This week's top stories
Transformative progress in Africa’s fight against tuberculosis
The WHO's latest TB report shows Africa has made the greatest progress among all regions in tackling the world’s deadliest infectious disease, with a 42% reduction in deaths and a 24% decrease in infection rates since 2015. Top of the table is Zambia, whose TB preventive treatment efforts between 2018 and 2022 have cut the rate of HIV-associated TB by half and reduced deaths by nearly 80%.
Are we going to see a decline in carbon emissions this year?
The IPCC has set 2025 as the year by which greenhouse-gas emissions must peak if the world is to stay within the Paris climate agreement. All eyes are now on China. Forget what just happened in Baku - this is by far the most important climate story happening right now (but you know that already because we've been banging on about it ALL YEAR).
- The Economist suggests there's reason for hope given the China’s economic slowdown and this year's unprecedented scale-up of renewables.
- Bloomberg 🎁 is predicting an emissions peak, driven by China's accelerating shift to clean technologies and a slowdown in heavy-polluting industries.
- The Financial Times:
"A survey of 33 domestic and 11 international experts found 44% expected the emissions from the world’s biggest polluter had either peaked already or will peak by 2025, more than double the 21% in 2023 who responded positively, and up from just 15% in 2022."
A remarkable reversal in drug overdose deaths in America
Fatality rates have been declining for seven months straight. CDC data recorded 16,000 fewer overdose deaths between June 2023 and June 2024. Several theories could explain the drop, including law enforcement efforts to reduce fentanyl’s availability and affordability, which have impacted potency: In 2023, 70% of tested counterfeit pills contained lethal fentanyl; now it’s 50%. New York Times 🎁
The HPV vaccine is saving the lives of millions of young girls
In 2020, 194 countries committed to eliminating cervical cancer. Since then, 144 countries, most recently the Lao People's Democratic Republic, have introduced the HPV vaccine. Lao's nationwide initiative aims to protect over 124,000 girls aged 10–14, both in and out of school, from cervical cancer, with support from UNICEF, WHO, Gavi, and the Australian government.
Huge improvements in water, sanitation, and hygiene access in China
Between 2000 and 2020, access to safe water in China increased from 45.7% to 91.3%, access to sanitary toilets rose from 18.7% to 78.5%, and access to hygiene bathing facilities rose from 26.0% to 88.4%. An analysis of household data also shows significant improvements in accessibility across urban-rural divides. BMC
Global solar capacity hits 2 TW, and installations are accelerating
Around 60% is from ground-mounted solar farms, while rooftop solar makes up 40%. What’s really astounding about this is the pace of change - it took 68 years for the world to install the first terawatt, and just two more to add the second. We need to install 8 TW by 2030 to keep the world on a 1.5C pathway. Not impossible. Global Solar Council
Rwanda’s commitment to feeding kids
In Rwanda, four million children across pre-primary, primary, and secondary schools are now covered by the World Food Programme's Home-Grown School Feeding initiative. The government has also lowered parental contributions and cut taxes on rice and maize to reduce costs. Africa News
Indonesia to phase-out coal and gas power within 15 years
Big story. The Indonesian government plans to phase out all coal-fired and fossil fuel power plants by 2040. Fossil fuels accounted for 81% of Indonesia’s electricity generation capacity between 2018 and 2023, making this ambitious transition a highly positive step toward a cleaner energy future. Bloomberg 🎁
AI's hands are coming online
If you are curious about robotics, you really need to read this. There's a revolution underway in how robots learn, moving away from explicit programming to AI-powered self-learning through imitation and practice. While significant challenges remain, engineers believe we're approaching a breakthrough where robots could develop general physical capabilities similar to humans. New Yorker 🗄️
OPEC cuts oil forecasts, again
One of the more bullish industry bodies, OPEC has revised its global oil demand growth forecast downward for the 4th time this year. OPEC now expects 2025 growth to reach 1.54 million bpd, down from 1.64 million bpd. While there is a downturn in energy-hungry countries like China, the slower demand growth is also attributed to a greater shift toward clean energy in industry and transport. Reuters
Syrian tomb yields ancient alphabetic script
Archaeologists excavating a Syrian tomb have unearthed the oldest known example of alphabetic writing – etched onto finger-length, clay cylinders carbon dated to around 2400 BCE. That’s some 500 years earlier than other known scripts, upending our understanding about when and where alphabets came from, how they spread and the role they played in early civilisations. Phys.org
China to switch on one of world’s most powerful x-ray lights
China is firing up an x-ray light source powerful enough to reveal the atomic-scale structure of proteins. The High Energy Photon Source creates laser like x-rays, siphoned into beamlines, which scientists can use to image structures at atomic level and capture chemical reactions in nanosecond frames. “It’s like getting a major new telescope. You can see things that were not observable before.” Science
More conservation wins in the United States
In the largest conservation action in the state’s history, South Carolina has secured $50 million to protect 250 km2 of the Pee Dee River basin, in California, $113 million has been approved to acquire land for conservation, and $17 million for restoration projects, and in Nevada, $375 million from the sale of public land will be used to fund 36 recreation and restoration projects across the state.
Scientists discover thousands of new genes
Biologists have taken a deep dive into the ‘dark proteome’, uncovering thousands of genes in previously overlooked sections of the human genome. The findings have major implications for our understanding of human biology and ability to treat disease from pancreatic cancer to obesity. One newfound gene, for example, generates a miniature protein that appears key to a childhood cancer. Science
The ecological renaissance of Australia’s Lord Howe Island
More than 30 species of threatened flora and fauna have recovered since a $15 million eradication program eliminated 300,000 mice and rats five years ago. The island contains a fragile cloud forest ecosystem, where 85% of its species are found nowhere else. Among them is the woodhen, which is now numbered at over 2,000 individuals after plummeting to 30 individuals in the 1970s. ABC News
Credits: Emma Siossian, Hannah Ross, Ian Hutton, Dean Hiscox and Jack Shick, Bree-anna Brunjes.
If it bleeds it leads
Presented without comment.
Human progress
We're getting better at preventing rabies
A new Gavi programme is going be a game changer; more than 50 lower-income countries are now able to apply for financial aid to pay for the human vaccine. There might be a cheaper alternative too - in Zambia, a local vet has been vaccinating dogs themselves, and there hasn't been a single case of human transmission for a year. NPR
US manufacturing jobs have bounced back since COVID-19
Since 2019, manufacturing jobs in 30 states have witnessed the first full recovery after a recession since the 1970s, with small cities seeing most of the increase. The promised rebound for American manufacturing is well underway, thanks to the current administration's unprecedented manufacturing investments. Stateline
Rwanda’s rapid Marburg response is a lesson in global health
Another win for Rwanda. In October, it reported its first Marburg virus outbreak, for which there are no vaccines or treatments. Following a COVID-19-style mass test, track, and trace operation, the case fatality rate plummeted, and the outbreak has now been declared over - it's been a month since the last death was recorded. NPR
I can't imagine another scenario in which a country went from identifying this outbreak to just over a week later having experimental vaccines in country, already being provided to frontline health-care workers.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General, WHO
Improving educational outcomes in South Africa and Sudan
After a decade of consultation, South Africa has officially passed a new law making early childhood development and grades 10 to 12 compulsory, and in Sudan, a World Bank-supported initiative will support learning continuity for nearly four million primary school children and help operate 3,000 schools amid the ongoing conflict.
Dutch-Jordanian project brings clean water to 125,000 people
Funded by the Dutch government, a four-year project in Irbid has provided over 100,000 people with access to clean, reliable water. The initiative aimed to enhance Jordan's water management by replacing outdated sewer pipes, implementing capacity building through training, and improving safety standards. The Jordan Times
Key wins for trans rights in India and Pakistan
On November 12, Indian trans activist Akkai Padmashali secured a passport for her 5-year-old without listing a father’s name, setting a precedent for trans rights and single mothers, and Pakistan’s second-most populous province, Sindh, has approved the country's first Transgender Education Policy, creating supports to help transgender children cope with societal pressure. Washington Blade
A big win for LGBTQ rights in Hong Kong
Hong Kong’s top court has upheld earlier rulings that favoured subsidized housing benefits and equal inheritance rights for same-sex married couples. The unanimous decisions are expected to have a far-reaching impact on the lives of same-sex couples, who have traditionally had fewer rights compared to their heterosexual counterparts in the global financial hub. AP
Environmental protection
Huge deforested tropical areas could regenerate
A new study shows that 2.15 million km2 of deforested land in the tropics could regenerate naturally and, when fully regrown, would pull 23.4 billion metric tons of carbon from the atmosphere over 30 years. Natural regeneration is cheaper and supports more biodiversity compared to tree planting. Mongabay
Australia adds new national parks
New South Wales has just established the 330 km2 Brindingabba National Park, home to wetlands, deserts, and 12 endangered species. Meanwhile, the state of Victoria will soon have three new national parks, each of which will link existing parks to create a total of more than 750 km2 of continuous greenspace.
Paris to swap 60,000 parking spaces for trees
The replacement scheme, to be completed by 2030, is part of a bigger plan to help the city cope with extreme heat and create more than 700 acres of green space. More cooling centres, car-free zones, and reflective roofs on public buildings will also be installed. Eco Watch
Endangered frogs successfully reintroduced to Yosemite
After a fungal disease wiped out the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog from 90% of their historical range, researchers have successfully reintroduced resistant individuals into the wild, where populations have become established at 80% of the reintroduction sites. Cosmos
Proposed Chilean national park receives significant land donation
The donation of the 338-km2 area known as Puerto Gallant expands Cape Froward National Park’s total area to 1,270 km2. The ancestral territory of the Kawésqar people, Puerto Gallant is also home to the endangered huemul deer and Ruddy-headed goose. Instagram
Massive land area to be returned to Maine tribe without restrictions
A nonprofit is set to return 31,000 acres of purchased land to the Penobscot tribe, the largest return to an Indigenous tribe in US history without any restrictions. Conservation groups are catching on to the dual benefits of sovereignty and environmental protection. More than 420,000 acres have been returned nationally to tribal management over the past 20 years. Inside Climate News
The Bahamas Debt Conversion project swaps debt for nature
Expected to generate $124 million for marine conservation over the next 15 years, the project has been made possible by a historic public/private partnership to buy back $300 million of Bahamian debt and will enable effective management of the country’s vast system of marine protected areas. The Nature Conservancy
Robots and divers start cleaning up the Baltic Sea
With $100 million Euros in funding from the German government, teams of divers and robots have started a massive project to remove more than 1.5 million tonnes of weapons sunk after World War II and now oozing carcinogens into surrounding waters and marine life. Hakai Magazine
Salmon return after historic Klamath River dam removal|
One month after the completion of the largest dam removal project in US history, as many as 115 salmon per day are returning to the Klamath River to spawn. A historic victory for local tribes, the dam removal has also resulted in lower average water temperature and fewer harmful algal blooms in the river. AP
Out of all the milestones that we’ve had, this one to me is the most significant. It feels like catharsis. It feels like the right path.
Yurok Fisheries Department Director Barry McCovey
Energy
Glimmers of hope amidst the debacle of COP29
Brazil, the UK and the UAE announced new nationally determined contributions. The UAE and UK's commitments put them on track to meet the 1.5°C target, with the UAE aiming for a 47% emissions cut by 2035 and the UK targeting an 81% reduction by 2035 compared to 1990 levels. Brazil's target of a 59-67% reduction from 2005 levels leaves more to be done, but it is progress. Carbon Brief
India takes solar and wind generation goals to next level
India has approved the development of 50 new solar parks to generate 37.5 GW of clean electricity and is expanding offshore wind projects to reach a 30 GW target by 2030. The country’s goal of 500 GW of renewable energy by 2030 is supported by an increase of over 100% in public spending on renewables this past year. India Times
Pakistan's solar boom still the most surprising story of the year
In the first nine months of this year Pakistan has imported $1.7 billion of solar equipment from China, enough to generate 17 GW—a third of the country’s power capacity. This 'breakneck solarisation' has brought financial relief to consumers and businesses, it’s saving money on fuel imports, and has catapulted the country past its goal of doubling renewables by the end of the decade. Bloomberg
China's clean energy transition isn't slowing down
The world’s second-largest solar plant has been completed in just 14 months, 38 ultra high voltage lines with a combined length of over 48,000 km are sending power from the western deserts to megacities 3,000 km to the east, and October 2024 saw over 1.2 million EVs sold—53% of the market, and 50,000 more than the previous record from September 2024.
EU announces island decarbonisation fund
Need another reason to visit the Greek islands? They're going green with the EU's announcement of a €1.6 billion fund, financed by revenues from the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme. The Islands Decarbonisation Fund will support renewable energy, energy storage, new grid connections, EV chargers and water treatment plants across Greece's 200-plus inhabited islands. PV Magazine
Ukraine innovates to make energy infrastructure more resilient
Ukraine's largest private energy company is bolstering power supply by constructing decentralised renewable energy hubs across the country. This approach makes the grid less vulnerable to attacks that would typically disrupt centralised utility assets. “Ukraine has done something no one has ever done before—maintain the grid in a war-torn environment." Milwaukee Independent
Coal plummets in Chile, and renewables soar
Coal's role in Chile's electricity generation hit a record low of 11.7% in October 2024, down from 43.6% in 2016, as hydropower and renewables expanded. Renewables now make up 66.8% of generation, with coal's 10-month average at 15.8%. Chile plans to eliminate coal power by 2030, supported by growing solar and battery projects. Progress Playbook
Türkiye increases solar generation by 40% in a single year
Solar’s share in meeting Türkiye’s peak electricity demand has increased from just 2.5% in 2017 to an impressive 18% in 2024. Solar now meets the electricity needs of 10 million people on peak demand hour - a crucial milestone in a country that until recently was one of the world's climate laggards. Ember
Scientific discovery
Meet LUCA, your ancient forebear
All life on Earth traces back to one point: an organism known affectionately as LUCA, the “last universal common ancestor”. Now we know much more about it, thanks to researchers who traced genetic mutations over time to infer that our single-celled forebear lived some 4.2 billion years ago, survived off hydrogen and carbon dioxide and had surprising genomic complexity. Quanta Magazine
AI finds hundreds more Nazca Lines in Peru
It took nearly a century to find the first 430 geoglyphs of the Nazca lines, mysterious artworks carved into the Peruvian desert. Archaeologists just doubled that number in six months, using AI to scan vast troves of aerial images and narrow down possible sites – leading them to the 2,000-year old images of parrots, monkeys and severed heads. New York Times 🎁
Some 303 previously uncharted geoglyphs made by the Nazca, a pre-Inca civilization in present-day Peru dating from 200 B.C. to 700 A.D., were identified with the help of machine learning.
A new malaria vaccine – delivered by mosquitoes
Scientists achieved astounding results in the trial of a new vaccine that uses a genetically engineered version of the malaria parasite to boost immunity via mosquito bites. Nearly 90% of participants exposed to the tweaked parasite avoided contracting malaria when later bitten by infected mosquitoes. Reminder: this disease infects around 250 million people a year. Nature
Chinese geo survey to tackle planetary puzzles
China is launching a $1 billion, six year survey of its vast subterranean atlas in a project of 'mind-boggling' scope. This is a mixed bag: an early aim is to chart fossil fuel basins and develop extraction technology. But it’s also likely to benefit green tech, by hunting materials needed for solar, wind and EVs, while solving fundamental puzzles of science – like India’s slo-mo collision with Eurasia. Science
Spain launches new ship to explore deep ocean
“The benefits of this ship aren’t just for Spain or Europe, but the whole world”. That’s María Gómez Ballesteros, VP of the Spanish National Research Council, discussing Odón de Buen – Spain’s cutting-edge research vessel capable of mapping the seabed almost anywhere. The team behind the ship, whose sonar reaches deeper than the Mariana trench, aims to enhance understanding and protection of deep ocean ecosystems. El País
Credit: Spanish National Research Council, Sonia Daponte
Breakthrough in understanding how Alzheimer’s affects brain
Alzheimer’s has been a medical mystery for decades, but a flurry of recent research breakthroughs have given fresh hope for a future cure. Now scientists in the US have taken a giant leap forward in understanding progression of the disease, studying millions of cells from brain tissue donated by deceased Alzheimer’s patients to identify how and when cellular change occurs. Fox News
The first CRISPR treatment is finally making its way to patients
It’s been a year since the gene-editing treatment Casgevy was approved for sickle cell disease and beta thalessemia - now patients are finally receiving it. The company responsible, Vertex, says 40 patients have undergone cell collections in anticipation of treatment in the third quarter of the year, up from 20 in last quarter. The next big challenge? Bring down that $2 million price tag. Wired
First skeletal blueprint sheds light on arthritis
Researchers have used cutting-edge genomic techniques to create a detailed map of how human bones and joints form in the first trimester, shedding new light on the development of skeletal conditions like arthritis and paving the way for better treatments. The blueprint has already boosted understanding of cells linked to arthritis risk in later life. Wellcome Sanger Institute
The best bits of the internet (Gus)
Andrew Dana Hudson argues that despite dominating science fiction for 75 years, humanity's dreams of space colonisation are effectively dead - we've made almost no progress since the moon landings, and neither capitalism nor nation-states have any real incentive to fund the massive costs of getting humans to Mars or beyond. Yet we keep writing about space, perhaps because we need these myths to process our technological acceleration, or maybe because we're not ready to admit that our grandest civilisational ambition has stalled. Long Now
Say hello to the next dominant species on Planet Earth.
Writer and technologist Jasmine Sun has a great organising principle for a good information diet: replace algorithmic content with chronological content.
Now I rely almost entirely on human curators sharing things in chronological order: newsletters, podcasts, group chat recs, and a few social platforms that actually show me what my friends are up to. Even magazines and legacy publications have good email newsletters these days. It takes some effort to build up a bespoke ecosystem, but it’s worth it. I’m optimizing for pluralism: ingesting multiple points of view instead of a single algorithmically flattened one.
On that note, I am loving Bluesky (you can find me at angushervey.bsky.social). Please, please, please let it not be enshittified. Wired
Through the lens of nostalgia drag racing and hot-rodding culture, writer Rachel Kushner explores how working with machines offers a powerful alternative to our modern world of passive consumption, leased cars, and touchscreens. Following her teenage son's deep dive into car mechanics, she discovers a vibrant, inclusive community of people who understand that true possession requires mastery - and that this world of metal, smoke, and danger isn't just about reliving the past - it's about maintaining a fierce vitality and connection to the physical world that much of modern life has lost. Harpers
The moral arc of the universe is stubborn, exhausted, and in need of constant supervision - skipping doctor's appointments, getting lost, making excuses, and demanding we carry it. Nevertheless, it bends.
I can count the number of TV series I've recommended in this newsletter on one hand, so this doesn't come lightly. If you are into gaming or sci-fi or fantasy, and you haven't watched Arcane yet, then you need to fix that right now. And if you have watched it, well, I hope you're enjoying Season Two as much as I am.
That's it for this edition, thanks for reading! We'll see you next week.
With love,
Gus