The year 2020 was always going to be critical for climate change. In the United States, a presidential election will likely present two candidates whose climate policies are diametrically at odds. Around the world, countries are required to submit updated plans to the United Nations in order to comply with the Paris Agreement in a…

On this episode, Andrea Risotto, the associate vice president of communications at Brookings, interviews William Burke-White and Todd Stern about the connection between the global coronavirus pandemic and the international response to climate change. Burke-White is the Richard Perry Professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a visiting fellow in foreign policy at Brookings. Stern is…

Charles Ebinger writes about India's ongoing efforts to achieve climate targets while balancing other considerations.

At the end of the month, governments from nearly 200 nations will convene in Paris, France for the 21st annual U.N. climate conference (COP21). Expectations are high for COP21 as leaders aim to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement on limiting global temperature increases for the first time in over 20 years. Ahead of this…

Policy responses to climate change can have important implications for monetary policy and vice versa. Different approaches to imposing a price on carbon will impact energy and other prices differently; some would provide stable and predictable price outcomes, and others could be more volatile. In "Climate change and monetary policy: Dealing with disruption" (PDF), Warwick…

As the struggling economy and demand for jobs consume the American public’s attention, climate policy has become a second-tier political issue. Although most economists advocate for putting a price on greenhouse gases through a carbon tax or cap-and-trade program, there is little political appetite to do so. Will the next president be able to make…

As the nation’s economy continues a slow and difficult recovery, climate change has so far received little attention on the presidential campaign trail. With the world’s carbon footprint soaring and America approaching an energy crossroads, however, the next president will be forced to make critical decisions regarding clean energy and the future of fossil fuels…

With negotiations underway to agree on a new global climate change treaty by 2015, international leaders will meet this November, again next year, and in France in 2015 to build consensus on what such an agreement should look like. On October 11, Global Economy and Development at Brookings will host a discussion on the challenges…

At the end of the month, governments from nearly 200 nations will convene in Paris, France for the 21st annual U.N. climate conference (COP21). Expectations are high for COP21 as leaders aim to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement on limiting global temperature increases for the first time in over 20 years. Ahead of this…

Editor’s Note: Nonresident Senior Fellow Jane McAdam says that climate change-related displacement is happening now and band aid solutions to natural disasters are simply not enough. The time is now to be proactive, because the cost of inaction will be much higher. This article was originally published in The Sydney Morning Herald and on smh.com.au.…

At the end of the month, governments from nearly 200 nations will convene in Paris, France for the 21st annual U.N. climate conference (COP21). Expectations are high for COP21 as leaders aim to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement on limiting global temperature increases for the first time in over 20 years. Ahead of this…

In Paris this past December, 195 nations came to an historical agreement to reduce carbon emissions and limit the devastating impacts of climate change. While it was indeed a triumphant event worthy of great praise, these nations are now faced with the daunting task of having to achieve their intended climate goals. For many developing…

The catastrophic wind and rain of Hurricane Dorian not only left thousands of people homeless but also children and adolescents without schools. The Bahamas is not alone; as global temperatures rise, climate scientists predict that more rain will fall in storms that will become wetter and more extreme, including hurricanes and cyclones around the world.…

On October 16, the Center on the United States and Europe at Brookings hosted Laurence Tubiana, special representative of France for the Paris 2015 Climate Conference and ambassador for climate change, for the 11th annual Raymond Aron Lecture. In her remarks, Tubiana offered a multilevel governance perspective for building a more dynamic climate regime. She reflected on economically…

Back when Whole Foods CEO John Mackey weighed in on-slash-stuck his personal foot in his professional mouth about healthcare, I stayed out of the debate. I assumed, wrongly in hindsight, that most people already knew that

A modest proposal

One of the most venerated scientists of our time, James Hansen is the head of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, a position he's held for three decades. Long before climate change was a household term, Hansen was one of the first to talk about

Ben Richmond at Motherboard highlights a climate change success story.

One of the more invasive geoengineering methods that's been proposed to avert global warming is spraying clouds with seawater to whiten them, reflecting solar radiation. New research presented at the European Geosciences Union meeting urges caution

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has released its fifth assessment report (AR5), which surely must be one of the most important science documents of all time.

Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon called upon heads of state to make “bold” announcements at today’s Climate Summit.

It's an all-natural TreeHugger-approved carbon capture and storage plan.

We still have to reduce our carbon emissions.

Basically, Pakistan's hydroelectric reservoirs are drying up. Several are reported to be at "dead level," which means the turbines can only use run-of-the-river flows, and have lower output as a result. Because natural gas supplies are also low,

As if melting Himalayan glaciers weren't enough to radically (and perhaps catastrophically) reshape water supply in South Asia, a new report from researchers at Purdue University shows that summer monsoons could be

Back when 20% of Pakistan was underwater, I wrote about the influence of deforestation on the flooding--deforestation caused in no small part by illegal logging at the hands of the so-called timber mafia, a group with

After Pakistan's extensive hydroelectric power resources dried up in 2008, Australian coal was marketed to satisfy the growing power consumption

As salinization impacts agriculture around the world—another effect of climate change that will hit already-vulnerable places and people the hardest—farmers, small-scale farmers in particular, have to figure out how to

Climate-related disasters and other losses will cost Pakistan $14 billion each year, a former environment has said.

Wastewater or sludge storage lagoons are designed, in part, based on statistical probability of annual precipitation and evaporation amounts. The data behind these estimates generally don't take into account contemporary

A number of states and several business groups are preparing to sue the Environmental Protection Agency over the rules to cut carbon emissions.

It's sustainable!

Why can't the Wall Street Journal call it what it is?

An undergraduate student at the University of Minnesota has created a unique way of connecting people with climate data through music.

In a press conference for an upcoming Carnegie Hall concert, Smith and the founders of Pathway to Paris talk about art, community, and keeping the spirit up for climate action.

2007 has been a brutal year for natural disasters in Latin America, keeping the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs busy. The agency said in a recent statement that a record nine missions were dispatched to Latin America

Can't we all stop fencing for political position and start talking about using the overwhelming amount of data to solve problems?

Don't take your morning cup of coffee for granted. It may not be around in a few decades, according to a new report.

Traveling exhibit in Turkey prompts audiences to put on their 'climate glasses' and see how floods, fires, and drought in the country are all connected.

The touring museum show 'Climate Change: The Threat to Life and A New Energy Future,' which wraps up its Istanbul run this weekend, is professionally put-together and well-intentioned, but flawed.

A landmark constitutional climate change lawsuit, filed by a group of kids against the US government, gets the go-ahead.

What do we really want from a building certification system?

Religious communities across the country will gather to reflect on the moral implications of climate change and our imperative to act. One man, in particular, should pay heed.

Inspired by massive flooding in the UK, the Church of England is renewing its commitment to fighting climate change. And that's sending a signal to the markets.

Just when you think climate change couldn't get any worse... BEARS!