The news, anew
Global commitments to cut planet-heating emissions are falling far short of the Paris climate goals and put the world on course for 2.6C warming this century, the UN warned Wednesday. The report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) lays bare the chasm between rhetoric and action when it comes to tackling global warming, and the challenge before political leaders at November's COP31 climate summit.
Science
A rare wild pepper endemic to Madagascar and prized by international chefs is facing an uncertain future, victim of its own success and the destruction of its forest habitat. With its subtle, aromatic flavor, Voatsiperifery pepper grows on vines that reach into the canopy of the island's natural forests, which shrank 27 percent between 1990 and 2025, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.
Science
The Bangka slow loris is one of Earth's most exotic primates, a slow-moving tree dweller that happens to be venomous. It was listed as critically endangered and possibly extinct, last scientifically documented in the 1930s, but now has been rediscovered on the tropical Indonesian island of Bangka. Scientists revealed in a new study that an animal rescue organization came across more than 90 Bangka slow loris individuals in recent years on Bangka, located off the southeastern coast of Sumatra. Most were returned to the wild.
Science
A UN report warns that the world is on track for increased warming this century, largely due to the United States abandoning climate efforts.
