Earth Month Action
As the urgency of the climate crisis grows, we may find ourselves leaning toward the side of despair. But now more than ever we need climate optimism. Amidst the headlines of melting ice caps and rising temperatures, there are rays of hope piercing through the gloom. In this edition of Beyond Neutral, we'll shine a spotlight on the innovative solutions, community initiatives, and groundbreaking research that are pushing us beyond the status quo and towards a greener, more resilient future. With hope on our minds, let's get to The Good Stuff.
LEGO partners with Climeworks to capture and store carbon emissions.
The Good Stuff
Let's Go, LEGO! In a bold move to continue to reduce its environmental impact, LEGO has signed a $2.4 million deal to capture carbon with Climeworks. The agreement aims to permanently remove CO2 emissions from the atmosphere, accelerating the toy company's progress toward achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. This initiative underscores LEGO's comprehensive approach to environmental stewardship, which includes investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency, and supplier engagement. Read on via Happy Eco News.
Gold Star for 'Reef Stars': An experiment in coral restoration in Indonesia's Spermonde Archipelago has yielded remarkable results: within just four years, reefs devastated by blast fishing have fully recovered. Through a collaborative effort involving academics, government agencies, nonprofits, and local communities, a novel approach using "reef stars" has been deployed to restore the coral. While the success of the project sets a high standard for evidence-based reef restoration, it also highlights the importance of community involvement and resilience-building efforts in the face of ongoing climate challenges. Read on via Grist.
Power to Renewables: Nearly a quarter of U.S. electricity now comes from renewables. The sun and the wind have been the country’s fastest growing sources of energy over the past decade, while coal power has declined sharply and the use of methane to generate electricity has all but leveled off. In a decade, solar energy went from generating less than half a percent of the nation’s electricity to producing nearly four percent. In that same period, wind grew from four percent to roughly ten percent. Read on via GoodGoodGood Co.
U.S. air quality suffered in 2023.
The Bad Stuff
Air Quality Knows No Borders: In 2023, most of the U.S. had almost double the levels of air pollution deemed acceptable by the World Health Organization. The report found that although the fossil fuel industry is still a culprit of poor air quality, smoke from Canadian wildfires was behind many of these spikes. Read on via Grist.
The Climate Clock is Ticking: The UN's climate chief issued a stark warning, emphasizing that governments, businesses, and development banks have a mere two year window to take decisive action to prevent irreparable climate change. Despite record high energy related CO2 emissions last year, current commitments to combat climate change are insufficient. Despite the urgency, political resistance and shifting priorities continue to impede progress on climate action worldwide. Read on via Reuters.
Cocoa, Coffee, Climate Crisis: Global prices for cocoa and coffee are surging as severe weather events hamper production in key regions. Cultivating cocoa and coffee requires very specific temperature, water and soil conditions. Now, more frequent heat waves, heavy rainfalls and droughts are damaging harvests and crippling supplies amid ever growing demand from customers worldwide. Read on Via the Wall Street Journal.