“We are on the deathbed. Humanity cannot survive – the way it has been behaving with nature – for more than fifty years, sixty years, or, at the most, one hundred years, which is nothing. If the Third World War does not happen, then we will be committing a slow suicide. Within a hundred years, we will be gone. Not even a trace will be left.”1 Osho
See also: Osho, “Religion: The Crimes Against Nature and the Environment”
And: Priests & Politicians: The Mafia of the Soul
It is becoming increasingly clear that humanity just doesn’t have the consciousness to prevent the inexorable destruction of the only home it has.
- Carbon Dioxide Levels in the Atmosphere
- The Human Population Clock is Ticking
- The Emissions Gap Report 2022
The Unfolding Story – 2025 – Updated Regularly:
Read 2024 Edition HERE
February 7, 2025
An Arctic ‘beyond recognition’ by 2100
“In 2024, annual average global air temperatures surpassed 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels for the first time, triggering extreme weather events like record-breaking rainfall and flooding events in the Sahara Desert and extreme summer heat waves across the planet. However, global warming will not stop at this level. Based on the current pledges of countries for limiting their emissions of greenhouse gases, global temperatures are projected to reach 2.7 degrees Celsius beyond pre-industrial levels by the end of this century. This scenario would dramatically reshape the Arctic, the fastest-warming region of Earth….
“‘These changes will devastate infrastructure, ecosystems, vulnerable communities, and wildlife’: Julienne Stroeve, senior research scientist at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) and professor at the Centre for Earth Observation Science at the University of Manitoba. ‘The Arctic is warming at four times the rate of the rest of the planet.'” – ScienceDaily
February 4, 2025
Temperatures at north pole 20C above average and beyond ice melting point
“’This was a very extreme winter warming event,’ said Mika Rantanen, a scientist at the Finnish Meteorological Institute. ‘Probably not the most extreme ever observed, but still at the upper edge of what can happen in the Arctic.’…
“Burning fossil fuels has heated the planet by about 1.3C since preindustrial times, but the poles are warming much faster as reflective sea ice melts. The increase in average temperatures has driven an increase in fiercely hot summers and unsettlingly mild winters.” – The Guardian
February 4, 2025
Climate change target of 2C is ‘dead’, says renowned climate scientist
The pace of global heating has been significantly underestimated, according to renowned climate scientist Prof James Hansen, who said the international 2C target is “dead”.
“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPC) defined a scenario which gives a 50% chance to keep warming under 2C – that scenario is now impossible,” he said. ‘The 2C target is dead, because the global energy use is rising, and it will continue to rise.’…
“The climate crisis has already supercharged extreme weather across the world with just 1.3C of heating on average in recent years destroying lives and livelihoods – 2C would be far worse.” – The Guardian
February 4, 2025
Half a degree further rise in global warming will triple area of Earth too hot for humans
“New assessment warns area the size of the USA will become too hot during extreme heat events for even healthy young humans to maintain a safe body temperature if we hit 2 degrees Celsuis above preindustrial levels. For those aged over 60, the same 2 degree rise would see more than a third of the planet’s land mass cross this critical ‘overheating’ threshold….
Dr Tom Matthews, lead author and Senior Lecturer in Environmental Geography at King’s College London said: ‘Our findings show the potentially deadly consequences if global warming reaches 2°C. Unsurvivable heat thresholds, which so far have only been exceeded briefly for older adults in the hottest regions on Earth, are likely to emerge even for younger adults. In such conditions, prolonged outdoor exposure — even for those if in the shade, subject to a strong breeze, and well hydrated — would be expected to cause lethal heatstroke. It represents a step-change in heat-mortality risk .'” – ScienceDaily
February 3, 2025
A new study projects that climate change could drive a $1.47 trillion decline in home values across the U.S. by 2055.
“Published by the climate risk modeling nonprofit First Street Foundation, the analysis found that population shifts and insurance costs will largely be to blame as consumers look for houses in areas that are less susceptible to extreme weather (though as studies show, there is no such thing as a “climate haven” anymore). The biggest projected population losses are set to occur in certain areas of New Jersey and California.” – Inside Climate News
February 3, 2025
Greenland ice sheet cracking more rapidly than ever, study shows
Crevasses increasing in size and depth in response to climate breakdown, Durham University researchers find
“The Greenland ice sheet – the second largest body of ice in the world – is cracking more rapidly than ever before as a response to climate breakdown, a study has found.
“Researchers used 8,000 three-dimensional surface maps from high-resolution commercial satellite imagery to assess the evolution of cracks in the surface of the ice sheet between 2016 and 2021.
“They found that the crevasses – the wedge-shaped tears that open in glaciers – had significantly increased in size and depth over the five years and at a faster rate than previously detected.
“’The biggest thing I was surprised about was how fast this was happening. One previous study showed changes over the scale of decades … and now we’re showing this happening on scales of five years,’ said Dr Tom Chudley, an assistant geography professor at Durham University and lead author of the study.” – The Guardian
February 3, 2025
How huge parts of the US could become uninhabitable within decades — even so-called ‘climate havens’
“It’s not just Florida and California — from poisoned water supplies to infrastructure issues to polar vortices, Holly Baxter speaks to experts about why the entire U.S. is being threatened by climate change, and why you can’t just move to Vermont to escape it.” – Independent
February 3, 2025
Our brains are filling with more and more microplastics, study shows
“A new study shows that microplastics are making their way into human brains — with potentially dangerous effects on people’s health andmental acuity.
“A paper published Monday in Nature Medicine found that the tiny fragments of plastic are passing the blood-brain barrier and into human brains, and the amount of microplastics in the brain appears to be increasing over time. The concentration of microplastics in analyzed brains rose by about 50 percent from 2016 to 2024.” – The Washington Post
January 30, 2025
Will bird flu spark a human pandemic? Scientists say the risk is rising
H5N1 is adapting to new mammalian hosts, raising the possibility of the virus spreading between humans.
“Ten months on from the shocking discovery that a virus usually carried by wild birds can readily infect cows, at least 68 people in North America have become ill from the pathogen and one person has died.
“Although many of the infections have been mild, emerging data indicate that variants of the avian influenza virus H5N1 that are spreading in North America can cause severe disease and death, especially when passed directly to humans from birds. The virus is also adapting to new hosts — cows and other mammals — raising the risk that it could spark a human pandemic.
“’The risk has increased as we’ve gone on — especially in the last couple of months, with the report of [some] severe infections,’ says Seema Lakdawala, an influenza virologist at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia.” – Nature
January 30, 2025
Groundwater in Arctic is delivering more carbon into the ocean than was previously known
A relatively small amount of groundwater trickling through Alaska’s tundra is releasing huge quantities of carbon into the ocean, where it can contribute to climate change.
“Researchers found that although the groundwater only makes up a fraction of the water discharged to the sea, it’s liberating an estimated 230 tons of organic carbon per day along the almost 2,000-kilometer coastline of the Beaufort Sea in summer. This quantity of carbon is on par with what free-flowing rivers in the area release during summer months.
“‘This study shows that there’s humongous amounts of organic carbon and carbon dioxide released via fresh groundwater discharge in summer,’ said Cansu Demir, who led the research while she was completing her doctoral degree at the UT Jackson School of Geosciences. She is now a postdoctoral research associate at Los Alamos National Laboratory.” – ScienceDaily
January 28, 2025
2025 ‘Doomsday Clock’: This is how close we are to self-annihilation, scientists say
“Scientists and global leaders revealed on Tuesday that the ‘Doomsday Clock’ has been reset to the closest humanity has ever come to self-annihilation.
“For the first time in three years, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved the metaphorical clock up one second to 89 seconds before midnight, the theoretical doomsday mark.
“‘It is the determination of the science and security board of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists that the world has not made sufficient progress on existential risks threatening all of humanity. We thus move the clock forward,’ Daniel Holz, chair of the organization’s science and security board, said during a live-streamed unveiling of the clock’s ominous new time.
“‘In setting the clock closer to midnight, we send a stark signal,” Holz said. ‘Because the world is already perilously closer to the precipice, any move towards midnight should be taken as an indication of extreme danger and an unmistakable warning. Every second of delay in reversing course increases the probability of global disaster.'” – ABCNews
January 28, 2025
Ocean-surface warming four times faster now than late-1980s
“This accelerating warming underscores the urgency of reducing fossil fuel burning to prevent even more rapid temperature increases in the future and to begin to stabilise the climate.” – ScienceDaily
Extreme heat will kill millions of people in Europe without rapid action
Climate models predict that the number of heat-related deaths could soar in cities over the coming century, even when efforts are made to keep people safe.
“An extra 2.3 million people in European cities could die as a result of extreme temperatures — both hot and cold — by the end of the century if countries do not take action to mitigate climate change, according to a study that modelled the effects of rising temperatures.” – Nature
January 22, 2025
Brazil fires consumed wilderness area larger than Italy in 2024 – report
“After enduring its worst drought on record in 2024, Brazil closed the year with another alarming milestone: between January and December, 30.86m hectares of wilderness burned – an area larger than Italy. The figure published in a new report is 79% higher than in 2023 and the largest recorded by Fire Monitor since its launch in 2019 by MapBiomas, an initiative by NGOs, universities and technology companies that monitors Brazil’s biomes.” – The Guardian
January 21, 2025
A third of the Arctic’s vast carbon sink now a source of emissions, study reveals
“A third of the Arctic’s tundra, forests and wetlands have become a source of carbon emissions, a new study has found, as global heating ends thousands of years of carbon storage in parts of the frozen north.
“For millennia, Arctic land ecosystems have acted as a deep-freeze for the planet’s carbon, holding vast amounts of potential emissions in the permafrost. But ecosystems in the region are increasingly becoming a contributor to global heating as they release more CO2 into the atmosphere with rising temperatures, a new study published in Nature Climate Changeconcluded.
“More than 30% of the region was a net source of CO2, according to the analysis, rising to 40% when emissions from wildfires were included. By using monitoring data from 200 study sites between 1990 and 2020, the research demonstrates how the Arctic’s boreal forests, wetlands and tundra are being transformed by rapid warming.” – The Guardian
January 18, 2025
Peering Into a Bleak, ‘Uninsurable Future’
Property insurance premiums are skyrocketing in the face of climate shocks like the fires raging through greater Los Angeles.
“The fires have killed at least 27 people and destroyed more than 12,000 structures, including many homes in Altadena and the Pacific Palisades. Early estimates from AccuWeather project total damages and economic loss at $250 billion….
“In 2024, insured losses from natural disasters reached $140 billion as climate change ‘showing its claws,’ according to reinsurance company Munich Re. Consumers and companies alike are taking hits. For example, since 2021, at least nine property and casualty insurers have gone bankrupt in Florida, largely because they don’t have the money to pay out rising claims.
“‘We’re marching steadily towards an uninsurable future in this country and across the globe, because we’re not doing enough to deal with the underlying cause’” said Dave Jones, who served two terms as the California insurance commissioner, where he regulated insurers amidst some of the state’s most destructive wildfires.” – Inside Climate News
January 16, 2025
Thawing permafrost threatens up to three million people in Arctic regions
First comprehensive pan-Arctic study of social impacts of thawing permafrost soils
“Increasingly thawing permafrost soils not only pose a global threat due to the CO2 and methane gas stored in them, but also have far-reaching implications for the approximately three million Arctic residents who live on permafrost soils…. They identified five key risks related to infrastructure, transport and supply, water quality, food security and health. The scientists found that the thawing permafrost posed an increased risk of exposure to infectious diseases and release of contaminants, and interruptions of supply routes.” – ScienceDaily
January 16, 2025
Economic growth could fall 50% over 20 years from climate shocks, say actuaries
“The stark warning from risk management experts the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) hugely increases the estimate of risk to global economic wellbeing from climate change impacts such as fires, flooding, droughts, temperature rises and nature breakdown….
“At 3C or more of heating by 2050, there could be more than 4 billion deaths, significant sociopolitical fragmentation worldwide, failure of states (with resulting rapid, enduring, and significant loss of capital), and extinction events.” – The Guardian
January 15, 2025
Age of the panzootic: scientists warn of more devastating diseases jumping between species
“Bird flu poses a threat that is ‘unique and new in our lifetime’ because it has become a ‘panzootic’ that can kill huge numbers across multiple species, experts warn. For months, highly pathogenic bird flu, or H5N1, has been circulating in dairy farms, with dozens of human infections reported among farm workers. It has now jumped into more than 48 species of mammals, from bears to dairy cows, causing mass die-offs in sea lions and elephant seal pups. Last week, the first person in the US died of the infection.
“This ability to infect, spread between, and kill such a wide range of creatures has prompted some scientists to call H5N1 a ‘panzootic’: an epidemic that leaps species barriers and can devastate diverse animal populations, posing a threat to humans too. As shrinking habitats, biodiversity loss and intensified farming create perfect incubators for infectious diseases to jump from one species to another, some scientists say panzootics could become one of the era’s defining threats to human health and security.” – The Guardian
January 10, 2025
2024 first year to pass 1.5C global warming limit
“The planet has moved a major step closer to warming more than 1.5C, new data shows, despite world leaders vowing a decade ago they would try to avoid this…. Global average temperatures for 2024 were around 1.6C above those of the pre-industrial period – the time before humans started burning large amounts of fossil fuels – according to Copernicus data. This breaks the record set in 2023 by just over 0.1C, and means the last 10 years are now the 10 warmest years on record.” – BBC
January 10, 2025
As fires rage, CA fears home insurance collapse
“JPMorgan doubled its prediction for the disaster’s total economic losses to $50 billion yesterday. Insured losses could surpass $20 billion, per JPMorgan, which would make it the costliest wildfire in US history.” – Morning Brew
January 10, 2025
The Insurance Crisis That Will Follow the Californian Fires
“Damages… now estimated to be up to a hundred and fifty billion dollars.” – The New Yorker
January 10, 2025
World’s richest use up their fair share of 2025 carbon budget in 10 days
Emissions caused by wealthiest 1% so far this year would take someone from poorest 50% three years to create
“In less than a week and a half, the consumption habits of an individual from this monied elite had already caused, on average, 2.1 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, according to analysis by Oxfam GB. It would take someone from the poorest 50% of humanity three years to create the same amount of pollution.” – The Guardian
January 9, 2025
Floods, droughts, then fires: Hydroclimate whiplash is speeding up globally
“Hydroclimate whiplash – rapid swings between intensely wet and dangerously dry weather — has already increased globally due to climate change, with further large increases expected as warming continues, according to a team of researchers. Los Angeles is burning, and accelerating hydroclimate whiplash is the key climate connection.” – ScienceDaily
January 9, 2025
La Niña has arrived. Here’s what that means.
“But La Niña’s cooling effect will not be enough to prevent this year from becoming another of the warmest in human history, climate scientists predicted. This La Niña could instead demonstrate just how high the baseline of average global temperatures has shifted. ‘We’ve reached the stage where every year is an anomalously hot year,’ said Gavin Schmidt, a climate scientist and director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies. “’They’re all different, statistically, than the climate we grew up with.'” – The Washington Post
January 9, 2025
U.S. Efforts to Cut Emissions Stalled in 2024 as Power Demand Surged
“America’s efforts to cut its climate change pollution stalled in 2024, with greenhouse gas emissions dropping just a fraction, 0.2 percent, compared to the year before, according to estimates published Thursday by the Rhodium Group, a research firm. Despite continued rapid growth in solar and wind power, emissions levels stayed relatively flat last year because demand for electricity surged nationwide, which led to a spike in the amount of natural gas burned by power plants. The fact that emissions didn’t decline much means the United States is even further off-track from hitting President Biden’s goal of slashing greenhouse gases 50 percent below 2005 levels by 2030. Scientists say all major economies would have to cut their emissions deeply this decade to keep global warming at relatively low levels.” – The New York Times
January 6, 2025
‘Forever Chemicals’ Reach Tap Water via Treated Sewage, Study Finds
“As the world grapples with climate change, population growth and dwindling supplies of fresh water, more people are set to rely on treated wastewater to sustain their daily lives. But wastewater, even after treatment, contains high levels of harmful “forever chemicals” that are already contaminating the drinking water of millions of Americans, researchers said in a study published on Monday that analyzed wastewater samples nationwide. The study, led by researchers at Harvard and New York University, found elevated levels of six types of chemicals known as PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, in the samples. The chemicals, which have been linked to cancer and other diseases, are known as forever chemicals because they don’t break down in the environment.” – The New York Times
January 6, 2025
Floods linked to rise in US deaths from several major causes
Study in Nature Medicine reveals potential deadly effect of large floods on injuries, infectious diseases, and other causes
“Over the last 20 years, large floods were associated with up to 24.9 percent higher death rates from major mortality causes in the U.S. compared to normal conditions. A new study demonstrates the sweeping and hidden effects of floods –including floods unrelated to hurricanes, such as those due to heavy rain, snowmelt, or ice jams.” – ScienceDaily
January 6, 2025
Earth shattered heat records in 2023 and 2024: is global warming speeding up?
Nature examines whether the temperature spike is a blip or an enduring — and concerning — trend.
“‘I would be very careful about saying this is clear evidence [of acceleration], but there might be something going on,’ says co-author Helge Goessling, a climate physicist at the Alfred Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven, Germany.
“Global temperature spikes have happened before. Why are scientists so worried about this one?
“One reason is that global temperatures were off-the-charts hot in 2023, with an average 1.45 °C of warming above the pre-industrial baseline (see ‘Temperature surge’), shattering previous records. This level of warming is outside the range of what scientists expected on the basis of previous trends and modelling.” – Nature
January 6, 2025
Climate crisis ‘wreaking havoc’ on Earth’s water cycle, report finds
Global heating is supercharging storms, floods and droughts, affecting entire ecosystems and billions of people
“The climate crisis is ‘wreaking havoc’ on the planet’s water cycle, with ferocious floods and crippling droughts affecting billions of people, a report has found. Water is people’s most vital natural resource but global heating is changing the way water moves around the Earth. The analysis of water disasters in 2024, which was the hottest year on record, found they had killed at least 8,700 people, driven 40 million from their homes and caused economic damage of more than $550bn (£445bn).” – The Guardian