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Dear readers,
Seemingly reduced pollution levels due to the coronavirus crisis have led many to proclaim that nature is ‘healing’, but a new report from the World Meteorological Organization has emphasized just how flawed that notion is: the trajectory of global greenhouse gas emissions is nowhere near what it needs to be to limit warming to 1.5°C or even 2°C. Extreme weather events are intensifying, ranging from simultaneous droughts and floods in India to wildfires in California. The latest research in climate science emphasizes that such occurrences are not mere isolated anomalies but “connected extreme events”; this insight demands a radical overhaul of adaptation strategies.
Progress, however inadequate, is being made on the mitigation front. Four agreements were signed at the first World Solar Technology Summit organized by the International Solar Alliance. Japan plans to commercialize hydrogen-fueled transport by 2025.
But much course correction is still in order. Many Asian energy sector actors for example are continuing to push the oxymoron that is “clean coal”, led by the Japanese. And the EU’s soy imports are fuelling deforestation in South America.
As for India, it needs to regain momentum in developing mini-grids, as they can still do much to ensure energy access, despite the increasing reach of the national grid. The country needs to work on residential energy conservation as our report from Jammu and Kashmir highlights. It also needs to evolve a clear policy and a strategic vision in order to develop a domestic solar manufacturing industry.
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| EXTREME WEATHER TRACKER |
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Record number of low pressure systems a cause of August floods| 09 September 2020
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Deluge here, drought there: India’s rainfall conundrum continues| 07 September 2020
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CLIMATE NEWS | SCIENCE| IMPACTS| POLITICS |
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| Factsheet |
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Mini-grids
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Mini-grids might have lost out momentarily to grid electrification, but their significance cannot be discounted
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Download Factsheet >> |
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| Solar manufacturing |
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| The domestic industry remains way behind China’s, whose products rule the roost in India. What is needed is a comprehensive policy and strategic vision, with vigorous investment in R & D |
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Download Factsheet >> |
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