United States (US) President Joe Biden and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping talked for the first time in seven months Thursday, with both leaders urging a path away from conflict but holding ground on the fierce competition between the superpowers.In the 90-minute call, Biden warned against misunderstandings that could lead to confrontation between Washington and Beijing, the White House said, while Xi called for a new direction in a relationship beset by "serious difficulties".&n

United States (US) climate envoy John Kerry warned Thursday that Beijing's coal building spree could "undo" global capacity to meet environmental targets, after holding talks with top officials in China.Tensions between Beijing and Washington have soared in recent months with the two sides trading barbs on China's human rights record and its initial handling of the coronavirus.Tackling climate change is among a handful of issues where the two sides had struck notes of harm

As recently as three months ago, the global economy seemed to be on track for a relatively robust recovery. The supply of COVID-19 vaccines had expanded in the developed countries, raising hopes that it would spill over to developing countries in the second half of 2021 and into 2022.

Over the past two decades, the Asia-Pacific region has made remarkable progress in managing disaster risk. But countries can never let down their guard. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its epicentre now in Asia, and all its tragic consequences, has exposed the frailties of human societies in the face of powerful natural forces.As of mid-August 2021, Asian and Pacific countries had reported 65 million confirmed coronavirus cases and more than 1 million deaths.

From the very recent destructive floods occurring at the same time in several parts of the world - China, India, Nigeria, Belgium, Austria and Italy, among others - to the forest fires, also occurring at the same time in Turkey, Greece, Italy and the United States (US), the signs are ominous: years of neglect and lip service on issues of climate change are taking its toll on the world population and the environment.This increased frequency of extreme weather events is the cumulative effect of

Almost half the world’s 2.2 billion children are already at “extremely high risk” from the impacts of the climate crisis and pollution, according to a report from the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF). The UN agency’s head called the situation “unimaginably dire”.Nearly every child around the world was at risk from at least one of these impacts today, including heatwaves, floods, cyclones, disease, drought, and air pollution, the report said.

Three-quarters of people in the world’s wealthiest nations believe humanity is pushing the planet towards a dangerous tipping point and support a shift of priorities away from economic profit, according to a global survey.The Ipsos Mori survey for the Global Commons Alliance (GCA) also found a majority (58 percent) were very concerned or extremely concerned about the state of the planet.Four in five respondents said they were willing to step up and do more to regenerate the global commons.The

In his elegiac memoir The World of Yesterday, which he wrote while in exile from the Nazis, the Austrian writer Stefan Zweig observed that most people cannot comprehend the prospect of catastrophic changes in their situation. Things can get incrementally worse for a long time without prompting a reaction. Once catastrophe strikes, it is too late to act.Dramatic changes are occurring in our times, too, and we must hope that it is not yet too late to address them.

If an evil mind were to engineer the perfect virus to wipe out an animal species, it would choose the optimal combination of transmissibility and infection fatality rate.

On the heels of jaw-dropping heat and flooding across three continents, nearly 200 nations gather Monday to validate a critical United Nations (UN) climate science report 100 days ahead of a political summit charged with keeping Earth liveable.