Catastrophic wildfires – those causing massive damage and soaring suppression costs – are increasing in frequency and intensity worldwide, a trend expected to worsen with climate change. In a Policy Forum, Robert Gray and colleagues use British Columbia (BC), Canada, as a case study of a government at a crossroads: continue reactive spending on suppression and recovery or invest in strategies to reduce future wildfire risk. “Although we focus on BC, this same tough question, along with lessons learned and our main recommendations, apply to regional and national governments in dozens of countries,” Gray et al. write. Over the past decade, BC has lost more than 7 million hectares to wildfire, with suppression and recovery costs topping $4.8 billion. Indirect costs, including health impacts and economic disruption, are far higher. Here, the authors argue that governments like BC are faced with an important policy choice; either continue to focus on response and recovery, or embrace proactive, long-term fire mitigation and prevention. Gray et al. highlight that scaling up wildfire mitigation requires public and political support for sustained, multidecade investments, along with cost-management strategies, yet governments continue to prioritize reactive spending despite evidence that prevention is far more cost-effective. They propose four recommendations: set clear resilience goals based on economic and risk analyses; foster public understanding and support for short-term sacrifices like prescribed burns; implement collaborative, hands-on landscape-scale interventions with scientists, Indigenous leaders, industry, and communities; and leverage public concern and scientific evidence to secure long-term political commitment and funding for preventive wildfire management.

A new study has found that UK Members of Parliament (MPs) and the public overestimated the time left to meet a critical deadline for limiting global warming. 

Researchers at the University of East Anglia (UEA) surveyed a representative sample of the previous House of Commons and the public in Britain and other countries on their knowledge of a well-publicised statement from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).  

Despite being among the most climate vulnerable regions in the world, public opinion from small island states and territories across the South Pacific, Indian Ocean and Caribbean has long been absent from the global discussions of the climate crisis. These countries face disproportionate climate impacts — from sea-level rise to intensifying storms to fresh water contamination, increasing diseases and other health risks — even though they bear virtually no responsibility for the climate crisis. 

Research led by scientists at the University of São Paulo contributes to the formulation of strategies to prevent the collapse of animal protein production. Considering future global warming scenarios based on projections by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the research group emphasizes the urgent need to intensify the production system for poultry farming because these animals will not be able to withstand high temperatures.

Explore the potential for hybrid alternative protein-based foods as healthier, tastier, more sustainable alternatives to animal products.