Author: Grace Johnson

In Brazil’s crowded favelas, green space is a rare luxury, but Vila Nova Esperança in São Paulo proves that sustainable initiatives can enrich residents’ lives. “You have to remove the seeds before they flower,” says Maria de Lourdes Andrade Silva, carefully pinching buds off a basil plant. She tends a vibrant community garden at the edge of the favela, a labour of love spanning over a decade. “If you leave it to flower, it will use all its energy and die,” she adds. When I visited this half-hectare garden in 2022, it was full of herbs, vegetables, and vibrant life.…

Live-fire military exercises have triggered hundreds of wildfires across the UK countryside since 2023. Exploding shells often make these fires too dangerous for firefighters to tackle. Fire crews fighting a vast moorland blaze in North Yorkshire this month faced threats from bombs and tank shells dating back to Second World War training. The remnants of past conflicts continue to complicate fire control efforts. Figures reveal that of 439 wildfires on Ministry of Defence (MoD) land between January 2023 and last month, 385 were caused directly by current army exercises. The MoD stated it has a comprehensive wildfire policy that monitors…

Located in the heart of Mexico, Querétaro enchants visitors with its colonial charm and famous stone aqueduct. But today the city and state carry another title: the capital of Mexico’s data centres. Global companies like Microsoft, Amazon Web Services and ODATA have chosen Querétaro for their vast, warehouse-like buildings filled with servers. Nobody knows the exact number of centres, but dozens already exist and new projects keep rising. Ascenty, the biggest data centre company in Latin America, operates two sites of about 20,000 square feet each. A third one is under construction. Analysts forecast over $10bn in investment linked to…

Investigators in India will examine a massive private zoo owned by the Ambani family after the Supreme Court ordered a probe into claims of illegal animal acquisition and mistreatment. Judges also directed scrutiny of possible breaches of wildlife laws at Vantara and allegations of financial irregularities and money laundering. The Supreme Court stated that no evidence currently proves the accusations. However, it ordered an inquiry because authorities faced claims of failing in their duties. Vantara under spotlight Vantara, managed by Anant Ambani, son of Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani, houses hundreds of elephants, tigers and other animals. The zoo promised…

A species close to extinction Until the 1980s hunters roamed the Shennongjia mountains in central China searching for monkey meat and fur. Poor farmers cleared huge areas of forest, and as the trees vanished, the golden snub-nosed monkey population collapsed. Fewer than 500 remained in the wild. This was the reality when young graduate Yang Jingyuan arrived in 1991. He was just in his early twenties. “The monkeys’ home was being destroyed by logging, so their numbers were falling fast,” he recalled. “Now the forest is protected, and the population is growing again.” Today Professor Yang directs the Shennongjia National…

Sweltering summers turn air conditioning into a lifesaving device. Yet millions of Americans cannot afford it. The heat in swampy New Orleans, Louisiana, is so intense that locals describe the weather as mostly summer with other seasons scattered in. Jeffrey Elder, medical director for emergency management at University Medical Center New Orleans, treats many patients with heatstroke. “We see it every summer in a few ways,” he says. “It could be an elderly person who cannot use air conditioning, has a broken unit, or lives alone. They are later found in a heat-altered state.” Children and the elderly suffer most…

Vintage once ruled the wine world In wine, the vintage has always been king. Every bottle of red, white, or rosé almost always carries the year of harvest on the label. Non-vintage still wine, which blends grapes from several years, has long been seen as cheap and undesirable. It is also far less common. But climate change is now shaking this tradition. Heatwaves, droughts, and extreme weather push winemakers to seek consistency. A small but growing group of respected wineries now release non-vintage bottles. They argue blending ensures quality when nature brings chaos. Napa Valley feels the heat Chris Howell,…

When floods strike, clear and fast warnings save lives. Too often, however, these crucial alerts fall short. Disaster experts explain what makes the difference. Lessons from Texas In South Bend, Texas, residents once marked flood levels on a concrete pillar. The visual warning reminded people that water had risen that high before. Disaster communications expert Keri Stephens recalls how powerful such reminders can be. She now notes that those watermarks have faded. Communities in Texas live under constant flood threat, worsened by climate change. When deadly flash floods struck the state in 2025, questions arose over whether alerts were good…

Workers face growing risks from extreme heat as climate change drives more frequent heatwaves, warns a new report by the World Health Organization and the World Meteorological Organization. Millions of employees suffer from heat stress, which harms their health and reduces their performance. The report urges governments, employers, and workers to cooperate on adaptation strategies to protect vulnerable populations. Heat Stress at Work Poses Real Health Risks Although the WHO has repeatedly highlighted the health dangers of extreme heat, this is its first dedicated report on workplace heat stress since 1969. Rüdiger Krech, WHO director of environment, climate, and health,…

Giraffes rank among the most iconic and beloved animals on the planet. For years, experts believed they belonged to one single species. Now researchers from the International Union for Conservation of Nature confirm something surprising. They have officially identified three additional species of the world’s tallest mammal. This recognition comes after years of speculation. Earlier studies already suggested that giraffes might not be one species but four. The latest assessment gives this theory a formal scientific seal. How researchers reached their conclusion Scientists compared skull sizes and head shapes of giraffes from across Africa. They discovered enough genetic differences to…