🌱 'Humanity has become a weapon of mass extinction'
The UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, criticized, this Tuesday (6), multinationals for transforming the world's ecosystems into “toys for profit”, and warned that, if there is no change of direction, the results will be catastrophic.
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Since taking office in 2017, Guterres has made climate changes your workhorse. His fiery denunciations at the solemn opening of the COP15 show that he is also concerned about the fate of plants and animals threatened with extinction, understanding that it is the same crisis.
The challenges of COP15 are enormous: a million species are threatened with extinction, a third of the world's land is seriously degraded and alone fertile crops are disappearing, while pollution and climate change accelerates the degradation of oceans.
Chemicals, plastic and air pollution suffocate the land, water and air, while the global warming caused by the burning of fossil fuels causes climate chaos, ranging from heat waves and forest fires to droughts and floods.
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More than 190 countries are meeting from December 7th to 19th to try to seal a 10-year pact for nature to avoid the sixth mass extinction. But the outcome of the negotiations, which involve around 20 goals to protect ecosystems by 2030, is uncertain.
🌊 Future of the oceans will be discussed in Paris
France will host in Paris, “at the end of May 2023”, a second round of negotiations, after the one held in Uruguay, to agree on a global treaty on marine pollution for plastics, official sources announced this Tuesday (6).
Representatives from 160 countries and around 850 members of civil society participated in the first stage of the negotiation, which ended on December 2 in Punta del Este, Uruguay, after five days of debates.
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“This session was the occasion for States to detail their ambitions for the future agreement, which must be as high as possible”, informed the French chancellery and Ministry of Ecological Transition, when announcing the new round. France and the European Union (EU) want a pact that “covers the entire life cycle of plastics, with efforts to reduce, eliminate and ban problematic plastics and substances”, as well as “microplastics and single-use plastics”, they added.
Eleven million tons of plastics reach the seas and oceans each year, an amount that could be three times greater by 2040 if action is not taken, according to the UN. Furthermore, plastics represent at least 85% of waste thrown into the sea.
☀️ Commitments from rich countries are insufficient to limit global warming
Most developed countries have climate ambitions that are incompatible with the objectives of the Paris Agreement, which aims to limit climate change. global warming at a maximum of 1,5ºC, according to a study published this Tuesday (6).
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The site Paris Equity Check (*) evaluated the so-called Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). These NDCs are equivalent to the greenhouse gas reduction commitments of the nearly 200 countries that signed the 2015 Paris Agreement. Contributions must be updated every 5 years.
In its latest assessment of the commitments adopted to date, the Paris Equity Check considers that “the most developed countries” are still far from adjusting to this ambitious limit of 1,5ºC, which was reaffirmed at COP26 in Glasgow last year and at COP27 in Egypt this year.
Among rich countries, the European Union's commitments are set for a warming of 2,3 or 2,5ºC by the end of the century, and those of the United States are set at 3 or 3,4ºC.
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In the Americas, Brazil would adjust to a warming of 2,1 or 2,9ºC, and Mexico to 2,7 or 3,2ºC. Slightly less ambitious, Chile's commitments would adjust to a warming of between 3,2 and 4ºC, and Argentina's to 3,9ºC.
It is the poorest countries, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa, that most comply with the Paris Agreement. Their challenge will be to maintain their commitments when they take off financially, after 2030.
🍉 Annita launches recipes to involve fans in the “Veganuary” challenge
Annita will show off her culinary skills to involve fans in the challenge Vegan, which seeks to encourage people around the world to adopt a diet without anything of animal origin throughout the month of January.
The name is a sum of the English words “vegan” (vegan) + “january” (January). The global campaign opened registrations this Tuesday (6). Those who join will receive 31 emails throughout January, with practical information and recipes, as well as a book to keep up to date with this lifestyle.
This year's surprise is Anitta's recipes, three in total: hot dogs, uramaki and tacos, all without anything of animal origin! The recipes were produced in partnership with the plant-based food company (plant based) Farm of the Future, of which the singer is a partner.
The participants of the Veganuary 2023 can download the recipe e-book for free after campaign registration. Even for those who just want to experience this new lifestyle, a month of changes makes a tremendous difference for the planet. It is estimated that, during this period, a person saves more than 124 thousand liters of water and avoids the emission of 273 kilos of carbon dioxide (CO2).
🌳 L'Oréal Brasil announces carbon neutrality in Brazilian units
A L'Oréal Brasil announced which reached the carbon neutrality in the operation of its units in Brazil. The company reached the goal 3 years before the milestone stipulated by the Group globally with the initiatives of the L'Oréal For the Future commitment, which brings significant objectives that must be met by 2030.
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Curto Verde is a daily summary of what you need to know about the environment, sustainability and other topics linked to our survival and that of the planet.
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