Category:News

• Citizens need to power Europe's future, demnext.substack.com (Oct 02, 2026) — The EU can enable new democratic institutions: in European countries; with a European Citizens’ Assembly as a 4th branch of government, and by legally enforcing the Global Citizens’ Assembly on AI, Claudia Chwalisz and Another Democratic Future
• Fifty Billion Seedlings: Can Ethiopia Replant Its Ravaged Forests?, e360.yale.edu (Oct 01, 2026)
• Want solar but don’t own a roof? California just legalized plug-in panels, no permission required, latimes.com (Sep 30, 2026)
• Corporations claim their fossil fuel emissions are a drop in the ocean. But what if we could count the real cost? Graham Readfearn, theguardian.com (Sep 29, 2026) — A new tool called Carbon Impacts Tracer can be used to estimate climate impact from emissions across eight metrics, including lost food production
• Concern mounts over slow-moving, planetary-scale ‘Kelvin’ wave heading for California, theguardian.com (Sep 28, 2026) — The ocean phenomenon could raise sea levels by up to a foot as El Niño keeps warm water trapped along the coast
• The Space Time Continuum, Alternative Editorial (Sep 27, 2026) — Empty spaces will be put back into use, Andy Burnham said, turning them into "community hubs, health centres, shared workspaces, cafés and the local services that people actually want to see.”
• Germany pledges to phase out fossil fuels for first time with target of 2045, theguardian.com (Sep 23, 2026) — Germany is the third major developed economy to publish such a roadmap, after France and the Netherlands, after a major international conference in Colombia in April at which all participants promised to set out plans for a full phaseout of fossil fuels
• ‘Small, flowering islands’: German city reveals how nature thrives when neighbours care for street tree beds, theconversation.com (Sep 21, 2026)
• Thousands protest inaction over climate crisis in Switzerland, france24.com (Sep 19, 2026) — Several thousand people marched in the Swiss cities of Geneva and Lausanne on Saturday to protest government inaction in the face of global warming
• Kim Stanley Robinson won’t read aloud his climate disaster scene from ‘The Ministry for the Future’, apnews.com (Sep 17, 2026)
• The Guardian view on the Nepal-Tibet floods: a spur to action on climate, Editorial, theguardian.com (Sep 17, 2026) — New research links last month’s disaster to fossil fuel pollution. Supporting disaster-hit countries must be at the centre of climate politics
• Fifty billion trees by 2030: how Ethiopia is recruiting citizens across the country to plant, plant, plant, theguardian.com (Sep 17, 2026) — After losing much of its forests in recent decades, the country’s people have led the way in planting saplings across the country as part of the government’s Green Legacy Initiative
• Climate solutions most likely to reach ‘positive tipping points’ revealed by scientists, theguardian.com (Sep 10, 2026) — Global shift towards clean electricity could trigger ‘cascade’ of progress, helping reduce air pollution, cut waste and revive oceans
• Reclaiming the streets: the architects clawing back Europe’s car-centric spaces, theguardian.com (Sep 09, 2026) — The European Prize for Urban Public Space’s shortlist highlights projects helping people cope with climate crisis
• We’re the mayors of Paris, Milan and Phoenix. The heat crisis has us all facing the same question, Emmanuel Grégoire, Giuseppe Sala and Kate Gallego, theguardian.com (Sep 07, 2026) — Our three cities are learning from each other about how to protect residents. These climate policies are also public health measures
• Why I choose to build commons, rather than being an ‘activist’, growingcommons.substack.com (Sep 06, 2026) — And why I think you should, too, Dil Green
• Local energy co-op model takes off in Switzerland, thenews.coop (Sep 03, 2026) — Since lawmakers introduced the local energy community model six months ago, more than 1,800 have been set up
• What Brazil’s supercentenarians can teach us about living to 120, positive.news (Sep 02, 2026)
• How a South African town cleaned up its polluted river using stones, wood and sand, theguardian.com (Aug 31, 2026) — Scientists say system to treat contaminated wastewater offers a model for ensuring food security in a fast-warming climate
• “The platforms that communities rely on treat conflict as a corporate liability, not a chance to strengthen relationships.” On Conflict Systems, Daily Alternative (Aug 31, 2026)
• Why We Sat Out RAMICS Rio, grassecon.substack.com (Aug 30, 2026) — Moving beyond the currency frame, Grassroots Economics and Njambi Njoroge, Programs Director, Grassroots Economics
• A Global Gathering to Tackle the Planet’s Soil Crisis Is Underway in Mongolia, insideclimatenews.org (Aug 22, 2026) — This year’s Convention to Combat Desertification focuses on rangelands and attempts to address an overlooked solution to climate change. By Georgina Gustin
• The everyday guardians: Rana Tharu women’s implicit roles in Nepal, globalvoices.org (Aug 21, 2026) — Rana Tharu women embody unspoken care, cultural continuity, and living memory across generations in Nepal, Civic Media Observatory, Samanta Azpurua, Bikram
• New Zealand opens marine reserves with groundbreaking Māori co-management model, news.mongabay.com (Aug 19, 2026)
• Elders, conservationists race to record fading sacred ties to Philippines’ endemic birds, news.mongabay.com (Aug 18, 2026)
• Canada Bets Big on Hydro and Wind Power, insideclimatenews.org (Aug 17, 2026)
• European farmers face ‘unprecedented crisis’ after successive heatwaves, theguardian.com (Aug 17, 2026)
• ‘Living proof damaged landscapes can recover’: exploring a vast restored forest in southern Sweden, theguardian.com (Aug 13, 2026)
• Mnyumbuni Eco Hub: A Beehive of Community, Learning and Abundance, grassecon.substack.com (Aug 10, 2026) — How Mweria, ecosystem restoration and community coordination are turning Mnyumbuni into a living hub of food, skills and shared abundance, Grassroots Economics, Njambi Njoroge, Aude Peronne, and Will Ruddick
• Philippines steps up solar transition as Iran war hikes energy costs, eenews.net (Aug 06, 2026)
• South Korea's president orders all-out response to heatwave, reuters.com (Aug 06, 2026)
• Young activists in the Maldives confront climate threats to their island nation, seattletimes.com (Aug 06, 2026)
• Europe’s rivers are running dry, and the knock-on effects are disastrous, Yiannis Baboulias, theguardian.com (Aug 05, 2026)
• Indigenous communities aren’t rejecting tourism – they just want to shape it themselves, theconversation.com (Aug 05, 2026)
• Nepal’s community forests offer climate solutions, one leaf at a time, globalvoices.org (Aug 02, 2026) — The production of sal leaf plates involves minimal processing or energy usage and have a a low carbon-footprint. Sanjib Chaudhary
• European Central Bank official warns climate crisis poses growing threat to ‘core financial stability’, theguardian.com (Aug 01, 2026)
• Fed up with Big Tech, communities turn to data collectives for control [Rest of World], Daily Alternative (Aug 01, 2026)
• How Australia combines modern tech and Indigenous knowledge to fight wildfires, BBC News (Aug 01, 2026)
• Denmark’s three-day democracy festival that attracts over 65,000, electoral-reform.org.uk (Jul 30, 2026)
• Did a tourist tax save Magaluf?, positive.news (Jul 30, 2026)
• Wildfires are raging – and the world has junked 45 climate pledges. Disaster looms, and little wonder, Bill McGuire, theguardian.com (Jul 29, 2026)
• Cities need EU and national support to deliver lower urban speeds, eurocities.eu (Jul 28, 2026)
• Shift Embassy in Rotterdam is “a public park that blends art with ecology” [Positive.News], Daily Alternative (Jul 25, 2026)
• The tech party "Team Mirai” (Team Future) won 11 seats in the Japanese general election. They’re now modelling the future of democracy [Tech Policy Press], Daily Alternative (Jul 24, 2026)
• What the majority world can teach the rest of us about low-cost, high-impact systems of “coolth” [John Thackera], Daily Alternative (Jul 23, 2026)
• ‘I can’t work in the farce of climate change cruise tourism anymore’: why Antarctic guides quit their dream jobs, theconversation.com (Jul 21, 2026)
• Eight lifesaving ways to improve wildfire risk management, theconversation.com (Jul 20, 2026)
• Conservationists urge caution over Bangladesh’s plan to plant 250 million trees, Abu Siddique, news.mongabay.com (Jul 20, 2026)
• The politics of heat, where “voters are greener than politicians, the media—even we ourselves—seem willing to admit” [The Break-Down], Daily Alternative (Jul 18, 2026)
• "What is flourishing? A life in many keys.” From Pavel Luksha's Protopia Futures, Daily Alternative (Jul 17, 2026)
• The most beautiful act of resistance I’ve seen: Madrid tenants fighting landlords with art [The Guardian], Daily Alternative (Jul 16, 2026)
• Research looks at potential for community wealth building in Australia, thenews.coop (Jul 09, 2026) — The study says action is needed to tackle wealth and inequality, which is ‘widening, creating fissures in many communities and economies’
• How can technology strengthen citizens’ capacities? By relating the "seven muscles of deliberation" to AI [DemocracyNext], Daily Alternative (Jul 06, 2026)
• A century of ULCCS: A worker co-op success story from Kerala, thenews.coop (Jul 03, 2026)
• As food shocks spread, citizens are showing more leadership than governments, climatechangenews.com (Jul 03, 2026) — People support efforts to protect forests and curb industrial food production, the results of the latest Global Citizens’ Assembly show – but politicians have been slow to act
• ‘I don’t just watch climate change happening’: the young Swedes being paid to make a difference, theguardian.com (Jul 02, 2026) — Participant-led YPS scheme creates green projects while providing summer jobs in country with high youth unemployment. By Jonna Dagliden Hunt
• The Takaungu Watershed Story of Community-Led Restoration in Kilifi, Kenya, grassecon.substack.com (Jul 02, 2026)
• Delhi plans to ban petrol rickshaws and scooters in effort to cut toxic fumes, theguardian.com (Jun 30, 2026) — Government hopes for 30% of city’s fleet to be electric by 2030, in move hailed as ‘gamechanger’ on air pollution
• How Paris transformed 300 school streets: a step-by-step guide [Cities4Children], Daily Alternative (Jun 29, 2026)
• Why Ukraine is rewilding in the heat of war, positive.news (Jun 29, 2026) — The environment usually takes a backseat in times of conflict. But in Ukraine a rewilding project is sowing seeds for a greener, more peaceful future
• We Don’t Have a Housing Crisis. We Have Something Worse, digbyhall.substack.com (Jun 28, 2026) — The way we’re solving the housing crisis will become our future cities crisis, Digby Hall
• Europe's heatwave linked to 1,300 deaths, WHO says, as Germany hits record 41.7C, BBC News (Jun 28, 2026)
• ‘Kind of miracle solution’: How Paris is harnessing the Seine to replace air-con, theguardian.com (Jun 26, 2026) — City plans to triple system of underground pipes that distribute chilled river water, reducing need for individual cooling units. By Jesse Chase-Lubitz
• European heatwave is worst ever and impossible without climate crisis, scientists say, theguardian.com (Jun 26, 2026) — Study also finds high humidity means people in hundreds of cities are enduring their worst ever heat stress
• Adapting to the heat: four ideas from European cities, theguardian.com (Jun 26, 2026) — From checking on older neighbours to greening spaces, some cities are stepping up efforts to keep people safe
• How Farming on Crutches is creating community and opportunity for Sierra Leone’s amputees, wickedleeks.riverford.co.uk (Jun 24, 2026) — Megan Tatum talks to Mambud Samai, the pioneering founder of a farming programme for amputees that is rooted in sustainable growing
• Trapped by floods and fearing death in the heat: the Australians taking legal action over the climate crisis, theguardian.com (Jun 22, 2026)
• ‘The sea took everything away’: how Nigeria’s ‘Happy City’ is disappearing beneath the waves, theguardian.com (Jun 18, 2026)
• Jamaican beach access campaigners go to court to fight privatisation of coast, theguardian.com (Jun 14, 2026) — Activists challenge colonial-era law, demand ‘free, legal, unfettered, forever rights’ to use beaches. ‘We shouldn’t be forced to fight for what is already ours'
• Trash and dignity: The rise of inclusive recycling projects in Latin America, globalvoices.org (Jun 12, 2026)
• Opening of a trial for planned obsolescence against Epson: a historic first step, repair.eu (Jun 08, 2026)
• Pakistan: the solar revolution nobody planned, janrosenow.substack.com (Jun 07, 2026) — The fastest distributed-solar rollout in the world happened almost entirely by accident
• Collaborative Finance (CoFi): rethinking finance for the commons, growingcommons.substack.com (Jun 07, 2026) — What finance looks like when communities build and govern it themselves, Michel Rauchs
• In Malawi, one woman’s farm shows what’s possible with land and support, news.mongabay.com (Jun 04, 2026)
• Radical change can lead to a fairer and greener world, says new report, positive.news (Jun 04, 2026) — A major new study argues that rising living standards, shorter working hours and a liveable climate are not competing dreams, but parts of the same future – if the world is willing to tackle extreme inequality
• Young South Africans take up sustainable agriculture for food security, climatechangenews.com (Jun 02, 2026) — Aquaponics is seeing a revival in South Africa’s schools, boosted by government support and climate concerns
• Dutch kids declared the world’s happiest (again). Here’s why, positive.news (Jun 02, 2026) — Dutch children are consistently ranked the happiest kids in the developed world. What is the Netherlands getting right? And does the humble bike have something to do with it?
• Rubbish as a resource: How communities in Mozambique transform waste into climate solutions, globalvoices.org (Jun 02, 2026) — Transforming waste into resilience, creativity, and climate solutions in Mozambican communities
• Amsterdam, along with other major European cities, bans public adverts for meat and fossil fuels [BBC], Daily Alternative (May 22, 2026)
• Solidarity fields in Syria: Reviving local seed production, globalvoices.org (May 21, 2026) — A community garden on Damascus's edge is quietly rebuilding Syria's agricultural memory
• How reindeer herds, nature and Sámi culture can thrive when forests are restored across northern Europe, theconversation.com (May 15, 2026)
• The household battery revolution that could change energy bills … and the world, Adam Morton and Petra Stock, theguardian.com (May 15, 2026)
• How one Kenyan community is building a new future on reclaimed ground, globalvoices.org (May 14, 2026)
• Data Centres Need a Social License to Operate, demnext.substack.com (May 13, 2026) — How lessons from citizens' assemblies are highly relevant for the future of AI infrastructure and data centres, Another Democratic Future and Claudia Chwalisz
• Argentina’s co-operativas escolares: A case study in co-op education, thenews.coop (May 12, 2026) — In 1946, national legislation formally established the teaching of co-operativism and the creation of school co-operatives
• Young inventor plans to stop 90% of floating sea plastic by 2040, positive.news (May 07, 2026)
• Rewilding giants: captive elephants rehomed in Europe’s first sanctuary, theguardian.com (May 07, 2026)
• How to build cities for wildlife, not just people – new research, theconversation.com (May 06, 2026)
• Hope is contagious and science is king: 10 big lessons on ending the fossil fuel era, theguardian.com (May 01, 2026)
• In Indonesia, a schoolboy moves mountains on waste as government targets reform, news.mongabay.com (Apr 30, 2026)
• Notes from Vilnius’ first citizens’ assembly, demnext.substack.com (Apr 30, 2026) — How 39 residents reimagined their city’s transportation with 23 recommendations, DemocracyNext
• ‘My own contribution’: the Ottawa immigrants learning to retrofit homes and fight the climate crisis, theguardian.com (Apr 30, 2026) — Canadian social enterprise hopes to help solve the urgent need for retrofits and shortage of skilled workers
• Santa Marta Process Begins: Tuvalu and Ireland to Host Second Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels in 2027 in the Pacific, fossilfueltreaty.org (Apr 29, 2026) — The First Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels, co-hosted by Colombia and the Netherlands, concluded today marking a historic breakthrough in building international cooperation for the phase out of coal, oil and gas extraction and production. This step fundamentally shifts power toward a growing coalition of courageous nations engaged in a new international process to manage an equitable phase out of fossil fuels
• Sail-power offers passengers new crossing between England and France, reuters.com (Apr 28, 2026)
• “The crisis of democratic legitimacy is a design problem—and better alternatives already exist” [Ecocivilization], Daily Alternative (Apr 27, 2026)
• Sick of power outages, this remote Indigenous town is planning to build its own renewable grid, theguardian.com (Apr 26, 2026)
• Toward a Common Grammar for Finance and Mutual Aid, willruddick.substack.com (Apr 21, 2026)
• Kenyan women defy fishing taboos as climate change threatens Lake Victoria, aljazeera.com (Apr 20, 2026)
• Arriving at commoning: it's everywhere, but how can we get it right?, growingcommons.substack.com (Apr 19, 2026)

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