Teaching robots to map large environments
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A robot searching for workers trapped in a partially collapsed mine shaft must rapidly generate a map of the scene and identify its location within that scene as it navigates the treacherous terrain. Researchers have recently started building powerful machine-learning models to perform this complex task using only images from the robot’s onboard cameras, but […]
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COP30: Could Brazil’s ‘Tropical Forest Forever’ fund help tackle climate change?
Billed as the “Amazon COP”, the UN climate talks will see the debut of Brazil’s flagship fund to “reward” tropical countries for keeping their forests intact. The Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) will be launched at the COP30 leaders’ summit on 6 November. The fund aims to raise and invest $125bn from a range of […]
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Interactive: Who wants what at the COP30 climate change summit
Negotiators from around the world will soon descend on Brazil as it prepares to host the latest round of UN climate talks, on the banks of the Amazon river. COP30 in Belém will see them discuss issues including the best ways to track progress on adaptation and how to pursue a global “just transition”. Some […]
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Adler & Allan acquire Thomson Environmental Consultants and Atmos Consulting
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Jean Curran, Managing Director of Atmos Consulting, said the group were “excited to pursue growth as part of [Adler & Allan’s] Environmental Consultancy team while continuing to deliver the trusted, solutions-focused advice that defines our work.” Environmental services provider Adler & Allan has acquired the specialist consultancies, Thomson Environmental Consultants and Atmos Consulting from Mornington […]
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UNEP: New country climate plans ‘barely move needle’ on expected warming
The latest round of country climate plans ‘barely move the needle’ on future warming, the head of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has warned. Executive director Inger Anderson made the comments as UNEP published its 16th annual assessment of the global “emissions gap”. The report sets out the gap between where global emissions are headed […]
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High-speed methanol engine for shipping now successfully tested, says Rolls-Royce
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The methanol engine is the product of six years of research, said the group. The world’s first high-speed marine engine running exclusively on methanol has been successfully tested, Rolls-Royce announced on 27 October, in what seems an important milestone for carbon-neutral shipping. While methanol engines in shipping have so far been demonstrated with the larger, […]
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Helping K-12 schools navigate the complex world of AI
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With the rapid advancement of generative artificial intelligence, teachers and school leaders are looking for answers to complicated questions about successfully integrating technology into lessons, while also ensuring students actually learn what they’re trying to teach. Justin Reich, an associate professor in MIT’s Comparative Media Studies/Writing program, hopes a new guidebook published by the MIT Teaching Systems […]
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3 Questions: How AI is helping us monitor and support vulnerable ecosystems
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A recent study from Oregon State University estimated that more than 3,500 animal species are at risk of extinction because of factors including habitat alterations, natural resources being overexploited, and climate change. To better understand these changes and protect vulnerable wildlife, conservationists like MIT PhD student and Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) researcher Justin […]
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Q&A: COP30 could – finally – agree how to track the ‘global goal on adaptation’
Nearly a decade on from the Paris Agreement, there is still not an agreed way to measure progress towards its “global goal on adaptation” (GGA). Yet climate impacts are increasingly being felt around the world, with the weather becoming more extreme and the risk to vulnerable populations growing. At COP30, which takes place next month, […]
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From microplastics to megastructures: Earthshot prize finalists reviewed
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Bogotá’s bold clean air policies have cut air pollution by 24% since 2018. Finalists in this year’s Earthshot Awards include a breakthrough microplastics filter and “the world’s first fully upcycled skyscraper”. The final 15 were announced in October, all exhibiting seemingly landmark technological or other innovations with relevance to nature, air, oceans, waste and climate […]
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A faster problem-solving tool that guarantees feasibility
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Managing a power grid is like trying to solve an enormous puzzle. Grid operators must ensure the proper amount of power is flowing to the right areas at the exact time when it is needed, and they must do this in a way that minimizes costs without overloading physical infrastructure. Even more, they must solve […]
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DeBriefed 31 October 2025: Hurricane Melissa strikes Jamaica; Climate plans overshoot 1.5C; Protest crackdowns
Welcome to Carbon Brief’s DeBriefed. An essential guide to the week’s key developments relating to climate change. This week Hurricane Melissa ‘TOTAL DEVASTATION’: Hurricane Melissa has killed at least 49 people after sweeping through the Caribbean islands of Jamaica, Cuba, Haiti and Bermuda, reported Independent. Jamaica’s prime minister Andrew Holness said the storm left “total devastation”, […]
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Four Solar For All Lawsuits: Two Distinct Forums and Legal Theories
In 2022, the United States Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), appropriating an unprecedented amount of money for climate spending programs. One of the IRA’s flagship investments was the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF), a $27 billion program comprised of the National Clean Investment Fund (NCIF), the Clean Communities Investment Accelerator (CCIA), and Solar […]
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Q&A: The UK government’s ‘carbon budget delivery plan’ for 2035
The UK government has set out a long-awaited plan explaining how it will cut emissions in the 2030s, on its legally bound path to net-zero by the middle of the century. Under the Climate Change Act, the government must lay out “carbon budgets” that set limits on the UK’s emissions over five-year periods. In 2021, […]
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China Briefing 30 October 2025: 15th ‘five-year plan’ priorities; 2035 wind goal; ‘Vehicle-to-grid’ tech
Welcome to Carbon Brief’s China Briefing. China Briefing handpicks and explains the most important climate and energy stories from China over the past fortnight. Subscribe for free here. Key developments China’s next ‘five-year plan’ NEW PLAN: The Chinese Communist party held its fourth plenum meeting, reported the Guardian, which described it as a “key meeting in […]
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Court of Federal Claims: Jurisdiction, Remedies, and Unsuitability to Adjudicate the GGRF Lawsuit
Amid the Trump administration’s cancellation of billions in federal funding for climate action, the Sabin Center has covered the numerous cases that have been brought in federal district courts to challenge federal grant cancellations. Among those cases is Climate United Fund v. Citibank, a challenge to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) unlawful termination of $20 […]
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ExxonMobil Chemical fined £176,000 for six days of flaring
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Flaring at an industrial site. ExxonMobil Chemical was fined £176,000 at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court on 28 October after pleading guilty to breaching its environmental permit during six days of continuous flaring at its Cowdenbeath site in April 2019. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) said the conviction followed an extensive investigation involving specialist regulatory, technical, […]
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Scotland’s Cabinet Secretary Gillian Martin visits BrewDog’s anaerobic digestion plant
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Gillian Martin MSP (front) with (left to right: Brewdog Ellon AD Plant Manager Gary MacConnell, ADBA External Affairs Lead Cameron Ball and ADBA Technical Support Manager Andrew Brown) Ellon plant showcases Scotland’s leadership in green energy and circular economy innovation, says trade assocation ADBA On 22 October, Scotland’s Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Energy, […]