The bad…
Shell roll back their low-carbon initiatives (boo!)
As a worldwide leader in the energy industry, this will have a negative impact globally. Let's be honest though... Shell were never going to be the 'good guys'. Let's hope this incident remains isolated.
The mixed…
COP climate talks will be taking place in Dubai
Having Dubai as the host city is an interesting choice. With the UAE’s economy so reliant on the (environmentally devastating) oil industry, should we really be endorsing a nation and economy so heavily and overtly reliant on fossil fuels? However, countries that emit a lot have a wider scope to reduce emissions - a small dent in their % emissions translates into a lot of saved CO2. Furthermore COP talks may bring the topic of climate change back to the forefront of mainstream media. What we really want to see here is Dubai divest from oil - real, tangible change for a better planet - not more greenwashing.
The good…
Stockholm is literally BANNING CARS in the inner-city
You read that right, Stockholm, with a population of 2.5M people, will be banning cars in the inner-city (diesel and petrol) starting from 2025. This bold move is the perfect example of decisive governance that genuinely makes a difference. Policies like this not only reduce car transport but incentivise walking, public transport and the promotion EV ownership over their polluting counterparts. Reductions in emissions will benefit the environment, as well as human health, but it doesn't stop there; Oslo has proposed to undergo this same regulation change in 2025! Could this be the beginning of a larger trend across the Europe? Cars account for 61% of transport emissions in EU, if this trend continues, this will be a tremendous win for people and planet.
