Environment

A man carries a tray of freshly baked bread outside a bread factory on Dec. 15, 2016, in Cairo. Chris McGrath/Getty Images Jessica Barnes, University of South Carolina Russia’s war on Ukraine is disrupting global grain supplies. Restrictions on navigation in the Azov Sea and the closure of ports have interrupted grain shipments from Russia, the world’s largest wheat exporter, …

Ingvar Tjostheim/Shutterstock Jack Marley, The Conversation Your annual energy bill could rise by another £800 in October according to UK electricity and gas market regulator Ofgem, which is set to lift the cap on energy prices (the maximum that energy suppliers can charge customers on a default tariff) in the autumn. The cap was already raised by £693 last month, …

Young Indian farmers are turning to an ancient crop to fight water stress and climate change Thana Ram / shutterstock Shruti Bhogal, University of Cambridge; Adam S. Green, University of Cambridge; Cameron Andrew Petrie, University of Cambridge, and Sandeep Dixit, University of Cambridge India is facing a water and food crisis, exacerbated by extreme climate cycles such as the current heatwave …

Henrike Schulte to Bühne, Zoological Society of London; Doug Weir, King’s College London; Jan Nyssen, Ghent University, and Teklehaymanot G. Weldemichel, Norwegian University of Science and Technology An ongoing war between the Ethiopian government and its allies against Tigray, one of its northern states, has led to one of the world’s biggest humanitarian crises. We have used satellite data to …

Olive oil is associated with some healthy benefits. garryknight Iliana Lourida, University of Exeter As life expectancies across the world steadily increase, the world’s population is inexorably ageing. Too often, with age comes difficult health problems such as dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. These highly disabling conditions lead to deteriorating cognitive abilities, and little chance to lead an independent life. The …

Drink up: carrot juice contains a small amount of radioactive potassium. Africa Studio / shutterstock Bill Lee, Bangor University and Gerry Thomas, Imperial College London Many people are frightened of radiation, thinking of it as an invisible, man-made and deadly force, and this fear often underpins opposition to nuclear power. In fact, most radiation is natural and life on Earth …

Predictions indicate that the Madagascar frog Mantella aurantiaca is likely to experience a dramatic decline by 2070. Frank Vassen/Wikimedia, CC BY Nicolas Dubos, Muséum national d’histoire naturelle (MNHN) The effects of climate change – extreme heat waves, wildfires of unprecedented magnitude and devastating floods – have now been occurring for several decades, and the COP26 climate agreement reached in Glasgow …

Steve Allen/Shutterstock Hilmar Gudmundsson, Northumbria University, Newcastle; Adrian Jenkins, Northumbria University, Newcastle, and Bertie Miles, University of Edinburgh East Antarctica’s Conger ice shelf – a floating platform the size of Rome – broke off the continent on March 15, 2022. Since the beginning of satellite observations in the 1970s, the tip of the shelf had been disintegrating into icebergs in …

A liquefied natural gas tanker loading in Qatar. The Gulf nation is in talks to supply gas to Europe if Russia cuts supplies. AP Photo Amy Myers Jaffe, Tufts University The prospect of conflict between Russia and NATO countries over Ukraine has raised fears of an energy crisis in Europe. Russia provides nearly half of Europe’s natural gas, and some …

Shutterstock Robert Nasi, Centre for International Forestry Research Africa’s forests are some of the natural wonders of the world. As someone who has spent decades studying the ecology and management of tropical forests, I’m constantly amazed by the unique forest ecosystems on the continent. Some of them are most likely unknown to the public at large, yet so fascinating and …