Good morning, this is Bruno, bringing the latest climate news for Geneva Solutions.

This week we talk to Geneva Cities Hub about why the urban dimension is so important for action. Meanwhile, TED’s climate Countdown offered us insightful moments and the pandemic has introduced major new uncertainties for the energy sector.

16.10.2020

Today’s reason for hope

Costa Rica has been able to gradually reverse deforestation through a scheme rewarding farmers who carry out sustainable forestry. Photo: EPA/Jeffrey Arguedas

Restoring farmland could drastically slow extinctions, fight climate change. Returning a strategic 30 per cent of the world’s farmlands to nature could help mitigate both climate change and biodiversity loss, a new study has found.

New York Times (EN)

Climate News

Geneva Cities Hub: an urban dimension to International Geneva. Still fine-tuning her strategy the new platform’s director, Daria Cibrario, tells us all about the importance of cities and her vision for Geneva.

Geneva Solutions (EN)

IEA releases its flagship World Energy report 2020. A Covid-19-led decline takes annual energy-related CO2 emissions back to where they were a decade ago. However dramatic additional actions will need to be taken over the next 10 years to reach the agency’s net-zero emissions case by 2050.

IEA (EN)

'It's cheaper to save the planet than to ruin it.' Highlights from TED's climate countdown on 10 October, a five-hour live event, which featured more than 40 leading thinkers to spark a massive collaboration to fight climate change.

Geneva Solutions (EN)

Here's what else is happening

Swiss ban export of highly dangerous pesticides that are already banned in Switzerland.
Swissinfo.ch (EN)
Arctic inhabitants overwhelmed by new form of climate grief, called 'Solastalgia'.
The Guardian (EN)
What Rosius Fleuranvil's life says about humanitarian aid. An investigation that starts with a poster of the Swiss Red Cross
Le Temps (EN)
Remdesivir has little effect on Covid-19 mortality, WHO study says.
Financial Times (EN)
NGO Geneva Call engaged with nearly 100 armed groups to convince them not to take advantage of the crisis.
Tdg (EN)
Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire hopes sink as warring sides bicker and fight
Reuters (EN)
UN calls for comprehensive debt standstill in all developing countries where the situation has worsened with Covid-19.
UNDP (EN)
EU environment rules could see more challenges under a newly proposed law.
Bloomberg Law (EN)

Image of the day

Photo: Keystone / Marcel Bieri

A light spectacle entitled "Planet Hope" is being projected onto the Parliament Building in Bern from 16 October to 21 November. Under the theme of Noah's Ark, the building will take the form of a ship and is meant to reflect hope "that will not sink in the storm of elements destroying the world".

Rendez Vous Bundesplatz (EN)

Next on the agenda

16 October | World Food Day The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is hosting a day of virtual events and discussions that also mark its 75th anniversary.

FAO (EN)

21 October | Digital and Environment Technology can help the environment but it also contributes to increasing the ecological footprint. This talk addresses the challenges.

UNIGE (EN)

22 October | Half-Earth Day This virtual event brings together people around the world to discuss how to achieve Half-Earth - a call to conserve half the Earth’s land and sea.

Half Earth Project (EN)

GS news is a new media project covering the world of international cooperation and development. Don’t hesitate to forward our newsletter!

Have a good day!

Avenue du Bouchet 2
1209 Genève
Suisse