COP29, U.S. nominations, and 2024 reader survey

The Climate, Health & Equity Brief is GMMB’s take on the latest news on the current impacts of climate change. If you haven’t subscribed yet, you can do so by clicking here.

Hot Topic: A contentious deal. Negotiators at COP29 landed on a last-minute agreement over the weekend for wealthy nations to provide developing countries with $300 billion per year to help them mitigate and adapt to the climate crisis. While this triples previous pledges, the deal was met with scorn as it remains far below the $1.3 trillion per year experts say is needed to help developing countries lower their emissions and adapt to the ravages of extreme weather.

In the U.S., Donald Trump’s recently announced cabinet nominations are bearing out his clear intent to dismantle climate progress. These include Lee Zeldin for EPA, a climate skeptic who opposes the very environmental regulations the EPA is tasked with developing and enforcing; Chris Wright for energy secretary, a fracking executive who insists “there is no climate crisis,” and Doug Burgum for secretary of the interior, a strong advocate for the fossil fuel industry who has called for opening public lands for rare earth metal mining and oil drilling.

Even under a Trump administration, however, efforts to dismantle the clean energy initiatives established under the Inflation Reduction Act will be easier said than done. The IRA has already spurred the creation of 300,000 new jobs in the clean energy sector, with over $150 billion in manufacturing investments flowing into Republican-held districts, making Trump’s threatened repeal unlikely. And the global momentum toward clean energy and declining costs of technologies like wind and solar will make it difficult for any single administration to completely reverse these trends.

As UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has stated, ” The clean energy revolution is here, and no group, no business and no government can stop it.”  The fight must go on, knowing that federal obstructionism on climate action under a Trump administration will be a painful yet temporary obstacle in a much longer fight.

Editor’s note: As 2024 draws to a close and we look ahead to a challenging period for U.S. climate action, we’d like your feedback. We hope you’ll take just two minutes to answer this 3-question survey that will guide our editorial considerations in the year ahead. Thank you for being a valued subscriber!
– Traci

Human Health

New research shows that climate change has fueled a global surge in Dengue fever in 2024, with the Americas alone reporting more than 12 million infections and nearly 7,500 deaths in the first ten months—triple the cases recorded in all of 2023. (USA Today)

According to a new report from the Center for American Progress, half of people with HIV in the U.S. live in areas highly vulnerable to extreme weather and climate disasters, where resulting challenges like disrupted care and limited access to pharmacies exacerbate their health risks. (The 19th)

Planetary Health

A new report estimates that current climate and energy policies will cause global temperatures to rise ​​2.7°C (4.9°F) above preindustrial levels by 2100, far surpassing Paris Agreement goals and underscoring the urgent need for collective action to avert catastrophic climate impacts. (The New York Times)

Methane emissions from tropical wetlands have surged by 7 million tons in recent years, driven by warming temperatures and increased rainfall and flooding, forcing nations to consider deeper cuts to fossil fuel and agricultural emissions to counter this unexpected challenge. (Reuters)

An updated map of climate attribution studies for almost 750 extreme weather events since 2004 shows that 74% were made more likely or severe because of climate change. (Carbon Brief)

A new study found that climate change has increased the power of Atlantic hurricanes by 18 miles per hour since 2019, and 40 storms over the last six years have jumped an entire category due to warmer ocean temperatures. (AP News)

Equity

Climate change is accelerating a global refugee crisis, with 90 million of the world’s 120 million displaced people living in countries highly exposed to climate hazards, compounding the challenges for those already uprooted by conflict, the UNHCR warns in a new report. (Al Jazeera)

Since 2019, climate-fueled flooding in South Sudan’s Unity State has contaminated its severely limited water sources with oil pollution, posing severe health risks and contributing to increased birth defects and illnesses in the region. (BBC)

Prolonged drought is crippling Zambia’s hydropower-dependent energy system, forcing the nation into rolling blackouts, escalating deforestation for charcoal, and threatening its green energy future while highlighting global vulnerabilities in renewable energy reliance. (The Washington Post)

Farmers in Kenyan coastal villages are shifting to seaweed farming to earn a living after hard-hitting droughts crippled the production of cassava and maize, a move that has led to improvements in infrastructure and electricity and boosted farmer incomes in the region. (Reuters)

Politics & Economy

A new report found that extreme weather events cost the world economy more than $2 trillion over the last decade, with the U.S. alone bearing nearly half of all global economic losses. (Axios)

Absent from COP29 were the heads of state from the 13 largest carbon-dioxide-polluting countries responsible for emitting over 70% of greenhouse gases last year, including the United States, China, India, and Indonesia. (AP News)

Nations at the COP29 climate talks are deeply divided as they struggle to secure annual climate financing for vulnerable countries, with warnings that they will need to boost climate finance to $1.3 trillion annually by 2035 if action is delayed. (Reuters)

Donald Trump has doubled down on his promise to roll back climate progress with his nominations of climate skeptic Lee Zeldin to lead the EPA, fracking executive Chris Wright to serve as Energy Secretary, fossil fuel advocate Doug Burgum to be named Secretary of the Interior, signaling a clear push for fossil fuel dominance. (The New York Times, E&E News)

President-elect Donald Trump is considering proposing a government-funded “red team/blue team” climate debate in which climate skeptics challenge mainstream climate scientists on the validity and severity of climate change, a move that could stall climate action and harm U.S. standing on the global stage.  (POLITICO)

A new analysis finds that Trump’s promise to undo President Biden’s sweeping climate policies could push $80 billion in investments to other countries and cost the U.S. $50 billion in lost exports. (The Guardian)

Amid Donald Trump’s promise to expand fossil fuels and roll back environmental regulations, emerging conservative advocacy groups and shifting public opinion within the GOP  reveal a complex but growing appetite for bipartisan climate solutions rooted in innovation and economic competition. (Grist)

China is leading the world in renewable energy production, with the country’s solar power generation alone projected to surpass total U.S. electricity consumption by the early 2030s, leaving the country poised to take on global climate leadership as the U.S. steps back under Donald Trump. (CNN)

Amid shifting market dynamics and driven by higher profitability and investor preference, oil giants like Exxon Mobil are retreating from renewable investments in favor of traditional fossil fuels, complicating global efforts to curb climate change. (The New York Times)

Action

Denmark lawmakers have agreed to convert 10% of current farmland into forests and plant 1 billion trees over the next two decades to reduce harmful fertilizer usage. (AP News)

Life as We Know It

Research shows that changing temperatures and rainfall levels can alter animals’ coloring, potentially impacting some species’ chances of survival. (Scientific American)

Kicker

For inspiration, check out this list of women aged 50+ leading the fight for climate action and Time Magazine’s list of the 100 Most Influential Climate Leaders in Business for 2024. (Forbes, Time)

Some may seek to deny or delay the clean energy revolution that’s underway in America, but nobody can reverse it…not when so many people, regardless of party or politics, are enjoying its benefits.” — President Joe Biden

The GMMB Climate, Health & Equity Brief would not be possible without the contributions of the larger GMMB team—Catherine Ahmad, Aaron Benavides, Stefana Hendronetto, Nikki Melamed, Sharde Olabanji, Kenzie Perrow and Marci Welford. Feedback on the Brief is welcome and encouraged and should be sent to CHandEBrief@gmmb.com.