Environmental change is being measured in forests cleared, crops stressed and species pushed from their habitats. But the response is also being shaped by decisions about money, land and technology, and by people trying to protect both livelihoods and the places they depend on.

Brazil’s latest figures offer one of the clearest signs of progress: forest clearing in the Amazon fell to 3,335 square kilometers in the year ending July 31, 2026, 42% below the previous year and the lowest level since records began in 1988. The Cerrado also saw a decline. The drop comes ahead of a presidential run-off in which the rainforest’s future is a key issue. Whether the reduction lasts remains uncertain.

Elsewhere, the costs of adapting to environmental pressures are immediate. Drought has left England’s pumpkins smaller than usual, with growers warning the crop could be the worst on record. In Southern California, wildfires have damaged or destroyed six homes, while a firefighter suffered heat exhaustion. And in the UK, proposals to cut hundreds of millions of pounds from the heat pump grant scheme could affect support for households switching from gas, oil or LPG boilers.

These stories sit alongside questions about what governments choose to prioritize. US voters in battleground states want candidates to discuss climate change, but candidates have largely stayed quiet. In Britain, Chancellor John Healey has made a growth case for Heathrow’s proposed third runway, while the prime minister has not backed the project. The government is studying consultation responses. The choices are practical as well as political: how to cut emissions, where to direct public funds and whose concerns shape decisions.

On the ground, communities are building their own responses. In Sergipe, women shellfish gatherers are resisting mangrove degradation and fighting for access to the areas where they work. In coastal Indonesia, Wisye Sahambangung leads a women’s group restoring mangroves and creating economic opportunities. Their work connects habitat protection with income and access to natural resources.

Other reports show how easily conservation efforts can create new pressures. Researchers found fewer wild pollinators in areas with higher concentrations of honeybees, which were observed bumping into or chasing other pollinators from flowers. The finding complicates the idea that more beekeeping automatically helps pollinators. In western states, efforts to reduce wolf numbers raise questions about the animals’ social lives and their role in nature. Meanwhile, countries are falling short of pledged funding and ocean-protection goals ahead of the UN biodiversity conference, COP17.

Technology and spectacle bring their own questions. Starlink’s reported restrictions in Ukraine have prompted US senators to seek an investigation into who imposed them, while the service remains important to Ukraine’s wartime operations. At a different scale, Belfast Harbour is to test zero-emission transport and energy systems with £15m in funding.

The Exmoor Dark Skies Festival, with about 80 events planned, offers another way people encounter the natural world: through walks, astronomy sessions and moonlit swims. The weeks ahead will show whether policy commitments match the scale of environmental pressures, and whether local efforts can endure with the resources and access they need.

The post California Wildfires Damage Homes, Exmoor Dark Skies Festival Marks a Decade — Today’s Environmental Briefing for Sat, Oct 17 2026 first appeared on EnviroLink Network.

The Exmoor Dark Skies Festival returns from 16 October to 1 November for its 10th anniversary, with about 80 events planned across villages and towns surrounding Exmoor National Park. Walks, talks, astronomy sessions, moonlit swimming, bioluminescence walks and planetarium shows invite visitors to experience the night sky.

The festival celebrates Exmoor’s Dark Sky Reserve status, granted by the International Astronomical Union in 2011. The designation aims to protect people’s ability to enjoy the night sky by helping limit light pollution. Festival organiser Julie Colman said Exmoor has very little light pollution, and that darkness makes it possible to see clear skies and constellations across a large area of the reserve.

The event was designed in 2017 partly to bring business to the area as the traditional tourism season winds down. In Dunster, the Yarn Market Hotel runs festival trips led by a local astronomer and visits to sites and events around the park. Hotel manager Antony Brunt said the festival has become better known, with people calling to book and some visitors returning twice a year. This year, many festival events sold out before opening day.

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Tesla has unveiled a new version of its Roadster electric sports car, fitted with thrusters that apparently let it hover and turn in mid-air. The presentation took place at a Texas facility owned by SpaceX, which helped develop the model.

CEO Elon Musk said an audience was needed to prove the car “is not AI.” In a demonstration, the Roadster drove up and off a steep ramp, spun in the air and landed using air jets. A flying car is unlikely to appear on roads anytime soon.

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A bipartisan group of US senators is calling for an urgent investigation into reported restrictions on SpaceX’s Starlink internet service in Ukraine. The letter, led by Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen, asks the US defence department inspector general to determine whether the restrictions were imposed by the department or its contractors.

The senators cited reported speed limits between 12 and 14 October, saying the curbs may have weakened Ukraine’s ability to defend against Russian drone and missile attacks on civilian infrastructure. Starlink reportedly capped speeds at 100mph (160km/h), cutting network access for weapons travelling faster. A US official told the BBC that President Donald Trump had not requested the slowdown. Elon Musk, who owns SpaceX, wrote on X that limits on Starshield systems are decided by the US military and ultimately the president. Starshield is designed for government and military use and relies on the Starlink network.

The letter also raises concerns about reported disruptions to intelligence-sharing and threat warnings, including incidents in which US diplomatic, military and security personnel could not reach designated bunkers during Russian air raids. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in Brussels on Friday that Starlink service was still being restored. He has also accused the US of withdrawing intelligence-sharing to pressure Kyiv over attacks on Russian energy sites. Zelensky said Ukraine’s attacks would continue after Russia struck Ukrainian energy infrastructure during a proposed “energy ceasefire”; the Kremlin did not say it had agreed to the arrangement.

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Evacuation orders are in effect as several wildfires burn across Southern California. The Norte Fire erupted Friday in Orange County and grew to 465 acres by Friday evening. Six homes in the San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano communities were damaged or destroyed, and one firefighter suffered heat exhaustion while fighting the blaze.

The Norte Fire is one of 13 fires burning in the state. In Malibu, the Bryson Fire has grown to 147 acres and prompted evacuation orders throughout the Santa Monica Mountains. Farther south, the Henderson Fire, which began Thursday, has burned more than 2,000 acres, including areas around Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. The fire has twice forced the closure of Interstate 5.

Santa Ana winds are driving the fires and are expected to remain dangerous into early Saturday. Gusts topped 40 mph in the Los Angeles area, with debris on roads posing a hazard to motorists. A red flag warning is in effect for several counties because of strong winds, low humidity and dry vegetation. Southern California is also experiencing temperatures far above average for this time of year. A heat advisory is in place, and Saturday’s forecast calls for temperatures reaching 95F (35C).

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As November approaches, the UK is still waiting for its first named storm of the season. High pressure has steered deep Atlantic low-pressure systems away, while the jet stream has often stayed north or north-west of the country. That pattern has brought warmer-than-normal south or south-westerly winds and less rain for many areas. Stronger winds have been occasional and mostly confined to the north-west, while the heaviest rain has fallen in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Parts of England and Wales have remained unusually dry. Herefordshire had received just a tenth of its normal rainfall for the month by mid-October. In southern England, exceptionally low reservoir levels led the Environment Agency to declare “severe drought” in some areas.

The jet stream’s position and strength are expected to change in the coming week, allowing deeper low-pressure systems to bring wetter and windier weather to more parts of the UK. Forecasts will be monitored for the possibility of the season’s first spell of widely disruptive weather later in the week. The Met Office’s October-to-December outlook gives twice the normal chance of wetter conditions and 1.3 times the normal chance of windier weather, a pattern consistent with previous El Niño events.

Named storms are usually designated when damaging winds are expected, but flooding rain or disruptive snow can also prompt a name. The UK, Ireland and the Netherlands began naming storms together in 2015. Storms are most common in winter, and in about half of the years since naming began, the first arrived after 1 November.

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Brazil’s government says deforestation in the Amazon and Cerrado has fallen to record lows ahead of a presidential election run-off where the rainforest’s future is a key issue. Satellite data shows that in the year to July 2026, deforestation in the Amazon fell 41.8%, the biggest annual drop since records began in 1988. The decline in the Cerrado, Brazil’s savanna region, was 23.8%.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who pledged to end Amazon deforestation by 2030 when he took office three years ago, will face Bolsonaro’s son Flavio in the 25 October run-off. Polls suggest a close race. Flavio is expected to continue his father Jair Bolsonaro’s policies if elected, though he has pledged to fight organised crime in the Amazon.

Under Jair Bolsonaro, who promoted mining in Indigenous lands, forest clearance soared as resources for forest protection were cut. From 2019 to 2022, the Amazon lost nearly 60% more forest than during the previous four years. Lula tightened environmental monitoring and penalties for illegal logging, and deforestation fell to a six-year low in his first year in office. “Our goal is to achieve zero illegal deforestation by 2030,” he wrote on X on Friday. Environment Minister Joao Paulo Capobianco called the decline “absolutely stratospheric”; Marcio Astrini of Observatorio do Clima called it an “historic achievement.” Tropical rainforests absorb carbon dioxide and are home to millions of species, but face pressure from land clearance for agriculture and logging, as well as climate change that can create conditions for wildfires.

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From November, all captive birds at Castle Espie will be moved to other Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) sites across the UK. The County Down centre once held around 500 birds; fewer than 100 remain. WWT Director of Operations Alex Lane said avian influenza and increased difficulty transporting birds since Brexit contributed to the decline. She said there is no aligned system for bringing birds into Ireland from mainland UK, and movements require an export health certificate and checks on arrival in Northern Ireland.

The bird transfer and closure of the captive bird programme are part of wider WWT cost-cutting measures. Lane said rising costs and income challenges have left the charity with a sizeable deficit. The centre will also end guided school tours, though self-guided school visits will continue. Lane said too few schools book guided tours to cover their costs, and transport expenses may contribute to low attendance. SDLP MLA Cara Hunter called the loss of guided educational visits “disappointing” and said the changes could reduce access for schools with limited resources. WWT plans to refocus Castle Espie as a hub for wetland nature conservation.

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Jai Mazumdar has served vegetarian curries, samosas, gulab jamun and other Indian dishes at Spice N Curry for almost 20 years. The cafe and grocery is in a strip mall near Florida International University in Miami. When the Covid-19 pandemic devastated the business, Mazumdar took out a $370,000 federal economic injury disaster loan in early 2021.

The loan offered a lifeline, with a 3.75% interest rate, a 30-year term and a 30-month deferment period. Mazumdar expected that business would return to normal and that he could then begin repaying the debt. But Spice N Curry did not recover enough to do so. Low-interest pandemic loans kept many restaurants afloat, but the industry has not rebounded enough for eateries to repay what they borrowed.

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Polls show that Democrats and Republicans in battleground states want candidates to talk more about the climate crisis. Most Americans feel uneasy or alarmed about climate change and, in red and blue states alike, want to know how political leaders plan to address it. Yet candidates in midterm campaigns across the country have responded with near silence.

This year, people in the US have endured a record-hot summer and roughly $2,000 per household in additional energy and mortgage costs. The higher costs are linked to the country’s dependence on fossil fuels, with the fuel supply disrupted by Donald Trump’s decision to attack Iran.

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Across the stories today, a common thread emerges: the planet is speaking in signals — some subtle, some deafening — and the question is whether our institutions can listen fast enough to act.

Start with the signals themselves. El Niño has surged to record strength weeks ahead of schedule, and its fingerprints are already visible — from Hurricane Polo’s explosive intensification in the Pacific to the climate volatility rippling through global weather systems. In the UK, an aphid outbreak wiped out 30 million lettuce heads almost overnight, a small but telling example of how shifting conditions can upend food systems in ways no one budgets for. In Malawi, an unexplained weed overgrowth has choked Chia Lagoon, stranding farmers and fishers in flooded fields nearly seven months after the rains should have drained. These aren’t isolated oddities. They’re the planet’s early warning system, written in crop yields and clogged waterways.

Then there’s the human response — uneven, but not absent. Germany’s landmark pledge to phase out fossil fuels by 2045 marks a rare moment of policy catching up to urgency, moving beyond vague “carbon neutrality” language toward something more concrete. The UK’s decision to declassify a once-suppressed intelligence report — warning that climate breakdown is a direct threat to global security — suggests governments are quietly acknowledging what scientists have said for years, even if political will lags behind. And at UN climate talks in New York, amid what The Guardian describes as a genuinely grim mood, solar power’s continued growth offered rare, tangible hope. As Al Gore noted twenty years after An Inconvenient Truth, he’s surprised by the ferocity of fossil fuel pushback — but still believes, cautiously, that the fight can be won.

Behind the numbers are real communities adapting in real time. In the Andes, villagers near Villa de Arma are turning to ancient wetland systems as glaciers they once walked across vanish into bare rock. In Guam, resident Leevin Camacho learned his family’s water contained a pesticide banned since 1987 — a stark reminder that militarization and environmental cost are often intertwined, especially in the Pacific. And in Sarawak, Indigenous communities are still reckoning with displacement from the Bakun megadam three decades later, a cautionary tale as the world races toward a “clean” energy future that doesn’t always ask who pays for it.

It’s a reminder that progress and pressure often arrive together. Endangered birds on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula won last-minute protection from a rocket launch site — a genuine conservation victory — even as a Norfolk Broads housing levy was quietly slashed, raising fears that environmental safeguards elsewhere are eroding. Meanwhile, olive ridley sea turtles nesting for the first time ever on California beaches offer something rarer: wonder. A signal, too, but one that invites curiosity rather than alarm — proof that the natural world is still capable of surprising us.

As the week unfolds, all eyes will be on whether momentum from Climate Week — bolstered even by a monster from Sesame Street reminding children it’s okay to feel both fear and courage — translates into follow-through. The data, the disasters, and the small human stories all point the same direction: the era of asking “if” is over. What remains is the harder work of “how fast,” and “for whom.”

The post Hurricane Polo Explodes in Pacific, UK Aphid Swarm Wipes Out 30 Million Lettuces, Glasgow Braces for Rubbish Pileup — Today’s Environmental Briefing for Thu, Sep 24 2026 first appeared on EnviroLink Network.

A widespread aphid infestation has devastated lettuce crops across the UK, leaving an estimated 30 million heads unfit for sale and dealing growers a financial blow of roughly £10 million. The tiny sap-sucking insects have multiplied rapidly, spreading through fields and rendering vast quantities of produce unmarketable seemingly overnight.

Aphids pose a persistent challenge for lettuce farmers because they cluster within the leaves, making infested crops visually unappealing and often unsellable even when the damage is largely cosmetic. Beyond the direct feeding damage, aphids can also transmit plant viruses and secrete a sticky substance called honeydew, which encourages mold growth and further degrades crop quality.

Experts point to a combination of factors behind this year’s severe outbreak, including unusually mild weather that has allowed aphid populations to thrive and reproduce at higher rates than usual. Warmer winters and shifting seasonal patterns, increasingly linked to broader climate trends, may be creating more favorable conditions for pest populations to explode, creating headaches for farmers who must now weigh costly pesticide interventions against consumer demand for cleaner, more sustainably grown produce.

The financial losses come at a difficult time for UK agriculture, which is already grappling with rising input costs and unpredictable weather patterns. Industry groups are calling for greater investment in pest-resistant lettuce varieties and improved early-warning systems to help growers respond more quickly to future outbreaks, as this incident underscores the vulnerability of large-scale monoculture farming to sudden pest surges.

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Skywatchers across the UK have a treat in store this autumn, as September’s full Moon—known as the Harvest Moon—rises on Saturday, 26 September 2026. This traditional name marks the full Moon that falls closest to the autumnal equinox, a moment when the Moon’s path across the sky produces shorter-than-usual gaps between successive moonrises, historically giving farmers extra light to bring in their crops after sunset.

Early forecasts suggest that southern and eastern parts of the UK will offer the clearest views, though as always with skywatching, local cloud cover on the night will be the deciding factor. For the best experience, find a spot with an unobstructed view of the eastern horizon shortly after sunset, when the Harvest Moon tends to appear especially large and takes on a warm, golden-orange hue—an optical effect caused by the way moonlight travels through the thicker layer of atmosphere near the horizon.

The Harvest Moon holds a special place in folklore and agricultural tradition, and it remains a popular subject for photographers and casual stargazers alike. Whether viewed from a rural field or a city rooftop, the rising of this seasonal Moon offers a simple, free way to connect with the natural rhythms of the year. Keep an eye on local weather forecasts in the days leading up to 26 September to plan the best viewing opportunity in your area.

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A newly released financial disclosure has revealed extensive stock trading activity involving major technology and artificial intelligence companies, conducted on behalf of the US president. The filing shows transactions worth millions of dollars in shares of prominent firms including Microsoft, Nvidia, and SpaceX.

The disclosure has drawn attention due to the scale of investment in companies that sit at the center of the rapidly expanding artificial intelligence and technology sectors. These firms are heavily involved in data infrastructure, computing power, and satellite technology—industries with significant and growing energy demands and environmental footprints.

The trades highlight the increasing financial entanglement between political leadership and the tech industry at a time when AI’s environmental impact is under growing scrutiny. Data centers powering AI systems require substantial electricity and water for cooling, raising concerns among environmental advocates about the sector’s contribution to carbon emissions and strain on natural resources. As investment in AI infrastructure accelerates, questions about transparency, regulatory oversight, and potential conflicts of interest are likely to intensify.

While the disclosure itself is a routine legal requirement for public officials, the specific companies involved—leaders in cloud computing, semiconductor manufacturing, and space technology—underscore how deeply intertwined political and financial interests have become with industries shaping both the digital economy and environmental policy debates going forward.

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Hurricane Polo underwent a dramatic transformation this season, rapidly intensifying into one of the most powerful storms recorded in the Pacific hurricane season. Meteorologists point to El Niño, the climate pattern characterized by warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific, as a key factor behind the storm’s explosive growth.

El Niño conditions create an environment particularly favorable for storm intensification. Warmer ocean waters serve as fuel for developing hurricanes, providing the heat energy needed to strengthen wind speeds and lower central pressure. Additionally, El Niño tends to reduce wind shear across parts of the Pacific, removing a natural barrier that often disrupts and weakens storm systems before they can reach their full potential.

The rapid intensification of Hurricane Polo highlights growing concerns among climate scientists about the relationship between shifting ocean temperature patterns and extreme weather events. As El Niño and La Niña cycles interact with broader warming trends, researchers are increasingly focused on understanding how these overlapping influences may affect the frequency and intensity of future tropical storms.

While El Niño is a naturally occurring climate pattern, its effects can be amplified or altered by long-term ocean warming trends linked to climate change. Scientists continue to study storms like Polo to better understand these compounding factors, aiming to improve forecasting models and provide earlier warnings for coastal communities in the storm’s path.

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Glasgow could soon face a visible waste crisis as two major problems collide: a significant breakdown at the city’s primary incinerator and a rapidly shrinking supply of landfill space. Waste management experts are sounding the alarm, warning that without urgent intervention, household and commercial rubbish may begin piling up on streets in the coming weeks.

The incinerator, which normally handles a substantial portion of the city’s waste by burning it to generate energy, has suffered a mechanical failure that has taken it offline. This forces waste operators to rely more heavily on landfill sites, but those sites are already operating with severely limited capacity. Years of stricter regulations, environmental targets to reduce landfill use, and site closures across Scotland have left the region with dwindling options for disposing of rubbish that can no longer be burned.

Industry insiders say the combination of these two factors creates a genuine bottleneck: waste is being generated at normal rates, but the city’s ability to process and dispose of it has been sharply curtailed. If repairs to the incinerator are delayed, or if alternative arrangements aren’t made quickly, waste collection services could be forced to slow down or suspend pickups, leading to a buildup of rubbish in bins and public spaces.

Environmental advocates note the situation highlights a broader issue facing many UK cities: an overreliance on a small number of aging waste facilities, paired with insufficient investment in recycling infrastructure and waste reduction programs. They argue that long-term solutions—such as expanding recycling capacity and cutting down on overall waste production—are needed to prevent similar crises in the future, rather than relying solely on incineration and landfill as fallback options.

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Residents living near a major chemical plant in Lancashire have been warned they may face increased health risks after blood tests revealed elevated levels of a cancer-linked “forever chemical” in their systems. The substance, part of a group known as PFAS, is used widely in industrial processes and consumer products, and has been linked in scientific studies to cancer, liver damage, and other serious health conditions.

PFAS chemicals, sometimes called “forever chemicals” because they do not break down naturally in the environment or the human body, have become a growing concern for public health officials and environmental campaigners worldwide. Their persistence means they can accumulate in soil, water supplies, and living tissue over time, raising long-term exposure risks for communities located near industrial sites.

The findings have prompted renewed calls for stricter monitoring of chemical plant emissions and discharges, as well as clearer communication with affected communities about potential health risks. Local residents are seeking further testing and clarity on what steps will be taken to reduce their exposure going forward, while health experts stress the importance of continued monitoring of both the factory’s practices and the surrounding environment.

The case adds to mounting evidence of PFAS contamination near industrial facilities across the UK and beyond, reigniting debate over regulatory oversight of chemical manufacturing and the adequacy of current safety standards designed to protect nearby communities from long-term exposure to hazardous substances.

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As autumn settles over the Swiss Alps, a centuries-old tradition unfolds across the high country. Known as the alpabzug, or “descent of the herds,” this seasonal ritual sees farmers guide their livestock down from summer mountain pastures to sheltered valley barns before winter’s harsh conditions set in.

This year, the tradition took a slightly unusual turn in the Griesalp area above Kiental, where roughly 70 alpacas made the journey down the mountainside. Unlike the cattle traditionally associated with the alpabzug, these woolly, long-necked animals picked their way along steep alpine trails, guided by farmers who have practiced this seasonal migration for generations. Once the herd reached the valley floor, the alpacas were loaded onto trucks for the final leg of their journey to a winter farm in Aeschi, near Spiez, in the scenic Bernese Oberland region.

The alpabzug is more than a practical necessity—it’s a cultural touchstone that reflects the deep relationship between Swiss farming communities and their mountain landscapes. As grazing pastures become inhospitable with the arrival of colder weather and reduced vegetation, moving herds to lower elevations ensures the animals’ welfare while preserving fragile alpine ecosystems from overgrazing during the dormant season. The practice also underscores how traditional agricultural methods continue to adapt, incorporating modern transport alongside age-old herding routes. For visitors and locals alike, the sight of animals winding through dramatic mountain scenery serves as a vivid seasonal marker, connecting present-day Switzerland to its enduring pastoral heritage.

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As climate experts gather in New York this week for another round of high-stakes negotiations, the mood is grim. This year is on track to set a new global temperature record, and next year could break it again as El Niño intensifies. The planet has lurched from one disaster to the next: deadly European heatwaves, catastrophic flooding in Nepal that has erased entire communities, and unsettling new research suggesting the Atlantic Ocean’s major current systems may be approaching a dangerous tipping point. Despite the mounting evidence and urgency, political will to act remains stubbornly weak.

Yet amid this bleak landscape, there is one source of genuine optimism: solar power. Unlike political negotiations, which move at a glacial pace, solar technology has advanced rapidly and become dramatically cheaper, making clean energy more accessible than ever before. Advocates are now pushing world leaders to commit to an ambitious but achievable goal — bringing solar power to every corner of the globe by 2030.

The road ahead won’t be easy. Confronting entrenched fossil fuel interests and inertia among the powerful takes courage. But there’s a unifying truth that cuts through the complexity of climate politics: every person on Earth lives under the same sun. That shared reality, advocates argue, can become a source of collective strength — a reminder that the tools to address the climate crisis already exist and are within reach, if only the political will can catch up with the technology.

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When policymakers struggle to inspire real momentum on the climate crisis, sometimes it takes a three-and-a-half-year-old furry red monster to cut through the noise. That’s exactly what happened this week in New York City, where Elmo of Sesame Street fame made a memorable appearance at a Climate Week event focused on how extreme weather and rising temperatures are affecting children around the world.

Speaking in his characteristic third-person style, Elmo shared how frightened he felt during a recent storm that struck Sesame Street, an event portrayed in a recent episode featuring musician Post Malone. The storm storyline was designed to help young viewers process fear and anxiety around extreme weather, a growing reality for children as climate-driven disasters become more frequent and intense.

Elmo’s message to the crowd went beyond fear, though. He spoke about resilience and compassion in the face of frightening events, telling the audience that “courage is when you still help others,” even when you’re scared yourself. The sentiment struck a chord at an event otherwise filled with sobering statistics about how children worldwide are increasingly exposed to climate-related hazards, from heat waves to flooding to poor air quality.

Organizers say bringing beloved children’s characters into climate conversations helps make an overwhelming global issue more relatable, especially for young audiences who are already absorbing news of extreme weather. With research showing that children face disproportionate risks from a warming planet, advocates hope that even a small, fuzzy voice of comfort might help both kids and adults find the courage to act.

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