China will plant 32,400 square miles of trees to combat air pollution
China has tasked 60,000 soldiers to increase the country’s total forest coverage in an attempt to combat its serious air pollution problem.
Nations
This archive collects milestones and progress stories involving nations — countries and their governments — acting to improve lives, protect rights, or address shared challenges. From policy breakthroughs to international cooperation, these stories show what countries are doing right.
Singapore to introduce carbon tax in 2019
Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat said the tax would be levied on all facilities producing 25,000 tonnes or more of greenhouse gas emissions a year.
Australia could double its solar capacity by the end of 2018
The solar energy boom has been spurred by solar projects large and small, with multiple industrial projects paired with the appearance of solar panels on buildings all over the country.
Renewables overtake coal in European electricity supply
Good wind conditions and huge investment into wind energy have helped the European Union generate more electricity from renewable energy sources like wind, solar and biomass than from coal in 2017, a new study has shown.
Chile adds 10 million acres of parkland in historic first
At a ceremony on Monday, Chilean president Michelle Bachelet officially declared a major expansion of Chile’s parklands, creating two new national parks and protecting vast swaths of the country’s rainforests, grasslands, and other wild terrains.
New Zealand creates first climate change refugee visa program
Faced with the looming prospect of entire islands disappearing under rising sea levels, New Zealand is designing the world’s first climate change refugee visa program.
Rwanda becomes first poor country to provide eye care for all
Universal eye care reaching every village in a low-income country is a landmark moment for global health equity. Rwanda trained thousands of nurses across hundreds of local health centers, putting basic eye services within reach of every community. The gains are deeply human — a pair of glasses can keep a woman employed, her daughter in school, a family out of poverty. Funding for vision care globally remains thin, and Rwanda’s success required sustained political will that can’t be assumed elsewhere. Still, the community-nurse model offers a real template for countries ready to follow.
France to shut all coal-fired power stations by 2021, Macron declares
The 2021 goal sets a more aggressive target than the timeline advanced by Mr Macron’s predecessor, Francois Hollande, who sought to shut down the country’s coal-powered plants by 2023.
Myanmar LGBT festival goes public for first time
The widening acceptance boosted numbers with some 6,000 people coming along on the first day alone, compared with 2-3,000 over the whole festival in previous years.
E.U. votes to increase 2030 renewable energy goal to 35%
The European Union Parliament voted Wednesday to increase its renewable energy goal for 2030 from a goal of 27% to a new target of 35%, which will now be taken to EU member states in upcoming talks.