As 2024 draws to a close, it’s easy to be overwhelmed by headlines warning of catastrophic climate scenarios. Yet this year has also delivered an abundance of encouraging news, even if it remains overshadowed by the sheer scale of our environmental challenges.
Across the globe, grassroots initiatives, bold policy moves and technological breakthroughs have demonstrated that humanity can turn hope into tangible progress.
Consider the UK’s historic moment of closing its last coal-fired power plant, symbolising the end of one of the most polluting sources of electricity. Today, wind power in the UK outperforms both gas and coal combined, especially when we recall the skeptics who once dismissed renewables as unrealistic.
On a broader scale, renewable energy capacity is on track to triple globally by 2030, thanks to surging solar, wind and battery installations. In India, coal’s share of power generation fell below 50 per cent for the first time in decades; a sign that the world’s largest emerging economies are actively embracing cleaner energy pathways.
Deforestation also showed promising trends. In the Amazon, habitat destruction dropped by 50 per cent, supporting Brazil’s pledge to end deforestation by 2030.
Meanwhile, innovative solutions to plastic pollution emerged from Japan, where scientists created a new plastic that dissolves safely in seawater, eliminating the scourge of microplastics. And in North America, Los Angeles County took a bold stand by suing major companies for their roles in plastic pollution, pushing for greater corporate responsibility and systemic change.
Wildlife conservation brought further good news. Conservationists repatriated nearly 1,000 trafficked lemurs and tortoises to Madagascar. Plans to reintroduce wild bulls in Scotland’s Highlands by 2026 aim to restore biodiversity, bolster carbon storage and stimulate eco-tourism.
In the oceans, the discovery of the world’s largest known coral near the Solomon Islands that is over 183 metres in circumference and possibly half a millennium old rekindled hope for marine ecosystems. Additionally, sea otters along the Pacific coast continued to protect kelp forests by controlling overgrazing sea urchin populations.
On the healthcare front, we’ve seen inspiring advances that point towards a future of longer, healthier lives. Global life expectancy increased, buoyed by improved disease prevention and medical interventions. With life expectancy on the rise, many of us will live to see multiple future generations, including those not yet born. They will look to us, their ancestors, to see what we did to safeguard the planet they inherit. If we fail to capitalise on today’s momentum, we risk squandering the gains we’ve worked so hard to achieve. Yet if we continue on this path, future generations could be surrounded by reforested landscapes, thriving wildlife, cleaner air and medical innovations that eradicate once-dreaded diseases.
As I pen my final column of 2024, I’m reminded of this responsibility we share with both our ancestors and those yet to be born. The ecosystems we inherit are not merely scenic backdrops; they are the bedrock upon which our cultures, economies and health depend. Generations before us could not have imagined the scale of our modern climate challenges, yet they passed down landscapes and traditions that still shape our lives. In turn, we will pass on what remains, and what we restore to those who follow.
So, let us take these glimmers of good news and reflections to guide us into the New Year with a renewed sense of both celebration and resolve. Wishing you all a reflective close to 2024 and a bright, determined start to 2025. Let us step forward together, committed to scaling up these pockets of progress into a new era of meaningful climate action.
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