1 . Overlooking the Biblioteca degli Alberi is Milan’s “Vertical (垂直的) Forest”: two residential tower blocks built in 2014 that are covered in 800 trees,4,500 shrubs and 15,000 plants. If this forest was planted on the ground, it would cover 20,000 m²— the size of three and a half football fields.

Each year the trees will absorb 10,000 tons of CO₂ and 57 tons of pollutants. They should also produce about 900 tons of oxygen. Boeri’s team of architects says the plants will also decrease the average air temperature, create noise barriers and boost biodiversity by creating a habitat for birds, insects and small animals.

It is not just physical wellbeing that is aided by large green structures in our cities. The team behind Sydney’s 100mhigh “vertical garden” claims it is a new form of “living architecture” that reminds us of “the restorative impact that nature has on our souls”. Just how restorative living near trees and plants is for our souls is open to debate; but studies in Germany have suggested that it can be extremely beneficial for our brains.

Scientists examined brain image sequences (顺序) of 341 elderly residents of Berlin, focusing particularly on the amygdala —the part of the brain that controls our fear responses and is responsible for stress and anxiety disorders. They found that there was strong connection between residents living within 1km of the forests on the edge of the city and those with the healthiest amygdala. A health y amygdala means being less likely to suffer from the stress and anxiety disorders controlled by this part of the brain. Mood and anxiety disorders are up to 56%higher in urban environments when compared to rural locations.

With two-thirds of the world’s population predicted to be living in cities by 2050, Milan’s Vertical Forest might show the world a way to create healthier, happier urban spaces.

6 . The African penguin lives on St. Croix island off the east coast of South Africa. A new study has found that they are leaving their natural environment to escape noisy ship refueling (补给燃料) activities.

The African penguins once mainly raised babies on this island. But the population has dropped sharply since South Africa started permitting ships in the area to refuel at sea six years ago, the study found.

Lorien Pichegru is acting director of the Coastal and Marine Research Institute at Nelson Mandela University, which led the study. She said the organization had found that noise levels in the area had doubled since the refueling activities began. Scientists say high noise levels affect the ability of penguins to find and catch other animals for food. Noise also makes it more difficult for them to communicate with each other and map travel paths. ‌“This year we are at 1,200 breeding pairs at St Croix from 8,500 pairs in 2016,” Pichegru said.

The study recently appeared in the publication Science of the Total Environment. The researchers said the study is the first to explore the effects of ocean traffic noise pollution on a seabird.

Nelson Mandela University’s study collected some data to estimate underwater noise from passing ships. Oil-covered penguins were found in 2019 in Algoa Bay after an oil spill from ship-to-ship refueling. Environmental groups have called for the activities to be banned in the bay.

Pichegru said penguins in the area were already struggling to survive because of a series of issues, including industrial fishing activities. She added that the refueling activities did not kill all the penguins. However, ‌“It was just the thing that made the whole ecology tip over and then the penguins couldn’t cope with that,” she said.

7 . Environmental pollution and other human activities are leading to thousands of deaths among seabirds, a new study has warned.

Ecological experts tracked the behavior of British and Irish seabirds. They used satellites to track hundreds of the creatures to find out where they went to catch fish at sea. The study can help assess potential impact from human activities and where protected areas of the seas should be.

Lightweight GPS tags were fitted to more than 1,300 adult birds from 29 different colonies around the UK and Ireland, including kittiwakes, shags, razorbills and guillemots. Results from the five-year study show the large areas of sea the four seabird species use. They found it was at least 600,000 square miles, an area three times the size of Spain. It shows how far they travel from their nests in search of food for their chicks. And it shows the use of the seas by all four species concentrated in the coastal waters of Scotland, highlighting the importance of conservation measures there.

The four species studied require conservation help, with kittiwake numbers declining 71 percent in the past 25 years and shag populations down 61 percent. This means both seabirds are "red listed" and need urgent protection. Razorbills and guillemots are "amber listed", which means they are considered to need conservation action.

Dr. Ewan, lead author of the research, said, “Many seabirds are at the top of the marine food web. They feed on some small fish but that prey is declining because of human pressures, including climate change. The result is that thousands of sea baby birds are dying each year because their parents can't feed them. For the first time, this study provides us with a full map for the feeding areas for some of our most important seabird species.”

The analysis provides critical data to inform marine management, the experts said.

8 . Margot doesn’t have a garbage can. It doesn’t need one because Margot simply doesn’t cause anything to get thrown away. The restaurant doesn’t allow any type of single use plastic. Margot, which opened last year, is one of the small but growing restaurants around the world aiming to avoid not only food leftovers, but also any garbage.

“Food waste has been increasing as an issue for restaurants over the last 10 years,” says Calvin Brown. He runs the Sustainable Restaurant Association. Based in the United Kingdom, the organization helps food business become more environmentally responsible. He says that food waste contributes to releasing the greenhouse gas, so there is strong motivation to reduce waste and help the environment.

In the USA, food waste and packing account for nearly half of the material sent to landfills. Restaurants from McDonald’s to Starbucks are addressing this issue with “no straw Mondays” and limits on single-serving plastic, but a handful of restaurateurs are trying to get rid of rubbish entirely. There’s also economic case to be made for waste reduction. One study shows that restaurants save seven dollars for every dollar invested in anti- waste methods.

Avoiding food waste is the first and perhaps most obvious challenge for sustainable restaurants. Doug McMaster, chef at Silo in London, only serves a set menu. This removes the worry that one particular item won’t sell well, and will spoil in the refrigerator. Compost (堆肥) is a necessity as well. Nolla (meaning “zero” in Finnish) in Helsinki, Finland is giving compost to its suppliers as well as its diners. Nolla also has food- tracking software more commonly used among corporate food service companies to keep track of what sells and what rots.

Sometimes restaurants call themselves environmentally friendly, but they might just be using the label. Calvin offers some pointers on what to look for to make sure a restaurant is truly committed to sustainability.

10 . A new study shows that increases in extreme winter weather in parts of the US are linked to quickened warming of the Arctic (北极).

Over the past four decades, warming in the Arctic has been far more definite than that in the rest of the world and has caused a rapid decrease of summer sea ice. Heating in the Arctic has ultimately disturbed the circular pattern of winds known as the polar vortex (旋涡). As a result, it got stretched out of shape and slid southward off the pole. Scientists believe this vortex stretching process led to the deadly Texas cold wave in February this year.

“The polar vortex over the Arctic usually locks in cold air at the poles and does not easily move south. The stronger the winds, the more the air inside is kept, and the colder it gets,” explained lead researcher Dr. Judah Cohen, who’s a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). “Melting (融化) ice in the Arctic and rising temperatures can disturb the Arctic vortex, making cold air no longer locked in the Arctic? but move some farther south.”

The researchers say that their findings are based on both observations and modelling and they show a physical link between climate change in the Arctic, the stretching of the polar vortex and the impacts on ground.

The researchers believe their work could improve predictions about the beginning of extreme cold winter events. The research team also believes that their findings will help people understand that global warming is complex and perhaps let go of the idea that colder winters mean climate change isn’t happening. “In the past, these cold extremes over the US and Russia have been used to justify not reducing carbon, but there’s no longer any excuse to not start reducing emissions (排放) right away,’’ said Dr. Cohen.