2 . A new study warns that pollution caused by the world’s food production system is also a major driver of rising temperatures on the planet besides the use of fossil fuels.

The study found that if the world food system stays on its present growth path, it will produce nearly 1.4 trillion metric tons of greenhouse gases over the next 80 years. That pollution is expected to come from fertilizers (肥料) used in agriculture, mismanaged soil, food waste and methane gas released from cows and other animals that are raised. Other causes include operations of turning forests into farmland.

The researchers predict that even if emissions from fossil fuels such as coal and oil were stopped now, emissions from the world food system would make it impossible to achieve a main goal of the 2015 United Nations Paris Agreement on climate change. The goal is to keep rises in the Earth’s temperature during this century well below 2 degrees Celsius.

The UN has said that in order to stay below the 1.5 degrees Celsius level, emissions must fall at least 7.6 percent each year through 2030. The new study calls for immediate “improvements in farming practices, as well as changes in what we eat and how much food we waste”, to help reach the Paris Agreement goals.

Jason Hill, a professor of biosystems engineering, said in a statement that most of the efforts aimed at reducing climate change center on reducing the use of fossil fuels, and that the research clearly shows that the food system has a much greater effect on climate change than is widely known. Hill also noted that fixing the problem would not require the world’s population to completely stop eating meat but eat better, healthier foods. People can improve how they grow foods. And they can waste less food.

The researchers say such efforts are achievable and can also lead to many other improvements beyond controlling climate change. These include making humans healthier, reducing water pollution, improving air quality, preventing animals’ dying out and making people make more money from their farm.

3 . “How many of us as children have stared up at a church-like top of a giant tree and climbed it in wonder, which is a rally special part of our lives?” asks Bill Laurance, a tropical ecologist at James Cook University. “The leaves of big trees in forests are spreading out in all directions. We’re faced with organisms that have evolved for long periods of ecological stability.”

“There’s a lot to discuss on the issue,” says David Lindenmayer, a conservation ecologist at the Australian National University. “Climate change will mean that, in some forests, big trees won’t reach the same sizes they used to.” The effects of climate change, including long droughts, more invasive species and so on increase the simple physical challenges that big trees face in pulling water from their roots to their leaves and withstanding windstorms.

Lindenmayer and Laurance define “large, old trees” as the largest five percent mature trees within a species. The flexible definition means that in some forests, the large, old trees might be only 20 meters tall and 100 years old.

These large, old trees control the surrounding plant communities, affect water and nutrient distribution, and provide food and shelter for wildlife. “They’re really the breadbaskets of the forest,” says Laurance. “This is a very environmentally and ecologically important group of organisms, and they need special care and handling.” Determining the distribution and habitat requirements for large, old trees in the landscape is the first step towards ensuring their survival, “We have to ensure that what we’re thinking is long-term, to match the way these trees have existed for hundreds or even thousands of years,” says Laurance. “It’s going to be a real challenge to keep some places where there is still wildlife and the big church-like trees that we all really care about.”

4 . The Best Eco-Friendly Gifts

This pack of seven teusable bags are plastic free and made from 100 percent biodegradable cotton. The set includes one cotton net bag, three produce bags, and three food bag. Double stitching and durable seams mean these bags are built to last, and they’re machine washable for easy cleaning.

Wood Bookmarks with Tassels (Price; $ 25)

Website: Etsy. com

Teachers often like to hand out small gifts to students at the end of the year, and this set of wooden bookmarks is a sustainable, affordable way to let students know you care. (Plus, they’re a great reminder to read over holiday breaks!) The bookmarks come with colorful tassels as well, making it easy to mark your place while reading.

Personalized Notebook (Price: $ 13)

Website: Journal. com

This customizable journal is a great gift to jot down notes, used as a daily thought journal, or as a place to keep travel memories or even grocery lists. The cover is made from eco-friendly heavy cotton paper. The pages are recycled cartridge paper that’s perfect for fountain pens and ink as well as other media.

Greener Bamboo Cutting Board (Price: $ 90)

Website: Amazon. com

This bamboo cutting board is naturally bacteria resistant and made from 100 percent Moso bamboo that’s grown in organic soil. One side of the board has a deep juice-catching groove that’s perfect for capturing juices as you cut. After cutting, simply flip the board to the other side for a beautiful presentation large enough for veggie arrangements, watermelon, and more.

6 . China published its official document on biodiversity conservation on Oct 8,2021. It said that China has achieved great results in biodiversity conservation.

In 2010, the China National Biodiversity Conservation Strategy and Action Plan (2011-2030) was published. Since then, China has been working for a better ecological environment through establishing and improving policies and laws, carrying out nationwide biodiversity surveys, and putting into place various programs and action plans for biodiversity conservation.

There are about 10,000 protected natural areas, covering 18 percent of total land area. The well-planned protected areas system has brought 90 percent of terrestrial (陆地的) ecosystem types and 71 percent of key state-protected wildlife species under effective protection.

China has contributed up to 10 percent of the new plant varieties identified worldwide in the past decade. In this period, the country identified about 200 new varieties of plants per year.

The habitats for wild animals in China have been expanding and their populations are growing. The population of giant pandas in the wild has grown from 1,114 to 1,864 over the past four decades. The crested ibis (朱鹮) population has increased from only seven to over 5,000.

China was the largest contributor to the world’s gain in greenness between 2000 and 2017. The country contributed about 25 percent of global vegetation growth in the period and China’s forest coverage and forest reserve areas have both continued to expand for the last 30 years. The country has realized the largest growth in forest resources among all countries in the world.

7 . Imagine your smartphone’s screen gets broken, or your favourite boots get a hole in them. What do you do? You could buy a replacement. Or you could join the worldwide trend of taking your broken stuff to a “repair café”.

The Bower Reuse and Repair Centre has just launched Australia’s first repair café, in Sydney’s inner west. The crowd-funded project will hold weekly repair sessions focusing on bikes, furniture and electrical items.

The first repair café was set up in Amsterdam in 2009, and the Repair Cafe Foundation says there are now more than 400 around the world. A repair café is a free face-to-face meeting of skilled volunteers and local residents who want things fixed. Visitors bring broken items from home and watch, learn or help as the repairs get done. Some things are fixed during the event, while for more challenging items people might be referred to local speciality repair shops.

Last year, according to the ABS, Australians sent more than half a million tons of leather to landfill—more than ten times the amount that was reused or recycled. Mending represents an attempt to resist the throwaway culture. Repair cafés get people talking and give them the chance to network and learn about the local resources available. And, perhaps most surprisingly for anyone who considers mending to be some kind of drudgery, repair cafés can be fun and creative.

“In a circular economy, repair cafés fit right in”, says the organiser Martine Postma. In rejecting buy-use-throw, the circular economy aims to keep resources moving around in the economy, rather than moving them through it to a dead end, where they cannot be put into valuable use.

It might be quicker and easier to throw stuff in the bin, but it’s more expensive and less fun too.

8 . TEDEd Hi Katherine!

This December, the TED-Ed team will host a series of 4 calls for students to learn about climate change, as part of our larger TED Countdown Initiative (方案)

Details about call series:

Each week during the month of December, we’ll meet at the same time on Zoom (an online meeting APP). Students should join in the calls on their own. We’d like students to be able to attend at least 3 of the 4 calls.

Register your students’ interest:

As we plan the time when we will meet with students, we’d love to see how many students are interested in this opportunity. Please share this interest with your students so they can register their interest. In this form we’ll ask them for their parent’s email address for permission.

Share this interest form with your students:

https∶//airtable. com/shr4U7DICbrdHuaGM

More about TED Countdown:

On January 25, we’re hosting the Countdown Summit in Scotland— the firstTED conference focusing on climate solutions. In April, TED hosted an online meeting and announced our plan to help the planet. And as always，education plays an important role in this mission (使命). That’s why we have chosen talks for students to do together virtually for a deeper understanding of this global issue and solutions.

We hope your students join us!

Please note that this event is only for studenst aged 3-19, in high school and below!

10 . Don't worry about why the chicken crossed the road—the bigger question is whether it'll make it at all.     1     But that road risk has dropped because of the COVID pandemic.

When officials began issuing stay-at-home orders to slow the spread of COVID-19, Shilling and his colleagues quickly realized they were witnessing a novel experiment:     2    

The answer is a lot of things, including fewer accidents and lower greenhouse gas emissions from cars. In their latest report, the researchers found that driving less has also led to a dramatic decrease in roadkills.

"    3     As far as I'm aware, no other action has been taken since creation of the national parks."

The team documented about a third fewer kills in the four weeks following shutdowns. If such a slowdown persisted for a year, 27.000 large animals would be saved in just those three states.

    4     Some populations in urban areas are at risk of local extinction, and vehicles are one of the top killers. However, in recent months, traffic deaths of mountain lions have dropped by 58 percent, revealing an important clue about how to save them.

People are now returning to the roads as stay-at-home orders are lifted.     5     "Yeah, I just say—everybody loves wildlife, you know—and if we can find a way to not kill them, it seems like everybody can line up behind that."