Good morning!

From scientific discoveries to activist wins, here are the latest news stories that showcase the people who are taking on climate change, and winning.

1. It looks like China’s emissions have peaked

China’s sky-high levels of clean energy deployment mean that the country’s carbon emissions may have finally peaked. The country is currently the biggest global greenhouse gas emitter, but the colossal amount of wind and solar it’s rapidly adding to the national grid may have now turned things around for good. Just the increase in China’s solar power this year is equivalent to the entire amount of power that was generated in Australia last year. And, so long as this growth in clean energy continues, it sets the stage for emissions to come down fast, which will play a pivotal role in countering the worst of climate change.

2. A better way to grow cultivated meat?

The nascent technology of cultivated – or ‘lab-grown’ – meat has the potential to help feed the world, while avoiding the huge emissions toll of factory farming. But its animal welfare benefits – since the meat doesn’t require slaughter – have one longstanding nagging issue: the serum that provides the proteins that grow the muscles in lab-grown meat comes from unborn cow fetuses. As well as being ethically questionable, for those who look to lab-grown meat as a wholly vegan alternative, it’s expensive and carries risks of contamination.

Now, a research team in Japan has developed a new way of creating muscle cells using cultivated rat liver cells and photosynthetic microorganisms rather than this serum, which could potentially bring down costs and help pave the way for getting lab-grown meat on supermarket shelves. 

3. The world is slowly moving to protect biodiversity

A new UN report indicates there’s been some progress towards protecting the planet’s animal and plant biodiversity. The UNEP has found that 17.6% of land and inland waters and 8.4% of ocean and coastal areas are now within protected and conserved areas, compared to a target for 30% for each. This accounts for an area twice the size of Colombia, where the current COP16 conference on biodiversity is taking place.

Although more attention needs to be paid to whether they’re being governed fairly and upholding the human rights of the communities who live there, it’s clear that conserving these areas will be critical for combating biodiversity loss. While the world needs to step on it if it hopes to meet the 20230 target, this report suggests it’s still within reach.