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From scientific discoveries to activist wins, here are the latest news stories showcasing the people taking on climate change and nature loss.

🤖 The robot cleaning Venice’s canals

Plastic trash, from old tires to fishing nets, is piling up in Venice’s historic canals. Cleaning up this waste means sending divers down to the hazardous depths, since dredging the seafloor can harm the marine life that calls it home. But now, European researchers are using solar technology to find the hotspots where plastic waste is accumulating. They can then deploy a robot to sweep the canals clean. This robot operates at depths up to 20 metres, and doesn’t cause any harm to the habitat of underwater creatures. 

 🍃 Hacking photosynthesis

Scientists have engineered crops that photosynthesise at a better rate and produce higher yields – a potential double-whammy for combating climate change and bolstering food security. They bred two crops with genes proven to accelerate photosynthesis, producing a 15.5% rise in biomass for sorghum, and a huge 37-81% rise for sugarcane.  

🐻‍❄️ The scientists who spend their days tracking polar bears

For 20 years, conservationists have been following polar bears across the Arctic to uncover how the animals are adapting to climate change. Electronic collars attached to the bears send messages via text to scientists with details on their movements and body temperatures, while every year they anaesthetize the bears to gather more information. The project's goal is to monitor how polar bears’ migration patterns are changing in the face of melting ice.

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