Edition 13: June 11, 2025

The United States may have descended into an unprecedented level of chaos while I was away, but there is still plenty of progress being made on climate both in and out of this country.

Jun 11, 2025

Young People Sue Trump Administration Over Climate Policies

For the past five months, President Trump has been issuing executive orders aimed at prioritizing fossil fuels. These executive orders are deliberately blocking the transition to clean energy, electrified transit, and even upgraded infrastructure. This, of course, is the exact opposite of what scientists agree needs to happen to effectively address the climate crisis. That is why 22 young people from across the country have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration for violating their constitutional right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness — which they argue includes the right to a stable climate. These young people range from ages 7 to 25, and they have all experienced the impacts of climate change. The legal non-profit behind the landmark Held v. Montana youth climate case, Our Children's Trust, helped put together the lawsuit, and they want a court to rule that these executive orders are unconstitutional — as well as to help reign in the overreach by the executive branch. There aren’t any updates on the case yet because it was just filed, but hopefully there will be some good news about it soon.

Source: Sophie Hurwitz writes for Grist

Renewables Generated 88% of Power in Brazil Last Year

It might come as a surprise to learn that Brazil is a global leader in clean energy considering the country’s massive deforestation and illegal mining issues, but recent data shows that clean energy generated 88.2% of the country’s electricity last year — which is higher than most other G20 nations. This is because hydroelectric dams generate the majority of electricity there due to the country’s vast freshwater resources. These dams, while good for reliable electricity generation, have a tendency to harm aquatic ecosystems. However, they have helped Brazil rely on fossil fuels for less than 10% of its electricity needs. Solar and wind power are on the rise, though, with it accounting for 24% of electricity generation last year. This new data is important because later this year Brazil will be hosting the annual United Nations climate conference known as COP30, and this will be the first time since 2021 that COP has been held in a country that is making real progress on climate. In fact, Brazil has already exceeded its goal of generating at least 84% of its electricity from clean energy sources by 2030, and now the world will be watching this November to see what further commitments they will make.

Source: Lívia Neves writes for PV Magazine

England Commits to First New National Forest in Decades

You might think of rolling green meadows or expansive sea cliffs when you think about the landscape of England, but the British Isles used to be covered in trees. Old growth forests and temperature rainforests once dominated the landscape until the population and their demand for wood for housing, ships, and fuel started increasing centuries ago. Today, natural forests cover just 1.2% of the land area in England – which is down 7.8% compared to 2000 levels. These ongoing deforestation issues are impacting carbon sequestration rates, local biodiversity, and public health throughout the country, and that is why the recently elected Labour Government has committed to increasing that number to 16.5% by 2050. As part of that commitment, plans were recently announced for the first new national forest in three decades. The Western Forest will eventually cover portions of Somerset, Gloucestershire, Bristol and Wiltshire, and the project will be spearheaded by a reforestation non-profit called the Forest of Avon Trust. They hope to plant 20 million trees by 2050 and restore at least 6,100 acres of forest and woodland by 2030. But that’s not all – the Labour Government also intends to plant two other national forests and force land developers to improve biodiversity through planning requirements.

Source: Cristen Hemingway Jaynes writes for EcoWatch

Major German Financial Institution Divests from ExxonMobil

The fossil fuel industry is starting to be called out for their greenwashing in a way that might actually get them to listen. Union Investment is a subsidiary of the second largest financial institution in Germany, and they have just formally divested all of their holdings in ExxonMobil over their lack of action on climate. For the past few years, Union Investment has been removing assets that do not meet their minimum climate targets as part of their own goal to become carbon neutral across their entire portfolio by 2050. ExxonMobil was given multiple opportunities to commit to those minimum climate targets but ultimately refused, and that is why Union Investment divested a whopping €500 million from the company. This just goes to show that while the American governments and businesses may be going back on their climate promises, the rest of the world is not. In fact, Union Investment’s Chief Sustainability Officer made it a point to mention that when interviewed about their divestment from ExxonMobil.

“Climate change remains — regardless of who is in political power — a central factor in our investment strategy.” – Dr. Henrik Pontzen

Other fossil fuel companies, including Shell and TotalEnergies, were spared from Union Investment’s divestment scheme which means that ExxonMobil truly is not committed to a sustainable future. However, if enough financial institutions refuse to do business with the fossil fuel industry over their climate inaction, then hopefully they will either become obsolete or change for the better.

Source: Florian Müller writes for Financial Times