7 good things humanity did to combat climate change in 2024

Advocating for climate change action can sometimes feel like pushing a huge boulder up a hill. News headlines are filled with breaking climate records, while governments, including Australia’s, are still approving new fossil fuel developments. Advertisements and social media feeds proliferate greenwashing and misinformation.

1. In January 2024 the BBC reported that deforestation in the Amazon was 50% less in 2023 compared to the previous year.
2. Between January and October 2024, wind power was the largest source of energy for the UK for seven out of ten months, providing about 25 to 30% of the total energy supply.
3. US private investment into clean energy and electric vehicles was at a record-breaking $US 71 billion in the first quarter of 2024—that’s around 40% higher than the first quarter of 2023.
4. India’s solar PV exports are skyrocketing, with their value increasing by 23 times in just two years from 2022 to 2024.
5. As of March 2024, the non-profit Renewable Energy and Sustainability (REES) has provided solar energy to more than 6,000 of the poorest Nigerians.
6. In response to the growing ozone hole above Antarctica, world leaders agreed to phase out substances that deplete the ozone layer via the Montreal Protocol in 1987. A new study, published in June 2024, found that ozone-depleting emissions of hydrochlorofluorocarbon peaked about five years earlier than predicted.
7. The 2024 Clean Energy Australia Report states that renewables made up 40% of Australia’s electricity supply, which is about 10% higher than the previous year.

Read the full post at phys.org.