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Welcome to the week, Shit Givers.
And welcome to another roundup of news to help you better understand all the important shit going on right now, and action steps to help you do something about it all.
Let’s get to it!
This week:
🌏 A guide to climate mis/disinformation
💉 Another COVID shot
🥕 Plant-based > local
🤖 A.I. is thirsty
And more!
Have a great week,
— Willow
This is science for people who give a shit.
Every week, we help 20,000+ humans understand and unfuck the rapidly changing world around us. It feels great, and we’d love for you to join us.
New Shit Giver Cassandra wants to help solve “saving family farms & farmland (I'm not a fan of foreign nations buying arable acres within the US), sustainable food production & reducing food waste.“
Welcome, Cassandra! We’re on it.
⚡️ Climate change:
Scientists have outlined nine boundary processes that map the safe zones for humanity — we’ve already crossed six of them
Here’s what you need to know about climate mis- and disinformation
Reason #9,738,951 for better public transit: the costs of car ownership are too damn high
Kenya is leading the world in constructing geothermal power infrastructure, while Japan has started its first carbon credit exchange
Meanwhile, the US is trailing behind Europe and China on climate fund investing, and falling short in committing money to the UN Green Climate Fund
🦠 Health & Bio:
You’re probably due for another COVID shot
Immediately cutting methane emissions could prevent 1 million premature deaths by midcentury
CRISPR is being used to make bird-flu-resistant chickens, and a clinical trial to cure deafness using gene therapy has begun
Teen depression is still going untreated, and a large chunk of mental health spending is being driven by young people
California is the first state to ban disease-linked food additives
💦 Food & Water:
What you eat likely matters much more for your carbon footprint compared to where your food comes from
COP28 is sure to be awash with greenwashing — here’s a breakdown of six greenwashing terms to look for from Big Agriculture
Eating large quantities of red and processed meat is unhealthy and bad for the environment — is a meat tax the answer?
While natural disasters cost US farmers $22 billion last year (mostly uncovered by insurance), small-holder farmers in India are innovating to conserve water and adapt to drought
👩💻 Beep Boop:
Disinformation about the Israel-Hamas war is flooding X
Training A.I. uses a lot of water, which isn’t great during a drought
The influence of billionaire A.I. advisers in Washington
We should probably have some rules around federal use of facial recognition technology
Southeast Asia is taking a business-friendly approach to A.I. regulation, in spite of the EU’s push for global rules that align with its own framework
Last week’s most popular Action Step was learning what areas in the U.S. are most vulnerable to climate change.
Donate to the Global Restoration Initiative to help restore deforested and degraded land.
Volunteer with Kiss the Ground to help shift U.S. policies and resources toward regenerative agriculture.
Get educated about food waste policies and programs you can implement in your community with ReFED.
Be heard about maximizing clean energy incentives in your community and forward this roadmap to your local government.
Invest in a better planet by banking with ATMOS.
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🧪 The pH Problem: Explaining Ocean Acidification
The ocean is basic, but all the excess carbon dioxide in the air is making it more acidic, which is bad news for marine life — especially coral and shellfish.
Get informed on this critical issue and get the full scoop on what ocean acidification means, what’s causing it, who it harms, and what we can do about it.
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Just when you thought you’d seen it all. Click for the full story 👇
🙋♀️ Today’s Poll
Last week, 48% of you said you aren’t using any A.I. tools — largely due to ethical considerations.
Do you feel prepared or knowledgeable enough to recognize greenwashing?
Want to talk climate strategy, investing, or anything else?
Work with me 1:1
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