Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced that he will be committing $10 billion of his own money to fight climate change. The announcement came via Instagram and is, by far, the largest donation to the cause to date. The Bezos Earth Fund will support “any effort that offers a real possibility to help preserve and protect the natural world”.

Researchers have designed a system that can desalinate ocean water. The system uses Ionics to separate salt from water and is powered by solar. Desalination on large scales typically uses a large amount of energy, costs vasts amounts of money, and has unintended environmental impacts. A small-scale system, used strategically, could avoid these negative aspects.

A new bill introduced to Congress proposes a reduction of the production of plastic in the United States. There is often a focus on consumers to responsibly reduce the amount of plastic they consume and dispose of it properly. The Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act of 2020 shifts responsibility to the producers of plastic, holding them financially responsible for waste they create.

Scientists at Rice University in Houston TX have found a way to create Graphene by using waste. The process, named flash graphene, works by heating carbon-containing materials to 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat this intense creates graphene in 10 milliseconds. This graphene can then be used in a wide range of products.

The United States has been pulling out of the Paris Climate Accords since 2019. It turns out that other countries haven’t necessarily been so great either. According to the World Resources Institute, 15 countries have plans or policy to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

Scientists have developed a way to produce Hydrogen power on demand. Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing and Tsinghua University, found a way to create a higher conversion efficiency that starts rapidly and runs quietly with the only byproduct being water.

Scotland is on track to reach 100% renewable energy target by the end of 2020. In 2016, the country closed down its last coal fired power plant. The plant once powered 25% of homes in the country and was once the largest coal plant in all of Europe. The majority of renewable energy is now produced by onshore wind energy.

The L.A Reservoir has 96 million black balls floating on it. When the shade balls were introduced into the reservoir, many people had questions about the purpose and effectiveness. The most common answer is to reduce evaporation during summer months. The correct answer is much more in depth, although evaporation reduction is a positive outcome.

Greta Thunberg continues to hit world leaders along with major business establishments hard about business practices directly causing climate change and political inaction. At the world economic forum, Thunberg spoke to world economic leaders.

A new mineral is being used for solar panels that could greatly improve the efficiency of solar panels. Perovskite is a calcium titanium oxide mineral found in the Ural Mountains of Russia in the 1800’s. Excitement about this mineral has grown due to its efficiency, unusual properties, and its low cost.

The company Watergen has created a system that creates drinking water from air. The technology extracts humidity from air in a machine resembling an air conditioner. The machine works by drawing in air, filtering it, going through a heat exchanger which extracts the water from air, and finally filtering the water to remove impurities and adding minerals for taste

The British company Highview Power Inc. has developed a process to store energy for the grid without the need for fossil fuels. The system involves cooling air, storing it efficiently, and using the re-gasification process to drive a turbine and create electricity without combustion.

According to the University of Sydney, nearly 1 Billion animals are feared dead as a direct and indirect result of the fires that have been catastrophic across the continent. The fires have been ongoing for several months, having been ignited for various reasons but exacerbated by climate change including extended drought.

A rumor has been floating around that the United States government may change the way scientific research is viewed by the public and institutions. The current administration is working on an executive order that would make publicly funded science available for free immediately.

A report from ISWA released in October 2019 is Aimed at Getting the Waste Management industry prepared for the oncoming 4th Industrial Revolution. The 4th industrial revolution is expected to drastically change the way humans live and the way our systems operate in a way that is non-linear and, in return, more difficult to predict and regulate

A wildlife crossing is planned for Los Angeles to help endangered mountain lions and other animals pass throughout the chain of the Santa Monica mountains. The project, once completed, will be the largest wildlife corridor in the world stretching over 10 lanes of traffic on highway 101 with a price tag of $87 million.

AMP Robotics, based outside of Boulder, CO, uses an intelligent robotics system to create positive change in the recycling industry. The AI robots perform physical tasks that have been largely performed by humans like sorting, picking, and moving materials. The AMP Cortex applies technology that simulates the brain, eyes, and hands to separate recycling from waste.

The first fully electric flight took off near Vancouver, Canada on December 10th. The flight was piloted by Harbour Air, a company operating in the islands near Vancouver and builder of the new aircraft. The plane is a converted 62 year old DeHavilland Beaver, a small plane that is used for many working people and companies in the region and is known as the workhorse of the north.

The company Carbon Cure has developed a way to sequester carbon into concrete by storing CO2 inside concrete during the manufacturing process. This technology has the ability to dramatically reduce the carbon footprint of the concrete industry.

A new climate change report was released by the United States Government outlining what impacts our country will most likely face due to climate change. The assessment is Volume II of a mandated report from the Paris Climate Accords, titled Impacts, Risks, and Adaptation in the United States. 13 federal agencies contributed to the report including NOAA, NASA, and the Department of Defense.

A new startup, Qube, is setting out to change the way we build our cities on a foundational level. Abhishek Banerjee developed a way to make bricks out of plastic waste. The India based company began when Banerjee toured a traditional brick kiln and was shocked at the level of inefficiency and inhumane working conditions present.