Genetic analysis of soil and sediment from Lake Hazen, the largest freshwater lake in the High Arctic, suggests that the risk of viral spread may be higher in the vicinity of melting glaciers. As global temperatures rise due to climate change, it becomes more likely that viruses and bacteria trapped in glaciers will awaken and infect local wildlife.

The WWF’s biennial “Living Planet” report analyzes the impact of environmental stressors on wildlife populations. They all come to the same conclusion: climate change, habitat destruction due to deforestation, overfishing, pollution and the introduction of invasive species are among the main causes of this decline, all due to human activity.

An investigation by two NGOs, Les Amis de la Terre and Survie, proves that the construction of the pipeline to evacuate oil extracted by TotalEnergies in Uganda is accompanied by large-scale human rights violations. TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanné was invited to address the European Parliament’s Human Rights Committee on October 10, but declined.

Dangerous chemicals known as perfluoroalkyl compounds (PFAS) are all around us: stain-resistant carpets, non-stick frying pans, mascara and even some food packaging. Research has shown that these chemicals are linked to health problems, including cancer. What’s more, they persist in the environment for decades, if not centuries.

In recent years, there has been a flurry of initiatives aimed at better integrating the principles of sustainable development into the various educational curricula, especially since the Higher Education Initiative for Sustainable Development launched at the Rio+20 Conference. Young people, however, believe that the curricula merely perpetuate the model that has led to current and future crises.

On the eve of the Paris Motor Show, the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) has published its opinion on electric vehicles: in conclusion, “a reasonably sized battery ensures climatic and economic relevance”; the positive effects of the 110 km/h limit on freeways; on closer inspection, the goal of carbon neutrality for international aviation by 2050 is not so virtuous; Air France’s greenwashing with its “eco-friendly” flights.

Julia Steinberger is an economist and co-author of the latest IPCC report. On October 11, she took part in a civil disobedience action alongside the Renovate Switzerland collective, during which they blocked the entrance and exit of the A6 freeway to demand the thermal renovation of buildings. She lay down on the asphalt and stuck her hand to it, before being taken away by the police.

The philosopher, anthropologist, sociologist of science and technology and thinker of the “new climate regime”, whose work spanned many disciplines and who believed that we should take better care of the Earth’s resources, has left us. He was a leader of the anti-growth coalition avant la lettre, but above all he hoped that humans could finally learn to be one with the planet and with each other.

COP27 will be held in Sharm el-Sheikh from November 6 to 18, in a bid to find solutions to the climate and environmental crisis. The thorny question of loss and damage should be at the heart of discussions. Accepting the sponsorship of one of the world’s biggest plastic polluters to finance a meeting on the climate emergency is disconcerting, to say the least, according to anti-plastic campaigners.

Green Street Art is a new graffiti technique that promotes ecology through techniques in total harmony with nature, or by using it to make art. Many artists use this peaceful and ecological practice to draw attention to the dangers threatening nature. It originated in 1973 with the green guerrilla movement, whose aim was to create local biodiversity in towns and cities.