
Sensemaker Audio
Is climate change to blame for the disaster in Libya?
Thousands have been killed after dams burst during a storm in Libya. Is this the result of government failure or climate change?
Sensemaker Audio
Thousands have been killed after dams burst during a storm in Libya. Is this the result of government failure or climate change?
Slow Newscast
What happens when another powerful carnivore threatens humans in a place where they are the masters?
Net Zero Sensemaker
Airports and haulage firms have funded groups of MPs pushing against aviation and fuel taxes, the Westminster Accounts reveal.
Net Zero Sensemaker
The right to camp wild in England and Wales is under threat. What is the relationship between land ownership and net zero?
Sensemaker Audio
The US snow crab harvest has been cancelled after billions of them went missing from the waters around Alaska. The industry is normally worth $132 million a year. What caused them to vanish?
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The Fortingall Yew probably first emerged when the Romans ruled the known world. Two thousand years later it faces a new threat
Quarterly
Mankind’s abuse of this little mammal may have brought us some rough justice, writes Simon Barnes
Slow View
The days grow short. The winter solstice is upon us. Simon Barnes traces the history of light and squints anxiously into our bright future
Quarterly
Human action, or inaction, is helping blue whales recover. Our treatment of our biggest neighbour is hugely symbolic
Sensemaker Audio
Thousands have been killed after dams burst during a storm in Libya. Is this the result of government failure or climate change?
Slow Newscast
What happens when another powerful carnivore threatens humans in a place where they are the masters?
Sensemaker Audio
The US snow crab harvest has been cancelled after billions of them went missing from the waters around Alaska. The industry is normally worth $132 million a year. What caused them to vanish?
Slow Newscast
Courtroom drama: Happy’s case goes to the top
Slow Newscast
Part II Happy passes the ‘mirror test’, an examination of intelligence and self-awareness
Slow Newscast
This is the story of an elephant. It’s a family saga, and a courtroom drama. It’s about how we live with animals, what we do to them and what they are entitled to expect from us.
thinkin
Torrential rains brought on by Storm Daniel have unleashed catastrophe in the city of Derna in eastern Libya. At least 11,000 people have died and 10,000 are missing after the floodwaters burst two dams and then rushed down onto the city. Climate change is supercharging storms. The surface waters of the Mediterranean are two to three degrees warmer than usual, which would have intensified Storm Daniel. In a single day, sixteen inches of rain fell on the area around Derna – which would normally have had a fraction of an inch of rain in the whole month of September. The changing climate meant the area around the dams was drier too, with less vegetation to hold soil in place and slow the flow of water. But this wasn’t just a natural disaster. Twelve years after a NATO-backed uprising in which rebels overthrew Muammar Gaddafi, Libya is divided between two weak governments. An internationally recognised one in the west, and a regime run by military commander Khalifa Haftar, who controls the east, including the area around Derna. Ciaran Donnelly, head of crisis response at the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian aid organisation, said: “In Libya you have over a decade of conflict and political turmoil, which has inevitably resulted in a lack of attention paid to the maintenance of public infrastructure… but also things like early warning systems, civil protection services that in other countries might have been able to help people evacuate earlier in a more orderly way.” In 1998, a Libyan government study revealed cracks in the dams – which had been built in the 1970s – but work to repair them only got underway in 2010. Four months later, the uprising against Gaddafi began and work on the dam was abandoned. According to a 2021 report by Libyan state auditors, more than $2m was set aside for maintenance of the dams but the money was never spent. But the failure to maintain the dams wasn’t the only reason so many people died. Derna’s mayor gave an order for the city to be evacuated. It was overruled by General Haftar. Instead, people received text messages advising them to stay in their homes. Derna is a warning from the future. In a world where climate and weather-related disasters are becoming more frequent, early and effective action from governments is needed to save lives. But that’s often exactly what’s missing.
thinkin
Torrential rains brought on by Storm Daniel have unleashed catastrophe in the city of Derna in eastern Libya. At least 11,000 people have died and 10,000 are missing after the floodwaters burst two dams and then rushed down onto the city. Climate change is supercharging storms. The surface waters of the Mediterranean are two to three degrees warmer than usual, which would have intensified Storm Daniel. In a single day, sixteen inches of rain fell on the area around Derna – which would normally have had a fraction of an inch of rain in the whole month of September. The changing climate meant the area around the dams was drier too, with less vegetation to hold soil in place and slow the flow of water. But this wasn’t just a natural disaster. Twelve years after a NATO-backed uprising in which rebels overthrew Muammar Gaddafi, Libya is divided between two weak governments. An internationally recognised one in the west, and a regime run by military commander Khalifa Haftar, who controls the east, including the area around Derna. Ciaran Donnelly, head of crisis response at the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian aid organisation, said: “In Libya you have over a decade of conflict and political turmoil, which has inevitably resulted in a lack of attention paid to the maintenance of public infrastructure… but also things like early warning systems, civil protection services that in other countries might have been able to help people evacuate earlier in a more orderly way.” In 1998, a Libyan government study revealed cracks in the dams – which had been built in the 1970s – but work to repair them only got underway in 2010. Four months later, the uprising against Gaddafi began and work on the dam was abandoned. According to a 2021 report by Libyan state auditors, more than $2m was set aside for maintenance of the dams but the money was never spent. But the failure to maintain the dams wasn’t the only reason so many people died. Derna’s mayor gave an order for the city to be evacuated. It was overruled by General Haftar. Instead, people received text messages advising them to stay in their homes. Derna is a warning from the future. In a world where climate and weather-related disasters are becoming more frequent, early and effective action from governments is needed to save lives. But that’s often exactly what’s missing.
thinkin
Torrential rains brought on by Storm Daniel have unleashed catastrophe in the city of Derna in eastern Libya. At least 11,000 people have died and 10,000 are missing after the floodwaters burst two dams and then rushed down onto the city. Climate change is supercharging storms. The surface waters of the Mediterranean are two to three degrees warmer than usual, which would have intensified Storm Daniel. In a single day, sixteen inches of rain fell on the area around Derna – which would normally have had a fraction of an inch of rain in the whole month of September. The changing climate meant the area around the dams was drier too, with less vegetation to hold soil in place and slow the flow of water. But this wasn’t just a natural disaster. Twelve years after a NATO-backed uprising in which rebels overthrew Muammar Gaddafi, Libya is divided between two weak governments. An internationally recognised one in the west, and a regime run by military commander Khalifa Haftar, who controls the east, including the area around Derna. Ciaran Donnelly, head of crisis response at the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian aid organisation, said: “In Libya you have over a decade of conflict and political turmoil, which has inevitably resulted in a lack of attention paid to the maintenance of public infrastructure… but also things like early warning systems, civil protection services that in other countries might have been able to help people evacuate earlier in a more orderly way.” In 1998, a Libyan government study revealed cracks in the dams – which had been built in the 1970s – but work to repair them only got underway in 2010. Four months later, the uprising against Gaddafi began and work on the dam was abandoned. According to a 2021 report by Libyan state auditors, more than $2m was set aside for maintenance of the dams but the money was never spent. But the failure to maintain the dams wasn’t the only reason so many people died. Derna’s mayor gave an order for the city to be evacuated. It was overruled by General Haftar. Instead, people received text messages advising them to stay in their homes. Derna is a warning from the future. In a world where climate and weather-related disasters are becoming more frequent, early and effective action from governments is needed to save lives. But that’s often exactly what’s missing.
thinkin
Torrential rains brought on by Storm Daniel have unleashed catastrophe in the city of Derna in eastern Libya. At least 11,000 people have died and 10,000 are missing after the floodwaters burst two dams and then rushed down onto the city. Climate change is supercharging storms. The surface waters of the Mediterranean are two to three degrees warmer than usual, which would have intensified Storm Daniel. In a single day, sixteen inches of rain fell on the area around Derna – which would normally have had a fraction of an inch of rain in the whole month of September. The changing climate meant the area around the dams was drier too, with less vegetation to hold soil in place and slow the flow of water. But this wasn’t just a natural disaster. Twelve years after a NATO-backed uprising in which rebels overthrew Muammar Gaddafi, Libya is divided between two weak governments. An internationally recognised one in the west, and a regime run by military commander Khalifa Haftar, who controls the east, including the area around Derna. Ciaran Donnelly, head of crisis response at the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian aid organisation, said: “In Libya you have over a decade of conflict and political turmoil, which has inevitably resulted in a lack of attention paid to the maintenance of public infrastructure… but also things like early warning systems, civil protection services that in other countries might have been able to help people evacuate earlier in a more orderly way.” In 1998, a Libyan government study revealed cracks in the dams – which had been built in the 1970s – but work to repair them only got underway in 2010. Four months later, the uprising against Gaddafi began and work on the dam was abandoned. According to a 2021 report by Libyan state auditors, more than $2m was set aside for maintenance of the dams but the money was never spent. But the failure to maintain the dams wasn’t the only reason so many people died. Derna’s mayor gave an order for the city to be evacuated. It was overruled by General Haftar. Instead, people received text messages advising them to stay in their homes. Derna is a warning from the future. In a world where climate and weather-related disasters are becoming more frequent, early and effective action from governments is needed to save lives. But that’s often exactly what’s missing.
Net Zero Sensemaker
Airports and haulage firms have funded groups of MPs pushing against aviation and fuel taxes, the Westminster Accounts reveal.
Net Zero Sensemaker
The right to camp wild in England and Wales is under threat. What is the relationship between land ownership and net zero?
Quarterly
The Fortingall Yew probably first emerged when the Romans ruled the known world. Two thousand years later it faces a new threat
Quarterly
Mankind’s abuse of this little mammal may have brought us some rough justice, writes Simon Barnes
Slow View
The days grow short. The winter solstice is upon us. Simon Barnes traces the history of light and squints anxiously into our bright future
Quarterly
Human action, or inaction, is helping blue whales recover. Our treatment of our biggest neighbour is hugely symbolic
Slow View
These wondrous flying mammals have had a bad rap, thanks in no small part to Bram Stoker. They deserve our friendship
Slow View
Insects are crucial for the flourishing of life on Earth. We should be nurturing them. Instead we’re killing them off, wholesale
Slow View
Too little water is bad for both the planet and people. Too much water is bad for them, too. We’ve created a crisis in which both extremes are happening at once