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The Global Cooling Pledge – set to be announced at the upcoming United Nations climate summit, COP28 – represents a tough request given the cooling industry is only expected to grow. The emissions from both the refrigerants and the energy used in cooling now account for about 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and are expected to triple by 2050 as temperatures continue to rise. "We need cooling, but it has to become more efficient," UNEP Cool Coalition global coordinator Lily Riahi said. Another 13 commitments outlined in the draft pledge include establishing minimum energy performance standards for air conditioning by 2030, and including cooling emissions in countries' overall climate action plans, called Nationally Determined Contributions. The UNEP estimates that global efforts to tackle cooling emissions could have a significant impact by 2050, avoiding the release of up to 86 billion metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.

Persons: Tyrone Siu, –, Noah Horowitz, Lily Riahi, Gloria Dickie, Katy Daigle, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: China Import, Export Fair, Canton Fair, REUTERS, Reuters, United, Programme's, Cool Coalition, International Energy Agency, UNEP, Coalition, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Canton, Guangzhou, China, India, United States, Nations, United Arab Emirates, Kigali, Montreal, Dubai, London

But even EU countries clashed over how ambitious to be - and their ministers were locked in talks into the evening on Monday. The faultlines tended to fall between wealthier EU members seeking rapid climate action, and poorer economies concerned about the cost of quitting fossil fuels. Another submission, by Saudi Arabia, did not explicitly mention a fossil fuel phase-out. 'NOT VERY HOPEFUL'The resistance shows how hard it will be to strike an ambitious climate deal at COP28. "I am not very hopeful," Carlos Fuller, U.N. climate negotiator for Belize, said of the fossil fuels phase-out - which Belize supports.

Persons: Wolfgang Rattay, Carlos Fuller, COP28, Jennifer Morgan, Natalie Jones, Kate Abnett, Glwadys Fouche, Katy Daigle, Barbara Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Diplomats, Reuters, African Group, International Institute for Sustainable Development, Thomson Locations: Niederaussem, Germany, Rights BRUSSELS, Poland, Czech Republic, COP28, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Belize, COP27, China, Japan, United States, Colombia, Norway, U.N, Paris, Oslo

☆ 83% of Gen Z say they're job hoppers. Here's how to handle old workplace retirement funds
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( Ana Teresa Solá | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Office communication is becoming far more casual, and Gen Z is leading the shift, new research has found. Job hoppers earned increasingly more than job stayers during the Covid-19 pandemic, but gains have languished. Wages for "job switchers" were 5.6%, as wages for "job stayers" slid 5.2%, according to Atlanta Fed data. However, job hopping won't necessarily make work difficulties disappear. As your funds keep growing for your retirement, keeping tabs on your old workplace accounts after you switch jobs can help ensure you aren't losing track of those accounts over time.

Persons: Sophia Bera Daigle, Bera Daigle, Daigle, haven't Organizations: Workers, Atlanta Fed, CNBC FA Locations: Austin , Texas

China, the world's biggest fossil fuel consumer, is among those signalling that it intends to keep using them for decades. By inserting "unabated" before fossil fuels, the pledge targeted only fuels burned without emissions-capturing technology. "We cannot use it to green-light fossil fuel expansion," the countries said in a joint statement. We can't say we want to avoid 1.5 C ... and not say anything about phasing out fossil fuels," Cox said. The Alliance of Small Island States, whose members face climate-fuelled storms and land loss to rising seas, wants a fossil fuel phase-out and an end to the $7 trillion governments spend annually on subsidising fossil fuels.

Persons: Eduardo Munoz, General Antonio Guterres, Sultan Al Jaber, John Kerry, Teresa Ribera, Eamon Ryan, Ryan, Peter Cox, Cox, Fatih Birol, Valerie Volcovici, Kate Abnett, Katy Daigle, Emelia Organizations: U.S, REUTERS, United Nations General Assembly, United Arab Emirates, United, European Union, Reuters, Ireland's, American Petroleum Institute, University of Exeter, International Energy Agency, Rockefeller Foundation, Organization of, Petroleum, Small, States, United Nations, D.C, Thomson Locations: New York, New York City , New York, U.S, Dubai, China, United States, Saudi Arabia, Russia, France, Kenya, Chile, Colombia, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Japan, Union, Washington, Brussels

[1/2] Former mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg speaks during a meeting with Earthshot prize winners and finalists at the Glasgow Science Center during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, Britain, November 2, 2021. The $500 million infusion into his decade-long Beyond Carbon initiative aims to "finish the job on coal" by working with state and local organizations to force the closure of the roughly 150 coal plants that have not yet retired, slash current gas generation in half and block the construction of new gas-fired plants. Bloomberg already has spent over $500 million to support the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign, which originally aimed to retire 30% of the U.S. coal fleet by 2020. The money would support litigation brought against utilities and power companies by grassroots groups, state and local policy advocacy and financing to assist local communities with coal plant closures, Bloomberg Philanthropies said. Reporting by Valerie Volcovici; Editing by Katy Daigle and Grant McCoolOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: New York Michael Bloomberg, Alastair Grant, Michael Bloomberg, Bloomberg Philanthropies, U.N, Antonio Guterres, Valerie Volcovici, Katy Daigle, Grant McCool Organizations: New York, Glasgow Science Center, Change, UNITED NATIONS, Former New York City, Bloomberg, Sierra, General Assembly, Thomson Locations: Glasgow, Scotland, Britain, United States, U.S, America

"The move from fossil fuels to renewables is happening – but we are decades behind," Guterres said at the start of the one-day summit. "We must make up time lost to foot-dragging, arm-twisting and the naked greed of entrenched interests raking in billions from fossil fuels." Those not invited to speak were the world's two top polluters - the United States and China – though U.S. Special Envoy on Climate Change John Kerry was in the audience. "This climate crisis is a fossil fuel crisis," he said, drawing applause from the heads of state and others in the room. "Climate change is a top priority for my administration," Thavisin told the gathering, his country having recently created a climate change ministry.

Persons: Antonio Guterres, Mike Segar, Guterres, John Kerry, China's U.N, William Ruto, Ruto, Gavin Newsom, Srettha Thavisin, Thavisin, Sultan Ahmed al, Jaber, COP28, Mia Mottley, Ursula von der Leyen, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Valerie Volcovici, Katy Daigle, Howard Goller Organizations: United Nations, General Assembly, REUTERS, Companies Allianz, General, United Arab Emirates, Thailand's, FINANCE, Security Council, Allianz, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Fund, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, COP28, Dubai, Brazil, Canada, Pakistan, South Africa, Tuvalu, United States, China, California, UAE, Barbados, Ukraine

They don't split their $1,900 monthly rent 50-50 but instead according to their income levels, since it is their biggest expense. Talk about money like you do the dishesJust as cleaning the kitchen and vacuuming need to be done on a regular basis, so do certain financial tasks, Whitman said. "Include financial management as one of the chores when making a list of who does what," Whitman said. Whitman also suggests regular chats about your financial goals, big and small. Couples might have "money dates" once a month to discuss their financial anxieties and aspirations, said Daigle, a member of the CNBC FA Council.

Persons: Wynne Whitman, Whitman, Hailey Pinto, Pinto, Sophia Bera Daigle, Daigle Organizations: Pew Research, Gen, CNBC FA Locations: Connecticut, Charlotte , North Carolina, Denver, Austin , Texas

☆ Global climate protests demand world leaders phase out fossil fuels
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Kate Abnett | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Organizers of the protests expect global turnout over the weekend to total more than a million people. "This is directed at world leaders," said Mitzi Jonelle Tan, a climate activist with youth movement Fridays for Future in Manila, the Philippines. We need a just transition, and we need to phase out the fossil fuels causing the destruction of our environment," she told Reuters. The burning of fossil fuels is the main cause of climate change, but countries have never agreed in U.N. climate talks to phase out fossil fuels - though they have committed to phase down use of coal power. Despite having plentiful solar energy resources, Africa received only 2% of global investments in renewable energy over the last two decades, the International Renewable Energy Agency has said.

Persons: Greta Thunberg, Mitzi Jonelle Tan, Eric Njuguna, U.N, General Antonio Guterres, Kate Abnett, Katy Daigle, Aurora Ellis Organizations: United States, Organizers, Reuters, Governments, International Renewable Energy Agency, General Assembly, Thomson Locations: COP28, BRUSSELS, Pakistan, Nigeria, United, Swedish, Manila, Philippines, Nairobi, Kenya, U.N, Africa, New York

☆ Fact Check-No reported mpox outbreak at Burning Man festival
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Social media posts falsely reporting mpox and other diseases at the festival are circulating amid news of heavy downpours that produced a sea of sticky mud at the event in 2023 and prompted a shelter-in-place order. One post on X, formerly known as Twitter, (here) reads, “There's no ebola outbreak at Burning man.. we've received confirmation that it's just a new strain of monkeypox. However, there are no credible news reports of an mpox outbreak at Burning Man in 2023, nor do the event organizer’s social media accounts mention any cases of the disease (here), (twitter.com/bmantraffic), (www.facebook.com/burningman/). Reuters has previously addressed false claims of an Ebola outbreak at the 2023 Burning Man event (here). There have been no reports of an mpox outbreak at Burning Man 2023, according to the CDC and BLM.

Persons: “, we've, Dave Daigle, ” Daigle, ” John Asselin, Read Organizations: U.S . Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, Land Management, Man, Twitter, Facebook, Reuters, CDC, Mpox, BLM, Burning Locations: Nevada, Black Rock, Marburg

In climate negotiations, "loss and damage" refers to existing costs incurred from climate-fueled weather impacts, such last year's devastating Pakistan flooding. The U.S. is part of a 24-country committee deciding how the fund will work before the COP28 climate summit in Dubai can officially adopt it this year. Both voted to approve new funding arrangements under the condition that the fund not be about liability for rich countries and compensation. Instead, both Washington and Brussels say the fund should be filled from myriad sources including industry taxes, philanthropic donations or other schemes. The world’s least developed nations want the fund to be limited to the neediest nations.

Persons: Akhtar Soomro, that's, ”, Sue Biniaz, Biniaz, Christina Chan, “, “ That’s, Avinash Persaud, Mia Mottley, Persaud, Dileimy Orzoco, Valerie Volcovici, Katy Daigle, Josie Kao Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, . State Department, Reuters, The, State Department, EU, Nonprofit, Thomson Locations: Sehwan, Pakistan, U.S, Washington, The U.S, Dubai, Dominican Republic, Paris, Brussels, China, Barbados, Philippines

☆ How climate change drives heatwaves and wildfires in Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Kate Abnett | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Here's how climate change drives these events. FINGERPRINTS OF CLIMATE CHANGETo find out exactly how much climate change affected a specific heatwave, scientists conduct "attribution studies". CLIMATE CHANGE DRIVES WILDFIRESClimate change increases hot and dry conditions that help fires spread faster, burn longer and rage more intensely. The study found that human-induced climate change played an absolutely overwhelming role in the extreme heatwaves that swept across North America, Europe and China in July. But scientists concur that without steep cuts to the greenhouse gases causing climate change, heatwaves, wildfires, flooding and drought will significantly worsen.

Persons: Alexandros Avramidis, Friederike Otto, Sonia Seneviratne, Seneviratne, Rhodes, Copernicus, Mark Parrington, Victor Resco de, Kate Abnett, Gloria Dickie, Katy Daigle, Barbara Lewis, Josie Kao, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Firefighters, REUTERS, Rights, United Nations, Imperial College London, ETH Zurich, Union, Spain's Lleida University, Thomson Locations: Sesklo, Greece, Europe, Spain, France, Netherlands, Paris, North America, China, Victor Resco de Dios

☆ Many young unmarried couples don’t split costs equally. Experts weigh in on what's 'fair'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Ana Teresa Solá | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Millennial couples are more likely to live together, with 65%, versus 37% of Gen Z couples. More than half of couples, 54%, said finances were part of their decision to move in together. Half of couples don't split the mortgage or rent equally, and 39% do not split pet costs equally, the survey found. Experts say the survey results underscore that when it comes to sharing expenses, equal isn't always equitable, or fair. "I think it's almost not fair to split finances 50-50 without taking into account your partner's financial situation," said Daigle, who is also a member of the CNBC Financial Advisor Council.

Persons: Gen Z, Michael Kraus, Cathy Curtis, Curtis, Sophia Bera Daigle, Daigle, Carli Blau, Blau, Kraus, Couples Organizations: Istock, Getty, of Psychology, Finance, Yale University, Curtis Financial, CNBC, Society Locations: U.S, Oakland , California, Austin , Texas, New York

France has used an anti-terrorism unit to question some climate activists, the police confirmed to Reuters. Britain’s National Police Chiefs’ Council did not immediately respond to a request for comment and its interior ministry did not comment. Germany does not have a national policy targeting climate activists, who the government considers mainly non-extremist, a spokesperson for the country’s interior ministry said. "Climate protesters can perhaps be locked away, but the climate catastrophe will come anyway," Lachner said after being convicted in Berlin in July for glueing incidents last year and fined 2,700 euros. In the January newspaper interview, the local office of the interior ministry confirmed both devices had been installed.

Persons: Yves Herman, Simon Lachner, he'd, “ radicalisation ”, Lachner’s, Lachner, Regensberg, Lafarge Holcim, SLT, Julien Le Guet, Le Guet, Pascale Leglise, Riham Alkousaa, Juliette Jabkhiro, Andrew MacAskill, William James, Katy Daigle, Frank Jack Daniel Our Organizations: REUTERS, GPS, Bavaria, Reuters, Britain’s National Police Chiefs ’, Los, Prosecutors, Bavarian, Berlin, Military, National Commission, Control, Thomson Locations: France, Sainte, Soline, BERLIN, Lachner, Britain, Germany, Berlin, Europe, Los Angeles, Brandenburg, Bavaria, Bavarian, Regensberg, French, Deux, Sevres, Nouvelle Aquitaine, SLT, Paris, London

☆ Majority of parents spend 20% or more of household income on child care, report finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( Ana Teresa Solá | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Jenny Goff, right, reaches out to a child at Central Park Child Care Center in Vancouver, Washington. Ariane Kunze | The Columbian via APWhy child care costs are so highRising fees at child care centers are contributing to the growing costs of child care, as well as inflation and changes in parents' work status, according to Care.com. Many day care centers shuttered during the pandemic, leaving the few that stayed open with limited slots available. The new child fee is usually used to fund teachers' education, books and materials for the classes, she added. Financial advisors say there are several other ways parents can plan ahead to help cover child care costs.

Persons: Jenny Goff, Ariane Kunze, Sophia Bera Daigle, Daigle, Carolyn McClanahan, McClanahan, Care.com Organizations: Central, Child Care Center, AP, CNBC FA Council, Planning Partners, CNBC FA Locations: Vancouver , Washington, Jacksonville , Florida

Their data showed mercury contamination from informal gold mining making its way into the biodiversity hotspot's mammals — from rodents to ocelots to titi monkeys. Leaders from the eight countries around the Amazon meeting in Brazil next week will discuss how to end illegal gold mining. While the scientists began testing for mercury at Los Amigos in 2021, some of the samples were gathered as early as 2018. During Reuters' visit to Los Amigos, scientists caught rodents in metal traps baited with peanut butter and snagged birds and a bat in mist nets floating through the forest. In 2021, mining arrived on Los Amigos' doorstep.

Persons: Conservación Amazônica, Mrinalini Erkenswick, Erkenswick Watsa, biogeochemist Jacqueline Gerson, there's, it's, Gideon Erkenswick, Jorge Luis Mendoza Silva, Caroline Moore, Moore, Chris Sayers, Jake Spring, Gloria Dickie, Marco Aquino, Oliver Griffin, Katy Daigle, Suzanne Goldenberg Organizations: Los, Biological, Amigos, Reuters, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, Projects International, Los Amigos, University of Colorado, REUTERS, Gold Council, USAID, Peruvian, Nature Communications, San Diego Zoo Wildlife, University of California, Thomson Locations: Peru, Peruvian, Peru's, de Dios, Madre de Dios, Brazil, Colombia, California, University of Colorado Boulder, Los Amigos, Dios, Latin America, Congo, Indonesia, University of California Los Angeles, London, Lima, Bogota

REUTERS/Stringer/File PhotoSummary Countries at odds over which should pay climate financeEU wants China to contribute to climate fundsChina among countries not currently obliged to payBRUSSELS/BEIJING, July 21 (Reuters) - Record-breaking heat in China. The EU, today the biggest contributor of climate finance, has lobbied to expand the pool of donor countries that provide it. Climate finance refers to money that wealthy countries pay toward helping poorer nations reduce CO2 emissions and adapt to a hotter, harsher world. Advocates for the change argue that an expansion needs to happen before a new - and, likely, far bigger - U.N. target for climate finance kicks in after 2025. "It would earn China diplomatic clout, and pressure Western donors to raise their stakes on climate finance," he said.

Persons: Stringer, John Kerry, Janet Yellen, Kerry, Li Qiang, Pa'olelei Luteru, Luteru, Byford Tsang, Kate Abnett, Valerie Volcovici, Katy Daigle, Stephen Coates Organizations: REUTERS, BRUSSELS, U.S, Union, Reuters, EU, United Arab Emirates, of Small, WHO, United, Climate Cooperation, Initiative, Bridgetown Initiative, Thomson Locations: Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China, EU, BEIJING, COP28, Dubai, Beijing, U.S, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Singapore, States, United States, South Korea, U.N, Barbados, Bridgetown, Brussels

☆ Which countries are paying their 'fair share' to fight climate change?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Kate Abnett | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WHICH COUNTRIES PAY U.N. CLIMATE FINANCE? That analysis suggested only seven countries had paid their "fair share" in 2020 - Denmark, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. By ODI's ranking, the U.S. lags behind every other developed nation, when its past climate finance contributions are compared with what its "fair share" would be. Taken together, the 27-country EU is the biggest provider of climate finance, contributing 23.38 billion euros ($26.15 billion) in 2020.

Persons: Kate Abnett, Katy Daigle Organizations: UN, FINANCE, Economic, European Union, United, WHO, FAIR, U.S, Finance, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States, China, United Arab Emirates, London, U.S, EU, Lincoln

Earlier this month, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said contributions from Beijing could boost U.N. climate funds. It has, however, signalled a willingness to offer climate finance to developing countries through different instruments, like a South-South Climate Cooperation fund it launched in 2015. And the United States hopes that China will unveil its domestic plans to tackle the issue before the next U.N. climate conference in December. Global emissions levels have only risen since. The United States tends to look at overall national emissions, ignoring both historical emissions and the per-capita breakdown.

Persons: Janet Yellen, Donald Trump's, Joe Biden, John Kerry, Xie Zhenhua, Kerry, Xie, David Stanway, Katy Daigle, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: European Union, Treasury, Climate Cooperation, Technological, Biden, Kerry, Microvast Holdings, Global, European, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, China, United, Beijing, U.S, U.N, Rio de Janeiro, United States, Xinjiang, Paris, Glasgow, 1.5C, European Union, COP28, Dubai, Singapore

During those COP27 climate talks last year in Egypt, China's top climate envoy, Xie Zhenhua, made an unexpected appearance at a meeting of the Global Methane Partnership, a U.S.-EU led initiative aimed at slashing 2020-level methane emissions by 30% by the end of this decade. Xie said China had drafted a plan with concrete measures to curb methane emissions from energy, agriculture and waste. COAL GASTwo big sources of methane emissions growth in China are livestock and rice production, neither of which are included in the country's climate plans. China is the world's largest source of methane from coal mines, with 28% of the world's biggest methane emissions points, according to Antoine Halff, co-founder of the environmental research group Karryos. "When you look around at the sources of coal mine methane worldwide, China is three or four times bigger than the next country's coal mine methane emissions," Banks said.

Persons: John Kerry, Kerry, Xie Zhenhua, Xie, Jonathan Banks, Joe Biden, Biden, Banks, Antoine Halff, Halff, Valerie Volcovici, David Stanway, Dominique Patton, Timothy Gardner, Katy Daigle, Will Dunham Organizations: Sunday, Methane Partnership, EU, Air Task Force, Program, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Task Force, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, U.S, China, Beijing, United States, Washington ., Glasgow, Sharm el, Egypt, Dubai, Shanxi, Boston, Singapore, Washington

☆ Janitor heard ‘annoying alarms’ and turned off freezer, ruining 20 years of school research worth $1 million, lawsuit says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Jessica Xing | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A university janitor who turned off a freezer after hearing multiple “annoying alarms,” ruined more than 20 years of research, according to a lawsuit filed against his employer by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in upstate New York. The school is seeking more than $1 million in damages and legal fees from Daigle Cleaning Systems as a result of the incident. The college does not believe the janitor is at fault but instead blames Daigle Cleaning Systems for failing to properly train and supervise him, according to the suit. CNN reached out to attorneys for Daigle Cleaning Systems and the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute for comment. A warning was posted on the freezer, according to the court filing.

Persons: Lakshmi, Baruch ’ Organizations: CNN, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Daigle, Systems Inc, Systems, Supreme, Biochemical Solar Energy Research, AS IT Locations: New York, Troy , New York, Rensselaer, “

☆ A college janitor turned off a freezer in a lab to silence 'annoying alarms,' but destroyed $1 million in scientific research in the process, a lawsuit claims
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A janitor destroyed $1 million in scientific research after turning off a super cold freezer in a lab. He had heard "annoying alarms" coming from the freezer where over 20 years of research were stored. Lakshmi conducted high-level research inside the lab that "had the potential to be groundbreaking" and funded by the university, the lawsuit said. It's believed that Harrington destroyed $1 million worth of scientific research and RPI will be seeking as yet unspecified damages. Daigle Cleaning Systems and Lawyers for RPI did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment about the lawsuit.

Persons: —, Joseph Harrington, K.V, Lakshmi, Harrington, It's Organizations: Service, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Daigle, Rensselaer County Supreme, AS IT, RPI, Systems, Lawyers Locations: New York, Troy , New York, Rensselaer County

☆ These home improvement projects pay off most — major kitchen and bath remodelings don't make the cut
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

watch nowMost homeowners are planning to remodel at some point down the road, but not everyone will get their money's worth in improved home value. Of all home improvement projects, the most popular are sparkling bathroom overhauls, according to newly released data from the Contractor Growth Network, followed by big-ticket kitchen and basement renovations. The projects offering the greatest returns in resale value are not new kitchens and baths, but rather projects related to a home's curb appeal. A minor kitchen remodeling — such as painting and updating the backsplash — did provide high returns, but major kitchen and bathroom renovations did not, the Zonda survey found. The average homeowner shelled out $3,890 on renovations and remodeling in the past year alone, the report found.

Persons: Todd Tomalak, Tomalak, They'll, Sophia Bera Daigle Organizations: Finance, Zonda Media, HGTV, CNBC, Homeowners, Federal Reserve, Real, Gen Locations: Austin , Texas

Environment Programme (UNEP), which is hosting the talks, released a blueprint for reducing plastic waste by 80% by 2040. The report, issued earlier this month, outlined three key areas of action: reuse, recycling and reorientation of plastic packaging to alternative materials. This week, dozens of countries were listing public health as one of their priority concerns in limiting plastics production and waste. The UNEP report also identified 13,000 chemicals associated with plastic production, more than 3,000 of which were considered hazardous. Greenpeace, meanwhile, issued a report collecting findings from scientific research papers that suggest plastic recycling processes can release many of these chemicals including benzene into the environment.

☆ Southern Europe braces for climate change-fuelled summer of drought
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Kate Abnett | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

As climate change makes the region hotter and drier, years of consecutive drought have depleted groundwater reserves. CLIMATE CHANGE TRENDSouthern Europe is not alone in suffering severe water shortages this year. The Horn of Africa is enduring its worst drought in decades, while a historic drought in Argentina has hammered soy and corn crops. "In terms of the climate change signal, it very much fits with what we're expecting," said Hayley Fowler, Professor of Climate Change Impacts at Newcastle University. Some 90% of the mainland is suffering from drought, with severe drought affecting one-fifth of the country - nearly five times the area reported a year earlier.

☆ Lauren Daigle, a Christian Music Superstar, Is Ready for a Bigger Tent
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Rob Tannenbaum | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Christian rock began in the late 1960s and early ’70s, when it was known as “Jesus Music,” a grass-roots movement led by longhaired hippie outsiders. Major labels took notice, and began to buy up Christian labels or start imprints of their own. “She left no ambiguity in her music and spoke transparently about her personal relationship to God.”As a child, Daigle dismissed Christian music as cheesy. She was raised in a religious home that welcomed secular music, as long as there “weren’t F-bombs every five seconds,” she said. As her interest in music grew, she cleaned her church choir director’s bathroom in exchange for singing lessons.

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