3 magazine

TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS pg. 1-2

STEP INSIDE ASHTON KUTCHER AND MILA KUNIS’S SUSTAINABLE L.A. FARMHOUSE pg. 9-10

AT LEAST 85 PERCENT OF THE WORLD’S POPULATION HAS BEEN AFFECTED BY HUMAN-INDUCED CLIMATE CHANGE, NEW STUDY SHOWS pg. 3-4

HERE ARE 6 BOOKS EMMA WATSON WANTS YOU TO READ ON CLIMATE CHANGE

24 SUSTAINABLE AND ECO-FRIENDLY GIFT IDEAS FOR ANYONE IN 2021 pg. 11-12 13-14

RE-PURPOSED SWEATER PILLOWS DIY pg. 15-16

pg. 5-6

EPA WATER CHIEF ON CLEAN WATER PROTECTIONS pg. 7-8

HOW THE CLIMATE CRISIS IS ALREADY HARMING AMERICA – PHOTO ESSAY pg. 17-18 19-20 21-22

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TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS pg. 1-2

STEP INSIDE ASHTON KUTCHER AND MILA KUNIS’S SUSTAINABLE L.A. FARMHOUSE pg. 9-10

AT LEAST 85 PERCENT OF THE WORLD’S POPULATION HAS BEEN AFFECTED BY HUMAN-INDUCED CLIMATE CHANGE, NEW STUDY SHOWS pg. 3-4

HERE ARE 6 BOOKS EMMA WATSON WANTS YOU TO READ ON CLIMATE CHANGE

24 SUSTAINABLE AND ECO-FRIENDLY GIFT IDEAS FOR ANYONE IN 2021 pg. 11-12 13-14

RE-PURPOSED SWEATER PILLOWS DIY pg. 15-16

pg. 5-6

EPA WATER CHIEF ON CLEAN WATER PROTECTIONS pg. 7-8

HOW THE CLIMATE CRISIS IS ALREADY HARMING AMERICA – PHOTO ESSAY pg. 17-18 19-20 21-22

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AT LEAST 85 PERCENT OF THE WORLD’S POPULATION HAS BEEN AFFECTED BY HUMAN-INDUCED CLIMATE CHANGE, NEW STUDY SHOWS Researchers used machine learning to analyze more than 100,000 studies of weather events and found four-fifths of the world’s land area has suffered impacts linked to global warming

At least 85 percent of the global population has experienced weather events made worse by climate change, according to research published Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change.

diseases. One of the papers analyzed for the Nature study, for example, found that deaths from heart disease had risen in areas experiencing hotter conditions.

“The climate crisis is the single biggest health threat facing humanity,” the health organizations’ letter said.

After using machine learning to analyze and map more than 100,000 studies of events that could be linked to global warming, researchers paired the analysis with a well-established data set of temperature and precipitation shifts caused by fossil fuel use and other sources of carbon emissions.

These combined findings — which focused on events such as crop failures, floods and heat waves — allowed scientists to make a solid link between escalating extremes and human activities. They concluded that global warming has affected 80 percent of the world’s land area.

Yet in many of the places that stand to suffer most from climate change, Callaghan and his colleagues found a deficit of research on what temperature and precipitation shifts could mean for people’s daily lives. The researchers identified fewer than 10,000 studies looking at climate change’s effect on Africa, and about half as many focused on South America. By contrast, roughly 30,000 published papers examined climate impacts in North America.

“We have a huge evidence base People ride in a cart pulled by zebus near Amboasary Atsimo in Madagascar, an area that is suffering a food crisis now that documents how climate change because of intense drought. (Rijasolo/AFP/Getty Images is affecting our societies and our ecoIndigenous Environmental Network and a member of the Cheysystems,” said lead author Max Callaghan, a researcher at the enne River Sioux Tribe who rallied in Washington this week.

Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate

The activists, many of them from Indigenous communities Change in Germany. that have been harmed by global warming, risked arrest as they

The study provides hard numbers to back up the lived remained on the sidewalk outside the White House after police experiences of people from New York City to South Sudan. “Cliordered them to clear the area. mate change,” Callaghan said, “is visible and noticeable almost

The new research in Nature adds to a growing body of everywhere in the world.” evidence that climate change is already disrupting human life on

The findings come amid a major push to get countries to a global scale. Scientists are increasingly able to attribute events commit to more ambitious climate goals ahead of a United Nalike heat waves and hurricanes to human actions. In August, the tions summit in Glasgow, Scotland, next month. Research shows U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change devoted an that existing pledges will put the planet on track to heat up about entire chapter to the extreme weather consequences of a warm2.7 degrees Celsius (4.9 degrees Fahrenheit) by the end of the ing world. century — a level of warming that would lead to drastic food and water shortages, deadly weather disasters, and catastrophic eco The study’s conclusion that 85 percent of humanity is exsystem collapse. periencing climate impacts may sound high. But it’s “probably an underestimation,” said Friederike Otto, a senior lecturer at the

Some of the world’s top emitters, including China and InGrantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment at dia, have yet to formally commit to a new 2030 emissions reducImperial College London, who was not involved in the study. tion target. Activists worry that an emerging energy crisis, which

The study looked at average temperature and precipitahas raised prices and triggered blackouts, could imperil efforts to tion changes, rather than the most extreme impacts, for which get developing economies to phase out polluting fuels.

Otto says there is even more evidence of climate change’s role.

In the United States, climate disasters have already caused at least 388 deaths and more than $100 billion in damage this “It is likely that nearly everyone in the world now experiences year, according to analyses from The Washington Post and the changes in extreme weather as a result of human greenhouse gas National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. emissions,” she said.

Yet despite a pledge to halve emissions by the end of the decade, congressional Democrats are struggling to pass a

The human toll of these events has become impossible pair of bills that would provide hundreds of billions of dollars for to ignore. This summer, hundreds of people in the Pacific Northrenewable energy, electric vehicles and programs that would help west died after unprecedented heat baked the usually temperate communities adapt to a changing climate. region. More than 1 million people in Madagascar are at risk of starvation as a historic drought morphs into a climate-induced

The contrast between the scope of climate disasters and famine. Catastrophic flooding caused New Yorkers to drown in the scale of global ambition is top of mind for hundreds of protheir own homes, while flash flooding has inundated refugee testers who have descended on Washington this week to decamps in South Sudan. mand an end to fossil fuel use.

“How can you say that we are in this climate emergency and be going around and saying we’re at this red point … and at the same time be giving away land for additional oil and gas infrastructure?” said Joye Braun, a community organizer with the

3

In a letter released Monday, some 450 organizations representing 45 million health-care workers called attention to the way rising temperatures have increased the risk of many health issues, including breathing problems, mental illness and insect-borne

In poorer countries, the researchers say, roughly a quarter of people live in areas where there have been few impact studies, despite strong evidence that they are experiencing changes in temperature and precipitation patterns. In wealthier countries, that figure stands at only 3 percent.

“But it indicates that we’re not studying enough,” Callaghan said, “not that there isn’t anything happening.”

Otto attributes this discrepancy, known as an “attribution gap,” to a lack of capacity and funding for research in poor countries, as well as researchers’ tendency to reflect the priorities of wealthy nations.

In South Sudan, for example, efforts to understand flooding have been stymied by conflict and the difficulty of collecting weather data in the world’s youngest country.

Liz Stephens, an associate professor in climate risks and resilience at the University of Reading, wrote in an email that the Global Flood Awareness System from the Copernicus Emergency Management Service is “notoriously bad” at forecasting flooding in the White Nile and Blue Nile river basins. Without good data, scientists can’t easily say what places are likely to be deluged or warn when a disaster is about to hit. Officials may be caught off guard by weather events. Vulnerable people are less able to get out of harm’s way.

South Sudanese officials say half a million people — about 4 percent of the country’s population — have been displaced by the floods.

enough.

According to a recent analysis by the Rhodium Group, an independent research firm, the larger spending bill would curb U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by as much as a gigaton — but would probably get the country only halfway to its 2030 goals.

A September study in Nature found that 60 percent of Earth’s oil and fossil methane gas and 90 percent of coal must remain in the ground for the world to have a chance of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) — a threshold that scientists say would spare humanity the most disastrous climate impacts.

Increasingly, groups are calling on President Biden to restrict fossil fuel production outright.

On Wednesday, a coalition of more than 380 groups filed a legal petition demanding that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers stop issuing permits for new fossil fuel infrastructure projects. Two days later, hundreds of scientists submitted an open letter ask-

ing Biden to do the same.

“The reality of our situation is now so dire that only a rapid phase-out of fossil fuel extraction and combustion can fend off the worst consequences of the climate crisis,” they wrote.

In response to Monday’s protests, however, American Petroleum Institute spokeswoman Megan Bloomgren said curbing the country’s energy options would harm the economy and national security. “American energy is produced under some of the highest environmental standards in the world,” she said.

Pledging to reduce greenhouse gas emissions without cutting back on fossil fuel extraction, activists say, is like a person promising to lose weight while continuing to consume french fries and doughnuts.

“It’s the only way the pledges make sense,” said Dharini Parthasarathy, senior communications officer for policy at the Climate Action Network. “Otherwise, they’re just promises.”

But the “attribution gap” makes machine-learning-based analyses like Callaghan’s all the more valuable, Otto said. These programs can help identify climate impacts even in places where there are not enough scientists studying them.

“It seems a very useful way … to understand better what climate change is costing us today in a global way that is more bottom-up,” Otto said.

Here in the nation’s capital, policymakers are still debating the costs of moving away from fossil fuels.

While members of both parties back a nearly $1 trillion A protective wall is erected with reclaimed sand in Guraidhoo, Maldives, on Oct. infrastructure bill that has passed the Senate and would provide 10. The Maldives is one of the world’s lowest-lying countries, making it extremely vulnerable to climate change. (Allison Joyce/Getty Images) $7.5 billion to build out a national network of electric-vehicle charging stations and several other measures to cut carbon emissions, the White House is struggling to muster enough support Ellie Silverman, Rachel Chason and Maxine Joselow contributed for a $3.5 trillion bill that would provide incentives for utilities that to this report. get an increasing share of their power from solar, wind and other carbon-free sources and penalize those that don’t move swiftly

4

AT LEAST 85 PERCENT OF THE WORLD’S POPULATION HAS BEEN AFFECTED BY HUMAN-INDUCED CLIMATE CHANGE, NEW STUDY SHOWS Researchers used machine learning to analyze more than 100,000 studies of weather events and found four-fifths of the world’s land area has suffered impacts linked to global warming

At least 85 percent of the global population has experienced weather events made worse by climate change, according to research published Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change.

diseases. One of the papers analyzed for the Nature study, for example, found that deaths from heart disease had risen in areas experiencing hotter conditions.

“The climate crisis is the single biggest health threat facing humanity,” the health organizations’ letter said.

After using machine learning to analyze and map more than 100,000 studies of events that could be linked to global warming, researchers paired the analysis with a well-established data set of temperature and precipitation shifts caused by fossil fuel use and other sources of carbon emissions.

These combined findings — which focused on events such as crop failures, floods and heat waves — allowed scientists to make a solid link between escalating extremes and human activities. They concluded that global warming has affected 80 percent of the world’s land area.

Yet in many of the places that stand to suffer most from climate change, Callaghan and his colleagues found a deficit of research on what temperature and precipitation shifts could mean for people’s daily lives. The researchers identified fewer than 10,000 studies looking at climate change’s effect on Africa, and about half as many focused on South America. By contrast, roughly 30,000 published papers examined climate impacts in North America.

“We have a huge evidence base People ride in a cart pulled by zebus near Amboasary Atsimo in Madagascar, an area that is suffering a food crisis now that documents how climate change because of intense drought. (Rijasolo/AFP/Getty Images is affecting our societies and our ecoIndigenous Environmental Network and a member of the Cheysystems,” said lead author Max Callaghan, a researcher at the enne River Sioux Tribe who rallied in Washington this week.

Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate

The activists, many of them from Indigenous communities Change in Germany. that have been harmed by global warming, risked arrest as they

The study provides hard numbers to back up the lived remained on the sidewalk outside the White House after police experiences of people from New York City to South Sudan. “Cliordered them to clear the area. mate change,” Callaghan said, “is visible and noticeable almost

The new research in Nature adds to a growing body of everywhere in the world.” evidence that climate change is already disrupting human life on

The findings come amid a major push to get countries to a global scale. Scientists are increasingly able to attribute events commit to more ambitious climate goals ahead of a United Nalike heat waves and hurricanes to human actions. In August, the tions summit in Glasgow, Scotland, next month. Research shows U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change devoted an that existing pledges will put the planet on track to heat up about entire chapter to the extreme weather consequences of a warm2.7 degrees Celsius (4.9 degrees Fahrenheit) by the end of the ing world. century — a level of warming that would lead to drastic food and water shortages, deadly weather disasters, and catastrophic eco The study’s conclusion that 85 percent of humanity is exsystem collapse. periencing climate impacts may sound high. But it’s “probably an underestimation,” said Friederike Otto, a senior lecturer at the

Some of the world’s top emitters, including China and InGrantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment at dia, have yet to formally commit to a new 2030 emissions reducImperial College London, who was not involved in the study. tion target. Activists worry that an emerging energy crisis, which

The study looked at average temperature and precipitahas raised prices and triggered blackouts, could imperil efforts to tion changes, rather than the most extreme impacts, for which get developing economies to phase out polluting fuels.

Otto says there is even more evidence of climate change’s role.

In the United States, climate disasters have already caused at least 388 deaths and more than $100 billion in damage this “It is likely that nearly everyone in the world now experiences year, according to analyses from The Washington Post and the changes in extreme weather as a result of human greenhouse gas National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. emissions,” she said.

Yet despite a pledge to halve emissions by the end of the decade, congressional Democrats are struggling to pass a

The human toll of these events has become impossible pair of bills that would provide hundreds of billions of dollars for to ignore. This summer, hundreds of people in the Pacific Northrenewable energy, electric vehicles and programs that would help west died after unprecedented heat baked the usually temperate communities adapt to a changing climate. region. More than 1 million people in Madagascar are at risk of starvation as a historic drought morphs into a climate-induced

The contrast between the scope of climate disasters and famine. Catastrophic flooding caused New Yorkers to drown in the scale of global ambition is top of mind for hundreds of protheir own homes, while flash flooding has inundated refugee testers who have descended on Washington this week to decamps in South Sudan. mand an end to fossil fuel use.

“How can you say that we are in this climate emergency and be going around and saying we’re at this red point … and at the same time be giving away land for additional oil and gas infrastructure?” said Joye Braun, a community organizer with the

3

In a letter released Monday, some 450 organizations representing 45 million health-care workers called attention to the way rising temperatures have increased the risk of many health issues, including breathing problems, mental illness and insect-borne

In poorer countries, the researchers say, roughly a quarter of people live in areas where there have been few impact studies, despite strong evidence that they are experiencing changes in temperature and precipitation patterns. In wealthier countries, that figure stands at only 3 percent.

“But it indicates that we’re not studying enough,” Callaghan said, “not that there isn’t anything happening.”

Otto attributes this discrepancy, known as an “attribution gap,” to a lack of capacity and funding for research in poor countries, as well as researchers’ tendency to reflect the priorities of wealthy nations.

In South Sudan, for example, efforts to understand flooding have been stymied by conflict and the difficulty of collecting weather data in the world’s youngest country.

Liz Stephens, an associate professor in climate risks and resilience at the University of Reading, wrote in an email that the Global Flood Awareness System from the Copernicus Emergency Management Service is “notoriously bad” at forecasting flooding in the White Nile and Blue Nile river basins. Without good data, scientists can’t easily say what places are likely to be deluged or warn when a disaster is about to hit. Officials may be caught off guard by weather events. Vulnerable people are less able to get out of harm’s way.

South Sudanese officials say half a million people — about 4 percent of the country’s population — have been displaced by the floods.

enough.

According to a recent analysis by the Rhodium Group, an independent research firm, the larger spending bill would curb U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by as much as a gigaton — but would probably get the country only halfway to its 2030 goals.

A September study in Nature found that 60 percent of Earth’s oil and fossil methane gas and 90 percent of coal must remain in the ground for the world to have a chance of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) — a threshold that scientists say would spare humanity the most disastrous climate impacts.

Increasingly, groups are calling on President Biden to restrict fossil fuel production outright.

On Wednesday, a coalition of more than 380 groups filed a legal petition demanding that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers stop issuing permits for new fossil fuel infrastructure projects. Two days later, hundreds of scientists submitted an open letter ask-

ing Biden to do the same.

“The reality of our situation is now so dire that only a rapid phase-out of fossil fuel extraction and combustion can fend off the worst consequences of the climate crisis,” they wrote.

In response to Monday’s protests, however, American Petroleum Institute spokeswoman Megan Bloomgren said curbing the country’s energy options would harm the economy and national security. “American energy is produced under some of the highest environmental standards in the world,” she said.

Pledging to reduce greenhouse gas emissions without cutting back on fossil fuel extraction, activists say, is like a person promising to lose weight while continuing to consume french fries and doughnuts.

“It’s the only way the pledges make sense,” said Dharini Parthasarathy, senior communications officer for policy at the Climate Action Network. “Otherwise, they’re just promises.”

But the “attribution gap” makes machine-learning-based analyses like Callaghan’s all the more valuable, Otto said. These programs can help identify climate impacts even in places where there are not enough scientists studying them.

“It seems a very useful way … to understand better what climate change is costing us today in a global way that is more bottom-up,” Otto said.

Here in the nation’s capital, policymakers are still debating the costs of moving away from fossil fuels.

While members of both parties back a nearly $1 trillion A protective wall is erected with reclaimed sand in Guraidhoo, Maldives, on Oct. infrastructure bill that has passed the Senate and would provide 10. The Maldives is one of the world’s lowest-lying countries, making it extremely vulnerable to climate change. (Allison Joyce/Getty Images) $7.5 billion to build out a national network of electric-vehicle charging stations and several other measures to cut carbon emissions, the White House is struggling to muster enough support Ellie Silverman, Rachel Chason and Maxine Joselow contributed for a $3.5 trillion bill that would provide incentives for utilities that to this report. get an increasing share of their power from solar, wind and other carbon-free sources and penalize those that don’t move swiftly

4

Why We Swim, Bonnie Tsui – swimmer, journalist and author Bonnie Tsui dives into the world of swimming to explore humankind’s relationship with water.

Who Cares Wins, Lily Cole – this book curates creative solutions to climate change from the minds of entrepreneurs and activists including Stella McCartney and Extinction Rebellion co-founder Dr Gail Bradbrook.

A Honeybee Heart Has Five Openings, Helen Jukes – writer, beekeeper and tutor Helen Jukes charts how a year looking after a beehive helped her reconnect with nature and friendships.

Actor Emma Watson – best known for her role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films – has been hiding books on climate activism around Glasgow during COP26.

The secret stash of more than 40 titles is part of a campaign by The Book Fairies, a global book sharing organization, to plant inspiring reads on climate change.

Here are six of the #COPBookFairies titles Emma Watson has been hiding.

The End of the Ocean, Maja Lunde – this novel by the Norwegian author and climate campaigner Maja Lunde, envisages a world without enough water and how it impacts a father and daughter.

All We Can Save, edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katharine K Wilkinson – a powerful collection of essays from some of the women leading on climate issues in the United States, from scientists and teachers to activists, farmers and lawyers.

How Women Can Save The Planet, Anne Karpf – poor women of colour are most impaced by the climate crisis - yet are rarely at the negotiating table.

Sociologist Anne Karpf calls or visionary global climate policies that promote gender equality.

Promoting gender equality Alongside her acting work, Emma Watson campaigns on climate, social and gender equality issues.

She is a Goodwill Ambassador for UN Women – the United Nations organization which promotes gender equality and the empowerment of women.

During COP26, Watson’s official Instagram site was taken over by “an anonymous Feminist Collective”.

More than 300 books were shared around the UK as part of The Book Fairies’ #COPBookFairies campaign.

HERE ARE 6 BOOKS EMMA WATSON WANTS YOU TO READ ON CLIMATE CHANGE

5

6

Why We Swim, Bonnie Tsui – swimmer, journalist and author Bonnie Tsui dives into the world of swimming to explore humankind’s relationship with water.

Who Cares Wins, Lily Cole – this book curates creative solutions to climate change from the minds of entrepreneurs and activists including Stella McCartney and Extinction Rebellion co-founder Dr Gail Bradbrook.

A Honeybee Heart Has Five Openings, Helen Jukes – writer, beekeeper and tutor Helen Jukes charts how a year looking after a beehive helped her reconnect with nature and friendships.

Actor Emma Watson – best known for her role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films – has been hiding books on climate activism around Glasgow during COP26.

The secret stash of more than 40 titles is part of a campaign by The Book Fairies, a global book sharing organization, to plant inspiring reads on climate change.

Here are six of the #COPBookFairies titles Emma Watson has been hiding.

The End of the Ocean, Maja Lunde – this novel by the Norwegian author and climate campaigner Maja Lunde, envisages a world without enough water and how it impacts a father and daughter.

All We Can Save, edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katharine K Wilkinson – a powerful collection of essays from some of the women leading on climate issues in the United States, from scientists and teachers to activists, farmers and lawyers.

How Women Can Save The Planet, Anne Karpf – poor women of colour are most impaced by the climate crisis - yet are rarely at the negotiating table.

Sociologist Anne Karpf calls or visionary global climate policies that promote gender equality.

Promoting gender equality Alongside her acting work, Emma Watson campaigns on climate, social and gender equality issues.

She is a Goodwill Ambassador for UN Women – the United Nations organization which promotes gender equality and the empowerment of women.

During COP26, Watson’s official Instagram site was taken over by “an anonymous Feminist Collective”.

More than 300 books were shared around the UK as part of The Book Fairies’ #COPBookFairies campaign.

HERE ARE 6 BOOKS EMMA WATSON WANTS YOU TO READ ON CLIMATE CHANGE

5

6

WASHINGTON (AP) — To finally determine a lasting definition of waterways that qualify for federal protection under the Clean Water Act, the Environmental Protection Agency’s new water director says everyone with a stake in the issue will need to be engaged.

Radhika Fox recently spoke to The Associated Press about the Biden administration’s plan to rewrite the regulation, also called Waters of the United States. The contentious rule was scaled back by the Trump administration after being expanded under President Barack Obama.

Q A

Fox joins the EPA as water issues have become a priority under President Joe Biden. She was previously CEO of the conservation advocacy group U.S. Water Alliance and policy director at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission.

Fox also spoke about the infrastructure plan’s goal of eliminating the country’s remaining lead pipes and service lines, which pose a risk for contaminated water in homes and schools. And she spoke about the importance of diversifying water sources in dry regions, such as by recycling wastewater and capturing stormwater.

The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

7

EPA WATER CHIEF ON CLEAN WATER PROTECTIONS

Q A

Regarding the Clean Water Act, how does the administration seek to balance the interests of farmers, ranchers, developers and environmentalists?

If we look back 50 years ago, what really prompted us to create the Clean Water Act is that literally rivers were on fire because pollution was so bad. To your question about how we intend to get to a durable definition, it’s really to do it in partnership. The one thing about Waters of the U.S. is nearly every water stakeholder has a stake in that definition. If we don’t reflect on that, and really understand the on-the-ground implementation challenges, I don’t think we can get to a durable definition.

Q A Q A

Who is the administration talking to before changes to the rule are made?

We are going to have public meetings that will be happening later this summer, where any interested stakeholder can share their views. We’re going to be doing regional roundtables in different parts of the country so we can understand the regional variation. When we do those, we’re going to try to bring all sides together in one discussion.

How do you see the twin challenges of promoting growth in arid places while drought conditions and water scarcity worsen?

We are going to have public meetings that will be happening later this summer, where any interested stakeholder can share their views. We’re going to be doing regional roundtables in different parts of the country so we can understand the regional variation. When we do those, we’re going to try to bring all sides together in one discussion.

Is it wise to encourage millions of people to live in places facing aridification and annual wildfires?

Q A

Who isn’t currently served by clean water in the U.S.?

Q A

How does the infrastructure plan intend to map out where lead pipes and service lines are?

If you look at the water access gap in this country, it impacts both urban and rural America. In rural communities, we have places like McDowell County, West Virginia, where communities never got centralized drinking water and wastewater infrastructure. In many urban communities, it’s low-income people and communities of color, particularly African Americans and Latino communities that face many of the contamination issues and aging water infrastructure issues. There’s millions of people who don’t have access to clean, safe, reliable, and increasingly, affordable water service.

There’s a real unevenness around the country in knowing where these lead service lines are. There’s also a lot of new technologies that are emerging that can help the water utility map these things more quickly and more efficiently. In places that have that, they’d be able to move forward with those removal projects. For communities that don’t, we really would like to see some of the resources going to doing that inventory. We are also developing guidance and technical assistance to help states and localities on that inventory. There’s a number of water associations that are also working with their member utilities.

The reality is we have millions of people living in the West. It is a critical economic center for America. So we really need to invest in those things that are going to promote diversification of water supplies. When I worked at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, we were in a drought at the time. A lot of the success that we had is that, as a local water utility, we tried to steward every drop as carefully as we could.

8

WASHINGTON (AP) — To finally determine a lasting definition of waterways that qualify for federal protection under the Clean Water Act, the Environmental Protection Agency’s new water director says everyone with a stake in the issue will need to be engaged.

Radhika Fox recently spoke to The Associated Press about the Biden administration’s plan to rewrite the regulation, also called Waters of the United States. The contentious rule was scaled back by the Trump administration after being expanded under President Barack Obama.

Q A

Fox joins the EPA as water issues have become a priority under President Joe Biden. She was previously CEO of the conservation advocacy group U.S. Water Alliance and policy director at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission.

Fox also spoke about the infrastructure plan’s goal of eliminating the country’s remaining lead pipes and service lines, which pose a risk for contaminated water in homes and schools. And she spoke about the importance of diversifying water sources in dry regions, such as by recycling wastewater and capturing stormwater.

The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

7

EPA WATER CHIEF ON CLEAN WATER PROTECTIONS

Q A

Regarding the Clean Water Act, how does the administration seek to balance the interests of farmers, ranchers, developers and environmentalists?

If we look back 50 years ago, what really prompted us to create the Clean Water Act is that literally rivers were on fire because pollution was so bad. To your question about how we intend to get to a durable definition, it’s really to do it in partnership. The one thing about Waters of the U.S. is nearly every water stakeholder has a stake in that definition. If we don’t reflect on that, and really understand the on-the-ground implementation challenges, I don’t think we can get to a durable definition.

Q A Q A

Who is the administration talking to before changes to the rule are made?

We are going to have public meetings that will be happening later this summer, where any interested stakeholder can share their views. We’re going to be doing regional roundtables in different parts of the country so we can understand the regional variation. When we do those, we’re going to try to bring all sides together in one discussion.

How do you see the twin challenges of promoting growth in arid places while drought conditions and water scarcity worsen?

We are going to have public meetings that will be happening later this summer, where any interested stakeholder can share their views. We’re going to be doing regional roundtables in different parts of the country so we can understand the regional variation. When we do those, we’re going to try to bring all sides together in one discussion.

Is it wise to encourage millions of people to live in places facing aridification and annual wildfires?

Q A

Who isn’t currently served by clean water in the U.S.?

Q A

How does the infrastructure plan intend to map out where lead pipes and service lines are?

If you look at the water access gap in this country, it impacts both urban and rural America. In rural communities, we have places like McDowell County, West Virginia, where communities never got centralized drinking water and wastewater infrastructure. In many urban communities, it’s low-income people and communities of color, particularly African Americans and Latino communities that face many of the contamination issues and aging water infrastructure issues. There’s millions of people who don’t have access to clean, safe, reliable, and increasingly, affordable water service.

There’s a real unevenness around the country in knowing where these lead service lines are. There’s also a lot of new technologies that are emerging that can help the water utility map these things more quickly and more efficiently. In places that have that, they’d be able to move forward with those removal projects. For communities that don’t, we really would like to see some of the resources going to doing that inventory. We are also developing guidance and technical assistance to help states and localities on that inventory. There’s a number of water associations that are also working with their member utilities.

The reality is we have millions of people living in the West. It is a critical economic center for America. So we really need to invest in those things that are going to promote diversification of water supplies. When I worked at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, we were in a drought at the time. A lot of the success that we had is that, as a local water utility, we tried to steward every drop as carefully as we could.

8

STEP INSIDE ASHTON KUTCHER AND MILA KUNIS’S SUSTAINABLE L.A. FARMHOUSE

9

August 3, 2021 Image may contain Mila Kunis Furniture Couch Porch Human Person Living Room Room Indoors Patio Wood and Cushion Mila Kunis, wearing a Dior dress, earrings by Louis Vuitton, and a Hoorsenbuhs ring, and Ashton Kutcher, in Levi’s jeans and a vintage t-shirt, at ease on the veranda. Sofa by Cisco Home. Landscape

by L.Z. Design Group. Fashion Styling by Rob & Mariel. Douglas Friedman. Hair by Mara Rosak at A-Frame Agency; makeup by Mélanie Inglessis at Forward Artists for Armani Beauty.

There’s surely some Beverly Hillbillies quip that pertains to the home that actors Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis have built on a glorious hilltop site perched above the storied Los Angeles enclave. After all, the high-powered Hollywood transplants—he’s from Iowa; she was born in Ukraine—dug a well on the property to irrigate the land, planted (and harvested) a field of corn during the COVID lockdown, and dubbed the place KuKu Farms. But while Jed, Granny, and the rest of the Clampetts embraced a far more traditional take on Beverly Hills splendor—the sprawling French Neoclassical mansion pictured in the series credits was designed by architect Sumner Spaulding in the early 1930s and renovated by the legendary designer Henri Samuel in the 1980s—Kutcher and Kunis approached their passion project from a decidedly more modest perspective.

“We wanted a home, not an estate,” Kunis insists, describing the six-acre property that now accommodates a main house connected to a guesthouse/entertainment barn, as well as a freestanding barbecue pavilion, all arrayed along a central axis elaborately plotted to capture the beguiling views from, between, and through the various structures. “We wanted the house to look like an old barn, something that had been here for decades, that was then converted into a house. But it also had to feel modern and relevant,” Kutcher elaborates.

The design-obsessed duo launched their five-year adventure by assembling independent Pinterest boards to flesh out their personal visions for the project. “Building a house from the ground up is no small thing. This was either going to make us or break us,” Kunis says of the potentially divisive undertaking. Happily, their aesthetic predilections seemed to dovetail neatly. “When we looked at each other’s boards, 90 percent of the images we selected were the same, and most of the houses we pinned were designed by Howard,” Kutcher recalls, referring to architect Howard Backen of the AD100 firm Backen & Gillam Architects.

Backen, of course, is a master of the so-called modern farmhouse, renowned for his ability to coax a sense of poetry and a bright, contemporary spirit from distilled vernacular forms and rustic materials. The Kutcher/Kunis residence is a testament to his alchemical handling of reclaimed wood, board-form concrete, and glass. “Howard is like a great software designer, someone who approaches design as an accentuation of function,” says Kutcher, who has broad experience in technology start-ups. “A software designer wants to get people where they want to be with the fewest clicks. Howard wants to get you where you want to be with the fewest doors and obstacles. He also knows that there are certain places where you want a barrier to mark a threshold and create a little friction,” Kutcher adds.

For his part, Backen returns the compliment. “Ashton and Mila are two of the smartest, most inquisitive people we’ve ever worked with. We talked about everything from beam sizes to the details of the cross bracing to the junctures of the wood planks and concrete. These are not the kinds of conversations we have with every client,” says the architect.

Stephanie Gerwin, Backen’s associate, seconds the notion. “They were out there with us, as genuine members of the design team,

for every step of this long and complicated process,” she notes, emphasizing the couple’s commitment to creating a sustainable, nurturing home for themselves and their two young children, Wyatt and Dimitri. The house is entirely powered by photovoltaics, concealed from view above the expansive porch that stretches along one side of the main structure. In fact, the house’s solar array produces significantly more power than the property requires, although antiquated municipal codes don’t exactly encourage energy sharing— a situation the homeowners hope will change in the future. “Ashton and Mila are concerned about the quality of the soil, the purity of the food they eat and the water they drink. The ideals of sustainability and regenerative farming aren’t just abstract concepts to them,” Backen avers.

The house’s refined architectural vocabulary and rugged materials palette provided a springboard for the work of AD100 interior designer Vicky Charles of Charles & Co., who joined the project just as she was exiting her post as global head of design for Soho House. “We were obsessed with Soho Farmhouse and other projects Vicky spearheaded. We loved the way she mixed fabrics, patterns, textures—really her whole aesthetic,” Kunis says.

In addition to new, crisply tailored tables and plush, super-comfortable seating, Charles incorporated elements from her clients’ previous homes, notably a set of custom silver throne chairs that Kutcher commissioned on a trip to India and an extravagant 10-foot-long crystal chandelier that seemed completely antithetical to the architecture’s humble forms and timeworn materials. “I got this job because I promised I could make a home for those, shall we say, formidable pieces,” Charles jokes. Ultimately she placed a pair of chairs in the primary bath—thrones for the throne room—and installed the chandelier in the towering entertainment pavilion. “We thought it would be funny to have this incredibly opulent thing hanging in a barn. It kind of takes the piss out of the property,” Kunis says of the improbable crystal confection.

Notwithstanding those notes of self-effacing levity, the soul of the Kutcher/Kunis residence remains tied to the meticulous planning and fanatical attention to detail that the homeowners and their designers lavished on every aspect of the project. “To feel tranquility in a space, everything needs to be in order,” Kutcher concludes.

“If the world around you isn’t in order, it’s hard to get your brain in order. When we’re in our home, the world just makes sense.”

“Mila was pregnant with their first child when we began this journey. We spent months looking at materials and colors to find the right visual language. Our conversations were not just about the land and the architecture but also about the future of their family,” Charles recalls. “Over time, the design moved away from a traditional farmhouse aesthetic to something more contemporary.

Wrought-iron chandeliers and big chesterfields were the wrong clothes for this body,” she adds.

10

STEP INSIDE ASHTON KUTCHER AND MILA KUNIS’S SUSTAINABLE L.A. FARMHOUSE

9

August 3, 2021 Image may contain Mila Kunis Furniture Couch Porch Human Person Living Room Room Indoors Patio Wood and Cushion Mila Kunis, wearing a Dior dress, earrings by Louis Vuitton, and a Hoorsenbuhs ring, and Ashton Kutcher, in Levi’s jeans and a vintage t-shirt, at ease on the veranda. Sofa by Cisco Home. Landscape

by L.Z. Design Group. Fashion Styling by Rob & Mariel. Douglas Friedman. Hair by Mara Rosak at A-Frame Agency; makeup by Mélanie Inglessis at Forward Artists for Armani Beauty.

There’s surely some Beverly Hillbillies quip that pertains to the home that actors Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis have built on a glorious hilltop site perched above the storied Los Angeles enclave. After all, the high-powered Hollywood transplants—he’s from Iowa; she was born in Ukraine—dug a well on the property to irrigate the land, planted (and harvested) a field of corn during the COVID lockdown, and dubbed the place KuKu Farms. But while Jed, Granny, and the rest of the Clampetts embraced a far more traditional take on Beverly Hills splendor—the sprawling French Neoclassical mansion pictured in the series credits was designed by architect Sumner Spaulding in the early 1930s and renovated by the legendary designer Henri Samuel in the 1980s—Kutcher and Kunis approached their passion project from a decidedly more modest perspective.

“We wanted a home, not an estate,” Kunis insists, describing the six-acre property that now accommodates a main house connected to a guesthouse/entertainment barn, as well as a freestanding barbecue pavilion, all arrayed along a central axis elaborately plotted to capture the beguiling views from, between, and through the various structures. “We wanted the house to look like an old barn, something that had been here for decades, that was then converted into a house. But it also had to feel modern and relevant,” Kutcher elaborates.

The design-obsessed duo launched their five-year adventure by assembling independent Pinterest boards to flesh out their personal visions for the project. “Building a house from the ground up is no small thing. This was either going to make us or break us,” Kunis says of the potentially divisive undertaking. Happily, their aesthetic predilections seemed to dovetail neatly. “When we looked at each other’s boards, 90 percent of the images we selected were the same, and most of the houses we pinned were designed by Howard,” Kutcher recalls, referring to architect Howard Backen of the AD100 firm Backen & Gillam Architects.

Backen, of course, is a master of the so-called modern farmhouse, renowned for his ability to coax a sense of poetry and a bright, contemporary spirit from distilled vernacular forms and rustic materials. The Kutcher/Kunis residence is a testament to his alchemical handling of reclaimed wood, board-form concrete, and glass. “Howard is like a great software designer, someone who approaches design as an accentuation of function,” says Kutcher, who has broad experience in technology start-ups. “A software designer wants to get people where they want to be with the fewest clicks. Howard wants to get you where you want to be with the fewest doors and obstacles. He also knows that there are certain places where you want a barrier to mark a threshold and create a little friction,” Kutcher adds.

For his part, Backen returns the compliment. “Ashton and Mila are two of the smartest, most inquisitive people we’ve ever worked with. We talked about everything from beam sizes to the details of the cross bracing to the junctures of the wood planks and concrete. These are not the kinds of conversations we have with every client,” says the architect.

Stephanie Gerwin, Backen’s associate, seconds the notion. “They were out there with us, as genuine members of the design team,

for every step of this long and complicated process,” she notes, emphasizing the couple’s commitment to creating a sustainable, nurturing home for themselves and their two young children, Wyatt and Dimitri. The house is entirely powered by photovoltaics, concealed from view above the expansive porch that stretches along one side of the main structure. In fact, the house’s solar array produces significantly more power than the property requires, although antiquated municipal codes don’t exactly encourage energy sharing— a situation the homeowners hope will change in the future. “Ashton and Mila are concerned about the quality of the soil, the purity of the food they eat and the water they drink. The ideals of sustainability and regenerative farming aren’t just abstract concepts to them,” Backen avers.

The house’s refined architectural vocabulary and rugged materials palette provided a springboard for the work of AD100 interior designer Vicky Charles of Charles & Co., who joined the project just as she was exiting her post as global head of design for Soho House. “We were obsessed with Soho Farmhouse and other projects Vicky spearheaded. We loved the way she mixed fabrics, patterns, textures—really her whole aesthetic,” Kunis says.

In addition to new, crisply tailored tables and plush, super-comfortable seating, Charles incorporated elements from her clients’ previous homes, notably a set of custom silver throne chairs that Kutcher commissioned on a trip to India and an extravagant 10-foot-long crystal chandelier that seemed completely antithetical to the architecture’s humble forms and timeworn materials. “I got this job because I promised I could make a home for those, shall we say, formidable pieces,” Charles jokes. Ultimately she placed a pair of chairs in the primary bath—thrones for the throne room—and installed the chandelier in the towering entertainment pavilion. “We thought it would be funny to have this incredibly opulent thing hanging in a barn. It kind of takes the piss out of the property,” Kunis says of the improbable crystal confection.

Notwithstanding those notes of self-effacing levity, the soul of the Kutcher/Kunis residence remains tied to the meticulous planning and fanatical attention to detail that the homeowners and their designers lavished on every aspect of the project. “To feel tranquility in a space, everything needs to be in order,” Kutcher concludes.

“If the world around you isn’t in order, it’s hard to get your brain in order. When we’re in our home, the world just makes sense.”

“Mila was pregnant with their first child when we began this journey. We spent months looking at materials and colors to find the right visual language. Our conversations were not just about the land and the architecture but also about the future of their family,” Charles recalls. “Over time, the design moved away from a traditional farmhouse aesthetic to something more contemporary.

Wrought-iron chandeliers and big chesterfields were the wrong clothes for this body,” she adds.

10

Siblings Scent No 1 Bundle

24 SUSTAINABLE AND ECO-FRIENDLY GIFT IDEAS FOR ANYONE IN 2021 There are small adjustments we can all make to reduce our carbon footprint, and the holidays are a good time to start changing your habits, considering there is much more waste created during this time.

According to the Stanford University Recycling Center, Americans create 25 percent more waste in the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas than any other time of year, totaling 25 million tons of additional garbage.

When thinking about eco-friendly living, words like “recycled,” “organic,” and “green” might come to mind, but there is actually a lot more to it than that. “Asking questions like ‘Who made this product?’

‘What materials did they use and where were they sourced’ and ‘What is their working environment like?’ will help you understand if the entire product and its processes are really sustainable,” said Aimee Singh, co-founder of Plastic Free Pursuit, an online shop for zero-waste products with gift registry options for various occasions.

If you know someone who is trying to be less wasteful, the holiday season is a great time to give them something they can use on their journey. Singh advised to gift items that replace wasteful things like single-use bathroom or kitchen items, and to look for fabrics like cotton, bamboo and hemp. If you’re looking for a more subtle gift, she suggested something like a reusable water bottle or a sweet-scented shampoo bar that’s “sustainable without making it obvious.” When in doubt, a starter kit is a good jumping off point: “Zero-waste kits make great gifts because they’re sort of a nice step toward a more sustainable lifestyle and anybody can use them,” she said.

Whether you know someone who is very into living a more green lifestyle or you want to introduce them to ways they can be more earth-conscious, we’ve curated a list of some of our favorite sustainable and eco-friendly gift ideas.

A brand that is attempting to reduce candle waste, this DIY candle set from Siblings is a fun craft to do on a winter day that the receiver will enjoy all season. All they have to do is melt the bag of eco-friendly coconut wax, place the included wick in the vessel and pour.

With notes of rose, bergamot, and earth oakmoss, this scent should suit most tastes and comes in plant- based packaging, according to the brand. The brand offers several other options as well in case they prefer something sweeter or even scent-free.

Furoshiki Reusable Gift Wrapping Cloth The gift that keeps on giving, use this pretty fabric to wrap their gift, and then they can reuse it for another gift in the future. Available in three colorful motifs, this cloth eliminates the need for wasteful wrapping paper this holiday season.

Introduce the eco-conscious person in your life to the sustainable practice of composting. This stainless steel bin, which I myself own and love, can rescue their food scraps from the landfill. When gifting, include information on where they can drop off their compost and some compostable bin liners to get them started on the right foot.

The best eco-friendly gift ideas

To help you find the best eco-friendly gifts, we rounded up top-rated and earth-conscious gifts based on Select reader interest. Whether it has biodegradable packaging or is made out of upcycled material, each of these gifts has some sort of sustainable element.

Indoor Herb Garden Starter Kit

Allbirds Wool Runners

Growing herbs right at home is a great way to jumpstart a healthier and more sustainable lifestyle. According to the brand, this kit includes USDA Organic seeds for five commonly used herbs: thyme, cilantro, basil, parsley and sage. It also includes compostable starter pots and soil discs so they have everything they need to get started. Gift with a ceramic pot from a small local business or a watering can made from recycled materials.

One of our favorite eco-friendly shoes, the Allbirds Wool Runners are available for both men and women and come in 11 different colorways. Allbirds is a Certified B Corporation, which means that they allowed B Corps to audit their sustainability practices and were given a stamp of approval.

Nixon Light-Wave Watch A great way to sneak something eco-friendly into a loved one’s wardrobe, this watch from Nixon is solar-powered, eliminating the need for batteries. There are five stylish colorways to choose from and the band and case are made from recycled ocean plastics, according to the brand.

Principle Beauty Eyeshadow Palette

Sheet masks are typically made with different types of fabric, but Masque Bar says these are made from plant cellulose and are biodegradable. Included in the set are Rose, Banana, Coconut, and Green Tea masks to handle all their skin woes.

11

Brightly Sustainable Chef Gift Set

Great for the beauty guru in your life, this eyeshadow palette could be a great addition to their beauty kit. The natural earthy tones are made with organic ingredients like jojoba and coconut oils and can be used as eyeshadow, blush or highlighter, according to the brand. Plus, the brand says the palette itself is made of upcycled cork and is fully backyard compostable.

A gift that any aspiring chef or cooking connoisseur will likely enjoy, this gift set is filled with items that are meant to be reused or regifted when done. The set includes an organic cotton apron from Reluctant Threads, Food Huggers to replace plastic wrap and sustainably

ChopValue Dominos Boody Cozy Knit Wrap

Masque Bar Natural Beauty Kit

Utopia Kitchen Compost Bin

This chic wrap can be worn as a scarf but is also big enough to cuddle up with on the couch. It Is made from bamboo, which requires less water and is more sustainable to grow than cotton, according to the brand. The wrap also comes in recycled packaging with vegetable-based inks. It’s available in four colors and is anti-static for more comfort on the cold days ahead, the brand says.

Upgrade their lounge or game room with the gift of a classic game like Dominos.

This set from ChopValue is made out of recycled chopsticks — the company says it collects used chopsticks from restaurants and gives them new life in the form of fun games, home decor and furniture.

Scoria Yoga Mat Regular yoga mats are made of synthetic materials, but Scoria says that its mat is made out of antimicrobial cork and sustainably sourced natural rubber. The mat with a carrying strap for convenient transport to their favorite yoga spot, and the brand says that proceeds of each purpose go to educating indigenous youth.

12

Siblings Scent No 1 Bundle

24 SUSTAINABLE AND ECO-FRIENDLY GIFT IDEAS FOR ANYONE IN 2021 There are small adjustments we can all make to reduce our carbon footprint, and the holidays are a good time to start changing your habits, considering there is much more waste created during this time.

According to the Stanford University Recycling Center, Americans create 25 percent more waste in the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas than any other time of year, totaling 25 million tons of additional garbage.

When thinking about eco-friendly living, words like “recycled,” “organic,” and “green” might come to mind, but there is actually a lot more to it than that. “Asking questions like ‘Who made this product?’

‘What materials did they use and where were they sourced’ and ‘What is their working environment like?’ will help you understand if the entire product and its processes are really sustainable,” said Aimee Singh, co-founder of Plastic Free Pursuit, an online shop for zero-waste products with gift registry options for various occasions.

If you know someone who is trying to be less wasteful, the holiday season is a great time to give them something they can use on their journey. Singh advised to gift items that replace wasteful things like single-use bathroom or kitchen items, and to look for fabrics like cotton, bamboo and hemp. If you’re looking for a more subtle gift, she suggested something like a reusable water bottle or a sweet-scented shampoo bar that’s “sustainable without making it obvious.” When in doubt, a starter kit is a good jumping off point: “Zero-waste kits make great gifts because they’re sort of a nice step toward a more sustainable lifestyle and anybody can use them,” she said.

Whether you know someone who is very into living a more green lifestyle or you want to introduce them to ways they can be more earth-conscious, we’ve curated a list of some of our favorite sustainable and eco-friendly gift ideas.

A brand that is attempting to reduce candle waste, this DIY candle set from Siblings is a fun craft to do on a winter day that the receiver will enjoy all season. All they have to do is melt the bag of eco-friendly coconut wax, place the included wick in the vessel and pour.

With notes of rose, bergamot, and earth oakmoss, this scent should suit most tastes and comes in plant- based packaging, according to the brand. The brand offers several other options as well in case they prefer something sweeter or even scent-free.

Furoshiki Reusable Gift Wrapping Cloth The gift that keeps on giving, use this pretty fabric to wrap their gift, and then they can reuse it for another gift in the future. Available in three colorful motifs, this cloth eliminates the need for wasteful wrapping paper this holiday season.

Introduce the eco-conscious person in your life to the sustainable practice of composting. This stainless steel bin, which I myself own and love, can rescue their food scraps from the landfill. When gifting, include information on where they can drop off their compost and some compostable bin liners to get them started on the right foot.

The best eco-friendly gift ideas

To help you find the best eco-friendly gifts, we rounded up top-rated and earth-conscious gifts based on Select reader interest. Whether it has biodegradable packaging or is made out of upcycled material, each of these gifts has some sort of sustainable element.

Indoor Herb Garden Starter Kit

Allbirds Wool Runners

Growing herbs right at home is a great way to jumpstart a healthier and more sustainable lifestyle. According to the brand, this kit includes USDA Organic seeds for five commonly used herbs: thyme, cilantro, basil, parsley and sage. It also includes compostable starter pots and soil discs so they have everything they need to get started. Gift with a ceramic pot from a small local business or a watering can made from recycled materials.

One of our favorite eco-friendly shoes, the Allbirds Wool Runners are available for both men and women and come in 11 different colorways. Allbirds is a Certified B Corporation, which means that they allowed B Corps to audit their sustainability practices and were given a stamp of approval.

Nixon Light-Wave Watch A great way to sneak something eco-friendly into a loved one’s wardrobe, this watch from Nixon is solar-powered, eliminating the need for batteries. There are five stylish colorways to choose from and the band and case are made from recycled ocean plastics, according to the brand.

Principle Beauty Eyeshadow Palette

Sheet masks are typically made with different types of fabric, but Masque Bar says these are made from plant cellulose and are biodegradable. Included in the set are Rose, Banana, Coconut, and Green Tea masks to handle all their skin woes.

11

Brightly Sustainable Chef Gift Set

Great for the beauty guru in your life, this eyeshadow palette could be a great addition to their beauty kit. The natural earthy tones are made with organic ingredients like jojoba and coconut oils and can be used as eyeshadow, blush or highlighter, according to the brand. Plus, the brand says the palette itself is made of upcycled cork and is fully backyard compostable.

A gift that any aspiring chef or cooking connoisseur will likely enjoy, this gift set is filled with items that are meant to be reused or regifted when done. The set includes an organic cotton apron from Reluctant Threads, Food Huggers to replace plastic wrap and sustainably

ChopValue Dominos Boody Cozy Knit Wrap

Masque Bar Natural Beauty Kit

Utopia Kitchen Compost Bin

This chic wrap can be worn as a scarf but is also big enough to cuddle up with on the couch. It Is made from bamboo, which requires less water and is more sustainable to grow than cotton, according to the brand. The wrap also comes in recycled packaging with vegetable-based inks. It’s available in four colors and is anti-static for more comfort on the cold days ahead, the brand says.

Upgrade their lounge or game room with the gift of a classic game like Dominos.

This set from ChopValue is made out of recycled chopsticks — the company says it collects used chopsticks from restaurants and gives them new life in the form of fun games, home decor and furniture.

Scoria Yoga Mat Regular yoga mats are made of synthetic materials, but Scoria says that its mat is made out of antimicrobial cork and sustainably sourced natural rubber. The mat with a carrying strap for convenient transport to their favorite yoga spot, and the brand says that proceeds of each purpose go to educating indigenous youth.

12

Earth Mama Organics Baby Gift Set

Paravel Aviator Carry-On

This organic travel minis set comes in simple recycled cardboard packaging that won’t take away from the fun inside. It includes baby essentials like diaper balm, baby wash and nose and cheek balm. A set like this could be smart to buy for loved ones with babies who might be staying over for the holidays so they can use it during the trip and then take it home.

This stylish carry-on has a recycled polycarbonate shell, recycled zippers, vegan leather details and recycled aluminum. Not only does the brand say that it offsets the carbon used in sourcing, creating and delivering the product to the customer, but it also says it offsets an additional .33 tonnes of carbon, which it approximates to be the estimated equivalent to the first trip you might take with this carry-on.

Blueland The Natural Hand Soap Collection

Wildred The Cloud Puff

Kooshoo Compostable Scrunchies

New for 2021, this set from Blueland includes four reusable hand soap containers with soap tablets in scents like gingerbread, peppermint and evergreen. The eco-friendly cleaning brand, which previously appeared on “Shark Tank,” says it prides itself on doing everything possible to eliminate single-use plastics from the home, so these glass containers are meant to be refilled and reused for years to come.

Made out of organic dyes, natural rubber and Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certified and Fair Trade certified organic cotton, these scrunchies from Kooshoo are biodegradable and plastic-free, according to the brand.

Sold as a pair, there are nine fun color sets to choose from.

KeepCup Reusable Cup

Give the gift of fashion-forward trends with the popular puff jacket from Aritzia. The normal version of this jacket is stuffed with goose-down, but the brand made a more eco-friendly version out of vegan leather and a down alternative it says is made with 100 percent recycled materials. There are five colors to choose from, so you can find the one that best suits their style.

Coming in several sizes and fun colors, this reusable cup will allow them to drink their favorite coffee without the need for a cardboard sleeve, as the cork band does the job. Supplement this gift with a gift card to their favorite local coffee shop or some fair trade coffee grounds.

Girlfriend Collective Please Recycle Backpack

Vrai Pave Huggie Hoops Vrai says it has the world’s first diamonds produced with zero carbon footprint and according to the brand, each carat it makes saves over 2,000 ounces of air pollution. Choose from hoops in recycled 14K yellow, white or rose gold to match their everyday style.

According to Girlfriend Collective, 47 plastic water bottles were used to make this sleek and, ironically, water-resistant backpack. It comes in five earth tones and has an interior laptop sleeve, making it great for heading back into the office.

Rachio Smart Sprinkler Controller Great for the dad obsessed with his lawn or the frequent flier who isn’t home much, this smart sprinkler system can be customized to your lawn and its needs and can be controlled by your smartphone or any smart home device.

It uses a smart scheduling system that knows when your lawn needs watering the most — according to the brand, this helps conserve water use and waste, helping both the planet and their bank account.

Pela Phone Case

To-Go Ware Bamboo Utensil Set Whether you’re shopping for someone who loves to hike or even just your coworker who is constantly ordering takeout, the BPA-free set will help them avoid single-use plastic utensils. The dishwasher-safe set includes a fork, spoon, knife, straw and set of chopsticks.

The carrying case is small enough to stick in any bag, and according to the brand, it’s made from post-consumer water bottles.

13

Fully compostable and biodegradable, according to the brand, this case from Pela is made of flax straw material (Flaxstic is what they call it). This case features a colorful daisy design that is sure to enhance their mood. Not only is the brand a member of 1% For the Planet (meaning it donates proceeds to planet-protecting initiatives), but it also says that it’s already saved nearly 600,000 pounds of plastic from entering the system by selling its cases.

The Foggy Dog Bandana The Foggy Dog says that its trendy bandanas are made from materials like organic cotton and upcycled denim in a zero-waste textile mill. Made in the USA, they come in three sizes and can be bought with matching scrunchies so you can match your pup. The brand also says it donates one meal to a shelter dog with each order.

14

Earth Mama Organics Baby Gift Set

Paravel Aviator Carry-On

This organic travel minis set comes in simple recycled cardboard packaging that won’t take away from the fun inside. It includes baby essentials like diaper balm, baby wash and nose and cheek balm. A set like this could be smart to buy for loved ones with babies who might be staying over for the holidays so they can use it during the trip and then take it home.

This stylish carry-on has a recycled polycarbonate shell, recycled zippers, vegan leather details and recycled aluminum. Not only does the brand say that it offsets the carbon used in sourcing, creating and delivering the product to the customer, but it also says it offsets an additional .33 tonnes of carbon, which it approximates to be the estimated equivalent to the first trip you might take with this carry-on.

Blueland The Natural Hand Soap Collection

Wildred The Cloud Puff

Kooshoo Compostable Scrunchies

New for 2021, this set from Blueland includes four reusable hand soap containers with soap tablets in scents like gingerbread, peppermint and evergreen. The eco-friendly cleaning brand, which previously appeared on “Shark Tank,” says it prides itself on doing everything possible to eliminate single-use plastics from the home, so these glass containers are meant to be refilled and reused for years to come.

Made out of organic dyes, natural rubber and Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certified and Fair Trade certified organic cotton, these scrunchies from Kooshoo are biodegradable and plastic-free, according to the brand.

Sold as a pair, there are nine fun color sets to choose from.

KeepCup Reusable Cup

Give the gift of fashion-forward trends with the popular puff jacket from Aritzia. The normal version of this jacket is stuffed with goose-down, but the brand made a more eco-friendly version out of vegan leather and a down alternative it says is made with 100 percent recycled materials. There are five colors to choose from, so you can find the one that best suits their style.

Coming in several sizes and fun colors, this reusable cup will allow them to drink their favorite coffee without the need for a cardboard sleeve, as the cork band does the job. Supplement this gift with a gift card to their favorite local coffee shop or some fair trade coffee grounds.

Girlfriend Collective Please Recycle Backpack

Vrai Pave Huggie Hoops Vrai says it has the world’s first diamonds produced with zero carbon footprint and according to the brand, each carat it makes saves over 2,000 ounces of air pollution. Choose from hoops in recycled 14K yellow, white or rose gold to match their everyday style.

According to Girlfriend Collective, 47 plastic water bottles were used to make this sleek and, ironically, water-resistant backpack. It comes in five earth tones and has an interior laptop sleeve, making it great for heading back into the office.

Rachio Smart Sprinkler Controller Great for the dad obsessed with his lawn or the frequent flier who isn’t home much, this smart sprinkler system can be customized to your lawn and its needs and can be controlled by your smartphone or any smart home device.

It uses a smart scheduling system that knows when your lawn needs watering the most — according to the brand, this helps conserve water use and waste, helping both the planet and their bank account.

Pela Phone Case

To-Go Ware Bamboo Utensil Set Whether you’re shopping for someone who loves to hike or even just your coworker who is constantly ordering takeout, the BPA-free set will help them avoid single-use plastic utensils. The dishwasher-safe set includes a fork, spoon, knife, straw and set of chopsticks.

The carrying case is small enough to stick in any bag, and according to the brand, it’s made from post-consumer water bottles.

13

Fully compostable and biodegradable, according to the brand, this case from Pela is made of flax straw material (Flaxstic is what they call it). This case features a colorful daisy design that is sure to enhance their mood. Not only is the brand a member of 1% For the Planet (meaning it donates proceeds to planet-protecting initiatives), but it also says that it’s already saved nearly 600,000 pounds of plastic from entering the system by selling its cases.

The Foggy Dog Bandana The Foggy Dog says that its trendy bandanas are made from materials like organic cotton and upcycled denim in a zero-waste textile mill. Made in the USA, they come in three sizes and can be bought with matching scrunchies so you can match your pup. The brand also says it donates one meal to a shelter dog with each order.

14

RE-PURPOSED SWEATER PILLOWS DIY

If you are using a pillow form, you will need to be sure the sweater has enough room that when cut, it will be the size of the pillow (front and back). Normally, you would add enough room on your sweater for seam allowance, which would be ideal. But if you are tight on room, I actually found that because it is a sweater, it stretches nicely and fits a pillow snugly even if you don’t have an extra 1/2 inch around all sides for the seam allowance.

Once you’ve lined up your pillow to your sweater, use a fabric marker to draw the shape of the pillow onto the sweater to mark where you will cut.

Cut alongside your markings. You can leave side seams if they are already out there.

You will be using both the back and front of the sweater.

Now here is the key to keeping your sweater the shape you want it to be! You will cute 2 pieces of lightweight fusible interfacing the same size you cut your sweater pieces.

Then you need to fuse the interfacing on the wrong sides of the sweater- both front and back.

By doing this important step, your knit sweater will not stretch or move when you sew it with the sewing machine. It keeps the exact shape you cut it as. The difference this step maks is huge!

Pillows are a wonderful way to cozy-up your home during the winter months!

I would like to share with you an inexpensive and easy way to take an un-loved, chunky knit sweater and turn it into a cozy re-purposed sweater pillow for your home.

For this pillow, all you need are some old sweaters that wouldn’t make you feel bad to cut up. Check your closet first and then search the thrift stores for something that is large enough to go around your pillow form of choice.

Once you find the perfect sweater, you’ll need either a pillow form or some sort of fiber-fill stuffing. I’ve even been known to cut up old pillows and re-purpose the filling for a new pillow.

This project can be done super cheap!

Don’t be afraid to use sweaters with buttons or zippers on one side. You can tie those in decoratively or use them on the backside for easy, built-in closure options. That is what I did with the pillow below.

When you try to sew with knitted materials, the fabric will easily stretch, leaving you with wavy seams and a less than appealing project.

Another thing that will help, is having a walking foot on your machine- though this is not necessary.

Take your sweater pieces with the interfacing on, and line them up right sides together. Pin all around and note a space to leave open for the filling or pillow form. If inserting a pillow inside, you will need a larger opening. I left about 10 inches in order to get my pillow inside.

Sew all the way around the 4 sides, leaving your opening.

MATERIALS: Sweater Pillow form or stuffing You can thrift a pillow form, buy stuffing, or buy a new form. Lightweight Fusible Interfacing

15

Flip it right sides out and shape your corners, Fill it with your pillow or stuffing.

You will need to fold the edges of the opening in to match the seam and pin it securely shut.

Take a needle and thread and hand stitch the opening shut.

And thats it! so very easy, youll want to make one for every corner of the couch!

I totally did.

Here is an image perfect for social sharing.

16

RE-PURPOSED SWEATER PILLOWS DIY

If you are using a pillow form, you will need to be sure the sweater has enough room that when cut, it will be the size of the pillow (front and back). Normally, you would add enough room on your sweater for seam allowance, which would be ideal. But if you are tight on room, I actually found that because it is a sweater, it stretches nicely and fits a pillow snugly even if you don’t have an extra 1/2 inch around all sides for the seam allowance.

Once you’ve lined up your pillow to your sweater, use a fabric marker to draw the shape of the pillow onto the sweater to mark where you will cut.

Cut alongside your markings. You can leave side seams if they are already out there.

You will be using both the back and front of the sweater.

Now here is the key to keeping your sweater the shape you want it to be! You will cute 2 pieces of lightweight fusible interfacing the same size you cut your sweater pieces.

Then you need to fuse the interfacing on the wrong sides of the sweater- both front and back.

By doing this important step, your knit sweater will not stretch or move when you sew it with the sewing machine. It keeps the exact shape you cut it as. The difference this step maks is huge!

Pillows are a wonderful way to cozy-up your home during the winter months!

I would like to share with you an inexpensive and easy way to take an un-loved, chunky knit sweater and turn it into a cozy re-purposed sweater pillow for your home.

For this pillow, all you need are some old sweaters that wouldn’t make you feel bad to cut up. Check your closet first and then search the thrift stores for something that is large enough to go around your pillow form of choice.

Once you find the perfect sweater, you’ll need either a pillow form or some sort of fiber-fill stuffing. I’ve even been known to cut up old pillows and re-purpose the filling for a new pillow.

This project can be done super cheap!

Don’t be afraid to use sweaters with buttons or zippers on one side. You can tie those in decoratively or use them on the backside for easy, built-in closure options. That is what I did with the pillow below.

When you try to sew with knitted materials, the fabric will easily stretch, leaving you with wavy seams and a less than appealing project.

Another thing that will help, is having a walking foot on your machine- though this is not necessary.

Take your sweater pieces with the interfacing on, and line them up right sides together. Pin all around and note a space to leave open for the filling or pillow form. If inserting a pillow inside, you will need a larger opening. I left about 10 inches in order to get my pillow inside.

Sew all the way around the 4 sides, leaving your opening.

MATERIALS: Sweater Pillow form or stuffing You can thrift a pillow form, buy stuffing, or buy a new form. Lightweight Fusible Interfacing

15

Flip it right sides out and shape your corners, Fill it with your pillow or stuffing.

You will need to fold the edges of the opening in to match the seam and pin it securely shut.

Take a needle and thread and hand stitch the opening shut.

And thats it! so very easy, youll want to make one for every corner of the couch!

I totally did.

Here is an image perfect for social sharing.

16

HOW THE CLIMATE CRISIS IS ALREADY HARMING AMERICA – PHOTO ESSAY

Northern Great Plains – flash droughts and extreme heat

climate change is not an abstract future threat to the United States, but a real danger that is already harming Americans’ lives, with “substantial damages” to follow if rising temperatures are not controlled.

This was the verdict of a major US government report two years ago. The Trump administration’s attitude to climate change was perhaps illustrated in the timing of the report’s release, which was in the news dead zone a day after Thanksgiving.

The report was the fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA), and is seen as the most authoritative official US snapshot of the impacts of climate change being seen already, and the estimate of those in the future.

It is the combined work of 13 federal agencies, and it warns how climate-related threats to Americans’ physical, social and economic wellbeing are rising, and will continue to grow without additional action.

Here we look at the regions of the US where it describes various impacts, with photography from these areas showing people and places in the US where climate change is very real.

Alaska - Unpredictable weather

A lone lodgepole pine in the Beaverhead-Deerlodge national forest in Montana. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Water is the crucial issue in the northern Great Plains, a vital resource largely provided by the gradual melting of snowpack that builds up in the colder months.

Rising temperatures are set to increase the number of heatwaves and accelerate the melt of snow, leading to droughts.

At the same time, rainfall intensity is growing, with downpours in winter and spring to increase by up to a third by the end of the century.

Children play on melting ice near the Yupik Inuit village of Napakiak on the Yukon Delta. Photograph: Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images

The Calving Hubbard Glacier near Yakutak. Photograph: Michael Melford/National Geographic Image Collection

If there was a ground zero for the climate crisis in the US, it would probably be located in Alaska. The state, according to the national climate assessment, is “ on the front lines of climate change and is among the fastest warming regions on Earth”. Since the early 1980s, Alaska’s sea ice extent in September, when it hits its annual minimum, has decreased by as much as 15% per decade, with sea ice-free summers likely this century. This has upended fishing routines for remote communities that rely upon caught fish for their food.

The thinning ice has seen people and vehicles collapse into the frigid water below, hampering transport routes.

Roads and buildings have buckled as the frozen soils underneath melt. Wildfires are also an increasing menace in Alaska, with three out of the top four fire years in terms of acres burned occurring since 2000. The state’s residents are grappling with a rapidly changing environment that is harming their health, their supply of food and livelihoods.

Last year was the hottest year on record in Alaska, 6.2F warmer than the long-term average.

This is set to lead to a see-sawing effect where severe droughts will be interspersed by flooding, a scenario that played out in 2011, when major floods were followed by drought in 2012. This, the national assessment states, represents a “new and unprecedented variability that is likely to become more common in a warmer world”.

Midwest – heavy rains and soil erosion

North-east – snowstorms, drought, heatwaves and flooding

Left: A house pushed into marshland almost a month after Hurricane Sandy, in Staten Island in November 2012. Photograph by Adrees Latif/Reuters Right: Sheila and Dominic Traina pose for a photo amid the remains of the house they had lived in for 43 years. Photograph by Mike Segar/Reuters

17

Top left: A house pushed into marshland almost a month after Hurricane Sandy, in Staten Island in November 2012. Photograph by Adrees Latif/Reuters Top right: Sheila and Dominic Traina pose for a photo amid the remains of the house they had lived in for 43 years. Photograph by Mike Segar/Reuters Bottom

The north-east, home to a sizable chunk of the US population and marked by hot summers and cold, snowy winters, is undergoing a major climatic upheaval.

The most rapidly warming region of the contiguous United States, the north-east is set to be, on average, 2C warmer than the pre-industrial era by 2035, decades before the the global average reaches this mark.

These rising temperatures are bringing punishing heatwaves, coastal flooding and more intense rainfall. Snow storms may decrease in number but increase in intensity, while the warming oceans are already altering the composition of available seafood – lobsters, for example, are fleeing north to the cooler waters of Maine and Canada.

High-tide flooding will soak about 20 north-east cities for at least 30 days a year by 2050, scientists predict, with the region also hit by stronger hurricanes and storms. These changes will “threaten the sustainability of communities and their livelihoods”, the national climate assessment warns.

A major challenge for the north-east will be adaptation to this hotter, more turbulent world. As home to some of America’s oldest cities, such as New York and Philadelphia, the region has plenty of ageing, inefficient housing that ill-equipped to deal with extreme heat.

Left: Part of a skeleton of a dead cow lies on parched grasslands on the plains of eastern Colorado. Photograph by John Moore/Getty Right: Floodwater surrounds a farm near Craig, Missouri. Photograph by Scott Olson/Getty

The US midwest, home to 60 million people, is the agricultural heartland of the country, growing the bulk of corn, soy and other commodity crops produced on US soil.

The climate crisis is starting to play havoc with established farming routines, however, with increasing heat and pounding rainfall causing the erosion of soils and introduction of harmful pests and diseases. Overall yields are set to drop, with the productivity of the midwest set to drop back to 1980s levels by mid-century.

Forest health is declining, while the extra heat is helping spawn algal blooms in lakes that can effect tourism. The Great Lakes, which contain 20% of the world’s surface fresh water, are experiencing a decline in seasonal ice cover and growing loss from evaporation.

Worsening air quality, again caused by the heat, is expected to cause up to 550 extra deaths a year in the midwest by 2050.

18

HOW THE CLIMATE CRISIS IS ALREADY HARMING AMERICA – PHOTO ESSAY

Northern Great Plains – flash droughts and extreme heat

climate change is not an abstract future threat to the United States, but a real danger that is already harming Americans’ lives, with “substantial damages” to follow if rising temperatures are not controlled.

This was the verdict of a major US government report two years ago. The Trump administration’s attitude to climate change was perhaps illustrated in the timing of the report’s release, which was in the news dead zone a day after Thanksgiving.

The report was the fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA), and is seen as the most authoritative official US snapshot of the impacts of climate change being seen already, and the estimate of those in the future.

It is the combined work of 13 federal agencies, and it warns how climate-related threats to Americans’ physical, social and economic wellbeing are rising, and will continue to grow without additional action.

Here we look at the regions of the US where it describes various impacts, with photography from these areas showing people and places in the US where climate change is very real.

Alaska - Unpredictable weather

A lone lodgepole pine in the Beaverhead-Deerlodge national forest in Montana. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Water is the crucial issue in the northern Great Plains, a vital resource largely provided by the gradual melting of snowpack that builds up in the colder months.

Rising temperatures are set to increase the number of heatwaves and accelerate the melt of snow, leading to droughts.

At the same time, rainfall intensity is growing, with downpours in winter and spring to increase by up to a third by the end of the century.

Children play on melting ice near the Yupik Inuit village of Napakiak on the Yukon Delta. Photograph: Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images

The Calving Hubbard Glacier near Yakutak. Photograph: Michael Melford/National Geographic Image Collection

If there was a ground zero for the climate crisis in the US, it would probably be located in Alaska. The state, according to the national climate assessment, is “ on the front lines of climate change and is among the fastest warming regions on Earth”. Since the early 1980s, Alaska’s sea ice extent in September, when it hits its annual minimum, has decreased by as much as 15% per decade, with sea ice-free summers likely this century. This has upended fishing routines for remote communities that rely upon caught fish for their food.

The thinning ice has seen people and vehicles collapse into the frigid water below, hampering transport routes.

Roads and buildings have buckled as the frozen soils underneath melt. Wildfires are also an increasing menace in Alaska, with three out of the top four fire years in terms of acres burned occurring since 2000. The state’s residents are grappling with a rapidly changing environment that is harming their health, their supply of food and livelihoods.

Last year was the hottest year on record in Alaska, 6.2F warmer than the long-term average.

This is set to lead to a see-sawing effect where severe droughts will be interspersed by flooding, a scenario that played out in 2011, when major floods were followed by drought in 2012. This, the national assessment states, represents a “new and unprecedented variability that is likely to become more common in a warmer world”.

Midwest – heavy rains and soil erosion

North-east – snowstorms, drought, heatwaves and flooding

Left: A house pushed into marshland almost a month after Hurricane Sandy, in Staten Island in November 2012. Photograph by Adrees Latif/Reuters Right: Sheila and Dominic Traina pose for a photo amid the remains of the house they had lived in for 43 years. Photograph by Mike Segar/Reuters

17

Top left: A house pushed into marshland almost a month after Hurricane Sandy, in Staten Island in November 2012. Photograph by Adrees Latif/Reuters Top right: Sheila and Dominic Traina pose for a photo amid the remains of the house they had lived in for 43 years. Photograph by Mike Segar/Reuters Bottom

The north-east, home to a sizable chunk of the US population and marked by hot summers and cold, snowy winters, is undergoing a major climatic upheaval.

The most rapidly warming region of the contiguous United States, the north-east is set to be, on average, 2C warmer than the pre-industrial era by 2035, decades before the the global average reaches this mark.

These rising temperatures are bringing punishing heatwaves, coastal flooding and more intense rainfall. Snow storms may decrease in number but increase in intensity, while the warming oceans are already altering the composition of available seafood – lobsters, for example, are fleeing north to the cooler waters of Maine and Canada.

High-tide flooding will soak about 20 north-east cities for at least 30 days a year by 2050, scientists predict, with the region also hit by stronger hurricanes and storms. These changes will “threaten the sustainability of communities and their livelihoods”, the national climate assessment warns.

A major challenge for the north-east will be adaptation to this hotter, more turbulent world. As home to some of America’s oldest cities, such as New York and Philadelphia, the region has plenty of ageing, inefficient housing that ill-equipped to deal with extreme heat.

Left: Part of a skeleton of a dead cow lies on parched grasslands on the plains of eastern Colorado. Photograph by John Moore/Getty Right: Floodwater surrounds a farm near Craig, Missouri. Photograph by Scott Olson/Getty

The US midwest, home to 60 million people, is the agricultural heartland of the country, growing the bulk of corn, soy and other commodity crops produced on US soil.

The climate crisis is starting to play havoc with established farming routines, however, with increasing heat and pounding rainfall causing the erosion of soils and introduction of harmful pests and diseases. Overall yields are set to drop, with the productivity of the midwest set to drop back to 1980s levels by mid-century.

Forest health is declining, while the extra heat is helping spawn algal blooms in lakes that can effect tourism. The Great Lakes, which contain 20% of the world’s surface fresh water, are experiencing a decline in seasonal ice cover and growing loss from evaporation.

Worsening air quality, again caused by the heat, is expected to cause up to 550 extra deaths a year in the midwest by 2050.

18

South-east – flooding in Louisiana

Top A flooded yard in Intracoastal City in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Barry last year. Photograph: Seth Herald/AFP/Getty Bottom Downed trees and power lines in Panama City following Hurricane Michael in 2018. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

Communities in the south-east are set to suffer the largest losses from climate change, research has suggested, due to its existing racial and economic disparities. Soaring temperatures, rising humidity and a raft of new diseases are expected to fall heaviest on poorer people and people of color.

Cities such as Birmingham, New Orleans and Raleigh are experiencing more and longer heatwaves, with diseases such as West Nile expected to spread in the region as mosquito activity increases.

Huge hurricanes such as Irma, which slammed into Florida in 2017, are “expected to become more common in the future due to climate change”, the national assessment warns, with

Southern Great Plains – Hurricane Harvey

South-west – drought in the Colorado river basin reduced Lake Mead by more than half since 2000

High tide in the Sea of Cortez floods the dry Colorado River delta. Photograph: Pete McBride/National Geographic Image Collection

The US south-west is experiencing a boom in its population, placing even greater stress on its overstretched water resources.

The Colorado River is a critical water supply for seven states but is suffering from years of overuse to irrigate crops as well as a reduction in flow coming from the gradual melting of snow as rising temperatures shrink the snowpack. The volume of water in Lake Powell and Lake Mead, two critical catchments, has dropped by half in the past two decades.

Fire has long been part of this landscape, but the climate crisis is fueling larger outbreaks, with scientists estimating the area burned in the US west since the 1980s was double what it would have been had humans not heated up the planet.

These wildfires can often turn deadly, as seen in 2018 when fires in California razed the town of Paradise and threatened coastal communities.

North-west – wildfire increases and associated smoke

Left: People wait to be rescued from their flooded homes after Hurricane Harvey, August 2017. Photograph by Joe Raedle/Getty Right: A driver abandons his truck in Houston. Photograph by Brendan Smialowski/Getty

Hurricane Harvey’s landfall on the Texas coast in 2017 was “one of the costliest natural disasters in US history”, the national assessment said. It ravaged Houston, America’s fourth largest city.

Estimates of the economic impact of the hurricane, which tore through the Caribbean, Texas and Louisiana, have been at least $90bn in loss of property and livelihoods. It was also the cause of scores of deaths.

Some new research earlier this year, based on a radical assessment, put the price tag directly linked to climate breakdown, which is making hurricanes stronger, at $67bn, far more than the previous estimates of a $20bn loss attributable to climate change, rather than natural weather conditions.

The storm made landfall 200 miles from Houston and dropped as much as 60in of rain over parts of the metropolitan area. It killed at least 68 people and flooded more than 300,000 structures in south-east Texas alone.

Harvey was Houston’s third serious flooding event in as many years.

19

left Firefighters battle a wildfire in Ventura. Photograph: Mario Tama/Getty right A man evacuates horses near Simi Valley. Photograph: David McNew/Getty Images

The north-western corner of the US is renowned for its clean air, pristine water and tracts of lush forest, but the climate crisis is beginning to take its toll even here.

Rising heat is reducing snowpack and introducing new pests to the north-west’s forests, threatening the key tourism and timber industries. Commercial fisheries, too, face losses, with the warming of river waters hurting the migration and spawning of salmon.

Air quality is set to decline, with the residents of Seattle given a glimpse of this in 2017 and 2018 when smoke from distant wildfires shrouded the city.

20

South-east – flooding in Louisiana

Top A flooded yard in Intracoastal City in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Barry last year. Photograph: Seth Herald/AFP/Getty Bottom Downed trees and power lines in Panama City following Hurricane Michael in 2018. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

Communities in the south-east are set to suffer the largest losses from climate change, research has suggested, due to its existing racial and economic disparities. Soaring temperatures, rising humidity and a raft of new diseases are expected to fall heaviest on poorer people and people of color.

Cities such as Birmingham, New Orleans and Raleigh are experiencing more and longer heatwaves, with diseases such as West Nile expected to spread in the region as mosquito activity increases.

Huge hurricanes such as Irma, which slammed into Florida in 2017, are “expected to become more common in the future due to climate change”, the national assessment warns, with

Southern Great Plains – Hurricane Harvey

South-west – drought in the Colorado river basin reduced Lake Mead by more than half since 2000

High tide in the Sea of Cortez floods the dry Colorado River delta. Photograph: Pete McBride/National Geographic Image Collection

The US south-west is experiencing a boom in its population, placing even greater stress on its overstretched water resources.

The Colorado River is a critical water supply for seven states but is suffering from years of overuse to irrigate crops as well as a reduction in flow coming from the gradual melting of snow as rising temperatures shrink the snowpack. The volume of water in Lake Powell and Lake Mead, two critical catchments, has dropped by half in the past two decades.

Fire has long been part of this landscape, but the climate crisis is fueling larger outbreaks, with scientists estimating the area burned in the US west since the 1980s was double what it would have been had humans not heated up the planet.

These wildfires can often turn deadly, as seen in 2018 when fires in California razed the town of Paradise and threatened coastal communities.

North-west – wildfire increases and associated smoke

Left: People wait to be rescued from their flooded homes after Hurricane Harvey, August 2017. Photograph by Joe Raedle/Getty Right: A driver abandons his truck in Houston. Photograph by Brendan Smialowski/Getty

Hurricane Harvey’s landfall on the Texas coast in 2017 was “one of the costliest natural disasters in US history”, the national assessment said. It ravaged Houston, America’s fourth largest city.

Estimates of the economic impact of the hurricane, which tore through the Caribbean, Texas and Louisiana, have been at least $90bn in loss of property and livelihoods. It was also the cause of scores of deaths.

Some new research earlier this year, based on a radical assessment, put the price tag directly linked to climate breakdown, which is making hurricanes stronger, at $67bn, far more than the previous estimates of a $20bn loss attributable to climate change, rather than natural weather conditions.

The storm made landfall 200 miles from Houston and dropped as much as 60in of rain over parts of the metropolitan area. It killed at least 68 people and flooded more than 300,000 structures in south-east Texas alone.

Harvey was Houston’s third serious flooding event in as many years.

19

left Firefighters battle a wildfire in Ventura. Photograph: Mario Tama/Getty right A man evacuates horses near Simi Valley. Photograph: David McNew/Getty Images

The north-western corner of the US is renowned for its clean air, pristine water and tracts of lush forest, but the climate crisis is beginning to take its toll even here.

Rising heat is reducing snowpack and introducing new pests to the north-west’s forests, threatening the key tourism and timber industries. Commercial fisheries, too, face losses, with the warming of river waters hurting the migration and spawning of salmon.

Air quality is set to decline, with the residents of Seattle given a glimpse of this in 2017 and 2018 when smoke from distant wildfires shrouded the city.

20

Hawaii and Pacific islands – coral bleaching

top: A green sea turtle swims near coral in a bay on the west coast of the Big Island. Photograph by Brian Skoloff/AP bottom: Fish swim over a patch of bleached coral in Hawaii’s Kaneohe Bay off Oahu. Photograph by Caleb Jones/AP

The sprawling Pacific islands under US jurisdiction are major draws for tourists, but face increasingly perilous conditions as the world heats up.

Increasingly powerful cyclones menace the region, while rising sea levels threaten to bring salt water inundation to places that have limited freshwater supplies. Hawaii, for example, has seen a significant reduction in rainfall over the past century.

The bleaching and dying of coral reefs, caused by the warming oceans, is an unfolding disaster for the Pacific.

21

Caribbean – hurricanes

Top The High Rock neighborhood in the eastern part of Grand Bahama Island after Hurricane Dorian caused huge damage in 2019. Photograph: Angel Valentin/ Guardian Bottom Puerto Ricans in San Lorenzo in the river after Hurricane Maria destroyed the town’s bridge, October 2017. Photograph: Alvin Báez/Reuters

A large proportion of people on Caribbean islands live near the coast and rely on a narrow climatic range to grow crops such as coffee and mangoes, meaning sea-level rise and soaring temperatures pose a major challenge to people in the region.

Fiercer hurricanes are also a growing threat, as evidenced in 2017 when Hurricane Maria crunched into Puerto Rico, resulting in thousands of deaths, crippling the power grid and causing billions of dollars in damages.

22

Hawaii and Pacific islands – coral bleaching

top: A green sea turtle swims near coral in a bay on the west coast of the Big Island. Photograph by Brian Skoloff/AP bottom: Fish swim over a patch of bleached coral in Hawaii’s Kaneohe Bay off Oahu. Photograph by Caleb Jones/AP

The sprawling Pacific islands under US jurisdiction are major draws for tourists, but face increasingly perilous conditions as the world heats up.

Increasingly powerful cyclones menace the region, while rising sea levels threaten to bring salt water inundation to places that have limited freshwater supplies. Hawaii, for example, has seen a significant reduction in rainfall over the past century.

The bleaching and dying of coral reefs, caused by the warming oceans, is an unfolding disaster for the Pacific.

21

Caribbean – hurricanes

Top The High Rock neighborhood in the eastern part of Grand Bahama Island after Hurricane Dorian caused huge damage in 2019. Photograph: Angel Valentin/ Guardian Bottom Puerto Ricans in San Lorenzo in the river after Hurricane Maria destroyed the town’s bridge, October 2017. Photograph: Alvin Báez/Reuters

A large proportion of people on Caribbean islands live near the coast and rely on a narrow climatic range to grow crops such as coffee and mangoes, meaning sea-level rise and soaring temperatures pose a major challenge to people in the region.

Fiercer hurricanes are also a growing threat, as evidenced in 2017 when Hurricane Maria crunched into Puerto Rico, resulting in thousands of deaths, crippling the power grid and causing billions of dollars in damages.

22