Too often, conservationists have pursued the protection of other species at the expense of people of color, poor people, and other marginalized groups.
The Trump administration plans to terminate the lease for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Jacksonville headquarters, which plays a key role in Everglades restoration and hurricane response, leaving employees uncertain about their future.
The Army Corps’ Jacksonville district oversees Everglades restoration, hurricane response, and water management in Florida, serving millions.
The administration’s plan to terminate the lease could impact 800 employees and comes as federal workers are being ordered back to the office.
The decision is part of a broader push to cut federal properties, with the government citing projected savings of over $4.3 million.
Key quote:
“Who fills this role if the Army Corps is pushed aside? Where do the decades of institutional knowledge go?”
— Eve Samples, Friends of the Everglades
Why this matters:
The Everglades is often called the "River of Grass," a vast wetland that stretches across much of South Florida. But beyond its reputation as a biodiverse wilderness, it also serves as a crucial freshwater source for more than nine million Floridians. Its restoration — one of the most ambitious environmental projects in history — aims to reverse decades of damage caused by development and water mismanagement.
Any disruption to the Army Corps’ operations could have serious consequences. Delays in restoration efforts risk prolonging environmental degradation, allowing saltwater intrusion to threaten freshwater supplies and leaving communities more vulnerable to extreme weather. The stakes are high, not just for wildlife but for millions of residents who rely on a stable and healthy Everglades for drinking water and storm protection.
A third nonprofit has sued Citibank for blocking access to climate funding backed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, intensifying a legal fight over the Trump administration’s efforts to roll back Biden-era green initiatives.
Power Forward Communities, awarded $2 billion through the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, sued Citibank after its accounts were frozen for nearly three weeks.
The bank, which administers $14 billion in green banking funds, has frozen multiple accounts since at least Feb. 18, despite contractual obligations to provide access unless EPA intervenes over fraud or misuse.
The move follows pressure from President Donald Trump and EPA administrator Lee Zeldin, who have sought to reclaim climate-related funding, citing political concerns.
Key quote:
“We entered into a contract with the federal government in good faith, and as a result, we have obligations we must meet, and commitments to the American people we intend to keep.”
— Tim Mayopoulos, CEO of Power Forward Communities
Critics see the move as part of a larger pattern in which financial institutions, facing pressure from Republican lawmakers and regulators, are retreating from climate-focused investments. The implications could be far-reaching, potentially undermining future federal climate programs, stalling nonprofit-led renewable energy initiatives, and limiting access to clean energy funding for low-income communities.
A new highway cutting through protected Amazon rainforest is being built in Belém, Brazil, to accommodate traffic for the COP30 climate summit, drawing criticism from conservationists and local communities.
The four-lane highway spans more than eight miles through the Amazon, displacing residents and threatening biodiversity.
Local farmers, like Claudio Verequete, have lost their livelihoods without compensation and fear further deforestation.
Scientists warn the road will fragment ecosystems, making it harder for wildlife to migrate and survive.
Key quote:
"From the moment of deforestation, there is a loss. We are going to lose an area to release these animals back into the wild, the natural environment of these species."
— Prof. Silvia Sardinha, wildlife vet and researcher
Why this matters:
The Amazon rainforest is critical for regulating global carbon levels and sustaining biodiversity. In a paradox that environmentalists find hard to ignore, new infrastructure projects — including roads — are being carved through the forest to accommodate global climate summits.
Deforestation in the Amazon is already a major driver of global carbon emissions, with land cleared primarily for agriculture, logging, and mining. Roads tend to accelerate this process, opening once-remote areas to further degradation. Research shows that up to 95% of deforestation in the Amazon occurs within a few miles of roads, often leading to unchecked expansion of industry, land grabs, and displacement of Indigenous communities.
The Trump administration is launching a sweeping effort to roll back decades of environmental regulations, targeting air quality standards and emissions rules, as well as climate policies that have governed U.S. industries.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, under administrator Lee Zeldin, is reconsidering dozens of regulations, including the 2009 finding that greenhouse gases endanger public health, which underpins current climate policies.
Other targets include air pollution limits, rules restricting coal ash contamination, and Biden-era vehicle emissions standards aimed at boosting electric and hybrid car adoption.
Environmental advocates and Democratic lawmakers vow legal challenges, warning that these rollbacks could have severe health and climate consequences.
Key quote:
Reconsideration of the endangerment finding “is a despicable betrayal of the American people…[it] will have swift and catastrophic ramifications for the environment and health of all Americans.”
— Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), House Energy and Commerce Committee
Why this matters:
The Trump administration’s latest EPA overhaul is a gut punch to decades of environmental safeguards, and a significant step toward completely redefining the purpose of the agency. Under Zeldin, the Trump administration’s EPA is taking a wrecking ball to emissions rules, air quality protections, and even the legal backbone of U.S. climate policy. If they succeed, they won’t just be unraveling Biden-era policies — they’ll be reaching back to undo the fundamental science-based regulations that have supported public health by keeping air and water cleaner for decades.
The Environmental Protection Agency has revoked $20 billion in climate grants issued under the Inflation Reduction Act, escalating a legal fight over the program’s future and the president's authority to withhold funds appropriated by Congress.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin cited concerns about oversight, fraud, and misalignment with agency priorities as reasons for terminating the grants, though no specific cases of fraud were identified.
The decision affects multiple recipients, including Climate United Fund, which has sued to access funds held in a Citibank account that the Trump administration froze.
Democratic lawmakers argue the move is politically motivated and undermines a congressionally authorized program meant to finance clean energy and housing projects.
Key quote:
“Zeldin and Trump are spreading lies in a last-ditch effort to terminate the climate bank because the truth is it will help households save money and deploy clean energy — exactly what Big Oil is afraid of."
— Sen. Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts
Why this matters:
The funding cuts in question could have sweeping consequences for climate and clean energy initiatives, particularly those aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions and assisting economically disadvantaged communities. Many of these projects, established under the Biden administration, rely on federal grants to support renewable energy development, efficiency upgrades, and pollution reduction efforts.
Beyond the immediate impact on climate programs, the outcome of this legal fight could set a precedent for how future administrations manage federal funds, raising critical questions about the balance of power between the executive and legislative branches. For communities and industries that depend on these grants, the uncertainty adds yet another layer of complexity to an already shifting policy landscape.
Global warming is reducing atmospheric drag in low Earth orbit, allowing more space debris to accumulate and increasing risks for satellites, researchers report.
A study from MIT finds that climate change could shrink the available space for satellites in low Earth orbit by up to 82% by 2100.
As greenhouse gases cool and thin the upper atmosphere, there is less drag to pull space debris down, leading to a more cluttered orbit.
Millions of pieces of space junk, including old satellite fragments and rocket parts, pose a collision risk, threatening critical satellite functions like navigation and communication.
Key quote:
“We rely on the atmosphere to clean up our debris. There’s no other way to remove debris. It’s trash. It’s garbage. And there are millions of pieces of it.”
— Will Parker, astrodynamics researcher at MIT
Why this matters:
Space is becoming increasingly congested, and climate change is making it worse. With thousands of satellites essential for communication, weather forecasting, and security, a more cluttered orbit raises risks of collisions that could disrupt global systems. The problem stems from a cooling upper atmosphere, which slows the natural process of debris re-entering and burning up. If unchecked, the buildup of space junk could lead to a cascade of collisions, making parts of Earth's orbit unusable.
The Trump administration has canceled a key National Weather Service training program that prepares meteorologists to respond to disasters, citing budget constraints and travel restrictions.
The incident meteorologist training was canceled due to staffing shortages and a reduction in employee travel budgets, making it harder to certify new forecasters.
The National Weather Service, part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is losing staff amid broader federal downsizing efforts, with cuts expected across agencies like the Interior Department and the National Park Service.
Other weather service operations, including the launch of data-collecting weather balloons, have also been affected by budget cuts.
Key quote:
“They’re there to help us make that prediction so we can protect lives and property as incidents evolve.”
— Lynn Budd, president of the National Emergency Management Association
Why this matters:
The role of incident meteorologists — highly trained specialists who provide real-time weather updates during emergencies — has never been more critical. These experts work on the front lines of disasters, from wildfires raging across the West to hurricanes battering the Gulf Coast. Their forecasts help emergency crews make split-second decisions that can mean the difference between containment and catastrophe.
Climate-driven disasters are becoming more frequent and severe, straining emergency response systems already pushed to their limits. If fewer meteorologists are trained, the availability of life-saving weather intelligence could shrink just when it’s needed most. The long-term implications of these cuts remain unclear, but they could ripple across emergency management agencies nationwide.
Prisons, jails and detention centers are placed in locations where environmental hazards such as toxic landfills, floods and extreme heat are the norm.
