The State Department has fired its last remaining climate policy staffers, ending U.S. participation in international climate negotiations as part of a sweeping agency reorganization.
Nearly a dozen remaining employees in the State Department’s Office of Global Change were fired on Friday, eliminating the team that had managed U.S. participation in global climate negotiations for decades.
The office’s closure comes as part of a broader cut of nearly 3,000 employees, justified by the Trump administration as a reorganization to support “America First” foreign policy goals.
Critics say the move removes the only group within the federal government equipped to engage in climate diplomacy, effectively withdrawing the U.S. from international climate discussions.
Key quote:
“Without the office in place, there’s not a focal point for the organization of U.S. climate diplomacy, but that seems to be the point, right? To not have the U.S. engaging in climate diplomacy seems to be the policy goal of the administration.”
— Alden Meyer, senior associate, E3G
Why this matters:
The closure of the State Department’s climate diplomacy office severs a vital link between the U.S. and international efforts to address global warming. For decades, American negotiators helped shape climate treaties and press other nations for stronger emissions cuts. With the U.S. out of the picture, coordination on issues like carbon markets, climate finance, and technology sharing becomes more fractured. The move also sidelines U.S. leadership in a time of accelerating climate impacts, from extreme weather to rising sea levels. That vacuum could allow other major emitters like China to step into a leadership role, but without the same financial or political commitments. The consequences could ripple through both global climate strategy and domestic preparedness for years to come.
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem defended the Federal Emergency Management Agency's handling of deadly floods in Texas amid criticism over delayed contract renewals and a policy requiring her approval for large agency expenditures.
Kristi Noem, who oversees FEMA, defended her role in the agency’s Texas flood response after reports showed steep drops in call center performance and delays in contractor rehiring.
Critics say a policy requiring Noem’s personal sign-off on FEMA spending over $100,000 slowed emergency operations; Noem argued it ensures accountability.
President Trump has suggested dismantling or overhauling FEMA, though he praised its work in the Texas disaster and Noem stated he seeks to “remake” the agency, not eliminate it.
Key quote:
“It’s discouraging that during this time when we have such a loss of life, and so many people’s lives have turned upside down, that people are playing politics with this.”
— Kristi Noem, Homeland Security Secretary
Why this matters:
FEMA plays a frontline role in responding to disasters that are growing more frequent and severe with climate change. Delays in aid during the Texas floods, including lapses in contractor support that left thousands unable to reach the agency by phone, raise concerns about how future emergencies will be handled. Oversight policies that slow decision-making — paired with political uncertainty about FEMA’s future — can leave communities more vulnerable. With extreme weather hitting both coasts and inland states harder each year, a dependable and swift federal response can mean the difference between recovery and lasting devastation.
President Trump’s administration has scaled back major Federal Emergency Management Agency programs aimed at flood prevention and disaster resilience, forcing many flood-prone communities to cancel or delay critical infrastructure projects.
The Trump administration canceled or retracted disaster mitigation grants, including FEMA’s BRIC and Flood Mitigation Assistance programs, which had funded early-warning systems, flood buyouts, and infrastructure upgrades across the country.
Cities like Norman, Oklahoma; Central, Louisiana; and Scranton, Pennsylvania had to scrap projects intended to prevent future flooding, despite having already won federal grants and followed FEMA’s process.
Republican lawmakers from affected states have pushed back, introducing bipartisan bills to reinstate funding, while FEMA has also revoked rules requiring essential buildings to be rebuilt with flood-resistant designs.
Key quote:
“Now we don’t have that automated system that we would very much like to have if there was funding available for it.”
— Tiffany Vrska, spokesperson for the city of Norman, Oklahoma
Why this matters:
Floods are the most common and costly natural disasters in the United States, and their frequency is rising with climate change. Early warning systems — such as automated flood sensors and real-time alerts — are among the most effective tools for reducing fatalities. Federal funding through FEMA’s BRIC program helped vulnerable communities install this infrastructure. Without it, cities often cannot afford the upfront costs, leaving vulnerable residents unprotected during extreme weather. The policy shift raises broader questions about how the federal government prioritizes disaster readiness in an era of increasingly volatile storms, especially as more Americans live in flood-prone areas.
Democrats are reframing their energy message ahead of the 2026 midterms, accusing Republicans of pushing policies that will raise electricity costs and threaten the reliability of the U.S. power grid.
Democrats aim to make economic arguments around rising electricity bills central to their campaign, blaming the GOP-backed tax and spending law that repealed clean energy incentives.
They accuse Republicans of undercutting grid expansion just as electricity demand surges, especially from AI and data centers, and say GOP lawmakers ignored economic risks to their own districts.
Environmental allies are backing the strategy with ad buys and messaging campaigns targeting swing districts, arguing that Republican policies will directly impact household power costs.
Key quote:
“We’re just not going to have enough electrons to go around and the prices will go up — and that will be 100 percent because Republicans passed this ridiculous bill.”
— U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)
Why this matters:
The U.S. electricity grid is under mounting strain. As AI data centers, electric vehicles and new technologies drive up power demand, forecasts show a 20% increase in consumption over the next five years. Repealing clean energy incentives could slow or halt planned wind and solar projects that would help meet that demand. While fossil fuels and nuclear are being promoted as alternatives, they face delays, costs, and public opposition. If grid capacity doesn’t keep pace, utilities may raise rates or ration power — especially in heatwaves or storms.
A wildfire fueled by extreme heat and winds has destroyed the historic Grand Canyon Lodge on the North Rim and forced a season-long closure of the area.
The Dragon Bravo Fire burned over 5,000 acres and destroyed up to 80 structures, including the Grand Canyon Lodge and National Park Service buildings.
Firefighting efforts were hindered by a chlorine gas leak from a nearby water treatment plant, forcing evacuations of emergency crews.
The White Sage Fire continues to threaten the North Rim, which will remain closed to visitors through the rest of 2025.
Key quote:
"They must first take aggressive action to end the wildfire and prevent further damage."
— Katie Hobbs, governor of Arizona
Why this matters:
The loss of the Grand Canyon Lodge, a landmark dating back to 1937, marks more than the destruction of a historic site. It reflects the growing vulnerability of public lands to increasingly intense wildfire seasons, driven by heat, drought, and volatile weather patterns. Compounding the challenge, events like the chlorine gas leak at the Grand Canyon’s water treatment facility expose how fire can quickly lead to cascading environmental hazards, putting firefighters and ecosystems at additional risk. The North Rim’s closure also means months of lost economic activity for the surrounding rural communities that depend on tourism revenue. It's worth noting that this comes at a time when wildland firefighting budgets and personnel have been slashed by the Trump administration.
Extreme heatwaves, heavy rainfall, and rising seas have become standard across the UK, according to a major new analysis of the nation's weather and climate records.
Scientists say days that are 10°C warmer than the 1961–1990 average have quadrupled in the past decade, while intense rainfall has surged, with months of double-average precipitation rising by 50% over 20 years.
Sea levels around the UK have risen 19 centimeters over the past century — faster than the global average — worsening flood risks and coastal hazards, especially when storm surges hit during high tides.
Wildlife is also responding to the warming: The earliest frogspawn and bird nesting ever recorded occurred in 2024, raising concerns about disrupted ecological timing between species.
Key quote:
“Breaking records frequently and seeing these extremes, this is now the norm. We might not notice the change from one year to the next, but if we look back 10 years, or 30 years, we can see some really big changes. We’re moving outside the envelope of what we’ve known in the past.”
— Mike Kendon, climate scientist at the Met Office who led the analysis
Why this matters:
Britain's climate is shifting fast, and the impacts are no longer subtle. Rising temperatures, driven by fossil fuel emissions, are now visibly transforming the seasons, ecosystems, and infrastructure. The past decade has seen more frequent and deadly heatwaves, overwhelming rains, and creeping sea levels that threaten homes, roads, and health systems. While average citizens may notice warmer summers or fewer frosty mornings, the underlying trend is a climate system tilting out of balance. From public health to biodiversity, the risks tied to unchecked global warming are no longer future projections. They're unfolding now.
With power bills soaring and the national grid failing, Pakistanis are taking the energy transition into their own hands—and creating a bottom-up solar revolution.
Pakistan’s solar use exploded from 4% to 14% of electricity generation in just three years, thanks to a mix of cheap Chinese panels, massive price hikes, and a failing grid.
Ordinary people — not government mandates — are driving this shift, with everyone from farmers to urban homeowners embracing solar to escape blackouts and save money.
As more people go solar, grid utilities are entering a “death spiral” that risks making electricity even more unaffordable for those left behind unless reforms are urgently implemented.
Key quote:
"This is not government deciding this is the route to take. And it’s not being driven by climate concerns, it’s all about the economics. Renewables are out-competing the traditional sources of energy."
— Muhammad Mustafa Amjad, program director, Renewables First
Why this matters:
Pakistan’s grassroots solar boom is a rare example of climate-friendly energy adoption driven not by ideology, but necessity — and it’s improving health by reducing diesel generator use and giving rural communities cooling, irrigation, and clean power. With heat and energy poverty on the rise globally, it offers a bold, people-powered playbook for other nations. Cheap Chinese panels made the technology accessible, but it’s everyday Pakistanis — struggling with 120 F-degree heat, failing infrastructure, and economic strain — who are turning this into a full-blown energy revolution.
