On her @brutalistplants Instagram page, Olivia Broome collects photographs that combine the angular shapes of raw concrete with the greenery of the natural world. “I really enjoy the aesthetic of eco-brutalism and tropical modernism,” she says. “I love mezzanines and ziggurats, and when you pair them with plants it softens them up. Brutalism can be this quite harsh, austere architecture style, but with nature involved, it balances it all out.” Now collected in a book, the images bring together buildings from across the globe, from Hong Kong to Sri Lanka, London to Mexico. “It’s a pleasant movement that people can get behind, especially in smaller spaces and modern cities – it’s nice to fill them with plants and nature.” • Brutalist Plants (Hoxton Mini Press, £20) will be published on Thursday
Continue reading...
Breaking Waves: Ocean News
05/11/2024 - 11:00
05/11/2024 - 10:16
Top temperatures expected, but heavy rain to follow with weather warnings in place for week ahead
Britain will experience its hottest temperatures of the year on Sunday – before thunderstorms and heavy rain bring an end to the sunny conditions that the country has enjoyed over the past few days.
The Met Office forecasts temperatures will peak at around 27C before the wet weather arrives. Western areas, including parts of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, will be the first to encounter the storms.
Continue reading...
05/11/2024 - 10:08
Virus sent to high-security facility so that experts can examine the potential risks to people and livestock
Avian flu typically spreads by infecting wild birds and moving along migration routes, but the virus currently running rampant in the US is about to be transported across the Atlantic by plane.
This category A pathogen, which is now spreading among cows in the US, is being sent to a high-security laboratory in the UK so that experts can better understand the potential risks to people and livestock.
Continue reading...
05/11/2024 - 01:00
Fears Climate Change Committee’s advice not to allow carryover from last carbon budget will be ignored
Ministers are considering plans to weaken the UK’s carbon-cutting plans by allowing the unused portion of the last carbon budget to be carried over to the next period.
This would go against the strong recommendation of the government’s statutory climate advisers, the Climate Change Committee.
Continue reading...
05/10/2024 - 23:00
Climate scientists have told the Guardian they expect catastrophic levels of global heating. Here’s what that would mean for the planet
World is on edge of climate abyss, UN warns
Climate scientists expect global heating to blast past 1.5C target
Global heating is likely to soar past internationally agreed limits, according to a Guardian survey of hundreds of leading climate experts, bringing catastrophic heatwaves, floods and storms.
Only 6% of the respondents thought the 1.5C limit could be achieved, and this would require extraordinarily fast, radical action to halt and reverse the world’s rising emissions from fossil fuel burning.
Continue reading...
05/10/2024 - 19:00
Loss of habitat and food sources driving fruit bats closer to urban centres, leading to bat deaths, power outages
Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast
It’s an increasingly frequent occurrence on Australia’s east coast – a fruit bat foraging for food lands on a power line to rest.
The flying fox (as it’s also known), spreading its wings before taking flight, touches a second power line and is electrocuted.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup
Continue reading...
05/10/2024 - 18:38
The climate crisis can seem intractable – especially in an election year. But the remarkable actions of individuals are reason for hope
The hottest year on record. Extreme drought, wildfires and flooding. Despairing scientists, wildlife loss and rampant waste. The sheer scale of the climate crisis can feel overwhelming.
And when it comes to taking serious action, politicians move at a glacial pace, and the very real possibility of another Donald Trump presidency could stymie progress even further.
If you would like to share your story, send us an email at diyclimate@theguardian.com. Tell us a bit about yourself, your project and why you started it, and the impact it’s had. Please leave contact details; one of our reporters will get in touch if we are interested in finding out more
Continue reading...
05/10/2024 - 09:11
Fire chief says incorrect disposal of devices powered by lithium-ion batteries are ‘disaster waiting to happen’
Fires caused by batteries in waste have gone up by 71% in the UK since 2022, as the rise of disposable vapes and other portable battery-powered devices leads to more lithium-ion batteries ending up in the bin.
An increase in the number of these devices being thrown in household rubbish bins has led to more than 1,200 fires in the waste system in the past 12 months, compared with 700 in 2022, according to research conducted by the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) and the campaign group Recycle Your Electricals.
Continue reading...
05/10/2024 - 09:07
Group says two women in their 80s took hammer and chisel to protective glass at British Library
Two Just Stop Oil protesters have smashed the glass around Magna Carta at the British Library.
The Rev Sue Parfitt, 82, and Judy Bruce, 85, a retired biology teacher, targeted the protective enclosure with a hammer and chisel on Friday morning.
Continue reading...
05/10/2024 - 09:00
All designers who have gone through carbon audit are eligible for consideration for green award
A green medal for sustainability is to be introduced at the Chelsea flower show, rewarding gardens with the lowest carbon impact.
Landscape designers are reporting that clients are commissioning them to make their gardens more wildlife-rich and eco-friendly, and that nature-friendly gardening is becoming increasingly important.
Continue reading...
