UN Report: Permanent Damage to Earth’s Glaciers

 

Emma Ljuslin Furumark

 

Published 16:09

 

Current climate policies could reduce the ice mass of glaciers to less than 10 percent of current levels, according to researchers. Photo: Aftonbladet

Temporary temperature increases can cause permanent damage to Earth’s cryosphere.

This is according to a new UN report.

“If the cryosphere disappears, the entire planet is affected,” says glaciologist James Kirkham.

The report, published shortly before COP31 begins in Turkey, was authored by 80 researchers brought together by the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative (ICCI) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). The researchers detail extensive and permanent losses of snow and ice within the cryosphere. This refutes a “persistent myth” that allowing Earth’s temperature to rise temporarily by 2 or 3 degrees would be manageable, reports The Guardian.

“Snow and ice react rapidly to every tenth of a degree of warming,” says Kirkham, lead author of the new report.

Melting six times faster

According to the newspaper, the report indicates that current climate policies—projected to lead to 2.8 degrees of global warming—would reduce glacier ice mass to less than 10 percent of current levels in the Rocky Mountains, the Alps, Iceland, and Scandinavia. If warming were limited to 1.5 degrees, in line with the Paris Agreement, approximately 20–35 percent of the ice mass would remain. Bill Hare, a climate scientist and CEO of the German climate research institute Climate Analytics, says:

“Ice sheets melting six times faster than they were 30 years ago; sea ice and mountain glaciers disappearing at record speed; sea levels rising inexorably; and the vital polar oceans becoming increasingly acidic. All of this is now irreversible on human timescales; all of it has global consequences; and all of it pushes the impacts of climate change beyond the limits of what we can adapt to.”

“They have damaged our world”

He adds:

“Every government minister and every executive in the fossil fuel industry who has ever succeeded in watering down climate action can read this report and see how their actions have fundamentally damaged the world we live in.”

Risk of bird flu on the rise

 

TT

 

Published 09:57

 

Lower temperatures, combined with birds migrating to new environments, increase the risk of bird flu, according to the National Veterinary Institute (SVA). File photo. Photo: Stefan Sauer/AP/TT

As the weather turns colder and birds migrate to new environments, the risk of bird flu outbreaks is increasing, according to the National Veterinary Institute (SVA).

Lower temperatures in Sweden favor the survival of the virus. The influenza can then spread through large flocks of birds—either those migrating to southern Sweden or those pausing their journey there while en route to warmer latitudes.

The number of confirmed bird flu cases among wild birds is considered low compared to last year. However, outbreaks have occurred in Denmark and the Netherlands, prompting the agency to release an updated assessment of the spread of the infection.

Over the past two months, the virus has been detected in three wild birds in Sweden.

Starvation and disease – how climate change affects us

 

Petra Hedbom/TT

 

Published 05:45 | Updated 11:42

 

A doctor examines a patient suffering from a heat-related illness at a hospital in Banda, India, in June of this year. Photo: Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP/TT

The health consequences of climate change could be devastating. Extreme heat, food shortages, and infectious diseases are set to worsen as the climate shifts.

An increasing number of people are dying, falling ill, or suffering economic hardship as a result of climate impacts. In 2023—one of the hottest years on record—approximately 710,000 deaths were linked to extreme heat. More than 70 percent of these are attributed to human-caused climate change. According to researchers behind a new report, this figure exceeds the number of deaths caused by malaria or HIV.

"The climate crisis is having serious, harmful consequences for human health—from deadly heatwaves and floods to food insecurity, pollution, and disease," says UN climate chief Simon Stiell in a press statement.

Health risks resulting from global warming have accelerated over the past decade. This is according to a report from the *Lancet Countdown* initiative, published ahead of the UN climate summit, COP31. 

Costly for societies

The report, produced in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), shows that heat-related deaths have increased by nearly 36 percent globally since 2016. Beyond the strain that heat places on the heart and other organs, many diseases spread more easily in a changing climate. Illnesses such as dengue fever and West Nile fever are on the rise, spreading to new parts of the world as the climate shifts.

Furthermore, in 2025, more than half of the world’s land area experienced extreme drought for at least one month—a situation with major consequences for factors such as groundwater levels and crop yields. This poses serious threats to drinking water and food supplies, which in turn creates health risks.

“Not a gradual deterioration”

Since over 80 percent of the energy we use still comes from fossil sources, these threats are set to intensify, according to the report. The authors call for health to be placed at the heart of all climate-related decision-making, and for the strengthening of international aid and climate adaptation efforts.

“This is not a gradual deterioration, but a shift that must be recognized for what it truly is: a global health emergency,” says Marina Romanello, a researcher at University College London who led the work on the *Lancet Countdown*.

Facts

The Lancet Countdown

The *Lancet Countdown* is an international research collaboration that tracks and analyzes the link between climate change and human health. It is led by researchers from University College London (UCL) and involves more than 300 scientists from over 100 institutions worldwide. The reports are produced in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), and this is the tenth in the series.

The report addresses several areas in which climate change affects our health:

Risks to vulnerable groups affected by heatwaves

Reduced capacity for physical activity during hot weather

Reduced capacity to work during hot weather

High nighttime temperatures and sleep deprivation

An increase in heat-related deaths

Increased risk of wildfires, drought, torrential rain, and air pollution resulting from storms

Higher incidence of infectious diseases, waterborne diseases, and vector-borne diseases (spread by, for example, mosquitoes)

Food insecurity and famine

Source: Lancet Countdown

 

Microsoft offers severance packages to 60,000 employees

 

William Faxius

 

Published 12:59

The tech giant is offering severance packages to one in four employees in order to focus more on AI.

Concerns are growing that more professional groups could be affected by this rapid development.

"This perhaps goes to show that people are losing their jobs," says Henning Eklund, a tech reporter at *Svenska Dagbladet*, speaking on *Radio Aftonbladet*.

Microsoft’s major investments in AI may have consequences for its workforce. An anonymous spokesperson told the news agency Bloomberg that the company is now offering severance packages to around 60,000 people—roughly one in four employees.

"It’s primarily about AI—and perhaps not so much that AI will take over these people’s jobs, but rather that even more capital needs to be poured into AI investments and the expansion of AI data centers. Consequently, they can no longer afford to keep this staff on the payroll," says Henning Eklund.

The tech giant has announced that it has presented voluntary separation agreements to some employees in the United States, Canada, India, and the United Kingdom. According to Bloomberg, the company’s workforce has shrunk significantly in recent years.

"Shows that people might be losing their jobs"

This massive package comes at a time when there is frequent talk of potential "AI bubbles" and overvalued tech companies. Microsoft’s leadership, however, appears to believe that the development of AI will not stagnate.

"It seems that those in charge at Microsoft, at least, do not believe we are heading toward an AI bubble." This is relevant to many listeners who have likely reflected on their own work situation or workplace: "What will happen if AI becomes truly proficient at my job?" This suggests that some people may indeed end up losing their jobs.

AI could affect a wider range of professions

The discussion surrounding AI and the labor market has long centered on programmers and how the technology might take over parts of their work. However, the impact of AI extends further, affecting a variety of professional fields.

"It’s not just about programming; it also concerns marketing, HR, finance, and other support functions. The scope is quite broad, as it involves a significant number of people—60,000, in fact. Previously, the conversation focused heavily on programmers, as AI is capable of handling a substantial portion of their tasks."

Earlier this year, Microsoft offered voluntary separation packages to approximately 8,750 employees of retirement age; 30 percent of them accepted. This time around, however, the company anticipates that a smaller proportion will take up the offer.

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