| Dear Express Explained reader, There were some developments on the climate change front this week, and our Climate and Science Editor Amitabh Sinha wrote three explainers capturing what you need to know about them to get the right perspective on each. First, the International Court of Justice at The Hague, the primary judicial arm of the United Nations, delivered a landmark ruling that said countries were obligated under international law to take actions to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases, and the failure to do so would constitute an “internationally wrongful act” for which they would be liable to pay compensation. While the ruling is in the nature of an “advisory opinion” and does not on its own impact any country immediately, it can nonetheless have significant implications for the global fight against climate change. It is expected to put the spotlight back on climate change and the existential threat it poses to life on Earth as we know it, and will be relied upon by courts around the world as they take up a new flood of climate litigation that will likely be triggered by its interpretation of international law on this subject. Second, a new report by the International Renewable Energy Association has said that the world added about 582 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity in 2024, which represents an increase of 15% over the previous year, the largest annual increase in renewable energy capacity in any single year. Also, the report says, at this current pace of growth, the world will almost triple its installed capacity for renewable energy by 2030. That said, however, we are not even close to replacing fossil fuel energy with renewables at the global level. And with the rising demand for electricity, more fossil fuels in absolute terms are being burned to generate electricity today compared to a decade ago. The transition to clean energy is more complicated than is sometimes believed, and increasing the renewables capacity alone will not solve the climate crisis. Third, specifically about India and renewables capacity: non-fossil sources now account for more than half of our installed electricity generation capacity, which means that one of the country’s main commitments under the Paris Agreement has been met five years before the deadline. The other two targets – reducing emissions intensity by 45% from 2005 levels, and creating an additional carbon sink of 2.5-3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent – are also very likely to be met well before the scheduled year of 2030. It is important to note, however, that installed capacity is not the same as actual generation, and despite the unmistakable and heartening signs of progress, the big picture is more nuanced than it appears at first glance. A Bill has been introduced in Parliament that seeks to regulate the functioning of sports governing bodies, and to set up a tribunal to adjudicate sports disputes. The key question here, and one that is yet to be answered with clarity, is about the status of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, the wealthiest governing body for the sport in the world, under the proposed law. But there are several other aspects to this potentially very consequential Bill, and the eminent sports lawyer Nandan Kamath unpacked them for The Indian Express in a very informative interview with Mihir Vasavda. Do check it out. Since there aren’t many of us who use coconut oil for cooking, it is probably not very well known that it is by far the most expensive cooking oil in the country right now. Harish Damodaran explained the reasons: a tight global supply, the result of lower production in the two biggest producers of coconut oil in the world, and diversion of the oil to produce biodiesel. Thank you for reading The Indian Express Explained. There is a large body of explanatory journalism, on a wide range of topics, on our website, and I hope you will check it out soon if you haven’t already. Also, many of our best explainers are now behind a paywall, so I hope you will subscribe. Sincerely, Monojit |
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