It was a tale of two different worlds at the U.N. General Assembly this week. On Tuesday, President Donald Trump delivered a sprawling 56-minute monologue that offered up gems for the climate-denial highlight reel—labeling clean energy a “scam” and calling the consensus on human-caused climate change “the greatest con job ever perpetrated.” We know we’re all on the same page about these barbs, but just in case: Study after study has found that the U.N.’s projections around global temperatures and sea level rise have been incredibly accurate. The next day, 120 countries and the European Union announced new emissions reduction goals. China, the world’s biggest emitter, said it would trim its greenhouse-gas output by 7%–10%, a benchmark that analysts warn isn’t ambitious enough.
*Cue rollicking sea shanty* The High Seas Treaty has officially hit the 60-country ratification threshold needed to take effect. In what U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called a “historic achievement for the ocean and for multilateralism,” the agreement covers international waters—which make up the nearly half the planet’s surface—and allows for massive marine conservation areas and requires environmental assessments for high-seas activities. But there’s choppiness ahead: The U.S. and other major ocean powers haven’t ratified the treaty, notes The New York Times. And, with the Trump administration pushing for expanded deep-sea mining, worries are surfacing that the U.S. could sidestep the treaty’s safeguards entirely.
For the first time ever, electric vehicles are cheaper than their gas-powered counterparts. In July and August, the average EV sold for $44,908, a skosh below the $45,521 average for gas vehicles, according to data J.D. Power shared with InsideEVs. What’s behind the shift? Federal EV tax credits, which knock off as much as $7,500 from the sticker, run out on September 30, manufacturers and dealers are piling on aggressive discounts to clear inventory that might languish after that deadline. The lower prices won’t last, but J.D. Power analyst Tyson Jominy says that doesn’t mean costs will necessarily skyrocket: “In the short term, EVs will probably, at best, go sideways.”
Since it moves heat instead of generating it, a heat pump is one of the hottest upgrades in home energy efficiency. Canary Media reports that a coalition of states—called the Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management (NESCAUM)—is collaborating on ways to speed adoption. It recently released a “menu” of more than 50 proven strategies, such as New York’s requirement that most new buildings be all-electric, Massachusetts’s push for reduced utility rates for homes with heat pumps, and California’s program to install free pumps in low- and middle-income homes.
And finally, a necessary dispatch from the world of things joyful and juvenile: Katmai National Park’s Fat Bear Week kicked off Monday. The annual March Madness–style bracket pits 12 of the bears that feast on salmon from the Brooks River (as seen on the park’s Bear Cams) in a competition to see who displays peak chonk. Hefty ursines aside, the contest is an important moment to focus attention on the importance of preserving the entire ecosystem these furry beasts depend on. According to a 2023 analysis, U.S. National Parks hoover up 17.5 million metric tons of carbon every year, which is like permanently parking more than 4 million gas-powered cars. The tournament ends Tuesday, so cast your votes for who you deem the most hibernation-ready chunkster of 2025.