The EU would prefer its wildfires served with a side of competitiveness. Climate change has other plans.
The economic toll of Europe’s infernal summer
Global warming, not climate policy, is bad for business, experts warn.
politico.eu
Zia Weise
@ziaweise.bsky.social
Senior EU climate reporter at POLITICO. Recovering news editor, former Istanbul correspondent. Brussels-based. She/her. DM for Signal. ✉️ zweise@politico.eu
🔥Update: More than 24,000 heat-related deaths in a selection of European countries by early August New: Spain now with > 3000 deaths (May-early Aug) We need more estimates from the remaining countries to get the full picture. 👉 Online map with data sources: datawrapper.dwcdn.net/yJcqo/13/
Matthias Deutsch@matthiasdeutsch.bsky.social · last wk.🔥Already > 22,000 heat-related deaths in a selection of European countries by end-July, and temperatures will keep rising in the future. Faster estimation of excess deaths for all countries would make the threat of global warming more tangible when it’s still hot. 🧵 datawrapper.dwcdn.net/yJcqo/
Climate change is rendering Europe more flammable, vastly increasing the odds of the tinderbox conditions that fueled this week’s megafires in France and Spain, researchers say.
Climate change made Spanish wildfires 20 times more likely
Global warming also doubled the likelihood of this year’s tinderbox conditions in France, says snap scientific analysis.
politico.eu
If you're wondering WTF is the ETS, look no further: Here's your cheat sheet to the next EU policy fight. www.politico.eu/article/eu-e...
The 3 letters Brussels won’t be able to shut up about
POLITICO’s guide to the core elements of the Emissions Trading System reform.
politico.eu
The European Commission earlier this week mourned the victims of climate change. A slate of high-profile announcements today will show whether those solemn words were more than just lip service.
The European Commission’s moment of climate truth
Two policy announcements on Friday will show whether the Commission can keep its emissions-cutting promises.
politico.eu
If you're wondering WTF is the ETS, look no further: Here's your cheat sheet to the next EU policy fight. www.politico.eu/article/eu-e...
The 3 letters Brussels won’t be able to shut up about
POLITICO’s guide to the core elements of the Emissions Trading System reform.
politico.eu
Why don't most Europeans have air conditioning? Dumb? Woke? No - WE DID NOT NEED IT UNTIL FOSSIL FUEL BURNING CAUSED THE CLIMATE CRISIS More info 👇 www.carbonbrief.org/eight-facts-...
Eight facts about air conditioning amid an overheated global debate - Carbon Brief
Carbon Brief explains why AC rates in parts of Europe are relatively low and clarifies some of the misleading claims about the technology.
carbonbrief.org
Last month's record-breaking heat wave killed thousands across Western Europe, making it one of the continent's deadliest climate disasters.
Brutal June heat wave killed as many as 14,000 Europeans
POLITICO calculations show thousands of excess deaths across six worst-hit countries.
politico.eu
Wondering why you can't keep cool this week? It's down to a lack of sufficient... — mitigation (climate-speak for reducing planet-warming emission) — adaptation (= making our infrastructure and economy fit for a warmer world) — political will (self-explanatory) www.politico.eu/article/3-re...
3 reasons why Europe can’t stop sweating this week
Climate change, poor infrastructure and distracted politicians all play a role.
politico.eu
An early estimate for excess deaths in this heat wave - 1,000 people died in France in just a few days.
POLITICO Europe@politico.eu · last mo.France has recorded 1,000 more deaths than usual this month — an increase that can be attributed to the record-breaking heat wave the country has gone through in recent days.
Hospitals in Cologne are so overloaded due to the extreme heat that the city has set up a field hospital for lesser emergencies...
Frau Büüsker@uedio.bsky.social · last mo.Köln hat wegen der Überlastung der Krankenhäuser ein Notlazarett für die weniger schweren Hitzefälle eingerichtet #hitzenotstand www.ksta.de/koeln/hitzew...
Once the heat dissipates, Europe will start counting its dead. Story: www.politico.eu/article/why-...
Why Europe’s heat waves are still so deadly
An ageing population, overheating homes and climatic change are fast outstripping preparations and driving up the death toll.
politico.eu
Europe's extreme heat dominating POLITICO's front page today.
Once the heat dissipates, Europe will start counting its dead. Story: www.politico.eu/article/why-...
Why Europe’s heat waves are still so deadly
An ageing population, overheating homes and climatic change are fast outstripping preparations and driving up the death toll.
politico.eu
This week’s extraordinary heat wave is the worst to ever hit Western Europe and could not have occurred without humans heating the planet by burning fossil fuels, scientists say.
‘This is climate change’: European heat wave impossible without warming, scientists say
Man-made warming made this heat wave far more likely and hotter than it would have been even a few decades ago, research finds.
politico.eu
🥵 It's hot in here. Europe is sweating through a record-breaking heatwave that's killing people, trees, and destroying crops. Meanwhile in Brussels: EU governments push to divert green investment funds towards fossil fuel expansion. Read the full story 👇 www.politico.eu/article/eu-c...
EU countries want oil exploration to be classed as a green investment
The proposed changes could see oil giants like TotalEnergies showing up in sustainable investment funds.
politico.eu
It took a long, long time, but POLITICO's Brussels newsroom is officially unionized as of today. ✊
How hard can it be to have sufficient AC to at least not make the metro hotter than outside? Question for Brussels.
The entire (!) rail network across Germany has stopped running for the time being due to comms tech failing. And I thought my 2-hr delay on the way back to Brussels yesterday was bad. www.sueddeutsche.de/panorama/bah...
Bahnverkehr wegen Funkstörung bundesweit eingestellt
Grund ist eine Störung der „internen Kommunikationskanäle“, heißt es von dem Konzern.
sueddeutsche.de
I guess climate change has a sense of humour
Grantham Research Institute at LSE@granthamlse.bsky.social · 2mo agoWe regret that our event on Extreme Heat: Improving governance and strengthening action around the world has been cancelled due to the red extreme heat warning issued by the UK Met Office. Our apologies to everyone who was planning to attend the event.
Tried to capture the vibe at this year's Bonn climate talks:
POLITICO Europe@politico.eu · 2mo agoTalking won't save the planet. Climate negotiators are starting to catch on.
The European Union did not manage to reduce its planet-warming emissions last year, with preliminary data showing a slight increase in pollution levels compared to 2024.
EU greenhouse gas emissions rose in 2025, data shows
The bloc’s pollution-slashing efforts have been stagnating in recent years.
politico.eu
Just need everyone to know that the Belgium men's soccer team has new jerseys based on the art of Rene Magritte and this is the official photo shoot
Enemies could exploit Europe’s fossil fuel dependence to “choke” the bloc in the event of a war, the EU’s defense and climate chiefs warn.
Europe’s fossil fuel reliance could be weaponized in war, EU chiefs warn
The bloc’s dependence on foreign oil and gas is a defense liability, Wopke Hoekstra and Andrius Kubilius say.
politico.eu
The Turkish hosts of this year’s COP31 UN climate conference have blocked Cyprus from preparatory briefings and are refusing bilateral meeting requests sent by Nicosia on behalf of the European Union, five diplomats and officials told us. Story: www.politico.eu/article/turk...
Turkey freezes Cyprus out of COP31 climate summit preparations
The refusal of the COP31 host country to recognize Cyprus has made things awkward for the EU.
politico.eu
In climate resilience terms alone, the decision to turn Schuman into yet another concrete circle of hell that has even less greenery than before is baffling. Heats up the area, and unless there's drainage I can't see, a flood risk (as the area has flooded with severe rainfall before).
Frédéric Moreau@goodclimate.bsky.social · 3mo agoThe heat coming off this...
Update: The Polish government yesterday announced defensive nature restoration efforts, including a ban on clear-cutting of border forests, and millions in cash for restoring bogs and other wetlands: www.gov.pl/web/klimat/k...
Komponent przyrodniczy Tarczy Wschód - Ministerstwo Klimatu i Środowiska - Portal Gov.pl
Zmiana gospodarki leśnej na terenach przygranicznych, odbudowa ekosystemów i renaturyzacja zasobów wodnych - Polska wykorzystuje naturalny potencjał do tworzenia unikalnej na skalę europejską bariery,...
gov.pl
Zia Weise@ziaweise.bsky.social · 12mo agoA tank-trapping, carbon-capturing bog barrier to keep out Putin? Governments in Finland and Poland say they're looking into making this a reality. My big summer read, w/ @nikamelkozerova.bsky.social and @wojciechkosc.bsky.social, on defensive bog restoration: www.politico.eu/article/russ...