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Articles

COP30 must begin shift from “talk” to “action”

1 week ago | illuminem.com | John Leo Algo

2025 marks the 10th year since the adoption of the Paris Agreement, then heralded as a game-changer in addressing the climate crisis. However, the past decade has seen little meaningful progress. Recent climate negotiations or COPs have been mired by familiar problems: more words than actions, deep division among blocs of countries, the unjust presence of fossil fuel lobbyists, and the unwillingness of historical polluters to provide enough support to vulnerable countries.
EVs are a small part of a better, more holistic transportation system

2 weeks ago | illuminem.com | Cameron Roberts

Imagine yourself on your dream vacation. Perhaps it's a relaxing all-inclusive resort in the Caribbean or an excursion to a remote campsite. Or maybe it's an urban adventure to Paris or Barcelona. People have very different tastes in the places they like to go to relax and unwind. But many of the most popular vacation destinations have something important in common: When you get there, you don’t have to do much driving.
Regenerative agriculture is a promising solution for the future

3 weeks ago | illuminem.com | Rose Morrison

• Soil degradation threatens food security and carbon storage, but regenerative agriculture restores soil health and diversity• Techniques like no-till farming, cover cropping, and crop rotation boost resilience and reduce environmental impact• Regenerative practices offer long-term benefits, enhancing productivity, reducing costs, and fostering stronger rural economiesSoil degradation is reaching crisis levels due to industrial farming, deforestation and climate change.
For Philippines’ businesses, nowhere to go but net-zero

1 month ago | illuminem.com | John Leo Algo

The road to net-zero is not an easy path, but for the Philippines, the journey is even more difficult. As the Philippines prepares to update its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) before COP30, a key question is whether it will finally set a net-zero emissions target. The country remains the only one in ASEAN to not have such a pledge.
Tending to the broken bones

1 month ago | illuminem.com | Christiana Figueres

We find ourselves at a time of profound gravity. Last year, our planet crossed the 1.5°C threshold for the first time– not a mere statistical milestone, but a stark reminder of our rapidly closing window for action. While greenhouse gas emissions continued their relentless rise in 2024, we witnessed over 40 nations going to the ballot box, including the United States.
When it comes to experience, we must stay human in an AI world

1 month ago | illuminem.com | Shep Hyken

Mark Schaefer is one of my favorite business authors. I’ve studied his work (and written about it) in the past. His most recent book is timely, as it’s about the topic of the day, AI. I love how Schaefer simplifies the complicated. As I read through the book, I thought about how this applies to customer service and CX.
Catalysing public capital for India’s critical minerals sector

1 month ago | illuminem.com | Labanya Prakash Jena |Saurabh Trivedi

As India transitions towards net-zero, securing critical minerals will be critical to meeting its target. The Indian government’s approval for the National Critical Mineral Mission earlier this year, entailing roughly Rs16,300 crore (US$1.9 billion) in direct public spending and an additional Rs18,000 crore (US$2.1 billion) via public-sector undertakings (PSUs), represents a bold commitment to securing critical materials essential for the clean energy and high-tech industries.
Does AI need nuclear energy?

1 month ago | illuminem.com | Silvia Galliani

Data centers are the backbone of AI. They provide the vast computational power required to train and develop complex models. However, the energy requirements associated with this fast-growing industry pose critical challenges to our existing energy production systems. But what exactly are we talking about? How much power does AI really need? AI data centers need significant power due to the high energy demands of processing AI workloads.
New efforts to attract private climate and nature finance | illuminem

2 months ago | illuminem.com | Scott Vaughan

Among the blunt lessons of 2024 is that the gap continues to widen between available multilateral finance and needs on-the-ground to address climate and nature. The climate finance pledges of COP 29 and nature financing pledges of COP 16 were predictably underwhelming. 2025 promises to be worse, with another U.S. exit from the Paris Climate Agreement and apparent freezing of all U.S. overseas development aid compounding wider pressures on overseas development budgets.
Cleantech’s Musk Conundrum

2 months ago | illuminem.com | Jonathan Gifford

“It is thanks to you that the future of civilization is assured. We’re gonna have safe cities, finally safe cities. Secure borders, sensible spending. Basic stuff. And we’re gonna take DOGE to Mars.” - Elon MuskTesla founder and CEO gave an animated speech at US President Donald Trump’s inauguration rally earlier this week. While the policy sections of his speech spouted predictable Republican talking points, other parts were hyperbolic. He was excited, almost ecstatic.