CARBON EMISSIONS | THE WEEK IN CLIMATE

THE CURVE IS BENDING — BUT NOT FALLING
Global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions grew about 0.4% in 2025, reaching nearly 38.4 billion tonnes. That is the slowest rise since 2021, but still a new record. Solar, wind, nuclear, electric cars and heat pumps avoided about 3 billion tonnes of CO2 in 2025. Clean technology is making a major difference — it is simply not expanding fast enough everywhere to make total emissions fall.

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WHY IT MATTERS
Weather can change year-to-year numbers. Colder winters raised heating demand, while drought limited hydropower in some regions. The long-term work is building cleaner electricity, efficiency and transport systems that keep pollution falling in every season.

THE HIDDEN ALLY: CARBON SINKS
Forests, soils and oceans absorb a large share of the carbon dioxide people release. Nature Climate Change reports that land ecosystems take up roughly one-third of human CO2 emissions, but heat, drought, wildfire and ocean warming can weaken that service. Carbon sinks are not a substitute for cutting fossil fuels; they are part of Earth’s safety net.

WHAT TO WATCH
Protecting forests and coastal ecosystems matters, while the fastest dependable emissions cuts come from using less fossil fuel in power, buildings, transport and industry.

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SOURCES: International Energy Agency, Global Energy Review 2026; Nature Climate Change, Sinking carbon sinks (2025); Associated Press reporting on the Global Carbon Project (2025).