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Copyright of Revista Româna de Dreptul Muncii is the property of Wolters Kluwer Romania and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Decarbonization, or the replacement of fossil fuels by renewables or 'cleaner' forms of energy, is an essential response to global warming. A gap in the debate on decarbonization is its implications for fragile fossil fuel-producing states (FFFPs). Unable to implement strategies for planned decarbonization, FFFPs face the prospect of rapid, unmanaged 'traumatic' decarbonization. This paper examines the political economy of this phenomenon drawing on six countries that have experienced dramatic losses in carbon revenues in the recent past: Ecuador, Iraq, Nigeria, South Sudan, Sudan and Venezuela. It also draws on two thematic papers – on peace-making during oil shocks and a review of the literature on energy transition in fragile states. The paper finds that in decarbonizing FFFPs, the rules of the political game tend to be 'sticky' and elites react to the loss of oil revenues by looking for alternate sources of rent and turning to coercion. Political settlements including peace agreements are structured around the allocation of oil rents to elites and their future viability is in question. We find only modest evidence for sustainable and democratic paths away from a carbon-based political settlement, despite the efforts of civic movements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the most important terrestrial sediments, Chinese loess provides valuable information on regional and global climatic and environmental changes and holds great potential for studying on nonlinear behaviors of the East Asian monsoon system. Utilizing objective and quantitative methods to identify tipping points and climate transitions in paleoclimatic records can help us understand the climatic change in the Chinese Loess Plateau (CLP). This study explores critical tipping points and nonlinear climate transitions within the CLP using the Chiloparts record, a comprehensive 2600-ka paleoclimate dataset. We pinpointed potential tipping points using recurrence quantification analysis and the augmented Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, ultimately leading to 15 critical tipping points. We argued that these 15 tipping points represent some of the most significant climatic changes recorded in the Chinese loess paleoclimate record. Employing recurrence quantification analysis, recurrence networks, and visibility graphs, we also identified several climate transitions and provided some nonlinear information, including the Mid-Pleistocene Transition (MPT) as well as the Mid-Brunhes Transition (MBT). We particularly highlight a significant climatic regime transition around 500 ka that may reflect a nonlinear response to variations in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). Our research also contributes to the understanding of the complex interplay between loess deposition, environmental change, and tectonic activity, emphasizing the need for further investigations to elucidate the mechanisms driving these transitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Across many policy areas, policymakers try to integrate new policy issues into old policy processes. This is challenging. Getting to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions requires radical change across a broad range of societal sectors; thus, climate policy integration is essential. This article develops a new processual perspective on climate policy integration, allowing assessment, classification, and comparison of various stages of integration across policy processes, and over time. The integration process can be shaped by differing institutional logics. In a study of Norwegian agricultural policy, we identify three logics: multifunctional, market failure, and socio-technological transition. These portray differing frames, objectives, instruments, and sector involvement as appropriate ways of linking climate concerns to agricultural policy. We suggest that a shallow integration process is characterized by a sector-specific logic that facilitates discussions of policy frames and goals. In an embedded integration process, multiple logics are mobilized, and a broader range of policy elements are discussed: frames, goals, instruments, and sector involvement in the process. Consistent and contested integration processes are intermediate categories. Climate integration in Norwegian agricultural policy had the hallmarks of a shallow process in 2006–2009 but changed to a contested process in 2016–2021. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the climate transition is to minimise the long-term losses of well-being that would result from inaction. However, the necessary policies are likely to incur costs in the short and medium term. Standard of living indicators will serve their intended purpose if they accurately reflect these costs. Nevertheless, some of them may be underestimated, resulting in a greater impact than suggested by conventional indicators. Conversely, the well-being cost of the transition could be lower if non-monetary co-benefits emerge quickly enough and/or if preferences shift: reduced access to polluting goods has a different impact depending on whether the intrinsic taste for these goods remains strong or declines. While these questions are relevant to various contexts, the climate transition offers an opportunity to examine them in greater depth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reviewer Frederik Appel Olsen takes issue with the approach we present in The Virtues of Green Marketing: A Constructive Take on Corporate Rhetoric (Palgrave Macmillan). In this response, we point out three aspects where Appel Olsen paints a misleading picture of our book. They concern a) the role of history in contemporary thinking, b) the role of Aristotle in our argumentation, and c) the legitimate place of rhetorical criticism. Thus, our response treats fundamental questions for the field of rhetoric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Derecho Comunitario Europeo is the property of Centro de Estudios Politicos y Constitucionales and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The wintertime multidecadal land precipitation (WMLP) variability is obtained using the ensemble empirical mode decomposition, and then the leading spatial pattern and temporal evolution of the WMLP in the northern hemisphere during the period of 1891–2014 are investigated. The time series shows a pronounced enhancement of the variability since the mid‐1970s, coincident with the 1976/1977 climate transition, with the variance increasing from 0.33 in the former period (P1) to 2.57 in the latter period (P2). The spatial structure in P2 resembles that in the entire period. The precipitation anomaly is positive in the North America between 30° and 50°N, South America and southern Europe; while it is negative in the southern North America, majority of Russia, Arabian Peninsula, Iran and South China. However, the spatial pattern in P1 differs from the entire period. An Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO)‐like sea surface temperature (SST) variability in cold phase and an Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO)‐like SST variability in warm phase are associated with the leading mode of WMLP in P2 and the entire period. Yet, the relationship of IPO and AMO on the WMLP is barely found in P1. The in‐phase change of IPO and AMO in P1 may contribute to the smaller amplitude of WMLP variability in P1. In the end, the coupled models from CMIP6 historical runs are evaluated. The good‐models average is superior to any single good model in capturing the observed spatial features of WMLP in both P1 and P2. The poor‐models average performs better than any single poor model. Both good‐ and poor‐models averages are able to reproduce the IPO‐ and AMO‐like SST variabilities in P2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews literature on six actor groups engaged in domestic mitigation governance. It evaluates the usefulness of three climate governance models: market failure, socio-technological transition and public support. For each group, three modes of action are considered: influencing, decision-making and implementing. The public support model is found to best capture the wide range of actors and real-world, complex participation patterns of domestic climate governance. The socio-technological transitions and market failure models in their narrow focus on political and business actors ignore the influencing roles of other groups, such as climate advocacy organizations, anti-climate action groups, Indigenous people's organizations and labor unions. However, they offer more insight on actor engagement in decision-making and implementation, roles mostly ignored by the public support model. Overall, more systematic comparative research is needed on a wider range of actors, on domestic climate governance in the global South, on differences across countries, sectors and policy domains and on interactions between actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the paleoclimate responses in Southern Ocean and its surrounding land can help us to better explore the major climate transition mechanisms in geological history and predict the response ofthe earth system to abrupt climate changes in the future, while, there is still a lack of research on the paleoclimatere sponse of the surrounding land in Southern Ocean.Based on the age framework, major, traceand rare earth element compositions of the deep-sea sediments at Site U1516 of the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) 369, we determined that the sediments were mainly from the southwest continent of Australia, and then reconstructed the chemical weathering history of the source area on the tectonic time scale.In addition, we combined with the previous research results to discuss the paleoclimate evolution of continents surrounding Southern Ocean during the Late Eocene-Oligocene climate transition period and its response toglobal climate changes and regional paleogeographic changes.During the Eocene-Oligocene transition (e.g., 34.1 to 33.6 Ma and 31.3 to 29.8 Ma), the paleoclimate in the source area was mainly controlled by the significant changes in the paleogeographic pattern of the adjacent area, which was characterized by the climate conditions tending to bedry and cold and the decrease of chemical weathering intensity on the land surface.During the period of 33.6 to 31.3 Ma and 29.8 to 25.2 Ma, the palaeoclimate of the source area mainly responded to global climate changes.In theformer stage, the paleoclimate changed from dry and cold to wet and hot, the intensity of chemical weathering on the land surface increased correspondingly; In the latter stage, the climate maintained in a relatively stable dry and cold state, the intensity of chemical weathering on the land surface is also weak.

Global climate has undergone dramatic changes over the past 200 years, accurately identifying the climate transition and its controlling factors will help to address the risks posed by global warming and predict future climate trends. To clarify climate change over the past 200 years, detailed analyses of chronology, grain size, color reflectance (L*, a*) and carbon content (TOC, TIC) were conducted on a 200-year high resolution (~ 2 a) sedimentary record from lake Ebinur in Xinjiang, northwest China. The results show that the median grain size (Md) of lake sediments ranges from 5.5 µm to 9.9 µm, with a mean value of 7.0 µm. Multi-parameter analysis of grain size suggests that the sediments in lake Ebinur are mainly transported by wind, and there are two kinds of different sources and transport processes: the fine-grained sediments (< 20 µm) are background dust that was transported by long distance high-altitude suspension, while the coarse-grained sediments (> 20 µm) are local and regional dusts that were transported from short distances at low altitudes. Comparative analysis of multi-proxies including grain size-color reflectance and carbon content reveals that 1920 AD is the time point of climate transition in the past 200 years. In the early period (1816-1920 AD), the high C values indicate strong transport dynamics; the high proportion of ultrafine component indicates strong pedogenesis, combined with high organic carbon content and high a* values, it is inferred that the water vapor content is relatively higher. Overall, this period corresponds to the cold and wet climate. In the later period (1920-2019 AD), the proxies show opposite changes, which may reveal a warm and dry climate. Based on a comprehensive analysis of multiple drivers (i.e., solar radiation, greenhouse gases and volcanic eruption), we propose that the increase of solar irradiance in 1920 AD played a dominant role in the Asian climate transition, and that the gradual rise in the concentrations of greenhouse gases (CO2 and CH4) may have a positive feedback effect on the climate transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whether there is a transition underway, from a warm-dry climate to a warm-wet climate in Northwest China remains a controversial and scientifically significant issue. Will this trend continue in the future? Another hot issue is whether the climate in Northwest China will continue to be warm and humid over the next few decades. In this paper, eight CMIP6 models were employed to investigate temperature and precipitation changes under five principal Shared Socioeconomic Pathway (SSP) scenarios (from 2015 to 2099) to project the future warming and humidification in Northwest China using the SPEI (standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index) method. The results revealed that (1) the simulated temperature and precipitation of eight CMIP6 models were consistent with that of observed data during 1961–2014, which showed an increase of approximately 28.2 mm, while simulated data revealed an increase of approximately 9.4 mm. The annual precipitation gradually decreased from Eastern Inner Mongolia and the Southern Northwest Mongolia region (>700 mm) to the Central Northwest Mongolia region (

A 1.5 °C world relies on the development of modern renewable energy sources in Latin America and the Caribbean. Whilst existing research offers insights into national case studies, our study responds to a lack of region-wide analysis. To identify the relative level of national commitment to a just transition in the region, this study collects, analyses, and visualizes global data from eight different sources. It uses a ranking method to analyse relative performance. To find where policy improvement is most urgently needed, trends are extrapolated on fossil fuel dependency, subsidies, and carbon dioxide emissions, as well as renewable energy production and international finance, through the lens of distributional, procedural, and restorative justice. We call for a new approach to international clean energy finance which promotes greater procedural justice whilst ensuring that green energy deployment leads to higher levels of meaningful employment.

Metropolitan governance and planning increasingly are understood as essential in managing urban growth and fostering a sustainable and climate-friendly metropolitan development. Lately, a contractual turn can be observed in metropolitan governance, in which traditional coordination tools are supplemented by contractual management tools between governmental layers and sectors. This article analyses two cases of metropolitan contractual management agreements, one in the Oslo region and one in the Gothenburg region. The article finds that both agreements build on regional strategies and plans to commit national authorities to invest in infrastructure in these metropolitan areas. The Oslo agreement has more layers than the Gothenburg case, in trying to align national, regional and local authorities' efforts in both land use and mobility politics. The agreements require advanced leadership competence from the core-city, curbing centre-periphery tensions in metropolitan areas and building local alliances to pressure national authorities in agreement negotiations. We argue that this requires a co-creational leadership role, which, in a multilevel governance setting, must be extended to include dimensions such as distributional balance sensitivity, delineation sensitivity and upward pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the mitigation of climate tipping point transitions using an energy balance model. The evolution of the global mean surface temperature is coupled with the CO2 concentration through the green-house effect. We model the CO2 concentration with a stochastic delay differential equation (SDDE), accounting for various carbon emission and capture scenarios. The resulting coupled system of SDDEs exhibits a tipping point phenomena: if CO2 concentration exceeds a critical threshold (around 478 ppm), the temperature experiences an abrupt increase of about six degrees Celsius. We show that the CO2 concentration exhibits a transient growth which may cause a climate tipping point, even if the concentration decays asymptotically. We derive a rigorous upper bound for the CO2 evolution which quantifies its transient and asymptotic growths, and provides sufficient conditions for evading the climate tipping point. Combining this upper bound with Monte Carlo simulations of the stochastic climate model, we investigate the emission reduction and carbon capture scenarios that would avert the tipping point. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the climatic diversity in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, housing diversity is one of the characteristics of this province. The southern part of the province, at least in a part of the year, has tropical climate features; the area experiences extreme heat and high relative humidity. At the same time, the northern parts of the province are affected by the climatic elements of tropical regions, where the climate is hot and dry. The diversity in housing caused by the climatic diversity of the region is one of the characteristics of this part of the country. Taftan mountainous regions of Bazman, hot and dry central regions, hot and humid southern regions, and the general position of the province have made the climate diversified. This has given the traditional houses there structural variety. The investigation of the adaptation or incompatibility of indigenous habitats with climatic features indicated that the local houses in the city of Sarbaz have the highest adaptability to the climate. Those in Saravan, Iranshahr, Nikshahr, Zahedan and Zabul have moderate adaptation. In Chabahar and Bampur, a minimum compatibility exists between the local houses and the climate. Also, the study of the spatial relationships in the province showed spatial similarities among Nikshahr, Saravan, Khash and Zahedan in terms of housing characteristics. These areas have a cluster distribution pattern. The buildings in Iranshahr with the autocorrelation coefficient of -0.714 have the highest coordination with the rest of the province. The cities of Iranshahr and Zabol have the least spatial relationship with the rest of the province with a negative correlation coefficient close to zero. It is considered as a random pattern in terms of spatial distribution. Therefore, the most adapted houses are located in Sarbaz, Nikshahr, Zabol.

Monitoring and predicting the climatic phenomenon are the major global concern because of its devasting effects on people's lives and their environments. As a result of this, there is a need to understand the natural processes that control the dynamic evolution of the climatic phenomenon. Air temperature and relative humidity data collected from Nsukka station by the Centre for Atmospheric Research (CAR), measured in 5 minutes time steps from 1st January till 31st December, 2012 have been analysed. Dew point temperature was calculated from the actual readings of air temperature and relative humidity using appropriate empirical relation. In this paper, Average Mutual Information (AMI), False Nearest Neighbour (FNN) and Lyapunov Exponent methods were used to study changes and transitions in the dynamics of these meteorological parameters or temporal deviations from their overall dynamical regimes. The results show that the dynamic model needed to describe the data has 4-5 dimensions for air temperature, 4-6 for relative humidity and 4-5 for dew point temperature. Positive and negative Lyapunov exponents were observed in the air temperature, relative humidity and dew point temperature time series. This indicates that there exists periodicity inherent in the chaotic behaviour of these meteorological time series, causing a transition from chaoticity (positive Lyapunov exponent) to periodicity (negative Lyapunov exponent) and thereafter to chaoticity (positive Lyapunov exponent). The results, therefore, provide additional information about the climate transitions, maximum predictability and also, for formulating a weather prediction model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Covid‐19 has highlighted our fragile relationship with the planet. But it represents a minor challenge compared to the permanent havoc that runaway climate change threatens. Politicians and governments—some at least—are beginning to recognise the scale of the danger. In this article we assess the evolution of policy thinking on how to make climate transitions happen; the potential of the European Green Deal; and how progressives need to shape it and any UK counterpart to meet the challenges of modern society. The European initiative arises from a broad coalition spanning the political spectrum. Yet, its central thrust of active government offers the prospect of reviving a battered social democracy. We indicate the openings here for a pluralist, ecological left. The run‐up to the next global climate conference—COP26—will be a vital period which will show whether parties and governments across the world are prepared to meet the climate change challenge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The climate system can potentially switch from one stable state to another. The closer a system is to a bifurcation point (i.e., 'tipping point'), the more likely it is that even small perturbations can force the system to experience a state shift, e.g., a collapsing Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) and associated cooling in parts of the North Atlantic. Here, we present an abrupt state transition from a warm to a cold North Atlantic climate state with expanded sea ice during an orbitally forced transient Holocene simulation performed with the Community Climate System Model version 3. The state transition is associated with a weakening of the AMOC by about 33% in this simulation. The changing background climate induced by slow external orbital forcing plays an important role for the abrupt climate shift. The model allows the identification of regions and variables that play a key role for a potential climate transition and show early-warning signals. Increase in autocorrelation and standard deviation as well as trends in skewness especially for sea-surface salinity in the northern North Atlantic are identified as robust early-warning signals, whereas no early-warning signals are found in the time series of the AMOC stream function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • There has been a strong climate transition change from warm-dry to warm-wet. • Drought still was limiting factor for radial growth of two dominant conifer trees. • Siberian larch had divergent response with first increase and then decrease trend. • Schrenk spruce had stable responses showing continuously decreasing growth trend. • Water management should be adjusted according to trees response characteristics. Abstract As global climate warming intensified in the latter half of the 20th century, the radial growth of trees exhibited unstable climate responses and growth trends, thereby reducing the accuracy of growth-climate ecological relationship and the scientificity of forest management based on tree rings. We assessed the temporal stability of radial growth responses and determined the growth patterns of two dominant co-occurring conifer tree species, Siberian larch (Larix sibirica) and Schrenk spruce (Picea schrenkiana), in the Tianshan Mountains of northwest China under a climate that shifted from warm-dry to warm-wet. The primary conclusions were as follows: (1) drought in the growing season was the main limiting factor of radial growth of the two tree species in recent decades through the analysis of the dynamic relationships between tree radial growth and climate factors; (2) Siberian larch had divergent responses to mean temperature in summer of the previous year, while Schrenk spruce had relatively stable responses to the mean temperature, total precipitation and monthly standardized precipitation-evapotranspiration index (SPEI) in spring of the current year by comparing the response variations before and after the abrupt increases in temperature and the moving correlation function; and (3) Siberian larch showed first increasing and then decreasing trends, while Schrenk spruce showed continuously decreasing trends based on calculating the basal area increment (BAI). The study results confirmed that forests in arid and semiarid environments would be subjected to more serious drought impacts, resulting in radial growth decline, tree mortality and community degradation with climate warming in the future. Therefore, it is important to adopt effective management measures for different species according to their response characteristics to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paleoenvironmental and paleoclimate changes in intracontinental Siberia were reconstructed by continuous, high-resolution records (biogenic silica, U, total organic carbon and N, total S, and grain size) from a sediment core retrieved from the Buguldeika Saddle, Lake Baikal, dating back to the last 33 cal. ka BP. The Holocene climate was wet relative to the last glacial period. The climate became gradually warm and wet from the early to middle Holocene, followed by a shift at ca. 6.5 cal. ka BP toward warm and dry, possibly because of evapotranspiration. This suggests that the climate system transition from the glacial to interglacial state occurred at that time. In the last glacial, the deposition of carbonate mud from the Primorsky Range was associated with Heinrich events (H3 and H1) and the Selenga River inflow during the Last Glacial Maximum was caused by meltwater of mountain glaciers in the Khamar–Daban Range. The anoxic bottom-water during the Allerød-Younger Dryas was probably a result of weakened ventilation associated with reduced Selenga River inflow and microbial decomposition of organic matters originating from moderate input of nutrients from the Primorsky Range. The rapid decline in precipitation during the early Holocene may have been a response to the 8.2 ka cooling event. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global climate has undergone dramatic changes over the past 200 years, accurately identifying the climate transition (from LIA to 20th century warming) and its controlling factors will help to address the risks posed by global warming. Detailed analyses of chronology, grain size, color reflectance (L*, a*) and carbon content (TOC, TIC) were conducted on a 200-year sedimentary record from lake Ebinur in Xinjiang, northwest China. The results show that lake sediments are mainly transported by wind, and there are two kinds of different sources and transport processes. Comparative analysis of multi-proxies reveals that the climate transition took place in 1920 AD. In the early period (1816–1920 AD), the high C values indicate strong transport dynamics; the high proportion of ultrafine component indicates strong pedogenesis, combined with high TOC and a* values, it is inferred that the climate is cold and wet. In the later period (1920–2019 AD), the proxies show opposite changes, which may reveal a warm and dry climate. Based on a comprehensive analysis of multi-drivers, we propose that the increase of solar irradiance played a dominant role in 1920 AD climate transition, and the gradual rise in the concentrations of greenhouse gases may have a positive feedback effect. • Lake Ebinur sediments are mainly transported by wind. • A climate transition occurred in 1920 AD: from cold LIA to 20th century warming. • The increase of solar irradiance is the main driver of the 1920 AD climate transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) is essential for the livelihoods of billions of people in East and Southeast Asia. Its present features and evolution history of the Quaternary have been well studied, yet how did EASM operate in much older geological times, especially before the late Miocene, is relatively less constrained. Scientific drillings conducted in the South China Sea (SCS) offer excellent opportunities to resolve this issue to a certain extent considering the EASM has been prevailing in this area since at least the earliest Miocene. In this study, mineralogical and stratigraphic studies were carried out on the middle Miocene pelagic reddish clay recovered at International Ocean Discovery Program Site U1433 using clay mineralogical and natural gamma radiation data. Our results show that the smectite content and illite crystallinity of the deep SCS clay were direct consequences of the EASM intensity varying in precession rhythm and modulated by eccentricity cycles. A high-resolution temporal framework constructed with onboard age controls and cyclostratigraphic analyses demonstrates that the pelagic reddish clay from Site U1433 was accumulated from 17.17 to 12.69 Ma. During this period, deep-sea sedimentation of the SCS was controlled by the EASM and influenced by the sea-level change. Importantly, clay mineral is proved to be an efficient terrigenous standard of astronomical tuning and stratigraphic correlation for pelagic sediments. It is also verified that the EASM intensified during the Miocene Climatic Optimum and the following Middle Miocene Climate Transition, and induced higher humidity and seasonality, respectively. Then, the EASM gradually weakened since the expansion of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet. • A standard process for building age models of pelagic sediments is proposed. • The first high-resolution middle Miocene time framework in the deep South China Sea. • Pelagic clay minerals recorded the Miocene East Asian summer monsoon evolution. • Continental shelves buffered the middle Miocene sedimentation in the deep sea. • The South China Sea's reddish clay composition is homogeneous in the oceanic basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO) is a 40-60 year quasi-oscillation seen mostly in the Pacific basin, but its impacts on surface temperature (T) and precipitation (P) have been found over Australia, the Southwest U.S. and other regions. Here, a global analysis of IPO's impacts on T and P and its modulation of ENSO's influence on T and P over the globe is performed using observational and reanalysis data and model simulations. Since 1920, there are two warm (1924-1944 and 1977-1998) and two cold (1945-1976 and 1999-present) IPO phases, whose change is associated with abrupt shifts in North Pacific sea level pressure (SLP) and contrasting anomaly patterns in T and P and atmospheric circulation over the eastern and western Pacific. The IPO explains more than half of the interdecadal variations in T and P over many regions, such as northeastern Australia, western Canada and northern India. Significant correlations between the IPO and local P are observed over eastern Australia, southern Africa and the Southwest U.S. The IPO also modulates ENSO's influence on local T and P over most of these regions. T over northern India is positively correlated with Niño3.4 ENSO index during cold IPO phases but the correlation turns negative or insignificant during IPO warm phases. Over northeastern Australia, the T versus ENSO and P versus ENSO correlations are stronger during the IPO cold phases than during the warm phases. The P versus ENSO correlation over southern Africa tends to be negative during IPO warm phases but becomes weaker or insignificant during IPO cold phases. The IPO-induced P anomalies can be explained by the associated anomaly circulation, which is characterized by a high SLP center and anti-cyclonic flows over the North Pacific, and negative SLP anomalies and increased wind convergence over the Indonesia and western Pacific region during IPO cold phases. These observed influences of the IPO on regional T and P are generally reproduced by an atmospheric model forced by observed sea surface temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The semiarid region of Brazil consists of a great variety of landscapes, soils and vegetation forms, with complex interrelations. In order to better understand this interplay, we posed two questions: Are there greater pedological similarities among the different landforms of the same catena or among the same landforms from different catenas? Which soil attributes could be the most important to segregate communities of plants? We sampled soils and vegetation on different landforms in four different catenas and performed NMS (non-metric multidimensional scaling) and ANOVA (analysis of variance) to address the first question; also, we carried another NMS following GLM (general linear model regression) to answer the second question. The first NMS indicated the existence of a fertility gradient, grouping communities in relation to similar landforms, confirmed by ANOVA. The second NMS indicated the same gradient whereas the GLM showed that is controlled by aluminum saturation, sodium saturation, phosphorous and sand content. One extreme of the gradient has uplands associated with cerrado vegetation forms whereas the other extreme slopes were associated with dry forests. The lowlands associated with dry forest represent the central position of the fertility gradient. In general, soils at similar landforms showed greater pedological similarity, and their physico-chemical attributes determined the formation and structure of vegetation. This similarity across the same landform refers to the comparable soil formation at each landform and soil age at landscape scale. The characteristics of the vegetation and soils in the Brazilian southern semiarid region indicated a previously wetter climate, during which deep weathered latosols (oxisols) were formed and remain as relics in the present semiarid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coal-fired electricity generation accounts for more than 10 Gt, or roughly 30 %, of global CO 2 emissions, with the majority of coal-fired generation capacity located in developing countries. It is possible to significantly reduce emissions from older, expensive and inefficient coal plants at less than US$10/tCO 2 e. However, in the absence of suitable business models and financing options, accelerated coal decommissioning may not transpire. Several business models have been tested, such as policy-based closure, buyout, and repurposing, and swapping for renewables. Features of different models can be combined to develop hybrid models. This paper develops typologies for alternative business models so that the available options can be clearly understood and compared. The paper also discusses the potential merits and drawbacks of each model. Rather than offering definitive answers on a suitable approach for coal transition. the paper aims to collate the experience thus far and highlight questions that require further examination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Late Paleozoic deglaciation is Earth's first icehouse-to-greenhouse transition with extensive vegetation, but the response of tropical climate to this transition has not yet been fully addressed. Here, cyclostratigraphic analysis was conducted on the magnetic susceptibility (MS) record of a deep marine carbonate succession in South China to construct the astrochronology of late Cisuralian (Early Permian), and decipher the evolutionary response to the climate transition in the MS and δ13C carb time series. The constructed astronomical time scale indicates an age of 272.83 ± 0.2 Ma for the Cisuralian–Guadalupian boundary in South China. Synchronizing global records demonstrates a complicated linkage between low and high latitudes, involving secular changes in atmospheric p CO 2 , ice volume, tropical climate and carbon cycling. In the final stage of the Early Permian icehouse (~290–288.2 Ma), the delivery of moisture from low to high latitudes was reduced in comparison with that in the icehouse apex. A more humid climate facilitated the development of tropical coal forests and more storage of 12C on land. In a full greenhouse condition (~281–272 Ma), the tropical responses to a rise in atmospheric p CO 2 involved continental drying and ocean stagnation. On a shorter time scale, the nodes of 1.36 Myr obliquity cycles triggered ice-sheet expansion and enhanced tropical precipitation during an icehouse condition. With the gradual transition to an arid greenhouse, the insolation-climate relationship began to change at ~285.1 Ma, and the obliquity nodes became associated instead with terrestrial aridity and marine anoxia. These results bring into a focus pattern of shifting dynamics involving Earth's astronomical parameters and climate change for icehouse and greenhouse worlds in the Late Paleozoic Era. • The Cisuralian–Guadalupian boundary were dated as 272.83 ± 0.2 Ma. • Obliquity nodes triggered ice sheet expansion and enhanced tropical precipitation during a subhumid icehouse (290–285.1 Ma). • Obliquity nodes resulted in the terrestrial aridity and marine anoxia during an arid greenhouse (285.1–272 Ma). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]