Today is Earth Day, an annual event now in its 52nd year that is focused on celebrating our planet and championing sustainable environmental practices - a part of the celebration that has taken on a significant amount of urgency in recent years.
The carbon comeback
Last Earth Day there was, somewhat ironically, something to celebrate. Data and estimates from the IEA show how global energy-related emissions in 2020 had fallen by a record amount as the pandemic ground our global economy to a halt.
Unfortunately this year the news isn't quite as optimistic — the same data shows a bounce back in net global energy-related emissions for last year that was more than equal to the drop from 2020. One of the very few silver linings from the pandemic has been erased.
