Roundup

2023 set to be warmest year ever

September was the hottest one ever and 2023 is firmly set to be the warmest year on record, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said, citing data from the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S).

Average surface temperature reached 16.38°C, or 0.5°C above the previous record in September 2020.

Last month was roughly 1.75°C warmer compared to the pre-industrial period. It was also 0.93°C warmer than the 1991-2020 baseline which is used as a practical tool for climate sensitive sectors like agriculture.

WMO said this continues an extended streak of extraordinary land and sea-surface temperatures and is an ominous signal about the speed with which greenhouse gases (GHG) are changing the climate.

“The temperature anomalies are enormous—far bigger than anything we have ever seen in the past. Antarctic winter sea ice extent was the lowest on record for the time of year,” said Petteri Taalas, the agency’s secretary-general.

“What is especially worrying is that the warming El Niño event is still developing, and so we can expect these record-breaking temperatures to continue for months, with cascading impacts on our environment and society,” he added.

Samantha Burgess, the C3S deputy director, stressed that September 2023 is one for the record books.

“This extreme month has pushed 2023 into the dubious honor of first place—on track to be the warmest year and around 1.4°C above pre-industrial average temperatures,” she said.

With the COP28 UN climate change conference taking place in Dubai next month, “the sense of urgency for ambitious climate action has never been more critical,” she added. UN News

Ban smoking, vaping in schools

Young people continue to be “relentlessly” targeted with tobacco and nicotine products, the World Health Organization (WHO), in a recent call to ban smoking and vaping “whether sitting in class, playing games outside or waiting at the school bus stop.”

According to the UN health agency, the tobacco industry’s approach has resulted in increased use of e-cigarettes, with nine out of 10 smokers starting before the age of 18—and some as early as 11.

“Considering that children spend nearly