Damien refers to it as a slow motion catastrophe. In the months before cop we got forty eight point eight degrees celsius recorded in italy. We've had temperature records smashed in canada, us, finland, estonia, in turkey. Meanwhile, floods have swept through germany, china. There's been wild fires across the world. It was striking speaking to people who are really on the front line of climate change,. particularly island nations which are directly threatened by rising sea levels. And so i really high lighted the urgency of the situation for me.
Cop26 may have dominated the headlines this year, but there have been lots of other fascinating, devastating and hopeful environment stories over the past 12 months. Madeleine Finlay speaks to Guardian environment editor Damian Carrington and biodiversity reporter Phoebe Weston about some of their favourites, from reintroducing wild bison to the fields of Kent to climate crisis tipping points. Help support our independent journalism at
theguardian.com/sciencepod