globalEDGE Blog - By Author: Ata Gurbuz

This year's mild winter has significantly impacted Europe's ski resorts, where declining snow cover due to climate change is disrupting operations. A recent research paper in a leading environmental science journal revealed that without snowmaking, 53% of Europe’s ski resorts would be at very high risk for insufficient snow supply under a 2°C global warming scenario, which jumps to 98% at 4°C warming. Even with snowmaking covering 50% of their pistes, 27% would still be at high risk under a 2°C increase and 71% at 4°C. This highlights the profound threat climate change poses to the ski tourism industry, crucial for the economies of many of Europe's mountain regions.

In the materials and minerals category, China stands first as the leader in graphite production. This utterly important yet overlooked material is used in many different industries for many purposes, from nuclear plants to the pencils.