I am reminded of a surprising and cherished memory of a gift that arrived at my office door one July afternoon—four tiny raspberries. As I sat at my desk, deeply immersed in writing, Shyra, my partner in life and business, returned from a short walk. In her hand, she held these delicate ruby-coloured gems, her face alight with excitement and curiosity as she asked, “Are these wild raspberries?”
My affirmation brought a look of elation to her face, but I could see the question forming in her eyes. Why were these berries so much smaller than the ones we typically see in stores? This simple question transported me back to a cherished memory, a lesson from my grandmother that has stayed with me for years.
The Sacred Role of Berries in Nature and Community
I remember clearly the day my grandmother and I walked along the east side of a large hill she lived on. With a subtle gesture—a point of her chin—she directed my attention to a patch of raspberry bushes. “These are raspberries,” she said. “They have been here for many years. There is just enough for us to enjoy their sweetness.”
Curious about their diminutive size, I asked her why they were so small. Her response was simple and profound: “I believe they are tiny because they serve a purpose: to create more raspberries.” She explained that raspberries are keepers of their seeds, designed to be eaten so humans, birds, and animals can disperse them. This natural process ensures the growth of new raspberry plants, perpetuating their life cycle and maintaining the balance of nature.
Her teachings revealed a sacred truth: these berries are not merely food but an essential part of the ecosystem, holding a sacred role in sustaining biodiversity of creating sacred spaces. The small size of wild raspberries isn’t a flaw but a feature that ensures their purpose is fulfilled. Every berry, every seed, every bite connects humans, animals, and the land in a cycle of interdependence.
Climate Change and the Balance of Nature
This delicate balance, however, is increasingly under threat from climate change. Rising temperatures, unpredictable weather patterns, and habitat destruction significantly impact the growth, health, and distribution of wild berries, including raspberries. Warmer winters disrupt dormancy cycles, leading to poor fruit production, while more frequent droughts stress plants and reduce yields. Unseasonal frosts can damage early blooms, and shifting climate zones are forcing plants to adapt to conditions they may not survive.
Other native berries in Ontario, such as blackberries, blueberries, serviceberries, elderberries, and strawberries, are also experiencing similar challenges. These plants, which once thrived in harmony with the local environment, are now vulnerable to changing precipitation patterns, invasive species, and soil degradation. This impacts the plants and the entire ecosystem that relies on them, from pollinators to humans.
For Indigenous communities, these berries are more than sustenance—they are integral to cultural identity and practices, traditional medicines, and food sovereignty. They symbolize the reciprocal relationship between humans and nature, which is strained by environmental degradation and climate change. The loss of these berries would represent an ecological crisis and a profound cultural loss.
Berries as a Foundation of Food Sovereignty
Berries like raspberries hold a sacred role in food sustainability and sovereignty. Their abundance supports a diverse food web, providing nutrition to countless species, including humans. In Indigenous food systems, berries are central to seasonal diets, ceremonial practices, and economic sustainability. Harvesting wild berries fosters a connection to the land, reinforcing the principle that food is a gift from Mother Earth to be shared responsibly.
The role of berries in the local food economy is also significant. Wild and cultivated berries contribute to community-based economies, supporting local growers and Indigenous harvesters. These plants embody the principles of balance and reciprocity, teaching us that sustainable food systems depend on healthy ecosystems. When climate change disrupts this balance, the consequences ripple through the food economy, threatening food security and sovereignty.
A Call to Protect the Sacred Role of Berries
Climate change is a threat to the environment and a challenge to the sacred relationships that sustain life. Berries like raspberries remind us of the interconnectedness of all living things and the importance of preserving these relationships. Protecting these plants means addressing the root causes of climate change, restoring habitats, and respecting Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) that has long guided sustainable stewardship of the land.
We must recognize the sacred role of berries as decision-makers in the health and well-being of people, plants, and animals. They are not mere commodities but vital participants in the dance of life, shaping ecosystems and supporting the cycles that sustain us all. Safeguarding their future is a moral and ecological imperative.
Honouring the Lessons of the Raspberry
As I savoured the sweet-tart flavour of the raspberries Shyra had found, I was grateful for her thoughtful gesture, the spirit of the berry, and the enduring wisdom of my grandmother’s teachings. These tiny berries, with their significant purpose, remind us of the beauty and fragility of the natural world. They teach us that food is not just sustenance but a sacred gift, a testament to the balance and wisdom of nature.
These lessons are more critical than ever in our modern world, where food systems are often disconnected from the land. The impacts of climate change compel us to reexamine our relationship with food, the environment, and each other. By protecting berries and the ecosystems they support, we honour the sacred balance of life and ensure a future where food sovereignty and sustainability are possible.
Let us walk gently on this Earth, remembering that even the smallest berry carries the wisdom of the land and the power to nourish life. By protecting these treasures, we uphold our responsibility to future generations and the sacred cycles that sustain us all.
By Rye Karonhiowanen Barberstock
(Image Credit: Christian Wiediger, Unsplash)
The post Small Berries, Big Lessons: A Reflection on Nature’s Wisdom and the Impacts of Climate Change appeared first on Indigenous Climate Hub.
Small Berries, Big Lessons: A Reflection on Nature’s Wisdom and the Impacts of Climate Change
It’s been less than 20 years since baby food in plastic pouches first appeared on supermarket shelves. Since then, these convenient and popular “squeeze-and-suck” products have become the dominant packaging for baby food, transforming the way that millions of babies are fed around the world. But emerging evidence raises concerns that big food brands are feeding our children plastic pollution with unknown consequences, by selling baby food in flexible plastic packaging.
Testing commissioned by Greenpeace International in 2025 found plastic particles in the baby food products of two global consumer goods companies – Danone and Nestlé. The study suggests a link between the type of plastic the pouches are lined with – polyethylene – and some of the microplastics found. Tests also suggest a range of plastic-associated chemicals in the packaging and food of both products.
Sign the petition for a strong Global Plastics Treaty
Governments around the world are now negotiating a Global Plastics Treaty – an agreement that could solve the planetary crisis brought by runaway plastic production. Let’s end the age of plastic – sign the petition for a strong Global Plastics Treaty now.
Climate Change
U.N. General Assembly Embraces Court Opinion That Says Nations Have a Legal Obligation to Take Climate Action
The U.S. was among eight countries that voted against endorsing the nonbinding ruling that said all nations must take steps to limit temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday voted overwhelmingly in favor of a climate justice resolution championed by the small Pacific Island nation of Vanuatu. The resolution welcomes the historic advisory opinion on climate change issued by the International Court of Justice in July 2025 and calls upon U.N. member states to act upon the court’s unanimous guidance, which clarified that addressing the climate crisis is not optional but rather is a legal duty under multiple sources of international law.
The number of new coal-fired power plants built around the world hit a “10-year high” in 2025, even as the global coal fleet generated less electricity, amid a “widening disconnect” in the sector.
That is according to the latest annual report from Global Energy Monitor (GEM), which finds that the world added nearly 100 gigawatts (GW) of new coal-power capacity in 2025, the equivalent of roughly 100 large coal plants.
It adds that 95% of the new coal plants were built in India and China.
Yet GEM says that the amount of electricity generated with coal fell by 0.6% in 2025 – with sharp drops in both China and India – as the fuel was displaced by record wind and solar output, among other factors.
The report notes that there have been previous dips in output from coal power and there could still be ups – as well as downs – in the near term.
For example, nearly 70% of the coal-fired units scheduled to retire globally in 2025 did not do so, due to postponements triggered by the 2022 energy crisis and policy shifts in the US.
However, GEM says that the underlying dynamics for coal power have now fundamentally shifted, as the cost of renewables has fallen and low usage hits coal profitability.
China and India dominate growth
In 2025, coal-capacity growth hit a 10-year high, with 97 gigawatts (GW) of new power plants being added, according to GEM.
(Capacity refers to the potential maximum power output, as measured in GW, whereas generation refers to power actually generated by the assets over a period of time, measured in gigawatt hours, GWh.)
This is the highest level since 2015 when 107GW began operating, as shown in the chart below. This makes 2025 the second-highest level of additions on record.
The majority of this growth came from China and India, which added 78GW and 10GW, respectively, against 9GW from all other countries.
Yet GEM points out that, even as coal capacity in China grew by 6%, the output from coal-fired power plants actually fell 1.2%. This means that each power plant would have been running less often, eroding its profitability. Similarly, capacity in India grew by 3.8%, while generation fell by 2.9%.
China and India had accounted for 87% of new coal-power capacity that came into operation in the first half of 2025. The shift up to 95% in the year as a whole highlights how increasingly just those two countries dominate the sector, GEM says.
Christine Shearer, project manager of GEM’s global coal plant tracker, said in a statement:
“In 2025, the world built more coal and used it less. Development has grown more concentrated, too – 95% of coal plant construction is now in China and India, and even they are building solar and wind fast enough to displace it.”
Both China and India saw solar and wind meet most or all of the growth in electricity demand last year.
Analysis for Carbon Brief last year showed that, in the first six months of 2025 alone, a record 212GW of solar was added in China, helping to make it the nation’s single-largest source of clean-power generation, for example.
However, the country continues to propose new coal plants. In 2025, a record 162GW of capacity was newly proposed for development or reactivated, according to GEM. This brought the overall capacity under development in the country to more than 500GW.
China’s 15th “five-year plan”, covering 2026-2030, had pledged to “promote the peaking” of coal use, while a more recent pair of policies introduced stricter controls on local governments’ coal use.
For its part, in India some 28GW of new coal capacity was newly proposed or reactivated last year, bringing the total under development to 107.3GW and under-construction capacity to 23.5GW.
The Indian government is planning to complete 85GW of new coal capacity in the next seven years, even as clean-energy expansion reaches levels that could cover all of the growth in electricity demand.
Outside of China and India, GEM says that just 32 countries have new coal plants under construction or under development, down from 38 in 2024.
Countries that have dropped plans for new coal in 2025 include South Korea, Brazil and Honduras, it says. GEM notes that the latter two mean that Latin America is now free from any new coal-power proposals.
This means that both electricity generation from coal and the construction of new coal-fired power plants are increasingly concentrated in just a few countries, as the chart below shows.
Indonesia’s coal fleet grew by 7% in 2025 to 61GW, with a quarter of the new capacity tied to nickel and aluminium processing, according to GEM.
Turkey – which is gearing up to host the COP31 international climate summit in November – has just one coal-plant proposal remaining, down from 70 in 2015.
The amount of new coal capacity that started to operate in south-east Asia fell for the third year in a row in 2025, according to GEM.
Countries in south Asia that rely on imported energy are increasingly looking to other technologies to protect themselves from fossil-fuel shocks, such as Pakistan, which is rapidly deploying solar, states the GEM report.
In Africa, plans for new coal capacity are concentrated in Zimbabwe and Zambia, the report shows, with the two countries accounting for two-thirds of planned development in the region.
‘Persistence of policies’
While new coal plants are still being built and even more are under development, GEM notes that the global electricity system is undergoing rapid changes.
Crucially, the growth of cheap renewable energy means that new coal plants do not automatically translate into higher electricity generation from coal.
Without rising output from coal power, building new plants simply results in the coal fleet running less often, further eroding its economics relative to wind and solar power.
Indeed, GEM notes that electricity generation from coal fell globally in 2025. Moreover, a recent report by thinktank Ember found that renewable energy overtook coal in 2025 to become the world’s largest source of electricity.
GEM notes that coal generation may fluctuate in the near term, in particular due to potential increases in demand driven by higher gas prices.
It adds that gas price shocks, such as the one triggered by the Iran war, can cause temporary reversals in the longer-term shift away from coal.
According to Carbon Brief analysis, at least eight countries announced plans to either increase their coal use or review plans to transition away from coal in the first month of the Iran war. However, a much-discussed “return to coal” is expected to be limited.
GEM’s report highlights that global fossil-fuel shocks can have an impact on the phase out of coal capacity over several years.
In the EU, for example, 69% of planned retirements did not take place in 2025, due to postponements that began in the 2022-23 energy crisis triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to the report. Countries across the bloc chose to retain their coal capacity amid gas supply disruptions and concerns about energy security.
Yet coal-fired power generation in the bloc is now more than 40% below 2022 levels. Again, this highlights that coal capacity does not necessarily translate into electricity generation from coal, with its associated CO2 emissions.
Overall, GEM notes that “repeated exposure to fossil-fuel price volatility is as likely to accelerate the shift toward clean energy as it is to delay it”.
GEM’s Shearer says in a statement:
“The central challenge heading into 2026 is not the availability of alternatives, but the persistence of policies that treat coal as necessary even as power systems move increasingly beyond it.”
In the US, 59% of planned retirements in 2025 did not happen, according to GEM. This was due to government intervention to keep ageing coal plants online.
Five coal-power plants have been told to remain online through federal “emergency” orders, for example, even as the coal fleet continues to face declining competitiveness.
Keeping these plants online has cost hundreds of millions of dollars and helped drive an annual increase in the average US household electricity prices of 7%, according to GEM.
Despite such measures, Trump has overseen a larger fall in coal-fired power capacity than any other US president, according to Carbon Brief analysis.
Meanwhile, according to new figures from the US Energy Information Administration, solar and wind both set new records for energy production in 2025.
Despite challenges with policy and wider fossil-fuel impacts, the underlying dynamic has shifted, says GEM, as “clean energy becomes more competitive and widely deployed” around the world.
It adds that this raises the prospect of “a more sustained decoupling between coal-capacity growth and generation, particularly if clean-energy deployment continues at current rates”.
The post New coal plants hit ‘10-year’ global high in 2025 – but power output still fell appeared first on Carbon Brief.
New coal plants hit ‘10-year’ global high in 2025 – but power output still fell
REPORT: The Hidden Risks of Plastic Pouches for Baby Food
U.N. General Assembly Embraces Court Opinion That Says Nations Have a Legal Obligation to Take Climate Action
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