Latest Stories
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Polar ice sheets melting faster than ever
Are melting ice caps our most urgent problem? With ice in Antarctica and Greenland melting faster than ever before, scientists warn of catastrophic consequences if we do not act quickly.
- Climate
- Reading Band 11
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The smallest dinosaur that ever lived
A spectacular amber fossil holds the skull of the smallest dinosaur ever found: a bird-like creature that lived more than 99 million years ago and grew no bigger than a bee.
- Science
- Reading Band 8
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Zoo celebrates birth of rare baby elephant
Chester Zoo has been working in India on projects helping to protect wild elephants. Its latest arrival should help raise more awareness of the species – and the threats it is facing.
- Science
- Reading Band 8
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The koala bear hospital saving fire victims
Hot and dry weather in Australia has made its annual forest fires much worse this year. The country’s favourite animals, koala bears, are being rescued and looked after in special hospitals.
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Volcano risk fears rise after fatal eruption
Are deadly volcanos becoming more frequent? An active volcano on New Zealand’s White Island has exploded. Some scientists think this could be the first of many more terrible eruptions.
- Science
- Reading Band 11
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Anger and sadness over seal with coffee bottle
Is our sea life in danger? Baby porpoises are poisoned by chemicals. A whale washes up with 100kg of litter in its stomach. Now, a seal clutches a coffee cup in a viral photograph.
- Climate
- Reading Band 11
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Toxic air pollution chokes Delhi
Is this a glimpse of the future? Delhi in India is covered in a toxic fog. Schools are shut and people are staying indoors. In cities across the world, air pollution is a growing problem.
- Health
- Reading Band 14+
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Plenty of food, but millions are starving
Can we feed everyone? World Food Day is this week. We already make enough for 10 billion people — and, yet, one in nine humans does not have enough food. How did that happen?
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Climate protests cause chaos in 60 cities
Are Extinction Rebellion protestors heroes? All week long, they have disrupted city centres around the world. They say it is the only way to save our future. But many disagree.
- Climate
- Reading Band 14+
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Happy birthday modern China, 70 this week!
Is China the world’s most important country? It certainly has the most people. And for most of history it has also been the richest — the inventor of paper, gunpowder and the compass…
- Society
- Reading Band 11
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Nations get together to help save Earth
But will they make a real difference? This week, nations were all summoned to a great gathering in New York to present solid plans to speed up progress on reducing greenhouse gases.
- Climate
- Reading Band 11
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Seals, dolphins, porpoises thriving in Thames
Does nature always bounce back? The Thames was declared dead, without oxygen, in the 1950s. This summer, 138 seal pups were spotted basking on the banks, and swimming among new marine life.
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Amazon loses football pitch of trees each minute
Can we stop Brazil cutting down trees in the Amazon rainforest? Satellite images show that an area the size of a football pitch is lost every minute. It is replaced with farmland for cows.
- Climate
- Reading Band 8
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Europe’s brutal heatwave could be the new normal
Can Europe adapt to rising temperatures? Last week, France sizzled in 45.9C heat — the hottest the country has ever seen — while soldiers fought wildfires in Spain. Is global warming winning?
- Climate
- Reading Band 14+
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World population to reach 10 billion by 2100
Can Earth sustain so many people? The United Nations predicts that our global population will peak at about 10.9 billion by the end of the century. It could put a big strain on resources.
- Climate
- Reading Band 14+