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<keyword id="19907392" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="climate-change" source="keywords">Climate change</keyword> could become the main driver of <keyword id="21446697" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="biodiversity-decline" source="keywords">biodiversity decline</keyword> by the mid-century, a new research has found. Studying changes in land-use patterns and their impacts on biodiversity, an international team of researchers found that biodiversity around the world could have declined by 2-11 per cent. "By including all world regions in our model, we were able to fill many blind spots and address criticism of other approaches working with fragmented and potentially biased data," said Henrique Pereira, research group head at the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), and the first author of the study published in the journal 'Science'. Examining how biodiversity and ecosystems might evolve in the future, the researchers found that the combined effects of land-use change and climate change lead to biodiversity loss across all global regions, regardless of emissions scenario. "We found that climate change poses an imminent threat to biodiversity and ecosystem services. While land-use change has historically been a significant factor, our findings indicate that climate change could overtake it as the primary driver of biodiversity loss by mid-century," explained study co-author, David Leclere, researcher at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Austria. The researchers called for a "truly integrated approach" considering varied <keyword id="21447217" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sustainability-aspects" source="keywords">sustainability aspects</keyword> to reduce conflicts between policies and safeguard biodiversity in the coming decades. "For instance, while <keyword id="21447218" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="bio-energy-deployment" source="keywords">bio-energy deployment</keyword> is still a critical element of the majority of climate stabilisation scenarios, it also poses a threat to species habitats," said IIASA Biodiversity and Natural Resources Program Director Petr Havlik, one of the study co-authors. The findings suggested that conservation and restoration efforts should be prioritised globally as necessary natural climate solutions, the authors said. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/realme-c65-5g-with-5000mah-battery-120hz-display-launched-starting-at-10499/articleshow/109619597.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/realme-c65-5g-with-5000mah-battery-120hz-display-launched-starting-at-10499/articleshow/109619597.cms" target="_blank">Realme C65 5G with 5,000mAh battery, 120Hz display launched starting at ₹10,499</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/ultraviolette-f77-mach-2-electric-sports-bike-launched-in-india-starting-at-2-99-lakh/slidelist/109615934.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/ultraviolette-f77-mach-2-electric-sports-bike-launched-in-india-starting-at-2-99-lakh/slidelist/109615934.cms" target="_blank">Ultraviolette F77 Mach 2 electric sports bike launched in India starting at ₹2.99 lakh</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/jiocinema-introduces-new-ad-free-premium-plans-starting-at-29/articleshow/109581033.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/jiocinema-introduces-new-ad-free-premium-plans-starting-at-29/articleshow/109581033.cms" target="_blank">An Ambani disruption in OTT: At just ₹1 per day, you can now enjoy ad-free content on JioCinema</a>

Climate change could become main driver of biodiversity decline by mid-century: Study

<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/IIT-Kharagpur-scientists-are-developing-tools-so-your-train-travel-can-be-far-safer-than-what-it-is-today/articleshow/55222771.cms">After developing tools that can make your train travel safer</a>, scientists at <keyword id="58264" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-Institute-of-Technology-Kharagpur">Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur</keyword> have now achieved another major breakthrough. They have found a way to raise biofuel yield from commonly found aquatic weeds such as water hyacinths. 
 
According to a new study published in Nature Scientific Reports, researchers have shown that this weed — which contains up to 50 percent hemicelluloses — can now be used as an economic and abundant source of biofuel. 
 <keyword id="3921769" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Saikat-Chakraborty">Saikat Chakraborty</keyword>, faculty member at the Department of Chemical Engineering and lead researcher of the <keyword id="3925325" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="bioenergy-research-group">Bioenergy Research Group</keyword> at <keyword id="6364832" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="IIT-Kharagpur">IIT Kharagpur</keyword> said - “We show that the secret to rapidly producing soluble sugars from amorphous natural polymers such as hemicelluloses lies in their smallest scale-the pores." 
 
The researchers have uncovered the pore-scale phenomena that result in “fourfold increase in the yields of fermentable sugars and bioethanol” from hemicelluloses. 
 
“It turns out that three quarters of the soluble sugars we obtain for generation of bioethanol are produced from the pore-scale reactions. So increasing the polymer’s porosity and degree of swelling will enhance the deconstruction of hemicelluloses from plant cell walls, thus increasing bioethanol,” the authors are quoted as saying, in the study. 
 
Hemicelluloses are the second most abundant natural polymer on earth — after cellulose — and a new technology engendered from this pore-scale phenomena could rapidly produce biofuels from locally available plant sources. 
 
Apart from water-hyacinth, hemicellulose-based bioethanol can also be produced from commonly available grasses, red and green algae, etc., which have 2.5 to 3 times more hemicellulose than cellulose. 
 
Up next is another study where Scientists at the institute’s chemical engineering department and PK Sinha Centre for Bioenergy are working to transform these fundamental insights into new biofuel technologies that would help fight climate change. 
 
(Credits: Nature Scientific Reports)

Here's another breakthrough by IIT Kharagpur researchers...

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Burning <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fossil-fuel-companies-spend-millions-to-promote-individual-responsibility-2021-3">fossil fuels</a> is a huge health hazard. The <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/types-of-pollution-health-effects-2019-3">air pollution</a> alone causes 1 in 5 deaths annually.</li><li>A <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-approval-alaska-drilling-could-be-big-oils-last-surge-2023-3">rapid transition to green energy</a> sources would prevent a lot of disability and early death, researchers say.</li></ul><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blackouts-power-outages-more-common-climate-change-electric-grid-infrastructure-2023-3">The world's energy choices</a> between now and 2050 will determine so much about the future. Climate change, natural ecosystems, and economic development are all on the line. Add to that list 181 million years of healthy human life — annually.That's how many years can be saved from death or disability by <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/speed-up-transition-green-energy-leaders-davos-2023-1">quickly ramping up</a> renewable energy and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/clean-energy-transition-net-zero-businesses-leadership-trust-pwc-2023-1">dialing back fossil fuels</a>, according to a new assessment published on Friday, from the nonprofit <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/publications/building-a-nature-positive-energy-transformation--2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Wildlife Fund</a> and the Boston Consulting Group.<div type="image" title="workers install solar panels using a drill" height="1707" width="2276" msid="105080516" hostid="261" sizebytes="298220"></div>The report compares two futures: one in which the world rapidly transitions to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/carbon-emissions-2022-record-renewables-growth-solar-wind-iea-2023-3">renewable energy sources</a> like solar, wind, and bioenergy; and one in which the world continues business as usual by relying largely on fossil fuels."The rapid-transition future is not only essential to mitigating climate change, but it's also quantifiably better for ecosystems, wildlife, and our well-being," Stephanie Roe, WWF's lead scientist on climate and energy, and a lead author of the report, told Insider.<h2>Millions of people's lives are on the line</h2><div type="image" title="dozens of people walk between cars stuck in traffic on a street" height="1498" width="1998" msid="105080517" hostid="261" sizebytes="423152"></div>Disability-adjusted life years, or DALYs, capture years of life affected by disability and years lost to premature death. The metric allows scientists to do a global, lifetime assessment of health risks due to air pollution or <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-climate-change-crisis-extreme-weather-is-costing-you-2023-9">climate change</a>, for example.That's what the WWF and BCG used to calculate the toll of the two futures on the table.If the world rapidly transitions to renewables, they found, the energy system will still hurt human health enough in 2050 to lead to early death and disability that affects 30 million years of human life.<div type="image" title="Wind turbines pictured at sunset." height="5091" width="6788" msid="105080518" hostid="261" sizebytes="229948"></div>That is to say that the impacts of the energy system in one year, 2050, would cause about 30 million people to live one year less or have one extra year of disability, or would cause 15 million people to live two years less, for example.Those health impacts would mostly come from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/types-of-pollution-health-effects-2019-3">air pollution</a> and climate change, but also from other toxicity and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/radioactive-fallout-from-nuclear-bomb-surprising-facts-2023-3">radiation</a> associated with nuclear energy.In the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/exxon-acquisition-permian-basin-pioneer-fossil-fuels-energy-transition-2023-10">fossil-fuel future</a>, though, the researchers estimate that in 2050 alone the energy system would cause 211 million years of human life to either be lost or lived with a disability. That's 181 million more years than the green-energy scenario for 2050.<h2>Fossil fuels are terrible for human health</h2>Fossil fuels like gasoline, coal, or diesel are so deadly because burning them releases heat-trapping gases like carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. That's raising average global temperatures and driving <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/climate-change-alter-human-life-un-ipcc-report-2022-2">increasingly extreme weather</a>.Fossil fuels also release toxic gases and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/does-the-us-have-the-cleanest-air-in-the-world-2018-10">particulate matter</a> — minuscule, toxic flakes that can increase the risk of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/most-least-toxic-countries-pollution-environment-2017-2#-1">asthma</a>, lung cancer, heart disease, and stroke.<div type="image" title="bird flying through dark orange skies above the london skyline" height="1500" width="1999" msid="105080519" hostid="261" sizebytes="42820"></div>Car exhaust and gas stoves are day-to-day sources of exposure to these pollutants, according to the American Lung Association. Mines, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-air-pollution-levels-in-2015-2015-12#china-has-a-lot-of-coal-power-plants-which-spew-out-large-amounts-of-a-pollutant-called-pm-25-a-type-of-particulate-matter-thats-found-in-soot-smoke-and-dust-those-coal-mines-when-combined-with-car-exhaust-are-responsible-for-the-smog-that-makes-it-almost-impossible-to-see-the-cars-pictured-here-4">coal-burning plants</a>, and other fossil-fuel facilities also emit poisonous substances.In 2018 alone, more than 8.7 million premature deaths could be attributed to air pollution from burning fossil fuels, according to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0013935121000487" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Harvard scientists.</a> That's one in five deaths worldwide."We knew this, but it's nice to have some numbers on it," Jonathan Buonocore, an assistant professor of environmental health at Boston University School of Public Health, told Insider.The report also assessed 2022, and concluded that the current energy system already enacts a heavy toll, to the tune of 159 million healthy life-years with each year that passes.<h2>How researchers measure years affected by disability or early death</h2>The researchers made their projections based on groundwork laid in a 2017 study, which had calculated DALYs per kilowatt-hour of energy from solar, wind, coal, and more.The WWF and BCG researchers applied those DALYs-per-kilowatt-hour calculations to the energy profiles of both scenarios for 2050.This may even be an underestimate of the human life and health that's at stake, Buonocore said, since the calculations in the 2017 study didn't include the impacts of the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/countries-with-the-worst-air-pollution-2016-9">smallest particulate matter in the air</a>.<h2>What global green energy means</h2><h2><div type="image" title="a crane installs a massive wind turbine in the water" height="3708" width="4944" msid="105080520" hostid="261" sizebytes="692114"></div></h2>As of 2019 , 80.9% of the world was powered by fossil fuels, 5% of the world was powered by nuclear energy, and 14.1% of the world was powered by renewables, according to the <a href="https://www.iea.org/reports/world-energy-balances-overview/world">International Energy Agency</a>. To meet the projections laid out in the WWF report, we'd need to reduce global dependency on fossil fuels to 15% and scale up our renewable energy use to 85%."I think it's important to think about energy as a determinant of health," Buonocore said. "People need energy to do everything."That means building solar panel fields and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-powers-on-16-megawatt-offshore-wind-turbine-taiwan-strait-2023-7">wind farms</a>, ramping up mining <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/north-american-rare-earth-minerals-supply-hunt-domestic-clean-energy-2022-4">rare earth minerals</a> to make more batteries, and shutting down coal mines and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-gas-prices-rising-energy-fracking-boom-ending-oil-shortage-2022-6">fracking operations</a>. So a shift into a green future would require a massive investment, upending many corners of our current operating system, from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/new-york-ban-gas-stoves-in-new-buildings-emissions-reduction-2023-4">individual kitchens</a> to national power grids. In 2022, <a href="https://web.stanford.edu/group/efmh/jacobson/Articles/I/145Country/22-145Countries.pdf">Stanford scientists</a> estimated that the transition could require $61.5 trillion in funds. But, the researchers who ran the report say that the investment would be worth the returns. "A fossil-fuel future is just so many orders of magnitude worse than this transition," Roe said.

A rapid clean-energy transition could save 181 million years of healthy human life annually by 2050, report finds

<keyword id="6355199" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="reliance-industries" source="Orion">Reliance Industries</keyword> Chairman <keyword id="3820" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="mukesh-ambani" source="Orion">Mukesh Ambani</keyword> said that <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword> is poised for an "unprecedented explosion in economic growth and opportunities" during the Amrit Kaal and will grow from a USD 3 trillion economy to USD 40 trillion economy by 2047 to rank among the top three economies of the world. Addressing the convocation of Pandit Deendayal Energy University (PDEU) here on Tuesday, Mukesh <keyword id="10924" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ambani" source="Orion">Ambani</keyword> said three game-changing revolutions will govern India's growth in the decades ahead - the Clean Energy Revolution, the Bio-Energy Revolution and the Digital Revolution. "Together, they will transform lives in ways unimagined. While the Clean Energy Revolution and the Bio-Energy Revolution will produce energy sustainably, the Digital Revolution will enable us to consume energy efficiently. All three revolutions will together help India and the world save our beautiful planet from the Climate Crisis," he said. "I am confident that you, the students of PDEU, along with lakhs of other bright young minds from across the nation, will leverage these revolutions to enable India meet its energy goals," he added. Mukesh Ambani, who is President, Board of Governors of PDEU, said he was excited about the convocation ceremony. "This batch of PDEU is graduating during a year that marks the beginning of India's Amrit Kaal. In our tradition, Amrit Kaal is regarded as the most auspicious time to start anything new. And each of you are starting your professional journey in this period. As the Amrit Kaal unfolds, India will witness an unprecedented explosion in economic growth and opportunities," he said. "From a 3 trillion-dollar economy, India will grow to become a 40 trillion-dollar economy by 2047, ranking among the top three economies of the world in your working life. In other words, a bright future beckons you. Be ready to step out confidently when opportunity knocks on your door," he added. Mukesh Ambani said the university has made the students future-ready, because it researches and teaches "energy with a very comprehensive perspective". He also had a word of advice for students, saying that in era of 4G and 5G, there is no 'G' greater than "MataG amd PitaG". "Today is your day. The arc lights are on you. But standing in the wings are your parents and elders... it's a very special day for them too. They have waited eagerly to see you walk up to the stage and receive your graduation certificate. It has been their lifelong dream," Mukesh Ambani said. "Don't ever forget the struggles they underwent and the sacrifices they made to bring you here. Their contribution to your success is immeasurable. Let me tell you something in your own lingo - the language of the youth. Nowadays, every youngster is excited about 4G and now 5G. But there is no 'G' in this world greater than Mata G and Pita G. They were, are, and will always remain your most dependable pillars of strength and support," he added. He said PDEU students were "bubbling with energy and enthusiasm", "brimming with creativity and ideas" and "bristling with entrepreneurial spirit" and were equipped with the knowledge and the skill-set needed to design breakthrough energy solutions for 1.4 billion Indians. "You have all the necessary ingredients to be the leaders India needs...And as leaders of India's future, you should ensure our nation leads the global clean and green energy revolution. It is a goal each one of you should pursue in mission mode," he said. The leading industrialist shared three mantras with students to help them achieve success in this mission: "One, Think Big. Be an audacious dreamer. Every great thing ever built in this world was once a dream thought to be impossible. You have to own your dream with courage, nurture it with conviction and realise it with bold and disciplined action. It is the only way you can make the impossible possible. "Two, Think Green. The Clean Energy movement is about adopting a green mindset. It is about being sensitive to Mother Nature. It is about inventing means to harvest its energy without harming it. It is about ensuring that we leave behind a better and healthier planet for future generations. "And three, Think Digital. In your mission of making India a clean energy leader, digitisation will play the role of a force multiplier. Technologies such as AI, Robotics and IoT are powerful enablers of change. Use them to your advantage. These three mantras will be your astras in your mission of making India a global clean energy leader," he said. Referring to challenges posed by COVID-19, he said the period "was a trial by fire for each of you....indeed, for all of humanity" "But remember, the finest sword is forged in raging fire," he said. Mukesh Ambani said the experiences in the past couple of years are "invaluable lessons no institution could have taught you". "They have shaped you into better professionals. They have made you tougher from within. They have filled you with the spirit of care and empathy. "And they have taught you the importance of service to humanity with honesty and integrity. With these learnings in your kitty, no mountain will be too high to climb; no river will be too wide to cross. So roll up your sleeves and move ahead," he said. Referring to Tata Group chairperson N Chandrasekar, who was the chief guest for the event, Mukesh Ambani said he "is a true inspiration to the business community and the youth of India". "Through his vision, conviction and rich hands-on experience, he has scripted Tata Group's spectacular growth in recent years. He has also led its forays into the businesses of the future," he said. Mukesh Ambani said he is particularly inspired by "the gigantic steps" the group has taken in the field of renewable energy under his leadership. "If India has to become a renewable energy powerhouse, it is possible through the combined will and initiatives of many leading business groups working with the ethos of a national coalition," he said. Referring to Hasmukh Adhia, chairman of the Standing Committee of the University, Mukesh Ambani said he is "one of the finest financial minds India has produced". "The banking and fiscal reforms he formulated as Finance Secretary have changed the face of our financial system. Under his chairmanship, PDEU has become the first private university in Gujarat to be awarded the A++ grade by NAAC. The credit for this achievement also goes to the excellent faculty and staff of PDEU," he said. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/indias-benchmark-indices-snap-3-day-losing-streak-easy-trip-planners-extends-gains-paytm-tanks-11/articleshow/95688559.cms">India’s benchmark indices snap 3-day losing streak – Easy Trip Planners extends gains, Paytm tanks 11%</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/fpis-pour-11452-crore-in-financial-services-in-the-first-half-of-november/articleshow/95681904.cms">FPIs pour ₹11,452 crore in financial services in the first half of November</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/visa-platinum-prepaid-card-users-will-soon-be-able-to-make-their-payments-with-wearables-like-band-rings-jackets-watch-straps/articleshow/95690253.cms">Wear it, tap it and get going: Visa Platinum prepaid card users will soon be able to make their payments with wearables like band, rings, jackets, watch straps</a>

You Searched For "bioenergy research group" and got 5 results

Climate change could become main driver of biodiversity decline by mid-century: Study

PTI

Here's another breakthrough by IIT Kharagpur researchers...

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A rapid clean-energy transition could save 181 million years of healthy human life annually by 2050, report finds

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Mukesh Ambani says India will become a $40 trillion economy by 2047

ANI

A forgotten war technology could safely power Earth for millions of years. Here's why we aren't using it

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