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New research suggests that millions of Americans currently live in regions that would be inundated by rising oceans if global temperatures continue to rise. The major remaining question isn't whether such change is coming, but rather how quickly it will come, says researcher Benjamin Strauss. "The question is, how long is the fuse and has it been lit yet?" he says. 

The US energy landscape is swiftly transitioning away from fossil fuels in favor of renewables, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. "By the close of 2014, the United States was relying on an unprecedented amount of renewable energy from wind turbines, solar panels, and other technologies. We are bearing witness to fundamental change in the energy sector, reflecting the needs and aspirations of all who depend on it," said the report. It added that US carbon emissions have already dropped 10% below 2005 levels

Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven recently declared at the U.N. General Assembly that his nation of 10 million people would become "one of the first fossil-free welfare states in the world."

Rethink Food Waste through Economics and Data released its roadmap for cutting food waste in the United States.

This month, Sodexo unveiled a new 200-item plant-based and plant-forward menu, developed in partnership with the Humane Society of the United States. Some of the dishes are vegan, some are vegetarian, and the rest include meat but still give plants a starring role, like a blended burger that replaces 25% of the beef with mushrooms.

Through the process, I gained an insight into the current state of corporate sustainability: how far it's come in this sector, and how far it still needs to go. Here are three themes that emerged.

A cap-and-trade bill proposed last month by California state Sen. Bob Wieckowski also would set aside hundreds of millions of dollars for the California Climate and Clean Energy Research Fund. The bill is headed to a Senate committee hearing, which hasn't yet been scheduled.

"Sell by," "Use by," "Display until" and "Best before" food labels intended to inform consumers about food quality and safety frequently come under fire for their lack of clarity and confusing terminology that contributes significantly to the colossal food waste problem - one that costs families up to $29 billion annually in the United States alone. However, little concrete action has been taken to address the problem. Now, the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) - a network of 400 of the biggest consumer goods companies across 70 countries - along with Champions 12.3 has approved a Call to Action to standardize food date labels worldwide by 2020.

Transportation is one of the biggest sources of carbon emissions in the United States and globally, and shipping goods, or freight, is a big contributor. How can companies keep up with growing consumer demand for home and in-store delivery, while also cutting their greenhouse gas emissions?

India's booming population and rapidly expanding urban areas have exacted a huge toll on its rivers, which are badly polluted and choked by development. But in cities across India, activists are heading to court to force municipalities and states to take action.

As national parks face issues with unmanaged waste during the government shutdown, Keep America Beautiful, the largest community improvement organization in the United States, and Nestlé Waters North America, one of the leading beverage companies in North America, announced today that they are teaming up to help mobilize affiliate organizations and volunteers across the country to clean up these shared public spaces.

Lawmakers in Hawaii passed a bill Tuesday prohibiting the sale of sunscreens that are harmful to ocean ecosystems, including coral reefs. The bill now heads to Governor David Ige for his signature. If signed, Hawaii will ban these sunscreens starting Jan. 1, 2021 and become the first state in the nation to enact such a law.

China has sent 60,000 soldiers to plant trees. China plans to grow 6.66 million hectares of new forest this year, having already created 33.8 million hectares (338,000 square kilometres) of forest in the past five years, says Zhang Jianlong, head of the State Forestry Administration, in a report from Reuters. The country wants to increase the area of land covered by woodlands from 21.7% in 2016 to 23% by 2020, according to China Daily.

Los Angeles County approves the start of the Newhall Ranch master-planned community north of the city of Los Angeles. The state has never seen a community quite like Newhall Ranch, proposed by California developer FivePoint. It will be a carbon-neutral development in the Santa Clarita Valley that tackles such critical challenges as climate change, water conservation, and the dire housing shortage that is severely threatening our economic competitiveness.

California Governor Jerry Brown joined forces with Michael Bloomberg to launch America's Pledge, an initiative aimed at tracking and reporting progress made by U.S. states, cities, and businesses on reducing GHG emissions in line with the Paris Agreement.

The Department of Defense is clear-eyed about the challenges climate change poses. "The pressures caused by climate change will influence resource competition while placing additional burdens on economies, societies, and governance institutions around the world," the most recent Quadrennial Defense Review, issued in 2014, states. "These effects are threat multipliers that will aggravate stressors abroad such as poverty, environmental degradation, political instability, and social tensions-conditions that can enable terrorist activity and other forms of violence."

WEF's annual state-of-play survey asks the views of a range of decision-makers and experts as to what they see as being the biggest risks facing the world today. It appears that while the types of risks have changed little in the last few years, the perceived level of risk and resulting impact has grown. Of the 1,000 respondents, 59 percent pointed to an intensification of risk; just 7 percent suggested a declining of risk.

An alliance of 27 countries and states - including the UK, Canada, and Mexico - have pledged to phase out coal power generation by 2030. The alliance has plans to grow to at least 50 members by late-2018.