What we learned this week

Over the last few days the Conservatives and their newspaper allies have gone to war on the Labour party’s net zero plans, in defence of the fossil fuels industry. Carbon Brief sum up the hysteria and get the truth of the matter.

“It would be an anachronism to dub Shakespeare an environmentalist. But he was acutely aware of what we would term the environmental issues of his era.” Todd Andrew Borlik sketches out some overlooked themes from Shakespeare’s plays.

Debt Justice are curating an art exhibition exploring “the links between debt, colonialism, and the climate crisis” for COP28. They’ve put out a call for artists from indebted countries, if there’s anyone you could recomment.

“Degrowth isn’t the same as a recession,” Katharina Richter explains again for those at the back.

Powers are abused when the law is vague, as we have seen with the police’s new right to prevent ‘serious disruption’ from protest. Because that is too loose, the government plans to define it as anything ‘more than minor’ – which is of course equally vague and subjective, and therefore just as likely to be abused. You can sign Unlock Democracy’s petition to the Lords about this here.

And Greta Thunberg graduated from school yesterday and so can’t officially strike from school any more – though she will still join protests every Friday.

Highlights from this week

• Buy an EV, or convert what you have?
• Global carbon inequality
• Before the Streetlights Come on, by Heather McTeer Toney