“Equally,” writes James Humphries, “PSG-Barca might have been the final of the century.”
That reminds me of one of my favourite David Lacey lines (and by heaven it’s a long list). When Sheffield United played Wimbledon in October 1990, at a time when both teams were hellbent on discovering grass in the sky, Lacey began his match report with this line:
After Wimbledon had won 2-1 at Bramall Lane on Saturday, it was generally agreed that this had been the game of the century. But opinion differed on which century.
Pakistan has authorised its military to take “corresponding” retaliatory action against India after overnight missile attacks by the Indian air force killed 31 people, raising fears of an escalating conflict between the two nuclear-armed countries.
In a strongly worded statement, Pakistan accused India of “igniting an inferno” in the region after it carried out targeted strikes on nine sites in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and the Pakistani province of Punjab in the early hours of Wednesday.
Former chancellor also said the ‘old two-party system’ could be coming to an end
Former chancellor Jeremy Hunt has said the Conservatives cannot rule out becoming extinct because of a “massive earthquake” in politics that is seeing the fracturing of the old two-party system.
Senior Conservatives are increasingly alarmed about polls that show support for the party plummeting, while Reform UK is soaring.
What’s new in AI – from effects on job market to Meta’s new app and ChatGPT changes – and a look at Musk’s first term
Hello, and welcome to TechScape. I’m your host, Blake Montgomery, and this week in tech news: Trump’s tariffs hit tech companies that move physical goods more than their digital-only counterparts. Two stories about AI’s effect on the labor market paint a murky picture. Meta released a standalone AI app, a product it claims already has a billion users through enforced omnipresence. OpenAI dialed back an obsequious version of ChatGPT. And we look back at Elon Musk’s first term.
Ryan Coogler’s smash hit horror focuses on the opening of a juke joint, a one-time mainstay in Black southern culture
In Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, the Smokestack twins – a gangster pair played by Michael B Jordan – return to their Mississippi Delta home town to open a juke joint and make a fast buck, only to wind up hunkered inside when danger literally comes knocking. But the juke joint is more than a safe space from vampires; for Black people during segregation, it was an escape from the horrors of the so-called “separate-but-equal” US economy. “The juke joint represents, as the film suggests, this multifaceted connection to the foundation of Black experience,” says William Ferris, a University of North Carolina history professor who has made documenting blues music and southern culture his life’s work. “It’s a safe haven from racial violence.”
During the late 19th and early 20th century the juke joint was a southern social institution, the place to drink and unwind over live music. The vast majority of them were owned and operated by Black people. In fact the word juke (also spelled jook) is said to derive from Gullah, a creole language that has been spoken by Black people on the south-eastern coast for generations; it means to dance, act disorderly or engage in rowdy behavior – fun that juke joints were known for.
First stage of initiative will introduce ‘keystone’ species to beaver enclosures in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire
Elk could return to the UK after 3,000 years under plans by the Wildlife Trusts to reintroduce the “keystone” species into Britain’s landscapes.
The Derbyshire Wildlife Trust wants to introduce elk into two existing beaver enclosures in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, with the hope of demonstrating that the large semiaquatic deer should be released to roam free in the wild.
Donald Trump plans to announce while on his trip to Saudi Arabia next week that the US will now refer to the Arabian Gulf or the Gulf of Arabia rather than the Persian Gulf.
The move has prompted outrage from Iranian leaders, and last-minute efforts are being made to persuade Trump to pull back from offending Iran in the midst of vital talks on the future of the Iranian nuclear programme. “If Trump went ahead with the proposal he would manage to unite every Iranian, pro- or anti-regime, against him, and that is a near impossible achievement,” one diplomat said.
Rohit Sharma has retired from Test cricket, his announcement coming hours after reports emerged that he was to lose India’s red-ball captaincy. The 38-year-old, who quit T20 international cricket after leading India to victory at last year’s World Cup, will continue to represent his country in one-day internationals.
“Hello everyone, I would just like to share that I am retiring from Test cricket,” Sharma posted on Instagram. “It’s been an absolute honour to represent my country in whites. Thank you for all the love and support over the years. I will continue to represent India in the ODI format.”
Groceries, fitness classes and therapy all go under the wide umbrella of health expenses – and it all costs money
What does it take to be well? The answer varies from person to person. For some, it may require prescription medication and yoga classes; for others, it could be a vegetarian diet and regular doctor visits. One thing is certain: it costs money.
Americans spend more than $6,000 (£4,500) per person a year on wellness, according to the Global Wellness Institute. This makes the US “the largest wellness economy by far”. In the UK, per capita average wellness spending is $3,342 (£2,505).
$280 for employer-sponsored healthcare
$80 on psychotherapy
$10 on a prescription medication
$360 on personal training
$20 on my gym membership (discounted with the personal training), and $45 on a protein-powder subscription
I’m also part of a run club and rec sports league, which have an upfront cost for multiple months, but combined are about $75 per month. It’s funny, I don’t consider myself very athletic, but it sure doesn’t look that way from my spending.
$35 on a prescription skincare subscription for a two-month supply (but I’m planning to cancel)
$15 average on moisturizer/cleanser that will last multiple months
German chancellor says reset vital to help Europe become more unified to face huge security and economic challenges
France and Germany will seek to jumpstart their relationship, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz have said on the new German chancellor’s first trip abroad, working “systematically together” in a “new push for Europe”.
Merz told the two leaders’ joint news conference in Paris on Wednesday that a reset in Franco-German relations was vital to help Europe become more secure, competitive and unified so it can overcome “enormous” security and economic challenges.
Chewy’s owner was detained and a bulk amount of methamphetamine was discovered in vehicle, officials say
Police in Ohio were surprised to discover a pet raccoon called Chewy with a meth pipe in its mouth during a traffic stop in the town of Springfield.
In a statement, Springfield Township police department said that one of its officers, Austin Branham, made the stop after spotting a vehicle whose owner had an active warrant and a suspended driver’s license.
Complaints of people who were infected, and their relatives, include criticisms that scheme is slow, flawed and complex
People infected as a result of the contaminated blood scandal, and their relatives, say they have been “re-traumatised” by delays to – and flaws in – the compensation scheme.
At a special hearing of the infected blood inquiry, which published its final report in May last year, victims and campaigners lined up to castigate the government’s handling of compensation.
Cheryl Tweedy, who has son with late One Direction star, appointed administrator of fortune along with lawyer
The late One Direction star Liam Payne has left behind a £24.3m fortune after dying without a will.
Cheryl Tweedy, his former partner and mother of his son, Bear, is legally responsible for Payne’s money, property and possessions after being named an administrator for his estate.
Defeat in the first round of a confirmation vote was humiliating. It could be the lesson Merz needed to change his leadership style
There goes the cliche about German politics being stable but dull. Germany finally has a new leader, but only after a day of drama, suspense and historic twists. The conservative Friedrich Merz failed to secure a majority confirming him as chancellor in the first round of voting in the Bundestag. In eight decades of postwar Germany, this has never happened before.
When Merz’s cabinet was finally sworn in later on Tuesday afternoon, after a successful second round, both parties in the governing coalition – the conservative CDU/CSU and the Social Democrats (SPD) – were eager to play down the failure as a mere hiccup. But the high drama indicates a new degree of fragmentation and instability in the German party system. It is certain to affect the way this new administration will govern.
Jörg Lau is an international correspondent for the German weekly Die Zeit
Chris Pelkey was killed in a road rage shooting in Chandler, Arizona, in 2021. Three-and-a-half years later, Pelkey appeared in an Arizona court to address his killer. Sort of. 'To Gabriel Horcasitas, the man who shot me, it is a shame we encountered each other that day in those circumstances,' says a video recording of Pelkey. 'In another life, we probably could have been friends.' Pelkey continues: 'I believe in forgiveness, and a God who forgives. I always have, and I still do.' Pelkey was 37 years old, devoutly religious and an army combat veteran. Horcasitas shot Pelkey at a red light in 2021 after Pelkey exited his vehicle and walked back towards Horcasitas’s car. Pelkey’s appearance from beyond the grave was made possible by artificial intelligence in what could be the first use of AI to deliver a victim impact statement.
The Guardian’s south Asia correspondent, Hannah Ellis-Petersen,reports on India’s strikes on Pakistan, and what they may mean for the conflict over Kashmir
In the early hours of Wednesday, India launched a series of strikes on Pakistan that killed at least 26 people – a serious escalation of the decades-long dispute between the two nuclear-armed countries over Kashmir.
As the Guardian’s south Asia correspondent, Hannah Ellis-Petersen, reports, the onslaught was in response to a terrorist attack in Kashmir two weeks ago that left 26 dead. India claims the group responsible is backed by its neighbour – an accusation Pakistan denies.
The eight-time world champion has returned to a very different looking WSL tour this week after some time out spent travelling and recuperating
Stephanie Gilmore, the most successful women’s surfer of all time, is back. Last weekend, the 37-year-old returned to the World Surf League (WSL) for the first time in two seasons, as a wildcard at the Gold Coast Pro. But unsure of how she would fare, against competitors who had not even been born when Gilmore first started winning WSL events, the Australian came armed with a good excuse.
“I’m playing on stage with Spiderbait,” Gilmore said ahead of a concert which took place on Sunday on the sidelines of the event. “So I’ve actually got something that’s taken my mind off the surfing, which is kind of nice. Maybe it’s a cop-out, but if I don’t do well in the competition I can just blame it on all the band practice I have to do.”
The best Big/Bigger Cup semi-final of all time? That’s the sort of recency bias-based chat that would normally have the Daily rounding up all the young football heads to watch Bayern v Red Star Belgrade on VHS over a cool glass of turnip juice. But Inter 4-3 Barcelona (aet, 7-6 on agg) really might be the one. In recent years, we’ve seen incredible comebacks (Liverpool v Barça), goals galore (Roma v Liverpool), dramatic late plot twists (Spurs v Ajax, Real Madrid v Manchester City). Still, nothing quite like this, a game where even the eye-watering, parenthesised final score doesn’t tell the whole story.
America will welcome the world. Everyone who wants to come here to enjoy, to have fun to celebrate the game, will be able to do that” – Fifa head honcho Gianni Infantino trumpets the warm reception the USA USA USA will give fans during the 2026 World Cup at a White House taskforce gathering.
We want them to come, we want them to celebrate, we want them to watch the game. But when the time is up, they’ll have to go home. Otherwise they’ll have to talk to Secretary Noem” – vice-president JD Vance isn’t quite so genial, while his boss reveals he had no idea Russia were banned from the tournament. Yikes!
OK, with a heavy heart, I’ll do it to save the other 1,056 Football Daily readers the effort but this is the last time I do the ‘Watford have changed manager again, let’s all laugh at them’ schtick, as it’s all very tedious now. But, for old times’ sake, since the Pozzos took over Watford in June 2012, they have had a grand total of 23 managers including interims, but they’re all interims really, aren’t they? In which case, a doff of the cap to Tom Cleverley for lasting more than a year. The more shocking thing from the piece was finding out that Cleverley had played for England. Thirteen times apparently (presumably during the Hodgson debacle)” – Noble Francis (and no others).
Re: JJ Zucal (yesterday’s Football Daily letters), I hail from a part of Sheffield where fights break out if you are offered Worcestershire sauce, and I can assure you that not only all the country, but half of Sheffield and the (evidently not bitter) Noble Francis don’t want Sheffield United in the Premier League. Heck, I bet even United don’t want United in the Premier, and they will soon demonstrate this by the most amusing tank yet in their playoff history. But if we are, à la Inter Miami, just going to decide who plays in a competition, in the same way we can decide what the inhabitants of Arctic land masses actually want, can we have Bristol City? I lately realised my tolerance for Frank Lampard had only increased because I hadn’t heard about him for a while, and Bristol City are way more romantic. I think they can be trusted not to desperately overspend on ageing players in an effort to stay up and destroy their entire financial structure. What? Oh. (Admittedly, only works if you are very, very old, that joke)” – Jon Millard.
Bagging a playoff place by finishing only 21 points behind the Blades is worthy of celebration. Certainly on a par with Leicester who scored an actual goal, for the first time since 8 December at the King Power. Celebrations were so wild, that the 20,000 of us there were credited as north of 31,000 by the Leicester number counters” – Steve Roberts.
On a night of scary news elsewhere, that match (apart from minor sh!thousery) was a reminder of the finer things in life. Such as me, turning over to see my mate making a brief appearance in an ITV medical drama and missing two goals” – Kev McCready.
A military attack on the same day as a trade deal with the UK reveals a nation keen to strut the world stage, but hampered by regional enmity and history
Concluding a “landmark” trade agreement with the UK and launching military operations against Pakistan on the same day: it is fair to say that, for India, the future and the past have collided this week. The agreement with Britain, which has been three years in the making, is one of several India is negotiating, including with the US and EU. It illustrates its appeal as a rising global power – the world’s most populous country and its fastest-growing major economy, which is also the fifth (and on course to be third) largest overall. In contrast, the military operations targeting Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir demonstrate how India continues to be bogged down by instabilities in its neighbourhood and held hostage to its history.
India’s military actions are in response to a terrorist attack last month in which 26 tourists were killed in Indian-administered Kashmir. The name of the military operation – Sindoor – refers to a symbol of marriage, alluding to the women who lost their husbands in the attack that selectively targeted Hindu men. New Delhi says it is trying to ensure the conflict remains limited between the nuclear-armed neighbours. It says its operations have targeted terrorist infrastructure rather than military facilities, although civilian casualties have been reported, and referred to its military action as a “precision strike” that has been “focused, measured and non-escalatory in nature”.
Dr Chietigj Bajpaee is senior fellow for south Asia at the thinktank Chatham House
I’m being plagued by a particularly pushy estate agent. I’ve tried blocking them, reasoning with them, even barking at them. And still they keep coming back for more …
Every breath I take, and every move I make, every bond I break, every step I take, they keep phoning me. This is a chain of London estate agents, well known to be – and doubtless proud of the accolade – the pushiest of a pushy breed. I bought a flat through them more than 10 years ago and I’ve had no peace since. It seems they think I might want to sell or rent it. I’ve told them I don’t. I’ve even told them I don’t own it any more. But it does no good. They always come back for another try. Perhaps they just want to keep in touch. Sweet, really.
About once a month, a London number I don’t recognise flashes up. It’s them. Clever, really, that they don’t withhold the number. Looks as though it might – might – be a call that needs answering. But now that I’m wise to their ways, I reject the call. You would hope they would take the hint and, like spurned lovers with too much pride to persevere, give up. Oh no. So, diligently, ruthlessly, unceremoniously, I block the number. But they have a workaround so simple that it is almost sophisticated – a month later, they call from another number. And so it goes on.
They like ice-cream – but only homemade. Carrots – but only served whole. And don’t even think of cooking with any herb or spice livelier than parsley ...
Manchester United lead 3-0 in Europa League semi-final
Athletic missing Williams brothers and top scorer Sancet
Ruben Amorim admits Manchester United “can lose their minds” during games so is unsure how they will perform in Thursday’s Europa League semi-final second leg against Athletic Bilbao, despite holding a 3-0 lead.
United are favourites to reach the final on 21 May at the San Mamés after their victory there last week thanks to Casemiro’s header and two goals from Bruno Fernandes. In the previous round’s return leg at Old Trafford they allowed a 2-0 advantage over Lyon to become a 4-2 deficit before scoring three goals in the final seven minutes of extra time to secure passage to the last four. United also led Lyon 2-1 in the first leg but conceded a 95th-minute Rayan Cherki equaliser.
The Dutch government, seen as one of Israel’s most loyal allies in the European Union, is calling for an urgent review of the EU Israel association agreement, the basis for the EU-Israeli free trade agreement, the Dutch foreign minister Caspar Veldkamp told the Guardian.
Veldkamp described the Israeli ban on the supply of aid into Gaza as “catastrophic, truly dismal” and in clear breach of international humanitarian law.
You cannot starve the people of the Gaza Strip. It is against international law. It’s morally wrong. It’s dangerous. I don’t think it’s in Israel’s own interest.
Giant canopy of stone lilies and exact cast of Windsor oak tree among ideas for commemoration in St James’s Park
How best to capture the enduring essence of Queen Elizabeth II is the question behind innovative designs shortlisted for a national memorial planned for Britain’s longest-serving monarch.
An exact cast of a Windsor oak tree, a giant canopy of stone lilies and a “graceful and strong” stone bridge symbolising her as the bedrock of the nation are among shortlisted designs on which the public is now being consulted.
A “tranquil family” of royal gardens linked by a natural stone path, by Norman Foster of Foster + Partners with the artist Yinka Shonibare, the ecologist Prof Nigel Dunnett and the landscape architect Michel Desvigne. It includes a statue of the queen alongside Philip, a wind sculpture for reflection, audio installations of the queen’s voice, a digital conservatory and a unity bridge.
A memorial walk inspired by the idea of “togetherness” with 70 lily pad stepping stones, by Heatherwick Studio with the sculptor and ceramicist Halima Cassell, MRG Studio, Webb Yates and Arup. At the centre of the bridge is a limestone sculpture of the late queen, protected by a giant canopy of eight sculptural lilies.
Group that calls itself NoName057(16) appears to have had limited success disrupting council and other websites
A pro-Russian hacking group has claimed to have successfully targeted a range of UK websites, including local councils and the Association for Police and Crime Commissioners, during a three-day campaign.
In a series of social media posts, the group calling itself NoName057(16) suggested it had made a number of websites temporarily inaccessible, although it is understood the attacks were not wholly successful.
Teenager was a revelation across an incredible semi-final tie and Spanish side have much to be proud of in defeat
On the afternoon before the first leg of the the most extraordinary Champions League semi-final anyone could remember, Lamine Yamal said he had left fear behind in the park in Mataró years ago. Everything else he left behind at Montjuïc and San Siro, a statement stronger than any he had delivered in the press room. If that line was a promise, a demonstration of personality, it was kept, but Barcelona couldn’t reach their first final in a decade so he made another. “We won’t stop until this club is where it deserves to be: at the summit,” he wrote in the dark moments after defeat.
Here Barcelona had been stopped within touching distance. Lamine Yamal departed the pitch in silence holding Marcus Thuram’s shirt, Inter’s players coming to embrace this boy they had survived, a child born every 50 years in the words of their manager, Simone Inzaghi. There has been something revelatory about the 17-year-old’s performance over two astonishing nights and at the end of it all there was almost a kind of reverence, a respect towards him. Inter had reached the final again and will talk of this for ever, their everything; one day, they knew, he may be part of the epic stories they tell.
‘The guitar, the hair, the mystery – I think I captured who the Cure are with this picture. When I showed it to Robert Smith and the band’s manager, they jumped up and down’
I think this is the Cure image that’s most reproduced. I’ve met people with tattoos of it. It’s been bootlegged, like, millions of times. The bootlegs are rubbish, though – half the time someone’s obviously cut the stencil out with a scalpel, and it’s so crude.
This image was used for the cover of Boys Don’t Cry when it was rereleased in 1986. It was taken during the video shoot, which featured three boys playing the band when young. I used to just go to those shoots as a fly on the wall, grabbing shots where I could – you try to not get in the way.
As Russia marks 80 years since the second world war with wild celebrations, in Ukraine the tone is very different
Mariia Sinhayevska was 11 when the Germans occupied her village, near Zaporizhzhia in south-eastern Ukraine, then part of the Soviet Union. She can still remember some German words from the year she spent in school under occupation. The soldiers were friendly, she said, though not if you were suspected of being a Communist or a Jew.
“There was a place about three kilometres away where people used to say the ground was breathing; it was where the Germans put the bodies of all the people they had shot,” she said.
Libya’s provisional government has denied claims flight could happen as soon as this week
The Trump administration is planning to deport a group of migrants to Libya, according to reports, despite the state department’s previous condemnation of the “life-threatening” prison conditions in the country.
Libya’s provisional government has denied the reports.
As industry giants trade beloved brands like commodities and AI offers easy content, independent games outlets are rising up. Here’s why they’re sorely needed
Last week was a bad one for video games journalism. Two key contributors to the veteran site Giant Bomb, Jeff Grubb and Mike Minotti, have announced their departure after a recent podcast was taken down. The 888th episode of the Giant Bombcast reportedly featured a section lampooning new brand guidelines issued to staff and is no longer available online. Later this week, it was announced that major US site Polygon was being sold to Valnet, owner of the ScreenRant and GameRant brands, resulting in a swathe of job losses. This follows ReedPop’s sale, in 2024, of four high-profile UK-based sites – Eurogamer, GamesIndustry.biz, Rock Paper Shotgun and VG247 – to IGN Entertainment, owned by Ziff Davis, which also resulted in redundancies.
It’s sad how these long-standing sites, each with vast audiences and sturdy reputations, have been traded and chopped up like commodities. On selling Polygon, Vox CEO Jim Bankoff said in a statement: “This transaction will enable us to focus our energies and investment resources in other priority areas of growth across our portfolio.” It felt gross, to be honest, to see this decade-old bastion of progressive video games writing being reduced to an asset ripe for off-loading. Of its purchase Valnet said: “Polygon is poised to reach new editorial heights through focused investment and innovation.” Quite how it will do that with a significantly reduced staff is anyone’s guess.
Non-binary British actor tells podcast that recognition for women in the entertainment industry should be preserved – but doesn’t know how to address gender non-conforming actors
The Last of Us star Bella Ramsey has said awards shows should preserve separate prize categories for male and female entertainers.
The British star, who identifies as non-binary, said it was important to distinguish performers, as “a lot of women wouldn’t get nominated” if there was one category for all actors.
Experts say such tools may give dangerous advice and more oversight is needed, as Mark Zuckerberg says AI can plug gap
Having an issue with your romantic relationship? Need to talk through something? Mark Zuckerberg has a solution for that: a chatbot. Meta’s chief executive believes everyone should have a therapist and if they don’t – artificial intelligence can do that job.
“I personally have the belief that everyone should probably have a therapist,” he said last week. “It’s like someone they can just talk to throughout the day, or not necessarily throughout the day, but about whatever issues they’re worried about and for people who don’t have a person who’s a therapist, I think everyone will have an AI.”
Artefacts from 11th century on display at British Library in London, alongside work of modern-day community group
“Being able to grow your own food is one of the most radical ways that you can express your freedom, your sovereignty, your liberation,” says Valerie Goode, the founder and chief executive of the Coco Collective, a Black-led community gardening organisation in south London.
“When you leave your food production in the hands of other people, you are leaving your health, your wellbeing, your sense of identity … in the hands of other people. When we reclaim our food, we reclaim our power.”
Case has been unfolding in state court in Reno but proceedings have remained under seal
A hearing before Nevada’s high court on Wednesday could provide the first public window into a secretive legal dispute over who will control Rupert Murdoch’s powerful media empire after he dies.
The case over the Murdoch family trust has been unfolding behind closed doors in state court in Reno, Nevada. But the proceedings have remained under seal, with the Nevada courts barely acknowledging the legal action even exists.
Podcasts and puzzles get a boost as part of ‘mobile first’ strategy with 1 million daily active users of app
The Guardian has relaunched its mobile app to offer more personalised, visual content and boost the prominence of podcasts as part of a “mobile first” strategy.
The introduction of a dedicated tab for podcasts will help people discover and listen to new episodes via an in-app player, while users can also listen to all articles with a text-to-speech feature.
Boardwalk Empire and Dawson’s Creek actor accused of multiple domestic violence charges
Boardwalk Empire actor Michael Pitt has been arrested on sexual assault and domestic violence charges.
According to the New York Post and Variety, the 44-year-old has been accused of multiple assaults by an ex-girlfriend stemming from four incidents taking place between 2020 and 2021.
Studio promises ‘smashed pumpkins, wayward science and a wild hairy beast’ in third big-screen outing for the much beloved animation
A Halloween-themed third Shaun the Sheep film is in the works from Aardman Animations, following hot on the heels of the success of Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl.
“Expect smashed pumpkins, wayward science, and a wild hairy beast,” said Sarah Cox, chief creative director of Aardman, about the film, which launches international sales via studio StudioCanal at Cannes next week, but has already been acquired by Sky for UK distribution.
Political uncertainty under Trump has dampened the market, even as red states see a boom in renewable energy
Renewable energy in the US has surged to unprecedented levels, with the combined power generated by solar, wind and geothermal more than tripling over the past decade, according to a new report by a network of state environmental groups.
The growth has slashed harmful greenhouse gas emissions, made the nation’s energy system more resilient and prevented thousands of premature deaths from power plant pollution, according to the report by Environment America.
The amount of solar energy produced in 2024 – enough to power 28m homes – was nearly eight times higher than a decade earlier. Solar power production increased 27% from 2023 to 2024.
Wind produced even more energy – enough to power 42m homes in 2024. The amount of power from wind has more than doubled over the past decade.
Wind, solar and geothermal energy accounted for 19% of all retail sales of electricity last year, according to the federal data used to produce the report.
The amount of utility-scale battery storage in the US grew 63% from 2023 to 2024 – and a more than 80-fold increase over the past decade.
Nearly 3.3m electric vehicles were on US roads at the end of 2023 – a 25-fold increase from 2014. The number of electric vehicle charging ports, meanwhile, grew to more than 218,000 at the end of 2024 – six times more than there were in 2015 and a 24% increase from just the year before.
Jaguars, giant armadillos and ocelots among species threatened by shrinking habitat in one of the richest areas of biodiversity in the world
In the Gran Chaco forest, vast green expanses – home to jaguars, giant armadillos and howler monkeys – have turned to fields of dust. The forest once brimmed with life, says Bashe Nuhem, a member of the Indigenous Qom community, but then came a road, and soon after that logging companies. “It was an invasion. Loggers came without any consultation and families moved away. Those that stayed were left with only a cemetery of trees,” she says.
The Gran Chaco is South America’s second-largest forest after the Amazon; its 100m hectares (247m acres) stretch across Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil and Bolivia. It is also one of the richest areas of biodiversity in the world – host to more than 3,400 species of plants, 500 birds, 150 mammals, 120 reptiles and 100 amphibians.
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