GIJN Webinar: Climate & Accountability — Investigating Methane Emissions

The fastest way to reduce global warming, say climate scientists, is to reduce methane emissions. Studies have found methane responsible for almost a quarter of global warming. Methane is the second most abundant greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide, and 60% of its global emissions are due to human activities, according to the United Nations Environmental Programme. Of those emissions, 40% come from the energy sector (mainly oil and gas, but also coal), 30% from agricultural sources (livestock and some crops), and 30% from waste management sources (landfills and wastewater treatment facilities).

One hundred countries have signed the Global Methane Pledge – committing to the goal of reducing global methane emissions by at least 30 percent by 2030. Yet many questions remain: about the measurement and reporting of methane emissions and about compliance by both governments and companies.

Watchdog journalists around the world have an important role to play in digging into this urgent issue. An understanding of the science is important but the climate change crisis is fundamentally a political issue – with accountability to the public interest at its heart. One study found that 100 active fossil fuel producers have been responsible for 71% of industrial greenhouse gas emissions since 1988 — so will companies and governments fulfill the promises they have made and the pledges they have signed?

In GIJN's webinar Climate & Accountability: Investigating Methane Emissions, at 9:00 a.m. EST, we bring together two senior reporters and two experts who will offer tools and techniques to identify specific methane emitters, find the data, and look closely at measurement systems. They will also present tips and resources to research what companies and governments are doing to reduce methane emissions.

Read more and register.