Richard Martin

Two key areas for climate investment are resilience to warming temperatures and phasing down fossil fuels, says Paul Bodnar

Captain Richard “Dick” W. Martin was born in Evansville, Indiana, in 1928. His father, the county sheriff, and his mother, a devoted wife, together instilled solid midwestern family values into Dick and his brother Bert, with a dedication to serve his family, community, and country. Dick graduated from Bosse High School in three years and attended Evansville College before attending the U.S. Naval Academy and graduating in the class of 1950 with a degree in engineering. He enthusiastically selected naval aviation, and then-Ensign Martin earned his Wings of Gold in 1952.

As the 2024 election rapidly approaches, both parties dove headfirst into existential rhetoric. “This will be the most important election of our lives,” said 75% of Americans according to PBS. This was supposed to be the case in 2020 and 2016. Come to think of it, why would any party tell you otherwise? Isn’t the goal to motivate the most people to go vote? Americans are increasingly frustrated with the state of politics. No matter who has power, things are incredibly expensive, our global reputation continues to plummet and we are faced with ongoing fascism. We must have a candid conversation and ask ourselves: “What did we get out of our vote?

Here's how the sustainability community plans to respond to the election of Donald Trump as the 47th president of the United States.

Introduction: Balneotherapy (BT) is the treatment of disease through the use of thermal spring water (TSW). It has been used for centuries and remains a popular form of treatment for dermatologic diseases such as atopic dermatitis (AD). Recent findings highlighted the role of the gut microbiota in AD and the possible crosstalk between gut and skin microbiomes in this pathology. Nevertheless, changes in the composition of the gut microbiota after balneotherapy remain to be elucidated.Methods: A total of 96 patients, with moderate to severe AD according to the SCORAD, were enrolled. Stool samples were collected prior and post a 3-week balneotherapy at the thermal care center of La Roche-Posay (France). Composition of the gut microbiota was assessed by shotgun metagenomic sequencing.Results: Species associated with high gut microbiota richness tended to correlate negatively with disease severity (SCORAD) and positively with SCORAD reduction, while species associated with low richness displayed the opposite pattern. Relative abundance of 23 species was significantly altered during BT, these changes being significantly associated with SCORAD reduction during BT, suggesting that gut microbiota composition and AD progression were associated through the treatment. Microbial functions related to gut-brain axis such as GABA and tryptophan metabolism were also altered by the treatment. Long-standing AD patients exhibited a better gut microbial profile than recently diagnosed patients, with higher MSP richness and species associated with SCORAD reduction.Conclusion: In patients with AD, clinical disease parameters such as SCORAD or disease duration are intricately linked to the gut microbiota composition. SCORAD reduction occurring during BT was also associated with gut microbiota. The gut-brain-skin axis via neurotransmitter such as GABA should be further studied in diseases such as AD.

Cultural loss has been neglected in the study of Aboriginal Australia. This neglect reflects the impact of changes in Australian society involving the recognition and celebration of Indigenous culture. Yet new jurisprudence relating to compensation under Australian land rights legislation has refocused attention on cultural loss. This article draws on ethnography from North West Queensland's Gulf Country to examine how the concept of loss relates to change. Reflecting on the rise of the juridical notion of a “compensable act,” I ask, When does “loss” occur and to whom, and what solace may be found for cultural loss? I argue that these questions focus attention on the fraught relationship between Indigenous people, anthropology, and the law in Australia, while also offering an opportunity to reformulate those relations.

Gideon talks to FT contributing editor Kim Ghattas about the rebel advances in Syria that have taken place in the wake of Israel's bombardment of President Bashar al-Assad's Hizbollah allies in Lebanon.

The Climate Label, launching January 2025, will require participating companies to pay $15 per ton of unabated emissions

Gideon talks to FT Middle East correspondent Raya Jalabi about what she found when she drove from Beirut into Damascus shortly after the toppling of President Assad.

Plus: what's in store for 2025. Welcome to our Year in Review, in which we help you look back at the major sustainability themes of 2024 — and ahead to what's coming in 2025.