ScienceA new report says Swiss glaciers lost more than 5% of their ice volume this year, marking the second-largest decline on record. The record pace was driven mainly by Europe’s summer heatwave and low snowfall the previous winter. Experts discuss the long-term consequences and whether the loss can be reversed.
EconomyA Swedish government scheme is offering lower-income rural drivers financial support to switch from petrol and diesel vehicles to electric cars. The programme is partly funded by the EU’s Social Climate Fund and is being carried out in partnership with the European Commission.
EconomyThe European Travel Commission’s CEO, Eduardo Santander, says Europe’s tourism industry is being squeezed by pricier trips, staffing gaps and a changing climate.
EconomyEduardo Santander, CEO of the European Travel Commission, explains how climate-related challenges threaten Europe’s tourism sector and are closely linked to travel costs.
WorldEurope has been described as enduring a year of disasters. In 2026, heatwaves have been linked to more than 30,000 excess deaths, while mega wildfires, nuclear plant shutdowns, pressure on gas plants, drought-hit hydropower and sharp electricity-price swings have disrupted crops and farming.
EconomyHeat and drought are damaging hop fields in Austria and Germany and affecting spring barley used for malt. Farmers and brewers are testing irrigation and turning to winter barley as concerns grow over a possible beer shortage.
ScienceRecord heatwaves and drought have pushed grape sugar levels unusually high, allowing French champagne producers for the first time to sell bottles above 13% alcohol. They fear climate change could eventually require a permanent rewrite of winemaking rules. The segment also reports a second European Central Bank rate hike this year as energy costs rise and a new gas crisis threatens Europe.
EconomyEuropean Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen says it has been a “very challenging summer” for farmers, many of whom have “lost their harvests” because of extreme climate conditions.
SocietyFrance has endured its hottest summer on record, with heatwaves, drought and massive wildfires, while extreme conditions have continued into September. The national weather service has kept five departments on orange alert for several days, with some areas expected to reach 40°C. The agriculture minister announced more than €1 billion in aid for the badly affected farming sector.
WorldFrance’s environment minister says the country experienced its hottest summer since records began more than a century ago. Météo-France reported an average summer temperature of 24°C, 3.6°C above normal and higher than the 2003 record of 2.7°C above normal.
EconomyRecent heatwaves in France created serious health risks and also weakened the economy. Authorities estimate that heat and drought sharply reduced agricultural production, with wealth generated by the sector expected to fall 8% this year. The knock-on effect could cut French growth in 2026 by 0.1 percentage points.
ScienceProvisional Met Office data shows the UK’s average mean temperature for June, July and August 2026 was 16.5C, the highest in records dating back to 1884. The summer’s peak temperature was 38.1C, recorded at Kew Gardens in London on 13 August.
BBC News
WorldParts of Europe have endured a dreadful summer marked by more raging wildfires. More than 300,000 people fled their homes in France and Spain, despite both countries having some of the best-equipped firefighters in the world.
WorldResidents of Le Porge in southwestern France plan to sue the state over last month’s wildfire, alleging it was mishandled. The blaze, described as France’s largest in decades, destroyed a quarter of the town, including 183 homes and 400 buildings.
WorldRecord-low water levels on the drought-stricken Danube have exposed riverbank in northern Bulgaria. About 20 volunteers, organised by the Regional Museum of History of Ruse, are searching for fossils and artefacts after receding water revealed mammoth bones in July.
ScienceDrought along a stretch of the Danube in Bulgaria has exposed fossils and wartime shipwrecks. Archaeologists have also been able to study the foundations of a bridge believed to have been built in 328.
EconomyRecord temperatures in Germany have affected farms, factories, schools and supply chains. The report examines the hidden costs of heat waves, including an estimated €36 billion in losses from heat and drought, and measures that could reduce future productivity losses.
WorldThe EU and Russia have sent helicopters and crews to help Serbia contain a wildfire burning in the country’s northeast. Neighbouring North Macedonia is also struggling to control a major blaze south of Skopje. The two Balkan nations are the latest affected during a summer of unprecedented fires across Europe.
SocietyAs Europe struggles with successive heatwaves and forest fires, awareness of the importance of wearing a hat has grown. Tourists in Greece appear better prepared for the risks posed by sun and extreme heat.
WorldFirefighting teams from the EU entered the operation at Serbia’s Deliblato nature preserve after the country triggered the bloc’s Civil Protection mechanism.
Reuters
WorldEurope has faced record-breaking temperatures this summer, bringing drought, deaths and devastating wildfires. Although the latest heat dome has dissipated, the damage remains, while the continent continues to warm faster than anywhere else globally. Could this summer trigger a worldwide climate reckoning?
WorldEurope is facing extreme weather, with wildfires in Serbia and Bosnia, floods and fires in Spain, and severe storms in Poland. Thousands of people have been evacuated while firefighters tackle fires, flooding and power cuts.
SocietyFrance’s summer holiday season is continuing, but as August draws to a close, northern destinations are becoming more popular after the country experienced a series of heatwaves this year.
WorldSerbian firefighters continued battling a major wildfire in the Deliblato Sands nature reserve while awaiting the arrival of help from the European Union.
Reuters