Climate News: April Recapped
- Proud Raksriaksorn
- May 1
- 5 min read
Are Dire Wolves Back?
Recently, three wolf puppies have taken the internet by storm as biotechnology company Colossal Biosciences claims to have “resurrected” a long-extinct species: the dire wolf. Two males, Romulus and Remus, were born in October, while Khaleesi, a female, was born in January. These are the first dire wolves to live in over 13,000 years. This marks a momentous breakthrough in genetic engineering, bringing us into an era scientists have named “de-extinction”. But what exactly is de-extinction? And can these pups truly be considered “dire wolves”?
Probably most famous for their role in the Game of Thrones TV show, dire wolves have been extinct for around 13,000 years. Their closest living relatives are the grey wolf. Scientists at Colossal managed to extract dire wolf DNA and analyse the unique genomes that give dire wolves their characteristic traits. Then, by editing sections of grey wolf DNA and placing the modified embryos into dog surrogates, 3 “dire wolves” were born. This opens up a world of possibilities for genetic engineering as technology continues to advance, with Colossal aiming to bring other species back from the dead as well, including the wooly mammoth, Tasmanian tiger and dodo.
“De-extinction” is the name given to the process of creating organisms that either resembles an extinct species or is an extinct species. The most common methods of achieving this are cloning, gene editing, and selective breeding. Colossal opted to use CRISPR technology, a form of gene editing, to create their wolf pups.
Responses to Colossal’s breakthrough were a mixed bag. Colossal aims to reintroduce extinct species to the habitats they once roamed in the hopes that they will bring about positive changes to the ecosystem. While many are excited at the prospect of being able to resurrect extinct species, many scientists have criticised the company for wasting resources on something that doesn’t guarantee any significant positive ecological impacts, instead distracting from the work being carried out to protect still-living species from extinction. According to Corinne Kendall, programme director of a non-profit organisation for the conservation of birds of prey, dire wolves and woolly mammoths were driven to extinction by a number of natural factors as well as human factors. But, for species whose extinctions were a direct result of human activity, simply bringing them back to life does not eliminate the threats that drove them to extinction in the first place. According to the IUCN, such threats include habitat destruction, invasive species, overexploitation from fishing and hunting, illegal wildlife trading, pollution and climate change. “That's what's missing in the way Colossal is approaching this,” Kendall says, “If you only address the genetics and technology side of things, it's interesting from a scientific discovery standpoint, but you're creating the trees without the forest.”
So, are dire wolves back? Yes, and no. What Colossal has created are genetically modified grey wolves that display some dire wolf characteristics. An incredible scientific feat in its own right, but to say that dire wolves are back from extinction isn’t entirely true.
Of course, it is nothing short of extraordinary that we may one day never have to see another species go extinct again, but some experts are concerned about the message this sends to people. Knowing that we can fall back on technology to fix our ecological mistakes, we could be undoing years worth of conservation efforts as we know that our actions no longer carry the same severe consequences on the ecosystem. As the BBC puts it, “It could give politicians and industries the idea that damage to the environment can be fixed by resurrecting species.” Paleogeneticist Dr. Nic Rawlence from Otago University questions, “If we don't have extinction, how are we going to learn from our mistakes?... Is the message now that we can go and destroy the environment and that animals can go extinct, but we can bring them back?”
In addition to bringing species back from the dead, Colossal has also invested in the conservation of the red wolf, a critically endangered species, by trying to increase their genetic diversity. However, the company has yet again been criticised for not addressing the main factors threatening the species, which are road collisions and poaching. Their efforts to resurrect the woolly mammoth have also raised ethical concerns regarding the distress that could be caused by keeping elephants in captivity and experimenting on them. Nitin Sekar, a conservation scientist at the IUCN who specialises in Asian elephants, has also pointed out how “Colossal clearly has very talented biologists on their team”, and if they were to instead redirect their efforts towards engineering climate-resistant crops, for example, “they could really be the heroes of conservation.”
World Leaders Unite to Step Up Climate Change Efforts in Preparation for COP30
As the 30th United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP30) approaches, the stakes have never been higher for our planet’s climate. Especially as countries are due to submit their new climate plans soon, the outcome of COP30 will help determine the fate of the planet’s climate. Will we uphold the Paris Agreement? Or will we fall off the climate tipping point?
On the 23rd of April, world leaders from 17 different countries came together for a virtual summit. This included representatives from China, the European Union, the African Union, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and Small Island Developing States. It was an initiative led by UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in an attempt to accelerate global climate action in preparation for COP30, which will be held in Belém, Brazil this November.
Find out more about what the COPs are here.
Guterres has made several statements:
“As we heard today, the world is moving forward. Full-speed ahead. No group or government can stop the clean energy revolution,”
“The clean energy sector is booming – creating jobs and boosting competitiveness and growth worldwide…Science is on our side and economics have shifted.”
He has also noted how renewable energy production is “the economic opportunity of the century”, and how they offer “the surest route to energy sovereignty and security, ending dependence on volatile and expensive fossil fuel imports” as prices of renewables have fallen dramatically over the years.
Additionally, Guterres has urged country leaders to submit NDCs (National Determined Contributions) that align with and fully commit to the target of net-zero emissions by 2050 as outlined in the Paris Agreement, accounting for all types of greenhouse gases as well. He has also emphasised the need to increase support for developing nations, which are disproportionately suffering the most severe impacts of climate change despite being the lowest emitters of greenhouse gases.
However, even if current climate plans are successfully carried out, we still still exceed the 1.5°C warming limit outlined in the Paris Agreement that was signed nearly a decade ago now by 196 countries. We can already start to see the consequences of failing to meet this goal, and it’s becoming clearer every day.
Moving towards COP30, it is clear that increased climate action and global cooperation is needed to curb the warming of the planet. As a Brazilian official in the summit has stated, “We have already negotiated enough…now the world wants to see action – results, examples, solutions.”
Credits:
Images - Deccan Herald, Vocal Media, UN
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