Global Scans · Environment · Weekly Summary

WHAT'S NEXT:? Our natural environment is under ever-increasing threat. Landscape and ocean adaptation plus stabilizing biodiversity strategies will play an important role in maintaining global food productivity as climate changes. Evidence is mounting that any economic strategy that ignores carbon pollution will impose tremendous costs on the global economy and will result in fewer jobs and less economic growth over the long term. The global market for commercial "Earth observation" data is expected to hit $3.5 billion by 2024. Battles over environmental regulation could become particularly pointed in the coming years.

• [New] Heightened environmental awareness among global consumers is projected to drive demand for regenerative farming outputs. Persistence Market Research
• [New] Demand for rare earth elements is projected to grow materially through 2040. Vistage Research Center
• [New] Plastic pollution will more than double by 2040. Reasons to be Cheerful
• [New] Geopolitically, China by 2040 will seek to become the center of the global system, setting rules and norms from its communist system for both Earth and space. The Washington Times
• [New] Environmental impact will be a negative consequence of growing AI use in Spring 2026, compared to 34% in Fall 2025. Yahoo Finance

Last updated: 25 April 2026