Across the Middle East, countries facing severe energy access challenges are turning to renewables to power essential infrastructure, from hospitals to schools and street lighting.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called on Thursday for greater protection for environmental and land defenders, noting that hundreds worldwide have been killed or detained in recent years.

In the wood-panelled rooms of New York’s storied Explorers Club, where portraits of pioneering adventurers line the walls, diplomats, scientists and ocean advocates gathered on Tuesday evening with a shared sense of urgency – and anticipation.