Data Vis Dispatch,
November 2

All eyes were on Glasgow this week for the start of the COP26 climate conference. For the first time since the 2015 Paris Agreement, countries will be expected to submit new, lowered national targets for greenhouse gas emissions. To show why that’s needed, these charts looked at what each country has pledged so far and how far off-track that still leaves us:

Of course, some countries bear more responsibility than others for the past and future of carbon emissions. In recent decades, developing and developed economies have followed very different paths:

If you need a quick refresher on why this whole “emissions” thing is such serious business — these charts have you covered with the big picture and the human-sized one:

The effects of climate change are already all around us. This week the spotlight was on melting ice and rising seas:

Despite all this, we haven’t collectively given up our dirtiest energy habits:

But far more charts this week focused on what the solutions could be — from efficient transit to carbon pricing to electoral change:

In politics, the U.S. congressional map is still in flux:

And a major spending bill is still stalled in the Senate:

The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments this week on the structure of a restrictive Texas abortion law:

And other political charts looked at partisan history in the U.S. and budget plans in U.K.:

The breakout topic of the week was rainforests:

And we also had two visual stories on the internet — one very topical, one (relatively) timeless:

Miscellaneous topics included international affairs, manufacturing, and more: