Recycling news: 2026

Research & science The secret underground system keeping the Grand Canyon alive Scientists are venturing into the Grand Canyon’s hidden cave networks to solve a mystery: how snowmelt travels underground to supply the park’s vital springs. Their discoveries could help protect the canyon’s water from drought, contamination, and other growing threats. ScienceDaily — Recycling and Waste · 2 Jun 2026 Research & science Is economic growth still driving municipal waste? Evidence from European Union and Western Balkan Countries Waste Management & Research, Ahead of Print. Municipal waste generation remains a key obstacle to Europe’s transition towards a circular economy and to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 12, particularly in macro-regions where European Union (EU) Member States coexist with Western ... Waste Management & Research (SAGE) · 2 Jun 2026 Research & science Whistler by Ann Patchett: a pacy metafiction where rich people are nice to each other Ann Patchett’s 11th novel follows a daughter and father who reunite and learn to be better to each other. University of Birmingham — The Conversation institution feed · 2 Jun 2026 Research & science Three KTH Projects on IVA’s List for Research Impact 2026 The Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) has singled out 30 research projects with what it says show significant potential to benefit society. Three of these projects are being conducted at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. IVA’s selections are based on the projects’ potential for commercialisation, business and methodological development, or societal impact. KTH Royal Institute of Technology News · 2 Jun 2026 Research & science Electrochemistry Goes Mainstream: Applications in Modern Total Synthesis - ChemRxiv ChemRxiv preprints · 2 Jun 2026 Research & science AI brings object-level vision prosthetics closer to reality 02.06.26 - EPFL researchers are developing AI models that could one day enable vision prosthetics able to restore meaningful, object-level sight for the blind. This research from the NeuroAI Lab of Martin Schrimpf, part of EPFL’s Schools of Computer and Communication Sciences and Life Sciences , uses AI models to predict exactly where to stimulate the brain to evoke images of faces and specific… EPFL News (Mediacom) · 2 Jun 2026 Research & science New hydrogen breakthrough turns waste heat into clean fuel A breakthrough hydrogen-production method could make clean fuel far cheaper and easier to generate. Researchers at the University of Birmingham developed a perovskite-based catalyst that splits water into hydrogen at much lower temperatures than existing technologies, potentially allowing factories, steel plants, cement works, and renewable energy sites to turn waste heat into valuable hydrogen. ScienceDaily — Sustainability · 2 Jun 2026 Research & science Making climate-neutral plastics and cosmetics using bacteria Plastics, medicines, cosmetics—there are very few everyday products that do not rely on using fossil resources. A European research team led by Charité—Universitätsmedizin Berlin is now aiming to revolutionize this cornerstone of the chemical industry: as part of the CarboNcare project, scientists are developing bacteria that can produce important chemical base materials from sustainable methan… Phys.org — 'circular economy' search feed · 2 Jun 2026 Research & science Sustainable water purification using kaolin–chitosan beads: an eco-friendly alternative to toxic chromium treatments The textile industry is among the most rapidly expanding in Indonesia. The textile industry’s procedures produce significant effluent, including numerous heavy metals detrimental to the environment. Therefore, a solution to diminish the heavy metal content in the waste produced by the textile industry must be developed. This study focused on the synthesis of a kaolin–chitosan adsorbent for the … Waste Disposal & Sustainable Energy (Springer) · 2 Jun 2026 Research & science Why dirty farm plastic matters: Cleaner mulch film could cut landfill waste and fossil fuel use Nearly a billion pounds of plastic film mulch is used in American agriculture each year, and most of it is dumped into landfills. New research from Washington State University shows that recycling could be a feasible alternative, reducing reliance on fossil fuels and keeping plastics out of the waste stream. Phys.org — 'plastic recycling' search feed · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Innovation From Above: How Mesh Networks Help Control Drone Swarms Drone swarms can monitor progress on large construction sites, inspect remote offshore wind farms and search for survivors after natural disasters. When multiple drones are deployed, they generally are controlled centrally by mobile communications up to now. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS are working on a decentralized solution that is less susceptible to in… Fraunhofer Research News · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Efficiently Cooling Satellite Components in Space The vacuum of space makes cooling extremely challenging. The Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Heinrich-Hertz-Institut, HHI is developing technologies for thermal management in aerospace applications. The research team is using femtosecond and nanosecond lasers to treat the outer surfaces of satellite components and rocket nozzles to improve their heat dissipation. The researchers wi… Fraunhofer Research News · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Improving the Availability of mRNA-Based Drugs Innovative mRNA-based therapeutics and vaccines offer hope in the fight against cancer, genetic disorders and infections. However, their development and production are complex, slow and difficult to scale. Seven Fraunhofer institutes are working to change this situation. In the RNAuto project, they have now developed an automated, digitally controlled production system that is fast, flexible an… Fraunhofer Research News · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Ebola, hantavirus… how eroding global health cooperation could threaten worse crises ahead Global health funding cracks do not bode well for pandemic governance as recent disease outbreaks are reminding us. What does this mean for developing countries and how do they cope with health emergencies? University of Birmingham — The Conversation institution feed · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Land by Maggie O'Farrell is a haunting tale set in post-famine Ireland about history, map-making and memory How can you map a changing landscape and retain its history and spirituality? University of Cambridge — The Conversation institution feed · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Com atuação da família Bolsonaro nos EUA, Brasil torna-se definitivamente alvo de intervenções eleitorais externas Quanto mais Flavio busca apoio nos EUA, mais reforça a narrativa de soberania do governo Lula. Mas se o governo não apresentar resultados concretos na segurança pública, a extrema direita transnacional terá um terreno fértil para influenciar a disputa presidencial University of Southampton — The Conversation institution feed · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science First projects funded by Local Innovation Partnership Fund £30 million has been earmarked for Liverpool City Region (LCR) to boost high-potential innovation clusters. UKRI UKRI News · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Bad for health and the environment: Lung experts highlight environmental impact of tobacco product waste Ahead of World No Tobacco Day May 31, the American Thoracic Society and our Forum of International Respiratory Societies (FIRS) partners reiterate the need for countries to urgently implement decisions made at the 11th Conference of the Parties (COP11) to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. Phys.org — 'plastic recycling' search feed · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Your kitchen sponge is releasing microplastics every time you wash dishes Kitchen sponges release microplastics as they wear down during everyday use, with some sponge types shedding far more than others. Researchers estimated that millions of households could collectively release hundreds of tons of microplastics annually. ScienceDaily — Recycling and Waste · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Scottish elections: why did Labour see its worst result in the history of devolution? Yes, voters were angry at UK Labour – but the Scottish party failed to get the best out of Holyrood’s voting system. University of Glasgow — The Conversation institution feed · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Women’s prize for non-fiction: powerful biographies, moving histories and creative approaches to health – six experts review the shortlist and winner New perspectives on history, complicated family relationships and a creative approach to health. University of Cambridge — The Conversation institution feed · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Analysis of waste disposal and recycling processes in Türkiye with machine learning and artificial neural networks Waste Management & Research, Ahead of Print. This study aims to analyze waste disposal and recovery data for 2022 and 2024 in Türkiye to reveal changes in national waste management and to make future predictions using multivariate machine learning and artificial neural network (ANN) models. Trends ... Waste Management & Research (SAGE) · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science KTH at Almedalsveckan 2026 KTH is organising and participating in several events during Almedalsveckan (Almedalen Week), which takes place in Visby June 22–26. President Anders Söderholm, researchers, and other KTH representatives will be on site to contribute to the public debate. KTH Royal Institute of Technology News · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science In an age of ‘heteropessimism’, straight romcoms can make us cringe – but the story’s different when it comes to queer love It’s hard to root for a story where boy meets girl and they live happily ever after in a time when that is happening less in real life. University of Warwick — The Conversation institution feed · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Public dialogue explores solar radiation modification research A public dialogue on solar radiation modification (SRM) has revealed broad support for further research, alongside clear concerns about its deployment. NERC UKRI News · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Why Sweden’s wolverine conservation success story is unraveling A world-famous conservation program that helped save Sweden’s endangered wolverines is now struggling as funding stagnates and local trust erodes. Researchers say the decline offers a cautionary lesson: protecting wildlife requires long-term commitment, not just early success. ScienceDaily — Sustainability · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Modular Platform for Directing-Group-Free Radical Dicarbofunctionalization of Unactivated Alkenes via Dual Nickel/Energy-Transfer Catalysis - ChemRxiv ChemRxiv preprints · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Volume 13 Issue 6 | Environmental Science: Nano - The Royal Society of Chemistry Green Chemistry (RSC) · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science British Journal of Haematology - Wiley Online Library Journal of Industrial Ecology (Wiley) · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Efficient Bridge Monitoring In its 2022 condition assessment, the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV) classified 8,000 highway bridges as requiring rehabilitation. In other words, it is time to start continuously monitoring Germany’s bridges. With the COMOBASE modular acoustic emission monitoring system, the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems IKTS presents an innovative solution… Fraunhofer Research News · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Accelerating the Production of Higher-Performance Batteries The battery factory of the future is increasingly digitalized. Simulations play a central role in developing new cells while intelligent sensor systems monitor production in real time. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics ITWM are developing methods that enable production processes to be mapped virtually and key parameters to be measured during production. The expe… Fraunhofer Research News · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Global Gas Flaring Tracker Report, June 2026 dc.title: Global Gas Flaring Tracker Report, June 2026 dc.contributor.author: World Bank dc.description.abstract: The Global Gas Flaring Tracker Report 2026 examines worldwide gas flaring trends and highlights a concerning rise in flaring activities. Global gas flaring increased to 167 billion cubic meters (bcm) in 2025, the highest level since 2019 and the third consecutive annual increase, de… World Bank Open Knowledge Repository — 'waste' search · 1 Jun 2026 Research & science Study reveals that without a reliable mate birds do what comes naturally An interest sparked more than a decade ago by the favourite pastime of a student’s pet cockatiel has led to a groundbreaking study of masturbation in birds which will improve understanding of crucial and under-examined aspects of bird behaviour and welfare. Swansea University News · 31 May 2026 Research & science What 'biodegradable' packaging really means—and three key questions to ask about it "Biodegradable" has become one of the most reassuring words in modern packaging. It appears on coffee cups, shopping bags and food containers, implying a promise: this product is better for the environment because nature will eventually take care of it. Phys.org — 'plastic recycling' search feed · 31 May 2026 Research & science Owl monkeys have gotten heavier as temps have risen Owl monkeys have gotten heavier as temperatures rise—a result that defies long-standing expectations about how animals adapt to warm climates Futurity — Earth & Environment · 31 May 2026 Research & science Drought in the southwest is shrinking wildlife habitat "The take-home message is that the effects of drought are huge and widespread." Futurity — Earth & Environment · 31 May 2026 Research & science Agro-industrial residues as biofilter media for biogas desulfurization: An alternative to activated carbon Waste Management & Research, Ahead of Print. Biogas desulfurization is essential to prevent equipment corrosion and ensure its suitability for energy applications. Although several technically established desulfurization technologies are commercially available, their implementation may still be ... Waste Management & Research (SAGE) · 31 May 2026 Research & science D1.2 Food Loss and Waste Economic Model Development & SILL-based Validation - Wageningen University & Research Wageningen University & Research News · 31 May 2026 Research & science Assessment of Lao PDR’s Emission Reduction Program and Options for Future Emission Reductions Results-based Programs dc.title: Assessment of Lao PDR’s Emission Reduction Program and Options for Future Emission Reductions Results-based Programs dc.contributor.author: World Bank dc.description.abstract: This report assesses opportunities to scale up Lao PDR’s Emission Reductions Program and expand participation in carbon markets, in response to government interest. Conducted in 2025, it evaluates the performanc… World Bank Open Knowledge Repository — 'waste' search · 31 May 2026 Research & science The presence of people affects how animals behave "Our findings provide an important nuance in our understanding of wildlife in a rapidly changing world." Futurity — Earth & Environment · 30 May 2026