Climate news in early 2026 has been dominated by record heat and stubborn emissions, but away from the headlines, a quieter set of breakthroughs is reshaping what is possible. From underground fungal networks that lock away carbon to aggressive new rules on toxic “forever chemicals,” the year is already delivering concrete wins that cut pollution and expand the toolkit for climate action. I want to unpack a few of the most consequential shifts that are easy to miss, yet could prove pivotal in the long fight to stabilize the planet.
Together, these developments show how science, local organizing and regulation are converging into a more muscular response to the climate and chemical crises. They are not silver bullets, and none of them erase the scale of the challenge, but they do mark a turn toward solutions that are both systemic and surprisingly tangible, from tap water to ski jackets.
Fungi step out of the shadows as climate heavyweights
For years, climate policy has focused on smokestacks and tailpipes, while the living infrastructure under our feet received little attention. That is starting to change as researchers spotlight how vast fungal networks in soil act as a planetary carbon pump, pulling CO2 from the air and storing it in underground biomass. Recent coverage of carbon-sucking fungi has highlighted how these organisms form symbiotic relationships with plant roots, moving nutrients through microscopic filaments that collectively span extraordinary distances and quietly bank carbon in the process, a shift that is now being framed as one of the most promising natural climate solutions in early Positive climate reporting.
The scientific case has been sharpened by work from Dr. Toby Kiers, who has become a standard-bearer for this field. Kiers and her colleagues have calculated that the microbial filaments known as mycorrhizal networks, if laid end to end, would stretch across half the galaxy, and that these networks move significant amounts of carbon into the soil each year, a scale that reframes fungi as a global climate actor rather than a niche curiosity. In recognition of that work, Kiers and her team have been honored with a major environmental prize, with recent profiles noting how Kiers and her collaborators have mapped this hidden world and quantified its role in locking away carbon.
Meet the scientist turning fungal maps into climate policy
The shift from curiosity to climate tool is not happening by accident, it is being driven by researchers who are determined to drag fungi into the center of policy conversations. One widely shared profile introduced readers to a scientist described as “The Laureate,” a nod to the work being likened to a Nobel-level breakthrough for climate science, and detailed how she has built global maps of fungal networks that chart where underground carbon highways are most vulnerable to disruption. That work, which has been framed as a response to years in which “we have neglected the power of carbon-sucking fungi,” is now informing conservation strategies that prioritize protecting soils where these networks are densest, as explained in a feature inviting readers to Meet the scientist behind the maps.
Other coverage has echoed that narrative, describing how this research community is pushing governments and land managers to treat fungal networks as critical infrastructure rather than an afterthought. Reports on early 2026 environmental bright spots have singled out this work as an “invisible key” to tackling the climate crisis, noting that the same scientist is now advising on how to integrate fungal conservation into reforestation and soil restoration programs, a shift that could change how carbon markets value living systems. In that context, the call to Meet the people mapping these networks is more than a human-interest hook, it is a sign that climate policy is finally catching up with underground biology.
PFAS crackdowns move from talk to product bans
While fungi are quietly absorbing carbon, regulators are finally tightening the screws on a very different class of chemicals that have spread through water, soil and human bloodstreams. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, have been used for decades in everything from nonstick pans to firefighting foam, and their persistence has earned them the nickname “forever chemicals.” Over the past year, a wave of state-level rules has begun to restrict PFAS in consumer products, with State PFAS laws taking effect in 2026 that push manufacturers to reformulate or abandon entire product lines, a trend documented in new summaries of how multiple States are moving in parallel.
Colorado and Maine are among the jurisdictions that have gone furthest, with new rules that ban PFAS in categories such as food packaging and certain textiles, while other states are phasing in disclosure and reporting requirements that will make it harder for companies to hide where these compounds are used. Legal analyses of these measures describe how Colorado and Maine are part of a broader pattern in which statehouses are no longer waiting for federal action, instead using their own authority to restrict PFAS in consumer goods, a shift that is expected to ripple through supply chains as manufacturers standardize products across markets, a trend underscored in coverage of how Colorado and Maine are reshaping the regulatory landscape.
From ski jackets to cleaning sprays, product lists get specific
The crackdown is not just abstract rulemaking, it is now naming and targeting everyday items. Legal briefings on new state laws detail how, starting January 1, 2026, several jurisdictions are prohibiting PFAS in defined categories of consumer products, including Outdoor apparel for severe wet conditions unless the product carries a clear disclosure explaining that PFAS were intentionally added and why. That kind of requirement, which appears in analyses of how five states have enacted new laws on PFAS in consumer products, is designed to push brands that sell high-end rain jackets, mountaineering shells and similar gear to either justify their chemistry or switch to safer alternatives, a shift spelled out in summaries of the new rules on Outdoor gear.
California is adding its own pressure through SB 682, a law that advances efforts to phase out what the state calls “unnecessary PFAS” by prohibiting the sale and distribution of six new product categories that contain these chemicals. Legislative summaries explain that SB 682 covers items such as cleaning products and ski wax, which means everything from household sprays to the fluorinated waxes used on racing skis will have to be reformulated or pulled from shelves if they rely on PFAS. That level of specificity signals a new phase in chemical regulation, one where lawmakers are no longer content with broad promises and instead are writing product-by-product bans into statute, a trend that is likely to accelerate as more states copy California’s PFAS playbook.
From Global treaties to local taps, PFAS rules tighten
These state actions are unfolding against a backdrop of international efforts to rein in PFAS under existing chemical treaties. Environmental analysts note that Global regulations of PFAS are mainly governed by the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, often shortened to POP, which provides a framework for listing and restricting the most dangerous compounds. Recent explainers describe how the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants has already added several PFAS to its lists and is considering more, and they point to research that draws on Poll-based methods to gauge public awareness and support for stricter controls, a reminder that international law and public opinion are starting to align on the need to curb PFAS worldwide.
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