While fossil fuels — coal, oil, gas — still produce roughly 85 percent of the world’s energy supply, it’s clearer than ever that the future belongs to renewable sources such as wind and solar. The move to renewables is picking up the development around the world: They now account for more than half of new power sources going in operation.

Some growth stems from a commitment by governments and farsighted businesses to fund cleaner energy sources. But increasingly the story is about the falling prices of renewables, especially wind and solar. The cost of solar panels has dropped by 80 percent and the cost of wind turbines（涡轮机）by close to one-third in the past eight years.

In many parts of the world renewable energy is already an important energy source. In Scotland, for example, wind turbines provide enough electricity to power 95 percent of homes. While the rest of the world takes the lead, especially China and Europe, the United States is also seeing an amazing shift. In March, for the first time, wind and solar power accounted for more than 10 percent of the power generated in the US, reported the US Energy Information Administration.

President Trump has underlined fossil fuels — especially coal — as the path to economic growth. In a recent speech in Iowa, he dismissed wind power as an unreliable energy source. But that message did not play well with many in Iowa, where wind turbines dot the fields and provide 36 percent of the state’s electricity generation — and where tech enterprise like Microsoft are being attracted by the availability of clean energy to power their data centers.

The question “what happens when the wind doesn’t blow or the sun doesn’t shine?” has provided a quick remark for skeptics. But an increase in the storage capacity of batteries is making their ability to keep power flowing around the clock more likely.

The advance is driven in part by vehicle manufacturers, who are placing big bets on battery-powered electric vehicles. Although electric cars are still uncommon on roads now, this massive investment could change the picture rapidly in coming years.

While there’s a long way to go, the trend lines for renewables are zooming. The pace of change in energy sources appears to be speeding up — perhaps just in time to have a meaningful effect in slowing climate change. What Washington does — or doesn’t do — to promote alternative energy may mean less and less at a time of a global shift in thought.

There aren't many happy conservation stories these days. But in the case of the California condor(秀鹫), it's good news.

In 1982, when just 22 California condors were left in the world, scientists started an official rescue program: they caught the remaining population to breed the birds.【小题1】

Chris Parish, a partner in the official rescue program, said, "We have put a lot of efforts into this-lot of dollars and a lot of years of research behind the present success. We are closer to recovery.【小题2】

Researchers began studying the birds in the 1940s. By the 1980s, experts began the slow process of catching, breeding rand reintroducing the birds back into the wild. The population then grew to more than 500.【小题3】Experts found that the leading cause was lead poisoning. The birds often eat dead animals shot and left behind by hunters, and they sometimes eat lead ammunition(弹药) while eating the meat. It was this research that made the California government order that hunters shouldn't use lead ammunition when shooting any wildlife anywhere in the state.

Aside from government bans, education in the hunting community has been also pushed for. 【小题4】Hunters there have been encouraged to either use non-lead ammunition or to pull the remains of shot animals away. For Parish, programs like that must be developed.

【小题5】"It's not the bird that's worth it.” Parish said, "It's successfully showing the problem and solutions and acting on those solutions. That's what we're going to need. We're going to need to have confidence in society that we can do it again. The California condor is far from the last species that will need to be saved.”

Human has only one home — the Earth. But it isn’t just ours. We share our beautiful planet with millions of other species, and our living is closely connected with theirs. For the sake of all living things, we must make sure that the earth is a healthy planet. However, to truly safeguard nature for the future, we need to see wide and fast changes. In particular, 【小题1】 .

First, it is important to strengthen the connection between how we deal with biodiversity (生物多样性) protection and climate change. The ecosystems that climate change is damaging not only provide living places for wildlife, 【小题2】 .

Second, it is valuable to provide enough money for biodiversity protection. 【小题3】 . However, the world spends only $142 billion on biodiversity protection at the present time, just over 0.1 percent of total world GDP. This is not good enough. We are short of almost $700 billion to protect everything we value.

Third, it is of great value for private business to take part in environmental protection. Without its money, 【小题4】 . Sustainability (可持续发展) has to be put at the core of private business strategies, so that every stage of value chains is one that can last for long.

Finally, 【小题5】. The need to protect biodiversity and ensure a healthy environment is a world challenge that does not stop at borders. Countries must work together if human beings are to succeed in protecting the planet. Working together, countries can create a world where human beings live in peace with nature.