Nature notes Italy growing populism

(ANSA) - Rome, December 19 - The Italian governing coalition under the League and the Five Star Movement (M5S) and the step backwards on mandatory vaccinations by the M5S health minister have resulted in Italy being named among Nature's scientific events to remember from the past year. The journal noted that the year was dominated by concerns over a lack of attention to climate change and growing strains of populism. In addition to Italy, Nature noted the election of Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil, the chaos over Brexit and the Hungarian government's announcement that it would be taking over control of the budget of the Hungarian Academy of Science. In its end-of-the-year stock-taking, Nature said that the harmful effects of climate change are of especial concern, as shown by massive fires in Sweden, British Columbia, and California, at a time when governments are doing little or nothing to solve the problem.
    Both Australia and the US have recently changed direction in terms of trying to cut emissions.