NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-16-2024 7PM EST

Episode Date: November 17, 2024

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Live from NPR News in New York City, I'm Dwahle Saikoutou. President Trump has named the CEO of a fracking company as his pig for Secretary of Energy. As NPR's Julia Simon reports, Chris Wright has said he doesn't think the world needs to transition away from fossil fuels. Wright, the CEO of Liberty Energy, has said publicly that there is no climate crisis. Here he is on a video on LinkedIn. The only thing resembling a crisis with respect to climate change is the regressive opportunity squelching policies justified in the name of climate change.

The overwhelming scientific consensus is that climate change is primarily caused by humans burning oil, coal, and gas. Scientists link more intense heat waves, wildfires, hurricanes, and flooding to global warming. Under President Biden, the Department of Energy has pushed to move the U.S. economy towards less polluting energy sources like solar, wind, and large-scale batteries. Environmental groups think Wright, as the leader of this department, means the U.S. will invest less in climate solutions. Julia Simon, NPR News. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is laying out his vision for negotiations between Ukraine

and Russia. From Kyiv, NPR's Hanna Palamarenko reports. In an interview with a Ukrainian public broadcaster, Volodymyr Zelensky said he believes the war will end faster under the administration of President-elect Donald Trump, citing unspecified policies. And Zelensky added the war should end through diplomatic means. Zelensky said Saturday he and Trump had a constructive interaction in September, and the Ukrainian side had the opportunity to present its position on the

vision of peace. A just peace is important for us so that there is no feeling that we have lost the best for the sake of injustice that was imposed on us, Zelensky said. Hanna Polomarenko, MPR News, Kyiv. A case of M-pox, previously known as monkeypox, has been identified in California. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it's the first time this strain of M-pox has been found in the U.S. And Piers Gabriel-Emmanuel reports.

This strain, known as clade 1, is more deadly than the M-pox strain already circulating in the U.S. Its fatality rate ranges from 1 percent to 10 percent. The California patient had recently traveled to Africa, where there is a large outbreak of EMPOX. After returning to the state, he visited a local health clinic where he was diagnosed. Chris D. Hudson is with the CDC.

Symptoms thus far have remained mild, and they are now isolating at home. So hopefully they will fully recover. Hudson says the risk to the general public is low. Other clade 1 M-pox cases in Sweden, Thailand, India, and elsewhere have not led to additional cases. Gabriella Emanuel, NPR News. And this is NPR News from New York.

Montgomery County, Maryland is the most religiously diverse county in the country. That's according to data from the Public Religion Research Institute. And Pierce-Sara Ventry took a drive there, down a road so packed with houses of worship it's been called the Embassy Row of Religions. But locals know it as the Highway to heaven. Holy Trinity Ukrainian Catholic Church sits on New Hampshire Avenue in Silver Spring, Maryland, along with other churches, mosques, and temples, all within a couple miles of each other.

The Public Religion Research Institute conducted the survey, which found that Montgomery County, Maryland is the country's most religiously diverse. The Institute's Melissa Deckman says the counties at the top of the list have some common denominators. The most populated counties in the country, but they're also the most racially and ethically diverse. Other counties in the top 10 include Kings County, New York, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, and San Francisco County, California. Sarah Ventry, NPR News. Another beach house along North Carolina's outer banks has collapsed, making it the sixth home in six months

due to coastal flooding, strong winds, and erosion. Officials say since 2020, a total of 11 homes were swept into the ocean along the outer banks. But coastal communities elsewhere are facing similar challenges, including in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Palm Beach, Florida, and Long Island, New York. I'm Dwahle Saikow-Tau, NPR News in New York City.