Asia
Philippines energy chief blocks UN climate deal approval
Energy department chief says country needs more time to plan for lower carbon future, arguing developing countries must not be forced to cut their emissions
Bangladesh PM to put climate losses on Marrakech agenda
Sheikh Hasina is expected to attend COP22 and highlight her low-lying country’s vulnerability to flooding and cyclones
To deliver on Paris, world’s poorest need climate funding
To meaningfully engage in these crucial rule-making processes, poor governments need continued financial and capacity-building support to be able to contribute
Climate adaptation: how do we know we’re doing enough?
There is no single metric for tracking adaptation, making it hard to work out who is doing what, but a new model developed by IIED offers greater clarity
Green Climate Fund talks ‘hijacked’ by India-Pakistan conflict
After objections by the Indian representative, the Green Climate Fund has kept on hold a project to reduce the risk of glacial lake outburst floods in northern Pakistan
Slums boom in Philippines typhoon danger zones
Communities destroyed by Haiyan refuse to join government relocations as new residents swell unauthorised seaside neighbourhoods
UN tells Bangladesh to halt mangrove-threatening coal plant
Rampal coal plant poses a “serious threat” to a key ecosystem for Bengal tigers and must be cancelled, says the UN world heritage body
UN agrees historic deal to cut HFC greenhouse gases
An estimated 0.5C of global warming could be prevented if latest climate pact is implemented successfully, say scientists
Saudi Arabia blasts Korean bank for “playing” with UN climate fund
“Either you are serious, or you are not,” says Saudi Green Climate Fund representative after Korea Exim pulled its application to the fund at the last moment
Green Climate Fund urged to blacklist coal-funding agencies
Export credit agencies are inappropriate partners for the Green Climate Fund, according to a letter signed by 92 NGOs
Report: food production must rise 100% by 2050
Global food production may need to rise by more than 100 per cent to deal with climate change’s effects on crops in the most vulnerable regions
World Bank calls on Vietnam to avoid coal
Top development lender is working to bring renewable energy costs for developing countries, says chief Jim Kim
China cuts pollution at home, grows coal abroad
China cuts coal at home but state owned companies and banks drive new coal expansion overseas, despite promises of green growth for developing countries
The cost of inaction: who will fund loss and damage?
The UN climate regime still lacks an official definition of loss and damage and funding streams remain limited – which means it’s time to get innovative
1.5 to stay alive: UN’s warming goal feels the heat
The tougher temperature goal was a great victory for the vulnerable countries in terms of global diplomacy and advocacy. Now comes the hard part of implementation
Asia’s coastal typhoons are gaining power
The violence of typhoons that devastate Asian coastal regions is being magnified by rising sea surface temperatures caused by greenhouse gas emissions
Simple planting switch could slash rice methane emissions
Traditional growing of rice in flooded fields is bad for the staple crop’s future quality and produces vast amounts of methane greenhouse gas
Asia and the Pacific must spearhead a climate resilient future
As one of the world’s most climate vulnerable regions and a growing emitter of greenhouse gases in its own right, regional governments must take the initiative
EU-sized coal fleet shelved since Paris climate deal
China and India are cracking down on excess projects, but remaining pipeline will still blow the 2C carbon budget, say analysts
G20 will blow the Paris climate targets – report
Proposed cuts are “far from sufficient” and must be six times greater by 2030 to stop the world warming beyond 2C, a study finds on the eve of the G20 leaders meeting