Climate News

After Trump’s pullback, Bloomberg promises to fill US funding gap to UN climate body

The announcement comes after Trump said the US should “immediately cease or revoke” any financial commitment made under the UNFCCC

Coal-reliant South African provinces falling behind on just transition

South Africa has a national strategy for a fair shift to cleaner energy – but regional plans and those of multinationals and cities remain patchy

Brazil appoints veteran climate diplomat André Corrêa do Lago as COP30 president

Ambassador Corrêa do Lago’s appointment was widely welcomed by Brazilian climate campaigners, who praised his “deep knowledge” of climate talks

Trump orders US to quit Paris Agreement and pause all foreign climate finance

Around $11 billion a year of funding for climate projects in developing countries is under threat from Trump’s review

Indian start-ups mine e-waste for battery minerals but growing industry has a dark side

Recycling e-waste can unlock a vast and sustainable supply of transition minerals but in India the sector relies on a neglected informal economy

Green Climate Fund looks at capital-market borrowing to meet COP29 goal

A GCF official says the fund needs new sources of money but campaigners worry the move could undermine climate justice

Support grows for global tax on shipping emissions to fund climate action

Shipping-reliant nations like Panama and Liberia have joined the EU, Japan and small islands in backing an emissions levy

What Trump’s second term means for climate action in the US and beyond

The new president is expected to exit the Paris Agreement, slash climate finance and wage war on science – but clean energy may get an easier ride

In a major reversal, the World Bank is backing mega dams

Despite opposition, the bank has approved the first of five big dam projects expected to get its support in the coming months

Bid to end export credit help for oil and gas fails, with Korea and Türkiye opposed

The EU, UK and Canada wanted fellow OECD members to commit to stop supporting foreign fossil fuels before Donald Trump takes over as US president

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Politics

To reform climate COPs, we should start with the voting rules

The UN COP climate conferences can’t be fixed with organisational reforms – we need to address the obstruction that results from blanket consensus decision-making

Record-hot 2024 shows world must adapt to extremes, says EU climate service

With global warming topping the key limit of 1.5C last year, adapting to worsening climate impacts has become a “necessity”, top scientist warns

Repression of climate and environmental protest is intensifying across the world

Climate protests surged in 2018-2019 and have continued, sparking a crackdown by authorities using the law to criminalise and constrain activism

President Biden sets US emissions goal for 2035 in the shadow of Trump

The outgoing administration said the target to cut emissions by 61-66% by 2035 can be reached even if Trump rolls back climate action

After Baku setback, activists call for ‘just transition’ to be front and centre at COP30

Developing states and labour activists say a fair global shift away from fossil fuels requires a firm UN plan for international support

Here’s how we take back control of COP from the world’s biggest polluters

From scrutinising delegates at UN climate summits to tightening rules on which countries host them and the deals they do, COPs can be cleaned up

Canada ignores official advice in setting much-criticised 2035 emissions target

While the Net Zero Advisory Body recommended a 50-55% cut in emissions, the government settled for a weaker 45-50% range

New loss and damage fund boss urged to keep costs down

Spending on consultants, business-class plane tickets and a deputy executive director was questioned at the fund’s latest board meeting

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Finance

Wall Street’s faltering on climate action opens up opportunity for European banks

With major US banks out of net zero alliance, European members should push to raise its ambition and turn words into action

After Cyclone Chido, France accused of neglecting climate threat to “fragile” Mayotte

Locals and experts say France should have done more to protect residents of its poor island territory from extreme weather

How Shell greenwashed gas with sham Chinese carbon credits

Exclusive: Shell used rice-farming offsets for “carbon neutral” LNG campaign – but farmers and local authorities said no project activities took place

Experts quit carbon market watchdog in row over quality label for forest credits

Two ICVCM expert advisors have resigned from their positions over what they called a “problematic precedent” set with the REDD+ decision

World Bank raises $100 billion for poor nations in boost for climate finance

Countries increased their contributions to the International Development Association in its largest replenishment yet, but experts warn rising inflation means a real-term cut

Why rich countries are “reluctant” on additional JETP coal-to-clean deals

UK and German officials have said there will likely be no more Just Energy Transition Partnerships, as the focus shifts to “country platforms” instead

COP29: Five most dramatic moments from the UN climate summit in Baku

The COP29 climate talks saw tearful speeches, hollow laughs, diplomatic spats and walk-outs before ending with a finance deal pushed through in controversial circumstances

What was decided at the COP29 climate summit in Baku?

From a controversial $300bn-a-year climate finance deal to stranded emissions-cutting talks and a new global carbon market, here are the main outcomes

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Justice

Oxfam: Super-rich have already burned more than their fair share of carbon for 2025

The idea of taxing the super-rich to fund climate action shot up the international agenda during Brazil’s G20 presidency

ICJ climate justice proceedings must recognise links between climate and nature

Climate change is destroying nature and must be stopped – but we should also ensure climate action helps, not hinders, nature

Nickel mining for electric vehicles is destroying lives in Indonesia

Indonesia’s abundant nickel reserves are crucial for a low carbon world. But extracting them is ruining local peoples’ lives and causing rampant deforestation

Big emitters accused of hiding behind climate treaties in international hearing 

The US, Saudi Arabia and others have pushed back against a global bid to clarify states’ legal obligations to tackle climate change

Call for climate reparations at the ICJ even more urgent after COP29 falls short   

People whose rights are harmed by climate impacts deserve remedy and reparation – and legal clarity from the International Court of Justice would be a first step

Weak gender focus at COP29 risks leaving women behind in greener future

In India, social barriers make it tough for women to work in the solar sector, as experts call for more attention to green skills in global climate politics

India, donor countries give up on Just Energy Transition Partnership – German official

Germany officials confirmed India and donor countries dropped a deal to accelerate the phase-out of fossil fuels in the South Asian country

Gender equality cannot be last on the agenda at COP29 climate talks

Climate action initiatives will only achieve their potential if women get more decision-making power and access to finance

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Energy

An economic lifeline: Why Iran opposes production curbs in UN plastics treaty

Iran’s plastics industry brings in much-needed foreign currency, which it can use to try and contain runaway inflation

Biden uses only Africa visit to promote “game changer” railway for copper and cobalt

The US is placing its critical minerals hopes in the Lobito Corridor project, which it says will also bring growth and jobs to Africa

Green reforms to energy investment treaty pass key hurdle

The reforms will allow governments to end protection for investments in fossil fuels within their borders while keeping them for renewables

Failure of Busan talks exposes fossil fuel barrier to UN plastics pact

Countries told they can’t afford to miss the opportunity to tackle plastic pollution next year – but can they resolve a row over cutting oil-heavy production?

Talks to produce global plastics pact end without agreement

Countries failed to break a stalemate over core issues for a new treaty, with a push to manufacture less plastic meeting resistance from oil-rich states

New plastics pact text reflects stark divide on production cuts

Diplomats from high-ambition countries urge petrostates to compromise as latest draft text for a global treaty to end plastic pollution leaves all to play for

Fossil fuel lobby secures “record” access to crunch talks on new plastics pact

Representatives of ExxonMobil, Dow, BASF and Sabic are among the oil and petrochemical firms with participants at the INC-5 negotiations in South Korea

Global plastics pact “hangs in balance” as petrostates block talks

Major fossil fuel-producing countries are blamed at negotiations in Busan for opposing curbs on plastic manufacturing, a key market for oil and gas

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Land

As Earth dries out, countries fail to reach drought agreement

Countries including the US successfully resisted Africa’s push for a legally binding drought protocol at the “land COP” in Riyadh

Global North countries must step up on protecting their own forests

The impacts of logging in the Global North are being felt in countries like Nigeria – a more equitable, coordinated approach is needed to tackle deforestation

Biodiversity market takes off at COP16, in shadow of carbon credit chaos

Several new guidelines for biodiversity credits were launched at COP16 in Cali, Colombia, where activists warned on risks to nature conservation efforts

COP16 hands power to Indigenous people but fails to bridge nature finance gap

UN biodiversity summit produces mixed results, with gains for Indigenous people and disagreement on how to raise and manage funding for nature protection

Fossil fuel transition pledge left out of COP16 draft agreement

An earlier draft decision at the UN nature summit included a call to transition away from fossil fuels – but it has been cut from the latest version

At COP16, countries clash over future of global fund for nature protection

Some biodiverse developing nations want to replace it with a new fund that would give them a bigger say in how it’s run and easier access to its resources

COP16 confronts “huge” challenge of protecting 30% of world’s land and sea

Ahead of the UN biodiversity summit, countries are urged to come up with strong new plans and funding to meet global nature goals

Delay to EU deforestation law must not lead to dilution

The EU needs to stand firm against the countries and companies hellbent on weakening its pioneering regulation to stop commodities harming forests

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Transport

Five ways to make aviation more sustainable right now

The aviation industry has been slow to engage with the climate change agenda and new technology that could help it decarbonise is still being developed

British Airways plans to offset rising emissions by sprinkling crushed rocks

The airline will pay a UK company to carry out enhanced rock weathering, which speeds up natural carbon-absorbing processes

Belém’s electric bus controversy: a cautionary tale for COP30

A plan for new buses in the Brazilian city hosting the 2025 UN climate summit was held up by a political row that suggests the road to COP30 could get rocky

London airport expansion spotlights danger of “false hope” Jet Zero strategy

The UK government decided expansion is compatible with its plan to cut aviation emissions, raising questions about its reliance on unproven techno-fixes over reducing flights

Key UN report lends weight to Pacific plan for shipping emissions levy

The report was seized upon by the Marshall Islands but branded “unacceptable” and “nonsensical” by Argentina and Brazil

As first airline drops goal, are aviation’s 2030 targets achievable without carbon offsets?

Air New Zealand has dropped its 2030 emissions reductions targets, validated by the Science-Based Targets Initiative

Lessons from trade tensions targeting “overcapacity” in China’s cleantech industry

Clean technology is turning into the next global climate spat. The debate over China’s dominance is highly politicized, but there are ways forward

Shipping sector pushes to keep emissions-tax cash for itself

The industry and governments’ maritime ministries want a proposed levy on emissions spent on cleaning up shipping, not used for wider climate goals like loss and damage

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Science

LA fires show human cost of climate-driven ‘whiplash’ between wet and dry extremes

These cycles can worsen wildfires, like in California, where rapid vegetation growth is followed by drying – and also exacerbate flooding when unusually heavy rains hit baked ground

With drought-hardy cows, Botswana prioritises adaptation in new climate plan

The dry, sparsely-populated southern African nation is focusing its funding on ways to combat extreme weather rather than cutting already-low emissions

2024: A year of extreme heat and growing climate danger

This year is set to be the hottest on record – but scientists say there’s still time to limit temperature rise and harm from climate impacts

The world is getting smaller for pastoralists facing multiple threats

Africa’s herders are trying to maintain their way of life in the face of rising climate stress, conflict and competition for land

EU should push for global deal to curb solar geoengineering, advisors say

Europe’s first scientific advice on the technology urges Brussels to prevent its deployment, leaving room for limited outdoor research

COP29 climate finance talks must have a strong adaptation focus

The new finance goal needs clear and enforceable adaptation targets to help vulnerable countries cope with the impact of climate change

Adaptation Fund head laments “puzzling” lack of pledges at COP29

Even as leaders highlight the urgency of protecting people from more extreme weather and rising seas, they have been reluctant to pay up at COP29 for the measures needed

Aid agencies grapple with climate adaptation in fragile states  

Humanitarian groups have pushed ahead with innovative efforts to protect people in conflict zones from worsening climate impacts – but they are struggling to go it alone

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