International: All stories
Decaying forest wood releases 10.9 billion tonnes of carbon annually
3 Sep 2021
If you’ve wandered through a forest, you’ve probably dodged dead, rotting branches or stumps scattered on the ground. This is “deadwood”, and it plays several vital roles in forest ecosystems
Solar ‘boom’ times as Lebanon’s fossil fuels run dry
3 Sep 2021
With electricity becoming a scarce commodity, thousands of well-off Lebanese are rushing to alternative energy.
Five things to know about carbon pricing
3 Sep 2021
The IMF's principal environmental fiscal policy expert, Ian Parry, outlines five things you should know about carbon pricing.
UN says weather disasters becoming more frequent and costly
2 Sep 2021
The number of disasters, such as floods and heatwaves, driven by climate change have increased fivefold over the past 50 years, killing more than 2 million people and costing $3.64 trillion in total losses, a U.N. agency said yesterday.
A faster, fairer way to retire carbon-emitting assets
2 Sep 2021
New financial instruments are being designed and brought into the fight against climate change. One such potential instrument is the 'carbon retirement portfolio' (CRP).
Glasgow records hottest summer in run-up to Cop26 climate summit
2 Sep 2021
Glasgow, the host city of the crucial Cop26 UN climate summit in November, has experienced its hottest summer on record, the Met Office has said.
Public confused by climate jargon
2 Sep 2021
If you’ve ever furrowed your brow trying to remember what “mitigation” meant, you’re not alone, a new study has found.
IMF urges countries to raise carbon price
1 Sep 2021
The International Monetary Fund is urging countries to scale up green investments and set a higher global carbon pricing floor to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change.
Climate change in election spotlight in Norway
1 Sep 2021
Climate change has surfaced as a key issue for Norwegian voters in an upcoming parliamentary election that polls show could usher in more lawmakers who want to curtail oil and gas drilling.
Costa Rica’s environment minister's plans for a green economy
1 Sep 2021
Costa Rica's environment minister Andrea Meza has ambitious plans for the country’s fight against climate change. But between a warming planet and limited time in her role, she’s on a tight deadline.
Will chocolate survive climate change? Actually, maybe
1 Sep 2021
The forecast has been bad for domesticated cacao. But some environments in Peru might hold the key to the future of the world’s sweet tooth.
Medellin strives to become Latin America’s first ‘eco-city’
1 Sep 2021
The Colombian city, notorious decades ago for its crime and violence, is reinventing itself as an eco-city.
Price of carbon crosses 60 euro for first time
31 Aug 2021
The European benchmark price for carbon allowances on Monday morning climbed above 60 euros per tonne for the first time since the European Union’s carbon market launched in 2005.
Singapore exchange to tighten climate rules
31 Aug 2021
The Singapore Exchange will ask all companies listed on its exchange to disclose climate-related information or explain why they cannot do so.
Zimbabwe opens new coal mines
31 Aug 2021
Zimbabwe's government says more coal mining will create jobs and give the country's power supply a much-needed boost, but critics warn the environmental cost is too high.
Forced farm buy outs mooted in Netherlands
31 Aug 2021
One solution to reduce the Netherlands’ nitrogen compound emissions would be for the state to buy out farmers, according to experts.
Indigenous voices to be heard for first time at global conservation hui
31 Aug 2021
Indigenous peoples will have a seat at the table for the first time in the General Assembly of the International Union for Conservation of Nature's 73-year history when it meets in Marseille next week.
Fossil-fuel interests turn to ‘carbon shaming’
30 Aug 2021
After Prince Harry told Oprah Winfrey that climate change and mental health are two of the “most important issues facing the world today,” the New York Post threw the words back at him.
China has carbon neutral goals, but at local level old habits die hard
30 Aug 2021
China is aiming to be carbon neutral by 2060, and for its carbon emissions to peak by 2030. But its initial efforts have been undermined regionally, partly by provinces continuing to launch high-energy and high-emissions projects.
Is deep-sea mining a cure for the climate crisis or a curse?
30 Aug 2021
Trillions of metallic nodules on the sea floor could help stop global heating, but mining them may damage ocean ecology, the Observer's Robin McKie reports.
The killing of environmental activists continues five years after Berta Cáceres's murder
30 Aug 2021
The Indigenous activist in Honduras had won the Goldman prize for opposing the Agua Zarca Dam. But it didn’t protect Cáceres in one of the world’s most dangerous countries.
Has methane-free vegan icecream arrived?
30 Aug 2021
Nothing hits quite so good as a cone full of ice cream on a sweltering summer day. Alas, that single serving of classic vanilla may cool you off, but it has the exact opposite effect on the Earth. The dairy industry accounts for a massive 3.5 percent of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions, and the US's 8.8 million cows are a huge source of the planet-warming gas methane.
Is the world approaching peak car?
27 Aug 2021
Cars aren’t what they used to be. Sure, they have more horsepower, more features, and require less fuel — but they are losing their power over humanity.
Middle East ‘faces 60C temperatures’ due to climate change
27 Aug 2021
It sounds like hell on earth. The Middle East, already riven by conflict, faces 60C temperatures as the region worst affected by climate change, a climate expert has warned – making crises from Lebanon to Syria even more acute.
Africa's mountain forests store more carbon than previously thought
27 Aug 2021
Tropical forests may be local to the tropics, yet they all have global benefits. In addition to serving as refuges of the planet’s stunning, if shrinking, biodiversity, these forests store large amounts of carbon, which helps offset our emissions and mitigate climate change.
China to increase carbon sinks in the ocean
27 Aug 2021
China's environmental authority vowed on Thursday to promote the capability of carbon sinks in the ocean as a key part of the country's efforts to confront climate change and fulfill its goals to achieve carbon peak before 2030.
Could working less help save the planet?
27 Aug 2021
So, you’ve just come through 18 months of a pandemic and realized there’s more to life than work. Every moment is precious, why waste more time at a job that will never love you back?
Global greenhouse gas levels were highest ever in 2020
26 Aug 2021
Any hopes that pandemic lockdowns dented the build up of greenhouse gases have been dashed as a new report confirmed that global levels reached their highest on record in 2020.
Carbon emissions from power sector soar
26 Aug 2021
Global carbon dioxide emissions from the power sector have surged past pre-pandemic levels to reach new highs, a new report examining trends during the first half of 2021 finds.
Global carbon tax could turbocharge ‘green shorting’
26 Aug 2021
Australia's largest ethical super fund says the opportunity for investors to profit from ‘green shorting’ will grow as global leaders take greater action on climate change, which could act as a catalyst for sliding sharemarket valuations for fossil fuel producers.
Australia bushfires of 2020 had cooling effect on climate
26 Aug 2021
Wildfires are getting so big, and wildfire seasons are lasting so long, that they’re now impacting the earth’s climate.
Is climate change to blame for extreme weather events?
26 Aug 2021
For years climate scientists warned against attributing single weather events to climate change. That's been changing lately. An expert in weather attribution Xubin Zeng, a professor of atmospheric sciences, provides an overview of the changing science of climate change attribution in this piece for The Conversation.
Central banks failing on climate action
25 Aug 2021
Released in advance of the Federal Reserve’s annual Jackson Hole meeting, a study assessing twelve of the world’s largest central banks against ten climate-related policy criteria has found all failing to align their lending, asset purchases and regulatory activities with the Paris Agreement target.
Experts clash over cost of carbon
25 Aug 2021
An academic debate over a key metric for greenhouse gases is heating up, just as a high-profile courtroom battle is scheduled to begin.
USA nears first major steps to control CO2 emissions
25 Aug 2021
The United States is preparing to adopt a raft of new energy policies that will for the first time put the US – the world’s second-worst polluter after China – on a path to meeting its pledge to cut greenhouse emissions in half by 2035.
Europe's extreme rains made more likely by humans
25 Aug 2021
The heavy rainfall behind deadly flooding in Europe in July was made more likely by climate change, scientists say.
Pacific islands call for zero carbon shipping by 2050
24 Aug 2021
Three climate vulnerable Pacific nations have asked the world’s governments to agree to aim to make international shipping emissions-free by 2050.
China’s new carbon trading market isn’t working
24 Aug 2021
The price of emissions credits in China’s carbon trading market reached a record low on Aug. 20, the latest sign that the market’s structural flaws are preventing it from working as an effective weapon against climate change.
Carbon dividends: a win-win for people and climate
24 Aug 2021
Putting a price on emissions and sending the proceeds to the public is a sound environmental and economic strategy, writes James K. Boyce in the Scientific American.
Climate change will lead to changes in crop diseases
24 Aug 2021
A new study that looked at climate change models has predicted that with rising temperatures, the burden of crop diseases will increase in some parts of the world and fall in others.
The case against individualising climate change
24 Aug 2021
BIG OIL coined the term 'carbon footprints’ to blame us for their greed. Keep them on the hook, writes Rebecca Solnit in The Guardian.
Queen shirks climate responsibilities
23 Aug 2021
Queen Elizabeth II’s lawyers have secretly negotiated with Scottish ministers to change a draft law about reducing carbon emissions, ensuring that her private land is made exempt from new regulations.
Insurance industry seeks to limit fossil fuel exposure
23 Aug 2021
With global climate change threatening to wreak havoc on their industry, insurance companies are increasingly looking to limit their exposure to the fossil fuel sector.
Time for a cow tax?: Mother Jones
23 Aug 2021
During a debate about the Democrats’ new infrastructure bill in the Senate chamber on Tuesday night, Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) took the floor, positioned next to a sign stating “No Cow Tax.”
Reforestration fails to make up for Amazon's destruction
23 Aug 2021
Driven largely by the expansion of farm land to meet increasing global demand for products such as soya bean, over 810,000 km² of forest in the Amazon has been cleared – an area nearly as big as Norway and Sweden combined.
On the hunt for climate killing gas
23 Aug 2021
After finding a rusty gas canister near his midwest US home, Rick Karas checked online if it was worth anything. Incredibly, it turned out to be a coveted commodity in the battle against climate change.
Judge overturns U.S. approval of Alaska oil project
20 Aug 2021
A federal judge has reversed the U.S. government's approval of ConocoPhillips' planned $6 billion Willow oil development in Alaska, citing problems with its environmental analysis, according to court documents.
Climate change will disrupt supply chains much more than Covid
20 Aug 2021
The onset of the coronavirus pandemic caused unprecedented, worldwide supply-chain disruptions, but experts say that’s a drop in the bucket compared with the disruptions that climate change will cause.
The soaring carbon footprint of wildfires
20 Aug 2021
Devastating wildfires that have ravaged parts of the northern hemisphere this summer have released soaring amounts of carbon, EU data shows.
Mapping wildfires around the world
20 Aug 2021
From Siberia to Algeria, Al Jazeera looks at some of the largest and deadliest wildfires blazing around the world.
“There was so much death.” A toxic algal bloom is ravaging Australia’s southern coast – warming waters are to blame
Fri 29 Aug 2025
Three ingredients are required for an algal bloom to get going – temperature, the right conditions and food. South Australia had all the preconditions necessary, thanks to climate change.
We used to stash gold in Fort Knox. What if we did the same with carbon?
Fri 29 Aug 2025
If we could convince the masses that waste carbon dioxide is sacred and worth hoarding — like gold — one of our most existential problems might solve itself.
China's carbon market to introduce absolute emissions caps from 2027
Wed 27 Aug 2025
China will tighten its carbon trading market by introducing absolute emissions caps in some industries for the first time starting by 2027.
Apple Watch not a 'CO2-neutral product,' German court finds
Thu 28 Aug 2025
Apple can no longer advertise its Apple Watch as a "CO2-neutral product" in Germany, following a court ruling on Tuesday that upheld a complaint from environmentalists, finding that the U.S. tech company had misled consumers.
What happens to net zero if the trees don’t survive?
20 Aug 2025
When climate change undermines the climate plan.
Challenges persist in bid to mine the deep sea, even after boost from Trump
29 Jul 2025
After years of delay, the deep-sea mining plans of Canadian firm The Metals Company (TMC) now appear to be progressing as it pursues a controversial new path to securing a license to mine in international waters under U.S. jurisdiction.
Singapore seals carbon credit deal with Thailand, its first South-east Asian partner
Thu 28 Aug 2025
The agreement, the eighth for Singapore, helps both nations meet climate targets under the Paris Agreement, directing finance to Thai projects.
Rise in dengue fever outbreaks across the Pacific driven by the climate crisis, experts say
13 Aug 2025
Samoa, Fiji and Tonga among the worst affected amid warning the disease and others will become ‘more common and more serious’ as the planet warms.
Iconic Antarctic species at risk amid 'regime shift', with 'rapid and self-perpetuating changes'
22 Aug 2025
Scientists say there is emerging evidence of abrupt and potentially unstoppable changes in the Antarctic environment.
Is Africa about to see the solar energy boom it needs?
Thu 28 Aug 2025
African countries imported a record number of solar panels in the past year, which could be the beginning of a green energy boom on the continent.
Lessons from the Incas: How llamas, terraces and trees could help the Andes survive climate change
Thu 28 Aug 2025
New research suggests solutions may lie in environmental knowledge that the Incas and their predecessors developed centuries ago.
Brazil issues last-ditch plea for countries to submit climate plans ahead of COP30
20 Aug 2025
Only 28 countries have submitted carbon-cutting proposals to the UN, with some of the biggest emitters yet to produce plans.
