International: All stories
NZ birds feature in species loss study
24 Jul 2018
A new study which included kokako and saddlebacks in its research data shows that the steadily warming climate is driving species loss.
UN pact offers hope to climate refugees
24 Jul 2018
Communities at risk of climate displacement have won vital protection now that their plight has been recognised in a global pact on migration.
Greedy Earth chomping through resources
24 Jul 2018
Humanity is devouring our planet’s resources in increasingly destructive volumes, according to a new study that reveals we have consumed a year’s worth of carbon, food, water, fibre, land and timber in a record 212 days.
Do the young have anything new to offer climate fight?
24 Jul 2018
Young people have become noisy advocates for action on climate change. But what new methods are they bringing to the table and are children really a source of hope for an issue on which adults have failed?
It's hot alright ... and we can't blame it all on climate change
24 Jul 2018
The northern hemisphere is having a baking summer – and it’s not just down to climate change.
Are we getting climate finance all wrong?
23 Jul 2018
Long-term thinking about climate change is challenging widely held assumptions about how we spend money today.
Officals block Sydney waste-power incinerator
23 Jul 2018
A plan for a massive waste-to-energy incinerator in western Sydney has been blocked, after the New South Wales Independent Planning Commission ruled there was “uncertainty” over human health and environmental impacts.
Baltimore sues 26 fossil fuels companies ...
23 Jul 2018
Baltimore's waterfront revitalisation has become a model for urban development, but sea level rise and extreme weather are putting its future at risk.
... and judge pours cold water on New York hopes
23 Jul 2018
A federal judge has dismissed New York City's lawsuit against five of the world's largest oil companies, dealing a setback to local governments that are trying to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for climate change.
Meat and dairy set to pass oil as biggest polluter
20 Jul 2018
Meat and dairy companies are on track to be the world’s biggest contributors to climate change, outpacing even the fossil fuel industry, according to a new report.
California's mega farms display their dark side
20 Jul 2018
The floor of California's Central Valley is slumping, and there is arsenic in the tap water. It seems the two problems are connected.
Palau plans the fastest-ever shift to renewable energy
20 Jul 2018
Palau plans to stop buying diesel and go 100 per cent solar by the end of 2019 - offering a blueprint for other Pacific nations to do the same.
UN and Google team up to monitor enviro damage
20 Jul 2018
UN Environment and Google have joind forces to provide trackable data on human impacts on the environment.
Singapore battles addiction to plastic
20 Jul 2018
The average Singaporean uses an unconscionable 13 plastic bags a day. With its only landfill site fast filling up, what are consumers and businesses doing to defuse the nation's plastic waste timebomb?
Burning of waste set to overtake recycling in England
20 Jul 2018
England is on the brink of burning more of its rubbish in incinerators than it recycles for the first time, according to a new analysis.
Spotlight goes on NZ climate aid to Pacific
19 Jul 2018
New Zealand’s support for Pacific countries threatened by climate change will be under the spotlight in Fiji next week.
EU-Japan trade deal first to carry Paris pact clause
19 Jul 2018
Europe’s massive free-trade deal with Japan is the first the EU has struck with a specific provision on the Paris climate agreement.
Internet under threat from rise in sea levels
19 Jul 2018
The rise in sea levels will put vital internet infrastructure at risk, new research suggests.
Native peoples have key role in conservation
19 Jul 2018
Indigenous peoples are crucial for global conservation and for living with climate change – after all, a quarter of all land is in their hands.
A billion people struggle to stay cool as the world warms
19 Jul 2018
More than a billion people are at risk from a lack of air conditioning and refrigeration to keep them cool and to preserve food and medicines as global warming brings more high temperatures, a new study shows.
EU and China agree on climate change action
18 Jul 2018
Climate change will become a “main pillar” of the relationship between the European Union and China, leaders said yesterday.
How Trump’s trade war could be used to fight climate change
18 Jul 2018
What if countries responded to US President Donald Trump’s tariffs by taxing imports based on their carbon footprint instead?
Europe keeps on setting clean-energy records
18 Jul 2018
Two of the biggest economies in Europe last week set new records for clean energy.
Why Central American farmers are jumping ship
18 Jul 2018
As immigration issues along the US southern border continue to roil the country, one driving force of migration from troubled Central American countries has received relatively little notice: climate change.
It's red alert time, says Paris Agreement leader
17 Jul 2018
The world community has taken action against climate change but it must “triple its efforts” to reduce emissions, says the man who presided over the Paris Agreement.
SCIENCE UNDER SIEGE: Behind the scenes at the EPA
17 Jul 2018
Uncertainty, hostility and irrelevance are now part of daily life for scientists at the US Environmental Protection Agency.
Can Norway solve the plastic crisis, one bottle at a time?
17 Jul 2018
A bottle deposit hub on the outskirts of Oslo has had a stream of high-level international visitors. Can its success be replicated worldwide?
Pence’s failed gas stations cost taxpayer $20M
17 Jul 2018
The gas station chain that was owned by US Vice-President Mike Pence's family has left more than $20 million worth of environmental remediation costs for Indiana taxpayers.
Prolonged heatwave brings record high temperatures
16 Jul 2018
Record high temperatures have been set across much of the world as an unusually prolonged and broad heatwave intensifies concerns about climate change.
Ireland's vote highlights global divestments
16 Jul 2018
Nearly 900 institutions have committed to some level of divestment from oil, gas and coal. Others believe they can push climate action more effectively as investors.
UK can go low-carbon at no extra cost, say advisers
16 Jul 2018
The UK can have low-carbon electricity, heat and transport in 2050 at the same cost as today’s high-carbon energy system, according to infrastructure advisers.
These countries have not ratified the Paris Agreement
16 Jul 2018
Nearly three years after the Paris Agreement was reached, more than a tenth of global emissions are generated in countries that have not formally adopted the deal.
Huge iceberg threatens Greenland village
16 Jul 2018
A 100-metre high iceberg has drifted close to a village on Greenland’s west coast, prompting fears of a tsunami if it breaks up.
Ireland first country to divest from fossil fuels
13 Jul 2018
Ireland will become the first country to sell off its investments in fossil fuel companies, after a bill was passed with all-party support in the lower house of parliament.
Germany powers to renewables record
13 Jul 2018
Germany has set a record for renewable power production during the first six months of 2018.
Heatwave could be making Americans think
13 Jul 2018
Record-breaking high temperatures across much of North America appear to be shaping people’s thinking, a survey finds.
Plastic waste makes floating pleasure park
13 Jul 2018
More than 1000 square feet of plastic ultimately destined to pollute the ocean is getting a second lease on life in Rotterdam.
China and EU can lead on climate action
12 Jul 2018
After the US surrendered its influence, the EU-China summit in Beijing next week will be yet another moment for both economies to show leadership on climate action.
Chinese lead green bonds charge
12 Jul 2018
China issued $30 billion in green bonds in 2017, remaining the world leader in the market.
Meet the man who paves highways with old plastic
12 Jul 2018
Chemistry professor Dr Rajagopalan Vasudevan, 73, wants us to know that repurposed plastic can be good for the environment.
India’s cheap cars fixation stalls EV dream
12 Jul 2018
India’s obsession with affordable small cars could delay the Narendra Modi government’s ambitious plan to only sell electric vehicles in the country by 2030.
Life's a toxic cocktail in the land of Genghis Khan
12 Jul 2018
The lifestyle of nomads in the ancient home of Genghis Khan and his Mongol horde is under threat as never before. Climate change, combined with local environment mismanagement, government neglect and the lure of the modern world, has created a toxic cocktail.
Big Krill backs vast Antarctic ocean sanctuary
11 Jul 2018
The creation of the world’s biggest ocean sanctuary, protecting a huge tract of remote seas around Antarctica, has come a step closer after major fishing companies came out in favour of the plan.
Six ways Andrew Wheeler could reshape the EPA
11 Jul 2018
Former US coal lobbyist Andrew Wheeler inherits some important decisions from Scott Pruitt at the EPA, including on the Clean Power Plan, auto standards, methane and use of science.
Clever catamaran is carrying energy message to the world
11 Jul 2018
Aboard the strange-looking catamaran Energy Observer, two Frenchmen are sailing around the planet without using any fossil fuel.
Church of England wields divestment axe
11 Jul 2018
The Church of England will divest from all fossil fuel companies which are not taking steps to combat climate change.
London might have found a new job for lost rivers
10 Jul 2018
Campaigners are targeting London’s lost rivers, water courses that have been gradually buried over the centuries, as a source of fossil fuel-free heat.
Spain to lead energy transition in Europe?
10 Jul 2018
The creation of the new ministry for ecological transition in Spain brings fresh air not only at the national level but also at the EU level as Spain can give a push in the fight against climate change.
UK moves on e-car charging in new homes
10 Jul 2018
New homes in suburban England would need to be fitted with electric car charging points under a government proposal to cut emissions.
TV coverage of bike races holds climate change clues
10 Jul 2018
The impact of climate change on trees has been detected by analysing almost four decades of archive video footage from the Tour of Flanders cycling race.
Australia’s biggest gas advocates are quietly swapping out peaking gas plans for big batteries
Mon 1 Sep 2025
Big batteries are rapidly displacing plans for gas peaking plants, as cost and commercial factors prompt a rethink on how much the owners of these sites want to spend.
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.
EU’s record wildfire emissions highlight threat to forest carbon sinks
Mon 1 Sep 2025
As carbon emissions from forest fires spike in Europe, experts warn that wildfires pose a growing risk to national efforts to meet climate goals.
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.
