International: All stories
Electric food – the new sci-fi diet that could save our planet
2 Nov 2018
Growing food without plants or animals sounds like science fiction. But it could stop environmental destruction.
Bolsonaro to merge environment and agriculture
2 Nov 2018
Brazil President-elect Jair Bolsonaro will merge the environment and agriculture ministries, a move activists have warned could imperil the Amazon rainforest.
NSW launches emerging energy programme
2 Nov 2018
New South Wales has launched one of the most significant energy transition projects in Australia designed to help to replace most of the state’s ageing coal plants with wind, solar and storage.
US makers double down on utes and SUVs
2 Nov 2018
The big three US vehicle makers - GM, Ford and Fiat Chrysler - talk about a cleaner future, but in reality are pushing the sales of gas-guzzling SUVs and utes.
Only 16 countries meet their Paris commitment
1 Nov 2018
Only 16 countries out of the 197 that signed the Paris Agreement have defined national climate action plan ambitious enough to meet their pledges.
Wildlife in 'mindblowing' crisis, says WWF
1 Nov 2018
Global wildlife populations have fallen by 60 per cent in just over four decades, as accelerating pollution, deforestation, climate change and other manmade factors have created a "mindblowing" crisis, the World Wildlife Fund says in a new report.
Climate change drives migrant caravan
1 Nov 2018
While violence and poverty have been cited as the reasons for the Central Amica exodus, experts say the big picture is that changing climate is forcing farmers off their land – and it’s likely to get worse.
UK announces tax on plastic packaging
1 Nov 2018
The UK has announced a world-leading plastics tax which will apply to any business that produces or imports plastic packaging that does not contain at least 30 per cent recycled content.
Chinese city launching own moon to save on power bill
1 Nov 2018
A private aerospace institute in China plans to launch its own moon to save money on nightime lighting in a provincial city.
Investors challenge 55 companies on climate lobbying
31 Oct 2018
Five weeks before a pivotal UN climate conference starts, a group of investors, led by the Church of England Pensions Board and the Swedish national pension fund, has sent a letter to 55 companies to challenge them on climate lobbying.
Polish utility sued over financial risk of coal plant
31 Oct 2018
Activist shareholders have filed a climate lawsuit against utility Enea over a planned €1.2 billion coal plant in north-east Poland.
Clean energy is surging – and headed for a fall
31 Oct 2018
The relentlessly corrosive nature of Australian political debate about climate change can sometimes mask that this is a golden moment for the clean energy industry.
Big brands pledge to turn tide on plastic waste
31 Oct 2018
Big brands – from Coca Cola to Kellogg – have pledged to cut all plastic waste from their operations in what the UN calls the most ambitious effort yet to fight plastic pollution.
Will Trump of the Tropics wreck Amazon rainforest?
30 Oct 2018
Will Jair Bolsonaro dedicate himself to the meticulous destruction of the Amazon now he has won Brazil's presidential election?
Catholic bishops call for faith in Paris target
30 Oct 2018
Catholic Church leaders have urged governments around the world to ramp up their climate action efforts, calling for “ambitious implementation” of the Paris Agreement.
Litigation likely to rise on back of IPCC report
30 Oct 2018
Climate-related litigations are set to break new grounds following the rcent landmark IPCC report which provides lawyers with new evidence that limiting global warming to 1.5deg is still possible.
Air pollution the new tobacco, warns WHO head
29 Oct 2018
Air pollution is the new tobacco, the head of the World Health Organisation has warned, saying the simple act of breathing is killing seven million people a year and harming billions more.
Spain to close most coalmines in $400m deal
29 Oct 2018
Spain is to shut down most of its coalmines by the end of the year after government and unions struck a deal that will mean €250m ($NZ430m) will be invested in mining regions over the next decade.
How boiling Darwin could keep the people and regain its cool
29 Oct 2018
July 2018 in Darwin was 2deg hotter than any previous July and the record heat has continued. Surveys show that it's the reason people are leaving the city.
Climate fund approves $1b for poor countries
29 Oct 2018
A UN Green Climate Fund backed fund has approved more than $1 billion for 19 new projects to help developing countries to tackle climate change.
Ocean-sweeper targets plastic waste in Caribbean
29 Oct 2018
SodaStream has announced the launch of its massive ocean-sweeper, a contraption designed to dismantle plastic waste patches in marine waters.
We can’t take many more populists like Bolsonaro
26 Oct 2018
Just when Earth badly needs pro-environment leaders, we get big-business strongmen. There’s a reason for this grim irony.
Hunger for raw materials bad news for the climate
26 Oct 2018
Just when you might think the world has heard an unmistakable warning of the need to curb climate change drastically and fast, along comes another warning, about humans’ voracious appetite for the raw materials we use so profligately.
Coalition digs deeper into coal and climate denial
26 Oct 2018
If the Wentworth and Wagga Wagga by-elections in Austraia were supposed to send a message to the Coalition government about the need to act on carbon emissions and embrace renewables, it hasn’t worked.
Ocean warming hits highest recorded level
25 Oct 2018
Ocean heat content set a record in the first half of 2018, with more warmth in the oceans than at any time since records began in 1940.
Brexit and Germany erode EU climate resolve
25 Oct 2018
Britain is leaving, Germany is wobbling and talks on EU emissions cuts are tipping in favour of the bloc’s more reticent countries, according to diplomatic sourcese following climate files in Brussels.
Australia shows interest in hydrogen power
25 Oct 2018
The Australian Renewable Energy Agency has announced funding to produce renewable hydrogen from wind and solar power.
How one small island showed us how to clean up our act
25 Oct 2018
In just 10 years, the Isle of Man has rid its beaches of plastic and earned Unesco status as a world leader in ocean protection. So how did it do it?
US scientists keen to get political power
24 Oct 2018
More than a dozen scientists are candidates for US House and Senate seats this year in a wave fueled by the Trump Administration’s anti-science agenda.
Coalition could help out new power projects
24 Oct 2018
Energy minister Angus Taylor has signalled the Australian government could indemnify new power generation projects against the future risk of a carbon price, and says it could also support the retrofitting of existing coal plants.
Australia to have ultra-fast charging network
24 Oct 2018
Drivers travelling between Australia’s major cities could soon charge their electric vehicles in just 15 minutes with a super-fast network being rolled out across the country.
How a little warming paved the way for reign of the dinosaurs
24 Oct 2018
Massive flooding of Pangea millions of years ago - caused by climate warming of 4deg-7deg - led to mass extinction and allowed for dinosaurs to rapidly diversify and spread around the world.
US emissions fell in 2017 as coal plants shut
23 Oct 2018
Greenhouse gas emissions from the largest US industrial plants fell 2.7 per cent in 2017 as coal plants shut, according to the Trump administration.
Trump tries again to stop youngsters' case
23 Oct 2018
President Trump’s administration has for a second time asked the US Supreme Court to put the brakes on a lawsuit filed by young activists who have accused the government of ignoring the perils of climate change.
Nauruans (and refugees) have nowhere to hide
23 Oct 2018
Everyone on Nauru – indigenous Nauruans and refugees alike – is experiencing the impacts of one the greatest social, economic and political threats faced by the world today: global environmental change.
Study finds 90% of table salt contains microplastics
23 Oct 2018
Ninety per cent sea, rock and lake salt brands sold around the world contain microplastics, a new study shows.
Russian town besieged by hungry polar bears
23 Oct 2018
A coastal town in the Russian Arctic has been besieged by hungry polar bears who are spending more time on land as sea ice melts due to climate change.
Global carbon emissions set to hit new high
19 Oct 2018
Global carbon emissions will rise to a new record level in 2018, making the chances of reaching a target to keep temperature increases to 1.5deg or 2deg “weaker and weaker every year, every month,” says the International Energy Agency.
Wales to turn back on coal mining
19 Oct 2018
Future coal mining applications are set to be rejected as a matter of policy for the first time in Wales.
New climate threatens heritage sites
19 Oct 2018
More powerful storms, flooding, desertification and the melting of permafrost are already destroying important heritage sites at an alarming rate.
Fracking protesters set free on appeal
19 Oct 2018
Three protesters jailed for blocking access to a UK fracking site have walked free after the court of appeal quashed their sentences, calling them “manifestly excessive”.
Rice gene bank wins survival funding
19 Oct 2018
The world’s largest collection of rice varieties has secured indefinite funding in what officials say will be crucial for the development of seeds resilient to the effects of climate change.
ANGKOR'S END: Did floods speed the end of ancient city?
19 Oct 2018
A series of floods that hit the ancient city of Angkor would have overwhelmed and destroyed its vast water network, according to a new study that provides an explanation for the downfall of the world’s biggest pre-industrial city.
Leaders move past Trump to protect the world
18 Oct 2018
Far more must be invested in adapting to warming, says a new global commission that aims to rebuild political will after the US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement.
Banks and insurers must have plans, says BoE
18 Oct 2018
The Bank of England has told Britain’s banks and insurers they must come up with credible plans for protecting themselves against risks from climate change and that they might need to hold more capital.
Judge rules youngsters can sue the state
18 Oct 2018
A lawyer for a group of young Americans suing the federal government over climate change said a judge’s decision to allow the suit to move forward should clear the way for a trial to begin this month.
CLIMATE CASE: The fact is we just don't have enough data
18 Oct 2018
Climate researchers must understand the past before they can understand the future. But across huge swaths of the world, scientists simply don’t have the data they need.
Greens big winners in European elections
18 Oct 2018
The Greens have been the big winners at the weekend elections by attracting new voters in Belgium, Luxembourg and Bavaria.
Change ‘laboratories’ open up in EU
18 Oct 2018
Stark warnings from the United Nations ahead of a make-or-break summit in Poland in December have propelled climate change up the political agenda in Europe.
Australia should be 'exporting sunshine, not coal'
17 Oct 2018
Economist Jeffrey Sachs has criticised successive Australian governments for “defending a 19th or 20th century industry” rather than taking decisive action on climate change, saying Australia should be “exporting sunshine, not coal”.
Oil refinery fire at key Victoria facility
16 Apr 2026
Explosions and towering flames were reported as a significant fire broke out at one of Australia’s major oil refineries.
Trump takes a ‘wrecking ball’ to independent scientific advisory board
Thu 30 Apr 2026
Without the impartial oversight of its board, the National Science Foundation is now “fully at the behest of the White House,” experts warn.
China’s leadership calls for ‘strict control’ of fossil fuels
Tue 28 Apr 2026
Chinese government leaders published a policy document on 22 April – Earth Day – calling for stricter controls on fossil-fuel consumption and greater oversight of heavy emitters.
EU faces ‘China shock’ as EV imports drive Beijing’s record surplus with bloc
Fri 1 May 2026
The EU is experiencing a prolonged “China shock” as a flood of Chinese EVs into Europe helped push Beijing to a record surplus with the bloc.
UK scientists to fire salt water into the sky in bid to tackle climate crisis
Fri 1 May 2026
Government supporting new geoengineering techniques as race against unregulated companies seeking to capitalise on need for climate cooling tech heats up.
Canada, Alberta close in on carbon price agreement, sources say
Wed 29 Apr 2026
Canada and Alberta are expected to strike a deal in the next two weeks that will increase the price on carbon for the province's industrial emitters, but a broader agreement to tackle oil sands greenhouse gases and green-light a new crude oil export pipeline remains elusive.
India submits new climate action pledges to UN body, flags condition to fulfil promise
Wed 29 Apr 2026
India has formally submitted its pledge to the UN climate body, underline importing conditions noting the developing countries' committments cannot be fulfilled without adequate support in terms of finance and technology transfer.
Tuvalu to host world leaders before COP31 summit
16 Apr 2026
Tuvalu, the Pacific nation at the forefront of the global climate crisis, will host a special meeting of world leaders before this year’s Cop31 summit, as the conference president expresses “complete faith” in Chris Bowen to lead tough negotiations.
Drowned chicks and food scarcity: Emperor penguin and Antarctic fur seal now endangered
13 Apr 2026
The primary drivers are shrinking sea ice and warming oceans driven by climate change.
Rationing power and diluting petrol – how African countries are coping with effects of Iran war
30 Mar 2026
Countries across Africa have taken measures such as diluting petrol and restricting electricity consumption to cope with the fuel crisis triggered by the US and Israel's war in Iran.
Beef production drives 40% of agriculture-linked forest destruction, Brazil leads
26 Mar 2026
Beef production is the leading driver of agriculture-linked deforestation, accounting for 40% of all forest clearing done to open space for food production, according to details of a study released on Tuesday.
Extreme heat threatens global food systems, UN agencies warn
23 Apr 2026
Extreme heat is pushing global agrifood systems to the brink, threatening the livelihoods and health of more than a billion people, according to a new report by the U.N.'s food and weather agencies.
