International: All stories
Germany’s new government deal fails Paris test
14 Mar 2018
With the coalition agreement for a new German government under Angela Merkel, a major opportunity to realign German climate policy to the challenges of the Paris climate change agreement has passed.
What is biodiversity and why does it matter?
14 Mar 2018
The air you breathe, the water you drink and the food you eat all rely on biodiversity, but right now it is in crisis – because of us.
Greens want to end sale of fossil fuel cars by 2030
14 Mar 2018
The Ausralian Greens have proposed introducing mandatory fuel efficiency standards, ending the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, and imposing a four-year 17 per cent tax on luxury vehicles.
Europe, too, likes the look of circular economy
13 Mar 2018
As the EU doubles down on its waste management efforts and sets its sights on tackling plastic waste, the idea of a circular economy and internal market for recycling is gathering momentum.
Climate change is a disaster foretold (just like World War I)
13 Mar 2018
The warnings about an unfolding climate catastrophe are getting more desperate, yet the march to destruction continues.
Landmark case challenges NT land clearing
13 Mar 2018
A landmark court case in the Northern Territory is set to consider a challenge to a massive land-clearing approval based on its impacts on climate change.
EC unveils new action plan on sustainable finance
13 Mar 2018
The European Commission has produced its strategy to make sustainability a key component of the financial sector within Europe for years to come.
Heart attacks can rise during extremes of heat
13 Mar 2018
Extremes of heat are dangerous. Just how dangerous is still being established. But since heat waves are on the way, city-dwellers need to know.
Canberra politicians ride the golden escalator
12 Mar 2018
More than 180 individuals have moved between senior public service roles and the fossil fuel industry in Australia over the past decade - providing a golden escalator for former senior politicians.
False emissions ratings cost UK more than £2b a year
12 Mar 2018
False emissions ratings for cars based on lab tests have cost the UK more than £2bn a year in lost tax revenue, according to the Green party.
Demand for rare metals brings new risks
12 Mar 2018
The increasing global demand for rare earth metals is bringing new risks.
Cities study reveals much bigger carbon footprints
9 Mar 2018
Cities are generating up to 60 per cent more greenhouse gases than thought, thanks to their reliance on goods and services from outside their borders.
UK carbon emissions at lowest level since 1890
9 Mar 2018
Fresh analysis has highlighted the dramatic fall in carbon emissions within the UK, reaching a new low unseen in normal times for 128 years.
Brazil fights emissions cap for shipping
9 Mar 2018
Brazil is seeking to water down prospective climate targets for the shipping sector.
Central banks threat to green energy boom
9 Mar 2018
Central banks are emerging as a bigger threat to the green-energy revolution than Donald Trump.
Women coming off second best in the world of climate change
9 Mar 2018
Women are more likely than men to be affected by climate change, new studies show.
Luxembourg home to half world’s green bonds
9 Mar 2018
Luxembourg and its very international stock exchange are well positioned to become the standard bearer that leads the green and sustainable finance industry of the future.
Auckland City eyes green bonds issue
8 Mar 2018
Auckland Council could issue green bonds to cover the cost of cutting emissions and adapting to climate change.
BIG SEAS: Damaged coral could mean islands face giant waves
8 Mar 2018
Damage to coral reefs could mean that by 2100 some Pacific Islands could experience waves reaching the shore at more than twice the height of today’s seas.
Fiji's climate talks presidency turns messy
8 Mar 2018
Fiji's Nazhat Shameem Khan has been removed from her role in the UN climate talks presidency after what observers say was a protracted power struggle with Australian and European advisers.
Spanish bank announces €100 billion climate plan
8 Mar 2018
The second-largest bank in Spain has launched a 100 billion euros initiative to support sustainable development and combat climate change.
We must cut down on meat, says Greenpeace
8 Mar 2018
The world needs to cut the production and consumption of meat in half by 2050 in order to meet the climate goals of the Paris Agreement, a new Greenpeace report says.
Bloomberg has new climate job at the UN
8 Mar 2018
Former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg has landed a new job as UN special envoy for climate change.
Record means Australia's solar future looks bright
8 Mar 2018
The future of Australia’s solar industry is looking bright after a record 3.5m panels were installed on rooftops last year, giving the equivalent output of a medium-sized coal-fired power station.
Life after plastic? We have inventions out there that promise a cleaner world
7 Mar 2018
As the backlash against plastic waste grows, industry is replacing and redesigning single-use products, from recyclable bottles to biodegradable film.
Antarctic sea ice shrinks for second straight year
7 Mar 2018
Sea ice cover in Antarctica has dropped to its second-lowest on record, Australian authorities said, adding that it was not yet clear what was driving the reduction after several years of record-highs.
Ontario permits sell out at first auction
7 Mar 2018
Ontario has participated in its first auction of carbon allowances as part of the Western Climate Initiative, selling 23,743,316 current-vintage allowances at a price of $C18.44 ($NZ19.66).
Sustainable eating will remain a minefield
7 Mar 2018
Millions of people probably feel confused, conflicted or downright overwhelmed by their eatging habits.
How America's clean coal dream unravelled
6 Mar 2018
Kemper power plant in the US promised to be a world leader in ‘clean coal’ technology but Guardian reporting found evidence top executives knew of construction problems and design flaws years before the scheme collapsed.
Half of world's oceans now fished industrially
6 Mar 2018
Data gathered from more than 70,000 vessels shows commercial fishing now covers a greater surface area than agriculture.
Paris aside, the health benefits are huge
6 Mar 2018
Health savings from cutting greenhouse gas emissions outweigh the cost of implementing the Paris Agreement, scientists say.
BRANCHING OUT: When Lego says green, it means green
6 Mar 2018
Fans of Lego can rest assured that when they come to use tree, leaf or bush pieces they will now more closely resemble the real thing.
Ban on bee-killer pesticide likely after new study
6 Mar 2018
A new study from the EU has found that the widespread use of a controversial pesticide on crops is harmful to the bee population.
Rio Tinto faces $84 billion shareholder revolt
5 Mar 2018
Australia’s second-biggest miner, Rio Tinto, faces a shareholder revolt over the role it plays in the country’s climate and energy debate.
Only one country to blame if Paris deal fails
5 Mar 2018
The Paris Agreement’s challenges should not be painted as a collective global failure: the US, with its malignant politics, is the only country that truly matters.
Climate change fallout no quick threat, says Chevron
5 Mar 2018
Climate change is critical to future energy markets but its effect on Chevron Corp’s oil and gas business will be minimal for decades to come, says a company report.
'Crazy' Arctic temperatures alarm scientists
5 Mar 2018
An alarming heatwave in the sunless winter Arctic is causing blizzards in Europe and forcing scientists to reconsider even their most pessimistic forecasts of climate change.
These people know climate change is real, it's deadly and it's here right now
5 Mar 2018
Are you driving around and flying on airplanes and ordering things to be shipped by truck and making money off oil stock like there’s no tomorrow? We are here to tell you there is a tomorrow and we are living in it.
How Scotland plans to meet climate change targets
5 Mar 2018
The Scottish government's new climate plan includes measures to significantly cut emissions from transport, buildings and industry to meet its target of a 66 per cent cut in greenhouse gas emissions.
Canada pledges $1 billion to protect nature
2 Mar 2018
The Canadian Government plans to invest $1.3 billion to preserve the country’s land, oceans and wildlife.
SKIP THE DIP: It could be a good idea to stay on the beach
2 Mar 2018
People who swim in the sea are at significantly higher risk of stomach bugs, ear problems and other illnesses than those who stick to the sand.
Three NZ cities get high world ranking for renewable energy
1 Mar 2018
Three New Zealand urban areas are among 101 global cities getting more than 70 per cent of their electricity from renewable sources.
King penguins find their icy southern realm is shrinking
1 Mar 2018
King penguins – one of the most charismatic species of the Southern Ocean – are under threat from climate change.
Acid in oceans will soon get to work on reefs
1 Mar 2018
Many of the world’s coral reefs could begin to erode within 30 years as a result of increasing ocean acidity, according to new research.
Lloyd’s under pressure to get out of coal
1 Mar 2018
Lloyd’s of London, is under increasing pressure to back away from supporting the coal industry.
Southern Ocean has history of storing carbon
1 Mar 2018
The Southern Ocean – the 20 million-square kilometre stretch of sea that encircles the earth south of the 60th parallel – released vast amounts of carbon dioxide the last time the Earth warmed, scientists say.
Tokyo admits rainforest timber used for stadium
1 Mar 2018
The Tokyo 2020 Olympics organising committee has confirmed that 87 per cent of the plywood panels used to build its new national stadium come from southeast Asian rainforests.
Brussels eyes free transport on bad air days
1 Mar 2018
Brussels has moved to make the city’s public transport and bike share system free on the smoggiest days in a bid to drive down pollution levels.
Terrifying phenomenon is pushing species to extinction
28 Feb 2018
Scientists are alarmed by a rise in mass mortality events – when species die in their thousands. Is it all down to climate change?
German court rules cities can ban vehicles to tackle pollution
28 Feb 2018
Germany’s highest administrative court has ruled that diesel and other vehicles can be banned from some city streets as part of efforts to improve air quality,
Battery subsidy scheme set for 'urgent' overhaul as costs run out of control
16 Dec 2025
Australian Energy Minister Chris Bowen has announced big changes to the government's battery subsidy scheme amid claims most of its $2.3 billion budget has been spent in just six months.
EPA erases references to human-caused climate change from websites
19 Dec 2025
EPA has scrubbed references to people’s contribution to rising temperatures from some of its climate change webpages.
Verra cancels four tree planting projects in China. And starts reviews of 45 more projects
16 Dec 2025
“Multiple carbon projects in China are facing serious allegations regarding the authenticity of government approval documents."
France updates its 2050 carbon neutrality roadmap
17 Dec 2025
To mark the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement, France released a revamped climate plan promising to phase out oil and gas and sharply increase electricity use.
Net-zero scenario is ‘cheapest option’ for UK, says energy system operator
15 Dec 2025
A scenario that meets the “net-zero by 2050” goal would be the “cheapest” option for the UK, according to modelling by the National Energy System Operator (NESO).
The ecological havens flourishing beneath power lines
19 Dec 2025
Initiatives to foster native wildflowers, grasses and shrubs are turning utility corridors into wildlife corridors.
‘Not normal’: Climate crisis supercharged deadly monsoon floods in Asia
12 Dec 2025
Cyclones like those in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Malaysia that killed 1,750 are ‘alarming new reality’.
Pacific fisheries summit gives a boost to albacore and seabirds
19 Dec 2025
Much of the world’s albacore tuna catch, which usually ends up in a can, comes from the southwestern Pacific Ocean, where fishery managers just passed a new set of conservation rules.
Arctic endured year of record heat as climate scientists warn of ‘winter being redefined’
18 Dec 2025
Region known as ‘world’s refrigerator’ is heating up as much as four times as quickly as global average, Noaa experts say.
Are rainforests now a cause of, rather than the answer to, climate change?
15 Dec 2025
A new study finds that Africa’s forests, responsible for one-fifth of global carbon removal, are beginning to generate carbon as the result of human activity.
Thousands of climate disasters are not included in official reports from Amazonian countries
12 Dec 2025
More than 12,500 extreme weather events impacted the Amazon and its population in 10 years, but countries have not generated enough information about it, according to a new scientific study.
UN environment report 'hijacked' by US and others over fossil fuels, top scientist says
11 Dec 2025
A key UN report on the state of the global environment has been "hijacked" by the United States and other countries who were unwilling to go along with the scientific findings, the co-chair has told the BBC.
