International: All stories
Australian emissions soar over Paris targets
17 Sep 2018
New studies show Australia is on track to miss its Paris Agreement emissions target by nearly a billion tonnes.
Europe must cut meat and dairy by 2050, says expert
17 Sep 2018
Europe’s animal farming sector has exceeded safe bounds for greenhouse gas emissions, nutrient flows and biodiversity loss, and urgently needs to be scaled back, according to a new report.
HOME INVASION: It's time to move away from the coasts
17 Sep 2018
For an increasing number of people, coastal flooding and erosion is a real threat to property, the local economy and, in some cases, life.
Nations face bottom-up pressure to act
17 Sep 2018
Cities, states and business from around the world called on national governments to redouble their efforts to fight climate change, as a summit in San Francisco ended at the weekend.
MEMO AUSTRALIA: The Kiwis have a good plan
14 Sep 2018
As Australia prepares for another climate policy reset, it's easy to look to New Zealand and wonder what might have been.
Australia stuck in the slow lane on transport
14 Sep 2018
Australia is stuck in the slow lane on transport pollution as one of the only OECD countries without greenhouse gas emission standards for vehicles, says a new report.
Court orders Frankfurt to ban diesels
14 Sep 2018
The German city of Frankfurt has received a court-ordered ban on diesel after regularly exceeding pollution limits.
$6 TRILLION: That's how much Big Oil will not now be banking
13 Sep 2018
The funds committed to fossil fuel divestment now total more than $6 trillion with almost 1000 institutional investors having made the pledge, according to a new report.
Poland plans to leave its mark on climate talks
13 Sep 2018
Declarations on forests, electric vehicles and the impact of climate action on coal workers will be a central legacy of this year’s talks in Katowice.
Europe air pollution killing 1000 a day
13 Sep 2018
Governments are failing to tackle an air pollution crisis that causes 1000 early deaths a day, says a damning EU report.
UN chief calls for urgent stand against fossil fuels
12 Sep 2018
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has warned that the world is facing “a direct existential threat” and must rapidly shift from dependence on fossil fuels by 2020 to prevent “runaway climate change”.
EPA loses 1600 employees under Trump
12 Sep 2018
The US Environmental Protection Agency lost 1600 employees in the first 18 months of the Trump administration, including 260 scientists and 185 specialists. Fewer than 400 people have been hired.
How Australia could be 100% renewable by 2030s
12 Sep 2018
Australia could reach the equivalent of 100 per cent renewables for its electricity needs by the early 2030s by doing nothing more than maintaining the current pace of wind and solar development, a new report has found.
End nuclear power war, says France’s new minister
12 Sep 2018
France’s new environment minister François de Rugy is calling for an end to what he called the “religious war” on nuclear power and pleading for a more pragmatic approach to environmental policy.
California governor ups the clean-energy game
12 Sep 2018
California solidified its role as a world leader on climate action as Governor Jerry Brown signed legislation to shift the state to 100 per cent carbon-free electricity by 2045.
Sylvia tackles Australia in her Tesla ... and look what it cost
12 Sep 2018
Sylvia Wilson, a 70-year-old retired farmer, drove around Australia in an electric car. It cost her $150.90.
Rich countries out to weaken Paris rules, say critics
11 Sep 2018
Complaints are growing that the United States and other wealthy countries are trying to manipulate the Paris Agreement rules to protect polluters and weaken their own commitments.
Thousands march across US to protest at environment crisis
11 Sep 2018
Tens of thousands of people took part in marches and other events across the US at the weekend, calling for a swift transition to renewable energy.
China cracks down on distant fishing fleets
11 Sep 2018
China’s fishery authorities have introduced hard-hitting punishments for overfishing and illegal fishing by the country’s distant fishing vessels.
Morrison says national energy guarantee 'dead'
10 Sep 2018
Australia's new government remains committed to meeting its Paris emissions targets even as it moves to dump climate change moves that led to the demise of the previous leadership.
Countries inch forward on Paris Agreement
10 Sep 2018
The Bangkok climate change talks have closed with uneven progress on the guidelines that will tell the world how to implement the Paris Agreement.
THIS IS THE BBC: How to best report climate change news
10 Sep 2018
The BBC, one of the world’s largest and most respected news organisations, has issued formal guidance to its journalists on how to report climate change.
Global drink firms back plan to drop plastic
10 Sep 2018
Global soft drink companies have made their biggest commitment yet to eliminating the use of throwaway plastic bottles, in an action plan presented to UK parliament.
Work begins on universal environment pact
10 Sep 2018
Governments have taken the first steps on a path that might lead to the creation of a global environment treaty.
Australia tried to water down Pacific stand, says PM
7 Sep 2018
Australia tried to water down a resolution on climate change agreed by country representatives at the Pacific Islands Forum, a leader attending the event has claimed.
World's largest offshore windfarm opens
7 Sep 2018
The world’s biggest offshore windfarm has officially opened in the Irish Sea, amid warnings that Brexit could increase costs for future projects.
Plastic can holders on way out as Carlsberg beer goes for glue
7 Sep 2018
Familiar plastic can holders used for lager and beer multipacks could be on their way out after global brewing giant Carlsberg revealed plans to replace them with recyclable glue.
NZ backs Pacific call for UN to do more
6 Sep 2018
New Zealand is backing other Pacific nations calling for the United Nations to up its game over the security threats posed by climate change.
Bangkok negotiators racing the clock
6 Sep 2018
Climate change negotiators who began an important meeting in Bangkok yesterday are under the gun.
Brazil court overturns glyphosate ruling
6 Sep 2018
Brazilian farmers will continue to have access to the world’s most-used weed killer after a court reversed a ruling which had suspended the existing and new registration of glyphosate-based products.
Macron under pressure to up his game
6 Sep 2018
French environment campaigners have warned president Emmanuel Macron is doing too little to combat climate change and must radically rethink his environment policy if he is to honour his promise to “make this planet great again”.
Soggy Bangkok struggles to stay afloat
6 Sep 2018
As Bangkok hosts climate-change talks, the sprawling city of more than 10 million is itself under siege from the environment, with dire forecasts warning it could be partially submerged in just over a decade.
Deforestation claims movie-star macaw
6 Sep 2018
Spix’s macaw, a brilliant blue species of Brazilian parrot that starred in the children’s animation Rio, has become extinct this century, according to a new assessment of endangered birds.
Nations scramble for power as warming opens up the Arctic
5 Sep 2018
On Monday, a Danish container ship sailed from South Korea. On September 22, it will dock in Germany. The bit in between could change the world.
Polish climate chief phones a friend (or two)
5 Sep 2018
Polish deputy energy minister Michaù Kurtyka, who will lead the most important climate talks since the Paris Agreement, though he'd better phone a few friends.
Australian Greens back Labor and climate action
5 Sep 2018
Australian Greens leader Richard Di Natale will promise to work with a new Labor government to get action on climate change back on track.
How deforestation is affecting global water cycles
5 Sep 2018
Destruction of tropical forests is disrupting the movement of water in the atmosphere, causing major shifts in rainfall.
Animal waste is turning China's lakes green
5 Sep 2018
Animal husbandry is contaminating China’s water and has been linked to turning lakes bright green, a phenomenon known as eutrophication.
It's time to deliver at Bankok climate talks
4 Sep 2018
Since the Paris Agreement was adopted in December 2015, negotiators have been grappling with how to set it in motion with a strong framework of rules, commonly known as “the Paris Rulebook.”
BLOCKS BAN: Lego says no more plastic pieces by 2030
4 Sep 2018
Lego has announced plans to stop the production of plastic blocks by 2030.
Mental hospital best for some leaders, says Samoa PM
3 Sep 2018
Samoan leaderTuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi has called climate change an “existential threat ... for all our Pacific family” and said that any world leader who denied climate change’s existence should be taken to a mental hospital.
Burgeoning bugs might monster grain crops
3 Sep 2018
Growing swarms of hungrier and hyperactive insects might wipe out big percentages of the world's three most important grain crops, wheat, corn and rice, scientists warn.
Fish populations could rise in warming climate
3 Sep 2018
Better management of fisheries and fishing rights around the world could increase profits and leave more fish in the sea as long as measures to meet climate obligations are taken, new research has found.
Nestle eyes using plastic waste for fuel
3 Sep 2018
NESTLE is exploring the use of plastic waste as a raw material for fuel.
Australia rolls out roll-out solar panels
31 Aug 2018
Australia has installed its first solar cells made using a conventional reel-to-reel printer.
How making smartphones can bury a whole village in sludge
31 Aug 2018
Mining of precious metals used in smartphones is a vital activity that underpins the modern global economy. But the environmental cost can be enormous.
California plans to run on carbon-free power by 2045
31 Aug 2018
Legislation has been passed to move California towards 100 per cent clean energy by 2045.
French environment minister walks out
30 Aug 2018
France’s high-profile environment minister Nicolas Hulot has unexpectedly announced his resignation live on national radio, lamenting the government’s lack of decisive action on green issues.
How a warming planet could speed up the southern seas
30 Aug 2018
As the planet warmed at the end of the last ice age, the abyssal Pacific circulation kicked into high gear.
Keep flying and eating red meat, says UN
30 Aug 2018
Don't bother changing your lifestyle to stop climate change - just buy carbon credits, says a UN climate change video promotion.
Australia opens first carbon refinery, making new products from captured CO2
Today 11:30am
Australia’s first carbon refinery opened in New South Wales, capturing carbon dioxide from explosives giant Orica's ammonia-making operations on Kooragang Island and turning it into products such as concrete, paper and glass.
US defence spending on critical minerals surges in the last decade
Mon 22 Jun 2026
Members of communities affected by some of these projects said that U.S. state backing has meant projects are being fast-tracked without the necessary social and environmental checks or meaningful consultation.
China to raise power prices for energy-intensive sectors in green transition push
Fri 19 Jun 2026
Beijing’s latest road map aims to cut carbon emissions by 200 million tonnes by 2028 – but analysts say implementation may vary across regions.
Half of France under red heat alert as alcohol banned at street music festival
Tue 23 Jun 2026
France has issued red heatwave alerts for around half the country including Paris for Monday as a heatwave pushes temperatures towards record levels.
UK heatwave: 40C in June must be wake-up call on climate crisis, scientists warn
Today 11:30am
Scientists are warning that politicians are failing to appreciate the magnitude of the climate crisis after the Met Office forecast that temperatures in the UK could hit 40C for just the second time since records began.
Canada signs landmark LNG energy deal with Germany
29 May 2026
Canada has announced a landmark energy agreement with Germany that will see the first-ever long-term shipments of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Canada to Europe in the coming years.
Asia warming nearly twice as fast as before
Fri 19 Jun 2026
A new report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) highlights record ocean heat, accelerating glacier loss and a series of extreme weather events causing significant human and economic losses across Asia.
‘Those blocking climate science are not our friends': Pacific leaders warn at Bonn talks
Tue 23 Jun 2026
Pacific nations and civil society groups have united at UN climate talks, pushing back against efforts to weaken agreed language on global temperature limits as negotiations continue behind closed doors.
Antarctica’s west coast missing an area of sea ice the size of France as temperatures peak 20C above average
16 Jun 2026
A vast area of the Bellingshausen Sea should be covered by sea ice by now, with one expert calling the loss of ice ‘depressing’.
Mombasa ocean summit drives progress on marine protection, but threats persist
Tue 23 Jun 2026
At the 11th Our Ocean conference in Kenya, its founder John Kerry says the ocean must become central to climate solutions and needs to be looked after.
Colombia’s climate crossroads: Trumpism casts shadow over presidential battle
26 May 2026
Colombia is a global leader in climate activism. Could US influence drag country to a future of mining and fracking?
Bonn climate talks end in “gridlock” on adaptation and emissions-cutting
Mon 22 Jun 2026
After two weeks of climate negotiations riven by arguments over finance and science, the UN climate chief expressed disappointment and denounced governments for “cherry-picking” commitments they have already made and waiting for others to move first.
