International: All stories
New look at Antarctic raises fears of higher sea levels
15 Dec 2017
Antarctic ice sheet models double the sea-level rise expected this century if global emissions of heat-trapping pollution remain high, according to a new study.
Poland’s new leader eyes nuclear future
15 Dec 2017
Poland is in no hurry to ditch coal power any time soon but the new prime minister insists nuclear energy and renewable sources are a part of the country’s future energy mix.
Bank partners with global mayors to green cities
15 Dec 2017
A European development bank has partnered with city mayors from all over the world to mobilise more than $1.5 billion in urban investment to help combat climate change.
INTERVIEW: Trump's man who doesn't know what 2deg means
15 Dec 2017
Donald Trump’s climate adviser George David Banks cut an intriguing, divisive figure at the recent climate talks in Bonn.
Thailand gets $1.1 billion for wind power project
15 Dec 2017
Southeast Asia’s leading solar energy nation -Thailand - could be the frontrunner in wind energy after renewables developer WEH secured funding for the region’s biggest wind power project.
Mass starvation is our fate if we keep flogging the land to death
14 Dec 2017
The Earth cannot accommodate our need and greed for food. We must change our diet before it’s too late, says George Monbiot.
Germany the champion nation for recycling
14 Dec 2017
Germany is the leading nation for recycling, followed closely by Wales and Singapore, according to new research.
... and France is best at food sustainability
14 Dec 2017
A war on waste food in France has helped it secure the top spot in a ranking of countries by their food sustainability.
Belt-and-road countries could top China’s emissions
14 Dec 2017
China is seeking to clean up its overseas investments and is calling for international support.
Europe utilities vow to be carbon neutral by 2050
14 Dec 2017
More than 3500 European utility companies have vowed to lead the low-carbon energy transition, calling on policymakers to accelerate electrification.
BUBBLE POWER: New device could stop plastic in its tracks
14 Dec 2017
When a river flows into the ocean, so does plastic. Lots of it. Globally, rivers transport as much as four million tonnes of plastic out to sea every year.
Macron pays US scientists to move to France
13 Dec 2017
Eighteen climate scientists from the US and elsewhere have hit the jackpot as France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, awarded them millions of euros in grants to relocate to France.
How Big Oil is tightening its grip on the White House
13 Dec 2017
The oil industry has stalled action on climate change from the inside and sold America on fossil fuels – and its influence goes back further than people realise.
GE's 12,000 job cuts highlight how it went wrong
13 Dec 2017
After spending years building up its gas-power business, General Electric is trying to figure out how to keep pace in a world that’s no longer all that interested in fossil fuels.
Tsunami of data could pump up global emissions by 2025
13 Dec 2017
Billions of internet-connected devices could produce 3.5 per cent of global emissions within 10 years and 14 per cent by 2040.
These high-speed trains could take 3m cars off the roads
13 Dec 2017
A $3 billion project that will introduce high-speed deisel trains to the US could take up to three million cars off the roads.
Australia's greenhouse gas emissions highest on record
12 Dec 2017
Australia’s emissions over the past year were the highest on record, when relatively unreliable emissions from land use are excluded, according to new estimates.
It's hard to get people to reduce food waste
12 Dec 2017
Seventy-six per cent of global consumers say sustainability is important – but only 42 per cent say they always attempt to minimise household food waste, a new survey shows.
To phase out coal, leaders should learn from tobacco
12 Dec 2017
A few countries are set to join the coal phase-out club at the One Planet Summit in Paris today, but more levers will be needed to bring major coal users in line.
Meat tax ‘inevitable’ to beat climate and health crises
12 Dec 2017
“Sin taxes” on meat to reduce its huge impact on climate change and human health look inevitable, according to analysts.
GRUB'S UP! Climate-conscious foodies swap cows for crickets
12 Dec 2017
A wave of social enterprises are trying to get people to eat insects instead of meat.
How planting trees changed lives in a former coal town
12 Dec 2017
The UK's National Forest has not only transformed an industrial landscape, it has given people a new sense of belonging and wellbeing, created jobs and boosted wildlife.
US judge sends Volkswagen exec to jail for seven years
11 Dec 2017
A senior Volkswagen executive has been sentenced to seven years in prison by a US court after being found guilty of concealing software used to evade pollution limits on nearly 600,000 diesel vehicles.
Europe's coal plants bleeding cash
11 Dec 2017
Almost all coal plants in the European Union will be outspending their income by the end of the next decade, relying on subsidies to stay open to back up wind and solar generation.
Fiji summit calls for action on climate migration
11 Dec 2017
Civil society leaders from more than 100 countries meeting in Suva have called for action on climate-induced displacement.
UK sees value in rebirth of the railways
11 Dec 2017
Proposals in the UK aimed at reversing decades of decline in the rail system, have been praised as the “rebirth of the railways”.
The most northerly town in the world is at risk of disappearing
11 Dec 2017
It’s freezing, snowing and so far north that the sun won’t rise again until March, but the 2000 residents of the world’s most northerly town wish it were much colder.
Farm grows food under streets of Paris
11 Dec 2017
La Caverne is an urban farm that grows mushrooms, herbs and greens beneath the streets of Paris.
Is this the end of the road for Adani’s megamine?
8 Dec 2017
Adani’s operations in Australia appear to be hanging on by a thread, as activists prove effective at undermining the company’s chances of getting the finance it needs.
Canada and China shake on carbon and climate
8 Dec 2017
The premiers of China and Canada have announced deeper collaboration on climate change and energy, including on carbon markets.
Air pollution could do huge harm to unborn babies
8 Dec 2017
Air pollution significantly increases the risk of low birth weight in babies, leading to lifelong damage to health, according to a large new study.
Hyundai building battery bigger than Tesla's
8 Dec 2017
Tesla’s South Australia battery system won’t hold the title of world’s largest for long - Hyundai is building one 50 per cent bigger.
Citizens fight EU weedkiller decision
8 Dec 2017
The public is fighting back against an EU decision to renew the licence of controversial pesticide Glyphosate.
London's new e-cabs come with all the mod cons
8 Dec 2017
Wi-Fi, USB charging and even a sunroof are among the features of London's new six-seat, battery-powered cabs.
Outlook grim for warmer Auckland, warns report
7 Dec 2017
Floods, fires, droughts, storms, slips, pests and diseases are Auckland’s future, threatening primary production and human health, warns a new report.
China’s footprint threatens to trample the natural world
7 Dec 2017
Many observers of China’s escalating global programme of foreign investment and infrastructure development are crossing their fingers and hoping for the best.
Oceans under greatest threat in history, says Attenborough
7 Dec 2017
The world’s oceans are under the greatest threat in history, according to Sir David Attenborough.
Iceland's new PM vows carbon neutrality by 2040
7 Dec 2017
Iceland's new Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir, 41, says she wants her nation to be carbon neutral by 2040.
In Poland’s coal heartland, miners imagine a greener future
7 Dec 2017
While the Polish government champions coal, the area around Katowice, host of next year’s UN climate summit, is starting to diversify its economy.
Sacre bleu! It seems the French are world's smartest farmers
7 Dec 2017
France has topped the 2017 edition of the Food Sustainability Index exhibiting the best performance across food loss and waste, sustainable agriculture and nutritional challenges.
Can a massive barrier save Venice from drowning?
6 Dec 2017
The engineering limitations and cost overruns of a huge barrier designed to protect Venice from sea level rise are raising questions about the mega-projects that many coastal cities are hoping can save them.
Military money in genetic extinction tech raises fears
6 Dec 2017
Technology could be used to wipe out malaria carrying mosquitos or other pests but UN experts say fears over possible military uses and unintended consequences strengthen case for a ban.
London mayor wants to put stopper on plastic water bottles
6 Dec 2017
London Mayor Sadiq Khan wants to see free water fountains and bottle refill stations across the city to reduce the use of plastic bottles.
Yes, it's a massive battery, but it does quite a lot
6 Dec 2017
Australians are watching in anticipation to see what impact South Australia's Tesla battery has on the local electricity market, and whether it could be a game-changer nationally.
Nature's drying up, so maybe we should be mining our cities
5 Dec 2017
Instead of extracting dwindling raw materials from nature, the time has come to start re-using materials from buildings and infrastructure in cities.
‘I don’t know how Turnbull faces his grandkids’
5 Dec 2017
Former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd talks about the failure of his country’s climate policy, the rise of China and the Carmichael coal mine.
Why remote Antarctica is so important in a warming world
5 Dec 2017
The Antarctic Treaty was signed 58 years ago this week, protecting the continent for peace and science.
Nations agree to ban Arctic fishing for 16 years
5 Dec 2017
Nine nations and the European Union have reached a deal to place the central Arctic Ocean off-limits to commercial fishers for at least the next 16 years.
How Airbus was allowed to write its own climate rules
4 Dec 2017
E-mails between the European Commission and Airbus show how the European aircraft manufacturer was offered privileged access to the EU decision-making process, allowing it to write its own environmental rules.
Tesla big battery officially switched on in South Australia
4 Dec 2017
The Tesla big battery – the world’s biggest lithium-ion battery storage installation – was officially switched on in South Australia on Friday.
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.
