International: All stories
US eyes help for struggling coal and nuclear plants
3 Oct 2017
US Energy Secretary Rick Perry has taken sweeping steps to buttress a pair of financially strapped nuclear plants under construction and to redefine how coal and nuclear plants are compensated for the electricity they provide.
Tsunami wreckage serves as liferafts for invasive species
3 Oct 2017
Hundreds of species were carried across the Pacific to North America by debris — estimated to weigh a total of nearly 1.5 million tonnes — that was swept out to sea after the 2011 Japan earthquake.
Europe playing a two-faced climate change game
3 Oct 2017
EU member states risk undermining the diminishing confidence Europeans have in the union by playing a two-faced game on climate change.
Trump swaps 'climate change' for 'resilience'
3 Oct 2017
In the Trump administration's list of dos and don'ts, "climate change" is out and "resilience" is in.
Coca-Cola gave us a billion more plastic bottles last year
3 Oct 2017
Coca-Cola increased its production of throwaway plastic bottles last year by well over a billion, according to analysis by Greenpeace.
PROMISES, PROMISES: Does Big Business really mean business?
2 Oct 2017
Corporations globally have made hundreds of commitments on deforestation. But what do these pledges really mean and why do scandals keep happening?
Yes, says the UN, the planet can be pollution free
2 Oct 2017
Pollution is controllable and avoidable through political leadership, high-level champions and commitments, says a new UN report.
Trump's next climate act is a bit of a mystery
2 Oct 2017
President Trump is preparing to repeal Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan. But what would take its place remains a mystery.
RAW DEAL: Have children lost touch with the natural world?
2 Oct 2017
Studies show that children are better at identifying Pokémon characters than real animals and plants.
Delhi chokes on US exports of tar sands waste
29 Sep 2017
India has emerged as the world’s largest importer of petroleum coke, an oil byproduct that is now a major cause of pollution in the capital.
You must do more, IMF tells rich countries
29 Sep 2017
The International Monetary Fund has told rich countries they must do more to help poor nations cope with climate change or suffer the consequences.
VIVA VIKA: Giant rat lives in trees and eats coconuts
29 Sep 2017
A fabled giant rat known as the vika is the first new Solomon Islands rodent to be described in more than 80 years.
Antarctic sea ice levels hit record low - but why?
28 Sep 2017
Sea ice levels in Antarctica dropped to a record low this year, but experts say there is not a clear link to climate change.
David Suzuki: Australia's marine threat is sickening
28 Sep 2017
Growing global momentum to protect the world’s oceans from overfishing could be undermined by Australia, warns renowned conservationist David Suzuki and nearly 1500 other scientists.
EU climate chief’s Paris suggestion sparks anger
28 Sep 2017
A suggestion by the EU’s climate chief that the US might water down its carbon-cutting pledge to the Paris Agreement has sparked outrage among veteran negotiators and developing countries.
Diamonds and a bitter feud destroyed an Amazon reserve
28 Sep 2017
Family rivalry and Brazil’s Catholic church helped miners to devastate an indigenous territory that was once a leader in the fight against deforestation.
Green bonds expected to top $130b this year
28 Sep 2017
Green bonds issuance is set to reach a record $134.9 billion by the end of this year.
Mass wildlife extinction threatens global food supplies
27 Sep 2017
The sixth mass extinction of global wildlife already under way is seriously threatening the world’s food supplies, according to experts.
Attenborough: 'I remember being told plastic doesn't decay, it's wonderful'
27 Sep 2017
In his sequel to The Blue Planet, David Attenborough will focus on the threats to our oceans and explain why plastic pollution, climate change and overpopulation are problems too urgent to be left to ecologists.
New worry as key Antarctic glacier loses chunk of ice
27 Sep 2017
An enormous Antarctic glacier has given up an iceberg over 100 square miles in size, the second time in two years it has lost such a large piece in a process that has scientists wondering whether its behavior is changing for the worse.
Brazil backs off mining bid in Amazon reserve
27 Sep 2017
The Brazilian government has pledged to reinstate a mining ban in an Amazonian nature reserve, reversing its earlier course after an international outcry.
Green-building rating is sustainability's secret weapon
27 Sep 2017
Green building rating systems are an essential tool in the fight to achieve a net zero emissions built environment.
Weakened Merkel means boost for coal phaseout
26 Sep 2017
A three-way coalition in Germany is the most likely outcome of a surprising election, putting the Greens in a position to pursue their goal of ending coal power.
Australia failing to meet Paris targets, report says
26 Sep 2017
With the Coalition still hamstrung by internal divide over a clean energy target, a new report shows Australia is in danger of not meeting its Paris agreement commitments unless it acts soon.
Palm oil giant makes debut in sustainability index
26 Sep 2017
Singapore palm oil company Golden Agri-Resources has been featured in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices for the first time.
Ontario joins California-Quebec carbon market
26 Sep 2017
Ontario has signed an agreement with California to enter its joint carbon cap and trade market with Quebec, from next January 1.
Plastic chunks on Arctic icefloe show how pollution has spread
26 Sep 2017
A discovery by scientists is prompting fears that melting ice will allow more plastic to be released into the central Arctic Ocean – with huge effects on wildlife.
Land defenders call on UN to act against violence
25 Sep 2017
Land rights defenders from 29 countries have written to the UN asking it to act against violent corporate and state-sponsored groups which they say are threatening their lives and trashing the environment.
Can the United States afford another hurricane?
25 Sep 2017
The 2017 North Atlantic hurricane season still has about five weeks to go, but it’s already one of the most expensive on record. Repeated storms are stretching the public and private sectors thin.
Innovation fuels Europe’s leadership on shared mobility
25 Sep 2017
European cities are stepping up their efforts on shared mobility, aiming to reduce traffic jams and pollution while generating the most profitable business in this field on the planet.
London could cut waste by 60% through circular model
25 Sep 2017
London could reduce its waste by 60 per cent by 2041 through a circular economy approach, says a new report.
Long-lost Congo notebooks may shed light on tree secrets
25 Sep 2017
A cache of decaying notebooks found in a crumbling Congo research station has provided unexpected evidence with which to help to solve a crucial puzzle – predicting how vegetation will respond to climate change.
Nicaragua yes leaves US and Syria out in the cold
22 Sep 2017
President Daniel Ortega has announced that Nicaragua will sign the Paris Agreement, leaving the US and Syria the only two countries not taking part in the global accord.
May speaks out against Trump climate stance
22 Sep 2017
Theresa May has issued a veiled warning to Donald Trump, arguing that his plan to withdraw from the Paris climate change treaty ranks alongside North Korea’s nuclear missile tests as a threat to global prosperity and security.
Fiji’s COP 23 message: ‘We are all in the same canoe’
22 Sep 2017
Fiji Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama has urged leaders in New York to look beyond narrow self-interest as he outlined his plans for the COP23 climate talks presidency.
EU aims for 100% emission cuts in new mid-century roadmap
22 Sep 2017
The European Commission is preparing an update of its low-carbon economy roadmap for 2050, acknowledging that the bloc’s current target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions at least 80 per cent by mid-century are insufficient.
TRASH TOWERS: Eleven-storey mansion made from rubbish
22 Sep 2017
First prize in a tropical architecture design competition went to an 11-storey marvel built using recycled building materials, waste plastic and glass bottles.
India is about to embark on stupendous e-car changes
21 Sep 2017
India, the world’s fifth-largest car market is readying for a stupendous transformation: moving completely toward electric vehicles by 2030.
United Nations must do more on climate change
21 Sep 2017
Right now, the capability of the UN’s institutions to understand, prepare and respond to climate change risks is terrifyingly inadequate.
Angela Merkel the world's leading eco-vandal
21 Sep 2017
Ignore Angela Merkel's reputation for supporting green initiatives. The German chancellor’s record on environmental policy has been a disaster.
Melting Arctic ice cap falls to well below average
21 Sep 2017
The Arctic ice cap melted to hundreds of thousands of square miles below average this summer, according to data just released.
OCTLANTIS: Underwater city built (and run) by octopuses
21 Sep 2017
The discovery of aquatic architecture has led scientists to compare the behaviour of cephalopods to humans – but octopus city life is no utopia.
MIGHTY MOROCCO: There's only one country doing the job
20 Sep 2017
Just one country – Morocco – is promising to cut emissions to a level that will keep warming to 1.5deg, according to an updated analysis.
Figueres wants EU action on ‘imported deforestation’
20 Sep 2017
Former UN climate chief Christiana Figures has called on the EU to step up regulatory action against deforestation in the global south by tackling emissions of imported agricultural goods like beef, soy and palm oil.
Evaporation drains level of world's largest inland sea
20 Sep 2017
The impact of rising temperatures on the Caspian Sea is gradually reducing the world’s largest inland body of water to catastrophically low levels.
Vancouver wants to be the world's greenest by 2020
20 Sep 2017
Vancouver - the mountain-fringed, bicycle-friendly, pot-loving host of the 2010 Winter Olympics - wants to be the world’s greenest city by 2020.
London welcomes first plastics-free shop
20 Sep 2017
London has welcomed the opening of its first package-free food store opened In an effort to eliminate plastic pollution.
Trump told Paris Agreement is non-negotiable
19 Sep 2017
The terms of the Paris Agreement are set in stone, the EU, China and Canada agreed at a summit in Montreal at thge weekend, while Washington was forced to deny that the US is planning to stay in the accord.
Jerry Brown’s climate coalition spreads the word
19 Sep 2017
California governor Jerry Brown's climate coalition list of city, state and national governments nears 200 and is shifting climate diplomacy beyond the caprices of national leaders.
DYING BREED: Our oceans are no place to be a senior fish
19 Sep 2017
Fishing has dramatically reduced the number of senior fish left in the ocean.
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.
