International: All stories
All hell breaks loose as the tundra thaws in Siberia
26 Jul 2017
A recent heatwave in Siberia’s frozen wastes has resulted in outbreaks of deadly anthrax and a series of violent explosions.
NZ in firing line of foreign species invasion
26 Jul 2017
Foreign animals and plants can cause huge damage in vulnerable nations like New Zealand, with the march of Argentine ants a new example of how climate change is boosting the threat.
UK businesses urge PM to raise climate ambitions
26 Jul 2017
A group of UK businesses and investors have written to Prime MInister Theresa May, urging her to raise the country’s ambitions to tackle climate change.
India diverts $25 billion away from clean energy
26 Jul 2017
The Indian government is diverting $25 billion earmarked for clean energy to an unrelated policy, a national news site has revealed.
Electric trams shuttle goods around Europe cities
26 Jul 2017
French and German cities using trams to move products are showing how to cut congestion while making a profit from the network.
Mayors demand English acts on climate change
25 Jul 2017
New Zealand’s mayors want a national emissions reduction plan and a stocktake of the likely cost to the country of climate change – something Prime Minister Bill English has steadfastly rejected.
Mexico has an idea ... insure coral reefs against damage
25 Jul 2017
A stretch of coral reef off Mexico is the testing ground for a new idea that could protect fragile environments around the world - insurance.
China to ban import of foreign waste
25 Jul 2017
China has anounced that it will no longer be importing foreign garbage shipments.
JUSTIN TRUDEAU: Climate warrior in love with Big Oil
25 Jul 2017
Justin Trudeau has proposed to end Canada's coal use, tax carbon pollution and invest in clean energy technology. But he also wants to keep Canadian oil flowing.
The changing climate is killing us ... as we speak
24 Jul 2017
The most obvious effect of global warming is not a doomsday scenario. Extreme heat is happening today, and wreaking havoc on vulnerable bodies.
Volvo e-car push reflects China’s leadership ambition
24 Jul 2017
Chinese-owned Volvo's move away from the internal combustion engine will fuel Beijing dominance in emerging clean technology.
Asian temperature rise could be disastrous
24 Jul 2017
Profligate fossil fuel use could cause Asian temperatures to rise by 6deg , bringing floods and food shortages for hundreds of millions.
Changing your diet could save animals from extinction
24 Jul 2017
Nearly one-third of tropical animal species face extinction if humans do not curb their growing appetites for beef, pork and other land-intensive meats.
Hanoi choking on fumes of five million motorbikes
24 Jul 2017
The roads of Vietnam’s capital have been taken over by the two-wheeled horde, but bringing in a ban by 2030 will be a tough ask.
Big brands in illegal forest destruction, says report
24 Jul 2017
Pepsico, Unilever and Nestlé have been accused of complicity in the destruction of Sumatra’s last tract of rainforest shared by elephants, orangutans, rhinos, and tigers together in one ecosystem.
Rising seas spark tobacco-style lawsuits in California
21 Jul 2017
Several flood-prone municipalities in California filed first-of-their-kind lawsuits against fossil fuel companies this week as they attempt to recoup the cost of coping with rising seas.
Plastic pollution risks near-permanent contamination
21 Jul 2017
Humans have produced more than eight billion tonnes of plastic since the 1950s with the majority ending up in landfill or polluting the world’s continents and oceans.
Asia coal boom bankrolled by foreign money
21 Jul 2017
The much-discussed boom in coal-fired power in south-east Asia is being bankrolled by foreign governments and banks, with the vast majority of projects apparently too risky for the private sector.
CON JOB: We must stop fighting as individuals
21 Jul 2017
OPINION: Stop obsessing with how personally green you live – and start collectively taking on corporate power.
Work for me, says Macron, and scientists flock to France
21 Jul 2017
Hundreds of climate scientists, including many from the United States, have applied to work in France under a multi-million dollar scheme set up by President Emmanuel Macron.
Satellites zero in on dangerous urban heat islands
21 Jul 2017
Cities are getting hotter as the planet warms, and the consequences can be deadly - a heat wave hit Russia in 2010 and killed 55,000 people.
Cape Town shares water lessons of record drought
21 Jul 2017
Cape Town, experiencing its worst drought in 100 years, has taken the situation as an opportunity to seek solutions which could be of use in other parts of Africa.
Let buyers borrow more on greener homes, says report
20 Jul 2017
Homebuyers could take out bigger mortgages if the energy ratings of properties were factored into the lending criteria of banks and building societies, new research has found.
Fiji COP presidency must not fail climate victims
20 Jul 2017
Despite warm words about protecting the vulnerable, the island presidency of this year’s UN climate talks is showing no urgency on “loss and damage”.
At halfway point, 2017 is second-hottest year on record
20 Jul 2017
At the halfway point of the year, 2017 remains the second-hottest year to date — a surprise given the demise of the El Niño that helped to boost temperatures to record levels last year.
World’s young face $535 trillion bill for climate
20 Jul 2017
The next generation will have to pay a $535 trillion bill to tackle climate change, relying on unproven and speculative technology.
Get together and slash emissions, Australians told
20 Jul 2017
Australians collectively could slash greenhouse gas emissions by a staggering 70 per cent if they joined forces to become energy and climate trailblazers in their own backyards.
Protesters die as Canadian company mines hills of silver
20 Jul 2017
In Guatemala, one of the world’s largest silver deposits reaps millions for its Canadian owners - but for local farmers the price is their land and even their lives
EU slapped for breaching access to environmental justice
20 Jul 2017
The European Union has accepted a UN ruling that found the bloc in breach of international laws requiring the public to have access to justice on environmental matters.
Rising seas threaten scores of Pacific species with extinction
19 Jul 2017
The Chuuk flying fox. The Black-spotted Cuscus. The Fijian crested iguana. The Mariana skink. The greater monkey-faced bat. Poncelet’s giant rat. They live on islands in the Pacific and they are facing extinction.
California extends cap-and-trade to 2030
19 Jul 2017
California lawmakers have voted to extend the state's signature programme for cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
Australian powerco head supports Paris targets
19 Jul 2017
The head of Australia’s biggest energy utility – and its biggest coal generator – says that if any Clean Energy Target is to be effective it has to take into account global climate targets.
GROW FOOD ON MARS: Los Angeles startups get inventive
19 Jul 2017
Geeks are inventing ways to keep Los Angeles cool with products and services that aim to avert environmental disaster – and make a profit.
Bloomberg and California launch climate action plan
18 Jul 2017
California Governor Jerry Brown and Michael Bloomberg have announced the launch of America’s Pledge, which will allow US states, cities and businesses to stay aligned with the Paris Agreement.
US approves oil drilling off Alaska
18 Jul 2017
An Italian multinational oil and gas company has received permission to move ahead with drilling plans in federal waters off Alaska.
Activists being murdered in record numbers
18 Jul 2017
Some 200 environmental and land-rights activists were killed in 2016, making it the deadliest year on record.
Is it a human right to have a healthy environment?
18 Jul 2017
Do we have a fundamental right to breathe clean air, drink clean water and eat safe food?
AA fights plan to cut car greenhouse gas emissions
17 Jul 2017
The Australian Automobile Association has tried to kill any government move to cut greenhouse gas emissions from cars, arguing it would increase the cost to consumers and contradicting comprehensive government modelling.
Japan to export renewable energy expertise
17 Jul 2017
Japan plans to export its expertise in renewable energy technologies such as low-emitting geothermal, solar and hydrogen power.
Steel town sets out to redesign the rustbelt
17 Jul 2017
The world is urbanising at a pace never before seen in human history. By 2050, 66 per cent of the world is projected to live in cities.
Communities and cities are getting on with the job
17 Jul 2017
As the international community putters along, cities and local communities are already staking out the front lines of the fight against climate change.
China signed big coal deal days before G20 pledge
14 Jul 2017
Chinese president Xi Jinping endorsed a G20 plan calling on development banks to support poor countries to lower their emissions, just days after his own development bank had signed a $1.5 billion loan deal to build a South African coal plant.
HEY, BABE: Want to save the climate? Have fewer children
14 Jul 2017
The greatest impact individuals can have in fighting climate change is to have one fewer child, according to a new study that identifies the most effective ways people can cut their carbon emissions.
California about to vote on emissions trading scheme
14 Jul 2017
California lawmakers are expected to vote next week on legislation to extend the state's landmark cap-and-trade programme, the country's most progressive, statewide attempt to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
States threaten to go it alone on clean energy
14 Jul 2017
Australian state energy ministers are threatening to go it alone with a clean energy target as they ramp up pressure on the Coalition government.
And now, the weather: Prepare for 10,000 years of drought
13 Jul 2017
Climate history locked in stalagmite evidence warns of 10,000 years of drought – 100 centuries – to come in the Middle East.
Believe it or not, Queensland plans to cut emissions
13 Jul 2017
Coal-hungry Queensland is preparing to slash its pollution to net-zero by 2050, under new plans just released by the State Government.
Coal price will decline, experts tell Australia
13 Jul 2017
As Australia mulls the building of its biggest-ever export thermal coal mine, its biggest foreign buyers look set to reduce their consumption, driving down the price of Australian coal, and the profitability of its mines.
Trillion-tonne iceberg breaks away from Antarctica
13 Jul 2017
A trillion-tonne expanse of ice that has broken off Antarctica's Larsen C shelf isn't going to raise sea level on its own, but it can't be viewed in isolation.
Finland ignores scientists and increases logging
13 Jul 2017
Plans to increase logging in Finnish forests will have dire impacts on the climate; yet the Finnish government is ignoring evidence and denigrating scientists.
Australian governments subsidising fossil fuel use by more than $30,000 a minute, analysis finds
Fri 13 Mar 2026
Australian federal and state government subsidies that encourage fossil fuel use and help drive the climate crisis will reach $16.3bn this year after leaping by nearly 10%, according to a new analysis.
Trump administration sues California over the state’s nation-leading vehicle-emission rules
Today 11:00am
The Trump administration ramped up a battle with California over the state’s nation-leading vehicle-emission standards Thursday, suing air regulators over rules aimed at curbing pollution from cars.
What does China’s 15th ‘five-year plan’ mean for climate change?
10 Mar 2026
China’s leadership has published a draft of its 15th five-year plan setting the strategic direction for the nation out to 2030, including support for clean energy and energy security.
Germany misses climate targets as emissions barely fall in 2025
Today 11:00am
Greenhouse gas emissions in Germany have again missed targets set by the Climate Protection Act and barely fell at all in 2025.
UK emissions fall 2.4% in 2025 as coal hits 400-year low
9 Mar 2026
The UK’s greenhouse gas emissions fell by 2.4% in 2025 to their lowest level in more than 150 years, according to new analysis.
Mark Carney just picked his lane on climate change
17 Feb 2026
COMMENT: Mark Carney's time as prime minister has been defined in part by his decision to roll back Trudeau-era climate policies.
'The situation is dire': War on Iran squeezes India's cooking-gas supplies
Mon 16 Mar 2026
The shockwaves of a war being fought nearly 3,000km away are now reaching India's kitchens.
Vanuatu moves forward with UN climate resolution despite Trump opposition
9 Mar 2026
The Trump administration’s attempt to sink a UN resolution demanding countries act on the climate crisis has caused cuts to the proposal but hasn’t entirely killed it, according to the tiny Pacific island country spearheading the effort.
Limiting warming to 2C is ‘crucial’ to protect pristine Antarctic Peninsula
24 Feb 2026
Keeping global warming to less than 2C above pre-industrial temperatures is “crucial” for limiting damage to the Antarctic Peninsula’s unique ecosystems, according to a new study.
'Blackwater' lakes and rivers in the Congo Basin are now emitting ancient carbon into the atmosphere
Mon 16 Mar 2026
Carbon that has been buried in the Congo Basin's peatlands for millennia is seeping into lakes and rivers. Why this is happening remains unclear, but researchers warn that tropical peatlands could be nearing a tipping point.
Companies – including Blackrock – retired 2 million carbon credits after Verra suspended project
Thu 12 Mar 2026
Verra suspended the Pacajai REDD project in Brazil in September 2023, pending an investigation into the project’s validity. That didn’t stop Mastercard, BlackRock, Philip Morris International from retiring carbon credits from the project to offset their greenhouse gas emissions.
Summit aims to revive stalled UN talks on phasing out fossil fuels
Wed 11 Mar 2026
Colombia and the Netherlands have set out three priorities for a conference on phasing out fossil fuels they will co-host in Colombia in April.
