International: All stories
Buffett pockets quick billion on China hybrid maker
7 Aug 2009
American investment guru Warren Buffett has earned a $1 billion paper profit from an investment he agreed to make in Chinese hybrid carmaker BYD less than a year ago.
One carbon choice: Don’t have that child
7 Aug 2009
People who are serious about wanting to reduce their carbon footprint have one choice available to them that may yield a large long-term benefit - have one fewer child.
Psychological barriers hobble climate action
7 Aug 2009
Psychological barriers like uncertainty, mistrust and denial keep most Americans from acting to fight climate change, says a task force of the American Psychological Association.
Asia Pacific refugees could top 75 million, says report
31 Jul 2009
Climate change could produce more than 75 million refugees in the Asia Pacific region in the next 40 years, says a new report released on the eve of a Pacific leaders' meeting in Australia.
US, China upbeat on Copenhagen treaty
31 Jul 2009
The United States’ chief spokesman on climate change has voiced optimism at reaching a new global treaty this year, saying that top polluters China and the US were both serious about taking action.
France faces internal fight over carbon tax
31 Jul 2009
France should aim to introduce a tax on carbon dioxide emissions by 2010 to help to fight global climate change, says a panel advising the government.
How US can halve emissions from transport
31 Jul 2009
The United States can cut greenhouse gas emissions from transportation in half by 2050 with strategies ranging from cutting speed limits to imposing road pricing, according to a new report.
UN chief to visit Arctic ice rim to see for himself
31 Jul 2009
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will head to the Arctic polar ice rim next month as part of his efforts to push for action ahead of a major climate change conference to be held in December in Copenhagen.
India says no to legally binding emissions
31 Jul 2009
India will not succumb to any international pressure on committing to a legally binding agreement on cutting greenhouse emissions but will deal with climate change issues according to its own plans, a state minister says.
Opposition split over Australia's climate plan
24 Jul 2009
Australia’s opposition has split over whether to support government legislation to tackle climate change, with one lawmaker calling leader Malcolm Turnbull “arrogant” for ignoring the wishes of party members.
Wal-Mart to demand eco-labels on all products
24 Jul 2009
United States supermarket giant Wal-Mart has rolled out an ambitious plan to require manufacturers to put eco-labels on all items to show consumers the full environmental cost of production - from raw materials to disposal.
Maritime chiefs act to cut emissions from ships
24 Jul 2009
The International Maritime Organisation will issue a package of energy efficiency measures for new and existing ships to help to cut the industry’s rising greenhouse gas emissions.
IPCC to elevate plight of poorest countries
24 Jul 2009
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change will use its next assessment due in 2014 to look at how the impact of global warming is falling unequally on the poorest developing countries.
Ban to talk climate change on trip to China
24 Jul 2009
Climate change will feature prominently on United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon’s visits to China and Mongolia which begin today.
Nike says no more leather from Amazon
24 Jul 2009
Sports shoes manufacturer Nike has announced that it will no longer use leather that comes from farms near the Amazon rainforest.
Tiny Tuvalu: If we can do it, so can you
24 Jul 2009
The Pacific island nation of Tuvalu, already under threat from rising seas caused by global warming, has vowed to do its part for climate change by fueling its economy entirely from renewable sources by 2020.
Groser: Something will come from Copenhagen
17 Jul 2009
The Copenhagen climate change negotiations are unlikely to come up with a ratifiable agreement but will produce some sort of agreement, says Associate Climate Change Minister Tim Groser.
UK aims for 40% low carbon energy by 2020
17 Jul 2009
Britain intends to produce 40 per cent of its electricity from low carbon energy by 2020 to help meet legally binding targets to cut emissions and tackle climate change, the government said yesterday.
Low carbon: How Britain plans to do it
17 Jul 2009
In its low carbon transition white paper, the British government sets out how it intends to meet its binding carbon budget across all sectors.
High-speed rail part of UK carbon strategy
17 Jul 2009
High-speed rail, incentives for low-emission transport and investment in offshore wind and marine energy are at the heart of the British government plans announced yesterday to bring down the country’s carbon emissions.
Exxon to invest millions in fuel from algae
17 Jul 2009
Oil giant Exxon Mobil, whose chief executive once mocked alternative energy by referring to ethanol as “moonshine,” is about to venture into biofuels.
Dutch act on tax fraud in carbon market
17 Jul 2009
"Clear indications" of fraudulent activity in the Dutch carbon emissions market has forced the Ministry of Finance to take steps to prevent value-added tax fraud.
Carbon scheme ripe for fraud, says Aussie expert
17 Jul 2009
Australia’s proposed carbon trading scheme is ripe for fraud and companies are set to be hit with class actions by activist groups because they are not adequately protected by proposed laws, a climate change expert has warned.
US ready to lead on climate change, Chu tells China
17 Jul 2009
US Energy Secretary Steven Chu has told an audience in China that the United States is now ready to lead in the fight against climate change.
Japan opposition eyes bolder emissions cuts
17 Jul 2009
Japan's main opposition party will adopt bolder greenhouse gas cuts than the government by using the global emissions market and increasing green jobs if it wins an upcoming election, the party's head of green policy said.
Power bills up £200 a year in UK energy move
14 Jul 2009
Household energy bills in Britain will rise by more than £200 a year under the Government’s low-carbon strategy being announced this week.
Indonesia issues first forest-carbon revenue rules
14 Jul 2009
Indonesia's forestry ministry has released what are believed to be the world's first set of revenue sharing rules governing forest carbon projects, a ministry official said.
Get on with it, Gore tells Australians
14 Jul 2009
Former US vice-president Al Gore has waded into the Australian carbon trading debate, suggesting passing even an imperfect bill this year could help to secure a new treaty to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
US officials to prod China on climate change
14 Jul 2009
US Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke visit their ancestral homeland this week to press China to join with the US in stepped-up efforts to fight global warming.
Greenpeace calls for pressure on rich nations
14 Jul 2009
Greenpeace has called for massive public pressure to demand that the world's wealthiest nations take decisive action on climate change.
World leaders fail to agree on emissions targets
10 Jul 2009
The world's leading industrial nations have tentatively agreed to try to prevent global temperatures from rising above a fixed level, after a more far-reaching proposal to slash greenhouse gases fizzled.
UN accuses G8 of doing too little
10 Jul 2009
The world's richest countries are not doing enough to tackle climate change and secure the "future of humanity", the United Nations says.
Senate delays action on climate bill
10 Jul 2009
US President Barack Obama's push for quick action by Congress on climate change legislation suffered a setback yesterday when the Senate committee leading the drive delayed work on the bill until September.
New angle on emissions: Make rich people pay
10 Jul 2009
Researchers in the US have proposed a new way of allocating responsibility for carbon emissions they say could solve the impasse between developed and developing countries: make the rich pay.
Al Gore invokes spirit of Churchill in climate war
10 Jul 2009
Al Gore invoked the spirit of Winston Churchill yesterday when he urged political leaders to follow the example of Britain’s wartime leader in the battle against climate change.
Accountants the winners as carbon economy grows
10 Jul 2009
As a carbon-trading economy gathers steam in the United States, the accounting industry is expected to profit handsomely.
Let’s get inventing, says climate report
10 Jul 2009
The fight against climate change would not be won unless a “revolution” in the use of existing low-carbon technology, and numerous new inventions took hold, says a new report.
G8 leaders could set emissions goal of 80%
7 Jul 2009
Leaders of the G8 nations meeting in Italy this week are to set a target to cut greenhouse gases by 80 per cent by 2050, the BBC understands.
Obama to seek climate deal in Moscow
7 Jul 2009
United States President Barack Obama will move to seal a deal with Russia for joint action on climate change during his summit in Moscow this week.
Could rice possibly be the new concrete?
7 Jul 2009
Concrete is the world's most abundant building material; rice is one of the world's most abundant food crops. Now, one group of researchers is putting the two together to try to make concrete more environmentally friendly.
Un-baa-lievable ... Scottish sheep are shrinking
7 Jul 2009
Along with polar icecaps and sandy beaches, sheep on a remote Scottish island are gradually shrinking as a result of global warming, say reasearchers.
Greenpeace to carry on fight with Rainbow Warrior III
7 Jul 2009
Greenpeace has signed a contract with a German shipyard for construction of a new Rainbow Warrior to help the environmental organisation in its climate change campaigns.
Sweden: Learn from our climate change miracle
3 Jul 2009
Sweden plans to use its “climate change miracle” to convince China and the United States to sign up to tough cuts in greenhouse gases at the Copenhagen summit to find a successor to the Kyoto Protocol.
Democrats gear up for Senate climate bill battle
3 Jul 2009
US Senate Democratic leaders are preparing for what is expected to be a tough fight over climate change legislation, even tougher than it was in the House of Representives.
ExxonMobil still funds climate change sceptics
3 Jul 2009
ExxonMobil, the world’s largest oil company, is continuing to fund researchers who cast doubt on global warming, despite public promises to cut support for climate change sceptics.
Permafrost melt poses major climate change threat
3 Jul 2009
New research shows that the amount of carbon stored in frozen soils at high latitudes is double previous estimates and could, if emitted as carbon dioxide and methane, lead to a significant increase in global temperatures by the end of this century.
Canada hits rock-bottom on emissions scorecard
3 Jul 2009
Canada has fallen to last place in the latest G8 Climate Scorecard by the World Wildlife Fund and insurance giant Allianz.
Nuclear energy key to India’s climate action
3 Jul 2009
The Indian Government has revealed that nuclear energy will be an important component of 24 “critical initiatives” to be taken up by different ministries to combat climate change.
EPA allows California to regulate car gases
3 Jul 2009
The US Environmental Protection Agency has granted California's request to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from cars and light trucks as the Obama administration implements measures to increase fuel efficiency and reduce the impact on global warming linked to these gases.
Carbon management is information management
3 Jul 2009
For most businesses today, sophisticated carbon management is simply not possible.
'They’re gone:' End of an era as Liddell coal plant chimneys demolished in spectacular explosion
Tue 2 Jun 2026
It was quiet. Very quiet. Everyone stood or sat still, and the only sound that could be heard was the gentle lapping of the water on the shores of Lake Liddell.
AI boom means US is now ‘investing more’ in fossil-fuel power than China
Tue 2 Jun 2026
The “data-centre boom” is driving a surge in gas investment in the US, pushing its fossil-power spending ahead of China, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Can China turn hydrogen into its next clean-energy industry?
Fri 29 May 2026
China has said that hydrogen is a key “future industry”, important to both its energy transition and its industrial policy.
Europe's green jet fuels see upside in Iran war
Wed 3 Jun 2026
Interest in synthetic propellants is growing as the Iran war pushes Europe to reassess its dependencies, raising hopes of a turnaround for the struggling sector, according to industry experts.
Record-breaking heat and dry spring leave parts of England without water
Tue 2 Jun 2026
Thousands of households in southeast England were left without water or facing low pressure during a record-breaking heatwave this week, as high demand followed a dry spring to expose the failings in Britain's ageing infrastructure.
Canada signs landmark LNG energy deal with Germany
Fri 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.
One day of extreme heat tied to 3,400 excess deaths in India, nearly 30,000 over five days
Wed 3 Jun 2026
A day of extreme heat is associated with an estimated 3,400 excess deaths across India, while a heatwave lasting five consecutive days could lead to nearly 30,000 additional deaths, according to a new study.
Coral reefs in French Polynesia are stuck between life and death
Wed 3 Jun 2026
Scientists’ discovery of hollowed coral skeletons after a 2019 bleaching event reveals a reef that isn’t coming back.
‘Triple whammy of climate chaos’: Why Antarctica's sea ice collapse is no longer a mystery
11 May 2026
Scientists have finally identified the ‘triple whammy’ behind Antarctica’s dramatic collapse, shedding new light on the chain reaction that has pushed its sea ice to record lows.
Aid cuts and climate change drive deadly malaria surge in Zimbabwe
Fri 29 May 2026
A surge in malaria cases in Zimbabwe is exposing fragile health systems and growing treatment shortages in rural areas.
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?
UN backs historic climate crisis ruling, despite US attempts to stop resolution
22 May 2026
The UN has voted 141-8 to adopt a resolution backing a world court opinion that countries have a legal obligation to address climate change, with the US – which is the world’s biggest historical emitter – among the small group opposing it.
