International: Australia
How climate change is threatening Australia’s favourite fruits
18 Oct 2021
Australian mango growers are expecting the smallest harvest in at least two decades this summer, cherry farmers are losing trees and grape growers are contending with shortening harvest windows.
Climate change disasters will cost Australia billions each year
7 Oct 2021
Climate change-related disasters will cost Australia $73bn a year by 2060, even if action to curb emissions is taken now, a report has found.
COP26 billboard campaign takes aim at Australia
30 Sep 2021
When world leaders like Joe Biden and Boris Johnson descend on Glasgow for the world's most significant meeting on climate in years, they could well come face to face with a billboard designed by an Australian comedian.
What would a net zero emissions policy mean for Australian agriculture?
29 Sep 2021
As the warring parties in the Coalition debate the idea of a net zero carbon emissions policy, a number of questions remain unanswered. What would such a policy mean for Australian agriculture?
Australia needs to commit to net zero emissions by 2050: Frydenberg
24 Sep 2021
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg will prepare the way for Scott Morrison to take a target of net zero emissions by 2050 to Glasgow, when he warns on Friday capital inflow will be at risk if Australia is seen as a climate laggard.
One in five Australian carbon credits junk: study
22 Sep 2021
About 20% of carbon credits created under the federal Coalition’s main climate change policy do not represent real cuts in carbon dioxide and are essentially “junk”, new research suggests.
First credits sold under Queensland's carbon scheme
22 Sep 2021
A central Queensland couple has become the first to sell carbon credits under the state government's Land Restoration Fund (LRF).
Australian bush fires belched out immense quantity of carbon
16 Sep 2021
The extreme bush fires that blazed across southeastern Australia in late 2019 and early 2020 released 715 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the air — more than double the emissions previously estimated from satellite data, according to an analysis1 published today in Nature.
Australia is shaping up to be the villain of COP26 climate talks
14 Sep 2021
If Australia's allies were worried that the country might cause them problems at upcoming climate talks in Glasgow, the events of the past week should leave little doubt in their minds. It will.
Australia could phase out coal in a decade
10 Sep 2021
With coal prices reaching all time highs, professor economics John Quiggan argues its time for the lucky country to commit to phasing out coal within the next decade.
UK criticised for ‘dropping Paris climate goals in trade deal with Australia
9 Sep 2021
Green campaigners have criticised the UK government for apparently removing references to the temperature goals of the Paris climate agreement from a prospective trade deal with Australia.
Global carbon tax could turbocharge ‘green shorting’
26 Aug 2021
Australia's largest ethical super fund says the opportunity for investors to profit from ‘green shorting’ will grow as global leaders take greater action on climate change, which could act as a catalyst for sliding sharemarket valuations for fossil fuel producers.
Australia bushfires of 2020 had cooling effect on climate
26 Aug 2021
Wildfires are getting so big, and wildfire seasons are lasting so long, that they’re now impacting the earth’s climate.
GHB move shows global market has turned on fossil fuels
19 Aug 2021
The Conversation: The announcement by BHP, the world’s second-largest mining company, that it will shift its oil and gas assets into a joint venture with Australian outfit Woodside is a clear indication the “Big Australian” is getting out of the carbon-based fuel industry
Australia risks international punishment for lagging on climate change: Ban Ki-moon
18 Aug 2021
Former UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon has declared Australia "out of step" with the world on tackling climate change, as international pressure grows on the federal government to do more to limit global warming.
World Heritage Committee 'postpones the inevitable' with Great Barrier Reef decision
26 Jul 2021
The Conversation: After much anticipation, the World Heritage Committee on Friday decided against listing the Great Barrier Reef as “in danger”.
Offshore wind turbines could make Australia an energy superpower
23 Jul 2021
New research confirms Australia’s offshore wind resources offer vast potential both for electricity generation and new jobs
Canberra attacks Europe's carbon plans
16 Jul 2021
Australia's ruling Coalition lashed out yesterday at the European Union's proposed carbon border tariff as a new climate plan from Brussels added to growing international pressure on Canberra to do more to tackle climate change.
US urges Australia to act on climate change
5 Jul 2021
The top US diplomat in Australia has declared both countries need to set “more ambitious climate goals” and tackle the climate crisis “head on”, as international pressure mounts on the Morrison government to act.
Australia bottom of the climate change pack
2 Jul 2021
Australia has been ranked dead last for climate action in the latest Sustainable Development Report, which assesses the progress of countries towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Peatlands critical for climate
29 Jun 2021
GLOBAL peatlands store more carbon than is naturally present in the atmosphere but are under pressure from drainage-based agriculture.
Unesco: Great Barrier Reef 'in danger'
23 Jun 2021
Australia's government has lashed out after a United Nations report claimed it had not done enough to protect the Great Barrier Reef from climate change.
Top Aussie economists support EV subsidies
22 Jun 2021
THE CONVERSATION | Australia’s top economists overwhelmingly back government measures to speed the transition to electric cars in order to meet emission reduction targets.
Australian resource minister urges fossil industry to fight back
16 Jun 2021
Australia’s resources minister, Keith Pitt, is urging oil and gas producers to turn the “spotlight” on environmental groups campaigning against an expansion of the fossil fuel industry on climate change grounds.
Australia increasingly isolated on coal
15 Jun 2021
Australia has become even more isolated on climate change after the heads of the world's largest economies agreed to end government support for coal-fired power stations by the end of the year.
Australia backs carbon capture
9 Jun 2021
The Australian government picked six carbon capture, use and storage projects to receive a total of A$50 million ($39 million) in funds as it looks to accelerate development of the technology to cut emissions.
Tasmania has reached net-zero emissions
9 Jun 2021
Getting to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and 100% renewable energy might seem the end game for climate action. But what if, like Tasmania, you’ve already ticked both those goals off your list?
Climate change's $250k price tag for the young
2 Jun 2021
Climate change will cost a young Australian up to $245,000 over their lifetime, a landmark court case revealed.
Court finds Australian Government has responsibility to protect young from climate change
28 May 2021
The Federal Court of Australia has found the environment minister, Sussan Ley, has a duty of care to protect young people from the climate crisis in a judgment hailed by lawyers and teenagers who brought the case as a world first.
Most Australians want a ban on new coal mines
26 May 2021
More than six in ten Australians – 63% – support a ban on new coal mines opening in Australia, according to the Lowy Institute’s Climate Poll 2021.
Aussie scientists call for zero pollution target
18 May 2021
MEDIA RELEASE - A group of eminent scientists has urged Australian governments, Federal and State, to adopt a zero pollution target for air, water and land.
Cooking with gas bad for the planet and our health
18 May 2021
We've long known that cooking with gas is bad for the environment but a new Australian study has shown it could be as bad for child health as smoking in the home.
Boris tells Scott to step up his climate change game
17 May 2021
Boris Johnson urged Scott Morrison to sign up to net zero emissions by 2050 during a phone call held on the same day the British Prime Minister’s climate chief said it was time to “consign coal power to history”.
How climate change skepticism held a government captive
13 May 2021
In her new book, reporter Marian Wilkinson uncovers the network of politicians, business leaders and others who have wielded huge influence over Australia’s climate policy for more than two decades.
Investor Group on Climate Change outgoing CEO optimistic about the future
10 May 2021
The outgoing CEO of the Investor Group on Climate Change, Emma Herd, says she’s never felt more optimistic about the likelihood of the world successfully dealing with climate change.
A call to climate arms from two former Aussie PMs
21 Apr 2021
Two former prime ministers, Kevin Rudd and Malcolm Turnbull, write the world shouldn’t give up hope on Australia just yet
Time for Australia to stop bluffing on climate change
19 Apr 2021
Australia is like a firefighter holding a hose with one hand and a box of matches in another when it comes to climate change. And according to two Aussie academic, it's only going to get worse.
Outback doctors fleeing heat
14 Apr 2021
THE Northern Territory could lose one-third of its doctors because of the ever-increasing heat, according to a new study ringing alarm bells for all regional areas.
Aboriginals fight new coal mine
13 Apr 2021
With support from the Australian government, the Adani corporation is pushing ahead with an environmentally destructive coal mine in Queensland. But the traditional Aboriginal owners of the land, the Wangan and Jagalingou nation, are waging a determined fight to stop them.
NSW's big ugly coal problem
9 Apr 2021
On Wednesday this week, the New South Wales Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional NSW, Industry and Trade John Barilaro stood next to a train packed with coal, hurtling past metres away as he espoused the benefits of coal mining (sadly, he failed to literally salute it, as he had promised in the tweet).
Carbon price is coming, one way or another
1 Apr 2021
Australia is about to get a carbon price, one way or another. Unfortunately, the process is shaping up to be much more economically damaging than it could have been, says Sydney Morning Herald senior economics writer Jessica Irvine.
Gigawatt-scale solar manufacturing plan
1 Apr 2021
The $26 billion, gigawatt-scale solar export plans of the Sun Cable consortium made important progress this week, with the lodgement of a development application for the first phase of a solar manufacturing and assembly facility in Darwin.
Australia can replace oil & gas with renewables - report
29 Mar 2021
Renewable energy and batteries can secure Australia’s electricity grid as effectively as coal and gas, new research suggests.
Gas-led recovery? Probably not, says AEMO
29 Mar 2021
The Australian Energy Market Operator says gas could disappear from that country's grid because it can't compete with renewables and green hydrogen.
Heavy rains in Australia's east bring worst floods in 50 years
22 Mar 2021
Heavy rains along Australia's east coast over the weekend have brought the worst flooding in half a century in some areas, authorities said on Sunday, forcing thousands to evacuate and damaging hundreds of houses.
Australia tells US it's moving to a 'new energy' economy
18 Mar 2021
Scott Morrison has reiterated his intention to reach net-zero emissions “as soon as possible and preferably by 2050”, and transition Australia to a “new energy economy”, in a conversation with Joe Biden’s special presidential envoy for climate, John Kerry.
Early shut for coal-fired power station
11 Mar 2021
Australia's third-largest power retailer EnergyAustralia will shut its ageing Yallourn coal-fired power station in 2028, four years earlier than previously flagged, stoking concern about electricity supply and price increases.
Aussie says as OECD boss he would be climate ambitious
10 Mar 2021
The former Australian finance minister vying to become the new head of the OECD said he would pursue an "ambitious" and "global" approach to help nations become carbon-neutral by 2050.
Climate change could put insurance out of reach
4 Mar 2021
Millions of Australians could be left uninsured as the effects of climate change put increasing pressure on the financial system, the industry’s regulatory body has warned.
Teens take their climate crisis plea to court
2 Mar 2021
Eight teenagers and an octogenarian nun are in Australian court today to launch what they hope will prove to be a landmark case – one that establishes the federal government’s duty of care in protecting future generations from a worsening climate crisis.
Fossil-fuel billionaires bought up millions of shares after meeting with top Trump officials
Today 11:00am
Co-founders’ acquisition of Venture Global shares before key permit granted draws scrutiny as pair deny wrongdoing
China’s BEV trucks and the end of diesel’s dominance
Thu 4 Dec 2025
Cheap Chinese battery electric heavy trucks are no longer a rumor. They are real machines with real price tags that are so low that they force a reassessment of what the global freight industry is willing to pay for electrification.
Spain announces $1.5 billion package to boost electric vehicle market
Fri 5 Dec 2025
Spain's plan includes 400 million euros in direct subsidies in 2026 for consumers to buy EVs.
UK farmers lose £800m after heat and drought cause one of worst harvests on record
Fri 5 Dec 2025
Many now concerned about ability to make living in fast-changing climate after one of worst grain harvests recorded.
Canada rolls back climate rules in energy deal with Alberta
1 Dec 2025
Under the agreement, the federal government will scrap a planned emissions cap on the oil and gas sector and drop rules on clean electricity.
Asia flood death toll surpasses 1,500 as calls grow to fight deforestation
Today 11:00am
The death toll from last week’s catastrophic floods and landslides in parts of Asia surged past 1,500 Thursday as rescue teams raced to reach survivors isolated by the disaster with hundreds of people still unaccounted for across the region.
Storms in the Southern Ocean are producing more rain – and the consequences could be global
Today 11:00am
Storms in the Southern Ocean influence weather patterns across Australia, New Zealand and the globe.
Scientists discovered something alarming seeping out from beneath the ocean around Antarctica
13 Oct 2025
Planet-heating methane is escaping from cracks in the Antarctic seabed as the region warms, with new seeps being discovered at an “astonishing rate".
European Investment Bank pledges over 2 billion euros for African renewables projects
26 Nov 2025
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is pledging more than 2 billion euros ($2.3 billion) of financing for renewable energy projects on the African continent over the next two years.
In blow to Lula, Brazil Congress revives controversial environmental bill
Tue 2 Dec 2025
Brazil's conservative-led Congress on Thursday reinstated much of a bill that makes it easier for companies to secure environmental permits, infuriating the leftist government and green groups.
Analysis: Why COP30’s ‘tripling adaptation finance’ target is less ambitious than it seems
Fri 5 Dec 2025
One of the headline outcomes to emerge from COP30 was a new target to “at least triple” finance for climate adaptation in developing countries by 2035.
