International: Europe
Farmers report catastrophic damage to crops as Storm Marta hits Spain and Portugal
10 Feb 2026
Farmers in Spain warned on Saturday that torrential rains and high winds had left fields submerged and caused millions of euros worth of damage to crops, as Spain and Portugal braced for more extreme weather.
EU weighing options to support industry in carbon market overhaul
9 Feb 2026
The European Commission is looking at various ways to support industries in an upcoming overhaul of the EU carbon market to prevent them moving to areas with lower pollution standards, the head of the Commission’s climate department said late on Wednesday.
EU adopts first-ever standard for carbon removal projects
4 Feb 2026
The European Commission announced the adoption of its first set of voluntary certification methodologies for permanent carbon removals, aimed at providing clear standards for carbon removal technologies, to enable certification and investment in projects that permanently remove CO2 from the atmosphere.
EU carbon price forecasts edge up in volatile start to the year
3 Feb 2026
Analysts raised slightly their forecasts for prices in the European Union's carbon market for the next couple of years while predicting volatile trading in 2026 as the benchmark contract moves with Europe’s gas prices.
Norway’s $2tn wealth fund stress tests effects of climate shocks and AI correction
2 Feb 2026
Equity portfolio could lose a quarter in event of extreme weather and shed more than half from AI boom collapse.
Dutch government discriminated against Bonaire islanders over climate adaptation, court rules
29 Jan 2026
The Dutch government discriminated against people in one of its most vulnerable territories by not helping them adapt to climate change, a court has found.
EVs just outsold petrol cars in EU for first time ever
29 Jan 2026
Sales of electric vehicles overtook standard petrol cars in the EU for the first time in December 2025, according to new figures released by industry group the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association.
Europe set for record LNG imports in 2026, IEA says
27 Jan 2026
Europe is expected to import a record amount of liquefied natural gas this year with global supply also expected to soar, the International Energy Agency said on Friday.
Amsterdam defies last-minute lobbying to become first capital city to ban fossil fuel ads
27 Jan 2026
The world’s largest outdoor advertising company warned city councillors of “far-reaching consequences” hours before the landmark vote.
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.
EU waters down plans to end new petrol and diesel car sales by 2035
17 Dec 2025
The European Commission has watered down its plans to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2035.
EU closes deal to slash green rules in major win for von der Leyen’s deregulation drive
10 Dec 2025
Controversial “omnibus” bill saw center-right EU lawmakers side with the far right to water down environmental standards.
Seven EU countries pressure European Commission to rethink 2035 diesel and petrol car ban
9 Dec 2025
Pressure from EU countries, lawmakers and the automotive industry is likely pushing the European Commission to delay the revision of the bloc's ban on diesel and petrol cars by 2035.
Spain announces $1.5 billion package to boost electric vehicle market
5 Dec 2025
Spain's plan includes 400 million euros in direct subsidies in 2026 for consumers to buy EVs.
Norway to examine scenarios for post-oil economy
5 Dec 2025
Norway said Wednesday it will set up a commission to study potential scenarios for the country's post-oil economy, a commitment the Greens Party secured in exchange for backing the government's 2026 budget bill.
EU agrees to end Russian gas imports by late 2027; Hungary, Slovakia oppose
4 Dec 2025
The European Union agreed on Wednesday to phase out Russian gas imports by late 2027 as part of an effort to end the bloc’s decades-long dependency on Russian energy.
EU carbon border tax goes easy on dirty Chinese imports, industry warns
3 Dec 2025
Businesses say Brussels got its math wrong on the carbon footprint of imports from China, Brazil and the U.S.
Europe must defend its deforestation law – for forests, business and its reputation
2 Dec 2025
Constant weakening and delays to the landmark EU regulation pose a threat to rainforests and erode Europe’s credibility as a stable, predictable market.
Swiss reject compulsory civic duty, climate tax for super-rich
2 Dec 2025
Swiss voters on Sunday resoundingly rejected a proposal to replace the current men-only military conscription with a compulsory civic duty for all and another on taxing the super-rich to fund the climate fight.
Europe’s water reserves drying up due to climate breakdown
2 Dec 2025
Vast swathes of Europe’s water reserves are drying up, a new analysis using two decades of satellite data reveals, with freshwater storage shrinking across southern and central Europe, from Spain and Italy to Poland and parts of the UK.
The carbon capture plan turning cattle farms into power plants
28 Nov 2025
The Frontier coalition is backing new technology that produces green electricity from biogas, while capturing waste carbon.
Europe plans service to gauge climate change role in extreme weather
24 Nov 2025
The EU is launching a service to measure the role climate change is playing in extreme weather events like heatwaves and extreme rain, and experts say this could help governments set climate policy, improve financial risk assessments and provide evidence for use in lawsuits.
Turkey set to host COP31 after reaching compromise with Australia
21 Nov 2025
The COP31 climate meeting is now expected to be held in Turkey after Australia dropped its bid to host the annual event.
A crucial system of ocean currents may be on course to collapse. This country just declared it a national security threat
17 Nov 2025
As evidence mounts these currents could be on course for collapse, Iceland’s government has made the unusual move of designating the risk a national security threat.
EU countries seek another year-long deforestation law delay
13 Nov 2025
European Union member states are seeking to postpone the implementation of the bloc's anti-deforestation law by another year, an EU negotiating draft dated November 10 shows.
Will EU's carbon border tax crash climate summit party?
12 Nov 2025
A flagship European environmental policy – dubbed a "carbon tax" on imports – is raising hackles abroad and is becoming a flashpoint at the UN's COP30 climate summit in Brazil.
EU’s new climate target lines up multibillion dollar boost for carbon markets
10 Nov 2025
Analysts estimate the EU will buy at least 50 billion euros worth of carbon credits in the 2030s to help meet its emissions-cutting goals.
EU ministers agree to 90% emissions reduction target
7 Nov 2025
European environment ministers have reached an agreement on a contentious plan to cut the bloc's greenhouse gas emissions but with caveats.
TotalEnergies loses in Paris court, marking a turning point for fossil fuel truth-in-advertising
5 Nov 2025
TotalEnergies was found to have misled consumers about its role in the energy transition.
Norway faces European Court climate ruling over oil licences
29 Oct 2025
The European Court of Human Rights will decide on Tuesday if Norway breached its climate obligations when it awarded Arctic oil exploration licenses in 2016.
EU leaders set conditions for new climate goal
28 Oct 2025
The EU is trying to pass a new target to cut net greenhouse gas emissions 90% by 2040 to put the bloc on track for net-zero emissions by 2050.
Oil firm TotalEnergies made misleading green statements, court rules
28 Oct 2025
A French oil company engaged in “misleading commercial practices” about the scope of its environmental commitments, a court has ruled.
'It was the start of a new movement': The Dutch rewilding project that took a dark turn
24 Oct 2025
In 2018, thousands of dead animals, emaciated from starvation, lay strewn across a famous Dutch rewilding project. Was it animal cruelty or just nature taking its course?
The methane hunters of Melendugno
23 Oct 2025
How Italian activists are fighting to expose the true scale of the climate harm caused by a giant European pipeline.
EU plans deforestation delay only for small businesses
22 Oct 2025
The proposal will need approval of co-legislators, EU countries at the Council and MEPs, who can still push for more changes to the legislation.
Von der Leyen tries to appease EU climate target skeptics
22 Oct 2025
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has pledged to adjust key green laws to secure support for a new climate target.
How one country’s Russian gas crisis became a green energy boom
21 Oct 2025
When Russia invaded Ukraine, Moldova quickly empowered its small towns to produce their own renewable energy so no one could push it around.
EU plans support for countries affected by carbon border levy
20 Oct 2025
The European Union will offer development funding to countries affected by the bloc's carbon border tariff, the European Commission said on Thursday, as it attempts to soothe developing economies' concerns over the policy.
'Not up for discussion': Brussels rejects Washington's pressure on climate rules
13 Oct 2025
In response to US demands to roll back the EU's environmental legislation, the European Commission defended its autonomous power to adopt laws.
Nestle leaves climate alliance for dairy emission reductions
10 Oct 2025
The Swiss consumer goods company previously said its overall greenhouse gas emissions declined 20% in 2024.
Cancelled artwork in Belém generates 57,765 Cultural Degrowth Credits
10 Oct 2025
The figures represented the anonymous decision-makers behind the greenhouse gas emissions driving the climate crisis.
Bonaire residents take Netherlands to court over climate
9 Oct 2025
The trial is a first for Europe and follows an advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice, which provides a legal interpretation of international climate law.
‘This is real progress’: Airlines on sustainable aviation fuels and the chances of net zero flying
7 Oct 2025
The EU and UK have imposed mandates, and investors see its value – but the industry has mixed views.
Pope Leo condemns climate change critics
3 Oct 2025
Pope Leo XIV has hit out at those who minimise the "increasingly evident" impact of rising temperatures in his first major statement on climate change.
NGOs urge no green label for fossil fuel investments
2 Oct 2025
Fossil fuel developers should be excluded from financial investments labelled sustainable, NGOs and associations urged on Tuesday, as part of any reform of the European Union's green finance transparency rules.
‘I couldn’t look’: European farmers on losing crops as the industry collides with worsening drought
30 Sep 2025
Global heating means annual drought losses across Europe could reach €17.5bn. Shipping and power generation are also being affected by low water levels.
Electric vehicle sales surge across EU as overall car market stalls
29 Sep 2025
Battery-electric and hybrid models are gaining ground in the EU, while diesel and petrol car sales continue to lose momentum.
EU proposes delaying anti-deforestation law, again
25 Sep 2025
The European Commission has proposed pushing back the European Union Deforestation Regulation for another year, to December 2026, citing concerns that its IT system is not yet ready to handle the demands that the regulation would place on it.
Climate change tripled death toll from European heatwaves this summer, study says
25 Sep 2025
Experts say just a few degrees of extra heat can be the difference between life and death for thousands of people.
EU set to miss UN deadline for new target under Paris climate accord
19 Sep 2025
The delay is intended to allow countries more time to agree to an ambitious goal.
“It’s by stealth, isn’t it?” The multi-million dollar effort by Australian fossil fuel companies to get into schools
Thu 16 Jul 2026
Australian oil, gas and coal companies want to get into school to shape what kids learn about their industry and climate change. One group has been trying to map the scale of the problem.
Trump blames Canada for wildfire smoke affecting US
Tue 21 Jul 2026
A series of Republican “leaders” have started producing angry denunciations of Canada for polluting America’s air with their "thoughtless" fires.
China warming faster than global average as extreme weather intensifies, report says
6 Jul 2026
China is warming faster than the global average, while extreme heat, heavy rainfall and other severe weather events are becoming more frequent and intense as climate change accelerates worldwide.
UK's Burnham to maintain ban on North Sea exploration licences
Tue 21 Jul 2026
Andy Burnham will stick to Labour’s contentious ban on new exploration licences in the North Sea, dashing oil and gas industry hopes for a radical change in government policy towards fossil fuels.
Ontario seeks federal support for evacuations as wildfires devastate remote Canadian towns
Mon 20 Jul 2026
Ontario requested federal assistance to evacuate people from remote northern Canadian communities ravaged by wildfires on Thursday, as smoke brought poor air quality to Toronto and much of the Northeastern U.S.
India is adding biofuels to petrol – but many drivers are unhappy
Thu 16 Jul 2026
India's decision to increase the share of biofuels blended with petrol is facing ire from motorists who question its viability in a market where a majority of vehicles are not yet designed for it.
‘Those blocking climate science are not our friends': Pacific leaders warn at Bonn talks
23 Jun 2026
Pacific nations and civil society groups have united at UN climate talks, pushing back against efforts to weaken agreed language on global temperature limits as negotiations continue behind closed doors.
Antarctica’s west coast missing an area of sea ice the size of France as temperatures peak 20C above average
16 Jun 2026
A vast area of the Bellingshausen Sea should be covered by sea ice by now, with one expert calling the loss of ice ‘depressing’.
Africa secures $900 million in new clean cooking commitments
13 Jul 2026
African countries have secured $900 million in new financial commitments to expand access to clean cooking technologies, which replace polluting fuels with cleaner alternatives, said the International Energy Agency.
Under Lula, Amazon deforestation falls to lowest level in a decade
14 Jul 2026
Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest has fallen to its lowest level in a decade during the first half of 2026, according to official government figures.
COP31 president says electrification is ‘surest way to protect citizens’
14 Jul 2026
Last month, COP31 president-designate Murat Kurum launched a target for 35% of the world’s final energy to come from electricity by 2035. In an interview with Carbon Brief, Kurum says that the target was not a political choice, but instead reflects the latest evidence on “what is needed to keep 1.5C within reach”.
