International: Asia
Asia is officially the most ‘disaster-prone’ region in the world
26 Apr 2024
Asia has to cope with more disasters than any other part of the world, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
Battling climate change, Japan looks to seagrass for carbon capture
26 Apr 2024
Some 100 volunteers gathered on a popular beach in the Japanese port city of Yokohama, wading in the shallows to plant strands of light-green eelgrass on the seabed.
How can India hold elections when it’s too hot to vote?
24 Apr 2024
Sweltering heat is keeping some voters away. Changing the system is a risk worth taking.
Climate change is political and we must treat it that way
22 Apr 2024
OPINION: Global warming is still far from being an election issue — and therein lies the problem.
Death toll from four days of rains rises to 63 in Pakistan with more rain on the forecast
19 Apr 2024
The heaviest downpour in decades flooded villages on Pakistan’s southwestern coast. Flash floods have also killed dozens of people in neighbouring Afghanistan.
Japan considers 66% emissions cuts by 2035 in new energy plan, report says
18 Apr 2024
Japan will consider slashing emissions by 66 per cent by fiscal year 2035, from 2013 levels, as the nation kicks off a review of its energy mix strategy.
Don’t forget women in new UN climate fund, policymakers urged
15 Apr 2024
At home on a flood-prone island in northern Bangladesh, Ms Mosammat Shahina and her family take refuge from frequent inundations on a boat, causing upheaval that adds to her domestic workload.
India’s supreme court expands ‘right to life’ to include protection against climate change
11 Apr 2024
In another landmark climate decision, the Supreme Court of India has ruled that an individual’s “right to life” includes protection against the impacts of climate change.
Climate disasters decimate Mongolian livestock
10 Apr 2024
Millions of livestock have perished as climate change exacerbates impacts of extreme winter weather in Mongolia, crippling nomadic communities that rely on the animals for income and threatening wider economic damage.
A coal billionaire is building the world’s biggest clean energy plant
28 Mar 2024
Five times the size of Paris. Visible from space. The world’s biggest energy plant. Enough electricity to power Switzerland.
India calls for $1 trillion per year climate finance from next year, submits its proposal to the UNFCCC
15 Mar 2024
India in its latest submission to the UN climate body has called for developed countries to provide “at least” $1 trillion per year in climate finance to developing countries from 2025.
New report details rights abuses in Cambodia’s Southern Cardamom REDD+ project
14 Mar 2024
Human Rights Watch has detailed forced evictions, property destruction and violence against Indigenous communities living within a REDD+ carbon offset project area in southwest Cambodia.
Climate change pushes Malaysia’s coastal fishermen away from the sea
11 Mar 2024
On an overcast morning six years ago, Mohammad Ridhwan Mohd Yazid was on his way back to Malaysia’s southern Johor coast when his small fishing boat was caught in a sudden storm.
Toyota is hitting the gas on hybrids as EV sales cool. But what does that mean for the planet?
11 Mar 2024
It was just over a year ago that Toyota appeared to acknowledge it had dropped the ball on electric vehicles.
Qatar announces new gas field expansion
27 Feb 2024
Qatar has announced new plans to expand output from the world’s biggest natural gas field, saying it will boost capacity to 142 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) before 2030.
Climate change-fueled winter extremes put 90% of this country at 'high risk'
26 Feb 2024
So far this year upward of 2 million livestock animals have died, according to official statistics.
Kazakhstan: Methane mega-leak went on for months
19 Feb 2024
An estimated 127,000 tonnes of methane escaped when a blowout started a fire that raged for over six months last year at a remote well in Kazakhstan.
India will be world's biggest oil demand growth driver through 2030, IEA says
9 Feb 2024
India is expected to be the largest driver of global oil demand growth between 2023 and 2030, narrowly taking the lead from top importer China.
Saudi Arabia ditches plan to raise oil production
1 Feb 2024
World’s biggest exporter says it will no longer seek to increase output to 13mn barrels a day.
Climate change in South China Sea will impact global weather: experts
25 Jan 2024
The impact of climate change in the South China Sea and its surrounding areas on the local and global weather system could be “profound,” new scientific research has found.
Bangladeshi farmers eye drought-resistant tree as a climate and economic solution
25 Jan 2024
Farmers in Bangladesh are increasingly turning to the fast-growing, drought-resistant moringa tree, which is indigenous to South Asian nations.
Fiscal reforms needed to address global problems like climate change and ageing
24 Jan 2024
The world needs to cut high levels of debt and raise tax revenues to deal with challenges such as climate change and rapid ageing in developed countries, said Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam.
Bottom trawling is kicking up tons of carbon dioxide
23 Jan 2024
Your shrimp cocktail comes with a side of carbon dioxide, according to scientists who have for the first time quantified greenhouse emissions caused by a destructive fishing technique known as bottom trawling.
Here’s why climate change in Afghanistan has global repercussions
13 Dec 2023
Severe droughts are exacerbating Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis, but funding for climate change adaptation is frozen.
Iraqis displaced by climate change fall into poverty
23 Nov 2023
In a country of 43 million people, nearly one Iraqi in five lives in an area suffering from water shortages.
The reappearing forests of West Bengal
15 Nov 2023
The trees in this corner of India vanished decades ago, leaving heat waves and drought. What happened when they returned proves the healing power of reforestation.
Bangladesh cyclone forces nearly 275,000 to evacuate
27 Oct 2023
Cyclone Hamoon, the latest of the numerous and deadly weather events affecting the country and creating climate refugees, has killed at least 2 and left at least 10 injured.
Over a year after Pakistan floods, survivors battle climate anxiety
25 Oct 2023
Climate anxiety among the flood-affected communities across the South Asian nation has failed to make headlines.
Carbon pricing efforts accelerate in Asia
20 Oct 2023
Asia is emerging as the key catalyst for growth in carbon trading, though the region’s markets currently cover only a fraction of emissions that account for half the world’s total.
Tokyo Stock Exchange begins trade in carbon credits
12 Oct 2023
Japan's Tokyo Stock Exchange started trading carbon credits on Wednesday, as the world's fifth-largest carbon dioxide emitter put in place a key element of its strategy to tackle climate change.
How the tiny island city-state of Singapore fights rising sea levels
11 Oct 2023
During a half-century of independence, Singapore has fought to expand its territory, inch by hard-won inch.
Peace has not stopped Afghanistan’s depopulation
10 Oct 2023
Climate change is bringing about more devastation, forcing more Afghans to flee. Deportations from neighbouring countries will not stop them.
Glacial lake bursts in India leaving 100 missing and 14 dead
6 Oct 2023
More than 100 people are missing in India’s northeast after heavy rain caused a glacial lake to burst, leading to flash floods which ripped through the Himalayan state of Sikkim.
Vietnamese climate activist jailed in ‘unjust’ government crackdown
2 Oct 2023
Five environmentalists have been jailed in the last two years, while the government works on a clean energy partnership with rich nations.
How climate change threatens some of the world’s most coveted real estate
26 Sep 2023
Until recently, the upscale homes of the Redhill Peninsula seemed like an oasis for rich Hong Kongers aspiring to a tranquil lifestyle in an otherwise notoriously cramped metropolis of 7.5 million.
Court ruling spares Papua forest from further clearing for palm oil
15 Sep 2023
An Indonesian court has upheld a government decision to curb the expansion of a multibillion-dollar oil palm plantation project in the country’s easternmost region of Papua.
India launches global biofuel alliance at G20
12 Sep 2023
India has announced the launch of a global biofuel alliance at a G20 summit in New Delhi to boost the use of cleaner fuels.
India steps up coal use amid unusually dry weather
7 Sep 2023
India stepped up the use of coal to generate electricity in a bid to stop outages caused by lower hydroelectricity output, and as renewables struggle to keep pace with record power demand.
Pakistan faced with deep-rooted energy crisis after catastrophic floods
6 Sep 2023
Pakistan is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change in the world. It is currently in the midst of a crippling energy and economic crisis that has brought it to the brink of bankruptcy.
Indonesia climate deal in $20bn gridlock as Vietnam, India on hold
6 Sep 2023
Last November, G20 leaders in Bali hailed what they said was a transformational climate change finance deal to help wean Indonesia off coal.
In a world of climate risks, Sri Lanka is finding ways to adapt
1 Sep 2023
In a landscape of interconnected and mutually compounding risks, climate change has emerged as a key risk factor for Sri Lanka, specifically for vulnerable sectors and groups.
First crops, now animals: Climate change hurts Bangladesh farmers
29 Aug 2023
Bangladeshi farmers are adapting to deal with worsening salinity and climate change, yet fears are growing for their livestock.
50% of Asia’s protein must be animal-free by 2060 to reach net zero
22 Aug 2023
Countries in Southeast Asia and Asia-Pacific must increase their alt-protein production by 2030 to help mitigate the climate crisis, as animal protein and its associated emissions must peak by the end of the decade, says a new report.
Indonesia’s $20bn energy transition plan continues increased decarbonisation focus
21 Aug 2023
Indonesia’s decarbonisation efforts are reflected in increasing mentions in company filings of renewable energy, climate change and the environment.
Over 50 killed in Indian Himalayas as rain triggers landslides
16 Aug 2023
Torrential rain in India's Himalayas triggered landslides over the weekend that have killed over 50 people, with the death toll expected to rise as more than 20 remain trapped or missing.
UN: South Asian children face highest level of heat in the world
10 Aug 2023
About 460 million children, about 76%, are exposed to extreme heat in South Asia, compared to a third of children globally, UNICEF said.
Turkey’s second highest glacier melts amid climate change
7 Aug 2023
The severe grip of global warming has tightened its hold on Cilo Mountain in Hakkari, the country's second-highest peak, causing glaciers to undergo a rapid and unsettling change.
India’s parliament clears contentious bill that seeks to amend forest act
4 Aug 2023
Hundreds of legal and environmental experts have flagged potentially damaging clauses in the bill that might endanger as much as 25% of India’s forest cover.
As extreme heat hits South Korea and Japan, death toll rises sharply
4 Aug 2023
The extreme weather sweeping across Asia has claimed more victims, with South Korea and Japan reporting deaths from the sweltering heat.
Heat wave forces shutdown in Iran
3 Aug 2023
The government claims the move is to safeguard the well-being of its citizens as soaring temperatures continue to pose health risks, though it raises questions as to the country's readiness for a crisis.
“Dirty and expensive:” City of Sydney bans gas as it votes to electrify all new big buildings
Thu 6 Nov 2025
The City of Sydney has followed the example of the ACT and Victoria governments and voted unanimously to require all newly built residential buildings, medium to large commercial buildings, hotels, and serviced apartment buildings, to be all-electric.
New York climate advocates celebrate Mamdani’s victory, prepare to hold him accountable
Fri 7 Nov 2025
For the first time in years, New York’s environmental justice advocates say they’ll be working with the city’s government – rather than against it.
Why climate change now threatens China’s future
Tue 4 Nov 2025
Extreme weather is hurting its economy and worrying its leaders.
EU ministers agree to 90% emissions reduction target
Fri 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.
How climate change worsens heatwaves, droughts, wildfires and floods
Thu 6 Nov 2025
Many extreme weather events are becoming more common and more intense around the world, fuelled by human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels.
Canada could eliminate oil and gas emissions cap, budget plan says
Thu 6 Nov 2025
Canada could scrap a cap on oil and gas emissions in favor of other measures like strengthened industrial carbon pricing and the deployment of carbon capture and storage technology, the government said in a budget plan unveiled on Tuesday.
Mystery heatwave warms Pacific Ocean to new record
21 Oct 2025
The waters of the north Pacific have had their warmest summer on record, according to BBC analysis of a mysterious marine heatwave that has confounded climate scientists.
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".
Nigerian billionaire plans expansion of Africa’s biggest oil refinery
31 Oct 2025
The billionaire owner of Africa’s largest refinery plans to expand its capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day to meet growing fuel needs in the continent and beyond.
Brazil’s Lula puts forward new vision for protecting the Amazon rainforest
Fri 7 Nov 2025
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva put forward his vision for how the Amazon rainforest should be protected, a future that didn’t depend on donations from wealthy nations and large philanthropies but instead included a major fund that paid countries to keep forests standing.
UN chief scolds nations for failing climate goals ahead of COP30 summit
Fri 7 Nov 2025
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres tore into nations for their failure to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, as Brazil hosted world leaders for a summit ahead of the COP30 climate conference in the rainforest city of Belem.
