International: Asia
Coal is still king in Southeast Asia
10 Oct 2019
Not only will coal continue to be the dominant fuel source in power generation in Southeast Asia, its use will grow and peak in 2027 before slowing, according to a new study.
Can indonesia avoid a capital distaster?
6 Sep 2019
Indonesia will build a new capital city from scratch in a jungle-covered area with little to no infrastructure and it could be an environmental disaster.
Most Southeast Asia banks ignore climate crisis
27 Aug 2019
Most Southeast Asian banks are indifferent to climate change in their lending operations, a new report has found.
IKEA IDEA: Inspired firm aims to electrify a million boats
27 Aug 2019
A Singapore startup on a mission to replace a million polluting diesel-powered boats in Southeast Asia has been inspired by Ikea.
Singapore expects to pay $72b for climate peace of mind
21 Aug 2019
low-lying Singapore could spend $US72 billion or more over the next 50 to 100 years to adapt to climate change and rising sea levels, according to its prime minister.
Plastic, poverty and paradox ... the sad story of a great river
15 Aug 2019
India’s most sacred river is also its most polluted, with plastic a major culprit. Now moves are afoot to monitor the flow of rubbish and assess its link to poverty.
Southeast Asia drowning in electronic waste
7 Aug 2019
As awareness of the toxic fall-out of Southeast Asia's e-waste crisis grows, what's being done to defuse an environmental timebomb in the making?
At the garbage cafe, pay for your curry with plastic waste
31 Jul 2019
No money … no problem. Bring plastic waste and get a free curry at India's first “garbage café”.
Car craze brings gridlock and grumpiness to beaming Bhutan
26 Jul 2019
Booming car sales in Bhutan, famed for valuing Gross National Happiness over economic growth, are testing the good humour of the citizens.
Melting ice will hurt Southeast Asia
24 Jul 2019
Southeast Asia will be hardest hit by rising sea levels caused by melting and collapsing ice sheets.
Corruption and coal rule in Indonesia
16 Jul 2019
Prosecutors have indicted the head of a Indonesia's national power firm and other officials, raising hopes of a dirty energy clean-up.
Residents sue government over ‘world’s filthiest’ air
12 Jul 2019
A group of citizens is suing the Indonesian government, including the president, over the poor air quality in Jakarta, which in recent weeks has ranked as the worst in the world.
Leftover spy satellites reveal Himalayas melt
21 Jun 2019
US spy satellites that secretly kept watch over the Himalayas during the Cold War are helping researchers piece together the most detailed view yet of the region's accelerating ice loss.
Coal-dependent Japan sets neutral goal
14 Jun 2019
Heavy on tech, light on any plans to tackle its coal dependency, Japan has released its climate legislation.
Students must plant 10 trees to graduate
4 Jun 2019
The PhilippineS Senate has passed a law requiring all students to plant 10 trees in order to graduate.
Malaysia loses last male rhino
31 May 2019
The last male Sumatran rhino in Malaysia has died in a nature reserve on Borneo.
TREATED LIKE TRASH: Asians send back the West's rubbish
29 May 2019
South-east Asia has begun to push back against the deluge of plastic and electronic waste from the UK, US and Australia.
What is sustainable rubber?
23 May 2019
Rubber is one of the world’s most widely used materials, but irresponsible farming methods have led to deforestation and human rights abuses as the sector has grown.
Asian voters want environmental action
18 Apr 2019
Voters across Asia are most likely to usher in governments that take a stronger stance on climate change and other environmental issues, according to surveys released in the lead-up to national elections.
Melting ice exposing bodies of Mt Everest's missing climbers
25 Mar 2019
Melting glaciers on Mount Everest have begun exposing the bodies of climbers who died on the mountain.
Look what happened when they cleaned up this rubbish beach
21 Mar 2019
Baby-turtles have officially returned to Mumbai - and it's all because one of the world’s largest beach clean-up efforts.
Japanese investors back renewables
19 Mar 2019
Major Japanese investors, including those most indebted to coal, are seeking to back large-scale renewables projects across Asia, marking a “monumental” shift that energy market analysts say is “the start of the end for thermal coal”.
Two billion people dread the day the Himalaya ice cap fails
8 Feb 2019
At least a third of the huge ice fields in Asia’s towering Himalaya mountain chain are doomed to melt due to climate change with serious consequences for almost two billion people.
Toxic smog forces Bangkok to close schools
4 Feb 2019
Toxic smog has forced Bangkok authorities to issue an unprecedented order to shut nearly 450 schools as authorities struggled to manage a pollution crisis that has stirred widespread concern.
Bali will bill tourists for plastic pollution
1 Feb 2019
Bali has announced plans to implement a tourist tax which targets plastic pollution.
Vietnam milk boom leads to billions of cartons on beaches
12 Dec 2018
More than eight billion Tetra Paks are sold every year in Vietnam – and only a few percent are recycled. It’s having a devastating effect on the environment.
Asia's media ignores air pollution shocker
4 Dec 2018
It's a public health crisis that kills almost five million people in Asia every year. So why isn’t air pollution a bigger story?
Everest's glaciers sensitive to climate change
29 Nov 2018
It's not only glaciers in Greenland and Antarctica that are feeling the effects of a changing climate.
Gas demand spurs race to build tankers
28 Nov 2018
Busy shipyards along the coasts of South Korea, China and Japan are competing for lucrative contracts to build liquefied natural gas carriers.
Sweet taste of chocolate has turned sour for orangutans
15 Nov 2018
Cadbury chocolate maker Mondelçz International has destroyed more than 25,000 hectares of orangutan habitat in Indonesia, says a new report from Greenpeace.
ANGKOR'S END: Did floods speed the end of ancient city?
19 Oct 2018
A series of floods that hit the ancient city of Angkor would have overwhelmed and destroyed its vast water network, according to a new study that provides an explanation for the downfall of the world’s biggest pre-industrial city.
Palm oil giant vows to cut deforestation
9 Oct 2018
The world’s largest palm oil company has unveiled a plan to cut deforestation and labour abuses out of its supply chain within two years.
Pay more for your clothes, workers tell fashion brands
19 Sep 2018
Garment workers in Bangladesh have rejected an increase in the minimum wage, urging global brands to pay more for the clothes they buy.
Soggy Bangkok struggles to stay afloat
6 Sep 2018
As Bangkok hosts climate-change talks, the sprawling city of more than 10 million is itself under siege from the environment, with dire forecasts warning it could be partially submerged in just over a decade.
Overloaded Thailand bans import of e-waste
23 Aug 2018
Thailand, struggling to deal with overflowing waste deposits following China’s trash ban last year, will bar the import of 432 types of scrap electronics.
A river restored breathes new life into Kuala Lumpur
14 Aug 2018
Ridiculed at first, the project to clean up Kual Lumpur's Klang river is on track to be completed on time and below budget.
Unhappy with fish poachers? Blow them out of the water
10 Aug 2018
Indonesia is taking an explosive approach to illegal fishing ... and it's putting the industry back on a path to suistainability.
Japan eyes daylight savings time for 2020 Olympics
9 Aug 2018
Deadly heatwaves in Japan have caused government and Olympics officials to consider the benefits of adopting daylight savings time for the 2020 games to ensure athlete safety.
Philippines kills off green campaigners
1 Aug 2018
A shocking 48 killings of green campaigners were reported in the Philippines last year, which was the worst on record for activist murders globally.
Heat goes on in (already) steamy Sri Lanka
31 Jul 2018
Steamy Colombo is expected to be one of the South Asian cities hardest hit by temperature hikes linked to climate change.
Imran vows to green Pakistan by planting 10 billion trees
30 Jul 2018
Imran Khan has vowed to plant 10 billion trees in five years as prime minister of Pakistan.
Penang is drowning in its own development
30 Jul 2018
The Malaysian island of Penang is paying a heavy price for putting development above the environment.
Singapore battles addiction to plastic
20 Jul 2018
The average Singaporean uses an unconscionable 13 plastic bags a day. With its only landfill site fast filling up, what are consumers and businesses doing to defuse the nation's plastic waste timebomb?
Meet the man who paves highways with old plastic
12 Jul 2018
Chemistry professor Dr Rajagopalan Vasudevan, 73, wants us to know that repurposed plastic can be good for the environment.
India’s cheap cars fixation stalls EV dream
12 Jul 2018
India’s obsession with affordable small cars could delay the Narendra Modi government’s ambitious plan to only sell electric vehicles in the country by 2030.
Life's a toxic cocktail in the land of Genghis Khan
12 Jul 2018
The lifestyle of nomads in the ancient home of Genghis Khan and his Mongol horde is under threat as never before. Climate change, combined with local environment mismanagement, government neglect and the lure of the modern world, has created a toxic cocktail.
E-waste deluge turning Thailand into world's dump
2 Jul 2018
At a deserted factory outside Bangkok, skyscrapers made from vast blocks of crushed printers, Xbox components and TVs tower over black rivers of smashed-up computer screens.
Palm oil alternatives could be worse, experts warn
29 Jun 2018
The deforestation caused by palm oil is decimating species such as orangutans and tigers - but the alternatives could be worse, says a new report.
Use plastics in Mumbai and you could go to jail
27 Jun 2018
Mumbai has the become the largest Indian city to ban single-use plastics, with residents caught using bags, cups or bottles facing penalties of up to $NZ530 and three months in jail.
Newest development bank invests in coal
22 Jun 2018
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank is backing a coal-fired cement works in Myanmar through an intermediary, in a worrying sign for its climate credentials.
Tiny, lost and constipated: what a baby turtle told Australian scientists about warming seas
Fri 6 Mar 2026
The arrival of loggerheads in New South Wales shows these ‘sentinels of climate change’ are being forced into unknown territory.
The war in Iran shows us another cost of our fossil-fuel economy
Fri 6 Mar 2026
When people debate the cost of fossil fuels versus renewables, the conversation almost always centers on the price at the pump or the cost per kilowatt-hour on your electricity bill. That’s understandable — those are the costs you can see. But they’re not the whole story.
China sets cautious climate target as carbon deadline looms
Fri 6 Mar 2026
China, the world’s top polluter, set a cautious new climate target for the rest of the decade, frustrating hopes for tighter policy that would accelerate the nation’s work to curb emissions.
Spain defends EU’s flagship climate law against attacks from other capitals
Tue 3 Mar 2026
Spain has come to the defense of the European Union's bedrock climate law, with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez warning fellow European leaders against dismantling the embattled Emissions Trading System.
Nature loss could cost twice as much as the financial crash, leaked report reveals
Thu 5 Mar 2026
ITV News has seen a classified government intelligence report which appears to show some of the most worrying potential impacts of nature loss weren't disclosed to the public.
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.
World leaders invited to see Pacific climate destruction before COP31
Tue 3 Mar 2026
The leaders and climate ministers of governments around the world will be invited to meetings on the Pacific islands of Fiji, Palau and Tuvalu in the months leading up to the COP31 climate summit in November.
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.
Solar-powered truck charging gains ground on South Africa’s freight corridors
Wed 4 Mar 2026
Africa’s freight corridors, long dominated by diesel trucks and constrained by unreliable power grids, are emerging as a new frontier in the global shift toward clean logistics, with solar-powered charging hubs designed specifically for heavy-duty electric trucks.
Floods and landslides in Brazil kill at least 30 after record rainfall
26 Feb 2026
Three firefighters pulled a man’s body from the mud amid the rubble of houses swept away in a landslide in south-eastern Brazil, where 30 people died and 39 were still missing on Tuesday after torrential rains.
Half of nations meet UN deadline for nature-loss reporting
Wed 4 Mar 2026
Half of nations have met a UN deadline to report on how they are tackling nature loss within their borders, Carbon Brief analysis shows. This includes 11 of the 17 “megadiverse nations”, countries that account for 70% of Earth’s biodiversity.
