Topics tagged with 'COP'
COP30’s biofuel gamble could cost the global food supply – and the planet
Fri 28 Nov 2025
What was once considered a climate holy grail comes with serious tradeoffs. The world wants more of it anyway.
Another COP wrecked by fossil fuel interests and our leaders’ cowardice – but there is another way
Thu 27 Nov 2025
COMMENT: The fingerprints of Russia and Saudi Arabia are all over the decision text in Brazil. But a group of nations led by Colombia and the Netherlands offer hope.
10 years after the Paris Agreement, world leaders are letting go of its most famous goal
Thu 27 Nov 2025
This year's U.N. climate negotiations crashed out on a hard truth: It’s all about the money.
This year’s climate talks saw real progress – just not on fossil fuels
Wed 26 Nov 2025
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva dubbed it the “COP of Truth”. Delegates did not shy away from the urgency of the moment as climate change intensifies and emissions continue to climb.
Experts dismiss coalition claims Chris Bowen cannot remain minister while leading COP31 negotiations
Wed 26 Nov 2025
Experts have dismissed claims Chris Bowen cannot remain a senior minister while playing a leading role in international climate negotiations, with one describing the argument as evidence of an Australian “culture cringe”.
Here’s what’s next in the fight to curb climate change, now that talks in Brazil have ended
Wed 26 Nov 2025
After an agreement from U.N. climate talks in the Amazon that fell short of many nations’ expectations, experts found some bright spots alongside weighty reasons for worry in the fight against global warming.
Minister warned over lack of rationale for climate policy
Tue 25 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ formal explanation of why the Government isn’t going to follow the independent Climate Change Commission’s advice on climate targets is still in the pipeline, the Minister has confirmed.
COP30: Summary and what it means for New Zealand
Tue 25 Nov 2025
Media release: Lawyers for Climate Action NZ | COP30 wrapped up over the weekend - the first COP since the International Court of Justice (ICJ) released its landmark Advisory Opinion on states’ obligations on climate change.
Simon Watts was right about Pacific climate support at COP30, now we must deliver
Tue 25 Nov 2025
Media release: Oxfam Aotearoa | At COP30 in Brazil, New Zealand has joined other higher-income countries in reaffirming their pledge to triple climate funding for lower-income countries by 2035.
UN warns world losing climate battle but fragile COP30 deal keeps up the fight
Tue 25 Nov 2025
Reaching agreement in divisive political landscape shows ‘climate cooperation is alive and kicking’, says UN climate chief.
There can be no information integrity without scientific and political integrity
Tue 25 Nov 2025
Opinion: I'm just back from COP30 in Belém and it is making me feel crazy to watch so many climate advocates and reporters declare the final text coming out of it a victory.
India, China step into leadership vacuum at climate meet as the West retreats
Tue 25 Nov 2025
With the US withdrawing from the Paris Agreement and Europe distracted by war-driven pressures, India and China have emerged as anchors at the Brazil climate summit by shaping climate finance and trade negotiations through coordinated positions.
COP30 in a multipolar world
Mon 24 Nov 2025
COMMENT: As the gavel comes down on the final negotiations at COP30, New Zealand seems to be heading for the sidelines of global transitions, increasing our dependency on imported solutions and neglecting the economic opportunities in generating our own, writes David Hall.
COP30 fails to land deal on fossil fuel transition but triples finance for climate adaptation
Mon 24 Nov 2025
Instead of a global agreement to create roadmaps to shift away from fossil fuels and end deforestation, Brazil announces voluntary initiatives.
Article 6 wraps up with progress in hand and challenges ahead
Mon 24 Nov 2025
At COP30 in Belém, negotiators made a delicate balancing act in the evolving world of global carbon markets. Amid the buzz of side meetings and plenary sessions, key decisions on Articles 6.2 and 6.4 revealed both progress and caution.
Five key takeaways from a deeply divisive climate summit
Mon 24 Nov 2025
In three decades of these meetings aimed at forging global consensus on how to prevent and deal with global warming, this will go down as among the most divisive.
Trump, war, absent media: five threats to climate progress that dogged COP30
Mon 24 Nov 2025
Did the talks succeed or fail? The verdict must take account of the geopolitical minefield they took place in.
Govt’s rejection of CCC’s advice on climate targets undermines independent watchdog’s role, says opposition
21 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s latest dismissal of Climate Change Commission advice shows they have their heads in the sand about the reality of meeting climate targets, according to the Labour Party, while the Greens say Government decisions were an embarrassment on the world stage at COP30 this week.
COP30 climate talks evacuated after fire breaks out
21 Nov 2025
The UN climate talks COP30 have been evacuated due to a fire breaking out inside the venue in Belém, Brazil.
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.
Pacific Islands rue lost chance to host COP climate summit
21 Nov 2025
Pacific islanders decried on Thursday a wasted chance to draw eyes to their climate troubles, after their bid to co-host next year's COP climate summit was brushed aside.
Early COP30 climate deal eludes Brazil, but Lula remains upbeat
21 Nov 2025
Brazil failed to land an early COP30 climate deal on Wednesday, though President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva remained upbeat about the prospects of progress in the last two days of the summit despite differences between nations on key issues.
Mounting emissions due to Government decisions
20 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Coalition Government’s climate policies have added a whopping 26 million tonnes of emissions out to 2030, according to new analysis of Government projections.
NZ and Iceland collaborate on geothermal energy
20 Nov 2025
Media release: New Zealand Government | New Zealand and Iceland today signed an agreement to deepen cooperation on geothermal energy development.
Climate Leaders Coalition launches next chapter
20 Nov 2025
Media release: Sustainable Business Council | The Climate Leaders Coalition (CLC) is this morning unveiling a new Statement of Ambition and refreshed Strategy, marking the next step in business-led climate action in New Zealand – just as COP30 concludes in Belém.
COP-and-trade? Tariffs, carbon tax weigh on climate talks
20 Nov 2025
Trade-restrictive measures loom large over this year's UN climate summit, with China pushing for wider market access for its green technologies and major developing economies challenging Europe over its new carbon border tax.
At COP30, focus on wildfire prevention amid record destruction
20 Nov 2025
With wildfires causing unprecedented damage, countries and organisations at COP30 agree to boost community-based prevention.
Artificial intelligence sparks debate at COP30 climate talks in Brazil
20 Nov 2025
At the U.N. climate talks in Brazil, artificial intelligence is being cast as both a hero worthy of praise and a villain that needs policing.
A landmark court ruling looms over US absence at COP30
20 Nov 2025
The historic climate change advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice suggests the United States is violating international law on climate, legal experts say.
China’s top envoy blasts EU climate goals and Trump’s ‘bad example’
20 Nov 2025
The European Union’s new pollution-cutting targets are insufficient, China’s climate envoy told POLITICO on the sidelines of this year’s COP30 conference while also condemning the “bad example” set by the absent United States.
It’s crunch time for the Forest COP – will we let them burn?
20 Nov 2025
We must sustain the momentum on forest finance and a roadmap to secure their future at COP30.
NZ drops in global climate rankings as govt 'propels country backwards'
19 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand has fallen to 44th place in global climate rankings, with the country’s climate policy rated “very low” amid widespread rollbacks of environmental protections.
‘We must keep 1.5 alive’ – Minister’s statement to climate summit
19 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts has delivered New Zealand’s National Statement to this year’s United Nations climate summit, affirming the country’s commitment to international climate targets and saying “we must keep 1.5 alive.”
Ministers urge decisive methane action as global report shows progress, warns of gaps
19 Nov 2025
Media release: UN Environment Programme | The Global Methane Status Report, launched on the sidelines of COP30 in Belém, shows that while considerable progress has been made since the launch of the Global Methane Pledge in 2021, more work is required to align with the level of ambition and action needed to meet the Pledge.
Brazil releases draft text and letter to accelerate COP30 climate negotiations
19 Nov 2025
With a direct letter sent to nations and a draft text released Tuesday, host country Brazil is shifting the U.N. climate conference into a higher gear.
Clamour for change inside the world's COP30 climate negotiations
19 Nov 2025
An existential question hangs over this year's COP30 summit in Brazil: what are the annual U.N. climate negotiations really for?
Methane U-turn earns NZ ‘Fossil of the Day’ at COP30
18 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand has been handed an unwanted ‘Fossil of the Day’ award at COP30 in Brazil after the Government weakened its methane-reduction targets, drawing international criticism for backtracking on climate commitments and undermining global efforts to curb the potent greenhouse gas.
Nations hit by natural disasters tell ministers at climate talks to act
18 Nov 2025
Battered by last month’s ferocious climate-fueled hurricane, Jamaica joined other small island nations and impoverished countries at Monday’s United Nations climate talks to implore the rest of the world to stop talking and start acting. Their message: Our lives are on the line.
Thousands march outside COP30 summit in call for action
18 Nov 2025
Marching to the beat of pounding sound systems, thousands of climate protesters have been bringing their message to the gates of the COP30 climate talks in Brazil.
Australia rejects offer to co-host UN climate summit with Turkey
18 Nov 2025
Australia rejected on Monday Turkey's offer to co-host next year's UN climate summit, which Canberra is pushing to take place in the city of Adelaide.
Brazilian lawmakers seek to decimate green laws one week after hosting climate summit
18 Nov 2025
Changes would damage President Lula’s efforts to cast Brazil as an environmental leader.
Fossil fuel lobbyists outnumber all COP30 delegations except Brazil, report says
17 Nov 2025
One in every 25 participants at 2025 UN climate summit is a fossil fuel lobbyist, according to Kick Big Polluters Out.
A fossil fuel fight brews at COP30 as delegates draft road map
17 Nov 2025
Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva surprised many at the opening ceremony of the COP30 leaders summit in Belém last week when he called for world leaders to prepare a road map to “overcome dependence on fossil fuels.”
Despite record turnout, only 14% of Indigenous Brazilians are expected to access decision-making spaces at Cop30
17 Nov 2025
The Coalition of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB) estimates 2,500 Indigenous people from across Brazil have gathered in Belém. Leaders are demanding a bigger role in the negotiations and the inclusion of land demarcation as climate policy.
Media round-up
14 Nov 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: Simon Watts acknowledges he may face ‘challenging’ conversations with Pacific nations at COP30, New Zealand's climbdown on its methane emissions target is "embarrassing", and corporates are the real winners of the gutting of the Zero Carbon Act this week.
Australia's green energy push, Pacific ties face setback from COP31 impasse
14 Nov 2025
Australia risks undermining efforts to establish itself as a leader in the green energy transition and letting down its vulnerable Pacific island neighbours if its bid to host next year's biggest climate summit fails, diplomats and analysts say.
COP30: Brazil tries to find a home for tricky issues
14 Nov 2025
Brazil is trying to craft a compromise package on several contentious issues and has dismissed the idea of a roadmap away from fossil fuels.
NZ backs international government push for high-integrity carbon markets
13 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand has joined a coalition of governments aiming to strengthen corporate demand for voluntary carbon credits.
Ethiopia set to host UN's 2027 climate summit, 2026 undecided
13 Nov 2025
Uncertainty still surrounds which country will host next year's UN climate conference: Australia or Turkey. But for 2027, there's little mystery: it will almost certainly be Ethiopia, an African diplomatic powerhouse.
Protesters and UN security clash at climate summit in Brazil
13 Nov 2025
Activist groups and United Nations security clashed in chaotic scenes late Tuesday after protesters appeared to force their way into the COP30 climate conference venue, in the most serious act of unrest seen in years inside one of the annual gatherings.
Govt slashes environmental funding by $1 billion
Tue 25 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Central government funding for the environment is set to fall by a quarter in 2025/26, prompting warnings that hard-won environmental improvements may now stall or reverse.
Govt's emissions ‘buffer’ an illusion with all NZ's carbon budgets off track
Fri 28 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Dr Christina Hood, head of consultancy Compass Climate, says the Government’s claim that New Zealand has a comfortable emissions “buffer” to absorb higher agricultural pollution is misleading, with projections showing emissions budgets are actually set to be missed in real terms.
NZ’s government wants tourism to drive economic growth – but how will it deal with aviation emissions?
22 Oct 2025
By Robert McLachlan, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University | Following a brief dip during the COVID pandemic, aviation is back in a growth phase.
Air NZ inks deal for its first internationally verified carbon credits
9 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | Air New Zealand has committed to buying 8000 tonnes of carbon removals by 2030, in partnership with local native forest investment platform My Native Forest.
Wilding pines threaten Kaikōura ranges in ‘looming catastrophe’
Thu 27 Nov 2025
Kira Carrington, Local Democracy Reporter | Wilding pines are threatening to make their way into the Kaikōura ranges, as their rampant spread sparks a renewed call for more central government funding.
Govt launches strategy backing wood-based heat sector
23 Oct 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Forestry biomass could replace as much as 40% of fossil fuel-generated process heat by 2050, but access to supply, regulatory settings and business cases for converting to wood-based heat sources are required, the Government says in a series of documents released yesterday.
Marex invests in methane-busting biotech, hopes to kickstart NZ methane credits
Thu 27 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | NASDAQ-listed financial services group Marex has taken a minority stake in Ruminant Biotech, an Auckland-based agritech startup, with a view to kick-starting Marex’s methane-based carbon credits trading business in New Zealand.
The carbon capture plan turning cattle farms into power plants
Fri 28 Nov 2025
The Frontier coalition is backing new technology that produces green electricity from biogas, while capturing waste carbon.
Elevated volatility continues for carbon market despite govt reassurances
Wed 26 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | While carbon prices have recovered somewhat from recent lows, the market is still plagued by low prices and volatility, despite soothing words from the government intended to calm rattled participants.
Media round-up
Fri 28 Nov 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: How the oil and gas industry helped rewrite New Zealand’s drilling rules, confusion reigns as the climate minister appears unaware of his own announcement, and the fierce battle over mining on Denniston Plateau.
Investors must support positive climate-tech
Fri 28 Nov 2025
OPINION: We need better leadership than the current ‘climate opportunism’ that is rife in the Beehive, and we need to back a marketplace that will make it happen, writes Rob Campbell.
$235 billion worth of NZ buildings exposed to flooding
30 Oct 2025
More than 750,000 New Zealanders live in locations exposed to one-in-100-year floods, according to a nationwide study which shows escalating flood risk.
Govt must do the work to close gap to NZ’s Paris Agreement goal
Thu 27 Nov 2025
OPINION: New Zealand needs to wake up to the fact that under current policies we are not going to meet our international climate target and this comes with commercial and diplomatic consequences: risking our European and UK free trade agreements; risking carbon border charges; and threatening the reputation of our ‘clean and green’ export brand, writes Nigel Brunel.
‘Highly uncertain’ ETS hampers Genesis biomass plans
Fri 28 Nov 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | “Highly uncertain” New Zealand carbon prices and market settings are identified as a commercial threat by Genesis Energy to its planned use of biomass to replace coal and gas at its Huntly power station by 2028.
DOC trims costs and winds down jobs for nature
10 Nov 2025
The Department of Conservation (DOC) is entering a new phase of tighter budgets and structural change as it winds down the pandemic-era Jobs for Nature programme and reshapes its operations to absorb long-term cost pressures.
Floods in Thailand, Malaysia kill over 30, displace thousands
Thu 27 Nov 2025
Tens of thousands of people in Thailand and neighbouring Malaysia were displaced by widespread flooding, with streets submerged, homes inundated and at least 34 dead.
NZ marine heatwaves could double in intensity under high-emissions pathway
16 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New projections show marine heatwaves will grow more intense around the North Island and more frequent around the South Island as the climate warms – raising risks for fisheries, aquaculture, coastal ecosystems and tourism.
Foresters warn ETS reforms could fell innovation
17 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Elizabeth Heeg, chief executive officer for the Forest Owners Association, says forestry must not be stripped from the Emissions Trading Scheme, arguing that carbon income underpins forest management and rural resilience.
Cheaper power and lower emissions for Chatham Islands funded by ETS revenue
Wed 26 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government has hailed the success of a wind turbine project for the Chatham Islands paid for by Emissions Trading Scheme revenue from a fund the Coalition Government has since canned.
RMA to speed up fossil fuel consents
18 Aug 2025
By Liz Kivi | An energy lobby group has welcomed a last-minute amendment to the RMA that puts fossil fuels on the same footing as renewables, however a sustainable energy expert says the move “beggars belief.”
European Investment Bank pledges over 2 billion euros for African renewables projects
Wed 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.
Govt’s rejection of CCC’s advice on climate targets undermines independent watchdog’s role, says opposition
21 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s latest dismissal of Climate Change Commission advice shows they have their heads in the sand about the reality of meeting climate targets, according to the Labour Party, while the Greens say Government decisions were an embarrassment on the world stage at COP30 this week.
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.
Lake Onslow battery project set for revival?
29 Oct 2025
A newly formed private consortium has emerged with plans to finance and build the massive Lake Onslow pumped-hydro project, despite the coalition government’s decision to abandon the scheme.
Hiringa eyes green methanol plant near Whanganui
29 Jul 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Green hydrogen pioneer Hiringa Energy is deep in planning to develop an “eight-to-nine figure” methanol plant near Whanganui, using a combination of biomass and hydrogen produced using renewable energy.
Insurers welcome govt decision to keep NHC levy unchanged
21 Nov 2025
Media release |The Insurance Council of New Zealand | Te Kāhui Inihua o Aotearoa (ICNZ) has welcomed the Government’s decision to leave the Natural Hazards Commission levy unchanged, amid ongoing concerns around the cost-of-living.
Why I’m not outraged at the Govt’s latest climate backsliding
7 Nov 2025
COMMENT: The Government’s latest climate rollbacks underline New Zealand’s long history of a lack of genuine desire to cut emissions, writes Geoff Bertram.
Minister warned over lack of rationale for climate policy
Tue 25 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ formal explanation of why the Government isn’t going to follow the independent Climate Change Commission’s advice on climate targets is still in the pipeline, the Minister has confirmed.
NZ fails to back ‘roadmap’ to phase out fossil fuels at COP
Mon 24 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Eighty-six countries including Australia, the UK, Germany, and Ireland backed a proposal at COP30 for national plans on how to quit oil, gas and coal – but New Zealand wasn’t one of them.
Greens put miners ‘on notice’, pledge to revoke fast-track approvals
18 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Greens have pledged to revoke fast-track consents for coal, hard-rock gold, and seabed mining projects if elected to government next year.
NZ's latest climate target 'weak' – Climate Action Tracker
24 Jun 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | New Zealand's new international climate target to 2035 is weak, and could even allow for higher emissions than the 2030 target, according to a global scientific project that tracks government climate action.
‘We must keep 1.5 alive’ – Minister’s statement to climate summit
19 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts has delivered New Zealand’s National Statement to this year’s United Nations climate summit, affirming the country’s commitment to international climate targets and saying “we must keep 1.5 alive.”
Carbon Finance Program upscales efforts to close climate investment gap in climate vulnerable nations
22 Oct 2025
Media release | The Climate Vulnerable Forum and its V20 Finance Ministers (CVF-V20) will work with the Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI) to upscale the Carbon Finance Program in reach and impact, supporting more climate-vulnerable countries to host high-integrity carbon projects that yield tangible climate, nature, and sustainable development benefits.
Lobby group launches ‘blueprint’ for ocean management reform
18 Sep 2025
The Environmental Defence Society yesterday released its plan to tackle widespread ecological decline in our oceans.
Local council shakeup will weaken environmental protection, say critics
Wed 26 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Government’s sweeping overhaul of local councils threatens to erode hard-won environmental protections, warning that stripping regional councils of directly elected governance will weaken oversight of freshwater, biodiversity and land-use decisions.
Thousands march outside COP30 summit in call for action
18 Nov 2025
Marching to the beat of pounding sound systems, thousands of climate protesters have been bringing their message to the gates of the COP30 climate talks in Brazil.
Straterra has a new name: the New Zealand Minerals Council
16 Apr 2025
Media release | Straterra has been renamed as New Zealand Minerals Council, says chief executive Josie Vidal.
Climate and carbon-removal researcher takes top honours at scientists' awards
Thu 27 Nov 2025
Dr Terry Isson has received the prestigious Beatrice Hill Tinsley Medal for research that is reshaping global understanding of Earth’s climate system and driving real-world carbon-removal solutions.
Solar households to get little-noticed tax break
23 Sep 2025
A provision in the government’s latest tax bill would exempt households from paying tax on income they earn by selling excess electricity back to the grid.
Artificial intelligence sparks debate at COP30 climate talks in Brazil
20 Nov 2025
At the U.N. climate talks in Brazil, artificial intelligence is being cast as both a hero worthy of praise and a villain that needs policing.
Last minute change to oil and gas legislation over cleanup costs
31 Jul 2025
By Liz Kivi | The government is expected to repeal the oil and gas ban today, with a last-minute amendment handing discretionary power to two ministers over the controversial issue of decommissioning.
Singapore sets course for 'green' methanol ship fuel supplies
Wed 26 Nov 2025
Singapore will start issuing bunkering licences next year to companies supplying methanol as marine fuel, in an effort to help global shipping cut carbon emissions.
10 years after the Paris Agreement, world leaders are letting go of its most famous goal
Thu 27 Nov 2025
This year's U.N. climate negotiations crashed out on a hard truth: It’s all about the money.
Kaicycle celebrates ten years of collective climate action in Pōneke
14 Nov 2025
Media release: Kaicycle | Since 2015, Kaicycle has grown from a humble pilot project growing kai and collecting compost on bicycles into the thriving urban farm and composting hub that Wellingtonians know and love.
Study provides a step-change in understanding NZ’s groundwater
Fri 28 Nov 2025
Media release | Earth Sciences New Zealand has developed a world-first National Groundwater Age Map and a powerful suite of tools to support the sustainable management of our hidden groundwater resources, from national through to local scales.
Amid the ashes
Wed 26 Nov 2025
This year the LA wildfire came for my hometown. What happened next is a warning for us all.
NZ’s energy system at a crossroads – report
21 Nov 2025
A new report says New Zealand’s rapid shift toward a 95% renewable electricity system is at a critical turning point, urging faster consenting, stronger firming solutions and better grid planning.
