Topics tagged with 'United Nations'
Last month was one of the warmest Julys on record, says UN
11 Aug 2022
Last month marked one of the three hottest Julys ever recorded, with global temperatures measuring nearly half a degree Celsius above average, the United Nations’ weather agency has said
IMF calls for global guidelines on climate reporting
10 Aug 2022
Global guidelines on corporate climate reporting must fall in line with those in Europe and the US or investors could be hit by fragmented and inconsistent information, the European Central Bank and IMF have warned.
Climate change compensation fight brews ahead of COP27 summit
9 Aug 2022
Tensions are mounting ahead of this year’s U.N. climate summit as vulnerable countries ramp up demands for rich countries to pay compensation for losses inflicted on the world’s poorest people by climate change.
African climate diplomats reject African Union’s pro-gas stance for Cop27
5 Aug 2022
African climate negotiators have quashed a proposal by the African Union to promote gas as a bridge fuel for the continent at UN talks.
India approves climate plan with increased ambition, clarifying energy goals
4 Aug 2022
India’s cabinet has approved an updated national climate plan, cementing targets pledged by Narendra Modi in November, including a 2070 net zero goal and 45% reduction in emissions intensity by 2030.
Climate action calendar for COP27 published
3 Aug 2022
The incoming Presidency of COP27, together with the High-Level Champions and Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action, have published the calendar of the thematic programme of the UN Climate Change Conference COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, in November.
Rich nations still failing to honor $100B climate funding pledge: OECD
1 Aug 2022
Rich countries are still failing to fulfill their pledge to provide $100 billion for climate action in poorer nations, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said on Friday.
COP26 President to visit Fiji to continue momentum on climate action
27 Jul 2022
COP President Alok Sharma is in Fiji to see the impacts of climate change in the Pacific region. He will highlight the urgency for the biggest emitters to take action now and deliver the promise of the Glasgow Climate Pact signed by almost 200 countries at COP26.
How secretive methane leaks are driving climate change
20 Jul 2022
There is an open secret in the oil and gas industry and it is feeding the climate crisis.
Nature is in crisis. A UN report says short-sighted economics is to blame
15 Jul 2022
When governments make decisions, economic considerations often trump everything else — human well-being, social connections, the health of the environment. According to a new report from the United Nations, this imbalance is driving the global biodiversity crisis and the human suffering associated with it.
Pacific Island Forum backs Vanuatu’s campaign for World Court climate case
12 Jul 2022
Foreign ministers attending the Pacific Island Forum in Fiji have endorsed Vanuatu’s call for a UN General Assembly resolution requesting the International Court of Justice hears a case on the responsibility of states to deal with climate change.
Should "ecocide" be added to the International Criminal Court's list of crimes?
12 Jul 2022
A law professor from Queen Mary University in London has called a proposal to make “ecocide” the fifth international crime the “most credible and advanced” effort to date to expand the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
Voices from Vanuatu: life on the climate crisis frontline
6 Jul 2022
Vanuatu is at the front line of the fight against climate change. This low-lying chain of 80 islands strung across the ocean, with a population of just under 300,000, is the world’s most at-risk country for natural disasters, as measured by the UN World Risk Report 2021.
Bonn climate talks end with ‘almost empty pages’
28 Jun 2022
“Kicking the can”, “pointing fingers”, and “divorced from climate impacts” were descriptions used by observers to describe progress at the latest round of global climate talks in Germany.
Ibrahim Thiaw appointed interim UN Climate Change head
22 Jun 2022
The head of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification will head UN Climate Change from 17 July and until a permanent replacement to Patrica Espinosa is found.
Rich nations hit brakes on climate aid to poor at UN talks
20 Jun 2022
Rich countries including the European Union and the United States have pushed back against efforts to put financial help for poor nations suffering the devastating effects of global warming firmly on the agenda for this year’s U.N. climate summit.
Bonn talks end in acrimony over compensation
17 Jun 2022
Two weeks of climate talks in Germany have ended in acrimony between rich and poor countries over cash for climate damage.
Albanese locks in Australia’s higher 2030 emissions reduction target
17 Jun 2022
Prime minister Anthony Albanese has formally committed Australia to a stronger 2030 emissions reduction target, to cut emissions by 43 per cent by the end of the decade.
‘Delusional’: UN chief slams new fossil fuel funding and warns of climate chaos
16 Jun 2022
The U.N. Secretary General has slammed new funding for fossil fuel exploration, describing it as “delusional” and calling for an abandonment of fossil fuel finance.
Fifty years after UN's Stockholm Environment Conference vision of a "healthy planet" no closer
13 Jun 2022
Diplomats from countries around the world gathered here last week to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment—the meeting that made the environment a prominent international issue.
Vulnerable nations demand funding for climate losses, fearing UN 'talk shop'
10 Jun 2022
Developing countries are losing wealth as they are hit by extreme weather and rising seas, says V20, amid calls for a new fund to direct money to repair the damage fast
On the road to COP27: Climate negotiations in Bonn
10 Jun 2022
COP27 will take place in Egypt this November. Some 4000 delegates are currently meeting in Bonn to prepare the conference. What are the intersessional negotiations? What is on the agenda? What role does the UN city Bonn play?
Alok Sharma in running to be UN’s global climate chief
9 Jun 2022
Alok Sharma, the UK cabinet minister who led last year’s Cop26 climate summit, is in the running to be the UN’s global climate chief, at a crucial time for international action on greenhouse gas emissions.
Bonn climate conference: World is "cooked" if we carry on with coal: US
7 Jun 2022
The US envoy on climate change John Kerry has warned that the war in Ukraine must not be used as an excuse to prolong global reliance on coal.
Bonn climate change conference set to kick off next week
3 Jun 2022
Media Release - The upcoming Bonn Climate Change Conference (6-16 June) is set to kick off next week, designed to prepare for the UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) in November of this year.
Big tobacco’s big climate impact
2 Jun 2022
New data released by the World Health Organization point to the tobacco industry’s impact on the climate and call for more accountability in the industry.
The US has fallen way behind on climate goals
1 Jun 2022
The US is doing a pretty horrible job of following through on promises it’s made to tackle climate change, according to two separate new studies.
Millions of lives at stake amid unprecedented challenges: UN experts
31 May 2022
Media Release - Five decades after the world’s first conference to make the environment a major issue, UN human rights experts call on States to redouble efforts to protect the imperilled planet for current and future generations amid unprecedented challenges.
New challenges face the Bonn climate summit
30 May 2022
When the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change meets in the German city of Bonn in early June to review worldwide progress in the battle against this growing threat, it will be hard pressed to find any advance at all.
Island states back Vanuatu’s quest for climate justice at the UN
25 May 2022
Pacific and Caribbean nations have joined Vanuatu in calling for an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on countries’ legal obligations to protect people from climate harm.
Four key measures of climate change set records in 2021
19 May 2022
Four key measures of climate change hit record highs last year, the United Nations said yesterday.
Climate goes missing in action in Russia’s war
13 May 2022
Making big promises at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow was hard; six months later, governments are finding out that actually following through on them is even harder.
A mangrove revolution: How Egypt is prioritising climate projects in the run-up to COP27
3 May 2022
Forty-eight-year-old Abu el-Hassan Saleh spent a lot of his childhood in his Red Sea home village of Al-Quweh, exploring the lush strips of mangroves that covered, at the time, swathes of Egypt’s expansive coastline.
This is what the world’s first floating city will look like
2 May 2022
The world’s first prototype floating city that adapts to sea level rise has just been unveiled at UN headquarters in New York.
IMF expects 'significant' pledges for new climate, pandemics trust
19 Apr 2022
The International Monetary Fund expects to members to make "significant" pledges of support for its newly approved Resilience and Sustainability Trust during the IMF-World Bank spring meetings beginning this week, a senior IMF official said.
COP26 promises will hold warming under 2C
14 Apr 2022
The carbon-cutting promises made at COP26 would see the world warm by just under 2C this century, according to a new analysis.
Seven new oil and gas projects approved since IPCC report called for an end to fossil fuels
14 Apr 2022
It’s “now or never,” said the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It called on governments to start staving off emissions to save the planet from irreversible climate disaster.
Covid stalls NZ's GHG emissions
12 Apr 2022
The COVID-19 pandemic has achieved what politicians have failed to do for decades: stall the growth in New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions.
IPCC scientists report five ways to save the planet
6 Apr 2022
The dangers of climate change have been well reported for years. But what's had less attention is how the world could effectively tackle the issue.
Carbon removal ‘unavoidable’ as climate dangers grow: IPCC
6 Apr 2022
Removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is essential to meet the Paris Agreement’s looming climate targets, according to a major report from the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Kiwi climate expert says civil disobedience not enough
5 Apr 2022
Massey University's Professor Bruce Glavovic, a former IPCC lead author, says a campaign of civil disobedience being waged by scientists around the world demanding urgent action on climate change doesn’t go far enough. “It’s necessary but not sufficient.”
World has its best chance yet to slash emissions – if it seizes the opportunity: IPCC
5 Apr 2022
The world has its best chance yet to reduce greenhouse gas emissions quickly, but hard and fast cuts are needed across all sectors and nations to hold warming to safe levels, the global authority on climate change says.
The UN's 10,000-page red alert on climate change
5 Apr 2022
Accelerating global warming is driving a rising tide of impacts that could cause profound human misery and ecological disaster, and there is only one way to avoid catastrophe: drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Scientists race to finish key IPCC report
4 Apr 2022
UN scientists have worked through the weekend to complete a key report on how to restrict the greenhouse gases that are warming the planet.
UN asks NZ’s Rod Carr to join major global group
1 Apr 2022
Media Release - The UN’s secretary general António Guterres has asked New Zealand’s Dr Rod Carr to join an elite world group to look into climate change issues.
France fails to meet court deadline to get Paris climate deal objectives back on track
1 Apr 2022
With 10 days to go to the French presidential election, the government has just broken a deadline to realign itself with the Paris Climate Agreement objectives.
After US fails to pay its debt, UN’s flagship climate fund warns of austerity
31 Mar 2022
The head of the UN’s flagship climate fund has warned that it will have to reject emissions-cutting projects if its donors do not provide more resources.
Ukraine war accelerates climate emergencies in Horn of Africa
29 Mar 2022
In some parts of the region, famine is now not just a threat, it is waiting, says UNICEF's regional director for Eastern and Southern Africa Mohamed Fall.
World ‘sleepwalking’ to climate catastrophe: UN chief
22 Mar 2022
UN chief Antonio Guterres said on Monday the world is “sleepwalking to climate catastrophe”, with major economies allowing carbon pollution to increase when drastic cuts are needed.
IPCC scientists to examine carbon removal in key report
22 Mar 2022
UN scientists are likely to weigh up technology to remove CO2 from the atmosphere, as they gather to finalise a key report.
Media round-up
Fri 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.
Methane U-turn earns New Zealand ‘Fossil of the Day’ at COP30
Today 12:00pm
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.
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.
NZ’s shameful new role as ‘international climate pariah’
Thu 13 Nov 2025
OPINION: New Zealand has ratcheted up its climate backsliding in the past month – losing any shred of climate credibility we once had and showing the world we’re giving up on a net zero future, writes Kayla Kingdon-Bebb.
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.
Words fail to calm carbon price jitters
Today 12:00pm
While the Climate Change Minister and the Ministry for the Environment have both tried to quell carbon market volatility with soothing words, participants are viewing government actions as speaking louder, and the market remains volatile.
Nations hit by natural disasters tell ministers at climate talks to act
Today 12:00pm
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.
Ministry won’t investigate pre-announcement price drop
Mon 17 Nov 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Ministry for the Environment won’t be investigating a drop in the price of NZUs on the secondary market just days before the government announced a policy change causing carbon prices to plummet.
Act-NZ First split over future of the energy sector
Fri 14 Nov 2025
Act leader David Seymour has set out an energy policy platform that diverges sharply from coalition partner NZ First, arguing New Zealand must accept coal-fired backup generation, consider nuclear power, remove political interference from the electricity sector and sell down the government’s majority stakes in the gentailers.
'Little to be hopeful about' – NZ scientists caution ahead of COP30
31 Oct 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Record heat, worsening climate impacts and global backsliding on emission reduction commitments have left some New Zealand climate experts with little optimism as COP30 approaches.
$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.
Thousands march outside COP30 summit in call for action
Today 12:00pm
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.
ETS price spike fears drove NDC decoupling
Thu 13 Nov 2025
By Pattrick Smellie | Fears about the economic and fiscal costs of failure to buy enough offshore carbon credits to meet New Zealand’s Nationally Determined Contribution drove last week’s key climate change policy decision.
Clean energy could become a huge political winner
Wed 12 Nov 2025
Rising power bills quietly shaped this year’s races – and gave Democrats a new attack line on climate.
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.
Rural Wairarapa communities on climate change frontline
Mon 17 Nov 2025
By Sue Teodoro, Local Democracy Reporter | Droughts, long hot days, more pests and invasive plants and increasingly severe weather are all risks faced by the Wairarapa rural community, leaders heard this week.
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
Mon 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.
The hidden dangers in Canada’s oil and gas ambitions
Today 12:00pm
Premier of Alberta Danielle Smith thinks global demand for oil will grow to 2050, perhaps beyond, and the Alberta industry will be viable for a hundred years.
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.”
Oxfam urges NZ to renew climate funding as Pacific projects face closure
Wed 12 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Oxfam Aotearoa is calling on the Government to urgently renew New Zealand’s climate finance commitments, warning that vital projects supporting Pacific communities’ resilience are running out of funding.
Building resilient cities in a time of climate change
Thu 13 Nov 2025
Media release: Otago University | Local and international experts are meeting in Wellington this month to share their knowledge on creating healthier, more resilient cities in the face of the challenges posed by climate change.
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.
Media round-up
31 Oct 2025
In our round-up of climate coverage in local media: A controversial seabed mining project could lead to sediment flows knocking over rigs and damaging wind turbines; weather-related insurance claims climb; and is the government playing Russian Roulette with our future over methane targets?
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.
South Korean growers sue state power utility, blaming climate change for crop damage
Mon 17 Nov 2025
Five South Korean farmers recently sued the state utility Korea Electric Power Corporation and its power-generating subsidiaries, alleging that their reliance on coal and other fossil fuels has accelerated climate change and damaged their crops.
Nelson commuters urged to ditch car once a week
22 Oct 2025
By Max Frethey, Local Democracy Reporter | Nelson has a bold carbon emission reduction target and residents are being encouraged to leave the car at home one day a week to help meet it.
Greens put miners ‘on notice’, pledge to revoke fast-track approvals
Today 12:00pm
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.
A crucial system of ocean currents may be on course to collapse. This country just declared it a national security threat
Mon 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.
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.
Coastal roads in the climate spotlight
Fri 14 Nov 2025
By Sue Teodoro, Local Democracy Reporter | Vulnerable coastal roads across New Zealand, including in Masterton district, are coming under the spotlight as the Government works on a plan to address the cost of climate-related damage.
Protesters and UN security clash at climate summit in Brazil
Thu 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.
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.
Scotland's first wind farm 'supercharged' after upgrade
11 Nov 2025
Scotland's first commercial wind farm will be able to deliver five times more clean power than before after being upgraded.
New national dataset to unlock blue carbon potential in NZ’s coastal wetlands
Wed 12 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | The Ministry for the Environment and the Nature Conservancy have collaborated on a dataset to inform a framework to potentially include coastal wetlands into compliance and voluntary carbon credit schemes.
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.
AgriZero backs first nitrous oxide solution with $1.2m investment
6 Nov 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | A Kiwi ag-tech start-up developing a device for cows to wear to drastically cut nitrous oxide emissions has secured $1.2 million in government-industry funding.
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.
EV and hybrid sales soar in Australia as internal combustion cars fall below 70% market share for first time
Thu 13 Nov 2025
Data from peak motoring body shows battery-electric vehicles accounted for 9.7% of new cars sold in September quarter, the highest proportion on record.
Kaicycle celebrates ten years of collective climate action in Pōneke
Fri 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.
Climate impacts hit NZ with increasing wild weather
23 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | New Zealand is facing a triple whammy of climate impacts today, with severe winds and rainfall predicted for much of the country while some areas are still dealing with wildfires ignited earlier in the week.
Adaptation plan at odds with public sentiment: survey
21 Oct 2025
By Liz Kivi | The Government’s position on climate adaptation buyouts shows a disconnect with public opinion, according to survey findings from insurer Suncorp NZ.
We have more renewable energy than ever before. Why are we switching it off?
11 Nov 2025
Experts say until more storage is installed to soak up the waves of renewable energy flooding the grid, much of that power will occasionally have to be curtailed.
