Joe Lo
Joe Lo is a reporter for Climate Home News. He has previously specialised in container shipping, UK politics and investigative stories about Scotland. His work has appeared in the Guardian, Al Jazeera and Deutsche Welle.
Around the world, climate change committees are steering government action
Representatives of 22 official climate advisory bodies – from Chile to New Zealand – got together on Zoom to compare notes
Drought and water mismanagement spark deadly protests in Iran
The driest conditions in 53 years have brought chronic mismanagement of water resources to crisis point, with at least eight people killed in protests against the regime
G20 climate and energy ministers split over coal exit
China, Russia and India are among countries resisting a timeline to phase out coal power generation, leaving it to leaders to resolve the impasse
Indonesia to burn coal well into the 2050s, under updated climate plan
The world’s second biggest coal producing country is depending on carbon capture to keep the industry alive in its “low carbon” scenario
Record-breaking rain fills Chinese subway, drowning twelve people
Flooding in the central province of Henan can be linked to human influence on the climate, but Chinese media is not making the connection
After 20 years, talks on scrapping fishing subsidies enter final stretch
The World Trade Organization is nearing a deal to end harmful fishing subsidies, but exemptions for developing countries could give China a pass
EU’s border tax gives countries 5 years to clean up industries or face penalties
Unpopular among the bloc’s trading partners, countries are seeking exemptions to the carbon levy, as Brussels hints alternatives to pricing may be considered to dodge the tax
China’s biggest bank is ditching Zimbabwe coal plant, campaigners say
The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China told environmentalists in a meeting last month they would not go ahead with the 2.8GW Sengwa coal plant
Canadian minister Catherine McKenna to quit politics and focus on climate change
Catherine McKenna introduced climate legislation as Canada’s environment minister and will step down at the next election before October 2023
Months after criminal probes launched, Brazilian environment minister quits
Ricardo Salles is the subject of two police investigations into collusion with loggers illegally cutting down the Amazon rainforest
UK has done ‘surprisingly little’ to deliver on climate targets, say official advisers
The Climate Change Committee called on the UK government to up its game and show leadership before hosting Cop26 in November
Biden scales down climate spending in search of bipartisan deal
Clean energy and electric vehicle incentives are being cut from the US president’s flagship $2 trillion American jobs plan to win conservative support
Pacific islands make lonely case for carbon price on shipping
The Marshall Islands and Solomon Islands called for a price on shipping pollution at the UN body, but got only tepid support from European nations
Nato considers net zero by 2050 target in move to green military operations
Joe Biden has put the hefty – and underreported – carbon footprint of tanks and fighter jets on the transatlantic security agenda
Swiss public reject climate law over cost of living fears
In a referendum on Sunday, Swiss citizens narrowly voted against a package of measures including increased taxes on petrol and flights
Norway eyes expansion of oil and gas industry under policy proposal
The government wants to hand out more exploration licences – ignoring modelling that shows fossil fuel expansion must end now to meet global climate goals
UK to provide Covid-19 vaccines for Cop26 delegates
The host nation of UN climate negotiations in November says it will help participants to access Covid-19 vaccines, as part of a support package to developing countries
New Zealand climate plan criticised over ‘cow-shaped hole’
Aotearoa Climate Change Commission set out detailed advice to cut emissions to 2035 but stopped short of recommending fundamental change to the dairy industry
Elections dash Mexican President’s hopes for dirty energy reform
Amlo does not have the two thirds majority in Mexico’s parliament to pass proposed constitutional reforms in favour of state-owned coal and gas power generation
NASA launches mission to better predict climate impacts
Using advanced satellite technology, the programme aims to accelerate the pace of scientific discovery by better monitoring storms and ice sheet melts