World
Merkel’s legacy: a robust diplomat who surrendered to coal and cars back home
As Angela Merkel’s 16 years leading Germany come to an end, experts praise her international climate record but say she was too timid domestically
European gas shortages prompt calls to accelerate clean energy transition
Analysts say renewables, insulation and electrification of heating and cooking are the answer to soaring gas prices across Europe
World leaders at UN urged to end public finance to fossil fuels
As world leaders meet to talk energy in New York, 200 green groups are urging them to embrace renewables and stop financing fossil fuels
President Xi declares end to Chinese support for new coal power abroad
Climate campaigners are celebrating as an end to Chinese public backing leaves few sources of finance for new coal plants around the world
EU commits €4 billion more to climate vulnerables, calls on the US to step up
Ursula Von der Leyen called out the US for failing to deliver its fair share of climate cash – an issue poor nations say is critical to success at Cop26
Conservationists back indigenous peoples’ call to protect 80% of the Amazon by 2025
Members of the IUCN Congress overwhelmingly backed the motion but Brazilian experts warn the verdict will likely be ignored by Bolsonaro’s government
On a mission: Evangelicals flock to the Amazon home of isolated tribes
On Brazil’s border with Peru, evangelical churches are multiplying, in a threat to uncontacted indigenous groups
Leaked IPCC draft: Lifestyle change can cut double the emissions of Brazil by 2030
Meat, air con, flying and SUVs are driving emissions up, the latest science shows – and cleaner lifestyle choices can make a difference
Qatar misleads with claim gas exports make it a climate action “pioneer”
The world’s largest supplier of LNG also has the highest per-capita emissions, yet is not committing to absolute carbon cuts in its latest UN submission
Joe Biden can seal a breakthrough deal to end global public finance for fossil fuels
The US has the opportunity to make fossil-free public finance a new international norm ahead of Cop26 – but that requires ending its support for gas
Chinese coal power investment slows, with 24 projects approved this year
Chinese provincial governments approved construction of 5.2GW of coal power capacity in the first half of 2021, analysis by Greenpeace has found
UK oil construction postponed after kayakers’ Stop Cambo protest
Campaigners scored a minor victory in efforts to block consent for Cambo oil field in the North Atlantic, which they argue is incompatible with climate leadership
Afghanistan at risk of hunger amid drought and Taliban takeover
As the Taliban seizes control of Afghanistan, experts warn severe drought could worsen the humanitarian crisis triggered by an exodus of western forces
Pacific islands call for zero carbon shipping by 2050, citing IPCC report
Three Pacific nations want to reopen talks on the long term climate target at the International Maritime Organization, urging higher ambition
US guidance to development banks puts gas infrastructure finance in question
Gas-fired power projects in Thailand and South Africa could be affected by a shift in US development finance policy to back clean energy over fossil fuels
The lesson from German floods: prepare for the unimaginable
A month after fatal floods swept through western Germany, survivors are still in shock and experts warn such disasters are becoming more common
Sri Lanka rules out new coal power, promotes rooftop solar
The government wants 70% of the island’s electricity to come from renewables by 2030 and is offering cheap loans to install rooftop solar
Green taxation can help us recover from the Covid-19 crisis. Here’s how
Scandinavian countries have raised taxes on pollution in response to economic crises, while reducing them on labour and capital, boosting productivity
Nigeria to end gas flaring by 2030, under national climate plan
The government is promising to crack down on wasteful emissions from oil and gas production, a major climate and health issue in Nigeria
Brazil plans to prop up coal sector, defying calls for a global phase out
The government has published a plan for the ‘sustainable’ use of coal that would allow the fossil fuel to be burnt until 2050