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Brazil's national development bank has formally launched a climate investment platform that it said already has up to $10.8 billion in capital that could be mobilised, in support of its newly updated Paris Agreement pledge.

Transition credits could be a viable way to finance the early phase-out of coal-fired power plants in Asia, but familiar risks around project permanence, and buyer appetite are seen as major barriers to scaling up the practice, a panel discussion heard at COP29.

When infestations affect Notting Hill billionaires, it reminds you that it’s the little winged bastards who truly own this city

While reading of the case of the super-rich couple suing the previous owners of their west London mansion over its moth infestation, one particularly detail prompted warm memories. Iya Patarkatsishvili and Yevhen Hunyak had to tip away glasses of wine after discovering moths floating in them, Hunyak told the court. Ah yes, I thought, I too have found a moth taking a little dip in my tipple, though I’ll admit that I simply fished him out rather than waste a glass. Worse, mine only contained Tesco’s finest wine, as opposed to, you know, the world’s.

Moths, it seems, pay no attention to social class. Whether you are a lowly renter in a poky flat, such as I, or the daughter of a Georgian billionaire; if you live in London, they are coming for you. Moths, like mice in the tube, are simply a fact of living in this city, so commonplace as to be almost unremarkable. Even when waging daily battle against them, you sort of forget about them; their soft fluttering wings are a kind of inaudible mood music, until someone who has recently moved here says, “What’s with all the moths?”, and you remember the bastards that truly own this city.

Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett is a Guardian columnist and author

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A report has found that expansion of carbon trading systems will see emissions covered by pricing mechanisms rise to 34% over the next five years.

Fourteen countries, including the US, France, and the UK, issued a statement at COP29 in Baku on Thursday affirming their commitment to scale up finance for forests, based on 'high-integrity' carbon markets.

A White House official said Thursday that the US has had active and productive negotiations with Chinese delegates over reducing non-CO2 greenhouse gases (GHG), adding that Beijing has signalled interest in implementing regulatory controls over non-CO2 gases similar to those in the US.

Some 5% of recent planning applications have complied with England’s biodiversity net gain (BNG) rules, in a positive sign the legislation is working, a lawyer has said.

Alberta government and industry were sceptical of the viability and effectiveness of Canada’s emissions cap on its oil and gas sector, highlighting instead the success of provincial emissions reductions efforts on the sidelines of COP29.

Low- and middle-income economies invested $2.3 trillion in their energy systems last year, yet only 14% of that spending outside China went towards low-carbon solutions, a new report has found.

The government of Para state in Brazil is expected this Friday to launch a long-awaited call for tenders to take on an ecological restoration-oriented forest concession, which will generate carbon credits from the reforestation process.

A large home retailer is investing €1.5 billion in renewable energy at its sites to phase out the direct use of fossil fuels under a target to reduce its operational carbon footprint 85% by 2030.

The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), regulator of the power sector in India, this week released guidelines for the buying and selling of carbon credit certificates (CCCs) on power exchanges.

The UK is poised to ban new coal mines, soon after becoming the first industrialised country to end coal-fired power generation, the government announced on Thursday.

A global group of securities regulators on Thursday published new recommendations aimed at improving transparency and reliability in the voluntary carbon market (VCM), while also unveiling a partnership with the World Bank.

Defra data shows lower income for most farm types but small boost from payments for nature-friendly schemes

Income fell on almost all farm types in England last year, as extreme weather hit yields and the government cut subsidies.

Farmers fear future hits to their industry after a hugely unpopular change to agricultural property relief which means some farms will be saddled with a large, unexpected tax bill, and a surprise, severe cut to the EU-derived basic payments scheme meaning a shortfall in cash that they had not predicted.

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The Norwegian government is advocating clean cookstoves be included in the outcome statement of COP29, a side event at the Baku climate conference heard Thursday.

Gigantic multicoloured organism is visible from space and has grown for between 300 and 500 years

The world’s largest known coral, visible from space, has been discovered in the waters of the Solomon Islands.

With a circumference of 183 metres, the gigantic multicoloured organism is an intricate network of individual coral polyps that have grown for between 300 and 500 years.

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A Singapore-based tech firm is developing a framework for mass-producing corals and automating the farming process, considering generating carbon or biodiversity credits within two years, the company told Carbon Pulse.  

Ghana has mobilised $800 million by hosting carbon projects through Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement, President Nana Akufo-Addo revealed at COP29, precipitating emissions cuts through bilateral agreements with primarily European buyer countries.

European carbon prices posted healthy gains on Thursday morning, tracking a substantial rise in natural gas as traders reacted to news headlines that added uncertainty to the supply outlook.