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From flooding to drought, extreme weather is devastating our communities. It is time for the world’s heaviest emitters to help mitigate the impacts of climatic breakdown on the countries most affected

Millions of people in my country, Malawi, face unprecedented existential crises driven by climate breakdown. The frequency of extreme weather events and the massive impact they have on communities have left government officials like me with a huge dilemma of how to act fast enough to save lives. In the past three years, we have gone from facing the worst flooding in recent times to the most severe drought in a decade. The impact has been devastating to communities across the country.

When Cyclone Freddy hit us in March 2023, it killed more than 600 people. The cyclone injured many more, tore families apart, destroyed livelihoods, and the long-term effects from diseases were even worse. A little over a year later, we were in the middle of a raging drought, which the president, Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera, declared a national disaster in March. Millions of people are facing acute food insecurity, leading to malnutrition and health issues that are putting lives at risk, not least for people on long-term treatment for conditions such as tuberculosis and HIV.

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Many of the big economies need to accelerate wind and solar rollout to meet their COP28 commitments and avoid derailing the Paris Agreement goal to limit global warming to 1.5 C, according to analysis released this week.

Floods inundated emergency housing built for those who lost their homes in an earthquake that hit Ishikawa on the Sea of Japan coast in January

At least six people have died and 10 others are missing after heavy rain triggered flooding and landslides along a peninsula in Japan that is still recovering from a deadly earthquake at the start of the year.

Public broadcaster NHK and other outlets said on Monday that six people had been confirmed dead, while the Kyodo news agency said more than 100 communities had been cut off by blocked roads after almost two dozen rivers burst their banks.

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Despite growing regulatory pressures and improved emissions disclosure in the food sector, companies are struggling to make significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, particularly those from their supply chains, according to a new report.

Have you ever paused to think about the athletic abilities of Australian wildlife? Let’s look at some of our best competitors and how might they fare in a contest against humans and overseas entrants. Euan Ritchie, Professor in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Deakin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Australia's national environment law is completely blind to the issue of climate change. A 'climate trigger' could be the most powerful step Australia can take towards tackling global warming.

The post Explainer: How the “climate trigger” could be the answer to Australia’s fossil fuel problem appeared first on RenewEconomy.

AEMO boss Daniel Westerman on why the future of Australia's grid lies in variable renewables, storage and dispatchable energy. Baseload power, he says, is a construct whose time has passed.

The post “Absolutely world leading:” Why Australia is leading the charge away from baseload power appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Norway continues to support blue hydrogen solutions, a top Norwegian official stated Sunday at New York Climate Week.

Net zero commitments across countries, cities, regions, and companies have seen progress, but 40% of non-state entities, including major companies like Tesla, Nintendo, and Berkshire Hathaway, still lack emission reduction or net zero targets​, according to new research.

A flagship UK airline has become the biggest purchaser of carbon removal (CDR) credits in the UK, and the world’s largest CDR buyer in aviation, through a deal announced Monday.

Colombia’s ETS is set to launch in 2025, building upon recent momentum in the country’s years-long process, a top official told Carbon Pulse on the sidelines of New York Climate Week on Sunday.

Urgent action is now needed to protect these vulnerable populations and ensure the night parrot doesn’t become extinct. Rachel Paltridge, Adjunct Senior Research Fellow, ecology, The University of Western Australia Clifford Sunfly, Ngururrpa Ranger, Indigenous Knowledge Nicholas Leseberg, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, School of the Environment, The University of Queensland Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Rising ground-level ozone levels are significantly reducing the productivity of tropical forests, undermining their ability to act as a crucial carbon sink, researchers warn.

The Sri Lankan government has published a list of project activities across six sectors that will be eligible to generate credits under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

The UN Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) crystallised its institutional arrangements at the third meeting of the board held in Baku last week.

Coalition plans to build seven nuclear power plants are "economic insanity", the treasurer says, ahead of a speech by the opposition leader unveiling details behind the policy.

The post “Economic insanity:” Treasurer slams Peter Dutton’s nuclear power plan appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Exclusive: Independent MPs and Lidia Thorpe tell PM that environment law reforms under negotiation must remove exemptions for native forest logging

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Independent MPs and a crossbench senator are trying to increase the pressure on the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, to remove Howard-era exemptions that allow native forest logging to operate outside national environment laws.

The government has been negotiating over reforms to the laws in the Senate, where Greens and crossbenchers David Pocock and Lidia Thorpe have been pushing for an end to the exemptions for logging covered by regional forest agreements.

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Showing climate delivery can be done effectively and fairly would be an extraordinary climate legacy for Keir Starmer

A well-intentioned but badly designed and poorly communicated energy policy from the German government, and more recent protests by farmers in France and the Netherlands, have knocked the confidence of European political leaders that environmental progress can be delivered in a way that works for people and enjoys democratic support. Unashamedly popular climate policies from Keir Starmer, Rachel Reeves and Ed Miliband offer the chance to reshape European climate politics and confound these sceptics.

Showing climate delivery can be done fairly, effectively, affordably and with strong public support would be an extraordinary climate legacy for Starmer. It would build on Britain’s relatively strong record of having halved its climate footprint already, and it would offer hope amid all the gloom.

Joss Garman is executive director of the European Climate Foundation

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Ecover, backed by activist model Lily Cole, calls for fewer washes to reduce microplastics and other sources of water pollution

A company that sells cleaning products is giving customers some surprising advice: wash your clothes less.

Ecover is calling for a change in our laundry habits after research found people felt under societal pressure to wash their clothes more frequently, and were unaware that this could damage the environment.

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The Rev Sue Parfitt has lost right to conduct religious ceremonies after her arrest at a Just Stop Oil demonstration

An 82-year-old retired priest has spoken of her pain at losing her right to conduct religious ceremonies because of her participation in Just Stop Oil protests.

The Rev Sue Parfitt was arrested in May after causing damage to the glass around Magna Carta at the British Library in London as part of a protest with the climate action group. She is still awaiting trial.

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