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To meet climate targets and avoid economic collapse, countries such as Iraq need international support in the transition to clean energy

• Ali Allawi is deputy prime minister and finance minister of Iraq. Fatih Birol is executive director of the International Energy Agency

In the Middle East and north Africa, global warming is not a distant threat, but an already painful reality. Rising temperatures are exacerbating water shortages. In Iraq, temperatures are estimated to be rising as much as seven times faster than the global average. Countries in this region are not only uniquely affected by global temperature rises: their centrality to global oil and gas markets makes their economies particularly vulnerable to the transition away from fossil fuels and towards cleaner energy sources. It’s essential the voices of Iraq and similar countries are heard at the Cop26 climate change conference in Glasgow this November.

To stand a chance of limiting the worst effects of climate change, the world needs to fundamentally change the way it produces and consumes energy, burning less coal, oil and natural gas. The International Energy Agency’s recent global roadmap to net zero by 2050 shows the world’s demand for oil will need to decline from more than 90m barrels a day to less than 25m by 2050. This would result in a 75% plunge in net revenues for oil-producing economies, many of which are dominated by a public sector that relies on oil exports and the revenues they produce.

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An exchange in China’s Fujian province has set up the nation’s first trading platform for blue carbon credits, in expectation of a government-backed push for offset projects that store carbon in the ocean.

With a record-breaking number of entries from around the world, the judges of the 57th wildlife photographer of the year have had the toughest job yet.

From lynx making a comeback to a striking ecological disaster and narwhal shrimp communicating at great depths, there is an incredible range in the unique and fascinating images in the Natural History Museum’s exhibition. The photographs are a compelling reminder of the importance of the variety and variability of life on Earth in securing the future of our planet, revealed just ahead of the first phase of the global UN conference of Cop15 on biodiversity.

A special selection of highly commended photographs has been released before the opening of the highly anticipated exhibition at the London museum on 15 October 2021

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A selection of the winners in this year's Bird Photographer of the Year competition.

Floods, storms and extreme events increase five-fold but the number of people dying in them fell.

Awesome alpacas, frolicking flamingos and recuperating ravens … these rescue animals – in Sage Sohier’s photographs – have a zest for life and a remarkable willingness to forgive people

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Why rooftop solar will be dominant feature of grid within 5 years. And we speak to Autonomous Energy over recent buyout.

The post Solar Insiders Podcast: Solar is king, but who gets to control it? appeared first on RenewEconomy.

New infrastructure projects are all the rage, post-pandemic. But who benefits from a rising tide of concrete?

Dig for victory: this, repurposed from the second world war, could be the slogan of our times. All over the world, governments are using the pandemic and the environmental crisis to justify a new splurge of infrastructure spending. In the US, Joe Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure framework “will make our economy more sustainable, resilient, and just”. In the UK, Boris Johnson’s build back better programme will “unite and level up the country”, under the banner of “green growth”. China’s belt and road project will bring the world together in hyper-connected harmony and prosperity.

Sure, we need some new infrastructure. If people are to drive less, we need new public transport links and safe cycling routes. We need better water treatment plants and recycling centres, new wind and solar plants, and the power lines required to connect them to the grid. But we can no more build our way out of the environmental crisis than we can consume our way out of it. Why? Because new building is subject to the eight golden rules of infrastructure procurement.

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Plans to establish a renewable hydrogen hub in South Australia’s Whyalla region gain ground with a site locked in for the first of three solar and big battery projects.

The post Amp Energy secures land for massive solar, battery, green hydrogen play appeared first on RenewEconomy.

AEMO says the switch to 5-minute settlement ready to go on October 1, a switch expected to support investment in new technologies, including battery storage.

The post Battery boost: AEMO gives green light to 5-minute settlements from October appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Scholarship to support emerging female leaders in renewables, energy management and carbon abatement established in honour of Chloe Munro.

The post Chloe Munro Scholarship to honour “enormous legacy” of leader in renewables appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Biggest wind farm in NSW reaches financial close, to be built in electorate of federal energy minister Angus Taylor.

The post Biggest wind farm in NSW reaches financial close, to feature Australia’s biggest turbines appeared first on RenewEconomy.

South Korea’s National Assembly has adopted legislation that significantly firms up its 2030 emissions target as the nation steps up efforts to get on track to meeting its mid-century net zero ambition.

Billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes debunks Liberal MP's claims about the role of nuclear and gas in the UK grid. The real answer is less coal and more renewables.

The post Cannon-Brookes slam dunks Liberal MP on Twitter over gas and nuclear claims appeared first on RenewEconomy.

A daily summary of our news plus bite-sized updates from around the world.

New Zealand carbon permit auction cleared at a record high of NZ$53.85 ($37.97) on Wednesday, with ravenous buyers snapping up all 7 million units for 2021 under the market's new cost containment reserve, along with the 4.75 mln on offer in the sale.

Experts say 17,500 tree species are at risk around the world, including magnolias, oaks and maples.

Both beauty and beast. A Sabethes mosquito is visually stunning but it's also a carrier of disease.

Global study calls for urgent action to prevent ecosystem collapse, with farming the biggest cause of die-off

Between a third and half of the world’s wild tree species are threatened with extinction, posing a risk of wider ecosystem collapse, the most comprehensive global stocktake to date warns.

Forest clearance for farming is by far the biggest cause of the die-off, according to the State of the World’s Trees report, which was released on Wednesday along with a call for urgent action to reverse the decline.

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Wild cockatoos have been observed using three types of tools as 'cutlery' to extract seeds from tropical fruit. Researchers made the discovery while studying Goffin’s cockatoos on the Tanimbar Islands, a remote archipelago in Indonesia.

• Wild cockatoos observed using tools as ‘cutlery’ to extract seeds from tropical fruit
• Cockatoos in Sydney learning from each other to bin-dive for food, study finds
  
• Australian bird of the year 2021: nominate your favourite for the shortlist

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