Bookmarks (22) clear filters

The US reversal over Yemen marks the country’s welcome re-entry into world affairsHis intentions had been repeatedly trailed in advance. Yet Joe Biden’s first foreign policy speech as president, delivered appropriately at the state department, the home base of American diplomacy, was still a breath of fresh air. The main headlines were an end to US support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen and...

Joe Biden wasted no time as the newly elected president of the United States by signing a flurry of executive orders on issues including Covid-19, immigration and the environment.Some of the executive actions undo policies from Donald Trump’s administration, including halting the travel ban from Muslim-majority countries, and ending the national emergency declaration used to justify funding construction of a wall on the US-Mexico borderJoe...

Action points for first 100 days of Joe Biden presidency seen as boost to international action currently falling behind The US will hold a climate summit of the world’s major economies early next year, within 100 days of Joe Biden taking office, and seek to rejoin the Paris agreement on the first day of his presidency, in a boost to international climate action.Leaders from...

Exclusive: António Guterres says key promise of $100bn funding will be missed, damaging trust in Paris dealRich countries will miss a key promise they made to the poor world on the climate crisis by failing to provide the money necessary for them to cope with its effects, damaging the prospects for global action, the UN secretary general has said.Developing countries were supposed to receive...

With Trump no longer a threat, there is a sense of optimism around what the accord could achieve – but only if countries meet their targetsNo one who was in the hall that winter evening in a gloomy conference centre on the outskirts of the French capital will ever forget it. Tension had been building throughout the afternoon, as after two weeks of fraught...

Virtual summit an awkward swan song for Trump who skipped some sessions to play golfG20 leaders meeting remotely pledged on Sunday to “spare no effort” to ensure the fair distribution of coronavirus vaccines worldwide, but offered no specific new funding to meet that goal. The virtual summit hosted by Saudi Arabia was an awkward swan song for Donald Trump, who skipped some sessions on...

Trump administration set US withdrawal in motion a year ago but it didn’t take effect until 4 NovemberUS election live – follow all the latest updatesThe United States on Wednesday officially became the only country in the world refusing to participate in global climate efforts, with the fate of the crisis hanging on the still uncalled presidential election.Donald Trump as of Wednesday has withdrawn...

Research says melting will continue even if temperature rises are limited to 2CMelting of the Antarctic ice sheet will cause sea level rises of about two and a half metres around the world, even if the goals of the Paris agreement are met, research has shown.The melting is likely to take place over a long period, beyond the end of this century, but is...

The climate crisis and Covid-19 are crying out for international cooperation, writes the prime minister of BangladeshOne-third of my country was underwater last month. The heaviest rains in almost a decade began and have still not abated. More than 1.5 million Bangladeshis are displaced; tens of thousands of hectares of paddy fields have been washed away. Millions of my compatriots will need food aid...

Economists say falling cost of clean energy and growing climate risks strengthen case for cutting CO2 emissionsWithdrawing from the Paris agreement does not make economic sense for the US, a group of economists has argued, as the cost of clean energy has fallen since the agreement was signed in 2015, while the risks of climate catastrophe have increased.Economists from the Grantham Institute for Climate...

Global voices in the crisis say a US exit from the Paris agreement is damaging, but the fact no other country is leaving shows it can survive this ‘ultimate stress test’ The origins of the world’s historic agreement to tackle climate change, in Paris in 2015, have some familiar themes. Back in 2007, there was a Republican president in the White House who had...

Experts say new climate data shows how close world already is to breaching 1.5C Paris agreement pledgeThere is a one-in-five chance annual global temperatures will be at least 1.5C warmer than in pre-industrial times in the next five years, experts have said.Annual global temperatures are likely to be at least 1C above the levels they were before the industrial era in each year between...

Global economy could lose out by $600tn by end of century on current emissions targetsEvery country in the world would be economically better off if all could agree to strengthen their commitments on the climate crisis through international cooperation, new research has found.But if countries go no further than their current CO2 pledges – which are too weak to meet the goals of the...

Appeal court says decision to give go-ahead not consistent with Paris agreementPlans for a third runway at Heathrow airport have been ruled illegal by the court of appeal because ministers did not adequately take into account the government’s commitments to tackle the climate crisis.The ruling is a major blow to the project at a time when public concern about the climate emergency is rising...

This summer, Scott Morrison has faced international criticism over his climate change policies. But this government is just the latest in a long line that have either failed on meaningful climate policy at home, or blocked stronger climate action on the world stage.In this episode of Full Story, Guardian Australia editor Lenore Taylor explores Australia’s long track record of stalling on climate change action.To...

Kremlin website recognises global heating as a problem but lists ‘positive’ economic effectsRussia has published a plan to adapt its economy and population to climate change, aiming to mitigate damage but also “use the advantages” of warmer temperatures.The document, published on the government’s website on Saturday, outlines a plan of action and acknowledges changes to the climate are having a “prominent and increasing effect”...

Governments including the US, Brazil, Australia and China accused of frustrating COP25 negotiations in MadridGlobal climate talks have continued past midnight on Saturday after a marathon final negotiating session in Madrid that has lasted since Friday without clear resolutions on how to implement the Paris agreement.Campaigners from around the world expressed their frustration at the lack of progress, with one group of activists dumping...

The European parliament has declared a 'climate and environmental emergency' in a symbolic moment when it promised to urge member states to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and push the climate crisis to the top of the EU’s agenda. The parliament voted 429-225 with 19 abstentions to use the term 'emergency'. Ursula von der Leyen, the incoming president of the European commission, declared this...