New report on funding to slash carbon emissions finds startlingly low engagement with the people affectedLess than 3% of international aid to slash carbon emissions is supporting a just transition" for workers and communities away from polluting industries, according to a new report.Released one week before the start of major United Nations climate negotiations in Belem, Brazil, the analysis from the climate and development non-profit ActionAid warns that the world's response to the climate crisis risks deepening inequality rather than addressing it. Continue reading...

The Nationals argue the 2050 emissions target is already causing financial pain and the rest of the world is walking away from it. Neither of these things is true

Labor announces solar sharer' program for households in NSW, south-east Queensland and South Australia

Decision to abandon policy could trigger revolt from moderate Liberals who are open to breaking Coalition if net zero not kept in some form

Old Faithful, measuring more than 4 metres, rehomed to Sunshine Coast facility after removal from far north Queensland waterhole

Texas-based fossil fuel company financed Atlas Network in attempt to derail UN-led climate treaty processExxon funded rightwing thinktanks to spread climate change denial across Latin America, according to hundreds of previously unpublished documents that reveal a coordinated campaign to make the global south less inclined" to support the UN-led climate treaty process.The documents, which include copies of the actual cheques Exxon sent, consist of internal documents and years of correspondence between the Texas-based fossil fuel company and Atlas Network, a US-based coalition of more than 500 free-market thinktanks and other partners worldwide. Continue reading...

Researchers to investigate whether environmental factors may have affected female animal's pigmentationAn amateur photographer in southern Spain has captured unprecedented images of a white Iberian lynx, prompting researchers to investigate whether environmental factors could be at play as wildlife watchers revelled in the rare sighting.Angel Hidalgo published the images on social media, describing the singular animal as the white ghost of the Mediterranean forest". Continue reading...

London mayor says government should stay true to its beliefs and face down those who claim net zero adds to cost of livingKeir Starmer's government has shown a lack of confidence that it has the answers to the country's problems, the mayor of London has said, as he called on the chancellor to back green investment in this month's budget.Speaking on the eve of a summit of world mayors in Rio de Janeiro, Sadiq Khan said the Treasury should be more supportive of the energy secretary, Ed Miliband, in his pursuit of the government's target of an 81% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2035. Continue reading...

Inspired by childhood encyclopedias and Jane Goodall, Beth Pratt writes about the more than 150 species in the national park - and transports readers to a rarefied worldA shrill call was followed by a flash of movement through a pile of boulders on a high country slope in Yosemite national park. Hello, Sophie!" Beth Pratt responded to the round, feisty pika who had briefly emerged to pose defiantly in the sun.Pratt, a conservation leader and wildlife advocate, has spent more than a decade observing the tiny mammals and the other inhabitants of these serene granite domes and the alpine meadows they overlook, which gleamed gold on a crisp afternoon in mid-October. Continue reading...

The dark nights are here and staying in is more appealing than ever. But there's a very real cost to not venturing outSince the clocks changed, a damp, dark blanket settles over York from about 5pm - and it's brilliant; the perfect excuse to stay in. I love every quiet corner of home: my armchair, angled for a perfect view of bird goings-on and bleak skies outside; my marshmallowy bed; the sofa, stacked with blankets; the kitchen (I don't cook, but it's where snacks live). What could be nicer than sinking into the stifling embrace of multiple heated throws as a jacket potato crisps up in the oven and I succumb to a smorgasbord of good winter telly? Why would I ever move?Me and everyone else. Right? We're sleepmaxxing and soup-making in our slippers, sparking up fairy lights and enthusiastically appropriating hygge and gezellig (Dutch for cosy). We're sharing memes on the thrill of someone else cancelling social plans before we're forced to and proclaiming our Jomo. It's natural to retreat in winter: we're animals. But it's not just a seasonal phenomenon now, and I'm conscious I need, and maybe you also need, to get a grip and go out. Continue reading...

Industry bodies say proposals will force site closures, slow investment and cost drivers up to 300 a year moreThe UK charging industry has said it could face a 100m bill as the government considers making public charger operators pay business rates for the first time, at a time when slower-than-expected electric car sales have put pressure on the sector.ChargeUK, an industry body, said that its estimates suggest that operators will have to pay business rates on as many as 64,000 parking bays beside chargers which have not, up to now, been liable for the taxes. The lobby group said the change could add as much as 300 to the annual charging bill for some people if the cost is passed on to the customer. Continue reading...

David Littleproud says he informed the Liberal leader days ago of the policy position his party was considering

State park contains rock art dating back at least 3,000 years and tens of thousands of artefacts

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There's no such thing as a perfect legislative solution. It's about finding one that's workable - for the community, for the economy and for natureVictoria's Healesville Sanctuary is helping to protect and restore the critically endangered orange-bellied parrot which is predicted to be extinct within five years.With only 50 known to be left in the wild, a major breeding program aims to release up to 20 pairs of the migratory birds annually.Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading...

Many waterways vulnerable to breaches and closures and face mounting maintenance costs, charity saysBritain's network of canals and rivers is under strain from funding shortfalls and growing climate pressures, campaigners warn.Three-quarters of the country's waterways face financial peril, according to the Inland Waterways Association (IWA), an independent charity advocating for Britain's canals and rivers, as the country braces for heavier winter rainfall and intensifying summer droughts. Continue reading...

Keir Starmer is taking the lead on tackling the climate crisis. With the US backing away, now is the moment when other nations must step upWith the once-familiar pillars of the old world order crumbling and the US stepping away from action on climate crisis, it falls to others to assume global environmental leadership. Those leaders who understand the urgency should seize the opportunity afforded by Brazil hosting Cop30 this month to build a coalition of committed countries determined to turn back the climate deniers.Many now see China - the most successful manufacturer of solar, wind, battery and electric vehicle technologies - as the global low-carbon powerhouse. But its national emission goals, recently submitted to the UN, are underwhelming and it is unclear whether China is willing to take up the mantle of climate leadership. Continue reading...

The threatened Jillaga Ash (Eucalyptus stenostoma) was spotted 90m down a cliff in Wadbilliga national park, in southern New South Wales

Decision to stay away from Cop30 meeting in Brazil underscores administration's hostility to climate actionThe Trump administration has confirmed that no high-level representatives will be sent by the US to upcoming UN climate talks in Brazil, underscoring the administration's hostile stance towards action on the climate crisis.The US has always sent delegations of various sizes to UN climate summits over the past three decades, even during periods under George W Bush and in Donald Trump's first term, where there was scant desire to address the global heating crisis. Continue reading...

It could eventually cut down on the production of traditional chocolate, which degrades soil and requires much fertilizer and pesticides

Trio argued orange powder protest day before 2024 solstice was justified because of focus on climate emergencyThree Just Stop Oil protesters have been cleared over a protest at Stonehenge during which orange powder was sprayed on to the prehistoric circle.Rajan Naidu, 74, Niamh Lynch, 23, and Luke Watson, 36, targeted Stonehenge the day before last year's summer solstice. Continue reading...

At least two people died on Thursday in flooded basements after record rainfall in parts of New York City that also deluged some streets and subway stations. Preliminary reports showed 45.7mm (1.8in) of rain fell in Central Park, which exceeded its record of 41.7mm set in 1917, the National Weather Service said. LaGuardia airport recorded 50mm of rain, which broke the hub's 1955 record of 30mm

Indiana Jones star calls US president one of history's greatest criminals for attacks on science and boosting of fossil fuelsHarrison Ford has said that Donald Trump's assault upon measures to address the climate crisis scares the shit out of me" and makes the US president among the worst criminals in history.In a blistering attack upon the president, Ford told the Guardian that Trump doesn't have any policies, he has whims. It scares the shit out of me. The ignorance, the hubris, the lies, the perfidy. [Trump] knows better, but he's an instrument of the status quo and he's making money, hand over fist, while the world goes to hell in a handbasket." Continue reading...

The best of this week's wildlife photographs from around the world Continue reading...

Category 5 storm is most powerful to strike Jamaica and has caused death and destruction in Cuba and HaitiHurricane Melissa has wreaked havoc across parts of the Caribbean in recent days, after first making landfall in Jamaica on Tuesday night as a category 5 storm - the highest strength. This was the most powerful storm to strike the island nation, packing winds of up to 185mph at its peak.Western parts of Jamaica were worst hit, with 90% of homes in the town of Black River losing their roof or being destroyed entirely. Roughly three-quarters of the country lost electricity, with at least 19 people known to have lost their lives at the time of publication. The cleanup operation was hampered by thunderstorms even after Melissa cleared to the north. The hurricane continued northwards, but was a slightly weakened category 3 storm by the time it made landfall in Cuba. Nonetheless, the storm continued to bring winds of up to 120mph and torrential rains. Continue reading...

Sydney, Brisbane and Darwin are predicted to hit hottest October in terms of maximum temperatures, the Bureau of Meteorology says

Separate incidents see bodies pulled from basements in Brooklyn and Manhattan as heavy rain closes roads and causes delaysTwo people died in flooded New York City basements Thursday during a rainstorm that shut down roadways and caused airport delays, authorities said.A scuba team recovered the body of a 39-year-old man after firefighters received a call of a person trapped in the flooded basement of a townhouse in Brooklyn at about 4.30pm, police said. A video posted online showed firefighters carrying the victim away through calf-deep water on the street. Continue reading...

Flooding that killed 10 people in central Vietnam this week turned streets in the historic town of Hoi An into canals on Thursday after a major river reached a 60-year high, authorities say. The Unesco heritage-listed town is among the country's most popular tourist destinations Continue reading...

Sydney researchers commercialising a product they say can cool indoor spaces and will cost little more than standard premium paints

It's hard to fathom how a peaceful protester can receive more prison time than many of the insurrectionists,' said one researcher, of Timothy Martin's sentenceClimate activists have condemned an 18-month jail term for a nonviolent protester who vandalized a display case at the National Gallery of Art as grossly disproportionate" and a violation of the constitutional protected rights to free speech and peaceful protest.Timothy Martin, along with fellow activist Joanna Smith, staged the climate protest at the Washington DC gallery in April 2023, smearing washable red and black paint on the protective glass covering Edgar Degas's Little Dancer Aged Fourteen Years sculpture. Continue reading...

Expanded climate action from cities and states could slash planet-heating pollution despite Trump working against itAhead of next month's major United Nations climate talks in Brazil, Gina McCarthy, the former Environmental Protection Agency head, said US cities and states were keeping the climate fight alive despite an all-out assault from the Trump administration.We will not allow our country to become numb or debilitated by those who are standing in the way of progress," she said on a press call early on Thursday. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Every project developer is absolutely convinced that their project is in the national interest,' Australian Climate and Biodiversity Foundation boss says

Centre for Independent Studies points to climate risk report to back up its dismissal of heat-related deaths, but neglects to use the part that actually concerns the future

The discovery that affluent neighbourhoods have more diversity of nature has implications for human wellbeing - and sheds light on the structural injustices in citiesFor a long time, ecology tended to ignore people. It mostly focused on beautiful places far from large-scale human development: deep rainforest or pristine grassland. Then, in the late 1990s, in the desert city of Phoenix, Arizona, scientists shifted their gaze closer to home.A team of ecologists went out into their own neighbourhood to map the distribution of urban plants in one of the first studies of its kind. Equipped with tape measures and clipboards, they documented trees and shrubs, sometimes getting on all fours to crawl through bushes under the curious watch of local people. Continue reading...

Exclusive: More than 98% of fish and mussels tested in English waters contain mercury above EU safety limitsBritain is facing mounting pressure to ban mercury dental fillings, one of the few countries yet to prevent the practice, as new data reveals alarming contamination levels in the nation's fish and shellfish.Mercury is a potent neurotoxin that can harm the nervous, digestive and immune systems, as well as the lungs, kidneys, skin and eyes, even at low levels of exposure. Its organic form, methylmercury, is particularly dangerous to unborn babies and can move through the food chain building up in insects, fish and birds. Continue reading...

October rains have been light across Somalia, a country which in recent years has found itself on the frontline of the climate crisis. The latest estimate is that 3.4 million people don't have enough food. One of the worst affected areas is Puntland, where disappearing water sources, pasture and food supplies have forced many to abandon their way of life Continue reading...

Campaigners say problem so common that some of the UK's most irreplaceable ancient trees in danger of being lostWhen Linda Taylor Cantrill finally found her dream family home in Exmouth, Devon, it wasn't the location, the square footage or the local amenities that finally made up her mind - it was the 200-year-old oak tree in the garden.The way we felt about just standing in the shade of the tree was: We need this house, because look how beautiful it is,'" she told the Guardian. Continue reading...

Oil company plans to buy back shares for 16th consecutive quarter as protesters say its earnings are horror show'Profits at Shell have climbed to more than $43bn for the year so far after fossil fuel production in the Gulf of Mexico reached a 20-year high and production in Brazil set a new record.The oil company reported better than expected earnings of $5.4bn for the third quarter, a 27% increase on the $4.3bn in the previous three-month period - but lower than the $6bn recorded over the same period a year earlier. Continue reading...

Conservationists hail remarkable' rediscovery after 40 years, at nature reserve only accessible by boatA tiny spider thought to have vanished for ever from the UK has been rediscovered on a remote area of a nature reserve accessible only by boat.The Aulonia albimana, a member of the wolf spider family with orange legs, was found on the Isle of Wight in a spot grazed by a flock of Hebridean sheep. Continue reading...

Most intense tropical cyclone to hit Jamaica in nearly two centuries leaves trail of devastation in its wake

Former PM says he has not seen party soaring in the polls as a result of saying what rubbish net zero is'Boris Johnson has warned the Conservatives they will not win the next election by bashing the green agenda".The former prime minister said he had not seen the Conservatives soaring in the polls as a result of saying what rubbish net zero is". Continue reading...

Suzanne Rees, 80, was found dead on Lizard Island a day after her cruise ship the Coral Adventurer left without her

Ed Miliband says pushing for renewable energy and lower emissions will reduce household bills and boost economyThe UK government will go all in" on clean energy and climate policy, the energy secretary has said, as he unveiled plans to put the UK back on track to reach its net zero commitments.In the face of intensifying attacks on climate policy from the poll-leading Reform UK party and the Conservatives, the government insists that pushing for renewable energy and lower carbon emissions will reduce household bills and boost the economy. Continue reading...

Environment minister Murray Watt's Thursday speech warns parties it's now or never' for overhaul to EPBC Act

Analysis of public records comes as Trump administration aims to fast-track approval of new LNG export terminalsEvery fully operational liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in the US has violated federal pollution limits in recent years, a new report has found.The analysis of public records comes as the Trump administration is aiming to fast-track the approval of new export terminals in an attempt to sell more domestic LNG to Europe and Asia. Joe Biden had previously placed a pause on LNG exports, which Donald Trump lifted on the first day of his return to office. Continue reading...

Researchers previously took first confirmed footage of a juvenile colossal squid in scarcely explored habitatA carnivorous death ball" sponge is among 30 previously unknown deep-sea species found by scientists in one of the most remote parts of the planet.Researchers sampled the depths of the Southern Ocean, including volcanic calderas, the South Sandwich trench and seafloor habitats around Montagu and Saunders islands. Continue reading...

Wonderful' for people to see the predators so close and feasting on bait fish at the Gold Coast's Rainbow Bay, near Snapper Rocks, expert says

Minister says parish of St Elizabeth is under water' and that families are trapped in their homes in the community of Black River in western Jamaica

In Finland, kindergartens are exposing children to more mud, wild plants and moss - and finding changes to their health that show how crucial biodiversity is to wellbeingAurora Nikula, 5, is having a normal day at her nursery. She is making a cake out of sand and mud, adding in make-believe carrots, potatoes and meat. It's overcooked," she says as she splashes water in, then adds another dollop of sand. More sugar, it tastes better," she says. A handful of mud goes in, and the dish evolves into a chocolate cake.Aki Sinkkonen, a principal scientist with the Natural Resources Institute Finland, is watching. He's also very interested in Aurora's cake, but for different reasons. Perfect," he says, admiring the way she is mixing soil, sand and leaves and then putting it on her face. She's really getting her hands in it."Aki Sinkkonen (left) and Marja Roslund from the Natural Resources Institute Finland in the Humpula garden Continue reading...

It is the first whale to have died out of 15 entangled in shark nets on Australia's east coast so far this year