Sisters of Mercy of the Americas singles out fund over its investmentsAn investment fund representing 9,000 nuns hascriticised the multitrillion-dollar investment group BlackRock for failing to combat the climate crisis.The Sisters of Mercy of the Americas called on the world’s largest asset manager, which has $7tn (£5.25tn) of assets, to use its clout to coax companies into moving faster to reduce emissions. Continue reading...

Partial agreement at COP25 that countries must be more ambitious to fulfil Paris goalsClimate talks in Madrid have ended with a partial agreement to ask countries to come up with more ambitious targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions in order to meet the terms of the 2015 Paris accord.Few countries came to this year’s talks with updated plans to reach the Paris goals, though the EU finally agreed its long-term target of reaching net zero emissions by 2050. Experts say more ambitious emissions cuts are needed globally if the Paris pledge to hold global heating to no more than 2C is to be met. Continue reading...

Edinburgh zoo stays silent on prospect of a final bid to produce cubs before Tian Tian and Yang Guang return to ChinaFor a couple of years, Scotland’s two giant pandas were the biggest celebrities in the land. Now, as they prepare for their final scheduled year in captivity on Scottish soil, before returning to their native China, Tian Tian and Yang Guang are largely forgotten after a decade of failed and increasingly desperate attempts to coax them into producing offspring.They arrived at Edinburgh zoo in 2011 and made headlines for months as the nation waited for the first giant panda to be born in Scotland. Record numbers of visitors followed, and at one point the then first minister, Alex Salmond, joked that the country had more pandas than Tories. Continue reading...

Trees for Cities, one of the four groups we are supporting in the 2019 charity appeal, helps schools in deprived areas create inspiring green spaces

Martijn Wilder says more companies are talking about the climate crisis but not moving quickly enough – and his new firm Pollination aims to improve thatA growing number of governments, including of every Australian state, Britain and the European Union, have set targets of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Few have mapped how to get there.It is a similar story in the corporate sector. Businesses are under increasing pressure from investors and shareholders to back up claims they are committed to the goals of the Paris agreement. Take BHP, one of the world’s 20 big emitters: it has set a mid-century net-zero emissions target but is yet explain how it will reach it, and plans to invest more in oil and gas than climate solutions. Continue reading...

Large deposits of sediment and ash in reservoir which supplies 80% of the city’s drinking water creates ‘serious situation’Sydney’s drinking water supply is at risk of the same “worst-case scenario” facing some New South Wales regional communities, where large amounts of bushfire ash has been swept into dams by heavy rainfall, a water expert has warned.Stuart Khan, a water quality security expert and environmental engineer from the University of NSW, said recent bushfires had left large deposits of ash in the Warragamba Dam catchment, which supplies 80% of the city’s drinking water. Continue reading...

Decision on Moorside Fields in Lancaster makes it harder to stop public space being developedIt is not the most attractive piece of land in Lancashire. But for Janine Bebbington and her friends, Moorside Fields was where all the important things in life happened.“It was our playground, it was where we went and climbed trees, used the running track from the nearby school, played rounders, explored, kissed people in the bushes, drank cider, did all the things that people get up to in green spaces.” Continue reading...

Tougher limits on pollutants could cut dangers of heart disease, cancers and poor brain development in childrenThe UK’s failure to meet World Health Organisation standards limiting the amount of ultra-fine particles in the air represents a major danger to health that is only now being recognised, experts claim.Studies published this year link the particles to cancers, lung and heart disease, adverse effects on foetal development, and poor lung and brain development in children. They are considered a key threat to health because they go deep into the lungs and then reach other organs, including the brain. But European standards allow the levels of particles in the air to be 2.5 times higher than those stipulated by the WHO. Continue reading...

Erisvan Soares Guajajara’s body was found with knife wounds in Maranhão regionA 15-year-old indigenous boy has been murdered in Brazil on the edge of a heavily deforested indigenous reserve in the state of Maranhão, on the fringes of the Amazon.The murder, the fourth from the Guajajara tribe in recent weeks, came as a wave of racist abuse against indigenous people swept social media in the state. Continue reading...

Government-dominated committee calls for partial lifting of nuclear ban and for greater work on nuclear technologyThe Labor leader, Anthony Albanese, has described the call from Coalition MPs to lift a longstanding ban on nuclear energy as “fantasy”.A 230-page report released on Friday by the chairman of the parliament’s energy committee and Liberal MP Ted O’Brien said nuclear energy should be considered as part of Australia’s future energy mix. Continue reading...

The pick of the best flora and fauna photos from around the world, from an illuminated giraffe to an elusive southern elephant seal Continue reading...

Green party vote rises as campaigners urge Tories to meet pledge to cut emissionsThe new Conservative government must urgently bring forward plans to fulfil its pledge to cut greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050 or risk losing the fight against climate breakdown, green campaigners have urged.Rebecca Newsom, the head of politics at Greenpeace UK, said the Tory manifesto was “full of holes” on the environment and had been judged inadequate by green groups, and people would expect swift action. Continue reading...

Former first lady told climate activist ‘don’t let anyone dim your light’ after Trump said teen had an ‘anger management problem’Michelle Obama has sent a public message of support to the 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg after the teenager was mocked by Donald Trump.“@GretaThunberg, Don’t let anyone dim your light,” the former first lady wrote following a visit to Vietnam. “Like the girls I’ve met in Vietnam and all over the world, you have so much to offer us all. Ignore the doubters and know that millions of people are cheering you on.” Continue reading...

Volunteers find nests made by descendants of creatures released by student in 2004As an idealistic PhD student, Wendy Fail’s ambition was to reintroduce harvest mice to Northumberland. She painstakingly bred 240 mice in captivity and in 2004 released the elusive mammals on to a coastal nature reserve with plenty of reedbeds for them to hide in.When not a single harvest mouse – Britain’s smallest rodent – was recaptured in subsequent trap surveys, Fail concluded that her efforts to reintroduce them had been unsuccessful. Continue reading...

Here are our highlights – tell us yours and we’ll showcase them in next week’s Christmas newsletterHow’s it been for you? Annus horribilis or golden year? We’d love to hear from Upside fans about their 2019: what was the best thing that happened? The funniest thing you witnessed? The very best joke? The most promising dab of progress that you came across? Anything that made it good to feel alive?Email us at the usual address (theupside@theguardian.com). We’ll showcase a sample in next week’s festive edition, the last newsletter of the year. The best email wins a hole punch. Continue reading...

Ilene Dondlinger of California says she does not want the big cat killed, despite its fatal attack on her miniature schnauzerWhen Ilene Dondlinger jumped on the mountain lion attacking her miniature schnauzer in the early hours of 5 December, she reacted without thinking. The 54-year-old wrestled with the big cat in her backyard, desperately trying to open its jaws to save her beloved dog Pumba. But there was nothing she could do.“I couldn’t prise its jaws open, no matter what I did,” Dondlinger said, detailing how she punched, kicked and jumped on the big cat, even putting her knee to its throat in desperation. Continue reading...

Germanwatch says assessment that ranked Australia last or near last was based on scientific criteria and data

Exclusive: forest regrowth can reabsorb emissions from fires but scientists fear natural carbon ‘sinks’ have been compromisedBushfires in New South Wales and Queensland have emitted a massive pulse of CO2 into the atmosphere since August that is equivalent to almost half of Australia’s annual greenhouse gas emissions, Guardian Australia can reveal.Analysis by Nasa shows the NSW fires have emitted about 195m tonnes of CO2 since 1 August, with Queensland’s fires adding a further 55m tonnes over the same period. Continue reading...

Fat innkeeper worms typically burrow under the sand but recent storms have swept away layers, leaving them exposedI’m not sure this is what the Weather Girls meant when they sang, “It’s raining men.”Related: 'Truly astounding': inside the Farallon Islands' battle against a plague of mice Continue reading...

Campaigners frustrated at how women and indigenous people have struggled to have voices heardYouth climate activists have called for a global strike on Friday to protest that human rights and social justice have been sidelined at the UN climate talks in Madrid, where governments look set to wrap up two weeks of negotiations without a breakthrough on the pressing issue of greenhouse gas reduction.Campaigners have been frustrated not only at the slow progress of the talks but also that groups representing women, indigenous people and poor people have struggled to have their voices heard within the conference halls where the official negotiations are taking place, even while 500,000 people took part in a mass protest in the streets outside last Friday. Continue reading...

After reviewing its membership of associations, BHP will resist shareholder pressure and not leave anyBHP has bucked shareholder pressure to quit the Minerals Council of Australia and will remain a member of the lobby group despite disagreeing with it over the importance of putting a price on carbon emissions.After a review of its membership of industry associations, first revealed by Guardian Australia, BHP has decided not to leave any of them. Continue reading...

Organisers criticised over environmental impact as site is thousands of miles from host cityThe organisers of the 2024 Paris Olympics have chosen Tahiti as the site for surfing events, arguing that the waves are more dependable than the French coast, despite being nearly 10,000 miles (more than 15,000km) from the host city.Tahiti is part of French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity, which is an administrative division of France with semi-autonomous status. The International Olympic Committee still has to approve the choice, but Paris organisers believe the famous waves at Teahupo’o in Tahiti – among the most spectacular and powerful in the world – mean it would be a more predictable wave site than the Atlantic coast of France. Continue reading...

Waste management firm suggests greener ways of celebrating festive seasonBerlin’s rubbish collection service is urging the city’s residents to cut down on their waste this Christmas by gifting time rather than material objects.In an advertising campaign, BSR suggests the festive season could be more meaningful if people reduce their rubbish by shopping less, try to eat rather than throw away leftovers, and do a good turn for a neighbour. Continue reading...

Greenpeace activists unfurl climate emergency banner on Brussels venue before eventEuropean leaders meeting at a summit in Brussels will make a new attempt to set the European Union on course for carbon neutrality by 2050, in a test of the bloc’s credibility on the climate emergency.Hours before EU leaders were due to arrive on Thursday, Greenpeace activists unfurled a banner on the side of the summit venue warning of the climate emergency. Continue reading...

Green groups say 52% vote against federal government facility should rule out region as potential siteResidents in South Australia’s Flinders Ranges have voted narrowly against having a nuclear waste dump in their region.About 52% of the people who took part in the ballot voted against the federal government’s facility being established on land near Hawker. Continue reading...

Parents have been told to consider keeping Tamborine Mountain state school students at home, while trucks take local water to bottling plants for companies including Coca-ColaThe Tamborine Mountain state school has run out of water, even as water miners in the Gold Coast hinterland are sending millions of litres to commercial bottling operations.Trucks sent by the Queensland government carrying emergency supplies to the school, including Mount Tamborine bottled water, have been passing trucks heading in the opposite direction taking local water to bottling plants for beverage giants such as Coca-Cola. Continue reading...

Officials are doing little to reduce the biggest source of pollutants in local water, researchers findLos Angeles beaches are plagued by stormwater pollution that can make people sick and damage ecosystems, and local governments are largely failing to address the hazards, according to a new report.The LA region has made little progress toward reducing pollution from stormwater, which is the single greatest source of pollutants in local rivers, lakes and the ocean, according to researchers with Heal the Bay, a not-for-profit environmental organization. Continue reading...

Popular broadcaster and scientist hailed as man who ‘inspired a whole generation’The naturalist and broadcaster David Bellamy has died aged 86, the Conservation Foundation has said.Bellamy died on Wednesday, according to the foundation, of which he was president and co-founder. In a statement, David Shreeve, its director, said: “Sadly, I have to report that David Bellamy died this morning. David and I worked together on a variety of projects in various places since launching the Conservation Foundation in 1982. Continue reading...

Labour is the only major party with viable plans to tackle the our environmental emergency, says Diana Heeks. Plus, Steven Pollard on the Tory candidate’s absence from a climate hustings in Portsmouth SouthBrexit doesn’t matter. Jeremy Corbyn’s likability doesn’t matter. What matters above all is that the planet that is our only home remains habitable. Australia, California and Amazonia are on fire, the Victoria Falls are a mere trickle, the oceans are deoxygenating, the thawing Arctic tundra is belching methane. In Europe, once-thriving Alpine ski resorts are left to rot for lack of snow, and here in the UK flooding is starting to become endemic. Catastrophic feedback loops, points of no return, are inevitable unless we change our way of living quickly.Labour is the only major party with viable plans to tackle this. Their Green New Deal would be good for the planet’s health and ours too. Investment in green technologies like wave and tidal power will provide us with unlimited clean energy. The expertise and equipment of this technology could be exported around the world, creating jobs and wealth for us. Continue reading...

Climate Analytics suggests Australia has reneged on a pledge to make deeper emissions cutsAustralia’s plan to use an accounting loophole to meet its commitment under the Paris climate agreement has no legal basis and suggests it has reneged on a pledge to make deeper emissions cuts once a global deal was reached, a new report says.An analysis by Climate Analytics, a Berlin-based science and policy institute, found there were no grounds for Australia to claim credit towards its Paris emissions target for having beaten targets under its predecessor, the Kyoto protocol. Continue reading...

Rooftop solar capacity to double or even triple to replace existing thermal generation, new assessment by the energy market operator predictsAustralia’s ageing coal-fired power plants could be shuttered earlier than expected if competition from renewable generators and carbon budgets render them uneconomic, according to a new assessment by the Australian Energy Market Operator.Aemo will, on Thursday, publish a new draft integrated system plan which snapshots the unfolding revolution underway in Australia’s energy market. The energy market operator predicts rooftop solar capacity will double or even triple, providing up to 22% of total energy by 2040. Continue reading...

Teen activist lauded by magazine for starting an environmental campaign which became a global movementGreta Thunberg, the teen activist from Sweden who has urged immediate action to address a global climate crisis, was named Time magazine’s person of the year for 2019 on Wednesday. She is the youngest person to have ever received the accolade.Thunberg, 16, was lauded by Time for starting an environmental campaign in August 2018 which became a global movement, initially skipping school and camping out in front of the Swedish parliament to demand action. Continue reading...

Many activists who are too young to vote are working hard to get message across to those who can

Energy park of one or more islands would be able to supply up to 10 million householdsDenmark is pursuing plans to build one or more artificial islands surrounded by offshore wind turbines with a capacity of 10 gigawatts, capable of supplying up to 10 million households, the climate and energy ministry has said.The country, which produced 41% of its energy from wind power in 2018, the highest level in Europe, last week passed an ambitious climate act which commits it to cut greenhouse gas emissions to 70% of 1990 levels by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, with new, legally binding targets every five years from 2020. Continue reading...

In the 1980s, black New Orleanians were encouraged to buy houses built by the city on top of a toxic landfill. Three decades later it is one of Louisiana’s worst cancer hotspots, but residents of Gordon Plaza are still fighting to be relocatedIn 1988, Jesse Perkins was 27 years old and trying to get his piece of the American dream. Continue reading...

State’s powerful advisory body has recommended development of Wollar and Hawkins-Rumker coalfieldsFarmers and activists in NSW’s Bylong Valley say they are concerned about the damage to water quality and prime agricultural land in the area if development of two coalfields is given the green light by the state government.The NSW deputy premier, John Barilaro, has confirmed to locals Guardian Australia’s report in October that the state’s powerful advisory body for strategic release has recommended opening up for development two coalfields in the area: Wollar and Hawkins-Rumker. Continue reading...

Some 134 species of eucalypts had drops in numbers of at least 30% and the endangered Rose Mallee declined by more than halfA global assessment of all 826 known species of eucalypt trees – of which some 812 grow only in Australia – has found almost a quarter are threatened with extinction.The figures are revealed in the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s update of its “red list” of threatened species. Continue reading...

Thinktank report deems Morrison government ‘an increasingly regressive force’Australia is the worst-performing country on climate change policy, according to a new international ranking of 57 countries. The report also criticises the Morrison government for being a “regressive force” internationally.The 2020 Climate Change Performance Index, prepared by a group of thinktanks comprising the NewClimate Institute, the Climate Action Network and Germanwatch, looks at national climate action across the categories of emissions, renewable energy, energy use and policy. Continue reading...

NSW environment minister splits with federal Coalition to urge immediate emissions reduction, saying weather conditions are exactly what scientists warnedThe New South Wales environment minister Matt Kean has split from his federal Coalition counterparts, arguing climate change is behind the bushfire crisis and calling for greater emissions reduction.Kean’s intervention piles pressure on Scott Morrison to do more on emissions reduction and disaster management after his predecessor Malcolm Turnbull urged him to step up his government’s response to the “national security issue” and former emergency services chiefs pushed for a national summit. Continue reading...

It is disappearing from our countryside, but what is the real story behind its inclusion in the famous carol?“On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…” I bet you’re already singing the next line: “a partridge in a pear tree!” The Twelve Days of Christmas is one of our best-known Christmas carols, even if its repetitive format does sometimes drive us round the bend.But what of the partridge itself? When I was growing up on the edge of London, the grey partridge was, if not exactly common, a fairly regular sight. If I took a trip to East Anglia, they were ten a penny. Nowadays, I struggle to find them anywhere. Continue reading...

Scale and speed of loss much higher than predicted, threatening inundation for hundreds of millions of peopleGreenland’s ice sheet is melting much faster than previously thought, threatening hundreds of millions of people with inundation and bringing some of the irreversible impacts of the climate emergency much closer.Ice is being lost from Greenland seven times faster than it was in the 1990s, and the scale and speed of ice loss is much higher than was predicted in the comprehensive studies of global climate science by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, according to data. Continue reading...

Ten species with improved numbers in IUCN red list unveiled amid call for more biodiversity focus at COP25The Guam rail, a flightless bird typically about 30cm long, usually dull brown in colour and adorned with black and white stripes, has become a rare success story in the recent history of conservation.Previously extinct in the wild, the bird has been saved by captive breeding programmes and on Tuesday its status was updated on the IUCN red list of threatened species to critically endangered, along with nine others whose numbers have recently improved. Continue reading...

Alberta’s oil sands produce one of the dirtiest oils on the planet. If the Teck mega mine is approved, the damage to our planet will be colossalThis week, the Canadian government is in Madrid telling the world that climate action is its No 1 priority. When they get home, Justin Trudeau’s newly re-elected government will decide whether to throw more fuel on the fires of climate change by giving the go-ahead to construction of the largest open-pit oil sands mine in Canadian history.Approving Teck Resources’ Frontier mine would effectively signal Canada’s abandonment of its international climate goals. The mega mine would operate until 2067, adding a whopping 6 megatonnes of climate pollution every year. That’s on top of the increasing amount of carbon that Canada’s petroleum producers are already pumping out every year. Continue reading...

Almost 3,000 firefighters deployed across New South Wales as more than 80 bushfires continue to burn. This blog is now closed• Morrison rejects calls for more bushfire help, saying volunteer firefighters ‘want to be there’

UN experts say it is impossible to rule out that cattle raised on illegally deforested land end up in supply chain of Minerva

Investigation showing Brazilian beef industry tied to Amazon destruction prompts demands for firms to scrutinise supply chains

Exclusive: email exchanges show senior employees knew Michigan residents might risk being poisoned by tap water months before city admitted to problemExecutives at one of the world’s largest utilities companies knew that families in Flint, Michigan, might be at risk of being poisoned by lead in their tap water months before the city publicly admitted the problem, according to internal company emails.Email exchanges in February 2015 between executives at Veolia and a city contractor show some senior employees were aware that lead from the city’s pipes could be leaching into drinking water. They argued that city officials should be told to change Flint’s water supply to protect residents. Continue reading...