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Rare wildlife species found in Cambodian national park

A years-long survey of a Cambodian national park has revealed endangered species never before recorded in the country, highlighting the need for greater conservation efforts, environmentalists said Wednesday.

Activists slam 'destructive' Indonesia forest conversion plan

Indonesia's plan to convert millions of hectares of forests for food and energy use is "environmentally illogical and destructive," and risks irreversible environmental and biodiversity loss, activists warned Monday.

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COP29 fight for climate money 'humiliating': Bangladesh's Yunus

Bangladesh's interim leader on Wednesday slammed the "humiliating" fight for climate finance at the COP29 talks, demanding rich countries and emitters pay for the problems they caused.

Fifth Greenland hearing for anti-whaling activist Watson

A Greenland court will decide Wednesday whether to further extend US-Canadian anti-whaling activist Paul Watson's time in custody pending a decision on his extradition to Japan, where he is wanted over an altercation with whalers.

Lame-duck US climate team vows to be 'effective' at COP29

They may be out of a job when Donald Trump takes office in two months, but US officials kept a busy schedule at UN climate talks, reminding jittery countries that global action had survived his first term.

UN carbon market inches closer after COP29 agreement

The creation of a UN-backed global carbon market has taken a step closer to reality with governments approving new standards for the use of credits to meet climate targets.

'Carbon-neutral' countries demand credit at COP29

They're some of the world's smallest nations, but a group of countries that say they absorb more carbon than they emit is demanding attention at the UN COP29 talks.

EU vessels to cease fishing in Senegal after accord expires

European fishing vessels will imminently cease activities in Senegalese waters after the non-renewal of an agreement between Brussels and Dakar, EU ambassador Jean-Marc Pisani said Tuesday.

Azerbaijan defends fossil fuels at COP29 as big names skip summit

The host of the UN climate summit in Azerbaijan on Tuesday defended fossil fuels and the right of countries to exploit them as dozens of world leaders arrived for the COP29 conference.

Climate crisis worsening already 'hellish' refugee situation: UN

Climate change is contributing to record numbers of people being uprooted from their homes globally, while worsening the often already "hellish" conditions of displacement, the United Nations said Tuesday.

Toxic towns in Kyrgyzstan battling radioactive danger

In a mask and a hazmat suit, Ermek Murataliyev drives a truck filled with Soviet-era radioactive waste along the winding mountain roads of Kyrgyzstan.

World leaders meet for climate talks, but big names missing

Dozens of world leaders convene in Azerbaijan on Tuesday for COP29 but many big names are skipping the UN climate talks where the impact of Donald Trump's election victory is keenly felt.

Trump picks ex-lawmaker Lee Zeldin to head EPA

Donald Trump on Monday nominated Lee Zeldin, a former congressman and early loyalist of the Republican, to oversee US environmental policy, the latest in a series of swift cabinet choices by the president-elect.

Nations approve new UN rules on carbon markets at COP29

Governments at the COP29 talks approved Monday new UN standards for international carbon markets in a key step toward allowing countries to trade credits to meet their climate targets.

Brazilian Indigenous leader warns world on Amazon's fate

As the COP29 climate talks started Monday in Azerbaijan, an Indigenous leader half a world away is literally towering over Brazil with a warning about the fate of the Amazon rainforest.

Paris agreement climate goals 'in great peril', warns UN

The Paris climate agreement's goals "are in great peril" and 2024 is on track to break new temperature records, the United Nations warned Monday as COP29 talks opened in Baku.

COP29 opens after Trump win with call for cooperation

The COP29 climate talks opened Monday in Azerbaijan with a call to show global cooperation was not "down for the count", as Donald Trump's re-election hangs over the key discussions.

COP29 opens with Trump climate withdrawal looming

The COP29 climate talks open Monday in Azerbaijan, under the long shadow cast by the re-election of Donald Trump, who has pledged to row back on the United States' carbon-cutting commitments.

Pakistan's record smog triggers anguish and anxiety

On the streets of Pakistan's second biggest city, smog stings eyes and burns throats. Inside homes, few people can afford air purifiers to limit the damage of toxic particles that seep through doors and windows.

No culprit found five years on from Notre Dame fire

Five years of investigation and expert reports have failed to identify the precise cause of the 2019 fire that ravaged Paris' landmark Notre Dame cathedral, even as the probe draws to a close just as the cathedral prepares to reopen early next month.

New tools give researchers hope for fungus-ravaged US bats

Standing at a woodland entrance to the world's longest cave system in Kentucky, a park ranger warns those about to enter of an extremely deadly fungus -- not for humans, but for the bat populations it has devastated across North America.

Daughter of missing Mexico environment defender pleads for global help

Brenda Diaz Valencia's life was upended nearly two years ago when the bullet-riddled truck driven by her father, Mexican environmental defender Antonio Diaz Valencia, and lawyer Ricardo Lagunes was found abandoned.

UN aims to set standards for scandal-hit carbon markets

Governments could finally approve new UN standards for countries and companies wanting to trade carbon credits, a long-awaited decision some hope can bring credibility to a scandal-ridden sector.

US town on alert after 43 monkeys escape research facility

More than 40 monkeys were on the loose Thursday in a small US town after escaping a research facility, with authorities warning residents to keep their doors and windows closed.

Lights still out in Cuba after Hurricane Rafael

Cubans on Thursday were assessing the damage caused by Hurricane Rafael which lashed the island and plunged it into darkness but caused no reported fatalities so far.

Chinese rover finds signs of ancient ocean on Mars

A Chinese rover has found new evidence to support the theory that Mars was once home to a vast ocean, including tracing some ancient coastline where water may once have lapped, a study said Thursday.

Waste heat from London sewers eyed to warm UK parliament

London landmarks including the UK parliament could be warmed by low-carbon heat powered by the River Thames, the London Underground train system and even the sewer network under new government plans.

Europe wants ministers at plastic pollution treaty talks

Europe is pushing for ministers to take part in UN talks this month to ensure that the world's first treaty on plastic pollution will be "highly ambitious".

Brazil's Amazon posts lowest deforestation in nine years: govt

The Brazilian Amazon experienced its smallest amount of yearly deforestation in nearly a decade, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's government reported Wednesday, in line with its promise to combat forest loss.

'Drill, baby, drill': Trump policy poses risks, opportunities for oil industry

Donald Trump's election as US president brings back a champion of the oil industry to the White House, but experts warn that his push for low prices could be at odds with petroleum companies' priorities.

Trump's climate denial and green rollbacks poised to fuel warming

Donald Trump's election victory puts a climate change denier back in the White House, poised to dismantle his predecessor's green policies and jeopardize global efforts to curb human-caused warming.

World's first wooden satellite launched into space

The world's first wooden satellite has blasted off on a SpaceX rocket, its Japanese developers said Tuesday, part of a resupply mission to the International Space Station.

Critically endangered Sumatran elephant calf born in Indonesia

A critically endangered Sumatran elephant has been born in Indonesia, officials said Tuesday, another rare birth that has given renewed hope to conservation efforts.

The other greenhouse gases warming the planet

While carbon dioxide, or CO2, is the best known greenhouse gas, several others, including methane and nitrous oxide, are also driving global warming and altering the Earth's climate.

The Japan Times - Nature (English)