Negotiations ran late last night, and as delegates begin to leave the outcome of the summit remains unclear
The US – by its absence not presence – has had a major impact on what appears likely to be a disappointing deal at the Cop30 climate summit. This is because the US is the only country with the power to influence Saudi Arabia, observers say.
The oil-rich kingdom has a decades-long history of obstructing the climate talks to protect its lucrative industry and has been widely blamed here in Belém for leading efforts to block any mention of fossil fuels. With Donald Trump calling climate change a “con job”, the US did not send a delegation to Cop30 and is withdrawing from the Paris agreement. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had a friendly meeting with Trump on Tuesday.
Quorum is key: as cruise ships leave, many delegates have nowhere to stay tonight and will be heading out. Pacific delegates and many UN staffers are among those impacted. Brazil faces a race against time. Lula faces the prospect of explaining to G20 leaders why a summit he hoped would propel him to election victory in 2026 has ended in abject failure, with little to no support from his Brics allies and Saudi Arabia, which tried to kill efforts to talk cuts on Friday.
Continue reading...
Breaking Waves: Ocean News
11/22/2025 - 07:25
11/22/2025 - 05:00
Trend is adding to ‘waste crisis’ owing to individual packaging and potential for unwanted items, campaigners say
The trend for Advent calendars aimed at adults is “superfluous consumerism” that adds to excessive and wasteful consumption, according to environmental groups.
While once children excitedly opened a door each day to see what festive picture lay behind it, adults can now count down the days to Christmas with calendars containing everything from luxury beauty products to instant mashed potato.
Continue reading...
11/22/2025 - 00:00
National Trust begins planting the 49 ‘trees of hope’ so the illegally felled tree can live on in a positive way
Saplings from the felled Sycamore Gap tree are to be planted across the UK, including at a pit disaster site, a town still healing from the Troubles and a place which became an international symbol of peace, protest and feminism.
The National Trust said planting of 49 saplings, known as “trees of hope”, would begin on Saturday. It is hoped that the sycamore will live on in a positive, inspirational way.
Continue reading...
11/21/2025 - 18:50
UK energy secretary says UN climate talks must find way to keep proposals alive despite significant resistance
Supporters of a global phaseout of fossil fuels must find “creative” ways to keep the proposal alive, including making it voluntary rather than binding, the UK energy secretary, Ed Miliband, has said in the closing stages of the UN climate talks.
As the Cop30 summit in Brazil carried on past the Friday night deadline, the prospect of countries agreeing on the need for a roadmap to a global “transition away from fossil fuels” looked increasingly dim. A first draft of the potential outcome text from the summit had contained the formulation, but in the updated draft text produced on Friday by the Brazilian presidency it had been excised.
Continue reading...
11/21/2025 - 13:48
President of talks urges ministers and high-ranking officials to find common ground as conference nears its end
Cop30 live – latest updates
Climate crisis talks look likely to stretch well into the weekend in Brazil, with countries still far apart on the crucial issues of phasing out fossil fuels and cutting carbon.
The Cop30 president, André Corrêa do Lago, urged ministers and high-ranking officials from more than 190 countries to find common ground: “We need to preserve this regime [of the Paris climate agreement] with the spirit of cooperation, not in the spirit of who is going to win or is willing to lose’” he said. “Because we know if we don’t strengthen this, everyone will lose.”
Continue reading...
11/21/2025 - 09:00
Exclusive: Concession follows fierce criticism of the workaround but may not be enough to convince minor party
Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast
Labor would prevent a contentious “national interest” exemption being used to approve coal and gas projects if the Greens agreed to support its nature laws, Guardian Australia can reveal.
The offer follows a groundswell of criticism about the discretionary power, including from the author of the review that inspired the new laws, Graeme Samuel, and the former treasury secretary Ken Henry.
Continue reading...
11/21/2025 - 09:00
Australian Marine Conservation Society’s GoodFish guide aims to showcase the most environmentally friendly seafood sources
Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast
As a challenging year for marine life heads into its final weeks, GoodFish has shared its list of sustainable choices for the festive season to help take the pressure off Australia’s oceans.
“It’s a time to be more careful than ever,” said Adrian Meder, sustainable seafood program manager at the Australian Marine Conservation Society, which produces the GoodFish guide.
Continue reading...
11/21/2025 - 09:00
Here are some of the standout images from this year’s Nature Conservancy Australia Oceania photo contest. Winners were chosen from over 3,500 entries from across Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands
Continue reading...
11/21/2025 - 06:53
Summit president André Corrêa do Lago issued plea to preserve Paris agreement with countries unable to reach compromise on scheduled final day
An informal stocktake plenary is now underway [see live feed at the top of the blog]. Here the presidency will update parties on the state of the negotiations.
My colleague Damian Carrington will be keeping across the main developments.
Continue reading...
11/21/2025 - 05:00
Nearly 13m people are hoarding millions of dollars’ worth of the stylish 50 peso note, featuring Mexico’s cutest critter
For most of her life, Gorda was just an axolotl who lived in a museum in Mexico City – that is, until she became the star of the country’s favourite banknote.
The note, which features a depiction of Gorda as the model for Mexico’s iconic species of salamander, went into circulation in 2021, dazzling the judges of the International Bank Notes Society, who declared it the Note of the Year.
Continue reading...
