About: climate action
Two of 196 signatory countries to Paris Agreement have raised their climate ambitions
The signatories to the Paris Agreement are supposed to revise their climate ambitions upwards within the next 18 months. While states are struggling to get involved, businesses are trying to move forward. EURACTIV France reports.
COP24: Return of king coal
Poland is hosting lobbying for coal and fossil fuels of a scale that has rarely been seen during an annual UN conference on climate (COP). The EU is turning a blind eye to this new facet of its ‘enfant terrible.’ EURACTIV France reports.
Poland increasingly deporting activists from COP24
Poland has already deported 14 people from Central Europe since the beginning of COP24, including two members of the Georgian delegation. Many NGOs are questioning the legality of these bans on entering Polish territory. EURACTIV France reports.
French government prepared to back down on carbon tax
After the riots at the margins of the “yellow vests” movement, the carbon tax adopted under François Hollande is expected to be revised downwards. EURACTIV France reports.
CO2 emissions rising again after three years of decline
It is increasingly unlikely that the global rise in temperature will be limited to 1.5°C. The current trajectory, if maintained, would lead to the planet warming by 3.2°C in 2100, according to a new UN report. EURACTIV France reports.
European forests cannot further curb global warming, French study warns
European countries should not heavily rely on their forests to curb climate change. However, they should instead ensure that forests are protected from climate change, underlined a study published in Nature on Wednesday (10 October). EURACTIV France reports.
The Brief: What the eck is Talanoa all about?
Climate negotiators gathered in Bonn, Germany, to negotiate the rules that will govern the Paris Agreement will go back home on Thursday with little to show after almost two weeks of negotiation. The final seal on the rules should be...
Seven EU countries call for stronger climate action in Europe
The ecology and environment ministers of seven European countries met in Paris on 25 April and called for a more ambitious climate strategy for the EU. EURACTIV.fr reports.
Climate justice not on the menu in Bonn
Climate activists and indigenous leaders gathered last week (16 November) to raise awareness about the human rights aspect of climate action. They lamented the lack of substance in climate talks, while people are already dying due to the direct effects of climate change.
Climate finance, the sticking point in COP23
Rich countries had pledged to raise $100 billion each year in climate finance for developing countries by 2020. As of September 2017, they had pledged just $10.3 billion. And the question of who should pay remains unanswered. EURACTIV reports from the COP23 in Bonn.
America’s ‘other half’ steps up climate efforts
On Tuesday (14 November) at COP23, America’s “other half” presented its efforts to fight climate change in spite of the Trump administration’s decision to pull out of the Paris Agreement.
Franco-German tandem under pressure to lead climate action
French and German NGOs have asked Brune Poirson and Jochen Flasbarth – state secretaries for the environment in France and Germany, respectively - to make the tandem “the engine of an ambitious European climate policy.”
Make or break time: Will the Commission make Europe a true industrial and climate leader?
The European Commission’s new Industrial Policy Strategy is a good start to provide the framework for Europe’s businesses to secure their position as a leading economy in the future, but the hard work is only just beginning, warns Seppo Parvi.
Western Balkans cannot track climate action without appropriate monitoring
The European Commission has just announced it will drop a mechanism to monitor progress in limiting greenhouse gas emissions in the Western Balkans. The decision will make it difficult to track and manage the climate goals in a region that is highly vulnerable to climate change impacts, warns Dragana Mileusnić.
Merkel says growth must be inclusive as G20 protests begin
As anti-globalisation activists took to the streets in Hamburg ahead of this week's G20 summit, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said yesterday (2 July) leaders will have to focus on sustainable and inclusive economic growth rather than their own prosperity.
EU budget for climate action: Time to wake the sleeping beauty
The European Commission will publish its ‘Reflection paper on the future of EU finances’ on 28 June. Against a background of renewed commitments from European leaders towards climate action, the EU budget must be reformed to comply with the requirements of the Paris Agreement, writes Markus Trilling.
Emissions Trading Scheme by numbers
The EU’s Emission Trading Scheme reform took a huge step forward last year when the European Parliament’s Environment Committee voted in favour of MEP Ian Duncan’s report. He talks us through the process and what happens next.
The Brief: Commission must harness climate momentum
The European Commission has the chance, if it seizes the moment, to push through the higher renewable and energy efficiency targets that are needed to meet the EU’s Paris Agreement climate commitments.
EU unveils national CO2 emission targets
“These targets are realistic, fair and flexible,” EU Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Cañete said on Wednesday after the EU unveiled national targets for cutting greenhouse gases by 2030.
Brexit: A step forwards or backwards for a Greener Europe?
Environmental action is one of the triumphs of the EU. The UK’s contribution and ambition in this area is likely to be sorely missed, write Viviane Gravey, Andrew Jordan and Charlotte Burns.