In many affected towns, the thick mud has given way to the roar of machinery as homes are rebuilt (Thomas COEX). (Thomas COEX/AFP/AFP) By AFP - Agence France Presse One year on, Spain's flood survivors rebuild and remember Rosa SULLEIRO When the first autumn rains fell this year, Toni Garcia drew the curtains. Rain is a painful reminder of last year's devastating floods that killed more than 200 people in Spain, including her husband and only daughter. "Everything comes back

New Delhi and its sprawling metropolitan region are regularly ranked among the world's most polluted capitals (ARUN SANKAR). By AFP - Agence France Presse Toxic Haze Chokes Indian Capital India's capital New Delhi was shrouded in a thick, toxic haze on Monday as air pollution levels soared to more than 16 times the World Health Organization’s recommended daily maximum. New Delhi and its sprawling metropolitan region -- home to more than 30 million people -- are regularly rank

People take part in a demonstration against pollution caused by chemical factories, in Gabes, Tunisia, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2025. (AP) By AFP - Agence France Presse Dozens Arrested In Tunisia Anti-pollution Protests: Activists Police in Gabes, Tunisia, have arrested dozens of people in demonstrations against a chemical factory which locals blame for pollution and a range of health issues, a local campaign group and a lawyer said Saturday. Thousands have rallied in the southern

China is installing solar and wind power at a rate that outstrips the rest of the world combined (GREG BAKER). (GREG BAKER/AFP/AFP) By AFP - Agence France Presse China's Power Paradox: Record Renewables, Continued Coal By Sara HUSSEIN Call it the China power paradox: while Beijing leads the world in renewable energy expansion, its coal projects are booming too. As the top emitter of greenhouse gases, China will largely determine whether the world avoids the worst effects of c

The upcoming UN climate summit in Brazil is the moment for world leaders to look at climate action as action against poverty, the UN says (MUKESH GUPTA) By AFP - Agence France Presse Nearly 900 Mn Poor People Exposed To Climate Shocks, UN Warns By Amélie BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS The upcoming UN climate summit in Brazil is the moment for world leaders to look at climate action as action against poverty, the UN says (MUKESH GUPTA) Nearly 80 percent of the world's poorest, or about 900

Two court cases challenge Indonesia's growth push over deforestation and rights issues (Yusuf WAHIL). (Yusuf WAHIL/MIGHTY EARTH/AFP) By AFP - Agence France Presse Indonesia's growth push sparks fight on deforestation, rights Marchio Gorbiano with Sara Hussein in Bangkok An "eco-city", a mining complex, and a massive project to grow food and fuel are all part of an Indonesian growth drive that activists allege is causing deforestation and dispossession. The projects have been

Illustrative Photo Unsplash By AFP - Agence France Presse Santa Cruz, Bolivia's Breadbasket, Hopes Political Change Will Fuel Growth By Sandra FERRER In the department of Santa Cruz, Bolivia's breadbasket, farmers hope a change in government will bring an end to hobbling fuel shortages, allowing their sector to become the savior of a struggling economy. Snaking lines of cars and trucks at gas stations have become a common sight in the dollar-starved South American country, an

Guinea's Simandou mining project aims to provide a stream of much-needed revenue for the country and has resulted in the construction of infrastructure (PATRICK MEINHARDT) By AFP - Agence France Presse In the Simandou mountains, Guinea prepares to cash in on iron ore Eléonore SENS At the foot of the Simandou mountains in southeast Guinea's lush tropical forest, thousands of workers, trucks, and excavators are digging up the hills. The verdant paradise is home to a massive min

The jump in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere last year is the biggest ever recorded, according to the WMO (DAVID MCNEW). (DAVID MCNEW/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images via AFP) By AFP - Agence France Presse CO2 In The Atmosphere Up By Record Amount In 2024: UN By Robin MILLARD The increase in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere last year was the biggest ever recorded, the United Nations said Wednesday, calling for urgent action to slash emissions. Levels of t

Illustrative Photo Pixabay By AFP - Agence France Presse Rare Earths: Strategic Metals Key To Future Tech Rare earths are minerals used to make magnets, crucial to the auto, electronic, and defence industries, as well as in renewable energy. The US Treasury Secretary slammed export curbs imposed by Beijing last week on technologies used for rare-earth mining, smelting, and other processing steps. Scott Bessent said on Thursday that it was "China versus the world". Here are so

The pledge involves quadrupling the production of sustainable fuels such as biofuels, hydrogen, and some synthetic fuels by 2035. (Photo for Representation). By AFP - Agence France Presse Brazil, Other Nations Agree To Quadruple Sustainable Fuels Brazil, India, Italy, and Japan vowed this week to quadruple their production and consumption of renewable fuels, hoping other countries will join the pledge during UN climate talks in November. "We hope to have a good number of sign

China is the world's biggest greenhouse gas emitter, and will determine the planet's climate change trajectory (NOEL CELIS) By AFP - Agence France Presse In China, Climate Litigation Starts With The State By Sam DAVIES With thousands of dedicated courts and more than a million recent cases, environmental and climate litigation is booming in China, but it often looks different from the trend seen elsewhere. Instead of a movement led by activists and NGOs, in China, climate lit

Washington has threatened to sanction countries supporting a UN plan to cut maritime emissions (Jim WATSON). (Jim WATSON/AFP/AFP) By AFP - Agence France Presse China, EU stand firm on shipping emission deal despite US threats. China, the European Union, and several other members of the International Maritime Organization reaffirmed their support on Tuesday for ambitious plans to cut shipping emissions, despite US threats. Initially approved in April, the London-based IMO is s

Quorn, in central England, was flooded after heavy snow and rain in January (OLI SCARFF) By AFP - Agence France Presse Climate Advisers Warn UK To Prepare For 2C Warming By 2050 By Akshata KAPOOR UK climate advisers warned the government for the first time on Wednesday to prepare for 2 °C of global warming by 2050, stressing current efforts to adapt to extreme weather are falling far short. Britain is among many countries experiencing record-breaking temperatures this year, w

Last week, an adult bear entered a supermarket in Numata, Gunma, north of Tokyo (STR). (STR/GUNMA PREFECTURAL POLICE VIA JIJI PRESS/AFP) By AFP - Agence France Presse Fatal Bear Attacks In Japan Hit Record Number By Kyoko HASEGAWA Bears have killed a record number of people in Japan this year, the environment ministry said on Thursday, just as another possible victim was reported missing. Bears hungry because of shortages of food, such as acorns -- which have been blamed on c

Wildfires fuelled by climate change have driven a rise in global greenhouse emissions (HANDOUT). (HANDOUT/Manitoba Government/AFP) By AFP - Agence France Presse 'Bigger, hotter, faster': extreme blazes drive rise in CO2 fire emissions Rampant wildfires in the Americas drove a jump in global greenhouse gas emissions from fires in the year to February, new research found Thursday, warning that climate change was fanning the flames. Infernos that ravaged huge areas of Canada's b

Rainforests in Australia's northern tropics are no longer acting as net carbon sinks, according to new research. (DAVID GRAY). (DAVID GRAY/AFP/AFP) By AFP - Agence France Presse Australian Rainforests No Longer A Carbon Sink: Study By Steven Trask with Sara Hussein in Bangkok Australia's tropical rainforests are among the first in the world to start emitting more carbon dioxide than they absorb, scientists said Thursday, linking the "very concerning" trend to climate change.

President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (L) and his Minister of Indigenous Peoples, Sonia Guajajara, chat during a meeting in Belem (Ricardo STUCKERT). (Ricardo STUCKERT/Brazilian Presidency/AFP) By AFP - Agence France Presse Brazil's climate wins ahead of COP30. Ramon SAHMKOW Brazil's president has slashed deforestation in the Amazon and worked to better protect Indigenous people, giving him a generally positive environmental record as he prepares to host COP30 UN climate talks

Each winter, Delhi is blanketed in acrid smog, a toxic mix of crop-burning, factory emissions, and choking traffic (ARUN SANKAR) By AFP - Agence France Presse India's Pollution Refugees Fleeing Delhi's Toxic Air By Aishwarya KUMAR Pollution levels in India's capital shaped Natasha Uppal and her husband's decision on parenthood -- either raise their child away from the city, or stay put and remain childless. New Delhi and the surrounding metropolitan area, home to more than 30

Republicans are moving to block what they describe as 'lawfare against the energy industry' (PATRICK T. FALLON) By AFP - Agence France Presse US Republicans Seek To Shield Oil Giants As Climate Lawsuits Advance By Issam AHMED President Donald Trump's second term has seen the United States go all-in to boost Big Oil and block renewables -- yet a wave of state and local climate-damage lawsuits against the fossil fuel industry continues to advance. Now Republicans are moving to