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Relief as Delhi schools reopen but smog crisis persists
Teenage student Aniksha is relieved to be back in class in India's capital -- even if the choking smog that prompted her school to close last month has yet to dissipate.
US 'disappointed' after plastic pollution talks collapse: White House
The US government said Tuesday it was "disappointed" after nations negotiating a global treaty to curb plastic waste failed to reach a deal, blaming a "small group" of countries and producers for blocking progress.
Japan witnesses warmest autumn on record
Japan has recorded its warmest autumn since records began 126 years ago, the weather agency said, delaying the country's popular displays of seasonal foliage into December.
Third death as Storm Bora batters Greece
A storm sweeping through Greece has claimed a third victim, state TV reported Monday, after damaging roads and buildings on the islands of Lemnos, Rhodes and other parts of the country.
New Zealand scientists dissect world's rarest whale
New Zealand scientists on Monday began dissecting a whale considered the rarest in the world, a species so elusive that only seven specimens have ever been documented.
Sixth Greenland hearing for anti-whaling activist Watson
A Greenland court will decide on Monday whether to further extend the four-month-long detention of anti-whaling activist Paul Watson, pending a decision on his extradition to Japan.
Plastic pollution talks fail to reach landmark deal
Deeply divided negotiators failed on Sunday to reach a landmark global treaty to curb plastic pollution, missing a self-imposed deadline, and agreed to extend their talks.
Divided plastic pollution negotiators call for more time
Negotiators have failed to reach agreement on a landmark treaty to curb plastic pollution and need more time to continue discussions, the diplomat chairing the talks said Sunday.
No accord on plastic pollution deal, more time needed: chair
Negotiators have failed to reach agreement on a landmark treaty to curb plastic pollution, the diplomat chairing the talks said Sunday, calling for additional time to continue discussions.
Afghanistan must participate in future climate talks: Taliban
An Afghan environment official on Sunday said the country must be allowed to participate in future global climate talks, after returning from COP29 in Baku where Taliban officials attended for the first time.
Calls for extension as plastic treaty negotiations falter
Delegates seeking the world's first deal to curb plastic pollution began openly advocating for an extension of talks on Sunday, accusing a handful of nations of obstructing an ambitious agreement.
The farm fires helping to fuel India's deadly air
Blazing flames light the sky as Indian farmer Ali Sher burns his fields to clear them for new crops, a common but illegal practice that is fuelling deadly pollution killing millions.
Philippine Eagle hatchling dies in conservation setback
A Philippine Eagle chick hatched via artificial insemination has died, an avian conservation foundation has announced, in a fresh setback for one of the world's largest and most critically endangered raptors.
Nations warn of 'obstruction' at plastic talks
Dozens of countries warned Sunday that a handful of nations were obstructing efforts in South Korea to reach an ambitious landmark global treaty to curb plastic pollution.
Nations warn of deadlock at landmark plastic pollution talks
Diplomats warned Saturday that a majority of countries could walk away from talks on the world's first plastic pollution agreement if a handful of delegations continue resisting calls to compromise.
Researchers analyse DNA from dung to save Laos elephants
Slow and silent, former logging elephant Mae Khoun Nung emerges from a forest in northern Laos and follows her guide to an animal hospital for a check-up.
Showdown looms on plastic treaty days before deadline
Diplomats warned Friday of a looming showdown in negotiations to reach the world's first deal to curb plastic pollution, after a new draft text emerged littered with competing visions and ongoing disagreements.
Days before deadline, plastic treaty draft highlights disagreement
With just two days before negotiators are due to agree on the world's first deal to curb global plastic pollution, a new draft text released Friday showed deep differences remain.
Top UN court to open unprecedented climate hearings
The world's top court will next week start unprecedented hearings aimed at finding a "legal blueprint" for how countries should protect the environment from damaging greenhouse gases -- and what the consequences are if they do not.
In Bosnia, the path to renewables runs through its coal mines
At 250 metres underground, the dust is thick and oxygen is in short supply at the Mramor mine in northeastern Bosnia.
Plastic pollution talks must speed up, chair warns
Negotiators must move "significantly" faster to agree on a landmark treaty to curb plastic pollution, the diplomat chairing the talks warned Wednesday, as countries lined up to express frustration about the limited progress.
Thailand to return nearly 1,000 trafficked lemurs, tortoises to Madagascar
Thailand is sending almost 1,000 highly endangered lemurs and tortoises back to their home in Madagascar, in what both countries called their biggest ever operation against wildlife trafficking.
Environmentalists slam lobbyist influence on plastic talks
Environmental groups on Wednesday slammed the presence of dozens of petrochemical and fossil fuel industry lobbyists at UN talks on a plastic pollution treaty, accusing them of "obstruction" and "misinformation."
'Very, very slow': plastic treaty talks grind forward
Negotiations on a first global treaty to curb plastic pollution are moving "very, very slowly", diplomats and observers told AFP on Wednesday, threatening the chances of reaching an agreement.
COP29 president blames rich countries for 'imperfect' deal
The tough-fought finance deal at UN climate negotiations was "imperfect", the Azerbaijan COP29 leadership has admitted, seeking to blame richer countries for an outcome slammed by poorer nations as insulting.
California vows to step in if Trump kills US EV tax credit
California will revive its own subsidy programs for electric vehicles if Donald Trump guts US federal tax breaks for such cars, the state's governor said Monday.
Plastic pollution talks must not fail: UN environment chief
Talks to agree the world's first treaty to curb plastic pollution cannot fail and must tackle both production and consumption, the UN's environment chief told AFP on Monday.
Indian author Ghosh wins top Dutch prize
Acclaimed Indian author Amitav Ghosh has won the coveted Dutch Erasmus Prize for his writings on climate change and its impact on humanity, especially on the Indian subcontinent.
As baboons become bolder, Cape Town battles for solutions
On a sunny afternoon in Cape Town’s seaside village of Simon’s Town, three young chacma baboons cause a commotion, clambering on roofs, jumping between buildings and swinging on the gutters.
'Existential challenge': plastic pollution treaty talks begin
A final round of talks on a treaty to end plastic pollution opened on Monday, with the diplomat chairing the difficult negotiations urging nations to "meet an existential challenge."
Climate finance's 'new era' shows new political realities
Rich countries' promise of $300 billion a year in climate finance brought fury at talks in Baku from poor nations that found it too paltry, but it also shows a shift in global political realities.
Concern as climate talks stalls on fossil fuels pledge
The failure of UN climate negotiations to double down on a global pledge to move away from planet-heating fossil fuels on Sunday was decried by experts as a "worrying" setback to global progress on curbing warming.