Page 2 - Climate Change Talks

Local institutions need empowerment to fully harness Bharat Forecast system

With enhanced predictions of floods, heatwaves, and cyclones, state governments and emergency services will be in a position to act swiftly to mitigate damage

Earth's average temperature for 2025-29 may exceed 1.5 deg C limit: WMO

There is a 70 per cent chance that the average global temperature for the 2025-2029 period will exceed pre-industrial levels by more than 1.5 degrees Celsius, according to a new report published by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) on Wednesday. It also said that there is an 80 per cent chance that at least one of the next five years will exceed 2024 as the warmest on record. Besides being the hottest on record, 2024 was the first calendar year with a global mean temperature of more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above the 1850-1900 baseline, the period before human activities, such as burning fossil fuels, began significantly impacting the climate. The 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold is a target that countries agreed to at the Paris climate conference in 2015 to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. A permanent breach of the 1.5-degree Celsius limit specified in the Paris Agreement refers to long-term warming over a 20 or 30-year period. Countries are required to submit th

New national climate plans needed for economic growth, says UN's Stiell

UN climate negotiator urges nations to submit 'next generation' climate plans amid multiple crises

India contributing to climate action with the urgency: Bhupender Yadav

India is deeply committed to contributing to climate action with the urgency it demands, despite its minimal role in the climate crisis, Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said on Friday. Addressing the first edition of 'Sagarmatha Sambaad', a global dialogue on climate change and its impact on mountainous regions, the minister said the global carbon budget is rapidly being depleted with developed nations continuing to disproportionately grab the meagre remaining share. The global carbon budget is the amount of carbon dioxide that can be emitted into the atmosphere while keeping the rise in average global temperature since the industrial revolution below 1.5 degrees Celsius. Yadav said the developed countries' commitments to providing climate finance, technology transfer and capacity building have been profoundly neglected, intensifying the climate crisis for which they bear far greater responsibility. The dialogue, he added, is not just a forum for discussion but a call fo

Best of BS Opinion: India must push through multiple headwinds

India faces multiple challenges in many areas, and how it faces them will frame the future for its citizens.

Clear green rules key for India to meet climate goals, says StanChart

In theory, a taxonomy would help clarify an investment's green credentials and mitigate greenwashing

EU carbon border policy may hurt global climate cooperation: Study

Implementation of unilateral Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism-like policies across jurisdictions can increase costs for exporters, complicate trade relations and potentially weaken collaborative global climate efforts, a study has found. According to the study -- conducted by researchers from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM)-Lucknow and the Institute of Management Technology (IMT)-Ghaziabad -- the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) can pose challenges for India's small- and medium-sized steel enterprises due to financial, technological and capacity constraints. In the first-of-its-kind study, the researchers tested if the EU's ability to extend its regulation beyond borders, commonly known as the "Brussels Effect", would drive decarbonisation in India's steel industry through the CBAM. The researchers found that while large integrated steel plants might adapt their production to supply lower-carbon steel for the EU market, smaller and medium-sized enterprises .

Govt plans National Green Financing Institution to meet climate goals: NITI

The government is working to set up a National Green Financing Institution to support its net-zero target by 2070, as current finance flows for climate initiatives remain much lower than the desired levels, NITI Aayog has said. "A dedicated National Green Financing Institution may be envisaged to bridge the huge gap," the Aayog said in its annual report 2024-25. It added that the primary purpose of the institution will be to aggregate green capital from different sources and lower the cost of capital. NITI Aayog said it is examining structuring mechanisms for operationalising a potential National Green Financing Institution, including a bank modelled on NaBFID/NABARD, repurposing existing institutions like IREDA; Climate Fund in GIFT city, Green InvIT, etc. (non-exhaustive) along with analysing best practices from Green Banks around the world. As part of its climate commitments or Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on ...

Bad news for the earth: Climate action scepticism rises among policymaker

Germany less committed to climate action would swing Europe in a very different direction from the one it has been going for some time

Climate change drying up rivers, need to act now: UP CM at Maha Kumbh

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said climate change is drying up rivers and urged people to act urgently instead of engaging in a blame game over carbon dioxide emissions. Addressing a conference on climate change, environment and faith at the Maha Kumbh, he said the UP government has worked to rejuvenate rivers in the state, which is why the Kumbh is witnessing such large crowds. "CO2 emissions are causing climate change, which is further drying up rivers, the lifelines of Mother Earth," he said. "People blame each other but don't take responsibility for mitigating climate change. It's time we act collectively and individually urgently," Adityanath added. He said that the Ganga and Yamuna were not as clean 10 years ago, but his government worked to rejuvenate them. "Because the river water is clean and arrangements are good, people are coming in large numbers to the Kumbh. Every time, 10,000 to 11,000 cusecs of water are released into the Ganga, ensuring th

India plays critical role in global climate targets: EDF prez Fred Krupp

India's critical role in achieving global climate targets lies in its potential to lead through innovation, strategic partnerships and scalable climate solutions, said Fred Krupp, president of the Environmental Defense Fund. In an interview with PTI, he outlined India's unique position as an emerging economy balancing rapid economic growth with ambitious climate goals. Krupp underscored that while the world is lagging in addressing the climate crisis, countries like India have a chance to accelerate progress. "India is aiming to become one of the world's top three economies while keeping its climate goals in focus. If India can successfully produce energy-efficient goods, increase renewable energy, and adopt low-carbon manufacturing, it would have a profound global impact," he said. Environmental Defense Fund or EDF is a United States-?based nonprofit environmental advocacy group. The group is known for its work on issues including global warming, ecosystem restoration, oceans, and

UN's NZBA in trouble: Why big banks are pulling out of climate accords

After major US and Canadian banks, now European banks threaten to exit climate alliance amid concerns over net zero policies

EU warns of 'serious blow' to climate change policy from Donald Trump

US exit from the Paris Agreement would require other countries to double down on climate diplomacy in response

Here's all about the best climate news you may have missed this year

Averting catastrophic climate change was always going to involve plenty of steps forward as well as steps back

Here's all about the worst climate news of the year you may have missed

If the ongoing renewables boom (see below) doesn't avert those plans, coal's role in India's grid looks to be getting back on track

India plans final refinery expansion as electric vehicle era looms

This comes even as New Delhi is struggling to strike a balance between rapidly adopting EV and bolstering energy security by taking recourse to affordable and more reliable transport fuels

Closely-watched climate case in Hague wraps up first week of testimony

A closely-watched international climate case that could yield guidance for governments around the world wrapped its first week of arguments before the top court of the United Nations in The Hague Friday. The case, though not binding, is expected to spell out what countries are legally required to do to combat climate change and help vulnerable nations fight its devastating impact. The push for the International Court of Justice to hear this case comes like much of the call to address climate change from island nations that are losing territory and fear they could disappear under rising seas. The UN General Assembly asked the court last year for an opinion on the obligations of States in respect of climate change. The stakes could not be higher. The survival of my people and so many others is on the line, Arnold Kiel Loughman, attorney general of the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu, told The Hague-based court. For years his country has spearheaded calls for reductions of the ...

India slams developed countries for climate crisis at ICJ hearing

India home of about 17.8% of global population, its contribution to climate change less than 4%, said JS, MEA Luther M Rangrezi to ICJ

Govt official slams COP29 as missed opportunity for climate finance goals

Describing COP29 as one steeped in "semantics and not solutions", a senior Indian official has called the proceedings a missed opportunity to mobilize meaningful climate finance for adaptation and mitigation efforts in developing nations. Leena Nandan, Secretary of the Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Ministry, highlighted India's strong stance during negotiations and its leadership role in articulating concerns of the developing world. Speaking about the outcomes of COP29 at a session, she said the conference, which was anticipated to focus on implementation, fell short of expectations. "This was to be an enabling COP, a COP which was going to be focused on the means of implementation and what is means of implementation other than funds and resources. And here it was that we found semantics and not solutions. We found rhetoric and not results. And that has been the biggest disappointment," she said, adding that the sentiment was echoed across the Global South. Nandan ...

Time to adapt: India's climate efforts lack alignment with urgent needs

Evidence suggests that both the extent of change and the associated income losses are likely to be higher than expected