On 29 March 2023 the United Nations General Assembly voted by acclamation to support the motion brought by the Republic of Vanuatu and by Pacific Island law students, with the support of more than 100 countries. This sought a referral to the International Court of Justice for an advisory opinion of two questions seeking clarification of states’ responsibilities under international law to address climate change effectively.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ‘IPCC’ released its Sixth Assessment Summary Report on 20 March 2023. This is a key scientific baseline, consensus and internationally respected building block which needs to form the basis for all climate actions that governments take towards mitigation and adaptation on climate change.

After nearly two decades of work and a final burst of 36 hours of round the clock negotiations, on 3 March 2023 in New York, Nations agreed to the “Draft Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction”.

The hosts of COP28, the UAE, have appointed Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber as COP President. The man who will take on this crucial role is currently the CEO of the state oil company as well as chairman of its renewables division. His appointment has caused concern over corporate influence at the COPs, but could the public scrutiny on the UAE and the President benefit us in the long run?

The decision by Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, to authorise the first new coal mine in the UK for 30 years continues to generate huge controversy. In this short article I would like to suggest local and national politicians declaring that “We need the jobs” should ask themselves “What jobs, exactly, and are they the best we have to offer?”

William Wilson will be leading a workshop on the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework for young climate activists.

We cannot think of a better way for this website to celebrate the New Year than to relay to all of our followers at COP26 and beyond this brilliant series of interviews put together by the Protect Our Planet ‘POP’ Movement and Planet Classroom Network! It has so much of what we best like and most admire!

The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, agreed by the parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in Montreal, Canada, in the early hours of Monday 19th December 2022, represents a huge first step on the road towards halting and reversing the precipitate decline in biodiversity and species extinctions.

In this blog we explain the context behind why the agreement was needed, and what it contains.

Energy efficiency is the quickest way for the UK to reduce its energy consumption this winter, which is why a new insulation scheme & public information campaign from the Govt are very welcome, if well overdue.

Sincere thanks to our good friends at MOCK COP for arranging to have our film “Climate Carnage in Pakistan” shown in the Children and Youth Pavilion at COP27 in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt. We felt we owed it to the 12 million Pakistani children whose education has been put at risk to try to take their story to the heart of COP27

Loss & Damage is one of the most contentious topics being discussed at COP27. Here we provide some thoughts on the negotiations, further reading on the topic, and the relevant text from the Paris Agreement to support anyone negotiating in Egypt.

Pakistan is suffering from the worst floods in its history. Now, as the global news cycle moves on, the impacts remain devastating - over 20 million people are in need and as of 27th Oct, 1731 are dead, including 645 children.

We have produced a video, that will be shown in the Blue Zone of COP27 in Egypt this year, focusing on just one of the many areas in need: education.

For anyone attending COP27 or COY17 climate talks, we have brought together on one web page all the information and resources that we have produced over the last two years, to help you better prepare for this and future climate conferences and negotiations. Please raid it, and help yourselves!

On 13 September 2022 we caught up with Dr Rich Young, Director of Conservation Knowledge at the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, and were privileged to be able to interview him about Biodiversity, and its place within the climate debate.

In the run-up to COP27, we are looking at climate change issues from different angles. We are extremely grateful for this guest contribution from our friend and colleague at Italy’s IARI and PhD candidate Marco Volpe, sent from Rovaniemi in Lapland, where he is researching China’s engagement in the Arctic region.

An overview of the devastating floods affecting Pakistan. What is happening, why is it happening and what may come next?

In a judgement published by the High Court on the 18th July 2022, Friends of the Earth, ClientEarth, the Good Law Project and individual litigant Joanna Wheatley, succeeded in winning their legal challenge that stated the UK government’s Net Zero Strategy did not meet the requirements of the Climate Change Act 2008.

Yesterday, on the 16th of August, President Biden signed into law the biggest piece of climate legislation that the US has ever managed to pass. The Inflation Reduction Act was the result of years of negotiations within the Democratic party. The bill provides significant investments in climate, energy and healthcare, which are projected to help reduce the US’s CO2 emissions to 40% below their peak by 2030. So how did the bill finally pass, what is actually in it, and what effect will it have?

On 28 July 2022, by 161 votes to 0, with 8 abstentions, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution (UNGA 76/300) recognising the right to a clean, healthy, sustainable environment as a human right.