On my way to Perugia for @journalismfestival.com. Shame to see that a topic that was once a staple of the conference is now barely on the agenda. And do we really need 25 panels on AI?

It withdrew the proposal in January 2025, a week ahead of Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration. And this week says it plans to kill the rule altogether.

Experts say no other measures have been proven to reduce strike risk as effectively as speed limits.

Interestingly, NOAA proposed to expand the speed rule to vehicles longer than 35 feet in 2022 after admitting that limiting vessel speed remained “one of the most effective, feasible options available to reduce the likelihood of lethal outcomes from vessel collisions with right whales.”

US Eyes Rollback of Protections For Critically Endangered Whale The National Marine Fisheries Service is planning to loosen speed-limit rules protecting the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale.

The Trump administration is considering a rollback of the Vessel Speed Rule, introduced in 2008 to protect the critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whale. Environmental groups have warned that the deregulation would put whales and boaters at risk of deadly collisions. earth.org/trump-admini...

Hong Kong Sees Warmest Winter on Record | Earth.Org February, which saw "unseasonably warm" weather and mean temperatures 3C above the normal, marked the end of the city's warmest winter.

"Together with the well above normal temperatures in December 2025 and warmer than usual weather in January 2026, Hong Kong experienced the warmest winter on record from December 2025 to February 2026," the Hong Kong Observatory said on Tuesday.

earth.org/hong-kong-se...

Lawyers Condemn 'Flawed', 'Biased' Greenpeace $660 Million Trial A jury's verdict that found Greenpeace liable for more than $660 million was "patently biased," according to a group of human rights lawyers.

But a group of international lawyers and human rights advocates who monitored the marathon trial in Mandan, North Dakota, said Greenpeace was denied its right to a fair trial and described it as an “illegitimate corporate-funded SLAPP harassment case.” earth.org/human-rights...

Greenpeace Vows to Fight $345mn Verdict in Dakota Pipeline Suit A judge has finalized a $345 million judgement in a lawsuit over Greenpeace's role in protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline.

Greenpeace has vowed to fight a $345 million verdict over its role in protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline, a 1,172-mile (1,886-kilometer) underground pipeline transporting crude oil from North Dakota to Illinois. The group has said the verdict could bankrupt it. earth.org/greenpeace-v...

32 companies, mostly state-owned, generated half of all planet-warming carbon dioxide emissions in 2024, according to a new analysis. The number is down from 36 five years earlier.

earth.org/32-fossil-fu...

One Year of Trump: How the US Reversed Climate Progress From climate research funding cuts to the rollback of environmental protections, here's how Donald Trump has reversed US climate policy.

Since taking office a year ago, Donald Trump has taken sweeping actions to reverse America’s environmental agenda and withdraw from international commitments. Here's an attempt to summarize the most consequential of all.

earth.org/one-year-of-...

Trump's Anti-Climate Agenda Suffers Back-to-Back Court Defeats Two judges instructed the Trump administration to reinstate clean energy grants and allow an offshore wind farm's construction to resume.

Two separate rulings this week represented a major setback to the Trump administration’s efforts to obstruct renewable energy initiatives and other climate-focused projects across the country.

earth.org/two-courts-b...

Hong Kong saw a total of 20 record-breaking weather and temperature events in 2025, the city's sixth warmest year since record-keeping began in 1884. All 12 months were warmer than usual.

Full story: earth.org/hong-kong-br...

Full list:

Withdrawing the United States from International Organizations, Conventions, and Treaties that Are Contrary to the Interests of the United States MEMORANDUM FOR THE HEADS OF EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United

President Trump has direct all executive departments and agencies to take "immediate steps" to withdraw the US from organizations "that are contrary to the interests of the United States," including the UNFCCC and the IPCC.

www.whitehouse.gov/presidential...

Australian Cities' Outskirts At Risk of Los Angeles-Style Wildfires Australian cities' outskirt are increasingly threatened by devastating wildfires, according to a new report that draws parallels with LA.

Millions of Australians living on the expanding outskirts of the country’s cities are at increased risk of experiencing devastating, Los Angeles-style wildfires, a new report warns. It comes as a heatwave not seen since the 2019 Black Summer is affecting southern regions.

earth.org/millions-liv...

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@coveringclimatenow.org

Climate Litigation Is Forcing Governments to Act on Climate: Report Climate litigation is "one of the most powerful tools there is to force a systemic shift in climate action," according to a new report.

“Climate litigation is not a silver bullet, but it is one of the most powerful tools there is to force a systemic shift in climate action,” according to a new report by the Climate Litigation Network. earth.org/global-accou...

Wednesday saw the launch of the Declaration on Information Integrity on Climate, bringing together countries, a global commitment to combat climate misinformation. It marks the first time that any states have formally committed to rooting out climate misinformation.

Lula announced his flagship initiative to pay for forest conservation. 53 countries endorsed it, but its initial investment target of $25bn was cut back, with just $5.5bn pledged so far.

China has declined to invest in the fund, arguing that developed nations should bear primary responsibility.

UNFCCC's Simon Stiell unveiled a graph showing that the historic 2015 Paris climate agreement is working. ⁠
⁠
86 new national climate plans submitted by 113 countries ahead of COP30 – also known as Nationally Determined Contributions – put us on track to cut emissions by 12% in the next 10 years. ⁠

A coalition of more than 35 leading global philanthropies announced a joint $300 million commitment to tackle the escalating public health crisis driven by climate change. Funders include Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Gates Foundation, Wellcome, Rockefeller Foundation, IKEA Foundation and CIFF.

The UNFCCC issued the Report on the Baku to Belém Roadmap to 1.3T outlining five “action fronts” to help deliver on the $1.3 trillion aspiration. Meanwhile, the Independent High-Level Expert Group on Climate Finance laid out what it calls an “entirely feasible path” to mobilizing The money.

On Monday, the Loss and Damage Fund launched its first call for project proposals, with the initial package totaling $250 million. Countries vulnerable to climate change have six months to submit funding approvals from mid-December. Grants of up to $20mn/project to be disbursed from mid-2026.

COP30: Indigenous Brazilians Left Out of Decision-Making Spaces Indigenous leaders at COP30 are demanding a bigger role in the negotiations and the inclusion of land demarcation as climate policy.

2,500 Indigenous people attending the summit. Yet only 14% (360 individuals) secured accreditation for the Blue Zone, the restricted area for official negotiations. earth.org/despite-reco...

For the first time in 30 years, the US sent none. Aside from Trump, other world leaders – including Chinese President Xi Jinping and those of Russia and Japan, Australia, Indonesia and Turkey – are also skipping the summit.

COP30: Brazil Invites Beef Giants Linked to Deforestation to Talks The owners of JBS, the world’s largest beef producer, are accredited by host country Brazil with access to the restricted area of COP30.

Some 1,600 participants – one in every 25 – is a fossil fuel lobbyist, according to Kick Big Polluters Out. Representatives from the fossil fuel and meat industries are also in attendance. earth.org/cop30-brazil...

With 56,118 delegates registered, COP30 is provisionally the second-largest COP in history, behind only COP28 in Dubai, which was attended by more than 80,000 people.

COP30 Week 1: Recap | Earth.Org The 30th United Nations climate change conference kicked off on Monday in Belém, Brazil. Here is a recap of what happened on COP30 Week 1.

A recap of the main announcements, reports, and events from #COP30 Week 1👇 earth.org/cop30-week-1...

A new graph by Zeke Hausfather shows that the vast majority of the Earth’s surface has seen a record set in recent years:
- 38% of the land surface has set a new record in the 2020s
- Overall, 78% set a new all-time monthly high record set after the year 2000

www.theclimatebrink.com/p/most-of-th...

Jane Goodall's 7 Must-Read Books on Nature and Primatology Late primatologist Jane Goodall wrote numerous books documenting her decades of experience and scientific studies on chimpanzees.

One of the world’s foremost expert on chimpanzees, Dr Jane Goodall spent her career studying their social behaviour and family interactions and publishing numerous books documenting scientific studies on our closest relatives. Here are some of our favorites👇

earth.org/books-by-jan...

More than 1,000 small glaciers in Switzerland have already disappeared Since 2015, glaciologists say Switzerland's glaciers have shrunk by a quarter.

Switzerland's glaciers have faced “enormous” melting this year with a 3% drop in total volume, the fourth-largest annual drop on record, due to the effects of global warming.

www.euronews.com/green/2025/1...