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Scoop Coverage: NZ And The Paris COP21 Climate Talks

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Vernon Rive: Drama Over ‘Most Important Global Agreement In History’

For an hour and a half on Sunday evening it looked as if a typo in the final draft text might derail proceedings on the Paris Agreement.

A ‘shall’ had been included in the final draft text of Article 4, a clause recording obligations of wealthy countries to set economy-wide targets for greenhouse gas emissions reductions. It should have been ‘should’, the US team insisted.

The difference was no small one More>>

Gordon Campbell: On MP Pay Rises, And The Paris Agreement

So three days after the historic, momentous, epochal, game-changing climate change conference in Paris…hows it going? Paris was great, it felt good to see nations get together for some other reason than planning a bombing mission or an invasion but ….at the risk of sounding self-defeatingly cynical, aspirational pledges come pretty cheap. More>>

Paris Climate Agreement: The Real Work Starts Now

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The Paris climate agreement is an extraordinary achievement. It codifies the long-term goal of keeping global temperature increases below 2°C. It also sets a more ambitious aspirational target of capping global warming at 1.5°C degrees.

But this more ambitious target will be beyond our reach within a decade or two at current rates of fossil fuel use around the world. More>>

Paris Deal Done: Immediate Steps Needed On Climate Change

WWF: World governments finalized a global agreement in Paris that lays a foundation for long-term efforts to fight climate change. More effort is needed to secure a path that would limit warming to 1.5C.

This new agreement should be continuously strengthened and governments will need to go back home and deliver actions at all levels to close the emissions gap, resource the energy transition and protect the most vulnerable.

The Paris talks also created a moment that produced announcements and commitments from governments, cities and business that signalled that the world is ready for a clean-energy transition. More>>

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Climate Talks Close To End: Bennett’s First Act On Climate Ignores Pacific’s Pleas

Greens: Minister Bennett refused to give New Zealand’s support to an explicit goal in the Paris climate agreement to limit global warming to a 1.5 degree increase, despite growing support from allies including Australia, Canada and Pacific nations for a 1.5 degree limit. More>>

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Last Week Of Paris Talks: Call For Government To Future Proof The Pacific

Following breaking news that Australia has agreed to support a strong push for a 1.5 degree ambition target at the Paris Climate Talks, New Zealand Youth are calling for New Zealand to follow Australia’s lead and future proof the Pacific by supporting more ambitious global climate target.

The current draft text has the target limit for temperature rises set at 2 degrees but a group of climate vulnerable countries including all Pacific island states are pushing for a more ambitious target of 1.5 degrees, which is being supported by an increasing number of developed countries including Germany and now Australia. More>>

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Good Ideas We're Not Acting On Now: PM Calls For Global Action On Fossil Fuel Subsidies

Prime Minister John Key today presented UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres with a message from close to 40 nations calling for the removal of inefficient fossil fuel subsidies.

“Phasing out fossil fuel subsidies is absolutely vital if the world is to succeed in substantially reducing emissions,” says Mr Key. More>>

Fossil Of The Day: Dead Heat In First Fossil Of Day Awards At Paris

As world leaders up the ante on the opening day of the Paris Climate Summit, the first place Fossil of the Day award is a double-act. New Zealand claim a top spot for rather hilariously, or not, urging countries to phase out fossil fuel subsidies while shelling out big bucks to prop up fossil fuel production to the tune of $80 million. More>>

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General Politics: Maurice Strong (29 Apr 1929 – 29 Nov 2015)

Just on the eve of the Paris Climate Conference (COP 21) and the coming discussions on climate change and a sustainable world society, Maurice Strong died on 29 November 2015. Strong more than any other person in the United Nations system had been the driving force to put action on the environment on the “world agenda” for both government and non-governmental action. More>>

Climate Marches: New Zealanders March For Solutions Not Pollution

Ahead of the UN Climate Summit in Paris more than 15,000 New Zealanders have taken part in the Peoples Climate march in Auckland, kicking off the largest climate mobilisation the world has ever seen...

The Auckland march up Queen Street ended with a mass haka challenging the leaders of the world to take real climate action... Marches are also happening in 34 other New Zealand locations with the smallest in Raoul Island in the Kermadecs, where the entire population of seven people will take part. More>>

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Climate March Buildup:

Werewolf 58: No Climate For Change

The last time the global community tried to take collective action on climate change the world’s leaders finally came to agree that every not-too-onerous effort should be made to hold global warming to 2°C above the pre-industrial average. At Paris, all 150 participant countries nations will have put forward their pledges... On the information available, New Zealand's is the second weakest contribution of any nation in the developed world. More>>

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Q+A Transcript: Groser ‘Not Expecting’ Failure At UN Climate Talks
‘I will be very surprised if we don’t get an agreement. I think it’s a completely different situation to Copenhagen for a number of reasons. We’ve got a much more realistic negotiating proposal on the table. Secondly, I think the science has strengthened...’ More>>

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Greenpeace Protest:

Flood Risk: Prepare For Rising Seas, Warns Environment Commissioner

“Homes, businesses and infrastructure worth billions of dollars have been built on low-lying land close to the coast,” Dr Wright said. “Rising sea levels will have major impacts in many places. In time, some coastal land will become uninhabitable.” More>>

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