SCIENCE

The current United Nations framework for fighting climate change should be preserved, the United States told the International Court of Justice, which is working on drafting fresh global legal guidelines.

Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay are hoping to announce a blockbuster trade deal with the European Union at a regional summit Friday after a push by Brussels to get the long-delayed accord over the line.

Minas cheese -- a dairy delight from a farming region in Brazil giving it its name -- was added to UNESCO's global list of intangible cultural heritage on Wednesday.

The UN on Wednesday appealed for more than $47 billion to deliver vital aid next year in a world ravaged by surging conflicts and the climate crisis, but warned many in need would not be reached.

Notre Dame cathedral will reopen in Paris on Saturday with incoming US president Donald Trump set to attend the ceremony marking the resurrection of the Gothic masterpiece five years after a devastating fire.

Thousands of people have been displaced by torrential floodwaters that slammed into southern Thailand, where the death toll has risen to 25, officials said on Tuesday.

A survey by the Bitkom association found that 75 percent of German children between the ages of 10 and 12 own a smartphone, with usage rising as children get older.

With vote-counting resuming Monday in Ireland's closely-fought general election, the Green Party and far-right candidates are among the biggest losers so far.

Romania's political future looked uncertain Monday after legislative elections produced a fragmented parliament, with the far right making big gains a week before the second round of a presidential election in which a pro-Russian candidate is in pole position.

The future of the planet is at stake during hearings at the top United Nations court, a representative for Vanuatu said Monday, opening a historic case that aims to set a legal framework on how countries should tackle climate change.

The United Nations' top court will start unprecedented hearings on Monday aimed at setting legal guidelines for how countries should protect the planet against climate change and help vulnerable nations combat its devastating impact.

UN talks aimed at halting the degradation and desertification of vast swathes of land start in Saudi Arabia on Monday after scientists fired a stark warning over unsustainable farming and deforestation.

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.

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.

For months US Vice President Kamala Harris was laser-focused on one potentially career-defining, history-making goal -- becoming the first woman entrusted with the keys to the White House.

Uruguay's cult ex-president Jose Mujica -- a leftist icon for his humble lifestyle and progressive policies -- warned in an AFP interview against growing authoritarianism in Latin America and the "madness" of Javier Milei's rise to power in neighboring Argentina.

Global wine production is set to fall again this year to its lowest level since 1961 due to climate change, the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) said Friday.

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.

World Trade Organization chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was reappointed Friday for a second term, in the shadow of the coming return of Donald Trump and his disdain for international trade rules.

World Trade Organization chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is expected to be reappointed Friday for a second term, in the shadow of the coming return of Donald Trump and his disdain for international trade rules.

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.

A bitterly-fought climate finance deal reached at COP29 risks weakening emissions-cutting plans from developing countries, observers say, further raising the stakes for new national commitments due early next year.

Crunch United Nations talks to find funding to curb the destruction of nature will resume in Rome in February, the UN said on Thursday, after negotiations this month in Colombia ended without a deal.

At 250 metres underground, the dust is thick and oxygen is in short supply at the Mramor mine in northeastern Bosnia.

America's largest private employer, Walmart, is the latest name to join a list of US businesses and institutions rethinking programs to bolster minority groups as support for progressive policies erodes.

Air pollution caused by fires is linked to more than 1.5 million deaths a year worldwide, the vast majority occurring in developing countries, a major new study said on Thursday.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday announced almost 2.3 billion euros ($2.4 billion) in new aid for Spain's flood-stricken region and defended his government's handling of the deadly disaster last month.

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 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.