Scientists say 2025 showed how human-driven emissions can overwhelm natural climate patterns, with warming intensifying deadly droughts, extreme rainfall, heatwaves and wildfires worldwide. buff.ly/vnqEjXt

As temperatures in parts of Laikipia County reach 30°C and beyond, a community project is using traditional, locally sourced materials to build homes that stay significantly cooler. buff.ly/mTWpCJw

Climate change made 17 of the 22 major extreme weather events analysed in 2025 more severe or more likely. buff.ly/vnqEjXt

Comment: Training a single large language model like GPT-3 consumed approximately 1,287 megawatt-hours of electricity, resulting in 552 metric tons of carbon dioxide – equivalent to driving 123 gasoline-powered cars for a year. buff.ly/hVtJxp4

Climate Home News visited Kenya’s Laikipia County, where locally made compressed earth blocks are helping reduce extreme indoor heat as global temperatures continue to rise. buff.ly/mTWpCJw

In Kenya’s semi-arid Laikipia County, homes built with wood and cement blocks often become unbearably hot. A new housing initiative is turning to compressed earth blocks as a cooler, more sustainable alternative.

A new annual climate assessment finds that human-caused warming pushed global temperatures in 2025 to “extremely high” levels, fuelling more frequent and dangerous extreme weather. buff.ly/vnqEjXt

Comment: We are deploying massive computational infrastructure to warn us of climate collapse while these same systems consume the energy and water resources needed to prevent or mitigate it.

Comment: As the computational power needed for AI continues to double approximately every 100 days, the energy footprint of these systems is not static but is exponentially accelerating. buff.ly/hVtJxp4

Compressed earth block technology is helping communities in Kenya’s Laikipia County keep homes cooler as temperatures rise, while also supporting local jobs and education.

Despite the cooling effects normally associated with La Niña, 2025 is “virtually certain” to end as the world’s second- or third-warmest year on record, according to EU climate monitors.

Human-driven greenhouse gas emissions turned 2025, a year that should have been cooler, into one of the hottest on record, worsening heatwaves, storms, droughts and wildfires.

In Laikipia County, climate-resilient housing is helping students avoid school closures during heatwaves. buff.ly/mTWpCJw

Thick earth walls help regulate indoor temperatures, keeping buildings cooler by day and warmer at night in Kenya’s semi-arid climate. buff.ly/mTWpCJw

Earth block construction offers a climate adaptation solution that cuts emissions by reducing reliance on cement, one of the world’s most carbon-intensive materials. buff.ly/mTWpCJw

Comment: If we allow unconstrained AI expansion, we risk the perverse outcome in which computing infrastructure consumes the surplus renewable energy that could otherwise accelerate decarbonization, rather than enabling it. buff.ly/H22V8FU

Rising temperatures are making metal-roofed homes increasingly unbearable in Kenya’s drylands, pushing communities to seek alternative building solutions. buff.ly/mTWpCJw

Comment: There is no mechanism requiring that AI infrastructure deployment decisions account for the specific carbon budgets associated with preventing different categories of tipping points. buff.ly/H22V8FU

In semi-arid regions of Kenya, traditional building methods are being adapted to modern needs to help communities cope with worsening heat. buff.ly/mTWpCJw

Comment: Computational models and AI-driven early warning systems operate according to different temporal logics. They promise to provide warnings that enable future action, but they consume energy – and therefore contribute to emissions – in the present. buff.ly/H22V8FU

As climate change drives hotter conditions in Kenya’s drylands, thick-walled earth buildings are helping families stay cool without air conditioning or high energy use. buff.ly/mTWpCJw

In Kenya’s Laikipia County, communities are using compressed earth block construction to keep homes cooler as temperatures rise, offering a low-carbon alternative to cement-based buildings.

Comment: A single data center can consume up to 5 million gallons of drinking water per day – sufficient to supply thousands of households or farms. buff.ly/H22V8FU

From global negotiations to local impacts, these nine stories capture the state of climate action in 2025. buff.ly/o0S4Hvo

A previous investigation found little evidence that emissions-cutting activities were carried out on the ground at the Chinese rice offset projects. buff.ly/JI6jfV7

Comment: AI-driven climate monitoring systems should operate according to defined carbon budgets and become more efficient in their use of energy and water

A year of climate reporting. buff.ly/o0S4Hvo

We’ve pulled together nine of our strongest climate stories from 2025 — reporting that explains what happened, why it mattered, and who it affected.

Shell was closely involved in several of the Chinese rice offset projects as an “authorised representative”, though it says it did not operate them. buff.ly/JI6jfV7

Nearly 960,000 replacement credits used by Verra came from Chinese rice projects that were also later invalidated. buff.ly/JI6jfV7

The investigation shows that carbon credits from rice-methane projects in China overstated emissions reductions and failed to deliver real climate benefits. buff.ly/JI6jfV7

Experts say replacing bogus carbon offsets with other “hot air” credits does nothing to reduce real-world emissions and undermines trust in carbon markets. buff.ly/JI6jfV7

A Climate Home News investigation found that Verra used nearly one million low-quality carbon credits to compensate for failed offset projects linked to Shell in China.

With just 7,500 party badges, COP30 saw government attendance fall sharply compared with recent summits. buff.ly/Z12GsUB

Ten years on, the Paris deal continues to shape policies, markets and investment decisions. buff.ly/tiqMB5O

Recommended read: To mark the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement, climate scientist Prof Piers Forster explained in @climatechangenews.com “why it worked” and “what it needs to do to survive”.

Comment: By filing this case, we are seeking financial compensation for losses and damages. We’re still living with the consequences of Odette, even today. buff.ly/f2Oaugv

Comment: Scientists have said the likelihood of a disaster like Odette in the Philippines has roughly doubled due to global warming. buff.ly/f2Oaugv

Even with its flaws, the Paris deal remains the backbone of global climate action. buff.ly/tiqMB5O

The Amazon venue brought global attention — but limited lodging access reduced negotiator numbers.

Comment: We’ve done nothing to cause the climate crisis, but because fossil fuel companies have chosen profit over people, our lives have been destroyed. buff.ly/f2Oaugv

Belém’s accommodation constraints hit delegations from smaller nations the hardest. buff.ly/Z12GsUB

Comment: We didn’t, and still don’t, know when the next disaster will hit, only that thanks to the fossil fuel industry, the threat is always growing. buff.ly/f2Oaugv

While 42,000 people attended COP30, government delegates made up less than 20% of the total. buff.ly/Z12GsUB

The Paris Agreement at 10: ambition is rising, but delivery is still too slow. buff.ly/tiqMB5O

Comment: Fossil fuel companies in the Global North, which bear huge responsibility for the climate crisis, are largely protected from the impacts of their polluting activities. buff.ly/f2Oaugv

New UN data shows COP30 had the smallest number of government negotiators since 2014. buff.ly/Z12GsUB

Ten years after the Paris Agreement, projected global warming has dropped... but not nearly fast enough.

Comment: Unless you’ve lived through it yourself, you’ll never know the feeling of having to swim away from your own collapsing home, or the sound of 175 mph (281 km/h) winds devastating your entire community. No amount of photo or video footage can ever bridge that gap.

Government attendance at #COP30 fell to a 10-year low. Only 7,527 official delegates made it to Belém.