Unambitious and undermined: why NZ’s latest climate pledge lacks the crucial ‘good faith’ factor

Our latest selection of articles from New Zealand and around the world on environmental management and sustainability. Click here to subscribe.

Recent global and national climate politics have been marked by the tension between environmental ambitions and economic interests with an increased emphasis on access to the necessary environmental, economic and social data and science, which is necessary for informed and accurate decision making. 

New Zealand’s latest climate pledge has been described as Unambitious and undermined: Why NZ's latest climate pledge lacks the crucial good faith factor. The country has committed to reducing emissions by 51-55% below 2005 levels by 2035, but experts argue this target falls short of what is needed to meet global climate goals. Critics highlight that while the pledge is an improvement, more aggressive action could be taken without sacrificing economic stability.  

Additionally, the government’s ongoing support for the mining and fossil fuel industries in this case, suggesting how banks should run their businesses, raises questions about the credibility of New Zealand’s climate promises. Questions have been raised about the government's understanding of the complex economic dimensions of climate policy, particularly when decisions seem to be made with an eye on short term economic interests. Meanwhile, the banking sector's response to these issues has been characterised by one financial analyst as a pragmatic, business-driven reaction to economic risk rather than a stance rooted in ideological motives. 

In the U.S., President Trump’s recent executive order, which aims to overhaul federal websites and reduce climate change-related content, is just one of the many executive orders issued to undermine environment and climate policy. There is also concern – highlighted by Jeff Bezos's $10 billion Earth Fund ending its support for the Science Based Targets initiative – that wealthy individuals are enabling such initiatives and yielding to political pressures under President Trump's administration. 

However, there’s still hope to be found in the wave of environmental innovation that continues to emerge. In 2025, we’ve already seen groundbreaking advancements, such as the development of solar grazing tiles and innovative waste solutions for whisky distilleries. A new project has also empowered communities to repair solar devices, broadening access to renewable energy. Amidst these positive developments, a climate campaigner who has taken up ‘plogging for the planet’ reminds us that real change begins at the individual level, urging all of us to take personal responsibility for the environment and make lasting commitments to action. 

Looking for a software tool to measure and reduce your emissions? We've got tips to help you choose.

Here is the full list of articles...

Why does NZ’s latest climate pledge lack the crucial ‘good faith’ factor? The agreement commits nations to provide a new pledge, known as a Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), every five years. Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced New Zealand would commit to reducing emissions by 51-55% below 2005 levels by 2035, which is only 1-5% above the current NDC of a 50% cut by 2030. country's NDC should reflect its "highest possible ambition, are the NZ government's changes really that ambitious! Read more…

A coal mining firm was told by BNZ that it would slowly have banking services withdrawn, with all accounts closed by 2030. The letter has provoked fury from NZ First Minister Shane Jones, who has said he will “do everything he can” to allow the mine, which does not wish to be named, to continue banking. In the letter, BNZ said it was making the decisions in response to its coal mining policy which included capping coal exposure since 2019, exiting thermal coal mining by 2025 and exiting metallurgical coal by 2030.   Read more… 

Banks are avoiding lending to mining companies to avoid risk - not to intentionally drive them out of business, an expert says. Resource Minister Shane Jones has been attacking banks for cutting back on lending to fossil fuel businesses - calling them "woke". Head of KiwiSaver provider Simplicity Sam Stubbs said while banks were promoting their good intentions regarding the climate, he believed they had decided that mining in New Zealand was "a fairly risky business". They preferred low risk lending such as mortgages.  Read more…

While the NZ government may want businesses and the public to forget about climate change, the Trump administration in the US is trying to make it happen – removing mentions of the climate crisis across US government websites. Internet portals, guides, reports and research related to climate change are all being scrubbed out in potentially one of the largest and most visible information suppression attempts in recent memory. However, no amount of information suppression will reduce the local and global impacts of climate change. Read more…

However, there is more that Trump is doing that will affect the world on a much larger scale than scrubbing information from the internet. Trump issued an executive order aimed at dismantling many of the key actions that have been taken at a federal level to address climate change. From loosening binding emission standards to killing climate action plans entirely – as one of the world’s largest emitters, the US government doing less on climate will affect us globally, and perhaps even inspire governments to follow suit. Read more…

It should be no surprise that American businesses and multinationals are now pulling out of their climate commitments with Trump at the helm. For example, Jeff Bezos has halted funding to the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), an international body that assesses if companies are decarbonising in line with the Paris Agreement (including major businesses in New Zealand!). While billionaires and big businesses are bowing down to Trump, there is concern around how this will impact green investment and businesses who are interested in.....  Read more…

Vivek Gurav, a 29-year-old environmentalist from Wembley, London, is on a 50-city UK tour promoting "plogging"—jogging while litter picking. Originating his efforts in India, Gurav advocates for practical climate action rather than solely relying on protests. While supporting disruptive movements like Just Stop Oil, he emphasises individual responsibility through hands-on efforts such as biodiversity conservation and rubbish collection. Gurav believes grassroots action fosters a stronger connection to green spaces. He invites universities, NGOs, and communities to join his movement, aiming to inspire a ripple effect of environmental awareness and action.  Read more… 

Solar power has transformed lives across Africa, but aging equipment poses a growing challenge. SolarAid, a nonprofit, trains "solar entrepreneurs" like Father Vincent Ngwira in Zambia to repair solar devices, extending their lifespan and reducing electronic waste. More than 90% of broken solar products in sub-Saharan Africa can be fixed. Ngwira and repair agents address common issues, such as wiring faults and battery failures, at affordable prices, boosting local economies. This movement fosters job creation, financial resilience, and supports sustainable energy access, offering a model for circular economies globally.  Read more… 

January 2025 brought positive environmental developments worldwide. Solar energy outpaced coal for the first time in the EU, while Italy, Albania, and the UAE partnered on renewable energy sharing. The Dutch embraced "tile whipping" to green urban spaces, and sheep grazing proved beneficial for solar farms in the U.S. Researchers innovated batteries from industrial waste, while British Sign Language expanded climate-related terms. Scotland's whisky industry tackled overfishing, and solar charging reached remote St. Helena. Efforts supporting green job transitions and legal wins for nitrogen pollution reduction added further hope.  Read more…

Hydrology Report - 13th February 2025

Electricity Price Index - 13th February 2025

Click here to subscribe to SnippETS 

Did you know: You can display your organisation’s sustainability data on your website or intranet using our carbon management software, e-Bench? Read more…

Copyright of all featured articles lies with the original authors