Energy and tech news at UN climate negotiations in Brazil – The Verge The Verge is about technology and how it makes us feel. Founded in 2011, we offer our audience everything from breaking news to reviews to award-winning features and investigations, on our site, in video, and in podcasts. 2025-11-24T23:57:34+00:00 https://www.theverge.com/rss/stream/819192 https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/01/verge-rss-large_80b47e.png?w=150&h=150&crop=1 Justine Calma <![CDATA[UN climate negotiations burned up and then fizzled out]]> https://www.theverge.com/?p=828270 2025-11-24T18:57:34-05:00 2025-11-24T18:56:57-05:00 Flames and smoke inside a burning conference hall.
A fire burns in a pavilion during the COP30 UN Climate Change Conference in Belém, Pará state, Brazil, on November 20th, 2025. | Photo: Getty Images

"It's a wrap … Don't forget to buy an 'i survived Belém' shirt," reads the opening line of an email I got Saturday, the final day of highly anticipated United Nations climate negotiations in Belém, Brazil. The email was sent from Shravya Jain-Conti, the US climate diplomacy lead at the Global Strategic Communications Council (GSCC), who's been following these events for years. While she sometimes has tips on where to snag a cup of coffee along with her email updates to reporters, the T-shirt tip was a first as far as I've seen.

I've been mulling over these negotiations since last year, mapping out potential funding opportunities to make a t …

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]]> Justine Calma <![CDATA[UN climate talks are getting weird]]> https://www.theverge.com/?p=818223 2025-11-12T09:11:17-05:00 2025-11-12T09:11:17-05:00 A photo of a man in a suit in front of a wall that says “Brasil” / “Climate Summit”
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva attends the General Plenary of Leaders in the framework of the COP30 UN Climate Change Conference in Belem, Para State, Brazil, on November 6, 2025.

One of the most consequential rounds of global climate negotiations has kicked off in Belém, Brazil. Leaders from nearly every country in the world - but notably, not the US - are gathering to try to ramp up action on climate change during a time of tremendous transformation when it comes to both energy systems and international cooperation.

Whatever happens over the course of talks at the United Nations climate conference, known as COP30 this year, will be a peek into what the shuffling world order means for the climate we live in now and for generations to come.

No pressure, right? Here's what to know as the negotiations take place throu …

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]]> Justine Calma <![CDATA[Why is Bill Gates tone policing on climate change? ]]> https://www.theverge.com/?p=808647 2025-10-29T08:05:45-04:00 2025-10-29T08:05:45-04:00 A close-up photo of Bill Gates’ face.
Bill Gates at a Bloomberg Philanthropies meeting at the Plaza Hotel on September 23, 2025 in New York City. | Photo: Getty Images

Bill Gates wants us all to be more upbeat about climate change. He argues that we've made great progress on the problem, aided in large part by technological advances. So it's time to focus more on improving people's lives, particularly by fighting hunger and disease, he writes in a memo published Tuesday. Of course, he says AI can help.

It's supposed to be a hopeful message released ahead of high-stakes UN climate negotiations taking place next month. But it gave me whiplash reading it. Gates is a high-profile climate philanthropist, having invested billions of dollars into new technologies that are supposed to reduce greenhouse gas emiss …

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