Energy and environment ministers of the Group of Seven wealthy nations vowed Sunday to work to hasten the shift toward cleaner, renewable energy, but set no timetable for phasing out coal-fired power plants as they wrapped up two days of talks in the northern Japanese city of Sapporo.

The officials issued a 36-page communique laying out their commitments ahead of a G-7 summit in Hiroshima in May.

In the heart of Jakarta, the grand Istiqlal Mosque was built with a vision for it to stand for a thousand years.

The mosque was conceived by Soekarno, Indonesia's founding father, and was designed as an impressive symbol for the country's independence. Its seven gates — representing the seven heavens in Islam — welcome visitors from across the archipelago and the world into the mosque's lofty interior.

France's government sounded the alarm Monday about the growing risk of forest fires because of climate change, as hundreds of firefighters in the country's parched south wrestled with their biggest woodland-destroying blaze so far this year.

The fire erupted Sunday and burned on more than 1,000 hectares (2,500 acres) of land along the Mediterranean coast, and spread across the border into northeastern Spain.

Access to clean energy is a basic human right and ensuring equal and easy access to it is imperative considering recent climate change developments. Regardless of location, income, or social status, individuals and communities should have access to reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy. Investments in such energy sources will drive more efficiency, by improving the quality of life in a variety of ways, promoting economic growth, and keeping the planet a clean and safe place for future generations.

The demand for clean and renewable energy is growing rapidly worldwide, and the Middle East is no exception. To address this need, the “Middle East Clean Energy” exhibition and conference are returning to Beirut for the second consecutive year, from Wednesday May 3 to Friday May 5, 2023 to provide visitors with access to the latest developments in the world of clean energy production.

Drought now affects 60% of the Spanish countryside, with crops like wheat and barely in four regions likely to fail entirely, the main Spanish farmers association said on Thursday.

Spain's long-term drought is causing "irreversible losses" to more than 3.5 million hectares of crops, the Coordinator of Farmers and Ranchers Organizations said in a new report, with wheat and barley in four major growing regions was "written off," and badly affected in three more.

Nearly a foot (30 centimeters) of rain fell in a matter of hours in Fort Lauderdale – causing widespread flooding, the closure of the city's airport and the suspension of high-speed commuter rail service for the Broward County region.

The city of Fort Lauderdale released a statement Wednesday evening urging residents and visitors to stay off the roads until the water has subsided.

A tropical cyclone is expected to intensify to the most destructive category before it crosses the northwest Australian coast with winds gusting at more than 280 kph (170 mph), meteorologists said Thursday.

Cyclones are common along the sparsely populated Pilbara coast of Western Australia state and fatalities are rare, but authorities fear that Cyclone Ilsa's extraordinary wind speeds could take some in its path by surprise.

A plan to increase irrigation in an area adjoining one of Europe's most prized wetlands is set to advance Wednesday when lawmakers in the southern Spanish region of Andalusia vote in favor. The proposal to rezone the lands goes against the advice of ecologists and repeated warnings from European Union officials.

The vote is expected to start the bill down the path towards becoming law. It is sponsored by the ruling conservative Popular Party, which holds an absolute majority in the regional parliament based in Seville. It also has the support of the far-right Vox party.

Gobonamang Kgetho has a deep affection for Africa's largest inland delta, the Okavango. It is his home.

The water and wildlife-rich land is fed by rivers in the Angolan highlands that flow into northern Botswana before draining into Namibia's Kalahari Desert sands. Several Indigenous and local communities and a vast array of species including African elephants, black rhinos and cheetahs live among the vibrant marshlands. Much of the surrounding region is also teeming with wildlife.

It was a celebratory atmosphere for officials gathered just hours away from several of India's major tiger reserves in the southern city of Mysuru, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced to much applause that the country's tiger population has steadily grown to over 3,000 since its flagship conservation program began 50 years ago after concerns that numbers of the big cats were dwindling.

"India is a country where protecting nature is part of our culture," Modi proclaimed. "This is why we have many unique achievements in wildlife conservation."