New York, United States — According to Greenpeace Ukraine public Diesel Tanker Tracker, the Agioi Fanendes, a tanker carrying about 40,000 metric tons of Russian diesel, has stopped on its course towards New York and New Jersey. 

In response, John Noël, Senior Strategist, Greenpeace International said: “Since its departure from Russia, this diesel carrying tanker has been on a steady course towards New York/New Jersey, its originally signalled destination. Two days ago, it suddenly stopped and is now holding position some 430 nautical miles off the coast, apparently unsure where to discharge its cargo. Every shipment of Russian diesel helps fuel Russia’s war machine and threatens to undermine international sanctions. No country should accept Russian diesel tankers as part of a corrupt deal with the White House. The diesel deal with Russia must be terminated and instead more effective and comprehensive sanctions must be applied along with measures to limit fossil fuel dependence and achieve true clean energy security.” 

After New Jersey Governor Sherrill drew a hard line and warned ports and businesses about accepting Russian fuel[1], Greenpeace USA sent a letter to New York Governor Kathy Hochul[2] this week urging her to take the same action as New Jersey Governor Sherrill: declare that the diesel shipments are not welcome, and warn port and terminal operators of the legal risks of accepting it. With the tanker now potentially just days away from the harbour, Greenpeace USA is urging the Governor to act. 

As of early morning EST on 11 November, the ship was at N39.96 / W64.88, some 430 nautical miles straight east from New Jersey.  At its normal speed of 12 knots, it can approach New York Harbour within 36 hours.

ENDS

Notes: 

[1] Governor Mikie Sherrill letter to Port and Terminal Operators of New Jersey 

[2] Greenpeace USA letter to New York Governor Kathy Hochul 

Background:

The cargo is the first shipment under a controversial deal struck in October by President Trump and President Putin. On 9 October, the US Treasury Department issued a temporary licence allowing otherwise sanctioned Russian diesel to be sold in the United States. The licence conflicts with the Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act, which the US Congress passed with overwhelming bipartisan support in April 2022 to ban imports of Russian petroleum products, including diesel. The recent diesel agreement between Trump and Putin has been widely condemned as rewarding Russia for its illegal war against Ukraine with the objective of destroying the international sanctions regime against Russia.

The Agioi Fanendes loaded ultra-low-sulfur diesel at Russia’s Baltic port of Primorsk in late October and initially broadcasted the New York area as its destination, with arrival expected in early November. In response, New Jersey Governor Sherrill warned port and terminal operators that handling the fuel could expose them to civil and criminal penalties. No US buyer or receiving terminal has been publicly identified since her warning.

Contacts: 

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Antalya, Türkiye – Greenpeace has called on leaders arriving for the UN climate talks COP31 to pick up the challenge laid down by UN Secretary-General Guterres and ramp up the urgency of their action with clear and credible commitments and roadmaps to end fossil fuels.

As the Brazil Presidency launched its legacy COP30 roadmap for the transition away from fossil fuels on day two of COP31, Guterres called on leaders to build their own “concrete national roadmaps”.[1] His remarks came as the focus shifted to COP31 Presidents Türkiye and Australia and the contradiction between their reliance on fossil fuels and their actions in Antalya. 

Leaders arriving at COP31 will now need to show they are prepared to act more swiftly after the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said the world is entering a “new age of climate extremes” and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) declared a 1.5°C overshoot is already locked in.[2][3]

Emel Türker Alpay, Climate and Energy Campaigner at Greenpeace Türkiye, said: “A Presidency’s legacy is measured in how they move the world from rhetoric to action. President Kurum has said that cutting fossil fuel use will be a measure of this COP’s success and we will hold the Presidency to that standard!

“Türkiye must ensure the Brazil COP30 roadmap serves as a catalyst for more ambition and urgent action at COP31 and beyond. It also means leading by example at home. Türkiye’s new 2040 energy plan bets on electrification, but keeps coal, oil and gas in the mix with no exit date.

“The Presidency’s electrification target is the right direction, but it is not a goal in itself. It only serves to keep the 1.5°C target alive if it drives renewable-based electrification that actively displaces fossil fuels as part of an equitable, affordable and people-centred transition. 

“A host country with no planned coal phase-out and transitioning away from fossil fuels cannot lead the transition from the sidelines. Türkiye must announce the coal phase-out date and start planning the roadmap for transitioning away from fossil fuels. Antalya can be the COP where the fossil fuel roadmap starts delivering, if the Presidency chooses to lead.”

Dr Simon Bradshaw, COP31 lead at Greenpeace Australia Pacific said: “As leaders meet in Türkiye amidst a global energy shock and soaring temperatures, the stakes have never been higher. The success of COP31 will be judged by whether it delivers real action and momentum to phase out fossil fuels. Brazil laid the ground, it’s now up to Australia to take the baton and run hard. 

“Australia must step up and lead the way through developing a national roadmap away from fossil fuels, and as President of Negotiations, ensure COP31 delivers concrete plans and time-bound action. Australia cannot drop the ball on this, with the looming threat of 1.5°C overshoot and the future of entire nations in the balance.”

Anna Cárcamo, Climate Politics Specialist at Greenpeace Brazil said: “The launch of the COP30 fossil fuels roadmap has helped renew hope, turning the COP28 promise to transition away from fossil fuels into a roadmap the world can act on through continued dialogue, but likewise we cannot waste another moment. COP31 is now the place to decide how and when that transition will take place.

“The COP30 roadmap is already encouraging countries to develop their own national roadmaps, address the phase-out of fossil fuel subsidies and implement tax reforms – measures essential for ensuring an effective, equitable, and well-funded transition. This includes Brazil, which must craft a national roadmap consistent with these recommendations.

“Leaders from several countries called for action from countries starting now and the continuity of implementation of this agenda here at COP31. We need continuous action at this COP and beyond to stay on path to a livable future.”

ENDS

Notes:

[1] UN Secretary-General’s remarks at the COP30 roadmap event

[2] WMO State of the Climate 2026

[3] UNEP Limiting Overshoot

Contacts:

Aaron Gray-Block, Greenpeace International, Climate Politics Communications Manager, aaron.gray-block@greenpeace.org

Beyza Kural, Senior Communication Expert, Greenpeace Türkiye, +90 5336 417 123, beyza.kural@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org 

As a long-time fan of The Hunger Games books and films, I always get chills during the scene in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 when Katniss Everdeen (played by Jennifer Lawrence) screams her defiant warning to President Coriolanus Snow (played by Donald Sutherland): “And if we burn, you burn with us!”

This year, I witnessed people use that iconic quote during protests in Indonesia over urgent demands, including the government’s response to the devastating forest and peatland fires. For months, these blazes have burned across the archipelago, from Sumatra to Kalimantan and Papua.

The fires have not only led to the destruction of nature, but have also caused a prolonged deadly haze that exposed around 40 million people to hazardous-level air pollution, claiming at least 3,560 lives by September 2026.

As toxic smoke blankets cities and crosses borders, we know that this orange sky is not a dystopian film filter. It is our blue sky being stolen, while real lives are being taken.

El Niño is not the sole culprit

Around 1,9 million hectares of land and 85,000 hectares of forest across Indonesia were devastated by fires between January and September 2026, and there were 6,811 haze-source spots between August and October.

A conservation zone in Gunung Palung National Park, West Kalimantan province – home to thousands of orangutans – has been severely damaged, while primary natural forests in Papua have been catastrophically affected since last month.

“Again, we are losing our forests, including the natural forests of Papua, which serve as one of our final safeguards against the climate crisis. The loss of forests is not merely the disappearance of trees and their shade; it is the destruction of the life-support and climate systems we depend on,” said Belgis Habiba, Greenpeace Indonesia Forest Campaigner.

El Niño occurring since mid-year has triggered fires and crippling droughts across many parts of Indonesia, but it is not the only culprit. For a long time, palm oil and pulp & paper companies have used illegal slash-and-burn methods to rake in massive profits while nature and everyday people bear the cost.

Belgis emphasised that the Indonesian government should have proactively mitigated the forest and peatland fires – which are both predictable and preventable – rather than focusing solely on extinguishing blazes without addressing their root causes. This requires genuine peatland ecosystem protection and restoration, sustainable water management, and firm legal enforcement against those causing and exacerbating forest destruction.

People are dying from toxic wildfire haze

Classes are cancelled, workplaces forced to close, many are struggling to breathe.

The fires have contributed to recurring haze that affects communities, where vulnerable groups – children, the elderly, and people with pre-existing health problems – face increased risks of respiratory illnesses.

Data from the Indonesian Ministry of Health recorded 401,586 cases of acute respiratory infection (ARI) linked to Indonesia’s forest and peatland fires across 7 provinces and 63 districts as of 2 November 2026, with 91,913 of those cases involving children aged 0–5 years.

Even Malaysia’s Borneo region experienced its worst haze crisis in a decade with surging respiratory illnesses as toxic smoke travelled across Southeast Asia to neighbouring countries, such as Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines.

A report from the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) shows that in September 2026 alone, air pollution-related deaths driven primarily by these fires reached 3,560 nationwide. Furthermore, 10 individuals battling the fires on the frontlines – from volunteers to firefighters – have lost their lives.

No one should have to worry about the air they breathe. A persistent lack of responsiveness from the government in handling this crisis makes a dystopian society feel increasingly real.

“The rising number of deaths and cases of acute respiratory infections (ARI) resulting from air pollution – caused by haze from forest and peatland fires – highlights a recurring failure by the Indonesian government. First, they have failed to ensure that citizens have access to clean air, which is a fundamental human right. Second, they have failed to mitigate the impact of the haze by refusing to declare a national disaster, resulting in a sluggish response in providing urgent support to those affected,” said Belgis.

People power is louder than ever

On 20 October 2026, marking the second year of the Prabowo-Gibran administration, Greenpeace Indonesia activists staged a peaceful action by scaling the iconic Selamat Datang (Welcome) Monument in the heart of Jakarta. They unfurled banners in Bahasa Indonesia reading “Disasters are Getting Worse, the People are Struggling, What is the Government Doing?” and “No Progress without Protest,” demanding urgent climate action – specifically regarding the haze – and a lower cost of living. This creative action quickly went viral on social media, prompting an immediate government response.

A week later, on Indonesia’s Youth Pledge Day, thousands of students and civil society groups across Jakarta and other major cities rallied with five key demands, and among them was urgent environmental crisis management: declaring the fires a national disaster and prosecuting the corporate actors responsible.

The moment when people take to the streets is a powerful sign of hope. We are refusing a future we didn’t choose. More and more of us won’t let those in power believe we are backing down. 

We have spoken, we have shown up, we are becoming louder than ever.

This generation resists and we are starting to see its power.

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A giant banner in Türkiye ahead of UN climate talks COP31, a protest for forest protection at IKEA in Sweden, and a floating banner calling for environmental protections in the Canary Islands, here are a few of our favourite images from Greenpeace work around the world this week.

Türkiye – Greenpeace Türkiye displayed a giant banner on the Konyaaltı Beach in Antalya ahead of the UN climate talks COP31. The 31st UN Climate Conference, COP31, takes place in Antalya, Türkiye from 9-20 November 2026. Greenpeace is at the COP to hold governments to account in pursuit of an accelerated just, orderly and equitable transition away from fossil fuels.

Sweden- Greenpeace activists hang a banner on the IKEA sign in Helsingborg. Below the IKEA logo, they hang a banner with the text: “Forests of high conservation value cannot be reassembled” Greenpeace demands that IKEA stop purchasing timber from forests that need to be protected.

Canary Islands – Floating Banner in Tenerife Bearing the Slogan “Hands Off Teno-Rasca”. Activists from environmental and land-conservation organisations have called for a halt to tourism projects that threaten this protected area and for efforts to restore both terrestrial and marine ecosystems.

Spain – Greenpeace Spain has renamed a New Zealand trawler—currently under construction at the Marín shipyard (Pontevedra)—”Ocean Killer” (formerly “Voyager”). The action aims to highlight the severe damage such vessels cause to the seabed and to call for an end to bottom trawling. Simultaneously, other activists placed a sign at the offices of the company Talley’s to denounce its destructive fishing practices, which include operations within protected areas.

Australia – Press conference against AI Data Centres with local organisations in Darwin, Australia. Greenpeace Australia Pacific is calling for a moratorium on AI data centres until proper regulations that protect our people and planet are put in place.

UK – Greenpeace UK successfully place giant boulders onto the seabed in the Southern North Sea – the UK’s most bottom-trawled Marine Protected Area – forming an underwater barrier to prevent this destructive fishing method.

Located off England’s east coast, the targeted stretch sits within a so-called Marine Protected Area (MPA), which was created specifically to protect harbour porpoises.

Greenpeace has been a pioneer of photo activism for more than 50 years, and remains committed to bearing witness and exposing environmental injustice through the images we capture.

To see more Greenpeace photos and videos, please visit our Media Library.

Greenpeace live blog coverage of COP31

The world’s governments are gathering in Antalya, Türkiye for the annual UN climate change conference COP31, coming at a time of profound geopolitical challenges and climate instability, but also opportunities for change in a just transition away from fossil fuels.

COP31 will be held from 9-20 November 2026 and Greenpeace will be covering the conference with a live blog, bringing you regular updates and insights. Check back here for rolling updates throughout the coming two weeks.

Find live updates below:

Hot-take: What makes a good just transition roadmap?

11 November 2026

Today, Finland launched a roadmap to transition away from fossil fuels. This is the first such plan released at COP31 and we look forward to others following suit, putting even more steam into phasing out oil, gas and coal following France, the Netherlands and Germany, which launched their respective roadmaps earlier this year. 

Jehki Härkönen, Campaigner with Greenpeace Finland, reacted to the launch: “Finland’s roadmap has a lot to its credit: in a cold northern country, coal has already left energy production, power is almost entirely fossil-free and most district heating is too. But the roadmap sets a phase out date only for coal in energy production. It has no commitment to end oil or gas use and coal in steelmaking falls outside the ban.

“Meanwhile, heavy logging, including for wood energy, has turned Finland’s land sector from a carbon sink into a net source of emissions. Finland should turn this roadmap into a real plan, with dates to end gas use by 2035 and all fossil fuel use by 2040 while also taking action to reduce logging to a sustainable level.

Beyond the good signal these efforts send to other governments to ramp up their actions to reduce emissions, we should look in detail at what makes a good just transition roadmap to prevent them falling short and miss the opportunity we have. The COP30 Presidency roadmaps initiative presented an alternative last week from Brasilia.

For Greenpeace, good roadmaps have to show a clear plan for national governments to phase in renewables and phase out fossil fuels across all economic sectors, aligning with the country’s fair share of action to keep global heating below 1.5°C and anchored on social justice and accountability. To help guide governments in this journey, Greenpeace will present its technical guidance to assess TAFF roadmaps this week.

Rodrigo Estrada, Greenpeace International focal point for TAFF roadmaps said: “We see just transition roadmaps as navigation charts, showing us which ports we can reach, how to get there, what we will find in the way, and, more importantly, who has to be part of that journey: communities, Indigenous Peoples, workers and all of us struggling to pay our bills today. I trust our technical guidance can allow Greenpeace to move governments from principles in documents into badly needed action to cut emissions.”

Greenpeace Türkiye paragliders say ‘sun and wind are enough for us’

November 9, 2026

It was a busy first day at the UN climate summit COP31, especially for Greenpeace Türkiye, as it unfurled a banner while paragliding from Lycian mount Olympus over the Antalya coastline. The banner read in Turkish: ‘Sun and wind are enough for us’.

In its role as the COP31 Presidency, Türkiye has launched an electrification pledge aiming to secure an agreement at the UN climate summit to increase electricity’s share of global final energy consumption needs to 35 % by 2035.

But electrification by itself is not the end itself. As Emel Türker Alpay, a Climate and Energy Campaigner at Greenpeace Türkiye says: “If Türkiye wants to really secure a lasting legacy, it needs to ensure that the electrification goal is used to displace fossil fuels with renewable energy”.

This is why the Greenpeace Türkiye paragliders also displayed an English banner saying: COP31: Electricity with Wind and Sun. To keep the 1.5°C global warming limit alive, the only way forward is to end fossil fuels and rapidly expand renewable energy!

‘Choked’: Greenpeace shows how fossil fuels are suffocating our future

November 9, 2026

Also on the opening day at COP31, Greenpeace International displayed a 3D visual installation titled ‘Choked’, calling on world leaders to act now and defend the 1.5°C warming limit!

Situated inside the entrance to the UN’s ‘Blue Zone’ – which is the official area of the climate negotiations – the large 3D sculpture showed how 1.5°C (depicted in climate warming stripes) was increasingly being engulfed by fossil fuels. 

The display was a talking point at the climate summit and was widely photographed by media and passing delegates as speakers from Greenpeace Türkiye and Greenpeace Australia Pacific spoke of the urgency of action. 

They were also joined by Trixy Elle, a co-claimant in the Odette climate change lawsuit against Shell, who spoke about her experiences in the Philippines ahead of the 5th anniversary of Super Typhoon Odette:

“Our political leaders need to be bolder and stronger in standing up to the fossil fuel industry and fighting to prevent every fraction of a degree of global warming. Even 1.5°C is too much. Our lives, livelihoods, cultures and futures depend on action now.”

A call from the Pacific: ‘stop putting our future at risk’

November 9, 2026

“Talofa lava. My name is Moemoana Schwenke. I am a daughter of Samoa, a Pacific woman, and someone who carries the stories, hopes and responsibilities of our people wherever I go.

“For the Pacific, 1.5°C is quite literally, our survival line. It is about whether our children can grow up knowing the same coastlines their grandparents knew. Whether our families can continue to fish, farm, gather food and practise the traditions and cultures that have sustained us for generations. The very wellbeing of our lands and oceans are connected to the wellbeing of us, our children, our elders.

“It is about our homes, our languages, our sacred places, our graves that hold the bones of our ancestors, our stories and our connection to the ocean. Because when land disappears beneath the sea, we are not simply losing territory. We are losing places that hold our genealogy, our identity and our belonging.

“And some of these losses cannot be measured in dollars. They cannot be rebuilt with a seawall. They cannot be compensated for by relocating a community and calling it adaptation. This is what loss and damage means to Pacific people. It is not a distant possibility. It is already part of our reality.

“The failure to limit warming to 1.5°C is not a failure of Pacific ambition. It is a failure of global responsibility. Every fraction of a degree we allow the world to warm increases the scale of loss and damage our communities will face. And for some of those losses, there is no going back.

“We cannot keep expanding the very industry driving the crisis and expect our communities to carry the consequences. So when you look at 1.5°C, I ask you not to see a target on a page. See our people. See our children. See our ancestors. See everything that makes the Pacific home. We are asking the world to stop putting our future at risk.”

Australia and Türkiye civil society groups keep the heat on COP31 Presidency

November 9, 2026

In a joint initiative on day 1 at the UN climate summit COP31, civil society organisations from both Türkiye and Australia came together to launch an urgent call for a global transition away from fossil fuels. The groups urged both countries to demonstrate climate leadership through concrete action at home.

The event at the Australian Pavilion in Antalya was a packed house as civil society outlined their demands in a joint letter signed by almost 100 civil society organisations from Türkiye and Australia addressed to Türkiye’s COP31 President, Murat Kurum, and Australia’s President of Negotiations Chris Bowen. 

Speaking at the event, Dr Simon Bradshaw, COP31 lead at Greenpeace Australia Pacific said: 

“As a major coal and gas exporter, Australia plays an outsized role in fuelling the climate crisis and has approved 38 new, extended or expanded fossil fuel projects since first elected in 2022. More than half the world’s coal export project pipeline is in Australia, and the Albanese Government is poised to make decisions on massive new gas projects. Australia must reckon with this reality.

“In Türkiye, the Australian government must rise to the occasion and show what true climate leadership looks like — but we can not move the world towards a clean energy future while expanding the industry we need to leave behind.

“Australia can lead by example and help build global momentum through developing a national roadmap away from fossil fuels. It must get fully behind Pacific calls to hold the line on 1.5°C and accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels. With its abundant renewable energy potential, Australia can move beyond fossil fuel exports and play a major role in supporting the energy transition throughout Asia.”

At the same event, Emel Türker Alpay, Climate and Energy Campaigner, Greenpeace Türkiye said: “The question is no longer whether we leave fossil fuels, it is how. And the how has to be addressed for real. That is why we are concerned. Neither Presidency has yet said how it will build on the COP28 and COP30 legacies on moving away from fossil fuels. Instead, the Turkish Presidency has put electrification at the centre: 35 percent by 2035, a voluntary pledge under its Action Agenda, which Australia has signed and is promoting with Türkiye.

“Electrification is necessary. But if it is not tied to moving away from fossil fuels, new demand can simply be met with more coal and more gas. Electrification without a fossil fuel transition and based on renewable energies is half a plan.

“The momentum for change is here. It comes from the doers of Santa Marta, from the COP30 roadmap processes, and from communities all over the world demanding climate justice. COP31 must name the number one cause of this crisis, the burning of coal, oil and gas. It must speed up the COP28 commitment to a just, orderly and equitable transition. And it must deliver real progress on halting and reversing deforestation and ecosystem degradation by 2030.

“What we want from the COP31 Presidencies is political courage: the courage to stop this crisis at its source. We want Türkiye and Australia to act as honest brokers and to say openly that holding warming to 1.5°C cannot go together with new fossil fuel expansion.”

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Greenpeace Türkiye displays giant banner calling for 1.5°C action

November 6

On the eve of COP31, Greenpeace Türkiye activists unveiled a massive banner on the Konyaalti Beach in Antalya, calling on countries to use this year’s climate summit as a moment to make real progress in global efforts to address the escalating climate crisis.

This year’s annual climate summit will be the first since the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) declared in a landmark report in September that the world will overshoot the 1.5°C global warming limit set out in the Paris Agreement, likely within the next few years.

It was a heartbreaking moment, the type of news that must finally spark governments into  action. Greenpeace is calling on countries meeting in Antalya to respond with the urgency that has been absent for too long. That means ensuring progress towards a fair, fast and funded transition away from fossil fuels and ending forest destruction by 2030, as agreed at COP28.

The Greenpeace Türkiye banner said COP31: KEEP 1.5°C ALIVE and was large enough to be photographed by a passing satellite as a symbol of our planetary plight. It was the first time Greenpeace had used a satellite to take an image of a banner. 

The giant banner was photographed by a passing Planet Labs PBC Pelican satellite at 1205 (TRT). The satellite imagery was obtained and processed by Earth observation experts from the Greenpeace International Global Mapping Hub.

Antalya, Türkiye – Greenpeace has called on governments at the UN climate summit COP31 to respond to the looming overshoot of 1.5°C with urgent action to phase-out fossil fuels and end forest destruction to limit the extent and duration of the overshoot.

After the stark reality check from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) confirming an overshoot of the 1.5°C global warming limit will occur, the test at COP31 is whether governments can respond with action. Antalya must break the cycle of negotiations that produce incremental compromises rather than the breakthroughs needed to confront the worsening climate crisis.

Jasper Inventor, Head of COP31 Greenpeace Delegation said: “The world is not short of climate promises, but we’ve run out of time to prevent a 1.5°C overshoot. Now COP31 must prove how climate diplomacy can deliver real change, not just more commitments that governments spend the next decade discussing how to implement.

“COP31 needs to secure a breakthrough that delivers. Every fraction of a degree matters and every year of delay makes the consequences more severe. We need a fast, fair and funded transition away from fossil fuels, an end to forest destruction, urgently required climate finance for developing countries, and to make those most responsible for the climate crisis pay their fair share.

“An agreement at COP31 that falls short of what science demands is not a breakthrough, no matter how many countries sign up to it. Implementation cannot mean doing the bare minimum. It’s time for action.”

Ahead of the start of COP31, Greenpeace Türkiye activists displayed a giant banner on the Konyaaltı Beach in Antalya that was visible from space as a symbol of the planetary plight. The banner, which read COP31: KEEP 1.5°C ALIVE, was photographed by satellite. Photos are available from the Greenpeace media library and an overview of Greenpeace’s expectations and activities at COP31 are found below.[1][2]  

Berkan Özyer, Director of Greenpeace Türkiye, said: “As we face one of the most severe energy crises of the last century and the looming 1.5°C overshoot, the need for urgent action has never been clearer. A powerful call is rising from local communities and civil society across Türkiye for a just transition away from fossil fuels and we are bringing this voice directly to COP31.

“Türkiye should view its COP31 presidency as a genuine opportunity to demonstrate real climate leadership. The electrification goal will only succeed if it is anchored in a phase-out of fossil fuels and powered by renewable energy. As COP31 host, Türkiye cannot champion global pledges while ignoring contradictions at home: plans for new coal-fired power plants must be immediately canceled, a clear timeline for a just transition away from coal must be announced, and plastic waste imports must be completely banned as the true test of its ‘Zero Waste’ vision.”

Shiva Gounden, Head of Pacific at Greenpeace Australia Pacific said: “International law and climate science tell us that 1.5°C is a lifeline for our communities, but the political landscape treats overshoot like a temporary inconvenience. In the Pacific, we know the truth: once our reefs die and our lands disappear under rising seas, there is no coming back, no matter how much carbon you try to pull out of the air decades down the line. This is irreversible harm! 

“The COP31 electrification push will mean nothing if it’s used to disguise the real problem – fossil fuels. If this COP is to deliver real implementation, it must address the extraction driving us into overshoot. For this to truly be the implementation COP, what actually matters is a binding, managed, funded and urgent phase-out of fossil fuels.”

ENDS

Photos and video are available in the Greenpeace media library

Notes:

[1] Greenpeace: COP31 Priorities and Expectations

[2] Greenpeace: COP31 Media Briefing and Activities 

Contacts:

Beyza Kural, Senior Communication Expert, Greenpeace Türkiye, +90 5336 417 123, beyza.kural@greenpeace.org

Kate O’Callaghan, Communications Manager, Greenpeace Australia Pacific, +61 4062 31892 kate.ocallaghan@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Amsterdam, Netherlands – Greenpeace has called on countries to step up adaptation finance at the UN climate talks COP31 as the United Nations Environment Programme exposed the widening gap in critical finance for developing countries.

The UNEP’s Adaptation Gap Report 2026 showed international public adaptation finance flattened at USD28.2 – 31.7 billion in 2024, representing just a USD1 billion year-on-year increase. In contrast, developing countries face annual adaptation needs of USD305 billion, which is expected to rise to USD420 billion by 2035 with inflation. It means that even tripling flows by 2035 will only cover 20 to 29% of what vulnerable nations require.[1]

Koaile Monaheng, Climate Finance Expert, Greenpeace International said: “The math of climate injustice is here in plain sight, with adaptation needs woefully underfunded. This leaves frontline communities, who have contributed the least to global emissions, facing escalating climate extremes with a fraction of the support. This is morally indefensible. Adaptation is not a luxury, but critical for human survival, dignity and justice.

“Every delay in adaptation funding turns climate impacts into catastrophic losses and damages. At COP31, governments must confront this reality and the widening adaptation finance deficit by immediately scaling up grant-based funding to meet the goal to at least triple adaptation finance by 2035.”

At COP31, Greenpeace is calling for developed country governments to announce ambitious multi-year post-2025 climate finance commitments that reflect their country’s fair share in delivering the USD300 billion New Collective Quantified Goal agreed at COP29 in Baku.[2][3]

Under the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA) agreed at COP30, developed nations must clarify how they will triple adaptation finance to reach at least USD120 billion annually by 2035, alongside recognising the need for a robust, needs-based adaptation finance commitment. [4] This has to be delivered through grant-based and non-debt-creating mechanisms rather than loans that trap vulnerable countries in spiralling debt.

Monaheng added: “To unlock these funds, governments must make polluters pay. Taxing the massive profits of oil and gas corporations through progressive environmental taxation is one of the clearest ways to generate new public finance. This money must be channeled directly into public adaptation and multilateral funds, including the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage, where initial funding requests of USD2.8 billion vastly outstripped the available USD342 million envelope.”

ENDS

Notes:

[1] UNEP’s 2026 Adaptation Gap Report: Ready? Not

[2] Greenpeace: COP31 Priorities and Expectations

[3] New Collective Quantified Goal

[4] Global Goal on Adaptation

Contacts:

Aaron Gray-Block, Greenpeace International, Climate Politics Communications Manager, aaron.gray-block@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

Brasília, Brazil – Greenpeace has urged countries to use the Brazil COP30 Presidency’s roadmaps on ending deforestation and transitioning away from fossil fuels as a driving force for next week’s UN climate summit COP31 to help deliver a 1.5°C future.

After committing to developing the roadmaps at COP30, the Brazil presidency unveiled the roadmaps in Brasília, today. The Roadmap for Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels (TAFF) outlined different scenarios and measures to facilitate the transition, while taking into account different national circumstances and reinforcing the importance of climate justice.[1] 

The 2030 Forests Roadmap highlights existing efforts to combat forest loss, the international architecture for forest action and for financing it, and provides concrete proposals for the road ahead as part of international efforts to end forest destruction by 2030, as agreed at COP28. 

Carolina Pasquali, Executive Director, Greenpeace Brazil said: “This is a major effort by the COP30 Presidency and a crucial step towards ensuring the COP28 decision to transition away from fossil fuels is fully implemented. As our climate races towards a 1.5°C overshoot, the roadmap encourages important measures but stops short of setting clear fossil fuel phase-out targets or calling for an immediate halt to the expansion of fossil fuels.

“The Forests Roadmap also represents a major effort from the COP30 presidency and was launched with the credibility of a Brazilian government that has achieved the lowest deforestation rate in its history. The presidency has helped bring together, through multiple contributions and dialogues, a wide range of existing initiatives and views.”

Tracy Carty, Climate Politics Expert, Greenpeace International said: “Brazil’s TAFF roadmap makes clear that the pace of the transition is falling well short of achieving 1.5°C.  While it misses the mark by failing to include explicit phase-out timelines, it recognises the need for accelerated action in line with justice and equity and backed by finance. 

“The fossil fuels roadmap must now serve as a catalyst to raise ambition and drive urgent action at COP31 and beyond. COP31 can and must deliver concrete action to end fossil fuels: including agreeing a global 35 percent by 2035 electrification goal to propel renewable power and displace fossil fuels, establishing a Just Transition Mechanism to co-ordinate, guide and enable support for workers and communities and securing scaled-up international climate finance for implementation.”

An Lambrechts, Biodiversity Politics Expert, Greenpeace International said: “To return global warming to 1.5°C, build climate resilience and prevent irreversible ecosystem collapse, it’s imperative that we implement the 2030 target to halt and reverse forest destruction. After the global community’s failure to take strong decisions on forests at COP30, Brazil’s forest roadmap initiative has kept the ball rolling and its publication is the catalyst to translate commitments into action.

“Other countries now need to step forward and join Brazil in charting a course for transparent, equitable and inclusive implementation of the 2030 forest and biodiversity targets. They represent a hard planetary boundary. The Earth can no longer afford a disjointed approach to forest governance.”

ENDS

Notes:

[1] COP30 Presidency launches international roadmaps

Greenpeace COP31 Priorities and Expectations

Contact:

Aaron Gray-Block, Greenpeace International, Climate Politics Communications Manager, aaron.gray-block@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org

The world’s biggest oil and gas corporations have just reported another quarter of staggering profits – significantly higher than the previous quarter, when earnings were already supercharged by the war on Iran. Meanwhile, filling up your car costs more, so does buying food at the supermarket, heating your home and paying for the things you need every day. A war thousands of kilometres away can end up hitting your household budget, even if you have not changed how much fuel or energy you use. The oil and gas corporations cashing in on this volatility are not the ones struggling to make ends meet. 

It doesn’t have to be this way. Governments can make oil and gas corporations pay their fair share through permanently higher taxes on their profits, using the revenue to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, protect households from price shocks and help communities recover from climate disasters.

BP, Shell, TotalEnergies, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Eni and Equinor reported combined third-quarter profits of US$38 billion, up 140% on the same period last year. Their combined profits for the first nine months of 2026 reached US$150 billion.

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These extraordinary earnings expose the injustice at the heart of fossilflation: we all pay more when global energy markets are disrupted, while the oil and gas corporations profiting from this dependence collect billions. Permanent, comprehensive taxes on their profits could help turn that imbalance around, funding a fair transition to renewable energy and helping communities recover from extreme weather.

These are not just big numbers on a balance sheet. They tell part of the story of how a crisis overseas can put money into the pockets of oil and gas corporations while taking it out of yours. Greenpeace International’s new Fossilflation report shows how energy price shocks feed into the wider cost of living.

A separate Greenpeace Germany-commissioned study has found that the oil industry generated an estimated €36 billion in additional gross margins across the EU petrol and diesel supply chain between 1 March and 19 October 2026. That’s more than €154 million a day.

How does a war thousands of kilometres away make your bills go up?

Fossilflation is what happens when dependence on fossil fuels allows a crisis to drive up the cost of living. The war on Iran has disrupted global fuel supplies and sent oil and gas prices soaring. Because oil and gas are traded on international markets, a conflict can push up the prices people pay far beyond the countries directly involved. Households and businesses have little control over those markets, but they still end up paying the bill. 

The effects extend well beyond the petrol station. Diesel powers much of the world’s transport, agriculture and freight, while gas is a key input for fertiliser production. When the cost of fuel rises, it costs more to grow, process and transport food. Those extra costs can eventually show up in the price you pay at the supermarket.  

While governments cannot control every international price shock, they can reduce how exposed people are to the next one.

The effects can be seen in corporate earnings, too. When oil prices rise, producers can earn more from selling their output. Refiners and fuel distributors can also benefit when the margins between crude oil prices and the prices charged for petrol and diesel widen. Greenpeace Germany’s recent analysis of the EU fuel market found that petrol and diesel prices had risen faster than crude oil prices since the war began, creating additional margins for the industry.

Families cannot simply stop buying food or getting to work when prices rise. And while governments cannot control every international price shock, they can reduce how exposed people are to the next one. Expanding access to rooftop solar, community energy, battery storage and electrified transport can help households rely less on volatile fossil fuel markets. Permanent taxes on oil and gas profits can help pay for that transition, while ensuring that corporations benefiting from the system contribute more to the solutions. 

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Why aren’t temporary windfall taxes enough?

After Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, soaring energy prices delivered a windfall to fossil fuel corporations. Governments introduced temporary taxes on some exceptional earnings, but these measures did not deliver all the revenue expected. Profit shifting and loopholes helped multinational corporations avoid the tax.

The problem with a temporary windfall tax is that it treats extraordinary profits as an exception, even though fossil fuel price shocks keep returning. Greenpeace is calling for permanently higher taxes on oil and gas profits, applying a higher rate comprehensively rather than waiting for a crisis to justify a temporary levy. That would mean the industry contributes more in every quarter, not just when prices spike and public anger grows.

These taxes must be backed by binding international rules to stop corporations shifting profits into tax havens. Research by the International Tax Observatory has found that extractive multinationals declare a disproportionate share of additional profits in low-tax jurisdictions during commodity booms. Without effective rules, governments risk losing revenue that could fund the transition and help communities deal with the damage caused by fossil fuel dependence.

The Global Tax Treaty negotiations offer an opportunity to establish a global polluter profits tax alongside stronger rules against profit shifting. Governments should pursue that agreement while increasing taxes at the national level. They should not wait for an international deal before making polluters pay.

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Put the money where the damage is

Revenue from permanent taxes on oil and gas profits should go towards solutions that make everyday life more affordable and help communities recover from climate disasters. That means investing in clean energy, reducing household exposure to price shocks and helping people rebuild after floods, fires and heatwaves.

Decentralised renewable energy, including rooftop solar, community energy and battery storage, can give households and communities greater control over their energy supply. Combined with electrification and resilient energy systems, it can reduce exposure to global fossil fuel price shocks. No war can stop the wind from blowing or the sun from shining. Once renewable energy systems are built, they can help households and communities rely less on fuels traded on volatile international markets.

No war can stop the wind from blowing or the sun from shining.

The revenue should also support communities recovering from floods, fires, heatwaves and other extreme weather made more dangerous by climate change. It should help ease cost-of-living pressures and increase international climate finance for countries in the Global South, which have contributed least to climate change but face some of its most severe impacts.

The need is urgent. The UN warns that global warming is expected to exceed the 1.5°C threshold in the coming years, increasing risks to people and nature. Communities should not be left to shoulder the costs of climate disasters while the corporations driving the crisis continue to profit.

Making war profiteers pay means putting that money to work where it can make the greatest difference: reducing household energy costs, helping communities recover from climate disasters and ensuring countries with fewer resources can build a cleaner, safer energy future.

How can we break the cycle of fossilflation

The war on Iran has exposed how easily a crisis can send costs rippling through an energy system built around volatile oil and gas markets. The latest quarterly results show the enormous sums the world’s biggest oil and gas corporations continue to make, while households face higher bills.

This is not an unavoidable price of modern life. Governments have practical choices available now. They can permanently increase taxes on oil and gas profits, close loopholes that allow corporations to shift profits to tax havens, and use the revenue to expand renewable energy and support communities facing climate impacts.

At COP31, leaders must turn commitments into action: end new fossil fuel expansion, establish science-based timelines to phase out coal, oil and gas, and fund a fair transition.

We do not have to wait for the next war or price shock to act. Taxing fossil fuel profits fairly and investing in renewable energy can help protect household budgets, strengthen energy security and make communities more resilient. The solutions are within reach. Governments must choose to deliver them.

Martin Zavan is a freelance communications strategist at Greenpeace International, based in Sydney.

Stockholm, Sweden – Timber from irreplaceable Swedish forests is ending up in sawmills supplying wood for Ikea furniture production, reveals a new investigation from Greenpeace Nordic. Using tracking devices, investigators followed logs from eight logged forest areas in northern Sweden and documented links to manufacturers of Ikea’s popular IVAR and HEJNE shelving. Greenpeace is calling on Ikea, one of the world’s largest consumers of wood, to stop sourcing from forests that need protection, including in the company’s home country.

Frida Bengtsson, head of Greenpeace in Sweden said: “Ikea prides itself on high sustainability standards, and has a stated ambition to use its size to be a positive force for forests and halt biodiversity loss. It should go without saying that wood from forests that need protection has no place in Ikea’s products. No shelf or chair in the world is more important than saving irreplaceable forests. Ikea could make that decision today. All it takes is a clear instruction to its suppliers to stay away from these unique ecosystems.”

Several major international companies have already taken action over Swedish forestry practices. Between autumn 2025 and spring 2026, Nestlé, Zalando and L’Oréal announced plans to phase out wood fibre from SCA in their packaging supply chains.[1] The announcements followed criticism of the Swedish forestry company’s logging practices and their impacts on nature and the rights of the Indigenous Sámi people.

The new investigation from Greenpeace Nordic tracked logs to two sawmills operated by forestry company SCA. The logged areas are mapped as continuity forests – forests that have remained tree covered over a long period without ever being clear-cut. Wood from one of the sawmills, Munksund, was documented at Hedlunda, a manufacturer of Ikea’s IVAR shelving. The report also maps a supply chain from the other sawmill, Bollstabruk, through SCA to TräTeam, which manufactures HEJNE shelving. Tracking devices followed the logs from the forest areas to the sawmills. The onward links to furniture manufacturers and Ikea were established through company information, customs records, product labelling and field visits.

Karolina Carlsson, forest campaigner at Greenpeace Nordic and co-author of the investigation, said: “Our investigation reveals a clear pattern and maps how wood from some of Sweden’s last remaining continuity forests that need protection can end up in Ikea furniture that many of us have in our homes. I do not think this is something Ikea’s customers want, and it should be unacceptable to a company that puts so much effort into sustainability.”

Unlike the majority of the Swedish forest landscape which have been clear-cut and transformed for industrial production, continuity forests contain habitats that have developed over long periods of time, creating the best conditions for biodiversity, which cannot be replaced by planting new trees. The Swedish Forest Agency has concluded that logging of continuity forests needs to cease immediately if Sweden is to meet its national and international environmental objectives.[2] 

Greenpeace Nordic is calling on Ikea to immediately stop sourcing wood from forests that need protection in Europe, including all of Sweden’s remaining continuity forests, and to verify that this requirement is met throughout its supply chain.

The Swedish investigation follows two reports published on 13 October 2026. The Missing Manual examines gaps in Ikea’s sourcing rules, including their failure to exclude wood from forests that need protection.[3] A field investigation in Romania documented the logging of an approximately 170-year-old natural forest before proposed strict protection could take effect, and traced timber to a depot supplying an Ikea manufacturer.[4]

ENDS

Photos and Videos available from the Greenpeace Media Library

Vanishing forests (part 2) – How Ikea drives destruction in the boreal forest

Notes:

About the Swedish investigation: Tracking devices followed logs during spring 2026 from six logged forest areas in Norrbotten to SCA’s Munksund sawmill in Piteå, and from two areas in Västernorrland to SCA’s Bollstabruk sawmill. Onward links were documented to Hedlunda in Lycksele and TräTeam in Kramfors. Based on the combined evidence, Greenpeace Nordic assesses that wood from Swedish continuity forests that need protection is highly likely to regularly enter Ikea’s furniture production.

Previous Romanian investigation: Timber was traced to a depot supplying Masifpanel, which manufactures Ikea’s BEKVÄM step stool and SNIGLAR cot.

[1] Nestlé, Zalando and L’Oréal announce plans to phase out wood fibre from SCA in their packaging supply chains

[2] Swedish Forest Agency: Biologisk mångfald i skogen, report 2026/07, revised edition (in Swedish)

[3] The Missing Manual – new investigation from Greenpeace Nordic

[4] Europe’s Vanishing Forests (Part 1) – Romanian case study by Greenpeace CEE

Contact:

Ludvig Tillman, Communications Lead, Greenpeace in Sweden, +46 70 271 64 37, ludvig.tillman@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace International Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (available 24 hours), pressdesk.int@greenpeace.org