Global Climate News

The Nature Returns programme, led by Natural England in partnership with the Environment Agency, Forestry Commission and Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, has published results demonstrating nature-based solutions' carbon and flood benefits. - **Programme achievements and interventions:** Over four years the six Local Partnership Projects across England delivered **800 hectares of habitat created**, **95,000 trees and shrubs planted**, **16 km of hedgerow restored**, **2.5 km of watercourses improved**, and engaged **over 7,000 people** with **400 volunteer days**. Projects trialled **3D laser scanning** to measure hedgerow carbon (finding hedgerows can rival woodlands) and identified **soil fungi** as an indicator for soil carbon; practical interventions included **leaky dams** that reduced peak flows by **12%** in Plymouth’s Seaton Valley. - **Funding, partnerships and monitoring:** The programme was funded by **HM Treasury’s Shared Outcomes Fund** and **Defra’s Net Zero R&D budget**, and worked with partners to develop **blended public-private finance models**. Sites will be monitored for **10 years** to track long-term carbon storage and biodiversity, with lessons feeding into England’s forthcoming **Land Use Framework**.

The Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture jointly signed an MOU with National Pingtung University of Science and Technology to establish a campus-based demonstration center for sustainable energy and climate change. - **Main announcement/action:** On 114-09-26 (Minguo calendar), the **Ministry of Environment**, **Ministry of Agriculture**, and **National Pingtung University of Science and Technology** signed an **MOU** (witnessed by Legislators 鍾佳濱 and 蘇清泉 and the **Pingtung County Government**) to build the "Sustainable Energy and Climate Change Demonstration Center" on **about 300 hectares** of campus land; agreed activities include **waste collection**, **energy conversion (biomass-to-energy)**, and **resource reuse** to create a circular economy pilot on-site. - **Background and implementation details:** The project will leverage Pingtung’s agricultural scale to pilot a **Taiwan biomass energy model**, develop **natural carbon sink and carbon capture technologies**, and offer professional training courses to cultivate **green-collar talent**; the MOU sets collaboration scope (research, demonstration, replication) but **no specific multi-year implementation timeline** is specified in the announcement.

Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz has published a memorandum advising public company boards on enhanced risk oversight responsibilities and practical recommendations for documenting and implementing board-level risk governance. - **Main announcement/action:** The memorandum provides detailed guidance for boards to **oversee enterprise risk** (including **climate**, **cybersecurity**, **ESG**, and emerging tech risks such as generative AI), recommends regular director training, documents the importance of maintaining records to satisfy **Caremark** standards, and urges boards to ensure management integrates risk into strategy; it cites legal and regulatory developments including SEC disclosure rules, Delaware case law, and DOJ enforcement guidance (DOJ revised Corporate Enforcement Policy announced May 2025). - **Background and other concrete details:** The memo summarizes specific regulatory actions and timelines: SEC 2023 cybersecurity disclosure rules require Form 8-K Item 1.05 reporting of material incidents within **four business days** after determination; the NYSE/SEC clawback rule had a compliance adoption deadline of **December 1, 2023**; DOJ settlements and enforcement examples include a **$25 million** SEC penalty against Charter Communications, an Ireland Data Protection Commission fine of **€530 million** against TikTok, and a **$98 million** DOJ settlement with Illumina (July 2025); the memo also cites a **2024 Spencer Stuart survey** showing **12%** of S&P 500 companies had a standing risk committee in 2024.

The Executive Yuan held a ceremony to award official certificates for the "Ministry of Environment Net-Zero Green-Collar Talent Training Course," presenting certificates to 22 qualifying learners, with the youngest recipient aged 17. - **Main announcement and course details**: The ceremony awarded **22** official certificates; the course started in **April** via a **32-school alliance**, uses standard teaching materials from the **National Environmental Research Institute**, and is a **48-hour** program with a **tuition fee of NT$12,000**. The first centralized exam was held on **2024-08-30** (reported as Aug 30) with **~1,400** trainees taking the test and an **86.7% pass rate**; nearly **2,000** people had registered since April and about **1,400** completed training and sat the exam. - **Background, partnerships and implementation details**: The Ministry provided **partial/full tuition subsidies** (half-price for currently enrolled tertiary students except in-service programs; full subsidy for eligible disabled and low-income registrants). Planned cross-ministry courses include **Near-Zero Carbon Building** (Ministry of Interior), **Energy Saving Training** (Ministry of Economic Affairs), **Green Healthcare Talent Training** (Ministry of Health and Welfare), **Indigenous Green-Collar** (Council of Indigenous Peoples), **CCUS** training with National Cheng Kung University, and **Resource Recycling** with the EPA Resource Circulation Agency. The first NTNU class (40 seats) filled in **16 minutes**.

The UK government announced that two carbon capture projects — Padeswood (Heidelberg Materials UK) and Protos (Encyclis) — have signed final contracts with the Low Carbon Contracts Company and are ready to begin construction. - **Main announcement and actions:** The projects have **signed final contracts with the Low Carbon Contracts Company** and are expected to **move into the construction phase shortly**, together securing **500 skilled jobs** (part of **2,800 jobs** across the wider HyNet network). Padeswood (cement) will capture **~800,000 tonnes CO2/year** and Protos (waste-to-energy) will capture **~400,000 tonnes CO2/year**, totaling **1.2 million tonnes CO2/year**. Both projects will connect to **Eni’s Liverpool Bay Transportation & Storage** as anchor projects of the **HyNet** cluster. - **Background, financing and timelines:** The announcement follows the Prime Minister’s April green-light for HyNet and the government’s **£9.4 billion** commitment to Carbon Capture made in the Spending Review (funding stated **over this Parliament**). The projects are positioned as **shovel-ready**, with contracts now in place to provide certainty to proceed; Padeswood will deploy capture at the existing cement works to produce **evoZero net zero cement**, and Protos is described as a first full-scale carbon capture-enabled waste-to-energy facility.

The College of Planning and Design (Bachelor's Program in Construction Smart Sustainability) is announcing a faculty hiring for its low-carbon and smart-sustainability bachelor program. - **Main announcement:** Hiring **1** faculty member at **Assistant Professor (or above)** level for the **Taipei Campus**, with **start date 115 academic year, 2nd semester (February 1, 2026)** and **application deadline: November 30, 2025** (postmark valid). Applicants must mail completed application forms and documents to **Personnel Office, No. 56, Section 3, Xinglong Road, Wenshan District, Taipei City**; contact phone **02-2931-3416#2181**. Required documents: **Application form**, **Industry Experience Review Form**, copies of **highest diploma**, **transcripts**, and **proof of practical experience**. - **Qualifications and process:** Seeks specialists in **low-carbon building and green technology / construction smart sustainability** with **≥1 year** relevant practical experience (excluding school and cram school). For general faculty: **PhD** in related fields or assistant-professor level; for technical professionals: **Master's** plus **≥9 years** professional experience with notable achievements. Submitted materials will be screened and shortlisted applicants will be **notified separately for interview**; unsuccessful applicants will **not** receive further notice and submitted materials will **not be returned**.

The Department of Architecture is hiring one full-time faculty member at associate professor level or above for the Taipei campus, starting February 1, 2026 (2nd semester, Academic Year 114). - **Main announcement/action:** The department seeks **1 faculty member (associate professor or above)** to begin on **2026-02-01**; **application deadline** is **November 30, 2025 (postmark valid)**. Applicants must mail a completed “Application for Full-time Faculty Basic Information Form” and “New Faculty Industry Work Experience Review Form” together with **copies of highest degree diploma**, **transcripts**, and **proof of practical experience** to **No. 56, Section 3, Xinglong Road, Wenshan District, Taipei City (Personnel Office)**; phone contact: **+886-2-2931-3416 ext.2181**. Envelope should be marked **"Application for Department of Architecture full-time faculty"**. Applicants whose documents pass review will be notified of interview times; submitted materials will not be returned. - **Background and requirements:** Required professional areas include **low-carbon materials**, **low-carbon construction methods**, **BIM applications**, **smart structural integration**, and **sustainable building systems**; expected teaching subjects include **Green Building Topics, Carbon Footprint & Energy Efficiency Analysis, BIM Practical Integration, Structural Systems, Building Structures, Structural Behavior**. Applicants need **≥1 year of relevant industry practical experience (excluding school and cram school work)**. General faculty requirement: **PhD in architecture/civil-related fields or equivalent at associate professor rank or above**.

The Pembina Institute issued a statement criticizing the Government of Alberta's changes to the Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) regulation. - **Main announcement/action:** Pembina states the changes to **TIER** "open the door to double counting" and will **slash demand for TIER credits**, undermining the **stability of the credit market**; Pembina warns companies could both avoid compliance costs at investment and still **generate carbon credits** when emissions fall. The release notes Alberta **froze the TIER price at $95/tonne in May 2025**, increasing investment uncertainty. - **Background and details:** **TIER** has operated for **18 years**; **Emissions Reduction Alberta** has spent **around $990 million** of TIER revenue (which Pembina says has catalyzed **$10.5bn** in additional investment). Pembina cites the paused **Pathways carbon capture** project and references **Dow Inc.**'s planned **$9bn** net-zero petrochemicals project near Edmonton as examples affected by TIER uncertainty.