Australia is talking up its green credentials at the annual U.N. climate summit, but its policies do not match the portrayal as it continues to support new mining and energy projects, and fuels the crisis through its enormous fossil fuel exports.
A year after his predecessor was slammed as a climate laggard, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's government is touting tougher goals for cutting carbon emissions and a pledge to reduce methane emissions, as nations at the COP27 conference in Egypt seek a global climate deal.
Albanese's climate change minister, Chris Bowen, telling the conference Australia was a "willing climate collaborator," made a pitch to host COP31 in 2026 along with the Pacific island nations.