This was a year of extremes when it came to both climate change and climate policy. Cop30 was another missed opportunity to build momentum for a fossil fuel phase-out. At the top of the 2025 naughty list is the US, now officially in climate denial. Even in the US oil and gas hotspot state of Texas, renewables flourished under former president Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) subsidies. Climate leadership was not much in evidence from the Irish Government in 2025, though on paper at least, it remains committed to the 2030 climate targets.

Source: The Irish Times December 16, 2025 16:54 UTC