Bjørn-Oliver Magsig

Welcome to the World of Obstruction Investigating the obstacles to action on climate change.

If you're a @drilledmedia.bsky.social listener you know I think social scientists are key sources if we want to understand why governments haven't acted on climate. So imagine my nerd delight to get my hands on an incredible new batch of research on climate obstruction. drilled.media/podcasts/dri...

Long (Inspiring) Read. An “optional extracurricular activity” in a University of the South Pacific environmental law class went all the way to the International Court of Justice (IJC) and transformed global climate law. By @brookejarvis.bsky.social for The NYT Magazine… buff.ly/XYow5FH

World's highest court sends shot across bow of NZ's climate policy The International Court of Justice's finding that granting fossil fuel exploration licences could breach international law casts a shadow over the Govt's oil and gas plans.

New: The International Court of Justice’s finding that granting fossil fuel exploration licences could breach international law casts a shadow over the New Zealand Government’s oil and gas plans.
newsroom.co.nz/2025/07/25/w...

⚡️ ⚖️ Precedent-setting #climatelitigation victory this morning in #SaulvsRWE
🙌 🎉 A victory for #climatejustice and corporate accountability
🧵🧑‍⚖️ A short thread to unpack the key legal principles reaffirmed by the judges of the Higher Court of Hamm 🇩🇪 ⬇️ 1/8

🔥 ⚖️ #ClimateLitigation history happening right now at Higher Court of Hamm🇩🇪: follow with us this precedent-setting ruling in #SaulvsRWE.
🗣️ Today's decision cld be a turning point in efforts to make polluters pay for climate harms.
🧵 thread with context, insights from the Court & legal arguments👇

Jumping on line and going on again about Adaptation Futures 2025 as it’s the biggest climate adaptation event- held in both virtual & in person formats because we can’t keep flying to save the planet but come and stay longer - first time NZ & Pacific has hosted this

NZ swims against Pacific currents at global climate case NZ's arguments before the 'World's Court' look progressive but ultimately align with polluters and developed nations, a law lecturer says.

New Zealand has argued states shouldn’t be bound by international human rights law to reduce their climate pollution, in its submission to a landmark climate case being heard by the International Court of Justice.
newsroom.co.nz/2024/12/16/n...

Cover page of the article: 'Ice sheet conservation' and international discord: governing (potential) glacial geoengineering in Antarctica PATRICK FLAMM AND AKIHO SHIBATA*

Two key take aways from the paper: • We argue that the proposed infrastructures could negatively implicate the 'peaceful purposes only' obligation enshrined in the Antarctic Treaty. By affecting contentious areas of Antarctic geopolitics, such as authority, sovereignty and security, there is a significant risk that the project would make the Antarctic 'the scene or object of international discord'. • Even if the ice curtain idea were to be technically feasible and environmentally harmless, it would still create significant political and legal challenges for the current governance arrangements in the Antarctic.

Using the opportunity to tell you about a new paper that I wrote together with Akiho Shibata about the underrated geopolitical dimension of glacial #geoengineering proposals in #Antarctica.

It’s #openaccess & available online at International Affairs here: academic.oup.com/ia/advance-a...

Our future, by the numbers The fate of New Zealand Geographic will be decided by the cruel precision of accounting—our income less our costs, year on year. Here’s what that looks like.

Really unusual move by @nzgeo.bsky.social to open the books & show how our changing world is affecting the viability of critical magazines like NZ Geo. www.nzgeo.com/stories/our-... If you've enjoyed my work, please subscribe-it's very affordable-& help keep this shoestring powerhouse on the road🇳🇿

The same set of documents show the fossil fuel industry heaping praise on the Government's draft Emissions Reduction Plan, the final version of which is due this month.

Here my commentary on #COP29 with former colleagues from the Wuppertal Institute. This year, for obvious reasons, it is called "Not a Gift from God". It is high time to look for complementary initiatives like the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative! #FFNPT
wupperinst.org/fa/edaktion/...

🚨🔥In 2 weeks, we will enter a historic moment as Advisory Proceedings on #ClimateJustice enter public phase at ⚖️ 🇺🇳International Court of Justice
🫵📢 Now: it’s your turn to step up & show solidarity with Pacific Islanders
🧵See in thread some concrete steps YOU can take👇👇👇

Australia’s carbon credits system a failure on global scale, study finds Researchers find carbon offsets approach, which is supposed to regenerate scrubby outback forests, was not reducing emissions as promised

All the quotes in this are some version of experts asking, with a heavy, tired irony: "WHO COULD HAVE POSSIBLY KNOWN?"

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

ClimateReanalyzer daily sea surface temperature chart for all years, showing absolutely bonkers daily records beginning in mid-March 2023.

As of next week, the oceans will have set a rather preposterous heat record every day for a year.

Huge win for the climate in Smith vs Fonterra Supreme Court ruling - Greenpeace Aotearoa The Supreme Court has today ruled in favour of Northland iwi leader Mike Smith’s (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kahu) climate case continuing to trial. The case is against Fonterra and six other…

A HUGE win for the climate in Smith vs Fonterra Supreme Court ruling

Climate activist wins chance to sue Fonterra, Z Energy | www.stuff.co.nz/environment/... by @oliviawannan.bsky.social

Government quietly defunds transport climate work Transport Minister Simeon Brown wouldn't say whether the Government will completely scrap the targets for reducing private car usage.

There was no press release about it, but Transport Minister Simeon Brown has quietly told officials to stop work on policies that would provide transport alternatives to private cars.
newsroom.co.nz/2023/12/17/g...

Surprise, surprise - big oil unfazed by ‘historic’ COP28 agreement

Good Cop, bad Cop: what the Cop28 agreement says and what it means Some say the deal is historic, others that it is weak. We look closely at the text for the truth of the matter

Good overview of COP28 outcome by @dpcarrington.bsky.social

"This agreement delivers on making it clear to all financial institutions, businesses and societies that we are now finally at the true "beginning of the end" of the fossil-fuel driven world economy”, PIK Director Johan Rockström on #COP28 closing:  www.pik-potsdam.de/en/news/late...

Not even the bare minimum…

Climate Commission report makes for awkward reading Among the Government's first actions on climate, spelled out in the 100-day plan and coalition agreements, are moves that directly conflict with the Climate Change Commission's advice

At the centre of the surreality of the situation is this: the Climate Commission report was written for a government with a distinct vision of what the climate response will look like, but it has been received by a Government with no clear picture of the future.
newsroom.co.nz/2023/12/13/c...

Better text in sight. Better in the short term but leaves huge backdoor for fossils in the long term.

OPEC’s letter. #COP28

#COP28 initiatives will only reduce emissions if followed through. Our quick climate action tracker analysis.

climateactiontracker.org/publications...

Awesome initiative!

Some people say that because we're still emitting a lot of CO₂, we must deploy CO₂ removal (CDR) ASAP. This is wrong.

CDR will be useless as long as we're still emitting tens of billions of tonnes of CO₂.

We need to decarbonize ASAP so that CDR can be effective.

Come work with us at @VicUniWgtn! 🤓

www.wgtn.ac.nz/about/workin...