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Michael Jacobs

Michael Jacobs, Inside Story’s global climate writer, is Professor of Political Economy at the University of Sheffield and Visiting Senior Fellow at the global affairs think tank ODI.

International Michael Jacobs 9 November 2025 President Lula’s climate summit failed to defy Donald Trump in the way some had hoped, but COP30 has the chance to tackle two key challenges — if they can get on the agenda
International Michael Jacobs 29 October 2025 The US administration has intensified its efforts to turn back the sustainability tide International Michael Jacobs 9 October 2025 Keir Starmer’s Labour government is struggling to position itself in a fragmented political landscape International Michael Jacobs 5 July 2025 A UN conference discovers the absence of the United States can be an opportunity rather than a hindrance International Michael Jacobs 29 June 2025 Keir Starmer is paying a heavy price for spending cuts that lacked a defensible rationale
International Michael Jacobs 27 April 2025 America played a less destructive role than feared at last week’s spring meetings of the World Bank and the IMF
International Michael Jacobs 13 March 2025 At least one of its rivals will be rubbing its hands at Washington’s retreat from foreign aid and international institutions International Michael Jacobs 25 November 2024 Another cliffhanger climate conference achieves a kind of progress International Michael Jacobs 21 November 2024 While COP29 meets in Baku G20 leaders have been making their own decisions in Rio International Michael Jacobs 10 November 2024 As the UN conference opens in Baku, Azerbaijan, what difference will Donald Trump’s election make?
International Michael Jacobs 8 July 2024 A big majority, yes, but the success of Keir Starmer’s government rests on how effectively it deals with Britain’s deep problems
International Michael Jacobs 27 May 2024 Britain’s next prime minister doesn’t have quite the pedigree you’d expect — but his small-target strategy might seem familiar International Michael Jacobs 4 May 2024 As raw sewage gushes into the Thames and voters turn away in droves, Rishi Sunak’s government enters its doomed home stretch International Michael Jacobs 14 December 2023 The COP28 agreement has the potential to fuel a virtuous circle of policy, innovation and scale International Michael Jacobs 9 December 2023 At COP28 our correspondent probes a PR blitz for signs of genuine progress
International Michael Jacobs 1 December 2023 UAE deal-maker Ahmed Al Jaber has kicked off this year’s climate talks with a historic coup
International Michael Jacobs 25 September 2023 With an eye to the next election, the British government has backtracked on climate initiatives to try to drive a wedge into Labour International Michael Jacobs 22 September 2023 Brazil’s energetic president is set on galvanising the non-Western BRICS grouping, not least to fight climate change International Michael Jacobs 24 June 2023 Emmanuel Macron’s summit meeting has given new momentum to investment in sustainable development and climate financing International Michael Jacobs 5 June 2023 The latest UN climate conference is under way in Bonn. But the real action might be elsewhere
International Michael Jacobs 18 April 2023 The new World Bank president wants change, but will he get the backing he needs?
International Michael Jacobs 22 November 2022 Nearly forty hours behind schedule, a final climate compromise was reached in Sharm el-Sheikh. But important action was going on elsewhere too International Michael Jacobs 16 November 2022 With financing very much on the agenda, small nations are punching above their weight at COP27 International Michael Jacobs 4 November 2022 The latest UN climate conference matters, though not for quite the reason you might expect International Michael Jacobs 26 October 2022 Does Britain’s youngest prime minister for more than 200 years have what it takes to end the country’s crisis of leadership?
International Michael Jacobs 8 October 2022 The British PM and her allies have launched an enormous and potentially disastrous experiment
International Michael Jacobs 29 September 2022 Distinguished economists are protesting at Mathias Cormann’s reorientation of the international organisation International Michael Jacobs 5 September 2022 Does the new British PM have the capacity to deal with Britain’s gathering crisis? International Michael Jacobs 15 November 2021 Is it finally the end of the line for fossil fuels? Our correspondent’s Glasgow COP26 wrap-up International Michael Jacobs 9 November 2021 There is a paradox at the heart of climate activists’ demands for the overthrow of capitalism