Barney joined Tortoise as a recent graduate after working as a researcher for a public affairs agency in Malaysia.
Barney Macintyre
Social and Community Editor

“Tortoise is journalism democratised. There’s nothing quite like it.”
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Tuesday 3 May 2022
China’s coal revival
A series of domestic and international crises have deepened China’s addiction to coal. What will it take to wean it off?
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Tuesday 19 April 2022
Removals required
We’ll need a wider variety of ways to remove carbon from the atmosphere if we’re going to keep the planet cool.
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Tuesday 5 April 2022
Who controls Telegram?
How much do we really know about Telegram and its policies?
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Tuesday 5 April 2022
Nuclear option
Nuclear power is a key part of the government’s strategy, but an inadequate solution to the energy crisis and the need for immediate and deep decarbonisation
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Tuesday 15 March 2022
Drill, baby, drill
It’s tempting to believe the solution to cutting soaring energy bills is lying beneath our feet. But after a decade dreaming of a US-style shale revolution, fracking has failed to deliver.
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Tuesday 1 March 2022
Flood warning
Part two of the IPCC landmark report on climate change highlights both the risks and opportunities for cities.
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Tuesday 15 February 2022
Climate backlash
The government needs to make it clear to the public that net zero remains a priority, despite high gas prices and calls to delay from the backbench.
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Tuesday 1 February 2022
Beijing breathes
The Beijing Winter Olympics are taking place in an area completely unsuited to winter sports. But at least the air will be clearer than it was in 2008
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Tuesday 18 January 2022
Siberia melts
Permafrost covers nine million square miles of the Earth’s surface – and it’s thawing faster than ever. Will the big melt become a climate feedback loop?
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Wednesday 5 January 2022
You say green, I say greenwash
The EU is trying to define what constitutes a “green” investment, but member states have conflicting ideas about what that really means.
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Tuesday 14 December 2021
The cap fits
Imagine a world in which carbon cap and trade systems actually worked. Guess what? It’s happening.
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Tuesday 7 December 2021
Climate intelligence
Humans aren’t finding climate solutions fast enough. Luckily, machines can help.
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Tuesday 23 November 2021
Green bills
US Congress has a habit of killing off climate-focused legislation. Can Biden’s transformative bill make it through?
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Friday 12 November 2021
Promises and compromises
Will a deal emerge from Glasgow that has the teeth to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees? Or will the forces of inactivism prevail?
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Tuesday 9 November 2021
Climate law’s tipping point
The law is becoming an increasingly powerful tool in holding companies and countries to account on their emissions – but some cases fail to bring the latest science into the courtroom.
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Friday 5 November 2021
Curtains for coal?
The UK Cop presidency has made ending coal use its main mission. Will a new global deal succeed in banishing the black stuff?
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Tuesday 26 October 2021
The C100 Special
Findings from Tortoise’s Responsibility 100 Index show that the UK’s biggest supermarket chains are failing basic transparency tests when reporting on their environmental impact.
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Friday 22 October 2021
Can Asia kick its coal habit?
The world’s most populous continent, with its fastest-growing economies, depends on coal. We’ve mapped the data over the last 50 years to try and get a sense of this critical challenge for Asia – and the world
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Tuesday 19 October 2021
Climate specifics
In advance of Cop 26, there remains a yawning gap between countries’ pledges and policy action. Britain is making a last-ditch effort to narrow it
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Tuesday 12 October 2021
Geared for take-off
Aviation talks a big game about reaching net zero. But to actually achieve it, the industry and customers face some tough choices.
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Tuesday 28 September 2021
Tortoise at Cop26
Join us at The New York Times Climate Hub as we discuss Cop26, and help build a practical to-do list to save the planet.
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Tuesday 21 September 2021
The Great Climate Exodus
Humans have always been a relentlessly mobile species. But climate change is accelerating the number of people fleeing drought and disaster. How will developed nations respond?
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Friday 17 September 2021
Scotland’s second blueprint
In 2013, the SNP published a white paper detailing its plan for an independent future. The world has changed so dramatically since then that key issues in its proposal need to be updated ahead of a potential second vote.
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Tuesday 24 August 2021
The hydrogen society
Is the widespread adoption of hydrogen a necessary step towards net zero?
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Tuesday 17 August 2021
Methane matters
Decarbonisation alone won’t solve the climate crisis. In the scramble to prevent average temperatures climbing more than 1.5°C within the next 20 years, we meed to slash methane emissions too.
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Friday 6 May 2022
Time for a windfall tax?
Bumper profits posted by the world’s biggest oil and gas producers have reinvigorated calls in the UK for a windfall tax. Could it solve the cost of living crisis?