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Trees lost to drought and wildfires are not returning. Climate change is taking a toll on the world’s forests - and radically changing the environment before our eyes

Camille Stevens-Rumann never used to worry about seeing dead trees. As a wildland firefighter in the American west, she encountered untold numbers killed in blazes she helped to extinguish. She knew fires are integral to forests in this part of the world; they prune out smaller trees, giving room to the rest and even help the seeds of some species to germinate.

“We have largely operated under the assumption that forests are going to come back after fires,” Stevens-Rumann said.

Related: Fiercer, more frequent fires may reduce carbon capture by forests

Related: Subalpine regions struggle to recover after 2019-20 bushfires as eucalypt forests fare better

Church of England, Lloyds and the National Grid among those pledging to meet 2050 target

Major pension funds that own assets worth £870bn, including those of the Church of England, Lloyds Banking Group and the National Grid, have committed to cutting the carbon emissions of their portfolios to net zero by 2050 or earlier, in another sign of big investors’ increasing focus on the climate crisis.

Pension providers Scottish Widows, Royal London and Nest and a clutch of public sector pension funds from the UK to Scandinavia and New York were also among the investors that have pledged to align their portfolios to the Paris climate goals of limiting global temperature increases to 1.5C.

China criticises ‘selective multilateralism’ as US, Australia, India and Japan discuss climate, the pandemic, security and trade

Joe Biden’s forthcoming meeting with the leaders of Australia, Japan and India signals Canberra doesn’t “stand alone” at a time of intense pressure from China, experts say.

But while regional challenges are expected to be top of the agenda for the first leaders’ summit of the “Quad” countries later this week, the White House has also indicated the climate crisis will be part of the talks – reflecting the US president’s desire to ensure all countries lift their level of ambition.

Related: Press reset: can the Morrison government rebuild bridges with China – or is it too late?

Related: Australia urged to back plan to let poor countries make cheap copies of Covid vaccines

Related: Getting to net zero isn't all pain and expense - there are huge opportunities for Australia | Warren Entsch

Nine-tonne timber harvester clears trees as part of 50-year project to restore Border Mires dating from ice age

To the uninitiated a vertical mulcher might sound like the creation of a feverish nightmare, but the tree-chipping machine might be the saviour of one of the UK’s most important peat habitants.

The mulching is a continuation of a 50-year project to restore the Border Mires, a network of bogs in and around Kielder Forest in Northumberland that dates from the ice age. Forestry England will use the nine-tonne timber harvester to munch through 23 hectares (57 acres) of trees in order to speed up restoration of the mires.