Climate scientists have reported that they are unable to speak to press about their own findings, feeling effectively "muzzled" by agencies that want to script talking points for them. In June, a government spokesperson explained that federal meteorologists must speak only "to their area of expertise," which does not include climate change, according to a government spokesperson. Journalists sometimes face bullying, too. Environmental author Andrew Nikiforuk told ThinkProgress that "a government of thugs" slandered him and shut him out of events. But environmentalists may fare the worst. Seven environmental nonprofits in Canada have accused the Canada Revenue Agency of unfairly targeting them for audits. According to internal documents obtained by The Guardian, Canada's police and Security Intelligence Service identified nonviolent environmental protests—like people who oppose hydrofracking and the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline—as "forms of attack" fitting the "number of cases where we think people might be inclined to acts of terrorism."

Australia, for its part, has downplayed scientific findings. Abbott, along with his Environment Minister Greg Hunt, have rejected any link between extreme weather and global warming. Abbott, who once called the science of climate change "absolute crap," said last year that UN Climate Chief Christiana Figueres was "talking out of her hat" when saying that rising temperatures were driving more intense and frequent brushfires. "Climate change is real as I have often said and we should take strong action against it but these fires are certainly not a function of climate change," he argued. Hunt defended his boss, citing Wikipedia as his proof. "I looked up what Wikipedia says for example, just to see what the rest of the world thought, and it opens up with the fact that bushfires in Australia are frequently occurring events during the hotter months of the year. Large areas of land are ravaged every year by bushfires. That’s the Australian experience." He could have referred to his Department of Environment's website instead, had it not earlier removed explicit references connecting climate change, heatwaves, and fires.

As the host of the G20 this November, Australia is in an awkward position. Australians have staged protests, while the U.S. and European leaders have pressured Abbott to put climate change on the agenda. He has refused. There's no room for climate, he says, because the summit is about "economic security" and "the importance of private sector-led growth."

What's even more baffling about the rise of climate denial in both countries is that it's apparently not the popular view in either country. According to the Pew Research Center, the majority of Australians and Canadians say climate change is a major threat—as opposed to 40 percent of Americans who say the same.