Cleaning Up Their Act? G7 fossil fuel investments in a time of green recovery

Between January 2020 and March 3, 2021, G7 nations invested more in fossil fuels (US$189 billion) than in clean energy (US$147 billion), despite pledges to achieve net-zero emissions by mid-century. The report finds that over 80% of fossil fuel funding lacked 'green strings' or climate targets, while only 10% of COVID-19 response funds supported the cleanest energy measures. To align with the Paris Climate Agreement, the report recommends that the G7 end support for fossil fuel production, increase green recovery spending to at least 40% of total COVID-19 recovery funds, and double climate finance pledges to assist low- and middle-income countries.

• From January 2020 to March 2021, G7 nations provided more financial support to fossil fuels than to clean energy, with US$189 billion allocated to coal, oil, and gas compared to US$147 billion for clean energy.
• The majority of funding for fossil fuels lacked climate-related conditions, with over 80% of these commitments benefiting fossil-fuel intensive activities without requiring pollution reductions or climate targets.
• Investment in the cleanest energy technologies, such as energy efficiency and renewables, accounted for only 10% of the funds committed to the COVID-19 response, indicating insufficient scale for rapid economic decarbonization.
• Current G7 COVID-19 recovery spending on green policies and measures stands at 22%, falling short of the report's recommended minimum of 40%.

APA

Beedell,, L. D. M. P. (2021). Cleaning Up Their Act? G7 fossil fuel investments in a time of green recovery. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/cleaning-up-g7-fossil-fuel-investments-green-recovery

Chicago

Beedell,, Lucile Dufour,Tom Moerenhout,Angela Picciariello,Estan. Cleaning Up Their Act? G7 fossil fuel investments in a time of green recovery. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2021. https://www.iisd.org/publications/cleaning-up-g7-fossil-fuel-investments-green-recovery.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Beedell, |first1=Lucile Dufour,Tom Moerenhout,Angela Picciariello,Estan |title=Cleaning Up Their Act? G7 fossil fuel investments in a time of green recovery |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=2 June 2021 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/cleaning-up-g7-fossil-fuel-investments-green-recovery |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{beedell2021cleaning, author = {Beedell,, Lucile Dufour,Tom Moerenhout,Angela Picciariello,Estan}, title = {{Cleaning Up Their Act? G7 fossil fuel investments in a time of green recovery}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2021}, month = jun, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/cleaning-up-g7-fossil-fuel-investments-green-recovery}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }