Search Climate Insights Directory

The study uses a Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP) model and five CMIP5 GCMs to project climate impacts on the Sittaung river basin. Findings indicate that while increased riverine flows will likely benefit domestic water supply and hydropower generation, unmet agricultural demands for food production are expected to increase.

The document argues that 'net zero' pledges act as a 'smokescreen' for corporations to continue fossil fuel extraction and industrial agriculture. It specifically critiques nature-based solutions (NbS) and soil carbon sequestration, claiming these mechanisms facilitate land grabbing, data harvesting by agribusiness and IT firms, and the co-option of agroecology. The report contends that carbon offsetting relies on a false 'equivalence' between volatile biomass carbon and long-term fossil carbon, ultimately benefiting corporate power over small-scale food producers.

The report argues that PLN's plan to use biomass co-firing to reduce emissions is contradictory and potentially destructive. To achieve a 10% co-firing rate across 107 coal power plants, Trend Asia estimates a need for 10.23 million tons of wood pellets annually, requiring energy plantation forests (HTE) of at least 2.33 million hectares. Based on historical data showing 38% of industrial plantation forests originated from deforestation, the report projects that HTE development could lead to the loss of 630,000 to 2.1 million hectares of natural forest, depending on the tree species used.

The report argues that Indonesia's biomass co-firing policy, led by PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN), threatens natural forests. To achieve 10% co-firing across 107 coal power plants, Trend Asia estimates a need for at least 2.33 million hectares of energy wood plantations. Based on historical data showing 38% of industrial timber plantations were established via deforestation, the report warns that this policy could increase annual deforestation rates from 630 thousand to 2.1 million hectares. It further highlights contradictions between the government's Enhanced NDC emission targets and its increasing deforestation quotas, while noting that biomass burning creates a 'carbon debt' rather than being carbon neutral.

The report finds that new oil and gas developments in the North Sea could produce up to 984 megatonnes of CO2 equivalent, potentially causing the UK to exceed its 2023-2037 carbon budget by a factor of two. It argues that the development of the 21 largest undeveloped fields is incompatible with limiting warming to 1.5°C and that the government's Climate Compatibility Checkpoint system fails to account for all climate risks. Additionally, the report states that these developments would not lower energy prices for UK consumers.

The analysis by Climate Central examines how rising sea levels shift tidal boundaries, potentially converting private taxable land into public land and reducing local government funding for schools and services. By mid-century, over 648,000 tax parcels (up to 4.4 million acres) are projected to be at least partially below tidal boundaries, with Florida, Louisiana, and Texas most affected. By 2100, at least $108 billion in assessed property value is at risk, though the actual total is likely higher due to incomplete data.

The September 2022 Nord Stream pipeline ruptures may represent the largest single methane emitting event ever recorded, with potential losses exceeding 500 kilotonnes of methane. While the exact amount entering the atmosphere is difficult to calculate due to cloud cover, ocean dissolution, and the speed of the event, the climate impact is significant. However, the briefing notes that the oil and gas industry's annual fugitive emissions, flaring, and venting total 82 million tonnes, meaning the industry emits an equivalent amount to the Nord Stream leaks every day. The author argues that up to 85% of these emissions could be cut using existing technology and targeted policy.

The report analyzes the IRA's transportation incentives, including tax credits for new and used EVs, commercial vehicle credits, and charging infrastructure support. Through three modeling scenarios (Low, Moderate, High), it estimates that the IRA can increase passenger EV sales shares to 34% (Moderate) or 39% (High) by 2030 compared to a 29% business-as-usual baseline. It highlights that while commercial and light-duty truck adoption will see significant boosts, passenger EV adoption may be limited in the near term by stringent eligibility requirements regarding North American assembly and sourcing from 'entities of concern'. The authors argue that the IRA is a foundational step but insufficient alone to meet 1.5°C climate goals, recommending complementary EPA tailpipe standards, state-level clean vehicle mandates, and strategic electric grid investments.

FSD Africa co-funded the incubation and subsequent growth of the Digital Frontiers Institute (DFI) between 2016 and 2022. This support facilitated the training of over 3,500 professionals in Sub-Saharan Africa, the development of 26 digital financial services (DFS) courses, and the establishment of 10 registered professional country digital finance associations in Africa. Key achievements include a 78% increase in institutional capacity for DFS regulation in Sub-Saharan Africa and the creation of the Alliance for Digital Finance Associations (ADFA) in 2021.

The Ivory Initiative (2018-2022) focused on closing legal ivory markets in Asia and reducing demand among Chinese consumers through policy engagement and behavioral science. The initiative achieved significant reductions in ivory availability in China, with physical outlets dropping by 86% and online adverts by 86% by 2021. It successfully advocated for bans in Mainland China, Hong Kong SAR, Taiwan PoC, and Singapore, while strengthening laws in Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam. Demand reduction efforts, including the #TravelIvoryFree campaign, saw the proportion of Chinese consumers intending to buy ivory fall by nearly half between 2017 and 2021. The report concludes that these efforts contributed to a decline in African elephant poaching, with the Proportion of Illegally Killed Elephants (PIKE) in 2021 reaching its lowest level since 2003.

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) allocates $369 billion to clean energy and emissions reductions, projected to bring U.S. emissions to approximately 42% below 2005 levels by 2030. The law is expected to accelerate the energy transition primarily through the power and transportation sectors, potentially creating over 1.7 million energy supply jobs and avoiding 63,000 premature deaths by 2035 through reduced fossil fuel pollution.

Climate Central's analysis of U.S. power outage data from 2000-2021 reveals a significant increase in large-scale disruptions, with 83% of major outages attributed to weather-related events. The report highlights that the frequency of major outages rose by 64% between 2011-2021 compared to 2000-2010, driven by severe weather, winter storms, hurricanes, extreme heat, and wildfires. It emphasizes the vulnerability of aging infrastructure and the compounding effects of climate change, which simultaneously increases electricity demand for cooling while reducing the capacity of power plants due to water shortages. The report identifies the Southeast as the region with the highest number of outages and notes specific recent surges in Texas, California, and Michigan.

The Financing Steel Decarbonization (FSD) mechanism is a proposed dual-entity structure consisting of the Steel Decarbonization Financing Facility (SDF), a blended debt fund, and the Steel Decarbonization Initiative (SDI), a service company. The SDF aims to invest nearly USD 1 billion over five years to support both commercially available technologies (CATs) and new and innovative technologies (NITs), with a goal of mobilizing an additional USD 3.4 billion in private investment. The SDI provides non-financial support, including technical assistance, impact monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV), and deal brokerage to reduce investment risks. The mechanism targets the Indian steel sector, which contributes approximately 10% of the country's total emissions, aiming to reduce emission intensity by 25% and mitigate up to 250 MtCO2 against the baseline.

The Green Affordable Housing Finance instrument uses a two-pronged approach—a Guarantee Facility and an Enabling Environment Facility—to unlock local private finance for sustainable housing. It addresses the 'chicken-and-egg' problem where a lack of mortgage finance for low-income households disincentivizes developers from building affordable homes. The instrument will be piloted in Kenya in 2023, targeting the mobilization of USD 48 million in local loans during the pilot and over USD 400 million long-term. It requires all supported homes to be IFC EDGE certified, ensuring at least 20% reductions in embodied energy, energy use, and water use.

The Climate Smart Shrimp Fund (CSSF), developed by Conservation International, is a proposed loan bundle and technical assistance facility designed to transition extensive shrimp farms to a 'Climate Smart Shrimp' (CSS) model. This model increases production efficiency in a subset of ponds while restoring mangroves in others to provide carbon sequestration and coastal protection. The instrument is currently in a pilot phase in Indonesia, Ecuador, and the Philippines, with a goal to scale to a USD 100 million fund targeting six countries. Financial modeling suggests the approach can increase farm-level profits fourfold compared to business-as-usual scenarios and offers a viable debt service coverage ratio for investors.

The Reservoir Methane Capture Mechanism (RMCM) is a first-of-its-kind Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) designed to unlock public and private investment for capturing methane from the turbined waters of hydroelectric plants. The mechanism uses a 'methane capture-as-a-service' model to remove the need for initial capital expenditure by hydropower operators. The project follows a three-stage implementation: a USD 6.5 million proof-of-concept, a USD 54 million pilot phase involving five plants, and a scale-up phase targeting 273 projects with a potential capital mobilization of USD 3 billion. Revenues are generated through the sale of electricity and carbon credits, with the latter requiring the development of a new methodology via Gold Standard. At full scale, the RMCM aims to capture 217,000 tons of methane annually, avoiding 6.8 million tons of CO2e.

The report examines the rapid growth of proof-of-work cryptocurrency mining in the U.S. following China's 2021 ban. It argues that the industry's high energy demands drive the revival of defunct fossil-fuel power plants, increase greenhouse gas emissions, and place financial burdens on electricity ratepayers. The document also details local harms, including noise and water pollution, and debunks industry claims regarding sustainability and grid stability.

Since 1970, fall temperatures in the contiguous U.S. have increased by an average of 2.7 °F, with warming observed in 97% of 245 analyzed cities. The most significant warming occurred in Nevada, Texas, and Arizona, with Reno, Nevada, recording the highest increase at 7.7 °F. This trend has led to a higher frequency of above-normal fall days, affecting 74% of analyzed cities. These temperature shifts extend health risks from extreme heat, prolong pollen and wildfire seasons, allow disease-carrying insects to persist longer, and disrupt ecological events such as bird migrations and fruit ripening.

The briefing examines the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on global food security, noting that the two nations provide 12% of global calories. It highlights how port blockades and fertiliser export suspensions have driven up prices and hunger, particularly in Africa and the Middle East. The document warns that protectionist export bans by countries like India and Argentina are exacerbating the crisis, and argues that increasing cropland to compensate is problematic due to the associated fossil fuel and fertiliser requirements.

The document examines the process and impact of an economic study in Uganda that found the cost of inaction on climate change to be 20–24 times higher than the cost of adaptation. This evidence facilitated the integration of climate change into national development plans (NDP II and NDP III), the elevation of the Climate Change Unit to a Department, and the passage of the National Climate Change Act 2021. Key success factors included continuous engagement with high-level leadership, an in-country presence, and the use of layered communication products like documentary films. However, challenges remain in sub-national implementation and the lack of dedicated climate budget lines in the national budgeting system.