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The report evaluates 33 major European supermarket chains across six countries on three priority areas: the elimination of wild fish in aquaculture feed, the monitoring of fish mortality, and supply chain transparency. The findings indicate a widespread failure to implement responsible practices, with 76% of retailers falling into the 'red zone' due to a lack of relevant policies. While some UK and French retailers show more progress, no company achieved the 'at the forefront' status. The report highlights the negative externalities of the industry, such as the extraction of over half a million tonnes of fish from West African waters annually for feed, which undermines local food security.

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative evaluates the effectiveness of public policies used to combat deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon, consolidating academic evidence to propose a strengthened policy framework for forest protection and sustainable development.

The report evaluates the ambition, investment, and strategic implementation of forest-related climate goals across governments. It finds that national targets in Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) significantly underutilize the mitigation potential of forests, and that current financial investments are insufficient compared to the funding required for forest protection and restoration.

The document investigates whether Russia exerts significant influence over African states in the UN Security Council (UNSC) by analyzing voting patterns between 2014 and 2020. It argues that Russia's influence over the A3 is often exaggerated, as statistical evidence shows that African member states remain more aligned with the P3 (US, UK, and France) and are largely independent of Russian vetoes and abstentions. While the A3 have increasingly sought to present unified positions on African peace and security issues, their voting behavior on non-African files shows a declining coincidence with Russian positions over time.

The report examines the hazards of coal ash disposal, particularly in the Ohio River Valley, and advocates for 'clean closure' (excavation) over 'cap-in-place' methods. Through case studies of the Sebree Generating Station in Kentucky and the J. M. Stuart Station in Ohio, the authors demonstrate that comprehensive cleanup generates significantly more jobs and economic output than utility-proposed plans. The document highlights the disproportionate impact of coal ash pollution on low-income communities and people of color, and calls for stronger EPA enforcement and state-level regulations to ensure the safe removal of toxic waste.

The report analyzes the impact of Brazilian public policies on Amazon forest protection, highlighting the success of the Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Deforestation in the Legal Amazon (PPCDAM) and the use of real-time monitoring (DETER) in reducing deforestation between 2004 and 2012. It identifies a recent trend of increasing deforestation linked to weakened environmental governance and impunity. The author argues for a broader conservation agenda that includes monitoring forest degradation and secondary vegetation, as these are currently 'invisible' to official systems but critical for carbon sequestration and ecosystem restoration.

The report identifies 27 GW of planned coal power plants in India as "zombie" assets that are superfluous to the country's electricity requirements for FY 2030. It argues that India can meet both aggregate and peak demand growth through its existing construction pipeline and the expansion of renewable energy (RE) and battery storage. The analysis suggests that cancelling these projects would save Rs. 247,421 crore in capital expenditure and potentially reduce annual power purchase costs by Rs. 43,219 crore. The report warns that building these plants would lock consumers into expensive contracts, create stranded assets, and jeopardize India's target of 450 GW of RE by 2030.

The report examines framework climate laws in the UK, France, Mexico, Finland, Sweden, and Victoria (Australia), concluding that while such laws provide a critical political signal and a structured pathway for decarbonisation, most have struggled with implementation. Key failures include a lack of binding interim targets, overcomplexity in governance, and insufficient accountability mechanisms. The report recommends that future laws impose clear, enforceable duties on high-level government decision-makers, integrate independent scientific advisory bodies, and combine long-term goals with frequent short-term progress reporting to avoid 'paper tiger' legislation.

The policy brief examines the history and impact of UN mega-conferences on sustainable development, focusing on the 1972 Stockholm Conference, the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, and the 2012 Rio+20 conference. It highlights the persistent tension between developed and developing nations regarding the priority of economic development versus environmental protection. While these events have established global agendas, common principles, and institutional mechanisms like UNEP and the HLPF, the author notes that they often struggle to catalyze national-level action due to a lack of political will and a tendency for negotiations to protect narrow national interests. The document concludes that while mega-conferences are valuable for stakeholder integration and agenda-setting, they are not a substitute for the political will required to solve global sustainable development challenges.

The Canadian Climate Institute evaluates Canada's diverse carbon pricing instruments, noting inconsistencies in emission coverage and price signals. It recommends establishing a common emission coverage standard, improving transparency, and harmonizing benchmarks for large emitters to enhance efficiency and equity.

Analysis of 2017 and 2018 model year non-luxury used electric vehicles (EVs) in California shows that they deliver total ownership savings of $1,100 and $500 respectively over a 5.5-year period compared to similar gas cars. While EVs carry a purchase price premium, this is offset by lower fuel and maintenance costs. The report highlights that targeted incentives, such as the Clean Cars 4 All program's maximum $9,500 rebate, can reduce total ownership costs by nearly 40% for lower-income households. The author recommends expanded EV financing, electricity rate reductions using cap-and-trade revenue, and increased support for charging infrastructure in multi-unit dwellings to ensure an equitable transition.

The report finds a significant lack of a level playing field in the EU, with 13 Member States still relying on entirely paper-based processes for verifying catch certificates (CCs). While some states have developed national IT tools, these cannot detect the 'overuse' of CCs across different EU entry points. The European Commission's CATCH system is designed to provide a centralised EU-wide database to prevent fraud and harmonise risk analysis, but as of June 2021, no Member State was actively operating the first version due to a lack of legal requirements and data input from third countries. The report recommends that the Commission make CATCH mandatory, improve its interoperability with national systems, and develop tools to monitor trade flow variations to identify potential IUU fishing loopholes.

Based on a survey of over 900 households in Jharkhand, the report finds that LPG subsidies are poorly targeted, with the poorest 40% of households receiving less than 30% of government support in 2018/19. The analysis indicates that poor households may receive two times less in subsidies than better-off consumers due to low consumption of subsidized cylinders among the poor and high consumption among the wealthy. While LPG subsidies per cylinder were effectively removed in May 2020, the report warns that the COVID-19 crisis has increased the need for affordable clean cooking support. The authors conclude there is no 'magic bullet' for improving distribution and suggest that policy-makers consider volumetric targeting to limit expenditure until the causes of low consumption among poor households are addressed.

The report finds that LPG subsidies in Jharkhand are highly regressive, with wealthier households receiving a disproportionate share of benefits due to their higher consumption levels. Testing of volumetric targeting and differential subsidies for Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) beneficiaries failed to significantly improve subsidy incidence, although volumetric limits reduced overall government expenditure. The authors recommend mapping subsidy equity across India and exploring smarter indicators, such as motorbike ownership, to better identify and exclude better-off consumers.

The report argues that South Africa's promise of affordable electricity for the poor remains unfulfilled 20 years after the 1998 White Paper on Energy. It highlights that poor households spend a disproportionate 17% of their income on electricity and that the Free Basic Electricity (FBE) program, which provides 50 kWh per month, is severely under-implemented. The document claims that in 2019, while national funding supported 9.8 million households for free services, only 2 million actually received free electricity, leaving over 5.4 million eligible poor households without the benefit and resulting in an estimated R6 billion in diverted funds.

The Union of Concerned Scientists concludes that most non-light-water reactor (NLWR) designs do not offer sufficient improvements over light-water reactors (LWRs) to justify their increased safety and proliferation risks. The report argues that NLWRs, including sodium-cooled fast reactors, high-temperature gas-cooled reactors, and molten salt-fueled reactors, are technologically immature and unlikely to be commercialized in time to significantly impact the climate crisis. It recommends that the US Department of Energy suspend the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program until the Nuclear Regulatory Commission determines if full-scale prototype testing is required for safety validation.

The brief warns that funding for blue hydrogen may conflict with Canada's goals to phase out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies by 2025 and reach net-zero by 2050. It recommends that subsidies for hydrogen based on natural gas without significant carbon capture and storage be ineligible for assistance, and that blue hydrogen only receive support if it matches the environmental performance and cost of green hydrogen.

The Institute for Economic Justice reports that only about a third of South Africa's R500 billion COVID-19 rescue package had been utilized by February 2021. While social security and wage relief saw significant spending, other areas like the credit guarantee scheme and municipal funding suffered from disastrous underspending and lack of transparency. The report highlights that the expiration of social grants and the TERS scheme occurred just before the second pandemic wave, potentially plunging millions into hunger and leaving workers without support.

The policy brief examines the 2021 UN Security Council agreement to keep the Bab al-Hawa border crossing open for humanitarian aid to Syria. It argues that Russia's support for the resolution, despite its preference for aid to flow through Damascus, was driven by a need to prevent the economic collapse of the al-Assad regime. The author highlights the role of a bilateral US-Russia deal and the diplomatic efforts of Ireland and Norway in securing the compromise. The brief also notes that while external stakeholders find the current fragile state of Syria acceptable, the lack of funding for reconstruction and regional instabilities—including COVID-19 and shifts in Iranian and US engagement—threaten long-term stability.

The document evaluates the GPA, a non-binding UNEP programme launched in 1995 to curb land-based marine pollution. While it has successfully set agendas, fostered multi-stakeholder partnerships, and helped 107 countries establish policy frameworks, it has struggled against increasing pollution levels, insufficient funding for developing nations, and a shift toward more specialized, legally binding global treaties.