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The 2022 floods in Pakistan, which inundated a third of the country, have created a humanitarian catastrophe that exacerbates political instability, provides opportunities for extremist recruitment, and increases risks to nuclear security. The document argues that poor ecological governance and political turbulence worsened the impact. It highlights the potential for groups like the Pakistani Taliban and Islamic State Khorasan to exploit government absence by providing aid. Furthermore, it warns that climate hazards could destabilize nuclear sites or escalate tensions between nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan over water resources in the Indus River Basin. The authors urge the United States to integrate climate considerations into military support and fulfill climate finance commitments to ensure long-term security.

The briefing addresses the lack of standardised definitions for sustainable agriculture, which increases the risk of greenwashing. It examines four representative production systems—regenerative, ecological intensification, sustainable intensification, and organic agriculture—and argues that sustainability should be assessed based on specific management practices rather than broad system labels. The author categorises practices into 'Always', 'Usually', and 'Sometimes' sustainable based on environmental impact, while emphasizing that all must meet 'do no significant harm' (DNSH) social standards. It identifies uncontrolled deforestation and the conversion of high-carbon stocks as permanently unsustainable practices.

The Zondo Commission concluded that state capture occurred on an 'extensive scale' in South Africa, characterized by a network of public and private actors who systematically redirected state resources for private gain. The Commission estimated that approximately R57 billion in public funds were 'tainted' by state capture, with the vast majority originating from Eskom and Transnet. Key mechanisms included the manipulation of procurement processes, strategic appointments of complicit officials, and the weakening of law enforcement and oversight bodies. The report recommends the prosecution of high-profile individuals, the recovery of funds, and sweeping institutional reforms to public procurement, SOE appointments, and the electoral system.

The document examines the vulnerability of community-based conservation (CBC) to corruption, specifically highlighting risks in land tenure, administrative processes, and revenue sharing. It argues that power imbalances and insecure resource rights enable elite capture and bribery, which can lead to resource overexploitation and project failure. To counter this, the author recommends strengthening institutional capacities, implementing social accountability tools, and ensuring inclusive definitions of 'community' to protect marginalized groups.

The 2021 Hong Kong GSS+ market saw significant expansion, with USD 14bn in labelled debt from Hong Kong issuers and a quadruple increase in GSS+ debt arranged or issued in the city to USD 57bn. Growth was driven by the HKSAR Government's green bond programme and a diversifying issuer base, including real estate and financial corporates. The report highlights the emergence of transition finance and the adoption of the Common Ground Taxonomy to facilitate cross-border green finance between China and the EU.

The briefing outlines three primary risks of reintroducing nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missiles (SLCM-N) to the U.S. Navy: operational complications and costs, the 'discrimination problem' where adversaries cannot distinguish nuclear from conventional strikes, and the risk of incentivizing other states to pursue similar capabilities, thereby lowering the threshold for nuclear use.

The briefing emphasizes that clean electrification is the most efficient path to net-zero in Canada, noting that three quarters of emissions from building heating must be eliminated by 2040. It highlights the need for the industrial sector to increase electricity use to 41% by 2050 and for the electricity sector to accommodate a doubling of consumption by the same date, while noting that the electrification of medium- and heavy-duty vehicle fleets is currently lagging behind the light-duty market.

The steel industry faces a conflict between growth outlooks and 1.5°C climate targets, requiring demand to peak between 2035 and 2040. Delaying decarbonization until 2030 would necessitate a 50% reduction in demand by 2050 to remain climate-aligned, posing a risk to primary steel production. To avoid this, the industry must invest in zero-carbon technologies like green hydrogen, with significant opportunities for producers in Australia, Brazil, and South Africa.

The briefing examines ENEL's climate commitments, noting that while the utility has announced a coal phase-out by 2027 and a gas exit by 2040, it continues to plan new gas projects and the potential revival of an LNG terminal in Sicily. It urges shareholders to use the upcoming Annual General Meeting to demand a more robust transition plan that avoids selling or converting coal assets and accelerates the gas exit in EU/OECD countries to 2035.

The document outlines the synergies between climate mitigation and public health, arguing that immediate action to reduce emissions provides significant health co-benefits across energy, transport, urban planning, and agriculture. It emphasises that climate change is a justice issue, noting that wealthy nations and individuals are the primary polluters while vulnerable populations suffer most. The briefing advocates for systemic transformations, such as shifting to plant-based diets, decarbonising energy systems, and implementing sustainable urban design, to avoid breaching the 1.5°C warming threshold and to improve global health outcomes.

President Biden has ordered federal agencies to conduct a one-year inventory of mature and old-growth forests on federal land to identify threats and inform future protection policies. Earthjustice argues that protecting these forests is critical for climate mitigation, noting that federal forest lands sequester 35 million metric tons of carbon and that logging is the primary driver of forest carbon loss across the United States. The organization advocates for a nationwide rule to safeguard these forests from logging and the continued defense of the Roadless Rule.

The document explains the Global Stocktake (GST) as a mechanism of the Paris Agreement designed to assess collective progress on mitigation and adaptation to inform the updates of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) every five years. It highlights the challenges of the 'learning-by-doing' approach and encourages developing countries to use their National Adaptation Plan (NAP) and Adaptation Communication (AdCom) processes, alongside monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL), to provide technical inputs to the GST.

The land sector is essential for 1.5°C and 2°C pathways, potentially providing up to 30% of global mitigation. While it offers significant near-term potential at low cost, the IPCC warns that land-based mitigation cannot compensate for delayed emissions reductions in other sectors. Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) is deemed necessary for net-zero targets, but the IPCC highlights substantial uncertainties, risks, and a massive investment gap, with current annual investment at USD 0.7 billion against a needed USD 400 billion.

The document explains the Global Stocktake (GST) as a collective assessment of progress toward the Paris Agreement's goals, detailing its iterative cycle of information gathering, technical evaluation, and outcome review. It emphasizes the role of adaptation, highlighting the need for a global Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) system and the importance of inputs from developing nations through National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and voluntary communications to drive global adaptation ambition.

The document explains the Global Stocktake (GST) as an iterative process to assess collective progress toward the Paris Agreement's goals. It details the three-stage cycle—information collection, technical assessment, and outcome review—and emphasizes how adaptation efforts, including National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and Adaptation Communications (AdComs), inform the process. The briefing highlights the importance of national monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) systems in providing high-quality data to the GST and encourages developing countries to use voluntary communications to ensure their priorities and subnational actions are represented.

The document outlines the escalating impacts of human-induced climate change on humans and ecosystems, emphasizing that the most marginalized populations are hit hardest. It highlights the role of 'attribution literature' in linking extreme weather to human activity and discusses the critical need for transformative adaptation and nature-based solutions. The briefing warns that the costs of inaction far exceed those of mitigation and adaptation, noting significant GDP losses in vulnerable nations and the potential for mass migration and biodiversity loss.

The document advocates for moving beyond GDP toward comprehensive/inclusive wealth (C/IW) to better balance short-term goals with long-term environmental, social, and economic well-being. It emphasizes the need for capacity building for decision-makers and expanded measurement by national statistical offices.

The briefing outlines critical areas of focus for Africa in 2022, including democratic transitions in eighteen countries, the management of military coups in states like Mali and Sudan, and the fight against terrorism in regions such as the Lake Chad Basin. It highlights Africa's priorities for COP27, specifically the need for climate finance, technology transfer, and a just transition that supports industrialisation. Additionally, it examines the evolution of China-Africa relations following the FOCAC Ministerial Meeting and the potential impact of China's debt on Kenya's elections.

The document explains the Global Stocktake (GST) as the Paris Agreement's "ratchet mechanism" to assess collective progress on mitigation, adaptation, and finance. It argues that for climate action to be effective, it must be guided by human rights, including the rights of Indigenous Peoples, gender equality, and intergenerational equity. The briefing details the GST's three-phase structure—information collection, technical assessment, and consideration of outputs—concluding at COP28 in November 2023. It provides a framework for stakeholders to align their submissions with the GST's guiding questions to address critical gaps such as fossil fuel phase-out, land tenure rights, and loss and damage.

RMI proposes a decentralized, open-source technical architecture to replace static, estimate-based carbon accounting with a blockchain-based system. The proposed system focuses on the exchange of primary emissions data at the product level, using 'digital twins' to track embodied carbon from source to sale. This approach aims to improve the veracity of Scope 3 emissions reporting and enable more informed procurement decisions to drive industrial decarbonization.