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11 WAYS TO MEASURE CLEAN GROWTH
The Canadian Climate Institute identifies 11 indicators to track clean growth, categorized into goals (low-carbon growth and economic resilience), catalysts (technology development, adoption, trade, and infrastructure), and foundations (jobs, affordable energy, inclusive resilience, clean air, and ecosystems). The analysis reveals that while Canada has decoupled GDP from GHGs, progress is uneven across provinces, and significant data gaps hinder comprehensive policy tracking.
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Document type: Report
Air pollution and its impact on human health
The document highlights the critical link between air pollution, human health, and climate change, specifically focusing on short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs). It argues that because air pollution has a more immediate and tangible impact on public health than long-term climate change, it can serve as a powerful catalyst for policy action. The brief details the health burdens of PM2.5 and tropospheric ozone, including millions of asthma-related hospital visits and pre-term births. To facilitate this, the Stockholm Environment Institute promotes the Low Emissions Analysis Platform (LEAP) and Integrated Benefits Calculator (IBC) to help cities and nations model emission projections and quantify health and climate benefits simultaneously.
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Document type: Policy brief
Written Submission to Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy
The submission by Scientists for Global Responsibility (SGR) criticises the UK's focus on military deployment and the arms trade, urging a shift toward 'human security'. SGR identifies rapid climate change, nuclear war, and biodiversity loss as high-priority security threats and calls for the reallocation of military funding toward the 'green' economy and social needs.
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Document type: Statement
Public Participation in Rulemaking at Federal Agencies
The Union of Concerned Scientists identifies systemic barriers to public participation in US federal rulemaking, noting that industry interests often have disproportionate influence and that marginalized communities are frequently excluded. The document recommends earlier community involvement, the use of plain language, increased transparency regarding funding and meetings, and improvements to digital accessibility on platforms like regulations.gov.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Supporting Equity and Environmental Justice
The Union of Concerned Scientists argues that marginalized communities in the US face disproportionate environmental and health harms, which are exacerbated by systemic racism within federal agencies. The document recommends that agencies make equity-based analyses mandatory for significant policies, strengthen scientific integrity, and dismantle internal racial biases. Specific calls to action include rescinding certain EPA and CEQ rules, increasing the number of health and safety inspectors, and improving the meaningful participation of frontline and tribal communities in rulemaking processes.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Mesurer le chemin parcouru vers la croissance propre
The Canadian Climate Institute introduces a framework of 11 indicators to track 'clean growth' in Canada, balancing economic prosperity with climate action. The report identifies that while most provinces have decoupled GDP growth from GHG emissions since 2005, significant gaps remain in technology adoption, data collection for climate costs, and the protection of vulnerable populations and ecosystems. It argues for a 'skeptical optimism' approach, where governments actively resolve barriers to transition rather than assuming growth will naturally follow emission declines.
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Document type: Executive summary
Statement on EPA Recission of Federal Methane Pollution Standards
The Clean Air Task Force criticizes the EPA's decision to rescind methane pollution standards for the oil and gas industry, noting that the 2016 rules had reduced emissions by 330 million metric tons of CO2e since their inception. The statement highlights that the move removes federal controls for the country's largest industrial methane source and weakens leak detection and repair requirements, particularly in the transmission and storage segment. Furthermore, the EPA's new policy position requires a 'significant contribution finding' before regulating air pollutants under the new source performance standard program, which the author claims prevents the agency from addressing hundreds of thousands of older pollution sites. The document also links oil and gas air pollution to over one million childhood asthma attacks annually.
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Document type: Statement
SUPPLEMENTARY SUBMISSIONS ON THE DRAFT UPSTREAM PETROLEUM RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT BILL, 2019
The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) submits that the draft Upstream Petroleum Resources Development Bill, 2019 is deficient in its approach to the climate crisis and community welfare. The CER argues that gas exploration and production pose severe risks to climate, air, water, and marine environments, and that the Bill's consultation processes are 'woefully inadequate'. Furthermore, the CER criticizes the lack of a robust Social and Labour Plan (SLP) framework to ensure benefits reach affected communities, noting that a proposed 20% state carried interest is an insufficient substitute for local development. The submission also calls for stronger administrative penalties to ensure corporate compliance with environmental laws.
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Document type: Statement
CO2 emission performance standards for new passenger cars and light commercial vehicles
ClientEarth argues that the UK government's proposed approach to retaining EU CO2 emission standards is insufficient and potentially weakens regulatory requirements. The organization urges the government to adjust the vehicle mass baseline (M0) to reflect UK averages, reduce sales volume derogation thresholds, and introduce a binding zero exhaust emission vehicle (ZEEV) mandate to phase out petrol, diesel, and hybrid vehicles by 2030.
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Document type: Statement
Strengthening Scientific Integrity at the Environmental Protection Agency
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) argues that the EPA has systematically undermined scientific integrity since January 2017 through political censorship, the sidelining of expert advisory committees, and the suppression of research. The report details specific instances of scientific failure—such as the reversal of a chlorpyrifos ban and the delay of a formaldehyde assessment—and proposes a comprehensive roadmap for reform. Key recommendations include lifting hiring freezes on scientific positions, rescinding rules that restrict the use of confidential data in regulatory science, and establishing a formal process for resolving differing scientific opinions. The document also emphasizes the need to eliminate industry conflicts of interest among political appointees and to protect the rights of scientists to communicate their findings to the public without political interference.
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Document type: Fact sheet
California Can’t Wait on All-Electric New Building Code
RMI urges the California Energy Commission (CEC) to implement a statewide all-electric new building code in the 2022 cycle. The document asserts that delaying this requirement until the 2025 cycle would result in 3 million additional metric tons of carbon emissions by 2030 and over $1 billion in unnecessary spending on gas infrastructure. It highlights that buildings are the primary source of premature deaths from air pollution in California, causing over 6,000 deaths annually, and that an all-electric code would support public health, especially in disadvantaged communities.
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Document type: Statement
India's environmental laws and COVID-19
The paper examines how the COVID-19 pandemic exposed gaps in India's environmental governance, noting that while lockdowns temporarily improved air and water quality, the period also saw a rise in industrial disasters and the dilution of environmental impact assessment rules. It highlights the intersection of environmental degradation—such as deforestation and pollution—with increased vulnerability to pandemics and climate-driven extreme weather events. The author concludes that India's economic recovery packages lack long-term environmental vision and calls for the stringent implementation of environmental laws to build socio-ecological resilience.
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Document type: Research paper
A Call for Public Health Leadership in Building a Post-COVID-19 South Africa
The Public Health Association of South Africa (PHASA) calls for a 'healthy recovery' from COVID-19 that avoids returning to unsustainable economic patterns. The group argues that air pollution from coal-fired power stations, particularly in the Mpumalanga Highveld, exacerbates respiratory diseases and coronavirus mortality. PHASA advocates for a just energy transition to renewables, the closure of coal mines, and the active involvement of the health sector in the Presidential Climate Change Commission to address the intersecting crises of pandemics and climate change.
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Document type: Statement
Transports publics et pollution de l'air : l'exemple des grèves canadiennes
The study finds that public transport in its current North American configuration increases nitrogen oxide levels and does not significantly improve local air quality.
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Document type: Research paper
The Politics of Representation in the Climate Movement
The author argues that the disproportionate fame of Greta Thunberg, the "Greta effect", is a symptom of a system that privileges white activists from the Global North while marginalising activists of colour. This bias extends from media coverage—where people of colour are often stereotyped as victims or erased entirely—to environmental policymaking, where the exclusion of marginalised voices leads to projects that harm indigenous and minority communities. The document advocates for an intersectional approach to climate action to address these power imbalances and ensure that those most affected by climate change can own their narratives and influence policy.
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Document type: Research paper
sign_on_letter_pfas_food_packaging_72020-f7e4b7355e2b3d48.pdf
A coalition of health and environmental organizations is advocating for New York State legislation to ban PFAS in food packaging, citing severe health risks, the availability of safer alternatives, and the disproportionate impact on vulnerable communities.
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Document type: Statement
What role for national energy and climate plans in the COVID-19 recovery?
The document asserts that National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs) are essential for the EU to achieve its 2030 climate targets and the goals of the European Green Deal. It notes that current measures are insufficient to meet the 40% greenhouse gas reduction target and that the COVID-19 pandemic has delayed policymaking and plan submissions in several member states. The author calls for higher ambition, better policy coherence, and increased stakeholder involvement to ensure a green recovery and climate neutrality by 2050.
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Document type: Statement
Consultation: Ending the sale of new petrol, diesel and hybrid cars and vans
ClientEarth advocates for a legally binding 2030 deadline to end the sale of new internal combustion engine vehicles in the UK, arguing that the government's proposed 2035 date is insufficient to tackle illegal air pollution and climate change. The response emphasizes that Zero Exhaust Emission Vehicles (ZEEVs) should be the only vehicles sold, excluding hybrids due to their failure to deliver promised environmental benefits. To achieve this, ClientEarth recommends a combination of supply-side mandates, CO2 performance standards, expanded charging infrastructure, and demand incentives such as VAT exemptions and a targeted diesel scrappage scheme. The document highlights the severe health impacts of NO2 and PM2.5 pollution, noting that road transport is a primary contributor to illegal pollution levels in UK cities.
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Document type: Statement
FICHA INFORMATIVA El COVID-19 resalta la necesidad de reforma electoral en Arizona
The document highlights the intersection of public health disparities and electoral access in Arizona, arguing that the COVID-19 pandemic underscores the need for voting reforms. It identifies systemic health inequities affecting Black, Latino, and Indigenous communities and links these to a lack of adequate political representation. To improve the 2020 election, the Union of Concerned Scientists recommends implementing automatic and same-day registration, expanding voting centers in rural and tribal lands, and improving the verification and tracking of mail-in ballots.
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Document type: Fact sheet
AMERICAS NEW CLIMATE ECONOMY: A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO THE ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF CLIMATE POLICY IN THE UNITED STATES
The document argues that the United States can decouple economic growth from carbon emissions, as evidenced by a 25 percent increase in real GDP and a 12 percent fall in energy-related CO2 emissions between 2005 and 2018. It highlights that clean energy is more labor-intensive than fossil fuels, with $1 million spent on renewables or energy efficiency generating 7–8 jobs compared to 2–3 for fossil fuels. The paper emphasizes the falling costs of solar, wind, and battery technologies, noting that new clean energy portfolios are often cheaper than operating existing coal plants. It also discusses the potential for revitalizing rural communities through renewable energy and the necessity of a fair transition for fossil fuel workers to ensure social equity.
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Document type: Research paper