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The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) have provided unprecedented funding for both technological and natural carbon dioxide removal (CDR) in the U.S. The BIL focuses on infrastructure, including $3.5 billion for four regional Direct Air Capture (DAC) Hubs and billions for CO2 transport and storage. The IRA enhances these efforts through an expanded 45Q tax credit, offering up to $180/tCO2 for geologically sequestered DAC, and allocates billions for climate-smart agriculture and forestry, such as $8.45 billion for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). Together, these laws support the full lifecycle of carbon capture and ecosystem restoration to help the U.S. reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

The report finds that most EU Member States cannot reach climate neutrality through natural sinks alone, with only Spain, Finland, and Sweden projected to have sinks of the necessary magnitude by 2050. While forestry is the primary focus of natural removals, there is a significant lack of attention to sink stability and other land-use categories. Technological solutions are discussed, with a clear preference for Carbon Capture and Storage/Utilization (CCS/CCU) over Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) and Direct Air Capture (DAC), though distinctions between these technologies are often blurred in national strategies.

The assessment finds that while Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania all commit to climate neutrality by 2050, their strategies are largely aspirational and lack the rigorous sectoral modelling, investment analysis, and socioeconomic impact assessments required by EU regulations. Lithuania's strategy is the most recent and detailed regarding targets, while Latvia's is the most legible. Estonia's original LTS is outdated and brief, though supplemented by the broader 'Eesti 2035' plan. Common regional weaknesses include a lack of integrated financial planning and insufficient detail on a 'just transition,' particularly for Estonia's oil-shale region. The report recommends structural harmonisation, comprehensive sectoral modelling, and increased regional collaboration to enhance energy security and achieve decarbonisation goals.

The report advocates for the creation of the Seal River Watershed Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) in northern Manitoba, highlighting its role in biodiversity, carbon storage, and the preservation of Indigenous cultures. It asserts that Canada and Manitoba cannot meet conservation targets without Indigenous involvement and recommends that the Manitoba government implement interim protections and a feasibility study for the IPA.

Environmental organizations oppose the CP2 LNG Terminal in Louisiana, arguing that the application is incomplete and fails to account for severe impacts on wetlands, chenier plains, and local communities. They contend that the project would destroy critical storm protections, exacerbate climate change through greenhouse gas emissions, and pose significant risks of accidents and explosions. The commenters request that the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources deny the permit due to inadequate alternatives analysis and a failure to meet public trust duties under the state constitution.

The document highlights the necessity of CCS for the Netherlands to meet its goal of reducing CO2 emissions by 55% by 2030 and 95% by 2050. It focuses on the Porthos project, which will transport and store CO2 from the Port of Rotterdam in empty North Sea gas fields, potentially reducing 2.5 Mt of CO2 per year. Porthos is presented as a first-mover project that can unlock further emissions reductions in the Netherlands and Europe.

The report evaluates transition planning among ASEAN companies in sectors like cement, steel, and chemicals against the Climate Bonds Initiative's 'Five Hallmarks' of a credibly transitioning company. It finds that while net-zero commitments are increasing, most plans are fragmented and lack the robust, costed, and science-based pathways necessary for a 1.5°C alignment. The document provides specific analysis of companies such as Siam Cement Group and PTT, and offers guidance on improving the credibility of sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs) by ensuring they include material emission scopes and absolute targets.

The report argues that while the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) significantly advances U.S. climate goals, it is insufficient on its own to meet the 2030 NDC. Using the Energy Policy Simulator (EPS), the authors propose a comprehensive set of additional federal, state, and local policies across the electricity, industry, transportation, and building sectors. The electricity sector is identified as the primary driver for 2030 reductions due to its ability to decarbonize faster than sectors limited by slow stock turnover. Proposed measures include a nationwide 80 percent clean electricity standard, stricter tailpipe emissions standards, and the electrification of industrial and building heating. The report estimates that this combined policy pathway would create 2.7 million additional jobs, grow GDP by $700 billion, and avoid 3,900 premature deaths by 2030.

Friends of the Earth International calls for a Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) based on environmental integrity, human rights, and binding government regulation of business. The organization rejects 'false solutions' such as offsetting, 'Nature Positive' concepts, and corporate self-regulation, arguing that these facilitate continued biodiversity loss. Key demands include the recognition of Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IPLCs) as primary guardians of biodiversity, a transition from industrial agriculture to agroecology, and the provision of new, additional public financial resources for developing countries based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities.

Friends of the Earth International calls for a Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) that prioritizes absolute biodiversity loss reversal, the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities, and strict government regulation of corporations. The organization rejects 'false solutions' such as biodiversity offsets, nature-based solutions used for carbon capture, and corporate self-regulation, while advocating for a transition to agroecology and the provision of new, additional public financial resources for developing countries.

The report outlines the activities of the St. Louis Controlled Environment Agriculture (STLCEA) Coalition, which selected AeroFarms to develop a large-scale commercial vertical farm and community-based farms in the St. Louis region. It evaluates various energy strategies to reduce the high carbon footprint of indoor farming, including the use of stranded assets like river cooling, underwater turbines, and waste-to-energy systems. Additionally, the document describes the establishment of a Center of Excellence (CoE) led by The Yield Lab Institute to foster knowledge sharing and technological innovation in the fragmented CEA industry while addressing food insecurity and racial inequality in north St. Louis.

The report evaluates a 2,868-hectare assisted natural regeneration (ANR) project in Sodo Woreda, Ethiopia, finding that it provides direct economic benefits to farmers and delivers climate adaptation and mitigation services. The analysis demonstrates that ANR is an investment-worthy strategy for combating land degradation and enhancing rural resilience, particularly when located upland of cropland to reduce erosion.

The document argues that the DOE's proposed 4 kgCO2e/kgH2 standard is too weak and should be lowered to 1 kgCO2e/kgH2 to prioritize truly zero-emission hydrogen. It criticizes the GREET model for underestimating methane leakage and grid emissions, warns against the safety and environmental risks of carbon capture and storage (CCS), and demands that the hydrogen hub program incorporate strict environmental justice protections and community engagement.

The document contends that the current energy crisis is a "natural gas market crisis" caused by fossil fuel price volatility, specifically citing the Russian invasion of Ukraine and post-pandemic recovery. It argues that natural gas is incompatible with the 1.5°C and 2°C Paris Agreement targets, noting that global gas emissions rose 23% between 2010 and 2019. The briefing highlights that solar and onshore wind are now cheaper than gas for two-thirds of the global population and that new gas projects face significant stranded asset risks, such as a USD 13 billion risk in the UK by 2050. It dismisses Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) as an effective solution, noting that only 27 of over 260 projects undertaken between 1995 and 2018 were completed. Finally, it argues that for Africa, renewables are the fastest and cheapest way to expand energy access, as gas costs are projected to be double those of solar and wind by 2030.

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has the potential to become a global leader in zero-carbon fuels, particularly hydrogen, by utilizing its geographic position and natural resources. While countries like Saudi Arabia, Oman, and the UAE have announced projects using wind, solar, and natural gas with carbon capture, the region requires international cooperation and demand signals to scale infrastructure. Success depends on transitioning from one-off projects to a systematic approach that addresses high costs and infrastructure gaps, supported by partnerships between MENA countries and buyers in Asia and the EU.

The document argues that biogas and biomethane should primarily be reserved for hard-to-abate sectors like petrochemical production and industrial heating, as electrification via renewable energy is more cost-effective for power and heat. It highlights that biogas only addresses a minority of agricultural emissions (at most 28.9%) and warns that scaling production to meet targets, such as the EU's 35 bcm goal by 2030, could threaten food security by requiring significant arable land. Additionally, the briefing notes risks from fugitive methane emissions, high reliance on public subsidies, and safety hazards including explosions and toxicity.

The LAC campaign urges South Africa to advocate for climate reparations and a non-fossil fuel development vision for Africa at COP27, while domestically accelerating the transition to renewable energy and phasing out coal by 2040.

The Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) reports that between September 2020 and August 2022, five major oil companies—BP, ExxonMobil, Shell, Aramco, and Chevron—spent $23.7 million on US Google Search ads, with $10.9 million dedicated to greenwashing. The report highlights a discrepancy between these companies' public sustainability claims and their internal documents, while also noting that Google continued to accept $421,000 from the Competitive Enterprise Institute for climate denial ads despite promising to stop doing so.

The author argues that current climate efforts are in a 'catastrophic equilibrium' where unabated fossil fuel growth outpaces clean energy investment. To address this, the document advocates for three principles: recognizing the immense scale of the challenge by investing in all plausible zero-carbon technologies (including nuclear and carbon capture), moving beyond 'black box' economic models that ignore real-world constraints like land use and geopolitics, and embracing a diversified portfolio of strategies to hedge against uncertainty and risk.

The global steel sector, responsible for approximately 7% of worldwide energy-related CO2 emissions, faces a critical transition period as 71% of coal-based blast furnace capacity will require reinvestment by 2030. The report highlights the disparity between current production methods—specifically the high emissions of Blast Furnace-Basic Oxygen Furnace (BF-BOF) versus Electric Arc Furnace (EAF)—and the massive investment required for enabling infrastructure, such as green hydrogen and CO2 pipelines. It advocates for a combination of upstream, midstream, and downstream policies, including Carbon Contracts for Difference (CCfDs) and Green Public Procurement (GPP), to avoid stranded assets and align the industry with a 1.5°C-compatible trajectory. Additionally, the Climate Bonds Initiative introduces sector-specific criteria to guide the certification of climate-aligned steel assets and companies.