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Mighty Earth and the Coronavirus – A Letter from CEO Glenn Hurowitz
CEO Glenn Hurowitz asserts that destructive practices like forest clearing by agribusiness and the illegal wildlife trade increase human contact with wild animals, fueling pandemics. He advocates for increased conservation funding and the removal of deforestation links in food supply chains. Additionally, he criticizes the US Senate stimulus package for providing approximately $50 billion in airline bailouts without requiring carbon neutrality, arguing that crisis funding should not subsidize polluters or lock in destructive business models.
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Document type: Statement
Last year the U.S. Intelligence Community warned of a coronavirus pandemic. Will we heed their climate warnings?
The authors use the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment's accurate prediction of a pandemic to urge policymakers to act on similar warnings regarding climate change. They highlight how environmental degradation and climate hazards threaten global infrastructure, food and water security, and geopolitical stability, particularly in coastal areas and the Arctic.
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Document type: Statement
La politique commerciale européenne à l'heure du Green Deal
The author contends that the EU's current trade policy is characterized by an 'inertia' that prioritizes unconditional liberalization over environmental and social goals. While the EU aims for carbon neutrality via the Green Deal, its trade framework continues to promote 'new generation' bilateral agreements that limit state sovereignty through investor-state dispute settlements and 'living agreements' that bypass democratic control. The text argues that the EU remains a net importer of carbon, with one-third of its footprint stemming from imports, and calls for a shift toward trade regulation that conditions market access on the achievement of environmental and social objectives.
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Document type: Statement
Comments on Changes to Proposed Advanced Clean Truck Regulation
A coalition led by Earthjustice urges the California Air Resources Board to increase zero-emission (ZE) truck sales targets, arguing that initial proposals are insufficient to meet the state's 2045 carbon neutrality goals. Citing analysis from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the authors claim that without stronger mandates, carbon emissions from trucking would only drop by 18% by 2045. The letter proposes specific higher sales percentages for Class 7-8 tractors to meet drayage fleet goals by 2035 and calls for a 'work backwards' approach from 2040 fleet goals to eliminate internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle sales for urban delivery by 2033. The coalition asserts that technological advancements, falling battery costs, and corporate commitments from entities like Amazon and UPS make these higher targets feasible, shifting the primary barriers from technical or economic to logistical planning.
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Document type: Statement
Sortir de la dpendance aux fossiles
The document calls for an immediate end to financial support for fossil fuel expansion to meet the 1.5°C climate goal. It criticizes financial institutions for insufficient exclusion policies and highlights the danger of non-conventional hydrocarbons and the continued expansion plans of oil and gas majors.
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Document type: Statement
Financing Climate Mitigation and Resilience: Lessons from Hawaii
The document details Hawaii's approach to climate resilience through the Hawaii Green Infrastructure Authority (HGIA), highlighting its use of non-traditional underwriting to democratize clean energy for low-income residents and renters. It discusses specific projects, such as the Kahauiki Village microgrid and the Kahuku Point coastal restoration, as models for combining mitigation and adaptation. The briefing also argues for the National Climate Bank Act to scale these models federally, noting that while mitigation is easier to finance due to cash flows, adaptation requires more innovative financial structures to address unpriced positive externalities.
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Document type: Briefing
Civil Society Organisations’ recommendations for the new EU Industrial Strategy - Making the new European industrial strategy an enabler of a just transition to a carbon neutral, circular and zero-pollution economy
A coalition of European civil society organisations urges the EU to align its Industrial Strategy with the 1.5°C Paris Agreement target, advocating for climate neutrality by 2040 and a 65% emissions reduction by 2030. The recommendations emphasize a transition to a circular economy, the phase-out of fossil fuel subsidies, and the prioritisation of renewable electrification over hydrogen and CCS. The authors call for a 'just transition' that protects vulnerable communities and workers through retraining and the exclusion of fossil fuel investments from the Just Transition Mechanism.
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Document type: Statement
EU carbon market state aid rules: moving in the right direction but not far enough
Carbon Market Watch argues that while the proposed EU state aid guidelines for indirect cost compensation under the EU ETS show improvement by reducing eligible sectors and requiring energy efficiency investments, they remain insufficient. The author contends that there is no evidence of carbon leakage to justify these subsidies, which cost nearly 1.2 billion Euros between 2017 and 2018, and argues that EU ETS auctioning revenues should be used entirely for carbon neutrality rather than being returned to industry.
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Document type: Statement
Water and energy in California: planning for a sustainable future under political and climatic change
The report examines the deep links between California's water and energy sectors, noting that water services account for approximately 20% of electricity and 30% of natural gas consumption, while hydropower provides an average of 15% of electricity. Using WEAP and LEAP modeling, the study finds that water conservation and potable reuse can reduce energy demands and costs, whereas desalination increases them. To achieve carbon neutrality by 2045, the report emphasizes the necessity of massive growth in solar, wind, and energy storage, alongside the continued role of low-cost hydropower. It also warns that federal policy interference could increase electricity production costs by $23 billion and raise CO2 emissions by 16% compared to the state's policy baseline.
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Document type: Report
Une transition fracturée : CHANGEMENTS CLIMATIQUES, SANTÉ ET FRACTURATION HYDRAULIQUE
The report examines the risks associated with unconventional oil and gas extraction (PGNC), specifically hydraulic fracturing. It details significant health concerns, including adverse birth outcomes, asthma exacerbation, and potential links to childhood leukemia. Environmental risks identified include water contamination, air pollution (specifically benzene and ozone precursors), and induced seismicity. The document highlights the disproportionate impact on Indigenous populations and argues that methane leaks undermine the role of natural gas as a transition fuel, calling for a moratorium on new projects and a strategic phase-out to meet Paris Agreement goals.
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Document type: Report
10 -YEAR STRATEGY 2020 – 2030
The Green Economy Coalition (GEC) has established a 10-year action plan (2020–2030) to drive structural economic reform globally. The strategy identifies five systemic flaws in current economic models—including outdated metrics like GDP and short-termism in finance—and proposes five key interventions: reforming governance, financial systems, economic sectors, inequality, and the valuation of nature. To achieve these, GEC will pursue four pathways: telling new narratives, building critical mass through citizen dialogue, influencing policy via tools like the Green Economy Tracker, and transitioning to a decentralized 'network of networks' structure. The goal is to ensure that by 2030, inclusive green economy principles are central to decisions made by policymakers, business leaders, and citizens.
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Document type: Report
A WORLD ALIVE GREEN POLITICS IN EUROPE AND BEYOND
The document examines the evolution of political ecology, arguing for a shift from growth-based economic models to a 'social-ecological state' that prioritizes wellbeing and justice. It analyzes the electoral successes and challenges of Green parties across Europe—specifically in Germany, Finland, Sweden, Belgium, Ireland, Spain, and Poland—and discusses the 'Green New Deal' in the USA. Key themes include the intersection of climate action with feminism, labor rights, and geopolitics, while critiquing the 'green growth' and 'decoupling' narratives of the European Green Deal.
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Document type: Report
SPOTLIGHT on Sustainable Development 2020
The report argues that the COVID-19 pandemic acted as an 'X-ray,' exposing deep structural inequalities and the failure of neoliberal policies. It critiques the global fiscal response, noting that while US$ 11 trillion was mobilized, the support was unevenly distributed, favoring high-income countries and corporate interests over the global South and public services. The document proposes an "8 R" agenda for systemic change: re-valuing care, re-empowering public services, re-balancing value chains, reinforcing climate justice, re-distributing economic power, re-regulating global finance, re-inventing multilateral solidarity, and re-defining progress beyond GDP. It specifically highlights the dangers of IMF-mandated austerity in countries like Ecuador and the failure of the Global Health Security Index to predict pandemic outcomes due to its reliance on infrastructure over social determinants of health.
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Document type: Report
État de la gouvernance environnementale mondiale 2020
The report analyzes the shift of global environmental governance to virtual formats during the 2020 pandemic, noting that while operational decisions (like budgets) were achieved via the 'silence procedure', substantive negotiations on climate and biodiversity were largely delayed. It highlights that pandemic-related emission drops were temporary and structural, and warns that the crisis exacerbated social inequalities and hindered scientific reporting, such as the IPCC's sixth assessment report. The document concludes by advocating for a 'green and inclusive recovery' and a stronger link between biodiversity protection and pandemic prevention.
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Document type: Report
G20 Scorecard of Fossil Fuel Funding
China provides the largest amount of fossil fuel support among G20 countries, averaging USD 134.2 billion annually from 2017 to 2019. While ranked highly for transparency and commitments, China has seen a 35% increase in overall fossil fuel support relative to 2014–2016 averages, driven largely by state-owned enterprise (SOE) investments in oil and gas production.
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Document type: Fact sheet
G20 Scorecard of Fossil Fuel Funding
The Republic of Korea is the fourth-highest provider of public finance for fossil fuels among G20 countries, with an average annual government support of $12.4 billion between 2017 and 2019. While the government has committed to no new public finance for domestic coal projects and aims for carbon neutrality by 2050 under a Green New Deal platform, it has increased public finance for fossil fuels by 9% relative to 2014–2016 levels and provided $2.49 billion in emergency bailout loans to coal plant manufacturer Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Document type: Fact sheet
State of Global Environmental Governance 2020
The 2020 State of Global Environmental Governance report details the shift of international environmental negotiations to virtual platforms due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It analyzes the adoption of the 'silence procedure' for decision-making, the delays in scientific advice from bodies like the IPCC, and the temporary nature of pandemic-related emission dips. The document argues that the pandemic highlighted the interconnectedness of human health, biodiversity loss, and climate change, while warning that structural inequalities and nationalist responses to the pandemic could hinder the global cooperation necessary for a green and inclusive recovery.
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Document type: Report
ENERGIZING FINANCE: UNDERSTANDING THE LANDSCAPE
The 2020 report by Sustainable Energy for All reveals a widening gap between the investment needed and the finance actually committed to achieve universal energy access by 2030. In 2018, only USD 16 billion was tracked for residential electrification against a required USD 41 billion, and clean cooking finance reached USD 131 million, far below the estimated USD 4.53 billion annual need. The report highlights a geographic mismatch, where Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for 70% of people in HICs without electricity but received less than 20% of the total electricity access finance. Furthermore, the report notes a concerning trend toward fossil fuel-generated electricity and a lack of private sector investment in clean cooking. It recommends coordinated action from donor governments and DFIs in Sub-Saharan Africa, the termination of fossil fuel project financing, and the adoption of innovative business models for off-grid solutions.
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Document type: Report
Environmental and Social Management Plan for Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary
The Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP) for the Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary (BWS) outlines the safeguards and mitigation strategies for four key activities planned for 2020: Ramsar campsite development, bank protection for Dungtsho lake, boundary zonation, and the construction of a guard post. The plan ensures compliance with both Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB) laws and WWF's Social Safeguards Integrated Policies and Procedures (SIPP), with the latter prevailing in cases of discrepancy regarding land use rights and community consultation. The ESMP identifies potential minor short-term impacts, primarily related to construction waste and worker health and safety, and assigns responsibility for monitoring and mitigation to the BFL focal person and contracted engineers.
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Document type: Report
Bhutan for Life Environmental and Social Management Plan for Jigme Khesar Strict Nature Reserve
The document outlines a site-specific management plan for the Jigme Khesar Strict Nature Reserve (JKSNR) in Bhutan. It identifies four primary activity areas for 2020: the construction of eco-tourism structures along the Haa-Nubtsonapata trail, the improvement of five waterholes, the construction of a reserve head office and access road at Bjee, and the construction of a range office and staff quarters at Sombeykha. The plan assesses potential risks—such as noise disturbance, dust pollution, waste generation, and soil erosion—and prescribes specific mitigation measures, including the use of earplugs for workers, water-spraying on dry days, and a 'garbage-in and garbage-out' policy. It establishes a monitoring framework involving weekly field visits and quarterly reports to ensure compliance with both Royal Government of Bhutan laws and WWF's Social Safeguards Integrated Policies and Procedures.
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Document type: Report