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The report finds that the implementation of the DETER satellite system, which allows for rapid identification of deforestation hotspots, was the primary driver of deforestation deceleration in the Brazilian Amazon during the 2000s. By enabling Ibama to focus law enforcement and monitoring more precisely, these command-and-control policies prevented the loss of approximately 59,500 km² of forest between 2007 and 2011. The analysis indicates that these conservation efforts did not negatively impact local agricultural production and provided significant monetary gains when considering the value of carbon retention.

The report finds that the implementation of the satellite-based DETER system was the primary driver of the deforestation slowdown in the Brazilian Amazon during the 2000s. By enabling the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama) to target law enforcement more effectively, these policies prevented the clearing of over 59,500 km² of forest from 2007 to 2011. The analysis indicates that these conservation efforts did not adversely affect agricultural production and provided significant net monetary gains when compared to the costs of monitoring and enforcement.

The policy brief analyzes four regulatory scenarios for Canada's oil and gas sector, pairing emission-intensity improvements (20% to 40%) with price ceilings ($20 to $60). It argues that a 40% intensity standard with a two-tiered price ceiling ($30 and $60) provides an optimal balance by delivering 42 megatonnes of compliance in 2020 at an average cost of $28 per tonne. The author notes that while higher intensity targets increase costs, the average cost per barrel remains low (under $1), suggesting that such regulations would not significantly deter industry investment, as project hurdle rates already account for a $40 marginal cost.

The report finds that while South African institutional investors increasingly recognize the relevance of ESG factors, integration remains slow and inconsistent. Many investors rely on narrow proxies for climate risk, such as carbon taxes, while largely ignoring physical risks and water scarcity. The study highlights a systemic lack of demand from asset owners and a prevalence of short-termism in performance evaluation, which hinders the transition to a low-carbon economy. Despite these barriers, a majority of respondents acknowledge that portfolios are heavily exposed to climate-vulnerable sectors, particularly through state-owned enterprises like Eskom and Transnet, leading to the conclusion that many assets may be mispriced.

The report examines how carbon pricing mechanisms—such as carbon taxes and emissions trading systems—affect the competitiveness of the mining and metals sector. It focuses on aluminium, copper, iron ore, and coal across the EU, South Africa, Australia, Canada, and the US. The analysis highlights that electricity-intensive processes, like aluminium smelting, are most vulnerable to indirect costs passed through from power grids. The report advocates for a principles-based approach to policy design to prevent carbon leakage and maintain international competitiveness, recommending a transition toward a harmonized global emissions system.

The document argues that Ontario should implement a unified carbon-pricing scheme, specifically a cap-and-trade system, to preempt federal sector-by-sector regulations and ensure cost-effective mitigation. Using economic modelling, the authors suggest that full compliance flexibility—including offsets and potential linking with the Western Climate Initiative (WCI)—could reduce compliance costs to below $15 per tonne by 2020. The brief cautions against overcompensating firms through free permit allocations, particularly in the electricity sector, to avoid windfall profits, and suggests a 25,000 tonne coverage threshold to align with California and Quebec systems.

The document argues that current development paths for carbon capture and storage (CCS) are insufficient to meet commercial availability goals by the end of the decade or contribute significantly to CO2 emission reductions. It identifies four specific areas requiring a tenfold increase to achieve viability: the size of plants, the number of large-scale demonstration plants under construction, annual funding over the next 40 years, and the price of carbon dioxide emissions. The author concludes that CCS development depends on policy-makers simultaneously favoring coal-based power and implementing stringent climate policy.

The CDKN East Africa Climate Finance Workshop identified a gap between pledged and required climate finance and highlighted the need for supportive policy environments and institutional architecture to improve readiness. Participants noted a preference for grants over loans, particularly for adaptation, and emphasized the importance of inter-ministerial coordination and private sector engagement to catalyze financial flows toward low-emission and climate-resilient options.

The report assesses how carbon pricing affects the competitiveness and investment strategies of energy-intensive industries (EIIs). It finds that while carbon costs are a factor, they are often secondary to energy and raw material prices. The analysis highlights the risk of carbon leakage, where production shifts to regions with lower emissions costs, particularly as demand grows in Asia. The report emphasizes that current short-term policy horizons, such as the EU's 2020 targets, are insufficient for the 20- to 40-year investment cycles typical of these sectors, suggesting a need for longer-term regulatory certainty and support for breakthrough technologies like Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS).

The report analyzes the design and operational experiences of various emissions trading systems, including the EU ETS, RGGI, WCI, NZ ETS, TMG ETS, and the Australian CPM. It highlights key design trade-offs regarding coverage, allowance distribution, and price management, while emphasizing that the EU ETS experience demonstrates that over-allocation does not necessarily preclude abatement. The document also provides a toolkit for policymakers to assess the environmental and economic effectiveness of such systems.

The World Resources Institute (WRI) responds to President Obama's State of the Union address by identifying key policy levers to meet U.S. emissions targets. WRI argues that while executive action is necessary, market-based legislation to price carbon would maximize economic benefits. To reach the 2020 target, WRI recommends enacting standards for existing power plants, reducing hydrofluorocarbons, addressing methane leaks from natural gas systems, and improving energy efficiency.

The report finds that while global economic impacts of market-based measures (MBMs) for international aviation and shipping are small, effects vary significantly by country. Small, remote island states dependent on air tourism, such as Samoa, face the highest GDP risks, while large economies like China and India experience minimal impacts. The study concludes that MBM revenues and increased demand for Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) offsets can be used to mitigate these undesired economic effects.

The authors argue that conventional cost-benefit analysis (CBA) fails to account for the value of flexibility and the irreversibility of climatic events. By applying real option analysis to the DICER model, they incorporate the 'cost of lost flexibility' as a penalty function. Their results indicate that accounting for risk leads to a more aggressive mitigation pathway, reducing the optimal end-of-century temperature increase from approximately 2.5°C in deterministic scenarios to about 2.25°C.

The paper evaluates the Spanish "Renove" plan, which provides rebates for A+ labelled energy-efficient appliances. Using a model of close substitutes, the authors find that a standalone 80€ subsidy for dishwashers in the Basque Autonomous Community increases total market demand by 1.5%, leading to a "rebound effect" that increases the total energy bill by 197,399€ and costs the government over 1 M€. In contrast, a 40€ tax on non-efficient appliances reduces total appliance demand by 1.6%, generates approximately 0.8 M€ in revenue, and saves nearly 300,000€ in energy costs. The authors argue that combining taxes and subsidies can optimize outcomes; for example, a 40€ subsidy paired with a 20€ tax avoids a deficit, prevents the rebound effect, and reduces deadweight loss compared to single-instrument policies.

The document argues that while public and private funding for climate-resilient development is increasing, it remains insufficient to limit global temperature rise to below 2 degrees Celsius. It highlights the need for a more equitable international climate finance architecture, specifically calling for the inclusion of least developed countries and small island developing states in the design of the Green Climate Fund (GCF). The brief emphasizes that climate change should be treated as an economic concern managed by national ministries of finance and planning, and that public finance must be used strategically to unlock the private sector, which is expected to provide over 85% of the necessary funding.

The report analyzes a diverse array of cap-and-trade systems, from the established EU ETS to emerging pilots in China and South Korea. It argues that the success of these markets depends heavily on long-term political commitment, robust data collection, and centralized decision-making to avoid over-allocation. The authors highlight a shift in the center of carbon market activity toward Asia-Pacific economies, which are experimenting with novel scopes including buildings and indirect emissions.

The report argues that transitioning to a green economy can serve as an insurance policy for Sweden against future global shocks. Using a scenario-based 'wind-tunnel' approach, it tests the robustness of various policy options across four plausible global futures: Glocal Citizenship, Global Governance, Return of Geopolitics, and Big Business. The authors conclude that while Sweden possesses strong preconditions—such as renewable resources and high social capital—it must proactively integrate environmental considerations into the heart of economic decision-making, specifically through the Ministry of Finance, to ensure long-term stability and competitiveness.

The report argues that current carbon pricing, such as the EU ETS, is insufficient to alter global emission trends in the steel sector because costs are lower than production cost differences between regions. It highlights a lack of immediately deployable breakthrough technologies and suggests that a 'coalition of the willing' among steel-producing countries is necessary to scale up RDD&D and address competitiveness and leakage concerns.

The study finds that potential BCAs by the US and EU would capture only a small fraction of China's total exported emissions, though certain energy-intensive sectors like iron and steel would face significant charges. The impact varies greatly depending on whether charges are based on direct or embodied emissions, with embodied emissions resulting in significantly higher costs. Overall, the authors conclude that such measures would have limited impact on incentivizing total carbon reductions as exporters might divert production to other regions.

Following the 2012 re-election of President Barack Obama, Friends of the Earth calls for a shift away from 'all of the above' energy strategies toward a national plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The organization advocates for the rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline, the implementation of carbon pricing, and the prevention of new coal plant construction to mitigate the impacts of climate change and extreme weather events like Superstorm Sandy.