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The report finds that while 92% of surveyed business leaders view reducing carbon emissions as an urgent priority, many struggle with the 'how' of decarbonization due to budget and technological constraints. Businesses increasingly view the voluntary carbon market (VCM) as a critical tool for immediate action, though concerns over greenwashing and market transparency persist. While science-based targets are widely supported, there is a significant demand for clearer, more realistic guidance to help organizations meet their 2030 and 2050 goals.

The Clean Air Task Force proposes several reforms to the 2023 Farm Bill to improve the quantification and procurement of carbon sequestration, facilitate rural clean energy transmission, and reduce livestock methane emissions. Key recommendations include streamlining the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) funding processes, establishing carbon cooperatives, and investing $350 million to $500 million in enteric methane research.

The report analyzes Russia's climate policy, specifically the 2021 Low Carbon Strategy and the Law on Limiting Greenhouse Gas Emissions. It argues that these frameworks are 'imitational,' serving as a facade to maintain the international image of leadership while shielding fossil-fuel elites from actual emission reductions. Key failures identified include scientifically unfounded reliance on forest carbon sinks, a history of 'ghosted' energy-efficiency targets, and a lack of transparent verification or additionality criteria for carbon projects. The authors conclude that the current 'dual state' system, where informal elite interests override formal legislation, makes genuine carbon neutrality unlikely without systemic political and economic change.

The 2023 Sustainable Agriculture Market Intelligence Report by GreenCape examines the transition to sustainable farming in South Africa, particularly in the Western Cape. It identifies key investment opportunities in renewable energy, regenerative agriculture, smart farming, and circular agriculture to mitigate climate risks such as water scarcity and rising temperatures. The report provides market sizing for specific technologies, discusses the impact of national policies like the Carbon Tax Act and the Agriculture and Agro-Processing Master Plan, and highlights the Western Cape's role as a greentech hub.

WRI Europe's 2023-2027 strategy focuses on transforming the food, land, water, energy, and city systems to achieve interconnected goals for people, nature, and climate. The strategy emphasizes Europe's role as a driver, consumer, and partner for change, specifically supporting the implementation of the EU Green Deal and managing the impacts of the energy transition, such as the demand for rare minerals. WRI Europe aims to act as an enabling office for focus countries with large emerging economies while addressing Europe's own environmental footprint through data-driven solutions and partnerships like the Systems Transformation Hub in Brussels.

The document highlights the critical role of grasslands in biodiversity and carbon sequestration, noting that over 70 percent of American prairies have been destroyed. It identifies federal crop insurance subsidies and the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) as primary drivers of habitat loss and proposes six policy interventions, including amending the RFS, strengthening the Sodsaver provision, and passing the North American Grasslands Conservation Act.

The report examines the significant environmental impacts of animal feed, which accounts for 41% of livestock's global greenhouse gas emissions and 98% of its freshwater use. It proposes four key solutions: Responsible Sourcing to end land conversion, Regenerative Agriculture to improve soil health and carbon sequestration, Circular Ingredients to utilize food waste and by-products, and Feeding Innovations to improve efficiency and reduce enteric methane. The document emphasizes that these solutions require a strong enabling environment, including better data transparency, supportive public policy, and strong market signals across the fragmented feed value chain.

The document argues that the 2023 Farm Bill should be used to make US agriculture net zero by 2040 and reverse species decline. It proposes expanding the Grassland Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), strengthening the Sodsaver provision to prevent native prairie conversion, and increasing funding for regenerative agriculture and technical assistance. It also recommends reducing food loss and waste, improving freshwater management, and ensuring bioenergy supports only advanced fuels with at least 50% life-cycle GHG reductions. Additionally, it emphasizes increasing equity for Tribal Nations and historically underserved producers.

The report examines the 'blue corridors' of the Eastern Pacific Ocean, from the Bering Strait to the Antarctic Peninsula, highlighting how these migratory routes are essential for whale survival and ocean health. It details cumulative threats including ship strikes, fisheries bycatch, ghost gear, underwater noise, and climate change. The document advocates for the implementation of connected networks of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) to meet the global 30x30 target, while proposing specific regional initiatives like the Eastern Tropical Pacific Marine Corridor (CMAR) and the Global Oceans Treaty (BBNJ) to protect whales in international waters.

WWF's 2023 Plowprint analysis reveals that 1.6 million acres of grasslands in the US and Canadian Great Plains were plowed in 2021, contributing to a total loss of 32 million acres since 2012. The report identifies crop insurance subsidies and biofuels policies as primary drivers of this conversion. To combat this, WWF recommends that the US Congress use the Farm Bill to strengthen the Sodsaver provision, expand the Grassland Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), and protect Inflation Reduction Act funding. Additionally, the report supports the North American Grasslands Conservation Act and amendments to the Renewable Fuel Standard to ensure biofuels do not incentivize the conversion of native sod.

The document identifies the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and crop insurance subsidies as primary drivers of grassland conversion in North America. It proposes specific reforms to these policies, alongside the expansion of Farm Bill conservation programs and the passage of the North American Grasslands Conservation Act, to mitigate biodiversity loss and enhance carbon sequestration.

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.

WWF urges the NRCS to use IRA funding to establish a National Agricultural Soil Carbon Plus Monitoring Network, prioritize the conservation of the Central Grasslands, and transition toward a 'regenerative agriculture' tier of technical assistance. The document emphasizes the need for better data infrastructure, the integration of Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) for Native Nations, and the reduction of on-farm food loss and waste to maximize climate and biodiversity outcomes.

The document argues that current agri-food transition finance is often unambitious and lacks alignment with science-based pathways, particularly regarding scope 3 emissions. It introduces five Transition Principles and five Hallmarks to ensure that corporate transition plans are rooted in action rather than pledges, exclude offsets, and align with a 1.5°C trajectory. The paper also reviews various existing frameworks, such as SBTi FLAG and the EU Platform on Sustainable Finance, to identify how they address broader goals like biodiversity, water use, and just transition.

The ZAMBEZI ADMIT project is a proposed USD 50 million initiative (requesting USD 30 million from the Green Climate Fund) to address high deforestation rates and climate vulnerability in Zambia's North-Western province. The project focuses on the 'forest-water-climate nexus,' targeting five districts: Mwinilunga, Ikelenge, Kapombo, Manyinga, and Kalumbila. It seeks to reduce GHG emissions by 10.4 million tCO2eq over 20 years by sustainably managing 100,000 ha of forests, restoring 10,000 ha, and establishing 2,000 ha of agroforestry. The project aims to benefit 225,000 people by diversifying livelihoods away from unsustainable charcoal production and rain-fed agriculture. Key components include the establishment of Community Forest Management Groups (CFMGs), the development of non-wood forest product value chains, and the mobilization of diverse finance sources, including payments for environmental services (PES) from ZESCO and the development of a jurisdictional REDD+ program.

The report analyzes the 'Nature Positive' concept, which aims to stop and reverse biodiversity loss. It argues that the term is vaguely defined and relies on 'net gain' accounting, which allows for the continued destruction of ecosystems if compensated elsewhere. The authors contend that such offsetting is often technically impossible, particularly in forest and marine ecosystems, and frequently leads to human rights violations against Indigenous Peoples and local communities. The document further asserts that the concept is pushed by the private sector to avoid strong regulations and to create new business opportunities, while failing to integrate the rights and knowledge of those who protect 80% of existing biodiversity.

The document defines Nature-based Solutions (NbS) as actions to protect, manage, and restore ecosystems to address societal challenges while providing biodiversity and human well-being benefits. It identifies a lack of specific NbS frameworks in South Asia but notes that existing national laws and policies in India, Bangladesh, and Nepal provide a foundation for their mainstreaming. The report categorizes NbS into five IUCN-based approaches: ecosystem restoration, issue-specific ecosystem-related, infrastructure-related, ecosystem-based management, and ecosystem-protection. It details 15 urban case studies, including the Yamuna Biodiversity Park in New Delhi, the restoration of riverine areas in Rohingya camps in Cox's Bazar, and the Green Lumbini Initiative in Nepal, highlighting the role of multidisciplinary partnerships and community engagement in achieving ecological and socio-economic resilience.

The document critiques the 'net zero' framework and the expansion of carbon markets under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, labeling them as 'false solutions' used by the fossil fuel industry to avoid drastic emission cuts. It specifically warns that 'nature-based solutions' (NBS) lead to land grabbing and that geo-engineering technologies are unproven and risky. The briefing outlines the outcomes of COP26 and the expected agenda for COP27, advocating instead for a coordinated phase-out of fossil fuels, support for agroecology, and the recognition of indigenous land sovereignty.

The report examines the global cocoa market, highlighting the tension between growing demand and climate-related supply risks. It analyzes how VSSs like Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance attempt to improve sustainability and farmer incomes, while noting that power imbalances and low farm-gate prices continue to drive poverty among the 5 to 6 million cocoa farmers worldwide.

The Amazon biome is facing a critical situation due to deforestation, degradation, and climate change, which threaten its role in global climate regulation and its immense biodiversity. Key drivers include cattle ranching, mechanized agriculture, illegal logging, and unsustainable infrastructure projects like dams. The report emphasizes the vital role of indigenous territories and protected areas in maintaining resilience and proposes an integrated landscape management approach, the protection of free-flowing rivers, and the transition to a sustainable bioeconomy to avoid an ecological tipping point.