Search Climate Insights Directory

The document critiques neoliberalism for causing ecological destruction and deep inequalities, proposing a shift toward an economy that prioritizes people and the planet. It outlines five strategic pillars for transformation: ensuring universal public services through tax justice, expanding cooperatives and the social and solidarity economy, supporting local agroecological markets and fair trade, replacing GDP with wellbeing indicators (such as 'Buen vivir' or 'doughnut economics'), and establishing a binding UN treaty to hold multinational corporations accountable for human rights and environmental abuses.

The document outlines the 'Renewables Done Right' framework, which seeks to prevent renewable energy projects from replicating the harms of fossil fuel systems, such as land grabbing and human rights violations. It emphasizes energy sovereignty, sufficiency, and circular economies, using examples from India, Palestine, and Scotland to illustrate the need for community participation, infrastructure investment, and the avoidance of overconsumption.

Persistent Energy Capital provides equity and venture-building support to small, under-resourced green companies in Sub-Saharan Africa, starting with investments as low as $50,000. To date, the fund has invested $23 million across 23 companies in 22 countries, contributing to the elimination of 1.4 million tons of CO2 and the creation of over 21,700 jobs. With support from FSD Africa Investments (FSDAi), Persistent is currently raising a US$100 million Africa Climate Venture Builder Fund to expand its reach into sectors such as agritech, circular economy, waste management, and water and sanitation.

The study identifies a significant gap between the high demand for green financing driven by Morocco's Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) and the limited supply of dedicated instruments for SMEs. While sectors like industry and agriculture are well-served by credit lines, others such as transport, water, and construction remain underserved. The report recommends enhancing the regulatory framework, implementing a green taxonomy, and developing new instruments such as a dedicated green guarantee mechanism or an equity fund to support the transition to a green economy.

The Waste Management Flagship Programme seeks to expand a pilot project from 6 to 30 South African municipalities, diverting organic waste from landfills to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. The programme proposes five treatment technologies, including anaerobic digestion and composting, to be operated by private entities via service contracts. With a total cost of USD 72 million, the project requests a USD 50.67 million grant from the Green Climate Fund, arguing that grant financing is essential because waste treatment is not financially self-sustaining and would be unaffordable for secondary municipalities if funded via loans. Expected climate impacts include an annual reduction of 572,800 t CO2 eq. Beyond mitigation, the programme aims to create 938 jobs during construction and 404 annual operational jobs, while improving public health and food security through compost production and better waste collection in underserved areas.

The guidelines establish that 'secondary cities' eligible for the SAP must have a population between 1 and 3 million. The GCF prioritizes integrated, cross-sectoral projects focusing on decarbonization of energy, building energy efficiency, mobility, urban form, climate adaptation, circular economy, waste management, and water/sanitation. To achieve a 'paradigm shift,' projects must move away from carbon-intensive urbanization through technological and institutional leapfrogging. The document specifies that construction of new housing, roads, or bus rapid transport systems are 'NON SAP-ABLE' due to environmental and social safeguard (ESS) standards. Impact measurement must be quantitative and aligned with the GCF's integrated results management framework, utilizing sex-disaggregated indicators where possible.

The document outlines the criteria and technical guidelines for cities to access the Green Climate Fund's Simplified Approval Process (SAP). It defines eligible 'secondary cities' as those with populations between 1 and 3 million, emphasizing the need for integrated, cross-sectoral approaches to decarbonization and resilience. The guide details eligible sectors—including energy, building efficiency, mobility, urban planning, adaptation, circular economy, waste management, and water/sanitation—while explicitly excluding new construction projects for housing, roads, or rapid transit systems. It provides a framework for measuring impact using quantitative indicators and offers three project scenarios: LED street lighting, district cooling networks, and integrated waste management.

The document outlines the technical requirements and eligible sectors for urban projects seeking funding through the Green Climate Fund's Simplified Approval Process (SAP). It defines eligible 'secondary cities' as those with populations between 1 and 3 million inhabitants and identifies key sectors for intervention, including energy decarbonization, building efficiency, mobility, and waste management. The guide emphasizes a multisectoral, integrated approach to achieve a 'paradigm shift' away from carbon-intensive urbanization, providing specific indicators for measuring impact and examples of activities that do and do not qualify for the SAP.

The Global Research and Action Network for a New Eco-Social Contract (GRAN-ESC) proposes a bottom-up, negotiated framework to address the 'polycrisis' by aligning social contracts with environmental sustainability. The briefing provides specific recommendations for the UN's Pact for the Future, emphasizing gender justice, international financial architecture reform, youth empowerment, and the inclusion of persons with disabilities to ensure a just transition toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The document outlines the necessity of reforming financial systems to meet climate targets and support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It advocates for a shift away from short-termism and 'brown' investments toward a system that serves society's long-term needs. Key proposals include the use of 'blended' finance to de-risk investments, decentralized financing to reach local organizations, and the implementation of a 'brown penalising factor' to discourage unsustainable lending. The brief also highlights the role of the 2019 PAGE Ministerial and initiatives like the UNEP Finance Inquiry in shaping this transition.

The report highlights the transformative potential of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) that operate with a 'triple bottom line' approach to benefit local environments and communities. It identifies systemic barriers to growth, including a lack of formal definitions for 'green enterprises,' prohibitive collateral requirements for loans, and a lack of financial literacy among entrepreneurs. Through case studies in India, Mongolia, Peru, Senegal, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uganda, the document demonstrates how LGEs—ranging from organic farming and waste recycling to sustainable fisheries—are often excluded from public and private investment. The report concludes with recommendations for public finance institutions, private investors, and national policymakers to implement global taxonomies, support clustering models, and develop specific financial products for informal and micro-scale green businesses.

The Green Economy Coalition advocates for a systemic shift from narrow economic metrics like GDP toward a 'green economy' that prioritizes human wellbeing and ecological health. The report identifies five key action areas: redefining progress through new metrics, reforming financial flows to reduce short-termism, greening high-impact sectors (energy, food, housing, transport), investing in people to ensure inclusive growth, and managing natural systems to protect essential ecosystem services. It concludes with nine guiding principles for a fair and inclusive transition, emphasizing the need for multi-stakeholder engagement and a move away from resource-intensive growth.

The report argues that inequality and sustainability are deeply interlinked, with the wealthiest individuals contributing most to environmental degradation while the poorest bear the brunt of its impacts. Through case studies in the UK, India, and Kenya, and analysis of the energy, transport, waste, and food sectors, it identifies recurring patterns of 'double injustice' where marginalised groups are most vulnerable to climate change and pollution. The document highlights 'win-win' examples—such as distributed solar power in Bangladesh, Bus Rapid Transit in Bogotá, and insect farming in Thailand—to show that sustainable development can be designed to reduce inequality.

The report introduces a framework for 'Inclusive Green Economies' (IGE) designed to decouple economic growth from resource consumption while ensuring social equity. It outlines five guiding principles—Wellbeing, Justice, Planetary Boundaries, Efficiency and Sufficiency, and Good Governance—and suggests ten catalytic activities to accelerate this transition. The document emphasizes that the transition is an adaptive process likely taking 10-20 years, requiring collaboration between governments, businesses, and civil society to move from awareness and pressure to policy decisions and behavioral change.

The report analyzes India's steel industry, which accounts for 12% of the country's CO2 emissions, and argues that transitioning to green hydrogen-based steelmaking is the most viable path to net zero by 2070. It identifies significant barriers, including the high cost of green hydrogen, the lack of a legal definition for 'green steel', and the young age of existing blast furnace fleets. The authors recommend government intervention through carbon pricing, mandatory green steel procurement in public projects, and the implementation of green hydrogen purchase obligations to make low-carbon technologies commercially competitive.

The HKH-Innovation Challenge for Entrepreneurs (ICE) is a competition targeting for-profit organisations in Bhutan, Bangladesh, India, and Nepal to develop scalable solutions for climate resilience, water security, and sustainable tourism. Selected winners will receive cash prizes between USD 5,000 and 25,000, alongside mentoring, leadership training, and investment mobilisation support to implement their projects over a nine-month period ending in December 2025.

The HKH-Innovation Challenge for Entrepreneurs (ICE) 2.0, led by the Global Resilience Partnership (GRP) and ICIMOD, seeks for-profit innovations to enhance climate resilience in the Hindu Kush Himalaya. The program targets 12-15 enterprises, with a priority on youth- and women-led businesses, offering prizes between US$5,000 and $25,000 for implementation from May 1, 2026, to April 31, 2027. Selected winners receive a comprehensive support package including tailored mentoring, a Leadership Academy in Kathmandu, investment mobilisation assistance, and monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) support. Eligible applicants must be legally registered in Bhutan, Nepal, India (Himalayan region), or Bangladesh (Chittagong Hill Tracts) and demonstrate a viable business model that promotes biodiversity and social equity without causing harm.

MAVUNOLAB is a youth-driven innovation centre implementing a project to reduce fish food loss and waste in the Lake Victoria region of Tanzania. The initiative focuses on the Dagaa value chain, where 10-22% of fish caught on the Tanzanian side is wasted, primarily due to ineffective traditional sun-drying and smoking methods. MAVUNOLAB has developed a low-cost solar-powered dryer capable of drying up to 250 kg in less than four hours as of 2024, with a goal to provide these to 150 fish processors by 2027. The project specifically targets women, who traditionally handle post-harvest processing but face high financial risks and gender inequalities, including dependency on men for fish and drying equipment. By integrating technical innovation with social empowerment, the initiative aims to reduce women's debt and improve their economic independence. MAVUNOLAB employs a community-centered approach, using needs assessments and partnerships with Beach Management Units (BMUs), local government, and Sokoine University of Agriculture to refine its technology and ensure local alignment.

The Resilient Agriculture Innovations for Nature (RAIN) challenge, a partnership between the Global Resilience Partnership (GRP) and Shockwave Foundation, supports agricultural entrepreneurs in East Africa. The program identifies nature-positive, scalable solutions that build climate resilience and protect biodiversity while offering a profitable revenue model. Selected winners (between 6 and 10 submissions) receive a comprehensive support package including up to 24 hours of mentoring, access to a Leadership Academy, communications support, and monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) assistance. Successful graduates who meet pre-agreed criteria are eligible for a cash prize of up to 50,000 USD for implementation and scaling over 12 months. Applications are assessed on a 100-point scale covering impact, innovation, equity, additionality, profitability, team experience, and risk.

Between 2021 and 2023, mining for copper, cobalt, lithium, and nickel was linked to 334 incidents of violence or protest across 19 top-producing countries, averaging 111 per year. Nearly 90% of these events occurred in emerging and developing economies, while the majority of production is controlled by companies from advanced economies and major consumer countries, primarily China. The report warns that social unrest is likely to increase as production is forecast to spike by 2028 to meet climate goals, potentially destabilizing supply chains and increasing costs for renewable technologies.