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The World Resources Institute (WRI) condemns systemic racism and police brutality in the United States, specifically citing the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and Ahmaud Arbery. WRI President & CEO Andrew Steer argues that government leaders must address the gross inequality underlying these issues. WRI acknowledges that the environmental movement has historically failed to address these disparities and commits to ensuring that solutions for climate change, environmental degradation, and extreme poverty benefit disproportionately impacted communities of color.

The document examines the causes of annual flooding in Accra, Ghana, and advocates for the integration of nature-based solutions, specifically ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA), alongside traditional infrastructure. It highlights the need for coordinated management across municipal and district assemblies to address shared waterways and drainage systems.

The report analyzes a May 2018 survey of 1,257 American adolescents to determine how they learn about climate change, their level of scientific understanding, and their emotional responses to the issue. Key findings indicate that while a large majority of teens recognize climate change is happening and trust NASA scientists, their understanding of the underlying science is often incomplete. Social media and television are the most common general news sources, while science teachers are the most frequent source of climate-specific information. The report also highlights a significant level of worry among teens, with many believing their generation will suffer more harm than their parents' generation and feeling that adults are not doing enough to protect them.

The document details how French involvement in Mozambique's gas sector—through companies like Total and TechnipFMC and banks such as Crédit Agricole—has contributed to a cycle of debt, corruption, and human rights abuses. It highlights the 'tuna bonds' scandal, where illicit debts were contracted to fund a defense program under the guise of fishing. In Cabo Delgado, the report links gas projects to an insurgency that has caused over 1,100 deaths and displaced 100,000 people, noting that militarization prioritizes corporate assets over civilians. Environmentally, the report warns that three developing gas projects could emit greenhouse gases equivalent to seven years of France's total emissions, threatening the biodiversity of the Quirimbas biosphere reserve.

The document examines how COVID-19 disrupted mining operations, specifically affecting direct employment, contractors, and local suppliers. It highlights the vulnerability of underground mining and non-permanent workers, while noting that automation and 'essential service' designations mitigated some impacts. The report argues for a transition from general stimulus packages to sector-specific support, emphasizing the need for new health protocols, increased local sourcing to reduce global supply chain dependency, and investment in worker reskilling to prepare for future systemic shocks.

The SAVi assessment finds that the Kalivaç and Poçem hydropower projects (HPPs) are uneconomic, producing higher costs and societal burdens than benefits. When integrating externalities, the HPPs' levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) is more than 2.5 times higher than that of solar PV. The report highlights significant negative externalities, particularly the loss of agricultural land and tourism potential along the Vjosa River, and notes that the projects are not financially attractive at domestic electricity prices of EUR 55/MWh.

The assessment identifies that while Jamaica has strong mechanisms for bauxite revenue generation and environmental permitting, its overall mining legal framework is outdated and fragmented. Key gaps include limited public access to geological data, inadequate post-mining transition planning, and a lack of local content policies to increase domestic value addition.

The report examines the global cotton market, highlighting a shift toward voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) which grew from 1% of production in 2009 to 14.1% in 2016. It identifies significant sustainability challenges, including high water and pesticide use, price volatility, and labor abuses. The document argues that VSSs like BCI, CmiA, Organic, and Fairtrade are essential for mitigating these risks and improving livelihoods for the 100 million farmers globally. It specifically identifies Mali and Burkina Faso as having high potential for VSS growth among Low Human Development Countries.

The document argues that Africa is experiencing a growing economic divergence from the rest of the world, with GDP per capita projected to be less than one quarter of the global average by 2040. While human well-being indicators like life expectancy have improved, the continent's growth is constrained by an unproductive economic structure dominated by low-end informal services and a slow demographic transition. To ignite a 'growth revolution', the author advocates for a 'bottom-up' approach focusing on basic infrastructure, reducing fertility rates, and transitioning toward manufacturing and productive agriculture. The brief emphasizes that leveraging the fourth industrial revolution, renewable energy, and the African Continental Free Trade Area, alongside accountable leadership, is essential to reversing commodity dependence and achieving sustainable prosperity.

The MIGNEX Handbook Chapter 7 outlines the methodology for a large-scale survey of 12,500 young adults (aged 18-39) across 25 research areas in ten countries. It details a three-stage probability-proportional-to-size (PPS) cluster sampling strategy using satellite imagery and random walks to ensure representativeness. The guide specifies the use of Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) via SurveyCTO software to improve data quality and efficiency. It establishes rigorous protocols for research ethics, including oral informed consent, and defines a multi-layered quality assurance framework involving enumerators, fieldwork supervisors, and data managers. The document also provides a detailed survey instrument covering themes such as migration aspirations, livelihoods, health, and governance.

The report analyzes the link between synthetic nitrogen fertilizer use in the Midwest and the formation of a hypoxic 'dead zone' in the Gulf of Mexico. It estimates that agricultural nitrogen losses have caused between $552 million and $2.4 billion in annual damages to Gulf fisheries and marine habitat ecosystem services since 1980. The authors argue that shifting to sustainable agricultural practices—such as cover cropping and conservation tillage—can reduce these losses, providing a significant return on investment by restoring marine productivity and improving soil resilience for farmers.

The report examines the link between environmental degradation and the rising frequency of zoonotic diseases, using COVID-19 as a primary example. It identifies land-use change for agriculture and the trade of high-risk wildlife as the primary drivers of pathogen spillover. The document proposes a 'New Deal for Nature and People' focusing on halting high-risk wildlife trade, eliminating deforestation from supply chains, and implementing a 'One Health' approach to economic recovery.

The authors highlight the accuracy of previous intelligence warnings regarding pandemics to argue that similar foresight must be applied to climate change. They assert that unabated climate change will trigger global instability through food and water insecurity, mass migration, increased international tensions, and high-impact 'wildcard' events, necessitating a move toward net-zero emissions to protect global security.

The authors argue that pandemic recovery stimulus should not compromise efforts to address climate change and air quality, but should instead use an integrated approach to identify efficient, low-cost solutions that provide multiple near-term benefits for both the economy and the environment.

The text advocates for a 'green' economic recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic, suggesting that investments in renewable energy and sustainable transport create more jobs than the oil and gas sector. It highlights specific examples of sustainable shifts in Amsterdam, Bogota, and the UK, and calls for government investment in public transport and green energy over fossil fuel subsidies.

The authors argue that COVID-19 and climate change are direct threats to U.S. national security and act as 'threat multipliers' that amplify geostrategic competition and local conflicts. They contend that the U.S. should not simply reallocate funds away from national defense but instead expand the defense toolkit to include biodefense, climate adaptation for military bases, and support for international cooperation to prevent the collapse of global governance systems.

The document outlines China's 60-year effort to manage desertified lands, particularly in northern China, through a combination of government policies, forestry programmes, and eco-industrialization. Key interventions such as afforestation and water conservation have helped restore arid and semi-arid ecosystems.

The document examines how the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change concurrently degrade the readiness of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). It highlights the financial and operational strain caused by severe weather, specifically citing the $3.6 billion in damages to Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune from Hurricane Florence. The author contends that the DoD should apply the same decisive adaptation strategies used to combat COVID-19 to mitigate long-term climate risks, such as recurrent flooding and wildfires, to ensure national security and deter adversaries.

The document identifies three primary transmission modes for SARS-CoV-2: direct physical contact, intermediate inanimate objects, and respiratory droplets or aerosols. It highlights that fine particles (<10 µm) can reach pulmonary alveoli, while larger droplets (>100 µm) contribute primarily to contact transmission. Environmental factors such as low temperatures and specific relative humidity levels are noted to increase virus survival, while solar ultraviolet radiation acts as a natural virucide. The report discusses correlations between high levels of atmospheric pollutants, such as NO2 and PM2.5, and increased COVID-19 mortality and incidence in regions including Northern Italy, Spain, China, and the United States, suggesting that pollution may predispose individuals to more severe infections.

The document identifies three primary transmission routes for SARS-CoV-2: direct physical contact, intermediate inanimate objects, and respiratory droplets or aerosols. It highlights that indoor environments significantly increase contagion risk and that climatic factors like low temperature and specific relative humidity levels can enhance virus survival. A substantial portion of the text examines the correlation between air pollution—specifically NO2 and PM2.5—and increased COVID-19 mortality and incidence in regions such as Northern Italy, Spain, China, and the US. It also discusses the potential role of global warming in altering transmission patterns through changes in human behavior and animal migration.