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Carbon Neobank is a digital financial vehicle designed to bridge the USD 331 billion SME finance gap in Africa by integrating international carbon markets into business banking. Headquartered in Kenya, it offers three primary products: receivables loans, unsecured working capital loans, and carbon-backed term loans, targeting a USD 1 billion total addressable market. The vehicle utilizes a digital-first model, leveraging a partnership with Ecobank for geographic reach across 33 countries and employing digital Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (dMRV) to monetize emission reductions. A USD 10.8 million pilot is planned to demonstrate the model's ability to mobilize private capital and deliver climate outcomes, including an estimated 6.097 million tCO2e in emission reductions over 10 years. The bank specifically targets the agricultural sector and women-led businesses to promote an inclusive green transition.

The Clean Economy Fund (CEF) is a USD 75 million structured-equity fund targeting a financing gap for Indian climate tech companies seeking USD 1-10 million. It employs a two-stage investment approach using convertible notes for early commercialization and direct equity for early growth, supported by a 20% junior tranche to absorb downside risks from non-converting notes. The fund focuses on three verticals: industrial solutions, energy systems, and the built environment. It aims for a first close of USD 35-40 million by mid-to-late 2026, targeting a mitigation impact of 15 megatons of CO2e over ten years.

The Community Equity Opportunity Fund (CEOF), led by Meliquina Partners, is a blended finance facility designed to overcome capital and governance barriers that exclude rural and Indigenous communities from the economic benefits of the energy transition in Latin America. By providing milestone-based development loans and catalytic equity, the fund enables community co-ownership of renewable energy projects from early development through operations. The model includes a mechanism for communities to execute a leveraged buyout (LBO) of the fund's equity position approximately two years after the commercial operation date, supported by external credit guarantees. Targeting a fund size of USD 35-40 million, CEOF aims to invest in six to eight projects (15-100 MW each) in Argentina and Colombia, with a projected mobilization ratio of 10:1 for commercial capital. The fund's impact goals include avoiding 417,000 tCO2e annually and creating over 3,200 job-years over 25 years, with a specific gender strategy targeting 40% female representation in the workforce.

Climate finance for emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs) surpassed USD 1 trillion in 2023, with 80% mobilized domestically. Mitigation finance dominates, accounting for 92% of flows (USD 979 billion), while adaptation finance reached USD 48 billion. China is the primary driver, providing 64% of total EMDE flows. Significant gaps remain, with annual mitigation needs estimated at USD 3.86 trillion. The report recommends strengthening domestic enabling environments, improving the quality of international finance, and increasing data transparency to scale investment.

The report argues that standard top-down cost estimation methods for energy transitions often overlook socio-spatial factors and marginalized groups. It proposes a new framework that identifies specific losses (recognitional justice), determines preventative and transformative spending (restorative justice), assigns cost burdens (distributive justice), and ensures stakeholder consensus (procedural justice). Using the planned early retirement of the Cirebon 1 coal-fired power plant as a case study, the report demonstrates how to map direct, indirect, and induced impacts across individuals, companies, and governments to more accurately calculate the financial requirements of a just transition.

The Seeded Initiative is a financial vehicle designed to address a critical bottleneck in Brazil's restoration value chain: the lack of capital for native seedling nurseries. To meet national targets of restoring 12 million hectares by 2030, Brazil needs approximately one billion seedlings annually, but currently produces only 200 million. The initiative employs a revolving debt structure using receivables-backed credit (via CPR-F, CRA, and FIDC instruments) and blended finance to provide working capital and CAPEX support to nurseries. The model transitions from high concessional support in its Proof-of-Concept phase to market-aligned returns in its commercial and scale-up phases. If scaled to one billion seedlings per year, the initiative could enable the restoration of 670,000 to 1 million hectares, removing an estimated 8.6 to 18.3 million tons of CO2e annually.

Between 2017 and 2022, Viet Nam's power sector saw a total of USD 64 billion in reported investment, with renewable energy (RE) dominating at 64.54% (USD 41.3 billion) compared to fossil fuels (FF) at 35.13% (USD 22.5 billion). RE growth was primarily driven by generous Feed-in Tariffs (FiTs) and domestic private investment, which provided approximately 80% of RE finance. In contrast, FF finance was dominated by international sources, particularly Japan for coal. While gas investment surged in 2021 as a transitional fuel, coal investment ceased in 2022 following net-zero commitments. Despite RE growth, a significant financing gap remains; BloombergNEF estimates an annual requirement of USD 30.7 billion to meet a net-zero scenario by 2030, far exceeding the USD 6 billion invested in 2023.

The document provides a comprehensive introduction to the ETS2, a 'cap and trade' system starting in 2027 to reduce emissions in buildings and road transport by 42% relative to 2005 levels by 2030. It details the market mechanisms, including the Linear Reduction Factor and the Market Stability Reserve (MSR2), and emphasizes that carbon pricing must be paired with complementary policies—such as building renovations and EV electrification—to prevent price volatility and ensure a just transition. The guide also describes the Social Climate Fund (SCF), a €65 billion mechanism designed to support vulnerable households facing energy and transport poverty, and analyzes the distribution and potential misuse of ETS2 revenues among member states.

The report examines 'coal transition credits' as a financial tool for early coal plant closure in Southeast Asia. It finds significant expert skepticism, with only 2 out of 10 experts viewing them as effective. Major risks identified include carbon leakage, baseline inflation, and 'perverse incentives' that may reward polluters. The document concludes that CTCs are not a reliable exit strategy and emphasizes the need for systemic public policy and funding over market-based offsets.

The document critiques debt-for-nature swaps (DNS) as a 'green trap' that prioritizes creditor profits over biodiversity and sovereignty. It asserts that these mechanisms reinforce a cycle of extractivism and austerity in the Global South, where governments are forced to prioritize debt servicing over social and ecological investments. The author calls for the cancellation of illegitimate debts and a radical overhaul of the global financial architecture based on justice and reparation.

The document critiques debt-for-nature swaps (CDN), asserting they function as a 'green trap' that reinforces financial dependence and extractivism in the Global South. It claims these mechanisms transfer control of national territories and policies to foreign NGOs and private actors while providing minimal conservation funding. The text argues that the current international financial architecture forces indebted nations into a cycle of austerity and extractivism to service debts, and calls for the cancellation of illegitimate debts and the recognition of the North's ecological debt to the South.

The document critiques debt-for-nature swaps (EDN), asserting they are a 'green' facade for an unjust financial system. It argues that these mechanisms reinforce financial dependence, facilitate the privatization of common goods, and shift control of territories to foreign NGOs and private actors. The text highlights a 'vicious circle' where debt repayment forces countries toward extractivism and austerity, while modern EDN structures—often involving 'blue' or 'green' bonds—replace old debts with more opaque loans from international entities.

The report argues that multinational corporations use lobbying networks like the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) to undermine the creation of a legally binding UN treaty on business and human rights. It documents environmental and human rights abuses by Chevron in Ecuador, Total in Uganda and Mozambique, and Shell in Nigeria, illustrating a systemic 'architecture of impunity'. The authors call for the exclusion of corporate lobbyists from UN negotiations to ensure the treaty prioritizes human rights over corporate profit.

Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) analyses the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF), a hybrid investment fund led by Brazil to be launched at COP30. FoEI argues that the TFFF's 'blended finance' model, which offers US $4 per hectare for forest preservation, commodifies nature and prioritises private investor returns over the rights of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs). The paper warns that the facility may create a 'vicious cycle of debt' for Global South countries and calls for direct financial reparations and land reform instead of profit-driven conservation schemes.

Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) argues that the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) promotes the 'financierization of nature' by treating forests as financial assets. FoEI criticizes the TFFF's structure for prioritizing private investor returns over conservation, creating a potential debt cycle for Global South countries, and maintaining colonial power asymmetries through the involvement of the World Bank and other international financial institutions. While acknowledging the TFFF's commitment to allocate 20% of payments to Indigenous Peoples and local communities (PICL), FoEI deems this insufficient and calls for a systemic shift toward community-led forest management, debt cancellation, and historical reparations.

Friends of the Earth International opposes the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF), a Brazilian-led initiative designed to mobilize private finance for tropical forest conservation. The organization argues that the TFFF's 'blended finance' model—which prioritizes private investor returns over conservation payments—treats nature as a commodity and risks creating a cycle of debt for tropical forest countries. The paper criticizes the central role of the World Bank and the limited influence of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs), calling instead for debt cancellation, historical reparations, and community-led forest management based on the intrinsic value of ecosystems.

The 2025 Forest Declaration Assessment reports that global forests remain in crisis, with 8.07 million hectares of deforestation in 2024, leaving the world 63% off track for 2030 goals. While some natural recovery and national reforms in countries like Brazil and Indonesia show promise, the report finds that corporate commitments are largely unimplemented and public finance for forests is dwarfed by environmentally harmful agricultural subsidies. It calls for a shift from voluntary pledges to mandatory regulations and inclusive governance that secures land rights for Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

The 2025 Forest Declaration Assessment reports that global forests remain in crisis, with 8.1 million hectares lost in 2024 and degradation increasing. Despite some success in natural regeneration and specific national policy reforms in Brazil, Colombia, and Indonesia, the report finds that corporate commitments are largely insufficient and financial flows remain misaligned with conservation goals. It calls for a shift from voluntary corporate pledges to mandatory regulations and inclusive governance that secures land tenure for indigenous peoples and local communities.

The 2025 Forest Declaration Assessment reports that global forests remain in crisis, with 8.07 million hectares lost in 2024 and a 63% gap relative to the 2030 zero-deforestation goal. While some national reforms in Brazil, Colombia, and Indonesia show promise, corporate action remains largely insufficient, and public finance for forests is dwarfed by harmful agricultural subsidies. The report emphasizes that current voluntary corporate commitments are inadequate and calls for mandatory regulations, inclusive governance for indigenous peoples, and a fundamental shift in the global financial system to prioritize forest stability over extractive production.

The 2025 Forest Declaration Assessment reports that global forests remain in crisis, with deforestation and degradation continuing at high rates. Despite some progress in natural regeneration and specific national reforms in Brazil, Colombia, and Indonesia, the report finds that corporate commitments are largely insufficient and public and private financing remains drastically misaligned with forest protection goals. It calls for systemic changes, including mandatory regulations and inclusive governance, to reverse these trends by 2030.