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The 2025 Forest Declaration Assessment finds that the world is significantly off track to achieve zero deforestation by 2030, with 8.1 million hectares lost in 2024. The report highlights a systemic failure where harmful agricultural subsidies (USD 409 billion annually) dwarf positive forest finance, and where corporate commitments remain largely voluntary and insufficient. While some countries like Brazil and Indonesia have shown that political will can reduce deforestation, these gains are threatened by geopolitical instability and regulatory rollbacks. The assessment emphasizes that forests are better managed when Indigenous Peoples and local communities have secure tenure rights, yet only 13 percent of customary lands in tropical forests are formally recognized. It calls for a shift from voluntary pledges to mandatory regulations and inclusive governance to prevent ecosystem collapse.

The report examines the role of securitisation in developing African capital markets, noting that while South Africa has a mature market, other sub-Saharan regions remain nascent. It identifies significant barriers, including fragmented legal and tax frameworks, a lack of a 'ratings culture', and limited understanding among financial institutions. Despite these challenges, the study finds a substantial supply of securitisable assets in banking, microfinance, and fintech sectors. It recommends a holistic regulatory approach, the use of anchor investors from DFIs and MDBs, and the adoption of scalable structures like warehouse facilities to mobilise private capital and bridge the private credit gap.

The report analyzes the role of nominee companies—middlemen that hold shares in name only—in masking the identities of investors in Australian coal, oil, and gas projects. It finds that these structures obscure approximately 18% of Australia's national fossil fuel CO2 emissions and are predominantly operated by major global banks. The document highlights a lack of regulatory requirements for nominee disclosure in Australia, which allows investors, including some superannuation funds, to maintain stakes in high-emitting assets while avoiding public scrutiny.

The document analyzes the South African Climate Change Act as a framework for transforming the food system, which contributes approximately 20% of national emissions and is highly vulnerable to climate shocks. It identifies specific legal avenues—such as the National Adaptation Strategy and Plan (NASP), municipal climate response plans, and the Presidential Climate Commission—where farmers, workers, and civil society can intervene to promote agroecology, land rights, and food price stability. The author emphasizes that while the Act provides the legal framework, it does not guarantee funding or specific ground-level obligations, making active public participation essential to ensure a 'just transition' that protects vulnerable groups including women, youth, and smallholder farmers.

The report finds that Chhattisgarh remains deeply dependent on fossil fuels, with government subsidies for coal and oil and gas being four times higher than those for clean energy in FY 2024. While the state has a vision to reach 66% renewable energy by 2047, current public investment is dominated by thermal power expansion and electricity price supports. Energy revenues, which make up 22% of the state's total receipts, are primarily driven by oil and gas VAT and coal royalties, leaving the state vulnerable to the national energy transition.

The report examines eight innovative financial instruments—including the Adaptation Benefit Mechanism, biodiversity credits, carbon taxes, carbon trading, credit guarantees, debt-for-nature/climate resilience swaps, pooled investment funds, and sovereign green/sustainability-linked bonds—to bridge the climate finance gap in developing countries. It identifies common barriers such as limited institutional capacity, lack of robust project pipelines, and underdeveloped local capital markets. The document emphasizes that while these instruments can signal a government's commitment to climate action, their success depends on a supportive enabling environment characterized by effective leadership, clear taxonomies, and robust climate data. For least developed countries (LDCs), the report suggests a phased approach, first strengthening basic financial and legal prerequisites before focusing on 'climate investability'. It concludes with specific recommendations for donors and development partners to provide technical assistance, anchor investments, and pilot projects to scale up private sector mobilization.

The report analyzes 32 Air Service Agreements (ASAs) among COFFIS member states to identify legal obstacles to taxing aviation fuel. It finds that while the Chicago Convention does not prohibit such taxes, many bilateral ASAs contain prohibitions or non-discrimination clauses that require reform. The authors propose a 'Joint Agreement' as a multilateral mechanism to bulk-amend these treaties. For EU states, the Energy Taxation Directive (ETD) remains a primary structural barrier, though international agreements can override it. The report also estimates that taxing three specific UK flight routes could generate up to USD 3.1 billion in revenue.

The report examines the 'renaissance' of green industrial policy, defining it as government intervention to achieve environmental goals alongside economic growth. Through case studies of China, the US, the EU, Canada, Brazil, and South Korea, it highlights a shift toward interventionism driven by climate urgency and geopolitical rivalry. The authors argue that while these policies can accelerate decarbonization and lower technology costs globally, they risk increasing international inequality, creating market distortions, and triggering trade conflicts, particularly for developing nations with limited fiscal capacity.

The report argues that tax incentives for critical mineral value addition are secondary to primary non-tax enablers such as infrastructure, regulatory stability, and clear national strategies. It analyzes the value chains of copper, lithium, and nickel, noting that while production-based, cost-based, and profit-based tax incentives can attract investment, they risk revenue loss if projects are not commercially viable. The document highlights varied national approaches, such as Indonesia's nickel export bans and Australia's production tax credits, and recommends rigorous financial modelling to ensure that downstream incentives do not result in a net loss of government revenue compared to raw ore exports.

The document argues that while WTO rules provide policy space for LDCs to build climate-resilient agriculture, these countries often lack the financial and technical capacity to utilize them. It recommends targeted assistance through Aid for Trade to design compliant subsidies, mapping of climate technologies to facilitate TRIPS-compliant transfers, and the establishment of exemptions for LDCs from food and fertilizer export bans to ensure food security amid climate shocks.

The report analyzes three case studies to demonstrate how purposeful, collective learning can improve climate adaptation planning. In Côte d’Ivoire, a national platform fostered a community of practice on the gender-climate nexus. Peru established a platform to integrate Indigenous Peoples' ancestral knowledge into its NAP. Rwanda implemented a monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) system to refine adaptation priorities. The report identifies key enabling factors such as inclusive leadership, legal institutionalization, and a culture of public accountability, while noting that sustained financial support remains a primary challenge for maintaining learning momentum.

The report finds that rents for the lowest-cost unsubsidized market-rate housing (workforce housing) increased by 20.2% nationally between 2021 and 2025, more than double the 9.2% increase for luxury (discretionary) housing. This trend is most pronounced in the Sunbelt region, where corporate landlords, including private equity firms, target workforce housing as a low-risk, high-cash-flow investment. The document highlights a crisis of evictions and 'self-evictions' driven by these price hikes and argues that government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac facilitate this corporate takeover by providing easy financing with few tenant protections. It recommends policy interventions such as rent control, just cause eviction laws, and the adoption of investment standards for public pension funds.

The report analyzes climate disinformation in French and Brazilian mainstream media, finding that in France, disinformation is systemic and often linked to political and economic interests, while in Brazil, it manifests as a strategic 'invisibilization' of environmental issues driven by the agribusiness sector. It recommends strengthening media regulation, improving journalist training, and integrating disinformation detection into emergency response systems for extreme weather events.

Ten years after the Paris Agreement, French banks and insurers continue to heavily finance fossil fuel expansion, with some increasing their support for oil and gas extraction. The report argues that 'green finance' and ESG labels are largely greenwashing, as they fail to redirect capital away from climaticide activities. It further criticizes the French and European governments for favoring voluntary industry commitments over binding regulations and for weakening key directives like the CSRD and CSDDD under pressure from financial lobbies.

The document evaluates the role of bioenergy in the energy transition, specifically critiquing the International Energy Agency's (IEA) Net Zero Emissions (NZE) scenario for its heavy reliance on biomass. It argues that solid biomass creates a 'carbon debt' and threatens biodiversity, while biogas and biofuels often have greenhouse gas intensities comparable to fossil fuels due to land-use change and methane leaks. Reclaim Finance concludes that bioenergy should not be included in sustainable financing frameworks, as it competes with wind and solar power and risks prolonging the use of fossil gas infrastructure.

The report argues that the European Commission's 'Omnibus I' proposal, unveiled on February 26, 2025, represents a shift toward deregulation driven by disproportionate private sector influence. Analysis of meeting logs shows that Executive Vice-President Stéphane Séjourné and his office met almost exclusively with business interests, while excluding civil society, NGOs, and trade unions. This lobbying resulted in significant setbacks for the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), including the removal of obligations for financial services to undergo due diligence reviews.

The report analyzes how the 'Omnibus I' law, presented on February 26, 2025, by Executive Vice-President Stéphane Séjourné, rolls back key environmental and social protections. It details a significant imbalance in the consultation process, where the vast majority of meetings were held with private economic interests while civil society was largely excluded. A specific case study highlights how the French asset management lobby successfully pushed for the removal of a clause that would have required the Commission to study the necessity of regulating financial services under the CSDDD.

The document identifies a significant funding and deployment gap for carbon removal, estimating a need for at least 100 megatons per annum (Mtpa) and $20 billion per year by 2035. It proposes a government-led Advance Market Commitment (AMC) as a mechanism to guarantee future markets, reduce costs through economies of scale, and harmonize global standards. The paper provides a design framework for such an AMC, covering product eligibility, procurement processes, and cross-border funding, while outlining the complementary roles of corporations, philanthropy, NGOs, and academia.

The G20 has transitioned from a narrow focus on financial stability (2005–2008) to an integrated governance model where energy security, climate action, and sustainable development are central. Key milestones include the 2009 Pittsburgh Summit's first mention of clean energy, the 2015 first Energy Ministers' Meeting, and the recent sequence of Global South presidencies (Indonesia, India, Brazil, South Africa) that have shifted the narrative toward equity, just transitions, and the reform of the international financial architecture. South Africa's 2025 Presidency specifically champions African interconnectivity, critical minerals sovereignty, and debt sustainability to enable a just energy transition.

The report analyzes the global trend toward 'green industrial policies'—characterized by state intervention through subsidies, procurement, and local content requirements—and warns that these measures often prioritize domestic benefits over global equity. While EMDEs can benefit from lower technology costs and new trade opportunities in critical minerals, they face risks of 'extractive lock-in' and market distortions. The authors propose pathways for a more inclusive transition, including preferential technology licensing, scaled-up climate finance, and the recycling of carbon border adjustment revenues to support industrial upgrading in developing nations.