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The article analyzes the impact of political corporatism on climate policy ambition by comparing Sweden and Finland. It identifies that while inclusiveness and consensualism promote ambitious policies, strong tripartite organizations that exclude NGOs can hinder them.

The Independent Integrity Unit (IIU) reported progress on five priority areas from March to May 2019: completing the integrity policy framework, developing guidelines, implementing proactive risk assessments, launching awareness initiatives, and conducting investigations. Key policy developments include the operationalization of Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) standards and an updated Policy on Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment (SEAH). The IIU also developed a two-tier model for Proactive Integrity Reviews (PIRs) and conducted training for staff and Board members. During the period, the IIU received 16 reports of suspected wrongdoing, primarily related to misconduct.

The report identifies 175 policy recommendations across 18 categories, finding that governance (31%) is the most frequent focus, followed by financing and methods/tools. While the European Commission and HELCOM focus heavily on governance and monitoring, BONUS projects contribute more to financing and innovative policy design. The study notes a significant lack of recommendations addressing global issues like climate change and biodiversity, despite their presence in the documents' background sections.

The report examines the complex relationship between the African Union (AU) and Regional Economic Communities (RECs), specifically the application of 'subsidiarity'—the principle that regional structures should lead in their own jurisdictions. It highlights systemic failures in North Africa due to the inactivity of the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU), tensions between the AU and SADC over elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the AU's successful re-assumption of leadership in the Central African Republic. The document also notes the East African Community's (EAC) internal trade disputes, ECOWAS's struggle to adapt to violent extremism in the Sahel, and the general lack of civil society engagement within the AU and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

The document examines the inequitable resource interdependency between Europe and Africa, where Africa provides critical minerals and energy resources but does not benefit fully from the resulting wealth. It argues that current EU directives and African initiatives are insufficient to address illicit tax outflows and governance deficits. The authors propose the adoption of 'extractive justice'—comprising distributive, recognitional, and procedural justice—to create a symbiotic relationship and reduce resource-related conflicts.

The Report of the IAI Standing Committee for Rules and Procedures, prepared by Argentina and the United States, recommends no amendments to the Standing Rules of the Conference of the Parties (CoP) for the 27th meeting in Brasilia, Brazil. The document includes the full text of the Standing Rules, which govern the participation, voting, and administrative procedures of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI).

The report from the IAI Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures recommends no amendments to the Rules of Procedure for the 27th Conference of the Parties (CoP) in Brasilia, Brazil. It includes the full Rules of Procedure governing the CoP's operations, including membership, voting, and the election of officials.

The African Peer Review Mechanism, established in 2003 to improve governance through voluntary peer review, experienced a period of decline between 2008 and 2016 marked by leadership vacancies and financial mismanagement. While recent reforms under the 'Three Rs Strategy' and the 2018 incorporation into the African Union as a specialised agency have revitalized the process and expanded its mandate to track Agenda 2063 and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, significant hurdles remain. These include the failure to release country reports on time, a lack of political will to 'name and shame' poor performers, and dwindling attendance of heads of state at forums.

The document argues that traditional resilience concepts often ignore power dynamics and social inequalities. Based on a review of 171 articles, the authors define equitable resilience as a form of human-environmental resilience that accounts for social vulnerability and differentiated access to power, knowledge, and resources. They propose four essential elements for practice: recognizing subjectivities, ensuring inclusion and representation, working across geographical and temporal scales, and promoting systemic transformation. The brief emphasizes that resilience indicators alone are insufficient and that practitioners must engage with the politics of social change to avoid entrenching existing vulnerabilities.

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) implements a zero-tolerance policy toward prohibited practices to ensure the integrity of its resources. The policy defines specific misconduct—including corruption, fraud, coercion, collusion, obstructive practices, abuse, money laundering, retaliation against whistleblowers, and terrorism financing—and outlines the obligations of GCF personnel and external counterparties to prevent and report these acts. The Independent Integrity Unit (IIU) is responsible for investigating allegations and recommending sanctions, which can range from formal reprimands and fund cancellation to permanent exclusion from GCF financing and the restitution of misappropriated funds.

The GCF's Policy on Prohibited Practices implements a zero-tolerance approach to corruption, fraud, and other integrity breaches. It defines specific prohibited behaviors, mandates high standards of integrity for 'covered persons' and 'counterparties,' and outlines the role of the Independent Integrity Unit (IIU) in investigating misconduct. The policy provides a framework for administrative sanctions, including financial restitution and exclusion from future funding, to protect the Fund's resources and reputation.

The document finds that climate adaptation planning in Spanish cities is in its early stages, with only 11 of 54 analyzed cities having specific plans, most of which were developed in the last three years. While these plans show strengths in international network adherence and risk assessment, they lack binding legislation, dedicated budgets, and sufficient integration of equity and justice. The brief highlights Barcelona, Córdoba, and Murcia as high-performing cities and suggests that the Spanish state and regional governments should provide more technical and financial support, potentially through mandatory planning regulations similar to those in the UK, Denmark, France, and Slovakia.

The Oversight Committee (OC) determined that the elections for the ASEZ-CSN were "fair, free and transparent" and aligned with the established Terms of Reference (ToR). The process involved a mixed-methods approach combining quantitative voting results with qualitative vetting based on criteria such as diversity, organisational citizenship, SEZ knowledge, and activism. While the overall process was successful, the OC noted that some nominees failed to meet eligibility criteria in initial rounds, necessitating second-round elections for the Youth and Education sectors. The final ASEZ-CSN is described as a "truly diverse, represented forum" reflecting the demographics of the Atlantis community.

The document presents a framework for understanding the trade-offs inherent in development and disaster risk reduction (DRR), arguing that poorly planned development can increase vulnerability while disasters can erase development gains. It introduces five dimensions of trade-offs—aggregation, participation, equity, time, and risk—and demonstrates their application to the 'Build Back Better' concept to identify opportunities for more resilient, proactive governance.

The document argues for a fundamental shift from 'zero-sum offsetting' to a 'results based climate finance' (RBCF) model for the Article 6.4 mechanism. It recommends strict environmental integrity criteria, including a partial cancellation rate for credits and the exclusion of emission removals. To prevent the carry-over of failures from the Kyoto Protocol, it proposes a full re-assessment of existing Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects and prohibits the use of pre-2020 units for post-2020 targets. The brief also emphasizes the need for independent governance, a formal grievance mechanism to protect human rights, and mandatory local stakeholder consultations.

The report outlines critical knowledge gaps across four themes essential for achieving SDG 17 and the broader 2030 Agenda. It emphasizes the need for research on the relationship between quality of government and sustainability outcomes, the development of tools for policy coherence, the removal of barriers to technology transfer in least developed countries, and the creation of empirical metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of multi-stakeholder partnerships.

The report finds that while armed conflict fatalities in Africa are generally declining, the continent remains vulnerable due to structural drivers including poverty, youth bulges, and poor governance. It notes a shift from rural armed conflict toward urban political protests and riots. The analysis identifies a core group of countries at the highest risk of armed conflict and argues that inclusive economic development and improved governance are the only long-term solutions for stability.

On 25 July 2018, the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) and the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) convened a meeting in Windhoek, Namibia, to engage civil society in the APRM process. Participants identified 17 primary governance challenges, which were subsequently condensed into a thematic framework for a written submission. Key areas of concern include executive dominance, land access, youth unemployment, institutionalised corruption, and a lack of policy coherence. The IPPR is tasked with driving the drafting process, with a deadline for initial contributions set for the end of August 2018.

The report details a consultation process led by the Cameroon Climate Change Working Group under the African Climate Legislation Initiative to identify priority areas for climate legislation. Participants identified land use and farming as the most critical sectors for regulatory intervention and highlighted corruption and limited public participation as primary barriers to successful law implementation. As a result, the Legal Response Initiative provided a legal opinion on improving the delivery of rainfall forecasts to farmers, suggesting revisions to Decree No. 2005/118 regarding the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

This briefing document, prepared by the United States of America as President of the Executive Council, outlines the process for electing members to the Executive Council of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) for the 2018-2020 term. It includes the formal recommendation for the 26th Conference of the Parties (CoP) to elect nine members and provides the full Rules of Procedure for the Executive Council.