Search Climate Insights Directory

The Canadian Climate Institute presents a framework of 11 indicators divided into goals (low-carbon growth, economic resilience), catalysts (technology development, adoption, trade, and infrastructure), and fundamentals (low-carbon jobs, affordable energy, inclusive resilience, clean air, and flourishing ecosystems). The report finds that while Canada has decoupled GDP from emissions nationally, progress is uneven across provinces. It highlights significant data gaps, particularly regarding climate costs, social vulnerability, and ecosystem health, and recommends cross-governmental collaboration and improved data correlation to support a just transition.

The paper examines nature-based solutions (NbS) in coastal cities across India, South Africa, Seychelles, and Tanzania, highlighting how integrating traditional knowledge and community empowerment can enhance urban resilience. It argues that for NbS to be effective in the Global South, they must be aligned with broader development agendas to address socio-economic inequalities and generate green jobs.

The policy brief outlines a pathway for the U.S. to reach 90 percent zero carbon electricity by 2035, leveraging falling costs of solar, wind, and batteries. It asserts that this transition could support $1.7 trillion in investment and 530,000 annual energy jobs without increasing customer bills. However, it warns that without policy intervention, zero carbon sources would only reach 53 percent by 2035. The authors propose specific regulatory actions for FERC and RTO/ISOs, including simplifying interconnection rules, reforming transmission cost allocation, enhancing energy price signals, and reducing reliance on capacity markets.

The document argues that Canada's economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique opportunity to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy. It proposes seven 'green conditions' to guide government spending, including requiring companies to have net-zero plans, banning stock buybacks for aid recipients, and ensuring a just transition for workers. The report emphasizes that without deliberate conditions, recovery funds risk perpetuating unsustainable economic structures.

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 report analyzes seven European Green Capital (EGC) winners—Bristol, Ljubljana, Essen, Nijmegen, Oslo, Lisbon, and Lahti—across 12 environmental domains to establish 'threshold activities' necessary for reaching the EGC finals. Comparing these to Tallinn, the study finds that while Tallinn excels in air quality, green space proportion, and the use of green electricity in municipal buildings, it lags in CO2 emissions per capita, waste landfilling rates, and the formal adoption of strategic planning documents. Key findings highlight the importance of carbon neutrality targets by 2050, integrated sustainable mobility strategies, and the implementation of 'polluter pays' principles in waste management.

The project proposes a USD 45 million intervention to restore 50,648 hectares of degraded land and support land-based enterprises in four Kenyan counties. It aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 7.1 million tCO2eq and benefit 57,250 direct beneficiaries through climate-smart agriculture, reforestation, and the creation of 25,000 green jobs. The initiative focuses on three main components: enhancing climate-smart land practices, transforming rural livelihoods via green enterprises, and improving policy and climate information systems.

The report identifies significant barriers to implementing just transition strategies in developing countries, including a lack of conceptual consensus, the misconception that the concept only applies to developed nations, and weak institutional capacity. It proposes a structured template for NDCs that includes labour market planning, stakeholder engagement, and the creation of inter-departmental coordinating committees. Through case studies of Latin American countries and a policy roundtable, the document emphasizes that no 'one size fits all' approach exists, particularly due to the prevalence of informal economies and varying levels of social protection in low- and middle-income economies.

The report finds that South Africa is on a pathway of economic divergence from its middle-income peers due to poor human capital, lack of investment, and an electricity crisis. It proposes the 'Thuma Mina' scenario, which suggests that targeted structural interventions in five key sectors could increase average incomes by 60% by 2044 compared to a 24% increase on the current path. Key recommendations include solving the electricity crisis, improving the quality of health and education, and revitalising manufacturing through increased foreign and domestic investment.

The document analyzes policy coherence between the Paris Agreement's NDCs and the 2030 Agenda's SDGs in Germany, Kenya, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sweden, and the Philippines. It finds that while synergies exist, significant conflicts often emerge around energy transitions, economic growth, and inequality (SDG 10). These incoherencies are driven by institutional fragmentation, conflicting national ideologies, and vested interests. The authors argue that achieving both agendas requires moving beyond institutional fixes to address deep structural changes and political dynamics.

The document defines sustainable material management infrastructure as assets that reduce waste generation by promoting recovery, reuse, and recycling. It distinguishes between 'grey' infrastructure (e.g., unregulated landfills, incineration without energy recovery) and 'green' infrastructure (e.g., sorting facilities, composting, waste-to-energy). The guide details the environmental, economic, and social shortcomings of business-as-usual (BAU) scenarios—such as GHG emissions, resource scarcity, and public health risks—while highlighting the benefits of green investments, including carbon footprint reduction and green job creation. It also analyzes risks to project financing, such as volatile commodity prices and regulatory uncertainties, and provides a comprehensive overview of policy interventions, measurement indicators, and a detailed breakdown of costs and revenues for various waste management technologies.

The document argues that green investments in the Bełchatów region, primarily funded by the EU's Just Transition Mechanism (JTM), can generate significantly more employment than is currently provided by the Bełchatów Power Plant complex. It highlights that the lodzkie voivodeship could access up to PLN 45 billion in EU funds for 2021-2027, though this amount depends on a government pledge to reach climate neutrality by 2050. The highest job creation potential is identified in thermal retrofitting, solar, and onshore wind, with the potential to create 61,000 jobs from JTM funds alone.

The document presents seven principles for a green recovery in Canada, focusing on net-zero commitments, a just transition for workers, and the protection of environmental regulations.

The document outlines the economic and social opportunities for African nations to 'recover better' from the COVID-19 pandemic by prioritizing sustainable energy. It estimates that achieving universal electricity access in Africa by 2030 requires an annual investment of USD 29 billion, while clean cooking solutions require USD 2 billion annually. The guide highlights the GDP and job creation multipliers of clean energy over fossil fuels and provides a framework of eight 'enablers'—including the removal of fossil fuel subsidies and the implementation of cost-reflective tariffs—to facilitate this transition. It uses India as a case study for successful policy implementation in the global south.

The guide identifies significant energy access gaps in South Asia, with 152 million people lacking electricity and 990 million lacking clean cooking as of 2018. It proposes that governments allocate 25% of stimulus budgets to renewables and target 30% localization of clean energy value chains. Key benefits cited include a GDP multiplier where every USD 1 invested in renewables yields USD 0.93 in additional growth, and the creation of 2 to 2.5 times more jobs than fossil fuel investments. The document recommends eight enablers for this transition, including the elimination of fossil fuel subsidies, a moratorium on new coal-fired power, and the adoption of cost-reflective tariffs.

The guide outlines opportunities for Southeast Asian nations to 'recover better' from the COVID-19 pandemic by shifting economic stimulus toward sustainable energy. It identifies significant untapped potential in energy efficiency, particularly in buildings and cooling, and advocates for increasing the share of renewable energy in the power mix. The document highlights macroeconomic benefits, including GDP growth and job creation, while proposing eight enablers for a successful transition, such as eliminating fossil fuel subsidies and declaring a moratorium on new coal-fired power plants.

The author asserts that a just transition is impossible without 'radical collaboration' across sectors, highlighting the need to bridge the gap between climate action and social justice. The text emphasizes that while many governments have committed to a just transition, policy and investment are lagging. It advocates for partnerships between employers, unions, and governments to create decent green jobs that respect labor rights, noting that businesses must act on their accountability to all stakeholders to avoid worsening conditions for workers and communities during the shift to net-zero.

The document provides a detailed breakdown of 'green jobs', highlighting that the U.S. energy efficiency sector employs over 3 million people and the global renewable energy sector employed 11 million in 2018. It identifies China as the global leader in renewable energy employment and notes the emergence of climate adaptation and resilience as critical new areas of job growth, despite a lack of standardized tracking codes in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics system.

The document provides a comprehensive overview of 'green jobs', highlighting that the U.S. energy efficiency sector employs over 3 million people and the global renewable energy sector employed 11 million people in 2018. It details specific employment figures for various technologies—such as solar, wind, and biofuels—and identifies China as the global leader in renewable energy employment. Additionally, it notes the emergence of climate adaptation and resilience jobs, though standardized data collection for these roles remains limited.

The report evaluates South Africa's implementation of SDGs 4, 8, 10, 13, 16, and 17, finding a significant gap between strong policy frameworks and actual delivery. While the National Development Plan aligns well with the 2030 Agenda, the authors highlight systemic failures in education quality, rising unemployment, extreme wealth inequality, inadequate climate action, and high levels of gender-based violence. The document argues that the 'leave no one behind' principle is not being operationalised and calls for greater state accountability and inclusive multi-stakeholder engagement.