Search Climate Insights Directory

The document identifies a stark divide in Canada's electricity sector between low-emitting provinces (B.C., Manitoba, Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Ontario) and fossil fuel-based provinces (Alberta, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia). To achieve net zero, the author proposes five integrated pathways: expanding variable renewable energy, implementing clean firm supply, enhancing interprovincial transmission, increasing demand flexibility, and deploying energy storage. While wind and solar are now the lowest-cost energy sources, their integration requires complementary resources to manage intermittency and seasonal variation, particularly in Canada's high-latitude environment.

The report finds that while electrification will increase electricity use, total energy spending for Canadian households is expected to decline. However, the costs of expanding electricity infrastructure may fall regressively, disproportionately impacting lower-income households. The authors analyze rate-design changes and government funding mechanisms as tools to improve equity, concluding that means-tested fixed charges and progressive tax-based funding can insulate vulnerable populations from rising costs.

The document analyzes the diverse structures of Canada's provincial electricity markets, noting that a lack of coordination creates economic inefficiencies and hinders the integration of renewable energy. It identifies key barriers to integration, such as constitutional jurisdictional splits and political inertia, and proposes four strategies—bilateral collaboration, a Nordic-inspired bottom-up approach, a free-trade framework, and a health-care-style principles-based model—to foster a more integrated national grid necessary for deep decarbonization.

The document identifies several systemic obstacles hindering the deployment of clean energy technologies in Canada, including misaligned mandates, market access restrictions, and outdated information. It argues that the highly centralized and regulated nature of the Canadian grid creates a path dependency that favors fossil fuels and large-scale hydro over innovative solutions like energy storage and distributed renewables. To overcome these, the report recommends implementing clear decarbonization mandates, adopting performance-based regulation, improving interprovincial transmission infrastructure, and utilizing carbon pricing to shift investment toward zero-emission resources.

The document outlines a strategy for Canada to achieve a net-zero electricity sector by 2050, noting a sharp divide between 'clean' provinces (e.g., Quebec, Ontario) and those reliant on fossil fuels (e.g., Alberta, Saskatchewan). It proposes five key technical trajectories: increasing variable renewable energy, securing clean firm capacity, enhancing interprovincial transmission, improving demand flexibility, and deploying long-duration storage. The author argues that while the economic cost of wind and solar has plummeted, the primary barriers are now financial uncertainty regarding carbon pricing and the technical need for firm capacity and seasonal storage to manage intermittency.

Quebec has successfully decoupled economic growth from greenhouse gas emissions, leveraging cheap hydroelectricity and a mature mining sector to foster transition-opportunity companies in electric vehicles and batteries. However, the province faces significant challenges, including high public debt (45% debt-to-GDP in 2020–21), workforce shortages in technical trades, and the need to rebuild trust with Indigenous Peoples to develop critical mineral projects. While Quebec attracts significant venture capital, its companies often raise less capital per investment stage than those in the US and the rest of Canada, facing stiff international competition from China and the US.

The document analyzes how climate change and the transition to net zero impact the reliability and resilience of Canada's electricity grid. It identifies risks across generation, transmission, and distribution, and proposes solutions such as infrastructure hardening, increasing system flexibility, and updating regulatory frameworks and building codes.

The document analyzes how climate change and the transition to a carbon-neutral economy threaten the resilience of Canada's electrical grids. It details risks to power generation, transmission, and distribution, while highlighting the danger of 'cascading effects' where power failures disrupt other essential services. The paper proposes mitigation strategies including infrastructure hardening, increasing grid flexibility through energy storage and decentralized resources, and improving energy efficiency. It also identifies systemic obstacles, such as regulatory frameworks that prioritize short-term reliability over long-term resilience and outdated building codes based on historical rather than future climate data.

The report argues that the Amazon rainforest is a strategic national asset because its evapotranspiration creates 'flying rivers' that distribute rainfall across Brazil. Deforestation, which has already affected about 20% of the biome, reduces this moisture transport, leading to significant economic losses. The document provides evidence of billion-real losses in hydroelectric power generation and highlights vulnerabilities in the rain-dependent agricultural sector, urban water systems like São Paulo's Cantareira, and the navigability of key waterways. It concludes that protecting the Amazon is a strategic imperative for national economic security.

The Santa Rita Hydroelectric Plant in Guatemala's Alta Verapaz region was registered as a Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) project in June 2014 despite strong opposition from local indigenous communities. The document asserts that the project violated the Guatemalan Agreement on Identity and Rights of Indigenous Peoples, ILO Convention 169, and CDM Modalities and Procedures by failing to conduct proper public consultations. This lack of compliance is linked to severe human rights abuses, including the alleged deaths of seven people and repressive police operations against Q’eqchi´ communities. The project is funded by the Latin Renewables Infrastructure Fund (LRIF), with investments from the IFC (USD 15mln), SIFEM (USD 7mln), DEG, FMO, and AECID. Civil society organizations have filed complaints with the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) and the IFC, demanding the withdrawal of financing and the cancellation of the CDM registration.

The Santa Rita hydroelectric project on the Dolores River in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, was registered under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) in June 2014 despite strong opposition from local Q’eqchi’ communities. The document reports that the project violated the Guatemalan Agreement on Identity and Rights of Indigenous Peoples, ILO Convention 169, and CDM procedures by failing to conduct appropriate public consultations. This lack of consultation and the subsequent project development led to severe human rights abuses, including the alleged extrajudicial killings of seven people, including two children, and violent police repression against indigenous families in August 2014. The project is funded via the Latin Renewables Infrastructure Fund (LRIF), with investors including the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which contributed 15 million dollars, and the Swiss Investment Fund for Emerging Markets (SIFEM), which contributed approximately 7 million dollars. In October 2014, civil society organizations filed a formal complaint with the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) of the IFC, citing a lack of public consultation and the criminalization of opponents. The document uses this case to advocate for a human rights-based strategy in the 2015 climate agreement, noting that climate actions must respect and protect human rights.

The Ember Subnational Data Methodology describes the data sources and calculation methods for electricity metrics across 36 states/union territories in India and 50 states in the US. It details the mapping of nine fuel types and the application of IPCC 5th Assessment Report emissions factors to determine carbon intensity, while noting caveats regarding fuel quality, methane potency, and plant efficiency.

Friends of the Earth International asserts that a 100% renewable energy transition for the Global South is financially feasible, noting that the wealth of the world's richest individuals could cover the required investments. The report calculates that 5,146 billion US dollars are needed by 2030 to power Africa, Latin America, and non-OECD Asian countries (excluding India and China) with renewables. It advocates for a 'revolution of the energy' that moves beyond simple fuel switching to include democratic control of resources, the elimination of fossil fuel subsidies, and the repayment of 'climate debt' by developed nations.

The document provides a comprehensive overview of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), describing it as a strategic framework for Chinese foreign investment and global influence. It highlights a systemic lack of environmental and social safeguards, the dominance of Chinese state-owned enterprises, and the tendency of BRI financing to favor fossil fuel projects over renewables. The briefing also details the 'debt trap' risks for recipient nations and the efforts of civil society organizations to advocate for a 'Green BRI' and greater corporate accountability.

The document outlines the 'Renewables Done Right' framework, which seeks to prevent renewable energy projects from replicating the harms of fossil fuel systems, such as land grabbing and human rights violations. It emphasizes energy sovereignty, sufficiency, and circular economies, using examples from India, Palestine, and Scotland to illustrate the need for community participation, infrastructure investment, and the avoidance of overconsumption.

The policy brief examines the nature of China's energy investments in Africa, contrasting upstream extractive projects with downstream power generation. It highlights a problematic bias toward large-scale hydroelectric dams, which the author suggests may be a way for China to export its own domestic overcapacity in dam building while ignoring environmental and geopolitical risks. The document calls for African agency in agenda-setting to transition toward greener technologies like solar and fuel cells, ensuring that investments create local jobs and support structural transformation rather than merely facilitating resource export.

The Sombwe dam project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo threatens the Upemba National Park, potentially flooding tropical forests and endangering rare species like savannah elephants and zebras. Global Witness reports that the 160 MW project may violate Congolese conservation law and could release 1.3 million tonnes of CO2 by the end of the century. The report highlights failures in the initial environmental impact study and calls on the constructor, PowerChina, and international financial backers—including BlackRock and Standard Chartered—to suspend work and seek an alternative site.

The document examines the multifaceted effects of climate change in Latin America and the Caribbean, highlighting vulnerabilities in artisanal fisheries, rural women's livelihoods, education, and public health. It argues that traditional top-down scientific and governance models are insufficient, proposing instead 'co-production' of knowledge and participatory water and land management to build regional resilience.

The document examines the diverse impacts of climate change in Latin America and the Caribbean, highlighting vulnerabilities in rural communities, women, education, and public health. It discusses the role of ocean warming in collapsing fisheries, the link between deforestation and zoonotic diseases, and the necessity of shifting from technocratic to participatory water governance. The report emphasizes the 'Anthropocene' as a geological era driven by human activity and argues for a transdisciplinary approach to science that integrates local and indigenous knowledge to create effective public policies.

The proposed consortium between IAI, ICSU-ROLAC, and UNESCO aims to implement an interdisciplinary research and capacity-building program in Latin America and the Caribbean, focusing on sustainable energy and risk prevention and management within the Future Earth framework.