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The We Mean Business coalition calls on governments to integrate climate action into economic recovery plans following the Covid-19 pandemic. Citing support from over 700 businesses, the statement advocates for prioritizing investments in clean power, electric mobility, zero-carbon infrastructure, and nature-based solutions to avoid future systemic shocks and create a sustainable labour market.

The Life After Coal Campaign argues that the Draft Regulations Amending the Electricity Regulations on New Generation Capacity, 2011 are redundant and legally inconsistent. They contend that the Electricity Regulation Act (ERA) does not require Ministerial approval for municipalities to establish electricity capacity, and that such regulations create unnecessary barriers to the urgent transition to clean energy. The document highlights the severe health, environmental, and economic harms of South Africa's coal-dependent energy sector and criticizes the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2019 for unjustifiably constraining renewable energy while permitting new coal and gas capacity. The campaign recommends that if the regulations proceed, they must include requirements for environmental and health impact assessments, transparent public consultation, and financial support for under-resourced municipalities.

ClientEarth urges the UK government to mandate that companies receiving public recovery funds commit to TCFD reporting, net zero emissions by 2050, Paris-aligned business plans, linked executive remuneration, and restrictions on executive pay and capital distributions.

ClientEarth proposes that the UK Government mandate five legally enforceable conditions for companies listed in the UK or with an annual turnover exceeding £45 million receiving recovery support. These conditions include reporting according to TCFD recommendations, committing to net zero emissions by 2050 or earlier (covering scopes 1, 2, and 3), and disclosing a Paris-aligned business plan within 12 months. Additionally, the proposal suggests linking executive remuneration to these targets and restricting executive pay and capital distributions during the support period. ClientEarth emphasizes that the Government, as steward of public funds, must monitor compliance, impose sanctions for non-compliance, and maintain transparency by disclosing support and conditions on a company-by-company basis.

The document outlines a pathway for the United States to reach 90 percent zero carbon electricity by 2035, asserting that plummeting technology costs make this achievable without increasing consumer electricity bills. It details the economic benefits, including $1.7 trillion in investment and 530,000 annual energy sector jobs, while avoiding 85,000 premature deaths by 2050. To prevent a scenario where zero carbon sources only reach 53 percent by 2035, the brief proposes a series of policy interventions for Congress, including a Clean Energy Standard, expanded tax credits, increased DOE capital for manufacturing, and support for coal communities through a 'Just Transition' framework and the RECLAIM Act.

The policy brief outlines a pathway for the United States to reach 90 percent zero carbon electricity by 2035, noting that this transition could support 530,000 annual energy sector jobs and reduce economy-wide emissions by 27 percent without increasing electricity bills. It warns that without policy intervention, zero carbon sources would only reach 53 percent by 2035. The authors propose a series of actions for federal entities, including the EPA requiring state decarbonization plans, the DOE expanding low-cost capital for domestic manufacturing, and the DOL creating a Just Transitions Office to support fossil fuel-dependent communities.

The 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 projects that this transition could support 530,000 net new energy jobs annually and reduce economy-wide emissions by 27 percent without increasing customer bills. The document provides a set of policy recommendations for state-level officials, including the adoption of Clean Energy Standards, prohibitions on new natural gas investment, and the creation of ratepayer-backed bonds to securitize uneconomic fossil fuel assets.

The policy brief argues that the U.S. can achieve 90 percent zero-carbon electricity by 2035 through a federal clean energy standard and complementary reforms in tax credits, manufacturing, transmission planning, and wholesale market design. This transition would require significant scaling of solar, wind, and battery storage, while retiring the coal fleet and utilizing existing gas plants only for flexibility. The authors emphasize the need for a 'just transition' for coal-dependent communities and the modernization of utility regulation through performance-based models and all-source procurement to ensure the transition is affordable and equitable.

The document argues that Canada's post-pandemic reconstruction offers a historic opportunity to pivot toward a low-carbon economy. It outlines seven specific principles, or 'green strings,' to guide bailouts, stimulus, and recovery measures. These include requiring companies to develop net-zero plans, prohibiting stock buybacks and dividends for aid recipients, and ensuring a just transition for workers in high-carbon sectors. The report emphasizes that green stimulus can create as many jobs as neutral measures and calls for increased transparency, equity for Indigenous peoples, and the protection of environmental regulations during the recovery phase.

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 report details how private equity firms like Blackstone, KKR, and Macquarie Infrastructure have acquired coal assets in the US, India, the Philippines, and Europe, often facing financial losses or environmental criticism. It contrasts these investments with a broader trend of coal decline, noting that US coal consumption dropped 44% since 2010 and renewable energy is expected to eclipse coal in the US by 2021.

The report argues that coal is no longer the cheapest power source and that a significant portion of the global coal fleet is now uncompetitive compared to new renewables with storage. It proposes a three-part approach—refinancing, reinvesting in clean energy, and providing transition financing—to overcome the barrier of legacy contracts and noncompetitive tariffs. The authors suggest that by 2025, 78% of the global coal fleet will be uncompetitive, creating an opportunity for net financial savings of over $107 billion. The report details specific financial instruments, such as ratepayer-backed securitization and carbon bonuses, and provides regional analyses for the US, EU, China, and India.

The report argues that a successful global low-carbon transition depends on addressing equity concerns to reduce resistance and ensure fairness. It distills seven principles from literature and historical case studies: actively encouraging decarbonization, avoiding carbon lock-in, supporting affected regions, supporting workers and communities, remediating environmental damage, addressing social inequalities, and ensuring inclusive planning. The authors emphasize that these principles must be pursued in parallel and that the need for social support does not justify delaying decarbonization. Historical analysis shows that poorly managed industrial declines lead to poverty, out-migration, and political instability, often with the public sector bearing the costs of private-sector environmental liabilities.

The policy brief contends that the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated existing vulnerabilities in the U.S. fossil fuel industry, making a fair transition for workers urgent. It advises against using federal stimulus for fossil fuel assets, suggesting instead that investments be directed toward low-carbon infrastructure, which creates more jobs per million dollars spent. The author proposes a four-part framework for a fair transition: accounting for automation and digitization, planning proactively across all carbon-intensive industries, recognizing that clean energy jobs may not be a direct replacement for all fossil fuel roles due to geographic and skill gaps, and employing bottom-up, community-led investment strategies.

The authors argue that governments must plan the decline of coal, oil, and gas production to meet the Paris Agreement's 1.5°C limit and avoid further market chaos. They highlight a significant 'production gap,' noting that planned extraction by 2030 exceeds climate-compatible levels by 60% for oil, 70% for gas, and 280% for coal. The text advocates for a 'just transition' that supports fossil fuel workers through diversification, the removal of consumption subsidies—which totaled at least $400 billion in 2018—and the use of green investment to ensure community viability.

The document outlines a framework for a 'green and resilient recovery' following the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasizing that the next 18 months are critical as countries invest $10-20 trillion. It advocates for low-carbon infrastructure, fossil fuel subsidy reform, and a revamp of the Bretton Woods system to prioritize well-being over traditional growth metrics. The dialogue warns against bailouts for carbon-intensive sectors like aviation and coal, and highlights the urgent need for debt cancellation in vulnerable developing countries.

Friends of the Earth International asserts that the COVID-19 crisis exposes the failures of a neoliberal, capitalist, and patriarchal system that prioritizes corporate profit over human life and nature. The organization argues that the pandemic aggravates existing structural inequalities, particularly for women, Indigenous Peoples, and the global South, while increasing vulnerability to climate disasters. It demands a systemic shift away from fossil fuel-driven economies, the abolition of Investor-State Dispute Settlement mechanisms, and the guarantee of fundamental rights through public services to ensure a just transition.

Friends of the Earth International asserts that the COVID-19 crisis exposes and exacerbates systemic inequalities driven by a neoliberal, capitalist, and patriarchal system. The statement links the pandemic's severity to the destruction of ecosystems by agribusiness and extractive industries, the weakening of public health through privatization, and the disproportionate burden of care work on women. It demands a transition away from fossil-fuel-dependent economies, the abolition of investor-state dispute mechanisms, and the suspension of intellectual property rights for medical supplies to ensure global health equity.

Friends of the Earth International asserts that the COVID-19 crisis is a result of a neoliberal politico-economic system that prioritizes market economies and corporate power over public health and nature. The statement highlights how the pandemic disproportionately affects marginalized groups—including women, indigenous peoples, and the working class—while intensifying climate vulnerabilities and food insecurity. It demands an end to austerity, the cancellation of external debt, and a transition away from fossil-fuel-based capitalism toward a feminist economy and strengthened public services.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), writing on behalf of the Life After Coal Campaign, submitted comments to the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) regarding a draft ministerial determination to procure 2,000 MW of new generation capacity. The CER argues that this procurement must prioritize clean, affordable, and renewable energy sources over fossil fuels to align with constitutional obligations and public interest, while criticizing the lack of transparency regarding Request for Information (RFI) responses and the inadequacy of the public consultation process.