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The document calls for the EU to address administrative bottlenecks and improve spatial planning to speed up renewable energy permitting, while maintaining strict adherence to environmental safeguards like the Birds and Habitats Directives to avoid legal uncertainty and ecological harm.

This case study describes the installation of a hybrid solar grid system by Aptech Africa for the UNDP country office in Yaoundé, Cameroon, to ensure power stability for critical IT equipment and reduce the organization's carbon footprint.

Between May and August 2022, the EU generated a record 12.2% of its electricity from solar power, totaling 99.4 TWh. This generation helped the EU avoid the purchase of an additional 20 bcm of fossil gas, resulting in potential cost savings of €29 billion based on average daily gas prices for that period. Solar share records were broken in 18 of 27 EU countries, with the Netherlands achieving the highest share at 23%. The report argues that while solar deployment is accelerating, permitting bottlenecks must be addressed to meet 1.5C and REPowerEU targets, which include a proposed 45% renewable energy target for 2030.

The First Baptist Church of Glenarden in Maryland has installed four solar arrays—one ground-mounted and three rooftop—totaling 3.2 megawatts of capacity. These projects, developed with Suntrail Energy and IGS Solar, provide over 80 percent of the church's energy usage and have generated nearly $1 million in savings over three years. The installations include a 2.06 MW ground-mounted farm at the Upper Marlboro campus and rooftop arrays at the Family Life Center, Ministry Center, and Empowerment Center.

The Green Economy Coalition argues that the UK's cost-of-living crisis requires a combination of urgent financial support for the vulnerable and a strategic commitment to a green recovery. It rejects short-term fixes such as North Sea drilling, fracking, and scrapping the green levy, instead advocating for a transition to renewable energy, a pro-poor policy approach, and a green jobs strategy to ensure long-term economic and environmental resilience.

The briefing outlines the scientific consensus that human activities, primarily fossil fuel combustion, are unequivocally causing climate change, leading to unprecedented warming and extreme weather. It warns that current national commitments are insufficient to limit warming to 1.5°C, potentially leading to 2.8°C by 2100, which would severely threaten food security, health, and biodiversity. To avoid this, the document argues for urgent, transformative changes, including widespread electrification, a rapid phase-out of fossil fuels, and significant methane reductions by 2030. While noting that investment in fossil fuels still outweighs adaptation and mitigation funding, it highlights progress in the falling costs of solar, wind, and battery technologies, as well as the increasing adoption of electric vehicles and climate legislation.

The document reports that despite China's climate goals, investment in high-carbon coal power and blast furnace steel capacity remains high. While renewable energy and electric arc furnace (EAF) investments are growing, the continued approval of coal plants and high-emission steel projects creates significant stranded asset risks. The report argues that power shortages in provinces like Sichuan are caused by rigid grid management and fuel costs rather than a lack of capacity, suggesting that further coal expansion is unnecessary if grid reforms are implemented.

The document finds that while China has seen record clean energy installations and a decline in coal-fired power generation, government permitting for new coal plants and investments in blast furnace capacity accelerated in early 2022. This trend creates a risk of significant stranded assets—estimated at $8.5 billion for power and $15-22 billion for steel—and complicates the economic and political transition to low-carbon energy. The report highlights that power shortages in provinces like Sichuan were driven by rigid grid management and high fuel prices rather than a lack of capacity, and recommends reforming grid operations and including the steel sector in the emissions trading system.

Cyprus currently relies heavily on fossil fuels and suffers from energy isolation and high electricity costs. The report proposes a 'green pivot' involving grid interconnectivity via projects like the EuroAsia Interconnector, the liberalisation of the electricity market through the 'Net Pool' model, and increased investment in solar power and energy storage. By comparing Cyprus to the successful Nordic model, the authors suggest that physical interconnectivity and market transparency could reduce CO2 emissions and lower annual electricity bills for the average consumer by approximately €200.

The Union of Concerned Scientists finds that the United States can achieve a 98 percent reduction in transportation emissions by 2050 through rapid vehicle electrification, strengthened efficiency standards, and a transition to renewable electricity. The proposed 'Core scenario' involves ending sales of passenger cars and light trucks by 2035 and medium- and heavy-duty trucks by 2040, reducing liquid fuel use by 84 percent by midcentury. These pathways are deemed economically viable, with net energy costs estimated at less than 1 percent of GDP. The report emphasizes that this transition must be coupled with a power grid shift to 97 percent zero-carbon sources by 2050 and a focus on environmental justice for overburdened communities.

The document outlines the challenges of the digital age—including the digital divide, data monopolies, and online violence—and proposes a set of principles to promote social justice in digital spaces. It emphasizes the need for a global movement involving civil society and faith communities to protect human rights, ensure equitable access to infrastructure and energy, and challenge the 'attention economy' and systemic inequalities embedded in algorithms.

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is projected to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 37% to 43% below 2005 levels by 2030, significantly closing the gap toward the U.S. Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). While oil and gas leasing provisions may increase global emissions by 17 to 29 MMT CO2e, these are heavily offset by other IRA provisions. The legislation is expected to create up to 1.3 million jobs, prevent up to 4,500 premature deaths from air pollution, and increase U.S. GDP by 0.65% to 0.77% by 2030.

The Progressive Community Church in Gary, Indiana, has implemented a multifaceted sustainability strategy to combat high energy burdens and industrial pollution in the Emerson neighborhood. By installing a 7.6 kW solar array and energy efficiency upgrades, the church achieved net-zero electricity for eleven months of the year and assisted community members in accessing weatherization grants. Additionally, the church established the F.A.I.T.H. Farm, producing 15,000 pounds of food annually, and is developing an urban park to mitigate heat stress and improve air quality.

The case study describes the installation of an off-grid solar photovoltaic system in the village of Ned, Datal Bonglangon, in South Cotabato, Philippines. Supported by the Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center and Friends of the Earth International, the project provides essential lighting to 46 of 60 planned households and a community charging station. The initiative is framed as a move toward energy sovereignty for the T’boli-Manobo people, who face threats from industrial coffee plantations and proposed coal power plants, and as a model for low-carbon development in remote areas.

The Inflation Reduction Act invests $369 billion in climate solutions and environmental justice, aiming for a 40% emissions reduction by 2030. Key investments include $60 billion for clean energy manufacturing, billions for zero-emission transportation (including the US Postal Service fleet and port equipment), and over $20 billion for sustainable agriculture. The law also provides consumer incentives, such as a 30% tax credit for residential solar and up to $7,500 for electric vehicles. However, the document notes critical compromises, including tax credits for carbon capture and sequestration and mandates to offer Gulf of Mexico and Alaska lands for oil and gas development.

The briefing identifies a recurring pattern in energy transitions where demand for an incumbent energy source peaks, plateaus, and then declines rapidly once price parity with a new source is reached. It provides historical examples from the US and UK, such as the transition from horses to cars and gas to electric lighting, and notes that OECD demand for coal electricity peaked in 2003 and has fallen by 43% since 2008.

GDS International is implementing a solar mini-grid project in Benin with a capacity of 1.7 to 3 MW to address rural energy poverty. The project, costing less than 10 million EUR and partially funded by the Off-Grid Clean Energy Facility (OCEF), aims to serve up to 6,000 households and 2,400 productive activities over 20 years while promoting local economic development and gender-inclusive employment.

The Inflation Reduction Act commits $369 billion to energy and climate initiatives to decarbonize the US economy and secure clean energy supply chains. Key measures include tax credits for electric vehicles, residential energy efficiency, and green hydrogen, alongside funding for urban forestry and carbon capture. The legislation targets a reduction in energy costs for households, the revitalization of former fossil fuel communities, and the acceleration of low-carbon industrial production in sectors like steel and cement.

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 is presented as a critical opportunity for the U.S. to strengthen energy security and economic growth through federal incentives for clean energy. The document argues that the bill supports business climate goals by providing tax credits for domestic manufacturing of wind turbines, solar panels, and batteries, as well as incentives for electric vehicles and heat pumps. It contends that the cost of climate inaction, evidenced by nearly $100 billion in U.S. climate-related disasters in one year, far outweighs the bill's corporate tax provisions.

The report outlines a 'Route to Net Zero' for Colombia by 2050, arguing that current national energy plans are insufficient for carbon neutrality. It proposes a strategy centered on high electrification (targeting 60% of final energy consumption by 2050), a massive expansion of non-conventional renewable energy (FNCER), and a gradual phase-out of fossil fuels. The analysis emphasizes that decarbonization must be paired with a 'just transition' framework to protect communities and workers dependent on the mining and hydrocarbon sectors, particularly in regions like La Guajira and Cesar.