Search Climate Insights Directory
2,139 results
Green Revenues for Green Energy
The report examines how environmental taxes and other market-based instruments can fund renewable energy deployment. Through eight case studies from diverse economies, it argues that EFR can generate a 'double dividend' by reducing pollution while providing stable funding for green energy. It highlights the importance of revenue recycling to maintain economic competitiveness and the role of earmarking in increasing policy transparency and public acceptance. For China, the report suggests transitioning from electricity surcharges to a system based on natural resource and carbon taxes to ensure long-term investment stability.
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Document type: Report
RUSSIA–SOUTH AFRICA RELATIONS: BEYOND REVIVAL
The document examines the political, economic, and scientific ties between Russia and South Africa, noting a significant imbalance where political coordination is strong but economic and civil society linkages remain underdeveloped. While bilateral trade grew from $138.1 million in 2002 to nearly $1 billion in 2012, the authors argue that the relationship is hindered by a lack of mutual knowledge and limited cultural exchange. Key areas of cooperation include mineral resources, nuclear energy, and aviation, culminating in the March 2013 Joint Declaration on the establishment of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
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Document type: Policy brief
The Role of Development Finance Institutions and Development Banks in Scaling Up Green and Climate Investments
The document analyzes the 2012 green and climate finance activities of 15 surveyed DFIs and DBs, who committed approximately USD 18.2 billion. While these institutions play a significant role in financing green economic development, their catalytic potential is hindered by a shortage of bankable projects and the uncertain viability of prototype technologies. The report details the sectoral distribution of funds—favoring mitigation and sustainable transport—and examines the ongoing financing of fossil fuel projects. It concludes by suggesting policy improvements and enhanced transparency through standardized reporting to further scale green investments.
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Document type: Briefing
Policy Tools That Support Transition Into a Green Economy
The document examines how regulations and standards can be used to foster a green economy by either mandating transitions or removing regulatory barriers. It highlights Vancouver's "Green Tape Review" as a successful example of removing obstacles to green technologies, such as green roofs and urban agriculture, through zoning bylaw amendments. The text suggests that a similar proactive review in Manitoba could identify and remove sustainability barriers with minimal opposition compared to imposing higher mandatory standards.
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Document type: Briefing
Gas Ceiling
The report argues that replacing coal with natural gas is insufficient to meet U.S. climate goals due to continued CO2 emissions and methane leakage. It highlights risks including water contamination from fracking, price volatility, and the potential to crowd out renewables. The authors advocate for a transition to a system where renewables and efficiency provide 80% of electricity by 2050.
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Document type: Report
Managing Risk in Ohio
Ohio is transitioning from coal to natural gas for electricity generation, but this shift maintains significant risks. The report advocates for a more diverse energy mix, highlighting the success of the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard in reducing costs and creating jobs through wind, solar, and energy efficiency.
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Document type: Report
Issue Brief: Energy Storage
The document examines various energy storage technologies, ranging from established systems like pumped hydro and compressed air energy storage (CAES) to emerging solutions like flow batteries and flywheels. It highlights the critical role of U.S. federal initiatives, specifically Department of Energy (DOE) grants and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) orders, in reducing financial risks and reforming market access to encourage utility-scale implementation. The brief also details specific U.S. projects and proposed legislation, such as the STORAGE Act, aimed at incentivizing storage to support grid stability and the integration of variable renewable energy.
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Document type: Briefing
La Ruta hacia el Futuro para la Energía Renovable en Centroamérica
The report analyzes the energy landscape of Central America, noting a contradictory trend where the region leads in geothermal and hydroelectric power but faces increasing dependence on imported fossil fuels. It argues that while the region has the potential to meet 100% of its electricity needs through renewables, significant gaps in data, administrative inefficiency, and fossil fuel subsidies hinder progress. The document recommends integrating technical resource assessments with socio-economic analysis (LCOE+), simplifying bureaucratic processes through 'single-window' permitting, and strengthening regional interconnection via SIEPAC to manage variability in wind and solar power.
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Document type: Report
Energy Storage
The document examines various energy storage technologies, from established methods like pumped hydro to emerging battery and flywheel systems, highlighting their role in integrating renewable energy and stabilizing the grid. It details the impact of FERC Orders 1000 and 755 and DOE initiatives, such as the Joint Center for Energy Storage Research (JCESR), in reducing technical and economic hurdles. Additionally, it profiles several large-scale U.S. projects and discusses proposed legislation, including the STORAGE Act, aimed at incentivizing storage deployment through tax credits.
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Document type: Policy brief
coal fails to deliver for india watch this
The text highlights the ecological and social costs of coal mining in Central India, specifically the loss of biodiversity and displacement of forest communities. It notes that despite doubling coal production capacity since 2007, 400 million Indians still lack electricity. The document criticizes the failure of 22 out of 29 Indian states to meet Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) targets in 2012 and argues that the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) acts as a fossil fuel subsidy by providing credits to coal plants that do not achieve real emission reductions.
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Document type: Statement
Imagine a University
Amory Lovins advocates for universities to move beyond reductionist thinking by employing 'integrative design' to optimize buildings and campus systems. He suggests that by engaging students in hands-on, transdisciplinary projects, universities can transition from high energy costs to 'negative costs' through extreme efficiency and onsite renewables. The text emphasizes that the goal for all waste—energy, materials, and water—should be zero, transforming campuses into regenerative microcosms of a sustainable economy.
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Document type: Statement
Survey on Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Study on the Effects of Climate Change in the Upper Yallahs Watershed
The survey found high levels of climate change awareness in the Grasspiece, Brook Lodge, and Poorman’s Corner communities, with respondents identifying flooding and drought as primary evidence. While most believe they can manage these effects, primarily through evacuation, there is a strong consensus that planting trees and adopting agro-forestry can reduce flooding risks.
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Document type: Report
fact-sheet-jobs-in-renewable-energy-and-energy-efficiency
The document compiles job data from various government and industry sources to estimate employment in the U.S. clean energy economy. It highlights that as of 2011, there were 3.4 million green jobs in the U.S., and that the 'clean economy' employed 2.7 million people in 2010, surpassing the 2.4 million employed in the fossil fuel industry. The report details specific employment figures for sectors such as biofuels, hydropower, solar, and wind, while projecting significant future job growth in energy efficiency through 2050.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Jobs in Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency
The document details employment figures for the U.S. green economy, noting that the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated 3.4 million green jobs in late 2011. It provides a granular breakdown of jobs in energy efficiency, which totaled 823,105 direct jobs according to a Brookings-Battelle study, and renewable energy, where total estimates range from 903,536 to 1,055,536 jobs across various technologies including biofuels, hydropower, solar, and wind.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Pioneering renewable energy options: Thailand takes up the challenge
Thailand has achieved rapid growth in renewable energy, particularly solar power, through a combination of incentive policies, simplified regulations, and civil society engagement. Key mechanisms include the Small Power Producer (SPP) and Very Small Power Producer (VSPP) programmes, and the 'Adder' feed-in premium. While these policies attracted significant private investment and increased capacity, the government is now transitioning toward a more sophisticated feed-in tariff to manage costs and balance the energy portfolio, as solar growth has significantly outpaced other renewable sources.
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Document type: Policy brief
Ramping Renewables
The US experienced a nearly four-fold increase in electricity from wind and solar between 2007 and 2012, with nine states already generating 10 percent or more of their power from these sources. The document asserts that current grid tools can handle higher percentages of variable renewable energy and that a combination of wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, and hydropower could supply 80 percent of US electricity by 2050, with wind and solar alone contributing 50 percent.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Mainstreaming climate change resilience into development planning in the Gambia
The report evaluates the Gambia's efforts to mainstream climate change resilience into its development planning. It highlights the existence of high-level political will, the integration of climate actions into the Programme for Accelerated Growth and Employment (PAGE) 2012–2015, and the role of the National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA). However, it notes gaps in coordinated research and inadequate funding for adaptation, necessitating a resource mobilisation strategy reliant on international assistance.
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Document type: Report
ENERGY 101
The 'Energy 101' Model Curriculum is a one-semester interdisciplinary framework developed by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). It aims to foster 'energy literate decision making' by combining the science of energy with economic, ethical, societal, and international factors. The curriculum is structured into five units: Introduction to Energy, Energy Basics, Energy Sources, Energy Technology and Practice, and Energy Policy and Decision-Making. It utilizes the National Training & Education Resource (NTER), an open-source cloud-based platform, to provide instructional materials and interactive graphics. The framework is currently being tested at the University of Maryland, with further implementations planned at Harford Community College and Cecil Community College.
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Document type: Guide
Case Studies on Low Emission Development
The document details Nepal's approach to integrating economy, society, and environment through District Climate and Energy Plans (DCEPs). It highlights a pilot process in three districts—Ilam, Makwanpur, and Mustang—which led to the creation of a 'DCEP Preparation Guideline' to be scaled across all 75 districts. Using Ilam as a primary example, the text describes how multi-stakeholder task forces use data and scenario analysis to prioritize renewable energy technologies (RETs) such as solar, biogas, and micro-hydro based on mitigation potential and local vulnerability. This bottom-up planning is supported by the national Climate Change Policy (2011) and the forthcoming Low Carbon Economic Development Strategy (LCEDS).
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Document type: Case study
Facteurs et défis associés au développement respectueux du climat
The document identifies five key drivers for Climate Compatible Development (CCD)—national adaptation needs, energy security, new economic opportunities, access to climate finance, and strong government leadership—while detailing seven primary obstacles, including high opportunity costs, political resistance, and institutional constraints. It provides case studies from over 40 countries to illustrate how these factors interact and suggests solutions such as multi-stakeholder dialogue, legislative anchoring, and risk-sharing financial mechanisms.
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Document type: Research paper