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The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) issued a statement welcoming the appointment of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) on February 15, 2021.

This research paper evaluates the framing of human health within four major international agendas—the Paris Agreement, Agenda 2030, the Sendai Framework, and the New Urban Agenda—concluding that greater coherence and governance mechanisms are required to effectively translate these global goals into national policies.

This policy brief examines the green bond market in Africa as a mechanism for mobilizing the significant financial resources needed for climate change adaptation and mitigation, noting that current public finance is inadequate to meet these needs and the Sustainable Development Goals.

This case study by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and GIZ examines the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Paris Agreement, and the Sendai Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction in Germany. It focuses on the mechanisms and enabling factors required to achieve policy coherence across different levels of governance to strengthen resilience and reduce vulnerability to climate change and disasters.

This policy brief by the International Institute for Sustainable Development examines the evolution of global development goals, from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (SDGs). It analyzes the lessons learned from the MDGs, the expanded scope of the SDGs, and how the 2030 Agenda can serve as a framework for recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.

This document is a directory of actors in the renewable energy sector in Togo, published in January 2021 by the Alliance for Renewable Electrification (ARE). It provides a comprehensive list of government bodies, private companies, NGOs, academic institutions, international partners, and financial entities operating within the country's energy transition landscape.

This case study by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines mine closure policies in South America, with a detailed focus on the legislative frameworks of Chile and Peru. It outlines international best practices for mine closure, emphasizing the critical role of financial guarantees to prevent abandoned sites and protect the public interest. The document compares the national approaches of Chile and Peru, highlighting their use of mandatory financial assurances and periodic plan updates, while noting a general lack of emphasis on social transition and post-closure land use in both jurisdictions.

The Recover Better with Sustainable Energy Guide for South Asian Countries outlines the energy access challenges and economic risks facing South Asian nations during the pandemic, urging leaders to utilize recovery efforts to transition toward sustainable development and updated Nationally Determined Contributions.

This report by the NewClimate Institute examines methods for implementing sustainable development impact assessments within climate change mitigation mechanisms, specifically focusing on project-level indicators for monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) in voluntary and mandatory carbon markets.

This report by the NewClimate Institute examines methods to strengthen the role of sustainable development and safeguarding provisions within the design of mechanisms under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, drawing on experiences from the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), voluntary markets, and non-UNFCCC multilateral institutions.

This report evaluates Panama's readiness to implement the Mining Policy Framework (MPM) of the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development (IGF). The assessment, conducted between December 2019 and April 2020, identifies a sector in a developmental phase with a significant large-scale operation (Cobre Panamá) and a smaller non-metallic sector. While Panama has strengths in environmental awareness and indigenous rights recognition, it faces critical gaps in its outdated legal framework, lack of a cohesive national mining policy, weak fiscal oversight, and a near-total absence of specific regulations for mine closure and artisanal mining.

This policy brief by the Climate Policy Initiative and Inter.B analyzes infrastructure planning in Brazil, specifically within the land transport sector. It argues that current processes fail to integrate socio-environmental factors and recommends the introduction of a 'pre-viability' phase to improve project selection and prioritization, alongside a planning strategy that prioritizes sustainable development and the protection of the Amazon.

The Climate Policy Initiative calls on development banks and financial institutions to utilize COVID-19 recovery finance to shift global economic trajectories toward sustainability and social justice, rather than returning to business-as-usual models that lock in unsustainable activities.

This executive summary, published in November 2020 by the NYDF Assessment Partners and coordinated by Climate Focus, evaluates progress toward the New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF). It specifically focuses on Objective 3 (reducing deforestation from economic sectors other than agriculture) and Objective 4 (promoting sustainable alternatives to basic-need driven deforestation). The report finds that natural forest loss has increased since 2014, failing the goal of a 50% reduction by 2020, and highlights systemic failures in transparency, policy enforcement, and the protection of indigenous rights across governments, corporations, and financial institutions.

This policy brief by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines the role of technical assistance and capacity building (TACB) in implementing a potential World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement on fisheries subsidies. It identifies critical gaps between the needs of developing countries for compliance—such as subsidy inventory and IUU monitoring—and the actual distribution of official development assistance (ODA), which heavily favors general fisheries development and management over specific subsidy reform.

This policy brief outlines the international governance of biodiversity, focusing on the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and its associated protocols. It details the shift from species-based to area-based conservation, the challenges of ensuring fair benefit-sharing from genetic resources, and the regulatory complexities introduced by emerging technologies like synthetic biology and digital sequence information (DSI). The document emphasizes the urgency of moving away from "business as usual" to reverse biodiversity loss and achieve sustainable development goals.

This research paper by the South African Institute of International Affairs examines the necessary adaptations for South Africa's trade policy following the COVID-19 pandemic. It advocates for a revised Trade Policy Strategic Framework that emphasizes regional integration through the AfCFTA and SACU, a strategic redesign of South Africa's role within the WTO, and the diversification of global trading partnerships to ensure economic resilience in the 2020s.

This policy brief examines the 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm, detailing its origins, the diplomatic tensions between developed and developing nations, and its lasting impact on international environmental law and the creation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

This executive summary by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI/PUC-Rio) analyzes the planning, governance, and environmental risks of the EF-170 railway (Ferrogrão) in Brazil. The document identifies significant fragilities in the project's economic modeling, socio-environmental assessments, and administrative transparency, warning that without mitigation, the project could induce substantial deforestation in Mato Grosso.

This briefing describes the 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm, Sweden, as the foundational event for modern environmental diplomacy. It details the conference's origins, the tensions between developed and developing nations, the resulting Stockholm Declaration and Action Plan, and the subsequent establishment of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).