Search Climate Insights Directory

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provide substantial funding for U.S. public transit and clean energy, including $91.9 billion for transit via the IIJA and $12.3 billion for transportation via the IRA. Key programs include the Urbanized Area Formula Grants, the State of Good Repair Formula Grants, and the Neighborhood Access and Equity (NAE) program. However, the analysis suggests a continued reliance on car-centric infrastructure, with $307 billion of combined transportation funding directed toward roadway planning and development, potentially undermining climate goals and equity through induced demand and the prioritization of personal electric vehicles over mass transit.

The report identifies a significant 'charging access gap' for U.S. residents in multifamily housing (MFH), who often lack on-site charging and must rely on public infrastructure. Analyzing 69 cities, the study found that no city achieved a 'best in class' ranking, with many cities—particularly in the Upper Midwest and Texas—showing high ratios of MFH units per public charger. The authors argue that this lack of reliable charging is a critical barrier to equitable EV adoption, especially for lower-income and non-white drivers. To address this, the report recommends a combination of EV-ready building codes, right-to-charge laws, curbside charging expansions, and streamlined utility interconnection rules.

The document examines the ecological footprint of e-commerce, highlighting carbon emissions from logistics, packaging waste, and the impact of high product return rates. It argues that sustainability requires a coordinated effort: governments must implement green regulations and urban planning; the private sector should optimize supply chains and adopt renewable energy; and consumers must shift away from impulsive, high-frequency purchasing. The author emphasizes the need for better data collection and international cooperation, particularly to support developing nations in building sustainable digital infrastructures.

The document analyzes the environmental footprint of e-commerce, highlighting issues such as carbon emissions from logistics, packaging waste, and high return rates. It proposes a multi-stakeholder action agenda involving government regulation, private sector supply chain optimization, consumer behavioral shifts, and international cooperation to foster a sustainable digital economy.

The document details the history of transit inequality in Boston, specifically focusing on the Roxbury neighborhood, and outlines the advocacy work of Alternatives for Community and Environment (ACE) and the T Riders Union (TRU) to secure affordable, fair, and sustainable transit services.

The report evaluates Rwanda's progress on climate adaptation indicators for human settlements and transport. Key findings include an increase in rural households in planned settlements to 65.4% and the implementation of stormwater-inclusive master plans in 16 districts. However, urban informal settlements remain at 61.3%, and urban green space (19.89%) falls short of the 30% target. The transport sector has developed comprehensive resilience guidelines and expanded scheduled bus routes to 14,475 km, though road vulnerability assessments show significant risks in the Western, Northern, and Southern Provinces.

The report evaluates three primary climate adaptation indicators in Rwanda: the proportion of rural populations in clustered settlements, access to water and sanitation services, and the reduction of road vulnerability to floods and landslides. It finds that while planned rural settlements have increased to 65.4% and water access has improved, significant gaps remain in sanitation coverage and road resilience. The document highlights the effectiveness of engineering solutions like gabions and terracing for road stability and the social benefits of Integrated Development Programme (IDP) model villages, while recommending increased investment in climate-resilient infrastructure and better inter-sectoral coordination.

The study finds that climate change increased rainfall intensity in Taiwan and Hunan province and contributed to a 7% increase in maximum wind speeds for similar storms in the Western North Pacific basin. While sea surface temperatures as hot as those observed during Typhoon Gaemi were "almost impossible without climate change", the analysis did not identify a significant trend for rainfall in the northern Philippines. The report highlights that existing urban plans and flood infrastructure are unable to withstand climate-driven extreme floods, particularly in areas of unplanned urban development like Metro Manila.

The paper examines how the 2020 flooding of Lake Naivasha displaced approximately 500 people in the Kihoto informal settlement. It finds that vulnerability is driven less by environmental factors and more by socio-economic marginalization, including precarious employment in horticulture and tourism, lack of secure land tenure, and a deficiency in official disaster response. The study highlights a 'double tragedy' where flooding coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, eroding long-term resilience and crippling local informal savings groups (chamas). Findings indicate that women aged 18-35 suffered the highest rates of unemployment post-disaster. The authors argue for vulnerability reduction through livelihood diversification, investment in basic infrastructure, and inclusive, co-produced risk governance.

RMI analysis indicates that Illinois households could save over $2,800 annually by implementing a combination of vehicle electrification standards, climate-driven agency planning, and renewed transit investments. These strategies could reduce pollution by up to 305 million metric tons between 2024 and 2050 and prevent thousands of deaths annually through reduced crash fatalities, improved air quality, and increased physical activity. While Illinois has received federal funding via the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, the report notes the state has yet to adopt clean vehicle standards or integrate climate metrics into infrastructure project scoring.

The São Paulo Complete Streets Network, a partnership between WRI and the Bloomberg Initiative for Global Road Safety, supported Brazilian cities in redesigning infrastructure to protect pedestrians, cyclists, and public transit users. Between 2020 and 2023, ten cities in São Paulo implemented measures such as expanded sidewalks, cycle lanes, and reduced speed limits. These efforts contributed to a shift where the crash mortality rate in these cities fell below the state average of São Paulo in 2022, compared to 2021 when it was higher.

The proposal addresses the rapid growth of GHG emissions in Togo's transport sector, which increased 278% between 1995 and 2018. It identifies critical gaps including weak legal frameworks, poor institutional coordination, and a lack of technical expertise at national and local levels. The proposed 24-month intervention focuses on establishing a coordination mechanism, developing a stakeholder engagement plan, enhancing the capacity of ministries to evaluate emissions and design low-emission mobility plans, and creating a sustainable financial strategy to attract private investment. Key activities include urban planning evaluations for five major cities, the development of a low-emission roadmap for the Ministry of Energy, and an awareness campaign to improve public perception of low-carbon transport.

The document introduces a study on the future of mobile work—including working from home, business trips, and co-working spaces—and investigates how these shifts affect traditional office spaces, private living spaces, settlement patterns, and consumer services to identify opportunities for climate protection policy.

The proposal seeks USD 599,932 over 24 months to address five key barriers hindering the integration of green infrastructure and nature-based solutions (NbS) in Chile. These barriers include the lack of a long-term national strategy, weak interinstitutional governance, insufficient technical data, limited investment, and low public awareness. The project, implemented by the FAO and led by the Ministry of Housing and Urbanism (MINVU) and the Ministry of the Environment (MMA), will create the National Green Infrastructure Strategy (ENIV), a Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) system, and a financing strategy. Key activities include conducting technical studies on disaster risk reduction and zoning modeling for urban vegetation, as well as holding regional workshops across all 16 Chilean regions to ensure participatory development and gender inclusion.

The report examines two nature-based solutions (NbS) projects: mangrove restoration in Grenada and interurban biological corridors in Costa Rica. It highlights the importance of establishing ecological baselines, using participatory monitoring and citizen science, and integrating biodiversity targets into urban planning to ensure that climate adaptation efforts also provide net gains for ecosystem health.

The document presents two case studies to illustrate the practical application of nature-based solutions (NbS) for climate adaptation. The first case focuses on mangrove restoration in Grenada, emphasizing the use of a specific restoration protocol and diverse biodiversity monitoring tools to improve seedling survival and ecosystem health. The second case examines the Biodiver_City project in Costa Rica, which implements interurban biological corridors in the San José metropolitan area to combat urban heat islands and flooding while enhancing ecological connectivity. Both cases highlight the importance of baseline data, citizen science, and multi-stakeholder coordination in achieving biodiversity co-benefits.

The document analyzes the demographic transition of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, noting that all are facing population ageing while still in a middle-income economic phase. It highlights the risks of economic stagnation, fiscal pressure on pensions and healthcare, and the political challenges of raising retirement ages. The author recommends that BRICS members leverage their collective resources to invest in human capital, assistive technologies, and age-friendly urban planning, while sharing policy lessons to create a sustainable development precedent for other Global South countries.

The document argues that the U.S. transition to electric vehicles risks leaving behind low-income, rural, and minority communities due to 'charging deserts' and financial barriers. It outlines five strategies for local governments to ensure equitable access: utilizing community input for siting, prioritizing multifamily housing and charging deserts, expanding urban curbside charging, increasing pricing transparency, and supporting diverse e-mobility modes. The guide emphasizes that overcoming disparities in homeownership and energy burdens is essential for a just energy transition.

The document outlines insights from the FRACTAL and FRACTAL-Plus projects, arguing that climate services should transition from a product-driven focus to a process-driven approach centered on decision-making needs, learning, and relationship-building.

Climate Central analyzed 18,945 census tracts across 44 major U.S. cities, finding that 41 million people (approximately 55% of the analyzed population) live in areas where the urban heat island (UHI) effect increases temperatures by 8°F or more. The study identifies albedo, green space percentage, and population density as the primary drivers of this effect, with New York City exhibiting the highest average UHI index. The analysis categorizes cities by heat patterns—concentrated cores, diffused zones, or sprawling intensity—and highlights that structural inequities often lead to disproportionate heat exposure for people of color and low-income populations.