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The World Resources Institute (WRI) reported total assets of $533,266,191 as of September 30, 2023, an increase from $384,549,025 in 2022. The organization's operating revenues for the 2023 fiscal year totaled $250,310,049, with $235,185,176 in operating expenses. An independent audit by Grant Thornton LLP issued an unmodified opinion on the financial statements and compliance for major federal programs, although a significant deficiency was identified regarding the preparation of the Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards (SEFA). WRI's programmatic work is organized across seven critical issues, including climate, energy, and forests, with a global presence including subsidiaries and offices in India, Europe, Colombia, Kenya, China, and Ethiopia.

The Catalyst Climate Resilience Fund (CCRF) is a blended finance vehicle designed to support pre-seed climate adaptation startups in Africa. It provides an initial USD 200,000 investment per company, split between cash and venture-building support from BFA Global. The fund targets a total size of USD 40 million, utilizing a tiered capital structure with first-loss protection to attract commercial investors. Its investment thesis focuses on three verticals: fintech for resilience, sustainable livelihoods, and climate-smart essential services. The fund has already completed its first close of approximately USD 8.5 million in August 2023 and has made 10 initial pre-seed investments across several African nations.

The report analyzes the urgent water crisis in Bolivia, driven by population growth, increased consumption in agriculture, industry, and energy, and exacerbated by climate change and pollution. It argues that deep transformations in water management are necessary to meet national development and climate goals, emphasizing the need for 'just transition' planning to prevent adverse impacts on communities and governments. By reviewing projects under the Climate Resilience Pilot Program, the document seeks to provide guidance for future just transitions in the water sector both in Bolivia and globally.

The 'Recharge Pakistan' project is a 7-year initiative designed to shift Pakistan's flood and water management from a reactive, grey-infrastructure-based approach to a proactive, nature-based strategy. With a total budget of approximately 77.8 million USD, the project focuses on four sites in the Indus Basin: DI Khan, Ramak, Chakar Lehri, and Manchar Lake. Key activities include restoring 14,215 hectares of degraded watersheds, implementing 127 green infrastructure measures (such as recharge basins and retention areas), and updating national and provincial water policies to prioritize EbA. The project also aims to improve the livelihoods of over 50,000 smallholder farmers through climate-smart agriculture and support the incubation of seven sustainable businesses. It is expected to benefit 687,336 direct and over 7 million indirect beneficiaries.

The SOLKAS project is a 72-month initiative designed to benefit 185,102 direct beneficiaries across six provinces in the Solomon Islands. It focuses on three main components: building community and school capacity for adaptation planning, implementing physical resilience measures (such as school retrofits and climate-resilient agriculture), and strengthening institutional governance through the deployment of a digital Climate Resilience Information Management System (CRIMS). The project specifically targets youth, women, and children to address systemic vulnerabilities and promote locally led adaptation (LLA).

The 55th meeting of the IAI Executive Council focused on financial sustainability, leadership transitions, and regional climate initiatives. The Council recommended that the Conference of the Parties (CoP) approve the FY 2023-2024 Core Budget and establish a working group to increase voluntary contributions and diversify funding sources, noting that the core budget has not increased since 1992. The meeting also introduced Dr. Anna Stewart-Ibarra as the new Executive Director and Dr. Edwin Castellanos as the incoming Science Director. Additionally, the Council discussed a Regional Assessment of global change policy priorities and an initiative to enhance national climate assessment capacities in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The report assesses gender-based vulnerabilities in northwest Bangladesh to support the ECCCP-Drought project, which aims to benefit 215,000 people through water infrastructure and resilient agriculture. It identifies systemic barriers for women, including limited land ownership, wage discrimination in agricultural labor, and restricted mobility. The assessment highlights how drought exacerbates these issues, increasing food insecurity and the prevalence of early marriage. To address this, the project mandates that 50% of beneficiaries and Climate Change Adaptation Group (CCAG) members be women, while integrating gender-responsive measures into water management and agricultural activities.

The document analyzes the Mijares river basin, noting that decreased summer rainfall is linked to land-use changes and is driving aridification. Through 'uncertainty dialogues' with stakeholders, the authors identify three critical barriers to sustainability: the unpredictability of rural abandonment, a lack of technical knowledge for profitable and sustainable forest management to prevent fires, and conflicting perspectives on water allocation between the upper and lower basin. The brief argues that addressing these uncertainties through coordinated dialogue is essential for implementing robust sustainability projects.

The report analyzes the alignment between the Colombian and EU taxonomies, finding a high degree of similarity in climate change mitigation criteria for 47% of compared activities. While both frameworks share core principles and governance structures, the EU Taxonomy is generally more detailed in its technical eligibility criteria and adaptation objectives, whereas the Colombian Taxonomy offers more specific requirements for land-use sectors and certain circular economy safeguards.

The policy brief identifies three primary drivers of food insecurity in Africa: limits to agricultural land, limits to agricultural productivity, and climate change effects. It highlights a steady decline in arable land per capita from 0.31 in 1990 to 0.2 in 2020, alongside severe productivity gaps where African farmers use only 8kg of fertiliser per hectare compared to 140kg in Asia and Latin America. The document calls on the G20 to provide financial and technical support for soil mapping, small-scale irrigation, the Africa Fertilizer Financing Mechanism, and the commercialisation of quality seeds to help the continent meet UN Sustainable Development Goals and AU Agenda 2063 targets.

The 'Recharge Pakistan' project aims to shift Pakistan's flood and water management from a reactive, grey-infrastructure-based approach to a proactive, nature-based strategy. Implementing interventions across four sites in the Indus Basin, the project focuses on restoring degraded watersheds, establishing green infrastructure like recharge basins, and updating national and provincial water policies. It also targets the resilience of smallholder farmers through climate-smart agriculture and supports the development of sustainable, climate-resilient businesses. The project is managed by WWF-US as the Accredited Entity and WWF-Pakistan as the Executing Entity, with a total budget of approximately 77.8 million USD.

The report identifies poor governance, hydrocarbon dependence, and an unsustainable subsidy system as primary barriers to Algeria's growth. It projects a modest GDP growth rate of 1.8% between 2020 and 2040 under the 'Current Path' but proposes an 'Algerian Dream' scenario based on four reform pillars: improved governance, economic transformation, investment in the knowledge economy, and a transition to sustainable agriculture and renewable energy.

The proposal seeks USD 2,726,404 over 36 months to overcome five primary barriers to climate change adaptation (CCA) in Georgia: limited national and regional coordination, insufficient mainstreaming of CCA in policies, low awareness among decision-makers, limited funding, and the lack of a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation (M&E) system. The project, implemented by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture (MEPA), will establish thematic working groups, conduct climate risk assessments in four representative regions, develop six sectoral adaptation plans, and create a private sector engagement strategy. A central goal is the formulation and submission of a costed National Adaptation Plan to the UNFCCC, supported by a new M&E framework and a targeted adaptation finance action plan.

The document details the proceedings of the 2022 IISD Forum on Natural Infrastructure Performance and Metrics, focusing on the Canadian Prairies. It argues that while natural infrastructure (NI) is essential for water management, a lack of standardized metrics and economic valuation tools hinders its large-scale adoption. The report outlines a framework for scaling NI through improved data sharing, regional watershed-scale planning, the integration of Indigenous knowledge via 'Two-Eyed Seeing', and the use of economic valuation tools like SAVi to engage municipal decision-makers.

The document describes a 2023-2024 project to create the Water Sector Youth Leadership Network (WSYLN) in the Mekong-Lancang Region. The initiative aims to move beyond volunteerism by building a network of practitioners, researchers, and community leaders to improve inclusive water governance. Key activities include reviewing existing youth networks, providing capacity-building training, and hosting regional consultation workshops to strengthen partnerships between youth, researchers, and policymakers.

The document describes a project aimed at building climate-resilient water resources and rice farming systems in the Lancang-Mekong Region. It focuses on technical exchange, capacity building for farmers and government agencies, and the implementation of pilot studies in Thailand and China to combat water scarcity and drought risks. The project intends to produce a State of Knowledge Report, joint research papers, and policy briefs while promoting public-private partnerships.

Experts from the Office of National Water Resources, Rajamangala University of Technology Isan, and the Stockholm Environment Institute visited Nakhon Ratchasima from August 15-17, 2023, to evaluate climate-smart agricultural technologies. The visit included observations of field levelling, soil moisture measurement, and the use of calcium carbonate at the Rice Research Centre, as well as a grassroots valve control tool at the Land Development Station. The team also visited a smart farm utilizing Internet of Things (IoT) technology and the alternating wetting and drying method for rice cultivation, and reviewed low-cost weather monitoring tools developed by RMUTI.

The project launch meeting, held on June 26, 2023, in Bangkok, aimed to align stakeholders on the project's scope and work plan for implementing climate-smart water technologies in the Lancang-Mekong Region. Key discussions centered on the practical application of technologies for farmers, the identification of drought-prone areas such as northeastern Thailand, and the challenges of implementing Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) in rainfed regions. The meeting also addressed the organization of regional meetings and the selection of demonstration sites in China, Thailand, and Lao PDR, emphasizing the need for gender-inclusive data and the involvement of youth and farmers' organizations.

The PIDACC-Zambezi programme seeks USD 100 million from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to complement a total budget of USD 312.3 million. It targets the Zambezi Watercourse, where climate change is causing increased drought, flooding, and reduced hydropower potential. The programme focuses on four components: building community resilience through infrastructure and agribusiness, strengthening integrated landscape management, enhancing adaptive and institutional capacity, and programme coordination. Key targets include benefiting 3.79 million direct beneficiaries, restoring 970,000 hectares of degraded land, and reducing emissions by 37.1 million tCO2eq. The initiative emphasizes the use of digital technologies, carbon farming via the Boomitra model, and the establishment of a Direct Credit Window to de-risk private sector investment in agribusiness.

The report identifies barriers to private urban climate investment across macro, city, and project levels, and provides recommendations for city governments, public sector partners, and private/third sector entities to improve enabling conditions. It analyzes five case studies from Chile, Ecuador, India, South Africa, and Turkiye to highlight success factors such as bulk procurement, green bonds, and strategic partnerships.