Search Climate Insights Directory

This briefing by RMI argues that mining companies in developing countries can improve financial and climate resilience by transitioning from inefficient diesel power to renewable energy. By co-creating business models with local communities, mining operations can address their own energy needs while expanding energy access and supporting sustainable development in remote regions.

Macquarie Group issued GBP500m in green loan tranches on 13 June 2018, marking the first such issuance from an Australian issuer. The funds are allocated to renewable energy, waste management, clean transportation, and certified green buildings, while explicitly excluding fossil fuels, nuclear, and food-production biomass. The issuer will provide annual reporting on proceeds and impacts, though the Climate Bonds Initiative notes the need for more rigorous data on waste-related projects to ensure alignment with low-carbon transitions.

A Green Bond Fact Sheet for a USD 750 million senior unsecured bond issued by National Australia Bank on June 11, 2018, with a maturity date of September 20, 2021.

This amicus curiae brief, submitted by a coalition of environmental law organizations, urges the court to vacate the Bali Governor's Decree granting an environmental permit for the expansion of the PLTU Celukan Bawang coal-fired power plant. The brief argues that the project's environmental impact analysis (ANDAL) is legally insufficient because it fails to comprehensively assess climate change impacts, including greenhouse gas emissions and the project's vulnerability to sea-level rise.

This policy briefing by the South African Institute of International Affairs examines South Africa's role as chair of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) starting in October 2017. It argues that while South Africa has set thematic priorities in maritime security and the Blue Economy, its most significant potential legacy lies in driving institutional and procedural reforms to increase the organization's openness, transparency, and inclusivity for researchers and non-governmental stakeholders.

This policy brief examines the impact of seismic surveys used in oil and gas exploration on marine fauna, specifically within South Africa. It argues that current mitigation guidelines, which are often based on the UK's JNCC standards and developed by the companies conducting the surveys, are insufficient. The author recommends the establishment of an independent regulatory board to create country-specific, science-based legislative frameworks to protect biodiversity and maintain environmental integrity as South Africa expands its ocean economy through Operation Phakisa.

This document provides an overview of climate and energy policies adopted since July 2017 across 25 major emitting countries and regions, supplementing a 2017 report on projected greenhouse gas emissions for 2030.

This research paper examines the risks and opportunities of Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) in delivering sustainable infrastructure. It analyzes high-profile failures, such as the collapse of Carillion in the UK, and critiques current policy approaches in the US and developing nations, arguing that PPPs often fail when used primarily to keep debt off public balance sheets rather than to optimize value for money.

This briefing by the Climate Bonds Initiative explains how green securitisation—the process of creating asset-backed securities (ABS) from low-carbon assets—can unlock finance for small-scale projects. It details various structures including synthetic ABS, PACE ABS, solar ABS, and green mortgage-backed securities, highlighting how aggregating small assets allows institutional investors to provide capital to SMEs and urban infrastructure.

This RMI insight brief argues that the global climate finance system must evolve from a focus on 'direct access' to multilateral funds toward establishing national institutions, specifically Green Investment Banks (GIBs), to ensure true country ownership. The authors posit that for large emerging markets, national GIBs can better mobilize domestic private capital and coordinate financial flows to achieve nationally determined commitments (NDCs) than current international structures.

A fact sheet detailing a AUD117.3 million (USD91 million) Certified Climate Bond issued by Westpac Banking Corp on February 28, 2018, targeting Japanese retail investors.

This research paper analyzes the challenges facing the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM), contrasting it with the more established Global Compact on Refugees (GCR). It examines the political obstacles to the GCM, the unequal dynamics of migration negotiations between the African Union and the European Union, and the limitations of the GCM's February 2018 zero draft, which the author argues lacks binding accountability mechanisms.

This briefing by the Center for International Environmental Law reviews the status of human rights, gender equality, and other social considerations within the negotiations for the Paris Agreement's implementation guidelines as of February 2018. It analyzes four key agenda items—Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), Adaptation Communications, the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF), and the Global Stocktake (GST)—detailing the proposals made by various countries and the extent to which these social dimensions were reflected in the co-facilitators' notes following COP-23.

This guide by Friends of the Earth International provides a compilation of strategies and experiences for communities and Indigenous Peoples to declare their territories free from threats such as REDD, financialization of nature, mining, fracking, and GMOs. It frames these declarations as exercises of autonomy and political practices aimed at realizing collective human rights and defending traditional ways of living against an extractivist corporate model.

This guide, published by Friends of the Earth International, outlines the concept and practice of declaring 'free territories' to protect lands from extractive industries, financialization of nature, and corporate imposition. It provides a framework for communities and indigenous peoples to exercise autonomy and human rights by formally rejecting projects such as mining, fracking, and GMOs.

This guide by Friends of the Earth International provides a compilation of ideas and experiences regarding the declaration of 'free territories'—areas where communities, indigenous peoples, or local governments formally reject specific harmful projects or policies. The document focuses on strategies to resist the 'financialization of nature' (FN), REDD projects, extractive industries, and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to protect local autonomy and traditional ways of life.

This executive summary from the 2018 'Brown to Green' report analyzes the progress of G20 countries toward a low-carbon economy. It highlights a significant gap between current Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and the goals of the Paris Agreement, noting that G20 energy-related CO2 emissions began increasing again in 2017 and that 82% of the G20 energy supply remains dependent on fossil fuels.

Sustainalytics conducted a pre-issuance verification of AC Energy's green bond in January 2019 to ensure its conformance with the Wind, Solar, and Geothermal Energy Criteria of the Climate Bonds Standard Version 2.1. The verification concluded that the bond's framework for financing or refinancing eligible renewable energy projects meets the required standards.

This report summarizes progress toward Goal 10 of the New York Declaration on Forests, which focuses on strengthening forest governance, transparency, and the rule of law, while empowering indigenous peoples and local communities. It details developments in producer and consumer countries regarding illegal timber trade, the rising violence against environmental defenders, and the status of financial resources and data collection for land tenure security.

This report assesses progress toward Goal 3 of the New York Declaration on Forests: significantly reducing deforestation derived from economic sectors other than agriculture by 2020. It highlights the roles of infrastructure and mining as primary drivers of forest loss and identifies critical data gaps that prevent a global aggregate assessment of these impacts.