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The research evaluates how different market designs affect the European power grid's ability to integrate wind energy. It finds that the current zonal pricing system fails to reflect the physical reality of the grid, leading to inefficient network use and higher costs. Simulations using the MADRID and DRESDEN models demonstrate that a nodal pricing regime would increase international power transfers by up to 34% and generate annual system variable cost savings between €0.8 billion and €2.0 billion, depending on wind penetration levels.

The document analyzes China's 'going-out' strategy, noting that while overseas FDI grew rapidly, it remained concentrated in energy and mining sectors and faced significant losses. It identifies four primary risk categories: breach of contract, exchange losses, premium-value transactions, and integration failures. The author argues that systemic risks stem from excessive government intervention and a lack of international management capacity, while external risks are primarily driven by the incompatibility of legal, political, and social institutions between China and host countries.

The report analyzes the aluminium sector's exposure to carbon leakage, finding that while the sector as a whole is trade-intensive, the risk varies by product. Unwrought non-alloy aluminium is identified as particularly vulnerable due to high trade and CO2 intensity, whereas secondary aluminium and semi-fabricated products pose lower risks. The study highlights a shift in primary production capacity toward China and the Middle East, while the EU27 remains a leader in recycling but continues to export scrap to China.

The document outlines four decades of activism by Friends of the Earth International, highlighting specific successes in banning commercial whaling in Spain, prohibiting open-pit mining in Costa Rica, and establishing the first climate change law in the UK. It details diverse campaigns against coal power in Germany, oil pollution in Nigeria, and genetically modified organisms in Europe, while emphasizing the role of grassroots mobilization and legal action in achieving environmental protections and human rights.

This report highlights the achievements of Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) over four decades, detailing specific campaigns against extractive industries, pollution, and unsustainable development. It documents legal victories, such as the ban on open-pit mining in Costa Rica and the recognition of water as a human right in Uruguay, as well as grassroots successes in reforestation in Belgium and the protection of eucalyptus forests in Australia. The text emphasizes the role of international solidarity and legal action in challenging neoliberal globalization and protecting the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities.

The report evaluates Integrated Place-based Management (IPM) as a holistic approach to managing human-natural system trade-offs. It identifies a gap in long-term impact reporting, noting that most IPM studies focus on short-term results. The authors argue for a dual monitoring approach that combines process-based indicators (governance, participation) with outcome-oriented indicators (environmental status). Case studies in the Lake Champlain Basin, Rhine River Basin, and South Tobacco Creek demonstrate that collaborative governance and strategic planning can lead to documented improvements in water quality, such as reduced phosphorous and coliform contamination, though attributing these changes solely to IPM remains challenging due to time lags and multi-scale interactions.

The report examines China's position as the world's largest producer and consumer of refined copper, detailing the supply chain from extraction to recycling. It highlights the industry's significant economic contribution and employment generation, while addressing environmental risks such as heavy metal pollution and toxic gas emissions. The document also outlines the Chinese government's regulatory framework, including the 'Admittance Qualification of Chinese Copper Smelting Industry', which sets strict energy, resource recovery, and environmental standards for smelters.

The document analyzes the growth and modification of International Investment Agreements (IIAs), noting a trend toward more precise treaty language to preserve state regulatory space, particularly regarding environmental and labor standards. It also details the rise in investor-State disputes, highlighting that while states and investors have similar win rates in concluded cases, the financial stakes and costs of defense are increasing, with developing countries frequently appearing as respondents.

The document serves as a resource for First Nations in Canada to navigate the economic opportunities and risks of carbon markets. It emphasizes that while global literature on indigenous peoples and carbon markets exists, there is a significant information void specifically regarding First Nations in Canada. The report argues that for indigenous participation to be equitable, governments must recognize carbon rights, obtain free, prior and informed consent, and adopt decentralized governance models that prioritize local employment over simple financial compensation. It also highlights the technical necessity of accurate carbon accounting, particularly in the boreal forest, where factors like insect infestations and soil moisture significantly impact carbon stock measurements.

The document details a workshop held at the Stockholm Resilience Centre involving approximately 35 participants. It examines social learning across four primary domains: natural resource management, climate change adaptation, social learning platforms, and the intersection of education and society. The proceedings highlight the definitional complexity of 'social learning', the influence of power dynamics, and the challenges of measuring learning outcomes in time-bound participatory projects. Key discussions emphasize the need for multi-level learning to build adaptive capacity in social-ecological systems and the role of 'shadow spaces' in facilitating international governance.

The document argues that conventional 'siloed' policy-making is insufficient to address the interconnected pressures of population growth, urbanization, and climate change on water, energy, and food security. It proposes a 'nexus approach' that integrates management across sectors to identify synergies and minimize negative externalities. The paper details the specific interactions between these sectors—such as the high water intensity of biofuels and the energy requirements of water desalination—and provides case studies from Jordan, Ethiopia, India, and Brazil to illustrate both the risks of non-integrated development and the potential for sustainable, pro-poor intensification.

The document details the GIS-based modeling approach used to assess threats to global coral reefs, categorizing them into local pressures (coastal development, watershed-based pollution, marine-based pollution, and overfishing) and global threats (thermal stress and ocean acidification). It explains the proxy indicators, distance-based rules, and data sources used to create an integrated threat index, while acknowledging limitations such as the use of population as a proxy for overfishing and the exclusion of coral disease and storm intensity due to uncertainty.

The report advocates for Zero Net Deforestation and Forest Degradation (ZNDD) by 2020 to protect biodiversity and mitigate climate change. Using the Living Forests Model developed with IIASA, it analyzes various scenarios, including a 'Do Nothing' baseline and a 'Target' scenario. The findings suggest that while ZNDD is technically possible in the short term, maintaining it beyond 2030 will require unprecedented increases in agricultural productivity and significant shifts in global consumption patterns, particularly regarding animal calories. The document highlights critical trade-offs, such as the risk of shifting environmental pressure to non-forest biomes like grasslands and the potential for increased agricultural pollution due to intensification.

The report challenges the 'miracle crop' narrative of jatropha, presenting ten reasons why industrial-scale plantations fail. It argues that jatropha requires fertile land, significant water, and chemical inputs to be productive, contradicting claims that it thrives on marginal land. This leads to competition with food production, displacement of local communities, and biodiversity loss. Economically, the report highlights a pattern of failed investment projects and unrealistic yield promises. Environmentally, it asserts that land-use change for jatropha can increase carbon emissions, undermining its purpose as a climate solution.

The document outlines the positions of a broad coalition of environmental and health NGOs on the European Commission's proposed definition of nanomaterials. While welcoming the initiative to establish a regulatory framework, the signatories argue for a broader size range (0.3 to 300 nm) than the proposed 1-100 nm to ensure that potentially hazardous materials are not excluded from scrutiny. They specifically support basing size distribution on particle numbers and the inclusion of aggregates, agglomerates, and materials smaller than 1 nm, such as fullerenes.

On November 12, Canada endorsed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), having previously been one of four states to vote against its 2007 adoption. Natural Justice notes that despite this endorsement, Canada was criticized at the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP10) in Nagoya, Japan, for attempting to remove all references to UNDRIP from the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing negotiations, leading to Canada receiving the 'Dodo Award' for its failure to evolve.

The report by Friends of the Earth examines nanotechnology's role in the energy transition, specifically in solar, wind, hydrogen, and battery technologies. It argues that the industry has "over-promised and under-delivered," noting that the energy required to manufacture nanomaterials often exceeds the savings they provide. The document highlights significant health risks, such as the potential for carbon nanotubes to cause mesothelioma, and environmental hazards, including the release of potent greenhouse gases like nitrous oxide from nano silver. It further criticizes the use of public funds to develop nanotechnology for expanded oil and gas extraction and warns that the technology may exacerbate global inequities through restrictive patenting and the dumping of nanowaste in the Global South.

The document argues that the lack of harmonized accounting rules for Annex I pledges in the Copenhagen Accord creates uncertainty regarding the actual level of climate ambition. It recommends that the Conference of the Parties (COP) mandate the development of consistent, transparent, and accurate measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) guidelines. Specifically, it addresses the need for standardized coverage of greenhouse gases and sectors, rules for land use, land-use change, and forestry (LULUCF), the prevention of double counting in international offsets, and the management of surplus assigned amount units (AAUs) from the Kyoto Protocol's first commitment period.

The policy brief examines how Australia transitioned from a highly protected economy to a productive one starting in 1983 by using transparency to build public support for trade reform. It highlights the role of the Productivity Commission in providing evidence-based reports and the importance of adjustment assistance for affected sectors. The author recommends that South Africa establish a similar independent body of experts and engage the media to foster a consensus for trade liberalisation.

The report examines the intersection of climate change and ASEAN-facilitated trade and investment in the Mekong subregion, noting that while some countries use trade liberalization for growth, their natural resources remain vulnerable to climate risks. It highlights a tension between low-carbon initiatives, such as hydroelectric dams, and the resulting loss of irreplaceable natural capital. Additionally, it notes that free trade agreements facilitating mining may be viewed as an adaptation to climate-threatened agriculture, though at a high cost to natural capital and livelihoods. The report recommends mainstreaming climate concerns into ASEAN's economic frameworks and implementing climate risk assessments for trading mechanisms.