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The report argues that while the EU aims to triple data centre capacity within five to seven years, grid congestion in traditional hubs like Dublin, Frankfurt, and Amsterdam is creating a primary barrier to growth. This is shifting investment toward markets with better grid preparedness, such as the Nordics and Belgium. Data centres are identified as unique grid challenges due to their large, localised, and continuous loads. Despite their economic benefits—including GDP growth and job creation—forecasts suggest the EU will likely only double its capacity by 2030, falling short of its target.

The report details a critical shortage of grid connection capacity in Turkey and worldwide. In Turkey, 65% of unlicensed project applications were rejected between February 2024 and April 2025 due to regional capacity constraints. Globally, 1.65 TW of wind, solar, and hydro projects are awaiting connection. The document identifies economic risks, long construction timelines, cautious technical planning, and procedural inefficiencies as primary barriers to the energy transition.

Türkiye is facing significant grid connection bottlenecks, with 65% of unlicensed solar project applications rejected between February 2024 and April 2025. Hybrid solar plants, which share existing transmission lines with wind or hydroelectric facilities, offer a way to bypass these constraints without new grid investments. The report estimates a baseline hybrid solar potential of 8 GW, which could increase to 25.6 GW under more favorable economic conditions. Implementing these systems could raise total solar capacity to 30 GW and mitigate the impact of climate-induced droughts on hydroelectric generation.

The report highlights a critical shortage of grid connection capacity in Türkiye, where 65% of unlicensed project applications (7.5 GW) were rejected between February 2024 and April 2025 due to regional constraints. Globally, 1.65 TW of wind, solar, and hydroelectric capacity is awaiting connection approval as of July 2024. The document identifies high investment costs, inflation, exchange rate fluctuations, and cautious technical planning assumptions as primary drivers of these bottlenecks. It also notes procedural delays in Europe, where wind farm connection permits can take up to 9 years, and suggests that improving data transparency and tightening application criteria—as seen in France, Greece, and Romania—could accelerate the energy transition.

The document argues that current development and climate finance is insufficient to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement, noting a $4 trillion annual investment gap for SDG implementation in developing countries. It promotes the work of the Global Solidarity Levy Task Force (GSLTF), which has proposed 16 levy options targeting undertaxed sectors responsible for carbon emissions, including aviation, fossil fuels, and financial transactions. The GSLTF estimates that these levies could potentially generate over $500 billion in annual revenue, with specific examples such as a 0.1% levy on trading stocks and bonds potentially raising $418 billion. The brief calls for developing countries to engage in the design and assessment of these levies to ensure equitable access to funds, as the recovery of these taxes generally occurs through individual national tax systems, leaving the allocation of grants to developing countries to the discretion of developed nations.

South Africa faces significant trade risks as its carbon-intensive export model clashes with global net zero targets and Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanisms (CBAMs). Approximately 78% of its exports are sold to countries with net zero targets, and hundreds of thousands of jobs are exposed to CBAMs in the EU and UK. High embodied CO2 emissions in the basic metals and automotive sectors, combined with a carbon-intensive electricity grid, threaten competitiveness. However, the document notes South Africa's potential to pivot using its critical minerals and renewable energy resources, provided that international financial commitments like the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) are fulfilled.

The document outlines the work of the Global Solidarity Levy Task Force (GSLTF) in developing 16 tax options targeting undertaxed, high-emission sectors to bridge the trillion-dollar financing gap for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement. It highlights the potential for these levies to generate over $500 billion in annual revenue and calls for developing countries to engage in the design and assessment of these mechanisms to ensure equitable access to funds. The brief details the GSLTF's efforts to build political momentum through international forums and its submission to the Baku to Belém Roadmap to support the New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance.

The report calls for the EU to adopt a 2035 NDC target of at least 72.5% emissions reduction, aligning with a straight-line path toward a 90% reduction by 2040 and net zero by 2050. It emphasizes that a robust, investible target, supported by the Clean Industrial Deal and sectoral policies in energy, transport, and industry, will reduce dependence on fossil fuel imports—which cost the EU EUR 376 billion in 2024—and enhance global competitiveness. The authors advocate for a 'competitive sustainability' approach and strengthened public-private collaboration, citing models from Denmark, Sweden, and the Netherlands to accelerate the transition.

The report argues that the global ocean economy must transition from business-as-usual to a nature-positive model to avoid an estimated US$8.4 trillion in economic value loss by 2036. It introduces the AR3T (Avoid, Reduce, Restore & Regenerate, Transform) action framework to help companies in four key sectors—offshore wind, coastal and marine tourism, shipping, and seafood—halt and reverse biodiversity loss. The document emphasizes that nature positive is a collective societal goal, requiring absolute gains in nature rather than relative net gains or offsets. It provides specific technical recommendations for each sector, such as using nature-inclusive design in offshore wind, implementing sustainable siting in tourism, reducing vessel noise in shipping, and eliminating destructive fishing practices in the seafood sector. The report also highlights the necessity of integrating social equity and Indigenous knowledge into conservation efforts, asserting that a nature-positive future must also be 'people positive'.

The paper addresses a gap in literature regarding the practical capacities needed to facilitate transdisciplinary knowledge co-production. Drawing on lessons from the DIRECTED project's real-world labs in Europe, the authors propose a framework of four key capacities—collaborative, systems thinking, creative, and reflexive—and detail the corresponding skills necessary for both academic researchers and practitioner hosts to effectively manage local sustainability and disaster resilience challenges.

Operation Overload is a high-volume Russian influence campaign that impersonates over 80 organisations, including media outlets and universities, to sow division in democratic nations. In early 2025, it targeted 10 countries—primarily Germany, France, and Ukraine—using AI-cloned voices and forged logos to spread narratives against Ukraine and destabilise domestic politics. While most content had limited organic reach, one video claiming USAID paid celebrities to visit Ukraine garnered over 4.2 million views. The operation relies on bot networks and commercial services to amplify its content and frequently tags research organisations to distract them with debunking requests.

The report evaluates the use of bio-based materials from agricultural and forestry residues as a mechanism for carbon dioxide removal (CDR) in the building sector. Using BEAM life cycle assessment software, it estimates a cumulative global carbon removal capacity of 3.6 Gt CO2 by 2050, with an additional 16.5 Gt CO2 in avoided emissions. The analysis highlights that while non-timber biomass offers significant potential, the integration of mass timber could increase storage by fivefold. Implementation is hindered by challenges in carbon accounting, durability, and building code compliance, though emerging policies in the EU, Canada, and the US are beginning to incentivize biogenic carbon storage.

Nigeria ranks 162nd out of 181 countries on the 2025 WPS Index with a score of 0.495, which is below both the global average (0.650) and the Sub-Saharan Africa average (0.511). While the country has seen a turnaround in its ranking to 2017 levels, significant disparities persist between the North and South, particularly in education and exposure to conflict. The document highlights the role of National Action Plans (NAPs) and specific initiatives like the AGILE project and RESMAT, while noting that a lack of systematic monitoring and evaluation hinders the implementation of these frameworks.

The paper argues that Colombia's previous price-based renewable energy auctions failed to consider socio-economic factors, leading to social conflict and project cancellations, particularly in La Guajira. It recommends two main pathways for the new framework: enhancing community engagement and benefit sharing for large-scale projects through stricter qualification requirements and multicriteria award mechanisms, and scaling up energy communities via a reserved auction quota (adhesion process) and a dedicated support agency to prevent 'community washing'.

In 2024, global electricity generation reached new record highs for solar, wind, hydro, gas, and coal. Solar was the fastest-growing source, increasing by 474 TWh to reach a 6.9% share of the global mix, with China contributing 53% of this growth. Wind generation also hit a record of 2,494 TWh, though growth slowed due to weather conditions. Hydro rebounded to an all-time high of 4,416 TWh following 2023 droughts, largely driven by China. Nuclear generation grew by 2.5% to 2,768 TWh, but its global market share fell to a 45-year low of 9%. Gas and coal both reached record generation levels in 2024, though their shares of the global electricity mix declined to 22% and 34% respectively, as electricity demand grew faster than their production.

The document outlines a training curriculum focused on 'energy justice' and 'energy sufficiency' to ensure the transition to renewables does not replicate the injustices of fossil fuel systems. It explores the risks of 'energy extractivism'—where resources are exploited in the Global South for consumption elsewhere—and provides examples of community-owned energy models in The Gambia, Brazil, Denmark, and the UK. The module guides participants through a process of identifying barriers to just transitions and developing local projects based on circular design and 'people power'.

The manual outlines a pedagogical framework to move beyond simple renewable energy substitution toward a systemic change based on energy sufficiency and sovereignty. It critiques 'energy extractivism'—the exploitation of resources in the Global South for external consumption—and 'green extractivism,' where climate mitigation narratives justify local land and resource loss. The guide promotes circular design to combat planned obsolescence and provides examples of community energy models in Gambia, Brazil, Denmark, and the UK, while detailing Scotland's policy strategy for local renewable ownership.

The report argues that while phasing out oil and gas is essential to meet the 1.5C Paris Agreement goals, the threat of investor-state arbitration often creates a 'regulatory chill' that discourages ambitious climate action. It identifies that legal risks increase as a project progresses through its life cycle, with the highest risks associated with targeting the production phase. To mitigate these risks, the authors propose five principles: stopping the issuance of new licenses, managing investor expectations through long-term frameworks and early notice, grounding policies in legislation and scientific evidence, leveraging existing environmental regulations, and ensuring consistent application across all investors. The report specifically suggests that governments should prioritize a managed phase-out with clear end dates and consider an internationally legally binding instrument to harmonize production deadlines and exclude arbitration rights for fossil fuel investors.

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) argues that the UK must go beyond ending new exploration licenses to truly align with 1.5°C pathways. Key recommendations include ending development consents for new fields, closing loopholes for license extensions and transfers, and replacing the North Sea Transition Authority's 'maximising economic recovery' objective with one focused on a managed decline of production. IISD also urges the UK to join the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance (BOGA) to solidify its global leadership.

The Bioplastic Feedstock Alliance (BFA) proposes a unified framework for a circular bioeconomy, arguing that bioeconomy and circular economy strategies are often treated separately in policy, such as by the European Commission. The vision emphasizes four key integration concepts: Cascading Use, Biobased Carbon, Industrial Ecology, and Responsible Biomass Sourcing. The document highlights the need for a universal framework of principles and indicators to overcome the complexity of varying national definitions. It warns against 'sustainability tunnel vision' and calls for a use hierarchy that prioritizes long-term material uses over energy recovery. Recommendations are provided for policymakers, businesses, NGOs, and financial institutions to align their efforts, with a specific goal of conserving 30% of lands, inland waters, and oceans worldwide and reducing primary biomass use for energy by 50% by 2030.