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The COP29 South African Youth Statement outlines five main mandates for climate justice, emphasizing human rights, gender equality, and the needs of marginalized communities. It calls for a shift in climate finance toward grants and debt cancellation for the Global South, the integration of renewable energy into the national grid, and the empowerment of youth and community-based organisations in policymaking. The statement specifically highlights environmental injustices in water sanitation, waste management, and the health impacts of coal mining in Mpumalanga, while advocating for agroecological farming and the regulation of AI and the 'fast-fashion' industry.

This document is a formal appeal submitted by groundWork and the South Durban Community Environmental Alliance (SDCEA) to the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment. The appeal seeks to set aside an Amended Environmental Authorisation (Amended EA) granted on 2 August 2024 to Phinda Power Projects (Pty) Ltd for a 320MW Emergency Risk Mitigation Power Plant in Alton, Richards Bay. The Appellants argue that the decision was unlawful, procedurally unfair, and failed to adequately assess the environmental and climate impacts of switching the plant's fuel source and technology.

The CCFLA and Urban-Act Subnational Assessment Tool is designed to help city and regional officials identify strengths and gaps in the regulatory, institutional, and financial environments necessary to scale urban climate finance. The tool evaluates 49 dimensions across four categories: Climate Policy, Budget and Finance, Climate Data, and Vertical and Horizontal Coordination. It provides a structured six-step application process—from institutional mapping to the development of follow-up roadmaps—and includes a comprehensive directory of external resources and global case studies to guide subnational governments in improving their creditworthiness, data reporting, and intergovernmental cooperation.

The report examines the gendered impacts of climate change and environmental degradation in South Africa, focusing on air pollution, water access, agroecology, and energy poverty. Through case studies, it highlights how women-led initiatives—such as legal challenges against air pollution in the Highveld, agroecology gardens in Burundi, solar energy projects in Johannesburg, and waste management in Durban—address systemic inequalities and build community resilience. It argues that a Just Transition must integrate an intersectional gender perspective to be effective.

The report analyzes the April 2022 floods in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, using attribution science to link the disaster to human-induced global warming. It argues that 'carbon majors'—the largest global GHG emitters—should be held accountable under the 'polluter pays' principle. The document explores the legal pathways in South African delictual law to seek compensation for both immediate losses and future climate resilience, while highlighting the disproportionate impact of such disasters on marginalized communities.

The report provides an evidence-based narrative of the April 2022 floods in Durban, which saw 304-311 mm of rain in 24 hours, resulting in 450 deaths and 40,000 displaced people. It evaluates the city's resilience strategies, such as the Community Based Early Flood Warning System (CBFEWS) and the Transformative Riverine Management Programme (TRMP), while detailing the devastating cumulative impacts on vulnerable populations. Through five case studies—including the Quarry Road West informal settlement and the Dassenhoek peri-urban area—the document highlights profound material loss, psychological trauma, and the erosion of development gains, arguing that such events serve as proxies for the broader impacts of climate change.

The document traces the transition from the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), founded in 1963, to the African Union (AU), launched in 2002. It highlights the historical tension between gradualist and radical approaches to African unity, exemplified by the Monrovia and Casablanca Blocs. While the AU has introduced significant institutions and the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), the author argues that a pattern of policy non-implementation persists, leaving visions like Agenda 2063 largely aspirational.

The document analyzes adaptation planning across 136 large coastal cities, finding that over 50% lack formal plans and most existing policies fail to align with actual climate risks. It introduces the ARPA and APC frameworks to measure policy alignment and credibility, noting a significant gap between planning and implementation. Furthermore, it highlights a critical lack of outcome-based monitoring and evaluation, with 95% of indicators focusing on outputs. The brief argues for the integration of 'subaltern' knowledge to improve the social legitimacy and effectiveness of urban adaptation.

The Southern African Yearly Meeting of the Quakers calls for the South African government to implement an unconditional universal basic income (UBI) for all citizens and legal residents. The authors argue that South Africa's high unemployment and poverty have created a 'tinderbox' of social instability, and that a UBI—set at least at the upper-bound poverty line—would provide dignity, stimulate local economies, and reduce crime. They contrast UBI with means-tested social grants, noting that universality removes bureaucratic inefficiency and stigma. The document cites a 2008 pilot in Namibia as evidence of UBI's ability to improve health, education, and entrepreneurship. Proposed funding sources include taxes on carbon emissions, wealth, and resource rents, alongside reducing wasteful public expenditure.

The document assesses the state of marine and coastal ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) in Southern Africa, finding that while there is growing political commitment and various local success stories, marine concerns are frequently overshadowed by terrestrial issues in national climate policies. It identifies significant hurdles to implementation, including capacity gaps, siloed government coordination, insufficient financing, and unequal resource rights. The author recommends establishing enabling bodies to support NDCs, adopting a 'seascape' approach to integrate land-sea interfaces, and scaling innovative financing like blue carbon and debt-for-nature swaps.

The report argues that the proposed Lephalale Coal and Power Project (LCPP) poses substantial health risks to surrounding communities in Limpopo, South Africa. It critiques the project's official Air Quality Impact Assessment (AQIA) for failing to provide quantifiable health risk estimates and for relying on weak national air quality standards. In contrast, the report supports findings from the Centre for Research into Energy and Clean Air (CREA), which identifies significant morbidity and mortality risks and an 'unfunded liability' of US$33.6 billion in externalised health costs. The author provides a comprehensive review of peer-reviewed literature linking coal-related pollutants—including particulate matter (PM2.5, PM10), nitrogen oxides, and mercury—to respiratory, cardiovascular, neurocognitive, and maternal health disorders, as well as various cancers.

The document examines South Africa's position within BRICS ahead of its 2023 chairship, highlighting the tension between its democratic values and the geopolitics of larger members like Russia and China. It evaluates the success of 'multi-track diplomacy' through institutions like the New Development Bank and the BRICS Vaccine Research and Development Centre, while noting that domestic crises—including energy instability and economic recovery—hinder South Africa's ability to fully leverage the partnership for national growth.

The report outlines a strategic framework to transition South Africa's TVET system toward a green hydrogen economy (GHE). It identifies critical gaps in current vocational training, such as low throughput and poor industry alignment, and proposes a 'demand-led' model using Centres of Specialisation (CoS). Through four quantitative scenarios, the report forecasts that an 'All-inclusive Portfolio' of domestic use and exports would maximize GDP growth and TVET job creation by 2050. Key recommendations include developing a Green Skills Master Plan, implementing nano-credentialing, and reskilling workers from sunset industries like coal mining into growth sectors such as platinum mining and green steel.

The policy brief proposes a framework for national loss and damage facilities in Africa to manage climate-induced losses. It distinguishes between risk finance for avoidable/unavoided risks and curative finance for unavoidable risks, suggesting a diversified funding model including philanthropic funds, multilateral grants, and innovative levies. The author illustrates the need for such facilities through case studies of extreme weather in South Africa, Mozambique, and Malawi, as well as a slow-onset drought in Cape Town, highlighting gaps in current disaster response and the necessity of integrating knowledge development, resilience building, and formal compensation mechanisms.

World Weather Attribution (WWA) reports on its activities from October 2021 to October 2022, during which it published eight rapid analyses and several peer-reviewed papers. These studies examined the role of human-induced climate change in events such as heatwaves in India, Pakistan, and the UK, as well as flooding and droughts in various regions. The organization emphasizes that while climate change is a major driver for heatwaves, its role in other events like tropical cyclones can be less clear, often compounding with high levels of vulnerability to increase human impacts.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) critiques the Western Cape's draft climate plan, arguing for greater urgency, transparency, and meaningful public participation. The CER strongly opposes the use of fossil gas as a transition fuel due to methane leakage and warns against the potential misuse of 'Net Zero' targets. They propose a comprehensive set of 27 guiding principles for the plan's implementation, emphasizing climate justice, the phase-out of fossil fuels, and the protection of vulnerable groups, particularly those in informal settlements.

CILRIF is a novel financial instrument developed by the UNCDF and partners to address the lack of affordable, long-term climate insurance and resilient infrastructure funding for cities in emerging markets. It operates through two linked facilities: an insurance facility providing 10-15 year coverage with premiums that decrease as cities meet resilience milestones, and a financing facility providing below-market rate loans for adaptation projects. The instrument uses a hybrid parametric and indemnity insurance model to provide immediate post-disaster liquidity while rewarding risk reduction. A financial model for 40 cities suggests that resilience interventions, such as drainage systems for flood risk or cooling networks for heat risk, can reduce annual premiums by 5% to 10% per intervention. The pilot phase targets Makati, Durban, and Freetown, with a goal of mobilizing USD 1 billion in commercial and concessional investment.

The report argues that G7 economies face significant economic risks due to the interconnectedness of global supply chains, where climate-driven disruptions in production hubs—particularly in Africa, Asia, and Latin America—transmit shocks to industrialised nations. It cites examples such as the 2011 Thailand floods and recent flooding in Durban, South Africa, to illustrate how extreme weather causes global price spikes and production delays. Specific analyses for the US, Germany, UK, and Japan reveal vulnerabilities in sectors ranging from ICT and automotive manufacturing to food security. The document concludes that because labour cost differentials continue to drive the offshoring of production, G7 nations must cooperate globally and fulfill adaptation funding commitments to secure their own supply chains.

The Institute for Economic Justice evaluates the draft South African Climate Change Bill against the 2022 IPCC WGII report. While the Bill aligns with IPCC definitions of adaptation and vulnerability and acknowledges the risks of extreme weather, the author finds it insufficient in several areas. Key gaps include the lack of a formal climate emergency declaration, missing definitions for 'resilience' and 'exposure', insufficient transparency and accountability mechanisms, and a lack of specific timeframes and responsible parties for implementation. The document argues that the Bill must better integrate socio-economic rights and traditional knowledge to effectively protect vulnerable groups, including women, youth, and rural communities.

A collaborative scientific study found that human-induced climate change approximately doubled the probability of the extreme 2-day rainfall that caused devastating floods in eastern South Africa in April 2022, increasing the event's intensity by 4-8%.