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Between June 16 and 24, 2024, approximately 4.97 billion people—over 60% of the global population—were exposed to extreme heat that was at least three times more likely to occur due to climate change. The analysis, using the Climate Shift Index (CSI), highlights severe impacts across India, China, Indonesia, Nigeria, Brazil, and the United States, as well as lethal heat waves in Saudi Arabia, Mexico, and Egypt.

The document examines the current state of circular economy trade measures notified to the WTO, noting a heavy bias toward end-of-life waste management over upstream resource efficiency. It proposes that the WTO facilitate a 'dynamic alignment system' using mutual recognition agreements, ISO 59000 standards, and cross-border extended producer responsibility schemes to support a global transition to a circular economy, particularly for developing nations.

The report analyzes the competition between Western and Chinese narratives in Africa, specifically debunking the 'debt-trap' narrative and arguing that African states exercise strategic agency by viewing both the US and China as viable partners rather than choosing one in a zero-sum game.

The R3Lab Toolkit offers a framework for insurance regulators to balance the promotion of innovation with consumer protection. It outlines a process starting with innovation gap and ecosystem assessments, followed by the application of a 'toolbox' comprising regulatory adjustments (e.g., sandboxes, tiered licensing), supervisory improvements (e.g., streamlined approvals, suptech), proactive engagement (e.g., newsletters, workshops), and monitoring via KPIs and social listening. The guide emphasizes that the choice of tools must be fit-for-context and supported by top leadership buy-in and internal capacity building.

The report argues that the EU's pursuit of 'policy coherence' in its external migration dimension is primarily a tool for containment, often instrumentalising development aid to limit migration. It highlights the inherent tensions between migration management, development, and integration, noting that the EU's reliance on conditionality and compensation in partnerships with third countries often ignores the domestic interests of those partners and lacks evidence-based effectiveness in addressing the 'root causes' of migration.

The document examines how social protection—comprising non-contributory assistance, contributory insurance, and labour-market interventions—can mitigate the economic shocks of climate change in Africa. It highlights the African Risk Capacity (ARC) for sovereign risk pooling and Ethiopia's Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) as key models for resilience. The author emphasizes that while climate change threatens to push 130 million people into poverty, leveraging multilateral funds like the Loss and Damage Fund and Green Climate Fund can finance the necessary social protection systems to protect the continent's most vulnerable.

The document examines the role of Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) and Eco-DRR in enhancing disaster risk preparedness across Africa. It highlights that while Africa is highly vulnerable to climate hazards, government capacity and financing for disaster risk reduction (DRR) are severely lacking. The author proposes three primary opportunities for improvement: aligning climate, biodiversity, and disaster risk policies; developing blended and scalable financing solutions; and empowering local communities through natural resource management models. Practical examples from Uganda, Mozambique, Madagascar, and Malawi demonstrate how nature-based solutions, such as mangrove and bamboo restoration, can mitigate disasters while supporting livelihoods.

The brief analyzes financial capital trends in Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Trinidad and Tobago between 1995 and 2020, noting that while financial capital generally contributes positively to total wealth, Ethiopia and Trinidad and Tobago saw an increase in liabilities over assets toward the end of the period. It recommends diversifying debt financing sources, particularly for Trinidad and Tobago, and improving public debt management and governance to ensure long-term resilience.

The document reports that natural capital in Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Trinidad and Tobago is poorly managed, with per capita market natural capital stocks stagnating or declining after 2008. It highlights a dangerous concentration of market natural capital in agricultural land for Ethiopia, and in oil, gas, and minerals for Indonesia and Trinidad and Tobago, while noting that non-market natural capital is threatened by climate change and population growth.

The document analyzes produced capital—the value of human-made assets—in Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Trinidad and Tobago, noting that levels remain low compared to developed nations and are concentrated in few sectors. It highlights a critical need for increased investment in renewable energy and agriculture to meet climate and food security goals, while noting that a lack of regular measurement by national statistical offices hinders policy-making.

The report argues that while GDP growth suggests sound economic development in Trinidad and Tobago from 1995 to 2020, an analysis of comprehensive wealth reveals an unsustainable path. The country's wealth is heavily skewed toward the petroleum industry, leaving non-oil sectors like agriculture, fisheries, and forestry under-invested. Additionally, human capital has declined globally from 35th in 2009 to 46th in 2018, and financial capital contributes little to overall wealth despite sovereign wealth fund efforts.

The report advocates for moving beyond GDP by adopting a 'comprehensive wealth' framework that measures natural, human, social, produced, and financial capital. Using data from 1995 to 2020, the report demonstrates that GDP often masks unsustainable development trends. In Trinidad and Tobago, fossil fuel reliance led to declining comprehensive wealth and well-being from 2008. Indonesia showed a decrease in well-being created per unit of wealth between 1995 and 2020. Ethiopia is advised to shift produced capital investments from manufacturing toward modern farming to enhance wealth growth.

The report argues that GDP is an insufficient measure of national progress as it ignores costs to nature and society. By analyzing Indonesia's comprehensive wealth—which includes produced, human, natural, financial, and social capital—the study finds that while Indonesia's comprehensive wealth nearly tripled between 1995 and 2020, its GDP grew at a significantly slower rate, suggesting the country is not fully benefiting from its increasing assets.

Between 1995 and 2020, Ethiopia's comprehensive wealth grew at an average annual rate of 3.3%, with human capital serving as the primary driver. However, real per capita wealth declined in 2018/19 and 2019/20, coinciding with increasing environmental pressures on ecosystems and climate.

The document describes La Niña as the cool phase of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle, characterized by the movement of cold water to the central and eastern Pacific surface. For 2024, there is an 85% chance of a transition to neutral conditions between April and June, and a 60% chance of La Niña developing by June to August. The text highlights that multi-year La Niña events are increasing in frequency, with five of the last ten occurring in the past 25 years. While La Niña temporarily lowers global average surface temperatures by about 0.1C, it does not offset human-caused warming; recent La Niña years have been among the top 10 hottest years ever. Regional impacts include drier conditions in East Africa and the southern US, and wetter conditions in Southeast Asia, India, and northern South America, affecting various crop yields and increasing the risk of floods and droughts.

The report argues that GDP is an insufficient measure of national success because it ignores the depletion of assets and non-market well-being. By analyzing data from 1995 to 2020 for Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Trinidad and Tobago, the study demonstrates that comprehensive wealth (CW)—which includes natural, human, social, produced, and financial capital—reveals critical sustainability trends invisible to GDP. Key findings include the unsustainable depletion of fossil fuel assets in Trinidad and Tobago, the inefficient management of natural capital in Indonesia, and the critical need for increased agricultural productivity and wealth accumulation in Ethiopia.

The report argues that climate change and the energy transition provide new vectors for mis- and disinformation that extend beyond simple climate denialism. It categorizes these threats into physical risks (e.g., misattributing disasters), cascading risks (e.g., xenophobic narratives around climate migration), and response risks (e.g., backlash to green policies). The document highlights the role of geopolitical competition, particularly involving Russia and China, and the amplifying effect of low institutional trust and AI technology. It recommends integrating misinformation risk assessments into climate policy design and strengthening monitoring capabilities.

The document examines human capital as a component of comprehensive wealth in Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Trinidad and Tobago. It finds that while Indonesia and Ethiopia saw significant growth between 1995 and 2020, this progress stalled recently. Trinidad and Tobago experienced a severe decline after 2008, erasing previous gains. The authors argue that diversifying human capital away from dominant sectors—such as agriculture in Ethiopia and services in Indonesia—and investing in health, education, and data capacity are essential for long-term prosperity.

The document examines natural capital trends in Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Trinidad and Tobago from 1995 to 2020, finding a general decline or stagnation in per capita market natural capital following the 2008 financial crisis. It highlights extreme dependencies, such as Ethiopia's reliance on agricultural land and Trinidad and Tobago's vulnerability due to the collapse of fossil fuel asset values. Non-market natural capital, including forest area and land per capita, is declining across all three nations, exacerbated by population growth and climate change. The authors advocate for moving beyond GDP toward comprehensive wealth measures and recommend green development policies, increased financial mobilization for nature-based solutions, and improved environmental statistical capacity.

The report examines produced capital—human-made assets used in production—across Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Trinidad and Tobago from 1995 to 2020. It finds that while produced capital has grown, levels remain low compared to developed nations and are heavily concentrated in a few sectors, such as petroleum in Trinidad and Tobago and manufacturing and real estate in Ethiopia and Indonesia. This concentration creates economic risks and hinders the transition to renewable energy and sustainable agriculture. The authors argue that the lack of regular measurement of produced capital by national statistical offices leaves policy-makers blind to these structural challenges, underscoring the need to move beyond GDP toward comprehensive wealth metrics.