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The state of knowledge on disaster risk
The paper reviews the evolution of disaster risk science, shifting from an emergency management focus to a proactive disaster risk reduction (DRR) approach. It analyzes the interplay between hazards, exposure, and vulnerability, while highlighting the emergence of systemic and Anthropocene risks. The authors identify significant geographical imbalances in research production, with a heavy reliance on Western scholarship and a lack of data from Africa and low-to-middle income countries. It calls for greater integration of DRR with climate change adaptation (CCA) and a stronger focus on disaster justice and indigenous knowledge.
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Document type: Research paper
30 years of SGR
The document outlines the 30-year history of Scientists for Global Responsibility (SGR), detailing its evolution from a merger of peace-oriented scientific groups in 1992 to its current role as an advocate for ethical science. Key activities include organizing the 'Climate Train to Kyoto' in 1997, publishing reports on the environmental impacts of the UK military and the risks of AI, and developing science education resources for schools. SGR has also contributed research to the campaign for the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and conducted critical assessments of the UK fracking industry.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Amundi toujours fidèle au charbon
Reclaim Finance reports that Amundi continues to support coal-expanding companies despite a 2019 commitment to exit the sector. The analysis finds that 94% of coal companies in the portfolios of major French financial institutions lack satisfactory exit plans, and Amundi is invested in all of them. The document highlights failures in Amundi's passive management strategy, where it voted in favor of 78% of resolutions from 13 coal developers, and criticizes its engagement policy for lacking precise requirements and binding sanctions.
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Document type: Statement
Breaking the Cycle: Why Europe Must Back Climate Reparations
The author contends that the current global political economy is a 'neocolonial debt regime' where Global South nations are forced to divert funds from climate preparedness to pay creditors in the Global North. Using Belize as a case study, the text illustrates how debt-to-GDP ratios hinder public health and ecological resilience. The document calls for a shift from an 'insulting' aid-based model to a reparations-based framework, including the cancellation of all Global South debt, the implementation of 'climate-health-debt swaps', and the democratisation of international financial institutions like the IMF and World Bank.
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Document type: Statement
Switch to renewables to come in from the cold
The We Mean Business Coalition asserts that the global energy system is vulnerable due to fossil fuel subsidies and unpredictable weather, as evidenced by Storm Arwen and European supply issues. It advocates for the immediate end of public coal financing, the removal of fossil fuel subsidies by 2025, and increased public investment in green infrastructure. The text highlights the role of corporate initiatives like RE100 and the First Movers Coalition in driving demand for renewables, while noting that countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea remain difficult geographies for sourcing renewable energy.
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Document type: Statement
It Happens Here Too: Methane Pollution in Europe’s oil and gas network
The report provides evidence of methane emissions at 180 out of over 250 oil and gas sites visited across 11 European countries. It highlights a current lack of EU-wide policy and common standards for addressing venting, flaring, and fugitive emissions. The author suggests that as the world's largest fossil fuel importer, the EU could drive global methane mitigation by setting stringent standards for imports.
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Document type: Report
Malta: Postkolonyalizmin Gölgesinde Referandumlar
Since 2003, Malta has held three referendums concerning EU membership, divorce, and spring hunting, all of which touched upon themes of national honor, identity, and sovereignty. These votes reflect a socio-political landscape dominated by a two-party system—the Labour Party (PL) and the Nationalist Party (PN)—where voters often align with party stances rather than the specific issue. The 2003 EU referendum saw high turnout but low support, while the 2011 divorce referendum signaled a decline in the Catholic Church's influence. The 2015 spring hunting referendum highlighted a divide between those seeking alignment with liberal European democracies and those viewing traditional hunting as a matter of national pride. The author argues that patriotic rhetoric and claims of protecting national traditions from foreign pressure are used by the government to maintain support amidst international scrutiny over corruption and the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia.
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Document type: Research paper
Macaristan'da Referandumlar: Onay Önyargısı
The article argues that under Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, referendums in Hungary have been repurposed to serve party interests and propagate anti-EU and anti-migrant narratives. It highlights the 2016 refugee referendum as a symbolic tool of propaganda and describes how the government obstructs opposition-led initiatives, such as those by the Socialist Party and the Momentum Movement. Additionally, the text details the use of 'national consultation surveys'—unregulated, state-funded polls sent to millions of households—to legitimize government policies through leading questions and strategic results.
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Document type: Research paper
Birleşik Krallıkta Referandumlar: Caveat Emptor
The article argues that referendums are alien to the UK's tradition of parliamentary sovereignty and have been used by politicians to resolve internal party disputes or by campaigners to simplify complex issues through misinformation. It highlights the 2016 Brexit vote and the 2014 Scottish independence referendum as examples where binary choices reduced nuanced decisions to 'support/oppose' options, leading to voter regret and democratic weakening.
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Document type: Research paper
İsviçre ‘emsalsiz bir genç demokraside’ referandumlar
The text analyzes the Swiss system of direct democracy, detailing the processes for constitutional amendments through popular initiatives and optional referendums. It highlights the historical milestone of granting women federal voting rights in 1971 and discusses the influence of non-parliamentary forces and financial opacity in modern campaigns. The author concludes by questioning whether the Swiss model of creating citizenship through direct democracy could serve as a model for strengthening European citizenship.
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Document type: Research paper
Romanya'da Referandumlar: Siyasi Sermayeye Giden Yol
The document analyzes the instrumental use of referendums in Romania, focusing on the 2018 vote to redefine marriage as a union between a man and a woman. Although the referendum failed due to low turnout (21%), it provided a platform for far-right rhetoric and contributed to the rise of the Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), which entered Parliament in 2020 with 9% of the vote.
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Document type: Research paper
External Review of WRI
The External Review finds that WRI is 'Mostly on Track' with its 2018-2022 Strategic Plan, achieving 71.3% of its targets by October 2021. While WRI remains a critical global player in environment and development, the review identifies significant risks related to rapid organizational growth, a potential tilt from research toward advocacy, and under-resourced core functions. The report highlights a need for a 'step-change' in monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) and a more systematic integration of poverty, gender, and social equity (PGSE) across its programs. WRI's Africa office is also 'mostly on track,' though it faces challenges in coordinating global programming with regional priorities.
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Document type: Report
The climate impacts of producing building materials, plastics, and food
The document outlines policy and technical strategies to mitigate the climate impacts of food waste, emphasizing the need for federal funding to support state-level innovation, the potential for national landfill bans, and the importance of addressing environmental justice for communities located near waste sites.
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Document type: Briefing
İtalya'da Referandumlar: Kontrollü Koşullarda Doğrudan Demokrasi
The document analyzes the use of referendums in Italy, contrasting their potential for progressive social change with the risks of authoritarianism and the limitations of the current constitutional framework. It highlights specific cases, such as the 1974 divorce referendum and the 2020 constitutional referendum on reducing parliament members, to argue that referendums alone cannot ensure inclusive democracy without accompanying social justice and inclusivity.
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Document type: Research paper
The Politics of Inequity: Science, Transparency and Travel Bans
The statement criticizes the imposition of travel bans on Southern African countries, asserting that such measures are ineffective at stopping mutations and cause significant economic damage. It highlights the disparity in vaccination rates between Africa and advanced economies, calling for the decentralization of vaccine manufacturing, the implementation of a WTO intellectual property rights waiver, and a shift from unilateralism to collective global action to ensure equitable vaccine distribution.
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Document type: Statement
Tracking Incremental Energy Efficiency Investments in Certified Green Buildings
The briefing introduces an 'energy efficiency cost premium' method to isolate energy efficiency spending from total construction costs in green-certified buildings. Analyzing over 16,000 certifications from 2019-2020, it finds that incremental energy efficiency investments averaged USD 10.5 billion annually, representing only about 5% of the total cost of those buildings. The report highlights that green certifications are inconsistent indicators of energy performance, with over half of tracked assets achieving less than a 30% efficiency gain. It argues that current certifications often fail to align with 1.5°C or 2°C decarbonization pathways and recommends standardized asset-level reporting and a shift toward certifying retrofits in developed economies.
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Document type: Briefing
Il referendum in Irlanda: come prendersi cura della Costituzione
The author discusses the historical and cultural significance of the Irish Constitution and the use of referendums as a tool for societal progress. Highlighting high turnout in social issues like marriage equality (2015) and abortion (2018), the text emphasizes the importance of youth participation and the role of Citizens' Assemblies. It recommends making the independent referendum commission permanent and introducing postal voting to increase accessibility, while arguing against grouping multiple referendums on a single day to avoid voter confusion.
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Document type: Research paper
Référendums en Italie : la démocratie directe dans des conditions contrôlées
The article analyzes the use of direct democracy in Italy, contrasting the success of the 1974 divorce referendum in advancing civil rights with later examples, such as the 1993 electoral reform and the 2020 parliamentary reduction, which the author suggests provided an illusion of change or risked fostering authoritarian tendencies. It concludes that true democratic sovereignty requires social justice and inclusion rather than relying solely on referendums.
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Document type: Research paper
Retournement de situation
The text examines the global decline of trust in democracy, linking it to economic inequality, technological shifts, and social transformation. It positions Green politics as a solution to this crisis through the promotion of active citizenship, the creation of a socially just and sustainable vision of prosperity to replace fossil-fuel-based social democracy, and the democratic reform of the European Union.
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Document type: Statement
Les référendums à Malte sous une ombre postcoloniale
Since 2003, Malta has held three referendums—on EU membership (2003), divorce (2011), and spring hunting (2015)—which the author argues are shaped by a persistent bipartisan political structure and a conflict between 'eurocentric' liberal values and 'authentic' national identity. The 2003 EU vote saw high participation (nearly 91%) but low support (54%), while the 2011 divorce vote (53.2% 'yes') signaled a decline in the Catholic Church's social influence. The 2015 spring hunting referendum highlighted a clash between environmental conservation and national pride, with the latter used by the government to deflect international scrutiny over corruption and the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia.
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Document type: Research paper