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This report analyzes regional trends in cooling access gaps for 2021, focusing on high-impact countries in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and the Caribbean. It highlights an overall increase in populations at highest risk—specifically the rural and urban poor—across all regions, with the COVID-19 pandemic cited as a contributing factor to rising poverty and cooling access challenges.

This report examines the socio-economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the specific challenges posed by the cold chain requirements of early vaccines, which threatened equitable global access to immunization.

This policy brief analyzes the fiscal implications of the gradual phase-out of coal production in Colombia, focusing on the role of royalties and the economic vulnerability of producing regions like Cesar and La Guajira. It examines production trends, international trade dynamics, and the impact of the General Royalties System (SGR) reform, concluding that current policy measures are insufficient to offset the projected decline in coal demand and revenue.

This case study document describes the Land Accelerator South Asia program, a World Resources Institute (WRI) initiative launched in 2020 to support entrepreneurs developing sustainable business models for restoring degraded forests and farmlands. The document details the program's growth from a 2020 cohort of 15 businesses to a 2021 cohort of 58, and provides detailed profiles of 11 specific restoration startups operating across India and Sri Lanka.

The World Resources Institute (WRI) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to environmental protection and sustainable development. For the 2021 tax year, WRI reported total revenue of $193,968,394 and total expenses of $183,476,237, focusing its efforts on global challenges including climate, energy, food, forests, water, oceans, and sustainable cities.

Karnataka holds 22% of India's total installed electricity capacity and the highest solar capacity in the country (7.3GW as of 2019). However, the document asserts that capacity growth alone is insufficient; market reforms are needed to increase supply and demand flexibility to ensure a low-carbon system is more cost-effective than the current energy mix.

This policy brief examines the global plastic pollution crisis, arguing that current waste-management strategies are insufficient because they focus on the waste stage rather than the production stage. The author discusses the limitations of recycling, the role of the petrochemical industry, and the potential for a new global treaty to address the lifecycle of plastics.

Friends of the Earth International expresses solidarity with Indian farmers protesting three agricultural laws passed in September 2020, which they argue promote corporate control and deregulation of the agricultural sector.

Friends of the Earth International expresses solidarity with Indian farmers protesting against three new farm laws enacted in 2020, which the organization and farmers argue promote the corporatisation of agriculture and threaten food sovereignty.

This briefing by the South African Institute of International Affairs examines strategies for sustainable resource mobilisation to strengthen global healthcare systems, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. It argues for a shift from disease-specific 'vertical' funding to a 'whole systems approach' that addresses the triple burden of non-communicable diseases, existing infections, and pandemic response gaps. The document emphasizes the importance of domestic resource mobilisation (DRM), the need for equitable vaccine distribution through the ACT-Accelerator and COVAX, and the potential for LMICs to leverage lessons from the AIDS epidemic to challenge intellectual property barriers via TRIPS waivers.

This report analyzes pathways for decarbonising India's transport sector—its fastest-growing emission source—to reach zero emissions by 2050. It explores two primary paradigms: scaling up rail transport and electrifying road transport, while identifying key policy levers such as urban planning and modal shifts to public transport.

The Recover Better with Sustainable Energy Guide for South Asian Countries outlines the energy access challenges and economic risks facing South Asian nations during the pandemic, urging leaders to utilize recovery efforts to transition toward sustainable development and updated Nationally Determined Contributions.

This report analyzes electricity subsidies in India from FY 2016 to FY 2019, evaluating the impact of the Ujjwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY) scheme. It finds that direct tariff subsidies increased by 32% during this period, reaching INR 110,391 crore in FY 2019, while most electricity distribution companies (DISCOMs) failed to meet financial performance targets regarding revenue recovery and loss reduction.

The Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2021 evaluates 57 of the world's highest greenhouse gas emitters, finding that no single country is currently on a path compliant with the Paris Agreement goals. While the European Union improved its ranking to 16th place, the report highlights a stark divide between leading nations and G20 members like the USA, Saudi Arabia, and Russia, who are rated 'very low'.

The 'Climate and Society' game is a training tool designed to illustrate how social, economic, and physical attributes—such as gender, age, and socio-economic status—create varying levels of climate vulnerability and adaptive capacity. Using fictional scenarios in Ethiopia, India, and Latin America, the game encourages participants to 'walk in other people's shoes' to identify barriers to participation in climate planning. The guide provides strategies for making consultations and adaptation interventions more inclusive by adjusting timing, location, and personnel to accommodate marginalized groups.

This executive summary by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) evaluates the alignment of global power sector investment with the Paris Agreement goals for 2018. Using a new science-based methodology, CPI finds that significant investment continues to flow into fossil fuel power, putting the world on a temperature trajectory exceeding 3.2°C. The document highlights a critical gap in asset-level transaction data and provides recommendations for public and private actors to halt carbon-intensive investments and accelerate the decommissioning of fossil fuel plants.

This report examines the financial sustainability of India's electricity distribution companies (DISCOMs) and the structure of electricity subsidies. It finds that while subsidies are critical for affordability, they often undermine DISCOM viability due to poor billing, delayed government payments, and regressive distribution. The report highlights a failure to meet UDAY loss-reduction targets and a lack of transparency in data reporting across states.

This policy brief examines the restart of agriculture negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) in September 2020 under Chair Gloria Abraham Peralta. It analyzes the challenges of achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and shifting global trade dynamics, while outlining seven key negotiating areas and potential pathways for progress.

This report by Ember evaluates the availability, quality, and transparency of timely electricity data across various countries in Asia and Oceania. It establishes a scoring framework based on eight criteria—including time granularity, fuel breakdown, and ease of access—to rank national data sources and identify gaps that hinder the tracking of the energy transition.

This research paper details a large-scale study of 253 in-home emission tests in rural India, comparing rocket-style biomass stoves, forced draft gasifiers, and LPG stoves to analyze their impact on indoor air quality and the climate.