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The study uses a multidisciplinary approach to assess how socio-economic indicators and institutional capacities—including social networks, legal frameworks, and citizen participation—affect the ability of coastal municipalities in Latin America to cope with climate-intensified extreme rainfall events. Findings suggest that local vulnerability is not directly linked to institutional capacity, and while legal frameworks and actor networks appear sufficient, there is a critical need to strengthen citizen participation and create public spaces for information exchange to improve future adaptation and response.

This report by the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) examines the complex nexus of climate change, migration, and justice. It argues that climate change acts as a risk multiplier that interacts with socio-economic and political factors rather than being a sole driver of migration. The document identifies eight key challenges—including the oversimplification of the climate-conflict-migration link, the risks of instrumentalizing migration as adaptation, and the impacts of slow-onset events—and proposes interdisciplinary, rights-based solutions. SEI highlights its strengths in analyzing transboundary climate impacts, conducting grounded comparative research to shift power dynamics, and fostering global cooperation for sustainable livelihoods through tools like AidAtlas and Trase.

The report details the outcomes of a WRI conference in Bogota, where teams from Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico developed a joint vision to synchronize electric mobility deployment with air quality monitoring. It proposes three primary regional projects: a 'Healthy and Sustainable Path to School' initiative to reduce child exposure to pollutants, a regional health-impact calculator platform (QueTanLimpioEsTuAire.com), and a 'Fleets in Transition' project targeting the decarbonization of urban freight. The document emphasizes a focus on vulnerable populations, including children and the elderly, and aims to position WRI as a regional leader in integrated sustainable transport solutions by 2030.

The report outlines a strategic framework to strengthen Africa's financial stability by combining a regional liquidity facility (MASF) with a flexible budgetary governance pact (PASC). The MASF is designed to provide rapid, concessional liquidity to counter exogenous shocks, including climate-related disruptions, while the PASC encourages national budgetary discipline through peer accountability and tailored rules. Together, they aim to reduce dependence on external donors and improve market credibility through a phased implementation starting with a pilot phase between 2025 and 2027.

The document outlines a process for conducting climate scenario analysis on investment portfolios using a static approach. It employs NGFS scenarios to model the financial impact on sovereign bonds (Colombia and USA) and specific industrial sectors (oil, gas, energy, and cement) from 2025 to 2050. The analysis demonstrates that ambitious climate policies generally decrease the valuation of carbon-intensive sectors like oil and cement due to lower demand and carbon taxes, while benefiting the energy sector. It also shows that orderly transitions tend to lower the risk perception and yields of Colombian sovereign bonds compared to disorderly or delayed scenarios.

The document examines the implementation of OECMs in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, and Peru, arguing that while the region has immense potential due to existing Complementary Conservation Areas (CCAs) and Indigenous and Traditional Territories (ITTs), systemic gaps in tenure security, legal coherence, and financial support must be addressed to ensure conservation is inclusive and effective.

The document examines the role of OECMs in promoting inclusive conservation across Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, and Peru. It highlights that while the region has significant potential due to existing Indigenous and community-led territories, the effectiveness of OECMs is hindered by land tenure insecurity, legal contradictions, and gaps in governance and financing. The report argues that OECMs should not be a mere tool for meeting 2030 targets but part of a long-term journey toward the CBD's 2050 vision, requiring systemic transformations in land rights and economic systems to support local autonomy.

The document frames ocean health as a critical component of U.S. national security and economic strength. It highlights how ocean degradation, illegal fishing, and competition over seafood supply chains drive regional conflict and economic instability. To address these risks, it recommends elevating ocean governance within national security directives, strengthening international partnerships to counter illegal fishing, and incentivizing private sector investment in sustainable ocean management.

The report frames ocean health as a critical component of U.S. national security, highlighting how the depletion of marine resources and illegal fishing drive geopolitical instability and transnational organized crime. It identifies specific risks in the Indo-Pacific and Arctic regions and warns that unsustainable practices place $8.4 trillion in blue economy assets at risk. To counter these threats, the document recommends elevating ocean governance in national security directives, strengthening alliances to counter illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, and expanding public-private partnerships through innovative blue finance and technology.

The report presents the business case for limestone calcined clay cement (LC3) as a tool for industry decarbonization. It asserts that LC3 can reduce emissions and provide economic benefits, including rapid payback periods and operational savings, by decreasing the use of carbon-intensive clinker. The findings are based on an analysis of seven scenarios across North America, Europe, Latin America, and Africa.

The EU and UK have withdrawn from the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), but a 'sunset clause' in Article 47(3) may extend fossil fuel investment protections for up to 20 years, potentially until 2043. The author contends that the ECT is part of a systemic global issue involving over 2,800 bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and 450 treaties with investment provisions (TIPs) that facilitate investor-State dispute settlement (ISDS) claims against climate policies. Current reform efforts by UNCITRAL, UNCTAD, the WTO, and the OECD are described as fragmented or focused on procedural rather than substantive changes. The document proposes the use of 'inter se' agreements to neutralize sunset clauses and the creation of a legally binding multilateral or plurilateral agreement to immediately remove investment benefits for fossil fuels and align financial flows with Article 2.1(c) of the Paris Agreement.

The document explores the potential for artificial intelligence (AI) to drive economic growth and strengthen cooperation among BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa). It argues that while AI can streamline trade, enhance maritime security, and bolster cybersecurity, the bloc must overcome internal economic imbalances and diverse regulatory approaches. The author highlights existing frameworks like the 2015 MoU on Cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation and recommends joint R&D, shared ethical guidelines, and infrastructure development to counter the hegemony of the Global North in AI policymaking.

The paper explores the intersection of gender inequality and climate change, particularly in Africa, highlighting how women are disproportionately affected by climate-related displacement, food insecurity, and energy poverty. It details structural barriers in employment, land ownership, and political representation that limit women's adaptive capacity. The document reviews international frameworks like the Paris Agreement and the Lima Work Programme on Gender, and calls for COP29 to prioritize honoring financial pledges, increasing women's access to clean energy, and investing in gender-disaggregated data to ensure a just social order.

The document advocates for the integration of substantive and procedural human rights into the Global Plastics Treaty, noting that plastic pollution infringes upon rights to health, life, and a clean environment. It critiques the current Compilation Draft for treating public participation as voluntary and omitting the right to effective remedy, while recommending that the final treaty explicitly operationalize the right to a healthy environment and protect marginalized groups.

The International Platform on Sustainable Finance (IPSF) updated the Common Ground Taxonomy (CGT) in November 2024, expanding the analysis to include 96 activities across five environmental objectives. The CGT serves as a voluntary technical tool to enhance the interoperability of sustainable finance standards between the EU and China, potentially lowering trans-boundary costs for green investments. The report details a scenario-based methodology for mapping activities using the International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC) as a neutral code. While it identifies 76 climate mitigation activities and 20 non-climate activities with shared ground, it explicitly excludes 'Do No Significant Harm' (DNSH) criteria, minimum social safeguards, and climate change adaptation due to technical complexity and divergent regulatory approaches.

The SEI strategy 2025–29 focuses on accelerating the implementation of climate and environmental goals through three primary impact areas: climate transitions, nature and resources, and health and wellbeing. The institute aims to move beyond goal-setting to action by boosting research on implementation, exploring emerging topics like critical raw materials and AI, and strengthening research-to-policy networks. Operationally, SEI seeks to enhance its 'One SEI' approach to integrate its distributed regional centres and diversify its funding to ensure financial resilience.

The document examines the potential for BRICS nations to integrate economically and form a common currency to reduce reliance on the US dollar. It applies Optimum Currency Area (OCA) theory to the bloc, noting that while the New Development Bank (NDB) and Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) demonstrate a commitment to cooperation, significant economic heterogeneity in GDP growth, inflation, and fiscal policy remains a major hurdle. The analysis suggests that while traditional OCA criteria are not fully met, the 'new' OCA theory—which emphasises political commitment and endogenous policy harmonisation—provides a more plausible path toward a multipolar financial order.

The ADAPTE project uses GIS to map the intersection of air pollution, extreme weather, and social vulnerability in Latin American cities. Findings indicate that PM10 and NOx levels in Mexico City, Santiago, and Bogota significantly exceed WHO standards. The research highlights that respiratory and cardiovascular mortality risks vary by city, season, and age group, with children in Bogota showing higher respiratory risk during cold seasons and elderly populations showing higher cardiovascular risk during the same period.

The UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP16), held in Cali, Colombia, focuses on delivering the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which aims to "halt and reverse" biodiversity loss by 2030. Key negotiations center on National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs), monitoring mechanisms, and resource mobilization, specifically the goal for high-income countries to provide USD 30 billion to low-income countries by 2030 via the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund (GBFF). The conference emphasizes the role of Indigenous Peoples and local communities under the theme "Peace with Nature."

The project utilizes the Antares network of eight time-series stations across Latin America to study phytoplankton's role in regulating and supporting ecosystem services, such as carbon sequestration and fisheries support. By integrating in situ data from 40 sampling cruises with remote sensing and bio-geochemical modeling, the team aims to understand how climate-driven changes in the ocean environment affect these services and the coastal populations that depend on them. Initial findings indicate that fish productivity in the South Brazil Bight is likely food-limited, as potential yields based on primary production significantly exceed reported FAO catches.