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The document analyzes the role of renewable energy in the Southern African mining sector, highlighting how energy instability and the high cost of diesel generators drive mining firms toward hybrid and private renewable solutions. While South Africa faces challenges from a reliance on coal and potential 'bridging' fuels like shale gas and nuclear power, the declining cost of solar and wind technologies, supported by the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Programme (REIPPPP), offers a viable path to reduce operating costs and increase energy security.

The report examines the barriers to regional economic integration within SADC, highlighting that despite political commitments and tariff reductions, non-tariff barriers, high transport costs, and regulatory uncertainty persist. It argues that a thriving private sector is essential for economic growth and that overcoming these constraints requires political capital to implement reforms against vested interests. Through various case studies, the document details specific issues such as border delays at Beit Bridge, restrictive visa policies affecting tourism, and the inefficiency of the NTB Monitoring Mechanism. It suggests that public-private dialogues and targeted infrastructure improvements, such as those seen in Namibia, are key to unlocking the region's economic potential.

The report examines the systemic and internal obstacles facing opposition political parties in southern Africa, highlighting how dominant-party systems, state repression, and internal fragmentation undermine democratic accountability. It analyzes specific country cases—including Botswana, Zambia, Namibia, Lesotho, Mozambique, South Africa, Mauritius, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe—to illustrate the 'politics of incumbency' and the critical need for opposition parties to engage with civil society and reform internal governance to achieve democratic consolidation.

The document examines how the BLNS countries are constrained by South Africa's regional dominance and the SACU common tariff. It highlights a critical vulnerability: because BLNS government revenues rely heavily on the SACU customs pool, South African trade liberalisation could decimate their budgets. While some scenarios show welfare gains—particularly for Swaziland's sugar exports to the EU—these are offset by massive potential losses in tariff revenue. The paper argues that the BLNS have limited independent trade policy space and suggests that negotiations with the EU should be conducted on a Customs Union-to-Customs Union basis.

The document advocates for the use of Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) to help African coastal and island communities adapt to climate change impacts such as sea level rise and tropical storms. It provides a set of nine key recommendations for SADC stakeholders to integrate EbA into Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), align biodiversity and ocean policies, and ensure the inclusion of local communities and gender equity in project design. The statement emphasizes the need for a regional SADC EbA strategy and a resource mobilisation plan to support sustainable investments across the region.

The author contends that the New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad) and the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) are being emasculated by a lack of political will among African leaders. Specifically, the paper highlights how the 'quiet diplomacy' of South African President Thabo Mbeki and other leaders toward Robert Mugabe's regime in Zimbabwe reflects a deeper commitment among National Liberation Movement (NLM) governments to protect one another from democratic turnover. The author asserts that this solidarity among former liberation movements contradicts the stated goals of good governance and democracy required to attract G7 financial support, thereby risking the overall success of the African renewal process.

The report investigates the captive predator breeding industry in South Africa, specifically focusing on lions. It challenges industry claims of economic significance and conservation value, arguing that the industry relies on deceptive marketing to attract volunteer tourists and supplies the 'canned hunting' and lion bone trades. The author contends that the industry lacks scientific grounding, suffers from genetic inbreeding, and may facilitate organised crime through the legal export of lion skeletons to Asia. The paper suggests that the opportunity costs—including damage to South Africa's tourism brand and the loss of potential jobs from ethical ecotourism—outweigh the industry's private returns, recommending a move toward a zero export quota for lion derivatives.

The document lists ten financing programs providing grants, seed funding, and technical assistance for renewable energy technologies. These programs target various stages of business development, from R&D and pilots to scaling and commercial expansion, primarily within African nations and other low-income or developing regions. Funding amounts vary significantly, ranging from small grants of US $15,000 to large-scale transition grants of up to US $15 million.

The document introduces updates to the OnSSET tool to move beyond the assumption of 100% grid reliability. It proposes two proxies for the cost of non-supplied electricity: a parametric Cost of Non-Served Energy (CNSE) penalty and a diesel back-up system model. Testing in eastern Uganda shows that incorporating these reliability costs shifts the 'least-cost' preference from grid extension toward off-grid solutions, with the diesel back-up approach causing more significant shifts in technology mix and increasing total estimated investment by approximately 20%.

The document provides a step-by-step methodology for a participatory exercise designed to clarify misunderstood or unfamiliar terms related to weather, climate, adaptation, mitigation, development, and disaster risk reduction. It outlines the logistical requirements, the process for using concept and action cards to stimulate discussion, and specific definitions to guide facilitators in correcting misconceptions.

The document describes a transdisciplinary workshop activity aimed at creating a "level playing field" of knowledge by clarifying often-misunderstood climate terms. It outlines a process where participants categorize statements to distinguish between weather, climate, adaptation, mitigation, disaster risk reduction, and development. The briefing highlights benefits such as increased receptivity to climate science and improved stakeholder ability to articulate information needs, illustrated by a case study in Windhoek, Namibia, where the activity supported the development of the city's first Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan.

The document identifies a significant global trend toward expanding coal-fired power capacity, with 1,199 new plants proposed across 59 countries. China and India are the primary drivers of this expansion, accounting for 76% of proposed new capacities. The analysis also highlights a shift in the global coal trade from Atlantic to Pacific markets, prompting infrastructure expansions in countries like Australia.

The WRI Results Framework establishes a structured system to plan and evaluate programmatic progress across three primary human systems: food, land & water; energy; and cities. It sets specific global targets for 2030 and WRI intervention targets for 2027, focusing on outcomes such as reducing agricultural land demand by 100 Mha, increasing the share of zero-carbon electricity by 9% in target geographies, and improving urban climate resilience. The framework integrates Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and utilizes a tiered approach of global, intervention, and country-specific targets, supported by impact indicators for people, nature, and climate.

This World Resources Institute working paper reports on three workshops held in Asia, Africa, and Latin America to identify challenges developing countries face in monitoring and tracking climate finance. It details nine primary technical, political, and capacity barriers, ranging from inconsistent definitions and lack of institutional coordination to the limited transparency of development partners and the difficulty of tracking private financial data.

Grasslands cover approximately 54% of global land and are critical for biodiversity, food systems, and climate mitigation, storing about one-third of terrestrial carbon. However, they are among the most threatened biomes, primarily due to land conversion for cropland and woody encroachment. WWF implements conservation strategies in the North American Great Plains and the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA) in southern Africa to support sustainable land management and wildlife coexistence.

Ecological connectivity allows animals to move freely to find food and breed, sustaining natural processes that provide clean air, soil, and water. Human activities—including infrastructure development, deforestation, and overfishing—fragment these habitats, leading to human-wildlife conflict and ecosystem breakdown. Climate change further necessitates connectivity as species must move to adapt to shifting environments. WWF implements restoration strategies such as wildlife corridors and sustainable land-use planning, exemplified by projects in Borneo, Southern Africa, the Mekong region, and the Terai Arc. To scale these efforts, WWF co-created the Wildlife Connect initiative with the Center for Large Landscape Conservation and the IUCN WCPA.

The document describes the application of GPS and satellite collars to track wildlife, providing specific examples of how this data reveals migration patterns, identifies critical movement corridors, and helps mitigate conflict between humans and animals. It highlights cases involving zebras, hyenas, lions, and elephants in Africa and Asia to demonstrate how tracking informs conservation strategies and promotes coexistence.

The 'Food is Local' fellowship by WWF International provides funding for master's and PhD students from 32 eligible countries to conduct interdisciplinary research on transforming food systems to be more sustainable, equitable, and climate-resilient. Eligible applicants must be citizens of the listed countries, have two years of conservation experience, and plan to start their studies by January 2024. Research proposals are encouraged to cover themes such as agroecological practices, gender equity, and the role of food systems in achieving Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

The 2022 KAZA Elephant Survey estimated a total population of 227,900 elephants across the KAZA TFCA, with the majority located in Botswana (58%) and Zimbabwe (29%). The survey also identified 26,641 elephant carcasses, resulting in an all-carcass ratio of 10.47%, which the authors suggest may be a "warning sign for the health and stability of the elephant population." Beyond elephants, the survey estimated populations for various wildlife species and domestic livestock, noting a ratio of 1.16 wild animals to 1 domestic animal in the survey area. The report details the technical execution of the survey, including the use of systematic transect sampling across 179 strata and the implementation of CITES MIKE Aerial Survey Standards.

The guide argues that traditional linear problem-solving is insufficient for the complex, interlinked nature of global environmental and social crises. It introduces a four-phase framework for systems change—laying a foundation, understanding the system, committing to a desired future, and bridging the gap—supported by eight principles of practice. These principles emphasize mindfulness, co-creation, iterative experimentation, and the identification of deep leverage points to shift system structures and behaviors toward a sustainable and equitable future.