Search Climate Insights Directory

The report warns that Nigeria's 'decade of gas' strategy, involving a planned USD 18.5bn investment in LNG infrastructure, risks creating stranded assets as global demand is forecast to fall by 2030. While Nigeria is currently the world's sixth largest LNG exporter, the report argues that prioritizing LNG may hinder economic diversification, increase fossil fuel subsidies, and expose the economy to external price fluctuations and climate-driven demand declines in Europe.

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 Lagos State Climate Adaptation and Resilience Plan (LCARP) identifies critical climate risks—sea-level rise, extreme rainfall, and extreme heat—and proposes a $9 billion portfolio of 33 projects to mitigate these threats. The plan emphasizes diversifying financing mechanisms beyond concessional debt to include blended finance, grants, and nature-based solutions, while recommending policy and governance reforms to attract private investment.

The report details a training workshop held in Abuja, Nigeria, from April 22–26, 2024, aimed at enhancing gender inclusivity within the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector. Based on a needs assessment and participant exercises, the workshop identified systemic barriers to women's participation, such as cultural practices and gender-blind programming, and proposed a gender-responsive formalization strategy. Key recommendations include revising mining laws, establishing microgrant schemes, and creating multistakeholder bodies to monitor gender-responsive policies.

The report evaluates Nigeria's strategy to expand LNG production to offset declining oil revenues, warning that such investments risk becoming stranded assets as global demand shifts toward clean energy after 2030. It highlights that while Nigeria is the world's sixth-largest LNG exporter, the sector has not significantly improved domestic energy access or reduced poverty, and continues to be linked to environmental degradation and social conflict in the Niger Delta.

The 2024 IPIE expert survey of 412 researchers across 66 countries reveals a growing pessimism about the global information environment, with 63% expecting it to deteriorate. Experts identify the availability of accurate information and diversity of opinion as the most critical features of a healthy information environment. Social media platform owners and governments are viewed as the most severe threats. While generative AI is seen as a tool for both hope and concern, 63% of experts fear its potential to amplify disinformation and harassment. The report advocates for supporting free and independent media and improving data access for researchers to build resilience.

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 Gambia's democratic transition is stalled due to the National Assembly's 2020 rejection of a draft constitution that would have limited President Adama Barrow to two terms and curtailed presidential powers. Because the country continues to operate under the 1997 'Jammeh Constitution', Barrow remains legally eligible for a third term in 2026, a prospect that threatens to deepen political tensions and potentially necessitate ECOWAS intervention.

The report examines the alignment between national climate policies and local adaptation practices in Ghana, Nigeria, and Senegal. It argues that while these nations have developed NDCs and adaptation plans, the effectiveness of these measures is hindered by a lack of recognition for locally-led adaptation (LLA), significant funding gaps, and weak institutional capacities. The document emphasizes that integrating indigenous knowledge and empowering local actors—particularly women—is essential for building sustainable climate resilience in West Africa.

The document outlines the necessity of a Global Just Transition to phase out fossil fuels by 2050, emphasizing the disproportionate economic burden on developing nations. It proposes a framework for financing this transition through new multilateral funds, the redirection of USD 5.9 trillion in annual fossil fuel subsidies, and systemic reforms to debt, taxation, and international financial institutions.

The report examines the environmental and health risks associated with ASGM tailings, which often contain mercury and cyanide. It finds that while large-scale mining (LSM) has robust standards, ASGM lacks specific international and regional tailings governance, relying on general mining codes that are often poorly enforced due to sector informality. The document recommends the creation of an international ASM-specific tailings standard, the implementation of strategic environmental assessments (SEAs), and the development of formalization schemes to improve waste management and recover critical minerals from tailings.

The report examines Nigeria's decentralised renewable energy (DRE) sector, focusing on green mini-grids, solar home systems (SHS), and productive use of energy (PUE). While Nigeria has a significant energy access deficit—with 88.5 million people lacking electricity—it has developed a robust regulatory framework and a dynamic private sector. Growth is driven by international donor programmes and government initiatives like the Nigeria Electrification Project (NEP). However, the sector faces substantial hurdles, including high inflation, foreign exchange risks, limited local manufacturing, and difficulty accessing affordable local credit.

Global operating coal capacity increased by 48.4 GW in 2023, reaching a total of 2,130 GW, primarily driven by a surge of new plants in China. While construction starts hit record lows outside of China, China's new construction starts reached an eight-year high of 70.2 GW. Despite a growing number of countries committing to 'No New Coal', 75% of global operating coal capacity still lacks a specific closure commitment, hindering alignment with the Paris Agreement goals.

A World Weather Attribution analysis concludes that the extreme heatwave affecting the Sahel in early 2024, which coincided with Ramadan and power cuts, would have been impossible without the 1.2°C of global warming caused by human activities. The event was particularly severe in Mali and Burkina Faso, where 5-day maximum temperatures had a return time of 200 years. The study finds that human-induced warming increased 5-day maximum temperatures by 1.5°C in Mali/Burkina Faso and 1.4°C across the wider Sahel, while the current El Niño event contributed only a small amount (approximately 0.2°C). In Bamako, Mali, the Gabriel Touré hospital reported 102 deaths between 1-4 April, significantly exceeding the 130 deaths recorded for the entire month of April 2023.

Using updated CoastalDEM elevation data and IPCC medium-to-high emissions scenarios, Climate Central projects that by 2100, annual coastal flood risk zones will expand to include areas where an additional 93 million people currently live. The report highlights severe population impacts in Asia, particularly in China, Bangladesh, and Vietnam, and provides the first full assessment of population exposure in Arctic nations.

The report identifies that climate change creates systemic stressors for the UK Home Office, ranging from direct threats to public health and infrastructure to indirect risks like societal polarization and organized crime. It argues that the Home Office must move from a reactive to a proactive posture by establishing a high-level climate security policy initiative. The proposed Action Plan is built on four pillars: exercising sustained leadership, understanding and anticipating risks through better data and literacy, collaborating with domestic and international partners, and implementing specific preventative measures to protect citizens and maintain social cohesion.

The report highlights a contradictory global trend: while most countries are reducing coal construction and many are committing to phase-outs, global coal capacity increased by 11% since 2015, reaching a record high in 2023. This growth is driven primarily by China, which accounted for two-thirds of the 2023 increase. Outside China, new construction starts reached their lowest level since 2015. The report notes that only 15% of global operational capacity has a documented phase-out plan aligned with the 1.5°C goal. Regional analyses show significant progress in the EU and UK, though some countries lag behind 2030 targets, and a volatile situation in Sub-Saharan Africa where South Africa remains heavily dependent on coal despite an energy crisis.

The report finds that Eni's investment strategy prioritizes oil and gas expansion and shareholder returns over renewable energy, leading to projected 2030 production levels that significantly exceed NZE requirements. While Eni is diversifying into renewables and bioenergy, these remain marginal compared to its fossil fuel core, and its decarbonization plan relies heavily on unproven carbon capture and offset technologies.

Reclaim Finance finds that Shell's investment strategy prioritizes oil and gas expansion and shareholder returns over renewable energy, leading to production levels and LNG capacities that significantly exceed NZE requirements by 2030. The report notes that Shell has reduced its carbon intensity targets and relies heavily on unproven carbon capture and offsets, while its renewable energy growth remains marginal compared to its fossil fuel output.

The report concludes that TotalEnergies' strategy prioritizes oil and gas expansion and shareholder returns over the energy transition. It finds that the company's 2030 production targets and LNG capacity expansions significantly overshoot NZE limits, while its renewable energy growth relies primarily on acquisitions rather than organic development. Furthermore, the report argues that TotalEnergies' diversification into gas power, blue hydrogen, and bioenergy is unsustainable and that its emissions targets rely heavily on unproven carbon capture and offset technologies.