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The briefing analyzes community land tenure in 14 countries, finding that while 57% of total national land in these countries is held by communities, levels of legal recognition and formal documentation vary significantly by nation. It highlights that 'not-recognized' land held under customary tenure is more vulnerable to seizure, and notes that while some countries like Tanzania and Kenya recognize all held community land, others like DRC and Cambodia have very low rates of legal recognition.

The document is a participant list for the 27th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research, which took place in Brasilia, Brazil, from 5-6 June 2019. It enumerates representatives from party nations, advisory committees, observers, and intergovernmental organizations.

The IAI Directorate implemented various capacity-building programs, including the São Paulo School of Advanced Science and science diplomacy workshops in partnership with AAAS. It established a Memorandum of Understanding with the Organization of American States (OAS) and is developing a Science, Technology, Policy (STeP) Fellowship Program. The report also outlines efforts to secure external funding for seed grants and territorial governance laboratories to support transdisciplinary research on global change.

The IAI Executive Directorate reports on its capacity-building efforts, including the São Paulo School of Advanced Science and partnerships with the AAAS and OAS to integrate science and policy. It outlines ongoing initiatives like the STeP Fellowship and Seed Grant programs, while seeking CoP support for future implementation subject to external funding.

This report from the Executive Council (EC) of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) outlines the council's activities and recommendations ahead of the 27th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP-27) in Brasilia, Brazil. The EC provides guidance on the IAI Strategic Plan, the election rules for the Science and Policy Advisory Committee, and the establishment of flexible funding mechanisms for global change projects in the Americas.

This report from the Chair of the Executive Council (EC) of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) outlines the EC's activities and recommendations ahead of the 27th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP-27) in Brasilia, Brazil.

The report details the conclusion of the CRN3 program, which involved 17 projects across 15 IAI Parties, and the launch of the SGP-HW program, which selected six projects focused on ecosystem services and human well-being. It also outlines the planning for the fourth round of Cooperative Research Networks (CRN4), emphasizing transdisciplinary research, regional priorities, and the pursuit of co-financing through entities like the Belmont Forum.

The IAI Directorate reports on the completion of the Third Collaborative Research Network (CRN3) program, which involved 17 projects across 15 IAI Parties and leveraged US$ 15.36 million in additional funding. The report details the transition toward the SGP-HW small grants program, which emphasizes transdisciplinary co-design with stakeholders and the implementation of an Open Data Policy. It also outlines the preliminary planning for the fourth iteration of the Collaborative Research Network (CRN4), recommending alignment with the Belmont Forum to secure co-funding and a focus on Party-driven priorities.

The IEU report covers its operational progress between November 2019 and February 2020, highlighting the completion of evaluations on country ownership and environmental and social safeguards. It details the progress of the Learning-Oriented Real-Time Impact Assessment (LORTA) programme, the publication of evidence gap maps on forestry and adaptation, and the unit's 95% budget expenditure rate for 2019.

The report examines the increasing engagement of UN human rights treaty bodies (HRTBs) with climate change, specifically analyzing their 2018 Concluding Observations (COBs), general comments, and thematic initiatives. It highlights a shift toward addressing a broader diversity of countries, including developed nations, and identifies a continuing emphasis on adaptation and procedural rights over mitigation. The document provides detailed syntheses of recommendations from the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR), and the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), emphasizing the disproportionate impacts of climate change on women, children, and persons with disabilities.

The Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI), in collaboration with the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and Bolivian partners, applied the Gridded Meteorological Ensemble Tool (GMET) to generate daily climate grids for Bolivia and parts of neighbouring countries from 1980 to 2016. Using a database of over 400 stations, the project demonstrated GMET's ability to incorporate prediction errors and uncertainty into spatial precipitation and temperature data, though it found that satellite-based data remained necessary to fill gaps in data-sparse regions. The project included a technology transfer to train local experts and the release of the tool as open-source software.

The Climate-Resilient Cities in Latin America Initiative (CRC) focused on small and medium-sized cities (50,000 to 1 million inhabitants) to bridge the gap between research and concrete climate action. The initiative emphasizes that while these cities are highly vulnerable to hydro-meteorological disasters, they offer significant opportunities for resilience due to their proximity scale. Key strategies included the co-generation of knowledge using both scientific data and citizen perceptions, the implementation of low-cost technological prototypes, and the integration of a gender perspective to address the disproportionate impacts of climate change on women. The report argues for a localization agenda where resilience is integrated into local development plans and supported by greater fiscal and administrative decentralization.

The report examines the global sugarcane market, noting that while demand is growing in Asia and Africa, it is stagnating in developed countries due to health concerns. It highlights the rise of voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs), which grew at a compound annual growth rate of about 52% from 2008 to 2016, though sales have not kept pace with production. The document identifies significant sustainability risks, including land grabbing, forced labor, and greenhouse gas emissions from field burning, and suggests that expanding VSSs in low human development countries like Sudan and Uganda could catalyze development benefits.

Cement production accounts for 5.6% of global CO2 emissions, split between thermal fuel combustion (30-40%) and limestone calcination process emissions (60-70%). The report highlights that concrete naturally re-absorbs CO2 through carbonation, sequestering roughly 48% of process emissions over several decades. To reach carbon neutrality by 2050, the author models scenarios suggesting that capturing 80% of process emissions is sufficient if electricity is decarbonized, or 53% if thermal fuels are also fully decarbonized. Mitigation strategies discussed include energy efficiency, clinker substitution (reducing clinker content to 60%), and novel technologies from CarbonCure and Solidia.

The report examines the environmental and health impacts of the global livestock sector, highlighting its role in greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, and antimicrobial resistance. It argues that current consumption trends are incompatible with the Paris Agreement and Sustainable Development Goals. The document analyzes the rise of plant-based and cultured meat alternatives as disruptive innovations and criticizes the lack of government policies to drive a transition, noting that existing subsidies often support intensive farming. It recommends shifting subsidies, implementing meat taxes, and updating dietary guidelines to promote sustainable, low-emission food systems.

The report examines downstream beneficiation—the domestic processing of raw materials—noting that policies are often driven by political goals rather than economic analysis. It identifies key prerequisites for success, including guaranteed market demand, infrastructure, and inexpensive energy, while arguing that proximity to raw materials is increasingly less important than proximity to consumers. The document analyzes five policy options: incentives, prescriptive measures, negotiations, bidding, and government-led investments, highlighting that without a strong business case, these can lead to inefficient 'white elephant' projects. It concludes with recommendations for governments to use market and cost-benefit analyses, including considerations for environmental externalities and the risk of stranded assets in the oil and gas sector due to global decarbonization targets.

Friends of the Earth International calls for an immediate transition from a pollutant-heavy energy system to a decentralized, people-led model. The statement rejects 'false solutions' like carbon capture and argues that developed nations must take primary responsibility for emissions reductions and financial transfers to the Global South to ensure a just transition.

Friends of the Earth International calls for a transition from 'Dirty Energy'—including fossil fuels, nuclear power, and large-scale hydropower—to decentralized, people-centered community energy. The statement criticizes 'false solutions' like BECCS and carbon offsets, highlighting the disproportionate responsibility of the global North for emissions and the need for a just transition that includes significant financial flows to the global South.

The Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) submitted an independent auditors' report for the period ending June 30, 2017. The auditors provided an unqualified opinion, stating that the financial statements present fairly the Institute's financial position in accordance with US generally accepted accounting principles. The IAI's total assets as of June 30, 2017, were 3,412,639 USD, and total revenues, gains, and contributions for the year were 3,047,200 USD. The report details funding for various scientific programs, including the Collaborative Research Network (CRN) and Training Institutes, largely supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF).

The report provides an audit of the IAI's financial position, operations, and cash flows, concluding that the statements present fairly the Institute's financial position in accordance with US generally accepted accounting principles. It details revenues from member nations and grants, expenses for core management and research programs, and the status of contributions from member countries.