Search Climate Insights Directory

As of September 30, 2022, the IAI had received 38% of its approved contributions for the 2022-2023 fiscal year. Total expenditures for the July-September period were $314,865, which is 10% lower than the budgeted $350,000. While salaries remained within budget, travel and training costs exceeded projections by 12.4% due to high ticket prices. Other categories, including equipment, operational costs, and dissemination, were under budget due to postponed purchases and improved resource management.

The GCF is implementing a four-pillar operational framework to enhance coordination with other climate funds. Key achievements include the establishment of a joint steering committee for the Long-Term Vision (LTV) with the GEF, the fast-track reaccreditation of nine entities with the AF, and the development of a joint GCF-GEF pavilion for COP 26 and COP 27. The report details specific funding proposals and readiness grants that demonstrate national programming coherence, as well as ongoing technical dialogues to harmonize results indicators and impact measurement methodologies across funds.

The 30th meeting of the IAI Conference of the Parties (CoP-30) focused on administrative governance, financial sustainability, and the advancement of transdisciplinary climate research in the Americas. Key outcomes included the approval of the 2022-2023 operating budget, the adoption of a revised Scientific Agenda, and the establishment of a Gender, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Policy. The meeting also initiated the recruitment process for a new Executive Director and planned for the 31st meeting to be hosted by Panama in 2023.

The E-Mobility Program for Sustainable Cities in Latin America and the Caribbean is a 450 million USD initiative (200 million USD from GCF) designed to accelerate the transition to commercial electric vehicles (EVs) and enhance the climate resilience of urban transport systems. The program focuses on high-utilization commercial vehicles, including buses, taxis, trucks, and vessels, while excluding private passenger cars. It integrates EV deployment with sustainable urban mobility measures, such as cycle lanes and pedestrianization, and explores advanced technologies like green hydrogen and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) systems to improve grid stability. The program targets nine countries: Barbados, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Key goals include reducing GHG emissions by 7.55 million tCO2e and benefiting approximately 8.9 million people through adaptation measures.

The Gender Action Plan for the E-Motion Sub-Program 2 in Panamá, Paraguay, and Uruguay establishes a framework to integrate gender equality into the deployment of electric vehicles (EVs). The plan focuses on three primary outputs: conducting country-level gender assessments to inform EV roadmaps, facilitating regional knowledge exchange on gender in transportation, and integrating gender-responsive components into financed sub-projects. Key objectives include improving women's access to green jobs, addressing sexual harassment in public transport, and accounting for 'mobility of care' in infrastructure design. The program allocates a total budget of 621,000 USD for these activities, including the employment of a four-specialist gender implementation team.

Amigos de la Tierra Internacional condemns the 'Masacre de Guapoy' that occurred on June 24, 2022, in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. During an illegal eviction of the tekoha Guapoy Mirin Tujury territory, the Military Police caused one death and at least 10 injuries, including a child shot with a 5.56 rifle. The document links this violence to the expansion of agrobusiness, the failure of the National Indigenous People Foundation (FUNAI) under Jair Bolsonaro's government, and a systemic pattern of state violence against indigenous land reclamation efforts.

The document denounces the "Guapoy Massacre" occurring on 24 June 2022, where Mato Grosso do Sul Military Police conducted an illegal eviction in the Tekoha Guapoy Mirin Tujury indigenous territory, resulting in one death and at least 10 injuries, including a child shot with a 5.56 rifle. It attributes the escalating violence to the struggle for land demarcation against agribusiness and the Jair Bolsonaro government's defunding of the National Indian Foundation (FUNAI). The organization calls for international pressure on the Brazilian state to protect Indigenous Peoples and hold illegal actors accountable.

The document details the re-accreditation reviews for three international entities: the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). All three entities are recommended for re-accreditation without conditions. ADB and EBRD are recommended for 'large' project sizes and 'high risk' (Category A/I-1) environmental and social (E&S) risk categories. UNEP is recommended for an upgrade to 'medium' project size and maintains a 'medium risk' (Category B/I-2) E&S category. The assessments cover fiduciary standards, E&S safeguards, gender policies, and the entities' overall climate portfolios, noting that all three have aligned their strategies with the Paris Agreement and GCF's 2020–2023 Strategic Plan.

This document is a list of participants for the 53rd Meeting of the Executive Council to the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research, held on 14 June 2022 in Montevideo and via videoconference.

The document identifies a substantial increase in protests in the Global South after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, driven by food and energy insecurity. Analyzing ACLED data, the authors found food protests in 32 countries and fuel protests in 37 countries. While many protests are isolated, in some nations—such as Paraguay, Guatemala, and Peru—these grievances constituted a significant portion of all unrest events. The report argues that such protests serve as warnings of household hardship and can lead to severe political consequences, citing the flight of Sri Lanka's president as an example.

The report analyzes the 2020-2021 outputs of seven UN Human Rights Treaty Bodies (HRTBs), noting a significant increase in climate-related references despite COVID-19 disruptions. It highlights a shift toward questioning developed nations on mitigation and fossil fuel extraction, alongside a consistent focus on adaptation and the participation of vulnerable groups. The document also examines key individual communications, such as Teitiota v. New Zealand and Sacchi et al. v. Argentina et al., which establish precedents for climate-induced human rights violations and extraterritorial jurisdiction.

The Human Rights Committee (CCPR) has increased its focus on climate change, issuing more recommendations and questions to states between 2019 and 2021. While early outputs primarily targeted Small Island Developing States and developing countries, the Committee has expanded its scope to include developed nations like Germany and Canada. Key areas of inquiry include mitigation, adaptation, procedural rights, and the regulation of private actors, with specific concerns raised regarding fossil fuel extraction in Guyana, Tanzania, and São Tomé and Príncipe. In the case of Teitiota v. New Zealand, the CCPR recognized that climate change could trigger non-refoulment obligations if it creates real threats to the right to life, though it found no breach in that specific instance. Additionally, the Pereira Benega v. Paraguay ruling established a precedent for state obligations to prevent environmental threats to private, family, and cultural life.

This report chapter analyzes the growth of the lower-middle-income population in high-impact countries in 2022, highlighting the risks associated with their potential purchase of inefficient cooling devices and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on income levels.

This report section analyzes the increasing vulnerability of the urban poor to extreme heat across 54 high-impact countries in 2022, highlighting a rise in the population at high risk due to lack of access to cooling.

The project achieved a 'Satisfactory' overall rating, successfully exceeding several output targets despite an ambitious design and challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Key achievements include the development of the Soy, Beef, and Palm Oil Toolkits, the expansion of the Trase transparency platform, and the launch of RSPO-labeled cooking oil in Indonesia. While the project was highly efficient in leveraging co-financing—reaching US$ 130,308,741 against an initial target of US$ 42,334,902—it faced difficulties in gender mainstreaming and encountered socio-political resistance in Brazil. The evaluation recommends deeper local context analysis during design and the formalization of exit strategies to ensure the sustainability of established platforms and tools.

This document is a participant list for the 52nd Meeting of the Executive Council to the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research, held on 18 November 2021. It lists representatives from member countries (including Canada, Chile, the US, and Panama), observer parties (Argentina, Colombia, and Peru), and various advisory and observer organizations.

As of May 24, 2022, 43 companies have committed USD 458 million across 48 countries to support the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge. The largest individual commitments come from Bayer (USD 160 million) and PepsiCo (USD 100 million), with significant regional focus on Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

As of 31 July 2021, the GCF pipeline includes 89 funding proposals requesting USD 6.4 billion and 350 concept notes requesting USD 15.9 billion. The report details the distribution of these requests by sector, region, and theme, while also tracking the progress of the Simplified Approval Process (SAP) pilot, specific requests for proposals (RFPs) such as REDD-plus and MSME, and the status of 65 active Project Preparation Facility applications.

The document provides a comprehensive guide to adaptation communications (ADCOMs), which are voluntary reports used by countries to share climate adaptation priorities and needs. It outlines the four primary goals of ADCOMs: increasing the visibility of adaptation, strengthening support for developing countries, providing data for the global stocktake, and enhancing global learning. The text details flexible submission methods—standalone, in conjunction with, or as a component of other documents like NDCs or NAPs—and lists optional content elements ranging from national circumstances to gender-responsive actions. Finally, it explains how countries can leverage existing NAP processes to develop their ADCOMs, even if a final NAP document is not yet complete.

The Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) sustainable finance market grew significantly between 2019 and 2021, with total GSS issuance reaching USD 48.6 billion by June 2021. Green bonds remain the dominant instrument, though social and sustainability bonds have expanded rapidly, partly driven by COVID-19 relief efforts. Chile, Brazil, and Mexico are the primary markets, together accounting for 77% of all GSS issuance. While energy is the most funded sector, there is increasing diversification into low-carbon transport and sustainable agriculture. The region is also seeing a rise in sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs) and the development of national green taxonomies to standardize climate-aligned investments.