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5,573 results
Cradle to grave: The health harms of fossil fuel dependence and the case for a just phase-out
The document details how fossil fuel extraction, production, and combustion cause severe health harms, including respiratory diseases, cancers, and cardiovascular issues, while contributing to the global climate crisis. It highlights the economic burden of these health impacts, the role of fossil fuel subsidies in perpetuating harm, and proposes sector-specific solutions and a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty to ensure a just transition.
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Document type: Briefing
Financing Net Zero Carbon Buildings
The report examines the role of the buildings sector in global GHG emissions, which account for 37% of energy-related emissions. It identifies key technical solutions for decarbonization, including reducing embodied carbon in materials and improving operational efficiency in heating and cooling. The document evaluates various financial instruments—ranging from traditional mortgages to specialized on-bill financing—and policy tools like building codes and green labels. It emphasizes that the transition requires a network of instruments tailored to different building archetypes and regional contexts, providing specific deep dives into the unique challenges and opportunities in Nigeria and Indonesia.
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Document type: Report
The Landscape of Methane Abatement Finance
The report finds that targeted methane abatement finance is severely underfunded, representing less than 2% of total climate finance at USD 11.6 billion in 2019/2020. Despite the high mitigation potential and availability of low-cost technologies, particularly in the fossil fuel sector, investment is disproportionately concentrated in the waste sector. The authors argue that a tenfold increase in annual finance is required to meet the estimated USD 119 billion needed to keep warming under +2C.
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Document type: Executive summary
The Landscape of Methane Abatement Finance
The report finds that targeted methane abatement finance is severely underfunded, representing less than 2% of total climate finance in 2019/2020. While the fossil fuel and AFOLU sectors are the largest emitters, the waste sector received the majority of funding. The authors argue that a ten-fold increase in annual investment is required to meet climate goals and recommend stronger regulatory signals, improved emission measurement, and dedicated project pipelines to close the finance gap.
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Document type: Report
Boom and Bust: The fiscal implications of fossil fuel phase-out in six large emerging economies
The report analyzes the fiscal vulnerability of the BRIICS countries to the global energy transition. Using IEA scenarios, it projects significant declines in fossil fuel revenues by 2050, particularly under 1.5°C and 2°C pathways. To mitigate these risks, the authors propose a 'GSS bond support fund' to leverage near-term windfall revenues for decarbonization and suggest a broad suite of environmental fiscal reforms, including subsidy removal and the introduction of carbon pricing and road user charges.
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Document type: Report
Greening Aid for Trade and Sustainable Development
The report argues that greening Aid for Trade (A4T) is essential for supporting developing countries in their transition to a sustainable global economy. It identifies a gap between the reported environmental objectives of A4T and actual project implementation, noting that while many donors use Rio markers, few projects have a clear environmental purpose. The document proposes six complementary pathways to green A4T: mainstreaming environmental considerations, securing additional financing, improving monitoring systems, integrating trade into climate funding, strengthening South-South cooperation, and fostering coherence with wider financial mechanisms like debt relief and climate finance. It emphasizes that developing countries must lead the prioritization of these resources to ensure a just transition that avoids new trade barriers and addresses the 'double exposure' of economic and environmental risks.
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Document type: Report
Energy Crisis Amidst the Ukraine War: Three Scenarios
The document examines how the Russia-Ukraine war has destabilized energy markets, undermining Russia's role as an 'energy superpower' and creating significant economic pressure on the Global South. It presents three scenarios: 'Stable high' prices, 'Persistent volatility', and 'Business as usual', analyzing how each affects national budgets, regional stability in the Middle East and Africa, and the global transition to renewable energy. The authors argue that while the crisis may incentivize some decarbonization, it also risks locking in fossil fuel production in the Global South and prioritizing immediate energy security over Paris Agreement goals.
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Document type: Policy brief
Transitions and Resilience: Natural Resource Governance Trends in Africa
The document argues that achieving a sustainable future requires 'decoupling' economic growth from resource use and waste. While the global transition toward renewable energy reduces fossil fuel reliance, it increases the demand for critical minerals and creates new challenges regarding e-waste. For Africa, this transition presents opportunities for industrialization and green technology adoption, but risks include stranded assets, economic marginalization, and governance failures in the mining sector.
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Document type: Briefing
Greening Aid for Trade and Sustainable Development: Financing a just and fair transition to sustainable trade
The report examines the role of Aid for Trade (A4T) in supporting the transition to a green global economy. It argues that while A4T has historically focused on infrastructure and productive capacity, it must now mainstream environmental considerations to help developing countries, particularly least developed countries (LDCs), adapt to climate change and seize green trade opportunities. The author proposes six complementary pathways to 'green' A4T, emphasizing developing country ownership and the need for additional financing, improved monitoring, and coherence with wider climate finance and debt relief mechanisms.
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Document type: Report
Driving Cleaner Electric Cars and Pickups Beat Gasoline on Lifetime Global Warming Emissions
The Union of Concerned Scientists finds that electric vehicles (EVs) in the United States produce significantly lower lifetime global warming emissions than gasoline vehicles, with the average EV reducing total lifetime emissions by 52% for sedans and 57% for pickup trucks. While EV manufacturing is more carbon-intensive due to battery production, the operational savings quickly offset this 'debt,' with breakeven points occurring between 17,500 and 21,300 miles. The report emphasizes that the emissions benefit of EVs increases as the electricity grid decarbonizes and recommends policies to accelerate renewable energy deployment, improve battery circularity, and increase vehicle efficiency.
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Document type: Report
HARNESSING THE POWER OF DEMAND: DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR DEMAND SIGNAL INITIATIVES
The guide defines demand signal initiatives as campaigns and alliances that commit companies and public bodies to purchasing net-zero products and services, thereby incentivizing supply-side investment. It outlines a five-step process for setting up these initiatives, identifies key target audiences across the value chain, and provides a case study on the steel industry and a list of existing global initiatives such as SteelZero and the First Movers Coalition.
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Document type: Guide
No Grain Left Behind
The study found that actual harvest losses for corn (4.7%) and soybeans (4.5%) significantly exceed industry goals (1% and 3% respectively). These losses are primarily driven by combine settings and operator error, with smaller farms using less sophisticated equipment experiencing the highest losses. The report argues that reducing these losses could significantly decrease the pressure to convert natural prairies to cropland in the Northern Great Plains.
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Document type: Report
South Africa’s 4IR Strategy
The analysis concludes that South Africa's 4IR strategy is uniquely home-grown and driven by socioeconomic development, although it shares commonalities with the US and China regarding the central role of government and a focus on cybersecurity. While South Africa consulted US organizations like Amazon and Cisco during its strategy formulation, it does not lean excessively toward either superpower, nor was it significantly influenced by the US-China trade war. A key distinction is that South Africa's approach is open-ended and developmental, whereas the US and China are more competitive, security-minded, and focused on a 2025 target date.
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Document type: Research paper
Stagnation or Growth? Algeria’s development pathway to 2040
The document examines Algeria's struggle to attract foreign direct investment compared to other middle-income countries, citing regulatory hurdles and the dominance of state-owned enterprises. It notes a shift in investment sources from Europe toward China and Gulf investors, while highlighting the positive impact of remittances on poverty and inequality reduction.
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Document type: Report
Consideration of accreditation proposals – Addendum I Re-accreditation assessments
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.
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Document type: Report
DEVELOPMENT PATHWAYS FOR THE DRC TO 2050
The report identifies systemic corruption, poor governance, and a reliance on volatile commodity markets as primary barriers to development in the DR Congo. It argues that a minerals-led growth model is unsustainable and recommends a transition toward economic diversification, focusing on agricultural productivity, infrastructure development, and human capital investment. Key policy priorities include strengthening the judiciary, publishing mining contracts, and improving female education to manage rapid population growth.
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Document type: Report
Soy and UK food system
The UK imports over 3 million metric tons of soy annually, primarily from Argentina, Brazil, and the US, with 90% used as livestock feed. The poultry sector is identified as the most vulnerable to supply or price shocks due to its high dependency on soy. The primary risk is deforestation and associated Scope 3 emissions. Recommendations include industry collaboration via the UK Soy Manifesto, aligned due diligence legislation, and long-term contracts for sustainable soy.
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Document type: Policy brief
Russia's play for influence in Africa could be curtailed by its lack of financial muscle
Russia has increased its presence in Africa through defense and security partnerships, positioning itself as an alternative to Western paternalism. However, the document argues that Russia lacks the financial capacity to compete with the U.S., EU, and China, as evidenced by its modest trade volume and the contrast with China's massive infrastructure investments. The war in Ukraine has further complicated this strategy by draining resources and increasing international sanctions.
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Document type: Research paper
G7 leaders: Business wants to work with you to build a clean energy future, here’s why
The We Mean Business Coalition and Stiftung KlimaWirtschaft call on G7 leaders to accelerate the clean energy transition by setting a 2030 deadline to end coal-fired power and domestic fossil fuel subsidies. The authors argue that a shift to renewables, including a target of 70% renewable electricity by 2030, would mitigate energy price volatility, create millions of jobs, and prevent stranded assets. They specifically advocate for scaled-up finance for energy efficiency and storage, common standards for renewable hydrogen, and the use of the proposed 'Climate Club' to support developing countries.
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Document type: Statement
The Epidemic-Terrorism Nexus and How to Safeguard Africa Against Bioterrorism
The document explores the 'epidemic-terrorism nexus,' specifically how terrorist groups exploit disease crises and disrupt public health efforts. Using the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) as a case study in Nigeria, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, the author argues that bioterrorism should be redefined to include the indirect undermining of health interventions through violence and anti-vaccination rhetoric. The paper warns that Africa's vulnerability to this nexus is under-researched, particularly following the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Document type: Research paper