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IF IT’S NOT GLOBAL, IT’S NOT JUST: HOW A FOSSIL FUEL NON-PROLIFERATION TREATY CAN ACCELERATE FINANCE FOR A GLOBAL JUST TRANSITION
The report argues that a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty can catalyze the financing necessary for a global just transition by establishing new funding regimes, creating state obligations, and supporting parallel financial reforms. It categorizes potential solutions into three clusters: debt management, new forms of finance and investment, and the replacement of fossil fuel revenues. The authors emphasize that wealthy nations must assume historical responsibility by ending extraction first and providing financial support to low and middle-income countries (LMICs) to diversify their economies.
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Document type: Report
Understanding Green Climate Fund Support for Adaptation Planning
This analysis of 108 GCF readiness proposals reveals that funding is primarily directed toward governance and institutional coordination (37.1%) and evidence-based planning (32%), with significantly less investment in private sector engagement (2.6%). While most countries use these grants to draft or update National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and develop investment pipelines, the report highlights a need for more national delivery partners and a stronger focus on domestic financing and concrete implementation steps, such as climate adaptation investment plans.
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Document type: Report
Tracking Progress on the Integration of Nature-Based Solutions and Ecosystem-Based Adaptation in National Adaptation Plan Processes
The report finds that while most NAPs recognize the importance of ecosystems and include EbA or NbS actions, there is a significant disconnect between climate adaptation planning and national biodiversity strategies. Most countries prioritize ecosystems linked to productive economic sectors, such as forests and fisheries, while urban and mountain ecosystems remain underrepresented.
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Document type: Report
Report on the activities of the Secretariat
The GCF Secretariat report details progress on its 2024 work programme, highlighting a new organizational structure launched on 9 September 2024 to improve investment efficiency and country ownership. Key achievements include the approval of 28 funding proposals for USD 1.5 billion and the operationalization of the 2024–2027 Readiness Strategy. The Secretariat is implementing the "Efficient GCF" initiative to reduce project review times and is developing a revised accreditation framework to simplify access. While programming targets are on track, challenges persist in private sector pipeline development and the procurement of no-objection letters.
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Document type: Report
Power sector decarbonisation depends on data transparency
The research evaluates power sector data transparency in 39 Asian economies, finding that over half have insufficient or poor data, which hinders the monitoring of clean power targets and grid optimisation. While higher-income economies generally perform better, countries like India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka are noted for leading improvements. The report provides nine recommendations for enhancing data governance, emphasizing the need for machine-readable, licence-free, and centrally located data to accelerate the transition from coal to clean electricity.
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Document type: Report
Exploring the Role of Narratives in China-Africa Relations
The report analyzes the competition between Western and Chinese narratives in Africa, specifically debunking the 'debt-trap' narrative and arguing that African states exercise strategic agency by viewing both the US and China as viable partners rather than choosing one in a zero-sum game.
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Document type: Report
Rising Seas Stretch Risk Zones
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.
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Document type: Report
Plastic Polymers under the Full Life Cycle Approach
The document asserts that a comprehensive approach to ending plastic pollution must address the entire life cycle, starting from raw material extraction through the production of plastic polymers. It details the chemical processes involved—from feedstocks to monomers and polymerization—and highlights the significant environmental and health risks associated with this production, including greenhouse gas emissions and toxic releases. The brief provides legal and scientific precedents to support the inclusion of production controls in the treaty and recommends specific mechanisms, such as national reduction targets and a moratorium on new production capacity, to effectively reduce the global volume of plastics.
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Document type: Briefing
A Playbook for Municipal Solid Waste Methane Mitigation
The report identifies four global municipal solid waste (MSW) management archetypes—Build the Basics (BtB), Build the Basics Plus (BtB+), Move up the Hierarchy (MuH), and Close the Circle (CtC)—and proposes specific abatement strategies for each. It emphasizes that diverting organic waste from landfills and dumpsites is the most significant opportunity for methane reduction. The authors recommend a combination of source-separated organics (SSO) programs, improved landfill gas collection and control systems (GCCS), and enabling policy frameworks, such as landfill taxes and organic waste bans, to align waste management with the waste hierarchy and limit global warming.
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Document type: Report
GLOBAL MARKET REPORT
The report examines the global tea market, highlighting the vulnerability of smallholder farmers to price volatility and climate change. It assesses the impact of voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) like Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance, noting that while they can provide price floors and premiums, a significant amount of certified tea is still sold as conventional. The document argues for a shift toward more transparent pricing, direct trade, and sustainable land management to ensure living incomes for producers.
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Document type: Report
Toolkit for Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning for National Adaptation Plan Processes
The toolkit outlines a structured, phased approach to integrating MEL into national adaptation planning. It emphasizes the use of logic models, such as Theories of Change, to link adaptation actions to outcomes and impacts. The guide provides detailed methodologies for selecting SMART indicators, collecting diverse qualitative and quantitative data, and conducting evaluations that integrate climate risks. It specifically highlights the necessity of gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) and the importance of deliberate learning to enable adaptive management of climate risks.
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Document type: Guide
Solicitud de Opinión Consultiva de la República de Chile y la República de Colombia sobre “Emergencia Climática y Derechos Humanos”
The document contends that the Loss and Damage Fund (LDF) adopted at COP28 is insufficient because it treats climate reparations as voluntary donations rather than legal obligations. It argues that the fund's governance excludes frontline communities and indigenous peoples, lacks a human rights framework, and ignores the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities. The authors request that the Inter-American Court of Human Rights clarify that UNFCCC decisions do not limit state obligations to provide full reparation to climate victims.
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Document type: Briefing
Advancing a Just Transition: A Rights-Based Approach to Climate Financing
The paper argues that the dominant 'Billions to Trillions' agenda, which prioritises private sector mobilisation and de-risking, often conflicts with international human rights standards. It evaluates this architecture through five principle clusters: national responsibilities, national sovereignty, procedural fairness, responsibilities of financial investment, and obligations during crises. The author contends that this model commodifies public goods, undermines state policy autonomy through investment treaties, and lacks transparency. Using South Africa's Just Energy Transition Investment Plan (JET-IP) as a case study, the report highlights gaps in public transport funding and the risks of private-sector dominance. It concludes by proposing a research agenda to bridge the gap between human rights norms and the actual implementation of climate investment plans.
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Document type: Research paper
THE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PARADOX
The report argues that technical assistance (TA) from the World Bank Group (WBG) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) creates a 'paradox' by facilitating fossil gas dependency while the institutions claim to align with the Paris Agreement. Between 2016 and August 2023, the WBG allocated nearly $200 million in TA for gas-related sectors across 14 countries, while the ADB committed nearly $11 million from 2016 to 2021. The authors contend that TA has a disproportionate impact on national energy strategies, often locking countries into carbon-intensive infrastructure and creating stranded asset risks. Case studies in Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Pakistan illustrate how TA has been used to prepare LNG projects or gas storage systems rather than accelerating renewable energy transitions. The report recommends that all energy-sector TA be approved at the Board level and redirected toward enhancing Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and renewable energy infrastructure.
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Document type: Report
WHO PAYS FOR PLASTIC POLLUTION?
The report highlights that the true lifetime cost of plastic is 8 times higher in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) than in high-income countries (HICs), primarily due to higher waste mismanagement rates and subsequent marine ecosystem damage. It identifies three structural inequities: the lack of influence LMICs have over global production, their limited waste management capacity, and the absence of accountability mechanisms for producers. To address this, WWF calls for a global treaty with binding rules on production bans, circular design standards, and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes.
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Document type: Report
A principled approach to domestic debt restructuring
The briefing argues that while external debt restructuring has established frameworks, domestic debt restructuring lacks guiding principles, often leaving the process to be dominated by the strongest political voices, typically foreign creditors. It proposes that DDR be integrated into domestic adjustment programs with full consultation and ownership, and that its implementation be based on rigorous cost-benefit analyses anchored in Debt Sustainability Analyses. The author emphasizes that the primary goal of any DDR should be the protection of long-term economic growth and poverty reduction gains, ensuring that the burden of adjustment is shared fairly between domestic and foreign creditors to avoid macroeconomic or social 'doom-loops'.
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Document type: Briefing
Harnessing science to accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goals
The document summarizes insights from the first Science Day, arguing that centering scientific evidence, local knowledge, and transdisciplinary research is essential to overcome stalled progress on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It recommends that governments move beyond goal-setting to focus on ground-level outcomes, address policy incoherence and trade-offs, and utilize systemic framing to navigate simultaneous global crises.
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Document type: Statement
Global Warming’s Six Audiences: A Cross-National Comparison
The report uses the Six Americas Super Short Survey (SASSY) to categorize Facebook users in 110 countries and territories into six groups: Alarmed, Concerned, Cautious, Disengaged, Doubtful, and Dismissive. The 'Alarmed' group is the largest in approximately 80 of the surveyed locations, with the highest percentages found in Chile (65%), Mexico (64%), Malawi (63%), Bolivia (62%), and Sri Lanka (61%). Conversely, the United States exhibits a higher proportion of 'Doubtful' and 'Dismissive' respondents (22%) compared to other major carbon emitters and is less 'Alarmed' (34%) than many of its peers. Regional analysis shows South America has the highest proportion of countries with a majority of 'Alarmed' respondents, while Southwest Asia and North Africa show higher levels of doubt or dismissal, particularly in Yemen (34%).
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Document type: Report
Impact of an Unprecedented Cold Spell on Northern Sri Lankan Cattle Farms: A Tale of Devastation
In December 2022, Northern and Eastern Sri Lanka experienced an unprecedented temperature drop to approximately 17C, caused by a cold front, smog, and pollution from India. This event devastated livestock farming, a primary income source for rural communities. The case study highlights the experience of Subramaniyam Kanahendran in the Vavuniya District, who lost 11 cattle, including a stud bull and several milking and pregnant cows, resulting in financial losses nearly 20 times his family's average monthly income. The document attributes the high mortality rate to the animals' poor nutritional status and inability to cope with temperature fluctuations, and it recommends improved nutritional management, weather-resilient infrastructure, and compensation mechanisms to build future resilience.
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Document type: Case study
New Trends in Chinese Infrastructure Lending to Africa
The document analyzes the transition of Chinese infrastructure finance in Africa from large-scale, policy-bank-funded loans to a more cautious approach. It identifies three primary trends: the diversification of lending partners and contractors, a strategic shift toward 'small is beautiful' projects with shorter repayment windows, and the adoption of new funding models like Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) and Integrated Investment, Construction and Operation (IICO) to reduce sovereign debt burdens.
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Document type: Policy brief