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The document examines the uncertainty surrounding the second Trump administration's approach to foreign aid and global security. It highlights a 90-day freeze on all U.S. foreign assistance and the withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement and the World Health Organization. The text notes a divide in perception, where populations in BRICS nations are more positive about Trump's presidency for global peace compared to those in the EU and UK, despite an overall increase in global conflicts and expansionist rhetoric regarding territories like Greenland and Panama.

Türkiye's solar capacity doubled between July 2022 and the end of 2024, reaching 19.6 GW and surpassing its 2025 target of 18 GW ahead of schedule. This growth was largely driven by unlicensed plants for self-consumption. Combined solar and wind generation avoided $15 billion in natural gas imports over two years. While solar is accelerating, wind energy growth has slowed, with 2024 capacity reaching 12.5 GW, missing its 13.3 GW target. The report highlights a significant pipeline of 33 GW in pre-licensed storage-integrated projects, far exceeding official targets, and suggests that Türkiye should update its NDC and National Energy Plan to reflect these trends and the revised 2035 targets.

The report maps nearly one hundred agreements on critical minerals between African states and global actors, highlighting the strategic competition for resources. It identifies a lack of transparency in these deals and notes that while China and Russia are prominent, other actors like Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE are expanding their footprints. The analysis emphasizes that these partnerships often reflect broader geopolitical and historical ties rather than just economic needs.

The document explores the intersection of culture, politics, and ecology, highlighting how neoliberalism, far-right nationalism, and generative AI threaten artistic freedom and worker security. It advocates for 'green cultural policymaking' that prioritises accessibility, rural inclusion, and the protection of creators. Through various case studies—including Spain's Cultural Rights Plan, the impact of AI on indigenous knowledge, and the use of culture as resistance in Ukraine—it argues that arts and culture should be viewed as essential social infrastructure rather than mere drivers of GDP growth.

The policy brief proposes that Cyprus leverage its unique island profile and Mediterranean position during its 2026 EU Council Presidency to advance EU-level action on water scarcity, climate adaptation, energy security, and transport decarbonisation. Key recommendations include establishing a Mediterranean Resilience Summit, a Water & Climate Security Forum, and an EU-SIDS Compact 2030, while steering legislative processes such as the Energy Security Framework and ETS revisions to support affordability and resilience.

The report describes a 'North Cyprus trap' where international students are lured by recruitment agents with false promises of easy employment and affordable living. Upon arrival in the de facto state of Northern Cyprus, students face economic insecurity and are forced into an illegal, exploitative labour market. Employers often refuse to provide required student work permits, leaving students vulnerable to underpayment, abuse, and legal risks. The author identifies a cyclical pattern where exploited students may become recruitment agents themselves to survive. To break this cycle, the report recommends prohibiting new university construction, regulating recruitment agents through mandatory registration and training, requiring universities to provide rights information in English, increasing labour inspections in the restaurant and construction sectors, and establishing a multi-stakeholder support committee.

The report analyzes the 'Dubaization' of North Cyprus, a process where the economy has shifted toward rent-generating sectors like speculative real estate, mass higher education, and casino-led tourism. This model, operating within a politically unrecognized state, has led to a fragmented labor market, significant infrastructural decay, and a 'war of numbers' regarding the de facto population. The author argues that these dynamics, combined with state-led naturalization of Turkish nationals, are altering the region's durable demography and increasing its structural subordination to Turkey, which complicates future peace negotiations.

The report tracks G20 climate commitments from 2008 to 2024, noting a shift from general statements to specific goals like phasing out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies and implementing the Paris Agreement. It highlights the disruptive impact of US withdrawals from the Paris Agreement under the Trump administration and the challenges of institutional memory within the G20. For its 2025 presidency, South Africa focuses on 'solidarity, equality and sustainability', with specific priorities for Africa-focused energy access, climate-resilient agriculture, and scaling adaptation finance.

The report finds that global progress toward SDG 7 is off track, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. While electricity access reached 92% in 2023, 666 million people remain unconnected. Clean cooking access stands at 74%, leaving 2.1 billion people dependent on polluting fuels. Renewable energy's share of total final energy consumption was 17.9% in 2022, and global energy intensity improved by 2.1% in 2022. International public financial flows to developing countries for clean energy reached USD 21.6 billion in 2023, though this remains below the 2016 peak of USD 28.4 billion.

The WWF-US FY2024 Corporate Partnerships Report outlines a strategic framework for engaging businesses to achieve nature-positive and net-zero outcomes. The organization categorizes its corporate work into four primary approaches: transforming business operations, consumer and employee engagement, shared policy and advocacy, and financing climate and nature projects. In FY24, income from these partnerships accounted for 9% of the WWF-US office's total income. The report lists numerous high-value partnerships across sectors such as ICT, retail, and food, with significant investments in nature-based solutions, plastic waste reduction via the ReSource hub, and forest stewardship through the Forests Forward program.

The document details a campaign of coordinated inauthentic activity on social media platforms—primarily X, Facebook, and YouTube—attributed to Azerbaijan during the lead-up to and duration of COP29. It highlights the use of thousands of bot-like accounts to amplify pro-government and pro-fossil fuel messaging while drowning out criticism of the regime's human rights record and climate policies. The report criticizes Big Tech companies for failing to enforce policies against coordinated inauthentic behavior and calls for better guardrails in the COP Presidency process.

The EU and UK have withdrawn from the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), but a 'sunset clause' in Article 47(3) may extend fossil fuel investment protections for up to 20 years, potentially until 2043. The author contends that the ECT is part of a systemic global issue involving over 2,800 bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and 450 treaties with investment provisions (TIPs) that facilitate investor-State dispute settlement (ISDS) claims against climate policies. Current reform efforts by UNCITRAL, UNCTAD, the WTO, and the OECD are described as fragmented or focused on procedural rather than substantive changes. The document proposes the use of 'inter se' agreements to neutralize sunset clauses and the creation of a legally binding multilateral or plurilateral agreement to immediately remove investment benefits for fossil fuels and align financial flows with Article 2.1(c) of the Paris Agreement.

The document analyzes the factors driving the high demand for BRICS membership, introducing the concept of 'magnetic pull'—where ideas about development and systemic reform act as coalition magnets. It traces the group's expansion from South Africa's entry in 2010 to the 2023 enlargement (adding Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the UAE) and the 2024 introduction of a 'Partner Country' category. While the group's appeal is rooted in South-South cooperation and de-dollarization, the author notes challenges to internal cohesion and the limits of its attraction, as seen in Argentina's rejection of membership.

The report examines Cyprus's role as a migration hub, highlighting a shift toward restrictive asylum policies, increased border security, and a lack of comprehensive integration strategies. It details the impact of regional conflicts and climate change on migration flows, the rise of xenophobic violence, and the tension between national deterrence efforts and EU-led resilience and integration frameworks.

Greece serves as a front-line state for the EU, managing mixed migratory flows through a policy that prioritizes deterrence over legal migration. While the country has seen shifts in arriving nationalities—with increases in Egyptians, Palestinians, and Iraqis—it faces significant challenges in the social and economic integration of refugees and asylum seekers. The government is currently attempting to expand legal labor pathways through bilateral agreements and domestic reforms to address labor shortages, while continuing to rely on EU funding to maintain border security and reception infrastructure.

The document examines the Eastern Mediterranean migration route, highlighting a shift toward deterrence policies across both EU member states (Greece, Cyprus) and neighboring countries (Egypt, Lebanon). It analyzes how EU external migration policy encourages these nations to act as 'gatekeepers' through financial and technical support in exchange for border management and the reduction of irregular departures. The report details specific mobility patterns, such as the surge in Egyptian migration via Libya and the displacement of Syrians and Lebanese due to regional conflict, while noting a systemic lack of legal migration pathways and significant barriers to healthcare, education, and employment for refugees and migrants across all four countries.

The document examines the transition of energy-intensive heavy industries toward net-zero emissions, highlighting how global trade dynamics and national policies in developed economies impact emerging markets. It identifies four primary technological levers for decarbonization: energy efficiency, alternative fuel use/electrification, material efficiency, and carbon capture and storage. The author argues that while developing countries with abundant renewables can become new green industrial hubs, they face significant risks from carbon border measures, green protectionism, and reduced access to secondary materials. The briefing emphasizes the need for international coordination on standards, technology transfer, and finance to ensure a just transition for emerging and developing economies.

National renewable energy targets for 2030 currently aim for a collective doubling of capacity rather than the tripling agreed upon at COP28, despite market forecasts suggesting such a goal is achievable, particularly for solar and battery storage.

Non-CO2 emissions account for approximately 25% of global greenhouse gas emissions, yet they are frequently overlooked in NDCs, which often lack gas-specific quantitative targets. While some countries like Côte d’Ivoire and Japan provide good practice examples of quantitative targets, major emitters including China, Russia, India, and Brazil generally only include non-CO2 gases as part of overall GHG targets. China, whose current NDC covers only CO2 despite non-CO2 gases making up 18% of its national emissions, has indicated it will include these gases in its updated NDC. The brief argues that the 2025 NDC update cycle is a critical opportunity for major emitters, particularly China, to adopt sector-specific targets and align with international initiatives like the Global Methane Pledge and the Kigali Amendment to maintain the 1.5°C warming limit.

The report highlights that G20 fossil fuel reserves contain over a trillion tons of CO2 equivalent, which would exceed the 2ºC carbon budget if fully extracted. It notes that emissions from G20 fossil fuel extraction nearly doubled between the 1992 Rio Summit and 2020. Despite this, the document argues that G20 economies have become less dependent on fossil fuel rents over the last three decades, making them better equipped to transition. It specifically identifies the USA, Canada, Australia, the UK, Germany, and Italy as being best placed to transition first and fastest.