Search Climate Insights Directory

This report by RMI argues that financial institutions (FIs) can use asset-level emissions modeling and remote detection technologies to identify and fund methane abatement in the oil and gas sector. It highlights that methane emissions from equivalent volumes of oil and gas can vary by a factor of 10 or more, and that a significant portion of these emissions can be reduced through cost-neutral or profitable investments. The document advocates for the use of 20-year Global Warming Potential (GWP) metrics to better reflect near-term climate risks and the impact of new regulations, such as the US Inflation Reduction Act's methane fee.

A briefing by the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) exploring the role of the U.S. Congress in scaling international climate finance and the challenges associated with global financial institutions.

This document is a summary of testimony provided by Jennifer Layke, Global Director for Energy at the World Resources Institute, to the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on October 22, 2023. The testimony addressed international energy efficiency best practices and potential federal actions to advance energy efficiency within the United States.

This policy brief argues that self-reported methane emissions from US oil and gas operators are significantly underreported, which undermines climate progress and the effectiveness of the Inflation Reduction Act's (IRA) Waste Emissions Charge. The author advocates for the integration of empirical data and remote sensing to capture 'super-emitting' events and ensure accurate financial penalties and mitigation efforts.

A petition addressed to Enviva leadership by 107 organizations and 12,377 individuals, demanding immediate action to mitigate the environmental and social damages caused by the company's wood pellet operations in the US South.

This briefing from the World Resources Institute argues that carbon mineralization requires increased and customized federal policy support to reach its potential for large-scale carbon removal. While some funding exists through broad carbon removal initiatives, the document highlights a gap in dedicated support compared to technologies like direct air capture and outlines necessary advancements in research, deployment incentives, and safety regulations to scale the technology responsibly.

This briefing from the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) provides a financial update for the first three months of the 2023-2024 fiscal year (July to September 2023), detailing party contributions and operational expenditures.

RMI has developed a calculator to determine the emissions parity between natural gas and coal, highlighting that methane leakage can make gas as damaging to the climate as coal. The briefing argues that the perception of natural gas as a 'cleaner' fuel is often incorrect because even low leakage rates can negate the greenhouse gas benefits of substituting coal with gas.

This report by RMI argues for the establishment of comprehensive indoor air quality (IAQ) guidelines in the United States to protect public health and inform building decarbonization. It examines the health risks of indoor pollutants, compares indoor and outdoor air regulation, reviews international and domestic examples of IAQ guidelines, and outlines how such guidelines can be applied to product safety, building codes, and certifications.

This RMI fact sheet explains the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) proposed April 2023 emission regulations for passenger cars, light- and medium-duty vehicles, and heavy-duty trucks. The rules establish performance-based limits on greenhouse gases and criteria pollutants for vehicles manufactured in model 2027 and beyond, aiming to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) and reduce overall emissions.

This guide by RMI provides recommendations for recipients of the US EPA's Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) planning grants to incorporate organic waste and landfill methane strategies into their Priority Climate Action Plans (PCAPs). It emphasizes the use of 20-year global warming potentials to highlight the urgency of methane reduction and suggests a combination of upstream waste prevention and downstream landfill control measures to achieve significant greenhouse gas reductions and community benefits.

This report by Ember analyzes global power sector emissions and electricity generation for the first half of 2023, noting that emissions plateaued due to a historic decline in hydropower output that offset gains from wind and solar growth.

This guide by RMI explains the importance of integrating embodied carbon reporting into Scope 3 climate disclosures for the real estate industry. It details the regulatory and investor pressures driving this shift, provides a framework for categorizing and calculating embodied emissions, and outlines a path toward net-zero targets.

This guide by RMI explains the role of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) as 'nutrition labels' for building materials, detailing how they report life-cycle assessment (LCA) data to track embodied carbon. It outlines the current limitations of EPD standardization and proposes a vision for 'ideal' EPDs based on rigorous Product Category Rules (PCRs) to ensure fair and competitive carbon reduction policies.

The Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) proposes the establishment of a Global Credit Guarantee Facility (GCGF) to reduce the cost of capital for renewable energy investments in emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs). The facility would primarily mitigate credit risk—including sovereign, off-taker, and average foreign exchange risk—through partial guarantees, while transferring political and residual FX risks to existing institutions like MIGA and TCX.

This guide provides State Energy Offices (SEOs) with a framework for designing and implementing residential energy rebate programs authorized by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). It emphasizes data-driven design, strategic outreach to underserved communities, and the creation of support systems like 'one-stop-shops' to ensure that energy efficiency and electrification retrofits are economically beneficial and accessible, particularly for low-to-moderate income (LMI) households.

This document provides a collection of case studies and resources intended to help State Energy Offices (SEOs) design and implement home energy rebate programs under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). It highlights specific tools, frameworks, and programs that address equity, workforce development, consumer education, and supply chain coordination to optimize residential energy retrofits and electrification.

The report by Global Energy Monitor (GEM) analyzes global coal mining employment and the necessity of a 'just transition' for workers. Using a new dataset from the Global Coal Mine Tracker, GEM estimates that nearly 2.7 million people are directly employed at operating coal mines. The report warns that hundreds of thousands of jobs are at risk due to planned mine closures by 2035 and 2050, regardless of climate policies, and that significantly more layoffs would occur if the world adheres to 1.5°C and 2°C warming scenarios.

This fact sheet describes mass timber as a class of engineered wood building materials that offers a lower carbon footprint and potential cost-competitiveness compared to steel and concrete. It outlines the environmental benefits, construction advantages, and the current state of mass timber adoption and policy support in the United States.

This policy brief by RMI examines the potential for the Great Lakes region of the United States to become a globally competitive hub for Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). It analyzes the region's strengths in feedstock availability, existing ethanol infrastructure, and logistics, while identifying a significant gap in coordinated state-level industrial policy to support the SAF value chain.