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The IISD response to the DESNZ consultation argues for more rigorous standards in assessing Scope 3 emissions for offshore oil projects, specifically calling for the separate reporting of Category 11 emissions, the use of zero-emission baselines, and the assessment of significance based on 1.5°C science-based scenarios rather than as a proportion of global emissions.

The report analyzes 215 cases of GenAI use in 2024 elections across 50 countries, finding that 80% of these countries experienced GenAI-related incidents. The majority of these cases (90%) involved content creation, such as deepfake audio and video, and 69% were classified as harmful to the electoral process. A significant portion of the content (46%) had untraceable origins, while 20% was attributed to foreign actors, all of whom were found to be acting with harmful intent. The document advocates for increased transparency, disclosure mandates for AI-generated political content, and improved detection mechanisms to protect democratic integrity.

The report argues that the traditional Official Development Assistance (ODA) model is outdated and failing to meet 21st-century challenges. It identifies six key pressures: shifting poverty geographies, rising demands for climate and health financing, fragmentation from new actors, changing flow natures, geopolitical rivalries, and declining public trust. The author contends that incremental tweaks are insufficient and proposes a 'reset' that integrates ODA into a broader Global Public Investment (GPI) framework. This new architecture would distinguish core poverty reduction from global public goods financing, reform governance to include the Global South, and shift the narrative from donor-driven charity to mutual interest. The report outlines five future scenarios for 2040, ranging from 'Incremental Change' to a 'Managed Handover' to non-governmental actors, urging policymakers to proactively shape a transition to avoid a fragmented 'Wild West' of bilateralism.

The document analyzes the evolution of BRICS, specifically the 2023 addition of Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the UAE, and the 2024 introduction of a 'partner countries' category. Using Susan Strange's framework of structural power, it argues that BRICS is not seeking to create a rival system but to reshape global governance to be more representative of the global South. The analysis highlights the bloc's economic growth—surpassing the G7 in PPP terms around 2015—and its efforts to create alternative financial mechanisms like the New Development Bank (NDB) and local currency trade to reduce reliance on Western systems. It concludes that while internal diversity and regional rivalries challenge cohesion, the 'agree to disagree' principle allows BRICS to function as a catalyst for South-South cooperation.

The report examines how urban green space access is often socially determined by income, gender, and age, particularly in rapidly growing cities in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. It highlights that lower-income communities often prioritize provisioning services—such as food and fuel—over the aesthetic or health-related benefits typically emphasized in high-income contexts. The authors argue that top-down planning frequently fails these populations and can lead to gentrification or social opposition. Using a case study from the Nakuru River area in Kenya, the report identifies systemic barriers to community-led management, including unclear governmental responsibilities, funding shortfalls, and the influence of external NGOs. It concludes that equitable urban greening requires integrating infrastructure improvements and employment opportunities with participatory design that includes women, youth, and people with disabilities.

The paper examines the 'co-impacts'—both intended and unintended, positive and negative—of urban climate policies. It argues that current literature and city plans overemphasize positive co-benefits (such as improved air quality and health) while neglecting adverse effects and equity considerations. The authors propose a 'people, planet, and profit' framework to categorize these impacts across various urban strategies, including building retrofits, circular economy initiatives, and transport shifts, to help cities avoid policy backlash and ensure a just transition.

The research paper examines the 'coloniality' of the international financial architecture, arguing that current climate finance mechanisms are controlled by the Global North and perpetuate power imbalances. The authors propose a decolonial framework based on the 'matrix of power' to evaluate reforms. Applying this to the Bridgetown Initiative, they find that while it is led by the Global South, it remains limited by its reliance on existing institutions like the IMF and World Bank, a lack of focus on debt cancellation, and an over-emphasis on private sector finance. The paper recommends shifting toward grants-based public finance, unconditional debt cancellation, local-level funding access, and global tax and trade reforms to achieve a truly decolonial system.

The document analyzes the pathway to net-zero shipping by 2050, highlighting the role of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in implementing technical and economic measures. It emphasizes the disproportionate economic risks for shipping-reliant developing nations, such as increased logistics costs and inflationary pressures, while identifying opportunities for these countries to become producers of scalable zero-emission fuels (SZEF) like green ammonia and hydrogen.

The report evaluates 2,618 commitments from the Our Ocean Conference (2014-2024), totaling US$160 billion in pledged funds. As of January 2025, 43% of commitments are completed, with $133.4 billion mobilized. The majority of pledged finance (54%) is directed toward ocean-climate action. The paper recommends increasing engagement with the private sector, academia, and marginalized groups, including small island developing states and Indigenous communities.

The Transparent 2024 report by WWF International reviews five years of progress among ReSource: Plastic members. Key findings show a collective reduction of 221,000 metric tons of virgin fossil-based plastic relative to baseline years and an increase in recycled content to 14.5% of the aggregate portfolio by 2023. However, the report notes that progress is incremental, with reusable packaging accounting for only 0.8% of the portfolio. Waste management modeling estimates that 16% of the members' plastic footprint is mismanaged globally, with China and India identified as the countries with the highest total tonnage of mismanaged waste. The report concludes that voluntary corporate action is insufficient and advocates for a legally binding global treaty on plastic pollution to mandate standards and drive systemic change.

The document examines the intersection of trade policy and food systems transformation in Africa, specifically advocating for the alignment of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) with agroecological principles. It identifies significant hurdles to this transition, including high intra-continental tariffs, complex non-tariff barriers, and the dominance of industrial agriculture. The briefing emphasizes the role of territorial markets in supporting smallholder farmers and calls for philanthropic investment to bridge funding gaps, as agroecology currently receives less than 10% of total agricultural funding in Africa. It provides specific recommendations for philanthropies to support local food trade, advocate for policy changes that recognize ecological services, and invest in capacity-building for agroecological communities.

The document argues that while agroecology offers a sustainable alternative to industrial agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa, these transitions are not gender-neutral and often overlook the systemic barriers facing women. It highlights how women's indigenous knowledge is critical for biodiversity and resilience, yet they face significant hurdles in land tenure, financing, and market access. The brief provides recommendations for philanthropic and governmental support to ensure equity, including long-term funding and investment in women-led cooperatives and processing infrastructure.

The report argues that the climate crisis is fundamentally linked to 'mimetic desire,' where individuals pursue luxury goods and status symbols not for their utility, but to emulate others. This cycle of conspicuous consumption fuels unsustainable economic growth and greenhouse gas emissions. The author explores various philosophical and economic responses, including degrowth communism, minimalism, and the concept of 'Buen Vivir,' while concluding that neither perpetual growth nor utopian degrowth fully resolves the tension between fulfilling essential human needs and maintaining planetary boundaries. The text identifies a 'climate–development trilemma' where societal stability, basic needs, and resource efficiency are in constant conflict.

The Sevilla Commitment outlines a comprehensive global strategy to mobilize resources for the 2030 Agenda, focusing on domestic resource mobilization, private capital, international cooperation, and debt sustainability. It calls for systemic reforms to the international financial architecture to increase the representation of developing countries and lower the cost of capital. Key initiatives include the creation of a global central debt data registry, the operationalization of the Africa Credit Rating Agency, and the expansion of blended finance to catalyze sustainable investments.

The report finds that most large dairy and coffee companies lack credible methane targets and transparency, with 18 of 20 companies scoring less than half of the available points in a comprehensive assessment. While some dairy companies show slight progress, coffee house companies performed poorly, and only one company, Danone, possesses both a methane-specific target and a detailed action plan.

The report examines the FAO's aquaculture growth targets and the 2025 Guidelines for Sustainable Aquaculture (GSA), arguing that they lack necessary protections to prevent the diversion of edible wild fish into fishmeal and fish oil (FMFO). Through modelling and case studies in West Africa, the document demonstrates how feed-intensive aquaculture increases pressure on wild fisheries and undermines local food security, particularly for vulnerable populations in Africa and Asia. It further alleges that the FAO's policy framing has been influenced by industry interests, shifting from a 'food-first' approach to one focused on efficiency and 'responsible sourcing' that permits continued extractive growth.

The report finds that the dairy and coffee house industries are failing to address methane emissions with urgency, with 18 out of 20 analysed companies scoring less than half of the available points in a performance assessment. While methane's climate impact is widely recognised, most companies lack specific reduction targets, credible action plans, or transparent, disaggregated reporting of methane emissions (CH4). Danone was the only company to set both a methane-specific target and an aligned detailed plan. The report highlights a significant gap in corporate accountability, noting that even members of the Dairy Methane Action Alliance (DMAA) generally achieve only about a third of the total possible score, though they outperform non-members.

The report argues that Brazil's agribusiness sector, dominated by giants like JBS, MBRF, and Minerva, exerts systemic control over political and public narratives to avoid climate regulation. It highlights a critical 'blind spot' in Brazil's updated NDC, which omits agricultural methane emissions despite the sector accounting for 75.6% of the country's total methane. The document details how the 'ruralist caucus' (FPA) controls Congress and pushes for controversial methane metrics like GWP* to downplay warming impacts. It also exposes the 'AgriZone' and other industry-led events surrounding COP30 as tools for greenwashing, while noting that structural weaknesses in the Climate Plan, Tax Reform, and Forest Code continue to favour industrial agriculture over sustainable agroecological farming.

The document argues that the GWP* metric allows major methane polluters to claim climate neutrality or "no additional warming" by merely stabilising emissions rather than eliminating them. It details how this approach is being embedded into the policies of New Zealand and Ireland, promoted by industry lobbies in Germany and the UK, and pushed by researchers and trade bodies in Brazil ahead of COP30. The author contends that government-linked research bodies are providing a "veneer of scientific legitimacy" to these industry-driven narratives to weaken national and international climate ambitions.

The report analyzes marine geoengineering, dividing it into marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) and marine solar radiation modification (SRM). It argues that these speculative technologies pose irreversible risks to ocean ecosystems and human rights, while facing significant monitoring and verification challenges. The authors contend that proposed deployment zones span every ocean basin, making the impacts inherently transboundary and potentially violating international law, including the CBD moratorium and UNCLOS.