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This report chapter analyzes the growth of the lower-middle-income population in high-impact countries in 2022, highlighting the risks associated with their potential purchase of inefficient cooling devices and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on income levels.

This report section analyzes the increasing vulnerability of the urban poor to extreme heat across 54 high-impact countries in 2022, highlighting a rise in the population at high risk due to lack of access to cooling.

This report section analyzes the growth of the rural poor population lacking access to cooling across 54 high-impact countries in 2022, highlighting the role of the COVID-19 pandemic in increasing extreme poverty despite improvements in electricity access.

The report analyzes the 2019 HRC voting records of 13 African member states, finding a significant lack of unity within the African Group. While South Africa, Rwanda, and Burkina Faso emerged as the strongest supporters of international human rights, Egypt, Eritrea, and Cameroon were the most opposed. The analysis highlights a recurring contradiction where many African states strongly support resolutions condemning Israel while opposing or abstaining from resolutions targeting other rights-abusing regimes. Overall, the report suggests a general unwillingness among African states to defend international human rights, with a noted decline in support since 2017.

The report finds that 41 of 54 African UN member states have subscribed to the HCoC, with the highest participation in ECOWAS (93%) and the lowest in SADC (56%). While ballistic missile threats within Africa are generally low—with only Algeria and Egypt maintaining active programmes—the report highlights the growing importance of the HCoC as African states expand their civilian space agencies and the AU aims to establish an African Space Agency by 2023. Key challenges include the exclusion of cruise missiles from the HCoC scope, administrative burdens for resource-constrained states, and a lack of institutional memory. The authors argue that the HCoC supports a 'nexus between security and development' by facilitating peaceful space exploration and improving a state's non-proliferation credentials for technology exports.

The author argues that South Africa's foreign policy for twenty-five years has often contradicted its own constitutional human rights principles, frequently shielding rights-abusing regimes to maintain an 'anti-imperialist' stance against the West. This is evidenced by its voting records on the UN Human Rights Council, where it historically supported authoritarian states and opposed investigations into human rights violations. However, the document notes a shift starting in 2019, with South Africa supporting investigations into Myanmar and Yemen, and showing renewed support for LGBTI rights reporting.

The report by Scientists for Global Responsibility (SGR) examines the Institute of Physics' (IOP) investment portfolio and sponsorship ties. SGR identifies that while the IOP has a comprehensive environmental statement, it maintains investments in numerous fossil fuel and arms companies through funds like Vanguard and Invesco. The report highlights specific sponsorships from military entities such as the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) and Babcock International. SGR argues that these financial ties contradict the IOP's stated goals of promoting a sustainable society and acting with integrity, particularly in light of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and the Paris Agreement.

The authors contend that environmental degradation and climate change are fundamental drivers of food insecurity and conflict. They highlight how resource competition in regions like the Sahel and Yemen fuels violence and extremism, while pointing to natural farming successes in India as a model for resilience. The document recommends that international security institutions acknowledge climate security risks to effectively address stability and displacement.

The fact sheet provides a detailed breakdown of major defence companies, including their revenue from military sales and their status regarding the Science-based Targets Initiative (SBTi) and Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI). It highlights a widespread lack of carbon emission commitments among these entities and notes their involvement in nuclear weapons production, which the document states is prohibited under the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

The report examines the Combined Exclusive Maritime Zone for Africa (CEMZA), a proposed 'maritime space without barriers' intended to enhance geostrategic, economic, and security benefits across the African Maritime Domain. While the author argues that CEMZA is compatible with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) if treated as a framework for cooperative governance rather than a replacement for national sovereignty, significant hurdles remain. These include the fact that less than half of Africa's coastal states have fully utilised UNCLOS to maximise their maritime zones, the existence of unresolved territorial and boundary disputes, and a historical gap between African Union norm-setting and actual treaty implementation. The report suggests that CEMZA should focus on joint enforcement jurisdiction and resource management, drawing on successful bilateral delimitation and joint-development examples from the continent.

The document defines confidence-building measures (CBMs) as actions intended to increase trust and transparency between conflict parties. It categorizes CBMs into five types—political, economic, environmental, societal, and cultural—and outlines ten characteristics of successful measures, emphasizing the need for gendered conflict resolution analysis. The briefing highlights specific cases where women's engagement influenced peace processes in Yemen, Kenya, Senegal, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Colombia, Northern Ireland, and the former Yugoslavia, concluding with recommendations for gender-inclusive, multi-track approaches to peace.

The report argues that climate change is a national security issue for Canada, affecting its Arctic sovereignty, domestic disaster resilience, and international stability. It recommends establishing a Climate Security Task Force to coordinate a cross-agency response, adapting military infrastructure to sea-level rise and permafrost thaw, and leveraging multilateral institutions to manage global climate-driven fragility.

The policy brief examines the regional dynamics surrounding Afghanistan, arguing that the country often serves as an arena where neighbors project their own existential security concerns and rivalries. It highlights the risks associated with the US military withdrawal in 2021, noting that while global powers like Russia and China have interests in the region, there is a critical lack of a credible multilateral platform for neighbors to coordinate. The author analyzes specific tensions, including the Iran-Saudi rivalry in the Gulf, the lead taken by Uzbekistan in Central Asia, and the deep-seated India-Pakistan conflict in South Asia, concluding that any Afghan normalization not endorsed by both India and Pakistan will be unsustainable.

The study finds that sexual violence in Tahrir Square was more likely to occur during large, static protests and less likely during transient demonstrations. The author identifies a shift from single-perpetrator to multiple-perpetrator assaults, specifically the 'circle of hell' phenomenon, suggesting a learned behavioral pattern or strategy. While the study found no statistically significant link between the specific political aim of a protest (anti-regime or anti-military) and the occurrence of sexual violence in the main model, it highlights the historical use of sexual violence as a tool of repression by the Egyptian state.

Cooling access gaps for the rural and urban poor grew across all analyzed regions in 2021. In Africa, 776 million people across 31 high-impact countries face cooling challenges, with 215 million urban poor at highest risk. In Asia and the Middle East, the population at highest risk rose to 645 million in 2021, with significant rural poor increases in India and Bangladesh. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the number of people at highest risk in six high-impact countries reached 48.8 million, with the majority being the urban poor.

The Global Resilience Partnership (GRP), in collaboration with the UNDP and GEF, is seeking Expressions of Interest from organizations managing innovative finance mechanisms in fragile and conflict-prone regions. The initiative aims to support private sector solutions that address the 'triple threat' of COVID-19, climate change-induced extreme weather, and geopolitical instability. Selected organizations will receive grants, technical assistance from a multidisciplinary mentoring facility, and networking opportunities to improve the scale and effectiveness of their funds. Eligible mechanisms must be based in specific Least Developed Countries (LDCs), demonstrate a sustainable revenue model, and focus on the intersection of climate adaptation, food and water security, and disaster risk reduction.

An analysis of 442 savings funds marketed in France reveals that 86.2% are exposed to companies with critical environmental or social risks, including major greenhouse gas emitters, arms manufacturers, and coal companies. The report highlights a significant gap between French citizens' desire for sustainable investments and the reality of current financial products, noting that 94% of studied ISR-labeled funds still finance these problematic companies. Reclaim Finance calls for mandatory climate requirements for all financial products in France, stricter standards for 'green' or 'sustainable' labels, and the implementation of a 'nutri-score' for financial products to increase transparency.

The document argues that while a 'grand theory' of migration does not exist, researchers can use 'theoretical triangulation' to formulate testable propositions. It presents ten such propositions covering the roles of pre-existing connections, social networks, involuntary immobility, resource constraints, environmental stress, violent conflict, economic development, development aid, and the effectiveness and unintended consequences of migration policies.

The submission by Scientists for Global Responsibility (SGR) criticises the UK's focus on military deployment and the arms trade, urging a shift toward 'human security'. SGR identifies rapid climate change, nuclear war, and biodiversity loss as high-priority security threats and calls for the reallocation of military funding toward the 'green' economy and social needs.

The report analyzes the 2018 HRC records of 13 African states, finding a general unwillingness to defend international human rights and a significant lack of unity in voting. Tunisia, Côte d’Ivoire, and Rwanda showed the strongest commitment, while Burundi, Egypt, and Ethiopia were the most opposed. The analysis highlights a discrepancy between domestic freedom ratings and HRC performance, noting that domestic records are weak predictors of how states vote on the Council.