Search Climate Insights Directory

The report details the 59th meeting of the Executive Council of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), held on May 28, 2025, in Asunción, Paraguay. The meeting focused on approving the 2025–2026 operating budget, addressing funding deficits for regional research initiatives, and proposing a shift in how member states designate national representatives to ensure institutional continuity.

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) evaluates the first 18 updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted by non-Annex I parties by May 31, 2025. It assesses whether these 'NDC 3.0' documents are evolving into 'investment-ready' prospectuses by analyzing three dimensions: the quantification of financial needs, the design of mobilization strategies, and the credibility of implementation plans.

This policy brief by the South African Institute of International Affairs argues for the 'ring-fencing' of development expenditures in Africa to protect long-term investments from short-term fiscal and political pressures. It identifies a 'perfect storm' of challenges—including trade fragmentation, the 'securitisation' of economic policy, high debt burdens, and technological disruption—that threaten development financing. The document proposes five specific policy mechanisms to institutionalise this protection and suggests that development finance should be framed as complementary to security priorities to leverage international funding.

This briefing by Zero Carbon Analytics argues for the creation of a comprehensive, quantitative global pathway for food systems transformation, similar to the IEA's energy sector roadmap. It highlights that while food systems contribute over 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions, existing frameworks are fragmented, lack legal enforceability, and often omit critical areas such as the reduction of animal-sourced product consumption and biodiversity targets.

This fact sheet outlines the significant health and economic costs associated with livestock production and meat consumption. It links high red and processed meat intake to increased risks of heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, noting that such diets caused 0.9 million deaths globally in 2019. The document also highlights systemic risks from industrial farming, including zoonotic diseases, antimicrobial resistance, and air pollution. Economically, it estimates that red and processed meat consumption resulted in USD 285 billion in global healthcare costs in 2020. Conversely, it argues that transitioning to plant-based diets, such as the EAT-Lancet planetary health diet, could prevent millions of deaths annually and save trillions of dollars in health and ecosystem costs.

This case study examines Unilever's approach to grounding global water risk assessments in local data. While using the Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas for initial screening across 300+ sites in 100 countries, Unilever validates results with local facility managers to correct discrepancies. The document highlights how global models can overestimate risk in the Great Lakes region due to unmodeled human engineering, or underestimate risk in São Paulo, Brazil, by ignoring water quality degradation and local transfers. The study concludes that global data should serve as a starting point, supplemented by documented local feedback and iterative reviews to ensure effective water stewardship.

A research paper by the South African Institute of International Affairs analyzing the 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran in June 2025 and the subsequent diplomatic response from BRICS members.

This document is a keynote address by Dr Basani Baloyi of the Institute for Economic Justice to the G20 Empowerment of Women Working Group. It argues that the care economy is the essential foundation of all economic activity and calls for G20 nations to transition from a model where care is invisible and undervalued to one where it is recognized as a public good and a driver of inclusive economic growth.

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) provides a strategic roadmap to scale climate finance for sustainable livestock systems in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). It identifies a massive funding gap, where current flows are estimated at only USD 100 million annually against needs of USD 23.2 to 25.2 billion. The document analyzes investment barriers—including governance, physical climate, and macroeconomic risks—and proposes a combination of blended finance instruments and policy reforms to attract private capital, particularly for smallholder farmers.

This policy brief by the Institute for Economic Justice argues that G20 countries must establish a coordinated, finance-backed roadmap to phase out oil and gas. While G20 nations have expanded renewable capacity, they continue to provide massive subsidies to fossil fuels, creating economic and political barriers to transition. The document highlights the specific role of South Africa's 2025 G20 presidency in leading equitable discussions on subsidy reform and financing for the Global South.

This IISD report examines the challenges and opportunities for consumer protection in the e-commerce sector of developing countries. It highlights a significant gap in legislative frameworks and enforcement capacity, particularly in LDCs, and analyzes how regional and multilateral trade agreements (like the WTO JSI and AfCFTA) are attempting to standardize protections against fraud and data misuse. The report recommends that developing countries leverage digital technologies, trade agreement commitments, and international cooperation to modernize their consumer protection systems.

This briefing by the World Resources Institute outlines four critical priorities for the third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC) taking place in Nice, France, from June 9th-13th, 2025. The document emphasizes the need to scale up funding for Sustainable Development Goal 14, integrate ocean-based solutions into national climate strategies ahead of COP30, accelerate the ratification of the High Seas Treaty, and promote 100% sustainable ocean management through Sustainable Ocean Plans.

This guide by the Climate Bonds Initiative provides a framework for investors to evaluate and engage with sovereign transition plans. It outlines key elements of credible planning, including science-based targets, detailed investment and policy roadmaps, and robust governance and transparency measures, aiming to help investors assess the long-term sustainability of sovereign asset exposures.

This expert note by the World Resources Institute examines country platforms as mechanisms to align public and private, national and international finance behind country-led climate, nature, and development plans. It identifies six key elements for effective platforms and details the specific roles and responsibilities of domestic institutions, international public institutions, and private finance providers in implementing these frameworks.

The 2025 'Pedal to the Metal' report by Global Energy Monitor evaluates the global iron and steel fleet's progress toward 2030 decarbonization goals, highlighting a gap between the planning of cleaner technologies and their actual construction.

This report documents a side event held during the 33rd Conference of the Parties (CoP-33) in Asunción, Paraguay, on May 28, 2025. Co-organized by the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) and other regional and international bodies, the event focused on formulating recommendations for drought management, improving early warning systems (EWS), and enhancing science-policy integration to support vulnerable sectors in Paraguay and the wider Americas.

This report documents a hybrid event held on May 28, 2025, in Asunción, Paraguay, organized by the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) and partners. The event focused on formulating recommendations for drought management in the Americas, specifically regarding early warning systems (EWS), regional collaboration, and the integration of scientific research into public policy to support vulnerable productive sectors.

This fact sheet from the World Resources Institute explains the definition, scale, and challenges of adaptation finance, which funds projects to build resilience against climate change impacts. It highlights a significant funding gap in developing countries and the difficulties in tracking these investments compared to climate mitigation.

This informal input paper, prepared for the G20 Working Group on Trade and Investment by the African Future Policies Hub, Lead-IT, and the World Resources Institute, advocates for a shift from nationalistic green industrial policies toward "cooperative green competitiveness." The report outlines strategies for inclusive green industrialisation, emphasizing the role of industrial clusters, regional cooperation, and reformed climate finance to ensure developing countries are integrated into global green value chains without repeating past patterns of resource exploitation.

This report by the Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs (TESS) examines the environmental impacts of agricultural subsidies and proposes frameworks for identifying and reforming those that are environmentally harmful. It emphasizes the need for international cooperation to avoid market leakage and competitiveness losses while aligning agricultural support with global biodiversity and climate goals.