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In 2025, the European Union's power sector reached a tipping point as wind and solar generation surpassed fossil fuels for the first time, accounting for 30.1% of electricity. While solar generation hit record highs and coal reached a historic low, gas power saw a slight increase, though it remained below pre-crisis levels.

The High Seas Treaty, formally the Agreement on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ agreement), enters into force on January 17, 2026. The treaty establishes a legal framework to protect biodiversity and manage natural resources in the 'high seas'—ocean areas outside any single country's jurisdiction, which cover approximately half of the planet's surface.

This fact sheet by RMI explains the liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply chain, the United States' role as a leading exporter, and the environmental and economic impacts associated with the liquefaction and transport of gas over long distances.

This briefing by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) and partners examines the application of the Polluter-Pays Principle (PPP) to the PFAS pollution crisis. It argues that current implementation in the EU is inconsistent and that a comprehensive strategy is needed to shift the staggering financial burden of remediation and health costs from the public to the producers and users of PFAS.

The European Electricity Review 2026 by Ember analyzes electricity generation and demand across the EU-27 for 2025. The report highlights a historic tipping point where wind and solar combined to produce more electricity than all fossil fuel sources for the first time, while coal reached a new historic low. Despite this progress, the EU remains dependent on imported gas, which drove up electricity prices and import costs in 2025. The report emphasizes the role of battery storage in reducing gas reliance and curtailment of clean power.

This briefing by Zero Carbon Analytics examines how climate change is reducing the quantity and quality of sparkling wine globally. It details the impact of extreme weather on yields and pricing in key regions like France, Spain, and Italy, the chemical changes in grapes that alter flavor profiles, and the risks to agricultural workers. The document also discusses the limitations and costs of adaptation measures, noting that traditional wine-growing regions face a high risk of becoming unsuitable if global temperatures rise by 2°C or more.

This report by Ember assesses the current state and future requirements of Europe's electricity interconnection. It finds that the EU is not on track to meet its 2030 interconnection targets, with 80% of the power system expected to miss the goal. To reach an optimal grid by 2040, Europe needs to nearly double its interconnection capacity, adding 151 GW, which requires an estimated €150 billion in investment. The report identifies a €30 billion public funding gap in the proposed Connecting Europe Facility for Energy (CEF-E) budget for 2028-2034, suggesting that this gap must be filled by EU loans and private funding to ensure energy security and cost-effectiveness.

A briefing by Zero Carbon Analytics detailing how soy-driven deforestation in Brazil's Cerrado biome reduces regional rainfall and agricultural productivity, creating a paradox where individual farmer profits are outweighed by regional economic losses and global supply chain risks.

This report by Ember examines the global expansion of solar power in the decade following the 2015 Paris Agreement, focusing on the leadership of emerging economies, specifically Brazil, China, and India. It details how national targets, international finance, and industrial policies accelerated solar adoption, shifting the center of solar generation from OECD nations to emerging markets.

In Q3 2025, the global cumulative volume of aligned GSS+ debt reached USD 6.5 trillion, with quarterly issuance of USD 233.2 billion. Non-financial and financial corporates were the leading issuer types, while the IBRD remained the most active individual issuer. Green bonds continue to dominate the market, though sustainability-labelled debt is showing increasing momentum.

This guide provides a structured framework for governments to develop and implement national or subnational fossil fuel subsidy (FFS) phase-out plans. It advocates for a whole-of-government approach to coordinate across ministries and proposes a three-category classification system to prioritize subsidies based on their risk to energy security, social stability, and political feasibility. The framework aims to move governments from general commitments to actionable, time-bound implementation roadmaps.

This policy brief by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines the 2024 reform of the European Union's public procurement framework. It argues that while green public procurement (GPP) is a powerful lever for the green transition—given that public procurement accounts for approximately 14% of EU GDP—its implementation is hindered by legal uncertainties, administrative burdens, and capacity gaps. The document advocates for the use of robust, third-party verified tools such as ecolabels and life-cycle costing to simplify GPP and recommends specific legal and structural reforms to the EU directives to foster their uptake.

This report provides a comparative analysis of global electricity tariff-setting methodologies, focusing on the process of determining revenue requirements and conducting Cost of Supply (CoS) studies. It examines various regulatory models—including rate-of-return, incentive-based, performance-based, and market-based pricing—and evaluates their effectiveness in balancing financial sustainability for utilities with affordability for consumers. The document concludes with specific recommendations for South Africa to modernize its tariff structures and revenue determination processes as it transitions toward a wholesale electricity market.

A joint letter from various Canadian health, environmental, and academic organizations urging the Canadian government to sign the Global Initiative on Information Integrity on Climate Change to combat climate disinformation.

The report 'Shockproof: how electrification can strengthen EU energy security' by Ember argues that accelerating the electrification of the EU economy, powered by homegrown renewables, is the primary mechanism to reduce the bloc's high dependency on imported fossil fuels. It suggests that fossil import dependency could be halved by 2040 through the adoption of mature technologies like electric vehicles and heat pumps.

In the first half of 2025, global solar and wind generation grew sufficiently to exceed total electricity demand growth, resulting in renewables overtaking coal in the global electricity mix for the first time. While global power sector CO2 emissions fell marginally by 0.2%, results varied by region, with emissions decreasing in China and India but increasing in the US and EU.

The report 'Global Electricity Mid-Year Insights 2025' by Ember analyzes global electricity generation from January to June 2025. It finds that solar and wind growth exceeded global demand growth, leading to renewables overtaking coal's share in the global electricity mix for the first time on record and causing power sector CO2 emissions to plateau.

A research paper by Zero Carbon Analytics (ZCA) examines the economic and health costs of red and processed meat consumption in high-income countries. The analysis finds that wealthy nations in Asia, Europe, North America, and Oceania face a substantial disease burden from meat consumption, with some countries spending heavily to treat preventable conditions rather than investing in primary prevention. The report argues that shifting toward dietary interventions could significantly reduce healthcare spending and improve public health outcomes.

This report by Ember examines the critical role of electricity interconnectors in maintaining European energy security, preventing blackouts, and mitigating the impact of geopolitical conflicts and sabotage. It argues that expanding and securing cross-border grid capacity is a vital element of protecting European society against hybrid warfare and technical failures.

This briefing by Zero Carbon Analytics debunks common myths about renewable energy, demonstrating that solar and wind are now the cheapest and most efficient power sources. It provides evidence that renewables are reliable when integrated with storage, have lower wildlife and environmental impacts than fossil fuels, and occupy minimal land. The document specifically clarifies that a 2025 blackout in the Iberian Peninsula was caused by grid failures rather than renewable energy usage.