Search Climate Insights Directory

This research paper by the Institute for Security Studies explains the concept of the demographic dividend, focusing on the first dividend where the working-age population grows relative to dependants. It details the metrics used to identify this window of opportunity and compares the timing, peak ratios, and durations of this dividend across various global economies, with a specific focus on Africa and Nigeria.

The 'Principles for Taxonomy Interoperability' report, published by the Climate Bonds Initiative in November 2025, provides a framework for sustainable finance taxonomy developers and policymakers to ensure that national and regional taxonomies are comparable and interoperable. Launched under the Taxonomy Roadmap Initiative at COP29, the document outlines seven high-level principles designed to reduce barriers to cross-border capital flows by establishing common design features, terminology, and implementation strategies while respecting jurisdictional priorities.

The 'Princípios de Interoperabilidade Taxonômica' report, published by the Climate Bonds Initiative in November 2025, provides a high-level framework to help sustainable finance taxonomy developers and policymakers increase the comparability and cross-border flow of capital. It introduces seven principles designed to align national and regional taxonomies through common languages, scientific baselines, and collaborative international efforts, supporting the broader 'Taxonomy Roadmap Initiative' launched at COP29.

This report by the Public Affairs Research Institute (PARI), commissioned by the National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council (NACAC), provides an independent assessment of the South African government's progress in implementing 60 presidential commitments made in response to the State Capture Commission (SCC) recommendations. The assessment evaluates progress across individual accountability and systemic institutional and policy reforms, highlighting significant delays in legislative updates and a persistent lack of accountability for members of the Executive.

The 'China Sustainable Debt Market Report 2024' provides a comprehensive analysis of China's Green, Social, Sustainability, and Sustainability-Linked (GSS+) bond market. As of the end of 2024, China's cumulative issuance of CBI-defined GSS+ bonds exceeded $500 billion, making it the world's third-largest issuer. While green bonds remain dominant, the report notes a decline in financial institution issuance in 2024, offset by growth in non-financial sectors. The report highlights the rapid growth of social and sustainability bonds, the challenges facing the sustainability-linked bond (SLB) market regarding transparency and ambition, and the specific opportunities for GSS+ financing in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

This briefing by Zero Carbon Analytics examines the role of transition finance in decarbonising high-emitting sectors, with a particular focus on Asia. It discusses the challenges emerging and developing economies face in accessing climate finance, the various transition taxonomies being developed in Asian markets, and the risks of 'transition-washing'. The document advocates for more robust guardrails, such as science-based targets and independent verification of corporate transition plans, to ensure financial flows align with the 1.5°C goal of the Paris Agreement.

This report provides a comparative analysis of how central banks manage physical climate risks, offering a phased roadmap for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). It examines case studies from six central banks—Banco Central do Brasil, Bank of England, Bank Negara Malaysia, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Hong Kong Monetary Authority, and South African Reserve Bank—to identify common challenges in data availability, technical capacity, and modelling. The document emphasizes a 'phased approach' and the 'principle of proportionality' to help regulated entities (REs) build capabilities before implementing mandatory capital requirements or reporting standards.

A statement delivered by Hon. Kerrie D. Symmonds, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Barbados, on 26 June 2024, calling for the immediate entry into force of the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies and the conclusion of negotiations on overcapacity and overfishing.

This briefing by the Climate Bonds Initiative outlines 12 critical policy interventions designed to accelerate the decarbonisation of hard-to-abate sectors—such as steel, cement, chemicals, shipping, trucking, and aviation—by overcoming market failures and reducing investment risks.

The Asia Data Transparency Report 2023 evaluates power sector data transparency across 39 economies in Asia-Pacific and Central Asia. It finds that over half of the region suffers from poor or insufficient data transparency, which hinders the transition from coal to clean electricity. The report identifies high-performing economies, provides a case study on India's public-private partnership for data aggregation, and offers nine recommendations to improve data governance.

The China Sustainable Debt State of the Market Report 2022, published by the Climate Bonds Initiative, CCDC Research, and CIB Research, analyzes the growth and composition of China's green, social, sustainability, sustainability-linked (SLB), and transition bond markets (GSS+) through the end of 2022.

This report by the Climate Bonds Initiative analyzes the alignment of green, social, and sustainability bonds priced in the first nine months of 2022 with its database standards. While most issuance meets these criteria, a significant portion of labelled debt is excluded due to insufficient disclosure or a lack of ambition in the Use of Proceeds (UoP).

In H1 2022, GSS+ labelled debt volumes reached USD417.8bn, a 27% year-on-year decrease driven by inflation, rising interest rates, and geopolitical instability. Green bonds remained the largest segment (52% of volume), with China emerging as the most prolific country. While social and sustainability bonds declined, sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs) grew by 5.2%, and transition UoP bonds saw a 2.5-fold increase from Q1 to Q2. Key policy shifts included the EU's inclusion of gas and nuclear as transitional activities and the launch of green taxonomies in Colombia and South Africa.

The China Green Bond Market Report 2021, published by the Climate Bonds Initiative and CCDC Research, analyzes the rapid expansion of China's green bond market in 2021. The report highlights a record high in annual issuance, the shift toward non-financial corporate issuers, and the dominance of renewable energy projects in the use of proceeds, all occurring against the backdrop of China's '30·60' carbon targets.

The 2021 China Green Bonds Investor Survey reveals a strong appetite for high-quality green bonds, particularly in renewable energy and low-carbon transport. While financial and corporate bonds are preferred, international investors are hindered by regulatory entry barriers and quotas. The report emphasizes that market growth depends on robust credit fundamentals, transparent green credentials, and the alignment of national green taxonomies with international standards to mitigate greenwashing risks.

This report by the Climate Bonds Initiative analyzes post-issuance reporting practices for green bonds in China, focusing on the availability and quality of Use of Proceeds (UoP) and environmental impact disclosures. While China possesses a stringent regulatory framework, the report finds that reporting availability is lower than global averages, particularly regarding impact disclosure. The study highlights a strong preference for core metrics and cumulative impact reporting among Chinese issuers, while identifying inconsistencies across different regulatory bodies and bond types.

This report analyzes the global development of green taxonomies, highlighting three main approaches: whitelist-based, technical screening criteria (TSC), and principle-based. It focuses on the alignment between the EU and China taxonomies, noting that while the EU emphasizes six environmental objectives and strict 'do no significant harm' (DNSH) criteria, China focuses on three broader objectives aligned with its national pollution and climate goals. The report emphasizes the Common Ground Taxonomy (CGT) as a tool to reduce market fragmentation and facilitate cross-border investment. It also discusses implementation, noting mandatory disclosure requirements in the EU and mandatory labeling for onshore green bonds in China.

A statement by several African policy leaders criticizing the imposition of unilateral travel bans on Southern Africa following the detection of a COVID-19 variant, arguing that such measures are ineffective, economically damaging, and ignore the systemic inequities in global vaccine distribution.

This briefing by the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) proposes a methodology to track incremental energy efficiency investments in certified green buildings. Using a global database of over 16,000 certifications from 2019-2020, the report argues that current green certifications are often inconsistent indicators of actual energy performance and that energy efficiency investments represent only a small fraction of total building construction costs.

This briefing by RMI's Center for Climate-Aligned Finance analyzes the increasing trend of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) within the financial sector, where large firms are acquiring smaller companies to gain expertise in climate risk and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) domains.