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The document asserts that the world is in the midst of a 'renewable revolution' characterized by exponential cost declines and adoption rates for solar, wind, batteries, and electric vehicles. It identifies China as the current leader of this transition, which is sparking a global race to the top. The report claims that global fossil fuel demand peaked in 2019 and will enter terminal decline after 2025. By 2030, the authors predict that renewables will dominate sector sales and be significantly cheaper than fossil fuel alternatives, creating a 'renewable supercycle' for investors and a necessity for petrostates to reform. The report also highlights the potential for the Global South to leapfrog old technologies and the ability of renewables to drastically reduce air pollution deaths and environmental pressure compared to fossil fuels.

The Steel GHG Emissions Reporting Guidance establishes a framework for product-level emissions accounting in the steel sector. It mandates reporting based on a fixed system boundary and the use of primary data to ensure comparability and transparency. A key feature is the 'sliding-scale' approach, which benchmarks emissions intensity against 1.5°C trajectories while accounting for the different carbon intensities of ore-based versus scrap-based production. The guidance also defines criteria for labeling abatement technologies and provides detailed procedures for calculating emissions from exported products, by-products, and fugitive methane.

The guide describes 'book and claim' as a flexible chain of custody model where producers 'book' emissions savings from clean fuels or materials in one location, and customers 'claim' those benefits for climate disclosures elsewhere via certificates. This system is designed to channel finance into nascent decarbonization technologies, such as sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), by allowing corporations to cover the price premium of cleaner alternatives when physical offtake is impractical. To ensure accountability, the system relies on independent verification of the physical supply chain, the use of registries to prevent double counting, and adherence to standardized reporting guidelines.

The guide outlines three federal funding pools for US clean industrial projects: the Office of Clean Energy Demonstration (OCED) providing grants up to 50% of costs for non-commercial technologies; the Loan Programs Office (LPO) offering up to $412 billion in loan authority to bridge projects to bankability; and various uncapped Section 45 tax credits for hydrogen, heavy industry, and carbon management. It emphasizes the role of these incentives in enabling the creation of 'clean industrial hubs' and the necessity of coordinating federal, state, and private capital to realize these projects.

The briefing highlights that material efficiency and recirculation can contribute nearly 20% of the GHG emissions reductions needed by 2050 for the steel and aluminum sectors. It distinguishes between pre-consumer, post-consumer, and internal scrap, noting that only post-consumer scrap provides significant emissions benefits by replacing primary aluminum production, which averages 16 tons of CO2e per ton. To align with 1.5°C trajectories, the aluminum industry must increase the share of post-consumer scrap from 21% in 2020 to 46% by 2050, while reducing pre-consumer scrap from 13% to 9%. The author contends that current reporting, which often only lists 'total recycled content,' obscures these distinctions, and advocates for separate disclosure of post-consumer content to drive market demand and sectoral decarbonization.

RMI organized Solarize cohorts in 2021 and 2022 involving 27 U.S. cities to make rooftop solar more accessible to low- and moderate-income (LMI) communities. By combining bulk purchasing discounts with grants and community partnerships, the program helped nearly 1,200 households install over 10 MW of residential solar, with 40% of participants from LMI or BIPOC communities. These installations are projected to save households over $8 million and avoid 106,000 tons of CO2 emissions over 25 years.

The document outlines the EV battery supply chain—divided into upstream (mining), midstream (processing/refining), downstream (assembly), and end-of-life—highlighting China's current dominance. It discusses the environmental and human rights risks associated with mining critical minerals like lithium and cobalt, and details US legislative tools such as the Inflation Reduction Act designed to 'de-risk' the supply chain and foster domestic economic growth.

Colorado faces a housing shortage requiring approximately 325,000 units to stabilize prices, which currently drives suburban sprawl and increases greenhouse gas emissions. The document proposes transit-oriented development (TOD) and 'missing middle housing' as solutions to reduce vehicle miles traveled and land consumption. Specifically, RMI estimates that upzoning and infilling along transit corridors in the Denver metro could reduce per-capita vehicle miles traveled by 13% and greenhouse gas emissions by 8% by 2040.

The briefing contends that current oil price benchmarks, such as WTI and Brent, fail to account for the varying greenhouse gas emissions intensities of the oils they comprise. It highlights that oils with similar quality and price can have climate footprints that differ by a factor of two to five, creating perverse incentives. By integrating data from the Oil Climate Index plus Gas (OCI+), the author suggests that the market could better incentivize emissions reductions and allow buyers to accurately account for supply chain emissions.

The policy brief examines the implementation of Buy Clean standards for the US steel industry, emphasizing the need to balance near-term emissions reductions with the long-term survival and decarbonization of primary steel producers. It proposes a sliding-scale emissions standard based on the ratio of primary to recycled scrap content in steel products to avoid unintended market shifts and emissions leakage.

RMI analysis finds that utility-scale solar and onshore wind are already cheaper to build than new natural gas plants in Texas, even without the Chapter 313 tax incentives. The report argues that excluding renewables from the next iteration of Chapter 313 via House Bill (HB) 5 is economically inefficient, as it would require $150 to $300 in taxpayer funds per kilowatt to make natural gas competitive. Furthermore, rapid adoption of clean technologies could allow Texas to retain $130 billion in-state through federal tax credits, with approximately 35 percent of that amount stimulating the electricity sector.

The report argues that discriminatory, car-centric land use policies in the United States have created housing shortages and increased transportation emissions. By implementing reforms such as upzoning, urban infill, and transit-oriented development in Austin, Charlotte, and Denver, RMI finds that vehicle miles traveled can be reduced by up to 13%, building energy use by up to 16%, and local greenhouse gas emissions by up to 14% compared to business-as-usual development.

The document establishes a standardized framework for reporting aluminum emissions at the product level, utilizing fixed system boundaries to ensure comparability regardless of a company's vertical integration. It defines two primary reporting boundaries: a 'benchmarking boundary' (mining to final cast-house) and a 'full boundary' (mining to semi-fabrication). Key requirements include the use of primary data, the disclosure of scrap-based content (distinguishing between pre- and post-consumer scrap), and the reporting of mine-to-smelter cast-house emissions intensity for primary aluminum. The guidance also details specific calculation methods for energy impacts, including a hierarchy for sourcing renewable energy and a dual-reporting approach for pre-consumer scrap using both cut-off and co-product allocation methods.

Geothermal heat pumps (GHPs) use the constant temperature of the earth to provide efficient heating and cooling with zero direct emissions. While installation costs are higher than fossil fuel alternatives, the Inflation Reduction Act provides tax credits and rebates that can reduce these costs by up to 50%. In the U.S. Midwest, GHPs can reduce emissions by 85-90% compared to gas or propane furnaces and use approximately 80% less energy annually. The document highlights 'networked geothermal' systems for campuses and neighborhoods as a way to achieve over 500% efficiency and lower individual costs through economies of scale.

New home construction in the US generates over 50 million tons of embodied carbon emissions annually. Analysis of 921 model homes across the US, Canada, and Europe indicates average cradle-to-gate emissions of 184 kg CO2e/m2. Reductions of 30% to 50% are achievable using existing, cost-parity materials by targeting concrete, insulation, cladding, and interior surfaces, which comprise over 70% of total emissions. Further reductions up to 140% are possible through low-emitting and carbon-storing materials.

Embodied carbon, which accounts for 11 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, refers to the emissions released during the lifecycle of building materials. Reduction strategies include using carbon-storing materials like mass timber, adopting 3D printing and robotic automation, and implementing material efficiency through modular construction. In the US, the Inflation Reduction Act provides nearly $10 billion for reducing embodied carbon, while several states have adopted 'Buy Clean' laws. RMI research indicates that low-cost embodied carbon solutions can reduce emissions by 19 to 46 percent with cost premiums under 1 percent.

The document outlines a strategy for India to transition to a green steel economy, identifying five primary technical levers—green hydrogen, renewable electricity, CCUS, scrap usage, and energy efficiency—and six policy objectives to drive the transition through standards, procurement, R&D, and sustainable finance.

The document outlines how real estate developers, building owners, and tenants in India can transition to renewable energy to reduce Scope 2 and Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions. It highlights various procurement mechanisms, including net metering, green tariffs, open access, and virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs). Using Lodha as an example, it discusses the challenges and opportunities for different user types, such as the limited rooftop space for residential tenants and the potential for commercial tenants to use open access or green tariffs. The text also emphasizes the importance of combining renewable energy with energy-efficient building design to achieve net-zero goals.

The document explains that most electric vehicles use lithium-ion batteries, specifically lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) and lithium iron phosphate (LFP) chemistries. It details the technical advantages of lithium-ion technology, such as high energy density and durability, and describes the internal movement of electrons between the anode and cathode via an electrolyte. Finally, it identifies the primary minerals used in these batteries—lithium, cobalt, manganese, nickel, and graphite—while noting the social and environmental concerns associated with their mining.

The document outlines China's transition toward a "New Power System" as a means to reach peak carbon emissions before 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060. It characterizes the current system by its reliance on coal, growing electricity demand, and the geographic distance between renewable sources and load centers. To transition, the report proposes a system defined by balanced green power development, large-scale energy storage, smart grids powered by AI and digital technology, and elastic demand for system balancing.