Tools and Initiatives

Circular economy strategies will be crucial for cities looking to scale their impact and reach net zero. While going circular in a linear world can be challenging, the Circle Carbon Scan can help cities link material use to emissions for any sector, pinpointing exactly where change-makers should focus their attention.
Tools and Initiatives

The joint project ‘A Legal Framework for Impact’ led by PRI, the Generation Foundation and UNEP FI explores how the global investment sector could strengthen its response to ESG issues by pursuing positive sustainability impact in the real economy. It looks at sustainability factors not merely from a risk-return perspective but rather emphasizes the need to utilize capital allocation, stewardship and policy engagement to steer investee enterprises towards increasing positive sustainability outcomes and decreasing activities that have a negative impact on our environment and society.

This short piece by Najib Saab discusses the "polluter pays" principle. International environmental law today incorporates the principle that whoever causes pollution and waste of natural resources bears responsibility for the damages, and therefore must pay the price. Still, the application of this principle still poses a problem in international law as countries act on it within their own sovereign borders and thus, the implementation differs. Therefore, international law must impose a standard than can uphold this important principle.

Stockholm+50 is a crucial opportunity to commemorate the 1972 Stockholm Declaration and chart a common path for the next 50 years of environmental multilateralism. This time, however, indigenous people, particularly our youth, must be included in the conversation and our voices heard.

Decarbonizing the energy sector is one of the most pressing challenges on the path to achieving the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. Generating more than 98% of its energy from renewable resources, Costa Rica is pioneering the way. This success story is written by a courageous individual who has dedicated her life to developing renewable energy sources. María de los Angeles Gálvez Orellana shares her personal journey from growing up in El Salvador to working with the pioneers of geothermal energy in Costa Rica.

Circular business investments bring both climate-wins and resilient, risk-adjusted returns.

High-level dialogue on Integrated Approaches to Sustainable Infrastructure Investment held by United Nations Environment Programme and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. Governments have the opportunity to close the infrastructure gap by promoting a green recovery from COVID-19—especially in health, energy, logistics, and connectivity.

Scientists agree to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement and avoid climate catastrophe, we need to make drastic changes to the way we produce food. Why?

Developing more sustainable infrastructure systems is a prerequisite for changing the way that our economies and societies function, as well as achieving the SDGs and the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement.

In a country struggling with national debt and unemployment, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact. In these difficult times, who will support sustainable enterprises threatened by the consequences of national lockdowns? Argentinian lawyer Juan Erdocia addresses the important issue of leveraging private investment for sustainable initiatives. He tells us about the difficulties that two local initiatives from Buenos Aires have faced as a result of the pandemic and how they found financial support.