Twenty years ago, the BioTrade Initiative was launched as the UNCTAD response to implementing the 1992 Earth Summit’s Agenda 21, the blueprint for sustainable development action into the twenty-first century.
The report is a one stop shop for learning about key developments and prospects of existing and emerging carbon initiatives. There is a continued momentum for carbon pricing. As of 2017, over 40 national and 25 subnational jurisdictions representing almost a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions are putting a price on carbon. Over the past decade the number of jurisdictions with carbon pricing initiatives have doubled. On average, carbon pricing initiatives cover about half of the emissions in these jurisdictions, which translates to a total coverage of about 8 Gigatons of carbon dioxide or about 15% of global emissions (a fourfold increase over the past decade).
Finance provided and catalysed by multilateral development banks (MDBs) will help pay for implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Climate Agreement in many developing countries. Although MDBs already track and report on their climate finance, less is known about how investments across their entire energy supply portfolios relate to achieving sustainable development and climate-change objectives.
An enduring concern for developed and developing countries alike is to strike the right balance between ambitious environmental policies and the international competitiveness of both nations and individual firms. Significant advances have been made in measuring the stringency of environmental policies and understanding the relationship between environmental action and economic dynamics. However, the literature evaluating these issues in the context of developing countries remains sparse, mainly due to a lack of data.
This paper aims to inform energy planners and investors about i) how climate change can affect power generation resources, particularly hydropower resources; and ii) an approach that can be taken to address climate change risks, both at the project and sector level, to improve power system resilience and enhance energy security.
In recent years the circular economy has received increasing attention worldwide due to, inter alia, the recognition that security of supply of resources and environmental sustainability are crucial for the prosperity of countries and businesses. G20 countries should consider developing frameworks that enhance the circular economy and more generally sustainable production and consumption modes. In this context, they should 1) integrate the circular economy into discussions about implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement, 2) work towards agreed terminologies for circular economy products and processes, 3) support demand for circular economy products and services, 4) support transparency across global supply chains, 5) facilitate financing for establishing circular supply chains and 6) proactively address the transition issues.