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In 2013, in the aftermath of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster, the government of Japan put forth a revised target to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 3.8 percent from 2005 levels by 2020.
This paper analyzes this target and finds that Japan can likely meet it by...
This issue brief identifies the technical, political, and implementation challenges of cost-effectively targeting agricultural conservation funds to achieve greater improvements in water quality and suggests options for addressing these challenges.
This publication is the third in a...
In this second installment of our 3-part series on better targeting of U.S. farm conservation funds, WRI found that combining geographic targeting with benefit-cost principles could potentially yield seven to 12 times...
Installment 5 of Creating a Sustainable Food Future explores the potential role of aquaculture in meeting global fish demand in 2050, finding that...
President Obama announced the first-ever National Climate Plan for the United States in June 2013. Under the plan, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will set carbon pollution...
This working paper is designed to help make decision-making processes more transparent and enable greater engagement in the electricity sector.
It is part of the 10 Questions to Ask Series, which aims to build...
Corporate data quality management is a vital component of a reliable GHG accounting system. This report is intended to assist corporate GHG reporters and government authorities in the process of establishing a GHG data quality management system.
There are three phases in developing,...
President Obama announced the first-ever National Climate Plan for the United States in June 2013. Under the plan, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will set carbon pollution standards for power plants. In September 2013, EPA introduced emissions standards for new power plants and...
This working paper is part of the “10 Questions to Ask Series”, which aims to build the capacity of electricity sector stakeholders—government agencies, regulators, utilities, the private sector, civil society, and others...
In an April 25, 2014 testimony, Sarah Forbes describes the context for US-China collaboration on clean energy, outlining the need for policies that encourage innovation throughout the value chain. She also highlights how collaboration with China can advance U.S. energy goals, and suggests ways...
Global growth has not come without costs: Pollution, natural resource depletion, climate change, and the disruption of ecosystem services are now felt around the world.
This report aims at helping investors in developing countries develop effective social and environmental safeguard...
Despite inaction by Congress, the Obama Administration is acting on several fronts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the United States.
This fact sheet outlines the steps the Administration has taken to reduce GHG emissions, with more important rules expected soon.
As the challenges facing the world—from economic uncertainty and political unrest, to the increasingly severe impacts of a changing climate—have grown, the World Bank is seeking to reinvent itself and help its developing member countries address these challenges.
To understand the World...
This issue brief explores the complicated realities of how accountability tools functioned in land-use planning, zoning, and permitting processes in a pair of case studies from Brazil and Indonesia and draws lessons for government or civil society designers of REDD+ programs.
One case...
This booklet provides an overview of key legality issues that businesses should consider when purchasing wood and paper-based products.
The Indian Government has made a voluntary international commitment to reduce the emissions intensity of its gross domestic product (GDP) by 20–25 percent from 2005 levels by 2020. Domestically, India’s National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) includes eight national missions to support...
National and corporate/facility level GHG inventory systems can help countries address climate change. However, these systems are often developed independently of each other, and confusion exists regarding the purpose of and need for each inventory type. This working paper seeks to describe...
This working paper reports on a series of three regional workshops in which participants from governments in Latin America, Africa and Asia reflected on the main technical, policy, and capacity challenges to monitoring climate finance, and exchanged experiences on efforts that are under way in...
This issue brief identifies the major types of uncertainties in water quality trading markets and summarizes the various mechanisms that could be used to address them.
Discussions are being initiated this month at the UNFCCC negotiating session in Bonn, Germany on the types of information that will be needed to understand the nationally determined contributions Parties put forward for the post-2020 period under the emerging 2015 Agreement.
This working...
