WRI Insights

WRI’s six-part blog series, Mobilizing Clean Energy Finance, highlights individual developing countries’ experiences in scaling up investments in clean energy and explores the role climate finance plays in addressing investment barriers. The cases draw on WRI’s recent report, [Mobilizing Climate Investment](http://www.wri.org/publication/mobilizing-climate-investment). Mexico’s experiences with wind energy provide an important case study for policy makers pursuing renewable energy deployment in other countries.

To this day, carbon pollution—the main driver of climate change—has not been controlled from power plants. That’s why the U.S. EPA’s new rules are so momentous, putting federal limits on carbon pollution from existing power plants for the first time. With the power sector representing [a third](http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/01/usa-epa-carbon-idUSL1N0MT1AM20140401) of America’s carbon footprint, these rules are the biggest single action the administration can take to drive down greenhouse gases.

At the upcoming [UNFCCC intersessional negotiation in Bonn](https://unfccc.int/meetings/bonn_jun_2014/meeting/8031.php), which begins on June 4, climate and environment ministers will have a two-day session to share their views on key issues for the [international climate negotiations](http://www.wri.org/blog/2013/11/qa-jennifer-morgan-how-do-we-secure-strong-international-climate-agreement-2015). Because these officials rarely attend such interim meetings, this is an unusual and major opportunity for them to show their commitment to strong international action, including steps needed this year to address climate change and secure a [global climate agreement by 2015](http://www.wri.org/blog/2013/11/qa-jennifer-morgan-how-do-we-secure-strong-international-climate-agreement-2015). Here are three specific points that ministers could make to underscore their commitment to curbing climate change:

There is a tremendous amount of underutilized and unproductive land throughout the world that has the potential to provide valuable ecosystem services if trees are returned to the landscape. In collaboration with the University of Maryland and IUCN, and as part of the [Global Partnership on Forest Landscape Restoration](http://www.forestlandscaperestoration.org/), WRI recently updated its [Atlas of Forest Landscape Restoration Opportunities](http://www.wri.org/forest-restoration-atlas). **We found that more than 2 billion hectares of land worldwide have the potential to be restored—and many of them are located in some unexpected places.**

On June 2, President Obama will unveil the latest—and likely greatest—emissions reduction policy since he announced his Climate Action Plan last year: new rules to limit carbon dioxide pollution from existing power plants. With power plants accounting for around one-third of U.S. emissions, these rules will address the country’s single-largest source of greenhouse gas pollution. Unfortunately, there are a lot of misconceptions on what these standards are designed to achieve, the impact they will have, and why they’re so important. This blog highlights some of the most important aspects of these crucial actions.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will soon unveil its first-ever emissions standards for existing power plants. These rules represent the most significant component of the U.S. [Climate Action Plan](http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/image/president27sclimateactionplan.pdf)—and moreover, they’re an essential step for overcoming the climate change challenge.

O GHG Protocol (sigla para [Protocolo de Gases de Efeito Estufa em inglês](http://www.ghgprotocol.org/agriculture-guidance) lançou novas diretrizes para auxiliar empresas agropecuárias a mensurarem e [gerenciarem suas emissões de GEE na agricultura e na pecuária](http://www.ghgprotocol.org/agriculture-guidance). São as primeiras diretrizes internacionais para o setor e irão ajudar nos esforços de mitigar seu impacto ambiental. Mas o que são exatamente estas emissões agropecuárias e por que é importante reduzi-las? Baseados no que há de mais recente em termos de pesquisa e de dados, aqui está tudo o que você precisa saber sobre a pegada de carbono na agropecuária.

The [Greenhouse Gas Protocol](http://www.ghgprotocol.org/) launched [a new guidance](http://www.ghgprotocol.org/agriculture-guidance) this week to help agricultural companies measure and manage their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from crop and livestock production. But what exactly are agricultural emissions, and why is it important to manage them? Drawing on the latest research and data, here is everything you need to know about agriculture’s climate footprint.

Os produtores brasileiros estão entre os principais fornecedores globais de carne, soja, cana de açúcar, arroz e café, entre outros. Mas estão também entre os principais produtores de Gases de Efeito Estufa (GEE). Read this blog in English, [here](http://www.wri.org/blog/2014/05/new-tool-low-carbon-agriculture-brazil).

Brazil’s farms are [major, global producers](http://www.brazil.org.za/agriculture.html#.U4Xz_PlSYS4) of beef, soybeans, sugarcane, coffee, rice, and more. Yet they’re also major producers of greenhouse gas emissions. Two new resources aim to reduce the emissions intensity of Brazil’s agricultural sector. The guidance offers an emissions accounting framework for all companies with agricultural operations—whether they produce animals or plants for food, fiber, biofuels, drugs, or other purposes. The calculation tool drills down into specific practices and emissions-intensive subsectors like soy, corn, cotton, wheat, rice, sugar cane, and cattle.