WRI Insights

One of the most far-reaching of the commitments from the recent UN Climate Summit is the [New York Declaration on Forests](http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/events/2014/september/23-september-united-nations-climate-summit/Land-Use-and-Forest-Action-Area-Online-Pressroom/), which includes a plan restore 350 million hectares of degraded forest landscapes into productivity by 2030. While restoration [holds great promise](http://www.wri.org/blog/2014/05/7-unexpected-places-forest-landscape-restoration) for many countries, this ambitious new target is especially important for Africa. As we’re already seeing, [if done right](http://www.wri.org/blog/2014/05/restoration-it%E2%80%99s-about-more-just-trees), restoration could boost food and water security, improve livelihoods, and curb climate change in some of the most vulnerable regions on Earth.

Multinational corporations have a central role in planning for climate change impacts. However, business leaders can go a step further by [making their supply chains](http://www.wri.org/blog/2013/11/3-ways-multinational-corporations-can-help-vulnerable-communities-adapt-climate-change)—often made up of small businesses in developing countries—more resilient. Here’s a look at why small businesses need a significant role in mitigating and adapting to climate change.

Buildings [account for](http://www.iea.org/media/training/presentations/etw2014/publications/Sustainable_Buildings_2013.pdf) more than one-third of all final energy consumption and half of global electricity use. While rapid urban development demands new infrastructure, there is a cost-effective solution for reducing buildings’ environmental impacts—energy efficiency.

In South Africa—[one of the world’s most water-stressed countries](http://www.wri.org/blog/2013/12/world%E2%80%99s-36-most-water-stressed-countries) and [one of the largest](http://www.worldcoal.org/coal/coal-mining/) producers and consumers of coal—the water-energy nexus is a topic of great concern.

Through the Compact of Mayors and parallel initiatives, cities are making ambitious commitments to curb emissions, adopting new greenhouse gas emissions measuring standards, and supporting the financing of low-carbon infrastructure.

A new report delivers a simple, but powerful message: economic growth and climate action can be achieved together. Drawing on new evidence and hundreds of real-world examples, it focuses on opportunities to shift three key economic systems: energy, land use, and cities.

Leaders at this week's UN Climate Summit unveiled “The New York Declaration” on forests, which many hope will inject life into efforts to reverse forest loss. While the Declaration is not an “official” UN agreement—and has been carefully worded to avoid the appearance of commitments being binding—it is a positive development. If governments and business take it seriously going forward—and civil society watchdogs hound them sufficiently to do so—it would yield significant impacts.

The [UN Climate Summit](http://www.wri.org/events/united-nations-climate-summit-2014) brought together more than 125 heads of state and government officials—the largest-ever climate meeting of world leaders. Leaders clearly demonstrated their understanding that the impacts of climate change are real and costly, and that they no longer have to choose between economic growth and climate action—they [go hand-in-hand](http://www.wri.org/blog/2014/09/numbers-new-climate-economy). WRI’s experts were in New York for all the action. While the outcomes from [the Summit](http://www.un.org/climatechange/summit/) are still evolving, here’s our first look at progress made and next steps.

In a blog post originally published for Huffington Post, Andrew Steer and Stephen M. Ross discuss the importance low carbon cities. The authors have recently partnered to create the WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities, an initiative that will galvanize action on sustainable urban development and improve the lives of people around the world.

Global emissions are [higher than any point in history](http://www.wri.org/blog/2014/05/history-carbon-dioxide-emissions) and atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide [are increasing faster](http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2014/09/09/carbon-dioxide-sees-biggest-annual-spike-on-record-as-researchers-gain-insight-on-warming-slowdown/) than the previous 30 years. A new interactive map reveals how carbon dioxide emissions are distributed globally and how they've changed in the past 160 years.