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The World Resources Report is the flagship publication of World Resources Institute. The inaugural edition, An Assessment of the Resource Base that Supports the Global Economy, was published in 1986. Subsequent editions have been published at regular intervals and have provided in-depth analyses of issues ranging from human health and the environment to climate change, ecosystem services and environmental governance. Every World Resources Report builds on a strong evidence base to develop fresh insights that can help decision-makers evaluate and implement the most effective solutions.
Sustainably feeding nearly 10 billion people by 2050 is possible – but it will require significant innovation and investment by the public and private sector.
The World Resources Report: Towards a More Equal City focuses on helping cities in rapidly urbanizing regions alter their development trajectories as demand for infrastructure and services grow.
The Natural Infrastructure for Aquifer Recharge Financial Calculator, is an excel based tool with a flexible financial model that estimates the private costs and benefits, including the return on investment (ROI), of natural infrastructure interventions designed to enhance aquifer...
In 2015, UNICEF and the World Health Organization reported that over 90% of the world’s population used improved drinking water sources. But new research suggests the indicators used by UNICEF/WHO grossly overestimated the state of water access, especially in cities of the global south. Analysis...
This publication was updated on September 9th 2019 to fix errors in Table 3 and November 8th 2019, updating Figure 7.
This technical note serves as the main reference for the updated Aqueduct™ 3.0 water risk framework, in which we combine 13 water risk indicators—including...
The American Cities Climate Challenge: Renewables Accelerator website is a resource developed in partnership by World Resources Institute and Rocky Mountain Institute to help cities procure renewable electricity. The procurement guidance section is a key...
On July 24, WRI Senior Fellow Karl Hausker, Ph.D., testified in a hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy & Commerce, Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change. The hearing, titled “Building America’s Clean Future: Pathways to Decarbonize the Economy,”...
By 2050, nearly 10 billion people will live on the planet. Can we produce enough food sustainably? World Resources Report: Creating a Sustainable Food Future shows that it is possible – but there is no silver bullet. This report offers a five-...
Building resilience to increasingly intense climate change impacts requires effective, urgent adaptation action at the local level. While much progress has been made within the international and national arenas, efforts to successfully implement adaptation at the subnational level remains uneven...
The greenhouse gas emissions of the global apparel and footwear sector are significant and likely to grow. Given the environmental and business implications of increasing global emissions, companies in the sector should actively pursue a comprehensive strategy to limit their climate impacts and...
Long-term planning for climate and development requires tailored governance and institutional arrangements. Most countries have some experience with climate-change planning over near- and medium-term horizons through efforts such as nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and low-emissions...
Climate change impacts on agricultural systems are intensifying. The recent IPCC report illustrates that as temperatures climb, changes in the climate are pushing systems beyond sustainable boundaries. This is the case with certain livestock...
For the past two years, at the invitation of the Argentine and Japanese G20 presidencies, UNDP and WRI have together advised the G20 Climate and Sustainability Working Group on the key role that long-term strategies and NDCs are playing to advance the G20 agenda and address climate change. This...
Electric buses could pioneer a new age of clean and efficient urban transport and put cities on track towards sustainability. However, electric bus adoption is not accelerating fast enough for the world to meet transport-related global climate objectives and help limit global temperature rise to...
Electric buses, which have zero tailpipe emissions, hold the potential to provide outsized air quality and climate benefits. Faster adoption of cleaner buses is an important part of the bigger climate solution, helping put cities on track towards sustainability. Despite the promise of electric...
Many cities are experiencing a decline in access to jobs, services and people due to a confluence of two trends: rapid urbanization and motorization. Lack of access afflicts both low-income communities scattered throughout the city and low- to medium-income people living in suburbs and...
New WRI analysis indicates that Mexico can save more than 25,000 lives and $5 billion in public health costs over the next 12 years by aggressively pursuing policies and actions that reduce air pollution and the greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming.
Addressing three sectors...
India will face considerable and varied climate change impacts in the coming decades. The country has a large population with high poverty and low adaptive capacity, heavy dependence on climate-sensitive sectors, and is likely to face negative climate change impacts. These factors make...
This case study in the World Resources Report, “Towards a More Equal City,” tells the story of the Via RecreActiva – a ciclovía, or bike path, in the city of Guadalajara, Mexico. More than 60 kilometers of streets are closed every Sunday for this...
The Paris Agreement’s enhanced transparency framework places new and more stringent requirements on developing countries. For many countries, to implement these new requirements capacity-building support is vital. This new paper from the Project for Advancing Climate Transparency examines...
The Costs and Emissions Appraisal Tool for Transit Buses (“the Tool”) is intended to help bus operators and transit agencies make informed decisions about alternative bus types during the preliminary analysis phase and to help them determine whether the transition to a “clean fleet” is...
Traditional infrastructure systems worldwide rely on built solutions to support the smooth and safe functioning of societies. in the face of multiplying environmental threats, this approach alone can no longer provide the climate resiliency and level of services required in the 21st century....
