U.S. states are major global greenhouse gas emitters, and they have the economic heft and legislative authority to move the United States toward lower emissions and cleaner energy. These six charts show how state emissions compare, how they're changing and what could come next.
CAIT
Visualizing Climate Equity: The CAIT Equity Explorer
The Climate Access Indicators Tool (CAIT) Equity Explorer (WRI 2014), part of WRI’s CAIT Climate Data Explorer suite, is an online visualization tool that aims to inform the UNFCCC international climate negotiations by providing a unique approach to climate equity. This technical note discusses...
Now that 190 countries have committed to new national climate plans – known as Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs -- under the Paris Agreement on climate change, they are looking for ways to convert these commitments into action. The success of the Paris Agreement on climate change depends in large part on whether countries can do this in a coordinated and effective manner.
The good news is that many governments and multilateral institutions offer technical and financial assistance, some cases have for years. However, navigating the vast, fragmented array of support can...
Scant information exists on emissions in Indonesia's provinces, making it difficult to evaluate local climate action in the country. The new Indonesia Climate Data Explorer provides insights on emissions and climate commitments from 34 provinces.
The top 10 emitters produce around 70 percent of global emissions in 2012, based on historical emissions data from CAIT Climate Data Explorer.
In the final days of the Paris climate conference, the idea of greenhouse gas emissions neutrality has emerged as a way to frame the long-term goal to limit the rise in world temperatures. Here are five key questions and answers about this critical concept.
Photo: Michelle Szejner Sigal/GIZ
Latin American Countries Commit to Expand Forest and Landscape Restoration
Countries in Latin America are seizing the opportunity to restore degraded landscapes, capturing gains in agricultural production, soil and water quality, and conservation of biodiversity, while also creating sizable carbon sinks. Through Initiative 20x20, the first regional commitment to forest and landscape restoration at scale in Latin America, a group of governments pledged to restore over 23.8 million hectares (59 million acres), attracting $670 million in impact investment pledges.
The Challenge
Global demand for forestry commodities is rising rapidly, especially in emerging and developing economies. Producing fuel, fiber and timber from forests creates opportunity for economic growth but also increases pressure on natural resources. Globally, about 13 million hectares (32 million acres) are being cleared each year, and in the past decade most of the world’s forest loss has occurred in the tropics. Commercial agriculture is responsible for 71 percent of tropical deforestation worldwide, much of it illegal. Latin America has a huge opportunity to scale up restoration of degraded lands but as of August 2014 only El Salvador had made an international commitment when it pledged to restore one million hectares through the Bonn Challenge.
WRI’s Role
WRI helped launch Initiative 20x20, a country-led effort to bring 20 million hectares (49 million acres) of land in Latin America and the Caribbean into restoration by 2020, at the Lima COP20 climate conference. WRI supports Initiative 20x20 through its Global Restoration Initiative and facilitates the dialogue between governments, civil society and the private sector to build a coalition and achieve the initiative’s goals.
WRI recruited local and regional institutions such as Bioversity International, CATIE, CIAT, Fundación Agreste, ICRAF, Instituto Humboldt, IUCN and Sustainable Amazon Foundation to become partners, making this an initiative supported by Latin American institutions. WRI also made the economic case for restoration to governments and the private sector, including impact investors. The team identified large areas with restoration potential in the “Atlas of Forest and Landscape Restoration Opportunities,” highlighted examples of successful restoration, and developed a Restoration Diagnostic tool to guide action.
The Impact
Initiative 20x20 is the first-ever regional commitment to forest and landscape restoration at scale in Latin America. Over the past 12 months, Initiative 20x20 has helped to mobilize political commitments to restore 23.8 million hectares (59 million acres) of forestlands (an area nearly as large as the United Kingdom) and impact investment commitments of $670 million. The team also convened a diverse regional technical partnership to support successful implementation of these commitments.
TRAC provides standards, tools, data, and analysis for use by countries, cities, and companies as the foundation for large-scale emissions reductions.
Brazil, the world’s seventh-biggest greenhouse gas emitter, has the relevant tools and policies it needs to become a leader in the fight to deal with climate change. This opportunity comes at a pivotal time for Brazil: its national climate plan—its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC)—should be submitted within days as part of global climate negotiations, while a national economic crisis, drought and energy uncertainty inform Brazil’s decisions at home.
New data in WRI’s CAIT Climate Data Explorer shows that the top 10 emitters contribute 72 percent of global emissions; the bottom 100 contribute only 3 percent.