Call for reform of EU power market rules

The ongoing electricity price hike fuelled by the gas crisis makes a reform of EU power market rules more urgent than ever, argue friends of EiD Mike Parr, director of PWR, and Simon Minett, founder of Challoch-Energy in an article on the EURACTIV website. High electricity prices, renewables and windfall profits – all paid … Continue reading Call for reform of EU power market rules →

Financing energy efficiency in Poland

A news article on the New Europe website discusses a landmark scheme to improve the energy efficiency of Polish homes. Separately, the moderndiplomacy website announced that the World Bank will be lending Poland €250 million to improve air quality and energy efficiency. Poland to boost residential energy efficiency with help from EBRD, BNP Paribas … Continue reading Financing energy efficiency in Poland →

Seeing the benefits of GFANZ

Many of you may not have heard of GFANZ but it could play a key role in finance climate change measures. F. Haider Alvi, Assistant Professor of Innovation Finance at Athabasca University in Canada discusses GFANZ in an article on The Conversation website. How global business could be the unexpected COP26 solution to climate … Continue reading Seeing the benefits of GFANZ →

Will poorer countries be unfairly disadvantaged by EU climate protection regulations?

The EU is picking up speed with climate protection regulations. For imports from abroad, a carbon tax will soon be introduced. But poorer countries could be unfairly disadvantaged by this. Tim Schauenberg discusses latest developments in an article on the Deutsche Welle website. CO2 tax at Europe's border: Revolution or protectionism? Earlier this year, … Continue reading Will poorer countries be unfairly disadvantaged by EU climate protection regulations? →

European Climate Foundation explains the bewildering different approaches to taxonomies

ECF Strategic Communications Manager/Sustainable Finance, Alba Málaga Homs, provides a helpful communication to sort through national approaches to what counts as green finance. While the European Union considers adopting a sustainable finance taxonomy that classifies fossil gas as a green investment, Russia and China have stepped forward and recently adopted more ambitious initiatives that exclude all … Continue reading European Climate Foundation explains the bewildering different approaches to taxonomies →

Blog from Peter Sweatman: And how much of the $100 trillion is earmarked for energy efficiency, Mark?

On November 3rd, during the first week of COP26, Mark Carney, the UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance, announced that 450 financial organisations from 45 countries pledged to deliver the estimated $100 trillion of finance needed for net zero over the next three decades. This is the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero … Continue reading Blog from Peter Sweatman: And how much of the $100 trillion is earmarked for energy efficiency, Mark? →

Legal process under Energy Charter Treaty poses real threat to the Paris climate agreement

Jennifer Rankin writes on the Guardian website about the concerns being raised that lawsuits by fossil fuel companies allowed under the Energy Charter Treaty could threaten the decarbonisation needed under the Paris climate agreement. What are your views? Secretive court system poses threat to Paris climate deal, says whistleblower A secretive investor court system … Continue reading Legal process under Energy Charter Treaty poses real threat to the Paris climate agreement →

What does it take to improve the energy performance of Britain’s homes?

When I worked at the International Energy Agency in the 1980s, we were discussing how Britain had to give more attention to improving the energy performance of its building stock, given how poor quality they were overall. In 1990, the then Department of Environment even published an excellent report of a survey on “Attitudes to … Continue reading What does it take to improve the energy performance of Britain’s homes? →

Concerns about widespread lapses in climate risk reporting found in company accounts

Over 70% of some of world’s biggest corporate emitters failed to disclose the effects of climate risk in 2020 financial statements. 80% of their auditors showed no evidence of assessing climate risk when reporting. The report is discussed in an article on the Carbon Tracker website. Flying blind: The glaring absence of climate risks … Continue reading Concerns about widespread lapses in climate risk reporting found in company accounts →

Governments around the world gave 20% more in overseas aid funding to fossil fuel projects in 2019 and 2020 than to programmes to cut the air pollution they cause

Air pollution kills more than malaria, HIV/Aids and TB combined but receives only 1% of development aid. Damian Carrington discusses how poorly air pollution is addressed in an article on The Guardian website. More global aid goes to fossil fuel projects than tackling dirty air – study Governments around the world gave 20% more … Continue reading Governments around the world gave 20% more in overseas aid funding to fossil fuel projects in 2019 and 2020 than to programmes to cut the air pollution they cause →