Nearly 25% of world population exposed to deadly city heat. A study done by Columbia University’s Earth Institute found that the number of person-days (the cumulative population exposed to cumulative heat in a given year for a particular place) soared from 40bn a year in 1983 to 119bn in 2016, representing a threefold increase. In 2016, 1.7 billion people were subjected to extreme heat conditions on multiple days.

A billion people will be affected by extreme heat stress if the climate crisis raises the global temperature by just 2C, according to research released by the UK Met Office at the Cop26 climate summit.

The right capital in the right place at the right time can take climate impact beyond ‘net zero’

"In many markets, it doesn’t take much to tip the balance towards net zero. Small shifts can have big ripple effects, spurring a country to turn decisively away from current high-carbon energy."

Hong Kong’s Water-Energy-Climate Synergies

Almost half of all energy-related CO2 emissions in G20 economies are now covered by a carbon price, as several countries introduced or extended carbon taxes or emissions trading systems in the last few years.

More needs to be done using the full range of policy tools, if countries are to match their long-term climate ambitions with outcomes, according to a new OECD report.

New SSE Gender Equality Database

The United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges (SSE) new Gender Equality Database tracks and ranks stock exchanges of the G20 by the gender balance of issuer's boards. The monitoring tool represents a step forward in examining the contribution exchanges can make toward SDG target 5.5: ensure women's full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision making in political, economic, and public life.

Nigeria commits to annual carbon budgets to reach net zero under climate law.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country and the continent’s biggest oil producer, has become the first major developing country to commit to set annual carbon budgets to plot its path to cutting emissions to net zero.

After announcing a 2060 net zero target at the Cop26 climate talks in Glasgow, president Muhammadu Buhari signed into law a climate bill committing his government to produce a sweeping plan to reduce emissions, adapt to climate change and set annual and five-year carbon budgets.

The contribution of plastic waste and the plastics industry to climate change is often less known or worse, disregarded.

The impacts of mismanaged plastic waste on the climate, as well as on livelihoods and ecosystems, are an urgent development challenge.

Financing, Gender in NDCs Highlighted at COP 26 Side Events

While gender is increasingly being acknowledged by and incorporated into NDCs, challenges remain for developing best practices for integrating gender into future NDCs.

The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) organized several discussions on the sidelines of COP26 to share ways to integrate gender into countries' NDCs under the Paris Agreement.

Among the most significant announcements made at COP26 was the Glasgow Leaders' Declaration on Forests and Land Use, in which 137 countries committed to collectively end forest loss and land degradation by 2030.

Forest commitments were made to help reduce emissions, and countries are looking toward collaborative methods of restoration and protection for a resilient future.