Posts tagged with 'net zero'
The built environment accounts for over one-third of global emissions. In rapidly developing markets like India and Mexico, a surge in housing construction faces a pivotal choice: lock in high-carbon infrastructure or, with the right interventions, enable resilient, low-carbon designs and ...
Nearly a decade ago, the world rallied around the Paris Agreement on climate change and the goal of holding global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees C (2.7 degrees F). Since then, the “1.5C goal” has become the world’s North Star ...
As countries prepare their updated nationally determined contributions (NDCs) for submission ahead of this year’s UN climate change conference (COP30), there is growing recognition that effective climate action requires strong collaboration between national and subnational governments. Only about a quarter ...
Transport is one of the fastest-growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for 24% of carbon emissions worldwide. Nearly three-quarters of those emissions come from road vehicles. Solutions like electrification and increased public transport can reduce the transport sector’s emissions, but they ...
Cities are at the forefront of climate impacts, and city governments are key actors in unlocking action to build urban resilience and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In recent years, the number of cities and regions committing to climate action and ...
For more than 20 years, WRI has identified annual “stories to watch.” These are the year’s moments, issues and decisions that we believe will shape the future trajectory of the world. In the past, we’ve highlighted things like dangerous heat in cities, ...
Cities are home to more than half the world’s population: 4.4 billion people commuting, working, eating, shopping, and using light, heat and air conditioning. As a result, cities collectively produce over 70% of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions warming the planet. They ...
The world recently experienced a 13-month streak of record-breaking global temperatures. And as blistering heat waves punish communities across several continents, 2024 is on track to be the hottest year on record. Global average temperatures are now perilously close to exceeding 1.5 ...
The built environment is not on track globally to achieve its sectoral climate targets. Accounting for over a third of total energy system emissions already, the continued use of carbon-intensive materials paired with inefficient energy use throughout the built environment ...
Getting more zero-emission trucks on the road is an important transportation shift that is needed to reduce air pollution, protect public health and curb climate-harming emissions. But transforming the entire trucking industry is a challenging feat that will require the ...
In the stylish Grünerløkka neighborhood in Oslo, construction workers are busy rehabilitating Sophies Minde, an old medical clinic, into a new nursery school and maternal health center. Tidy piles of building materials along the perimeter of the construction site wait ...
Climate change and social inequality are two of the most pressing challenges of our time. But, in the race to net zero, a narrow focus on decarbonization risks exacerbating inequality and results in a rising tide of “greenlash” (backlash against ...
By early 2025, countries are due to unveil new national climate commitments under the Paris Agreement, known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs). These commitments form the foundation of international climate action, establishing emissions-reduction targets and other measures that countries promise ...
If a picture can tell a whole story, then the image below of an intersection in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, shows the past, present and future of global transformation in the transport sector. During Transforming Transportation 2024, which focused on ...
India aims to reduce the emissions intensity of its economy by 45% by 2030, compared to 2005 levels, and to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070. The country can’t achieve either goal without a radical transformation in its buildings and construction sector, which was responsible for around 17% of the nation’s ...