Katie and Brian Boland of the Delta Fund argue that ESG, win-win and the Paris goals changed the story but not where the money went, and set out five truths, from a world past 2°C to AI and inequality, that philanthropy and impact investing can no longer ignore. Republished with permission.

This field experiment in rural Sierra Leone evaluates upgrading Village Savings and Loan Associations into digital financial service agents. While infrastructure expands access, introducing consumer feedback mechanisms significantly improves service quality, transaction usage, and household shock mitigation. Results demonstrate that accountability is essential for developing functional, scalable financial markets.

This report examines the macroeconomic consequences of global supply chain chokepoint disruptions. It finds that rising geopolitical tensions threaten critical nodes, causing significant output losses and price pressures. While substitution and inventories mitigate impacts, policy responses must consider a disruption's centrality and the private sector's capacity to adjust.

This study evaluates China's rate-based National Emissions Trading Scheme using satellite imagery. It finds high-efficiency plants increased electricity generation and carbon emissions by approximately 5% relative to low-efficiency plants. The programme incentivised production without significantly reducing emission intensity, leading to an estimated aggregate increase in carbon dioxide emissions.

Toitū Tahua: The Centre for Sustainable Finance is an independent body dedicated to accelerating the transition to a sustainable financial system in Aotearoa New Zealand. It serves as an interface between the public and private sectors to align financial flows with climate and sustainability obligations.

Embera Partners is a strategic advisory firm that provides services to finance-sector stakeholders, focusing on management consulting and transformational change. The firm specializes in areas such as risk, regulatory compliance, and project management to support sustainable organizational development.

The Global Climate Policy Project is a collaborative research initiative between Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that focuses on international climate policy and energy economics.