Library | ESG issues
Environmental
The environmental pillar in ESG (environmental, social, and governance) assesses an organisation’s impact on the planet. It includes issues such as climate change, biodiversity, waste management and water management. Strong environmental practices help businesses reduce risks, comply with regulations, and drive long-term sustainability.
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Nature enters the boardroom
This report examines how Australian boards are beginning to integrate nature into governance, identifying rising awareness of nature-related risks, early adoption of frameworks such as TNFD, and varied oversight and disclosure practices. It highlights barriers, emerging approaches, and the growing financial relevance of nature for organisational decision-making.
Oxygen Consulting
Oxygen Consulting offers specialist sustainability consulting services across carbon, climate and nature, sustainability strategy and advisory, disclosure and reporting, audit and assurance, and capability development. Serving organisations in New Zealand across diverse sectors, it supports measurement, strategy formation and robust sustainability-governance frameworks to drive meaningful business impact.
The investor climate policy engagement paradox
The article explores the paradox in which institutional investors focus heavily on climate-risk disclosure, an area of comfort and perceived legitimacy, while underinvesting in real-economy climate policy that could meaningfully reduce systemic risk. It argues that meaningful climate action requires shifting from technocratic “managing tons” approaches toward politically challenging asset revaluation and more robust policy engagement.
Food security: Tackling the current crisis and building future resilience
The report examines rising global food insecurity, driven by conflict, climate impacts, inflation, and supply disruptions. It outlines the economic and social consequences, highlights regional vulnerabilities, and assesses future risks. It also presents social, technological, financial, and geopolitical actions needed to strengthen food system resilience.
Empirically grounded technology forecasts and the energy transition
This report uses empirically validated probabilistic forecasting to assess future energy technology costs. It finds that rapid deployment of solar, wind, batteries, and electrolyser technologies is likely to lower overall system costs and deliver substantial net savings compared with continued reliance on fossil fuels.
Trophic rewilding can expand natural climate solutions
This paper argues that restoring wild animal populations can significantly enhance natural climate solutions by boosting carbon capture and storage across ecosystems. It presents evidence that animal-driven processes can help reduce emissions shortfalls and supports integrating trophic rewilding into climate and biodiversity policy.
Solutions from the One Planet network to curb plastic pollution
The report outlines solutions to curb plastic pollution by improving sustainability information, driving behaviour change, advancing sustainable procurement, and promoting circular economy measures, particularly for plastic packaging. It presents coordinated actions across sectors, including tourism, to reduce plastic use and support systemic, upstream interventions aligned with SDG 12.
Making our way: Adaptive capacity and climate transition in Australia’s regional economies
Australia’s fossil-fuel-exposed regions are assessed across seven dimensions of adaptive capacity, showing common weaknesses in economic diversity, social capital and service access. The report outlines region-specific strengths and proposes tailored, place-based transition planning to support diversification and community resilience through the net zero shift.
Increasing climate ambition, decreasing emissions: The third progress report of the net-zero asset owner alliance
The report outlines the Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance’s progress in reducing financed emissions, strengthening target-setting, and expanding climate-solution investments. It highlights updated methodologies, increased engagement with companies and policymakers, and rising member participation, underscoring the need for credible transition pathways and supportive policy environments to advance alignment with 1.5°C goals.
On YouTube, a Shift from Denying Science to Dismissing Solutions
This article dives into an analysis of over 12,000 YouTube videos and finds that while outright climate-change denial is dropping, content undermining climate solutions and trust in scientists is rising sharply. It also highlights concerns over YouTube’s ad policies, which still allow monetisation alongside videos that downplay impacts or spread misleading claims about climate policy.
The new climate denial: How social media platforms and content producers profit by spreading new forms of climate denial
Climate denial on YouTube has shifted from rejecting global heating to undermining climate impacts, solutions, and science. New Denial now represents most claims, while Old Denial has declined. The report highlights platform monetisation of such content and calls for updated policies and stronger action to address evolving misinformation.
Net zero carbon buildings in cities: Interdependencies between policy and finance
This report analyses how cities can decarbonise buildings by mapping the interdependencies between policy and financial instruments and the barriers they address. It highlights priority actions for cooling, embodied carbon, adaptation and a just transition, outlining pathways that help cities sequence measures to accelerate net zero building outcomes.
Cities Climate Finance Leadership Alliance (CCFLA)
Cities Climate Finance Leadership Alliance (CCFLA) is a global multi-stakeholder coalition mobilising finance for urban low-carbon and climate-resilient infrastructure. It supports sub-national governments in developing bankable projects, strengthening enabling environments and closing investment gaps especially in emerging markets and developing economies.
Closing the Gap: The evolution of climate transition finance in China
China’s transition finance market is expanding to support the decarbonisation of high-emitting industries. The report outlines growth in green and sustainability-linked bonds, emerging transition frameworks, and ongoing debates on coal and gas inclusion, highlighting the need for clearer standards and broader financing tools to meet China’s 2060 climate goals.
Responsible Investment: Australian perspectives on Private Equity practices
This report outlines how Australian private equity firms are integrating ESG across the investment cycle in response to mandatory climate reporting, taxonomy alignment, and stakeholder expectations. It highlights evolving screening, due diligence, ownership, and exit practices, and shows how ESG integration can support value creation and strengthen competitive positioning.
Firm‐level climate change exposure
The report develops a machine-learning method to measure firm-level climate change exposure from earnings calls across 34 countries. It identifies opportunity, physical, and regulatory dimensions and shows that these exposures predict green hiring, green patenting, and are reflected in options and equity markets.