Library | ESG issues
Public Policy
Public policy refers to the actions and decisions taken by governments to address societal issues through laws, regulations, and funding priorities. It shapes the business environment by influencing regulatory requirements, market conditions, and corporate responsibilities. Policies related to taxation, labour laws, environmental regulations, and trade agreements can impact business operations, costs, and investment strategies.
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Time to get real: Current and future best practice for investor engagement on climate policy
This report examines how institutional investors engage on climate policy and sets out guidance for best practice. Drawing on interviews with 70+ individuals and a survey of investors representing approximately USD 33 trillion in AUM, it calls for a shift from disclosure-focused engagement towards real economy policies, and identifies three field-building priorities.
Unlocking climate risk insurance: The role of public development banks
This report examines how public development banks (PDBs) can expand climate risk insurance in emerging markets and developing economies. It identifies five key barriers to insurance uptake, analyses distinct roles for national, regional, and multilateral development banks, and provides recommendations to scale insurance solutions that build climate resilience.
Where cultivated meat can be sold
An interactive tracker by The Good Food Institute mapping global regulatory approvals and market pathways for cultivated meat products.
The role of national social dialogue institutions in shaping investment policies
This ILO Working Paper examines how national social dialogue institutions across eight countries and one regional bloc shape trade, investment and responsible business conduct policies. Drawing on eleven case studies, it identifies emerging practices, key challenges including unclear mandates and limited resources, and policy options for strengthening institutional effectiveness.
Investment treaties as catalysts for technology transfer in Africa
This policy brief analyses how African investment treaties — more than 1,000 signed to date — support or constrain technology transfer. It examines express and implied treaty restrictions, associated investor-state dispute risks, and recommends that African states adopt precisely drafted provisions and strengthen institutional capacity to enable meaningful technological advancement.
Global report on internal displacement series
The Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID) is an annual benchmark series published by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC). It tracks the scale, drivers, and geography of internal displacement worldwide, covering both conflict- and disaster-driven movements across countries and regions.
Trump climate endangerment stories
This interactive mapping tool from the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) combines climate data and community stories to show how climate change is affecting temperatures, water resources, disaster losses, insurance costs and public health across the United States. It also illustrates the projected impacts of changes to federal climate pollution regulations.
Digital Policy Hub
The Digital Policy Hub, hosted by the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), is a research and policy platform focused on the governance of transformative technologies. It supports research, analysis and collaboration on topics including artificial intelligence, data governance, digital security, democracy, outer space and environmental impacts of digitalisation.
Modeling ghost GDP: Macro-financial risk and diversified portfolios in the age of artificial intelligence, automation, and populism
This PDI working paper stress-tests four AI-driven labour displacement scenarios against US macro-financial data, modelling cascading losses across household debt, corporate credit, equities, pensions, insurance, and fiscal channels. Total economy-wide value at risk ranges from approximately $15–18 trillion (Light) to $62–72 trillion (Aggressive). Predistributive mechanisms are proposed as structural solutions.
Update on China's climate policy from the 2026 two sessions: How Chinese companies and industry are shaping the energy transition agenda
This report analyses corporate engagement in China's climate and energy policy during the 2026 Two Sessions. It outlines the 15th Five-Year Plan's carbon intensity reduction target and examines how the oil, gas, new energy, and automotive sectors are influencing the nation's decarbonisation and energy transition agenda.
The growth of dual-use by design research in Europe: Export control risks and challenges
This report explores how increased funding for 'dual-use by design' research in Europe blurs the line between civilian and military ecosystems. It highlights proliferation risks and identifies challenges for export controls, arguing for a broader, integrated governance framework to safeguard international research collaboration and security.
Reining in big tech corporations: Why platform governance requires structural regulation
This paper argues that big tech platform corporations function as state-empowered artificial legal entities rather than private contractual arrangements. Highlighting their structural and governance power, the author suggests that these organisations require structural regulation and democratic oversight to recalibrate the delegated powers granted by states.
ASCOR Tool
The ASCOR Tool is an investor-led framework for assessing how countries manage the low-carbon transition and the impacts of climate change.
The impact of extreme temperatures on respiratory mortality in Brazil: Evaluating regional adaptations to different thermal environments
This report analyses the impact of extreme temperatures on respiratory mortality across 646 Brazilian municipalities from 2010 to 2020. Findings reveal a J-shaped exposure-response curve, with heat-related deaths dominating in tropical northern regions, whilst cold-related mortality predominates in the subtropical south, underscoring the need for region-specific climate adaptation policies.
Market-shaping states: A new theory of public sector capacities and capabilities
This report introduces a market-shaping theory of the public sector, arguing that governments must act as proactive co-creators of public value. It presents a three-layered framework of structural capacities, organisational routines, and dynamic capabilities to help states navigate socio-technical challenges, steer innovation, and drive sustainable societal transformations.
Leaning on uncertainty: Are European countries overrelying on carbon removals to reach climate targets?
This report analyses the climate strategies of six European countries and the European Commission, revealing a risky overreliance on unproven carbon dioxide removal technologies. It highlights fragmented planning, absent feasibility assessments, and policies contradicting scientific advice, warning that current approaches threaten effective climate action.
