The report argues the Global South is rapidly adopting cleantech as its cheapest growth pathway, driven by low energy access, limited fossil resources and abundant renewables. Falling costs, electrification and Chinese supply underpin accelerating solar and wind deployment, with fossil fuel demand for electricity expected to peak by 2030.

The report assesses energy financing by 65 major banks (2021–2024), finding fossil fuel finance more than double sustainable power supply. The energy supply financing ratio stagnates around 0.42:1, far below net-zero benchmarks, with regional disparities and weak translation of climate commitments into financing shifts.

The study analyses sustainability reports from major listed companies to assess alignment with Paris climate targets. Using natural language processing, it finds alignment depends on the type of actions taken. Firms prioritising innovation and energy transition outperform those focused on risk mitigation.

This IEA report examines how common, transparent criteria for sustainable fuels could support decarbonisation. It compares existing standards, highlights inconsistencies in definitions, and proposes supply-chain greenhouse gas intensity as a basis for fair comparison and policy alignment.

The article argues that while climate disclosure and green finance initiatives have expanded since Mark Carney’s “tragedy of the horizon” speech, they have failed to shift capital at the scale required to address climate and nature risks. It contends that deeper structural reforms to financial valuation, incentives and capital allocation are needed to move beyond managing symptoms toward financing real-world solutions.

The report assesses risks to Australia’s fossil fuel exports and outlines how aligned trade, aid and climate finance policies can build demand for green exports. It proposes sustainable growth partnerships in the Indo-Pacific to secure markets, attract investment and support regional decarbonisation.

The report assesses how to feed nearly 10 billion people by 2050 while limiting land expansion and emissions. It identifies food, land and greenhouse gas gaps, and proposes 22 solutions spanning demand reduction, productivity gains, ecosystem protection, fisheries growth and agricultural emissions mitigation.

This month’s sustainable finance roundup traces the shift from ambition to enforcement, as climate and nature risks become financial, regulatory and legal realities. It covers Australia’s environmental law reforms, the embedding of climate and nature risk through prudential supervision, disclosure and shareholder pressure, and insurer warnings on the limits of insurability. It also highlights how markets are responding to deforestation and biodiversity risk, and how litigation and regulation are reshaping governance and long-term financial resilience.

This month’s sustainable-finance roundup highlights faster transition momentum, rising physical risks and a tightening focus on accountability. COP30 reinforced expectations for stronger 2035 targets, while national actions underscored diverging paths toward decarbonisation. Markets continued shifting toward clean energy and resilience, and new science made climate harms more visible. With regulatory scrutiny and litigation increasing, transition credibility and real-economy resilience are becoming core drivers of financial risk and investment decisions.

This article explores the growing interest in deep-sea mining as a source of critical minerals for clean technologies, detailing how it works, its potential economic benefits, and the significant ecological and governance risks it poses. It also examines ongoing international regulatory disputes and alternative solutions such as recycling and circular mineral economies.

This month’s sustainability roundup traces a rapidly evolving landscape in climate finance and accountability, spotlighting the weaknesses exposed by Hurricane Melissa’s disaster-risk finance system alongside new policy frameworks now reshaping sustainable investment. It highlights how vulnerable nations continue to bear the costs of climate impacts, how regulatory reforms such as Australia’s 2035 emissions target and global disclosure regimes are embedding accountability, and how renewed scrutiny of carbon markets is driving the search for credible, incentive-based pathways to real decarbonisation.

This month’s sustainability roundup covers Australia’s new 2035 emissions target, ASIC’s final climate disclosure guidance, and Fortescue’s revised transition plan. It also examines global developments, from ISSB reporting updates and TNFD nature disclosures to Woodside’s gas extension, rising physical climate risks, and evolving ESG policy debates shaping corporate and investor responses.

The Lazard Levelized Cost of Energy+ 2025 report compares the economics of power generation, storage, and system reliability across technologies. It finds renewables remain the most cost-competitive, storage costs are falling due to market and technological shifts, and firming costs rise as renewable penetration increases, requiring diverse generation solutions.

Mark Carney’s “tragedy of the horizon” warned that markets would act too late on climate risks. A decade later, this article argues that framing climate change as a financial risk has misdirected efforts—what’s needed now is coordinated action to create investable markets, especially in emerging economies.

The report introduces the concept of Regenerative Good Growth (RGG) as an alternative to extractive GDP-focused models. It argues that economic progress should regenerate five renewable capitals, natural, social, human, cultural, and sustainable physical, while ensuring fairness, engagement, and reduced environmental harm. RGG promotes inclusive, low-carbon, and nature-positive transitions through diverse public participation.

MDPI (Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute) is a Swiss-based publisher of open access, peer-reviewed journals, established in 1996. MDPI publishes over 470 academic journals across science, technology and medicine, with authors covering article processing charges to enable unrestricted global access.