March 23rd

What happened this week?

March 22nd, 2018, marks the 25th annual World Water Day, which the United Nations started to raise awareness around the importance of water.

As water shortage looms for 5 billion by 2050 without action, the United Nations World Water Development Report says that nature-based solutions can improve the supply and quality of water and reduce the impact of natural disasters. A key focus on the study is the importance of preserving wetlands, which cover only about 2.6 percent of the planet. Wetlands act as natural barriers that soak up and capture rainwater limiting soil erosion and the impacts of certain natural disasters such as floods. Nevertheless, the use of nature-based solutions remains marginal and almost all investments are still channeled to grey infrastructure projects. Yet, to satisfy the ever-growing demand for water, green infrastructure appears to be a promising solution complementing traditional approaches. The authors of the report therefore call for greater balance between the two, especially given that nature-based solutions are best aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the United Nations in 2015... Read more

Interesting Facts

If no action is taken, there will be more than 143 million internal climate migrants across the regions of Latin America, South Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa by 2050

A new World Bank report has found that by 2050 the worsening impacts of climate change in three densely populated regions of the world could see more than 140 million people move within their countries’ borders.
With concerted action, however, including global efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions and robust development planning at the country level – this worst-case scenario could be dramatically reduced, by as much as 80 percent, or 100 million people. The report identifies “hotspots” of climate in- and out-migration. These include climate-vulnerable areas from which people are expected to move, and locations into which people will try to move to build new lives and livelihoods... Read more

How private and public finance can help us to fight climate change

 According to the Economist Intelligence Unit, the expected losses to investment portfolios due to climate change in today’s money lie between $4.2 trillion and $13.9 trillion. However, changing course remains very possible. Forecasts from the International Energy Agency suggest that up to $120 trillion in global infrastructure investments will be made before 2050, with most activity in emerging economies. Aligning these investments with a low-carbon future increases this figure by $44 trillion, but once the infrastructure is in place, radically lower fuel costs generate long-term real savings of $74 trillion. Funding the green transition should not be seen as a cost or a burden to investors who take a long-term view. But since many investors are assessed by short-term performance, they have an incentive to follow shorter-term strategies. And for those who can consider longer-term risks, there are not enough green investment opportunities into which they can redirect their capital. ... Read more