Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19

World Resources Institute (WRI)
World Resources Institute (WRI)environmental think tank at World Resources Institute (WRI)
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
POVERTY FALLING
Image: Flickr/Allie_Caulfield
25 million people
lifted out of
extreme poverty
in 2018
BUT, INEQUALITY RISING
Image: Flickr/Allie_Caulfield
Richest 42
people =
poorest
3.7 billion
people
ECONOMIC VOLATILITY
Source: Webfg.com
A SEASON OF DISCONTENT
Image: Shutterstock
COALITIONS FALL APART
Image: Flickr/Arno Mikkor (EU2017EE)
Brexit deadline:
March 29, 2019
OLD RULES DON’T APPLY
Image: Associated Press
WHO COMES NEXT AT WORLD BANK?
Image: Wikimedia Commons/Koch / MSC
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
GLOBAL EMISSIONS ON THE RISE
Source: Global Carbon Project
GLOBAL EMISSIONS ON THE RISE
Source: Global Carbon Project / Rhodium Group
2018 US emissions
rose 3.4% —
biggest increase
since 2010
MORE EXTREME EVENTS
Image: Cpl. Dylan Chagnon
THE PROBLEM IS CLEAR…
Image: IISD/ENB | Sean Wu
Special Report on
Global Warming of
1.5 Degrees
…SO IS THE OPPORTUNITY
Image: REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri
$26 trillion gain
through to 2030
PROGRESS IN POLAND
Image: IISD/ENB | Sean Wu
BRAZIL MOVES RIGHT…
Image: Flickr/Neil Palmer/CIAT
…MEXICO MOVES LEFT
Image: Flickr/Presidencia de la República Mexicana
TRANSITION IN GERMANY
Image: bilderseo.com
ELECTIONS IN INDONESIA…
Image: Flickr/uyeah
…AND IN INDIA
Image: Flickr/DIRCO
CANADA INTRODUCES CARBON TAX
Image: U.S. Air Force, Senior Airman Joshua R. M. Dewberry
CHINA’S ECONOMY SLOWS
Image: kremlin.ru
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
WILL LEADERS STEP
UP AT UN SUMMIT?
Image: Flickr/jST.
WHAT TO WATCH:
September 2019
GREEN CLIMATE FUND REPLENISHMENT:
AMBITION AND REFORM?
Image: Flickr/German Development Institute
WHAT TO WATCH:
October 2019
WILL ACTION OUTPACE POLITICS?
Image: Flickr/Steven Vance
WHAT TO WATCH:
500+ companies
take action through
Science Based Targets
Maersk set a
net zero CO2
target by 2050
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
ADAPTATION ISN’T A NEW CONCEPT
Image: Flickr/Tom Gill
2001
IPCC 3rd ASSESSMENT:
Impacts, Adaptation,
Vulnerability
UNFCCC COP 7:
National Adaptation
Programmes of Action
CLIMATE IMPACTS ARE HERE NOW
Image: Flickr/Asian Development Bank
Extreme climate-
related disasters
DOUBLED
since early 1990s
Image: Wikimedia/NASA
STRONGER STORMS
Ten Category 5
cyclones in 2018
2nd highest
total on record
Image: istockphoto
157 million
more people exposed to heat related
health risks in 2017 than 2000
HOTTER DAYS
PHOTO: FLICKR/ FOREST
SERVICE, USDA
Image: Flickr/Forest Service, USDA
FIERCER FIRES
In California, a record
1.6 million acres
burned in 2018
Image: Flickr/Vandan Desai
LONGER DROUGHTS
In Bundelkhand, India
~2 million farmers
migrated since last year
HIGHER SEAS
Image: Flickr/NPS Climate Change Response
Sea-level rise from
1993-2015 nearly
3x faster
than in previous century
EVERY FRACTION OF A DEGREE MATTERS
POOREST HIT HARDEST
Image: Flickr/UNICEF Ethiopia
Power to push
100 million
people into poverty in
next 15 years
THERE ARE BRIGHT SPOTS…
Image: Flickr/A'Melody Lee / World Bank
Resilient tea and
coffee production
in Rwanda
Image: Flickr/Reg Natarajan
Making adaptation a
development priority
in Colombia
Image: Flickr/M. Moers
Keeping the sea
at bay at the port
of Rotterdam
…BUT, IT ISN’T ADDING UP
Image: Flickr/Tony Armstrong-Sly
• Global leadership scarce
• Perceived as too complicated
• Lack of metrics
• Benefits long-term and not always visible
• Insufficient finance
GLOBAL COMMISSION ON ADAPTATION
LAUNCHED IN OCTOBER 2018
Kristalina Georgieva Bill GatesBan Ki-moon
COMMISSION CONVENED BY 17 COUNTRIES
ACCELERATING ADAPTATION
Image: Global Commission on Adaptation/Igor Roefofsen
Three major deliverables:
• Flagship report
• Action Tracks
• Year of Action
WHAT TO WATCH:
MAKING THE CASE FOR ADAPTATION?
Image: Flickr/United Nations Photo
September 2019
Launch of Global Commission’s
Flagship Report
WHAT TO WATCH:
OVERCOMING FINANCIAL BARRIERS?
Image: Flickr/Ryan
Up to
$300 billion
needed annually
by 2030
World Bank
will direct half their
climate investments
to adaptation
WHAT TO WATCH:
GROWING RESILIENCE IN AGRICULTURE?
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Three-quarters of
world’s poorest
get food and income
from farming small
plots of land
WHAT TO WATCH:
WILL CITIES CHAMPION ADAPTATION?
Image: Flickr/Maria Eklind
October 2019
Copenhagen
C40 Mayors Summit
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
CLOTHING PRODUCTION SURGING
Image: Flickr/Francisco Anzola
• Fashion industry
worth $1.3 trillion
• Employs 300
million people
FASHION GETTING FASTER...
Image: Flickr/Toshihiro Gamo
• Average consumer
purchases 60% more
clothing compared to 2000
• Up to 50 “microseasons”
…AND LEAVING A TRAIL OF WASTE
Image: Kevin Krejci/Wikimedia Commons
• Every second, one garbage truck
of textiles is landfilled or burned
• Clothes release 500,000 tons of
microfibers in the ocean each year =
more than 50 billion plastic bottles
WATER STRESS AND POLLUTION
BAD LABOR PRACTICES
Image: ILO/Asrian Mirza
• Forced child labor in more
than 10 countries in 2018
• Half of workers in main
textile manufacturing countries
not paid minimum wage
CIRCULAR BUSINESS MODELS ON THE RISE
FASHION DISRUPTORS
ENTERING THE FRAY
Image: Liz Cook
• Rent the Runway
subscribers up 150%
since 2017
• $173 million invested
in The RealReal
FABRIC INNOVATIONS
Image: Flickr/Patrick Giblin
• Lab-grown leather
• Fruit fibers
• Recovered plastic
• Advances in recycling
WILL THE FASHION INDUSTRY FOLLOW THROUGH?
Image: Flickr/Nic Raingsey
WHAT TO WATCH:
• 40+ companies
signed Fashion
Industry Charter for
Climate Action
• March 2019
UN Alliance on
Sustainable Fashion
WILL FASHION COMPANIES IMPROVE TRANSPARENCY?
Image: ILO/Aaron Santos
WHAT TO WATCH:
Sustainable Apparel
Coalition launching beta
platform for reporting
May 2019
Science Based
Targets guidance for
apparel and footwear
WILL EUROPE LEAD ON SUSTAINABLE FASHION?
Image: Flickr/Lorenzoclick
WHAT TO WATCH:
Spring 2019
European circular
fashion regulations
HOW WILL EMERGING ECONOMIES RESPOND?
Image: Flickr/Chris Yunker
WHAT TO WATCH:
Used clothing
import ban in
East Africa
SUSTAINABLE FASHION: FRINGE OR THE NEXT WAVE?
Image: Flickr/Jason Hargrove
WHAT TO WATCH:
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
COMMODITY-DRIVEN DEFORESTATION AN URGENT ISSUE
Source: Global Forest Watch
“BIG FOUR” COMMODITIES: $260+ BILLION IN EXPORTS
Source: Forest500.org
HIGH COST OF COMMODITIES
Image: lyzadanger/Wikimedia Commons
Tropical forest loss:
• Nearly 50% driven by
commodity production
• 3rd largest source of
carbon emissions
~500 COMPANIES COMMITTED TO
CURB DEFORESTATION
58% of major
commodities
companies have a
forest commitment
BUT, IMPACT IS ELUSIVE
Image: Nanang Sujana/CIFOR
• Lack of credible reporting
• Not all actors involved
TROPICAL TREE COVER LOSS: OUT OF CONTROL
Source: Global Forest Watch
LIVES AT
RISK
Image: Flickr/pato chavez
Environmental
defenders killed at a
rate of 4 per week
HOW WILL GOVERNMENTS RESPOND?
Image: Flickr/oneVillage Initiative
WHAT TO WATCH:
• Will EU enforce roadmap
to end deforestation?
• How will Bolsonaro’s
policies play out in Brazil?
• Will Indonesia’s progress
continue?
WILL COMPANIES DOUBLE DOWN
ON 2020 COMMITMENTS?
Image: Mokhamad Edliadi/CIFOR
WHAT TO WATCH:
May 2019
Tropical Forest Alliance
Assembly in Colombia
WILL BETTER MONITORING PROMOTE PROGRESS?
Image: Flickr/European Space Agency
WHAT TO WATCH:
• GFW Pro Launch
• Satellite Monitoring
• Accountability Framework
WILL SPOTLIGHT ON BIODIVERSITY ADD PRESSURE?
Image: Flickr/European Space Agency
WHAT TO WATCH:
2020
Beijing Biodiversity COP
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
WHAT IS THE BELT AND ROAD?
FAR-REACHING IMPLICATIONS
Source: MERICS
“THE PROJECT OF THE CENTURY”
Note: There is no timeline associated with China’s commitments
CHINA PUSHES FOR AN
ECOLOGICAL CIVILIZATION
Image: UN Photo/Loey Felipe
“Green Belt and Road…incorporates eco-
environment protection into all aspects
and whole process of Belt and Road”
Guidance on Promoting Green Belt and Road
BUT, ENERGY INVESTMENTS AREN’T
ALIGNED WITH CLIMATE GOALS
Note: Fossil Fuels include Oil, Gas, Petrochemical, and Fossil Fuel Generation
LAND USE CONCERNS
Image: Flickr/ Neil Turner | Source: WWF
1,739 key
biodiversity areas
in BRI route
WILL BELT AND ROAD FORUM PRODUCE
SUSTAINABILITY GUIDELINES?
Image: The Russian Presidential Press and Information Office/Wikimedia Commons
WHAT TO WATCH:
WILL CHINA RAMP UP RENEWABLE
ENERGY INVESTMENTS ABROAD?
Image: Flickr/Seungho L
WHAT TO WATCH:
$470+ billion
Renewable energy
investment needs by
2030 in BRI countries
WILL NATIONAL CLIMATE PLANS
INFORM BRI INVESTMENTS?
Image: Flickr/Moign Khawaja
WHAT TO WATCH:
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
MICROMOBILITY: TAKING OFF AROUND THE WORLD
A COMPELLING CHOICE
Image: Flickr/VincentJames21
60% of all trips
in U.S. are less
than 6 miles
SCOOTERS ACHIEVE UNICORN STATUS
Image: BIRD
Bird is fastest
startup ever to
reach $1 billion
valuation
BUT…
THIS…
Image: EvasiveMobile/WikimediaCommons
AND THIS…
Image: Flickr/Slices of Light
THE NEXT SEGWAY?
Image: Flickr/Pete Ashton
WILL MORE BIG COMPANIES MOVE IN?
Image: Flickr/Luis Tamayo
WHAT TO WATCH:
• Ford acquires e-scooter and bikeshare company Spin
• Uber and Lyft add scooters and bikes
• General Motors designing electric bikes for 2019
HOW WILL CITIES REGULATE?
WHAT TO WATCH:
• Permits and pricing
• Reduce oversaturation
• Improve safety
Image: Pixabay
LAUNCH OF THE
NEW URBAN MOBILITY ALLIANCE
WHAT TO WATCH:
Image: Shutterstock
RETHINKING CITY STREETS?
WHAT TO WATCH:
Image: Flickr/Dylan Passmore
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION CONTINUES
ENVIRONMENTAL ATTACKS
Image: Flickr/Tim Evanson
Efforts to roll back
70+ environmental
safeguards
CITIES, STATES & COMPANIES FORGE AHEAD
MIDTERMS: NEXT WAVE OF CLIMATE LEADERS
Image: Rachael Warriner/Sunrise Movement
Green New Deal
sparks debate
MIDTERMS: MORE MOMENTUM IN THE STATES
Image: Flickr/Tom Brewster Photography
10 new governors
with clean energy
platforms
29 STATES ALREADY HAVE RENEWABLE ENERGY STANDARDS
WHAT TO WATCH:
6 STATES GO FURTHER WITH 50–100% CLEAN ENERGY TARGETS
WHAT TO WATCH:
WILL MORE STATES ADOPT AMBITIOUS TARGETS?
WHAT TO WATCH:
WHAT ACTION WILL WE SEE FROM U.S. CLIMATE ALLIANCE?
WHAT TO WATCH:
WILL MORE UTILITIES GET AHEAD OF THE CURVE?
Image: Flickr/nmmacedo
WHAT TO WATCH:
Xcel Energy:
Carbon-free by 2050
DTE Energy, Consumers Energy:
80% carbon reduction by 2050
Will other major utilities follow suit?
WILL MORE STATES ADOPT CARBON PRICING?
Image: Flickr/Consumers Energy
WHAT TO WATCH:
• New Jersey to rejoin RGGI
• Virginia to cap power sector
• Oregon to adopt economy-
wide carbon price?
• Who’s next?
WHAT ABOUT TRANSPORTATION?
Image: Flickr/VDOT
WHAT TO WATCH:
• Transport largest source
of U.S. GHG emissions
• 9 Northeast & Mid-Atlantic
states design program to
cap and reduce transport
emissions
WILL ELECTRIC VEHICLE MARKET CONTINUE TO GROW?
WHAT TO WATCH:
Source: InsideEVs.com
US EV sales
jumped 81%
in 2018
WHAT WILL CONGRESS DO?
Image: Flickr/wbeem
WHAT TO WATCH:
• Support for
carbon pricing?
• Infrastructure deal?
• More funding for
clean technologies?
WILL GROWING CLIMATE MOVEMENT
EXPAND WHAT’S POSSIBLE?
Image: Whitehouse.gov
WHAT TO WATCH:
“The people are ahead of the Congress.
The Congress must join them.”
–Speaker Nancy Pelosi
WHAT ABOUT 2020 CONTENDERS?
Image: Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons
WHAT TO WATCH:
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
TREATY OF VERSAILLES
LEAGUE OF NATIONS
MAHATMA GANDHI BEGINS NONVIOLENT
RESISTANCE AGAINST BRITISH RULE
GRAND CANYON DESIGNATED A NATIONAL PARK
FIRST TRANS-ATLANTIC NONSTOP FLIGHT
FIRST POP-UP TOASTER
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19
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Stories to Watch 2019 #STW19