Commentary05 October

Managing GHG emissions in the supply chain

Two new standards were published this week for businesses to measure, manage, and report their greenhouse gas emissions. The guidelines, jointly developed by the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), were launched under the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, an “international accounting tool for government and business leaders to understand, quantify, and manage greenhouse gas emissions”. More »

Analysis03 October

Climate talks in Panama unlikely to end the logjam

Sergio Abranches

The last official preparatory meeting to the Climate Change Convention in Durban is taking place in Panama, since last Saturday. Negotiators will attempt to arrive at feasible drafts to be tabled at the next session of the Climate Convention, COP17, in Durban, South Africa. The signs are that an agreement on the core issues deadlocking conversations is unlikely to happen. More »

Article21 September

A Surge of Wind Over Brazil

Brazil has suddenly realized the attractiveness of its immense wind power potential. Once deemed too expensive and small-scale, unable to meet the country’s power needs, it is now braced to grow sevenfold to 2014. More »

Commentary14 September

Corporate climate change strategies create greater value for shareholders

Sergio Abranches

The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) its annual survey of the Global 500 largest companies by market capitalization included in the FTSE Global Equity Index Series provides some interesting indications on how the larger public corporations are dealing with climate change. More »

Article12 August

The trouble with Brazilian ethanol

Sergio Abranches

For the third consecutive year Brazilian sugarcane harvests will be affected by adverse climatic factors. The latest estimates from the producers’ association, UNICA, is that it will be 8.4% smaller for the season 2011-2012. Over the last three years demand for sugar has been very strong and prices even higher than ethanol’s. As a result, producers have been calibrating their production mix to yield more sugar than alcohol. More »

COP1702 August

A meeting to shape the transition to a new climate deal

Major climate talks in South Africa at year-end will be unlikely to strike agreement on a new pact, but will be important in determining the shape of long-term efforts to tackle climate change, a senior U.N. climate official said on Tuesday. More »