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Heavy lobbying by polluting companies and countries over review of EU emissions trading scheme
Adaptation has never been the priority, but this summer’s heat is a message that the Treasury needs to act
Brussels risks a row with member states over how emissions trading scheme revenues are spent
This post is adapted from the Tumelo white paper, “AI in stewardship: a strategic framework for asset managers”. It argues that AI is reshaping the stewardship function just as the proxy-advisory duopoly comes under regulatory pressure. Written by co-founder Will Goodwin, it sets out how the firms that build the right infrastructure now — and […]
The latest report on the UK's climate warns cold mountainous areas are also being lost.
The latest report on the UK's climate warns cold mountainous areas are also being lost.
Vulnerable people more at risk as research finds only half of local authority plans require cooling strategiesEngland risks constructing a new generation of “death trap” buildings that can fatally overheat unless the government tightens standards and prioritises climate safeguards, planning experts have said.Fears are growing about the plight of vulnerable people in heatwaves, with research this week suggesting that 2,700 people had died in the May and June heatwaves in England and Wales. Yet only about half of local plans being drawn up by councils and local authorities require new buildings to have a cooling or ventilation strategy to prevent overheating, according to findings from the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) and the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA). Continue reading...
Peat bogs are essential to the environment, holding twice as much carbon as all the world’s forests. But in the UK, 80% are damaged, most of what is extracted is used in horticulture – and some campaigners fear the problem is getting worse‘I don’t see how I can possibly do my job and eat mushrooms,” says Sally Nex, a campaign advocate for the Peat-Free Partnership. “An awful lot of the food you buy in the supermarket is grown in peat: field mushrooms and little button mushrooms, salads and many brassicas, herbs in pots … all of those have started in peat.”I’m taken aback. I’ve bought peat-free compost for years, but I’d never considered “hidden” peat. “I would imagine that most people are buying peat-free compost at the moment – certainly, you only have to go into a garden centre to see the amount of peat-free options you now have,” says Nex. “But you may not realise that an awful lot – probably most – of the plants that are on sale in that garden centre are also grown in peat.” Continue reading...
In the newsletter: From avoiding flights to checking on vulnerable neighbours, there are steps we can all take to fight the effects of extreme heat• Don’t get Down to Earth delivered to your inbox? Sign up hereFrom the comfort of a friend’s air-conditioned car last weekend, I watched a dozen sweaty men on a “beer bike tour” chug booze while pedalling through Berlin, as the city broke its temperature record with 39.2C heat. Few wore hats, and their tender pink necks showed signs of sunburn.A few days later, I visited Coschen, the eastern German village that provisionally recorded the hottest temperature the country had ever seen, in a district where nearly every other voter backs a far-right party that denies basic climate science. One man who lives down the road from the station that reached the national record-breaking 41.7C high calmly told me “it was also warm” when he was young. Continue reading...
Indigenous groups organised mass protests over a series of deals by the president, Rodrigo Paz, that prioritise agribusiness and mining interestsFrom her home in the Bolivian Amazon, Vivian Palomequi walked for a month and more than 560 miles (900km) to the capital, La Paz. She arrived in late April to protest over a law she fears would open the door to accelerated deforestation and land privatisation. “We declared a state of emergency and started marching,” says Palomequi, who leads a peasant farmers’ union. “We had no other choice.”The march was part of a wave of pushbacks against the environmental policies of Bolivia’s new government, which has staffed ministries with former agroindustry leaders, struck deals to open protected areas to mining and criminalised environmental defenders. Continue reading...
The next great climate divide will be between countries that have the resources to adapt and those that don’tThis summer, much of the media’s attention has focused on record temperatures across Europe and the United States. Television coverage has been filled with familiar images: heat maps shaded deep red, schools closing, rail lines slowing, wildfires spreading and emergency rooms treating growing numbers of people with heat-related illnesses.Public officials have responded with equally familiar advice: stay indoors, drink plenty of water and, if possible, turn on the air conditioning. Continue reading...
Days that are both extremely hot and polluted come with higher risks of respiratory ailments and other health hazards.
NEW YORK, July 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Business leaders, policymakers, United Nations officials and representatives from civil society came together yesterday at the 2026 SDG Business Forum to highlight the critical role of responsible business in accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and delivering on the Pact for the Future.
Held alongside the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), the SDG Business Forum was co-convened by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), the UN Global Compact and the International Organisation of Employers (IOE), with the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) serving as co-organizer.
The SDG Business Forum brought together leaders from across sectors to examine how business can help drive sustainable development in an increasingly complex global environment, with a particular focus on SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals), alongside this year's HLPF review of SDGs 6, 7 and 11.
Opening the Forum, Sanda Ojiambo, CEO and Executive Director of the UN Global Compact, joined Umut Shayakhmetova, CEO of Halyk Bank and President of the UN Global Compact Central Asia Network, and Samaila Zubairu, President and CEO of the Africa Finance Corporation, to discuss how responsible business can strengthen resilience, unlock investment and accelerate sustainable growth.
"Business has never been more important to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Around the world, companies are demonstrating that sustainability is not only good for people and the planet, it is fundamental to competitiveness, resilience and long-term value creation. The challenge now is to scale what works through stronger partnerships, enabling policy environments and greater accountability so that together we can accelerate progress towards the 2030 Agenda," said Sanda Ojiambo, CEO and Executive Director of the UN Global Compact.
Throughout the Forum, speakers emphasized that delivering sustainable development will require closer collaboration between governments, business and international institutions to mobilize investment, strengthen industrial development, build resilient infrastructure and accelerate innovation. Discussions highlighted the importance of enabling policy environments, blended finance and public-private partnerships in closing implementation gaps and translating commitments into measurable impact.
The Forum featured two substantive discussions. The first explored the role of business in shaping the future of industrialization amid rapid technological change, artificial intelligence, shifting global supply chains and the clean energy transition. The second showcased how UN Global Compact Country Networks are working alongside governments to implement Action 55(c) of the Pact for the Future, demonstrating practical examples of how business can support national sustainable development priorities while strengthening accountability and impact.
During the Forum, the UN Global Compact also launched a new Action 55(c) Insights Brief, developed on behalf of the UN Secretary-General. The publication outlines practical recommendations for strengthening private sector engagement and accountability in implementing UN frameworks and advancing the SDGs. The discussions reinforced the central message that sustainable development cannot be achieved without business.
Notes to Editors
About the United Nations Global Compact
As a special initiative of the United Nations Secretary-General, the UN Global Compact is a call to companies worldwide to align their operations and strategies with Ten Principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. Our vision is clear: to mobilize business to transform sustainability ambition into action at the scale the world demands. With more than 25,000 participants and a presence in over 100 countries through 5 Regional Hubs and more than 70 Country Networks and expansion territories, the UN Global Compact is the world's largest corporate sustainability initiative.
For more information, follow @globalcompact on social media and visit our website at unglobalcompact.org
XI'AN, China, July 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- LONGi Green Energy Technology Co., Ltd., one of the world's leading Solar-plus-Storage companies, has been named to the 2nd annual list of S&P Global Energy's Tier 1 Cleantech Companies. After being recognized in the inaugural 2025 edition, LONGi once again secures its place among a select group of cleantech suppliers – one of only 15 companies worldwide to receive this distinction in the category.
S&P Global Energy draws on its unique cross-divisional capabilities to build the list upon a robust and defined 6-point criteria methodology. The assessment spans market presence and cumulative equipment shipments, annual market share, scale, global manufacturing diversification, financial performance via key financial indicators, and sustainability factors.
"What makes S&P Global Energy Tier 1 different is the breadth and depth of the data behind it. We look beyond market share, drawing on S&P Global's proprietary data on market leadership, financial performance and sustainability to provide a more complete picture of supplier strength," said Edurne Zoco, Ph.D., Head of Clean Technologies and Supply Chains, S&P Global Energy. "Our Tier 1 recognition is designed to help cleantech suppliers stand out in a crowded market while giving developers and investors a clearer way to identify companies with a proven track record and stronger foundations for long-term success."
The S&P Global Energy Tier 1 Cleantech Companies List 2026 is not a placement ranking, but a roster of qualified companies meeting S&P Global Energy's robust methodology assessment and listed in alphabetical order by category. The companies considered are drawn from the top 30 in each of the five technology categories – Solar PV Modules, Solar PV Inverters, Energy Storage Systems, Energy Storage Battery Cells, and Wind Turbines – based on the largest shipments or installations globally in the previous year.
For LONGi, inclusion in this list for the 2nd consecutive year reinforces the company's competitive standing and brand credibility with authoritative third-party validation. It signals trust and reliability to partners across global clean energy project financing, large-scale power station tenders, and supply chain due diligence.
The recognition is also the first supplier classification in the cleantech industry to embed sustainability as a key criterion. The list will be updated annually, and therefore, reflect any changes that can occur year to year, depending on how the suppliers in each sector evolve in relation to each of the indicators in the assessment. LONGi's repeated Tier 1 recognition rests on a long-standing commitment to product reliability, supply chain transparency and traceability, and the deep integration of corporate social responsibility into its operations.
As clean energy becomes an increasingly critical foundation of global infrastructure, LONGi will continue to move forward with stability, reliability and innovation – working alongside partners to deliver a steady stream of green energy and long-term value to the world.
TAGUIG CITY, Philippines, July 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- For the second consecutive year, Globe has been recognized in TIME and Statista's World's Most Sustainable Companies 2026, becoming the only Philippine telecommunications company included in the global ranking and one of only two Philippine companies recognized this year, underscoring its commitment to responsible business practices and long-term value creation.
Selected from more than 5,000 of the world's largest and most influential companies, the ranking evaluates organizations across more than 20 key performance indicators in a four-step process covering sustainability criteria: Sustainable Business, Commitment and Ratings, Reporting and Transparency, and Environmental and Social Stewardship. The final list recognizes the top 750 companies worldwide.
Globe's inclusion reflects more than a sustainability milestone. The recognition places Globe alongside many of the world's most respected companies, reinforcing that Philippine businesses can compete globally on sustainability, transparency, and responsible governance. As sustainability stands as a vital benchmark for investors, customers, regulators, and communities, recognitions such as these demonstrate that Philippine businesses can meet the same standards of accountability and long-term thinking expected of leading global organizations.
"Earning a place on this global ranking shows that Philippine companies can meet the highest global standards for sustainability, transparency, and responsible governance," said Carl Cruz, President and CEO of Globe. "Our sustainability practice continues to strengthen, it has become a measure of how we build trust, create long-term value, and remain competitive in a rapidly changing world."
The recognition comes at a time when sustainability is increasingly viewed as a measure of corporate trust. Beyond environmental performance, the ranking evaluates companies on factors such as governance, transparency, accountability, external ratings, and social impact. These are the same qualities that shape confidence among customers, investors, regulators, employees, and communities. As expectations continue to evolve, trust is no longer built solely through products and services, but through how organizations create value, manage risks, and deliver on their commitments over the long term.
Globe's inclusion in the ranking reflects its commitment to responsible business practices and measurable outcomes. Through its decarbonization strategy, the company achieved a 15.13% year-on-year reduction in gross Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions and a 9.49% reduction in gross Scope 3 emissions, outpacing its annual reduction target of 4.2% for Scope 1 and 2 and 2.5% for Scope 3. Most recently, it has also expanded its use of renewable energy, transitioning approximately 700 sites as of end-May 2026 and targeting at least 3,000 sites by 2028 as part of its broader sustainability agenda.
As businesses navigate growing expectations around environmental, social, and governance performance, Globe continues to integrate sustainability into the way it operates, invests, and serves its stakeholders. The recognition from TIME and Statista reinforces the company's belief that sustainable growth and trusted leadership go hand in hand.
ABOUT GLOBE
Globe Telecom, Inc. is a leading digital platform in the Philippines with interests in telecommunications, fintech, venture building, shared services, and digital marketing. It is listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange under the symbol GLO. The company delivers a full suite of mobile, broadband, data, and managed services to meet the needs of consumers and businesses. A UN Global Compact Participant, Globe is the first publicly listed Philippine firm with approved near- and long-term science-based targets under the SBTi. It was named one of TIME and Statista's Most Sustainable Companies in 2026. Its back-to-back inclusion in the Fortune Southeast Asia 500 in 2024 and 2025 affirms its growth and leadership. Its principals are Ayala Corporation and Singtel, prominent industry leaders in the region.
Asian companies generated 47 per cent of global green revenues in 2025, while the region’s clean energy boom continued to collide with its heavy reliance on coal and imported fossil fuels, found a new analysis by the London Stock Exchange Group.
Rising heat linked to climate change is expected to increase health risks for players, workers and spectators at many sporting venues by 2050.
A group of advocates is seeking to transform False Creek, a tidal inlet in Vancouver, Canada, from a polluted city inlet into a place where nature thrives and people can safely swim in the water.
But civil society groups argued that the bigger totals do not automatically translate into support for adaptation, resilience, loss and damage that developing countries need.
With a Super El Niño and powerful typhoons threatening to converge, the climte-vulnerable nation must move beyond reactive disaster response and prepare for compounding climate risks before they strike.
