The Consolidated Financial Statements of the International Institute for Sustainable Development, reflecting the year ending March 31, 2016.

The Consolidated Financial Statements of the International Institute for Sustainable Development, reflecting the year ending March 31, 2017.

The Consolidated Financial Statements of the International Institute for Sustainable Development, reflecting the year ending March 31, 2018.

This report provides an overview of APEC economies’ existing measures on withdrawal of subsidies in cases of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, drawing on the voluntary responses and input of member economies. It identifies potential elements of good practice by analyzing and comparing the different ways through which the withdrawal of subsidies from IUU fishers has been implemented domestically by individual APEC economies or under regional schemes (the EU, CPTPP and USMCA).

Description provided by the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

First, demand for nutritious food continues to rise globally. Second, food and agriculture systems are having to adapt to changing weather and ecological conditions while reducing the harm they cause to the environment. Third, farmers and farmworkers face economic precarity and vulnerability, with too many living in poverty and chronic hunger. The challenges are immense, but there are technologies that can make a positive difference.

This report looks at innovations in three areas of technology, particularly how the declining costs and increased availability of renewable energy can make a difference. The authors also analyzed how off-grid electrification using solar photovoltaics (PV), dramatic improvements in battery capacity and performance, and the data revolution in information and communication technology (ICT) can each strengthen the resilience and sustainability of food and agriculture systems in low-and middle-income countries.

The National Adaptation Plan (NAP) process assists governments in identifying their medium- and long-term adaptation needs, and developing the right strategies to address them.

Though the NAP process remains a government-led and country-owned process, an effective NAP process is inclusive, participatory, and should involve a variety of stakeholder groups, including the private sector.

This toolkit aims to help governments develop strategies for the effective engagement of private sector actors in the NAP process. This includes engaging them in all phases of the NAP process, as outlined in the Technical Guidelines for the NAP Process, developed in 2012 by the Least Developed Countries Expert Group (LEG) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

The guiding document is not prescriptive; what works in one context may not work in another, and, as such, users should adopt those methods and approaches most relevant to their national or local realities.

The NAP Global Network and the UNFCCC Adaptation Committee co-hosted a webinar that demonstrated the versatile nature of the toolkit, as well as its applicability. Watch the video and view the presentations here.

Key Messages

• The COVID-19 crisis, while difficult and tragic, also provides a critical opportunity to align efforts to meet Canada’s climate goals with the challenge of economic reconstruction post-pandemic.
• IISD has developed seven "green strings" recommendations: key principles, criteria, and conditionalities that should be applied to government measures for economic recovery from COVID-19 to ensure a green recovery.
• Canada’s leading environmental groups, representing close to two million people, have signed on to the recommendations, including the Pembina Institute, Climate Action Network Canada, David Suzuki Foundation, Environmental Defence, Greenpeace Canada, Équiterre, Ecojustice, Ecology Action Centre, Conservation Council of New Brunswick, Stand.earth, Leadnow, Sierra Club Canada Foundation, and Wilderness Committee.

The reasons to set and apply "green strings" are clear:

• Conditions in the public interest are the government’s right and duty.
• The benefits of green stimulus and recovery measures are backed by evidence. 
• We need a new economic model for the workers of today and tomorrow.
• Urgent action is needed to address the climate crisis. 
• Health and climate change imperatives go hand in hand. 
• There is strong public support for ensuring a green recovery. 

The following seven “green strings” should be attached to COVID-19 recovery measures announced by Canada’s government:

1. Support only companies that agree to plan for net-zero emissions by 2050.
2. Make sure funds go towards jobs and stability, not executives and shareholders.
3. Support a just transition that prepares workers for green jobs.
4. Build up the sectors and infrastructure of tomorrow.
5. Strengthen and protect environmental policies during recovery.
6. Be transparent and accountable to Canadians.
7. Put people first and leave no one behind.

We can no longer continue with the status quo, worsening the climate and biodiversity crises and locking our country and the global community in to stark health, environmental, and economic outcomes. We must seize this difficult moment to transform our economy and our institutions to serve vital public policy goals from environment to equity. The stakes are high.

Key Messages

• The SAVi assessment informs the public debate in Albania on the environmental and societal costs of the hydropower projects Poçem and Kalivaç, and sheds light on the economic concerns regarding hydropower performance. 
• The SAVi results suggest that the two hydro assets cannot be considered a preferable solution to generate electricity for the Albanian people, as their lifetime costs, societal burdens, and tax losses are greater than their generated benefits. Solar photovoltaic represents a more beneficial and viable alternative for generating a comparable amount of electricity in Albania. 

The Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) was applied to the hydropower projects Poçem and Kalivaç to calculate the costs of environmental, social and economic externalities caused by these two projects currently being developed on the Vjosa River. The assessment also sought to calculate how these projects perform if climate change risks materialize. The assessment results presented in this report inform the public debate on the environmental and societal costs of hydropower and shed light on economic concerns of hydropower performance. Results are compared to the performance of a hypothetical solar PV system and a hypothetical onshore wind farm.

Read the digital story Why Albania Should Shift Away From Hydropower and Preserve the Last Free-Flowing River in Europe 

The SAVi results demonstrate that the two hydro assets imply considerable trade-offs. These emerge because of adverse effects on communities, economic sectors (such as agriculture and tourism), and ecosystems along the Vjosa River. Results of the cost-benefit analysis amount to negative EUR 233 million and negative EUR 321 million for the assets Poçem and Kalivaç, respectively.

The same conclusions can be drawn from assessing the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE). Under conventional calculations, the cost per MWh of electricity would be between EUR 121 (Poçem) and almost EUR 158 (Kalivaç). When integrating the valued externalities into the LCOE, the cost per MWh of electricity would increase to EUR 184 and EUR 203, respectively. If the impacts of materialized climate change risks are taken into account, the integrated LCOEs of both hydro assets increase further.

The financial analysis results of the two hydro assets highlight that supplying electricity to the domestic market alone will not be sufficient to make the assets financially attractive because of a market environment that promises relatively low electricity offtake prices. This is indicated by a project internal rate of return (IRR) for both hydro assets of 9.32% in a conventional scenario, which is below the assumed hurdle rate of 13.5%. The project IRR drops to 3.15% if the calculated costs for sediment dredging are considered and turns negative if the monetary value of externalities is internalized.

Key Messages

• From 2009 to 2016, the production of cotton compliant with voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) grew to account for at least 14% of the sector.
• Sustainable sourcing commitments are helping drive demand for VSS-compliant cotton.
• 100 million people work in cotton farming, about 90% of which grow cotton on less than two hectares of land in developing countries.

Cotton is the most widely used natural fibre in textiles, accounting for one third of total fibres manufactured worldwide. The sector faces a variety of sustainability issues, such as low farm prices, often due to unfavourable trade terms, excessive water consumption, pesticide use, and the use of forced labour. Cotton producers are increasingly using voluntary sustainability standards to address the sector’s sustainability challenges.

This report is the seventh in IISD’s Sustainable Commodities Marketplace Series, which presents market information and analysis on agricultural commodities to foster transparency, knowledge, and strategic decision making for sustainable development.

Key Messages

• For public procurement to become a strategic lever for sustainable development, the entire procurement process and function of the public procurer must be redesigned. Latin American and Caribbean countries have been working together with IISD through the Inter-American Network on Government Procurement (INGP) on the transformation of public procurement from an administrative to a strategic function.
• This paper presents four best practices from the region on how that transformation is taking place. It discusses how procurement has been used to contract with micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in the Dominican Republic, to support family agriculture in Paraguay, to promote the triple-impact economy in Argentina, and to advance gender equality in Chile.
• The paper concludes with 10 key ingredients for strategic public procurement for sustainable development in the region. 

This publication builds on the Handbook for the Inter-American Network on Government Procurement (INGP): Implementing Sustainable Public Procurement in Latin America and the Caribbean (Casier et al., 2015). It aims to provide guidance to the INGP network for taking the next step on Sustainable Public Procurement.

The 10 key ingredients for strategic public procurement reform are:

• The definition of public policy priorities as a precursor to public procurement reform
• Evidence-based assessments to identify barriers, challenges, and interventions for reform
• Capacity building of both procurement agencies as well as suppliers
• The use of technology and digitization to eliminate access barriers
• The existence of an enabling legal framework
• Leadership by procurement agencies beyond their traditional scope of authority
• Interagency collaboration and a multistakeholder approach
• Understanding reform as a continuous learning process that needs to be monitored and redirected based on feedback
• Knowledge about suppliers and their product and service offering
• A solid internal and external communication strategy