At the federal level, opportunities and incentives to decarbonize buildings expanded in 2022 due to the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act. However, many municipalities have seen their powers to steer building decarbonization curtailed in recent years. Notably, between 2020 and 2021, 20 states passed laws that limited local governments’ authority to regulate the installation […]
Though seemingly at odds with one another, a wide variety of living organisms and habitats exist in and around dense urban areas. With more than half of the world’s population now living in cities, and the urban footprint steadily growing, policymakers must think about how to protect the biodiversity that remains within urban areas and […]
Plastic pollution has evolved into one of the greatest global threats to humankind and the environment. While its impacts on health, food security, livelihoods, economies, and the wider environment are experienced across the globe, small island developing states are experiencing these impacts on a disproportionate scale, due in part to their unique vulnerabilities and limited […]
In late 2022, the international community convened in Punta del Este, Uruguay for the first meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) to begin developing a new global agreement to end plastic pollution. This process has been largely guided by UNEA Resolution 5/14, which, among other things, broadly identifies provisions that must—at a minimum—be included […]
Over half of the world’s population now lives in cities, and this share is expected to increase in the coming decades. With growing urbanization, cities and their residents face substantial environmental challenges such as higher temperatures, droughts, wildfires, and increased flooding. In response to these pressing challenges, some cities have begun to develop local environmental […]
