World Resources Institute

🌲When forests are healthy, they provide priceless benefits to people, nature and climate. But neglected forests can quickly turn into liabilities. We already see this shift from assets to liabilities playing out around the globe👉 https://lnkd.in/ebwvicUE #BiodiversityDay

🌱In Johannesburg, invasive plants have degraded areas around the city’s Jukskei River. Pines, black wattle, eucalyptus, bugweed and other invasives monopolize nutrients and outcompete local flora. They also worsen flooding, especially in Johannesburg’s riverside informal settlements like Alexandra and Soweto. Invasive plants’ roots push out deeper-rooted indigenous species, destabilizing the soil around riverbanks. When rain hits these riverbanks, loose soil and sediment flow into the river, reducing its ability to absorb and slow floodwaters. Aggressive invasive roots also damage drainage pipes and culverts, multiplying flood impacts. Shifts in climate and rainfall patterns are further exacerbating the problem: as temperatures increase, invasives thrive, densify and spread. Working with local communities, initiatives like WRI’s SUNCASA project are removing invasive plants to prevent flooding and loss of biodiversity while supporting livelihoods. So far, the project has cleared invasive plants from more than 133 hectares along the Jukskei’s riverbanks while creating more than 100 jobs in the process. Workers are also reintroducing indigenous species like African olive and white stinkwood. The trees’ sturdy roots will stabilize the Jukskei’s riverbanks, increase local biodiversity and reduce the impact of flooding. Johannesburg is also developing a Transformative Riverine Management Program, a framework and business model for investors and corporations to get involved in rehabilitating the city’s rivers, starting with the Jukskei. From Kinshasa to Dire Dawa, cities across Africa are discovering that wetlands, trees and parks could be their strongest defense against climate change. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/ePs77v_K #BiodiversityDay

Rafe Pomerance was one of the first to understand that climate change is the defining challenge of our time. He spent his life demanding we treat it that way. Today, we mourn his passing🌎💐 Over the last five decades, Rafe worked tirelessly to put climate action on the political agenda —inspiring countless environmental advocates in the process. He lobbied policymakers, forged coalitions, and pushed for concrete targets when the political will to act on climate was scarce. Among his many achievements, he helped organize the landmark 1986 U.S. Senate hearings on the greenhouse effect, a notable turning point in public awareness of climate risks. He was a key architect of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, the world’s first major effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. His critical work orchestrating climate action in the U.S. and beyond was documented in the book Losing Earth. WRI was privileged to call Rafe a colleague from 1986-1993, but we were just one of many organizations made better by his leadership — Friends of the Earth, the Woodwell Climate Research Center, the Polar Research Board, Arctic 21, American Rivers, the U.S. government and more. "Much has been written and will be written about Rafe, as his contribution to the climate movement cannot be overstated,” said Christina DeConcini, WRI’s Director of Government Affairs. “He was a delightful person, who drew people in with his contagious positive energy, his indefatigable passion to push new ideas forward and his generous spirit. I feel privileged to have had him as a colleague, mentor and most importantly, a friend.” We are grateful to have been part of Rafe's journey. His vision, persistence and integrity will continue to guide our work and the many changemakers he inspired. For those who knew Rafe or were shaped by his work, we invite you to share a memory or reflection🙏🪞⬇️

What can happen when temperatures rise in your city? Here are a few key impacts👇🌡️ While climate treaties trade in the language of degrees, it can be hard to imagine what people are likely to experience in their own neighborhood. To help fill in the picture, we analyzed dozens of climate models to discover how 1.5 and 3 degrees C of global warming might affect your city: https://lnkd.in/etMFjQ2w

Consider the stats🔽 ➡️Nearly 3 billion people lack access to housing that is both safe and connected to basic services like energy, water and sanitation ➡️Around 40% of the world’s population lives in houses located far away from jobs and opportunities ➡️300 million people are currently experiencing homelessness. This translates into a need to build 96,000 affordable homes worldwide every day from now until 2030.  #WRIExplains the growing housing crisis in more detail➡️ https://lnkd.in/d3NebVPA WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities #SustainableCities #HousingCrisis #Housing #Climate #Sustainability

🌳🌱Healthy watersheds = resilient cities Africa’s cities are seeing their surrounding forests disappear and their wetlands shrinking. The result is more flooding, less reliable water and greater vulnerability for the communities most at risk. Find out how some cities are testing new solutions: https://lnkd.in/ePs77v_K WRI Africa WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities Ir. MARC MANYIFIKA (MSc), Eden Takele, Meghan Stromberg, Alemakef Tassew, Nikara Mahadeo and Adane Kebede #ResilientCities #SustainableCities #NatureBasedSolutions #ClimateAction #Sustainability

📣 Still time to register! Join WRI Polsky Center for the Global Energy Transition's Energy Summit opening sessions with Dr. Fatih Birol, Executive Director, International Energy Agency (IEA) and Chris Stark CBE, Head of UK’s Mission for Clean Power, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. Over the course of the hour, we'll explore: 🔌Dominant drivers behind the global surge in electricity demand 🛢️How recent global events are shaping energy security 🤝What it will take to meet today’s challenges ➡️Register to watch live here: https://lnkd.in/ezgFbHjU If you’re unable to join, registering now will ensure you receive full access to the recording.

Global greenhouse gas emissions grew by 50% from 1990 to 2023, driving rapid warming and fueling increasingly severe storms, floods, fires, and heatwaves across the globe. But where exactly are these emissions coming from? Today, most greenhouse gas emissions can be traced to five key sectors: ⚡Energy 🌽 Agriculture 🏭 Industrial processes 🗑️ Waste 🌲 Land use, land-use change and forestry #ClimateWatch breaks down what's causing the most GHG emissions globally: https://lnkd.in/ecWiZY_U #GHGEmissions #GlobalEmissions #Sustainability #ClimateChange #Pollution #DataVisualization #Charts

⏰ One week left to register and join us for an inspiring conversation with Ani Dasgupta, President and CEO of the World Resources Institute about what it takes to rebuild optimism in the face of the climate crisis at International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) of Erasmus University Rotterdam. Dr Oane Visser, Associate Professor of Agrarian Studies, will join Ani for a fireside chat, audience Q&A and networking reception with researchers, practitioners, policymakers and students working across climate and development. We will explore how a clean economy that works for people, nature and climate is already taking shape, and what it will take to accelerate change in a time of global instability. Join us on Tuesday 26 May 2026 from 16:30 to 18:30 CEST at ISS Erasmus (Kortenaerkade 12, The Hague). RSVP to attend this event: https://edu.nl/8kq9x 🔗 #ClimteAction #Sustainability World Resources Institute World Resources Institute Europe International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) of Erasmus University Rotterdam