Years of delay in taking meaningful action on climate change, combined with the increasing impetus to pursue the goal of limiting warming to 1.5°C, have compressed the timescale for decarbonizing the energy system to net-zero to a few decades. The focus of research must therefore shift from the fundamental long-term characteristics of net-zero energy systems… Continue reading Time is of the essence: Accounting for observed past transformation progress in the ex-ante assessment of climate policies with integrated assessment models

The European Parliament has been a major actor in defining policies to achieve climate neutrality, notably with the adoption of the European Climate Law and the ‘Fit for 55’ package. In 2020, the European Parliament Research Service (EPRS) established a Climate Action Research and Tracking Service with the task to synthesize and communicate evidence for… Continue reading Synthesizing and communicating evidence for climate policies to European policy-makers

Policymakers in the environmental sector require timely access to the most relevant and high-quality evidence in order to support decision-making. Rapid response services (RRS) present one mechanism to provide these environmental policymakers with such access. Since 2018, the Johannesburg Centre for Environmental Evidence has implemented such an RRS with the National Department of Environmental Affairs… Continue reading Using evidence mapping and co-production to establish a responsive evidence synthesis service in the environmental sector in South Africa

Catalonia, in order to contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation challenges, apart from prioritizing relevant direct policy measures, is also developing an ambitious and holistic green budgeting reform, which covers the whole budget cycle and components, including revenue and expenditure tagging, budget requests climate appraisal, climate fiscal risks identification and management, climate-focused policy evaluations… Continue reading Introducing the “What Works in Climate Policy” Project: Catalyzing Green Budgeting in Catalonia

To successfully achieve the net-zero transition on ambitious timelines, stakeholders from across the public and private sectors must collaborate and pursue multiple, parallel policy solutions. In an international sample of experts in the net-zero energy transition (n = 430), we investigate patterns of policy support and actor responsibility. We investigate the preference schemata that shape… Continue reading Global expert evaluations of net-zero policies and actors

This presentation will assess the status quo of the institutionalisation of the use of evidence in environmental policy decision-making in South Africa. Based on nine years of supporting the center of government and environmental ministries in the country, we will unpack the history and politics of the process of institutionalising evidence use for environmental policy… Continue reading Institutionalising the use of evidence in environmental policy decision-making in South Africa: process, structures, and good governance of evidence

Background: Research on research has shown the scientific, ethical, and resource costs of unnecessary (redundant) studies. Many redundant studies could be avoided if prior research is considered in a systematic and transparent way before starting the new study. Once the study has been completed, systematic syntheses help with the interpretation of new results, facilitating the… Continue reading A call for action – applying the Evidence-Based Research Network approach to climate change research

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) agreed to publish a special report (SR) on cities in assessment report (AR) 7 cycle. The SR seeks to summarise the evidence on climate change impacts and the unique adaptation and mitigation options of cities. However, a systematic overview of the literature on cities, and particularly urban case… Continue reading A Global Systematic Map and Database of Climate Change Research on Cities

We conduct a systematic review of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems and their environmental and social impacts on cities across LMICs in Asia & Africa. Our search strategy involves 3 key steps. First, we search a database of BRT systems across the world to identify BRT systems in Asia & Africa and collect information about… Continue reading Bus rapid transit (BRT) in developing Asia & Africa: a systematic review of the enviornmental impact and co-benefits of BRTs

Shade provides thermal comfort, reduces urban heat islands, prevents heat-related illness and death, and, when provided by tree canopy, extends co-benefits to the environment. Despite its importance, many outdoor public spaces lack adequate or even any shade, and it is inequitably distributed. The scarcity of shade is exacerbated by the design and implementation challenges of… Continue reading Evidence Synthesis for Shade Design and Decision Making in Urban Built Environments

Assessing the effectiveness of climate adaptation action is the focus of intense debates across scientific and policy arenas. Measurement is essential for effective adaptation management and operation, and indicators and metrics (I&M) are claimed to have a pivotal role. Surprisingly, there are, however, no systematic efforts so far to understand the progress of science in… Continue reading Indicators and metrics to evaluate urban adaptation: a systematic review

In recent years, numerous cities across the world have shown interest in AI approaches to help with achieving carbon neutrality. There is a need for city policy makers and researchers to get overarching guidance or receive an overview of potential application areas and approaches. Currently, however, there is no comprehensive analysis of the existing body… Continue reading How can cities use machine learning for urban climate change mitigation? A systematic map