Generally speaking, assessing the attractiveness of impact-oriented bonds (IOBs), including green, blue and social impact bonds, revolves around two aspects: understanding the financial opportunity of the investment and recognizing its expected environmental and social (E&S) benefits and outcomes. Financial opportunity In principle, financial investors (FIs) may be … [Read more...] about Reflecting on financial opportunities and governance strategies: the attractiveness of green, blue and other impact-oriented bonds
Ocean resources are key to a sustainable and resilient recovery in Tobago
Tobago is renowned for its sandy beaches, great weather, beautiful tropical landscapes, and friendly people. But the island is also home to transcendent nature-based assets such as the internationally known Buccoo Reef and the Tobago Main Ridge Forest Reserve, the oldest legally protected forest reserve in the western hemisphere. All of these characteristics will be key to a … [Read more...] about Ocean resources are key to a sustainable and resilient recovery in Tobago
Navigating through the unavoidable: responsible management of involuntary resettlement
When we design development projects, our objective is always to improve lives. Ideally, this objective can be achieved with minimal to no negative externalities. However, on occasion and even after careful consideration of the alternatives, direct or indirect adverse impacts on some groups cannot be completely avoided and must instead be responsibly managed to ensure that … [Read more...] about Navigating through the unavoidable: responsible management of involuntary resettlement
Breathe Easy: smartphone apps can reduce exposure to air pollution
A product of decades of industrialization, urbanization, and motorization, chronic severe air pollution is now a global phenomenon. Today, 90 percent of the world’s people live in places that do not meet World Health Organization (WHO) air quality standards. The consequences for human health have been grave. Each year, air pollution causes 5 to 9 million premature deaths and … [Read more...] about Breathe Easy: smartphone apps can reduce exposure to air pollution
How is climate change impacting small islands in the Caribbean?
“A 2-degree Celsius rise in global temperature would be a ‘death sentence’ for island and coastal communities”, Prime Minister of Barbados Mia Mottley said during a powerful speech at the World Leaders Summit on the second day of the 26th UN climate summit (COP26) in Glasgow. Mottley highlighted how failure to provide critical climate finance to small island developing … [Read more...] about How is climate change impacting small islands in the Caribbean?