By Pamela Coke-Hamilton, Executive Director, International Trade Centre (ITC) Although it may not be obvious at first glance, Mongolia, Paraguay, Switzerland, and Zambia share more than the colour red in their flags: They have all dealt with – or are still dealing with – red tape and trade bottlenecks as
Geneva, August 5, 2025 — Delegates from more than 170 nations gathered today at the United Nations’ Palais des Nations to begin the final scheduled round of negotiations for a landmark Global Plastics Treaty. The talks, known formally as INC-5.2, are widely seen as the world’s last best chance to
By Gerd Müller, Director General of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) We live in a time of multiple, interconnected crises – crises which hit developing countries the hardest. Hunger and poverty remain widespread and have been worsened by the COVID pandemic. Moreover, they are exacerbated by conflicts and
Key Impact Points: UN’s Gold Standard Publishes Engineered Carbon Removal Guidelines to Accelerate High-Integrity Projects Gold Standard has released its Engineered Removals Activity Requirements, a comprehensive framework to guide high-integrity engineered carbon dioxide removal (CDR) projects toward certification. The publication marks a major expansion of the NGO’s efforts to bring
Key Impact Points: High-Level Push for Stronger Plastics Treaty Panama’s Juan Carlos Navarro, Minister of Environment, and Juan Carlos Monterrey, Special Representative for Climate Change, joined global leaders in demanding that the UN Plastics Treaty tackles the root of the problem: plastic production. “We cannot recycle our way out of
Key Impact Points: Azerbaijan Expands Renewable Energy Investments in Europe The State Oil Fund of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) will acquire a 49% equity stake in a 402 MW solar portfolio in Italy from Enfinity Global, which will retain 51% and manage the assets long-term, the companies announced on
Key Impact Points: Fashion Industry Veteran Joins Mango’s Board Mango has appointed Helena Helmersson, former CEO of the H&M Group, as an independent member of its Board of Directors. The move is part of the fashion giant’s ongoing push to professionalize its management structure and align with international governance standards.
Key Impact Points: Eni and Azimut Launch €100 Million Clean Energy Tech Venture Fund Italian energy giant Eni, through its venture capital arm Eni Next, is teaming up with asset manager Azimut to launch a €100 million clean tech-focused venture capital fund. The initiative aims to scale up startups and
Key Impact Points: 1PointFive Secures Long-Term Carbon Removal Deal with JPMorganChase 1PointFive, the carbon removal and storage subsidiary of Occidental, has announced a 10-year agreement with JPMorganChase for the purchase of 50,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) credits. The credits will be generated using Direct Air Capture (DAC)
Key Impact Points: NATURE Gets a Grammy-Worthy Debut The Sounds Right initiative—developed by the Museum for the United Nations – UN Live in collaboration with Spotify, AKQA, EarthPercent, and others—just earned the Cannes Lions Grand Prix for Innovation for a world-first idea: crediting NATURE as a music artist. Launched last
