The world is watching the Strait of Hormuz for oil. It may soon realize it should have been watching it for food. As tensions escalate between the United States, Israel, and Iran, the narrow maritime corridor—long viewed as the world’s most critical energy chokepoint—is emerging as something more consequential: a
Environmental certification for Buenaventura’s Trapiche project advances one of Latin America’s largest undeveloped copper assets as global demand reshapes regional investment calculus. Competition for copper supply security is intensifying across the Andes as Peru clears a critical regulatory hurdle for one of the region’s most significant undeveloped deposits. The country’s
Every second, the equivalent of a rubbish truck full of clothes is dumped into a landfill or incinerated. In Europe, between 4% and 9% of all unsold textiles, specifically items that have never been worn, are destroyed annually. This produces carbon emissions roughly equivalent to the total net output of
When delegates from nearly every nation gathered in Geneva earlier this month, the meeting on the agenda was procedural but carried heavy symbolic weight: electing a new chair to lead negotiations on what could become the world’s first legally binding treaty on plastic pollution. In a one-day resumed session of
As power shifts in Caracas and Washington, the country’s forests, rivers and communities are being pulled into the center of a high-stakes reckoning. CARACAS — Venezuela’s environment has long lived in the shadow of oil. Now it stands directly in its path. The country is one of the most biodiverse
UNITED NATIONS, October 7 — The global effort to end plastic pollution was thrown into disarray today after the chair of the United Nations plastics treaty negotiations, Luis Vayas Valdivieso, announced his resignation, citing “personal and professional reasons.” The surprise decision comes amid deep divisions between nations and growing criticism
Key Impact Points: Landmark Bank–State Partnership in Forest Carbon Markets Standard Chartered has signed a five-year agreement with the Government of Acre, Brazil, to bring high-integrity jurisdictional forest carbon credits to market, potentially releasing 5 million credits in 2026. Located in the Amazon rainforest, Acre will use the programme to
Key Points A Major Step Towards EU Circularity Goals Last week, the European Commission launched a public consultation and Call for Evidence for the upcoming Circular Economy Act, marking a key step in the impact assessment process. The initiative will gather input from stakeholders and the public to better identify
Geneva — August 2025: In a cavernous conference hall overlooking Lake Geneva, delegates from more than 170 nations filed into their seats this week, some clutching thick binders of draft text, others accompanied by advisers in tailored suits. Officially, they are here to finalize the world’s first legally binding treaty
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
