Clifford Chance
Sharing our knowledge and expertise
Explore our insights on climate change, business & human rights, sustainable finance, inclusion & diversity, energy transition, and more.
ESG highlights
Sustainability & ESG Trends 2025
We look at what's around the corner for sustainable finance and private capital M&A, the direction of travel for sustainability due diligence and reporting and managing ESG litigation risks, as well as the ways in which businesses may practically navigate regulatory uncertainties and increasingly diverging views on ESG.
Find out more about Sustainability & ESG Trends 2025
What the new Trump administration could mean for ESG
This briefing provides a high-level survey of potential areas for change, in environmental and climate regulation, the energy transition, antitrust, the workplace, and in the regulation of investors and asset managers. The field is complex and the direction of travel is unpredictable; this survey provides a snapshot of areas that likely will receive focus early in the new administration.
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Scaling the global carbon markets: a way forward for the VCM and Paris Mechanisms
At COP29, the global community is meeting in the hope of driving critical progress on climate commitments. Against this backdrop, our London Environment Group has launched a new report which explores recent developments concerning the Paris mechanisms and the VCM and makes recommendations for actions that need to be taken if they are to reach their full capabilities.
Find out more
What happened at COP29?
COP29, held in Baku, Azerbaijan, was beset by controversy and disappointment, but some progress was made. In this extract from a recent Clifford Chance webinar moderated by Roger Leese, a member of the firm’s ESG Board and co-head of the firm’s Global Business and Human Rights practice, we explore what was achieved including the announcement of a New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance and agreement on the operationalisation of the global carbon market following a decade of trying.
Find out more about What happened at COP29?
Will downstream scope 3 emissions have to be considered for all major projects? The Supreme Court decision in Finch
This briefing considers the court’s decision in Finch and its potential implications for business.
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Australia: Directors' Duties and Nature Related Risks
In this article, we explore nature-related risks and the practical steps which can be taken by directors (including representatives of financial investors) to assist with their assessment and mitigation of these risks to avoid consequences such as penalties from regulators and the risk of litigation.
Find out more about Australia: Directors' Duties and Nature Related Risks
Insights
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Betting on batteries: Powering the clean energy transition
With increasing global demand for batteries to power the clean energy transition, the opportunities and risks are multiplying. New technology, new markets and ...
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Forced labour: New regulations are changing contractual obligations across the world
An international framework aimed at the eradication of forced labour across the world has long been in place, set out in ILO Conventions and embraced within UN...
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Will downstream scope 3 emissions have to be considered for all major projects? The UK Supreme Court decision in Finch
In a landmark judgment, for the first time the UK Supreme Court has decided that, when assessing the environmental impacts of an oil extraction project, the pl...
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Australia: Directors' Duties and Nature Related Risks
Australian companies are increasingly vulnerable to risks associated with the natural environment. Although climate-related regulation is increasing, the strat...
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US SEC Adopts New Climate-Related Disclosure Requirements (Detailed)
On March 6, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") adopted long-awaited disclosure requirements to enhance and standardize the climate-...
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Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) recommendations published
The finalised Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) framework has been published and establishes a new standard for disclosure on nature and...
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Global Antitrust Challenges for Industry Climate Alliances and Cooperation on Environmental Sustainability
As businesses seek new ways to work together to improve environmental sustainability, navigating diverging approaches to competition law in different juri...
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Going beyond carbon reductions: The proposed EU carbon removals certification regulation
On 30 November 2022, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a Regulation to create a first EU-wide voluntary framework that would certify high-qua...
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Energy Transition Trends 2023
Energy security and affordability have become a major issue for many countries. Rising inflation, increasingly frequent and significant climate events, and an ...
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Looking ahead to COP29: What can we expect?
COP29 – the 29th annual United Nations climate meeting – takes place in Baku, Azerbaijan from 11 November, but what can be achieved, realistically, against a b...
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COP28: What it means for businesses
In this extract from our recent Perspectives webinar, we explore some of the major themes that came out of COP28, including renewable energy, financing and wha...
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Funding the energy transition: Mobilizing private finance for net zero
As world leaders gather at COP28 in Dubai, there is widespread acknowledgment of the scale of action required to address climate change by accelerating the dev...
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Looking ahead to COP28: What can we expect?
COP28 – the 28th annual United Nations climate meeting – takes place in Dubai from 30 November, but what can realistically be achieved against a backdrop of in...
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Debt-for-Nature Swaps: A New Generation
Ahead of COP28, we set out our thoughts on the new generation of debt-for-nature swaps which have recently come to market and look forward to their full potent...
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MENA Region: Three emerging ESG finance trends
The MENA region is experiencing rapid growth in green loans and sustainability-linked loans with issuers/borrowers ranging from sovereign wealth funds and GREs...
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10 questions on the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism
The EU has adopted a Regulation establishing a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) to deal with the long-standing problem of ‘carbon leakage’ that impede...
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Going beyond carbon reductions: The proposed EU carbon removals certification regulation
On 30 November 2022, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a Regulation to create a first EU-wide voluntary framework that would certify high-qua...
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Focus on hydrogen: The impact of the US Inflation Reduction Act's hydrogen incentives on trade
A key hydrogen trend to focus on for 2023 is "trade". The industry has gone from concentrating on the "colour" (i.e., grey, blue and green...
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Nature's Paris? Key outcomes and measures of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (COP15)
Agreement was reached by 190 countries on the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) on 19 December 2022, after two weeks of negotiations at COP1...
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Trump's first day: Presidential Statement and Executive Orders impacting the energy and environmental sectors
On January 20, 2025, the first day of his second term, President Trump issued a Presidential Statement highlighting his administration's key priorities and sig...
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Carbon Capture and Storage – How will Japan establish CCS value chains?
To enable Japan to achieve its ambitious targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the government has committed to support advanced carbon capture...
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Forecasting the impacts of Trump's second administration on the energy sector
This briefing provides an overview of how President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign promises may translate into policy reform, how potential policy reforms could...
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Investing In Carbon Capture And Storage In Australia – What You Need To Know
In chasing down opportunities to invest in the energy transition, private capital is increasingly focused on unlocking the investment potential offered by alte...
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Singapore Carbon Initiatives: The Carbon Tax and the Eligibility List
Singapore's eligibility list for international carbon credits (ICCs), published shortly after the announcement of its successful Article 6 Paris Agreement coll...
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Carbon Capture and Storage in Germany – Update on the legislative process
The German Government has announced that it will enable Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) and facilitate Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU) on an industrial s...
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Low-carbon H2 supply chain subsidy in Japan
Japan is promoting international supply chains for low-carbon hydrogen and derivatives. The immaturity of the markets for the supply of hydrogen and its deriva...
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Green fuels: Structuring and procurement issues to consider as demand takes off
Demand for e-fuels and biofuels is rocketing. Last year, the EU enacted new regulations in the aviation and shipping industries designed to force airlines and ...
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U.S. Supreme Court reels in federal agency interpretation power, overturning Chevron Doctrine, and lengthens deadline for bringing challenges
On June 28, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6-3 vote, overruled the landmark 40-year-old Chevron decision that required federal courts to defer to a federal...
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Singapore carbon initiatives: Introduction to carbon markets
Interest in carbon markets is growing across the globe. Singapore has led the way in carbon regulation in South-East Asia and has been proactive in seeking opp...
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Decarbonising Australia's economy: The future of gas in the energy transition
Australia's Future Gas Strategy was released on 9 May 2024 and recognises the important role of Australian gas and LNG in expediting the transition to net zero...
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UK vat treatment of voluntary carbon credits
HMRC has published new guidance on the VAT treatment of voluntary carbon credits, correcting the anomalous distinction between voluntary and compliance market ...
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UK Government consultation on the design of the UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism
The UK Government has published proposals for a UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) to deal with carbon leakage while the UK decarbonises. The proposa...
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Focus on Hydrogen: Navigating Morocco's New Policy
The Morocco Offer (l'Offre Maroc) is the most significant step forward to date for the green hydrogen sector in Morocco and covers the entire green hydrog...
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Carbon Trading in China Relaunch of the Certified Emission Reduction Scheme
On 22 January 2024, China officially relaunched the China Certified Emission Reduction (CCER) scheme, which is a milestone step in establishing the voluntary c...
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Carbon Capture and Storage in Germany – New opportunities for project developers and investors
The German Government has announced that it will enable Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) and facilitate Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU) on an industrial s...
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Energy Transition – Opportunities and Challenges for Offshore Wind
With increasing global demand for offshore wind to power the clean energy transition, the opportunities and risks are multiplying. Offshore wind has long been ...
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Low-carbon fuels: Decoding EU legislation for the transport sector
The EU has recently adopted new legislation on the use of renewable and low-carbon fuels in the transport sector. The new rules include important technical cri...
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Energy Transition Trends 2024
Explore our 2024 Energy Transition Trends amid global uncertainty, elections, climate pledge post-COP28, green tech advancements, carbon pricing, CCUS growth, green fuels, digital transformation, finance innovations & capital incentives..
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Clean Hydrogen Tax Credit Proposed Regulations: A Focus on the "Three Pillars"
On December 22, 2023, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service announced Proposed Treasury Regulations (the "Proposed Rules&qu...
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Energy Transition: What role can geothermal power play?
Geothermal energy is among the oldest types of power harnessed by humans. It holds a unique place in the energy mix, thanks to being entirely independent of we...
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Funding the energy transition: Mobilizing private finance for net zero
As world leaders gather at COP28 in Dubai, there is widespread acknowledgment of the scale of action required to address climate change by accelerating the dev...
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Energy Transition – How to mitigate the risk of disputes in decommissioning
The global rise in renewable energy projects has brought into focus the need to decommission ageing fossil fuel assets effectively and sustainably. Decommissio...
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Focus on hydrogen: European Hydrogen Bank: First pilot auction
On 29 August 2023, the European Commission (the Commission) published the terms and conditions of the EU Hydrogen Bank's (EHB) first pilot auction with an Inno...
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Energy in transition – The role of decommissioning
Decommissioning is an integral part of the energy transition. The move by oil & gas companies to decarbonise their operations often leads to a transfer of ...
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Belgian offshore wind - Upcoming tendering of the Princess Elisabeth zone
The tender principles for the Princess Elisabeth Zone are gradually taking shape following a recent stakeholder dialogue. This briefing provides an overview o...
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Focus on hydrogen: Romania's hydrogen strategy – A key component of the energy transition roadmap
The Ministry of Energy of Romania has published the first draft of its long-awaited Hydrogen Strategy and Action Plan for 2023-2030. This is a positive step fo...
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Betting on Batteries: Powering the clean energy transition
With increasing global demand for batteries to power the clean energy transition, the opportunities and risks are multiplying. New technology, new markets and new deals, including those associated with mineral extraction, human rights and the supply chain, regulatory changes and the race to find funding are giving rise to a number of issues for businesses to grapple with.
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Energy Transition: Balancing the interests of investors and States on the path to clean energy
197 Governments (and the European Union) have ratified or acceded to the Paris Agreement, pledging to pursue efforts to limit the global temperature rise to 1....
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Offshore Decommissioning Contracts – Operation of the Knock for Knock Regime
Decommissioning is an integral part of the international energy transition, and of the global push to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions and a carbon ne...
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Focus on hydrogen: the European Hydrogen Bank
One of the first measures announced by the European Commission President von der Leyen, in her September 2022 State of the Union speech, was the creation of a ...
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The European Net Zero Industry Act
The European Commission (the Commission) has issued proposals aiming to broadly equalise Europe's net zero industry with the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) a...
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Renewable energy sector reform in Morocco - how will it impact the market?
The Moroccan Government has undertaken a wide-ranging reform of the legal framework governing the renewable energy sector, including a new regime for self-gene...
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Focus on hydrogen: Achieving Africa's clean hydrogen potential with European initiatives
A number of countries in Africa have been identified as future sources of supply of clean hydrogen due to an abundance of land suitable for the production of w...
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Focus on Hydrogen: Regulatory developments in the Netherlands
Three years after the Cabinet presented its Cabinet Vision on Hydrogen (Kabinetsvisie waterstof), the Dutch Government has taken significant steps in developin...
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Energy Arbitration Trends 2023
What are the key trends for global disputes and international arbitration for the energy sector in 2023 and beyond? In our inaugural Energy Arbitration Trends ...
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Focus on hydrogen: Australia's Go Scheme and hydrogen certification
Certification schemes for clean hydrogen are being proposed in many countries to help markets develop, by providing certainty as to where the hydrogen has been...
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Going beyond carbon reductions: The proposed EU carbon removals certification regulation
On 30 November 2022, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a Regulation to create a first EU-wide voluntary framework that would certify high-qua...
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Energy Transition Trends 2023
Energy security and affordability have become a major issue for many countries. Rising inflation, increasingly frequent and significant climate events, and an ...
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Focus on hydrogen: Belgium is leading the way in regulating the hydrogen midstream
Belgium has published its long-awaited H2 midstream regulation. A draft proposal has been endorsed by the federal parliament's energy commission and will ...
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Focus on hydrogen: The impact of the US Inflation Reduction Act's hydrogen incentives on trade
A key hydrogen trend to focus on for 2023 is "trade". The industry has gone from concentrating on the "colour" (i.e., grey, blue and green...
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Focus on hydrogen: current regulatory framework for green hydrogen in Spain
Although green hydrogen production and use is still at an early stage of development and a European package is being put into place for hydrogen regulation (sp...
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Sustainability & ESG Trends 2025
Environmental, social and governance issues are having a significant impact on businesses globally. Against the prevailing backdrop of continued political and economic uncertainty and rising geopolitical tensions, we look ahead and assess the challenges and opportunities on a range of strategic issues, from regulations on corporate sustainability reporting and transition planning, the evolution of sustainable finance and the role of carbon markets in funding net-zero, to the increase in ESG-related litigation.
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What the new Trump administration could mean for ESG
While the debate over ESG has been bubbling in the United States for some time, the reelection of former president Donald Trump and the Republican sweep of Con...
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Scaling the global carbon markets: a way forward for the VCM and Paris Mechanisms
At COP29, the global community is meeting in the hope of driving critical progress on climate commitments. Against this backdrop, our London Environment ...
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REvolve Report - Social Impact: Measuring Real Estate's Influence on Society
"Social impacts are pervasive in the real estate sector and yet challenges around understanding the beneficial effects, whilst reducing harmful impacts, o...
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ESG ratings and ESG data: Regulation and practical issues in the equity and debt capital markets
As sustainable investing continues to become more mainstream globally, ESG ratings and data products play an increasingly central role in the sustainable finan...
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China Issues Guidelines on Corporate Sustainability Reporting
In April 2024, all three securities exchanges in China issued their respective guidelines on corporate sustainability reporting (each a CSR Guideline), which t...
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Reporting on HR related topics – The impact of CSRD on the HR practice
Sustainability reporting aims to provide a company's stakeholders with information on what it sees as the risks and opportunities arising from ESG issues, incl...
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U.S. Supreme Court reels in federal agency interpretation power, overturning Chevron Doctrine, and lengthens deadline for bringing challenges
On June 28, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6-3 vote, overruled the landmark 40-year-old Chevron decision that required federal courts to defer to a federal...
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The Environmental Crime Directive: A game-changer for ecosystem protection?
According to a report by the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation (“Eurojust”) dated January 2021, environmental crime has been expanding rap...
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Mitigation of current risks in mining industry through investment protection and arbitration
In 2023, the global mining disputes landscape continued to grow. Underpinned by an increasing demand for critical minerals worldwide, and in an environment of heightened sovereign and regulatory risk, this year is no different. This blog post highlights two key trends that mining investors around the world are likely to experience in the second half of 2024 and beyond and how recourse to commercial or investor-State arbitration can mitigate risks.
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Australia: Directors' Duties and Nature Related Risks
Australian companies are increasingly vulnerable to risks associated with the natural environment. Although climate-related regulation is increasing, the strat...
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The FCA publishes finalised guidance on the SDR anti-greenwashing rule
On 23 April 2024, the FCA issued Finalised Guidance (Guidance) on the ‘anti-greenwashing rule’. The Guidance takes into account feedback received by the FCA in...
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Agreement reached on the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive – what financial services firms need to know
After months of political wrangling, EU member states have finally reached agreement on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CS3D). On 15 Marc...
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US SEC Adopts New Climate-Related Disclosure Requirements (Detailed)
On March 6, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") adopted long-awaited disclosure requirements to enhance and standardize the climate-...
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SEC Adopts Climate-related Disclosure Rules
On March 6, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted 3-to-2 to adopt long-awaited disclosure rules and form amendments designed to enhance and ...
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The UK's Sustainability Disclosure Requirements Regime
In November 2023, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published the final rules for its new Sustainability Disclosure Requirements regime (SDR). Firms a...
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Debt-for-Nature Swaps: A New Generation
Ahead of COP28, we set out our thoughts on the new generation of debt-for-nature swaps which have recently come to market and look forward to their full potent...
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MENA Region: Three emerging ESG finance trends
The MENA region is experiencing rapid growth in green loans and sustainability-linked loans with issuers/borrowers ranging from sovereign wealth funds and GREs...
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Exploring the new ISSB sustainability disclosure standards
The ISSB has published two new sustainability disclosure standards establishing a global baseline that is comprehensive and compatible with existing frameworks...
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The green industrial policy revolution – developments in trade, energy transition, and geopolitics
Driven by the energy transition, national security concerns, and commitments to support domestic production, countries are increasingly taking measures to develop green economies and energy systems at home.
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ESG Trends 2023
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations have an increasing impact on all businesses, globally. Here we take a look at the some of the issues...
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ESG: What to expect from financial regulators in 2023 – Disclosures, Data and 'Greenwashing' in the spotlight
ESG disclosures, data product and ratings providers and 'greenwashing' will be in the regulatory spotlight in 2023, as financial regulators seek to implement m...
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Disagreement on U.S. DEI legislation and initiatives creates uncertainty for companies
Companies are faced with increasing challenges from internal and external forces, meaning that policies and initiatives related to diversity, equity, and inclu...
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Focus on hydrogen: Belgium is leading the way in regulating the hydrogen midstream
Belgium has published its long-awaited H2 midstream regulation. A draft proposal has been endorsed by the federal parliament's energy commission and will ...
-
Nature's Paris? Key outcomes and measures of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (COP15)
Agreement was reached by 190 countries on the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) on 19 December 2022, after two weeks of negotiations at COP1...
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FINRA's First Caution on ESG
On January 10, 2023, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA") issued its 2023 Report on FINRA’s Examination and Risk Monitoring Program ...
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European Commission proposes ambitious update to packaging rules
The European Commission has proposed a long-awaited legislative update aimed at reducing packaging waste across the EU as part of efforts to create a...
Sustainability & ESG Trends 2025
We look at what's around the corner for sustainable finance and private capital M&A, the direction of travel for sustainability due diligence and reporting and managing ESG litigation risks, as well as the ways in which businesses may practically navigate regulatory uncertainties and increasingly diverging views on ESG.
Find out more about Sustainability & ESG Trends 2025Reports
Scaling the global carbon markets: a way forward for the VCM and Paris Mechanisms
At COP29, the global community is meeting in the hope of driving critical progress on climate commitments. Against this backdrop, our London Environment Group has launched a new report which explores recent developments concerning the Paris mechanisms and the VCM and makes recommendations for actions that need to be taken if they are to reach their full capabilities.
Read the report
