Affluence is the biggest threat to our world, according to a new scientific report.True sustainability will only be achieved through drastic lifestyle changes, it argues.The World Economic Forum has called for a great reset of capitalism in the wake of the pandemic. A detailed analysis of environmental research has revealed the greatest threat to the world: affluence. That's one of the main conclusions of a team of scientists from Australia, Swit...

China's national emissions trading scheme (ETS) is expected to eclipse that of the European Union to become the world's largest carbon trading scheme.The scheme is designed to include all major industrial sectors, from construction to power generation.While first mentioned in 2015 ahead of the Paris climate agreement, technical problems have plagued the scheme, delaying it for a further 5 years. China is targeting the launch of a nationwide emiss...

For every dollar invested into girls' rights and education, developing nations could see a return of $2.80, according to a new report.Targets to improve girls education are included in the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, signed by world leaders in 2015.Around 130 million girls worldwide were out of school before COVID-19, according to UNESCO, and more than 11 million may not return to classes. Making sure all girls are finishing secondary edu...

• Last year, OECD members only gave 0.3% of their GNI to aid – less than the 0.7% promised. • 0.7% would help the world's poorest countries meet the SDGs for a decade. • Stable aid flows are needed more than ever during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. On 24 October 1970, the world's richest countries made a promise that would better the lives of people around the world. They committed to give a small percentage of their income – just 0.7% – in i...

A new study examines the impact of carbon pricing on emissions.Growth in annual carbon dioxide emissions was about 2 percentage points lower in countries with a carbon price than those without.The study also found that increasing the price by 1 euro per tonne was associated with decreasing emissions by a further 0.3% Putting a price on carbon should reduce emissions, because it makes dirty production processes more expensive than clean ones, righ...

Starting this week, 120 Germans will receive a form of universal basic income every month for three years.The volunteers will get monthly payments of €1,200, or about $1,400, as part of a study testing a universal basic income.The study will compare the experiences of the 120 volunteers with 1,380 people who do not receive the payments.Supporters say it would reduce inequality and improve well-being, while opponents argue it would be too expensiv...

The Future of Nature and Business, the second of three reports in the World Economic Forum's New Nature Economy series, provides the practical insights needed to take leadership in shifting towards a much needed nature-positive economy. As the world prepares to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting crisis, we are presented with an unprecedented clarion call, and opportunity, to change the way we eat, live, grow, build and power our liv...

A new report concludes that the benefits of protecting 30% of the world's land and ocean outweigh the costs by a factor of at least 5:1.COVID-19 and other zoonotic diseases are the direct result of the over-exploitation of nature and resources.Investing in nature and measures to prevent climate change would mean short-term net costs, but would be offset by financial benefits over time. In 2020, humanity is living the consequences of our broken re...

As the Productivity Commission confirmed this week, Australia's economy has enjoyed uninterrupted growth for 28 years straight. Specifically, our output of goods and services last financial year grew by 2%. Economists obviously see the growth of a national economy as good news – but what is it doing to the Earth? Capitalism demands limitless economic growth, yet research shows that trajectory is incompatible with a finite planet. If capitalism is...

A small boost in microlending to the developing world could lift more than 10.5 million people out of extreme poverty. That's one conclusion of my study, published last month in The B.E. Journal of Macroeconomics, which found that microfinance not only reduces how many households live in poverty but also how poor they are. Currently, 836 million people – or 12% of the world's population – experience extreme poverty, living off less than US$1.25 a...