This paper analyses lessons from Kochi and Trivandrum, Kerala, India, where municipal government and community partnerships on house building projects have led to better quality new housing stock while reducing costs and environmental impacts. It finds that by placing participation at the heart of their processes, these cities have achieved 100 per cent occupancy rates at a lower cost, while also cutting carbon emissions and providing economic benefits. Nationwide, costs and occupancy levels of Kochi and Trivandrum could save Rs. 118 billion (US$1.71 billion) or build an additional 816,000 homes. 

Conventional approaches to solid waste management have often proven unaffordable and ineffective. This paper analyses the lessons from Ahmedabad, India. It finds that clear national leadership that supports municipal authorities to integrate unionised informal waste pickers into formal municipal waste management can deliver competitive recycling rates at lower costs, whilst also improving the income, health, job security and inclusion of marginalised groups, reducing urban poverty and enhancing climate resilience. 

This paper analyses lessons from India, where electricity consumption is set to triple by 2040. It finds that clear national leadership supporting municipal authorities to incorporate innovative business models that help low-income households to access renewable energy is critical. If new approaches used in New Delhi were adopted nationwide, they would deliver 8 gigawatts of additional solar capacity by 2022, reduce energy bills for 2.6 million households, create 100,000–150,000 jobs and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 10 megatonnes a year—the equivalent of closing four coal-fired power stations. 

This paper is a background review representing part of the initial phase of the Financing the Urban Transition work programme. The review builds on a growing body of research that highlights both the importance of national sustainable infrastructure and the need to develop more effective and efficient financing mechanisms for delivering compact, connected cities that meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. While progress has been made in both these areas over the last five years, there remains a policy gap between the international/national level and the municipal level.

This report explores the ways in which urban policy sectors are integrated (or fragmented) in ten case study countries: China, Colombia, Ethiopia, Germany, India, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States. The analysis is based on the most recent and authoritative national-level policy documents. 

The renewable energy sector in India will require $189 billion in additional investment to meet its goal of 175GW by 2022. Institutional investors have the potential to bridge this gap. This report finds that the potential for renewable energy investment in India is more than double the required amount, but the expected level falls short. Domestic and international investors have the greatest potential to address this but require a greater understanding of India’s renewable energy sector to better facilitate investment.

In urban infrastructure the investment decisions taken today will shape tomorrow. Despite the critical importance of infrastructure for urban development, financing to scale up smarter, more sustainable urban infrastructure remains an immense challenge, particularly in emerging and developing economies. 

What happens to clean infrastructure finance when countries are big and fast-growing but have immature financial systems and a scarcity of long-term domestic investors? The Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) compares two different financing models from middle income countries: the highly centralized model of Brazil and the decentralized model from India. 

A staggering one-third of all agricultural landscapes are now degraded, mostly in developing countries, and a net 12 million hectares (ha) continue to be degraded yearly. But commitment to change is growing. The report highlights significant regional achievements being implemented, such as Initiative 20×20, through which seven Latin American countries and partners have pledged to bring 20 million ha of land into restoration by 2020, and the Africa Climate-Smart Agriculture Alliance, which aims to engage 6 million smallholders by 2021. 

This note describes the Commission’s assessment of future infrastructure investment needs. It presents projections for a baseline scenario, and the estimated incremental investment required for a low-carbon scenario. It sets out the sources used and provides an overview of the estimates and modelling undertaken by the New Climate Economy (NCE) network.