Cities are key to unlocking a climate-smart future for all, as they account for more than 50 percent of the global population, about 70 percent of global energy-related CO2 emissions and 80 percent of global GDP. Urban centers' share of emissions is expected to grow as the urban population is...

This staff sector assessment note accompanies the recently completed national environmental action plan for sustainable development (NEAP-SD), which, as an output of the Industrial Pollution Control Project in Algeria, focused on charting a new course for environmental management in the country,...

This report analyzes, through a review of the regulatory framework, case studies, and international experiences, current arrangements for coordination of government programs in priority regions in Mexico, as well as opportunities for better addressing the development needs of those regions via...

This report reviews the status of the 28 countries of Europe and Central Asia (ECA) with respect to the environmental Millennium Development Goal (MDG). The aim of this goal is to 'ensure environmental sustainability,' which is elaborated by a set of three targets and eight indicators. The...

The Rio de Janeiro Low Carbon City Development Program is an ISO-certified framework and set of comprehensive requirements to help the city to plan, implement, monitor, and account for low carbon investments and climate change mitigation actions across all sectors in the city over time. The...

Renewable energy and energy efficiency projects continue to perform strongly in the World Bank Group (WBG) energy portfolio and are increasingly being mainstreamed in the WBG's energy lending. In fiscal 2007 a total of US$1,433 million supported 63 renewable energy and energy efficiency projects...

This report builds on the consensus developed at the August 2002 Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development. It draws on the effort to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. And it looks beyond, to 2050, to envision a future that is far more prosperous and more equitable...