Refining concentration by geography and ownership , 2024 (IEA, Global Critical Minerals Report 2025). As clean energy and high-tech industries expand, demand for critical minerals is rising fast, while supply, especially at the refining stage, remains highly concentrated. Because new mining and processing projects are slow and costly to build, both the EU and the U.S. are turning to recycling as a faster way to strengthen supply security. The EU follows a rule-based, target-driven model,...

Following up on our research paper on wetlands finance, we wanted to discuss again wetlands conservation finance this week. Coastal ecosystems and wetlands are one of the most important ecosystems in the world due to the abundance of ecological, economic, and social benefits. Many plants and animals live within coastal wetlands. Wetlands also act as barriers against storms or floods while improving water quality through the filtration of pollutants. These areas are transitional and provide...

Reflecting upon Responsible Alpha's top January 1, 2025, Responsible Alpha id well. Responsible Alpha’s 2025 Top Ten: 10. ESG In Your Backpack, Ready for Travel: Standardized and Portable ESG Forecast:  Demand for standardized and simplified ESG reporting that can be transported across geographies will grow. While ESG is an acronym used for the first time in 2004, many of the underlying ESG metrics are much older . In fact, the metric “reporting the number of members of a board” – a commonly...