Breaking free from fossil fuels is urgent but hard – Colombia shows why

Colombia’s outgoing president Gustavo Petro, a former guerrilla and the country’s first leftist leader, came to power in 2022. He promised something few leaders of fossil fuel-producing countries have seriously […]

How methane policy will make or break the climate crisis

There’s no sign that methane emissions are declining globally. That’s according to the International Energy Agency’s latest report on methane, which revealed a worrying implementation gap in current policies. The […]

Online harms: how young people experience the dark side of social media – and what research suggests governments should do to protect them

There is a growing policy debate on online harms taking place around the world, with some countries having banned children from accessing social media and others considering doing so. Informed […]

Designing for democracy: lessons from Oslo’s New Government Quarter

A new government quarter in Oslo is catalysing a rethink of how different departments and agencies communicate. Here, Knut Hovland, head of design, Nordic Office of Architecture, sets out how […]

Turning debt into forests: the finance tool making a comeback

Alex Dryden, SOAS, University of London In 2023, Ecuador struck an unusual deal. Instead of simply paying back its debts, it refinanced part of them on better terms and promised […]

‘Much‑needed fresh air’: five outcomes from the world’s first summit on ending fossil fuels

Almost 60 countries, representing about a third of the global economy, met in the Colombian port city of Santa Marta last month for the first international summit on the transition […]

Measuring up: how robust are productivity expectations when it comes to AI in the public sector?

Artificial intelligence has the potential to improve productivity across the economy. But how do you measure it – particularly in the public sector where ‘public value’ is both crucial and […]

AI laws overlook environmental damage – here’s what needs to change

More than 200 laws have been developed to regulate AI in more than 100 countries. Many of them focus on issues such as privacy, bias, disinformation, security and cybersecurity rather […]

Australia has set new expectations for AI data centres – they should serve the public

The Australian federal government released new expectations for data centres and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. The message is simple: if companies want faster federal approvals, they must show their projects […]