The High-Level Expert Group on Sustainable Finance (HLEG) established in late 2016 by the European Commission presents its interim recommendations to make finance sustainable in a public hearing on July 18th. We urge the European Commission (EC) to build upon those recommendations, but also call upon the Expert Group to be bolder and more courageous in the final recommendations to be issued at the end of this year. Related documents: High-Level Expert Group on Sustainable Finance interim report [PDF] Statement by Share Action, Friends of the…

Global Witness welcomes the news that the Dutch and Finnish development banks behind the deeply controversial Agua Zarca hydropower dam in Honduras - which led to the murder of acclaimed land defender Berta Cáceres - have withdrawn their backing for the project. But the organisation warns that the banks urgently need to commit to concrete action to protect environmental and land defenders if they are to ensure future financing does not contribute to the abuse and violence suffered by thousands of activists every year. The banks’…

Today, the environmental NGO urgewald and its partners reveal which companies are at the forefront of plans to expand the world’s coal-fired power capacity by a staggering 42.8%. urgewald’s previous in-depth research played a key role in initiating the coal divestment actions of the Norwegian Government Pension Fund and the insurance company Allianz. Currently, over 1,600 new coal plants and units are planned or under development in 62 countries. [1] If built, they would add over 840,000 MW to the global coal plant fleet. “The…