Objective and activities

Climate Transparency brings together the most authoritative climate assessments and the expertise of institutions from G20 countries. Together, these experts develop a reliable, comprehensive, and comparable picture of the climate performance of G20 countries: the annual Brown to Green Report includes user-friendly information on mitigation, vulnerability, and finance. Based on the report, the IKI project seeks to improve key stakeholders’ knowledge of G20 climate performance and, consequently, strengthen their willingness to promote more ambitious climate action in Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, and South Africa.

Workshops, briefings, tailored knowledge products, and media outreach provide vital information to government representatives, particularly experts and finance ministries, G20 stakeholders, NGOs, think tanks, and businesses.

Implementation status/results

The project is in the implementation phase. The 2018 Brown to Green Report was launched on November 14, 2018. The report was prepared by 14 partners and other experts. Climate Transparency participated in several events during that year’s UNFCCC COP24 in Poland.

Latest project developments

• Climate Transparency partners provided concrete country recommendations during the participation of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in the Climate Action Summit on September 23, 2019, in New York. The recommendations were based on the findings of the Brown to Green Report, which provides the most comprehensive and concise information on climate action in G20 countries in a comparable format to support greater climate ambition and stimulate national debate. These Keys to Climate Ambition were also shared through a website dedicated to informing journalists and delegates attending the United Nations Summit, which received considerable international attention, and were communicated by partners to their governments and through social media channels, as well as through national engagement with key stakeholders.
• The 2019 Strategy and Partners Workshop was held from May 21 to 23 in Berlin, with the participation of 14 partner organizations and other experts to discuss the strategy, content development, and communication of the 2019 Brown to Green Report and other activities, such as the 2019 country-focused policy papers on transport.
• The high-level 2019 Brown to Green Forum on phasing out fossil fuels and ensuring a just transition in G20 countries was held in cooperation with the British Embassy on May 21. A comparative report on actions by G20 countries to phase out coal was presented, while national experts from the Climate Transparency partnership presented the coal transition policy papers produced within the partnership and shared country perspectives and lessons learned.
• A policy report on advancing climate action under Japan’s G20 Presidency was published, and its findings were presented and discussed at the International Workshop on G20 Fossil Fuel Subsidies and Public Finance, held on April 18–19, 2019, in Tokyo, Japan. Climate Transparency co-organized the workshop together with Oil Change International, the Overseas Development Institute, the Global Subsidies Initiative, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society.
• A series of policy papers by IESR, ERC, and TERI on coal phase-out and a just transition was completed, as well as a series of policy papers by ICM, Centro Clima, and FARN on the energy transition. Both include analyses of current barriers to increasing ambition and recommendations for concrete action. In a series of workshops in Argentina, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Mexico, and South Africa, the findings and recommendations were discussed with stakeholders from government, business, and civil society. Climate Transparency partners from different countries participated to share their perspectives on the respective topics.

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