Europe’s Protected Area Policies Could Use a Little More Ambition

Changes in NDVI between 1985 and 2020 for all of Europe (left) and inside protected areas (right). NDVI is on a scale from 0-100, with values >80 usually being forests.

(Outlet: Kleinman Center for Energy Policy) Arthur van Benthem, Wharton Climate Center Faculty Co-Director, writes about his recent study that seeks to explore the effectiveness of Europe’s land protections and finds the quantity of land protected is not as important as policies that target areas with a meaningful trade-off between biodiversity gains and economic costs.Read More

Some states backtrack on anti-ESG efforts, citing ‘unintended consequences’

BlackRock workers outside the firm's headquarters in New York. The asset manager has been a target for an anti-ESG campaign.

(Outlet: S&P Global Market Intelligence) Business researchers with the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School estimated in July 2022 that municipalities and other public entities in Texas would pay between $303 million and $532 million more in interest on the $32 billion they borrowed during the first eight months after those laws went into effect.Read More