Measures to adapt to climate change are often seen as the Cinderella of climate action – largely ignored and under-funded, garnering only a fraction of the attention and money enjoyed by their wealthier stepsister: efforts to cut planet-heating emissions.
That image is even more true to life when it comes to attracting money from private investors. While producing renewable energy offers easily quantifiable results and predictable revenue streams, projects to lessen the negative effects of drought or rising seas are regarded as hard to gauge and nearly impossible to monetise.
There’s no money to be made from adaptation and so private investors steer well clear of it, the common argument goes.
The numbers seem to back this up: the private sector contributed to just over 2% of the average $63 billion per year in global adaptation finance tracked by Climate Policy Initiative (CPI), an international research group, during 2021 and 2022. That is a rounding error when compared with the estimated $215 billion a year needed by developing countries alone to boost their climate resilience, according to the UN Adaptation Gap report.
But some climate finance experts suggest this is only a partial and misleading picture, perpetuated through a lack of data and information.
Morgan Richmond, lead analyst for CPI’s Adaptation and Resilience workstream, says private investments in adaptation are likely to be significantly underestimated as a result of the colossal challenge in tracking them.
“Basically no private-sector institution is currently self-identifying its investments as adaptation even when it could,” she told Climate Home.
Re-evaluating private sector adaptation
An asset manager, for example, could inject some cash into a food company’s efforts to reduce heat-related crop losses along its supply chain. Its primary goal might be the protection of the firm’s productivity and, ultimately, the financier’s bottom line. In doing so, it also helps farmers better withstand the impacts of climate change. Yet, without reporting requirements or specific incentives to spotlight that, what is essentially an adaptation investment falls into an information black hole.
The limited data available on private-sector adaptation finance in turn reinforces the mantra that there are limited or no viable business models for adaptation, CPI wrote in a recent report highlighting its new efforts to bring more of these finance flows to light.
Women plant mangrove saplings along the riverbanks of the Matla river in the Sundarbans, India, to combat the impacts of climate change. (Photo: Avijit Ghosh / Climate Visuals)
Having developed a more sophisticated tracking mechanism, CPI found private adaptation investments were on average more than four times higher than previously thought in the period from 2019 to 2022. While researchers believe this is still an underestimate, they hope that better identification and recognition of finance flows will encourage more businesses and investors to become active in the adaptation space.
“The idea is to create a common language and allow institutions to get a better sense of what their peers are doing,” said CPI’s Richmond. “Hopefully that creates a sense of the market shift that is happening and those institutions will want to be part of it.”
Some multinational firms – including Nestlé, Danone and Unilever – say they have taken steps, including promoting regenerative green agriculture techniques, to enhance the resilience of their global supply chains to climate shocks. But, outside of the food industry, business action to promote adaptation action has so far been limited despite the growing risks to revenues.
It’s time to end the UN’s artificial divide between biodiversity and climate
In late 2022, at COP27, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) launched a bid to spur more private-sector interest in building climate resilience under its PREPARE Call to Action. In an update on its website this year, it says that 39 companies and partners have so far made voluntary commitments that will mobilise more than $3 billion to help people better manage the impacts of climate change.
The commitments include technologies to expand climate information and early warning systems, new financial products and services, innovations for climate-smart food systems and insurance solutions, according to USAID.
Overcoming risk aversion
Despite this government-led push and efforts to capture finance flows better in the data, many barriers remain in trying to channel more private funding into adaptation, especially in the poorer developing countries at the forefront of the climate crisis. Uncertain parameters for assessing the success of adaptation measures – and putting a price on the risk of funding them – reduces appetite among profit-seeking institutions, experts say.
At the UN level, diplomats and experts are now working on a list of indicators for the Global Goal on Adaptation, a vague concept that was enshrined in the Paris Agreement in 2015 and intended to increase resilience-boosting efforts, especially in developing nations.
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A long-awaited playbook for putting the goal into practice, agreed at COP28 in Dubai last year, “recognises the importance” of the private sector – among various actors – in delivering it, though it does not provide specifics on what businesses should do.
One emerging attempt to overcome hurdles for adaptation funding involves “blended finance” mechanisms that bring together the public and private sectors. A public institution, such as a development bank or a government agency, provides early-stage concessional capital or guarantees that take on a substantial share of the project’s risk. This approach can lessen private financiers’ concerns and convince them to contribute funding that would otherwise not be made available.
In its latest report on international climate finance for developing countries, released in May, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development said climate finance mobilised from the private sector for adaptation using public money grew from $0.4 billion in 2016 to $3.5 billion in 2022, although it noted that significant jumps in 2020 and 2022 were due to just a few large-scale projects.
Kenyan startup leads the way
One successful product of blended finance is Kenya-based ag-tech startup Apollo Agriculture. Since 2017, it has provided more than 350,000 smallholder farmers across Kenya and Zambia with access to loans that help them switch to more climate-resilient farming methods and thereby boost their earnings.
“Blended financing is very powerful,” Apollo Agriculture’s co-founder Benjamin Njenga told Climate Home. “We’ve been able to get support from DFIs [development finance institutions], which brought in concessional capital and credibility to the business to attract private funders.”
Farmers carry harvested rice at a paddy field following the effects of the worsening drought due to failed rainy seasons, in Mwea, Kenya, November 30, 2022. (Photo: REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya)
The company has propelled its growth with support from both public institutions, including the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation and the UK government-backed British International Investment, and leading venture capital funds. It plans to reach more than 2.3 million farmers by 2026.
Apollo does not give out cash but provides credit in the form of vouchers that farmers can redeem upfront against a full package of support including agricultural inputs, like drought-resistant seeds and fertilisers, local training and insurance against crop losses. Repayments are flexible and kick in only after the harvesting season.
Busting myths
Njenga claims the secret is not only to give farmers access to new products and better technology, but to follow them step-by-step with “boots on the ground” and help them to make informed decisions. Apollo has built a network of agents that live in farmers’ communities and speak their local languages, he added.
“Farmers may not be aware that weather patterns have changed because of climate change, and risk losing their crops,” he said. “Our agents advise them with simple messages such as ‘you need to wait for three days before you do your planting now’.”
The model appears to be working so far. Apollo says its clients produce two and a half times more than other farmers in the region and are able to cope better with climate shocks. Around 90% of farmers pay back their loans on time, Njenga said.
Apollo Agriculture is determined to bust the myth that helping smallholder farmers adapt to the effects of climate change does not make business sense, the entrepreneur said.
“Many people think they are just poor people – but that’s not true. They are actually rich in resources,” he said. “What they are lacking are the tools and direct support to make sure they can continue to farm profitably.”
(Reporting by Matteo Civillini; editing by Megan Rowling)
The post Businesses may be investing more in climate adaptation than we think appeared first on Climate Home News.
Businesses may be investing more in climate adaptation than we think
Suresanathan Murugesu is the country director of Action Against Hunger in the Philippines
The Philippines is caught in an extreme weather trap. Here, forecasts for a strong El Niño in the months ahead do not just indicate a period of drought – they also point to torrential rain and flooding.
It could hardly come at a worse time, threatening communities that are still struggling to recover from previous typhoons, such as last year’s Typhoon Tino, as well as two strong earthquakes – in Cebu in September 2025 and last month’s 7.8-magnitude quake in Mindanao.
Forecasts point to the arrival of one of the most intense El Niños in recent history this year and into 2027, with the United Nations warning that it could be the strongest in decades around the world.
The peak of the El Niño is expected towards the end of the year, but the weather phenomenon is already estimated to have caused agricultural losses of nearly €30 million (£25.9 million), potentially affecting the livelihoods of 4 million farmers.
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Scientists warn El Niño could intensify climate extremes in 2026
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Philippines storm victims to seek damages from Shell in “unprecedented” climate claim
The case is the first civil claim to directly link an oil firm’s climate impact to deaths and personal injury in the Global South, its backers say
On the climate frontline
For many, El Niño is a figure in a report or a distant headline, but for those of us who live and work on the ground, it is a reality that is already hitting the most vulnerable families.
When I travel through the communities of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region – in the south – or speak with families on the island of Siargao or in the Zamboanga region, I do not see data or graphs.
I see a father looking at his cracked rice field, wondering how he will pay off the debts from a harvest that is already lost before it has even begun. I see a mother walking under a relentless sun because her village’s well has dried up, carrying the water that sustains the health of her children and her entire community.
And what we are seeing today – 26 provinces experiencing drought and millions of dollars in agricultural losses – is only the beginning.
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Many Filipino families are still trying to rebuild and recover after last year’s typhoons and the two earthquakes. In Mindanao, where the recent magnitude 7.8 earthquake displaced more than 90,000 people and destroyed over 19,000 houses, uncertainty remains about when the people will be able to fully recover and return home.
Today, they are trying to protect the meagre possessions they have and, if they are lucky enough to have their home unscathed by typhoons and earthquakes, their homes from flooding; tomorrow, they will have to survive the hardship and impact of drought.
The effects of El Niño threaten to exacerbate their troubles.
Struggle for basic needs
Many low-income Filipino families already face significant challenges to meet their basic needs.
In our daily visits, we see how life is becoming increasingly difficult for millions of people. Rising fuel and transport costs are driving up the price of basic foodstuffs, making them unaffordable for many families. At the same time, crop failures and income losses are leaving households without livelihoods, while disasters contribute to further suffering.
But we are not just talking about hunger. We are talking about health, safety and dignity. Water shortages are forcing many people to resort to unsafe sources, increasing the risk of disease. And, as is the case in so many crises, it is the most vulnerable who bear the heaviest burden: walking long distances every day to fetch water or food, enduring enormous physical strain and facing risks of violence and insecurity.
Building resilience
Faced with this reality, our response is based on a simple idea: to be there before the crisis reaches its most critical point. At Action Against Hunger, we work alongside communities to anticipate the situation, assessing the impact of the drought and activating early response mechanisms to protect their livelihoods and access to water.
We translate climate forecasts into concrete action plans: from support for farmers to programmes ensuring safe water. All of this is done in coordination with local authorities and international partners, because we know that what we do today will make the difference tomorrow.
The hardest months are yet to come. But the question is not just what will happen, but what we are doing now to prevent it. How many tables will remain empty and how many children will see their health compromised will depend on our ability to act in time.
We cannot stop El Niño. But we can prevent it from becoming a crisis of human dignity. We cannot afford to look the other way whilst the earth cracks and opportunities disappear. Because behind every statistic, there is a family struggling to get by. And that is a reality we cannot ignore.
The post A strong El Niño spells more climate pain for the Philippines appeared first on Climate Home News.
A strong El Niño spells more climate pain for the Philippines
Last month, COP31 president-designate Murat Kurum launched a target for 35% of the world’s final energy to come from electricity by 2035.
In an interview with Carbon Brief, Kurum says that the target was not a political choice, but instead reflects the latest evidence on “what is needed to keep 1.5C within reach”.
The ongoing Hormuz crisis means there is an “urgent” need for renewables and electrification, which are the “surest and cleanest way to protect citizens” from high energy prices.
Kurum says that the Brazilian and Ethiopian presidencies of COP30 and COP32, as well as the EU, UK and Canada, have welcomed the target.
He adds that “all have confirmed it will be central to discussions at COP31”.
In the interview, Kurum – who is also Turkey’s minister of environment, urbanisation and climate change – tells Carbon Brief where the target came from and what he expects to happen next.
Carbon Brief: You recently launched a target for 35% of the world’s final energy to come from electricity by 2035. Where did this idea come from?
Murat Kurum: The “35 by 35” target is grounded in technical data and based on the IEA [International Energy Agency] and IRENA [International Renewable Energy Agency] analysis of what is needed to keep [the 1.5C Paris Agreement target] within reach. The level was not chosen politically. Rather, it reflects what the science and the energy modelling tell us is required.
CB: Why do you think an electrification target is important right now?
MK: The case for the target is urgent right now. The latest war in the Gulf has made energy diversification – and, in particular, renewable energy transition and electrification – a top global priority, because it is the surest and cleanest way to protect citizens around the world from high and volatile energy prices.
At a time of real fragmentation in international relations, a single, shared target is needed to focus global efforts by aligning governments, businesses and investors behind a common benchmark and to send a clear market signal.
CB: Which countries are supporting this target so far?
MK: The reaction so far has been extremely positive and, while we presented our target at the UN June climate meetings in Bonn, our earlier conversations with parties at both the Petersberg and Copenhagen climate dialogues paved the way for this launch.
For example, the EU, UK, and Canada have welcomed the target, as have the Brazilian COP30 and Ethiopian COP32 presidencies. All have confirmed it will be central to discussions at COP31.
This support has been reflected in the business community as well, with polling by the We Mean Business Coalition showing that 90% of businesses expect to have largely electrified their operations by 2035 and that 88% expect electrification will make their business more competitive.
CB: How do you hope and expect to see this taken forward at the COP? Could it be in the formal COP outcomes, or part of the second global stocktake?
MK: We are now taking electrification forward as an “action agenda” initiative to bring actors together and drive progress. The action agenda and the [formal COP] negotiations are separate, but complementary, with different processes and thresholds, and it is too early to say what all countries might be able to agree in the negotiations. That is for parties to determine as the year progresses.
We are focused and determined to use COP31 as a moment to spark a global conversation about electrification.
CB: What are the key priorities for reaching the target?
MK: The critical sectors for reaching the target are buildings, transport and industry, which together account for around 45% of global emissions. Financial support for the developing world and investment in grids and infrastructure is also crucial.
The target also builds on COP28’s target to triple renewable energy capacity and seeks to take advantage of the tumbling cost of renewable power and other technologies critical to the energy transition. This is a journey that Turkey itself is taking ambitious steps on, including our plan to reach 120GW [gigawatts] of renewable capacity by 2035.
This interview was first published in the 10 July 2026 edition of Carbon Brief’s DeBriefed weekly newsletter. Sign up for free.
The post Interview: COP31 president says electrification is ‘surest way to protect citizens’ appeared first on Carbon Brief.
Interview: COP31 president says electrification is ‘surest way to protect citizens’
Climate Change
DeBriefed 10 July 2026: Deadly Europe heat | EU electrification leak | COP31 president interview
Welcome to Carbon Brief’s DeBriefed.
An essential guide to the week’s key developments relating to climate change.
This week
‘Catastrophic’ climate impacts
RECORD HEAT: Western Europe experienced its hottest June on record – some 3C above average – according to analysis covered by the Guardian. It said the finding came “as the UK enters its third heatwave of the year and wildfires ravage France and Spain”. Le Monde said 10,000 people had been evacuated due to wildfires in southern France.
‘EXCESS DEATHS’: The June heatwave killed more than 2,700 people in France, according to a guest post analysis for Carbon Brief. Similar analysis for Germany said there had been more than 5,000 “excess deaths”, reported Bloomberg. Meanwhile, an ongoing heatwave in the US has killed at least 30 people, said USA Today.
STORM TEST: Floods have killed 39 people in Guangxi province in southern China, said state-run newspaper China Daily. Scientists warned that climate change and the weather phenomenon El Niño are exposing China to “catastrophic storms” that will test its resilience in 2026, reported Reuters. The nation’s latest official climate report found that “extreme weather and climate events…have become more frequent and severe”, said China National Radio.
Around the world
- EU ELECTRIFICATION: The European Commission is set to unveil a 2040 target for EU electrification on 17 July, reported Bloomberg. Citing a leaked draft, it said the plan would aim to cut oil use in half and gas use by two-thirds.
- PEAKING PLAN: China has published an “action plan” for peaking emissions during the 15th five-year plan period to 2030, reported Xinhua. It lists targets including “new energy vehicles” making up 30% of cars on the road by 2030, said Reuters.
- CLIMATE ‘FLAT EARTHER’: The Trump administration has appointed Matthew Wielicki, described by Politico as a “climate critic”, to lead the office in charge of the US national climate assessment. Common Dreams quoted a scientist describing the move as “like putting a flat-earther in charge of NASA”.
- UGANDAN SUIT: A group of farmers from Uganda have launched a legal suit in London against the East African oil pipeline, according to Climate Home News.
23%
The share of Irish electricity used by data centres in 2025, reported the Irish Times.
2%
The share of global electricity used by data centres in the same year, according to Carbon Brief analysis of the Energy Institute statistical review.
Latest climate research
- Meltwater from the western Himalayan glaciers will peak at around 2C of warming, before declining at higher warming levels | Environmental Research Letters
- Current coral restoration efforts may be unsuitable for temperate reefs, including those in the Mediterranean | Nature Ecology & Evolution
- People tend to underestimate the level of “broad public support” for climate action | Nature Climate Change
(For more, see Carbon Brief’s in-depth daily summaries of the top climate news stories on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.)
Captured
Carbon Brief explained – via eight facts – why air conditioning rates in some parts of Europe are relatively low, as the technology emerges as a new front in the global “culture war” over climate action. Analysis for the article illustrated that, in many parts of the world’s fastest-warming continent, air conditioning simply was not needed in the past.
Spotlight
COP31 president speaks to Carbon Brief on electrification
This week, Carbon Brief interviews Murat Kurum, president-designate of the COP31 UN climate talks in November and Turkey’s minister of environment, urbanisation and climate change, on his target to boost global electrification.
Carbon Brief: You recently launched a target for 35% of the world’s final energy to come from electricity by 2035. Where did this idea come from?
Murat Kurum: The “35 by 35” target is grounded in technical data and based on the IEA [International Energy Agency] and IRENA [International Renewable Energy Agency] analysis of what is needed to keep [the 1.5C Paris Agreement target] within reach. The level was not chosen politically. Rather, it reflects what the science and the energy modelling tell us is required.
CB: Why do you think an electrification target is important right now?
MK: The case for the target is urgent right now. The latest war in the Gulf has made energy diversification – and, in particular, renewable energy transition and electrification – a top global priority, because it is the surest and cleanest way to protect citizens around the world from high and volatile energy prices.
At a time of real fragmentation in international relations, a single, shared target is needed to focus global efforts by aligning governments, businesses and investors behind a common benchmark and to send a clear market signal.
CB: Which countries are supporting this target so far?
MK: The reaction so far has been extremely positive and, while we presented our target at the UN June climate meetings in Bonn, our earlier conversations with parties at both the Petersberg and Copenhagen climate dialogues paved the way for this launch.
For example, the EU, UK, and Canada have welcomed the target, as have the Brazilian COP30 and Ethiopian COP32 presidencies. All have confirmed it will be central to discussions at COP31.
This support has been reflected in the business community as well, with polling by the We Mean Business Coalition showing that 90% of businesses expect to have largely electrified their operations by 2035 and that 88% expect electrification will make their business more competitive.
CB: How do you hope and expect to see this taken forward at the COP? Could it be in the formal COP outcomes, or part of the second global stocktake?
MK: We are now taking electrification forward as an “action agenda” initiative to bring actors together and drive progress. The action agenda and the [formal COP] negotiations are separate, but complementary, with different processes and thresholds, and it is too early to say what all countries might be able to agree in the negotiations. That is for parties to determine as the year progresses.
We are focused and determined to use COP31 as a moment to spark a global conversation about electrification.
CB: What are the key priorities for reaching the target?
MK: The critical sectors for reaching the target are buildings, transport and industry, which together account for around 45% of global emissions. Financial support for the developing world and investment in grids and infrastructure is also crucial.
The target also builds on COP28’s target to triple renewable energy capacity and seeks to take advantage of the tumbling cost of renewable power and other technologies critical to the energy transition. This is a journey that Turkey itself is taking ambitious steps on, including our plan to reach 120GW [gigawatts] of renewable capacity by 2035.
Watch, read, listen
HEATED: A Financial Times long read asked if Europe – the world’s fastest-warming continent – is “prepared for a world of extreme heat”.
LITIGATED: The Outrage and Optimism podcast spoke to Prof Joana Setzer and Catherine Higham about the latest trends in climate litigation.
‘SHATTERED’: Confidence in fossil-fuel exports via the strait of Hormuz has been “shattered”, wrote IEA chief Fatih Birol for Foreign Policy.
Coming up
- 13-17 July: Meeting of open-ended working group on the Montreal Protocol, Bangkok, Thailand
- 13-24 July: International Seabed Authority Council, Kingston, Jamaica
- 16 July: International Energy Agency critical minerals outlook 2026, online
Pick of the jobs
- Wellcome Trust, head of policy – climate and health | Salary: £84,640-£105,800. Location: London
- Financial Times, senior reporter, Sustainable Views | Salary: Unknown. Location: London
- North Texas Public Broadcasting, climate, energy and environment reporter | Salary: $70,000-$78,000. Location: Fort Worth, Texas
- Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit, head of communications and engagement | Salary: £65,000-£70,000. Location: London
DeBriefed is edited by Daisy Dunne. Please send any tips or feedback to debriefed@carbonbrief.org.
This is an online version of Carbon Brief’s weekly DeBriefed email newsletter. Subscribe for free here.
The post DeBriefed 10 July 2026: Deadly Europe heat | EU electrification leak | COP31 president interview appeared first on Carbon Brief.
DeBriefed 10 July 2026: Deadly Europe heat | EU electrification leak | COP31 president interview
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