Climate Policy

India’s cabinet has approved the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC 3.0) for the period 2031 to 2035 after months of delay, at a time when geopolitical conflict in West Asia disrupted the global energy supply chains and exposed the cost of fossil fuel dependence. 

India is laying the foundation stones of a national compliance carbon market. The market design features and regulatory systems are progressively under development, and industries are starting to prepare for the market. Much of the conversation so far has focused on targets, sectors, and trading rules. These are of course important — but the strongest foundation of an effective carbon market is something far more elementary.

The ongoing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz and escalating tensions in West Asia have highlighted the vulnerability of the global fertiliser supply, potentially jeopardising food security worldwide. 

China in its 15th five-year plan signalled a push towards carbon-intensity reduction and renewable energy, however, it stopped short from setting up a cap on its total emissions. 

On 27 January 2026, after nearly two decades of negotiations, India and the European Union (EU) finally concluded a free trade agreement (FTA). It comes amid a rapidly shifting geopolitical landscape, in which both sides seek to diversify market access and de-risk their supply chains. Beyond the FTA, the two blocs signed a Joint India-European Comprehensive Strategic Agenda setting out a broad framework for cooperation, including in areas such as sustainability, innovation, and defence.

As climate risks intensify and decarbonisation moves to the centre of economic policy, states are under growing pressure to align development with sustainability. Tamil Nadu, which is the manufacturing hub of the country, is taking active efforts to become a key player in this transition. The state is set to host the fourth edition of the Tamil Nadu Climate Summit, a platform to highlight the state's pioneering efforts in driving climate governance, policy innovation, and climate innovation at large scale on 17th and 18th February 2026, where the focus will be on achieving carbon neutrality and advancing climate action.  

A new report by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) found that the growth of the global economy from $1.18 trillion in 1820 to $130.11 trillion in 2022 has been at the cost of immense biodiversity loss, which now poses a critical and pervasive systemic risk to the economy, financial stability, and human well-being. 

A new study by University of Oxford researchers stated that countries relying heavily on carbon dioxide removal (CDR) to reach their national climate targets risk breaching the 1.5°C limit and international legal obligations. The CDR process involves deliberate, human-led actions to remove CO2 directly from the atmosphere and store it on a geological sphere. 

Against a backdrop of global economic uncertainty, the Union Budget 2026 underscores the government’s continued emphasis on fiscal discipline. The government has committed to reducing the fiscal deficit to 4.4% of GDP in FY2026-27 and further to 4.3% in FY2027, while continuing to lower the debt-to-GDP ratio, estimated at 55.6% in the coming fiscal year. This emphasis on fiscal consolidation is critical for maintaining investor confidence and long-term macroeconomic stability.

Part 1 of CarbonCopy’s series on non-economic loss and damage examines how climate impacts along Odisha’s coast are eroding identity, culture and belonging beyond what compensation frameworks recognise

Energy and climate experts are urging the government for deeper investments in energy storage, grid modernisation, and climate adaptation, ahead of the Union Budget 2026 session on Sunday. The experts point out that the gaps in these areas could slow the country’s clean energy transition.

Extreme weather events and environmental risks are no longer an immediate priority because of heightened geoeconomic confrontations as per the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2026.

India, the world’s fastest growing major economy, and the European Union (EU) have concluded talks for a long-anticipated free trade agreement (FTA) expected to double bilateral trade—currently at €124 billion ($136 billion)—within five years.

It has been just more than a month since Cyclone Ditwah flooded large parts of Chennai, killed at least four people and destroyed crops across more than 2.11 lakh hectares in Tamil Nadu. But beyond the immediate damage, the disaster has also brought into sharp focus how prepared Indian states really are for a future of climate extremes. In this interview, CarbonCopy speaks to Supriya Sahu, Additional Chief Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Forests, about how Tamil Nadu has tried to get ahead of that curve through the Tamil Nadu Green Climate Company (TNGCC), a state-run climate finance and governance platform that is now mobilising thousands of crores for mangroves, urban resilience, green jobs and decarbonisation. Recently named a UNEP Champion of the Earth for 2025, Sahu explains how the state is using law, public funding and international finance to turn climate plans into projects on the ground.