Author: Stuart Mitchell

Renewable supply shortfalls threaten companies’ 100% clean energy goals

Stuart Mitchell

Global businesses are making progress towards 100% renewable electricity, but many say policy, market and procurement barriers are still slowing adoption and limiting access to the renewable energy they need. Leading companies switching to 100% renewables are citing “limited supply and cost” as the biggest barrier in key markets, followed by a “lack of procurement options” and “regulatory barriers”. The latest RE100 Annual Disclosure Report, published ahead of Climate Week NYC, shows how companies are being denied the benefits of secure, home-grown renewable energy to shield themselves against price hikes…

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Closing the gender pay gap is critical to advance social justice

Stuart Mitchell

The Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Gilbert F. Houngbo, has called for decisive action to close the gender pay gap during an event in Dublin in last months International Equal Pay Day which discussed progress and future action on pay equity. He highlighted the persistent wage disparities facing women globally. Over the past decade, the global gender pay gap has narrowed by only two percentage points, leaving women still earning 18 per cent less than men on average. Strikingly, higher educational attainment among women has failed to eliminate…

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IPA backs industry concerns over proposed NPM changes

Stuart Mitchell

The IPA is supporting wider industry efforts to challenge Government proposals to apply the Nutrient Profiling Model 2018 (NPM 2018) to existing less healthy food and drink advertising restrictions. The move follows a report by Oxford Economics estimating that the proposals could affect up to £1 billion of advertising investment, with implications for growth, jobs and the UK’s creative industries. Richard Casofsky, Director of Public Affairs at the IPA, said: At a time when the Government is focused on growth, proposals that Oxford Economics estimates could affect up to £1…

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One in three institutions built to advance gender equality stripped of power in just two years, new UN report reveals

Stuart Mitchell

The Gender Snapshot 2026 report, released recently by UN Women and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), shows that where women hold real power, outcomes improve across every dimension of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development – from peace to education, and from poverty to climate action. Yet the very institutions built over decades to advance gender equality are being systematically weakened, stalling or reversing progress at precisely the moment when the world cannot afford to go backwards. The findings of the Gender Snapshot 2026 report reveal a…

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UNESCO and Norway strengthen their partnership through new agreement to advance education, culture and freedom of expression

Stuart Mitchell

UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany and the Government of Norway have signed a new cooperation agreement worth NOK 530 million, or roughly USD 56.9 million, reinforcing Norway’s longstanding partnership with UNESCO and supporting the Organisation’s work in education, sciences, culture, communication and information. Administered by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD), this new Programme Cooperation Agreement (PCA) for the period 2026-2029 covers three priorities: Education (NOK 330 million or roughly USD 35.5 million), Culture (NOK 120 million or roughly USD 12.9 million) and Communication and Information (NOK 80 million or…

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