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From historic climate change marches and bold advocacy by companies on the price of carbon to global economic volatility and heated debates on inequality, 2014 was a year of accelerated awareness and action for sustainable development. Our Ten Trends for 2015 distills SustainAbility's thinking over the past year and forecasts the issues that will shape the sustainable development agenda in 2015.  

US energy-related carbon emissions dropped 12 percent last year, compared with 2005 levels, after increasing in 2013 and 2014, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). Reduced energy-sector C02 emissions in 2015 are largely due to a decreased use of coal and increased use of natural gas in the electricity mix, the EIA says. Such fuel-use changes have accounted for 68 percent of total energy-related CO2 reductions from 2005 to 2015.

Air pollution contributed to a total of 80,665 premature deaths of adults over 30 years in Mumbai and Delhi in 2015, a two-fold jump from 1995, according to a new study at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. In economic terms, air pollution cost the two cities $10.66 billion (approximately Rs 70,000 crore) in 2015, or about 0.71% of the country's gross domestic product. The study has said the impact on health and productivity as a result of exposure to pollution and the consequent burden of respiratory ailments rose with every passing decade.

The key global goal of limiting global warming to 2 degrees Celsius is already beyond reach as negotiators begin planning a 2015 climate treaty, experts say. "There is nothing that can be agreed in 2015 that would be consistent with the 2 degrees," said former United Nations climate chief Yvo de Boer. "The only way that a 2015 agreement can achieve a 2-degree goal is to shut down the whole global economy

There's been a lot of talk in 2014 about the "utility death spiral" and suppositions that utilities as we know them will cease to exist. I'm not entirely sure we've seen the last of the utility industry, but I feel certain a year from now we'll look back on 2015 as the year a lot shifted in how each of us individually acquire and manage our energy consumption. Here's why.

Here are the clean energy trends that will matter in 2015:  - Moves toward 100 percent renewables will expand - Energy storage will carve out a competitive advantage - Low-cost oil could affect clean transportation, but not clean electricity - Other regions will follow New York's fracking ban 

Here are five signs clean energy and renewables will finally gain traction in China and the US in 2015 and continue to grow in coming years:

PepsiCo achieved a 26% reduction in operational water use per unit of production against a 2006 baseline in 2015, surpassing its 2015 target. The company's water conservation efforts have led to more than $80 million in cost savings since 2011.

The adidas Group sourced 43% of its cotton from sustainable sources in 2015, surpassing its 40% "Better Cotton" target. The company plans to source 100% of its cotton from sustainable sources by 2018.

According to a recent United Nations University report, e-waste generation is growing fast in both total volume and per capita measures throughout East and South-East Asia between 2010 and 2015. Driven by rising incomes and high demand for new gadgets and appliances, the average increase in e-waste across all 12 countries and areas analysed was 63% in the five years ending in 2015 and totalled 12.3 million tonnes. China's more than doubled to 6.7 million tonnes, up 107%.

Mondelēz International released a sustainable palm oil action plan that requires its suppliers to achieve full traceability by the end of 2015. The policy also requires suppliers to publish their sustainable sourcing practices and implementation timelines.

Mondelez International exceeded its goal to reduce manufacturing waste by 15 percent per metric ton of production by 2015, according to the company's most recent sustainability report. Through 2014, the snacking company achieved a 57 percent reduction - four times the original goal.

Mayor Bill de Blasio banned the possession, sale, or provision of polystyrene-based foam containers and loose fill packaging in New York City. The measure will go into effect on July 1, 2015.

As 2014 ends and 2015 begins, we asked members of the GreenBiz Executive Network, our member-based, peer-to-peer learning forum for sustainability professionals, to look ahead and share what they think will be exciting in the new year.

The Hershey Company announced plans to switch some of its popular chocolate products to "simpler ingredients," which includes a transition to non-GMO ingredients in its Hershey's milk chocolate bars and Hershey's kisses by the end of 2015.

While 2014 ushered in big breakthroughs in fields from solar energy to smart cities, 2015 will present a crossroads for larger-scale sustainability progress.

CDP released its "2015 Climate A List," which recognizes companies for demonstrating leadership in climate change mitigation. 

To assess shareholder involvement, I poured through the social and environmentally related shareholder proposals of 2015 using two terrific resources: Ceres and the Manhattan Institute's Proxy Monitor 2015 Scorecard.

2015 was Earth's hottest year on record, according to new data released Wednesday by NOAA and NASA. For the last 12 months the  average surface temperature across the globe was 58.47 Fahrenheit, a 0.23-degree increase from 2014's record-breaking average temperature of 58.24, the two agencies reported.

The Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition released its 2015 Solar Scorecard, a ranking that scores solar PV module manufacturers on a scale of 0-100 points based on their environmental, sustainability, and social justice factors. The 5 companies recognized as industry leaders included the following:  1. SunPower 2. SolarWorld 3. Trina 4. REC 5. Yingli