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"Circular Economy in India: Rethinking Growth for Long-Term Prosperity" (Ellen Macarthur Foundation) finds that following a circular economy development path could unlock $624 billion in benefits annually by 2050, compared to the country's current development path. The report also finds that this development path would enable India to cut GHG emissions by an additional 44% by 2050, compared to its current development path.

ITDP assessed the developments using its new TOD Standard, a policy guide that evaluates real estate developments using eight key elements to integrating sustainable transport, land use planning and sustainable urban design.

Developing nations invested $37.6 billion on renewable energy development in 2015, according to the World Bank. That renewables expenditure added up to 63% of all energy infrastructure spending in such countries last year, up from a five-year average of 44% and a 10-year average of 37%.

Dell has helped developed an e-waste model for developing countries and opened East Africa's first large-scale e-waste recycling hub.

The Natural Capital Coalition selected the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and the International Union for Conservation of Nature to develop the Natural Capital Protocol, a methodology for companies to assess their reliance on natural capital. The organizations will also lead pilot projects with major companies to test the protocol.

The big question for 2018 is whether last year's troubling trends for environment and development - rising global carbon emissions, multiple billion-dollar natural disasters, U.S. President Donald Trump's abandonment of climate action - will continue or turn in a more positive direction. As WRI President and CEO Andrew Steer noted during the Stories to Watch event in Washington on January 10, 2018, developments across several key topics will determine the answer.

Developing coutnries are trying to defeat a policy that would require knowledge and consent to hazardous waste material being shipped into that country

GRI, the UN Global Compact and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development have launched a new tool to help companies navigate and contribute to a new set of global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations last week. The SDG Compass is a guide that companies can use to align their strategies with the relevant SDGs, and measure and manage their impacts. It is supported by a live and constantly updated inventory of business indicators.

Geothermal energy has been developing rapidly in the Netherlands and in this guest piece by Niek Willemsen of IF Technology, the reasons for this growth are described.

Developer FivePoint has a new plan to reduce carbon emissions at its proposed $12.7 billion master-planned community in California's Los Angeles County after a court blocked the project on environmental grounds. The company hopes to begin construction in 2018 and will implement zero-net-energy construction when it builds the 21,500 homes, each of which will have a charging station for electric vehicle.

Nestlé has introduced new 2020 sustainability and development targets, building on its first set of 2020 goals announced in 2013. The company also announced long-term ambitions in support of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including helping 50 million children lead healthier lives, helping to improve 30 million livelihoods in communities directly connected to its business activities, and striving for zero environmental impact in its operations

Environmental questions about Canada's massive tar sands development have long centered on greenhouse gas emissions. Now there are mounting concerns about the huge volumes of water used by the oil industry and the impact on the vast Mackenzie River Basin.

An ambitious new initiative aims to provide hybrid wind energy to 1 million people in the developing world.

Los Angeles County approves the start of the Newhall Ranch master-planned community north of the city of Los Angeles. The state has never seen a community quite like Newhall Ranch, proposed by California developer FivePoint. It will be a carbon-neutral development in the Santa Clarita Valley that tackles such critical challenges as climate change, water conservation, and the dire housing shortage that is severely threatening our economic competitiveness.

The International Finance Corporation issued a $152 million bond to support private sector development and prevent deforestation in developing countries. The bond gives investors the option of getting repaid in either cash or a carbon-credit coupon - a move to bolster carbon-credit markets.

Agribusiness giant Olam International has for the first time published a list of the firms it buys palm oil from, part of the company's response to allegations that it is driving forest destruction in Southeast Asia and, more dangerously, perhaps, in West Africa. Almost all of the world's palm oil comes from Indonesia and Malaysia, but as those countries run out of available land, companies like Olam are turning to Africa to expand. In defending itself against the NGOs' allegations, Olam points to the "right to develop" of nations like Gabon, where a third of people live below the poverty line and a fifth are unemployed.

Ralph Lauren Corporation has developed sustainable sourcing guidelines on wood-based fabrics to ensure its raw materials are not connected to deforestation or human rights abuses. The guidelines were developed in collaboration with the Rainforest Action Network.

Thread™, the leader in responsible textile and fabric innovation, has developed a jersey material made entirely of recycled bottles from the developing world and reclaimed American cotton.

Rust-belt cities such as Gary, Indiana, want to spur urban renewal through large-scale greening programs, such as transforming vacant lots into community gardens, parks and micro-habitats. "There's a tremendous interest because some of these things are lower cost than traditional development, but at the same time their implementation will actually make the other land more developable," says Eve Pytel of the Delta Institute.

The Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) Platform, a group helping food and drink companies to achieve sustainable production and sourcing of agricultural raw materials whose members include McDonald's Europe and Unilever, has announced the development of its Principles for Sustainable Beef Farming, what it is calling the most complete guidelines developed for beef production to date.