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Costa Rica's left-wing opposition looks set to win next month's national elections, and party leaders say one of their first moves would be to cancel the country's pledge to achieve carbon neutrality by 2021. That goal, which is markedly more ambitious than any other country's carbon-reduction target, is no longer attainable, officials say. "We don't think it would be possible to reach carbon neutrality by 2021, because the most important tasks to reduce emissions in the country are yet to be done," said opposition environmental adviser Patricia Madrigal.

MetLife will achieve carbon neutrality by the end of 2016, becoming the first US-based insurer to do so.

Monsanto announced plans to achieve carbon neutrality across its operations by 2021. The company will focus its efforts on seed production, crop protection, sharing data, and increasing the adoption of best practices.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) today announced a new goal to achieve carbon neutrality for global operations by 2022. Underpinning this goal is a long-standing commitment to reducing energy consumption, improving energy efficiency and procuring renewable energy. As part of this goal, Morgan Stanley will source 100 percent of its global energy needs from renewable energy. Since 2006, the Firm has reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 36 percent and has achieved its two previous emissions reductions goals ahead of schedule.

SAP has committed to achieving carbon neutrality in its operations by 2025. The company is currently purchasing renewable energy certificates to cover 100% of the electricity used in its data centers.

AkzoNobel has pledged to achieve carbon neutrality and use 100% renewable energy by 2050, as part of its Planet Possible sustainability agenda. The company currently sources 40% of its energy from renewables.

The Carlsberg Group's brewery in Falkenberg, Sweden, is now using entirely renewable energy. The move comes after Carlsberg announced its goal to reach carbon-neutral status as part of its Together Towards Zero initiative earlier this year.

Heineken achieved carbon neutral operations at its Göss Brewery in Austria through the use of 100% renewable energy.

Volvo Construction Equipment's Braås site in southern Sweden has become its first carbon-neutral facility and is claimed to be the first construction equipment production plant in the world run entirely on renewables.

Sainsbury's has announced that its new store at Weymouth Gateway will be water neutral - 100 percent of its water demand will be met through water-efficient infrastructure and offsetting partnerships in the local community, and the total water used within the local catchment area will not increase as a result of this new store.

London's Heathrow Airport has unveiled a new sustainability leadership strategy designed to make Heathrow a center of excellence in the aviation industry. The strategy announces ambitious goals to reduce the airport's and the industry's environmental impacts while maximizing economic opportunities throughout the UK. Plans include a new R&D incubator, an ambition for growth from a new runway to be carbon neutral and at least halving the number of late-running departures to reduce noise for local communities.

At the COP23 conference in Bonn, Germany, mayors of 25 major cities from around the globe have signed a commitment to make their cities carbon-neutral by 2050. The list includes US cities Boston; Los Angeles; New York City; Philadelphia; Austin, Texas; and Portland, Ore.

Some 252 food producers and restaurants have committed to reduce food waste. Along with green giants such asUnilever, they include 7-Eleven Stores and the Milwaukee Brewers. 

Canadian architect Michael Green wants to build a 35-story wooden skyscraper in Paris that would be carbon neutral. He and some partners have submitted the proposal as part of the Reinvent Paris competition, a revitalization project in the city. Green said constructing the building would highlight the advantages of wood in the construction of tall buildings

The commitment is one of several new sustainability initiatives, part of a 500 million Swiss francs ($547 million) program called The Positive Cup. Nespresso says it will invest the money over the next six years to shrink its environmental footprint. Part of this investment will be used to establish a new Sustainable Development Fund.

The problem of ocean waste, particularly the plastic variety, is a big one, and many creative people are working on ways to clean it up. Finding ways to repurpose the plastic debris collected from the ocean is one component of that, and the U.S.-based startup ByFusion has responded with technology that recycles ocean plastic into durable construction blocks. This way, the plastic waste can be repurposed permanently, rather than being used to create another disposable plastic item that might wind up right back in our precious waterways.

Technology that compresses plastic waste items turns them into blocks suitable for construction, providing a permanent way to remove discarded plastic from the environment. The RePlast system developed by New Zealand-based inventor Peter Lewis is said to be nearly 100% carbon neutral and doesn't require the plastic to be sorted or washed.

Norway became the first country to commit to zero deforestation. Norway also reportedly plans to move its carbon neutrality target year from 2050 to 2030.

Sweden has pledged to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045. The country plans to achieve this goal by cutting 85% of its GHG emissions from 1990 levels, and offsetting the remaining emissions.

Cox Enterprises seeks to send zero waste to landfills in seven to 10 years and become carbon and water neutral in the next 25 to 30 years.

Sainsbury's supermarket in Leicester, which opens today, is one of two "triple-zero" stores the retailer has just opened. It emits zero CO2 from all operational energy used, zero waste goes to landfill, and the store has zero impact on the water usage of the local catchment area because of its "water-neutral" status, the UK grocery chain says.