Recourse

16/10/2026

Climate was absent from the agenda in Bangkok this week, where the institution doubled down on its private capital mobilisation goals and ‘technology neutral’ approach to energy investments.

Recourse's Just Transition Lead, Sunil Acharya, responded:

"The World Bank is not moving in the right direction on climate and energy. President Banga’s framing of wind and solar as a ‘top-up’ to nuclear, hydropower and gas misses the opportunity to transform energy systems."

"Fossil gas is bad economics, it exposes countries to volatile global markets and debt while locking public resources into costly infrastructure."

"The World Bank must stop reproducing the extractive development model of the fossil fuel era and redirect public finance towards 100% renewable economies that deliver energy for all, protect people and nature, and put people’s priorities before private profit.”

🔗 Read the full response from The Big Shift Global coalition members: https://bigshiftglobal.org/climate-and-energy-crises-bite-bangkok-world-bank-stays-silent

16/10/2026

🇳🇵 Nepal must not be made to rebuild the same risks.

As the continue in Bangkok, 122 civil society organisations from 38 countries are calling on the World Bank Group to stop financing high-risk hydropower following Nepal's devastating August floods.

Hundreds of workers at the IFC- and MIGA-financed Upper Trishuli-1 hydropower project remain missing. Civil society groups had warned of earthquake, glacial lake outburst flood and climate risks years before the disaster, yet a recommended climate resilience assessment was never conducted.

The signatories are calling for an immediate moratorium on large hydropower projects until independent, basin-wide risk reviews are completed, stronger safeguards and support for Nepal's recovery through reparations and grants, not more debt.

The World Bank Group must stop treating large hydropower as a climate solution at the expense of communities and workers.

🔗 Read the letter: https://re-course.org/newsupdates/press-release-nepal-flood-world-bank/

15/10/2026

🌍 World Bank Group: Stop funding fossil gas!

Fossil gas is bad economics. From mounting debt and displacement to costly energy infrastructure, communities are bearing the consequences of continued fossil gas investments in the Global South.

🎥 Hear from Karabo Mokgonyana (Power Shift Africa/Don't Gas Africa), Smith Nwokocha (Quest For Growth and Development Foundation , Nigeria) and Hussain Jarwar (Indus Consortium, Pakistan) as they explain why the World Bank must change course.

At the this week in Bangkok, we’re calling on the Bank to use public money to help countries build thriving renewable energy economies, not lock them into fossil fuel dependence.

📖 Learn more in our report: bit.ly/26gas

12/10/2026

“Debt is far more than a financial issue. It is the primary structural barrier to human-rights-centered sustainable development and a just transition.”

As the World Bank and IMF Annual Meetings take place in Bangkok, the International Peoples’ Assembly is bringing together civil society movements, climate groups and trade unions to demand debt justice and a transformation of global financial governance.

Their opinion piece in Eco-Business highlights how debt burdens prevent Global South countries from investing in public services and climate action. They are calling for debt cancellation and climate reparations instead of more loans.

🔗 Read it here: https://www.eco-business.com/opinion/squeezed-by-debt-and-disasters-the-global-south-needs-reparations-not-more-loans/

12/10/2026

The World Bank calls natural gas a “bridge to the future.” So we took a closer look at the bridge...

Turns out, it’s one of the most carbon-intensive ways to generate electricity AND comes with volatile prices & geopolitical risk.

Not sure about you, but that doesn’t sound much like sustainable development to us. And public money shouldn’t be paying the bill.

Swipe through then ask the World Bank the same question we are: is gas really a bridge to the future, or just a very expensive detour?

12/10/2026

11/10/2026

🌍 What happens when countries facing the climate crisis are also grappling with debt, austerity and dependence on extractive industries?

At our recent webinar, The IMF’s Climate Turn: Lending, Debt and Extractive Dependence, researchers and civil society representatives explored how IMF lending shapes climate action and development priorities.

💬 From higher energy prices and cuts to public spending in Egypt, to displacement risks in the DRC and austerity amid repeated climate disasters in Pakistan, speakers shared how IMF-backed policies can deepen existing inequalities and constrain a just transition.

We heard from Haneen Shaheen (Menafem movement), Emmanuel Musuyu (CORAP), Daniela Berdeja (Latindadd), Shehrzadee Moeed (Alternative Law Collective) and report co-authors Alexandros Kentikelenis and Thomas Stubbs.

Their reflections underscore the need for IMF lending that supports climate resilience, economic diversification and communities' rights rather than reinforcing extractive dependence.

📺 Missed the webinar? Catch up here: https://imf-climate.org/webinars/

📖 Explore the report: https://bit.ly/imf-climate-turn

09/10/2026

🌱 A just energy transition requires moving away from fossil gas and investing in renewable economies that work for people and the planet.

Fossil gas exposes countries to debt, volatile prices and financial risks, while renewable energy offers a more affordable and sustainable path forward.

But the energy transition must do more than replace fossil fuels. It must also change who benefits from energy investments and who has a say in shaping them.

⚡ Public finance should move away from fossil gas and support renewable energy systems that strengthen local economies and deliver lasting benefits for people and communities.

🤝 Communities must be at the centre, with their rights protected and their voices shaping decisions from the start.

🌍 Success should be measured by lasting benefits for people and communities, not megawatts alone.

A just transition must be built with people, not simply for them.

📖 Read more from Recourse and partners:

🔗 Why fossil gas is bad economics:
https://re-course.org/newsupdates/gas-is-bad-economics/

🔗 Financing renewable energy at scale:
https://re-course.org/newsupdates/renewable-energy-at-scale/

08/10/2026

🌱 Beyond renewable energy projects. Towards thriving renewable economies.

The energy transition must not repeat the extractive models of the fossil fuel era. Public finance should support renewable energy systems that benefit people, strengthen local economies and protect human rights.

Our new report outlines five strategic reforms and four practical tools for development banks to:

⚡ End fossil fuel financing and invest in renewable energy at scale.

🌍 Build national capacity by strengthening public institutions, supporting local industries and enabling technology transfer.

🤝 Ensure communities have a meaningful say in shaping their energy futures.

✊ Put people's rights and environmental protection before profit.

Published by Recourse in collaboration with The Big Shift Global, Power Shift Africa, Trend Asia, Indus Consortium, CAN Morocco and the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice.

🔗 Explore the report and executive summary on the first comment below.

06/10/2026

📢 New report: Fossil gas is bad economics

Multilateral development banks continue to finance fossil gas as a supposed ‘bridge fuel’ despite mounting evidence of the economic risks.

Our new research with Africa Change Lab and The Big Shift Global examines how fossil gas can deepen public debt, expose countries to foreign exchange and price shocks, create stranded assets, and place disproportionate burdens on women and vulnerable groups.

Drawing on case studies from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nigeria, Namibia and South Africa, the report calls on MDBs to end direct and indirect support for fossil gas and prioritise sustainable renewable energy.

📖 Read the report, summary and case studies on the first comment below.