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As of July 16, Cipher has concluded its publication of new content after nearly four years of delivering clear, solutions-focused journalism on climate and energy. For the remainder of 2025, all existing Cipher content will remain accessible for readers and available to republish for free with attribution. To follow Cipher's journalists in their next chapters, click here.

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An illustration of the Island of Haiti and the Haitian flag with two solar panels and a green background. — Haiti’s crisis fuels a solar energy revolution
Haiti’s struggle with severe fuel shortages and an unstable grid has sparked a wave of innovative approaches to expanding energy access. Voices
Evenson Calixte & Isabel Beltran 4 min read

An illustration of an open notebook with the words — In a faraway region, winds and nature are powerful forces to balance
Reporter Bill Spindle reflects on his visit to the Haru Oni sustainable fuels project in southern Chile. With dozens of similar projects planned for the region, preserving the region's ecosystems will require careful balance. Reporter's Notebook
Bill Spindle 3 min read

An illustration of a tank of hydrogen, with hydrogen written on the tank in Spanish. The tank is an orange-y yellow. Behind it, there are wind turbines in the same yellow color and the background is an aqua blue. — Clean hydrogen’s tricky path to production
A unique demonstration project in Chile is using clean hydrogen to make sustainable fuels. Latest News
Bill Spindle & Patricia Garip 5 min read

Illustration of a purple hand holding up a set of keys that have a lightbulb, a wifi symbol, and a utility pole on them. The background is green and red. — Utilities hold the keys to the energy transition in the Global South
They may not be shiny and exciting pieces of the energy transition, but utilities play a central role in bringing more clean energy online. Voices
Justin Locke 3 min read

Natural gas presents an energy transition puzzle

Natural gas has arrived at a watershed, one critical to the energy transition. The complex interplay between gas, renewables and coal will shape the future of the world’s energy landscape. Explainers

Bill Spindle 5 min read

Efforts to expand energy access in Africa at risk with new geopolitical headwinds

Hundreds of millions of people gained access to electricity over the last 15 years, but population growth and tight financing have recently slowed this trend. Data Dives

Anca Gurzu < 1

A line chart with the areas below the lines filled in on top of a blue background that has some cars and transmission lines visible.

Cricket metaphors and finance talk: Five takeaways from a meeting of developing countries

Under blue skies and palm trees, a stone’s throw from this island nation’s pristine beaches, leaders from across the Global South gathered last week to do some serious soul-searching. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 6 min read

A phot of the outside of a large glass building with palm trees out front, a blue sky, and a flag in front of the building that reads

A reporter tracks climate impacts and solutions in Chile

A journey through Chile is a journey into the energy transition. Reporter's Notebook

Bill Spindle 3 min read

A man in a white windbreaker and a hat and sunglasses, with a large telephoto lensed camera at his side, stands in front of a bright blue lake with a big grey mountain in the background.

On Chile’s coast, a rare earths mining operation seeks to uplift locals and counter China

A mining company backed by a traditional steelmaker takes a shot at mining rare earth elements along the Chilean coast. Latest News

Bill Spindle & Patricia Garip 5 min read

A photo of a rocky coastline, with trees and grasses in the foreground then water and a strip of land off in the distance. The sky is blue and a little bit hazy.

Miles high in the Andes, a lot depends on this lithium partnership

Chile has a lot to offer the world in terms of critical minerals for the energy transition. Getting those minerals out of the ground is neither simple or without cost. Latest News

Bill Spindle & Patricia Garip 6 min read

A photograph of a lake with bright blue, almost green, water, and a rocky red and dark gray mountain behind it.

Chile offers case study in critical mineral mining

Critical minerals — from copper to lithium and rare earth elements — are essential to the energy transition. But getting them from the earth into use isn’t easy. Explainers

Bill Spindle 5 min read

A photograph of a barren looking desert landscape with a white salt lake in the foreground and tall rocky mountains in the background. The landscape has a reddish quality to it and the sky is clear and blue.

Global cleantech market to top $2 trillion by 2035 – IEA

The global clean technology market has more than tripled in the last eight years and, under current policies, is expected to nearly triple again by 2035. Data Dives

Cat Clifford 2 min read

Illustration of a horizontal bar chart superimposed over a dark blue map of the world.

How to improve life for humanity — and not worsen global warming

Access to reliable energy dramatically improves the quality of people’s lives. And the world needs a lot more energy to bring billions of people out of poverty. Explainers

Cat Clifford 4 min read

An illustration with dots coming out from a globe.

Latin America buying more cheap solar this year

Brazil's voracious appetite for small-scale solar projects is driving Latin America's clean energy investment surge. Data Dives

Amena H. Saiyid 2 min read

A multi-colored bar chart is transposed over a black and white photo of solar panels on the roof of a house.

Progress under a microscope at New York Climate Week

Cipher’s team was on the ground in the Big Apple. In all the chaos and busyness, here’s what stood out to our reporters. Latest News

Cipher Staff 6 min read

Photo of traffic in NYC, a sign above the traffic warns of gridlock.

China, Qatar and U.S. lead, depending on how you judge emissions

Two different ways to measure emissions paint very different pictures of the problem, leading countries to conflicting conclusions about how to address global warming. Data Dives

Bill Spindle 2 min read

Bar chart with smoke stacks in the background. Illustration.

In Australia, renewable hydrogen dreams are meeting reality

Some of the initial high hopes for hydrogen as a clean energy source are falling back to earth in Australia. Latest News

Bill Spindle 4 min read

An illustration with a blue background, a map of Australia colored in with the country's flag, a tank of hydrogen with

Renewed interest in nuclear energy bolsters uranium prices

The price per pound of uranium has more than tripled over the past four years as interest in nuclear power has grown. Data Dives

Cat Clifford 2 min read

An illustration of a line chart with coins stacked up underneath it.

Surging power demand fuels new nuclear interest, federal funding

The exploding global demand for energy, combined with the urgent race to reduce carbon emissions, is focusing interest and investment on the once-staid, long-stagnant nuclear industry. Latest News

Cat Clifford 5 min read

An illustration with a blue background showing a renaissance statue and two types of nuclear reactors.

COP29: Azerbaijan official on climate finance, fossil fuels

The ambassador from Azerbaijan to the Netherlands recently sat down with Cipher to talk about the upcoming United Nations climate summit being hosted in his home country. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 5 min read

Aerial photo of a large solar power plant in a dry landscape.

Extreme weather prompts growth of parametric insurance, offering faster, more flexible payments after disasters

Based on a simple, data-driven model, such policies could especially benefit poor and remote areas threatened by climate change. Latest News

Bill Spindle 5 min read

A man in a red tshirt leans against a post and surveys a large brown and green field under a cloudy sky.

Despite unprecedented clean energy growth, it’s still a fossil fuel world

It’s a testament to the exponential growth of renewables that fossil fuels’ share of global energy consumption has not risen in recent decades even as the demand for energy climbs. Data Dives

Cat Clifford < 1

An illustration showing a line chart transposed on top of an image of the smokestack of a fossil fuel power plant.

Scale matters. Let’s talk about it.

Grasping the enormity of our energy systems and the challenge of transitioning to clean energy is like trying to imagine how many teaspoons of saltwater make up the ocean. Latest News

Cat Clifford 6 min read

Illustration of a large, white factory building in a desert surrounded by mountains.

Time to end the World Bank’s nuclear blind spot

Every credible vision of a high-energy, low-carbon future includes a meaningful role for nuclear power. Despite growing interest in the technology, the World Bank won't even talk about it. Voices

Todd Moss 3 min read

A man covers his eyes so that he can't see a nuclear power plant nearby. Illustration with a red background.

Latin America and the Caribbean are at an energy crossroads

Leaders from the region talk about the challenges and opportunities the energy transition poses for their countries. Latest News

Amena H. Saiyid 9 min read

A map of Central and part of South America, with the outlines of Brazil, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago emphasized. A little sun and a solar panel sit in the top righthand corner on top of a blue background.

Latin American energy spotlight: Guyana, Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago

Many Latin American and Caribbean nations could become major clean energy players — but may rely on fossil fuel revenues to do so. We take a look at the energy transition in three countries. Explainers

Amena H. Saiyid 5 min read

Illustration of a wooden boat on a sandy beach, pointing toward wind turbines on a small island in the distance.

Global cleantech competition threatens Latin American and Caribbean ambitions

Latin American and Caribbean nations are poised to embrace the energy transition, but stiff competition from the United States and the European Union are making those ambitions harder to meet. Latest News

Amena H. Saiyid 5 min read

Located along the Brazil-Paraguay border on the Parana River, Itaipu Dam is the world's third largest hydroelectric dam.

Australia’s top renewable energy state aims for more, much more

The state of South Australia has too much renewable energy. It plans to build way more. Latest News

Bill Spindle 5 min read

Illustration with a light blue background, showing a mountain of solar panels and wind turbines with an Australian flag sticking out of the renewable energy mountain.

With China’s dominance, cement emissions poised to grow

Cement emissions in economically developing parts of the world could double by the end of this century. Data Dives

Amy Harder < 1

Line chart.

CO2 emissions from producing hydrogen vary wildly

Relying on even a relatively small share of grid electricity to make hydrogen with an electrolyzer can have significant carbon costs if the grid itself is dirty. Data Dives

Cat Clifford 2 min read

Green and blue bar charts side by side.

Why we need a more ambitious global energy target

The world is committing to expanding energy access to all, but our current target is too low. Without a new approach, we will leave billions of people behind — and drive an even bigger wedge between rich and poor nations over climate policy. Voices

Todd Moss 3 min read

Two girls are sitting in a dark field in front of unlit houses. One of them is struggling to read while the other holds up a lightbulb with a growing plant inside, eliminating the darkness.

Wind and solar drive growth of clean power in Latin America

Renewables represent more than half of annual capacity additions in the last three years. Data Dives

Anca Gurzu < 1

Saudi Arabia has a surprisingly clear path to net zero

Saudi Arabia’s economy depends heavily on oil exports. But the kingdom has a clearer path to reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions at home than many other countries. Voices

Jim Krane 3 min read

A pipeline marked with 'CO2' at an outdoor industrial facility.

Renewables boss says world needs to prop up new energy system

Power grids, undersea cables and ports are overlooked yet essential connectors ensuring renewable energy can flow across great distances from production to consumption. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 3 min read

How to get the minerals we need in a clean energy future

Securing the critical minerals we need for a green energy future will require cleaning up mining practices, boosting recycling and innovating to be less dependent on them altogether. Explainers

Anca Gurzu 5 min read

The massive quest for the minerals we need in a clean energy future

The rush toward a clean energy future means we need to dig, extract and process Earth’s resources faster and better than ever before. Explainers

Anca Gurzu 5 min read

Cleantech race risks sidelining developing countries

The global cleantech race underway between the United States, Europe and China could leave developing countries behind. The world’s major economies are competing to become industrial leaders in the burgeoning cleantech sector. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 3 min read

Why we can’t sacrifice our way out of climate change

Matt Rogers helped teach millions of homeowners to look for the leaf symbol on their Nest thermostats to save money—and curb climate change. Harder Line

Amy Harder 4 min read

Energy security and federal climate funding to shape 2023

A historic 2022 will drive what happens this year. In our last December edition, we reflected on the five trends we predicted would shape 2022. This week, we’re looking at five trends we’re watching at Cipher in 2023. Harder Line

Amy Harder 5 min read

War and new climate law make history in 2022

Every year since 2018, I’ve looked back and ahead at the trends shaping the past year and the year to come, including reality checks of my previous predictions. We’re keeping the tradition going. Harder Line

Amy Harder 5 min read

As the world bakes, developing world scrambles to adapt

The world is not cutting emissions fast enough to slow climate change, leaving everyone—but especially developing nations—scrambling to adapt to a hotter planet and its extreme-weather consequences. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 3 min read

How to unlock clean tech for the developing world

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt—A half day’s drive from this resort town where thousands are gathered at an annual climate gathering, one of the world’s biggest solar farms stands as a rare example of how clean energy can be financed and built in a developing country. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 3 min read

Clean tech is not reaching the developing world fast enough

Not enough cash is flowing to clean energy technologies in the developing world, widening the investment gap between rich and poorer countries and hampering the energy transition. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 4 min read

Climate tech getting a boost but needs to reach all countries

Governments and the private sector in rich countries are stepping up investments in clean energy innovation, but more must be done to ensure both capital and cleantech reach the developing world. Latest News

Anca Gurzu < 1

Bending capitalism to fight climate change

Governments, corporations and nonprofits are coming up with novel ways to prod capitalism to help tackle—instead of fuel—climate change. Harder Line

Amy Harder 3 min read

Australia, U.K. and U.S. lead in low-carbon hydrogen projects

Global investments in low-carbon hydrogen supply are ramping up, with the bulk of new projects focusing on renewable hydrogen production. Data Dives

Anca Gurzu < 1

Africa, Middle East set to lead green hydrogen race

Africa, the Americas, the Middle East and Oceania are the regions with the highest technical potential to produce green hydrogen, while Europe is likely to become a key import market. Data Dives

Anca Gurzu < 1

Geopolitics lurk in EU’s bet on green hydrogen in energy transition

The European Union is working hard to rid itself of Russian natural gas, and in the process the 27-member bloc is betting on a different gas as a clean alternative: green hydrogen. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 4 min read