Media centre
If you are a journalist and would like a comment, interview and/or briefing, please contact Beth Herzfeld, IIED's head of media.
This section of our site is designed for members of the media. You can find our latest press releases, contact details and information about our spokespeople.
IIED experts are available for interviews and background briefings on a wide range of environmental and development issues, from climate change and climate finance to China and development, the economics of development, urban issues and resilient cities, and the illegal wildlife trade. See a full list of our areas of work.
For non-media enquiries, please go to our contact us page, and for general news go to our news and comment section.
Latest press releases
2 April 2020
In response to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and COP26 president the UK government’s announcement that the 2020 UN climate summit is postponed, IIED director Andrew Norton said: “Given the disruption to the entire political process leading up to the climate summit, including the postponement of crucial preparatory meetings, this decision is not surprising, however disappointing. But it is vital that throughout this process the voices of the people in the most vulnerable countries can be heard, which without face-to-face meetings, is not possible.
3 March 2020
New research introducing a system to help protect biodiversity while also reducing poverty, is released by IIED today, marking World Wildlife Day (3 March)
13 February 2020
In response to the appointment of Alok Sharma as next president of the 26th UN climate change conference (COP), IIED director Andrew Norton said: "The government’s appointment of Alok Sharma was unexpected although his previous ministerial background in international development and the Foreign Office should mean he understands the scale of the task ahead and the importance of the voices of the most vulnerable countries.
20 January 2020
On Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s announcement that the UK government will stop investing in coal overseas, IIED director Andrew Norton said: “The UK government’s decision to stop providing aid to support coal projects is long overdue and a welcome step in the right direction – but it needs to go further.
15 December 2019
On the conclusion of the UN climate talks in Madrid, Spain, Andrew Norton, director of the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), said: “Determination to rise to the challenge we all face has averted a near victory for the polluters. But the days of accepting compromise as progress is 20 years out of date, and the vulnerable countries held firm.
13 December 2019
As the UN climate talks head towards their conclusion in Madrid, Spain, IIED director Andrew Norton said: "The fate of the Paris Agreement is in the balance.
5 December 2019
IIED is delighted to announce the appointment of Dr Tara Shine as its new chair
Media mentions
As plans on how to change the way we work and live once the COVID-19 lockdown is lifted, Sam Green, IIED senior climate change researcher, reminds "There's an opportunity not to talk about what we have to have less of [to deal with climate change] but how we can create a more just and resilient future."
As business looks to how it can speed post-COVID economic recovery, IIED's Laura Kelly writes its policies need to be green and social so the Sustainable Development Goals can be met and 20 years of development gains in the poorest countries are not wiped out.
Transition to a green economy is crucial for keeping temperature rise below a 1.5°C rise. Some say it will be hard for developing countries to do. Paul Steele, IIED's chief economist, says they have the sorts of resources that make this change possible and, in some cases more access to the sources that can power renewables.
In his comment piece Andrew Norton, IIED director, writes that Covid-19 risks exacerbating inequality and ecological destruction, but it may also bring lessons of environmental and social justice that shift values, strengthen solidarity and encourage people to mobilise for change.
On Earth Day Andrew Norton, IIED director, said that "while the COVID-19 pandemic will lead to a temporary dip in global greenhouse gas emissions, this must not distract from the urgent need for rapid fundamental changes in infrastructure, energy, land use and industrial systems to set us on a path to net zero emissions globally by 2050 at the latest."