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Today, July 4, German insurance association GDV’s insurance regulation conference takes place in Berlin. German and Brussels-based environmental NGOs Urgewald, ShareAction and Insure Our Future use the occasion to collectively call on the lobby organization, speakers and participants in the event to support much more robust climate protection measures.

Bob Pickard’s shock resignation last week is a political earthquake. The departure of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank's (AIIB) chief communications officer, announced via Twitter, once again highlights Germany's failure to meet the set of criteria it demanded when it joined the AIIB for supervisory, including accountability and governance structures as well as compliance with human rights, environmental and social standards.

The Bank invests billions in fossil fuel projects, including through various opaque channels. Unless this changes, its soul-searching will count for little.

The moment has come: today Ajay Banga takes office as World Bank President. The U.S. nominated the top executive at the end of February following the surprise resignation of David Malpass. Since the founding of the Bretton Woods institutions, as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) are known, it has been accepted that the U.S. appoints the head of the World Bank, while European countries pick the leader of the IMF. This undemocratic practice continues to this day. There was no opposing candidate – let alone a female opponent. Despite strong criticism from civil society, on May 3, the 25 World Bank Executive Directors from the 189 member countries, including Germany, cleared the way for Banga after he had spent the last months holding talks in many countries.

New research shines a spotlight on the investors behind the fossil fuel industry. The Investing in Climate Chaos website features over 6,500 institutional investors whose holdings of bonds and shares in fossil fuel companies total US$ 3.07 trillion.

The environmental and human rights organization Urgewald together with 14 NGO partners published a comprehensive update of the AIIB-Watch. The website examines the projects of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (henceforth: “AIIB”) for human rights violations, forced resettlement and environmental damage. An interactive map lists a total of 24 cases where the AIIB is failing to meet key protection standards.