G7 nations or group of world's most advanced economies of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States are reportedly planning to ban all fossil fuel finance globally. In fact, G7 has already declared its intention to stop international funding for coal projects. This fossil fuel finance ban could have an adverse impact on countries in the Global South who are trying to balance their growing energy needs while taking action on climate change. To understand this decision of G7 and its far-reaching repercussions, we spoke with Vijaya Ramachandran, Director for Energy and Development at the Breakthrough Institute in the US. Vijaya is a renowned economist with over three decades of experience working in public policy and academia. She has served on the faculty of Duke University and Georgetown University as well as worked at the World Bank, the Executive Office of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, and the Center for Global Development. Suggested readings: 1. <a href='https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-01020-z' target='_blank'>https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-01020-z</a> 2. <a href='https://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/foreign-policy/541554-economic-growth-in-africa-will-not-be-achieved-by-a' target='_blank'>https://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/foreign-policy/541554-economic-growth-in-africa-will-not-be-achieved-by-a</a>

He is an award-winning journalist and researcher and author of a book “Total Transition: The Human Side of the Renewable Energy Revolution.”