Supply chains

Today’s global economy is characterized by often long, complex supply chains that bring commodities, goods and services to consumers, and economic benefits to producers. Applying innovative tools and analytical approaches, SEI explores the sustainability implications and potentials of global supply chains and broader consumption-to-production systems.

Jupiter Intelligence and SEI partner to map climate risk across global mineral, energy and food supply chains

Press release / SEI announces new research partnership with Jupiter Intelligence to assess cross-border climate risk across the minerals-energy-food (MEF) complex.

25 March 2026 / About Adaptation, Business, Finance and Supply chains

Trase: the “Beijing-Brasília effect” – the USD 47 billion trade nexus that could turn the tide for forests

Press release / Brazil and China can use their trade partnership to help curb deforestation and reduce climate change without compromising food security and economic stability.

18 March 2026 / About Climate policy, Finance, Food and agriculture, Forests and Supply chains

A white robotic arm hovers over the chassis of an electric car vehicle, with 8 battery packs on the base of the vehicle connected with orange wires, four tires, and the metal and glass of a clean room in the background.

Expanding battery production enables fast technology response to mineral criticality

Journal article / Rapid EV battery growth enables fast shifts in technology, reducing mineral criticality risks and broadening future supply pathways.

17 March 2026 / About Supply chains and Transport

Extreme climate events and transboundary effects of global crop trade

Journal article / This paper shows how extreme climate events in major exporting regions can cascade through crop trade, increasing countries’ exposure to climate shocks abroad.

13 March 2026 / About Disaster risk and Supply chains

A small herd of glossy black cows stand facing the camera. They are standing in a sunny plain, with a background of shrubs, small trees, and rolling hills in the distance.

Embryonic upgrading in agri-food value chains: an analysis of small-scale environmental initiatives in the Mexican beef sector

Journal article / Initiatives to improve the sector's environmental sustainability are gaining momentum, but a "generalizable" upgrade model is yet to emerge.

6 March 2026 / About Supply chains

Grain storage/silo and soybean monoculture area in Sorriso, Mato Grosso state, Brazil.

Trase: AI maps 9300 Brazilian soy facilities, unlocking supply chain traceability

Press release / Powerful new automated image analysis identifies soy facilities with over 90% accuracy – turbocharging transparency around logistical links in supply chains.

4 March 2026 / About Business, Food and agriculture, Forests and Supply chains

Aerial view of agricultural fields and waterways in Cao Bang, Vietnam, showing a food systems landscape relevant to methane emissions in commodity consumption.

MECCA: Methane emissions in commodity consumption assessments

Project / SEI York’s MECCA project develops methods to assess methane emissions linked to global commodity consumption, trade and agricultural supply chains.

2026 - 2027 / About Supply chains

Helen Bellfield, Chris West and Toby Gardner sit at a table indoors, smiling at the camera, with a laptop and notebook on the table and a large window behind them.

Trase appoints Chris West as new co-director

Feature / SEI York’s Chris West is stepping into the role of Trase co-director, taking over from Toby Gardner.

24 February 2026 / About Forests, Public policy, Supply chains and Water resources

Worker dressed in black and a red helmet inspects a steel pipe, its opening taller than the person

2025: a year in review for green steel

Other publication / This brief reviews the performance of the global green steel and green iron sectors in 2025, giving policy signals and developments to watch in 2026.

11 February 2026 / About Business, Innovation, Mitigation, Public policy and Supply chains