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Welcome
to the monthly newsletter for journalists about the impact of subsidies,
produced in partnership by IPS
- Inter Press Service and GSI
- Global Subsidies Initiative.
THIS
MONTH'S FOCUS:
TRACING A LINK BETWEEN FOSSIL FUELS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
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Fossil fuels play a very large role in our economies, and to phase them out would cause a lot of disruptions. However, it will not be nearly as difficult as living in a world that has been subject to climate change. |
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ABOUT
THIS NEWSLETTER
Subsidies — transfers of public money to private interests— are so
common that for the most part they go unnoticed; they can also be arcane and complex,
posing tremendous challenges for journalists. Yet, many experts believe that subsidies
are one of the most critical factors in determining the sustainability of a government’s
economic, social and environmental policies. By conservative estimates, over US$1
trillion is spent annually on government subsidies worldwide. That money has far
reaching effects, going well beyond the stated policy goals used to justify the
subsidy itself. This monthly IPS-GSI Subsidy E-newsletter is designed to help
journalists identify ways in which subsidies crucially affect efforts to achieve
a more sustainable future.
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More
information about subsidies
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The Global Subsidies Initiative cooperates
with an international network of researchers
working on subsidy related issues. Journalists
working on stories that involve subsidies,
and who are in search of expertise,
information and support are invited
to contact Javed Ahmad, the GSI's Director
of Communications, at info@globalsubsidies.org.
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Norman Myers - Bio
Norman Myers has served as an adviser to many governments, international
agencies and academic bodies, including the United Nations, the World
Bank, and the White House. In 2001 he published Perverse Subsidies,
one of the most comprehensive accounts of subsidies and the harm they
can cause. He is currently completing a new book called "How
Institutions Block Our Road to Sustainability".
SUBSIDIES
STORIES FROM IPS - RECENT ARTICLES
BULGARIA:
Small Farmers Strike for Survival
By Claudia Ciobanu
BUCHAREST - Thousands of Bulgarian milk and meat producers have been protesting for more than a week in various regions around the country, warning the government that life for small farmers has become impossible in Bulgaria.
TRADE-CHINA: Food Security Prompted Tough Line at Geneva
By Antoaneta Bezlova
BEIJING - China's tough stance at the 'Doha' trade talks in Geneva has less to do with political posturing than with the country's long-standing obsession with food security, experts here suggest.
VIETNAM: Coping With Skyrocketing Fuel Prices
By Helen Clark
HANOI - Nguyen Van Minh has just delivered a consignment of apples from China in his modified Hyundai at Long Bien market where, each night, hundreds of trucks pull up laden with fruits and vegetables from distant provinces and neighbouring countries.
TRADE: Subsidies (and Food Prices) Soar at Doha
By Gustavo Capdevila
GENEVA - Bias
in the WTO proposals to reform agricultural trade, which are being
analysed for the second consecutive week, will definitely aggravate
the food crisis caused in recent months by the high prices of farm
commodities, according to Aftab Alam Khan, an expert with the non-governmental
organisation ActionAid.
BIOFUELS AND FOOD SECURITY: CONFLICT OR COMPLEMENTARITY?
By Ignacy Sachs
It makes no sense to single out biofuels as the scapegoat for high food costs without considering the effect of the spectacular rise in oil prices, writes Ignacy Sachs, honorary professor, School of Advanced Studies in Social Sciences, Paris, and visiting fellow, Institute of Advanced Studies, University of Sao Paulo.
RELATED
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