Natural Resources

Jordan Makes Strides Toward Inclusive Green Economy

By Safa Khasawneh
Jordan may be one of the smallest economies in the Middle East, but it has high ambitions for inclusive green growth and sustainable development despite the fact that it lies in the heart of a region that has been long plagued with wars and other troubles, says the Director-General of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) Dr. Frank Rijsberman.

Can the Gender Gap Be Measured in Dollars Only?

By Baher Kamal
Until a decade or so ago, experts and world organisations measured the impact of natural and man-made disasters in terms of human losses. For instance, they would inform about the number –and suffering—of human beings falling victims of extraordinary floods, droughts, heat or cold waves, and armed conflicts. This is not the case anymore.

Collectively Managing South Asia’s Stressed Water Resources

By Rafiqul Islam
Experts and policymakers here say regional cooperation is a must to resolve long-standing water problems in South Asian countries like Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India and Nepal, and to harness the full value of water.

Water Is Precious, Fragile and Dangerous – It Can Sustain or Destroy

By IPS World Desk
Water is precious, fragile, and dangerous. It can sustain or destroy.

Value of Water Is on the Rise

By Rafiqul Islam
In the wake of recent water-related disasters in Bangladesh, including water-logging and floods that displaced thousands of families, a high-level consultation in the capital Dhaka on valuing water will look at ways to optimize water use and solutions to water-related problems facing South Asia.

2 Billion People Don’t Have Access To Clean Water, Opens up Fissures of Inequality

By Roshni Majumdar
More than two billion people lack access to clean and safe drinking water, according to a new report released by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Any Way to Help Slow Down Climate Change… Individually?

By IPS World Desk
It is no secret that the biggest responsible for climate change is greed. The greed of the world’s largest private corporations, which blindly seek unlimited high financial benefits. And the greed of those politicians who are also blindly keen about holding their temporary power at any cost, thus not daring to challenge big business. Ordinary people can meanwhile help slow down such a hellish race.

The World Is Burning

By IPS World Desk
Record high temperatures are gripping much of the globe and more hot weather are to come. This implies more drought, more food insecurity, more famine and more massive human displacements.

Children Now More Than Half of the 65 Million Displaced

By Tharanga Yakupitiyage
Around 20 people are newly displaced every minute of the day, according to a new report.In its annual Global Trends report, the UN’s refugee agency UNHCR has recorded unprecedented and concerning levels of displacement around the world.

New Inhumane Record: One Person Displaced Every Three Second

By IPS World Desk
Nearly 66 million people were forcibly displaced from their homes last year, the United Nation refugee agency has reported.

Africa: Drought and Jobless, Hopeless Youth, Fertile Grounds for Extremism

By IPS World Desk
Ignoring the plight of jobless young people in sub-Saharan Africa is a recipe for political instability and global insecurity, warned a high-level symposium of Africa’s interior, environment and foreign affairs ministers in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

Safeguarding Precious Crop Genes in Trust for Humanity

By Ini Ekott
A genetic resource centre run by the Nigeria-based International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) has banked thousands of crop varieties for disaster relief and research, holds the world’s largest and most diverse collection of cowpeas, and contains some of Africa’s rarest insect species.

Africa Could Help Feed the World – If Its Fertile Land Doesn’t Vanish

By Younouss Youn
The 23rd World Day to Combat Desertification was celebrated in Burkina Faso’s capital of Ouagadougou on June 15 with a call to create two million jobs and restore 10 million hectares of degraded land.

Global Coalition Calls for Withdrawal of SDGs Progress Report

By Tharanga Yakupitiyage
A report on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) fails to capture the the true picture of water challenges and the UN must withdraw it, said a global civil society coalition.

More Plastic than Fish or How Politicians Help Ocean Destruction

By Baher Kamal
World’s oceans are dangerously exposed to at least three major threats: climate change; the sharp degradation of marine biodiversity, and politicians. These simply encourage the destruction of oceans by subsidising over-fishing and turning a blind eye on illegal captures. See what happens.

Saving the Oceans, Saving the Future: Officials Tackle Marine Pollution

By Tharanga Yakupitiyage
The oceans’ health is only getting worse and the cycle of decline must be reversed, said representatives at the opening of a high-level UN conference.

Charting a Course to a Blue Commonwealth

By Patricia Scotland
The United Nations Ocean Conference offers an historic opportunity to safeguard the ocean environment and support small island and vulnerable developing coastal states, who depend on the seas for national economic growth and sustainable development.

Business Unusual: Valuing Water for a Sustainable Future

By Paula Fray
Valuing water is more than simply assigning costs to a scare resource - it is an essential step for transforming water governance to meet the needs of a prosperous future.

Valuing Water Beyond the Money

By Paula Fray
Amid the worst drought in a century, South Africans are kick-starting a global consultative process to agree on the values of water in a bid to ensure more equitable use of the finite resource.

Gateway Portals and the Quest for Sustainable Urbanization

By Joan Erakit
On a busy Friday afternoon, the number 1 subway train heading north through Manhattan’s Westside comes out of a dark tunnel --and if one takes a minute to release oneself from communication devices—one can catch sight of the approaching 125th street in the distance, the crosswalk buzzing with yellow cabs.

Community Seed Banks: Securing Diversity for Climate Change Adaptation

By Elena L. Pasquini
For thousands of years, farmers have used genetic diversity to cope with weather variability and changing climate conditions. They have stored, planted, selected and improved seeds to continue producing food in a dynamic environment.
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