Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Plastic Cuts Wastewater Treatment Costs

A polyethylene plastic bracket, to replace the stones and imported synthetic materials used in filtering sewage water, is poised to help Brazil overcome its sanitation problems.

HAITI RELIEF IS NOT CHARITY: A RIGHTS-BASED APPROACH TO AID

Haiti's January 2010 earthquake left more than 230,000 dead, 300,000-plus injured, 1.5 million homeless and physically leveled 28 of 29 government ministries. In response, the international community pledged 5.5 billion dollars in aid to rebuild Haiti. Today, only 10 percent of the promised funding has reached its shores.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Making Use of Power Lines' Wasted Electricity

The energy that is lost along electrical transmission lines can be utilized by small, nearby communities, says José Ezequiel Ramos, an engineer with the government electrical company Eletrobras.

Ecobreves – MEXICO: No Profits from GM Crops, Says Greenpeace

Yields from genetically modified (GM) crops did not provide additional economic benefits for the farmers in many countries, and the same could happen in Mexico, according to a study by the environmental organization Greenpeace.

Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Another Controversial Project on the Uruguay River

Residents of Concepción, in the eastern Argentine province of Entre Ríos, have denounced the start of infrastructure construction on the Uruguay River without the approval of the bilateral commission that oversees this border river.

Cuban Village with English Past, Ecological Present

An environmental protection regimen is changing the fate of a community founded in Cuba by English-speakers from the Cayman Islands.

Clean Energy and Cultural Survival in Nicaragua

On Nicaragua's Atlantic coast, a project is under way to ensure the survival of an indigenous culture through environmentally friendly development.

EUROPEAN UNION-AFRICA:UNEQUAL NEGOTIATIONS

Since 2002, African countries have been negotiating with the European Union (EU) a new framework of cooperation called Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs). These are supposed to replace the Cotonou Agreement, which is the current basis of the relationships between African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) countries and the EU. However, instead of negotiating with the ACP countries as a group, as had been the case in all previous agreements, the EU decided that the EPAs would be negotiated with each of the three regions of the ACP group individually.

THE UNEXPECTED POTENTIAL OF THE COCOA BEAN

As a commodity of almost irresistible attraction, chocolate has always played contradictory roles in human life. For those consuming it, chocolate has been an exquisite experience. For those growing the cacao from which itÂ's made, itÂ's more often been excruciating. For those of us savoring its flavor, itÂ's the ultimate indulgence. For those struggling to survive on the pittance paid for cacao beans, it has been the ultimate indignity. Many of those who grow cacao have never even tasted chocolate.

THE AFRICAN UNION SUMMIT AND THE FUTURE OF SUDAN

The African Union has declared 2010 the Year of Peace and Security in Africa, and will soon launch the African Decade of Women. What better opportunity to act on these pledges than at the 15^th African Union Summit, being held later this month in Kampala, Uganda? The upcoming referendum in Sudan gives African leadership an opportunity to demonstrate its commitment to improving the lives of women on this continent by ensuring that they actively and freely participate in the referendum. Southern Sudanese will go to the polls to decide whether to remain a part of a unified Sudan or secede and become AfricaÂ's newest country. Given that Sudan is AfricaÂ's largest country ­bordered by nine countries, also plagued by conflict, rampant corruption and stunted development­ it behooves our leaders to prioritize Sudan. News coming out of Sudan in the last few months paints a bleak picture: the security situation in Darfur is deteriorating, the Darfur peace negotiations in Doha, Qatar are barely limping along, and the recent national elections were well below international standard. There are just six months remaining to the referendum that will impact the future of millions of Africans. Recently the Sudanese government appointed the African Union High Level Panel for Implementation in Sudan led by former South Africa President Thabo Mbeki to facilitate negotiations on SudanÂ's referendum. Mbeki and the Panel are charged with leading negotiations between the ruling National Congress Party and the Southern Sudanese Liberation Movement in the South on all outstanding issues in the lead up to the referendum. Mbeki and the Panel have a big responsibility. They must support the Sudanese government and the Sudanese people to ensure an inclusive, transparent, and comprehensive process. The referendum will be dealing with issues that are of vital consequence to the people of Sudan, including the division of national economic resources, the redefining of citizenship, and border demarcation. The process must be, above all, inclusive. And an integral part of the responsibility to be inclusive is ensuring that those most affected by the referendum have a voice ­namely, Sudanese women. Achieving lasting peace and security in Sudan is not possible without womenÂ's full inclusion and especially within decision-making processes. Yet, up to now, women are almost invisible.

Reviving Lake Atitlán

What was once a beautiful blue lake surrounded by volcanoes is now stewing with tons of pollutants and the proliferation of toxic bacteria.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Cellulose to Drive Ethanol Industry

Sugar-based ethanol, the agro-fuel with the best energy results according to Brazil's agricultural research agency EMBRAPA, could be even more competitive if it makes use of the cane stalks and pulp as cellulose ethanol. It would boost Brazil's ethanol production 30 percent without having to expand sugarcane crops.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Timber Companies Propose New Forest Management

The Honduran Association of Timber Companies has proposed to work with the authorities to formulate a forest management plan to halt illegal logging and negative farming practices.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Construction Begun on Wind Park

Venezuela's state-owned oil company PDVSA this month began building a wind energy park in the northwestern peninsula of Paraguaná, with 76 turbines that in two years will provide 100 megawatt/hour to the region, an area of oil refineries, shopping centers and tourism.

Ecobreves – CHILE-ARGENTINA: Binational Campaign Against Mining

Environmental activists from Chile and Argentina have come up with a plan to defend the Andean glaciers from mining and are challenging the 1997 treaty signed by the two countries on mining integration.

WRONG TIME FOR DRC DEBT FORGIVENESS

Within the next few days, the World Bank Board and International Monetary Fund Board of Directors will decide whether to forgive a significant portion of the "odious" debt of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) accumulated to a large degree during the autocratic and kleptocratic regime of President Mobutu. Bilateral donors owed significant sums will probably follow suit.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: A Bicycle in Exchange for Zero Garbage

The government of the northern Venezuelan state of Miranda, which covers 8,000 square kilometers and includes the eastern one-third of Caracas, launched a "Zero Garbage" program at the Monagas school to convince students and teachers alike to recycle plastic, paper and glass.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Coral Reefs Have Legal Protection

The Honduran Parliament approved a special law to preserve coral reefs in the Islands of Bahía, in the Caribbean, said legislator Germán Leitzelar, of the Innovation and Social Democratic Unity Party.

Ecobreves – CHILE: Environmentalists on War Footing

More than 70 national and foreign organizations together issued a public statement in opposition to the proliferation of open-pit coal mining projects in Chile, citing their disastrous environmental consequences.

The Return of the Giant Tortoise

An ecological restoration plan in Ecuador is unfolding with the successful return of 39 Galápagos tortoises to their habitat.

“Latin America Faces an Environmental Emergency”

An Uruguayan expert warns that the unrelenting extraction of natural resources in Latin America fails to take into account the environmental damage, with the pretext that the wealth generated will sustain social programs.