Environment

U.N. Takes First Step Towards Treaty to Curb Lawlessness in High Seas

By Thalif Deen
The 193-member General Assembly adopted a resolution Friday aimed at drafting a legally binding international treaty for the conservation of marine biodiversity and to govern the mostly lawless high seas beyond national jurisdiction.

Opinion: 2015 and Beyond, Young Voices, Loud Demands

By Daniele Brunetto
As a young person interested in development, my heart beats a little faster when I look at the potential of 2015. There has never been so much at stake as this year for the future of our planet.

Farmers Find their Voice Through Radio in the Badlands of India

By Stella Paul
Eighty-year-old Chenabai Kushwaha sits on a charpoy under a neem tree in the village of Chitawar, located in the Tikamgarh district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, staring intently at a dictaphone.

Pope Could Upstage World Leaders at U.N. Summit in September

By Thalif Deen
Judging by his recent public pronouncements - including on reproductive health, biodiversity, the creation of a Palestinian state, the political legitimacy of Cuba and now climate change – Pope Francis may upstage more than 150 world leaders when he addresses the United Nations, come September.

New Approaches to Managing Disaster Focus on Resilience

By Kitty Stapp
Natural disasters have become a fact of life for millions around the world, and the future forecast is only getting worse.

Views from the Caribbean ahead of COP21, the December 2015 Climate Change Summit in Paris – Building Resilience to Disaster: Adaptation

By Kitty Stapp
From constructing barriers against rising sea levels to rehabilitating mangroves and providing agrometeorology services, the Caribbean isn’t waiting for a new international agreement on climate change to start implementing adaptation measures. But funding to roll out such projects on the necessary scale remains a key issue, and many communities remain desperately vulnerable to storms and flooding.

South Sudan Again Tops Fragile States Index

By Beatrice Paez
For the second year in a row, South Sudan has been designated as the most fragile nation in the world, plagued by intensifying internal conflict that has displaced more than two million of its people.

Industrial Fisheries Crowd out Artisanal Fisherpersons in South America

By Marianela Jarroud
Millions of families on South America’s Pacific coast have long depended on artisanal fishing for a living. But they have been increasingly being pushed aside by the industrial fisheries that have made this region a major player in the global seafood industry.

CTBTO, the Nuclear Watchdog That Never Sleeps

By Thalif Deen
The world’s nuclear powers may succeed in thwarting sanctions by the Security Council or avoiding condemnation by the General Assembly, but they cannot escape the scrutiny of a key international watchdog body: the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO).

From Residents to Rangers: Local Communities Take Lead on Mangrove Conservation in Sri Lanka

By Amantha Perera
Weekends and public holidays are deadly for one of Sri Lanka’s most delicate ecosystems – that is when the island’s 8,815 hectares of mangroves come under threat.

Cities Will Be Decisive in Fight for Sustainable Development

By Beatriz Ciordia
With cities increasingly in the spotlight on the international stage, urban planning and development has become a critical issue in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Opinion: We Have a Moral Imperative to Act on Climate Change

By Edwin Gariguez
My country, the Philippines, is one of the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Even though we are among those countries that hardly contributed emissions and benefited least from burning fossil fuels, we find ourselves at the frontline of the climate crisis.

Opinion: What the Philippines Can Learn from Morocco, Peru and Ethiopia

By Chris Wright and Jed Alegado
(Last week, Australian Climate Activist offered an apology to the Philippines for his country’s lack of action. Today, he partners up with climate tracker from the Philippines Jed Alegado to talk about what the Philippines can do to show its leadership in tackling climate change.)

Climate Justice: Trial by Public Opinion for World’s Polluters

By Thalif Deen
The United Nations, which is tasked with the protection of the global environment, has asserted that climate change affects people everywhere - with no exceptions.

From Residents to Rangers: Local Communities Take Lead on Mangrove Conservation in Sri Lanka

By Amantha Perera
Weekends and public holidays are deadly for one of Sri Lanka’s most delicate ecosystems – that is when the island’s 8,815 hectares of mangroves come under threat.

Adaptation Funding a Key Issue for Caribbean at Climate Talks

By Desmond Brown
With less than six months to go before the next full United Nations Conference of the Parties also known as COP 21 – widely regarded as a make-or-break moment for an agreement on global action on climate change – Caribbean nations are still hammering out the best approach to the talks.

Opinion: GM Cotton a False Promise for Africa

By Haidee Swanby
Genetically modified (GM) cotton has been produced globally for almost two decades, yet to date only three African countries have grown GM cotton on a commercial basis – South Africa, Burkina Faso and Sudan.

U.N. Urged to Put Global Citizenship at Centre of Post-2015 Development Agenda

By Thalif Deen
When Denmark hosted the World Summit on Social Development (WSSD) in March 1995, one of the conclusions of that international gathering in Copenhagen was to create a new social contract with “people at the centre of development.”

Peru a Shining Example for South America’s Climate Action Plans

By Chris Wright
This week, Peru became the first South American nation to publicly announce its Climate Action Plan, or INDC. In doing so, it may have set the scene for a new wave of highly transparent and ambitious INDC submissions from the continent.

Organic Cacao Farmers Help Reforest Brazil’s Amazon Jungle

By Mario Osava
“Now we realise what a paradise we live in,” said Darcirio Wronski, a leader of the organic cacao producers in the region where the Trans-Amazonian highway cuts across the Xingú river basin in northern Brazil.

Infrastructure Investments in Emerging Economies Hit Record Levels – but at What Cost?

By Kanya D'Almeida
According to new data released by the World Bank Tuesday, investments in infrastructure in 139 emerging economies shot up to 107.5 billion dollars in 2014, with just five countries – Brazil, Colombia, India, Peru and Turkey – accounting for 73 percent of the total.
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