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Saturday, November 14, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
Environment
Climate Change and Family Planning – Twin Issues for LDCs
The reproductive rights agenda, from improving women’s access to education to systematic family planning to reducing birth rates and combating poverty, has become a cornerstone of most industrialised nations’ development policies toward the least developed countries (LDCs), comprised primarily of sub-Saharan African states.
Q&A: North-South Divide Looms Heavily Over Rio+20 Summit
The 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro was to a large extent derailed by a North-South divide: a battle between a coalition of rich industrial nations versus the world's developing countries led by the Group of 77.
Rio+20 is Everyone’s Conference
The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, otherwise known as Rio+20, is a once-in-a-generation opportunity.
Elders in Peruvian Andes Help Interpret Climate Changes
A unique response to the challenge of global warming is happening in rural areas of Peru, where a network of indigenous elders is working out how to adjust weather forecasts in the light of climate change, while taking measures to safeguard their crops.
Guatemala Halts Widely Praised Maya Biosphere Reserve Initiative
The ambitious Cuatro Balam project for the management and conservation of the Maya Biosphere Reserve in the northern department of Petén has been put on hold after the change of government in Guatemala, say environmental and other civil society organisations.
Runaway Gold Prices Spark Major Headaches for Guyana
Fabian George drank and generally used water from jungle rivers near his mountainside home for decades until world market prices for gold began climbing in recent years.
Rural Women in Peru Key to Adaptation of Seeds to Climate Change
For ages, rural women in the Peruvian highlands have been selecting and storing seeds, ensuring their preservation. But the authorities have failed to tap into this storehouse of knowledge and experience, despite the contributions it could make to the design of effective policies for adaptation to climate change, which poses a growing threat to the women’s livelihoods.
Ikea Products Made From 600-Year-Old Trees
The home furnishing giant Ikea, founded in Sweden in 1943, is facing heavy criticism for the logging and clear-cutting of old-growth forests in the north of Russian Karelia by its wholly owned subsidiary Swedwood.
‘Green Economy’ – New Disguise for Old Tricks?
Though the current global economic and financial crises are undoubtedly devastating much of the world, they present the perfect opportunity for remodeling our economic system, according to participants at the ninth annual Terra Futura (Future Earth) exhibition of ‘good practices’ in social, economic and environmental sustainability held here from May 25-27.Ecobreves – CHILE: Pig Slaughterhouse Shut Down
The Chilean government declared a health alert in the town of Freirina, 800 km north of Santiago, in response to the pollution and foul odor emanating from the nearby Agrosuper pork processing plant.Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Program to Protect Highly Endangered Bird
The Venezuelan Institute for Scientific Research and Bararida Zoo in the city of Barquisimeto are launching a program to protect the red siskin (Carduelis cucullata), a highly endangered bird that lives in the country’s northwest region.Ecobreves – BRAZIL : Mapping the Jaguar Genome
Deciphering the gene map of the jaguar (Panthera onca) is the goal of a new project being jointly undertaken by a number of Brazilian institutions.Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Satellite Monitoring of Natural Resources
A satellite monitoring system donated by the government of Taiwan will enable the creation of a database of natural resources in Honduras and the damages they could suffer as a result of disasters such as hurricanes or earthquakes.
Forests Dying in South Sudan Violence
South Sudan is losing its forests. And with no unified policy to deal with the situation the government is at odds, with one ministry saying that the loss of forests is a necessity for farming and another warning of the dire environmental consequences if this continues unchecked.
Q&A: A Green Economy Without a Pricetag on Nature?
As thousands gear up for the 2012 Earth Summit, Rio+20, scheduled to kick off in Brazil on Jun. 20, questions on the viability and adequacy of a ‘green economy’ abound.
Selling Ethanol Stoves in Mozambique to Generate Carbon Credits
Along a dirt road in Mozambique’s Sofala province, a long line of men on bicycles stretches into the distance, each carrying an impossibly big bag of charcoal strapped to his bike.Global Temperatures Rising on a Devastating Trajectory
Climate-heating carbon emissions set a record high in 2011, in a 3.2 percent increase over the previous year, the International Energy Agency reported this week. The main reason for this dangerous increase is that governments are failing to implement policies to prevent catastrophic increases of global temperatures.
Peru – Megadiverse, and Biodiversity-Aware
One of every two Peruvians knows what "biodiversity" means, and most would stop buying products that are not socially or environmentally responsible, according to an international survey that for the first time included this megadiverse South American country.
Will Rio+20 Spark a Green Revolution?
Think of Rio+20 as the hothouse to grow the green ideas and values humanity needs to thrive in the 21st century.
Renaissance Rice Rises From the Debris
This April, a small rice paddy field in Minami Sanriku, destroyed by the massive earthquake and tsunami last year in Japan, provided one of its most fertile yields yet - bringing hope and joy to the devastated local community.
ANTIGUA: Mysterious Pest Targets Valuable Palm Trees
Something is decimating the coconut and other palm trees here and no one seems to know exactly what it is.« Previous Page — Next Page »
Through our global network of local writers, we are continuing our award-winning coverage of global and local environmental challenges, with a focus on the people for whom the ecosphere matters in a direct way: rural dwellers who have little means to protect themselves against adverse conditions; communities that need to switch to sustainable development in order to survive; poor women and children, who are the most vulnerable in natural disasters. Sponsored by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and The World Bank (WB), IPS also maintains the award-winning Tierramérica, a specialised information service on environment and development.
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Tracking global progress towards a sustainable world
