Blue Carbon Working Group: 1st Meeting

The International Working Group on Coastal "Blue" Carbon produced recommendations underscoring the need for active and effective measures to protect the large and vulnerable carbon pools stored in seagrasses, tidal marshes, and mangroves, and to restore and reestablish their carbon sequestration capacity.

Founding members of the International Working Group on Coastal “Blue” Carbon are Conservation International (CI), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Stakeholder Forum: Papers on SD Governance

The NGO Stakeholder Forum has recently published four papers on the topic of sustainable development governance in the lead-up to Rio+20. Publications: Sustainable development governance toward the UNCSD

Consultations on Great Green Wall

UNCCD and GEF co-hosted consultations among government representatives, bilateral and multilateral donors, international financial institutions and other organizations on the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and Sahel Initiative (GGWSSI). The consultations took place in the form of an experts meeting on 18 February, and ministerial consultations on 19 February. Environment ministers and other stakeholders from Burkina Faso, Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Sudan participated, and considered how to prioritize financing for the initiative, which is still currently in a design stage. GEF Press Release

Note: The Initiative has not been conceived as a wall made up of trees planted across the Sahara, but rather as a set of cross-sectoral actions and interventions aimed at the conservation and protection of natural resources with a view to achieving development and, particularly, alleviating poverty.

EU: Opinion on GMO Restrictions

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has released an Opinion regarding a proposal that would allow EU member States to restrict or prohibit the cultivation in their territory of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) that have been approved at EU level. If approved, the proposal would create a regulation of the European Parliament and EU Council to amend the current GMO directive of the EU.

CMS and Kazakhstan: MOU on Saiga Antelope

The Secretariat of CMS and the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan convened representatives of wildlife management authorities in the country and experts, from 17-18 February to discuss the implementation of CMS memoranda of understanding on the Saiga Antelope and the Bukhara Deer. [CMS Press Release]

UNCTAD: Report on Green Economy

UNCTAD has issued the report of the Ad Hoc Expert Meeting on "The Green Economy: Trade and Sustainable Development Implications," which t is issued as a background paper for PrepCom II of UNCSD (Rio+20) and designed to feed directly into the Report of the UN Secretary-General to PrepCom 2.  Publication: The Green Economy: Trade and Sustainable Development Implications] [UNCTAD Background Paper for Meeting]

Argentina and Chile: Andes MOU

A new Memorandum of Understanding aiming to conserve the South Andean Huemul was signed between Argentina and Chile. The agreement is part of the countries’ Speci

fic Protocol on the Conservation of Wildlife, developed in the margins of the 20th Ibero-American Summit on 4 December 2010, with CMS being the depositary. Press Release

FAO: State of the World's Forests

The 9th biennial issue of the State of the World's Forests considers the theme "Changing pathways, changing lives: forests as multiple pathways to sustainable development."

OECD: Publications on Biodiversity

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has published a brochure, titled “Recent OECD Work on Biodiversity,” summarizing recent insights on economic valuation and policies related to biodiversity, sector-specific analyses, and recent and forthcoming publications. 
Publication: Recent OECD Work on Biodiversity

UNFCCC: March/April Negotiations

The UNFCCC Secretariat has announced the dates for the

first round of formal negotiations in 2011. The 16th session of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol (AWG-KP 16), the 14th session of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention (AWG-LCA 14), as well as workshops organized pursuant to the Cancun Agreements and to other decisions, will take place in Bangkok (Thailand) from 3-8 April 2011. Website

UN/GA: Disaster Reduction Debate

The UN/GA convened a one-day thematic debate on disaster risk reduction (DRR) on 9 February 2011, in at UN/HQ, which included two panels on "invest today for a safer tomorrow," and "addressing the challenges of disaster risk in urban settings." Outcomes from the thematic debate will inform the 3rd session the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, scheduled to convene from 8-13 May 2011, in Geneva (Switzerland). UNGA President Statement UN Secretary-General's Statement

UN Agencies: Preparation of UNCSD Report on Latin America and Caribbean

Representatives of UN agencies met from 8-9 February  under the auspices of the UN Regional Coordination Mechanism for Latin America and the Caribbean, and agreed to work together on preparations for UNCSD (Rio+20). The agencies will produce an inter-agency document to assess progress and challenges in terms of sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean, 20 years after the the Rio Earth Summit. The report will include strategic guidelines to improve production and consumption patterns, with a view to moving towards economies based on sustainable development and the eradication of poverty.
Press Release

Brussels Urban Declaration

The European Parliament, the European Commission and UN-HABITAT, with the support of the Hungarian Presidency of the EU, hosted the high-level Consolidated Urban Dialogue Meeting with the EU Partners at on 26 January. The meeting concluded with the adoption of the Brussels Urban Declaration, which calls attention to urban development issues, and to the establishment of adequate mechanisms to support sustainable urban initiatives, including energy efficiency and innovative climate change strategies.

UNFF-9 Outcomes

Under the theme “Forests for people, livelihoods and poverty eradication,” over 700 participants attended the two week session of UNFF-9 from 24 January-4 February. They addressed the International Year of Forests (Forests 2011); forests for people, livelihoods and poverty eradication; means of implementation for sustainable forest management (SFM); and adopted the Resolution on Forests for People, Livelihoods and Poverty Eradication. Delegates also attended a two-day High-Level Segment, which included the of

ficial launch of Forests 2011, and four High-Level Roundtables on: forests and people; forests and finance; “forests-plus;” and forests and Rio+20. A Ministerial Declaration (not yet released, see: Building Blocks for the UNFF-9 Ministerial Declaration as proposed by the UNFF-9 Bureau) was adopted on 3 February. Background documents

Right to Water and Sanitation

In July 2010, the UN/GA adopted a resolution recognizing the right to drinking water and sanitation as a human right. Then, in September, this resolution was affirmed by the Human Rights Council (HRC), explaining that the right to water and sanitation was derived from the right to an adequate standard of living. Catarina de Albequerque, Independent Expert for the Council stated that this “first step” could be turned into a reality by placing it at the core of MDG policy and implementation. UN/GA Resolution and HRC Decision

World Resources Report

The topic of the upcoming WRR Report will be “how national governments make decisions for a changing climate – and specifically how they integrate the risks posed by climate change into planning and policy-making processes.” The findings and recommendations will be published in April 2011. See www.worldresourcesreport.org.

ABS and Implementation

An international seminar organized by IDDRI and AFD took place on 3 February, 2011 where participants focussed on the legal, policy and practical challenges of the Nagoya Protocol. Objectives included contributing to the debate on outstanding issues, future research directions and technical assistance and training activities related to the implementation of the Protocol. An in-depth report on the outcomes will appear in Environmental Policy and Law: The journal for decision-makers. Programme and Presentations

European Commission: Sustainable Growth

With €105 billion available in the current EU budget for sustainable growth, the European Commission has issued a Communication titled "Regional Policy Contributing to Sustainable Growth in Europe 2020," urging the use of EU regional policy funds to finance sustainable growth projects.

Priorities for investment fall into three areas: energy efficiency, renewables and decarbonizing transport; protection of ecosystem services, biodiversity, adaptation to climate change, including screening for climate resilience, and natural disaster prevention; and eco-innovation through the deployment of information and communication technologies and "green clusters."

Sustainable Tourism: Launch of Global Partnership

UNEP and the UNWTO have launched the Global Partnership for Sustainable Tourism aimed at influencing policies on sustainable tourism, developing projects, providing a global platform for communication, as well as facilitating a shift towards a green economy. The Partnership is made up of 18 governments, five UN organizations, the OECD, 17 international and business organizations, and 16 NGOs. Website

Global Compact LEAD Launched

The UN Secretary-General and a group of chief executives launched this new platform created by the UN Global Compact to enhance environmental, social and governance performance to set a new benchmark for corporate sustainability, at the World Economic Forum.

The executives represent a group of 54 companies, all participants of the UN Global Compact, that have made an ambitious commitment to work towards implementation of the Blueprint for Corporate Sustainability Leadership, a comprehensive roadmap outlining roughly 50 concrete actions businesses can take to achieve greater sustainability. Global Compact LEAD will be deeply integrated into other UN Global Compact engagement opportunities, including the six global working groups as well as the Caring for Climate and CEO Water Mandate initiatives. Website

Nagoya ABS Protocol: Signing Ceremony

In conjuntion with the launch of the International Year of Forests, the Nagoya ABS Protocol will be opened for signature by parties to CBD beginning on 2 February 2011, for one year, at UN/HQ.

2010 Arab MDG Report

UNDP, ESCWA and the League of Arab States have launched the "Third Arab Report on the Millennium Development Goals 2010 and the Impact of the Economic Crisis." With regards to environmental issues, the report inter alia indicates that while the Arab region as a whole only contributes about 5% of the global carbon dioxide emissions, the impacts of climate change on the region are of major concern to policy makers due to its dependence on climate-sensitive agriculture, as well as the concentration of population and economic activity in flood-prone urban coastal zones.

GEF: Endorsement of Biodiversity Projects

Monique Barbut, GEF CEO recently endorsed several biodiversity-related projects focusing on protected areas, biodiversity conservation in production lands and biosafety, taking the last step in GEF approval procedures. GEF Project Website

FAO: Report on World Fisheries and Aquaculture

The 2010 "State of the World's Fisheries and Aquaculture" includes a section on "climate change implications for fisheries and aquaculture," and also lists the major issues concerning international trade in fishery products in the past biennium, and which continue to affect international trade. It further outlines the various challenges ahead in terms of, inter alia: continuing trade globalization; heightened awareness for biodiversity protection; greater demand for public health and environmental protection; and the impacts of climate change.

Alps: Land Management

The current issue Alpine Research is running a feature on land management. Questions raised by the authors include what instruments are available to Alpine local authorities for land management and for weighing up private and public interests? Are new legal instruments required or a better co-operation between local authorities and the regions?

Challenges for Mountian Regions: New Publication

The Institute for Mountain Research at Innsbruck University (Austria) has published a book on man and the environment in mountain areas titled: Challenges for Mountain Regions - Tackling Complexity. Besides the Alps it also examines mountain areas in the Andes and Patagonia.

IUCN: Eastern Himalaya Freshwater Ecosystems

A recent study carried out by IUCN and Zoo Outreach Organisation, entitled "The Status and Distribution of Freshwater Biodiversity in the Eastern Himalaya," emphasized the need for extensive new research on freshwater species in the Eastern Himalaya region.

Report "World Economic Situation and Prospects 2011"

The UN has launched a report fiding that fiscal policies, in tandem with income and structural policies, will need to be reoriented to foster job creation and green growth.

Botwana: Judgement on Kalahari Bushmen's access to water

Survival International reports an important victory for the Kalahari bushmen in Botswana in their court case involving the right to water. 

In a momentous decision, Botswana’s Court of Appeal today quashed a ruling that denied the Kalahari Bushmen access to water on their ancestral lands.

With support from Survival, the Bushmen appealed a 2010 High Court judgment that prevented them from accessing a well which they rely on for water. The panel of five Appeal Court judges has found that:

·       the Bushmen have the right to use their old borehole, which the government had banned them from using

·       the Bushmen have the right to sink new boreholes

·       the government’s conduct towards the Bushmen amounted to ‘degrading treatment’.

·       the government must pay the Bushmen’s costs in bringing the appeal.

The full text of the final appellate judgement can be found at: http://assets.survivalinternational.org/documents/545/bushmen-water-appeal-judgement-jan-2011.pdf

Instrument on Mercury: 2nd session of the INC

The 2nd session of the Intergovernmental Negotiation Committee (INC) to Prepare a Global Legally Binding Instrument on Mercury agreed to negotiate the new treaty based on an elements paper prepared by the Secretariat (UNEP(DTIE)/Hg/INC.2/3), and offered initial responses to the paper element-by-element. By the end of the week-long meeting, delegates had achieved a full first reading of the elements paper, and mandated the Secretariat to prepare a new draft text, taking into account discussions at INC-2, for further negotiation at INC-3, scheduled to convene in October 2011.

Further information and documentation available at: http://www.unep.org/hazardoussubstances/Mercury/Negotiations/INC2/tabid/3468/Default.aspx

FAO/COFI: 29th Session

The 29th session of the FAO Council's Committee on Fisheries (COFI) will take place from 31 January - 4 February 2011, in Rome (Italy). Further Information 

LDC-IV: PrepCom-1

The 1st session of the Intergovernmental Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) for the 4th UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC-IV) took place from 10-14 January 2011, at UN/HQ. The meeting adopted the draft report of its session (A/CONF.219/IPC/L.1). Conference Website

The second PrepCom will take place from 4-8 April 2011.

LDC-IV will take place in Istanbul, Turkey, from 9-13 May 2011.

EU Protected Area Network Enlarged

The network of protected areas of the EU - Natura 2000 - has been enlarged to include 739 new sites covering nearly 27,000 square kilometres with more than half of the area added comprising marine sites, mainly in France, Denmark and Spain. More Details

UNDP: Biodiversity in Latin America and the Caribbean

A new UNDP report titled "Latin America and the Caribbean: A Biodiversity Superpower" aims to inform policy-makers and businesses  about the economic risks and opportunities of undertaking productive activities that impact on and are influenced by biodiversity and ecosystem services. It is a tool to assist governments and stakeholders in analyzing the role of ecosystem services in order to incorporate these services into economic planning, policy and investment at the sectoral level.

FAO: Forests and Climate Change in the Near East

FAO has released a Working Paper with several recommendations, including: establishing a regional network of pilot projects on forest adaptation measures; developing more flexible policies and legal frameworks to restore and adapt communal management systems and forest property regimes; and developing effective forest landscape restoration and afforestation plans. It further recommends that climate change adaptation and mitigation be integrated in all development strategies and policies.

CBD: Guidance for 5th National Report

The CBD Secretariat has issued a notification encouraging Parties to initiate work as early as possible on the updating of the national biodiversity strategies and action plans (NBSAPs) for the preparation of the 5th National Report.

FAO: Guidelines on Fisheries Discard

FAO has released the International Guidelines on Bycatch Management and Reduction of Discards, which will now be submitted to the Committee on Fisheries for endorsement when it meets in Rome (Italy)from 31 January-4 February 2011.

WTO: Trade and Environment

An informal meeting of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Committee on Trade and Environment in Special Session (CTESS) met on 10-14 January 2011 where members reviewed the various proposals on the table covering the Doha mandate related to environment. Press Release

SPREP: State of Marine Biodiversity

The Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) has released a report, titled "Outlook Report on the State of the Marine Biodiversity in the Pacific Islands Region,"

FAO/ITPGR: 4th Session of Governing Body

A webpage cotaining meeting documents has been launched in preparation for the 4th session of the Governing Body of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGR) to be  held from 14-18 March 2011, in Bali (Indonesia). It will be preceded by two days of regional consultations, from 12-13 March 2011. In addition, the Government of Indonesia has called for a high-level ministerial conference, to be held on 11 March 2011.

CBD Bureau Minutes

The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has circulated the minutes of the first meeting of the Bureau elected at COP-10) held on 19 December 2010.

World Bank: Linking Natural Resource Management and Wealth of Nations

As part of an initiative by World Bank President Robert B. Zoellick called the Global Partnership for Ecosystems Valuation and Wealth Accounting, the World Bank has released a book titled "The Changing Wealth of Nations," The book contends that most countries are relatively highly dependent on natural capital initially, and the ones that progress most successfully are those that manage their assets for the long term and reinvest in human and social capital as well as in building strong institutions and systems of governance.

International Forest Governance Report

The Global Forest Expert Panel on the International Forest Regime has released its assessment report  titled "Embracing Complexity: Meeting the Challenges of International Forest Governance,". The report and a policy brief will be presented at UNFF-9 on February 2.

European Commission: Sustainable Growth Initiative

The EC has launched "A resource-efficient Europe: Flagship initiative under the Europe 2020 Strategy," which sets out its views on a strategic framework towards  more sustainable use of natural resources and the shift towards resource-efficient, low-carbon growth in Europe. Publication: A Resource-Efficient Europe: Flagship Initiative Under the Europe 2020 Strategy

Journal of Environment and Development: December 2010

The newest issue of The Journal of Environment and Development includes the following articles:

The Usefulness of Sustainability Indicators for Policy Making in Developing Countries: The Case of Madagascar - Timothée Ollivier and Pierre-Noël Giraud

The Political Economy of Wildlife Conservation and Decline in Kenya - Ngeta Kabiri

The Use and Management of Mangrove Ecosystems in Pakistan - Bhim Adhikari, Saima Pervaiz Baig, and Usman Ali Iftikhar
See: http://www.journalenvdev.com/