Linkages Between Trade and Climate Change / Vinculos entre el comercio y el cambio climático
Friday, June 26th, 2009From the World Trade Organization (WTO):
WTO and UNEP launch a report explaining for the first time the connections between trade and climate change
The world cannot continue with “business as usual” and there is a profound need for a successful conclusion to the current negotiations on both climate change and trade opening.
The WTO/UNEP report on “Trade [...]
An Online Database of Marine Protected Areas / Un base de datos online sobre las áreas marinas protegidas
Tuesday, June 9th, 2009From the UN Environment Programme (UNEP):
UNEP launches new online system to view and study the world’s marine protected areas
UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre in Cambridge, UK
At a time when the world’s oceans are facing unprecedented pressures from human impacts in the marine environment, a new decision-making tool is being launched to provide the most current [...]
Trends in Clean Energy Investment
Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009From the UN Environment Programme (UNEP):
Economic Crisis Hits EU and US Clean Energy As Emerging Economy Investments Rise 27% to $36 billion
However Renewables Draw More Investment than Fossil-Fueled Energy Technologies in ‘08
Geothermal Sees Fastest Growth – Wind Power Tops Overall Investment, Solar Posts Largest Gains
$155 billion was invested in 2008 in clean energy companies and [...]
LAC Projects Receive 2009 SEED Award
Wednesday, May 13th, 2009This year’s recipients of the SEED Awards were announced yesterday by the SEED Initiative at a reception linked to this year’s session of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD), and several of the recipients were from Latin America.
What is the SEED Award and who is the SEED Initiative? you ask. The Initiative was founded [...]
Mesoamerica Shows the Way to DDT-Free Malaria Control
Thursday, May 7th, 2009The World Health Organization (WHO) has confidently announced that they can still roll back malaria worldwide while phasing out the use of the hazardous pesticide Dichloro-Diphenyl-Trichloroethane (DDT) through the use of pesticide-free Integrated Vector Management (IVM) techniques. Why is WHO so confident it can be done? Because they have already successfully tested the proposition through [...]
FAO: Bioenergy Can Benefit Rural Poor / La bioenergía puede beneficiar a los pobres rurales
Wednesday, April 8th, 2009The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has released a study showing that bioenergy projects can benefit the rural poor. The study looks at 15 case studies in 12 nations in six regions of Africa, Asia and Latin America to examine the impacts that different types of local level Bioenergy initiatives can have on [...]
Energy Efficiency Program for Caribbean Hotels Launched
Tuesday, March 24th, 2009From the Barbados Government Information Service:
CARIBBEAN HOTEL ENERGY EFFICIENCY ACTION PROGRAMME LAUNCHED
Additional income from savings in electricity/fuel bills, a reduction in operational costs; and an increased flow of tourists preferring sustainable energy tourism destinations, are just a few of the benefits expected from the Caribbean Hotel Energy Efficiency Action Programme (CHENACT).
This was announced today by [...]
UN to Fund Pilot REDD Programs
Wednesday, March 18th, 2009From UN-REDD:
18 Million Dollars Approved Under UN-REDD Programme
Funds Will Back Forestry Programmes Combating Climate Change and Boosting Local Livelihoods
A United Nations programme aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from forests and boosting livelihoods in tropical nations has approved $18 million in support of five pilot countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
The UN Reduced Emissions [...]
Swiss to Help Minas Prepare E-waste Diagnosis
Monday, March 9th, 2009The government of Brazil’s Minas Gerais state wants to regulate waste electronic and electrical equipment (WEEE, or “e-waste” or “e-scrap”), and with their new state waste policy law, they have ample authority to do so. There’s just one problem: they are not sure of the full extent and nature of the e-waste problem in [...]
Finally, a Chance for a Global Mercury Accord / Por fin, un chance para un acuerdo global sobre el mercurio
Saturday, February 21st, 2009When the UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP) Governing Council (GC) considered and agreed on the draft decision on chemicals management, including mercury, this past Thursday, I was in the room. It’s difficult to say which emotion filled the conference room more — joy or excitement. There was plenty of both.
This decision had been many years in [...]




















