Publications
This Summary for Policymakers presents key findings from the Special Report on Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation (SREX). The SREX approaches the topic by assessing the scientific literature on issues that range from the relationship between climate change and extreme weather and climate events (‘climate extremes’) to the implications of these...
The Secretariat of the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Convention) has released Ramsar Technical Report No. 6, titled "Healthy wetlands, healthy people: a review of wetlands and human health interactions." The report was published jointly with the World Health Organization (WHO).The report focuses on providing advice to wetland managers and decision makers on...
The global focus on the threats posed by climate change has drawn attention to the fact that water will be the medium through which many of its impacts will be felt. In addition to the direct impacts of damaging floods and interruptions to water supply due to drought, a particular concern in many regions is the threat to food security, driven by changing rainfall patterns and increased aridity....
Livelihood and natural resources utilization pattern in ethnically diverse area in Arunachal Pradesh
The majority of the mountains and Himalayan population depend upon agricultural and forest based natural resources for their livelihoods (Singh et al., 1994; Sundriyal et al., 1994) The traditional farming system in the Himalaya is a mixture of crop and animal husbandry, which provides fodder, firewood, food and medicine for human and timber for house construction (Upreti et al., 2001). Increased...
Climate change has severe adverse effects on the livelihood of millions of the world’s poorest people. Increasing temperatures, water scarcity and droughts, flooding and storms affect food security. Thus, mitigation actions are needed to pave the way for a sustainable future for all. Currently, agriculture directly contributes about 10-15 percent to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions....
Renewable energy sources contribute 16% of the global energy consumption and most nations are working to increase the share of renewables in their total energy budget, to reduce the dependence on fossil fuel sources. Most Nordic and Baltic countries have already surpassed the target set for EU countries by 2020, to produce 20% of energy use from renewables like hydropower, solar energy, wind...
Environmental injustice—in the form of limited access to and control of natural capital—negatively impacts the livelihoods and security of rural households in Tajikistan.1 Its primary victims are impoverished households, especially those headed by single women, living in Gorno-Badakhshan, and/or engaged in cotton farming (see figure 10.1). Moreover, the country’s governance structures and...
This study quantifies and maps the water footprint (WF) of humanity at a high spatial resolution. It reports on consumptive use of rainwater (green WF) and ground and surface water (blue WF) and volumes of water polluted (gray WF). Water footprints are estimated per nation from both a production and consumption perspective. International virtual water flows are estimated based on trade in...
The guidebook has synthesized relevant material from IPCC, UN reports and other documentation on emerging issues on environment, climate change and development. It is written in a style suitable for policymakers and practitioners and provides guidance and practical advice on how to address climate change issues in the development and implementation of actions leading to sustainable development....
This paper traces the progressive shift at the international level from purely voluntary approaches (corporate social responsibility or CSR) towards accountability mechanisms to ensure the environmentally sound conduct of private entities. It examines whether the most recent international discussion on human rights and corporate accountability have adequately considered environmental protection...