The World Meteorological Organization’s State of the Climate in Asia 2024 report warns that the region is warming nearly twice as fast as the global average, driving more extreme weather and posing serious threats to lives, ecosystems, and economies. In 2024, Asia experienced its warmest or second warmest year on …
The Strategic Plan for Biodiversity (2011–2020), formally adopted by COP in 2010 in Aichi, Japan provided an overarching global framework on biodiversity whose vision is to value, restore, and conserve biodiversity for the benefit of all people by 2050. This retrospective analysis of progress against the 20 Aichi Targets based …
People in the urban informal sector have suffered disproportionately during the COVID-19 pandemic and face a highly uncertain future. While supporting the livelihoods of most of the developing world’s urban poor, the informal sector also deprives them of basic services and social protection. Rendered vulnerable to socioeconomic threats, people in …
The regional flagship report analyses the gendered impacts of climate change in Southeast Asia and suggests ways to enhance and mainstream gender equality into climate-relevant sectoral policies and actions. Prepared by SEI Asia, ASEAN Committee on Women, ASEAN Secretariat, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and UN Women, the report provides …
The agriculture sector in Asia and the Pacific region contributes massively to climate change, as the region has the largest share of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture. The region is the largest producer of rice, a major source of methane emissions. Further, to achieve food security for the increasing …
Fewer than half the population of Asia and the Pacific have access to any social protection benefits, and public spending on social protection in the region is significantly below the global average, this new report by the International Labour Organization (ILO) has found. Spending on social protection in the region …
The global liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry has pinned its long-term hopes for growth on emerging markets in China, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. But this new IEEFA report finds that sustained high prices over the past year have eroded the economic case for LNG and hurt LNG sales in …
Asia-Pacific countries face a multitude of challenges in achieving their national and global sustainable energy goals. This policy brief provides a review on SDG 7 progress in the region, covering access to electricity, clean cooking, renewable energy, and energy efficiency. Higher ambitions, greater commitments, and more actions are needed to …
This publication examines opportunities for pursuing pro-poor urban resilience initiatives to reduce the increasing impacts of heat stress faced by urban populations in Asia and the Pacific. Cities in the region are increasingly at risk of heat waves, which are expected to be more severe and persistent due to global …
This publication explores good practices in the use of financial instruments to enhance women’s economic resilience to disasters caused by natural hazard events and extreme weather conditions. Gender inequalities and limited access to resources constrain women's ability to withstand and recover from financial shocks and economic distress arising from disasters. …
This publication provides updated statistics on a comprehensive set of economic, financial, social, and environmental measures as well as select indicators for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The report covers the 49 regional members of ADB. It discusses trends in development progress and the challenges to achieving inclusive and sustainable …
Air pollution is a global challenge to people’s health and has severe economic consequences. The region of Northeast Asia is no exception. Across most regions in Japan, and in the entire territories of Korea and China, annual average concentrations of fine particulate matter are above the guideline levels indicated by …
Billions of people in Asia and the Pacific depend on healthy oceans for their livelihoods, food security, health, and recreation. However, the impacts of climate change, marine pollution, overfishing, and unsustainable coastal development are increasingly threatening these ecosystems, jeopardizing the region’s small island nations and other developing coastal economies. Blue …
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, WFP has continually assessed household vulnerability to food and nutrition insecurity through monitoring surveys, while simultaneously providing technical assistance and operations support for programmes in response to the pandemic in the Asia Pacific region. Based on these experiences and in cooperation with partners, WFP undertook a …
This report provides scenarios for future transport demand and CO2 emissions in North and Central Asia up to 2050 to help decision makers chart pathways to sustainable, resilient transport. The scenarios reflect existing policy initiatives and specific constraints in the region. They also examine the potential impact of policies addressing …
Resilience in a Riskier World: Managing Systemic Risks from Biological and Other Natural Hazards, the Asia Pacific Disaster Report 2021 captured a comprehensive picture of the complexity of disaster risk landscape (‘riskscape’) from natural and biological hazards in the Asia-Pacific region. Following the release of the APDR at the seventh …
Knowledge gathered over the past four years in the IUCN Close the Plastic Tap programme is the basis of this publication. It presents a summary of methodologies, results, and key lessons learned from the use of the UNEP/IUCN National Guidance for Plastic Pollution Hotspotting and Shaping Action in Kenya, Menorca …
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a global economic recession. As the COVID-19 pandemic spread to every part of the world, governments released policies to restrict people`s socio-economic activities to limit the spread of COVID-19. The pandemic and related measures have great impact to consumption, investment, manufacture, trade among socioeconomic activities …
This paper assesses the latest evidence on climate change and population ageing in the Asia-Pacific region. It outlines implications climate change will have on meeting the objectives of MIPAA and the 2030 Agenda. The paper calls for a coherent policy approach that is inclusive and forward-looking. One that protects older …
The agriculture sector is a key economic sector in Southeast Asia and an important driver of socio-economic development, supporting the livelihoods of a significant share of the region’s population. Access to modern, reliable and affordable energy is vital to enable growth in the sector; at each step of the value …
The health of humans, animals, and the environment are closely intertwined—human health in particular heavily depends on the health of the others. Unsustainable practices in agriculture, natural resources management, and urbanization, as well as international movement, and the increasing use of antibiotics negatively impact the health of the environment and …
