The IMF’s April 2025 Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa presents a clear warning: regional growth is slowing, debt pressures are mounting, and donor assistance is declining. Yet the report outlines critical opportunities particularly in domestic revenue mobilization, structural reform, and private sector activation that can shape a more resilient …
A small group of ecologists is looking beyond the pristine to study the scrubby, feral and untended. Emma Marris learns to appreciate 'novel ecosystems'.
An oyster reef is an ecological community made up of densely packed oysters (bivalve molluscs). It provides habitat for toadfish, skilletfish and blue crabs. Oysters suck water through gills and suspended tiny organisms and pollutants like nitrogen are trapped in the gills
This annual review highlights the latest major research and innovations in climate change science and technology. It presents a timely synthesis of current understanding of global warming at a critically important time for the United States and the world. The international community is negotiating a new global agreement to reduce …
The objective of this report is to explore the topic of carbon sinks in forest ecosystems, focusing on the issue of REDD. The report covers different angles: an overview of existing financial and methodological initiatives that currently invest in preparation and capacity building of potential REDD host countries, but also …
The main provisions of an Indigenous Peoples Planning Framework (IPPF) have been integrated into the project design, specifically through the Environment and Social Management Framework (ESMF), and the Participatory Process Framework (PF). The PF, applies to, and informs, all project components and activities included under BCRLIP. The PPF incorporates key …
This report documents recent policy innovations for the conservation and management of ecosystem services in China. Policymakers have become increasingly interested in developing new approaches to address China
Over the past decade, scholars have begun to develop the discipline of global environmental ethics. In doing so, they have encountered two obstacles. First, much environmentalism cloaks itself in the discourse of prudence and security, and thus, ethical concerns are difficult to identify. Second, when scholars do recognize ethical issues, …
Large cuts in emissions of greenhouse gases are needed if we are to avoid the worst effects of global climate change. This rapid assessment report describes the vital contributions which ecosystems can and must make to improve these efforts. It presents carbon capture and storage through a Green Economy lens, …
This publication reviews changes in global forest cover and root causes of forest loss, including weak forest governance particularly in public-owned forests. It also highlights innovative practices in conserving forests and securing livelihoods of forest-dependent communities.
This issues paper firstly analyzes the vicious spiral between climate change impacts, ecosystem degradation and increased risk of climate-related disasters; secondly, defines the central role of ecosystem management in climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction and their multifaceted linkages; and thirdly, assesses the challenges for enhanced ecosystem management for …
This paper from the Center for Clean Air Policy (CCAP) explores how models of payment for environmental services (PES) programs could be applied in the context of reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD). The paper discusses a range of key elements and issues that would need to be …
This scoping study report reaches the conclusion that any attempt to advance corporate ecosystem valuation should focus on new ways of valuing ecosystem dependencies and impacts and incorporating these values within existing financial and business planning tools, drawing where relevant on the existing methods that have been developed specifically to …
Climate change has become a major issue in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region. If average temperatures increase as predicted, all aspects of human and natural life will be affected. The mountain regions are particularly vulnerable, both because warming trends are higher and because the impacts are magnified by the extreme changes …
Mapping a Better Future: How Spatial Analysis can Benefit Wetlands and Reduce Poverty in Uganda represents an exciting step forward in both combating poverty and protecting vital ecosystems in Uganda. The pioneering spatial analysis contained in the report provides valuable insights aimed at helping decisionmakers across government target and prioritize …
Protection against coastal disasters has been identified as an important service of mangrove ecosystems. Empirical studies on this service have been criticized, however, for using small samples and inadequately controlling for confounding factors. We used data on several hundred villages to test the impact of mangroves on human deaths during …
