The global cost of disasters is growing: The economic burden of disasters is intensifying. While the direct costs of disasters averaged $70–80 billion a year between 1970 and 2000, between 2001 and 2020 these annual costs grew significantly to $180–200 billion. But the real cost is far higher. Disaster costs …
Against the backdrop of the enhanced importance of technology transfer in the context of the ongoing climate change negotiations, the potential of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) as a vehicle for technology transfer has been underscored. This study undertakes an empirical exploration of the extent to which the CDM is …
This new report analyses the challenges and options involved in shifting to a “green economy” based on more efficient and renewable energy technologies, transforming agricultural technologies so as to guarantee food security without further degrading land and water resources, and utilizing technology to adapt to climate change and reduce risks …
Climate change is recognised as one of the most significant threats to development during the 21st Century and beyond. Infrastructure policymakers and practitioners have a crucial role to play in meeting the challenge of climate change in the developing word. This applies both to mitigation, i.e. reducing greenhouse gas emissions …
This article examines cross-border technology transfer between Indian and Danish/German firms in the wind energy industry between 1990 and 2005. The analysis shows the increasing technology gaps between the two sides during this time period, the fragmented and nonperformance-oriented market mechanism, the small market size, the policy inconsistency, the institutional …
This scoping report was developed by a team of expert authors convened and facilitated by Meridian Institute and is the result of an eight-month consultative effort with UNFCCC negotiators and other key stakeholders to help identify the most salient topics and questions to address. The consultation process was facilitated by …
This draft of the National Climate Change Policy for Sri Lanka contains a a vision, mission, goal and a set of guiding principles followed by broad policy statements under Vulnerability, Adaptation, Mitigation, Sustainable Consumption and Production and Knowledge Management. The most demanding challenge for the developing countries today is to …
Note dated 31.3.2011 from the Principal Secretary to Government (RD), Panchayat Raj & Rural Development, Govt. of A.P., Hyderabad on the formulation of a new society under the Societies Act for Community Managed sustainable Agriculture initiative.
This report analyzes technology innovation models from the agriculture, health, and information and telecommunications sectors. Its case studies range from projects like Human Genome Project, to the rise of the mobile phone industry in developing-world markets, to what can be learned from the Global Fund and the Consultative Group on …
The national climate change policy provides a framework for addressing the issues that Pakistan faces or will face in future due to the changing climate. In view of Pakistan’s high vulnerability to adverse impacts of climate, in particular extreme events, adaptation effort is the main focus of this policy document. …
The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), established under the Kyoto Protocol, is the primary international offset program in existence today. It generates offsets through investments in GHG reduction, avoidance, and sequestration projects in developing countries. These offset credits, called Certified Emission Reduction credits (CERs), represent a reduction in one metric ton …
At the United Nations meeting on climate change at Cancun in December 2010, India was confident in its actions and steadfast in its resolve. Contrary to the view expressed by some commentators, a new positive India emerged from Cancun.
Climate change is a natural phenomenon. Anthropogenic climate change has been accelerated by the emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs), primarily from industrialization, deforestation and increased use of fossil fuels for transport. Scientific evidence, as cited by the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), clearly indicates the wide scale of climate …
This paper illustrates the environmental elements of a strategy towards the creation of sustainable enterprises by highlighting impacts on employment of different environmental instruments and policies.
Unlike previous UN climate meets, the 16th Conference of Parties (CoP) held in Cancun in Mexico witnessed very few strong words being tossed between developed and developing countries till this magazine went to press. After Japan’s initial belligerence against any extension of Kyoto Protocol, China has shown surprising malleability for …
The Kyoto Protocol, with its crucial distinction between developed and developing countries, was critically wounded in Copenhagen and has virtually been buried at Cancun. It may be predicted with some confidence that the Kyoto Protocol will be replaced at the next climate change conference in Durban by a single framework …
ADAM VAUGHAN Formal step: Cancun put pledges on emissions by rich nations into UN documentation. Cutting carbon emissions: Scores of rich countries made pledges over the last year to cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 under the Copenhagen accord but they were not incorporated in the official UN process. …
Amitabh Sinha In the first major breakthrough to emerge at the climate change conference in Cancun, an agreement has been reached on creating a new international technology-sharing mechanism that will enable countries, especially poor and the most vulnerable ones, to have easy and cost-effective access to technologies needed to deal …
