Environment & Sustainability
Environment & Sustainability
Fair Observer's analysis of the latest debates on climate change, pollution, sustainable development, clean and renewable energy and environmental conservation.
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By Anna RitzThe true value of the Rio+20 conference does not consist of its political outcome. Discussing the political relevance of the outcome document only distracts from the true value of this conference. Conversations and Networking: Connecting the World We all know Forrest Gump. The great and extraordinary man sitting on the bench – alone. I was reminded of that situation when taking a break from the negotiations of the Rio+20 conference to have lunch in the park. Not far from me on a wooden bench was sitting a man, eating his sandwich – alone. I spontaneously approached him to ask whether we might share the bench and have lunch together. As it turned out, the man was Pekka...
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Brazilian agricultural policy exacerbates income inequality and is environmentally unsustainable. Brazil has been considered an emerging regional leader in the international scene. Eyes have been turned to Latin America’s fastest growing economy and there is a tendency to believe that it will become the biggest food provider in the near future. The responsibilities are big and so is the discontent among Brazilians that do not believe sustainable policies are being properly adopted. According to the Ministry of Environment, Brazil is home to the largest biodiversity in the world. 20% of the world’s species live in the tropical country, especially in the Amazon region....
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360° Analysis / climate change / Rio de Janeiro / Rio+20 / Russia / Europe / BRIC / Environment & SustainabilityRussia's Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev spent the majority of Rio 20+ boasting Russia’s progress on carbon emission reductions, while ignoring the nation’s radioactive rivers and the plume of sulfur it belches over Norwegian skies. Despite bringing along a team of several dozen, including President Vladimir Putin’s chief climate advisor Alexander Bedritsky, the Russian negotiating position was focused less on what it can do on an international scale, and more on a laundry list of achievements it has made domestically in the way of sustainable development – which rang off key when balanced with the facts. The importance of Russia’s contribution to the event...
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360° Analysis / climate change / fuel subsidies / Rio de Janeiro / Rio+20 / BRIC / Americas / Environment & SustainabilityThe Rio 20+ earth summit failed to produce an agreement on the reduction of fossil fuel subsidies, which totaled $409bn in 2010 and continues to perpetuate inequalities in global energy consumption. One of the biggest failures of the Rio+20 conference is the lack of concrete measures to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies and other policies that are clearly harmful to the environment. Policy makers dance around precise statistics in this debate, owing to the lack of agreement about the concept of a subsidy. According to the International Energy Agency, in 2010 countries spent 409 billion dollars to lower the price of petroleum, gas and carbon for their citizens. This represented a 36% increase...
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By Trevor CohenIn a world of multiple superpowers, the creation of an Environmental Council may facilitate the difficulties of building global consensus on climate change and sustainable development. At the Rio 20+ Earth Summit, 190 countries will discuss environmental sustainability within the context of development and poverty reduction. The summit is fast approaching and preliminary negotiations have already broken down. In a June 13 pre-meeting, China and the G77 group of developing nations, walked out of a number of sessions. They were in defiance of possible regulations which they felt would severely limit economic expansion and development. Barack Obama, Angela Merkel and David Cameron have even...
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By Trevor CohenA summary of the 2012 Rio 20+ and past environmental forums. Background On June 20-22, 2012, 50,000 delegates representing 190 states descended upon Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to discuss sustainability and development. This years’ summit marked the 20th anniversary of the previous Rio Earth Summit held in 1992. The participating states focused on sustainable development strategies coupled with poverty reduction. The conference also addressed the need for an institutional framework to implement global cooperation. This year’s Rio 20+ outlined seven priority areas: decent jobs, energy, sustainable cities, food security and sustainable agriculture, water, oceans and disaster readiness...
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The potential for the changing climate and associated migration to induce conflict or exacerbate existing instability is now recognized in national security circles. By Michael Werz, Laura Conley North-west Africa is crisscrossed with climate, migration, and security challenges. From Nigeria to Niger, Algeria, and Morocco, this region has long been marked by labor migration, bringing workers from sub-Saharan Africa north to the Mediterranean coastline and Europe. To make the land journey, migrants often cross through the Sahel and Sahel-Saharan region, an area facing increasing environmental threats from the effects of climate change. The rising coastal sea level, desertification, drought,...
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Brazil is potentially an agricultural giant but its farmers are challenged by low competitiveness. Ask anybody at the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, the IMF or even the CIA, and you will get the same answer: Brazil is the country with the highest agricultural potential in the world. At present, however, this potential is compromised by the sector’s high costs and low profitability. Several factors explain this conundrum. First, Brazil’s largest agricultural areas, especially the areas with the highest growth potential, are more than 1,000kms away from existing ports. Railways transport a very small part of agricultural output, with most production reaching the...
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By Kwei Quartey Rather than fostering development, the workings of the oil industry in Ghana seem to be damaging communities and re-routing wealth out of the country. In 2007, substantial oil deposits were discovered in the Jubilee field off the coast of Ghana’s Western Region, and production began in 2010. As a result, Sekondi-Takoradi, the region’s coastal capital, has gained new prominence in a country whose most high-profile urban center has generally been the national capital of Accra. There is already unmanageable congestion at Takoradi Harbor. During my visit to Ghana in March 2012, I was eager to assess the mood of the country in light of its much-touted new oil...