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International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change Annual Report 2012
Posted on: 29 May 2013
By: mackene
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The International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change has published its latest annual report, providing an overview of the programme’s mission and objectives, and highlighting key activities of 2012.
Cities and green growth: Urban evolution. Stockholm, 23-24 May 2013
Posted on: 29 May 2013
By: mackene
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Urbanisation and the shift to a green economy are two of the greatest challenges of our time. This conference considered how cities embrace and meet both of these challenges through green growth. The conference also saw the launch of Green Growth in Cities, the OECD Green Cities Program report, which integrates findings from green growth case studies of cities. The conference elaborated on the potential of cities and regions around the world to foster economic growth and reduce environmental impact through innovative policies and political commitment. A copy of the OECD report and presentations are available online.
Toward global (environ)mental change: Transformative art and cultures of sustainability
Posted on: 15 May 2013
By: mackene
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This paper, published by the Heinrich Böll Foundation, explores the causes of the global sustainability crisis from a unique and interesting angle. It argues that the search for a more sustainable development in the ‘developed’ world has, so far, been focusing too much on hardware updates, such as new technologies, economic incentives, policies and regulations. By doing so we have forgotten about the need for “software revisions”, that is cultural transformations affecting our ways of knowing, learning, valuing and acting together. The paper highlights the potential of art in changing current mindsets and fostering a sensibility to Nature-Culture’s dynamic complexity.
Green economy and trade: Trends, challenges and opportunities
Posted on: 15 May 2013
By: mackene
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A new report from the UN Environment Programme argues that developing countries with abundant renewable resources are well-positioned to capitalize on the opportunities provided by “green” products to increase their share in international markets for sustainable goods and services. The report analyses six economic sectors – agriculture, fisheries, forests, manufacturing, renewable energy and tourism – where trade opportunities exist, and identifies measures, such as policy reforms and certification, that can help developing countries benefit from these markets. These chapters can be downloaded individually.
Reference Framework for European Sustainable Cities
Posted on: 15 May 2013
By: mackene
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The Reference Framework for European Sustainable Cities (RFSC) is an online toolkit designed to help cities promote and enhance their work on integrated sustainable urban development. It is available free of charge to all European local authorities and offers practical support in integrating sustainability principles into local policies and actions. A joint initiative of the Member States, the European Commission and European organizations of local governments, the RFSC gives a common space and language to the community of cities that are interested in learning from each other, while respecting the diversity of local priorities.
Towards transformational change: UNDP’s work in environment and sustainable development 2008-2012.
Posted on: 13 May 2013
By: mackene
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The UN Development Programme’s (UNDP) Environment and Energy Group (EEG) has released a report which features a collection of stories from around the world in four strategic areas: mainstreaming environment and energy; mobilizing environmental finance; promoting adaptation to climate change; and expanding access to environmental and energy services for the poor.
Citizen Commitment to Sustainability 2012-2022 for a more equitable, prosperous and self-sufficient Barcelona
Posted on: 3 May 2013
By: mackene
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In 1995 Barcelona City Council signed the Aalborg Charter, committing it to working in accordance with sustainable development principles. Signing the document was the first step in building a Local Agenda 21 roadmap. Following an extensive consultation process, Barcelona defined its own Agenda 21 in Citizen Commitment to Sustainability 2002-2012, a document which defined principles, objectives and lines of action to move towards a better city. The city has now produced an updated version for the period 2012 – 2022, renewing citizen commitment for the coming decade.
Urban Planning and Economic Development
Posted on: 29 April 2013
By: mackene
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The aims of this journal is to provide educational information and services in urban planning and environmental conservation to an interconnected global community that will both enable individuals and communities to adapt to new holistic techniques and solutions to resolve existing and future urban and environmental issues and foster economic and sustainable development. The latest issue (April 2013) contains articles on: sustainable urban development in India; brownfield redevelopment in the Netherlands; people led mapping process as a tool for bottom-up planning and deepening of democratic values in urban governance: Experience from eastern Indian Cities; and the effects of a late modernization: The case of metropolitan region of Buenos Aires.
City-Level Decoupling: urban resource flows and the governance of infrastructure transitions
Posted on: 25 April 2013
By: mackene
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Building upon previous work of the International Resource Panel on Decoupling Natural Resource Use and Environmental Impacts from Economic Growth, this report examines the potential for decoupling at the city level. While the majority of the world’s population now live in cities and cities are where most resource consumption takes place, both the pressures and potentials to find ways to reconcile economic growth, wellbeing and the sustainable use of natural resources will therefore be greatest in cities. Analysing the role of cities as spatial nodes where the major resource flows connect as goods, services and wastes, the report ‘s focus is how infrastructure directs material flows and therefore resource use, productivity and efficiency in an urban context. It makes the case for examining cities from a material flow perspective, while also placing the city within the broader system of flows that make it possible for it to function. The report also highlights the way that the design, construction and operation of energy, waste, water, sanitation and transport infrastructures create a socio-technical environment that shapes the “way of life” of citizens and how they procure, use and dispose of the resources they require.
7th European Conference on Sustainable Cities & Towns. Geneva, 17-19 April 2013
Posted on: 25 April 2013
By: mackene
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Building upon the conclusions of the previous European Conference on Sustainable Cities & Towns, held in Dunkirk in 2010 and the outcomes of the Rio + 20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development, this event sought to bridge the gaps between environmental, economic and social goals and connect governments, civil society and business through policy and action. The theme of the conference was “A green and socially responsible economy: a solution in time of crisis?” Presentations are available online.
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