IW:LEARN News
UNEP-SPC Pacific Islands Freshwater Vulnerability Assessment Report
"Freshwater under Threat – Pacific Islands", written by Mr. David Duncan, Regional Environmental Engineer of the GEF Pacific IWRM Project was recently released by UNEP. The report found that the almost total reliance on rain-fed agriculture across all islands puts economies and livelihoods at risk. Nearly 10% of deaths of children under five in the region are attributable to water related causes; 90% of these deaths, according to the report, can be traced to poor sanitation treatment systems. Click below to download the report.
GEF IW:Science Synopsis and Analysis reports available
The IW:Science Synthesis Report is expected to have a global impact on transboundary waters science and management. The 5 x Synopsis Reports and 5 x Analysis Reports, written according to IW System Type, was made possible through the commitment and dedicated input of the working groups members, co-chairs, project partners and steering committee.
Python in Hydrology
Python in Hydrology is written for learning Python using its applications in hydrology. The book covers the basic applications of hydrology, and also the advanced topic like use of copula.
Ministers of Coral Triangle Countries Eye New Public and Private Partners in Upcoming High-level Financial Roundtable
MANILA, PHILIPPINES --- Ministers and senior officials of Environment, Fisheries, Marine Affairs, and Science from the six countries that surround the richest marine area in the world—known as the Coral Triangle (Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste) will meet with Finance Ministers for the first time at the High-Level Financial Roundtable on 3 May 2012 in Manila to discuss sustainable financing strategies to support the future of the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security.
CaMPAM Announces Learning Exchanges for Best Marine Practices
17 April 2012: The Caribbean Marine Protected Areas Management Network and Forum (CaMPAM) has announced the launch of a project aimed at supporting learning exchanges among marine protected areas (MPA) staff and fishers from the Dominican Republic, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Cuba, and Antigua and Barbuda, as well as other Caribbean countries.
Promoting International Waters at the Forum
In the month of March, Marseille played host to the biggest of our community’s gatherings, the 6th World Water Forum. Some 35,000 practitioners, government representatives, NGOs and various other stakeholders in the water sector convened for the triennial gathering. There were several new commitments made at the Forum to improve global, regional and local management of water resources.
Ministers Adopt Andean Environment Agenda, Water Resources Management Action Plan
11 April 2012: The Andean Community (CAN) has approved the Andean Environmental Agenda (known by its Spanish acronym AAA) for the period 2012-2016, outlining common actions and capacity-building measures regarding climate change, biodiversity and water resources for Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, and the Action Plan for implementing CAN's Andean Strategy for Integrated Management of Water Resources (known by its Spanish acronym GIRH).
Oceania Regional Meeting Prepares for Ramsar COP 11
12 April 2012: The fifth Oceania Regional Preparatory Meeting for the 11th Conference of the Contracting Parties (COP 11) to the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Convention) brought together government representatives and regional partners to share experiences and information, as well as to highlight national case studies of best practice in wetlands conservation.
IOC Assesses Climate Vulnerability of South-West Indian Ocean Islands
13 April 2012: The Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) project on climate change adaptation, titled "Acclimate," has released five assessments of climate change vulnerability in the South-West Indian Ocean islands of the Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, Reunion (France) and the Seychelles. For each case, the reports provide qualitative assessments of climate vulnerability across various sectors including: integrated water management; fisheries; risk and disaster management; energy; food security; and security and sovereignty.
OAS Sponsors Dialogues on Sustainable Development Governance
April 2012: The Organization of American States (OAS) has sponsored a series of thematic "hemispheric dialogues," intended to generate recommendations on institutions and governance for sustainable development to submit to the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20) and the World Congress on Justice, Governance and Law for Environmental Sustainability, both taking place in June 2012.
IW:LEARN organizes the ICT Workshop for LAC region projects
The first regional Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Workshop for 2012 is being organized in Saint Kitts and Nevis on 21-24 May 2012. The workshop aims to help projects in creating and managing a project website using the freely available IW:LEARN Toolkit. Related ICT subjects such as content development and syndication, and new topics as publishing for mobile gadgets and online collaborative data visualization as well as how to use the IW:LEARN Community Workspace will also be covered. The ICT workshop will take place parallel to the 6th Caribbean Environmental Forum in St. Kitts Marriott Resort.
World Wetlands Day 2012: Wetlands and tourism
On February 2nd each year is the World Wetlands Day, the date in which it adopted in 1971 the Wetlands Convention. This celebration in an opportunity to carry out activities to increase public awareness regarding the values of wetlands in the benefits of these ecosystems.
NASA Data Lights Up Times Square to Advertise the Groundwater Crisis
It's World Water Day , and thanks to 19,000 square feet of advertising, the hundreds of thousands of people who have passed through Times Square today should be aware of the decline in global groundwater levels that threatens millions. The data displayed was gathered by NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment ( GRACE ) mission, begun in 2002.
Stockholm Environment Institute report calls for marine carbon offsets and UN Oceans Commissioner to address the issue
Damage to natural services provided by oceans could cost the world $2tr a year by the end of the century if steps to curtail climate change are not taken, a study by the respected Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) said today.
Ecosystem Service Tradeoff Analysis Reveals the Value of Marine Spatial Planning for Multiple Ocean Uses
Marine spatial planning (MSP) is an emerging responsibility of resource managers around the United States and elsewhere. A key proposed advantage of MSP is that it makes tradeoffs in resource use and sector (stakeholder group) values explicit, but doing so requires tools to assess tradeoffs.
Artificial Wetlands Could be Affordable Method of Buffering Agricultural Runoff
Considering that in many areas, natural wetlands have decreased, creating these manmade buffers might be a possible answer to slowing the growth of dead zones, which is expected to increase with the effects of climate change .
Every Drop Matters - Project Guidelines
Inclusive Community Based Water Management and Adaptation to Climate Change Project for Catalyzing Achievement of the MDGs
IDB launches MapAmericas platform to track and visualize results of development projects
New interactive mapping platform revolutionizes the way the Bank and its partners show progress on development work in Latin America and the Caribbean Montevideo - The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) today launched MapAmericas, a new online platform that allows users to easily view and track the results of development projects financed by the Bank and its partner countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).
Conference on Oceans, Climate and Security (GC '12)
Oceans, climate and security are fundamentally related. Scientists and policy-makers across disciplines are raising awareness about the effects of a changing climate on national and human security. Impacts such as ocean acidification and warming, melting polar ice and sea level rise each pose critical threats to human populations, natural systems and global security. Understanding the inter-connectedness between oceans, climate and security is increasingly crucial to our collective future.
CARICOM Heads of Government Approve Climate-Resilient Development Plan, Agree to Hold Pre-Rio+20 Meeting on SIDS Issues
8 March 2012: The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Heads of Government have approved an implementation plan for its Regional Framework for Achieving Development Resilient to Climate Change, and have agreed to hold a special meeting prior to the June 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD or Rio+20) that will seek to ensure that small island developing State (SIDS) concerns are fully acknowledged in the Rio+20 outcome.
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