In March 2006, in Curitiba, Brazil, the parties to the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) discussed the issue of genetically modified (GM) trees. Some delegates demanded a moratorium on GM trees. Others requested that the CBD produce a report looking at the "potential environmental, cultural, and socio-economic impacts of genetically modified trees".
The CBD produced its report in early December 2007. The report will be discussed during the 13th meeting of the CBD's Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA), in February 2008 in Rome.
Bulletin articles
Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Parties, intergovernmental agencies, conservation NGOs, indigenous peoples and local communities, and civil society organisations will meet in Rome on 11-15 February 2008 to assess implementation of the CBD Programme of Work on Protected Areas (PoWPA) for the period 2004-2007.
Being “carbon neutral” seems to have become fashionable. The World Bank, the Vatican, the World Olympics, the Football World Cup, the Body Shop, the Rolling Stones, and a long list of celebrities proclaim themselves to be totally or partially “carbon neutral”. Even Mercedes Benz recently held in California what was described as “the world’s first ever carbon neutral fashion week”! It is therefore understandable that the New Oxford American Dictionary has proclaimed "carbon neutral" as its Word of the Year for 2006.
During the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Bali, Indonesia, in December 2007, a number of social movements and groups agreed to establish a coalition called Climate Justice Now! in order to enhance exchange of information and cooperation among themselves and with other groups with the aim of intensifying actions to prevent and respond to climate change.
Forestry development in Chile –meaning monoculture tree plantations- is marked by a great imbalance in the distribution of the monetary wealth generated by this industry. The huge profits obtained -subsidized by the Chilean people- enable the economic groups that own these companies to generate enormous wealth, while the population does not receive in exchange any real benefits from this activity.
Most Chilean forestry companies’ plantations are certified, some by FSC and the majority by CERTFOR (a member of PEFC). In round figures, FSC has certified some 350,000 hectares, while CERTFOR has certified approximately 1,600,000 hectares. Given the importance of CERTFOR in Chile, it interesting to analyze it in greater detail.
The 85,000 hectares territory of Woodlark Island in Papua New Guinea’s Milne Bay Province is almost totally covered by dense lowland rainforest -- lowland dry forest on the eastern side and dense jungle on the western side --which is home to several endemic species. Woodlark Island holds unique ebony species which include dark/black, grey and grey/black varieties, - there are no other forests of this type in the world.
Peter George is a farmer. Or, to be more accurate, he used to be a farmer. He bought Elangeni Farm in the cool highveld of Swaziland in the mid-1970s. He grew vegetables along with some eucalyptus and acacia trees. He drove twice a day to the local market to sell his cabbages. He had a few sheep, chickens, two cows and a half-blind sheep dog. After a few years he started a small fish farm, selling to local restaurants and hotels. He built his own house, got married and started a family.
European politicians want to validate the accelerated introduction of agrofuels into the EU countries establishing supposedly sustainable criteria. However, before making full assessments, consulting with the populations involved and establishing these criteria, the obligatory objectives or percentages of agrofuels to be mixed with fossil fuels have already been fixed. The percentages are so high (5.75% until 2010 and 10% until 2020) that many analyses claim that they are impossible to attain.
For the first time in the history of the United Nations Convention on Climate Change, a world wide coalition of women drafted position papers with the women’s and gender perspective on the most pressing issues negotiated at this Convention that took place in Bali, Indonesia from 3 to 14 December. Gender and Climate Change (gender cc), a global alliance of women for climate justice, presented their position papers at a press conference during the Convention and distributed hundreds of copies to government delegates.
For many years, the pulp and paper industry has been trying to paint itself green. No challenge is too big, it seems, for one of the most polluting industries on the planet. Although paper production is a major consumer of energy and a major cause of greenhouse gas emissions, the latest challenge for the industry is to go "carbon neutral". While reducing greenhouse gas emissions may sound like something that we all welcome, this industry-dominated discussion sidesteps the fact that the pulp and paper industry is expanding rapidly, especially in the global South.
In the general public perception, trees are automatically associated with environmental benefits, and there is consumer demand for “cuddly” offset tree-related projects, as opposed to the type of industrial emissions reductions that have dominated the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) market. It is estimated that some 40% of carbon credits generated in the voluntary market comes from tree-related projects.