Sustainable Development

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Professor Phillip J. Cooper

What's New?

GAO Issues Report on Humanitarian and Development Assistance
February 9, 2012. The Government Accountability Office has issued a report entitled "Humanitarian and Development Assistance: Project Evaluations and Better Information Sharing Needed to Manage the Military's Efforts." In addition to raising issues about the management and program evaluations of military humanitarian and development assistance programs, the report indicates that "DOD, State, and USAID do not have full visibility over each others' assistance efforts" which the report suggests may mean a "fragmented approach to U.S. assistance." GAO, Highlights page.
Access the GAO report.
Access the GAO Highlights page on the report.

EPA Issues National Toxic Release Inventory
January 6, 2012. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has released the 2010 Toxic Release Inventory. The agency has released an overview document and created a website with a variety of other data and analytic items. This report celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act which was enacted as Title III of the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorication Act, P.L. 99-499 (1986) and is codified at 42 U.S.C. 11001-11050.
   Access the NTR Overview.
   Access the EPA National Toxic Release Inventory Website.
   Read the Congressional Research Service Summary Report on the Statute from 2010 .
   Read the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act.

The EPA Has Finalized Its Standards for Mercury and Toxic Air Pollutants from Power Plants
December 29, 2011. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has issued the long-awaited standards for Mercury and Toxic Air Pollutants. The President also issued a memorandum directing flexible implementation of those standards.
   Read the EPA Press Release.
   Access the EPA Mercury and Air Toxic Standards Website.
   EPA Fact Sheet Summary.
   Access the Presidential Memorandum on Flexible Enforcement of the EPA rules.

Durban Climate Change Conference Extends Kyoto and Launches New Process
December 11, 2011. The United Nations Climate Change Conference, Durban 2011, has concluded with an agreement to extend the Kyoto agreement while a process to produce a new agreement is completed. The final documents are not yet available, but the conference materials and the site for documents is provided below.
   Access the UN Durban Conference Website.
   Access the Cancun Agreements 2010.
   Access Bali Action Plan 2007.
   Access the Kyoto Protocol 1998.

UNEP Issues Early Part of GEO-5 Report
November 8, 2011. The United Nations Environment Programme has issued a report entitled Keeping Track of Our Changing Environmnet: From Rio to Rio+20 (1992-2012). As the report explains, this is meant to be an update on a variety of data and key measures since the Rio earth summit, but is also part of the GEO-5 process, the final report for which is due in May 2012.
Access the Keeping Track of Our Changing Environment report.
Access the GEO process website.

World Bank 2012 World Development Report Focuses on Gender Equality and Development
November 8, 2011. The World Bank has released it 2012 World Development Report entitled Gender Equality and Development. World Bank President Robert Zoelick explained in the foreword to the report that: "The main message of this year's World Development Report: Gender Equality and Development is that these patterns of progress and persistence in gender equality matter, both for development outcomes and policy making. They matter because gender equality is a core development objective in its own right. But greater gender equality is also smart economics, enhancing productivity and improving development outcomes, including prospects for the next generation and for the quality of societal policies and institutions. Economic development is not enough to shrink all gender disparities -- roeective policies that focus on persisting gender gaps are essential." He explains: "This Report points to four priority areas for policy going forward. First, reducing gender gaps in human cpaital -- specifically those that address demaile mortality and education. Second, closing gender gaps in access to economic oportunities, earnings, and productivity. Third, shrinking gender differences in voice and agency within society. Fourth, limiting the reproduction of gender inequality across generations. These are all areas where higher incomes by themselves do little to reduce gender gaps, but focused policies can have a real impact."
   Read the Full 2012 Report.
   Read 2012 Report "Overview" document.
   Access the report "Main Messages" document.

UN Recognizes 7 Billion Population Mark
November 1, 2011. The United Nations Population Division designated October 31, 2011 as the estimated date when the world population would pass the 7 billion mark. As the Population Division explained in answer to a frequently asked question concerning how officials would know when the 7 billion mark would be reached, "The 31st October is a symbolic date, which is based on interpolated data from the original 5-year period estimates prepared by the Population Division." Population Division FAQ page. The division estimates based on its 2010 data that the population will reach 8 billion on 15 June 2025, 9 Billion on 18 February 2043, and 10 Billion on 18 June 2083.
Access the UN Population Division FAQ site.
Access the "World Population Prospects, the 2010 Revision" site and date.

Report on Causes of Deep Water Horizon Oil Platform Blowout Released
September 14, 2011. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement of the U.S. Department of the Interior has issued the report of the investigation conducted by the Bureau and the Coast Guard Joint Investigation Team into the causes both direct and indirect of the Deep Water Horizon oil platform blowout in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. For more information on the findings and the documents themselves, see the Public Law, Policy, and Public Administration page of this website.

Conflict In Obama Administration Over Proposed Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards
September 3, 2011. The White House has announced the action by Case Sunstein, Director of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) in the Office of Management and Budget, in calling on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to pull back its proposed Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards and reconsider them in 2013. In an unusual move, the president announced the administration's action. It is likely that this action will be challenged by environmentalists in further legal action.
   Read Statement by the President on the Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards.
   Read Sunstein OIRA letter to EPA re Proposed Ozone Standards.
   Read the EPA press release in response to the administration action.

Federal District Court Rejects Latest Salmon Plan
August 3, 2011. Judge James A. Redden of the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon has submitted the latest federal plan to deal with endangered salmon and steelhead in the Columbia and Snake rivers.
Access the opinion and order.

U.S. EPA Issues New Cross-State Air Pollution Rule
July 7, 2011. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has issued a new Cross-State Air Pollution Rule. The agency presss release explained that: "Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule that protects the health of millions of Americans by helping states reduce air pollution and attain clean air standards.
Access EPA Powerpoint Presentation on the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule.
Access EPA Press Release.

UN Publishes Economic and Social Survey Results
July 5, 2011. The United Nations has issued its 2011 Economic and Social Survey entitled "World Economic and Social Survey 2011:The Green Technology Transformation."
Read the overview.
Access the full report.

Supreme Court Rejects State Pollution Suit Against Power Plants
June 20, 2011. Writing for a unanimous Supreme Court (Justice Sotomayor not participating) in No. 10-174, American Electric Power Co. v. Connecticut, Justice Ginsburg rejected the efforts by several states, the City of New York, and other parties to bring a federal common law nuisance suit to abate carbon dioxide emissions from power plants. "We hold that the Clean Air Act and the EPA actions it authorizes displace any federal common law right to seek abatement of carbon-dioxide emissions from fossil-fuel fired power plants." Slip opinion at 10.
Read the opinion.

Commission on Wartime Contracting Holds Hearing on Post-Conflict Work by NGOs and PRTs in Afghanistan
April 25, 2011. On April 11, the Commission on Wartime Contracting held a hearing entitled NGOs' Lessons for Contingencies which is part of its ongoing investigations into contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan. Witnesses from NGO's operating in Afghanistan included Matthew McGarry, Country Manager, Catholic Relief Services; Sue Dwyer, Vice President, International Rescue Committee; Michael Bowers, Regional Program Director for South Asia, Mercy Corps; Michael Klosson, Vice President, Save the Children; and Beth Cole, Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, U.S. Institute of Peace. In 2010 a white paper titled "Being Smart about Development in Afghanistan," from several NGOs attending the hearing, stressed development work to include community-driven efforts, accountability, impartiality and local sustainability as keys for successful development initiatives. (NOTE: The reason that the white paper itself is not posted here is that the organizations that produced it have not authorized its release for publication or Internet distribution.)
   Access the press release on the hearing.
   Access the video/audio of the hearing.
   Access the statement of Matt McGarry, Outgoing Afghanistan Country Manager, Catholic Relief Services.
   Access the statement of Anne C. Richard, Vice President, Government Relations and Advocacy.
   Access the statement of Michael Bowers, Regional Program Director for South Asia, Mercy Corps.
   Access the statement of Michael Klosson, Vice President, Save the Children.
   Access the statement of Beth Cole, Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, U.S. Institute of Peace.

Obama Administration Implementing New Development Strategy
February 1, 2011. Starting in the fall of 2010, the Obama administration released two sets of policy documents to guide development policy that included the Presidential Policy Directive on Global Development and the State's Department's first Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review.
   Access the Fact Sheets on the PDD.
   Read the the State Department QDDR full report.
   Read the QDDR Executive Summary.
   Access the State Department News Conference on the Release of the new policies.

EPA Moves Forward on Greenhouse Gas Emissions Regulation
December 31, 2010. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced that it is moving forward with implementation of its obligations to regulate greenhouse gases that contribute to globale warming under the Clean Air Act from fuel-fired power plants and refineries through steps laid out in two consent agreements signed by the agency to resolve litigation. The agency explained in its press release on the new regulations that "Under today's agreement, EPA will propose standards for power plants in July 2011 and for refineries in December 2011 and will issue final standards in May 2012 and November 2012, respectively."
   Access the EPA web page on air quality planning and standards.
   Read the EPA consent agreements.
   Access the EPA Press Release on the steps announced.
   Access .

Interior Department Issues a New Drilling Moratorium
July 13, 2010. The Department of the Interior has issued a new deep water drilling moratorium to replace the one that has was blocked by a federal district court injunction. The moratorium comes in the form of a decision memorandum from Secretary Salazar to Michael R. Bromwich who is the Director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management , Regulation and Enforcement.
   The federal government had unsuccessfully appealed to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, seeking a stay of the original order issued by U.S. District Judge Martin L. C. Feldman of the Eastern District of Louisiana against the first federally imposed moratorium on deep water drilling in the case of Hornbeck Offshore Services v. Salazar, Civ. No. 10-1663.
   Read Secretary Salazars Decision Memorandum of July 12.
   Access the Federal Government Motion for Stay Pending Appeal.
   Access the District Court's Order and Reasons.
   Access the District Court Order.

Supreme Court Rules in Roundup Ready Alfalfa Case
June 21, 2010. The Supreme Court has issued a ruling written by Justice Alito in Monsanto v. Geertson Seed Farms, reversing a lower court injunction that blocked planting of Roundup Ready Alfalfa pending the resolution of disputes under the National Environmental Policy Act. The plant is genetically modified to allow the use of the herbicide in the field without damage to the crop. This case and the Supreme Court's opinion focused on the remedy, in this case the injunction, issued by the district court in the case. It is not, as some reports have suggested, a broad ruling in support of the decisions of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
Justice Stevens issued a lone dissent in the case in which began by noting: "The Court does not dispute the District Court's critical findings of fact: First, Roundup Ready Alfalfa (RRA) can contaminate other plants. . . Second, even planting in a controlled setting had led to contamination in some instances. . . . Third, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has limited ability to monitor or enforce liminations on planting. . . And fourth, genetic contamination from RRA could decimate farmers' livelihoods and the American alfalfa market for years to come. . . . Instead, the majority faults the District Court for 'enjoining APHIS from partially deregulating RRA." Stevens dissent, slip op. at 1.
Access the Monsanto v. Geertson Seed Farms opinion.

National Research Council Issues Climate Change Reports
May 20, 2010. The National Research Council has issued a series of reports on the climate change as well as a video entitled America's Climate Choices. These reports can be ordered or read online through the National Academies Press. There are downloadable summary reports on the site as well.
   Access Advancing the Science of Climate Change.
   Access Adapting to the Impacts of Climate Change.
   Access Limiting the Magnitude of Future Climate Change.
   Access the video America's Climate Choices.

UN Planning in Progress for Rio+20 Summit in 2012
May 1, 2010. The UN General Assembly approved has approved a resolution for a Rio+20 conference to be held in 2012. The summit is now in the early planning stages with the first prepcom meeting to take place this month.
Access the Earth Summit 2012 website.

Recent Study Addresses Ongoing Impacts on 9/11 Rescue Workers
April 11, 2010. A group of researchers has published a study of over 12,000 New York Fire Department personnel who worked at rescue and recovery efforts at ground zero following the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center that has found continuing significant lung function impacts. The study concludes: "Exposure to World Trade Center dust led to large declinges in FEV1 [Forced Expiratory Volume] for FDNY rescue workers during the first year. Overall, these declines were persistent, without recovery over the next 6 years, leaving a substantial proportion of workers with absnormal lung function." Thomas K. Aldrich, et al., "Lung Function in Rescue Workers at the World Trade Center after 7 Years," New England Journal of Medicine, 362 (No. 14, April 8, 2010): 1263.
Read the New England Journal of Medicine Article.

EPA AND DOTProduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards
April 1, 2010. The Environmental Protection Agency together with the Department of Transportation has issued a final rule controlling greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles under the Clear Air Act. This issue has been pending since the Supreme Court ruling during the George W. Bush administration mandating action by EPA under the Clear Act provisions.
   Read the Prepublication Version of the Final Rule.
   Access the EPA website with documents.
   Read EPA Press Release.

Afghanistan Special Inspector General Issues Report to Congress
January 31, 2010. The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction has issued the latest report for Congress, highlighting a series of challenges. (NOTE: The report is a large file.)
Access the SIGAR January 30 report to Congress.
Access the SIGAR website.

EPA Proposes New Smog Standards
January 10, 2010. The U.S. Environmental Proection Agency had issued a proposed rule setting new standards for smog. Three public hearings have been scheduled with two to be held on February 2, 2010 in Arlington, Virginia and Houston, Texas and the other scheduled for February 4 in Sacramento, California. The EPA announced on its website, (though not in the Federal Register as a notice of proposed rulemaking) on September 16, 2009 that it was reconsidering the 2008 standards for ground level ozone.
Read the proposed rule as EPA issued it -- now awaiting publication in the Federal Register.
Read September 16 announcement.

Great Lakes States Battle Over Efforts to Block Invasive Asian Carp
January 3, 2010. The states of Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin have filed suit against Illinois and the Metropolitan Sanitary District of Greater Chicago, seeking to reopen a Supreme Court ruling on Great Lakes protection in order to address the apparent threat from the dramatic spread of the invasive species known as the Asian Carp. The existing decree that the complaining states seek to modify was first issued in Wisconsin v. Illinois, 388 U.S. 426 (1967), later modified in Wisconsin v. Illinois, 449 U.S. 48 (1980). The United States has intervened as a defendant in the case.
   The focus of the case is the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal which was built a century ago to connect the Chicago, the Des Plaines, and the Illinois rivers with Lake Michigan. While the canal was constructed to cause water and waste to flow away from rather than into the lake, the carp have now manged to find their way upstream to near the intake from the lake, threatening their spread into the Great Lakes. Although the Corps of Engineers and Illinois authorities put in electrical barriers and even poisoned the waters, there is evidence that the carp, which displace native species because of their voracious consumption patterns and pose dangers because of their size and behavior, are very near the entry point into the lake.
   The complaining states, led by the Attorney General of Michigan have brought the case on grounds of common law nuisance, alleging that the failure of Illinois and the federal government to take adequate actions to protect against the spread of the fish interferes with the rights of other Great Lakes states. Wisconsin v. Illinois, Nos. 1-3 Original, Complaint, at 22.
   This case comes not long after the Great Lakes states entered into a new interstate compact, known as the "Great Lakes -- St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact," approved by the Congress and President in 2008. In addition, the states entered into a "good faith agreement" entitled the "Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Sustainable Water Resources Agreement."
   Read the Motion to Reopen (The Basic Argument for the Petitioners).
   Read the Motion for a Preliminary Injunction.
   Read the Appendix.
   Read P.L. 110-342, the approval of the Great Lakes compact of 2008.
   Read the good faith agreement, Great Lakes--St. Lawrence River Basin Sustainable Water Resources Agreement.

EPA Issues Climate Change Endangerment Finding on the Eve of Copenhagen Summit
December 7 15, 2009. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has issued its long awaited "endangerment" finding with respect to climate change and greenhouse gases. The finding, which will be published in the Federal Register, was issued by the agency today. The EPA announced: "The Administrator finds that six greenhouse gases taken in combination endanger both the public health and the public welfare of current and future generations. The Administrator also finds that the combined emissions of these greenhouse gases from new motor vehicles and new motor vehicle engines contribute to the greenhouse gas air pollution that endangers public health and welfare under CAA section 202(a)." Endangerment and Cause or Contribute FIndings for Greenhouse Gases Under Section 202(a) of the Clean Air Act," RIN 2060-ZA14. The agency also published a "Technical Support Document" to accompany the findings.
   Read the Finding.
   Read the Technical Support Document Issued with the Finding.
   Access the EPA Climate Change page on the process .
   Read the EPA Press Release on the findings.

UNICEF Issues Report on Maternal and Child Nutrition
November 15, 2009. A report released this week by UNICEF warns of critical problems of malnutrition among children and their mothers The report, entitled Tracking Progress on Child and Maternal Nutrition: A Survival and Development Priority, warns that more than 200 million children under 5 suffer from chronic undernutrition and a third of all dealths of children under 5 result from that cause.
Read the UNICEF Report.

Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Sends Kerry-Boxer Energy Bill to the Full Senate
November 5, 2009. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee could not consider amendments to the bill since minority party members boycotted the scheduled markup, but it has sent S. 1733 Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act, also known as the Kerry-Boxer Bill to the full Senate with one "no" vote. Senator Baucus (D., MT) voted against the bill, promising to seek changes in the bill going forward that he will support. This follows the passage in the House of the Waxman-Markey bill H.R. 2454.
   There are a number of other bills in other committees dealing with the issue. Senators John Kerry (D, MA), Lindsey Graham (R,SC), and Joe Lieberman (I,CT) held a news conference November 4, indicating that they were working with the leadership and the six committees with jurisdiction on energy legislation and the White House on a final bill for debate on the Senate floor.
   Access the Chairman's Mark of S. 1773.
   Access the 10/23/2009 changes to the Chairman's Mark.
   Access the EPA Analysis of S. 1733.
   Read the Committee Staff Summary of Allowance Allocations under S. 1733.
   Access H.R. 2454 Waxman-Markey.

The Afghanistan Electoral Complaints Commission Issues Audit Reports
October 19, 2009. The Afghanistan Electoral Complaints Commission has issued its audit report on allegations of fraud in the national elections.
   Access the primary press release on the audit in English.
   Access the Commission Formal Decisions on Each Question.
   Access the Afghanistan Electoral Complaints Commission English Language website.
   Access the audit reports and press releases.
   Access the United Nations Development Program Elections Project website.

U.S. EPA Announces Greenhoue Gas Reporting Rule and Proposes Prevention of Significant Deterioration and Title V Greenhouse Gas Tailoring Rules
September 30, 2009. The U.S. EPA has issued a final rule creating a greenhouse gas reporting system that will go into effect in January 2010.
   The agency has also just announced a proposed rule aimed a limiting greenhouse gas emissions. The proposed rules are intended to require new permits and limitations on large greenhouse gas emitters. It comes at a time when legislation on the subject, entitled the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act sponsored by Senators Boxer and Kerry, is facing difficulties in the Senate and the Obama administration is preparing to participate in the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit in December.
   Final Rule on Greenhouse Gas Reporting System Rule Preamble.
   EPA page with all rule documents on the Greenhouse Gas Reporting System rule.
   Access the EPA press release on the new program.
   Read the fact sheet on the proposed rule.
   Read the EPA press release on the proposed rule.
   Access the Prevention of Significant Deterioration and Title V Greenhouse Gas Tailoring Rules.
   Read the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act as proposed.

Copenhagen Climate Change Conference Online
September 30, 2009. The Cophenhagen Climate Change Conference website is now available with news and conference information available in the runup to the meeting scheduled for December 7-18, 2009.
Access the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference Website.

World Bank President Suggests Changed Power Relations as a Result of Economic Crisis
September 29, 2009. World Bank President Robert B. Zoellick explained in a speech yesterday at Johns Hopkins University entitled "After the Crisis" that: "The global economic crisis is contributing to shifts in power relations in the world that will impact currency markets, monetary policy, trade relations and the role of developing countries." World Bank press release. Zoellick suggests what he termed a "multipolarity" in the post-crisis economic order with the U.S. and the U.S. economic, the currency, and the U.S. government not playing the same kind of dominant role as in the past. He also advocated what he termed "responsible globalization." He concluded: "Coming out of this crisis, we have an opportunity to reshape our policies, architecture, and institutions. We have an opportunity to craft a new global system for a 21st Century of 'Responsible Globalization' one that would encourage balanced global growth and financial stability, embrace global efforts to counter climate change, and advance opportunity for the poorest. It means expanding the benefits of open markets and trade, investments, competition, innovation, entrepreneurialism, growth, information -- and debates on ideas. It must be a globalization that is both inclusive and sustainable -- expanding opportunity with care for the environment.
   Read the "After the Crisis" Speech.
   Access the World Bank press release on the speech.
   View the CSPAN Video of the Speech.

Pittsburgh G-20 Conference Reportedly Replaces G-8 as Primary International Conference Body
September 26, 2009. The G-20 leaders have issued what is termed the "Leaders' Statement of the Pittsburgh Summit," announcing the broad policy positions agreed to at the summit, including the decision that the G-20 will replace the G-8 as the primary forum for global discussion of key economic development issues. The statement indicates that: "We designated the G-20 to be the premier forum for our international economic cooperation. We established the Financial Stability Board (FSB) to include major emerging economies and welcome its efforts to coordinate and monitor progress in strengthening financial regulation." Id. at 3. The White House had announced earlier that the G-20 would replace the G-8 as the primary forum for global discussion of key economic development issues.
   The G-8 consists of United States, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Russia. That body will continue, but will not be the primary focal point for international economic development planning. The G-20 includes Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States of America, and a representative of the European Union. The G-20 will meet next in Canada in 2010.
   Read the "Leaders' Statement" from the G-20 Summit.
   Access the G-20 Website.
   Access the White House Statement on the G-20 Repositioning.

UN Produced Convention on Ship Recycling
July 6, 2009. The UN International Maritime Organization (IMO) has adopted the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships. The final preparation of the document for ratification is being completed and goes to member states for ratification consideration. Sixty-seven countries signed the document on May 15, 2009. It has been under development since 2005. There are still ongoing debates about the convention and the regulations and guidelines proposed for its implementation. Efforts to adopt an international agreement in this area followed on criticism of the manner in which ship recycling has been done, most often in developing countries both as to the effects of the activity on the workers and also on the environment.
Read the Lloyd's Register Summary of the Convention.
Access the IMO Conference Resolutions.

UNEP Reorganizes Post-Conflict and Post-Disaster Operations
June 6, 2009. The United Nations Environment Program has completed the reorganization of its units tasked with post-conflict and post-disaster action into one organization known as the Post-Conflict and Disaster Management Branch which has its headquarters in Geneva. That reorganization process began in 2007. The websites for the two units have been merged and redesigned. As the branch explains its responsibilities, "UNEP provides four core services to Member States: Post-crisis environmental assessments, Post-crisis environmental recovery, Environmental cooperation for peacebuilding,Disaster risk reduction."
   The branch, in cooperation with the Expert Advisory Group on Environment, Conflict and Peacebuilding, created in February 2008, and the United Nations Peacebuilding Commission which it supports, have produced a report entitled From Conflict to Peacebuilding: The Role of Natural Resources and the Environment which is an analysis and presentation of 13 case studies.
   Access the Branch Homepage.
   Access the Commission Homepage.
   Read From Conflict to Peacebuilding.

UNESCO Releases Report on Indigenous Ways of Knowing and Learning
May 13, 2009. The UN ESCO has published a volume edited by Peter Bates, Moe Chiba, Sabine Kube, and Doulas Nakashima entitled Learning and Knowing in Indigenous Societies Today (Paris: UNESCO, 2009). It is a product of their work in the Local and Indigenous Knowledge Systems (LINKS) Programme.
   This programme is separate from the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII). The UNPFII published last year a Toolkit for Indigenous Peoples' Issues.
   Access the Report.
   Access the LINKS Website.
   Access the ToolKit on Indigenous Peoples' Issues.
   Access the UNPFII Homepage

Press Releases Industry Group Documents on Global Warming
April 26, 2009. The New York Times and Washington Post have released documents provided by attorneys for environmental groups involved in litigation on global climate change, demonstrating that, like the case of tobacco politics, the groups and the industry they supported, and that provided their resources, knew that the warnings of danger of global warming were correct, but persisted in arguing that there was not a problem, at least not one that was significantly caused by human activity. The memorandum stated: "Can human activites affect climate? The scientific basis for the Greenhouse Effect and the potential impact of human emissions of greenhose gases such as CO2 is well established and cannot be denited." Gregory J. Dana to AIAM Technical Committee, 1/18/1996 "Global Climate Coalition - (GCC): Primer on Climate Change Science - FInal Draft, " pp. 1-2. The memorandum that made this point clear is provided in the link below. The material that acknowledged the global warming was later removed from the document that then went forward as support for industry resistance to global climate change science. There is an ongoing dispute as to which organization or persons removed the information.
Access .

EPA Proposes Endangerment Finding on Greenhouse Gas Emissions Under Clean Air Act
March 23, 2009. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has submitted a proposed endangerment finding for greenhouse gas emissions associated with global warming to the Office of Management and Budget for regulatory review. This is the first step in adopting the rules under the Clean Air Act that the Bush administration had refused to issue, a decision then overturned by the Supreme Court in Massachusetts v. EPA. The Bush administration did not take further action as required by the Court during its tenure in office. The new EPA appears ready to do so. The RIN number is 2060-ZA14 and the proposed rule was submitted on March 20, 2009. The next step after OMB review would be publication in the Federal Register.
Access the regulatory review information on RegInfo.gov.

President Calls for Expedited Issuance of Energy Efficiency Standards
February 6, 2009. President Obama has issued a memorandum to the Secretary of Energy with respect to Appliance Efficiency Standards. The Bush administration had delayed issuance of the standards required by statute and ultimately entered into a consent decree, agreeing to a schedule by which it would issue the standards but allowing several years to accomplish the task. The presidential memorandum calls upon the Energy Department to expedite the process and get the standards out ahead of the consent decree requirements.
Access the memorandum.

Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction Prepares "Hard Lesson" Report
December 14, 2008. The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction has now published the final version of its report entitled Hard Lessons: The Iraq Reconstruction Experience which details a history of problems with the plans and implementation of those plans after the invasion of Iraq and replacement of its previous regime. The report is scheduled to be completed and formally released in February at hearings to be held by the Commission on Wartime Contracting. (The report is over 500 pages in length and is a large file. Also, there are three separate links for the body of the report, the endnotes, and the cover on the SIGIR Hard Lessons webpage at the link below.)
   The Commission on Wartime Contracting was created at the sponsorship of Senators James Webb (D,VA) and Claire McCaskill (D,MO) as part of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2008. President Bush issued a signing statement at the time of passage of the legislation, suggesting that the administration would not cooperate with some oversight related provisions of the statute such as the commission, but the body has been moving forward with its work.
   Access the Hard Lessons report from the SIGIR website.
   Access the SIGIR website.
   Information on creation of the Commission on Wartime Contracting from Senator Webb's website.
   Read the President's Signing Statement on H.R. 4986.
   Read the National Defense Authorization Act.

U.S. Department of Interior Issues Controversial Changes to Endangered Species Act Decision Process
December 12, 2008. The Secretary of Interior has announced publication of final rules that change the process for decisionmaking on Endangered Species Act determination which currently requires a process of consultation with agency experts. The secretary referred to these as relatively minor changes in the process while environmental groups argue that it is a dramatic weakening of the process and avoid criticisms from key experts. Secretary Kempthorne specifically pointed to the process for determining the status of polar bears as the impetus for the changes, asserting that while listing the polar bear was a correct decision, the administration determined at the time that it was necessary to make "modifications to the existing regulation to provide greater certainty that this listing will not set a backdoor climate change policy outside our normal system of political accountability." The The final rules have not yet appeared in the Federal Register, but the document is available on the Department of Interior website at the link below.
Access the Department of Interior Final Rule.
Read the secretary's statement on release of the rule.

GAO Calls for Better Interagency Oversight and Cooperation of GMO Crops
December 8, 2008. The Government Accountability Office has issued a report calling on the Food & Drug Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to work together more effectively to ensure oversight and effective policy implementation of matters related to genetically modified crops. The report follows unauthorized releases into the environment of GMO material and a finding that the relevant agencies do not have solid data on the number and types of releases.
Access the GAO report.

UNEP Issues "Brown Cloud" Report
November 14, 2008. The United Nations Environment Programme has released a report on Atmospheric Brown Clouds: Regional Assessment Report with Focus on Asia which examines the phenomenon of atmospheric brown clouds (ABCs) that have had a range of significant and troublesome impacts. The report highlights particular prevalence and harmful effects of ANCs in Asia. The report finds that: "The absorbtion of solar radiation by the surface and the atmosphere is the fundamental driver for the physical climate system, the biogeochemical cycles, and for all life on the panet. . . . It is certain that ABCs have caused dimming at the surface. It is certain that soot in ABCs has increased solar heating of the atmosphere. It is virtually certain that India and China are dimmer (at the surface) today by at least 6 per cent, compared with the pre-industrial values. Absorbed solar radiation at the surface in China and India are lower today . . . compared with pre-industrial values. It is highly likely that black carbon in ABCs has increased the vertically averaged annual mean solar absorption in the troposphere." Summary for Policymakers, p. 4/
Access the UNEP Brown Cloud report Summary for Policymakers.

GAO Reports on Status of GSA's Implementation Green Building Requirements of the Energy Independence and Security Act
November 3, 2008. The Government Accountability Office has provided the relevant committees of Congress with a report on Implementation of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA). The memorandum explains that: "According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, buildings in the United States account for 68 percent of its total energy consumption. In December 2007, Congress enacted the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) to, among other things, increase energy efficiency and the availability of renewable energy in federal buildings. Specifically, the act established new energy-related requirements and standards for federal buildings and for the agencies that oversee them. For example, it required the General Services Administration (GSA) to establish an Office of Federal High-Performance Green Buildings to coordinate green building information and activities within GSA and with other federal agencies." p, 1. The link to the first report on implementation is provided below.
Read the GAO memorandum.

United Nations Development Programme Issues Asia/Pacific Human Development Report
October 20, 2008. The UNDP Human Development Report Unit in Colombo has issued a new Asia/Development Human Development Report entitled Tackling Corruption, Transforming Lives: Accelerating Human Development in Asia and the Pacific. The report takes as a point of departure the fact that 140 countries are now signatories to to UN Convention Against Corruption and, in addition to providing the base line data and information that are expected from a UNDP human development report, focuses on a seven part action agenda to press forward with the commitments from the UNCAC. It includes efforts to "join with international efforts, establish benchmarks of quality, strengthen the civil service, encourage codes of conduct in the private sector, establish the right to information, exploit new technology, and support citizen action." p. 13.
Read Asia/Pacific Human Development report.

California Adopts SB 375 Aimed at Encouraging Sustainable Communities and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction
October 1, 2008. The California legislature has passed and Governor Schwarzenegger has signed SB 375 concerned with "transportation planning,: travel demand models; sustainable communities strategy; environmental review." This statute is meant to follow and build on AB 32 adopted in which established state greenhouse gas emission standards. The new legislation seeks to encourage land use planning and sustainable community development by linking housing, transportation, and land use planning.
   Access California SB 375.
   Access the governor's press release on signing SB 375.
   Access AB 32 of 2006.

Government Accountability Identifies Barriers to Enhanced Carbon Capture and Storage Efforts
October 1, 2008. The U.S. Government Accountability Office has identified a variety of barriers that stand in the way of plans for enhanced carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a part of the effort to address global warming.
Read the GAO report.

Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction Issues Report on Parsons Contract Performance
July 28, 2008. The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction has issued a report entitled "Outcome, Cost, and Oversight of the Security and Justice Contract with Parsons Deleware, Inc."
Access the SIGIR report.

U.S. Government Accountability Office Issues Report on Millennium Challenge Corp. Procedures
June 30, 2008. The GAO has issued a report entitled "Millennium Challenge Corporation: Independent Reviews and Consistent Approaches Will Strengthen Projections of Program Impact." The report raises questions about the standards and methodologies used to calculate performance measures for the countries with which the MCC engages in a compact for assistance. The MCC acknowledged the criticisms and has indicated that it would incorporate the recommendations.
Access the GAO report.

Afghanistan Releases Its Afghanistan Development Strategy Documents
May 28, 2008. Afghanistan has released its new Afghanistan Development Strategy for 2008-2013.
   Access the Website for the Strategy.
   Access the Full Report in English.
   Access the Executive Summary in English.

The GAO Issues Report on Somalia Efforts
March 4, 2008. The U.S. Government Accountability Office has issued a report on efforts to date by the international community and the U.S. to assist Somalia not only with its current crisis but with development for the future.
Access the GAO report.

U.S. Enacts New Energy Legislation
December 19, 2007. Congress has adopted and the president has signed the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, H.R. 6. The legislation addresses a wide range of issues from auto fuel economy standards to the use of ethanol and alternative energy research. [NOTE: This is a very large file (over 800 pages in pdf) and may be most accessible by downloading the file and then opening.]
. Access the Energy Legislation.

United Nations Climate Change Conference Reaches Agreement Joined by U.S. on Bali Roadmap
December 15, 2007. The U.N. Secretariat for the Framework Convention on Climate Change has issued documents laying our the provisions of what is being called the "Bali Roadmap. This roadmap describes set of agreements that are to provide a foundation for negotiations leading to Copenhagen in 2009, where the world's nations are to reach final agreement on a formal replacement for the Kyota Protocol. The anticipated replacement for Kyoto is scheduled to go into effect by 2012. The Decisions and Documents page link below accesses the key decision documents. The UN Framework Convention page is provided since it has the Protocol and related materials.
   Access the Conference Press Release.
   Access the Bali Action Plan.
   Access the Bali Decisions and Documents.
   Access the Bali Conference Website.
   Access the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change Website.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Issues "Synthesis" Report, Completing Fourth Assessment of Global Climate Change
November 17, 2007. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climiate Change has issued a Synthesis Report, the fourth in a series of reports on global climate change issues in 2007. The first of these reports was issued by working group I and was entitled Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. The second was prepared by working group II Climate Change 2007: Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. The third was the product of working group III, Climate Change 2007: Mitigation of Climate Change, on strategies to address global warming. These reports, as well the previous reports issued by the panel, are available at the links below. (NOTE: Some of the reports are large files and are best downloaded and opened offline. The report links go to the IPCC page for each full report, but the files are then provided chapter by chapter.)
    Read the Synthesis Report, Summary for Policymakers.
    Read the Mitigation of Climate Change, Summary for Policymakers.
    Read the Mitigation of Climate Change report, Full Report.
    Read the Climate Change 2007: Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, Summary for Policymakers.
    Read the Climate Change 2007: Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, Full Report.
    Read The Physical Basis, Summary for Policymakers.
    Read The Physical Basis, Full Report.
    Access the IPCC Home Page.

FERC Issues Environmental Impact Statement on Klamath River Dams
November 17, 2007. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has issued a final Environmental Impact Statement on Klamath River dams which requires some mitigation efforts to deal with burdens on fish populations, but concludes that the dams should be relicensed. For more information and links, go to the Oregon page of this website.

United Nations Issues Long-Awaited GEO-4 Report
October 28, 2007. The United Nations Environmental Programme has issued its long-awaited Global Environmental Outlook 4 report. The links to the report and to the report that provides chapter by chapter access and versions in different languages. This page also provides below under International Documents, all of the previous GEO reports and the updates that have been issued since the GEO-3 report.
   . Access the GEO-4 Report website.
   . Access the full GEO-4 Report in English.
   . Access the full GEO-4 Report in Spanish.
   . Access the Media Executive Summary.

National Academy Releases PTSD Report
October 19, 2007. The Committee on Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder of the National Academy, Institute of Medicine's Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice has issued a report entitled Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: An Assessment of the Evidence. The report, requested by the Veterans Administration, assesses existing evidence on treatments for Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome in the wake of national debate on services available to returning veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
. Access the PTSD report.

EU Issues Energy Futures Reports Ahead of Washington Meetings
January 8, 2007. The EU has issued two reports on the energy and climate futures in Europe. The first, known briefly as the "Eurobarometer" (Energy Technology Knowledge Perception Measures) is based on surveys to determine attitudes and behavior preferences. The second, known as the "WETO-H2" for (World Energy Technology Outlook -- 2050) study which looks at Europe's future in a carbon economy versus a hydrogen economy.
Read the Eurobarometer Report.
Read the WETO-H2 Report.

World Bank Issues 2006 Development Effectiveness Report
December 8, 2006. The World Banks Independent Evaluation Group has issued its Annual Development Effectiveness Report for 2006. This report concludes that while there has been some poverty reduction in countries with economies that have seen rapid development such as China and India, there is still much to be done. It also finds that "Strategies designed solely to boost overall growth may miss opportunities to reduce proverty more effectively." Executive Summary, p. xii. It also found that the Bank's Country Assistance Strategies did not produce good results where they "either lacked selectivity or they were founded on unrealistic expectations for a reform program that was incommensurate with the country's institutional capacity and political situation." Id.
Read the Executive Summary.
Read the Full Report.

Czech Republic Ministry of Finance Maintains Public/Private Partnerships Resource Website
December 8, 2006. The Ministry of Finance of the Czech Republic has a useful website that provides a combination of documents and links arranged country by country on the uses and problems of public private partnerships.
Access the PPP site.

British Government Releases Global Warming Report
October 31, 2006. The British government has published a study on the economic impacts of global climate change that concludes: "Our actions over the coming few decades could create risks of major disruption to economic and social activity, later in this century and in the next, on a scale similar to those associated with the great wars and the economic depression of the first hald of the 20th century. And it will be difficult or impossible to reverse these changes. Tackling climate change is the pro-growth strategy for the longer term, and it can be done in a way that does not cap the aspirations of rich or poor countries." Executive Summary, p. ii. Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change.
Read the Executive Summary of the Stern Report.
Read the Stern Report.

Tsunami Evaluation Coalition Issues Synthesis Report on NGO Response to the Indian Ocean Tsunami
September 24, 2006. The Tsunami Evaluation Coalition was formed after the Indian Ocean Tsunami of December 2004 by more than 40 organizations. These nongovernmental organizations and international institutions established a process to ensure accountability for the funds donated and actions taken in response to the Tsunami. The TEC has published a number of thematic reports and a synthesis report as part of that effort. It has also established a website for future studies.
   The TEC was developed with the initiative of organizations that were part of another evaluation body known as ALNAP, the Active Learning Network for Accountability and Performance in Humanitarian Act that was itself developed in the wake the humanitarian efforts in response to the genocide in Rwanda.
    Read the TEC Synthesis Report.
    Read the TEC Report Executive Summary.
    Access the TEC website.
    Access the ALNAP website.

UN Assistance Missision Iraq Human Rights Office Issues July-August 2006 Report Highlighting Significant Rise in Sectarian Violence
September 20, 2006. The Human Rights Office of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) has issued its most recent report on human rights issues in Iraq, covering July and August 2006. The report details a serious increase in sectarian killings, many involving torture during this period, with 6,599 killed during the two month period.
Read the UNAMI Human Rights report for July-August 2006.

Pollution that Came to Washington State through the Columbia River from Canada Means Canadian Firm Is Liable Under Superfund
August 28. 2006. As long ago as 1999, the Conferated Tribes of the Colville Reservation asked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to investigate slag pollution that had come to the area from stream flow in the Columbia river out of Canada where it had allegedly originated at smelter operated by Teck Cominco Metals, Ltd. The EPA later concluded that the pollution qualified for listing as a Superfund site and issued an order to the firm for a remedial investigation and feasibilty study. When the firm did not comply, members of the Colville brought suit. The firm argued both that they could not bring such a suit as individuals, but, more importantly, that the Superfund policy was a domestic law and could not be applied to the firm in Canada. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington rejected the firm's challenge. That ruling was affirmed by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. However, the firm has sought further review. If it is sustained on appeal, this ruling may have important consequences where there are allegations that pollution found domestically was caused by potentially responsible parties operating outside the United States.
Read the Ninth Circuit Opinion in Pakootas v. Teck Cominco.

New Efforts Made to Track Health Impacts on 9/11 Responders
June 2, 2006. New York City has announced the World Trade Center Health Registry Follow-up Survey which will go to more than 71,000 people in an attempt to track effects of exposure to possible environmental health and safety issues from the 9/11 attacks and rescue and cleanup efforts. To date, the Registry project has produced a series of newsletters on its work and has made available a study published by the Centers for Disease Control based on data taken at the time that enrollees signed up for the registry on initial evidence of health impacts. That study, prepared by Brackbill RM, Thorpe LE, DiGrande L, Perrin M, Sapp JH 2nd, Wu D, Campolucci S, Walker DJ, Cone J, Pulliam P, Thalji L, Farfel MR, is entited "Surveillance for World Trade Center Disaster Health Effects Among Survivors of Collapsed and Damaged Buildings" and was published in the April 7, 2006 issue of CDC's Mortality and Morbidity Weekly Report and can be accessed at the link below.
Visit the World Trade Center Health Registry Site
Read the Surveillance for WTC Disaster Health Effects Article from CDC

"Toxic Children 2006" Report Issued Causing Concern and Rapid Official Response in Canada
June 2, 2006. A Canadian environmental group issued a report this week entitled "Polluted Children, Toxic Nation: A Report on Pollution in Canadian Families (2006)." It reported the results of a study carried out to determine the current levels of environmental pollutants in children. Although it was a very small study, the number of chemicals found in these otherwise healthy young people caused alarm and prompted Health Canada to promise that a study would be done next year on 5,000 Canadians. The current study indicated an average of 23 toxic chemicals in the children tested, including PCBs that had been banned in Canada three decades ago. The release of the findings prompted the Ministers of Health and Environment to agree to participate as subjects in the study.
Read the "Polluted Children Report.

D.C. Ciruit Rules on EPA New Source Review process under the Clean Air Act
June 24, 2005. The U.S. Ciruit Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has issued its long awaited ruling in the case challenging the so-called New Source Review program under the Clearn Air Act. The Court's ruling provided a divided response to the EPA rules. "Specifically, we find the following elements permissible interpretations of the CAA and not otherwise arbitrary and capricious: the use of past emissions and projected future actual emissions, rather than potential emissions, in measuring emissions increases; the use of a ten year lookback period in selecting the two-year baseline period for measuring past actual emissions; the use of a five-year lookback in certain circumstances; the abandonment of a provision authorizing states to use source-specific allowable emissions in measuring baseline emissions; the exclusion of increases due to unrelated demand growth from the measurement of projected future actual emissionsl and the Plantwide Applicability Limitations ("PAL") program. We also find meritless certain procedural challenges related to lack of notice. We conclude, however, that two aspects of the 2002 rule rest on impermissible interpretations of the Act and a third is arbitrary and capricious. Specifically, EPA erred in promulgating the Clean United Applicability test, which measures emissions increases by looking to whether "emissions limitations" have changed. Congress directed the agency to measure emissions increases in terms of changes in actual emissions. EPA also erred in exempting from NSR certain Pollution Control Projects ("PCPs") that decrease emissions of some pollutants but cause collateral increases of others. The statute authorizes no such exception. EPA acted arbitrarily and capriciously in determining that sources making changes need not keep records of their emissions if they see no reasonable possibility that these changes constitute modifications for NSR purposes. The agency failed to provide a reasoned explanation for how, absent such records, it can ensure compliance with NSR.
Read the Opinion

Oregon Federal District Court Strikes Salmon Plan and Requires Further Action Under the Endangered Species Act -- Now Pending in Ninth Circuit
June 10, 2005. Federal District Judge for the District of Oregon James A. Redden has issued the second of two recent opinions rejecting water flow and other salmon recovery plans in light of the requirements of the Endangered Species Act. The case, National Wildlife Federation v. Oregon, requires further development of plans with more attention to adequate water flows with respect to the operation of key dams. The U.S. Circuit Court of the Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied a request for a stay of Judge Redden's order and set the case for argument in July.
Read the Opinion
Read the Ninth Circuit ruling denying the stay and the other key filings in the Ninth Circuit in this case.

UNDP Releases Iraq Living Conditions Survey 2004
May 12, 2005. The UNDP has published the results of an extensive survey on living conditions in Iraq done during 2004.
Read the Report

Federal District Judge Jack B. Weinstein Dismisses Product Liability Class Action Suit Stemming from Agent Orange Use in Vietnam
March 10, 2005. A product liability suit brought by the Vietnamese Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin and a number of individual Vietnamese survivors and families against the firms that manufactured defoliants under contract to the federal government for use during the Vietnam War was dismissed today by Judge Weinstein of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, rejecting both domestic and international law claims. See Post-Conflict Sustainable Development below.

Our Common Future: Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development

Our Common Future
Access the WECD

International Organizations in Sustainable Development

Centre for International Sustainable Development Law
CISDL Homepage

United Nations
http://www.un.org/english/

UNEP United Nations Environmental Programme
   UNEP Homepage
   http://www.unep.org/
   Grid Arendahl Site
   http://www.grida.no/

UNDP United Nations Development Programme
http://www.grida.no/geo2000/index.htm

United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
   Access the UNPFII Homepage
   Access the UNPFII Handbook for Participants
   Access the UNPFII Brochure 2007 in English -- More than just a brochure.
   Access the ToolKit on Indigenous Peoples' Issues.

UNESCO Local and Indigenous Knowledge Systems (LINKS)
Access the LINKS Website.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
http://www.ipcc.ch/

UN Millennium Project
http://www.unmillenniumproject.org/

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
http://www.millenniumassessment.org/en/Index.aspx

United Nations Economic and Social Development
http://www.un.org/esa

UN Division for Social Policy and Development
http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/

The UN Internet Gateway on the Advancement and Empowerment of Women
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/

United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat)
http://www.unchs.org/

World Bank
http://www.worldbank.org/

World Health Organization
http://www.who.int/home-page/index.en.shtml

International Sustainable Development Documents

UN Millennium Goals Reports
   Millenium Goals Reports Website.
   Access the 2011 Report.
   Access the 2010 Report.
   Access the 2009 Report.
   Access the 2008 Report.
   Access the Addendum to the 2008 Report.
   Access the 2007 Report.
   Access the 2006 Report.
   Access the 2005 Report.

UNEP Global Environmental Outlook Reports
   GEO 5 Report to be Issued in 2012, the Year of Rio+ 20
   Access the GEO website with information on the GEO 5 report process
   Read the "Statement by the Global Intergovernmental and Multi-stakeholder Consultation on the Fifth Global Environmental Outlook held in Nairobi from 29-31 March 2010.
   GEO 4 Report Issued in 2007
   Read GEO 4
   GEO 3 Report Issued in 2002
   Read GEO 3
   GEO 2 Report issued in 1999
   Read GEO 2
   GEO 1 Report issued in 1996
   Read GEO 1

UNEP GEO Yearbooks
   GEO Yearbook 2006
   Read Yearbook 2006
   GEO Yearbook 2004/5
   Read Yearbook 2004/5
   GEO Yearbook 2003
   Read Yearbook 2003

UNDP Human Development Reports
   Human Development Report 2011: Sustainability and Equity.
   Read HDR 2011
   Human Development Report 2010: The Real Wealth of Nations: Pathways to Human Development.
   Read HDR 2010
   Human Development Report 2009: Overcoming Barriers -- Human Mobility and Development
   Read HDR 2009
   Human Development Report 2007/2008: Fighting Climate Change -- Human Solidary in a Divided World
   Read HDR 2007/2008
   Human Development Report 2006: Beyond Scarcity- Power, Poverty and the Global Water Crisis
   Read HDR 2006
   Human Development Report 2005: International Cooperation at a Crossroads -- Aid, Trade and Security in an Unequal World
   Read HDR 2005
   Human Development Report 2004: Cultural Liberty in Today's Diverse World
   Read HDR 2004
   Human Development Report 2003: Millennium Development Goals -- A Compact Among Nations to End Human Poverty
   Read HDR 2003
   Human Development Report 2002: Deepening Democracy in a Fragmented World
   Read HDR 2002
   Human Development Report 2001: Making New Technologies Work for Human Development
   Read HDR 2001
   Human Development Report 2000: Human Rights and Human Development
   Read HDR 2000
   Human Development Report 1999: Globalization with a Human Face
   Read HDR 1999
   Human Development Report 1998: Consumption for Human Development
   Read HDR 1998
   Human Development Report 1997: Human Development to Eradicate Poverty
   Read HDR 1997
   Human Development Report 1996: Economic Growth and Human Development
   Read HDR 1996
   Human Development Report 1995: Gender and Human Development
   Read HDR 1995
   Human Development Report 1994: New Dimensions of Human Security
   Read HDR 1994
   Human Development Report 1993: People's Participation
   Read HDR 1993
   Human Development Report 1992: Global Dimensions of Human Development
   Read HDR 1992
   Human Development Report 1991: Financing Human Development
   Read HDR 1991
   Human Development Report 1990: Concept and Measurement of Human Development
   Read HDR 1990

World Bank World Development Reports
   World Development Report 2012:Gender Equality and Development
   Read 2012 Report
   World Development Report 2011: Conflict, Security, and Development
   Read 2011 Report
   World Development Report 2010: Development and Climate Change
   Read 2010 Report
   World Development Report 2009: Reshaping Economic Geography
   Read 2009 Report
   World Development Report 2008: Agriculture for Development
   Read 2008 Report
   World Development Report 2007: Development and the Next Generation
   Read 2007 Report
   World Development Report 2006: Equity and Development
   Read 2006 Report
   World Development Report 2005: A Better Investment Climate for Everyone
   Read 2005 Report
   World Development Report 2004: Making Services Work Better for Poort People
   Read 2004 Report
   World Development Report 2003: Sustainable Development in a Dynamic World
   Read 2003 Report
   World Development Report 2002: Building Institutions for Markets
   Read 2002 Report
   World Development Report 2000/2001: Attacking Poverty
   Read 2000 Report
   World Development Report 1999/2000: Entering the Twentieth Century
   Read 1999 Report
   World Development Report 1998: Knowledge for Development
   Read 1998 Report
   World Development Report 1997: The State in a Changing World
   Read 1997 Report
   World Development Report 1996: From Plan to Market
   Read 1996 Report
   World Development Report 1995: Workers in an Integrating World
   Read 1995 Report
   World Development Report 1994: Infrastructure for Development
   Read 1994 Report
   World Development Report 1993: Investing in Health
   Read 1993 Report
   World Development Report 1992: Development and the Environment
   Read 1992 Report
   World Development Report 1991: The Challenge of Development
   Read 1991 Report
   World Development Report 1990: Poverty
   Read 1990 Report
   World Development Report 1989: Financial Systems and Development
   Read 1989 Report
   World Development Report 1988: Public Finance in Development
   Read 1988 Report
   World Development Report 1987: Industrialization and Foreign Trade
   Read 1987 Report
   World Development Report 1986: Trade and Pricing Policies in World Agriculture
   Read 1986 Report
   World Development Report 1985: International Capital and Economic Development
   Read 1985 Report
   World Development Report 1984: Population Change and Development
   Read 1984 Report
   World Development Report 1983: Management in Development
   Read 1983 Report
   World Development Report 1982: Agriculture and Economic Development
   Read 1982 Report
   World Development Report 1981: National and International Adjustment
   Read 1981 Report
   World Development Report 1980: Poverty and Human Development
   Read 1980 Report
   World Development Report 1979: Structural Change and Development Policy
   Read 1979 Report
   World Development Report 1978: Prospects for Growth and Alleviation of Poverty
   Read 1978 Report

World Bank Country Assistance Strategy Documents
Access World Bank Country Assistance Strategies

U.S. Millennium Project Report Investing in Development: A Practical Plan to Achieve the Millennium Development Goals
The Millennium project has a overview report and the full report.
Access the Overview Report.
Access the Report.

World Bank -- Poverty Net
Access World Bank Poverty Net Reports

World Bank -- Voices of the Poor
The World Bank project involved interviews with some 60,000 poor people around the world and is published in three volumes available on the Internet.
   Access the Voices of the Poor, Vol. 1 "Can Anyone Hear Us? Voices from 47 Countries"
   Access the Voices of the Poor, Vol. 2 "Crying Out for Change"
   Access the Voices of the Poor, Vol. 3 "Voices of the Poort from Many Lands"

Global Judges Symposium on Sustainable Development and the Role of Law
The UNEP convened an international collection of judges in conjunction with the the Johannesburg Summit and as a follow-on to the Montivideo Programme. The conference assembled both sets of country papers and provided transcripts of speeches from this distinguished assemblage of jurists.
Read the Speeches.
Read the Country Papers.

Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements, the Habitat Agenda, and Istanbul+5
   Read the Istanbul Declaration
   Read the Habitat Agenda, Goals and Principles, Commitments and the Global Plan of Action
   Read the Istanbul+5 Declaration "Declaration on Cities and Other Human Settlements in the New Millennium"
   Access the Report Page with information for Istanbul+5 Report: Cities in a Globalizing World: Global Report on Human settlements 2001
   Read the full report Cities in a Globalizing World: Global Report on Human settlements 2001

United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Access the Declaration

Rio Earth Summit Documents
Rio Declaration
Agenda 21

Rio+5 Report
http://www.un.org/documents/ga/res/spec/aress19-2.htm

Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action
Access Copenhagen Documents

Copenhagen Follow-On Reports
Access the Copenhagen+10 Report
Read the Copenhagen +5 Report of the Secretary General's Report on the Outcome of the Implementation of Copenhagen Accords

Post-Conflict Sustainable Development

RAND Corporation Report Cites Failure of DoD to Plan Seriously for Post War Action in Iraq
April 1, 2005. The contents of a RAND Corporation report to Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld that was presented in early February indicated a variety of problems with U.S. planning and performance in Iraq, including a failure to plan seriously and carefully for what would happen after the initial invasion and battle to remove the Saddam Hussein regime. The report, entitled "Iraq: Translating Lessons Into Future DoD policies," noted in part: "Planning for military combat and post-war operations in Iraq lacked the flexibility necessary to enable the U.S. military to respond to the situation that emerged after the defeat of the Saddam Hussein regime. Post-conflict stabilization and reconstruction were addressed only very generally; largely because of the prevailing view that the task would not be difficult. What emerged was a general set of tasks that were not prioritized or resourced. The possibility that these activities might require more resources, or a different mix of resources, than the earlier military operations were not contemplated," p. 6. The report came with a memorandum to Secretary Rumsfeld from RAND president James A. Thomson dated February 7, 2005.
Read the Opinion.

Final Report of the Commission on Human Security
The Commission on Human Security presented its final report in 2003, defining security in terms of a public good and with considerable attention to the concept of human security in a post-conflict environment.
Read the Report.

UNEP Produces Studies on Post-Conflict Challenges
The UNEP Post-Conflict Assessment Unit has produced a variety of reports on the impacts of majors conflicts. Several of these reports are listed below.
   UNEP Post-Conflict and Disaster Management Branch Website
The UNEP Issues Post Conflict Environmental Assessment for Lebanon.
   Read Lebanon Report
The UNEP Issues Post Conflict Environmental Assessment for Albania.
   Read Albania Report
The UNEP Issues Post Conflict Environmental Assessment for Afghanistan 2003.
   Read Afghanistan Report
The UNEP Issues Desk Study on the Environment in Iraq.
   Read Iraq Report
The UNEP Issues Post Conflict Environmental Assessment for Kosovo.
   Read the Kosovo Report
The UNEP Issues Post Conflict Environmental Assessment for Macedonia.
   Read Macedonia Report
The UNEP Issues Post Conflict Environmental Assessment for Serbia-Montenegro.
   Read Serbia-Montenegro Report

Afghanistan Post-Conflict Development Reports
Reports are now emerging on post conflict development in Afghanistan in addition to the UNEP report noted above.
Afghanistan has released its new Afghanistan Development Strategy.
   Read the Report.
UNEP and National Environmental Protection Agency of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Afghanistan's Environment 2008.
   Read the Report. UNDP Afghanistan and Center for Policy and Human Development, Kabul University, Afghanistan Human Development Report 2007: Bridging Modernity and Tradition -- Rule of Law and the Search for Justice (Islamabad, Pakistan: Army Press, 2007).
   Read the Report.
UNEP and National Environmental Protection Agency of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Afghanistan's Environment 2008 (Kabul: UNEP, 2008).
   Read the Report.
UNDP Afghanistan, Afghanistan Human Development Report 2004.
   Read the Report.

Congo Post-Conflict Reports (French Language Report)
UNDP, RAPPORT NATIONAL SUR LE DEVELOPMENT HUMAIN 2002 REPUBLIQUE DU CONGO
Read the Report.

Iraq Post-Conflict Reports
A number of reports have been done addressing development issues in Iraq with a focus on post-conflict issues, in addition to the UNEP Desk Study noted above under UNEP post conflict-assessment reports.
UNEP, UNEP in Iraq: Post-Conflict Assessment, Clean-up and Reconstruction (UNEP: Nairobi, 2007).
   Read the Report.
World Bank, World Bank, Interim Strategy Note for the Republic of Iraq for the Period Mid-FY09-FY11, February 19, 2009.
   Read the Report.
U.S. Government Accountability Office, Rebuilding Iraq: Resource, Security, Governance, Essential Services, and Oversight Issues, 2004.
   Read the Report.
"Environment in Iraq: UNEP Progress Report," October 2003.
   Read the Report.
World Bank/Un, Iraq Joint UN/World Bank Needs Assessment, 2003.
   Read the Base Report.
   Access Sector by Sector Reports.

Reports of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction
The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction provides quarterly reports on audits and investigations of post-conflict efforts in Iraq funded by the U.S..
   Visit the SIGIR Homepage.
   Read SIGIR Quarterly Reports.
   Read SIGIR "Lessons Learned" Reports.

UNDP Kosovo Human Development Reports
Reports are now emerging on post conflict development in Kosovo in addition to the UNEP report noted above.
Human Development Report Kosovo 2002.
Read the 2002 Report.
Human Development Report Kosovo 2004 -- The Rise of the Citizen: Challenges and Choices
Read the 2004 Report.

Rwanda Post-Conflict Reports
UNDP Rwanda, Human Development Report 2007: Turning Vision 2020 Into Reality (New York: UNDP, 2007).
   Read the Report.
World Bank, Country Assistance Strategy Rwanda FY09-FY12 (Washington, D.C.: World Bank, 2008)
   Read the Report.
UNDP Rwanda, Human Development Report 1999
   Read the Report.
World Bank, Country Assistance Strategy for Rwanda, 2002
   Read the CAS.

World Bank Report: Breaking the Conflict Trap: Civil War and Development Policy
The World Bank Conflict Prevention and Reconstruction Unit has produced variety of reports on aspects of this complex subject. One of the projects examined the impacts of civil war and possible approaches to reducing the likelihood of such conflicts or of the reemergence of future civil wars in countries already suffering the results of previous conflicts.
Read the Report.
Conflict Prevention and Reconstruction Unit Website.

World Health Organization Report -- World Report on Violence and Health and After
Of course, violence is a health problem as well as an environmental problem, a poverty problem, and an economic development problem, among many other aspects. The World Health Organization has sought to integrate the concept of "collective violence" into its global assessment of violence and health. The base document is still the 2002 World Report on Violence and Health, but the WHO has issued a number of follow-on publications in that series since that report.
   Read the 2002 Report.
   Read Just Ch. 8 of the 2002 report on "Collective Violence."
   Access "Preventing Violence and Reducing Its Impact" 2008.

New York City After 911
The Government Accountability Office produced a useful report entitled "September 11, Overview of Federal Disaster Assistance to the New York City Area. There are a variety of other materials that have been assembled into an online site with appropriate links to key documents by the government documents department of the Columbia University Libraries. The site provides access to U.S. federal materials, international resources, and New York state and city sources. Another site with a great deal of information is operated by the Oklahoma Department of Libraries and containe an Annotated Bibliography of Government Documents Related to the Threat of Terrorism and the Attacks of September 11, 2001. There is also the World Trade Center Health Registry site with ongoing studies in that domain.
   Read the GAO Federal Disaster Assistance Report.
   Access the Columbia University Libraries World Trade Center Attachs resources site.
   Access the Annotated Bibliography of Government Documents Related to the Threat of Terrorism and the Attacks of September 11, 2001.
    Visit the World Trade Center Health Registry Site

Best Practices Guides

Financing Infrastructure Projects
Antonio Vives, Angela M. Paris, and Juan Benavides wrote a paper entitled "Financial Structuring of Infrastructure Projects in Public-Private Partnerships: An Application to Water Projects" which is a good and a brief primer on the different types of financial structures for large-scale development projects, quite apart from the application to water related projects that was their particular focus.
   The Harvard Business School also operates a web portal with sources on international project finance.
   The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs operates a site called "Infradev" with a variety of useful sources of information on the subject.
    Access the IDB Paper.
    Access the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs .
    Access the Harvard Project Finance Web Portal.

U.S. Conference of Mayors Energy & Environment Best Pratices Guide
The U.S. Conference of Mayors issued an Energy & Environment Best Practices Guide in January 2007.
Access the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

U.S. Green Building Council LEED Program
The U.S. Green Building Council operates its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program.
Access the Green Building Council LEED Program.

UNHCR, Engineering and Environmental Sciences Section, Refugee Operations and Environmental Management
. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees Engineering and Environmental Science Section has issued a series of recommendations for countries facing major displacement issues.
Access the Refugee Ops and Env. Mgmt Report.