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The 2015 SAIIA Sasol Environmental Sustainability Project (ESP) is an educational competition for South African Grade 10-12 learners. Participants work in teams of three to produce a research paper of up to 12 pages focusing on a selected theme—Biodiversity, Climate Change, or Sustainable Development—and a specific topic such as energy, oceans, or air pollution. The project requires both a local and an international case example. The programme consists of three phases: the research paper, provincial or regional presentations for top papers, and the SAIIA Young Leaders Conference from 6-11 December 2015 in Gauteng, where top learners draft the 2015 SAIIA Young Leaders Declaration for government and UN officials. Key deadlines include school registration by 11 May 2015 and final paper submission by 21 July 2015.

The HASHI program in Tanzania's Shinyanga region restored 500,000 hectares of woodland by reviving 'ngitili', a traditional Sukuma practice of seasonal livestock enclosures. This effort reversed decades of desertification caused by cash-crop expansion and 'villagization' policies. Success was driven by a combination of traditional knowledge, decentralized governance, and long-term funding from the Norwegian Development Assistance Agency. While the program provided significant economic benefits and reduced workloads for women, it faces ongoing challenges from population growth, socioeconomic disparity in land ownership, and a lack of national monitoring systems.

The document examines the restoration of 5 million hectares in southern Niger through farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR), a locally driven agroforestry practice. It details how FMNR improved food security, household income, and climate resilience while sequestering 25 million tons of carbon. The study identifies key success factors, including the 1989 Rural Code which secured land and tree tenure for farmers, and the role of peer-to-peer knowledge sharing and international funding from USAID and IFAD.

The document examines the critical role of dryland forests in Southern Africa, highlighting their vulnerability to deforestation and climate change. It proposes a 'nexus approach' to overcome the marginalisation of the forestry sector by demonstrating its interdependencies with water, energy, and food security. The author argues that integrated landscape management and multi-sectoral policy coordination can identify win-win solutions for climate mitigation and adaptation, such as agroforestry and payment for watershed services.

The report identifies Botswana as highly vulnerable to climate change, particularly regarding water shortages and agricultural yields. It finds that while universities like the University of Botswana and Botswana College of Agriculture possess significant individual expertise, there is a critical lack of overarching national CCD policy and institutional coordination. The document argues for a shift toward transdisciplinary research and the integration of indigenous knowledge systems to build climate resilience.

The document analyzes National Councils for Sustainable Development (NCSDs) as mechanisms for stakeholder engagement in national sustainable development strategies (NSDSs). It categorizes NCSDs by membership—government-only, mixed, or non-governmental—and evaluates the strengths and challenges of each. The briefing identifies key success factors, such as the appointment of independent chairs and the maintenance of a 'critical friend' relationship with government, while detailing the core functions of NCSDs in strategy creation, policy implementation, monitoring, and international outreach.

The document examines the gap between legal provisions and practice regarding the right to participate in Ghana's forest sector. It identifies that while the 1992 Constitution and international agreements like the African Charter and the UNCCD support participation, specific national forestry laws offer limited, often non-binding, protections. It highlights that many participatory processes are relegated to non-binding manuals of procedure, leaving stakeholders without judicial redress when these processes are ignored.

The document advocates for a 'nexus' approach to land management to address the conflict between the need for increased agricultural productivity and the reality of land degradation. It highlights that while 24% of global land is degraded, a significant portion is improving through restoration. The proposed nexus approach seeks to move beyond the narrow goal of maximizing yields to reduce tradeoffs and build synergies between water, energy, food, and climate regulation.

The Living Convention is a compendium of internationally recognised rights for Indigenous peoples and local communities. It uses an 'integrated rights approach' to bundle disparate legal provisions from human rights, environmental, and cultural law into a single, accessible resource. The document categorises these into substantive rights (such as land tenure and cultural integrity) and procedural rights (such as free, prior and informed consent), aiming to democratise international law for the stewards of biocultural diversity.

The document serves as a tool to democratize international law by grouping fragmented legal provisions into an integrated framework of 'Traditional Resource Rights'. It categorizes rights into substantive (e.g., land tenure, cultural integrity, and food sovereignty) and procedural (e.g., free, prior and informed consent and impact assessments), while analyzing the legal weight of binding 'hard law' versus non-binding 'soft law'.

The document outlines how public-private collaborations (PPCs) can overcome market barriers to deliver climate adaptation and disaster risk solutions. Through nine case studies across various sectors—including agriculture, energy, and water—it argues that successful resilience-building requires local engagement, scalable design, and the strengthening of micro-enterprises to create sustainable livelihoods. Key strategies highlighted include leveraging existing relationships, creating synergistic value chains, and utilizing innovative alternatives to traditional infrastructure, such as mobile technology and off-grid energy.

The document details nine global case studies where public-private collaborations (PPCs) implemented resilience-building activities. These include logistics training for airports (GARD), IT-based fertilizer market intelligence in Sub-Saharan Africa, decentralized water kiosks in Zambia, multi-sectoral adaptation in Malawi, sustainable coffee supply chains in Rwanda, flood-resilient brick-making in Tanzania, water-efficient rice seeding in India, community micro-hydropower in Sri Lanka, and biomass energy combined with desertification control in China.

The IAI science-policy liaison office's 2013-2015 workplan focuses on establishing a baseline of current policy standing, strengthening relationships with member countries and the Conference of the Parties (CoP), and positioning IAI research within international conventions and organizations. The strategy emphasizes a three-pronged approach: institutionalizing brokerage mechanisms, positioning global change as a relevant policy issue, and spurring collective action through use-oriented research.

The document evaluates Honduras' National Climate Change Strategy (NCCS), highlighting its focus on reducing climatic vulnerability through a participatory framework involving over 60 institutions. While the NCCS identifies agriculture, soil, and food security as a priority sector, stakeholders report that implementation is in its early stages due to institutional, knowledge, and financial barriers. The report emphasizes the need for a territorial approach via Regional Development Councils to better integrate climate-compatible agricultural practices and access international finance.

The document is an appendix to a research paper that lists specific conflict episodes where natural resources played a role. It categorizes these links into mechanisms such as financing, distribution, and aggravation, providing brief descriptions of how resources like oil, diamonds, timber, and land influenced the conflicts across various global regions.

This fact sheet outlines a series of global events, publications, and policy agreements from 1962 to 2012 that have shaped the concept of sustainable development. It tracks the progression from early environmental warnings, such as the publication of Silent Spring, through the establishment of major international bodies like the UNEP and IPCC, to the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol and the Millennium Development Goals. The timeline highlights the increasing intersection of environmental protection, economic policy, and social equity, noting the rise of the 'green economy' and the critical role of both developed and emerging nations, particularly China, in the global energy transition.

The document highlights a critical gap between the economic value derived from Uganda's natural resources and the minimal budgetary support allocated to their preservation. It notes that Uganda's forests are disappearing at twice the rate of sub-Saharan Africa, driven by high population growth and a heavy reliance on biomass for over 90% of energy needs. The author details a trend of 'degazetting' protected lands for industrial and agricultural use, citing conflicts in Namanve Forest Reserve, Pian Upe Wildlife Reserve, and the Mabira forest. The document warns that the discovery of oil in protected areas, including the Greater Virunga Transfrontier Park, further escalates the risk of conflict between the state and civil society.

The document examines the complex interdependence between Northern and Southern Sudan as the South moves toward independence. It highlights the critical role of oil co-management, as Southern Sudan derives 98% of its income from oil exports that must travel through Northern infrastructure. The author argues that while the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) provided a path to secession, significant risks remain, including unresolved border disputes in Abyei, the potential for continued insurgency in the North, and the fragile internal governance of the South. Regionally, the document notes the potential for a new independent South Sudan to shift the balance of power within the Nile Basin Initiative, potentially challenging Egypt's historical dominance over Nile water rights.

This report highlights the achievements of Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) over four decades, detailing specific campaigns against extractive industries, pollution, and unsustainable development. It documents legal victories, such as the ban on open-pit mining in Costa Rica and the recognition of water as a human right in Uruguay, as well as grassroots successes in reforestation in Belgium and the protection of eucalyptus forests in Australia. The text emphasizes the role of international solidarity and legal action in challenging neoliberal globalization and protecting the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities.

The document reports that only 40% of the original tropical dry forests in the Americas remain, with only 4.5% (23,417 km2) under protection. Satellite data from 1982 to 2006 shows divergent productivity trends: increases in the Llanos of Venezuela and Colombia, northern Mexico, and the Chaqueña region of Argentina and Bolivia, but decreases in other parts of Mexico and the Brazilian Caatinga. These shifts are linked to global warming's impact on precipitation and humidity. The text warns that declining productivity reduces carbon storage and water retention, while increased productivity may inadvertently encourage further deforestation and agricultural intensification. It advocates for expanded protection, sustainable land management, and economic incentives like payments for environmental services and REDD+ to preserve biodiversity and ecosystem services.