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Integrating sustainable development and security: An analytical approach with examples from the Middle East and North Africa, the Arctic and Central Asia
The paper argues that ecological, financial, and political systems are under increasing pressure, creating a need to integrate 'hard' security (state-centric) with 'human' security (individual and ecosystem well-being). It identifies commonalities between these fields—such as uncertainty, irreversibilities, and multi-stakeholder complexity—and proposes a three-step methodology: context analysis, participatory scenario building, and options appraisal. Case studies demonstrate how water scarcity in the Nile and Euphrates-Tigris basins, climate-driven geophysical changes in the Arctic, and energy-water dependencies in Central Asia create security risks that require integrated governance and investment strategies.
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Document type: Research paper
Uncertain Futures: The Changing Global Context of the European Arctic
The report details a workshop in Pajala, Sweden, where local stakeholders and researchers co-created four future narratives for the region based on global Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs). Participants identified climate change, national-local power relations, and international security as primary drivers of change. The resulting narratives explore a range of futures, from a sustainable 'Green Road' focused on circular economies and bio-production to a 'Rocky Road' characterized by resurgent nationalism and state withdrawal from municipal welfare. The study emphasizes the interconnection between local Arctic conditions—such as mining and reindeer herding—and global trends in migration, resource demand, and climate change.
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Document type: Research paper
OUTLOOK: Indonesia Special Edition
The document outlines Indonesia's climate ambitions, including a greenhouse gas emissions reduction target of 26%–41% by 2020 and a moratorium on logging in primary forests and peatlands. It highlights the role of the Indonesia Climate Change Trust Fund as a mechanism for overseas climate finance and describes CDKN's efforts to support climate-compatible development in the energy sector and forest conservation research.
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Document type: Report
Community-Based Eco-cultural Tourism in Timor Leste
The document details how FoE Timor Leste/Haburas partnered with local communities to establish eco-lodges and tourism operations. The Tutuala project has hosted over 4,000 tourists and generated funds for education and living standards. This model has since been replicated in Maubisse and Laloran, promoting skill acquisition in areas such as financial management and environmental management. The author recommends that the government prioritize community-based ecotourism as a non-fossil fuel sector in its national strategic development plan.
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Document type: Case study
Raising the level of ambition towards a COP 21 outcome through Nationally Determined Mitigation Pledges
The paper examines the role of Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) in bridging the gap between political ambition and the goal of limiting global temperature rise to below 2°C. It describes INDCs as voluntary, bottom-up climate planning tools that allow countries to define their own mitigation and adaptation targets based on domestic capabilities. The author emphasizes that INDCs should be integrated with broader sustainable development goals, particularly for African nations, and calls for a 'virtuous cycle of rising ambition' supported by predictable international finance to ensure global emissions peak by 2030.
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Document type: Research paper
Frequently Asked Questions: NAP Global Network
The NAP Global Network is a practitioner-oriented group established in December 2014 to coordinate bilateral official development assistance (ODA) for National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) in developing countries. It focuses on bridging the gap between bilateral donors and in-country actors to ensure climate adaptation support aligns with national development priorities. The Network provides peer learning through Targeted Topics Forums (TTFs) and acts as a liaison to avoid duplication of efforts among donors. It distinguishes itself from other initiatives by specifically targeting bilateral support, which the document notes constituted USD 11.28 billion in adaptation-related ODA in 2013, significantly more than multilateral support.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Can we prosper without growth? 10 policy proposals
The document outlines ten policy proposals from Research & Degrowth in Barcelona aimed at breaking the 'spell of growth' and providing a cooperative economic model for radical Left and Green parties. These proposals include a citizen debt audit, work-sharing with a 32-hour week, a basic income of 400-600 Euros, and a green tax reform shifting taxation from work to energy and resource use. It advocates for ending subsidies for polluting activities, supporting the non-profit cooperative sector, optimizing existing building use, restricting advertising, establishing absolute caps on CO2 and material resources, and replacing GDP with prosperity indicators. The authors argue these complementary measures decouple social security from economic growth and shift the focus toward the commons and shared infrastructure.
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Document type: Statement
Saving Roşia Montană: Romania's New Face
The case study analyzes the conflict in Roşia Montană, where a proposed gold mining project by the Roşia Montana Gold Corporation (RMGC) sparked massive civic mobilization. It details how a local resistance movement evolved into an international campaign and widespread street protests in 2013, ultimately forcing the Romanian Parliament to reject a special law that would have bypassed environmental and urban planning regulations. The author argues that these protests signaled a shift in Romanian society away from 'development at any cost' toward a focus on corporate accountability, environmental protection, and social solidarity.
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Document type: Case study
SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ACCOUNTABILITY OF CLIMATE FINANCE INSTRUMENTS
The document examines the fragmentation of social and environmental standards across UNFCCC instruments, including the CDM, REDD+, NAMAs, GCF, and AF. It finds that while some funds like the GCF and AF have robust safeguard policies, others like the CDM and NAMAs lack mandatory monitoring, universal guidelines for stakeholder consultation, or formal redress mechanisms. The author recommends that the Paris climate treaty explicitly mandate the protection of human rights and establish a centralized UNFCCC accountability mechanism and safeguards system to ensure climate actions do not cause adverse social or environmental impacts.
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Document type: Policy brief
Water-Energy-Food Security and Mining in Suriname
The report details the development of the WEFsat-Mining tool, designed to help decision-makers in Suriname assess how mining impacts community access to water, energy, and food. It highlights the critical role of the mining sector in Suriname's economy, while noting severe environmental risks such as mercury pollution from artisanal gold mining. The project included capacity-building workshops and the proposal of a hydrologic monitoring framework to track water quality and quantity. Key recommendations emphasize the need for integrated WEF planning, diversified renewable energy, and improved local hiring and procurement policies to enhance community well-being.
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Document type: Report
WEFsat-Mining Tool User Guidance Manual
The WEFsat-Mining Tool User Guidance Manual describes a methodology for assessing how mining affects the water-energy-food nexus. It guides users through a four-step process: establishing a community WEF baseline, identifying mining-specific influences, determining mitigation and enhancement actions, and summarizing findings for decision-makers. The tool utilizes a framework focusing on availability, access, supporting infrastructure, and supporting policies.
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Document type: Guide
Water-Energy-Food Resource Book for Mining
The document introduces the WEF security concept to operationalize sustainable development in mining. It details a conceptual framework based on availability, access, supporting infrastructure, and supporting institutions/policies. The guide provides a review of existing sustainability indicators and introduces WEFsat-Mining, an Excel-based tool for stakeholders to assess current WEF status, identify mining influences, and determine mitigation or enhancement actions. It also outlines stakeholder engagement practices and a four-stage participatory scenario planning process for regional landscape investment.
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Document type: Guide
Corporate Social Responsibility in South Africa’s Mining Industry: An Assessment
The document examines the effectiveness of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the South African mining sector, identifying significant gaps in coordination, monitoring, and alignment with government development frameworks. While mining companies possess substantial financial capacity—exemplified by Anglo American Platinum's ZAR 100 million expenditure on education between 2012 and 2014—the briefing argues that CSR is often treated as ad hoc charity or driven by corporate competition rather than integrated development goals. It highlights weaknesses in the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA) and recommends stronger alignment with the National Development Plan (NDP) 2030 and local integrated development plans (IDPs) to ensure sustainable socio-economic impact.
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Document type: Policy brief
SADC Summit 17-18 August 2015
The briefing examines the shift in SADC's focus from trade integration to a region-wide industrialisation policy via the Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap (ISR). It highlights significant obstacles to implementation, including the economic dominance of South Africa, the lack of alignment between national and regional policies, and the historical failure of previous trade integration efforts. The author suggests that success depends on incorporating private sector insights and developing regional value chains (RVCs) that prevent economic polarisation by ensuring smaller states benefit from hub economies' access to global markets. Specific recommendations include linking Special Economic Zones (SEZs), regionalising local content requirements, and using fiscal incentives to lower input costs for beneficiation.
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Document type: Briefing
SOUTH AFRICA’S INTENDED NATIONALLY DETERMINED CONTRIBUTION (INDC)
South Africa's INDC proposes a 'peak, plateau and decline' emissions trajectory, with GHG emissions expected to peak between 2020 and 2025 and decline in absolute terms after 2036. The plan integrates climate action with the National Development Plan's goal to eliminate poverty by 2030. Adaptation efforts focus on six goals, including the development of a National Adaptation Plan by 2020, while mitigation emphasizes a transition to a low-carbon economy through renewable energy and efficiency. The document emphasizes that these commitments are premised on a fair multilateral agreement and the provision of international finance, technology, and capacity-building support.
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Document type: Report
The SEI Initiative on Fossil Fuels and Climate Change
The SEI Initiative on Fossil Fuels and Climate Change, launched in January 2015, aims to analyze the factors influencing fossil fuel development and influence policies to align development with sustainable goals. The initiative argues that climate strategies must address both the demand and supply sides of fossil fuels, as infrastructure and institutions can lock in long-term dependency.
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Document type: Fact sheet
HIGHLIGHTS FROM Planetary Economics: Energy, Climate Change and the Three Domains of Sustainable Development
The document outlines a framework called 'Planetary Economics' to address the inadequacy of traditional neoclassical economics in solving climate change. It proposes three domains of socio-economic processes: the First Domain (Satisficing), focusing on human behaviour and efficiency gaps; the Second Domain (Optimising), focusing on market trade-offs and pricing; and the Third Domain (Transforming), focusing on innovation and systemic change. These domains map to three policy pillars: standards and engagement for efficiency, markets and prices for carbon reduction, and strategic investment for infrastructure and innovation. The author concludes that only an integrated strategy combining all three pillars can effectively decarbonise energy systems and overcome systemic 'lock-in' and behavioural inertia.
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Document type: Executive summary
High-level political support & sectoral integration in NAP processes
The report details strategies for achieving political commitment to National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and explores various pathways for integrating adaptation into sectoral policies. It emphasizes the necessity of strong in-country coordination, the use of clear narratives to engage powerful ministries, and the role of south-south cooperation in building technical capacity.
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Document type: Report
High-level political support & sectoral integration in NAP processes
The report details strategies for achieving political commitment and sectoral integration in National Adaptation Plan (NAP) processes, based on a workshop with representatives from 14 countries. It identifies three dimensions of political support—expressed, institutional, and budgetary—and proposes framing adaptation as complementary to existing development goals to avoid 'initiative overload'. The document outlines a spectrum of integration approaches, ranging from sector-driven to nationally-driven, and emphasizes the necessity of strong in-country coordination and south-south cooperation to ensure climate-resilient development.
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Document type: Report
Response to the letter from MEPs to the CDM Board on the Santa Rita Hydroelectric Plant project
The CDM Executive Board informs European Parliament members that the Santa Rita Hydroelectric Plant project was registered on 2 June 2014 after a review confirmed it complied with CDM requirements and local stakeholder consultation processes. The Board notes that the Guatemalan designated national authority (DNA) approved the project for sustainable development and that the DNA retains the power to withdraw such approval if national laws are no longer met. The Board will forward the MEPs' concerns to the Guatemalan DNA without endorsing the content.
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Document type: Statement