Search Climate Insights Directory

The manual describes the CRiSTAL tool, which integrates climate risk assessment with a sustainable livelihoods framework to help project planners design adaptation strategies. It outlines a three-phase process: understanding the livelihood and climate context, evaluating project implications, and facilitating monitoring and evaluation. The tool emphasizes participatory methods, such as community consultations and focus groups, to identify vulnerable resources and prioritize adaptation activities based on specific evaluation criteria.

The Agriculture, Vulnerability and Adaptation (AVA) project in Colombia's Upper Cauca River Basin is developing a comprehensive vulnerability assessment model to help the agricultural sector adapt to climate change. Moving beyond traditional biophysical models, the AVA approach integrates four dimensions: biophysical, political-institutional, economic-productive, and sociocultural. This interdisciplinary and participatory method involves stakeholders—including farmers, researchers, and government authorities—to identify key indicators and collect data, ensuring the results are relevant to local needs and less sensitive to the uncertainties of climate modeling. The project aims to create a universally accessible tool for adaptation planning that can be scaled to regional or national levels.

The policy brief highlights the significant potential of Africa's coastal ecosystems, including mangroves, seagrasses, and tidal marshes, to act as carbon sinks. It argues that these 'Blue Carbon' sources are currently undervalued and under-accounted for in international frameworks like the UNFCCC. The author recommends that African nations advocate for the expansion of IPCC guidelines and the integration of coastal sinks into REDD+ and NAMA frameworks to attract conservation financing and meet national emission targets.

The authors critique the Green Economy (GE) for its anthropocentric, market-based approach that treats nature as 'natural capital' and argues that such a framework is incompatible with the goal of protecting the intrinsic rights of Nature. They contrast the GE's reliance on economic valuation and Payments for Environmental Services (PES) with a bio-centric perspective that recognizes nature's right to exist independently of human utility. The paper highlights Ecuador as a pioneer in constitutionalizing the rights of Nature and proposes practical global measures, including the strict protection of 10% of all ecoregions and a transition to 100% organic food production.

The paper examines 38 PES schemes in Latin America, finding that most are local initiatives driven by NGOs and focused on improving extractive water supply through forest conservation. It highlights a significant disconnect between payment levels and market-based data, noting that payments are typically decided top-down and based on inputs (actions) rather than verified ecosystem outputs.

The project investigates how to combine top-down national PES schemes with bottom-up local approaches, specifically Andean Reciprocal watershed Agreements (ARA), to better value ecosystems and promote climate compatible development. It seeks to develop a practical framework and a combined index for adaptation, mitigation, and development objectives, with the goal of influencing national legislation and providing a guide for scaling up locally led ARA.

Ecuador's Socio Bosque programme provides annual per-hectare payments to private and communal landholders who maintain forest cover. While not originally designed for REDD+, it supports Ecuador's climate strategy by reducing deforestation and increasing the resilience of the rural poor. After three years, the programme covered 881,933 hectares through 1,566 agreements, though it faces challenges regarding land titling and high monitoring costs.

The Socio Bosque programme in Ecuador provides annual per-hectare payments to private and communal forest landholders in exchange for maintaining forest cover. While not initially designed for climate mitigation, it has become a pillar of Ecuador's national REDD+ strategy. After three years, the programme signed 1,566 agreements covering 881,933 hectares with a total investment of US$14.4 million. Key challenges include the requirement for legal land titles, high monitoring costs due to satellite cloud interference, and risks of inequitable benefit sharing within communities. The government aims to diversify funding through green taxes and industry payments to reduce the current 40% administrative cost burden.

The document argues that the Peruvian state violated international human rights law by granting mining concessions in the Tiquillaca district without prior consultation with the Arboleda and other indigenous peoples. It asserts that under the American Convention on Human Rights and ILO Convention 169, such consultations must occur during the earliest planning stages and, for large-scale projects, require free, prior, and informed consent. The authors contend that the failure to consult renders the concessions null and void, requiring the judiciary to review them to ensure the survival and territorial rights of the affected communities.

The IAI's 2012-2013 plan includes the launch of CRN3, co-financing agreements with the NSF's PIRE program, and a MacArthur Foundation project on biodiversity in the tropical Andes. Capacity building events are scheduled for Chile, the Dominican Republic, and Ecuador, alongside an editorial forum in Buenos Aires. Administratively, the institute plans to move to Montevideo to address operational instability.

The IAI Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) managed the review and selection of CRN3 proposals from June 2011 to June 2012. Out of 88 pre-proposals, 26 full proposals were reviewed, and 8 were selected for funding. These 8 projects involve 117 investigators from 75 institutions across 16 countries. The SAC emphasized the need for multi-country teams, capacity building, and the integration of human dimensions and social sciences into climate research.

The July 2012 issue of Investment Treaty News Quarterly explores the tension between investor protections and the regulatory autonomy of states. Key discussions include the use of deferential standards of review to enhance the legitimacy of investor-state arbitration and the risks associated with unilateral offers to arbitrate in national investment codes. The document also analyzes how international investment agreements can clash with the provision of public services and the increasing trend of investors challenging renewable energy feed-in tariffs (FiTs) and domestic content requirements. Additionally, it reviews the European Commission's draft text for investor-state dispute settlement in EU agreements and provides summaries of recent arbitral awards involving countries such as Slovakia, Cuba, Paraguay, Ecuador, and Turkey.

This document is a list of participants for the 34th Executive Council Meeting of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research, which took place on June 29, 2012, in Arlington, Virginia, USA.

The document is a participant list for the IAI 20th Conference of the Parties and associated Science-Policy Dialogue held on June 27-29, 2012, in Arlington, Virginia. It lists representatives from various governments, academic institutions, and international organizations.

The IAI Executive Council met on June 26, 2012, to address operational budgets, scientific research grants, and governance restructuring. Key outcomes include the recommendation of a tripartite headquarters model distributed across Uruguay, Brazil, and Argentina, and the approval of eight research projects under the third round of the Collaborative Research Network (CRN3) program. The Council also reviewed financial reports for the 2011-2012 fiscal year, noting a total of US$1.3 million in pending member contributions.

The IAI Work Plan 2012-2013 details the implementation of the CRN3 program, small grants, and a MacArthur Foundation project on biodiversity in the tropical Andes. Capacity building includes training on water resource management in Chile and science-policy interface colloquia in the Dominican Republic and Ecuador, alongside an editorial forum in Argentina. Administratively, the institute aims to resolve operational instabilities and relocate to Montevideo.

The report details the financial status of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research for the 2011/2012 fiscal year. While 99.5% of approved contributions for the year were received by April 30, 2012, the institute faces significant arrears totaling US$1.3 million, with Mexico and Venezuela cited as major debtors. Operational expenses through February 2012 were 11% below budget, though salary costs exceeded projections by 6.4%. Cash reserves cover 3.8 months of operations, increasing to 9.2 months if US committed funds are included. Administratively, the report notes instability regarding the contracting of four staff members via INPE.

The authors argue that the Green Economy approach, as defined by UNEP, fails to protect biodiversity because it treats nature as 'Natural Capital' and relies on market-based tools like Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES). They propose a shift toward a biocentric perspective that recognizes the intrinsic value and legal rights of nature, independent of human utility. The paper highlights Ecuador as a pioneer in constitutional recognition of nature's rights and suggests practical global targets, including the strict protection of 10% of the world's eco-regions and a transition to 100% organic production.

The document analyzes the International Bar Association's Model Mining Development Agreement (MMDA 1.0), providing a template and narrative to ensure mining contracts promote sustainable development, transparency, and equitable resource distribution. It details key contractual areas including land tenure, royalties, taxation, and community obligations, while emphasizing the use of international standards like the IFC Performance Standards and EITI. Additionally, the report investigates the existence of similar model agreements for the oil and gas sector, concluding that no internationally accepted model currently exists despite the availability of various national form contracts.

The IAI Core Budget request for fiscal year 2012-2013 is US$1,312,578, a slight decrease from the previous year. The budget supports the Directorate's operations, including the management of the Collaborative Research Network (CRN) and Small Grants Programs, and accounts for the relocation of the Directorate from Brazil to Uruguay in January 2013. Salaries and benefits constitute 72% of the core budget. The document also outlines member country contributions, with the United States providing the largest share at US$762,000.