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2,369 documents from International Institute for Sustainable Development
The Measure of Progress
The 'Dashboard of Sustainability' is a visually-engaging online tool developed by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) to measure sustainable development performance across economic, environmental, social, and institutional dimensions.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Form follows Function: Management and governance of a formal knowledge network
This guide by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) provides a framework for establishing and managing formal knowledge networks. It outlines a four-stage process—forming, organizing, formalizing, and institutionalizing relationships—to move beyond simple information exchange toward collaborative "working networks" that create joint value and influence policy processes.
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Document type: Guide
Communicating Sustainable Development on the Web
This guide provides a framework for sustainable development organizations to integrate the Web into their communications strategies. It emphasizes that a website should be viewed as an extension of the organization rather than a separate project, advocating for a "Web first" approach to information delivery. The document details the creation of a common vocabulary for online content (files, clusters, modules, sections), provides guidance on information architecture and user-centric design, and outlines the management of technical and content development tasks. It also explores four models for collaborative joint module development: gateways, working sites, hub-and-spokes, and integrated modules.
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Document type: Guide
On Clustering International Environmental Agreements
This research paper by Konrad von Moltke explores the concept of "clustering" as a method to reform international environmental management. Rather than pursuing the daunting task of merging existing international environmental agreements (MEAs), the author proposes grouping related regimes to increase efficiency and effectiveness through shared tools, coordinated governance, and joint institutional frameworks.
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Document type: Research paper
YCLSF Host Organization Guide
The YCLSF Host Organization Guide, published by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) in 2001, provides operational instructions for organizations hosting interns under the Young Canadian Leaders for a Sustainable Future project. The project is part of the Government of Canada's Youth International Internship Program (YIIP), designed to provide unemployed or underemployed Canadian youth up to age 30 with their first paid international career experience in sustainable development.
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Document type: Guide
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND POVERTY ALLEVIATION EXPLORING THE LINKS
This research paper by Anantha Kumar Duraiappah of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) critiques the last 50 years of poverty alleviation strategies and proposes a new working model based on the principles of sustainable development. The author argues that previous approaches failed because they confused the means of economic growth with the end goal of poverty reduction, and suggests integrating Joseph Stiglitz's stakeholder-based transformation model with a guiding principle of sustainable development to ensure distributive and inter-generational justice.
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Document type: Research paper
Assessing the Impact of NAFTA on Environmental Law and Management Processes
This research paper analyzes how trade and investment disciplines under NAFTA and the WTO impact the ability of governments to enact and implement environmental laws. The author argues that while there is no inherent conflict between trade rules and environmental protection, the cumulative and retroactive nature of these disciplines creates significant legal and capacity risks for governments, particularly regarding older measures and the expansive interpretations of investment protections in NAFTA Chapter 11.
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Document type: Research paper
ENVIRONMENTAL AND TRADE IMPLICATIONS OF CHINA’S WTO ACCESSION
This report provides a preliminary analysis of the potential environmental and trade implications of China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), focusing on industrial restructuring, pollution levels, environmental management, and international trade dynamics.
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Document type: Report
PROSPECTS OF CDM FOR PROMOTING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN CHINA
This report analyzes the potential for China to participate in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) under the Kyoto Protocol. It evaluates the economic, environmental, and social benefits and costs, emphasizing that while the CDM offers short-term gains in foreign investment and technology, it poses a long-term risk of technology dependence if core R&D and manufacturing capabilities are not transferred. The authors provide strategic recommendations for China to ensure the CDM supports its long-term sustainable development goals.
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Document type: Report
International Institute for Sustainable Development
The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is a Canadian non-profit organization headquartered in Winnipeg with global offices. It provides international negotiation reporting and focuses on five strategic areas: sustainability measurement, climate change, economic policy, trade/investment, and natural resource management. IISD works with governments and communities globally, particularly in developing countries, to implement sustainable development practices.
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Document type: Fact sheet
The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety: An analysis of results
This IISD briefing note analyzes the results of the negotiations for the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, which concluded in Montreal in January 2000. The document examines the Protocol's scope, its operationalization of the precautionary principle, its complex relationship with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, and the positions of the five major negotiating blocs.
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Document type: Briefing
Community Drought Mitigation Project Final Report
The Community Drought Mitigation Project (CDMP), implemented by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and Environment and Development Activities (ENDA-Zimbabwe) between 1996 and 1999, aimed to enhance sustainable livelihoods in the drought-prone areas of Mudzi and Gwanda, Zimbabwe. Using a sustainable livelihoods framework, the project integrated local adaptive strategies with appropriate technologies and policy analysis to reduce community vulnerability to drought.
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Document type: Report
Memoria del Foro Regional sobre Comercio y Medio Ambiente Realizado en San Salvador del 7 al 10 de julio de 1999
This report documents the proceedings of the Regional Forum on Trade and Environment held in San Salvador from July 7 to 10, 1999. Organized by SG-SICA, CCAD, IISD, IDRC, and IUCN, the forum aimed to establish a regional agenda for Central America to integrate environmental sustainability into global and regional trade negotiations, particularly within the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA).
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Document type: Report
Trade and the environment
This research paper by Konrad von Moltke examines the complex relationship between international trade and environmental protection, specifically focusing on the World Trade Organization (WTO). The author argues that the trade regime must integrate environmental concerns and sustainable development to maintain its political legitimacy and operational effectiveness, particularly as it approached the 'Millennium Round' of negotiations in 1999.
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Document type: Research paper
A Youth Strategy for Public Outreach on Climate Change
This 1999 consulting report by the IISD Business Trust, submitted to the Government of Canada, proposes a five-year engagement strategy to raise climate change awareness and motivate emissions reductions among Canadian youth aged 13 to 29. Moving beyond simple social marketing, the strategy emphasizes an 'engagement' model that positions youth as leaders and participants. It is structured around three interrelated streams: information and awareness campaigns, capacity building for youth, and community actions, with a strong emphasis on intergenerational and multisectoral collaboration.
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Document type: Report
Pakistan: Environmental Impact of Cotton Production and Trade
This research paper examines the environmental impacts of cotton production and textile processing in Pakistan, analyzing the sector through the lens of global commodity chains. It highlights the ecological and health costs of heavy pesticide use in farming and the pollution caused by chemical dyes in textile manufacturing, while evaluating the governance structures that hinder or facilitate a transition to sustainable practices.
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Document type: Research paper
BALANCING TRADE AND ENVIRONMENTAL NEEDS – SINGAPORE’S EXPERIENCE
This research paper describes Singapore's strategies for integrating environmental protection with economic growth, focusing on the use of market-based instruments, international standards, and productivity programs to achieve sustainable development.
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Document type: Research paper
Trade in Environmental Services and Sustainable Development in Central America: The Cases of Costa Rica and El Salvador
This research paper examines the emergence of markets for global environmental services in Central America, focusing on greenhouse gas emission reduction trading in Costa Rica and the role of shade-grown coffee in biodiversity and carbon sequestration in El Salvador.
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Document type: Research paper
Comercio de servicios ambientales y desarrollo sostenible en Centroamérica: Los casos de Costa Rica y El Salvador
This executive summary examines the emergence of environmental services markets in Central America, focusing on Costa Rica's leadership in carbon emission reductions and El Salvador's potential for biodiversity and carbon sequestration through shade-grown coffee. It analyzes how international agreements like the Kyoto Protocol and the Convention on Biological Diversity create financial opportunities for developing nations to link environmental conservation with sustainable economic development.
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Document type: Executive summary
PROCEEDINGS OF THE TRADE AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOP
This document contains the proceedings of a Trade and Sustainable Development Workshop held on 1-2 July 1999 in Midrand, South Africa. Hosted by the IUCN, the Group for Environmental Monitoring (GEM), and the Trade and Industrial Policy Secretariat (TIPS), and funded by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), the workshop aimed to identify international and domestic trends, research focus areas, and strategic interventions for South Africa regarding the World Trade Organization (WTO) and other trade policy negotiations to promote sustainable development.
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Document type: Report