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  Linking Biodiversity Conservation and Poverty Alleviation: A State of Knowledge Review »

  Over recent decades, biodiversity conservation and poverty reduction have both become international societal and political goals. There is recognition of the links between these two goals both within the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Millennium Development Goals. However, the causal relationships are not so simple either that one can say poverty causes biodiversity loss, or improvements in biodiversity reduce poverty. This suggests a need to be more specific in defining what types of poverty and biodiversity issues are being assessed.

  Two “state of knowledge” reviews were commissioned to explore the evidence base for two common assumptions about the link between biodiversity conservation and poverty reduction: 1) that the poor depend on biodiversity; and 2) that biodiversity conservation can be a mechanism for poverty reduction. These attempt to tease apart the issues of what type of poverty and what type of biodiversity are being assessed.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Making REDD Work for the Poor. A Poverty Environment Partnership (PEP) report (2008) »

  Deforestation and degradation account for around 20% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions, widely believed to drive climate change. Growing concerns about the impacts of climate change have fuelled international interest in developing mechanisms to slow deforestation and degradation rates, such as the ‘Reduce Emissions for Deforestation and Degradation’ (REDD) Programme. Its potential contribution to rural poverty reduction could be immense, but REDD mechanisms may also entail new risks. This paper presents a framework for understanding the linkages between REDD and poverty, and conducts an initial analysis of the poverty implications of REDD.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  The Last Stand of the Orangutan - State of emergency: illegal logging, fire and palm oil in Indonesia's national parks »

  The Last Stand of the Orangutan was prepared by a Rapid Response Team at UNEP/GRID-Arendal and UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre as a broad collaborative effort, involving contributors from the Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Forestry, Indonesia, and partners of the Great Apes Survival Project (GRASP).

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Carbon, biodiversity and ecosystem services: Exploring co-benefits. Nigeria: Preliminary Results »

  Well-planned and carefully implemented REDD+ actions can have positive outcomes that are additional to emissions reductions. Such ‘cobenefits’ include conservation of biodiversity and maintenance of ecosystem services. Potential cobenefits from REDD+ are highly relevant in Nigeria, where services provided by forests make an important contribution to the livelihoods of local communities (Aruofor 2001).

  Spatial analyses relating potential co-benefits to carbon stocks can support planning and decisionmaking on REDD+. Simple mapping tools can be used to help identify areas where high carbon, high biodiversity priority, and ecosystem service values overlap, and show how these relate to pressures and management options. This brochure presents results from some initial spatial analyses for Nigeria.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Scoping the potential benefits of undertaking an MA-style assessment for England »

  The aim of this study was to identify and examine potential benefits of undertaking an ecosystem assessment for England. The need for such a study has arisen largely as a result of the 2005 Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) which not only demonstrated the importance of ecosystem services to human wellbeing, but also showed that at global scales, many key services are being degraded and lost.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Environmental Risks from Agriculture in Europe »

  The EnRisk project – Environmental Risk Assessment for European Agriculture was finalized in October 2004. This project, coordinated by ECNC, was funded by the European Commission as a Concerted Action under the theme 'Quality of Life and Management of Living Resources' of the Fifth Framework Programme for Research, Technological Development and Demonstration Activities.

  The report, written by a team of international environmental experts and conservationists, describes an innovative methodology and the results of a three-year study that applied agri-environmental indicators and European datasets to identify the main environmental risk areas in Europe. It covers soil erosion, nutrient enrichment, pesticide use and their integrated risks for biodiversity and landscapes.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Mangroves of Western and Central Africa »

  This report presents a country profile for 19 countries of West and Central Africa, considering the status, distribution, biodiversity, uses, threats and drivers of change for their mangroves. Although there is considerable work being undertaken to research this habitat at the national, regional and global level, there are still significant gaps in information, emphasizing a need for continued efforts to improve assessment in the region. This report concludes that there has been a decline in mangrove cover in the region over the last quarter of a century, and that there will be consequences as a result of this decline.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  CITES Species Checklist 2011 »

  The Checklist of CITES species is produced by UNEP-WCMC following each meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES, taking into account all changes agreed by the Parties.

  The 2011 Checklist of CITES species, containing updates from CoP15, is the latest edition of this document.

  This edition has been restructured, and now comprises:

  Part 1: CITES Species Index (previously called the Checklist of CITES Species):

  • lists all currently CITES-listed species
  • includes scientific and common names, synonyms, and current Appendix listing

  Part 2: History of CITES Listings (previously called the Annotated Appendices and Reservations):

  • provides a historical record of all taxa currently, or previously listed in the Appendices to CITES
  • includes full footnotes clarifying the populations, specimen parts, or specimen origins that are controlled under CITES
  • lists all reservations imposed by parties to CITES.

   

  The 2011 Checklist can be accessed here.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Climate Change and Marine Diseases: The Socio-Economic Impact »

  Diseases in the marine environment are integral to the regulation of marine ecosystems. However, in recent decades, unprecedented disease outbreaks have brought into focus the implications of human impacts upon marine disease. Climate change acts in synergy with other anthropogenic factors, such as pollution and over-exploitation, to drive changes in disease dynamics with important socio-economic consequences.

  Climate Change and Marine Diseases: The Socio-Economic Impact reviews this emerging field of research and presents case studies illustrating how the impact of climate change on marine disease has significant implications for human health, food security and business sustainability. A number of key recommendations are presented on how best to move forward in terms of unraveling the processes behind marine diseases and to integrate this knowledge into the wider policy realm.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Global Marine Assessments: a survey of global and regional marine environmental assessments and related scientific activities »

  The world's oceans provide goods, services and functions fundamental to the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people worldwide. Planning for their sustainable use requires a more detailed understanding of the marine environment than is available at present: an understanding that will only become possible through improved levels of monitoring and assessment. This publication is the result of inter-agency and national government collaboration. It represents part of UNEP's contribution to evaluating the feasibility of establishing a Global Marine Assessment, a process that would regularly report on the state of the marine environment. The report presents a snapshot of assessments and related scientific activities that were in progress at the end of 2002. It considers and recommends various ways in which a future Global Marine Assessment process could integrate these activities, and identifies the thematic and geographical gaps that need to be addressed.

  Resource Type: Reports