Comments on: MA Biodiversity Synthesis released http://rs.resalliance.org/2005/05/23/ma-biodiversity-synthesis-released/ coping with ecological suprise in a human dominated world Thu, 16 Oct 2008 03:54:48 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Resilience Science » WRI 2005: Environment key to helping poor http://rs.resalliance.org/2005/05/23/ma-biodiversity-synthesis-released/#comment-66 Resilience Science » WRI 2005: Environment key to helping poor Thu, 01 Sep 2005 04:38:01 +0000 http://blog.resalliance.org/?p=48#comment-66 [...] BBC news has an article on the report Environment key to helping poor which writes: The release of this year’s edition, sub-titled Managing Ecosystems to Fight Poverty, is particularly pertinent, coming as it does in the run-up to the UN World Summit, which will see representatives of more than 190 countries gather in New York to review progress on the Millennium Goals adopted by world leaders five years ago. … Jonathan Lash [WRI’s president] is pessimistic that the link between environmental protection and poverty is understood at the highest level. … “In the Millennium Goals, the environment was treated as an afterthought,” he told the BBC News website. A foreword co-written by senior figures in the World Bank and the United Nations Environment and Development Programmes notes the devastating figures which emerged earlier this year from a four-year study of global environmental decline, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (for more on the MA see our previous posts: 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5). [...] [...] BBC news has an article on the report Environment key to helping poor which writes: The release of this year’s edition, sub-titled Managing Ecosystems to Fight Poverty, is particularly pertinent, coming as it does in the run-up to the UN World Summit, which will see representatives of more than 190 countries gather in New York to review progress on the Millennium Goals adopted by world leaders five years ago. … Jonathan Lash [WRI’s president] is pessimistic that the link between environmental protection and poverty is understood at the highest level. … “In the Millennium Goals, the environment was treated as an afterthought,” he told the BBC News website. A foreword co-written by senior figures in the World Bank and the United Nations Environment and Development Programmes notes the devastating figures which emerged earlier this year from a four-year study of global environmental decline, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (for more on the MA see our previous posts: 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5). [...]

]]> By: Resilience Science » MA Desertification Synthesis http://rs.resalliance.org/2005/05/23/ma-biodiversity-synthesis-released/#comment-65 Resilience Science » MA Desertification Synthesis Mon, 27 Jun 2005 05:06:07 +0000 http://blog.resalliance.org/?p=48#comment-65 [...] 8212; Garry Peterson @ 12:01 am Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (see earlier posts Biodiversity Synthesis and 1 and 2.) has released Ecosystems a [...] [...] 8212; Garry Peterson @ 12:01 am Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (see earlier posts Biodiversity Synthesis and 1 and 2.) has released Ecosystems a [...]

]]> By: Line Gordon http://rs.resalliance.org/2005/05/23/ma-biodiversity-synthesis-released/#comment-64 Line Gordon Thu, 26 May 2005 09:43:36 +0000 http://blog.resalliance.org/?p=48#comment-64 Divergent opinions about whether preserving diversity is compatible with the MDG's are illustrated in two articles published at SciDev.net. The articles also discuss if highlighting trade-offs between ecosystem services and economic growth might be a "non debate" (citing Jeffry Sachs: "All of us now agree that poor people depend on the health of ecosystems to survive. The idea of a 'trade-off' is naïve... I don't want to see a debate because environmental sustainability is as much a part of the Millennium Development Goals as are the other goals." Finally the articles also point out that some of the findings in the MA biodiversity synthesis might be controversial. Habitat loss has according to the articles slowed down. Yet this is not reflected in the report's 11 "key messages" nor the report's 'Summary for Decision Makers'" See: http://www.scidev.net/News/index.cfm?fuseaction=readnews&itemid=2100&language=1 http://www.scidev.net/content/editorials/eng/plants-or-people-the-debate-continues.cfm Divergent opinions about whether preserving diversity is compatible with the MDG’s are illustrated in two articles published at SciDev.net. The articles also discuss if highlighting trade-offs between ecosystem services and economic growth might be a “non debate” (citing Jeffry Sachs: “All of us now agree that poor people depend on the health of ecosystems to survive. The idea of a ‘trade-off’ is naïve… I don’t want to see a debate because environmental sustainability is as much a part of the Millennium Development Goals as are the other goals.”

Finally the articles also point out that some of the findings in the MA biodiversity synthesis might be controversial. Habitat loss has according to the articles slowed down. Yet this is not reflected in the report’s 11 “key messages” nor the report’s ‘Summary for Decision Makers’”

See:
http://www.scidev.net/News/index.cfm?fuseaction=readnews&itemid=2100&language=1
http://www.scidev.net/content/editorials/eng/plants-or-people-the-debate-continues.cfm

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