(February 23, 2010) A massive new market in forest carbon would come with a series of new (and not so new) risks.
Carbon markets deflating in the wake of Copenhagen
(February 22, 2010) After political leaders failed at December’s climate summit in Copenhagen to agree to a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, the price of carbon has been slowly deflating. Many investors are now wary of pouring more money into a scheme that depends on political will, rather than economic fundamentals.
Help Haiti build a real government
(February 22, 2010) Aid makes governments unaccountable to their own people – with devastating results.
The Mekong river’s last stop: Vietnam
(February 20, 2010) To help acquaint readers in the West with the importance of the Mekong, National Public Radio’s (NPR) Southeast Asia correspondent Michael Sullivan is producing a five-part series, journeying the length of the river and offering a closer look at the people who live along its banks. The fifth part of the series, "As Mekong Rolls To The Sea, Turbulence On Its Banks" is reproduced below.
The Mekong river: Cambodia’s road to success
(February 19, 2010) To help acquaint readers in the West with the importance of the Mekong, National Public Radio’s (NPR) Southeast Asia correspondent Michael Sullivan is producing a five-part series, journeying the length of the river and offering a closer look at the people who live along its banks. The fourth part of the series, "Cambodia’s Fortunes Ebb And Flow Along The Mekong" is reproduced below.
A river runs through it: the Mekong river, Thailand and Laos
(February 18, 2010) To help acquaint readers in the West with the importance of the Mekong, National Public Radio’s (NPR) Southeast Asia correspondent Michael Sullivan is producing a five-part series, journeying the length of the river and offering a closer look at the people who live along its banks. The third part of the series, "Mekong Divides Different Worlds In ‘Golden Triangle’" is reproduced below.
Capital thirsts for water from Hebei
(January 20, 2010) Neighboring province tightens its belts to ease Beijing’s shortage. Four reservoirs in Hebei are expected to be called upon again this year to supply water to Beijing, but the water delivery plan is still being negotiated by the Beijing and Hebei governments. The temporary plan for Beijing to get water from the four reservoirs – two in Shijiazhuang and two in Baoding – will bridge the gap until the South-to-North water diversion project is completed in 2014.
Turbulent waters: Myanmar and the Mekong river
(February 17, 2010) As the rush to dam the Mekong river in Southeast Asia continues unabated, critics are fighting back by documenting the river’s elaborate ecology and economy that is under seige. The river–which runs for 3,032 miles, while coursing its way through China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam before emptying into the South China Sea–has become a regional ribbon of contention between local activists and the government bodies and international development agencies that want to dam the river’s flow.
China’s pollution problem worse than anticipated says new report
(February 17, 2010) China’s first official nationwide census of pollution sources found that the nation’s water is much more polluted than official estimates originally reported.
Tapping the source: China and the Mekong river
(February 16, 2010) As the rush to dam the Mekong river in Southeast Asia continues unabated, critics are fighting back by documenting the river’s elaborate ecology and economy–both of which are under siege from development.
Liu Xiaobo’ conviction killed the constitution, Bao Tong says
(February 16, 2010) It is a great pity that the government seems not to want progress; that it seems to have given up trying. The Chinese Constitution and the rights of its citizens have been recklessly trampled by the one-party system. There is no end to the number of cases of injustice, or miscarriages of justice that this system churns out. The case of Liu Xiaobo is just the latest warning sign.
The state of affairs for carbon
(February 15, 2010) Carbon markets have suffered a number of criticisms since they were first introduced — ranging from being a haven for white collar crime to a sponsor of environmental harm in Third World communities. With global leaders failing to reach an agreement to extend the Kyoto Protocol at the December meeting in Copenhagen, many people are asking if carbon markets will survive at all (also see here and here).
China: Lending Africa a helping hand
(February 15, 2010) Despite a number of concerns, China’s involvement in Africa is welcome for a variety of psychological and pragmatic reasons.
Chopsticks mercantilism: China’s involvement in Africa
(February 15, 2010) China’s engagement with Africa should be a boon. Its overall trade with Africa rose from $10.6 billion in 2000 to $75.5 billion in 2008, propelling Africa’s growth rate to 5.8% in 2008, its best performance since 1974. China is now Africa’s second-largest trading partner after the United States, importing a third of its crude oil from Africa…But China’s engagement is increasingly being seen as odious, predatory and brutish. The initial enthusiasm that greeted Chinese investments in Africa has now cooled.
An interview with the man who sued China’s Ministry of Finance to safeguard Chinese citizens’ right to know
(February 12, 2010) Tired of paying into a fund for the construction of Three Gorges dam without knowing how the money was being spent, Ren Xinghui took matters into his own hands.
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