The war that has devastated Syria for the last six years has led to a humanitarian crisis in the region and has had huge ramifications for Lebanon's ability to provide basic services such as electricity, sanitation, waste collection, and water.
COP23 outcomes call for faster action and higher ambition to keep Paris on track
Achala Abeysinghe reports back from last month's UNFCCC COP23 and asks whether the outcomes of this year's UN climate summit will be enough to keep the Paris Agreement on course.
Spotlight on... Biocultural heritage landscape to be established in Eastern Himalayas
Around 50 participants gathered for a workshop in November titled 'Methods, tools and processes for establishing biocultural heritage landscapes.' Participants at the event which was held near Kalimpong, India, in the Eastern Himalayas, committed to establish a biocultural heritage landscape to protect the biodiversity and cultural heritage of the area and its indigenous peoples.
As well as conserving biodiversity, biocultural heritage landscapes aim to support local economic growth which incorporates indigenous land tenure systems, methods of food production, and spiritual and cultural identities. They aim to protect areas with rich biodiversity for the future, enhancing food security and securing crop diversity for climate change adaptation.
New publications this month
Exploring the role of empowerment in urban humanitarian responses in Freetown looks at humanitarian responses in the Portee-Rokupa neighbourhood of Freetown. It explores how approaches have been able to build the capacities of informal dwellers’ groups, foster collaboration among different stakeholders, enable critical learning, and open up opportunities for the recognition of the diverse needs and aspirations of vulnerable groups within the wider policy and planning environment.
The Least Developed Counties (LDCs) have worked with the two branches of the UNFCCC’s Technology Mechanism for several years. Least Developed Countries' experiences with the UNFCCC technology mechanism aims to better understand the barriers and challenges LDCs face in implementing technology development and transfer and explores what changes to existing technology and financial institutions could lessen these barriers and challenges.
The Climate Change research group at IIED is looking for a researcher with UNFCCC experience to work on the development and implementation of the group's programme of work related to global climate change processes and implementation of outcomes.
