Recently, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), released a new report titled, Recent Trends in Material Flows and Resource Productivity in Asia and the Pacific 2013. The 36-page report available here, discusses the following:
[t]his report is intended to supplement the original Resource Efficiency: Economics and Outlook for Asia and the Pacific report (UNEP 2011). The content is based on an updated material flows database which presents data up to 2008, and the onset of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). The scope of this report is considerably narrower than the original report, focussing on deepening quantitative analyses specifically relating to primary material flows in the ten greatest resource consuming countries in Asia and the Pacific, and the trajectories of related resource efficiency indicators.
This month, the United Nations Environment Programme in conjunction with the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) and other organizations released a new report titled, Pacific Environment and Climate Change Outlook (2012). The 232-page report available here, discusses the following:
The Pacific Environment and Climate Change Outlook . . . [c]over[s] 21 countries and territories, mostly small, low-lying island
communities, the report provides a detailed assessment of the state of the
Pacific environment, and lays out policy options for improving sustainable
development in island communities. The experiences of over 500 communities are
included in the study."This report presents concrete evidence that food, freshwater and the
livelihoods of Pacific islanders are under threat, and that the Pacific is at
the forefront in humanity's efforts to combat and adapt to climate change, "said
UN Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner.
"Enhancing local capacity to directly monitor, and manage, the impacts of the
region's changing environment is essential for reducing climate risks, but also
for unlocking the potential economic benefits that a transition to an inclusive,
low-carbon and resource efficient green economy can bring," said Mr. Steiner.
The report covers the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) of:
American Samoa, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Guam, Kiribati, Marshall islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, Niue, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Pitcairn Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Wallis and Futuna.
