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Ravao’s Story: A Health and Environment Champion From Madagascar’s Mikea Forest
›The original version of this article, by Vik Mohan, appeared on Blue Ventures’ blog.
I recently spent a hectic and intense couple of weeks in the village of Andavadoaka, where Blue Ventures’ community health project is based, during my annual visit to Madagascar. Although I founded our Safidy (meaning “choice”) health program several years ago, each return visit brings new and inspiring stories and lessons from our team on the ground.
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Liang Jialin and Jiang Han, ChinaDialogue
Overfishing Pushes 80 Percent of Chinese Fishermen Towards Bankruptcy
›November 9, 2012 // By Wilson Center StaffThe original version of this article, by Liang Jialin and Jiang Han, appeared in English on ChinaDialogue and in Chinese on Economic Information Daily.
In mid-September, the fishing season got under way as usual in Ningbo, on China’s east coast, after the three-month season when fishing is forbidden. Over 2,000 steel-hulled boats headed out to sea. But, on board, there was little cause for optimism.
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Linking Biodiversity and WASH Efforts in Africa
›Sub-Saharan Africa is a key region both for conservationists and those working for improved public health. Nine of the world’s 34 biodiversity hotspots are in sub-Saharan Africa, as are two of the five most important wilderness areas. This hotbed of biodiversity is also home to many of the world’s most rapidly growing populations and swelling urbanization, which is putting increased pressure on natural resources.
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Education as a Conservation Strategy – Really?
›The original version of this article appeared in The Nature Conservancy’s October issue of their Science Chronicles newsletter.
It seems like everywhere you turn recently, you hear how the planet’s population is headed to 10 billion. And obvious questions follow: How can we balance far more people with the natural resources needed for their survival? How will we get more food? How will we get more energy?
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Population and Environment in Saadani National Park, and Repositioning Family Planning in Sub-Saharan Africa
›Tanzania’s Saadani National Park is a hotbed of biodiversity and, like other national parks in the region, it’s surrounded by human activity. A report by the BALANCED Project, “Population, Health, Environment Situational Analysis for the Saadani National Park Area, Tanzania,” provides a snapshot of the population, health, and environment situation inside the park to serve as a baseline for future activities of the Tanzania Coastal Management Partnership (TCMP) – a joint initiative of the government of Tanzania, USAID, and the University of Rhode Island’s Coastal Resources Center. A behavioral monitoring system implemented in June 2009 used surveys that reached a total of 437 respondents (54 percent women) from eight villages to analyze the “behaviors that positively and negatively influence the utilization and condition of natural resources.” The surveys found that arable land is scarce, fisheries are being depleted, and people have inadequate access to healthcare, water, sanitation, fuel, and family planning resources. The results suggest a strong case for expanding TCMP’s existing integrated approach – combining HIV/AIDS, conservation, and livelihoods goals – to include promotion of positive behavior changes, particularly as they relate to family planning and the effects of population growth on biodiversity loss and resource depletion.
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Who Are the Most Vulnerable to Ocean Acidification and Warming?
›In 2011, a record 34 billion cubic tons of carbon dioxide were emitted from man-made sources. Half the emitted CO2 stays in the atmosphere, about a quarter is absorbed on land (as trees grow, for example), and the remainder is absorbed by the ocean. Unsurprisingly, this incredible amount of carbon dioxide significantly changes the ocean environment. Over time, increased absorption of carbon dioxide in the oceans has led to ocean acidification, and overall warming has also led to warming of ocean waters – both changes impact marine ecosystems and the people who rely on them.
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Manipadma Jena, Inter Press Service
A Lake of Hope and Conflict
›October 4, 2012 // By Wilson Center StaffThe original version of this article, by Manipadma Jena, appeared on Inter Press Service.
Parvez Ahmad Dar climbs three hours to reach the hilltop, generator-equipped tourist center in Ajaf village, 35 kilometers from Srinagar, to recharge his mobile phone.
The 46-year-old president of the Wular Valley People’s Welfare Forum is in high demand as an activist and organizer – he cannot allow the long power outages in northern India’s Kashmir Valley to cut off communication with his constituency.
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Geoff Dabelko on the Evolution of Integrated Development and PHE
›August 27, 2012 // By Schuyler Null“Population-health-environment [PHE] connections have really been a focus of ours here at the Wilson Center for the last 15 years,” said outgoing ECSP Director Geoff Dabelko in an interview at the Wilson Center. The goal of ECSP’s project – HELPS (health, environment, livelihoods, population, and security) – is “really trying to understand these issues together.”
Showing posts from category conservation.