Jonathan Lash, president of the World Resources Institute (WRI), is testifying today before the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee regarding action of other countries to address climate change and the implications of their action for the United States.

Some important messages from his testimony:

China is making progress toward controlling greenhouse gas emissions, according to new research by the Word Resources Institute (WRI).

Petrobras, Ford Brasil, Wal-Mart Brasil, and Whirlpool are some of the first companies to voluntarily measure and publicly report their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions using the Brazil GHG Protocol Program, a project of the World Resources Institute (WRI).

The World Resources Institute (WRI) and the Rural Development Institute (RDI) are launching a new initiative that will improve the livelihoods of farmers by creating a system of Web-based multimedia tools to illustrate and communicate complex property rights issues in Africa. The initiative is funded with a grant to WRI from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

A new set of maps illustrating levels of clean drinking water, sanitation facilities, and poverty in Uganda will help guide national development planning.

Valuing Nature’s Assets: Business Accounts for Fresh Water, Biodiversity, Forests, Coral Reefs and Wetlands for Long-Term Viability and Profit

The earth’s diminishing natural and environmental resources are getting a new look from global business leaders – and not for the sake of philanthropy. Through new analytic approaches and tools that assess and value the fragile ecosystems virtually all businesses depend on, corporate leaders are beginning to understand that natural resources are as important to future profitability as interest rates or capital depreciation schedules.

Commitments made by developed countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, when added together, fall short of stabilizing global temperatures at a level that averts dangerous climate change.

WHAT:

The World Resources Institute (WRI), the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and clean technology companies will host a Senate briefing for lawmakers, staff, and journalists Tuesday, October 6, 2009. Companies representing the emerging clean energy industry in the Southeast United States will share their perspectives on jobs and economic growth in clean energy. They will also express how energy and climate legislation affects small and medium-sized businesses and how such policy action can support a competitive Southeast economy.

The World Resources Institute (WRI) is stepping up its work on greening the supply chains of companies both big and small, thanks to a grant from Walmart.

Palm Oil, Timber and Carbon Offsets (POTICO), a project of the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the NewPage Corporation, is making progress toward conserving rainforests in Indonesia by creating an ecologically and fiscally sustainable palm oil industry.