Topic: mexico

RELEASE: 14 Latin American and Caribbean Countries Adopt an Ambitious Plan of Action to Improve Access Rights in the Region

Lauren Zelin — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 17:17:15 -0400

Fourteen Latin American and Caribbean countries adopted an ambitious Plan of Action to improve access rights in the region, including access to information, public participation, and access to justice. The plan, which was approved at a meeting in Guadalajara, Mexico, on April 16-17, 2013, seeks to implement the Latin American and Caribbean Declaration on Principle 10 that was signed at the Rio +20 Conference in June 2012, under which countries agreed to work towards a regional instrument to improve access rights.

The meeting began with Colombia and Honduras signing on to the LAC Declaration, a major accomplishment for all parties. The 14 countries that have now signed on include: Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay.

“The new Plan of Action shows political will to transform environmental justice and transparency in the region,” said Carole Excell, Senior Associate at the World Resources Institute and The Access Initiative. “It sets the pace and the agenda to tackle the challenges of negotiating a regional instrument to ensure access rights across Latin America and the Caribbean.”

Under the new 2013-2014 Plan of Action, the LAC countries have committed to:

Promote the Principle 10 Declaration and incorporate new signatories into the process;
Strengthen and highlight the progress made on rights of access to information, participation, and justice;
Promote active participation of civil society at the national level; and
Develop working groups to deliberate capacity-building and cooperation efforts, and determine the nature and scope of the regional instrument.

Ambassador Jose Balmaceda of Chile noted that the Plan of Action “is a strong political signal to the international community that we are responding in a responsible way to this commitment [to Principle 10] … It is the first time that government representatives from 14 countries and civil society sat down to debate – with transparency and trust – relevant issues for the future of the region. This is a testament to maturity in the region. We have been able to reach consensus on the Plan of Action that will allow us to move ahead on national processes and regional efforts. I am sure that this result will motivate other nations in the region to join the process.”

The Plan of Action includes a number of innovative provisions, including procedures for public participation in the regional process and its working groups. It will create opportunities for close South-to-South cooperation on rights to promote transparency, public participation, and access to justice, as well as a focus on increased support for effective implementation at the national level.

“We hope at the end of 2014 we can count on the development of an instrument on Principle 10 that establishes concrete actions to guarantee effective and informed participation to all citizens and communities of our region,” said Daniel Barragan, Ecuadorian Center for Environmental Law (Centro Ecuatoriane de Derecho Ambinental Ambiental), an environmental law NGO. “Soon we can have a voice and be a part of the decision making on the environment and natural resources.”

In addition to adopting the Plan of Action, members elected co-chairs to run the working groups. Costa Rica and Brazil were mandated to design the regional instrument on Principle 10 and Jamaica and Columbia were given the role to facilitate work on cooperation and capacity building.

Mobilizing Climate Investment: The Role of International Climate Finance in Creating Readiness for Scaled-Up, Low-Carbon Energy

Sarah Parsons — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 15:20:51 -0500

Executive Summary

Between now and 2050, developing countries need an estimated $531 billion per year of additional investment in energy supply and demand technologies in order to limit global temperature rise to 2° C above pre-industrial levels. To achieve this scale of investment, developing country governments and custodians of international public finance will need to deploy limited public finance in ways that leverage an unprecedented volume of private sector investment. Despite growing global investment in low-carbon energy and falling costs, it will be difficult to achieve the scale and urgency of investments needed without the appropriate policy, institutional, industry, and financial conditions. Governments and their international partners need to undertake “readiness” activities designed to put in place the conditions that attract scaled-up investment and enable a transformation toward low-carbon energy development pathways.

Drawing on six developing country case studies, this report identifies a set of key lessons and insights for readiness. The report develops a framework to identify and prioritize readiness activities that will require public financial support to create the conditions necessary to scale up investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency (collectively referred to as low-carbon energy). The report discusses the implications of the findings for international climate finance and draws a number of recommendations for the Green Climate Fund (GCF). It targets international public funds and institutions looking to accelerate investment in low-carbon energy, as well as developing country governments looking to identify and prioritize activities for funding.

Enabling conditions for scaling up investment

We identify a number of policy and institutional, industry, and financial sector conditions that can attract scaled-up public and private investment in low-carbon energy. Policy and institutional conditions include plans and targets for low-carbon energy, institutional capacity to effectively implement climate change and energy policies, laws supporting investment in low-carbon energy, and regulatory and fiscal instruments to implement laws. Industry conditions include the capacity of developers to prepare bankable projects, information on renewable resource availability or options to conserve energy, engineering capacity, and the presence of a support industry and enabling infrastructure. Financial conditions include a stable financial sector with the capacity and range of financial products needed to support low-carbon energy.

In six case studies, we analyze the role that enabling activities have played in promoting scaled up investment in low-carbon energy, and the role that international public finance has played in supporting such activities. These case studies examine energy efficiency in Thailand, wind power in South Africa, solar water heaters in Tunisia, geothermal power in Indonesia, wind power in Mexico, and energy efficiency in India. Taken together, the case studies suggest two overarching determinants of success in scaling up investment: government leadership and effective responses to pricing distortions. When government leadership is strong, a commitment to policy and institutional reform and implementation of stated goals usually follows. This in turn strengthens the investment climate and increases investor confidence. In cases where market failures severely distort the market in favor of carbon-intensive energy sources, it has been more difficult to create the conditions that attract investment in low-carbon energy.

Lessons learned for the design of readiness activities

The case studies also reveal a number of lessons about the design of readiness activities and the role of international partners in supporting them.

Small amounts of long-term funding for enabling activities can help scale up investment

In each case study, small investments in enabling activities—from several hundred thousand dollars to several million dollars—helped pave the way for scaled up private and public investments by supporting the creation of conducive policies and market conditions. International support has been most effective when sustained over five or more years. Technical support can also be more effective if international advisors are integrated into national institutions and report to national, rather than international, authorities.

International support is likely to be more effective if it identifies and targets a few critical barriers to investment. In countries with comparatively few enabling conditions for investment, attempts to simultaneously surmount all investment barriers may result in resources being spread too thin to achieve a significant impact. Chapter 4 presents a framework that can aid governments and their international partners in identifying activities to support.

Strengthening the enabling environment should not end when investment begins. In each case study, readiness activities and larger investment took place simultaneously. Even in cases where the investment climate was already strong, there was still scope for additional enabling activities to address specific gaps.

Integrated, inclusive planning processes and policy and institutional reform are key to attracting investment

The integration of low-carbon energy into a broader development agenda can enhance coordination and alignment between different sectors of the economy. Civil society and private sector actors can bring valuable expertise and experience to the planning process, and play important roles in ensuring that low-carbon energy policies and plans are realistic, robust, and tailored to the needs of the country. International support should be aligned with national plans and priorities for effective and sustained outcomes, and should be flexible enough to respond in a timely manner to evolving priorities.

Changes to the policy and regulatory environment proved crucial to attracting investment on a significant scale in the case studies. International support for the design of policies is likely to be effective only if it is demand-driven and not seen as infringing on national sovereignty. Countries that have set up their own financial mechanism to support low-carbon energy projects are well positioned to implement their objectives effectively and independently, thereby reducing their reliance on international partners to finance their low-carbon energy needs.

Having the appropriate institutions in place to develop, implement, and regulate policy reforms—and empowering them with the mandate and resources to carry out their functions effectively—helped ensure that policies were coherent and consistent, which increased investor confidence.

In key institutions, strengthening the capacity of staff and management to carry out their functions is an important readiness activity that often requires international funding support. The case studies suggest that capacity-building support is most effective when carefully targeted to address particular skills gaps.

Tackling information barriers and strengthening industry and financial sector capacity can unlock investment

Public support for broad-scale renewable resource assessments or exploration can provide information on resource availability that is key to attracting investor interest. Similarly, measures to familiarize industry and other actors with low-carbon energy options—such as training centers, awareness campaigns, and seminars and workshops that bring together stakeholders—can strengthen industry knowledge of and capacity to implement renewable energy projects, and raise awareness of the potential cost savings from energy efficiency.

International support plays an important role in facilitating learning and demonstrating new financing models for renewable energy, as well as strengthening industry’s capacity to develop and implement low-carbon energy projects. In some cases, international support to strengthen the capacity of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and improve their access to financing for low-carbon energy projects has helped unlock investment by this sector of the market.

Financial institutions can play a key role in opening the market for low-carbon energy technologies. However, some financial institutions lack knowledge of and experience with these technologies. Strengthening the capacity of financial institutions to support renewable energy and energy efficiency projects, including through pilot financing programs, has been important in scaling up domestic sources of finance for low-carbon energy in several cases. In some cases, the high risk—real or perceived—of investing in low-carbon technologies without a proven track record in the country has deterred domestic financial institutions. Mechanisms that carefully allocate risks to those best placed to manage them can help attract financing from domestic banks and other financial institutions.

A framework for guiding readiness support for low-carbon energy investments

Building on the experiences of the six case studies, we propose a framework to guide governments and their international partners in determining how best to provide readiness support to countries with low-carbon energy sectors in different stages of development. The framework describes some of the activities required to strengthen the enabling policy and institutional environment for investment. In the early stages of development, these include support for assessing energy options, engaging stakeholders in the energy planning process, capacity building for government agencies and civil society, technical support for developing plans and strategies, and outreach activities. In later stages, activities include support for designing and implementing regulations and fiscal instruments, and targeted capacity building for government agencies, including local governments.

The proposed framework also describes some of the activities needed to strengthen the enabling industry and financial conditions for investment. In early stages of development, these include renewable resource assessments and energy conservation awareness campaigns, capacity building for project developers and financial institutions, support for technology transfer and localization, feasibility studies and environmental and social impact assessments, and support for financial sector reform. At later stages, activities include strengthening engineering capacity for low-carbon energy projects, supporting ancillary industries (such as upgrading grid infrastructure), and supporting financial institutions to assess and finance low-carbon energy projects.

Recommendations for the Green Climate Fund

The six case studies illustrate different approaches that various international partners have used to support readiness activities. The lessons learned are intended to inform the recently established GCF as it attempts to identify how best to support a paradigm shift toward low-emission and climate-resilient development pathways. Although the GFC’s detailed operational modalities are not yet defined, it could take a number of approaches to support readiness. These include supporting readiness directly or partnering with existing institutions; establishing distinct channels and allocations for readiness or integrating enabling activities into existing channels and allocations; and supporting readiness through the private sector facility.

Aqueduct Metadata Document: Colorado River Basin Study

Sarah Parsons — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 15:16:28 -0500

Summary

Prior to the creation of the global Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas, indicators were developed and tested in a number of river basins worldwide. The results of the Colorado River Basin Study helped inform and shape the global Aqueduct Water Risk Framework. The Colorado River Basin study contains 12 indicators of water quantity, water variability, water quality, public awareness of water issues, access to water, and ecosystem vulnerability.

RELEASE: C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group and World Resources Institute Partner to Promote City Transit Solutions

James Anderson — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 22:44:03 -0500

The World Resources Institute, led by its sustainable transport center, EMBARQ, and the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40) established a partnership today that will further their mutual goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from urban transportation. The partnership focuses on scaling up solutions and enhancing C40 cities transport efforts related to sustainable urban planning, bus rapid transit systems, and non-motorized transit initiatives.

Together, these organizations will tackle a transport sector that accounts for roughly 13 percent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.

“This new partnership with EMBARQ and its global network of transportation expertise will accelerate the work cities are doing to implement more efficient and effective transit systems,” said C40 Chair and New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. “By combining the forces of two organizations that know how to get things done we will help provide greater transit options that will help us build a more sustainable planet.”

For over ten years, EMBARQ has catalyzed and implemented sustainable transport solutions to improve the quality of life in cities in terms of pollution, public health, and safety. Similarly, C40 works to implement innovative, replicable transit solutions that reduce GHG emissions at the city level.

“Mayor Bloomberg and the leaders of other C40 cities are committed to shifting to a low-carbon future – and this partnership will help them to get there,” said Andrew Steer, President, World Resources Institute. “The world’s middle class is booming and people are more mobile than ever before. We need smart, people-focused transportation solutions that will help create better cities and a more sustainable world.”

C40 and the World Resources Institute cemented a long-standing relationship through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding that will encourage the two entities to collaborate on the following:

Supporting climate mitigation and adaptation measures through sustainable and equitable transportation policies in C40 cities;
Leveraging C40 networks, or working groups of peer C40 cities (e.g. Sustainable Urban Development Network and Bus Rapid Transit Network), to develop and share integrated transit and urban development planning in and among C40 cities; and
Collaborating to support and promote low-carbon urban development in C40 cities, with particular attention paid to bus rapid transit and non-motorized transport.

EMBARQ is already actively working in the following C40 Cities: Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo (Brazil); Mexico City (Mexico); Lima (Peru); Istanbul (Turkey); Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore (India).

“By combining our vast networks and deep technical capacity, C40 and EMBARQ are positioned to make a significant contribution to reducing city-level emissions and creating better transport systems,” said Holger Dalkmann, director, EMBARQ. “Mayor Bloomberg is a proven leader by transforming New York City and raising the ambition of mayors around the world. Now, we need to more cities to follow C40’s lead by scaling up transportation and low-carbon solutions that create a healthier and safer world.”

The two organizations have collaborated in the past. C40 is currently working with EMBARQ’s parent organization, WRI, to establish a single standard for measuring city emissions – the Global Protocol for Community-scale Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Additionally, Mayor Bloomberg’s philanthropic foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, also collaborates with and provides support for EMBARQ’s international activities to improve road safety.

Media Contacts:

World Resources Institute: Michael Oko, moko@wri.org; (202) 246-9269
C40: Mike Marinello, mmarinello@c40.com

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About C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40)
The C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40) is a network of large and engaged cities from around the world committed to implementing meaningful and sustainable climate related actions locally that will help address climate change globally. C40 was established in 2005 and expanded via a partnership in 2006 with President William J. Clinton’s Climate Initiative (CCI). The current chair of the C40 is New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. To learn more about the work of C40 and our Cities, please visit www.c40.org, follow us on Twitter @c40cities and like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/C40Cities.

About EMBARQ—WRI’s Center for Sustainable Transport (EMBARQ)
EMBARQ, the World Resources Institute’s center for sustainable transport, catalyzes and helps implement sustainable transport solutions to improve quality of life in cities. Since 2002, the EMBARQ network has expanded to Mexico, Brazil, China, India, Turkey and the Andean Region, collaborating with local and national authorities, business and civil society to reduce pollution, improve public health, and create safe, accessible and attractive urban public spaces. http://www.embarq.org

RELEASE: New Traffic Safety Guidelines Can Save Lives on Bus Corridors Worldwide

Lauren Zelin — Wed, 30 May 2012 18:32:23 -0400

EMBARQ releases most comprehensive research on traffic safety to cut down on the 1.2 million global traffic deaths each year

Editor’s note: Join EMBARQ for a special webinar on June 7, 2012, 10:00 a.m. EDT: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/857078514*

Each year, 1.2 million people die in traffic crashes, according to the World Health Organization, and traffic fatalities are projected to become the fifth leading cause of premature death worldwide by 2030, ahead of HIV/AIDS, violence, tuberculosis, or any type of cancer. One way to prevent many of these deaths and injuries is to improve traffic safety, especially on major bus corridors in cities. EMBARQ, the World Resources Institute’s center for sustainable transport, today released the draft “Traffic Safety on Bus Corridors” guidelines to improve traffic safety worldwide. Based on more than two years of research, the guidelines are part of the Road Safety in 10 Countries (RS10) project, funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies.

“This guidebook is part of a broader effort by EMBARQ to illustrate how sustainable transport projects can greatly improve traffic safety and ultimately save lives and improve quality of life for people around the world,” said Holger Dalkmann, director of EMBARQ.

The guidelines are based on findings from a two-year research project, led by EMBARQ, which evaluated safety, operations, and accessibility on major bus corridors and bus rapid transit (BRT) systems in 18 cities around the world. Key findings show:

Pedestrians account for the majority of fatalities across all bus corridors;
Safety on BRT and bus corridors depends on the overall design of the street and not just the bus infrastructure;
Center-lane BRT corridors with closed stations are the safest design option;
Counterflow, when buses drive in the opposite direction of mixed traffic, is the most dangerous type of configuration for a bus corridor; and
The most common types of vehicle collisions in BRT systems occur when cars make illegal left turns across bus lanes and collide with oncoming buses.

“BRT and bus routes are often located on major urban roads, which have the highest concentration of traffic crashes in cities,” said Claudia Adriazola, director of EMBARQ’s Health and Road Safety program. “A new BRT system can attract a lot of pedestrians to these areas, so it is crucial to help cities understand how to maximize safety for everyone on the road.”

The purpose of the draft planning and design guidelines is to provide bus agencies, local jurisdictions, and regional and international organizations with a set of suggested design, planning, and operational criteria for bus systems, including BRT corridors. The guidelines include recommendations for street design, intersections, stations, and station access, as well as transfers and terminals.

“Data has shown that after the implementation of some BRT systems, such as TransMilenio in Bogota or Macrobus in Guadalajara, crashes and fatalities on these corridors dropped by as much as 50 percent,” said Dario Hidalgo, director of EMBARQ’s Research and Practice and an author of the guidelines. “Not all bus systems have had a positive impact on safety, and in some cases, there is still considerable room for improvement, which is why EMBARQ developed these guidelines to improve traffic safety.”

The research included iconic BRT systems in places like Curitiba and Bogota, Colombia, megacities Mexico City and Rio de Janeiro, as well as examples from New Delhi and Ahmedabad, India, and Brisbane, Australia.

“Our research shows that the design of a bus corridor can have a significant influence on the frequency of crashes on the street,” said Luis Antonio Lindau, president of EMBARQ Brazil, who contributed to the research.

During the next six months, experts are invited to provide feedback on the content, methodology, feasibility, and usefulness of the safety recommendations. The feedback will be incorporated into the final version of the guidelines, to be released in 2013.

To read the full report visit: http://www.embarq.org/sites/default/files/EMB2012_Traffic_Safety_on_Bus_Corridors_Pilot_Version.pdf.

To participate in the “road test,” please contact EMBARQ Transportation Research Analyst Nicolae Duduta at nduduta@wri.org.

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EMBARQ catalyzes environmentally and financially sustainable transport solutions to improve quality of life in cities. www.embarq.org

Open Climate Network Analysis

Kevin Lustig — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:16:37 -0400

Use the list to the right to explore available analysis from the Open Climate Network »

RELEASE: New Assessment Finds Management Efforts are Insufficient to Protect Mesoamerican Reef

Michael Oko — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 11:40:11 -0500

First-ever Eco-Audit of the Mesoamerican Reef Countries

Editor’s note: Online resources, including verification documentation, a description of the Eco-Audit indicators, summary results and more, are available at: www.wri.org/reefs and www.healthyreefs.org

The first-ever Eco-Audit of the Mesoamerican Reef (MAR) countries finds that despite some positive management efforts, more needs to be done to protect the region’s coral reefs. The evaluation, entitled “2011 Eco-Audit of the Mesoamerican Reef Countries,” was carried out by the Healthy Reefs Initiative (HRI), in collaboration with the World Resources Institute (WRI), and nearly 40 local organizations, government agencies and companies. The results are being launched simultaneously in Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico.

The evaluation scored overall reef management as Fair (2.7 out of 5) across the region and for all thematic areas. This score indicates that, in general, the MAR ecosystem is not being adequately managed. The scores by country are: Belize 3.3, Honduras 2.7, Mexico 2.7 and Guatemala 2.2.

“Our evaluation has documented some positive steps in protecting reefs throughout the Mesoamerican region. However, there are many actions needed to protect the reefs that have been under discussion for decades. It’s time to complete and implement these actions,” said Dr. Melanie McField, director of the Healthy Reefs Initiative. “Reefs are a vital part of this region, providing both economic and cultural value to people in this area. We hope that this information will help to ensure that reefs can thrive for generations to come.”

The Mesoamerica Reef extends over 1,000 kilometers (over 600 miles), from Mexico to Honduras, and includes the Western Hemisphere’s longest barrier reef, located in Belize. Economies in the region are highly dependent on marine resources, especially from tourism and fishing industries. In Belize alone, the reef is estimated to contribute approximately $395 to $559 million (U.S.) in goods and services each year.

The Eco-Audit was developed and implemented using twenty-two standardized management indicators across seven thematic areas. This includes: Research, Education and Awareness, Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), Global Issues, Coastal Zone Management, Sustainability in the Private Sector, Ecosystem-based Fisheries Management, and Sanitation and Sewage Treatment. Over 300 supporting documents were provided as verification of the results.

“Through this highly collaborative process, involving diverse stakeholders, we have developed a collective understanding of reef management efforts supported by robust data,” said Benjamin Kushner, research analyst, World Resources Institute. “We hope that our transparently verified and publicly available results help coastal and fisheries managers, tourism operators, and others make smart decisions to create a healthy environment for reefs.”

“Stakeholders are now demanding unprecedented levels of transparency from organizations and governments, since our current economic and social conditions have been affected by unethical practices and a lack of transparency,” said Antonio Grijalba of PricewaterhouseCoopers Costa Rica. “This initiative has been a challenging process for HRI, but is a very important step to improve the transparency and accountability of the MAR region, align efforts to address the most critical issues, and share best practices to improve performance.”

To ensure the quality of the results, the financial and management auditing firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers Costa Rica reviewed the methodology and provided feedback on the processes and indicators, and the quality of the verification documentation.

The analysis revealed several key successes, including:

The extent of territorial sea included in MPAs is relatively high across the region;
Harmonization of regulations for the lobster fishery was a major regional success; and
There have been long-standing efforts to monitor reef health across the region, complemented by good availability of information on reef condition and threats.

However, it also showed key shortcomings, including:

A number of MPAs have been created, but their management is mostly inadequate;
Wastewater is not being treated at standards necessary to protect coral reefs; and
There is a lack of comprehensive coastal zone planning that has resulted in poorly planned and sited coastal developments.

This first Eco-Audit provides the foundation for subsequent Eco-Audits, which will be implemented every two years, assuring a routine accounting of efforts to improve the health of the MAR.

Read the analysis and find out more at: www.healthyreefs.org and www.wri.org/reefs

-END-

Contact:

Melanie McField, Director, Healthy Reefs Initiative (Belize City, Belize); email: mcfield@healthyreefs.org; tel: (501) 223-4898; or

Michael Oko, Director, Media Relations, World Resources Institute (Washington, D.C.); email: moko@wri.org; tel. (202) 729-7684

2011 Eco-Audit of the Mesoamerican Reef Countries

Maggie Barron — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:59:57 -0500

The Mesoamerican Reef (MAR) provides a diverse array of goods and services to the people of Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. It is our shared heritage. Unfortunately, the health of the reef is declining, as documented by the 2008 and 2010 Report Cards published by the Healthy Reefs Initiative. The decline stems, at least in part, from inadequate management of threats to coral reefs. This Eco-Audit evaluates our efforts to protect and sustainably manage the region’s coral reefs; celebrates management success stories; and documents the extent to which recommended management actions have been implemented in Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. It seeks to catalyze faster, more effective management responses and to increase accountability within the public and private sectors and among nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).

An Innovative, Rigorous Process

The Healthy Reefs Initiative (HRI), in collaboration with the World Resources Institute (WRI) and local partners, developed and implemented this first-ever multinational Eco-Audit of the Mesoamerican Reef Countries.

Evaluation criteria are comprehensive and inclusive.

Twenty-two standardized management indicators were developed across seven themes, such as fisheries management and coastal zone management. The Eco-Audit draws on input from a variety of NGOs, governmental agencies, and the private sector, and includes transparently verified and publicly available results. In September and October 2011, HRI and WRI convened four national workshops, whose purpose was for participants to collectively rank each indicator and to compile documents to verify the rankings.

Analysis is objective, science-based, and validated.

HRI and its regional partners are committed to maintaining audit standards that are unbiased, fact-based, transparent, and replicable. The financial and management auditing firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers Costa Rica (PwC) reviewed the methodology and provided feedback on the processes, indicators, and quality of the verification documentation.

Data quality will be enhanced over time.

This first Eco-Audit establishes a baseline regarding the status of reef ecosystem management efforts. The results are intended to guide data collection and compilation for future Eco-Audits, which will occur every two years. These biennial Eco-Audits and the biennial HRI Reef Report Cards will occur in alternating years, thereby providing a routine accounting of reef health and efforts to improve it. As data collection becomes more complete and the database grows, we anticipate that the Eco-Audit will evolve, becoming more quantitative and comprehensive in its evaluation of management efforts.

Slideshow

2011 Eco-Audit of Mesoamerica Reef Countries

View more presentations from World Resources Institute (WRI)

PRESS RELEASE: EMBARQ-FedEx Collaboration Aims to Improve Public Transport in Developing Countries

Lauren Zelin — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 15:22:53 -0500

A new collaboration to optimize city bus operations in Mexico, Brazil and India was announced today by FedEx Corp. and EMBARQ, the World Resources Institute’s center for sustainable transport.

“Thanks to the generous financial and in-kind support from FedEx, some of the world’s largest cities will be able to improve their public transit systems, which are critical in this time of rapid urbanization,” EMBARQ Director Holger Dalkmann said. “Especially in developing cities, the key to scaling up sustainable transportation is being able to adapt to growth, and leveraging relationships between the private, public and nonprofit sectors to find new solutions.”

FedEx will provide $1.4 million over two years to EMBARQ to provide technical expertise on sustainable transportation projects that improve quality of life in cities. This grant is a continuation of FedEx’s successful collaboration with EMBARQ’s Center for Sustainable Transport in Mexico (CTS-EMBARQ México), which began in February 2010 with a $500,000 grant to help Mexico City’s Metrobus optimize its vehicle operations.

“We’re excited to scale-up our work with EMBARQ so that we can have an impact not just in Mexico, but also in Brazil and India, two of the world’s fastest growing economies,” said Mitch Jackson, vice president of FedEx Environmental Affairs & Sustainability. “We have a lot of expertise to share. FedEx moves packages and EMBARQ helps cities move people. As a company, FedEx sees the benefits that come from better route design and more efficient, cleaner fuels and vehicles. Now imagine if bus operators and passengers could also enjoy those same benefits? You would have faster commutes, safer streets, and cleaner air. That’s what this collaboration is all about.”

Through workshops, field visits and direct consultation, EMBARQ transport planners and FedEx global experts will team up to provide support to developing cities in fuel and vehicle technologies, vehicle asset management, and real-time user information systems. In addition, to prevent injuries and deaths from traffic collisions, the project in Mexico will work to train hundreds of bus drivers on key safety principles.

“Safety is a top priority for us, considering we have hundreds of vehicles on the streets of Mexico and tens of thousands of vehicles across the globe,” FedEx Express Vice President of Global Vehicles Dennis Beal said. “It’s important that all users of the road are protected.”

In India, EMBARQ and FedEx will increase the technical capacity of city transport agencies to organize their bus systems, advising on areas like vehicle maintenance, procurement and technology, as well as data collection and management.

“FedEx’s guidance will go a long way in helping Indian officials—from bus operators to bureaucrats—realize the significance that bus-based systems can play in alleviating mobility problems, including congestion, air pollution and unsafe roads,” EMBARQ India Director Madhav Pai said.

In Brazil, urban and transport planners are working hard to upgrade urban infrastructure to manage the millions of visitors expected in Brazil for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics.

FedEx will work with EMBARQ’s Research and Practice team to create a decision support system for helping Brazilian cities choose the best fuel and vehicle technologies for new transit systems based on cost-effectiveness and environmental benefits.

Finally, EMBARQ and FedEx have also launched the EMBARQ-FedEx Fellowship, a two-year program to equip promising staff in EMBARQ’s Mexico, Brazil and India offices with the tools and knowledge to make an impact within their respective cities. The fellows recently completed a 10-day training at FedEx’s corporate headquarters in Memphis, Tenn., where they received leadership and technical training from senior FedEx staff. The Fellows will go back to their home country and apply their knowledge to improve EMBARQ’s FedEx-funded activities, which may include trainings, research and on-the-ground sustainable transport projects.

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The World Resources Institute is a global environmental think tank that goes beyond research to put ideas into action. We work with governments, companies, and civil society to build solutions to urgent environmental challenges. WRI’s transformative ideas protect the earth and promote development because sustainability is essential to meeting human needs and fulfilling human aspirations in the future. www.wri.org

EMBARQ catalyzes environmentally and financially sustainable transport solutions to improve quality of life in cities. www.embarq.org

FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) provides customers and businesses worldwide with a broad portfolio of transportation, e-commerce and business services. With annual revenues of $41 billion, the company offers integrated business applications through operating companies competing collectively and managed collaboratively, under the respected FedEx brand. Consistently ranked among the world’s most admired and trusted employers, FedEx inspires its more than 290,000 team members to remain “absolutely, positively” focused on safety, the highest ethical and professional standards and the needs of their customers and communities. For more information, visit news.fedex.com.

RELEASE: WRI and Fortune 500 Companies Launch Next Practice Collaborative

Lauren Zelin — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 10:38:34 -0400

Partnership Aims to Develop Innovative Solutions for Sustainable, Low-Carbon Business

Business leaders from a cross-sector group of companies joined with the World Resources Institute (WRI) today to announce a new initiative to identify and advance breakthrough sustainability solutions for businesses. The Next Practice Collaborative (Next Practice) will focus on business and finance models for low-carbon economic growth in major markets like the United States, China, Mexico, India and Brazil.

Next Practice founding members are Alcoa, AkzoNobel, CEMEX, Johnson & Johnson, Siemens, Staples and United Technologies Corporation.

“The Next Practice partnership is about re-imagining the bar for corporate leadership,” said Manish Bapna, interim president, WRI. “While it has been encouraging to see more and more companies improving their environmental performance and reaping the business benefits, leading businesses understand that it is time for real innovation and new thinking, not just incremental improvement.”

CK Prahalad, the late business thought leader and WRI board member coined the term “next practices,” to describe business strategies that generate innovation, competitive advantage, and industry transformation by seizing opportunities in tomorrow’s markets. Next Practice is founded on that vision.

“Staples is proud to be a founding member of the Next Practice Collaborative and is committed to working with others to create the next generation of low-carbon economic growth solutions,” said Mark Buckley, vice president of Environmental Affairs, Staples, Inc. “Staples is a leading provider of sustainable business solutions for customers of all sizes, and we believe this collaboration is strongly aligned with our core business values.”

Like Staples, participating companies will be collaborating to create new opportunities for low-carbon business innovation. CEMEX joined Next Practice to further its sustainable development work, including initiatives that engage low-income “base of the pyramid” consumers. The company is seeking to pioneer new financing models in rapidly urbanizing areas in Latin America and other developing countries that create sustainable housing at the lowest cost of acquisition and total ownership, through resilient and energy-efficient design and materials use.

“Through our work with Next Practice, CEMEX hopes to make a difference in our local communities while creating an important market for affordable homes,” said Dr. Luis Farias, Sr. Vice President of Energy and Sustainability at CEMEX. “By developing environmentally sound homes that are inexpensive and accessible to low-income families, we can make a breakthrough in the sustainable solutions marketplace.”

Companies will draw on insights from a group of advisors to refine and advance these next practice project ideas. This group includes individuals such as Carter F. Bales, chairman, NewWorld Capital Group LLC; David Blood, co-founder and senior partner, Generation Investment Management; Stefan Heck, Director, McKinsey & Company; Rebecca Henderson, Senator John Heinz professor of Environmental Management, Harvard Business School; Charles O. Holliday, Jr., former CEO of DuPont and Chairman, Bank of America; and Jigar Shah, CEO, Carbon War Room.

For WRI, Next Practice represents the next stage in the organization’s long history of working with the private sector to develop and advance innovations for practical, cost-effective business strategies for a sustainable future.

Low-Carbon Development in Emerging Economies

Kevin Lustig — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 15:25:58 -0400

Today’s major emerging economies — countries such as Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, and South Africa — face the challenge of increasing economic development while also overcoming serious barriers to energy access and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. These countries recognize the need for a shift to low-carbon climate-resilient development, but seek solutions that do not compromise growth.

It is possible to meet this challenge while addressing climate change. WRI’s vision is that these countries make a clear link between low-carbon growth and long-term prosperity, and support policies and incentives that advance national development priorities while significantly reducing GHGs. If successful, these countries would redefine the conventional growth paradigm, and offer innovative solutions that set the world firmly on a low-carbon and climate-resilient path.

Use the links below to explore WRI’s work on emerging economies:

WRI’s work by country:

(Click on a highlighted country for publications and other resources)

PRESS RELEASE: New Paper Lays Out Smart Policies for Renewable Energy Growth

Lauren Zelin — Tue, 24 May 2011 14:15:18 -0400

Offers six principles of smart energy policy for developing countries

A recent report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said that 77 percent of the world’s energy could come from renewable sources by 2050, as long as governments adopt the right policies. A new working paper, Grounding Green Power, outlines the key components of smart renewable energy policy in developing countries, focusing on the electrical power sector. The paper, from the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF), in cooperation with the Heinrich Böll Foundation, suggests priorities for international donors looking to make the most efficient investments in clean energy.

“Helping to build a wind farm is a good thing, but when donors support policies that bring down the cost of renewables, they lay the groundwork for many more wind farms and exponentially more renewable energy projects,” said Lutz Weischer, lead author of the paper and Research Analyst at WRI. “Smart renewable energy policies can drive private investment and create the right environment necessary for long-term growth.”

Grounding Green Power identifies the key components of smart energy policies and draws conclusions from on-the-ground experiences in 12 developing countries. The recommendations were based on a workshop with representatives from Brazil, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Mexico, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Tanzania and Thailand.

Thomas Kleine-Brockhoff, GMF Senior Director for Policy Programs said, “No two countries are the same, but by convening actors from so many developing countries we have been able to discern best practices that apply across countries. This paper should help the international community as it seeks simultaneously to achieve the goals of development cooperation and reduce the risk of climate change.”

The working paper outlines six principles of smart renewable energy policy that are necessary to achieve transformative deployment at scale, based on the 12 international case studies. According to the authors, a smart renewable energy policy should be:

Comprehensive – strives to create an enabling environment including power sector regulations, investment and financing conditions, suitable electric grid infrastructure, and technical capacity.
Based on clearly defined objectives – includes technology deployment, energy access and economic development goals, in addition to added power generation.
Welcoming to private investment – leverages private investment by promoting attractive and predictable market conditions.
Cost-effective – calls for careful policy decisions that avoid over subsidization of renewables, while removing incentives for fossil fuels.
Supportive of innovation – improves performance, reliability, safety and cost of renewable technologies, to take innovation beyond the lab.
Transparent, accountable and participatory – takes into account the principles of good electricity sector governance, including transparency, accountability, and stakeholder participation.

The paper is intended for audiences including bilateral and multilateral development agencies (the World Bank, bilateral financial institutions, and export-credit agencies); existing multilateral climate funds (Global Environmental Facility and Clean Technology Fund); as well as the new Green Climate Fund; and other international organizations like the International Renewable Energy Agency.

The full working paper is available here.

“Grounding Green Power; Bottom-up perspectives on smart renewable energy policy” was co-authored by Lutz Weischer, Davida Wood, Athena Ballesteros, Xing Fu-Bertaux, of the World Resources Institute and published by the German Marshall Fund of the United States in cooperation with the Heinrich Boell Foundation and WRI.

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The World Resources Institute (WRI) is a global environmental think tank that goes beyond research to put ideas into action. We work with governments, companies, and civil society to build solutions to urgent environmental challenges. (www.wri.org)

The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) is a non-partisan American public policy and grantmaking institution dedicated to promoting better understanding and cooperation between North America and Europe on transatlantic and global issues. GMF does this by supporting individuals and institutions working in the transatlantic sphere, by convening leaders and members of the policy and business communities, by contributing research and analysis on transatlantic topics, and by providing exchange opportunities to foster renewed commitment to the transatlantic relationship. In addition, GMF supports a number of initiatives to strengthen democracies. Founded in 1972 through a gift from Germany as a permanent memorial to Marshall Plan assistance, GMF maintains a strong presence on both sides of the Atlantic. In addition to its headquarters in Washington, DC, GMF has six offices in Europe: Berlin, Paris, Brussels, Belgrade, Ankara, and Bucharest. GMF also has smaller representations in Bratislava, Turin, and Stockholm. (www.gmfus.org/)

The Heinrich Böll Foundation is affiliated with the German Green Party. As part of the Green political movement it has developed worldwide as a response to the traditional politics of socialism, liberalism, and conservatism. The main tenets are ecology and sustainability, democracy and human rights, self-determination and justice. HBF places particular emphasis on gender democracy, meaning social emancipation and equal rights for women and men. As a green think tank and an international policy network, the Heinrich Böll Foundation is active in ecology, democracy and human rights worldwide with 30 offices across the globe. (www.boell.de/service/home.html)

Grounding Green Power: Bottom-Up Perspectives on Smart Renewable Energy Policy in Developing Countries

Maggie Barron — Tue, 24 May 2011 12:51:13 -0400

Watch the summary interview with Lead Author Lutz Weischer

This paper was published by the German Marshall Fund of the United States in cooperation with the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the World Resources Institute.

Developing Countries in the Renewable Energy Transformation

In order to meet the intensifying climate challenge, the global energy system must undergo a fundamental transformation, with a rapid increase of renewable energy worldwide. Developing countries are at the forefront of this challenge, since they are expected to add around 80 percent of all new electric generation capacity worldwide in the next two decades.

The deployment of energy from renewable sources is accelerating in developing countries, and already accounts for a higher percentage of electricity generation than in the developed world. In 2008, non-OECD nations generated 21 percent of their electricity from renewable sources including large-scale hydroelectric power (compared with 17 percent in OECD countries), according to International Energy Agency (IEA) statistics. However, this figure must more than double by 2035, to 46 percent, in order to meet the IEA’s “450 scenario,” which outlines a climate friendly pathway for meeting global energy demands.

Transforming the energy system on this scale will require significantly increased support from developed countries, channeled through both bilateral assistance and multilateral institutions, as well as philanthropic initiatives. Our conclusions, derived from a series of case studies and a comprehensive review of existing literature, suggest that donors should deploy financial support more effectively by moving beyond a project-by-project approach to one that creates the right environment for investments in scaled-up, nationwide deployment.

This working paper seeks to assist in this process, by identifying key components of smart renewable energy policy in developing countries, focusing on the power sector. It also provides recommendations for maximizing the effectiveness of international support for deployment of renewable energies, drawn from these on-the-ground experiences in developing countries.

About this Working Paper

Chapter 1 introduces the approach and methodology taken in this paper and describes the key concepts we address. The second chapter discusses what developing countries are already doing to deploy renewable energy sources, and how they can be supported in scaling up such efforts. It also introduces a set of principles of smart renewable energy policy to propel such a transformation, developed by the World Resources Institute. These are based on insights drawn from case studies of existing renewable energy policies in 12 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America as well as from existing literature.

The following five chapters each examine one key element of smart renewable energy policy, discuss lessons learned, and identify needs for international support. These cover planning and strategy (Chapter 3), well-designed generation-based incentives (Chapter 4), an enabling policy and regulatory framework (Chapter 5), attractive financing conditions (Chapter 6), and the necessary technical environment (Chapter 7). Our findings and recommendations are summarized in Chapter 8.

Principles of Smart Renewable Energy Policy

We define smart renewable energy policy as the set of rules, regulations, and government actions that lead to an increased share of renewables in total electricity consumption in line with a country’s development objectives. Smart renewable energy policy encourages private investment, achieves its objectives in a cost-effective way, promotes continuous innovation, and is designed through transparent, accountable, and participatory processes.

Presentation

Download Slides (PDF, 839 Kb)

EMBARQ Joins Launch of "Decade of Action for Road Safety"

Michael Oko — Thu, 12 May 2011 11:08:21 -0400

This week marks the official launch of the Decade of Action for Road Safety, a worldwide effort declared by the United Nations to save 5 million lives over a ten-year period.

Following is a statement by Claudia Adriazola, director of health and road safety for EMBARQ, highlighting the importance of sustainable transport and urban development in making streets safer:

“Traffic crashes are completely preventable. Creating more sustainable transport can really be two hands clapping on road safety. On one hand, you can reduce and prevent more driving—the real root of car crashes. On the other hand, you can improve safety for the most vulnerable and victimized—pedestrians and bicyclists. When this comes together, it can lead to not just safer cities, but also more humane and pleasant places that foster active lifestyles and cleaner air, saving even more lives and dire economic costs.”

Additional background on global road safety:

Nearly 1.3 million people are killed on the world’s roads each year, and 50 million more people are injured, with many of them disabled for life. 90 percent of road deaths occur in developing countries. If nothing is done to make roads safer, traffic crashes could double by 2030, overtaking AIDS, tuberculosis and lung cancer as the world’s fifth leading cause of premature death.

Part of the problem is the explosive growth in the number of vehicles — from cars to motorcycles — exacerbated by high speeds and a lack of regulation. Children and young people are the most at risk: Road traffic injuries are the number one cause of death among people aged 10-24 years. Pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists are also especially vulnerable.

The United Nations Road Safety Collaboration and its partners, including EMBARQ, developed the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020 to guide activities planned by governments, civil society and the private sector over the next ten years to address the tremendous global burden of traffic-related fatalities and injuries.

One of the key “pillars” of activities outlined in the plan are improving the safety of road infrastructure and broader transport networks. This highlights the critical role that cities can play in making streets safer.

EMBARQ’s role in road safety:

EMBARQ— WRI’s center for sustainable transport— currently works to improve health and road safety in Mexico, Brazil, India, Peru and Turkey. At the project level, EMBARQ completes “road safety audits” in cities like Mexico City and Rio de Janeiro to improve the design of bus rapid transit (BRT) corridors before they are constructed. Problems that need to be addressed could include dangerous left turns, insufficient bicycle signage or poor lighting. EMBARQ recommends preventive measures to improve road safety along these corridors, like improving pedestrian crossings or including physical barriers between BRT lanes and car lanes. EMBARQ also evaluates the public health impact of mass transit and bicycling initiatives, measuring levels of traffic crashes, air pollution and physical activity in select cities, such as Arequipa, Peru.

In November 2009, EMBARQ was awarded a grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies as part of the Bloomberg Global Road Safety Program, to implement programs in 10 low-and middle-income countries that have a high burden of road traffic injuries and fatalities, representing nearly half (48%) of traffic deaths globally. EMBARQ has also formed partnerships with the Pan American Health Organization and the U.N. Road Safety Collaboration.

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The World Resources Institute (www.wri.org) is an environmental think tank that goes beyond research to find practical ways to protect the earth and improve people’s lives.

EMBARQ - The World Resources Institute Center for Sustainable Transport (www.embarq.org) catalyzes environmentally and financially sustainable transport solutions to improve quality of life in cities.

Environmental Entrepreneurs: Mexico's 'Échale a Tu Casa' Builds Green Houses for Low-Income Families

Tracy Elsen — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 16:00:45 -0400

Houses crudely constructed from sheets of cardboard and aluminum start to appear just south of the Mexico-United States border and stretch across the Mexican landscape. These homes, which are often overcrowded, unstable and made of dangerous materials, provide stark visual evidence of Mexico’s severe housing shortage. The country needs nearly nine million more homes than currently exist, and experts expect the problem to increase over the next twenty years as the population of Mexicans aged 25-45, the key home-buying demographic, grows. The housing shortage leaves many low-income Mexicans unable to purchase a permanent home.

Housing for Communities

Francesco Piazzesi, a university professor and entrepreneur, provides housing to low-income Mexican families who otherwise would struggle to afford a home. His company, ¡Échale! a tu casa, works with Mexican communities to help them self-build new homes. By building their own homes, community members are able to have a new home in just one month, a process that, according to Piazzesi, could otherwise take 10-15 years.

Homes like this one in a community called ‘La Petrolera’ are often overcrowded, unstable and made of dangerous materials. They provide stark visual evidence of Mexico’s severe housing shortage. Photo credit: Échale

The houses built by Échale provide opportunities for local community members to move out of unsafe cardboard homes. “I was born in a carton board house, and so were my parents and children,” said one new homeowner in the Mexican town of Miacatlan. “The difference is that my children will never allow themselves to live in a carton board house because they know they can create something different.” Échale has already built or improved nearly 11,000 homes, and recently launched a social fund to lend money at affordable interest rates so more low-income families can afford Échale’s homes.

Making New Homes More Sustainable

Although Mexico desperately needs new homes, the construction of millions of houses could have potentially significant negative environmental impacts. Échale lowers the environmental impacts of its homes by including features such as rainwater harvesting, energy-efficient stoves and composting.

Read more profiles of Environmental Entrepreneurs:

Furthermore, houses are constructed from Échale’s patented building material, Adoblock, which serves as a natural insulation source and reduces reliance on heating and cooling devices. More than 90% of each Adoblock is made from local soil, which reduces waste and the use of environmentally harmful materials. The blocks are produced with an Adopress, an easily operated machine that can be used directly by community members building their own homes. Piazzeri believes that building environmentally-friendly houses is essential to ensuring Mexico’s sustainability. “Without a sustainable home, there wouldn’t be a sustainable society,” he says.

From Non-Profit to ‘Business with Impact’

Piazzeri initially founded Échale as a non-profit. Several years ago, he began working with WRI’s center for environmental entrepreneurship, New Ventures which provided Échale with a mentor from Ernst and Young in Mexico. “The first lesson New Ventures taught us was that we needed to be a for-profit business,” said Piazzeri. “At first our mentor was a shock, and a real lesson in humility.”

Échale’s staff worked with their New Ventures mentor to remold their operations into a for-profit company. Although Échale had to transform its entire model, after a year of hard work the former non-profit emerged as a company with a business plan, clear goals and targets, and newly hired staff boasting expertise in social business. “While I felt good about what I was doing as a non-profit, we learned that as a business we could make real social impact,” said Piazzeri.

More than 90% of each Adoblock is made from local soil, which reduces waste and the use of environmentally harmful materials. Photo credit: Échale

Due to the large market for affordable housing in Mexico, Échale now holds strong potential for future growth. However, in order to keep increasing their social housing production capacity, Échale needs investment. Piazzeri will travel to New York City in April for the New Ventures Global Investor Forum, where he will present Échale’s business model to a group of international investors. Piazerri plans to expand Échale by implementing a social franchise model, in which communities that have already self-built homes will be able to assist and train other communities in the process. This model will build 120,000 houses in Mexico over the next three years. With investment, Échale will be able to serve a larger portion of the low-income housing market with its affordable, environmentally-friendly houses.

Special thanks to gold sponsors Fundación AVINA and Alcoa Foundation, and silver sponsors Halloran Philanthropies, Related Companies and Harmon Foundation for supporting the New Ventures Global Investor Forum. WRI’s New Ventures program is supported by Alcoa Foundation, Citi Foundation, Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Fundaci ón AVINA, Morgan Stanley, Rockefeller Foundation, UK Department for International Development, UPS Foundation, US Department of State - Asia Pacific Partnership, Zennström Philanthropies