Topic: freedom of information

Financial stimulus plans could pose a threat to Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) around the world.

As the World Bank hosts Extractive Industries Week, the story of the Mae Moh coal plant in Thailand shows why early community engagement is critical.

On his first full day in office, President Obama issued an Executive Order and several memoranda on transparency and participation in the Federal Government.

It would be impossible to identify all the decisions to be made by governments that will affect the environment in different places in the coming years.

On a recent trip into the rainforests of the Indonesian part of Borneo Island, our team got first-hand accounts of the effects, causes—and the possible solutions—to rampant illegal logging.

Environmental democracy is about government being transparent, accountable, and involving people in decisions that affect their environment. 20 countries in The Access Initiative (TAI) network are expanding their work to promote environmental democracy. Here is a summary of what’s ahead in 2008 and beyond.

As part of World Water Day, The Access Initiative (TAI) is releasing a case study of how in 2004, poor data dissemination put the citizens of the capital of the world’s richest country at risk from lead in their drinking water.

Laws alone are not enough to ensure environmental protection. Civil society organizations often play a critical role in bringing those laws to life. In Uganda, Greenwatch has done exactly that for the country’s laws on access to environmental information, the first of which passed in 1998.

The Access Initiative (TAI) and its partners are launching the first of its kind assessment of environmental governance in China. It is the first step towards engaging civil society organizations and government agencies to promote the public transparency, participation, and accountability that are essential foundations for sustainable development.

Once isolated Paraguay has changed radically due to a boom in soybean exports, which has brought changes in land and pesticide use. 

For the first time in its ten-year history, the National Environmental Appellate Authority* (NEAA) has overturned a decision by the Government of India, quashing an environmental clearance granted by the Ministry of Environment and Forests.