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Una de las prioridades del G20 bajo la presidencia argentina es la Infraestructura para el Desarrollo. La infraestructura juega un papel clave en el crecimiento económico y la prosperidad de las naciones. Sin embargo, millones de personas alrededor del mundo aún no tienen acceso a servicios de infraestructura básica como puede ser la electricidad, agua potable y saneamiento.
One of the priorities of the G20 under Argentina’s presidency is Infrastructure for Development. The 2018 New Climate Economy report estimates we need to invest $30 trillion to deliver the SDGs by 2030. To bridge this financing gap, we need to unlock private capital investment in infrastructure assets in particular, and ensure those assets are designed for a sustainable future. One way to help that along, is to get better at addressing risk.
New infrastructure development is essential if we are to meet the food, water and energy needs of a growing global population and deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals. Yet expected public and private investment of $90 trillion in major projects between now and 2030 will double the amount of infrastructure on Earth and could potentially degrade the natural systems on which we all depend. Making wise choices and pursuing sustainability is critical.
This month’s IPCC special report on Global Warming of 1.5°C starkly underlines the need for decisive action on climate change. Impacts previously expected through a 2°C increase are likely to manifest from a 1.5℃ change or less. It’s timely then, that at this week’s Textile Exchange 2018 Sustainability Conference in Milan, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will confirm that in December it will launch a platform and a charter for textiles sector climate action.
We live in times of unprecedented change. Partnership and collaboration are paramount. The global challenges — and opportunities — we face are too big and too complex for one business, NGO or government to tackle alone. Looking beyond our own borders, working pre-competitively across sectors, engaging in stakeholder dialogue and mastering stewardship of natural resources, are all fundamentals of business success. And the UN Sustainable Developments Goals (SDGs), our blueprint for a sustainable world, will only be met through collective effort.
WWF is in the business of saving life on Earth. And even though we don’t like to put a price on nature, we can. Every year, the services that nature delivers, such as freshwater, pollination, soil fertility and climate regulation, are worth an estimated US$125 trillion to the global economy.
In San Francisco last week, we saw signs of hope. At the Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS), mayors, governors, chief executives, investors and citizens redoubled commitments to driving decarbonization of the global economy.
World Water Week’s 2018 theme, ‘water, ecosystems and human development’, reminds us that freshwater is not only a shared resource, fundamental for well-being, enterprise and prosperity, but also that its scarcity is a shared risk.
When I joined WWF’s Global Partnerships team in 2010, my ambition was to make sustainability an integral part of doing good business. A decade ago, most companies were grappling with sustainability, and asking what it meant for business. Now it’s the other way around. Companies are asking what their business means for sustainability. It’s a fundamental shift.
Around the world, camels are disappearing, along with the cultures and traditions of the people who have kept them. Hindu pilgrims washing away their sins in the sacred lake, Ferris wheels on the horizon, the crackle of distant loudspeakers, hot air balloons in the dawn sky, and camels. Everywhere camels, as far as the eye could see—barking, stinking, munching, spitting, crapping, and snorting in all their glory.
This April, something extraordinary happened in the world of bird conservation. Over four days in Abu Dhabi, scientists, policymakers, businesses, NGOs and donors from 100 organisations and 70 different countries came together in the world’s first-ever global Flyways Summit.
From harnessing solar energy to mastering self-assembly and temperature regulation, nature beats human ingenuity and engineering hands down. Nature is amazing, beautiful, terrifying, nourishing, essential — and smart.
Captive breeding is a controversial strategy in the conservation community. From the unpredictable nature of capturing and relocating wild animals to the vagaries of advanced reproductive technology or unsuccessful coupling, it is a challenging and risky undertaking. Above all perhaps, it is a tacit admission of failure to protect and conserve an animal in the wild – seemingly an altogether more noble approach.
Vanquishing high mountain cols in the Tour de France. Going the distance in Sweden’s Vasaloppet cross country ski race. Conquering the icy face of the Eiger. Mastering the seas in the Volvo Ocean Race. All feats of daring, courage, skill and endurance. And all awe-inspiring examples of how we, as a species, are drawn to test our wit, will and strength in sporting endeavour in the natural environment.
As sporting men and women, it is in our nature to compete, to challenge, to win – but also to show respect, embody fair play and take responsibility. In and through our games, we should show nature and life on Earth the same regard we show each other, for that it is the essence of who we are and what we do. We are as dependent upon nature’s gifts as we are on our friends, family, fans and team-mates. And it is time that we truly started playing for our planet.
We’ve known for some time that our planet from space is more blue than green. Yet the global ocean still remains largely a mystery. Fishing activity in particular has long been hard to monitor, and the full extent of its global reach has remained mostly unknown, until now.
For Earth Hour 2018, at 8.30pm local time on March 24th, we are inviting the world to #Connect2Earth to spark a global conversation about our relationship with nature and how we can live more sustainably. For business, this means asking what your company or sector can do for nature and sustainability rather than what they can do for you, and how enterprise can serve purpose and responsibility.
Used in hundreds of everyday items, from clothes and bed linen to mattresses, towels and even bank notes, cotton is ever present in our lives. It is a key raw material for the textile industry and represents about 30% of all fibre used in the sector. Globally, around 30 million hectares are planted with cotton, accounting for more than 2% of total arable land3, and producing approximately 25 million metric tonnes (MT) of cotton annually. Grown in around 80 countries, more than 100 million households around the world are directly engaged in cotton cultivation, relying on it for their income. Full report and summary here: http://www.sustainablecottonranking.org/
We should embrace the revolution — but beyond radical transparency, automation, smart contracting and elimination of uncertainty and blind trust, only the vision and ingenuity of people and partnerships can realise the true potential of blockchain technology for our wellbeing, enterprise and future prosperity.
At the heart of all our work are 'heroes' - passionate people dedicated to delivering effective and lasting conservation. With the conservation community, these inspirational partners are our greatest asset. Without them, we could not achieve our mission. Read some of our heroes' stories here – find out more about their incredible work, what makes them unique partners, what challenges they face, and their hopes for the future.
