|
| all news articles | by topics |
|
news
articles about singapore's wild places
|
| Tribune
de Geneve, 18 Feb 05 Tsunami, global warming to top world environment ministers' agenda in Kenya Last year's Asian tsunami disaster, climate change and progress on global development goals will top the agenda when world environment ministers gather here next week, UN officials said Friday. More than 100 environment and economy ministers are expected to attend the five-day meeting, starting Monday, at which officials will plan the year's work of the Nairobi-based UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the officials said. During the talks, UNEP will issue a report on environmental best practices that nations can use to better prepare for and recover from disasters like the December 26 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed nearly 290,000 people, they said. The report will make clear that "if you have stable nature, healthy coral reefs, healthy mangroves, healthy seabeds and well-vegetated coastlines," they can safeguard against similar catastrophes, the officials said. Another primary focus of the discussions would be the disappointing performance of countries in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia in meeting the so-called "Millenium Development Goals" or MDGs, UNEP chief Klaus Toepfer said. "Progress has decreased in some areas," he told reporters at a news conference here, referring to the MDGs, a UN-backed series of yardsticks for improving living conditions in the developing world by 2015. According to UNEP's annual report for 2004, northern Africa is the only region in the world making strides in meeting the development goals. The UNEP meeting will also cover efforts to eradicate poverty and hunger, gender equality and women's empowerment, climate change and sustainable environmental practices, particularly in the wake of the tsunami. "(We will) discuss the tsunami and how to integrate the environment into the reconstruction process," Toepfer said, rejecting notions that economic considerations should take precedence over environmental ones. On Thursday, the day the landmark Kyoto Protocol on combatting global warming went into force, Toepfer said he feared climate change was "spinning out of control" and urged redoubled efforts to halt its effects. On Friday, he was even more blunt. "It is becoming clearer and clearer that that without a healthy and stable environment, longlasting economic and social development, let alone eradicating poverty and hunger, will not be possible," Toepfer said. UNEP spokesman Nick Nuttal told AFP the tsunami report would point out that links between environmental protection, the disaster and recovery effort cannot be ignored. "When it comes to the reconstruction and rebuilding of communities, (countries) must ensure they have healthy environments or else they are going to be vulnerable to tsunamis in the future and flooding that comes as a result of climate change," he said. "It is also absolutely clear that these countries need proper mapping so that they know where the vulnerable coastlines are and whether they can take action there in terms of rebuilding infrustracture to make sure they are less vulnerable," Nuttal said. But environmental action to prevent such disasters is only one part of the equation, he stressed, noting that the protecting the ecology, specifically combatting global warming, is key to achieving sustainable development. "It is pretty clear now that the environment is the golden thread running right through the moon," Nuttal said. "If you damage that thread -- the environment -- all the MDGs are going to be hard to achieve." "If the environment is the golden thread then the dark cloud is global warming," he said. "Unless we so something with global warming all the MDGs are going to be harder and harder to achieve. © AFP Agence France-Presse PlanetSave.com, 18 Feb 05 Environment ministers, world officials to discuss efforts to cut poverty in Kenya conference NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) _ Environment ministers and officials from more than 100 countries hold talks in Kenya next week on how to improve the environment as a means toward reducing poverty, fighting AIDS and boosting education, United Nations officials said Friday. The U.N. Millennium Development Goals, which also include increasing access to fresh water, stand on the assumption that a clean environment helps improve economies and ease social suffering. ``In the past, the environment was viewed as something of a luxury,'' U.N. environment chief Klaus Toepfer told reporters ahead of the five-day meeting that starts Monday. But ``without a healthy and stable environment, long-lasting economic and social development, let alone eradicating poverty and hunger, will not be possible.'' Developing countries are even more reliant on the environment for food, medicine, energy and water supplies, Toepfer noted. A U.N. report, to be handed out at next week's meeting, says that the presence of coral reefs, coastal mangroves and beds of sea grass near the coastline areas is key to helping communities reduce the impact of tsunamis. ``When it comes to the rebuilding of these communities, they have to factor in the health of the environment. Otherwise they are always going to be vulnerable to tsunamis in the future and to flooding that is also going to come as a result of climate change,'' said spokesman Nick Nuttal of the U.N. environment agency. The U.N. agency also can help affected countries map vulnerable coastline areas not suitable for the construction of homes, hotels and other public facilities, he said. The U.N. world development goals include cutting poverty in half by 2015, educating 100 million children who are not in school now and halving the number of people without access to safe drinking water. The environment ``is a golden thread'' running right through the U.N. development goals. ``If you damage the environment, all the millennium development goals are going to be harder to achieve,'' Nuttal said. links Related articles on Global issues: global warming issues, policies Related articles on Global issues: biodiversity biodiversity loss, extinction threats, commercial applications of biodiversity Related articles on Global issues: tsunami and the environment Media and other articles discussing the role of mangroves and coral reefs in mitigating the effect and the impact on the natural environment and the people that depend on them. |
| News articles are reproduced for non-profit educational purposes. | |
website©ria tan 2003 www.wildsingapore.com |