Index insurance has a role to play in agricultural development and risk management, yet it faces operational and technical challenges to reach scale and sustainability. Data are a key challenge and were the focus of the project “Improving Agricultural Risk Management in Sub-Saharan Africa: Remote…

Identifying critical sustainability topics and areas of action in the supply chain represents a first important milestone for companies in sustainable supply chain management. The focus is important to be able to use the limited human and financial resources as effectively and efficiently as…

Global tree cover loss reached a record 29.7 million hectares (73.4 million acres) in 2016, according to new data from the University of Maryland released today on Global Forest Watch. The loss is 51 percent higher than the previous year, totaling an area about the size of New Zealand. Forest fires…

Development and Access to Information (DA2I) is the first of a series of annual reports that will monitor the progress countries are making towards fulfilling their commitment to promote meaningful access to information as part of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Repeated droughts around the world have shockingly large and often hidden consequences, destroying enough farm produce to feed 81 million people every day for a year, damaging forests, and threating to trap generations of children in poverty, according to a new report from the World Bank Group.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimates that around 1 billion people in dry regions may face increasing water scarcity in the near future. To address this challenge, plant scientists have developed biotech crops with drought-tolerant and water use efficiency traits…

Better stewardship of land is needed to achieve the Paris Climate Agreement goal of holding warming to below 2 °C; however, confusion persists about the specific set of land stewardship options available and their mitigation potential. To address this, we identify and quantify “natural climate…

Worlds 1st comprehensive evidence-based assessment report on land degradation will be launched in March 2018 ▪ Best-available evidence for decision makers to make informed decisions to halt & reverse land degradation ▪ Prepared by more than 100 leading international experts from 45 countries over 3…

This synthesis report provides an overview of where Africa, as a region, stands in terms of transitioning to an inclusive green economy. It draws on studies to summarise the prospective gains and challenges associated with investing in a green economy and outlines a way forward to prioritise policy…

According to the Economic Report on Africa 2017, half of Africa's population will live in urban areas by 2035. The rapid urbanization presents high demands for jobs, services and infrastructure, while creating enormous opportunities for Africa’s economic growth.

The report lists the existing soil protection policies and measures at the EU and Member State level and identifies key gaps in protection with respect to soil threats and functions of the Thematic Strategy for Soil Protection. The report developed an inventory of existing and upcoming policy…

This review summarizes the influences of pyrolysis conditions and feedstock types on biochar properties, and how biochar properties in turn affect soil properties. Mechanistic evidence of biochar's potential for enhancing crop productivity, carbon sequestration, and nutrient use efficiency are also…

Making Europe’s production, consumption and trade in food environmentally sustainable is possible, but it will require a major shift in public attitudes, policies and knowledge and seizing current opportunities for change, according to a European Environment Agency (EEA) report published today.

Rising temperatures could cause soils to release carbon on a scale that has the potential to accelerate climate change, reports 26-year study. As the world’s soils warm, they may surrender potentially dangerous amounts of carbon to the atmosphere. Rising temperatures could mean rising levels of…

This document summarises the proceedings of The Fifth Session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, which took place from 24 to 26 May 2017 in Cancún, Mexico, including the Chair's Summary and records of discussions conducted throughout the conference. The 2017 Global Platform was the…