Documentary produced for UNDP-UNEP Poverty-Environment Initiative Tajikistan country programme.
http://unpei.org

The Coral Triangle is a 272-page book that showcases the people, places, and marine ecosystems that make this region truly remarkable. Published by ADB and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), the book documents an 18-month expedition by award-winning photographer Jürgen Freund and Stella-Chiu Freund. 

Photo Essay

Declared officially dead over a decade ago Manila's Pasig River is an example of one of the great dilemmas facing Asia's cities. How to accommodate growing populations and keep the waterways clean.

ADB

St Louis, Senegal's historic former capital, is the city most threatened by rising sea levels in the whole of Africa. Every rainy season, thousands of people face upheaval from flood devastation. Learn what the city's Mayor, Cheikh Mamadou Abiboulaye Dieye brings the plight of his city to the World Mayors Summit on Climate in Mexico City.

More information and resources here

The Spain-UNEP Partnership in Support to conservation activities in Volcán Barú National Park and la Montañona Conservation Area seeks to preserve the integrity of these Protected Areas, which is threatened by communities that live in or around the parks and poach for food, or clear agricultural lands within park borders in order to meet their basic needs.

This short film shows how through this initiative, Improved agricultural practices for fire prevention will help prevent further deforestation & forest degradation.

ADB is supporting an initiative to introduce tens of thousands of biogas systems in rural communities throughout Viet Nam. By turning waste to fuel, families save on their energy bills and enjoy a cleaner environment.

ADB

In India, Solar Lanterns Create a Life After Dark.

ADB

This short animated film highlights the role forests can play in national development, a green economy and climate change. The film also reviews the impact of forests on business as usual and on transformative solutions.

UNEP

The Spain-UNEP Partnership for Protected Areas support to conservation activities in Takamanda National Park seeks to explore economic incentives to preserve Cross River gorilla habitat in Takamanda.

As illustrated in this short film, this project will, among other benefits, help protect both highland and lowland corridors of the landscape, effectively manage unprotected forests and ecosystem services and secure local livelihoods.

UNEP

Gunung Leuser National Park harbors many species that represents Sumatran and Indonesian biodiversity ranging from ornagutans, to elephants, tigers, and rhinoceros. Restoring the natural habitat will also help preserve the cultural and spiritual traditions that make this area so unique.

UNEP

More than 80 international experts came together at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna to discuss Green Economies and the role of sustainable development in reducing poverty worldwide.

Press TV

Q: What is the definition of Climate induced migration? Is it migration or displacement? How climate can be linked with displacement or migration? In same place, why few migrate others not? Is there any role of state and local institutions to force people migrate?

ADB: There's not really a consensual definition of climate-induced migration. Typically, we consider that it encompasses all people who have to leave their original place of residence because of an environmental disruption that is associated with the impacts of climate change, be it brutal - such as flash floods or hurricanes - or slow-onset, such as sea-level rise or soil degradation. This being said, the type of movement that is induced can be very diverse: some people will be forced to move (in that case it would be a displacement), some will move voluntarily (in that case it would be migration). Finally, sometimes moving is just an option amongst many, which explains why some decide not to move at all, or are unable to do so.

Read the full transcript

ADB

As part of the Spain-UNEP Partnership for Protected Areas, this project helps facilitate the action plan for Monk Seal conservation in Mauritania.

This short film demonstrates how the initiative aims to protect the critically endangered Monk Seal and increase food security and income generation for the coastal community at the Cap Blanc Satellite Reserve.

UNEP

Van Jones gave a talk at a recent TEDxGreatPacificGarbagePatch event, and what he brought up about the correlation between plastic use and poverty was fascinating.

Watch the video

Tree Hugger

As part of the Spain-UNEP Partnership for Protected Areas, this initiative supports conservation activities in Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park in the Republic of Congo. This short film presents the objectives and positive impacts this initiative has on local populations' livelihoods.

Strengthening the management of the park will ultimately help improve wildlife conservation planning in the region. It will also contribute to law enforcement and monitoring, including Ebola health monitoring and promote eco-tourism.

UNEP

The Environments of the Poor in the Context of Climate Change and the Green Economy: Making Sustainable Development Inclusive

In the first of a series of video interviews, participants of the conference in New Delhi, India, explain how climate change disproportionately impacts the poor and thereby aggravates poverty across the Asia and Pacific region.

ADB

Spain-UNEP LifeWeb Partnership to Raise Incomes and Improve Conservation in Protected Areas in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

UNEP

Lao PDR is highly dependent on natural resources for its prosperity but faces mounting environmental challenges. In addition to natural resource based investments, the expansion of commercial agricultural plantations and the extraction of minerals puts further pressure on the land.

The recent increase in economic activities linked to the country's natural resources has also had an impact on environmental quality. Managing these natural resources is vital as environmental conditions are closely linked to the livelihoods, health and vulnerability of people living in poverty, particularly women and children.

The UN is working at all levels to address the environmental challenges facing the country. The Poverty Environment Initiative supports the mainstreaming of poverty-environmental concerns and opportunities into national level planning. The recently developed Fisheries and Aquaculture Law is a landmark step for Lao PDR in protecting a vital food source and people's livelihoods. Fish and fisheries play an important economic role contributing an estimated 13 percent of GDP.

Please read more about UNDP's work on MDGs in Lao PDR here.

Poverty or environmental degradation: which should society address first? According to economist Pavan Sukhdev, the issue is not that simple. He explains that declining biodiversity (frequently a result of industrial development) has a disproportionately large impact on the poor.

Watch complete video
Fora

Protecting drylands is essential. Although deserts cover more than 40% of the planet's land area, they are facing dramatic changes as a result of global climate change, high water demands, tourism and salt contamination of irrigated soils.

UNEP

Ahmed Djoghlaf says nations risk economic collapse and loss of culture if it does not protect the natural world.

Read more
Guardian UK

Residents salvage all they can from the country's rising waters. A photo slideshow from Time.com.

View the slideshow
http://www.time.com

Paul Polak discussing the impacts of extreme poverty on population growth and other environmental impacts.

Communist Laos has come late to the Asian economic boom but it's now open for business. Investment is pouring in and resources like timber and rubber are pouring out - transforming the country and turning virgin forest into fields and plantations. But Laos is one of the last biodiversity hotspots in south east Asia and commercial development is chipping away at the country's natural capital. Originally from Laos, Sam Say is a successful Hong Kong businessman searching for investment opportunities that won't destroy his country's heritage.

From: BBC World News broadcasts "Earth Report -- Gambling on Laos"

During the last decades, Thailand has seen a remarkable economic growth. While it has resulted in increased prosperity and wellbeing for many, the environment has taken a great toll.

Today, large scale environmental degradation is threatening the livelihood of people who rely directly on natural resources.

Rwanda is one of the poorest and most densely populated countries in the world -- approximately 85 per cent of the people rely on subsistence agriculture to survive. Traditional farming methods have seriously reduced biodiversity and damaged ecosystems so Rwanda has begun a project of developing new villages to see whether poverty can be reduced by improving the environment.

Rwanda is celebrated for its natural environment, but the country is also emerging from under the shadow of the 1994 genocide. In an outbreak of ethnically-motivated violence, an estimated 800,000 people were killed in just 3 months. Genocide scarred not just the people, but the land itself. Millions were displaced, and refugees destroyed much of the dense forest that covered the countryside. With a fast growing population, restoring these degraded ecosystems has become a national priority. Reforestation has begun, bringing vital ecosystems back to life and the nation can focus on its future rather than dwelling on the past. Produced by tve and EEMP for UNEP.

A video about the UNDP-UNEP Poverty Environment Initiative (PEI) in Rwanda.
Poor people depend on the environment for their livelihoods and well-being. Improved management of the environment and natural resources contributes directly to poverty reduction, more sustainable livelihoods and pro-poor growth. To fight poverty, to promote security and to preserve the ecosystems that poor people rely on for their livelihoods, we must place pro-poor economic growth and environmental sustainability at the heart of our economic policies, planning systems and institutions.
To tackle this challenge, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) have joined hands and launched the Poverty-Environment Initiative (PEI). The PEI is a global UN programme that helps countries to integrate poverty-environment linkages into national and sub-national development planning, from policy making to budgeting, implementation and monitoring.

For more on the program, click here

Nyungwe National Park is like a lost world. It's the largest remaining mountain rainforest in east Africa, and nurtures astonishing biodiversity. The park is home to hundreds of species of birds, many kinds of primates, and an abundance of rare plant life. It's one of Rwanda's prime tourist attractions which means the park's spectacular wealth of species also brings economic rewards for local communities. Produced by tve and EEMP for UNEP