Presentation on the ERD 2011/12 by Dirk Willem te Velde and Imme Scholz, given at the UNCSD (Rio+20) on 19 June 2012

Yesterday, the European Commission and the Government of the United Kingdom organised a side-event at the Rio+20 Conference to present the European Report on Development (ERD) 2011/2012 and discuss its findings in the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals. Following the launch of the report in Brussels in May, a number of other events have been organised throughout Europe to present and debate its findings on national level, involving civil society, governments and media. The series of events led to the Rio+20 Conference.

Interview with Dirk Willem te Velde, team leader for drafting of the ERD 2011/12

This project undertakes the preparation of an the European Report on Development (ERD) 2012 researching this issue with the objective of presenting a report on effective natural resources management for sustainable and inclusive growth in the run up to the next RIO+20 Earth Summit in 2012.

The third European Report on Development (ERD) – drawn up by three European think tanks, the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM) and the German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE) – focuses on the use of scarce resources for inclusive and sustainable growth in the spheres of water, energy and land.

Insights from the European Report on Development

More technological innovation is needed to fight growing resource scarcity, but it will only be successful in achieving sustainable development if it considers the use of water, energy and land as interdependent issues, according to a European report. Investment in innovation is required for sustainable agriculture, for achieving more efficient use of water and energy, and for rolling out renewable energy technologies, says the ‘European Report on Development 2011–2012’, funded by the European Commission and seven European states.

Lowering consumption in the developed world, renewables, ending land grabs, a price for natural resources, private sector investment – what’s the answer?

Collecting inputs for the Bonn2011 Nexus Conference preparatory process

The question of how to effectively use our water resources has been debated for decades, yet what we need more than ever is direct action at the field level.

A message from Felix Dodds, Executive Director of the Stakeholder Forum for a Sustainable Future and International Steering Committee (ISC) Member

The World Water Week 2012 in Stockholm will zoom in on food security and the global water situation. This is warranted not least from the perspective of the increasing imbalances in global food security. In this article, Dr. Anders Jägerskog sums up the thrust of a report he edited on this topic, which is meant to provide input for the Week’s deliberations.

Lowering consumption in the developed world, renewables, ending land grabs, a price for natural resources, private sector investment – what’s the answer?

We live in the Anthropocene in which humans have become a major force shaping the environment. Rising incomes and reduced poverty have coincided with the growing demand for goods and services, such as food and energy, which in turn has increased the pressure on natural resources and ecosystems leading to their over-exploitation and degradation. Climate change adds to this predicament, as several climate adaptation and mitigation measures such as irrigation, desalination, or biofuels, are also resource intensive. In a recent attempt to quantify the limits of global resources, the Planetary Boundaries framework, a critical environmental threshold beyond which rapid and unexpected systemic or “regime” shifts may be triggered, was developed. This framework tries to establish global limits for water, land, and energy use (atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration as a proxy), and for other natural resources, such as nutrients or biodiversity.

More technological innovation is needed to fight growing resource scarcity, but it will only be successful in achieving sustainable development if it considers the use of water, energy and land as interdependent issues, according to a European report. Investment in innovation is required for sustainable agriculture, for achieving more efficient use of water and energy, and for rolling out renewable energy technologies, says the ‘European Report on Development 2011–2012’, funded by the European Commission and seven European states.

In a wide-ranging interview with Sanjeev Chadha, President, PepsiCo Middle East & Africa, we discussed the evolving relationship between business and society, water management and sustainability at PepsiCo, shortages and scarcity particularly in the Middle East and Africa, the interconnectivity of water with a number of other critical issues, and key leadership lessons learned from a business perspective in tackling some of the world’s most pressing problems.