Smallholder farmers are the guardians, as well as the beneficiaries, of a greater diversity of biological species than can be found in protected areas. The farmers' diverse practices are conserving these species for the benefit of future generations. In turn, agricultural biodiversity is a primary way for the poor to cope with difficult biophysical environments and precarious social and political circumstances. The United Nations University Project on People, Land Management, and Environmental Change (PLEC) studies and documents how the accumulated knowledge and experience of smallholders and their diverse practices lead to clear benefits for both biodiversity and society. This book highlights the ways smallholder farmers of East Africa -in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda
Autor:Libor Jansky
Masahiro Murakami
Nevelina Pachova
United Nations University Press
Data wydania:1999
The Danube river is one of the world's greatest international freshwater resources. It stretches halfway across Europe and its water is shared by 17 nations. With so many countries dependent on one limited resource, conflicts are bound to arise. This book focuses on the dispute between Hungary and the Slovak Republic over the Gabeikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric dam project. It examines the history and progress of the case from the International Court of Justice to the subsequent agreement to joint monitoring and assessment of the environmental implications. The authors use a multidisciplinary approach covering natural resources management, geography, international relations, political science, and international law. Environmental monitoring is essential to resolving
International governance increasingly occurs through complex synergies between networks of actors across levels of international politics. This volume describes and analyzes the activities of many new actors in the realm of sustainable development. It highlights their activities and challenges, as well as critiques of their role in international governance. At the same time, the authors raise new theoretical and empirical questions for the future study of globalization and the formulation of policies for global issues. While states ultimately continue to make and enforce international law, they are increasingly dependent upon multilateral institutions, organized science, NGOs and social movements, and business and industry for formulating their views and conducting
Autor:Nations University Press United
United Nations University
United Nations University Press
W Maley
Data wydania:2003
In the 1990s the United Nations, the militaries of key member states, and non-governmental organisations became increasingly entangled in the complex affairs of disrupted states. In some situations they delivered humanitarian assistance, while in other cases they acted as agents of political, social, and civic reconstruction. These actors played a critical role in rebuilding a number of states, including Somalia, Bosnia, Kosovo, and East Timor. This book provides a rigorous examination of the dimensions of state disruption and analyses the role of the international community in responding to it. It also covers key related issues such as military doctrines for dealing with disorder and humanitarian emergencies, mechanisms for ending violence and delivering justice in
Despite international initiatives such as the Earth Summit in 1992 and ongoing efforts to implement the Kyoto Protocol, human activities continue to register a destructive toll on the planetary environment. At root, research on global environmental risk seeks new pathways for reversing unsustainable trends, curtailing ongoing destructive activities, and creating a life-sustaining planet. This book takes stock of the distinctive challenges posed by global environmental risks, the capacity of knowledge systems to identify and characterize such risks, and the competence of human society to manage the unprecedented complexity. Particular attention trains on engaging, in ways conducive to enhancing social learning and adaptation, the large uncertainties inherent in these
Why is globalization not improving the lot of millions of the world's poor? Indeed, the number of poor people at the beginning of this new century is the same as in 1987, and poverty is rising in most developing countries. The deliberate aim of international organizations was to advance and promote development through globalization -in particular through higher levels of international trade and investment for the IMF, the World Bank, and the World Trade Organization, while the United Nations would promote well-coordinated and coherent policies at the national and international levels. Globalization in turn was expected to deliver higher degrees of welfare for all. We are now at a critical juncture where this link, the expectation that globalization creates higher
What kind of comparative advantage does the United Nations hold in the field of security compared to other actors such as states and regional organizations? What kind of asset does the United Nations have in terms of normative as well as operational capacities that states and regional arrangements lack? What asset does the United Nations possess to effectively deal with security issues? These are some of the questions addressed in this book. Obviously, the ability of the United Nations to ease conflicts depends upon the support of Member States. Therefore it is imperative to know what states expect from the world body. As a result, this book also explores the following questions: What is the vision of the Member States and specifically of the major powers? What kind of
Autor:A Alao
Funmi Olonisakin
John Mackinlay
United Nations University
United Nations University Press
Data wydania:2000
When the international community responds to a massive humanitarian emergency, such as the one in Liberia, the operation that results is both complicated and ephemeral. The multifaceted nature of the problems in the crisis area attracts many different responses ranging from the deployment of thousands of international troops and observers to groups of civilians who act locally. Acting simultaneously but not always in concert with the response operations are the regional and international political leaders. In the context of Liberia, the crisis and the international response to it developed in stages, each with its own idiosyncratic nature, characteristic form of violence, cast of dominant personalities, and fresh bouts of extreme violence. Peacekeepers, Politicians,
The relationship between growth and poverty lies at the heart of development economics. While many see aggregate growth as both necessary and sufficient for reducing poverty, and consequently focus their efforts on achieving the desired macroeconomic outcomes, others stress that the benefits from growth may not be evenly spread. Critics of globalization often point out that growth of the macroeconomy may have an adverse effect on the most vulnerable members of society. Thus the distributional impact of growth needs to be taken into account when considering the consequences for poverty. The essays in this book deal with institutional and policy questions concerning growth and poverty, as well as sectoral issues, and individual country experiences. The contributors
This publication examines the common concerns of developing countries seeking just and fair growth and at the same time highlights their special regional needs. It addresses the following topics: the role of the state in promoting growth in the global market, the part played by national development strategies in resource redistribution and poverty reduction, the impact of globalisation on the development paths taken by developing countries, and the attempt made by democracies to reconcile economic growth with distribution. In considering these issues the publication advances the proposition that well organized states that systematically incorporate popular concerns will continue to be fundamental to the pursuit of just growth in the 21st century.
A detailed examination of UN World Conferences with respect to the interface between diplomatic method and new forms of global governance is provided in this book from UNU Press. Because of the complex dynamics involved in large international conferences, this book highlights a number of important theoretical debates central to the study of international relations. The role of Canada and Canadians is given special attention as both a unique and representative sample of how this dual interplay between diplomacy and global governance and state and society to craft has played out over the past decade or so with respect to the UN World Conferences.
