Poverty Solutions, Global Development

Kigali, Rwanda, is site of one of the latest crossroads of people, planet and profit, with a recycling project as a catalyst for profit, employment and solidarity for HIV+ women. The project is run by ACEN (Association for the Conservation of the Environment), a local cooperative with funding from UNDP and the Global Environment Facility [...]

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TOMS Shoes are a stylish take on the traditional Argentine alpargata slip-on, appealing at once to the Polo Ralph Lauren crowd, surfers and skaters, as well as those of us in between. Yet, the shoes are more than just that. Founded on ethics of social responsibility, they are produced in Argentina in sweatshop free environments. [...]

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The 2008 Royal Award for Sustainable Technology Transfer, protected by HRH Crown Prince Felipe of Spain and HRH Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark, was awarded last week at Copenmind to Colorado State U…

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Cambodia has come a long way from the “killing fields” of the 1970s when 1.7 million people were killed by the communist group the Khmer Rouge. In 1993 it became a constitutional monarchy, and during the same time period began developing a garment industry. Cambodia’s garment industry grew rapidly with $20 million worth of export [...]

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eBay today unveiled a new ecommerce marketplace called WorldofGood.com by eBay, which offers products that have a positive impact on people and the planet, empowering consumers to align their social values with their shopping. As a result, the new site is both very consumer- as well as idea-centric. Customers will be able to purchase products [...]

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While the debate over sustainable biofuels continues to rage on and the amount of research opinions and papers on the topic continues to soar an underground “grease car” movement continues to grow. Enthusiasts recently completed a “Grease to Greece” recycled veggie oil vehicle rally was recently completed in Europe, but the movement has yet to really catch on despite its great potential.

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In the mid-2000s, I worked as a senior grantmaker at a New York-based foundation. In addition to annual or bi-annual due diligence trips we made to visit our overseas partners, the only performance-based evaluation we required of the grantees was to submit a semi-annual and annual report, detailing how they spent the grant we gave [...]

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The garment industry is a major contributor to climate change. Many of the clothes Americans and Europeans wear come from Sri Lanka. Three members of Sri Lanka’s Garments Without Guilt campaign, which champions the rights of workers in the Sri Lankan apparel industry, constructed eco-friendly factories: Brandix, MAS Intimates, and the Hirdaramani Group. Brandix, the [...]

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Fresno Yosemite International Airport last month flipped the switch on a solar power system that will meet some 40% of its electricity needs, designed and engineered by World Water & Solar Technologies, a company whose solar PV systems are also being used to supply water for a rural community in the Philippines.

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The coconut telegraph is being re-invented as locals in Papua New Guinea and islands across the south Pacific are turning to coconut oil to fuel more than just diesel vehicles.

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Can a new plan to halt deforestation of Brazil’s Amazon rainforest actually work? Last week, Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva announced a new international fund to raise money for sustainable forest projects. It is hoped that nations will donate a target amount of $21 billion over the next 13 years. Norway has been [...]

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Last week, Colorado-based non-profit Envirofit introduced clean-burning biomass stoves in India, a project that will attempt to reduce fuel consumption, toxic emissions, and offer a sustainable business model to foster local enterprise. In an effort to reduce indoor air pollution in developing nations, Envirofit teamed up with the UK’s Shell Foundation as a part of [...]

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g8 talks get stuck because of China and India’s refusal to stick to 50% reduction of ghg by 2050. Story focuses on China’s export sector and its ghg production. Who shoudl be paying?

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For many, the very mention of Tijuana conjures up images of debauchery, drunken 18-year olds, and Montezuma’s Revenge. What it might not conjure is a vision of sustainability. Especially when it’s in terms of tract housing developments. Yet Urbi, one of Mexico’s premiere housing developers, is attempting to create just that. Working in concert with [...]

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UN chief Ban Ki-moon opened the international summit on the global food crisis in Rome last week by calling for a 50 per cent increase in food production by the year 2030. As the High-level Conference on World Food Security concluded the UN’s long-term focus was revealed; to improve food security whilst increasing production and [...]

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At the UN Food and Agriculture Food Organization (FAO) summit that concluded today in Rome, Brazilian President Lula da Silva said the US is full of bad cholesterol. Defending his nation’s ethanol production against arguments that biofuels are causing deforestation and worsening the global food crisis, Lula said that the real problems are agro-subsidies and [...]

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Microfinance, the practice of making very small loans to people to support their businesses in developing countries, has been helpful to many, and is growing with the emergence of such partnerships as Kiva B4B. But what if your business is too big to be helped much from a microloan, but not big enough or your [...]

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On May 14th, as the French coastal city of Cannes swelled with celebrities, with heavyweights such as Spielberg, Polanski, and the like littering the streets for the famous annual film festival, the streets of Lima experienced an equally similar and momentous influx of its own. On the same day, heads of state from Latin American, [...]

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Google Zeitgeist conference unveils a new toy; look into the future with google earth and see what the planet looks like if met predictions and antarctica research proves valid.

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The Convention on Biological Diversity is a treaty between nations to maintain diversity and sustain life on earth. Every year the party nations meet to discuss progress of the convention, topical issues and strategic planning. This year our attention is drawn to the devastation brought about by climatic disasters and the real economic cost of [...]

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The World Social Forum takes place annually to provide a meeting ground for civil society organisations, networks and individuals to explore the progression of social movements across the globe. Those attending the function become equipped with the latest knowledge on social development, struggles and innovation in the field. The WSF hopes to facilitate networking among [...]

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food riots and the causes behind high food prices.

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Today, a dozen companies will reveal plans to implement business expertise, including the use of their technology and innovations to serve poverty alleviation within the Majority World. At the event in London, over 80 multi-national business executives will display innovations to tackle poverty. Such initiatives are hoped to create jobs and through targeted economic growth [...]

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Lately our news feeds about the business sector, government and development activities in Latin America have painted a stark picture; mostly surrounding resource competition between filling bellies and producing biofuels. The current crises elucidates the range of dilemmas faced when business and development needs are out of harmony, when they are placed in competition to [...]

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Here in the US, we’re used to the near ubiquitous access to cell phones, with the possibility of thousands, if not unlimited minutes. But what if every phone in the US was prepaid? Such is the case in Nicaragua. There, people use their phones mainly to receive phone calls, or as address books to make [...]

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The second highest imperative for life as we know it, conflicts over water resources and management are coming into sharp relief, exacerbated by growing population, land use, climate change and a surge of investment.

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Foresters, climatolgists and environmental agencies are devoting much time and effort to figure out a way to include deforestation abatement into the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development and carbon trading schemes. A recently released discussion paper examines the potential effects carbon credits would have on forest conservation and use.

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Streamlining and expanding the UNFCCC’s Clean Development Mechanism will be key priorities for 2008, according to Rajesh Kumar Sethi, the recently appointed chair of the CDM Executive Board.

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Looking to draw attention and redress the staggering fact that some 49% of the world’s population lack access to basic sanitation and safe, sustainable water sources, the UN has launched a global financing mechanism, the Global Sanitation Fund, and is organizing World Sanitation Day events in Geneva and New York.

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We in the West take it for granted that you turn on the faucet, and water comes out. But for many people, it’s not a given. In fact, in many places, you have to walk for miles, scooping it into a large jar, then carry it back. And there’s no guarantee of it’s cleanliness. This [...]

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