缅北禁地

Natural Resources and the Environment

Replacing more of the plastic things we use every day with wood-based products from sustainably managed forests can help combat climate change and achieve the SDGs. reminds us how vital it is to consume and produce wood in a more environmentally friendly way for the planet and its inhabitants. Let鈥檚 protect this easily renewable resource with a sustainable management of forests. Choose sustainable wood for people and the planet.

For millions of people across the world, wood helps provide safe drinking water, food and shelter - but wood can do much more and is a renewable resource when forests are managed sustainably. Join in celebrating the International Day of Forests on 21 March and choose sustainable wood for people and the planet.

calls for nominations for the Champions of the Earth Award - the UN鈥檚 highest environmental honour - to recognize outstanding leaders their transformative impact on the environment.

A forestry technician marking logs for firewood with red aerosol can paint

Forests are essential for planetary health and human well-being. They provide people with goods, as well as help combat climate change and protect ecosystems. Even though deforestation is slowing, 鈥each year we still degrade and destroy some 10 million hectares of forest鈥, reports 缅北禁地Chief, Ant贸nio Guterres. For this year鈥檚 International Day of Forest (21 March), choose wood from legal and sustainable sources to help reduce deforestation while providing people with jobs and renewable materials. to know how forest-based innovations can contribute to a sustainable lifestyle.

In recognition of Covid-19鈥檚 world-altering effects,, and the, implemented by , made a call for proposals to support communities dependent on wildlife-based tourism.  Grants and the projects they鈥檝e facilitated, have been working to build resilience in communities in wildlife-rich areas and support the continued protection of threatened wildlife in their remaining strongholds despite pandemic hardships.

In this video, the Oscar-winning filmmaker Luc Jaquet shares with us his passion for nature conservation, his love for the frozen landscape of Antartica, and how his life changed when he started filming the emblematic Emperor penguins. Luc Jaquet shares this intimate testament in commemoration of the of the Man and the Biosphere Programme and reminds us of the importance of tightening and conserving the links that bind human beings to nature.

monitors the global Desert Locust situation closely and provides early warnings and alerts on the timing, scale and location of invasions and breeding. This early warning is vital.

Encroachment upon forested lands is one of the main threats to natural forest in Pakistan. In realizing the need for practicing sustainable forest management, the  was launched and implemented by the Pakistan Ministry of Climate Change. Working with multiple partners, supports efforts to sustain resilient forest ecosystems to benefit local economies, protect biodiversity and address climate change by providing technical assistance, policy advice, and governance support to developing countries.

2022 could prove to be a seminal year for the environment, with high-level events and conferences scheduled, which are hoped to re-energize international cooperation and collective action. is going into 2022 with . Unsustainable patterns of consumption and production are fuelling the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste. Several global events in 2022 aim to encourage dialogue and influence policy decisions to address the triple crisis.

The Champions of the Earth award is the United Nation鈥檚 highest environmental honour. It recognizes outstanding leaders from government, civil society and the private sector whose actions have a transformative impact on the environment. Champions of the Earth inspire, defend, mobilize and act to tackle the greatest environmental challenges of our time. Learn more about 鈥檚 Champions of the Earth.  

works with local communities in Indonesia鈥檚 Kalimantan forests to protect biodiversity and generate sustainable livelihoods. Recognising that naturally-dyed textiles are in high demand (and thus fetch higher prices) on international markets, weavers from the Ensaid Panjang village started a programme of forest rehabilitation and enrichment by planting and cultivating natural dye-producing plants. The KalFor project, which is supported by UNDP Indonesia and partners, bolsters the Government's program to preserve the remaining forests in Kalimantan that are outside state forest zones.

and the Arbor Day Foundation started the Tree Cities of the World programme, a collaborative effort to encourage cities and towns around the globe to invest in, properly maintain and sustainably manage urban forests and trees. 2019 was the first year of eligibility for this worldwide initiative and 68 cities from 17 countries were recognised for their commitment to urban forestry. The programme has since almost doubled and now includes 120 cities from 23 countries.

Environmental protection is frequently presented as a choice between benefits for the natural world or for humans. But the Republic of Costa Rica is showing that symbiotic relationships between environmental protection and economic development are possible. And the world is taking notice. The Government of Costa Rica was honoured with the Earthshot Prize, a Nobel-like award founded by renowned British naturalist Sir David Attenborough. values the leadership of developing countries in finding solutions that work for people and for the planet.

The is one of the most successful universally ratified environmental treaties. Without which, it is estimated that the global ozone layer would have collapsed by the mid-21st century, with devastating environmental implications. Scientists estimate that the ozone hole is now expected to gradually close. But there is more to be done. The Kigali Amendment aims to phase-out so called HFC gasses. Compliance will avoid up to 0.4掳C of global warming over this century.  brings us a film by Yann Arthus-Bertrand, narrated by Sir David Attenborough, with aerial footage courtesy of Human / GoodPlanet Foundation.

Air pollution is a multifaceted problem 鈥 representing the world鈥檚 leading environmental risk to health, costing the globe an estimated $8.1 trillion in 2019. Air pollution is also deadly, causing or contributing to heart attacks, strokes, lung cancer, and respiratory diseases and killing an estimated seven million people every year. 95 percent of these deaths occur in low- and middle- income countries. As such, tackling air pollution is a component of the 鈥檚 mission to eradicate poverty and promote shared prosperity. Less obvious is what can be done to address this problem.