English references

Some narratives in international development hold that ending poverty and achieving good lives for all will require every country to reach the levels of GDP per capita that currently characterise high-income countries. However, this would require increasing total global output and resource use several times over, dramatically exacerbating ecological breakdown. Furthermore, universal convergence along these lines is unlikely within the imperialist structure of the existing world economy. Here we demonstrate that this dilemma can be resolved with a different approach, rooted in recent needs-based analyses of poverty and development. Strategies for development should not pursue capitalist growth and increased aggregate production as such, but should rather increase the specific forms of production that are necessary to improve capabilities and meet human needs at a high standard, while ensuring universal access to key goods and services through public provisioning and decommodification. At the same time, in high

The summary for policymakers (SPM) and the chapters of the Methodological assessment regarding the diverse conceptualization of multiple values of nature and its benefits, including biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services (referred to as the “assessment of the diverse values and valuation of nature”), were approved and accepted respectively by the IPBES Plenary during its ninth session, held from 3 to 9 July 2022 in Bonn, Germany. The background of this assessment dates to 2013, when at its second session (IPBES 2) in Antalya, Turkey, the IPBES Plenary approved the initiation of scoping for a methodological assessment. During the third session of the IPBES plenary, in Bonn, Germany in 2015, the expert group established for scoping the methodological assessment and developing a preliminary guide, was requested to revise the scoping report for the methodological assessment based on comments received following an open review by Governments and stakeholders. At IPBES 4, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 2016

It took me a while but I finally digested the 107 pages of Chapter 5: Demand, services and social aspects of mitigation in the last IPCC report on Mitigation of climate change. This chapter is worth the read if only because it’s the first one fully dedicated to demand-side strategies. What I find remarkable is its conceptual width, including a few ideas that are usually considered too radical in these kind of venues. But just like the rest of the report, it is long and – as academic writing too often is – full of abstract jargon and somnolent prose. What I want to do in this article is to explain why Chapter 5 is more radical (in the good sense of the term) that you may think.

With signs that Moscow’s initial invasion strategy has not gone according to plan, the crisis in Ukraine has reached a critical moment.

On the fifth day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, one of many unanswered questions is why Russia has launched a military campaign at huge cost with maximalist objectives, and then declined to use the vast majority of its fixed wing combat aircraft.

Tree diversity is fundamental for forest ecosystem stability and services. However, because of limited available data, estimates of tree diversity at large geographic domains still rely heavily on published lists of species descriptions that are geographically uneven in coverage. These limitations have precluded efforts to generate a global perspective. Here, based on a ground-sourced global database, we estimate the number of tree species at biome, continental, and global scales. We estimated a global tree richness (≈73,300) that is ≈14% higher than numbers known today, with most undiscovered species being rare, continentally endemic, and tropical or subtropical. These results highlight the vulnerability of global tree species diversity to anthropogenic changes.

The Belgian Institute for Sustainable IT is a think and do tank founded in 2020, based on its French equivalent the INR. Our aim is to bring together Belgian companies, organizations and individuals, and help them succeed their digital transition while reducing the environmental and social footprint of their IT services and usages. Thanks to the support of our members and of public authorities, we promote digital technologies and services that are more sustainable, inclusive and ethical.

Insects have declined by 75% in the past 50 years – and the consequences may soon be catastrophic. Biologist Dave Goulson reveals the vital services they perform

Professor Reinhard Loske argues that the idea that the ‘economisation of nature’ represents the one and only path to salvation should be viewed much more critically. Should cost-free services that are provided by nature, be understood as ecosystem services and allocated a price ? Should a landscape worthy of conservation be evaluated by means of a cost-benefit analysis ?