Publications

As human history is changing on many fronts, it is appropriate for us to understand the different perspectives of major global challenges, of which, water is a major priority. The water resources in urban areas are either approaching or exceeding the limits of sustainable use at alarming rates. Groundwater table depletion and increasing flood...

This workshop report highlights the main points of discussion during Mandalay City's first Workshop focused on the development of its Municipal Waste Management Strategy, held June 16-17 in Mandalay, Myanmar. Organized in collaboration with the Mandalay City Development Committee, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Conservation...

Financial inclusion, which aims to provide appropriate financial services to disadvantaged and economically marginalised segments of society, contributes to both sustainable development and climate change adaptation. The creation of enabling regulatory frameworks, guidelines and supportive infrastructure by governments is key to the further...

The focus of disaster risk reduction has changed from response-based approaches to pre-disaster preparedness, mitigation and risk reduction approaches over the course of the last 25 years. However, the progress of this transition in focus has been slowed by a narrow perspective on risk reduction, which is yet to be fully mainstreamed into climate...

This material was prepared for the International Forum for Sustainable Asia and the Pacific (ISAP) 2016 as an executive summary of the IGES Discussion Paper DP1601: Koakutsu, K., Amellina, A., Rocamora, A.R. & Umemiya, C. (2016): Operationalizing the Paris Agreement Article 6 through the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) - Key Issues for Linking...

Developing countries must submit forest reference emission levels (FRELs) to the UNFCCC to receive incentives for REDD+ activities (e.g. reducing emissions from deforestation/forest degradation, sustainable management of forests, forest carbon stock conservation/enhancement). These FRELs are generated based on historical CO2 emissions in the land...

This is the paper for ISAP2016 sub-plenary session.

Sustainable Consumption and Production: An overview of key sectors and stakeholder initiatives in Asia

This policy brief analyzes the position of air pollution in the SDGs, and makes recommendations for how air pollution could be better integrated into SDG implementation. The SDGs, with 17 goals, 169 targets, and even more indicators, were criticized by some for having too many goals and lacking a clear sense of priorities. However, this policy...

This policy brief identifies approaches that could help achieve better synergies in implementing three major global frameworks dedicated to sustainable development (SD), disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA) on the ground via programmatic integration, collaboration, capacity, and innovation. The salient messages from...