United Nations

Agriculture to feature as a key issue on the Road to Durban: opens up critical debates

Shefali Sharma blogged from Bonn, Germany climate talks. See her presentation from IATP's official side event for more.

Agriculture in the spotlight at Bonn climate talks

Carbon emissions trading at the Bonn climate change negotiations: alive but not so well

Five Reasons Carbon Markets Won't Work for Agriculture

Carbon markets are viewed as a primary source of climate financing. The experience to date demands a reevaluation of their ability to exact real, sustainable change, particularly in relation to agriculture. This fact sheet gives five reasons why poorly designed and regulated carbon markets should not be part of a global climate treaty.

World Water Day statement from the Water Justice Movement, March 22, 2011

World Water Day is observed every year on March 22 as a day of action to draw attention to the role that fresh water plays in our world and lives, and the challenges that lie ahead in realizing right to water for all. The past year has been momentous as far as the advancement of right to water goes. There have been two developments in the U.N.

What Does the Right to Water Entail?

This article by Shiney Varghese was published February 28, 2011 on Alternet Given that nearly three quarters of the "water poor" belong to rural communities, it's time that international deliberations around the right to water focus on rural communities access to safe water.

Submission by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy on the cost-effectiveness of "market-based mechanisms" and their promotion of mitigation actions

The focus on market mechanisms is a dangerous distraction from the real work of finding agricultural practices that reduce emissions while ensuring food security, environmental integrity and rural livelihoods.

Is famine the new normal?

Minneapolis, February 7, 2011 — When global food prices spiked in 2007-08, a hundred million people were added to the ranks of the world’s hungry, pushing the total number over 1 billion for the first time in history. Now, just two years later, we are seeing another food price hike, and more famine is likely to follow.

Public Input for the Study Regarding the Oversight of Existing and Prospective Carbon Markets

Comment on issues to be considered by the interagency group in the CFTC carbon market study mandated by Section 750 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act).

Shefali Sharma on disappointing conclusion to Cancún talks

IATP's Shefali Sharma reports on why the "agreement" reached in Cancún is less than representative of the countries and civil society groups that attended the negotiations but were kept from the table.