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Weekly News Alert
Issue 303
April 8-12, 2019

News
 

World calls for urgent action on peatlands
 
The 4th United Nations Environment Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya, adopted its first ever resolution on peatlands. An all-female group of representatives from UN Environment, the European Union, Indonesia, Norway, and the United States drafted and agreed upon its text. The resolution builds momentum for conservation and restoration of these important natural carbon sinks. Peatlands are also one type of green infrastructure which can act as buffers for absorbing excess rain water, thus attenuating certain types of flooding events. Read the story here
Three lessons from Cuba about improving coastal climate resilience
 
Cuba is particularly vulnerable to increasingly powerful storms and hurricanes, and the overall effects of climate change. In this blog post by the Environmental Defense Fund, the author highlights three components of an effective strategy to build coastal resilience to these threats, as discussed in a recent seminar on climate finance and sustainable development held in Havana. These include green infrastructure and ecosystem-based solutions, data collection and evaluation, and involving communities in resilience efforts. 

Featured Video

How nature can save us from climate breakdown
An animated video from Natural Climate Solutions, a new website launched on 2 April 2019highlights how living systems can reduce the likelihood of climate catastrophe, irreversible biodiversity loss and minimize the impacts of natural hazards, when allowed to recover. Natural Climate Solutions are calling on the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, governments and NGOs to put Natural Climate Solutions at the heart of their policies.

Opinion

A natural solution to the climate disaster

Prominent climate scientists and activists wrote an open letter in The Guardian, highlighting how ecosystems have been overlooked as a solution to addressing climate risks and ecological breakdown. A nature-based approach combined with large-scale decarbonization of industrial economies, they argue, is key to maintaining global warming below 1.5°C. "What I love about natural climate solutions is that we should be doing all these things anyway. Instead of making painful choices and deploying miserable means to a desirable end, we can defend ourselves from disaster by enhancing our world of wonders." said George Monbiot, journalist and co-author of the open letter, in a related opinion piece


Project Insights
 
Communities manage permeable structures to restore mangroves in Java



The Building with Nature Indonesia Consortium transferred the ownership of permeable structures from local contractors to local communities in Java. Permeable structures are built using local materials for the restoration of mangroves in muddy coastal areas, as they capture sediment that act as substrate for mangroves to grow naturally. These measures enhance the resilience of coastal communities, by providing more sustainable livelihoods options but also by attenuating the impacts of hazards. Read the story here

Featured Publications

 

Strategic Green Infrastructure and Ecosystem Restoration
 
This report by the Joint Research Centre, the European Environment Agency and the Directorate-General for Environment of the European Commission draws on a range of European case studies to highlight the use of geo-spatial and mapping tools in green infrastructure (GI) planning and design. GI mapping and ecosystem restoration can enhance climate change mitigation, disaster risk reduction and sustainable development. Read the report here

Scientific Corner

An integrated community and ecosystem-based approach to disaster risk reduction in mountain systems


According to a new paper from Environmental Science & Policy, over 70% of disaster-related deaths in the period 2005-2014 occurred in mountainous regions. The authors propose that integrating Eco-DRR with community-based DRR (CB-DRR) will help address the increasing vulnerabilities of mountain people and ecosystems to disasters. 

Events

Global Landscapes Forum Kyoto 2019

13 May 2019
Kyoto International Conference Center

Kyoto, Japan

The GLF Kyoto 2019 will focus on how climate change can be tackled from improved landscape approaches. Experts from science, business, policy, international development and more will join the Forum in person and online from around the world, to highlight how sustainable landscapes are one of the keys to climate mitigation and adaptation. More information on how to participate (in person or remotely) here.

  

Job Opportunities

Geospatial Specialist
Organization: FAO
Location: Rome, Italy
Closing date: 9 April 2019
See
here

Regional Researcher - Water Risks and Data Sciences Specialist
Organization: International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
Location: Colombo, Sri Lanka
Closing date: 10 April 2019
See
here


Consultant, Communications - Fiji's National Adaptation Plan
Organization: IISD
Location: Suva, Central, Fiji
Closing date: 15 April 2019
See
here 

Disaster Management Intern 
Organization: ADPC
Location: Bihar, India
Closing date: 16 April 2019
See
here

 
Environmental Affairs Intern
(UN Decade for Ecosystem Restoration)

Organization: UN Environment
Location: Nairobi, Kenya
Closing date: 16 April 2019
See
here

Junior Professional Officer (Dutch JPO)
Organization: UN Environment
Location: Nairobi, Kenya
Closing date: 24 April 2019
See here

Gender and Diversity Advisor
Organization: ADPC
Location: Bangkok, Thailand
Closing date: 30 April 2019
See
here 


Senior Program Officer, Forests Strategy & Research
Organization: WWF
Location: Washington D.C.
Closing date: unspecified
See
here


For more information please see PEDRR's Linkedin.
  
 
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Please send your news alert for us to feature: pedrr.secretariat@gmail.com
News Writer: Lavinia Giulia Pomarico
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