Time to walk the talk on sustainable development goals

As the UN’s Sustainable Development Summit closed in New York with a bold new global sustainability roadmap, world leaders now need to focus on fulfilling that vision.

The task ahead is clear, but not easy – world leaders must go home and make the necessary administrative, legal, regulatory and fiscal decisions, and spend the next 15 years implementing and enforcing this agenda.

Unlike the Millennium Development Goals that were mainly aimed at developing countries, for the SDGs, all goals have to be achieved in all countries.

The Agenda 2030, which contains the 17 SDGs, agreed upon by countries, with the participation of other actors in an unprecedented democratic process, necessitate important transformations. Leida Rijnhout, Director of Global Policies and Sustainability at the European Environmental Bureau, stated that the new development goals present an opportunity to transform the world’s development agenda.

“The Sustainable Development Goals should give some much needed impetus for a paradigm shift to a new global economic and political system based on sustainability, human rights and equality,” states Leida.

For this to happen there’s need for a clear political and moral will to implement the SDGs.

“Governments have to use their political and moral power to put the right policies in place and mobilise all means of implementation to enable the shift away from business-as-usual,” states Leida.

Political will

In his speech to the UN General Assembly, Pope Francis stated that “solemn commitments are not enough, even though they are a necessary step toward solutions.” He further reiterated the importance of political and moral will in the achievement of the SDGs.

“Our world demands of all government leaders a will which is effective, practical and constant, concrete steps and immediate measures for preserving and improving the natural environment and thus putting an end as quickly as possible to the phenomenon of social and economic exclusion.”

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon cautioned that the true test of commitment to these goals “will be implementation. We need action from everyone, everywhere”. He added that the goals “are a to-do list for people and planet, and a blueprint for success.”

“To achieve these new global goals, we will need your high-level political commitment. We will need a renewed global partnership,” he said.

WWF International President Yolanda Kakabadse urged world leaders to sustain this political courage at home and make the right choices, committing to a total economic, social and environmental overhaul.

“Today’s celebration must translate into delivery and quickly. For these goals to become a reality decision-makers must demonstrate their intention to implement the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals is real and make their efforts transparent through careful follow-up and review,” urged Kakabadse.

Countries need to figure out how they’re going to contribute to achieving these goals and set benchmarks and indicators so they can report on their efforts. They will need to strengthen their domestic and external mobilization of resources to implement this development agenda.

Addressing the UN General Assembly, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta stated that the goals are ambitious and need an equally robust development mechanism.

“Without resources, the goals may never be realised; effective mobilization of resources in the context of global partnership will be critical,” he said before adding “new ideas and courage are necessary in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Integrating Gender in SDGs

Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of Oxfam International said that the new Sustainable Development Goals are ambitious on paper but they could be historic in their impact.

“SDGs seek to go beyond band-aid solutions by setting out to eradicate – not just reduce – extreme poverty and hunger in every country,” she said.

Winnie further warned that the successes of the SDGs  requires the participation of the most vulnerable and marginalized people so they can hold their governments to account and claim their rights. Women must be central to realizing these goals, while at the same time the concentrated power of vested interests must be challenged and those interests held more accountable by governments and citizens.

Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) echoed the integration of women and other vulnerable groups in implementing the SDGs.

“Sustainable development must include gender equality comprehensively, otherwise it is neither development, nor sustainable. The time for equality has come,” stated Alicia.

The 2030 Agenda should be centered on participatory and transparent processes that turn the top-down logic on its head and move from the national arena to a regional sphere, and from regional to global.

Every country is required to develop national indicators and programmes of implementation through individual development plans. In March, countries will crucially agree a set of indicators that will allow the UN to report annually on global progress in coming years.

Sustainable development demands significant collective action. Though all 193 Member States of the United Nations reached agreement on the SDGs, their success relies heavily on action and collaboration by all actors. Just as Winnie Byanyima of Oxfam correctly puts it, “Our political leaders have set the goals. There is a collective responsibility now to achieve them.”

African leaders miss opportunity to show their commitment to Climate Change

African Civil Society has expressed disappointment at the failure of African leaders to fully rally behind their resolve to demand climate justice for the continent at the 70^th UN General Assembly in New York.

The Committee of African Heads and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC) had an opportunity to meet, get updates, exchange views and analyze the continent’s effort to consolidate itself on the ongoing international dialogue process for a suitable climate change agreement, which will be reached in Paris in December 2015.

According to the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA), the New York meeting provided a key strategic moment for the convergence of African leaders to discuss and agree on a position that will secure African people a promising future in view of the rising impacts caused by the changing climate, which will disproportionately affect the most vulnerable in the society.

CAHOSCC remains the platform of Heads of State and Government and was conceived to provide the highest political leadership possible.

Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC) has provided the stewardship in positioning climate change as the top-most priority for the Commission.

Civil society is however concerned that some Heads of State continue to bypass the crucial opportunity to join CAHOSCC, which is their platform to demonstrate their commitment to navigating this critical issue.

PACJA is disappointed at the absence of several CAHOSCC members at a press conference convened by its Coordinator, Fattah El Sisi, the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, and attended by Chairperson of the African Union (AU), Robert Mugabe.

“We wish to remind our leaders that the Ministers have their platform where they compile the African Position and priority issues, under the guidance of the African Group of Negotiators,” stated Mithika Mwenda, PACJA Secretary General. “As the civil society, we are on top of the developments in Africa as the climate change negotiations unfold and hope that our leaders will not fall into the trap of 2009, when they gave into a wholly unacceptable outcome. This can only happen if they are available to listen and widely consult with other stakeholders across the continent.”

PACJA has echoed the views discussed at the press conference that Africa should be left to develop its own initiatives to enhance the climate resilience of its people while contributing to the global effort to defeat the challenges of climate change.

“We urge our Governments to build on the existing initiatives and avoid the emerging trend where the African continent is turning out to be the experimental ground for climate change solutions developed elsewhere,” said Mithika. “We want to see our Governments’ firm commitment to a strong unified African position during COP21, on the Initiative on enhancing support to Africa on Adaptation and Loss and Damage, and the African Renewable Energy Initiative”.

Energy access and adaptation are the most pressing issues in Africa’s response to the climate crisis.

The Civil Society group feels that Africa has strong networks, institutions and the sufficient capacity to deal with any area of climate response, may it be adaptation, mitigation, technology transfer or finance.

Under the Climate and Development for Africa Programme (CLIMDEV) partnership, the AUC, AfBD and the UNECA have come together in an unprecedented relationship that has provided policy and programmatic guidance on continent-wide outreach: bringing together governments, UN Agencies, Regional Economic Integration Communities, the Private Sector, and Civil Society among others.

Governments and development partners have been asked to support the work of the CLIMDEV Africa Programme to enhance its capacity rather than duplicating the work it’s already doing under African Climate Policy Centre (ACPC), Africa Climate Change Fund (ACCF) and CAHOSCC.

“We urge that recommendations of this partnership continue to set the framework of Africa’s response to climate change, and any other effort should be geared towards strengthening them. Only then will we see hope for millions of people suffering at the hands of climate change across Africa,” said Mithika.

Climate Action a necessary pre-condition to achieve SDGs, says ACT Alliance

As world leaders acknowledge the links between climate change and poverty at the UNGA Post-2015 Summit in New York, ACT Alliance called for increasing urgency to address the impacts of climate change.

Addressing a parallel event focusing on the role of faith-based actors in sustainable development, the international humanitarian and development network said that the SDGs must steer the world onto a sustainable pathway towards poverty eradication.

“Ending extreme poverty starts with addressing climate change, as a key pillar of our moral imperative," said ACT Alliance General Secretary John Nduna, addressing faith leaders and political dignitaries. “Mother earth weeps for climate justice. As long as we human beings abuse mother earth, ending extreme poverty will be an illusion.”

“Climate change denies people and communities the ability to overcome poverty,” he continued. “Without rain in sub-Saharan Africa, people cannot grow their food or feed their families. When streets and fields flood in Asia, communities lose their livelihoods and lives. As the sea level rises in the Pacific, people are stripped of their land and risk statelessness. Our leaders must urgently and adequately confront climate change.”

ACT Alliance has engaged in work related to climate justice and sustainable development since 2010, from community mobilisation to high level political engagement.

“While we celebrate the incredible adoption of the SDGs,” said Nduna, “we must now urgently stand together, ready, excited and motivated begin working in partnership with one another for the effective implementation of these goals.”

The negotiations towards the new global development framework continues to build momentum towards the UN climate change meeting (COP21) which will take place in Paris, France, in December.

“The ambition that we see with the adoption of the SDG framework today must translate to concrete action in Paris at COP21,” said Nduna. “Sustainable Development and poverty eradication is largely dependent on the ambition of the climate agreement to be adopted in Paris. Progress on SDGs should encourage parties to come up with a strong, fair and equitable climate agreement..”

New global energy goal key to sustainable development

World leaders’ adoption of an internationally accepted goal on sustainable energy for all is a key that unlocks progress across a stream of other priorities, from ending poverty and hunger, through clean water, health and education, to gender equality, job creation, economic growth and climate action.

Among the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted at the UN Sustainable Development Summit on 25 September is goal number 7 which seeks to “Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all.”

SDG 7’s targets on energy access, renewable energy and energy efficiency are enshrined in the objectives of the UN Secretary-General’s Sustainable Energy for All initiative (SE4All), which stands ready and able to play a core role in implementing, tracking and reporting on the goal.

Some 1.1 billion people worldwide live without electricity, and 2.9 billion people depend on smoky, dangerous traditional fuels such firewood, charcoal and kerosene for cooking and providing light.

According to the World Bank, only 24 percent of the population of sub-Saharan Africa has access to electricity, compared with 40 percent in other low income countries.

For Africa, energy poverty and poor energy access are significant obstacles to development, with impact on individuals, families and business opportunities.

At the same time, wasteful energy use, especially in high-income countries, fuels potentially devastating climate change. Access to energy is a human right which must be achieved for all to allow for equitable development.

“For the first time, SDG 7 provides an internationally accepted roadmap to sustainable energy for everybody, in the developed and developing world alike,” said Rachel Kyte, who will take over next January as Chief Executive Officer of SE4All.

PACJA Secretary General Mithika Mwenda adds that energy is a key component in the mitigation response to combatting climate change.

“The African continent is facing a particularly key moment in its development pathway, with a stark choice to be made between either following the same high-carbon path pursued by industrialized countries, or concentrating its growth on low-carbon climate resilient development pathway. Africa must choose the latter both for the good of the planet and its own development. An energy transformation is crucial to enable the continent to grow sustainably,” he said.

More than 90 million people have already gained access to sustainable energy under pledges made for the SE4All initiative, and commitments to date can provide energy access for around a billion people by 2030, cutting energy poverty in half despite population growth.

SE4All’s Global Tracking Framework (GTF), coordinated by the World Bank and the International Energy Agency and supported by more than 20 other partner agencies, is ready to act as a rigorous tool for tracking and reporting progress against the targets of SDG 7.

Mithika Mwenda adds that African governments must support energy transformation by channeling resources toward renewable energy sources. Developed countries must also support Africa through providing resources support renewables and enhancing capacity of developing countries in producing clean energy.

Underlining its commitment to action towards SDG 7, SE4All held two high-level events on the sidelines of the Sustainable Development Summit.

Summit Charts New Era of Sustainable Development

“We have a big, bold agenda before us – now we must work to make it real in people’s lives everywhere,” said United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, ahead of the gaveling of a new agenda for sustainable development.

At the landmark Sustainable Development Summit to be held from 25-27 September at UN Headquarters in New York, countries will officially adopt the historic new agenda, entitled “Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” which was agreed upon by the 193 Member States of the United Nations, and includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“It is a roadmap to ending global poverty, building a life of dignity for all and leaving no one behind. It is also a clarion call to work in partnership and intensify efforts to share prosperity, empower people’s livelihoods, ensure peace and heal our planet for the benefit of this and future generations,” underscored Mr. Ban.

The new agenda is people-centred, universal, transformative and integrated. It calls for action by all countries for all people over the next 15 years in five areas of critical importance: people, planet, prosperity, peace and partnership. The agenda recognises that ending poverty must go hand-in-hand with a plan that builds economic growth and addresses a range of social needs, while tackling climate change.

The opening ceremony of the Summit will start on 25 September, with the film screening, “The Earth from Space,” followed by musical performances by UN Goodwill Ambassadors Shakira and Angelique Kidjo, as well as a call to action by Nobel Laureate Malala Yousafzai along with youth representatives as torch bearers to a sustainable future.

Opening remarks will be delivered by Yoweri Museveni, President of Uganda, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Prime Minister of Denmark, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, and civil society representative Salil Shetty, Amnesty International Secretary-General.

The Sustainable Development Agenda will then officially be adopted by world leaders.

Bamboo for a Greener Future; Ghanaian appointed as Ambassador

As the 2015 World Bamboo Day is commemorated, the World Bamboo Organization has appointed Bernice Dapaah, the Executive Director of Ghana Bamboo Bikes Initiative, as a World Bamboo Ambassador.

Where bamboo grows naturally, bamboo has been a daily element, but its utilization has not always been sustainable due to exploitation.

September 18 is celebrated to increase in bamboo awareness globally. 

The World Bamboo Organization aims to bring the potential of bamboo to a more elevated exposure – to protect natural resources and the environment, to ensure sustainable utilization, to promote new cultivation of bamboo for new industries in regions around the world. It also seeks to promote traditional uses locally for community economic development.

Executive Director of World Bamboo Organisation, Suzane Lucas, said Bamboo has enormous potential as an environmental remediator which could repair the destruction human beings have wrought on this planet.

Bamboo groves prevent erosion, clean the air, store carbon, provide habitat, provide food, provide biomass, provide resource, and provide opportunities for community development.

She has pledged the World Bamboo Organization’s support to help bamboo and rattan resource countries to be more productive.

The organization will provide them with new knowledge as well as technology and policy packages to help strengthen their bamboo and rattan sectors. 

The Director General of the International Bamboo and Rattan Network (INBAR), Hans Friederich said Bamboo and rattan are powerful strategic forest resources that can bring jobs and income to millions of people in rural areas, create new income streams for communities and reverse land degradation and deforestation.

But progress toward this widespread growth is slow as a result of lack of coordination between bamboo and rattan experts and agencies, technical knowledge that is difficult to access and the need for new evidence that countries can use to harness these resources to boost economic growth.

Addressing the 10^th World Bamboo Congress in Damyang, South Korea, Bernice Dapaah, paid tribute to the institutions who have helped transform the vision of Ghana Bamboo Bikes into reality.

According to her, the Ghana Bamboo Bikes Initiative has created employment opportunities for 35 people “whose incomes have lifted them out of poverty and allowed them to invest in a wide range of social benefits such as better nutrition and education”.

She urged the organisers and the experts to conduct workshops about the usage of bamboo and its potential to boost the rural economy, adding that her organization is ready to give cooperation to bamboo enthusiasts in this regard.

Ms Dapaah however lamented that Bamboo is a largely underutilized resource in Ghana and Africa with existing initiatives tending to occur in isolation.

According to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, Africa holds 12% of the global bamboo resources, but accounts for just 1% of the estimated $60+ billion world trade in bamboo.

Climate Knowledge Brokers Manifesto to spur communication and action

With the number of extreme weather ‐ and climate‐related events rising worldwide, it has never been more important for policy makers, urban planners, investors, and others facing climate‐related challenges to have the right information at the right time.

A group of leading players in the climate and development fields have issued a clear call for improved knowledge coordination to support action on climate change.

The Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP), together with UN’s Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN), the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) and dozens more, are backing the launch of the ‘Climate Knowledge Brokers Manifesto’.

This sets out the key principles for exchanging and communicating information related to the climate effectively, enabling a step change in society’s response to a changing climate.

The Manifesto is the brainchild of the Climate Knowledge Brokers’ Group (CKB), founded in 2011 and now counting more than 100 international agencies and programmes among its community www.climateknowledgebrokers.net.   

CKB was created in recognition that climate change has growing impacts on people’s daily lives, and will transform local environments the world over for the foreseeable future.  

“Knowledge and research is critical to creating a new low carbon future, but for busy decision makers this is not enough to bring about real change,” said Jane Clark, Head of Learning on climate change issues at the UK Department for International Development. “Knowledge needs to be translated, brokered and tailored to ensure we can all make better‐informed choices as we plan for and manage the risks, trade‐offs and opportunities of climate change. Enabling active learning is critical to changing the way we do things.”  

“Only now are we really grasping the full extent to which our lives, our jobs and our environment are being affected by a changing climate”, added Florian Bauer, COO and Open Knowledge Director at the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership in Vienna, and one of the editors of the Manifesto. “But while our knowledge is technically growing, our ability to process and make use of it is not.”

The arena of “climate information” was once a niche of modelling and projections used by those working specifically in climate and environmental science.

As understanding of the global climate and its influence has improved, the domain of climate‐related and climate‐relevant information and knowledge has grown tremendously.

For instance, the number of records on ‘climate change’ on google scholar increased from 76,000 in 1992 to 1.7 million articles in 2014.

CKB says it’s the job of its 100+ members and other organisations like them – many funded by taxpayer monies or donor subscriptions – to make sense of this ocean of information so that people are well informed to act on climate‐related risks.

The group defines the knowledge broker’s role as interpreting, sorting, translating, and integrating this wealth of information and tailoring it for the needs of different audiences – from government decision‐makers and business leaders, urban planners and farmers, to everyday consumers and voters.   

The Manifesto sets out seven key principles for how climate knowledge brokers can have greater impact through collaboration and the use of open data.

“Climate knowledge brokers need to work together to avoid overlap and make sure they are identifying and meeting people’s information needs effectively,” said Geoff Barnard, Senior Advisor on Knowledge Management at CDKN and a founder of the Group. “Only then will climate knowledge brokers meet their full potential for turning knowledge into action.”

New joint venture to revive Obuasi Gold Mine

Randgold Resources Limited and AngloGold Ashanti Limited have concluded an investment agreement aimed at the formation of a joint venture to redevelop and operate AngloGold Ashanti’s Obuasi gold mine in Ghana. 

Under the Agreement, Randgold will lead and fund a development plan designed to rebuild Obuasi as a viable long-life mining business with an attractive cost structure and returns.

Obuasi has a large, high-grade deposit with proven and probable ore reserves of 24.53Mt part of a substantial mineral resource base.  

At the end of 2014, AngloGold Ashanti converted Obuasi to limited operations, ceasing underground production, retrenching the workforce, but continuing to process tailings and starting a feasibility study on the redevelopment of the mine.  Development of the decline ramp has continued over this period.

“Obuasi is a world-class resource.  We now have to see if we can convert it into a world-class mine.  We have a long history of cooperation with AngloGold Ashanti and we look forward to working with them again on charting a new course towards a viable future for Obuasi,” said Randgold chief executive Mark Bristow in a statement.

Randgold is expected to deliver the new development plan to both parties’ boards by 31 January 2016.

“AngloGold Ashanti has since 2012 effected a range of improvements to modernise Obuasi and – in line with its strategy – has progressed a feasibility study as the critical next step toward breathing new life into this important mine,” AngloGold Ashanti CEO Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan said.

“Our partnership with Randgold has proved successful for well over a decade in bringing value from sustainable gold mining to all stakeholders and we believe that pooling the extensive expertise and the capital of these two companies will improve our ability to bring Obuasi’s world-class high-grade gold deposit to account.”

Climate Change, a threat to Sustaining CAADP Momentum in Agric transformation

From Maputo to Malabo, the NEPAD Agency’s Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) has shown the way to transform Africa’s agricultural sector.

For the past decade, CAADP has served as the continent’s policy framework for agricultural sector growth and economic development.

The Maputo Declaration of African Heads of States was “unprecedented”, says Dr. Augustin Wambo Yamdjeu, Coordinator of CAADP.

In Maputo, governments committed to increase their public expenditure to agriculture by allocating a minimum of ten percent of annual budgets to the sector.

There is now the quest to grow the agriculture sector by an annual six percent under the Malabo Declaration, which is crucial to consolidate the achievements and gains in the implementation of CAADP to ensure food and nutrition security.

“The Malabo Declaration is a game-changer,” said Dr. Yamdjeu during a media teleconference on “Walking the Talk – Malabo Declaration”. He has emphasized that the two declarations are mutually re-enforcing.

Vulnerabilities of Smallscale Farming

Smallscale farming is at the heart of CAADP implementation. 

A recent study by NEPAD has found that smallscale farmers are the prime financiers of the agricultural sector in Africa and also provide food for close to 70percent of the continent’s population.

Climate change, however, threatens the drive to protect the interest of smallholder farmers in the next decade – 2015-2025 – of Sustaining CAADP Momentum.

“Climate change is something that we are suffering from; there is no doubt about it. But our contribution to climate change is minimal compared to the extent of impact that we are facing today,” observed Dr. Yamdjeu.

According to the United Nations University Institute for Natural Resources in Africa (UNU-INRA), Sub-Saharan Africa faces a significant decline in soil fertility, a situation that could worsen food security in the region.

An earlier study by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) had also indicated that climate change would hit developing countries the hardest, leading to massive decline in crop yields and production.

The study said 25 million more children would be malnourished by 2050 due to the effects of climate change.

In Ghana, for instance, the reality of the impacts of the changing climate is dawning on local farmers.

True to forecast by Ghana’s meteorological agency this year, low rains have been recorded in the northern and middle belts of the country, compared to previous years.

Farmers in the country’s food basket areas like Techiman, Nkoranza and Atebubu in the Brong Ahafo Region are counting huge losses in cassava, yam and maize production as a result of the poor rains.

There is fear of food scarcity if the rainfall pattern persists.

The NEPAD Agency has been implementing climate-related programmes, including the Agriculture Climate Change Programme, Gender Agriculture Climate Change, Climate Smart Agriculture Alliance, NEPAD Climate Fund and TerrAfrica Sustainable Land and Water Management.

However, the level of scientific knowledge and research findings in tackling climate change is still limited in local farming communities.

The concern therefore is that the needs of small-scale farmers must be prioritized on the road to Paris in December, when a legally binding climate agreement is expected to be reached at the UN Climate Change Conference.

The CAADP Coordinator believes “to adapt is most crucial to Africa”, stating that adoption of new technologies must be accessible and affordable.

Vulnerable African farmers need to merge indigenous knowledge with new technologies to be resilient to climate change.

“They need to do something for the smallscale farmer because it is only by making them stronger, by making their livelihoods system more resilient in the face of climate variability that we are going to attain sustainable development,” said Dr. Yamdjeu.

Walking the Talk of the Malabo Declaration would therefore require that African governments and the African Group of Negotiators highlight the interest of the African smallholder farmer in the climate talks, especially in presenting their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) to the UNFCCC.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh

Global Nutrition Report Highlights Role of Climate

Climate change is complicating global efforts to end malnutrition, and even small seasonal fluctuations make a difference says a new report. 

According to the Global Nutrition Report, being released on September 22 in New York City, there are actions leaders of every country should be taking to end malnutrition in all its forms.

Among the report’s key findings: One in three members of the global population is malnourished, and the problem exists in every country on the planet—yet the strategies available to resolve it are not being implemented due to lack of money, skills, or political pressure.

Another finding is that climate change affects nutrition by influencing people’s food security, disease levels and patterns, water and sanitation environments, and choices about how to allocate time to their livelihoods and to caregiving.

Seasonal changes can have big impacts on food availability and disease patterns, and these in turn dramatically affect children’s survival and development.

This means, for example, that babies born in India in November and December are taller on average at 3 years of age than those born in April through September.

“We wanted to highlight that it isn’t just about how climate will have an impact on nutrition in 50 years time, but on the way climate impacts nutrition today,” said Madeleine Thomson, from the International Research Institute for Climate and Society, part of Columbia University’s Earth Institute.

Thomson was the lead author of the report’s chapter on the role of climate in global nutrition. “For the poorest communities, seasonal fluctuations in food access and drivers of infectious disease remain a reality and have a profound effect on nutrition,” said Thomson. “This vulnerability to weather cycles and climate phenomena such as El Niño is a stark indicator of the vulnerability of certain populations to the weather extremes that climate change could unleash.”

“When one in three of us is held back, we as families, communities, and nations cannot move forward,” said Lawrence Haddad, lead author of the study and senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute. “This not only jeopardizes the lives of those who are malnourished, but also affects the larger framework for economic growth and sustainable development. Simply put: people cannot get anywhere near their full potential without first overcoming malnutrition.”

The International Research Institute for Climate and Society is a PAHO/WHO Collaborating Centre on Early Warning Systems for Malaria and other Climate-Sensitive Diseases.