Norway to Help Protect Guyana's Forests

For the past year, President Bharrat Jagdeo of Guyana has traveled the world offering to place his nation's forests under international supervision if other countries paid his citizens not to deforest the tropical landscapes.

The campaign received major support last week when Norway announced a $30 million commitment on Monday for the small South American nation to implement an "avoided deforestation" plan. If the program demonstrates success, Guyana will receive an additional $250 million through 2015.

"We are giving the world a workable model for climate change collaboration between North and South," said Erik Solheim, Norway's minister of ...

Wicked Cool World of Organics - Edition 36

This week's dose of organic headlines, updates, resources, goodies, and recipes courtesy of DSnodgrass...

New research shows that the use of genetically modified crops have put more pesticides on consumers dinner tables. 

The rapid adoption by U.S. farmers of genetically engineered corn, soybeans and cotton has promoted increased use of pesticides, an epidemic of herbicide-resistant weeds and more chemical residues in foods, according to a report issued Tuesday by health and environmental protection groups.

The groups said research showed that herbicide use grew by 383 million pounds from 1996 to 2008, with 46 percent of the total increase ...

A Win-Win-Win-Win-Win-Win Opportunity?

With the United States of America's ever-mounting trade and budget deficits, unemployment above 10 percent (and, dependent on counting, un- and under-employment above 20 percent), looming peak oil and other resource (water, for example) limitations, environmental challenges, and ever-mounting climate chaos , America faces a very serious situation.

In fact, to one degree or another, these same intertwined challenges (with the exception of trade/budget deficits for some countries) are those face by societies and nations throughout the globe in our networked, systems-of-systems global community.

These serious challenges are a networked system-of-systems that interact and reinforce each other. As we ...

Looking Down the Environmental Legacy Barrel of Chinese Drywall

'Food Security and Climate Change Deeply Interconnected' Says UN Secretary-General

Speakers at the opening session of the World Summit on Food Security, hosted by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, called for increased investment in agriculture and emphasized the role climate change is playing in agricultural production.

“There can be no food security without climate security,” said Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations Secretary-General to the delegates gathered in Rome. “That is why next month in Copenhagen we need a comprehensive agreement that will provide a firm foundation for a legally binding treaty on climate change.”

Global leaders are trying to accomplish a foundational agreement, instead of a full-fledged treaty ...