Publications

Education on disasters has tended to focus on disaster response and recovery, as opposed to proactive actions to reduce disaster risk and increase preparedness. Furthermore, d[...]

Water has been a cause of conflict in many Asian countries since ancient times, primarily due to the tensions between increasing demand and decreasing availability and, lately[...]

Transformative change in socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS) builds on local innovations fostered through adaptive co-management to enable social-ecol[...]

Policymakers face a variety of challenges in implementing the 2030 Agenda. These include translating the SDGs and targets into national priorities, building on synergies and a[...]

A co-benefits approach is a way to achieve several positive outcomes along multiple dimensions through a single policy. It is used in the climate change literature to refer to[...]

This policy brief synthesises strategies for policy coherence, drawing from experiences and lessons in managing socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS) wh[...]

Every year the World Risk Report (WRR) features an update of the World Risk Index (WRI), which calculates the vulnerability and exposure to natural hazards of over 170 countri[...]

The 2014 World Risk Report (WRR 2014) systematically considers a country's vulnerability, and its exposure to natural hazards to determine a ranking of countries around the wo[...]

Increasing numbers of children and adults are displaced or migrating due to the impacts of climate change, affecting their right to education. Gaps in data at the intersection[...]

This policy brief identifies ICT solutions to prevent and mitigate environmental challenges in the Greater Mekong Subregion while addressing the SDGs and supporting the missio[...]

Sustainable and affordable housing is critical for achieving SDG 11 (sustainable cities & communities). Housing policy should support environmentally sound housing that consid[...]

Countries in the Asia-Pacific region are setting up implementation arrangements for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), by instituting governance structures and incorpor[...]

The issue of housing links multiple SDGs. For the urban poor, adequate, safe, and affordable housing is a prerequisite for economic prosperity and social inclusion. Well-defin[...]

Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) show marked progress by countries as well as challenges in their respective pursuit of implementing the 2030 Agenda. Countries across the glo[...]

Gender equality is a cross-cutting issue that affects all dimensions of sustainable development; women must be at the centre of the 2030 Agenda. Despite the interlinkages betw[...]

Caribbean small island developing states (SIDS) rely heavily on imported fossil fuels, leaving them vulnerable to unpredictable shifts in global fuel prices and supply disrupt[...]

Human rights are at the core of the United Nations (UN) system and are one of the building blocks of sustainable peacebuilding. Although these principles have long been recogn[...]

In Asia, urban water security garners much greater attention than any other water-related issue. This is largely because of deteriorating infrastructure, rising demand for wat[...]

The issue of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) is critical in the Asia-Pacific region, given its extensive use of these toxic substances, their transboundary movement, and [...]

Mainstreaming incentive systems to encourage integrated management of landscapes and seascapes that incorporate high levels of human production activities requires considerati[...]

The 2030 Agenda has come at a critical juncture for the Arab region. Countries have developed strategies for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) amidst ambitious economic[...]

Forms of coexistence between nature and people have been receiving increased global attention. The sustainable use of ecosystem services in production landscapes — characteriz[...]

This policy brief offers strategies to operationalise the principle of 'leaving no one behind' (LNOB) in climate policies, focusing on developing countries. It is based on key[...]

Landscape approaches help to effectively facilitate ecosystem restoration for the benefit of people and nature, by leveraging Indigenous and local knowledge and enhancing cont[...]

Landscape approaches render a scheme to contextualise adaptive co-management and effectively integrate policy and practice through iterative learning to balance multiple objec[...]

Finding a durable solution to a displacement situation is not a straightforward process. Cases of severe nuclear disasters that render areas unsafe for habitation for prolonge[...]

Water resources in Southeast Asia are under intense pressure because of population growth, urbanisation and climate change. Rapid economic development and urbanisation have re[...]

Smart city approaches promise technology-based opportunities to build sustainable urban futures. However, it is unclear how current market-led approaches can contribute to ach[...]

Asia is expected to experience population growth, followed by a declining trend, that will likely result in unpredictable socio-economic change presenting new challenges for l[...]

Drawing from first-hand experiences managing productive landscapes and seascapes, this brief provides insights on how landscape approaches can promote biodiversity-friendly bu[...]

This policy brief explores how developed countries can address the needs of vulnerable groups in their climate mitigation actions, focusing on clean energy policies. To realis[...]

This policy brief identifies the key challenges and prospects for strengthening wastewater monitoring and surveillance systems for COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, with[...]

Water resources in semi-arid regions are under severe pressure, causing reduced agricultural production and loss of ecological flows. Large scale expansion of microirrigation [...]

Restoring the livelihoods of people displaced by disasters involves a dual challenge: re-establishing the means for making a living while adapting to a new environment. Fukush[...]

Other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs) can achieve positive biodiversity outcomes in a larger area than is covered by protected areas. But this requires OECM[...]

Risk communication efforts after the Fukushima nuclear disaster face a range of challenges: disparities in access to information and perceptions of risk among the affected peo[...]

This policy brief provides advice for local policymakers and financial administrators to manage the short- and medium-term impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on city finances by i[...]

Integrating socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS) concepts into mainstream landscape management requires dynamic and innovative approaches that are tail[...]

This policy brief summarizes the key themes and recommendations that emerged from a migration policy roundtable held in Geneva in November 2022, six months after the Internati[...]

Food systems significantly impact the environment, contributing 23-42% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The top ten economies with the highest GHG emissions from food[...]

Addressing sustainable urban development issues and delivering the finance needed for climate mitigation and adaptation require closing the city finance gap. Structural change[...]

Effective policy related to climate change education requires not only a commitment to teach and learn but a commitment to act. Research has shown that knowledge alone is insu[...]

This policy brief addresses issues of education rights in the context of climate change and potential climate change displacement for SIDS residents. Challenges to adapting le[...]

As local communities are disproportionately impacted by disasters, there is an urgent need for multi-stakeholder platforms at the local level that can bring together knowledge[...]

This policy brief provides recommendations to guide policymakers at the national and local levels in strengthening the integration of the SDGs into budgets. It is based on an [...]

South Asia is particularly vulnerable to natural disasters, with millions of displacements recorded every year. Yet issues of climate-induced displacement and migration remain[...]