Sostenibilidad

This past March, two high profile articles were published that make somber reading for those interested in the natural world.

Donald and Gloria are leaders of the Indigenous Community of Kwatamang, located in Region 9 of southeastern Guyana. It is not easy to get to Katwamang: first you have to take a 90 minute flight in a small plane from Georgetown, the country's capital, and then you have a short (and a little bit bumpy) drive on rural roads, running through virgin rainforest.Kwatamang, much like other communities of the Hinterland region, is also one of the poorest regions in Guyana.

From the point of view of someone who has worked on climate change for over two decades, the political momentum demonstrated at the Paris COP21 was incredible to witness. From heads of Government, to mayors, to leaders of business and the investment community, there was a clarion call – bold action was urgently needed to avoid dangerous levels of climate change.

At the tip of my running shoe, lying in the dirt, is an empty, crushed, shotgun shell; then another one; and there, in the shrubs, again.I register the fact, but it's too hot, in the sizzling late morning Caribbean sun, to think much about it, busy as I am taking notes, keeping out of trouble and looking for shade.

I just came back from spending three days in Panama at the Sustainable Mega-Infrastructure and Impact Assessment symposium, jointly organized by the IDB and the International Association for Impact Assessment.

Governments and multilateral development banks around the world now recognize the social and economic importance of biodiversity. Despite this, a major gap between current funding levels for biodiversity projects (US$53 billion annually) and total estimated need (US$300-400 billion annually) remains. With no major increase in biodiversity financing on the horizon, new ways to protect and enhance biodiversity must be identified.

On December 8 of every year, around one million people visit the Lo Vásquez Sanctuary in Casablanca, located at 70 kilometers from Santiago de Chile. On that day, the Holiday of the Immaculate Conception is celebrated. In the last decade, pilgrimages to the area have increased over 60%, and today it is the largest religious festivity in the country.Next to the sanctuary, pilgrims spend a pleasant afternoon in a cute covered area, which, in honor of the Virgin, has been named the Lo Vásquez Shopping Center.