ABSTRACT
Seas and islands cannot be separated when it comes to sustainable development. For island countries (regions), the sustainable use of marine resources is an obvious choice and a top priority. Despite the fact that many people are still affected by COVID-19, increasing attention is being given to developing island resilience as a means to adapt to many challenges, including climate change. The core concerns of island development are therefore balancing the needs of ecological protection and the sustainable use of natural resources. The Island Research Center of the Ministry of Natural Resources of China etc. organized the 2022 International Island Forum on November 10, 2022 with the theme, ‘Eco Islands, Blue Development.' A hybrid conference was held to bring together representatives of government agencies, academic institutions, and experts from many countries around the world to discuss the key issues of sustainable island development. © 2023
ABSTRACT
Seas and islands cannot be separated when it comes to sustainable development. For island countries (regions), the sustainable use of marine resources is an obvious choice and a top priority. Despite the fact that many people are still affected by COVID-19, increasing attention is being given to developing island resilience as a means to adapt to many challenges, including climate change. The core concerns of island development are therefore balancing the needs of ecological protection and the sustainable use of natural resources. The Island Research Center of the Ministry of Natural Resources of China etc. organized the 2022 International Island Forum on November 10, 2022 with the theme, ‘Eco Islands, Blue Development.' A hybrid conference was held to bring together representatives of government agencies, academic institutions, and experts from many countries around the world to discuss the key issues of sustainable island development.
ABSTRACT
These proceedings contain 18 papers presenting and discussing the current environmental issues in Indonesia including monitoring of environmental pollution, role of environmental laboratory and set up national standard of environmental monitoring;circular economy and environmental quality management by businesses and relevant activities;mercury pollution, progress of National Action Plan for mercury reduction and elimination as a part of the ratification of Minamata Convention on Mercury;medical wastes and disposal concerning Covid-19 pandemic and antibiotically resistance;domestic waste, hazardous and poisonous materials and wastes;restoration and remediation of contaminated lands;and freshwater litters.
ABSTRACT
The central motivation to restore ecosystems at a planetary scale has been to reverse degradation and provide multiple environmental benefits, but key global players like governments may be more interested in social outcomes from undertaking restoration, such as job creation. Assessing the job opportunities stemming from ongoing restoration programmes can leverage additional investments for their implementation and support their long-term maintenance. Here, we aimed to understand and quantify current and potential ecosystem restoration jobs in Brazil, based on a widely distributed online survey performed in 2020 and led by the main restoration networks in the country. We explored the structure, job distribution and outputs of the national restoration supply chain. At the beginning of 2020, 4713 temporary and 3510 permanent jobs were created, nearly 60% of which were generated by organizations specialized in restoration, mainly from the non-profit (48%) and private (37%) sectors. Restoration jobs were concentrated in organizations working in one (58%) or two (28%) biomes, and the vast majority were in the Atlantic Forest (85%). Similarly, most restoration jobs were concentrated in the southeast region (61%), with one-third in the state of Sao Paulo. This geographical distribution was more strongly associated with the states' GDP than with the legal deficit of native vegetation area. Nearly 20% of the restoration jobs were terminated during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. We estimate that restoration activities can generate 0.42 jobs per hectare undergoing restoration, which could potentially create 1.0-2.5 million direct jobs through the implementation of Brazil's target of restoring 12 million hectares. We conclude by reinforcing the value of ecosystem restoration in promoting economic development and job creation, which can be crucial to promote countries' effective engagement in the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. We also highlight the critical role of grassroots organizations to maximize restoration opportunities for socioeconomic development during the post-pandemic economic recovery. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
ABSTRACT
As a result of climate change as well as the increasing need for island ecological protection, nature-based solutions have attracted increasing international attention. The impact of climate change and COVID-19 has presented island countries and regions with practical challenges such as rising sea levels, stunted economic development and difficult survival situations. Therefore, finding ways to realize the sustainable development of islands from a nature-based perspective has become a key concern. The Island Research Center of the Ministry of Natural Resources of China etc. organized the International Forum on Island Ecological Protection 2021 on November 19, 2021 with the theme, 'Nature-based Island Ecological Restoration and Management Practice.' The conference, which was held online and face-to-face, brought together front-line staff from government agencies, academic institutions and experts from major countries around the world to discuss emerging issues of sustainable island development.
ABSTRACT
Urban development is often confronted with a lack of available space. Brownfield sites offer great potential for sustainable urban planning because of their often-central location and the benefits associated with their redevelopment. Although the interest in brownfield regeneration has led to a lot of research on this topic, there is not yet a comprehensive review of brownfield research. In this review, we analyze the research on brownfields and provide a picture of the published case studies. We focus primarily on brownfields research in the United States, Europe, and People’s Republic of China. This exploratory research is based on an analysis of the published scientific literature available in the Web of Science database. Initially used in North America, the term “brownfield” quickly became popular in the rest of the world, particularly in Europe. However, with the exception of the United States, there is no specific legislation for these sites;their protection is often based indirectly on directives or laws related to soil pollution, biodiversity, or the environment. The perception of the potential use of brownfield sites varies considerably from one part of the world to another, and international collaborations among researchers from different parts of the world remain limited. Most of the described reuses of brownfield sites are forms of soft reuse (53%), and the type of reuse of a site depends more on the surrounding urbanization levels and the specific region than on the past use of a brownfield site. Despite the continued interest in the rehabilitation of these sites, especially due to the increasing demand for nature in the city following the COVID-19 crisis, many questions regarding the future of brownfield sites remain unanswered. The factors influencing their successful redevelopment are unclear, and further research is urgently needed to ensure a truly sustainable re-use of these sites. © 2021 The Author(s).