All tidal wetlands are blue carbon ecosystems.

Managing coastal wetlands is one of the most promising activities to reduce atmospheric greenhouse gases, and it also contributes to meeting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. One of the options is through blue carbon projects, in which mangroves, saltmarshes, and seagrass are managed to increase carbon sequestration and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, other tidal wetlands align with the characteristics of blue carbon. These wetlands are called tidal freshwater wetlands in the United States, supratidal wetlands in Australia, transitional forests in Southeast Asia, and estuarine forests in South Africa. They have similar or larger potential for atmospheric carbon sequestration and emission reductions than the currently considered blue carbon ecosystems and have been highly exploited. In the present article, we suggest that all wetlands directly or indirectly influenced by tides should be considered blue carbon. Their protection and restoration through carbon offsets could reduce emissions while providing multiple cobenefits, including biodiversity.

A breakthrough in macro-scale circularity and eco-efficiency assessment: A case study of OECD countries.

Countries' circularity performance and CO2 emissions should be addressed as a part of the UN net-zero Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030. Macro-scale circularity assessment is regarded as a helpful tool for tracking and adjusting nations' progress toward the sustainable Circular Economy (CE) and SDGs. However, practical frameworks are required to address the shortage of real-world circularity assessments at the macro level. The establishment of CE benchmarks is also essential to enhance circularity in less sustainable nations. Further, monitoring the extent to which nations' circularity activities are sustainable and in line with the SDGs is an area that lacks sufficient practical research. The current research aims to develop a macro-level framework and benchmarks for national sustainable circularity assessments. Methodologically, we develop a dynamic network data envelopment analysis (DN-DEA) framework for multi-period circularity and eco-efficiency assessment of OECD countries. To do so, we incorporate dual-role and bidirectional carryovers in our macro-scale framework. From a managerial perspective, we conduct a novel comparative analysis of the circularity and eco-efficiency of the nations to monitor macro-scale sustainable CE trends. Research results reveal a significant performance disparity in circularity, eco-efficiency, and benchmarking patterns. Accordingly, circularly efficient nations cannot necessarily be considered eco-friendly and sustainable. Although Germany (as a superior circular nation) can be regarded as a circularity benchmark, it cannot serve as an eco-efficiency benchmark for less eco-efficient nations. Hence, the new method allows decision-makers not only to identify the nations' circularity outcome but also to distinguish sustainable nations from less sustainable ones. This, on the one hand, provides policymakers with a multi-faceted sustainability analysis, beyond the previous unidimensional analysis. On the other, it proposes improvement benchmarks for planning and regulating nations' future circularity in line with real sustainability goals. The capabilities of our innovative approach are demonstrated in the case study.

A study of management decisions to adopt emission reduction measures in heavy industry in an emerging economy.

Heavy industry can face challenges in choosing applicable climate change mitigation measures due to a lack of technical background and practical guidance. A better understanding of these determinants is needed to design region-specific climate policies that most effectively enable more 'successful' low carbon transitions. Set in an emerging economy, this study aims to understand the determinants which underlie investment decision-making in greenhouse gas reduction. It relies on empirical research using an exploratory case study method in the leading cement company in Indonesia. The results show four key determinants influencing (constraining) adoption were (1) the primacy of profit-seeking objectives in operational planning and development; (2) the availability of sources (clinker substitutes and alternative energy fuels); (3) the limited access to cash capital; and (4) the complexity in implementing emissions reduction projects. The inquiry also compares determinants in an emerging and developed country to provide a comparative perspective on emissions management in manufacturing. It appears that firms from the industrial sector in emerging economies have investment strategies that are largely characterised by activities that accentuate achieving financial benefits or best value for money or cost savings in a short time frame, or 'short-termism'. Currently, greenhouse gas emissions management activities tend to be second-preference strategies for firms in emerging economies, at least in the industrial manufacturing sector.

Assessing the Impact of Marine Tourism and Protection on Cultural Ecosystem Services Using Integrated Approach: A Case Study of Gili Matra Islands.

Cultural ecosystem services (CES) are intangible benefits people obtain from an ecosystem through physical and cognitive interactions. Understanding CES provides vital insights into how activities impacting ecosystem services also impact people. Gili Matra Islands, a set of three small tropical islands located in West Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia, are an increasingly busy marine tourism destination and a marine protected area. By integrating a hedonic monetary value model with a eudaemonic non-monetary value model, this study examines the impacts of tourism and marine protected area management on cultural ecosystem services in the Gili Matra Islands. Results showed that the distance had significantly influenced property prices to coastlines, beach spots and coastlines with sunset views. In addition, the property prices of each individual island showed significant correlations with particular marine tourism and protection features. Less restricted marine protected zones and coastlines were the most significantly influencing variables to the strong eudaemonic well-being dimensions expressed by residents. The Spiritual dimension produced the highest score and was most significantly affected by several features. This study utilised higher accuracy of properties and residents' location, enabling more accurate assessments of interaction between CES and the features. This study also discusses how these novel insights in the small island's CES case can inform vulnerability assessments, reviews of recreation taxes, and spatial planning for marine protected areas and help optimise beach nourishments.

Original Research: How Will the TNFD Impact the Health Sector's Nature-Risks Management?

The G20-led TNFD taskforce or TNFD is under development and should be ready in September 2023. With one year to go before its official release, the study of the beta versions of the 0.2 framework is crucial to know the strategy of the taskforce regarding metrics and sectors with high natural risks. Its big sister, the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosure or TCFD, had defined the health sector as a non-key in terms of climate change and carbon risks, but the TNFD decided that it was a priority in terms of nature-related risks and co-dependencies. This research therefore focuses on the innovations of the TNFD and its impact on future disclosures in the sector. The goal being to predict if the TNFD will lead to more disclosures and therefore better risk management from the health firms. To complete this research, the analysis of the sector's risks and dependencies on nature-related issues and biodiversity loss was essential. To do so, a policy analysis on the framework of the TNFD was conducted, as well as a literature review on nature related risks and opportunities for the health sector. The Health Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp) was analysed to highlight the Task Force's focus on the health sector. Finally, a due diligence of the TNFD's stakeholders and partners was carried out to ascertain the interest and participation of health sector actors in the TNFD. Results have shown that Nature risks were important for the sector and that the TNFD was giving more importance to the sector in terms of priority. On the contrary, the health sector does not show an improved interest in this new taskforce. There is a need for more research in the implementation of Nature-financial metrics for disclosures.

Understanding How Marine Protected Areas Influence Local Prosperity-A Case Study of Gili Matra, Indonesia.

A Marine Protected Area (MPA) is always expected to create a specified outcome in ecosystem improvement. While they are certain to benefit marine life, MPAs also impact the surrounding communities, as they directly affect the livelihoods of people who rely on marine exploits to make a decent living. In other words, MPAs create new communal dynamics influencing the rate of prosperity in the surrounding communities. Unfortunately, the leverage of MPAs in the coastal communities' social economy is often under-assessed in MPA-related research. The MPA's influence on communal prosperity emphasizes the importance of policy incentives from stakeholders. Therefore, stakeholders' perceptions of MPAs are fundamental in the planning and implementation of MPAs, which could improve the prosperity of the coastal communities. In Gili Matra, Indonesia, where tourism is the MPA's backbone, MPAs are expected to sustain prosperity for future generations. However, some stakeholders with different influential stances to the MPA (Influential Stakeholders (IS) and Non-Influential Stakeholders (NIS)) demand a contradictive approach. This could lead to managerial issues for the MPAs. These issues must be addressed to avoid contradictory objectives that could harm MPA implementation.

Food Systems Development: The Necessary Paradigm Shift for a Healthy and Sustainable Agrarian Transition, a Case Study from Bougainville, Papua New Guinea.

Classical agricultural development paradigms prioritise basic requirements such as agronomic, caloric and economic needs for the target environment and for beneficiaries. As challenges associated with climate change, globalisation, and population growth compound and amplify one another, project scope must be broadened to take a holistic food systems approach that includes sociocultural and historical contexts, as well as climate impacts as underpinning project design. In this paper, we illustrate the importance of adopting a food systems development paradigm rather than a classical agricultural development paradigm through a case study in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea. The case uses Rich Picturing, targeted and focus-group interviews, and garden visits in remote Bougainville; it provides a poignant illustration of the importance of this more holistic perspective given the historical inefficacy of food systems development, as well as Papua New Guinea's exposure to a plethora of compounding environmental, social, economic, and political stresses and shocks that demonstrate the important linkages between ecosystem services and health. The study aims to demonstrate how including localised gender dynamics, climate vulnerability, rapidly morphing social norms, and climate analogue environments is critical in building food systems resilience and is key to designing policies, programs, and development projects that more effectively address environmental, sociocultural, and health considerations. Building on the inadequacies in agricultural development efforts previously documented for Papua New Guinea, we propose an improved framing for food systems development and identify areas for future research.

Assessment of Stakeholder's Perceptions of the Value of Coral Reef Ecosystem Services: The Case of Gili Matra Marine Tourism Park.

Ecosystem services is a concept broadly applicable to describe environmental interrelations with human activities. It serves as a practical instrument for assessing the success of resource management in natural reserves, with the goals of maximising conservation effort and achieving sustainable use. The Gili Matra Marine Tourism Park (GMMTP) has been extensively researched as a marine protected area centred on anthropocentric activities of marine-based tourism. However, there still a lack of research to address the full scope of ecosystem services derived from the coral reef ecosystem. From an ecosystem services viewpoint, the study's objectives were to define the services obtained from the GMMTP's coral reef ecosystem, relevant stakeholders, and how their utilisation activities were posed as drivers of changes that reflect the flow of services and the possible implications of these. Marine tourism, capture fisheries, and land-based activities were identified as services impacting upon the regulating and supporting services, with the resultant compounding externalities potentially degrading the services' utilisation value. Although there have been certain changes in community behaviour that may reduce the intensity of the impacts, the present prediction of service flow still confirms the previous statement. The results provided insight into current resources management implications on the state of ecosystem services. Overall, failing to recognise the causes that drives the interaction of these ecosystem services will increase the risk of incurring unexpected trade-offs, restricting the potential for resources' synergies, and eventually causing drastic and irreversible changes in the provision of coral reef ecosystem services in the GMMTP.

A case study of Australia's emissions reduction policies - An electricity planner's perspective.

Australia offers an interesting case study of climate policy effectiveness as Australia has 'tried' a wide range of policies to mixed effect. Given that more than half of Australia's greenhouse gas emissions typically come from stationary energy generation, most climate policy in Australia has focussed on electricity sector reform, particularly the uptake of variable renewable energy and the decrease of thermal power generation. Electricity supply in Australia has undergone substantial change over recent years, substantially due to these policies, and needs to continue changing in the future to meet climate change mitigation targets and ensure stable, cost-effective electricity supply. This paper is therefore written from the perspective of an electricity planner and seeks to learn from the experiences of climate policies tried over recent decades. We start by reviewing the history of Australian energy policy and a description of how the Australian electricity network is structured to operate. We examine the theory and effects of different policies tried, which range from renewable energy targets, carbon pricing schemes, subsidies for renewable energy and research and development initiatives. We make three key observations from the case analysis: (1) that there has been substantial expense and effort effectively wasted through duplicate effects of different policy mechanisms by both federal and state governments; (2) as various mechanisms enable variable renewable energy generation to increase, the market becomes distorted, increasing total system costs and decreasing system robustness and resilience; and (3) the narrowed focus of climate policy mechanisms on certain variable renewables, such as solar photovoltaic and wind generation, omitted the opportunity for uptake of scale-able low carbon, firm generation options, like nuclear power and carbon capture and storage.

An assessment of the carbon stocks and sodicity tolerance of disturbed Melaleuca forests in Southern Vietnam.

BACKGROUND: In the lower Mekong Basin and coastal zones of Southern Vietnam, forests dominated by the genus Melaleuca have two notable features: most have been substantially disturbed by human activity and can now be considered as degraded forests; and most are subject to acute pressures from climate change, particularly in regards to changes in the hydrological and sodicity properties of forest soil. RESULTS: Data was collected and analyzed from five typical Melaleuca stands including: (1) primary Melaleuca forests on sandy soil (VS1); (2) regenerating Melaleuca forests on sandy soil (VS2); (3) degraded secondary Melaleuca forests on clay soil with peat (VS3); (4) regenerating Melaleuca forests on clay soil with peat (VS4); and (5) regenerating Melaleuca forests on clay soil without peat (VS5). Carbon densities of VS1, VS2, VS3, VS4, and VS5 were found to be 275.98, 159.36, 784.68, 544.28, and 246.96 tC/ha, respectively. The exchangeable sodium percentage of Melaleuca forests on sandy soil showed high sodicity, while those on clay soil varied from low to moderate sodicity. CONCLUSIONS: This paper presents the results of an assessment of the carbon stocks and sodicity tolerance of natural Melaleuca cajuputi communities in Southern Vietnam, in order to gather better information to support the improved management of forests in the region. The results provide important information for the future sustainable management of Melaleuca forests in Vietnam, particularly in regards to forest carbon conservation initiatives and the potential of Melaleuca species for reforestation initiatives on degraded sites with highly sodic soils.