When we design development projects, our objective is always to improve lives. Ideally, this objective can be achieved with minimal to no negative externalities. However, on occasion and even after careful consideration of the alternatives, direct or indirect adverse impacts on some groups cannot be completely avoided and must instead be responsibly managed to ensure that … [Read more...] about Navigating through the unavoidable: responsible management of involuntary resettlement
Environmental and Social Safeguards
Breathe Easy: smartphone apps can reduce exposure to air pollution
A product of decades of industrialization, urbanization, and motorization, chronic severe air pollution is now a global phenomenon. Today, 90 percent of the world’s people live in places that do not meet World Health Organization (WHO) air quality standards. The consequences for human health have been grave. Each year, air pollution causes 5 to 9 million premature deaths and … [Read more...] about Breathe Easy: smartphone apps can reduce exposure to air pollution
A cautionary tale: the importance of project-level grievance mechanisms
I was born in Montreal, and I have early memories of whizzing around the city on the metro system with my mother. When I was in the first grade, we moved to a new province, to a smaller town with a slower pace, and we got around by car, foot, or bus. Living in the suburbs, I remember the fear of missing the last bus and having to take a long walk from the bus stop. This … [Read more...] about A cautionary tale: the importance of project-level grievance mechanisms
The IDB’s new Environmental and Social Policy Framework in a nutshell
At the Inter-American Development Bank, we believe that the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean can improve the lives of their citizens while protecting the region’s abundant natural resources. As part of our commitment to help achieve sustainable development for our borrowers, the IDB has launched a new Environmental and Social Policy Framework (ESPF), which became … [Read more...] about The IDB’s new Environmental and Social Policy Framework in a nutshell
Protecting all life on Earth: sustainable management of biodiversity in projects
Latin America and the Caribbean is a biodiversity superpower, with around 60% of the world’s terrestrial species found in the region. This abundant natural capital provides important benefits for human development and impacts on biodiversity can adversely affect the delivery of ecosystem services. The Environmental and Social Performance Standard 6 (ESPS 6) of our new … [Read more...] about Protecting all life on Earth: sustainable management of biodiversity in projects