Food loss and waste negatively impact the environment. Much food is lost or wasted throughout the food supply chain, from agricultural production until final household consumption. In developing countries the greatest food loss takes place during the initial phases of the food supply chain, mainly due to technical, storage, refrigeration and transportation management … [Read more...] about Food Loss and Waste and their Negative Impact on the Environment
Are health and education projects truly “low risk” for indigenous communities?
When we think of health and education, we envision the well being of human beings, as these are essential elements for all of us to live a full life and reach our potential, both as individuals and as members of society. At the Inter-American Development Bank, projects in these sectors are usually classified as “low safeguard risk,” since their environmental impacts are often … [Read more...] about Are health and education projects truly “low risk” for indigenous communities?
Forget the smell and let’s compost!
During my work trips to Latin America and the Caribbean as an Environmental Specialist for the Bank, I discuss the importance of safeguards and sustainability with our clients and stakeholders. In that context I try to encourage innovative solutions to protect the environment, solutions that go beyond the minimum requirements. After working in solid waste management projects … [Read more...] about Forget the smell and let’s compost!
Delivering on the Paradigm of Evidence-based Policy Advice
In a previous post on understanding natural capital accounting, we presented the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) Central Framework as an important advance in support of evidence-based policy and analysis. The SEEA is a framework, consistent with the United Nations System of National Accounts, for organizing data describing the interactions between the … [Read more...] about Delivering on the Paradigm of Evidence-based Policy Advice
“I’m not Indigenous!” Identity and Exclusion in Indigenous Development
Rural villages such as the ones located in the Andean mountains of southern Peru present an interesting dilemma. For an external observer, there is usually little doubt that people from these villages should be considered as indigenous: they are the descendants of pre-colonial societies, speak an ancestral native language (Quechua), and have worldviews, social norms, economic … [Read more...] about “I’m not Indigenous!” Identity and Exclusion in Indigenous Development