Financing loss and damage: reviewing options under the Warsaw International Mechanism

After decades of pressure from vulnerable developing countries, the Warsaw International Mechanism on Loss and Damage (the WIM) was established at the nineteenth Conference of the Parties (COP 19) in 2013 to address costly damages from climate change. However, little progress has been made towards establishing a mechanism to fund loss and damage. The WIM's Executive Committee issued its first two-year workplan the following year at COP 20 which offered, among other things, a range of approaches to financing loss and damage programmes, which we review here. We provide brief overviews of each mechanism proposed by the WIM ExCom, describe their current applications, their statuses under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), some of their advantages and disadvantages, and their current or potential application to loss and damage. We find that several of these mechanisms may be useful in supporting loss and damage programmes, but identify some key gaps. First, most of the mechanisms identified by the WIM ExCom are insurance schemes subsidized with voluntary contributions, which may not be adequate or reliable over time. Second, none were devised to apply to slow-onset events, or to non-economic losses and damages. That is, if harms are inflicted on parts of a society or its ecosystems that have no price, or if they occur gradually, they would probably not be covered by these mechanisms. Finally, the lack of a dedicated and adequate flow of finance to address the real loss and damage being experienced by vulnerable nations will require the use of innovative financial tools beyond those mentioned in the WIM ExCom workplan.

Key policy insights

• Despite a full article of the 2015 Paris Agreement devoted to loss and damage, there is little international agreement on the scope of loss and damage programmes, and especially how they would be funded and by whom.

• Most of the loss and damage funding mechanisms identified by the WIM ExCom are insurance schemes subsidized with voluntary contributions, which may burden the most vulnerable countries and may not be reliable over time.

• None of the mechanisms were devised to apply to slow-onset events, or to non-economic losses and damages.

     

GIS diffusion in Uganda

Despite myriad studies having been carried out on the diffusion of geographical information systems (GIS) technology, only a limited number have been done within the context of developing countries. This paper addresses the research question, how did the diffusion of GIS technology occur in Uganda? Mixed methods were used for data collection, and analysis was performed using a theoretical framework called the diffusion of innovations (DOI). The results of the study showed that the adoption of GIS by institutions in Uganda occurred in a classic diffusion pattern consistent with diffusion theory. Adoption of GIS was promoted by its relative advantage over, and compatibility with, existing technologies. It was characterized by both heterophilous and homophilous communication channels, and influenced by change agents and champions. Its rate of adoption followed an S-shaped diffusion curve, and was hampered by bureaucracy, and patronage-based societal norms. This study makes a contribution to literature on GIS diffusion in developing countries.     

新形势下中亚五国利用FDI业绩和潜力比较研究

深入了解中亚五国的投资现状和投资潜力,对中国如何在这一地区进行有效投资具有重要意义。采用FDI业绩指数与潜力指数评价方法,运用UNCTAD和世界银行的数据,对2002—2011年中亚五国利用FDI的业绩和潜力进行定量比较分析。结果表明:中亚五国引资业绩突出,总体呈上升趋势,但各国利用FDI业绩不平衡;中亚地区引资潜力变化趋于平缓,并略有下降;哈萨克斯坦和土库曼斯坦利用FDI的综合能力较强,乌兹别克斯坦利用FDI的潜力突出,吉尔吉斯斯坦引资潜力较弱,塔吉克斯坦总体尚处于落后状态。在新形势下,中国对中亚五国的投资应明确各国的比较优势,适当调整投资策略。     

从周边国家银矿床地质特征探讨中国银矿找矿前景

中国周边国家银(含银)矿床主要分布于原苏联、蒙古、日本、朝鲜、菲律宾、缅甸、印尼等国家。有5种类型银(含银)矿床可与中国相应地区银(含银)矿床进行类比,即①陆边缘带陆相火山岩型(金-)银(-多金属)矿床;②火山(-次火山)热液型含银黄铁矿型铜或多金属矿床;③斑岩型银或含银金-铜(铅-锌-锡)矿床;④变质热液交代型金-银矿床(穆龙套型)或银-铅-锌矿床;⑤矽卡岩型含银磁铁矿或多金属矿床。并提出我国相应地区银矿找矿前景。     

城市化对地下水流系统的影响

随着世界经济的飞速发展和人口增长,城市的规模和数量也在急剧增加,城市化的趋势变得日益明显,尤其在发展中国家。在这一过程中,地下水所扮演的角色越来越重要,揭示城市化与地下水各方面之间的相互影响规律以实现其可持续发展,成为一个全球性的重要研究课题。本文在分析世界城市人口增长规律和地下水对城市供水的重要性基础上;以三个典型示范城市为例,进一步具体探讨了城市化对地下水补给与地下水流系统的影响。最后认为,城市化会引起地下水补给量的增加;但城市大规模和经常性毫无节制地开采地下水可产生明显的地下水位下降、地面沉降和盐水入侵而导致地下水流系统的剧烈改变。     

Improving integrity of RC beam-column joints with deficient beam rebar anchorage

In recent earthquakes in developing countries, severe damage was observed on reinforced concrete buildings. This study focuses on exterior beam-column joints with substandard beam rebar anchorage and seismic strengthening by installing wing walls. First, a series of experiments was conducted to investigate the seismic behavior of exterior joints with substandard beam rebar anchorage representing typical Bangladeshi buildings. Two 0.7-scaled exterior joint specimens were tested, and these specimens showed beam rebar anchorage failure and/or joint shear failure. Prior to strengthening of the joint, a series of pullout tests was conducted on postinstalled bonded anchors in low-strength concrete for strengthening design. Then, an experiment was performed to apply the strengthening method by wing walls to one of the exterior joint specimens to improve the integrity, and this method was intended to prevent the failure of beam rebar anchorage. The strengthening method is proposed to extend the development length of beam longitudinal bars by considering the embedment length along the wing walls. The test results verified the effectiveness and applicability of the proposed strengthening method to upgrade exterior RC beam-column joints with deficient beam rebar anchorage.     

King Canute muses in the South Seas: Why aren’t Pacific Islands transitioning to low carbon sea transport futures?

Transition to low carbon sea transport is a logical response to the extreme dependency of the Pacific Islands region on imported fossil fuel, its significant vulnerability to the effects of climate change and the critical shipping needs of Pacific Island countries (PICs). Building on previous work in low carbon sea transport in the Pacific, this paper further considers the barriers to achieving such transition by assessing, through a ‘post-Paris Agreement’ lens, the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) submitted by PICs and contrasting these to the near total lack of investment and planning for low carbon transition in the transport sector with the parallel occurrence in the electricity sector where ~USD 2 billion of donor investment is deployed or queued despite electricity using only ~20% of fossil fuel across the region. Consistent with recent international studies, inadequate and inappropriate financing and policy have been identified as dominant transition barriers for low carbon sea transport development in PICs. This paper further examines the regional level barriers to policy development, and finds them inhibited by the silo nature of the major regional actors. The implications that the Paris Agreement has for climate financing to support the essential research and capacity development needed to underpin a successful low carbon sea transport transition strategy at any useful scale and speed are also considered in this paper.     

海洋油气开发工程环境影响评价特点浅析

相比陆上油气开发工程和其他海洋工程而言,海洋油气开发工程有其自身的特点,海洋油气开发工程环境影响评价应关注的内容与其他工程有所不同。文章通过分析海洋油气开发工程的特点以及对环境影响的特点,提出海洋油气开发工程环境影响评价要点,即包括施工期悬浮泥沙及钻井液钻屑排放对海洋生态环境的影响、运营期含油生产水排放对海洋生态环境的影响、工程建设对海洋环境敏感目标的影响、溢油事故环境风险分析、污染防治及生态保护措施,并针对目前海洋油气开发工程环境影响评价存在的问题提出改进建议。     

Impact assessment using DEA of coastal hazards on social-economy in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asian countries suffer from severe coastal hazards each year. A large number of these countries are incurring consequential costs that impact their national economies. It is crucial, therefore, to analyze the impact of such hazards on their economic development and provide a solid basis for future development strategies. The purpose of this paper is to assess the relationship between the economic development and the losses from coastal disasters, and to identify both the impact of hazards on the development, as well as the function of such development on the resilience to hazards. The data envelopment analysis (DEA) method is employed to build the assessment models. Data from 1995 to 2005 from eight Southeast countries are analyzed using the DEA models. A set of “resilience index” of these countries are concluded from the results. It is found that the economic development does not contribute to the strengthening of national resilience to coastal hazards. Inappropriate development could even impair the resilience. Additionally, the resilience to coastal hazards is impacted by various factors such as the allocation of resources and external assistance. From the analysis, a clear image is gained of the interaction between economic development and coastal hazards, which provides a basis for future development strategies.

中亚五国水土资源开发及其安全性对比分析

由于气候变暖和人类活动的影响,随着人口增长和区域农业灌溉发展,再加上低效率水资源管理等已导致中亚区域水土生态系统的退化.主要针对前苏联解体后到2007年的时段,对中亚五国水土资源开发情况及其对安全状态指标进行对比分析.结果表明:在1988—2007年期间,哈萨克斯坦人口总数逐年减少,人均可更新水资源量和人均总取水量呈逐年增加的趋势;其它中亚4国(吉尔吉斯斯坦、塔吉克斯坦、土库曼斯坦和乌兹别克斯坦)人均水资源量出现逐年降低的趋势;乌兹别克斯坦是最大取水用户国家,次为土库曼斯坦;乌兹别克斯坦和土库曼斯坦是最大农业取水国,哈萨克斯坦是最大工业取水国,乌兹别克斯坦是最大生活取水国.到2005年,塔吉克斯坦和土库曼斯坦的淡水产量降到1989年的99%.在1992—2005年间,除了土库曼斯坦外其它中亚国家人均耕地面积逐年减少;同期,哈萨克斯坦的森林和草地面积有所减少,吉尔吉斯斯坦和乌兹别克斯坦有所扩大,塔吉克斯坦和土库曼斯坦的森林面积基本上保持不变,草地面积有所降低.乌兹别克斯坦是化肥施用和土壤盐渍化强度较严重的国家,土壤盐渍化面积占总灌溉面积从1994年50%扩大到2001年65.9%.