Protect our Oceans Thank you for your interest in taking this action. This campaign is now closed. Please visit our results section for information about the results of other campaigns. Here are three other ways you can help save our living planet: 1. 2. 3. NARRI: A national platform for disaster risk reduction Friday, June 17, 2011 M. Mizanur Rahman Although the Americas were gravely affected by natural disasters in 2010, especially in terms of fatalities, the number of disaster victims remained by far the highest in Asia. As much as 89.2% of global disaster victims in 2010 were from Asia, compared to 5.6% from the Americas (ADSR, 2010). Realising this, six international NGOs in Bangladesh (ActionAid, Concern Universal, Concern Worldwide, Islamic Relief Worldwide, Oxfam-GB and Plan Bangladesh) with two technical partners (HelpAge International and Handicap International) have come up with a consortium named National Alliance for Response and Risk Reduction Initiatives (NARRI) with the financial assistance of the European Commission Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection to have a better output of the intervention by a good coordination among the partners and economies of scale. The consortium has adopted a five year action plan.
Cocoa Campaign | International Labor Rights Forum Cocoa trees are grown on small, independent farms of fewer than 5 hectares. Small farm sizes in the cocoa industry mean that production is heavily decentralized among hundreds of thousands of farmers. It is estimated that there are over 4.5 million small scale cocoa producers worldwide. Unfortunately, the cocoa sector in this region is also afflicted with a severe child labor problem. Children who work on cocoa plantations are unavoidably exposed to certain hazards, including dangerous tools, dust, flames or smoke, hazardous chemicals, and/or physically demanding labor such as carrying heavy loads or spending many hours in the sun. In addition to the physical consequences of their labor, cocoa farming often interferes with children’s education. Ultimately, the root cause of the child labor problem in West Africa is poverty.
The Right Social Policies Can Promote Intergenerational Ethics Home > Ideas > Innovations Make a Comment By Jan Hofmeyer | September 6, 2013 When economies fail to keep up with the demands of their societies, questions of fairness in the allocation of public resources force their way to the top of the agenda. Workers in several Southern European states have in recent years seen their pension benefits slashed and their pensionable ages increased. Will their futures be as dim as opinion polling of this population segment suggests? Bertelsmann Foundation recently released a study on "Intergenerational Justice in Aging Societies" as part of its project on Sustainable Governance Indicators (SGI). The intention of the index is twofold. Estonia, South Korea, Israel, and New Zealand come out on top in the rankings, followed by Hungary and the four Scandinavian countries: Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland. Probably one of the most important insights of this SGI study is that demography is not necessarily destiny, as the oft repeated motto goes.
Climate Change Report: Natural Disasters In The Future Require Planning Now * Rising population, development put more in harm's way * Policymakers urged to act in next few decades * Less emphasis on mitigation, more on cutting risk By David Fogarty and Deborah Zabarenko A future on Earth of more extreme weather and rising seas will require better planning for natural disasters to save lives and limit deepening economic losses, the United Nations said on Wednesday in a major report on the effects of climate change. The U.N. climate panel said all nations will be vulnerable to the expected increase in heat waves, more intense rains and floods and a probable rise in the intensity of droughts. Aimed largely at policymakers, the report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change makes clear nations need to act now, because increasingly extreme weather is already a trend. The need for action has become more acute as a growing human population puts more people and more assets in the path of disaster, raising economic risk, the report said.
UNISDR Haiti Earthquake Appeal Evaluations | Disasters Emergency Committee Protection and Accountability Study This report [1mb .pdf] assesses the protection work of member agencies and how they dealt with accountability issues during the earthquake response. It was produced by lead authors Eric James and Julie R. NGO staff were aware of the issues and sought practical approaches to providing protection and ensuring accountability.Community representation occurred in some unexpected ways and NGOs should approach community partnerships with a critical eye to local power relations.There was evidence that standards from the Humanitarian Accountability and Sphere projects were being used.NGOs need to more consistent in conducting detailed initial assessments and creating baselines.Definitions of protection are often different between field staff and their home office colleagues, partners or donors and a common understanding is required. The report highlight examples of what it regarded as good practice such as: Urban Disasters: Lessons from Haiti