Sustainability Networks Research

Problem: As efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions increase, so do the sources of ‘carbon financing’ and the size of the international ‘carbon market’. Greenhouse gas abatement activities can have both beneficial and detrimental impacts on the communities in which they operate. For this reason, it is vital that Indigenous communities have accurate information about carbon financing and carbon market processes at the outset – to help them make informed decisions and choices about activities that wo...

Action: This is a short guide for Northern Indigenous Australians on the impacts of and responses to climate change, particularly market and financial mechanisms for reducing greenhouse gas emissions (often referred to as the ‘carbon market’, ‘emissions trading’ and/or ‘carbon financing’). The guide is intended as a first edition: comments, case studies and more information would be most welcome – please contact ingrid@iisd.org, Review Group: Conservation Review

Problem: a multi-level problem exists on the Great Plains of North America  - decline of ecosystem quality, decline in quality of beef livestock, the comparative loss of kinds and numbers of species over the long haul.  Also, the consumption of beef is now linked to Alzheimer's disease.

Action: This resource presents an alternative, visionary use of the Great Plains  - the return of the bison herds, the return of wolf populations to "shepherd" and strengthen the bison, and the restoration of prairie floral systems.  The overall picture uses this initial ecological renaissance as a starting point for full ecological restoration of the North American continent.