12 May 2015, IIASA, Linking population and climate change: Population growth and changes in demographic structure are a key factor influencing future climate change, as well as people’s ability to adapt. People’s lifestyles and consumption habits make a huge difference in climate change projections. In a new article published in the journal Population Studies, IIASA demographers Wolfgang Lutz and Erich Striessnig describe new research linking population change with climate change scenarios. The research relies on new IIASA population projections, which include not just the numbers of people, but also the composition of populations by age, sex, and educational attainment for a number of different scenarios designed for climate research, the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs). Read More here
Category Archives: Carrying Capacity
23 April 2015, Climate News Network: UN special envoy urges a unified approach to global action on tackling the interlinked issues of climate change, sustainable development and human rights. Mary Robinson, the UN Secretary General’s special envoy on climate change, has warned that the whole issue of climate is much too important to be left to governments and their leaders. Robinson, who was the first woman president of Ireland and is now head of the MRFCJ foundation promoting climate justice, said it is a battle for all of us − and that now is the time for action, not for the continuation of business as usual. Read More here
JUST RELEASED 13 April 2015: To order Worldwatch Institute: State of the World 2015: About confronting Hidden Threats to sustainability. “We think we understand environmental damage: pollution, water scarcity, a warming world. But these problems are just the tip of the iceberg. Deeper issues include food insecurity, financial assets drained of value by environmental damage, and a rapid rise in diseases of animal origin. These and other problems are among the under reported consequences of an unsustainable global system.
In State of the World 2015, the flagship publication of the Worldwatch Institute, experts explore hidden threats to sustainability and how to address them. Eight key issues are addressed in depth, along with the central question of how we can develop resilience to these and other shocks. With the latest edition of State of the World, the authorities at Worldwatch bring to light challenges we can no longer afford to ignore….” Read More here
12 March 2015 Global Footprint Network: China world’s largest contributor. “China is the world’s largest contributor to annual growth in the demand for ecological resources and services, and has been for the last five years for which data is available, according to Global Footprint Network. The Ecological Footprint of the world – a measure of people’s demand on nature – has begun climbing again after experiencing a 2.1 percent decline in 2009 during the recession, according to Global Footprint Network’s 2015 Edition of the National Footprint Accounts, released today….” Read More here