The UN Special Rapporteur on the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation, Catarina de Albuquerque, presented recently a new publication: Realizing the human rights to water and sanitation: A handbook.Glossary, bibliography and index.

Climate change is already affecting millions of people worldwide. In urban areas, which are typically characterized by significantly higher population density, climate change will exacerbate and compound existing vulnerabilities, especially for the urban poor.

Parallel to urbanization, Asia is undergoing rapid motorization. Asia is now home to around half a billion vehicles. It has been estimated that by 2035, both the vehicle population and motorization index will at least double in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region, China and India from current levels (2012). In many countries, vehicle growth rates are higher than gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates. Despite projected high number of vehicles for 2035, the projected…

The Apia, Samoa - Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment (Abridged Report)
is an output of the Cities and Climate Change Initiative activities in Apia,
Samoa. This abridged report is based on the report titled: “Apia, Samoa – Climate
Change Vulnerability Assessment” funded by the United Nations Development
Account, and the Cities and Climate Change Initiative.
Starting with a brief background of the city, this report addresses Apia’s climate
change…

The African continent is currently in the midst of simultaneously unfolding and highly significant demographic, economic, technological, environmental, urban and socio-political transitions.

This report argues for a bold re-imagining of prevailing models in order to steer the ongoing transitions towards greater sustainability based on a thorough review of all available options.

This study aims to examine current land access and youth livelihood opportunities in Southern Ethiopia.
We used survey data from the relatively land abundant districts of Oromia Region and from the land scarce districts of Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ (SNNP) Region. Although access to agricultural land is a
constitutional right for rural residents of Ethiopia, the study found that youth in the rural south have limited potential to obtain agricultural land that can…

Secure land and property rights for all are essential to reducing poverty because they underpin economic development and social inclusion. Secure land tenure and property rights enable people in urban and rural areas to invest in improved homes and livelihoods. Although many countries have completely restructured their legal and regulatory framework related to land and they have tried to harmonize modern statutory law with customary ones, millions of people around the world still have insecure…