|
|
Yale/Columbia Team Report on Province-level Environmental Performance in China | |
Fri Jan 06 00:00:00 EST 2012 The first independent analysis of China environmental data at the sub-national level by an international team has been released by the Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), part of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, and Yale University. The report, Towards a China Environmental Performance Index, presents a framework for assessing environmental performance by province as an aid to developing government environmental policies. China faces formidable environmental challenges owing to its large population, limited water resources, rapid economic growth, and fast-paced urbanization. The research was carried out in collaboration with the Chinese Academy for Environmental Planning and the City University of Hong Kong. The framework that emerged, developed in consultation with many environmental experts in China and the U.S., provides a tailored set of issues and indicators that will be important to track for the foreseeable future. Core policy issues include air pollution, water quality, climate change, energy efficiency, and toxic metals, among others. According to the report, greater transparency and freer access to data, especially raw data from monitoring systems and spatial data on environmental conditions, are essential in the future development of environmental performance indicators for China. The Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy and CIESIN have been the world leaders in developing national-scale environmental indices since they launched the Environmental Sustainability Index in the year 2000. The motivation behind the subnational work in China was to better reflect the country's diverse geographical landscapes and differentiated environmental stresses, and to provide a more effective tool for policy making.
See: Report: Towards a China Environmental Performance Index |
|
CIESIN Director Appointed to National Research Council Board on International Scientific Organizations | |
Thu Jan 05 00:00:00 EST 2012 CIESIN director Robert Chen has joined the Board on International Scientific Organizations (BISO) of the National Academies for a three-year term beginning January 1, 2012. BISO promotes international collaboration in scientific research and coordinates U.S. participation in international scientific, engineering, and medical organizations. Chaired by Tilahun Yilma of the University of California, Davis, BISO serves as the U.S. National Committee to the International Council for Science (ICSU) and oversees a network of more than 20 U.S. National Committees for various ICSU scientific bodies. BISO also coordinates U.S. involvement in other international organizations such as the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS), the InterAcademy Panel for International Issues (IAP), the International Social Science Council (ISSC), and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA). Chen is currently Secretary General of the ICSU interdisciplinary committee CODATA, the Committee on Data for Science and Technology, through October 2012, and has extensive experience working with international scientific organizations and initiatives. |
|