If you have a relevant resource (books, papers, bulletins, etc.) you would like to see announced in this section, please forward a copy or review by the BRIDGES staff to Sarah Mohan .
THE EU-CHILE ASSOCIATION AGREEMENT: THE FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE SECTOR IN CHILE: ISSUES ARISING. BY Juan Carlos Cárdenas N., Patricio Igor Melillanca and Patricia Cabrera D. (Centro Ecocéanos, September 2005). The 2003 Protocol on Fisheries Investment establishes conditions, on a reciprocal basis, for European investment in the Chilean fisheries sector. Through it, European investors may acquire 100 percent ownership of fishing vessels operating in Chile’s EEZ, offering them direct access to the diverse marine resources linked to the fishing quotas and permits of the vessels. Despite the importance of the industry to national economy, and its impressive growth rates, the regulation of the fisheries sector by the Chilean government is weak. The Government recognises that it has the capacity to effectively control only 12 percent of the salmon industry. There is also evidence of widespread abuse of environmental and labour laws. Major steps need to be taken, possibly through existing provisions within the EU-Chile Association Agreement, to change the current situation.
THE CHANGING NATURE OF HIGH SEAS FISHING: HOW FLAGS OF CONVENIENCE PROVIDE COVER FOR ILLEGAL, UNREPORTED AND UNREGULATED (IUU) FISHING. By Matthew Gianni and Walt Simpson (Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, International Transport Workers’ Federation and WWF International, October 2005). Illegal fishing fleets are devastating fish stocks around the world by purchasing "flags of convenience" that for a fee allow a fishing vessel to identify its nationality without abiding by national and international standards. Under international law, countries issuing flags for boats are supposed to ensure that they abide by standards such as fishing quotas and labour and safety standards. However, this report suggests that for a fee, flags can be bought without environmental or social regulations, thereby making possible illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing on the high seas.
AGRICULTURE IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD: CONNECTING INNOVATIONS IN PLANT RESEARCH TO DOWNSTREAM APPLICATIONS. By Deborah P. Delmer (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, November 2005). Enhancing agricultural productivity in those areas of the world bypassed by the Green Revolution will require new approaches that provide incentives and funding mechanisms that promote the translation of new innovations in plant science into concrete benefits for poor farmers. Through better dialogue, plant breeders and laboratory scientists from both the public and private-sectors need to find solutions for the key constraints to crop production, many of which center around abiotic and biotic stresses. For a few crops with viable markets, such as maize and cotton, some of the traits developed by the private sector are already showing benefits for farmers of the developing world, but the public sector will need to develop new skills and overcome a number of hurdles to carry out similar efforts for other crops and traits useful to very poor farmers.
DISCREPANCIES IN REPORTED LEVELS OF INTERNATIONAL WILDLIFE TRADE. By Athur G. Blundell and Michael B. Mascia in CONSERVATION BIOLOGY 19: 6 (November 2005). This paper, written by authors from Conservation International and WWF, compares data from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) with US customs data and reveals that the two monitoring systems report substantially different volumes of wildlife trade. The divergence in the data suggest that inaccuracies distort the perceived risk of targeted wildlife exploitation, leading to misallocation of management resources and less effective conservation strategies.
WELFARE IMPACTS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY PROTECTION IN THE SEED INDUSTRY. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 87(4) (November 2005): pp. 951-968. By Sergio Lence, Dermot Hayes, A. McCunn, S. Smith and B. Niebur (American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 87(4), November 2005) pp. 951-968. This study examines the effect of intellectual property protection on agricultural seed companies, producers and consumers. It concludes that effective intellectual property protection is needed to encourage private agricultural seed companies to invest in research and development that will bring new technologies to farmers around the world. Yet protection standards that are too high would restrict benefits to society.
ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF BIODIVERSITY EXCEED COSTS OF CONSERVATION AT AN AFRICAN RAINFOREST RESERVE. By Robin Naidoo and Wiktor L. Adamowicz (Proceedings of the National Academy of Science US, 2 November 2005). This study quantifies the costs and benefits of avian biodiversity at a rainforest reserve in Uganda through a combination of economic surveys of tourists, spatial land-use analyses, and species-area relationships. Our results show that revising entrance fees and redistributing ecotourism revenues would protect 114 of 143 forest bird species (80 percent) under current market conditions. This total would increase to 131 species (approximately 90 percent) if entrance fees were optimized to capture the tourist’s willingness to pay for forest visits and the chance of seeing increased numbers of bird species. In contrast, the cost of purchasing agricultural land for ecological rehabilitation of the avian habitat would be economically prohibitive. These results suggest that local biodiversity markets could play a positive role in tropical conservation strategies if the appropriate institutions for redistribution can be developed.
RENEWABLES 2005: GLOBAL STATUS REPORT. By Eric Martinot (WorldWatch Institute, November 2005). This report, prepared for the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21), says that global investment in renewable energy set a new record of $30 billion in 2004. Technologies such as wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, and small hydro now provide 160 gigawatts of electricity generating capacity, about 4 percent of the world total. In its review of the status of renewable energy worldwide in 2005, the report covers markets, investment, industries, policies and rural (off-grid) renewable energy in developing countries.
THE ROLE OF BIOTECHNOLOGY FOR THE CHARACTERISATION AND CONSERVATION OF CROP, FOREST, ANIMAL AND FISHERY GENETIC RESOURCES IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES. By the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), November 2005. This 12-page document provides a summary of the main issues discussed during a moderated e-mail conference, hosted by the FAO Biotechnology Forum from 6 June and 4 July 2005, based on the messages posted by the participants. During the 4-week long conference, around 650 people subscribed to the conference and 127 messages were posted from 38 different countries, with over 60 percent of the messages coming from people in developing countries.
BUILDING ON GENDER, AGROBIODIVERSITY AND LOCAL KNOWLEDGE: A TRAINING MANUAL. By the FAO, 2005. This FAO training manual focuses specifically on the linkages between local knowledge systems, gender roles and relationships, the conservation and management of agrobiodiversity, plant and animal genetic resources, and food security. Its aim is to promote a holistic understanding of these components. The training objective is to strengthen the institutional capacity in the agricultural sector and to recognise and foster these linkages in the relevant programmes and policies.