Monthly Archive for May, 2010

Coral reefs, like those in Australia's Great Barrier Reef, are deteriorating rapidly, according to a UN report. (Great Barrier Reef National Park Authority/Reuters)

From cbc.ca:

Far too many of the world’s plants and animals — and the wild places that support them — are at risk of collapse, despite a global goal set in 2002 for major improvement by this year, the UN reports.

Frogs and other amphibians are most at risk of extinction, coral reefs are the species deteriorating most rapidly and the survival of nearly a quarter of all plant species is threatened, the UN Convention on Biological Diversity said Monday in a report issued every four years.

The outlook on the planet’s ecological diversity and health is produced under a 1993 treaty, since joined by most of the world’s nations. It says the planet is falling short of its goal to achieve “a significant reduction in the current rate of biodiversity loss at the global, regional and national levels.”

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/05/10/biodiversity-species-un.html#ixzz0nYubI1IJ

From The MacArthur Foundation

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation today announced grants totaling $5.6 million to ten universities in eight countries to establish new Master’s in Development Practice (MDP) programs. The programs combine training in the natural sciences, social sciences, health sciences, and management to help practitioners address global challenges such as sustainable development, climate change, and extreme poverty. The universities were selected through a competitive process that included reviews by experts outside the Foundation.

MDP programs are designed to offer graduate students training beyond the typical focus on classroom study of economics and management found in most development studies programs. The degree will provide students with substantive knowledge required to analyze and diagnose multi-dimensional problems such as malnutrition, extreme poverty, climate change, and infectious disease control by integrating the core disciplines of health sciences, natural sciences, social sciences and management. At the same time, the programs help develop practical skills through extended periods of field training to provide hands on, problem solving experience for students in a developing country.

To Read More…