Reports

Worldwatch Report #181: Global Environmental Change: The Threat to Human Health

Over the past two-to-three hundred years, humanity’s ecological footprint has ballooned to such an extent that we are now fundamentally altering the planet. We have transformed the Earth’s land surface and altered the function of its ecosystems, and we are triggering the rapid loss of both terrestrial and marine life. We are also profoundly changing our planet’s climate. It is increasingly apparent that the breadth and depth of the changes we are wreaking on the environment are imperiling not only many of the other species with which we share the ecological stage, but the health and wellbeing of our own species as well.

Worldwatch Report #180: Red, White, and Green: Transforming U.S. Biofuels

Over the last decade, biofuels have been championed in the United States as a new source of income for rural communities, as a way to reduce dependence on foreign oil, and most recently as a solution to the country's energy and climate change problems. These latter concerns are now the main driver behind the promise of biofuels, leading the United States and other governments across the world to encourage greater production and use. But as the market for biofuels expands, so too do the social, economic, and environmental impacts.

Renewable Revolution: Low-Carbon Energy by 2030

The transition to a highly efficient economy that utilizes renewable energy is essential for developed and developing countries alike. This is the only way that degradation of Earth’s climate system can be halted, and the only real option for raising billions of people out of poverty. The current reliance on fossil fuels is not supportable by poor developing countries, and increasing demand for fossil fuels is creating dangerous competition for remaining available resources of oil and gas. The challenge is to devise a transition strategy that improves the lives of all citizens by providing them with essential energy services that do not disrupt the climate system, degrade the environment, or create conflict over resources.

Worldwatch Report #179: Mitigating Climate Change Through Food and Land Use

Land makes up a quarter of Earth’s surface, and its soil and plants hold three times as much carbon as the atmosphere. More than 30 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions arise from the land use sector. Thus, no strategy for mitigating global climate change can be complete or successful without reducing emissions from agriculture, forestry, and other land uses. Moreover, only land-based or “terrestrial” carbon sequestration offers the possibility today of large-scale removal of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, through plant photosynthesis.

Worldwatch Report #178: Low-Carbon Energy: A Roadmap

Technologies available today, and those expected to become competitive over the next decade, will permit a rapid decarbonization of the global energy economy. New renewable energy technologies, combined with a broad suite of energy-efficiency advances, will allow global energy needs to be met without fossil fuels and by adding only minimally to the cost of energy services.

Worldwatch Report #177: Green Jobs: Working for People and the Environment

The pursuit of so-called "green jobs"—employment that contributes to protecting the environment and reducing humanity's carbon footprint—will be a key economic driver of the 21st century. "Climate-proofing" the global economy will involve large-scale investments in new technologies, equipment, buildings, and infrastructure, which will provide a major stimulus for much-needed new employment and an opportunity for retaining and transforming existing jobs.

Worldwatch Report #176: Farming Fish for the Future

From Asia to North America, people are eating more seafood, either because it’s the most affordable form of protein (as in many poorer nations) or because it’s the latest health food trend (as in many wealthy nations). But as the demand for fish rises, populations of both marine and freshwater species are being overexploited, resulting in stagnant or declining catches from many wild fisheries.

Worldwatch Report #175: Powering China’s Development: The Role of Renewable Energy

China’s need for secure, affordable, and environmentally sustainable energy for its 1.3 billion people is palpable. In 2006, China’s energy use was already the second highest in the world, having nearly doubled in the last decade, and its electricity use is growing even faster, having doubled since 2000. With both energy-intensive industry and high-tech manufacturing, China now serves as factory to the world.

Worldwatch Report #174: Oceans in Peril: Protecting Marine Biodiversity

Uniquely among the universe’s known planets, the Earth is a sphere dominated by watery oceans. They cover 70 percent of its surface and are home to a myriad of amazing and beautiful creatures. Life almost certainly originated in the oceans, yet the biological diversity of marine habitats is threatened by the activities of one largely land-based species: us. The activities through which humans threaten marine life include overfishing, use of destructive fishing methods, pollution, and commercial aquaculture.

Worldwatch Report #173: Beyond Disasters: Creating Opportunities for Peace

This report describes the recent experiences of Indonesia’s Aceh province, Sri Lanka, and Kashmir, among others, and suggests ways to better integrate disaster and conflict responses. The authors note that the human toll taken by natural disasters is increasing, adding to the list of deadly challenges faced by poor communities and countries worldwide, and that women, children, and the elderly are among those most vulnerable.

This publication is out of print, but the PDF and e-reader format is still available for purchase.