
Looking Back at the 24th CAF Conference
On September 9, 10, and 11, 2020, over 6,000 participants from around the world convened virtually for the 24th Annual CAF Conference to discuss the most pressing issues facing the Western Hemisphere.
On September 9, 10, and 11, 2020, over 6,000 participants from around the world convened virtually for the 24th Annual CAF Conference to discuss the most pressing issues facing the Western Hemisphere.
Lisa Viscidi, director of the Energy, Climate Change and Extractive Industries Program, sat down with Natural Gas World to discuss her recent report, Latin American State Oil Companies: Decarbonization Strategies and Role in the Energy Transition.
Alicia Bárcena, executive secretary of the ECLAC, has co-authored and published a new book titled La emergencia del cambio climático en América Latina y el Caribe ¿Seguimos esperando la catástrofe o pasamos a la acción? or “The Climate Change Emergency in Latin America and the Caribbean: Are We Still Waiting for the Catastrophe or Do We Take Action?”
La Fundación Propagas, la Universidad Central del Este y el Diálogo Interamericano celebraron el viernes 5 de junio la Cuarta Edición de la Cátedra Magistral Ambiental, dedicada a la señora Rosa Margarita Bonetti de Santana, destacada medioambientalista de la República Dominicana.
Latin American national oil companies (NOCs) have made important advances in slashing emissions from their operations through techniques such as reducing flaring, improving energy efficiency, and injecting CO2 for enhanced oil recovery, according to a new report by the Inter-American Dialogue and the Inter-American Development Bank. Yet, progress in producing lower carbon energy sources for consumers has been sluggish, no Latin American NOC has committed to net zero emissions, and for some companies emissions are on the rise, the report finds.
Caribbean islands are in many ways ideal markets for electric vehicles, and several Caribbean jurisdictions have made significant advances in promoting electric mobility. Examining five case studies—Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic—this report identifies the key challenges and recommends actions that Caribbean governments and other stakeholders can take to stimulate EV adoption.
Christiana Figueres, former executive secretary of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, has co-authored and published a new book titled The Future We Choose: Surviving the Climate Crisis.
La directora del Programa de Energía, Cambio Climático e Industrias Extractivas, Lisa Viscidi, habló con CNN en Español sobre el cambio climático, sus impactos en América Latina y el nivel de compromiso de países en la región a esfuerzos internacionales para combatirlo.
The fires in the Amazon expose the very heart of the greatest collective action problem that humanity has faced, and it foreshadows harder battles to come. The actions of each individual country have consequences for the global climate, yet perpetrators are loath to make sacrifices when others, especially those with equal or greater responsibility, are not doing the same. The fact that threats of economic punishment seem to have shifted Brazil’s behavior suggests that a similar approach could be taken to address climate change on a larger scale. But it will not be easy, especially where the biggest emitters are concerned.
As wildfires rage in the Brazilian portion of the Amazon rainforest, Brazil’s president Jair Bolsonaro finds himself under increased international scrutiny. Program Director Lisa Viscidi comments for BBC World News on Bolsonaro’s policies toward the Amazon.
Countries in the Amazon Basin are falling behind on their targets to cut deforestation. Environmental enforcement combined with economic incentives could provide a way forward, write Lisa Viscidi and Enrique Ortiz in this op-ed.
Deforestation rates in the Amazon River Basin have risen to near-record levels in recent years, threatening biodiversity and indigenous lands as well as global climate change efforts and weather patterns in the Amazon region and beyond. The lack of governance across Amazonian nations is a primary factor behind countries’ failure to stem forest loss, said experts at an event launching a new Inter-American Dialogue report on May 29.
The emergence of China as a new economic partner presents trade offs for Amazon basin countries. Without special care to avoid and minimize ecological and social impacts, the costs of development run the risk of outweighing its gains.
The largest tropical rainforest on the planet, the Amazon plays a critical role as a storehouse of carbon and mediator of the global water cycle and holds a greater share of the world’s known biodiversity than any other ecosystem. However, unchecked development is placing the Amazon under threat, pushing deforestation rates to near-record levels throughout the region.
Brazil should build on its impressive efforts in renewable energy, clean transport, and deforestation reduction. But as President Jair Bolsonaro assumes power, one of the world’s largest economies is on the verge of relinquishing its role as an environmental leader and retreating from the fight against climate change.