15. Life on land
Forests cover 30 per cent of the Earth’s surface and in addition to providing food security and shelter, forests are key to combating climate change, protecting biodiversity and the homes of the indigenous population. Thirteen million hectares of forests are being lost every year while the persistent degradation of drylands has led to the desertification of 3.6 billion hectares.
Deforestation and desertification – caused by human activities and climate change – pose major challenges to sustainable development and have affected the lives and livelihoods of millions of people in the fight against poverty. Efforts are being made to manage forests and combat desertification.
Read our stories to learn more about SDG Goal 15: Life on land
To adopt SDG 15 Life on land, in support of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, please contact us at partners@eco-business.com
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Policy & Finance
How can Malaysia’s businesses better integrate nature-related risks into their decision-making
Malaysia, a biodiversity hotspot, has many economic activities that are dependent on nature and its services. The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD)'s new framework provides recommendations on how businesses can adapt.
Carbon & Climate
TNFD launches framework on nature-related risk reporting; recommends voluntary market adoption
British drugmaker GSK is the first company to commit to guidelines from the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures, which will begin tracking adoption annually from 2024 onwards.
Carbon & Climate
In a win for forest protection groups, timber giant Samling withdraws defamation suit
Global pressure has also spurred an investigation by the Forest Stewardship Council into Samling's alleged illegal logging and human rights violations.
Invasive alien species are spreading around the world at “unprecedented and increasing rates”, according to a landmark new report from the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES).
Opinion
There is already an existing solution to some of Jakarta’s urban pollution woes, but this requires the present government to more seriously revive and maintain the city’s much-needed green spaces.
New research into selected geographical regions across Vietnam, for example, finds that the majority of plastic waste is being recycled by informal workers in craft villages. These waste pickers need to be given a voice.
Policy & Finance
A new playbook for preserving nature
Market-based solutions must be harnessed to prevent the exploitation of ecosystems. But such an approach will succeed only if markets' governance principles and operating methods are designed to promote equity and sustainable prosperity.
Carbon & Climate
4 factors driving 2023’s extreme heat and climate disasters
People have been quick to blame climate change for record-high global temperatures. But there are three other factors causing worldwide heating this year: El Niño, solar fluctuations and a massive underwater volcanic eruption.
Food & Agriculture
India and Pakistan can fight smog by addressing crop residue burning
Carbon & Climate
Why we won't have a super El Niño this year
Policy & Finance
Winning the fight for women's land rights
Food & Agriculture
A human rights approach to the global food crisis
Videos
The Green Mortician is the city-state's first water cremation service, which has a small carbon footprint compared to traditional funeral options.
Carbon & Climate
Lending forests a voice with primatologist Andie Ang
Amid competing concerns such as urban development and tackling climate change, keeping biodiversity conservation in people's minds can be a challenge. Eco-Business asks primatologist Andie Ang how that can be tackled.
Carbon & Climate
Climate spiral: what 141 years of global warming looks like
As planetary temperatures reach an all-time high, a climate scientist has designed a new way to show how global temperatures have changed every month since the start of the industrial revolution and 2021.
Food & Agriculture
Pandemics and the exploitation of wildlife — what's the connection?
The origin of Covid-19 is believed to be a market selling live wild animals. Eco-Business asked Anbarasi Boopal of Singapore-based animal welfare charity Acres about the link between the exploitation of animals and pandemics, and what can be done to curb the illegal wildlife trade.
Podcasts
Carbon & Climate
‘A 1.1°C warmer world is already a matter of life and death’: Climate scientist Winston Chow
The Singapore scientist, recently elected to the UN's top climate body, tells the Eco-Business Podcast about the precarious state of climate adaptation in developing Asia. The region is not well-prepared to manage the cascading risks of extreme climate events, he says.
The stories of Malaysia’s indigenous tribes are now being captured through the fresh lenses of young female filmmakers. In this bilingual podcast recorded in English and Bahasa Melayu, they tell Eco-Business why they've picked up the camera.
Food & Agriculture
Plant-based protein – fad or the future?
EB Studio
The booming alternative protein sector has experienced turbulence this year. The Eco-Business Podcast asks if growth in plant-based meat alternatives can go the distance.
Food & Agriculture
Food crisis: how to build resilient supply chains in Asia
EB Studio
Dexter Huerto Jr of engineering firm Danfoss tells the Eco-Business Podcast how food supply chains have been affected by a pandemic and conflict, and how they can be fixed.
