Report on the First Project Portfolio of the ITPGR Benefit-sharing Fund Available Online [viewed]
February 2013: The report on the first round of the project cycle of the Benefit-sharing Fund, published by the Secretariat of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGR), has been made available online. It contains financial and technical information related to the overall operation of the first project portfolio of the Benefit-sharing Fund, provides an overview of its results and presents a number of lessons learned and recommendations drawn from the execution of the first round of the project cycle.
February 2013: The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) and the UN University Institute of Advanced Studies (UNU-IAS) have released a report, titled "Governing the Forests: An Institutional Analysis of REDD+ and Community Forest Management in Asia." The report presents a background on REDD+, explores ways to link REDD+ to community forestry, and provides lessons learned and recommendations.
2 February 2013: The February 2013 issue of the "Micronesia Challenge Newsletter," published by the Micronesia Challenge Secretariat, highlights recent support for the Awareness Campaign for Sustainable Management of the Tafunsak Marine Protected Area Project in Kosrae. It also spotlights the outcomes of a Micronesian Challenge Communications workshop, which convened in Guam.
1 February 2013: The Regional Fisheries Livelihoods Programme (RFLP) in South and Southeast Asia, funded by Spain and implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), has launched a series of country surveys that provide data concerning small-scale fishing communities.
22 January 2013: A new Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) notification highlights that the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)/Species Survival Commission African and Asian Rhino Specialist Groups and TRAFFIC Final Report referred to in CITES Resolution Conf. 9.14 (Rev. CoP15) was received by the Secretariat in late December 2012 and is now available. 
January 2012: The UN Environment Programme (UNEP)/GRID-Arendal Marine Programme has released the January issue of its newsletter (Marine Newsletter #1), featuring articles on: the Global Environment Facility (GEF) funded demonstration project on the incorporation of carbon and other ecosystem services values into financial markets; the release of the State of the Mediterranean Marine and Coastal Environment Report; and the launch of the World Ocean Assessment website.
December 2012: Authored by Gurdial Singh Nijar, this study examines a number of issues related to Malaysia's implementation of the Multilateral System (MLS) of access and benefit-sharing (ABS) created by the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGR).
2 February 2013: As a contribution to the UN International Year for Water Cooperation, the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat (Ramsar Convention) focused the celebrations of this year's World Wetlands Day on wetlands and water management. The Day aims to show the interdependence between water and wetlands and the key role wetlands play.
1 February 13: The Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat (Ramsar Convention), the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and partners have launched the report "The Economics of Ecosystem and Biodiversity (TEEB) for Water and Wetlands." The report urges a major shift in attitudes towards wetlands, to recognize their value in delivering water, raw materials and food, as well as their role in maintaining people's livelihoods and the sustainability of the world's economies.
31 January 2013: The Pacific Invasives Learning Network (PILN) "Soundbites" January 2013 issue highlights the Solomon Islands' $1.5 million grant to fight the Giant African Snail, and the Pacific Invasives Partnership (PIP) member contributions to the Pacific Environment and Climate Change Outlook (PECCO) report, which was released by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) in Doha, Qatar, at the 2012 Doha Climate Change Conference.
