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711. Potential impact of financial innovation on financial services and monetary policy

Author:
Marek Dabrowski
Publication Date:
07-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Social and Economic Research - CASE
Abstract:
The recent wave of financial innovation, particularly innovation related to the application of information and communication technologies, poses a serious challenge to the financial industry’s business model in both its banking and non-banking components. It has already revolutionised financial services and, most likely, will continue to do so in the future. If not responded to adequately and timely by regulators, it may create new risks to financial stability, as occurred before the global financial crisis of 2007-2009. However, financial innovation will not seriously affect the process of monetary policymaking and is unlikely to undermine the ability of central banks to perform their price stability mission.
Topic:
Energy Policy, Environment, Monetary Policy, Financial Crisis, Economic Growth, Innovation, and Trade
Political Geography:
Europe, Global Focus, and European Union

712. Comments on Draft National Energy Policy

Author:
Navroz K. Dubash, Partha Mukhopadhyay, Radhika Khosla, Shibani Ghosh, Ankit Bhardwaj, and Swetha Sridhar
Publication Date:
07-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:
The Draft National Energy Policy released by the Niti Aayog in June 2017 was a roadmap describing the priorities of the government with regards to India's energy future and a critical reference document for all actors working in this field. This working paper reflects the result of internal deliberations, aimed at understanding and reflecting on the draft NEP, with the aim of constructive feedback to NITI Aayog.
Topic:
Energy Policy, Environment, Government, Finance, and Legislation
Political Geography:
South Asia, India, and Asia

713. From Prior to Post: Legalising environmental violations?

Author:
Krithika A. Dinesh and Kanchi Kohli
Publication Date:
07-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:
Between March 15 2017 and June 15 2017, 207 projects that violated the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification applied for an environmental clearance. These applications have come as a result of a notification that the Environment Ministry had passed on March 14th 2017 which gives an opportunity to projects that have violated conditions of the EIA Notification to apply for a clearance within a period of six months, ie by September 15. This notification was passed despite much criticism of the draft notification that was issued on 10 May 2016. The CPR-Namati Environmental Justice Program has analysed these applications to see what are the kind of geographical and sectorial spread of these violations and whether there are any trends emerging out of the applications that have come in till June 15. The Environment Ministry has already started looking at the applications through a Committee that has been set up for this. This Committee is headed by Dr SR Wate and had its first meeting on 22 June 2017. The Committee in its first meeting has examined ten applications. Out of these ten applications, the committee has already recommended seven for grant for a Terms of Reference subject to conditions. This working paper would be updated with the analysis of the applications that are coming in as well as the progress of these applications.
Topic:
Environment, Government, Natural Resources, Courts, and Legislation
Political Geography:
South Asia, India, and Asia

714. Paralegals for Environmental Justice (Version 2.0)

Author:
CPR-Namati Environmental Justice Program
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:
Large parts of the world, irrespective of their level of economic development, are at the cusp of severe environmental crises. In these regions, the operations of extractive projects such as large scale plantations, mining and industrial development have negated or worsened the economic, social and physical well-being of communities in their neighbourhoods and beyond. Their robust national and regional laws and institutions for the protection and governance of the environment and natural resources have remained on paper and the non-compliance by governments and corporations has had profound effects on community livelihoods, health, access to land and quality of life. CPR-Namati's Practice Guide for Environment Justice Paralegals is a step in the direction of closing this environmental enforcement gap. The guide provides a methodology for community mobilisers, activists and citizens groups to shift their attention from stating the problem to getting grievances addressed by environmental institutions. The guide is based on four years of work done by the paralegals of CPR-Namati Environment Justice Program to assist affected communities file complaints and seek remedies in over 150 cases of non-compliance in India. We hope that this guide will help local organisations and community groups to address environmental conflicts and seek useful remedies for affected people.
Topic:
Development, Environment, Law, and Justice
Political Geography:
South Asia, India, and Asia

715. Water for Security

Author:
Peter Engelke
Publication Date:
07-2017
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Fletcher Security Review
Institution:
The Fletcher School, Tufts University
Abstract:
In February 2017, California’s Oroville Dam threatened to collapse due to an unprecedented level of water in its reservoir. Faced with the possibility of calamity (Oroville Dam is the nation’s tallest at 770 feet), state officials evacuated 200,000 people from downstream areas.[1] The Oroville incident followed another high-profile water tragedy in the United States. In December 2015, Flint, Michigan Mayor Karen Weaver declared a state of emergency because lead contamination from Flint’s ancient water pipes poisoned the city’s water supply, making it unsafe to drink.[2] Michigan’s governor, Rick Snyder, and President Obama both followed with similar declarations. Flint sadly became a national symbol of incompetence, to some even proof of deliberate malfeasance by public officials. Despite remedies to fix the problem, Flint’s water remains unsafe, and the city’s residents continue to go about their lives drinking bottled water. These cases are more than just poignant demonstrations of the truism that water is life. They show that even in advanced societies, there is a fine line between water security and insecurity, between having and not having on-demand clean water in exactly the right quantities at precisely the right moment. In the United States, we are the beneficiaries of past investments in water infrastructure that have removed water insecurity from our lives. We believe that simply turning a tap provides clean, drinkable water as a free good of nature, as readily available to everyone as it is to us. Unfortunately, this assumption is not only untrue, it is dangerous to boot. A great many societies around the world are water insecure, meaning their inhabitants do not enjoy what Americans take as a given. As water is fundamental to public health, economic activity, energy and agricultural production, and countless other uses, the poor supply of water or disruption in that supply is a serious threat to domestic and international security...
Topic:
Security, Environment, Health, Water, and Infrastructure
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

716. Epidemiological Insurgency: Polio Persistence on the Afghanistan-Pakistan Border

Author:
Rand Quinn
Publication Date:
07-2017
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Fletcher Security Review
Institution:
The Fletcher School, Tufts University
Abstract:
Despite a profound global impact over the first half of the twentieth century, polio is largely an afterthought throughout the developed world. Vaccines engineered in the late 1950s paved the way for a precipitous drop in global disease burden with the onset of the World Health Organization-led (WHO) Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) starting in 1988. Recent indicators of the program’s success include a declaration of eradication in India[1] and a teeteringly low infection rate in Nigeria;[2] two of the disease’s last bastions. This progress, however, has been notably stifled by the steady persistence of a wild poliovirus reservoir centered in northern Pakistan along the Afghanistan-Pakistan (Af-Pak) border. Throughout significant portions of recorded history this region’s volatility has been well-documented, including a currently sustained network for the training of terrorist fighters dating back to the period of the 1979 Afghan-Soviet War.[3] These networks serve to both attract fledgling radical jihadist recruits and supply fighters globally, markedly providing many of the transnational fighters taking part in the Syrian Civil War. Their movement in and out of the Af-Pak region has provided a major disease vector for poliovirus. The location of a terrorist network transit hub in by far the world’s largest remaining reservoir of wild poliovirus poses a major challenge for policymakers. Due to several factors, including a decline in healthcare infrastructure throughout the western world, the situation presents a legitimate epidemiological threat. However, the issue is more importantly an exemplar of the morphing nature of multidimensional threats, which are likely to become more prevalent in an era of globalization, failed states, and an inability to effectively address social issues amidst the threat of kinetic warfare...
Topic:
Security, Environment, Health, Terrorism, World Health Organization, Infectious Diseases, and Borders
Political Geography:
Pakistan, Afghanistan, South Asia, Middle East, and United States of America

717. Bird Flu — It’s What’s for Dinner: What Human Population Growth and Climate Change Mean for the Future of Avian Influenza Outbreaks

Author:
Nahid Bhadelia
Publication Date:
07-2017
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Fletcher Security Review
Institution:
The Fletcher School, Tufts University
Abstract:
China is currently experiencing its fifth epidemic of “bird flu,” or avian influenza H7N9, since 2013 when it was first noted to cause human infections. The virus, which is mainly transmitted from poultry to humans, is also prone to limited human-to-human transmission. To date, there have been 1,258 human cases, with one-third of those cases (460) occurring during this year’s epidemic alone.[1] There are many “subtypes” of avian influenza circulating in birds around the world and most of these viruses cause limited or no human infections. However, two avian influenzas subtypes causing high human mortality have jumped from birds to humans in the last decade, H5N1 and then H7N9. The significant potential of this class of viruses to cause a human pandemic is a global public health concern, particularly because the conditions leading to the rise of these infections are becoming more favorable — for the viruses.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Health, and Infectious Diseases
Political Geography:
China, Asia, and Global Focus

718. Green growth and energy security Fossil-endowed middle-income countries at a crossroads

Author:
Louise Schaik Van and Louise Van Schaik
Publication Date:
01-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Clingendael Netherlands Institute of International Relations
Abstract:
This policy brief synthesises the findings of political economy analyses (PEA) in the energy sector in three fossil-endowed middle-income countries (MICs): Colombia, Indonesia and Kenya. It is based on a research project on political economy constraints and enablers influencing governments’ decisions on green growth options in the energy sector, where policy directions for a robust green growth trajectory are explored.
Topic:
Energy Policy, Environment, and International Political Economy
Political Geography:
Kenya, Indonesia, and Colombia

719. Recurring Storms Food Insecurity, Political Instability, and Conflict

Author:
Emmy Simmons
Publication Date:
01-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
Abstract:
Renewed and expanded international collaboration to anticipate and prepare for recurring storms of food insecurity is essential. Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Syria are examples that vividly underscore the explosiveness of situations in which people find themselves unable to get the food they want and need. The experiences of post-conflict countries highlight some critical issues that need to be prioritized in order to regain sustainable food security. Averting future storms will require the recognition that food security challenges will extend long beyond 2030, political leadership must be visibly committed to these issues, and actions to reduce fragmentation of effort will be critical.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Food Security, and Political stability
Political Geography:
Global Focus

720. THE INTERCONNECTION BETWEEN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS AND THE CLIMATE CHANGE NEGOTIATIONS: THE PARIS AGREEMENT CASE

Author:
İzzet Ari
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Journal Article
Institution:
Department of International Relations, Abant Izzet Baysal University, Turkey
Abstract:
The year of 2015 was an important milestone in terms of new progresses in development and climate change areas. Adopted Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement for climate change were two successful issues because of country-driven and comprehensive processes. SDGs which replaced to Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), includes 17 goals and 169 targets. The Paris Agreement aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. There are significant direct and indirect interconnections between SDGs and the Paris Agreement. Due to negotiations of the Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and SDGs continued in different platforms, both the Agreement and SDGs could not sufficiently provide input for each other. There is still room to ensure alignment between these two processes and outcomes while implementation, monitoring and reporting of the Paris Agreement and SDGs. In this paper, the key elements of the Paris Agreement, namely, adaptation, mitigation, finance, capacity building, technology transfer, cooperation and partnerships are determined, then these elements are tracked under the SDGs in order to analyze the connections and missing parts between SDGs and Paris Agreement. The findings present that the direct linkages between SDGs and Paris Agreement were not strong but, there are substantial and implicit interconnections among the Agreement and SDGs. Countries should nationalize their own SDGs targets and respective indicators in order to integrate climate change issue in their national development agenda. monitoring and reporting of the Paris Agreement and SDGs. In this paper, the key elements of the Paris Agreement, namely, adaptation, mitigation, finance, capacity building, technology transfer, cooperation and partnerships are determined, then these elements are tracked under the SDGs in order to analyze the connections and missing parts between SDGs and Paris Agreement. The findings present that the direct linkages between SDGs and Paris Agreement were not strong but, there are substantial and implicit interconnections among the Agreement and SDGs. Countries should nationalize their own SDGs targets and respective indicators in order to integrate climate change issue in their national development agenda. monitoring and reporting of the Paris Agreement and SDGs. In this paper, the key elements of the Paris Agreement, namely, adaptation, mitigation, finance, capacity building, technology transfer, cooperation and partnerships are determined, then these elements are tracked under the SDGs in order to analyze the connections and missing parts between SDGs and Paris Agreement. The findings present that the direct linkages between SDGs and Paris Agreement were not strong but, there are substantial and implicit interconnections among the Agreement and SDGs. Countries should nationalize their own SDGs targets and respective indicators in order to integrate climate change issue in their national development agenda. capacity building, technology transfer, cooperation and partnerships are determined, then these elements are tracked under the SDGs in order to analyze the connections and missing parts between SDGs and Paris Agreement. The findings present that the direct linkages between SDGs and Paris Agreement were not strong but, there are substantial and implicit interconnections among the Agreement and SDGs. Countries should nationalize their own SDGs targets and respective indicators in order to integrate climate change issue in their national development agenda. capacity building, technology transfer, cooperation and partnerships are determined, then these elements are tracked under the SDGs in order to analyze the connections and missing parts between SDGs and Paris Agreement. The findings present that the direct linkages between SDGs and Paris Agreement were not strong but, there are substantial and implicit interconnections among the Agreement and SDGs. Countries should nationalize their own SDGs targets and respective indicators in order to integrate climate change issue in their national development agenda. The findings present that the direct linkages between SDGs and Paris Agreement were not strong but, there are substantial and implicit interconnections among the Agreement and SDGs. Countries should nationalize their own SDGs targets and respective indicators in order to integrate climate change issue in their national development agenda. The findings present that the direct linkages between SDGs and Paris Agreement were not strong but, there are substantial and implicit interconnections among the Agreement and SDGs. Countries should nationalize their own SDGs targets and respective indicators in order to integrate climate change issue in their national development agenda.
Topic:
Climate Change, Development, Environment, and United Nations
Political Geography:
Global Focus