Resource Type

Buying Time: A User’s Manual for Building Resistance and Resilience to Climate Change in Natural Systems (open access)

Buying Time: A User’s Manual for Building Resistance and Resilience to Climate Change in Natural Systems

This publication is meant for Protected Areas Managers. It gives detailed information about assessing occurring and possible damage from climate change and fending off the damage - buying time for our protected areas while the world works out the only long-term solution - reducing CO2 emissions.
Date: August 2003
Creator: Hansen, L. J.; Biringer J.L. & Hoffman J.R.
System: The UNT Digital Library
State of the Climate in 2008 (open access)

State of the Climate in 2008

This report describes observations of precipitation, temperature, and other climatology metrics from different global regions.
Date: August 2009
Creator: Peterson, T. C.; Baringer, M. O.; Diamond, H. J.; Fogt, R. L.; Levy, J. M.; Richter-Menge, J. et al.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Green Jobs: Towards Decent Work in a Sustainable, Low-Carbon World (open access)

Green Jobs: Towards Decent Work in a Sustainable, Low-Carbon World

This report is about the impact of the green economy on the global job market.
Date: September 2008
Creator: Renner, Michael; Sweeney, Sean; Kubit, Jill & Mastny, Lisa
System: The UNT Digital Library
Land-Use and Land-Cover Change (LUCC): Implementation Strategy (open access)

Land-Use and Land-Cover Change (LUCC): Implementation Strategy

The Implementation Strategy of the Land-Use and Land-Cover Change (LUCC) project specifies in greater detail the activities and projects that will fulfil the mandate outlined in the LUCC Science/Research Plan published in 1995. The project, a joint initiative of IGBP and IHDP, is addressing important global change questions on the local, regional and global scale. The planned and ongoing activities involve a wide community of natural and social scientists. The new understanding of land-use and land-cover change dynamics following from the work carried out under the LUCC Implementation Strategy will be of crucial importance to the global environmental change research community as well as to decision-makers at the local, regional and global levels.
Date: 1999
Creator: Scientific Steering Committee and International Project Office of LUCC
System: The UNT Digital Library
Valuation Techniques and Metrics for Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation, and Mitigation Options: Methodological Perspectives For the National Climate Assessment (open access)

Valuation Techniques and Metrics for Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation, and Mitigation Options: Methodological Perspectives For the National Climate Assessment

The National Climate Assessment (NCA) Report Series summarizes regional, sectoral, and process-related workshops and discussions being held as part of the third NCA process. This workshop focused on techniques for quantitatively valuing climate impacts and adaptation in the context of the upcoming NCA. The workshop was held in Arlington, VA on January 12-13, 2011. Volume 8 of the NCA Report Series summarizes the discussions and outcomes of this workshop.
Date: January 2011
Creator: Sussman, Frances; Clarke, Leon; Grambsch, Anne; Vallario, Robert; Langner, Linda; O’Brien, Sheila et al.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Framing the Flow: Innovative Approaches to Understand, Protect, and Value Ecosystem Services Across Linked Habitats (open access)

Framing the Flow: Innovative Approaches to Understand, Protect, and Value Ecosystem Services Across Linked Habitats

This report presents a framework for understanding the connection between a variety of marine ecosystems such as mangroves, seagrasses, and coral reefs, across several contexts with policy recommendations for land use and management.
Date: 2010
Creator: Silvestri, Silvia & Kershaw, Francine
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Terrestrial Biosphere and Global Change: Implications for Natural and Managed Ecosystems (open access)

The Terrestrial Biosphere and Global Change: Implications for Natural and Managed Ecosystems

From the perspective of terrestrial ecosystems, the most important component of global change over the next three or four decades will likely be land-use/cover change. It is driven largely by the need to feed the expanding human population, expected to increase by almost one billion (109) people per decade for the next three decades at least. Much of this increase will occur in developing countries in the low-latitude regions of the world. To meet the associated food demand, crop yields will need to increase, consistently, by over 2% every year through this period. Despite advances in technology, increasing food production must lead to intensification of agriculture in areas which are already cropped, and conversion of forests and grasslands into cropping systems. Much of the latter will occur in semi-arid regions and on lands which are marginally suitable for cultivation, increasing the risk of soil erosion, accelerated water use, and further land degradation.
Date: 1997
Creator: Walker, Brian & Steffen, WIll
System: The UNT Digital Library
Considering Cumulative Effects Under the National Environmental Policy Act (open access)

Considering Cumulative Effects Under the National Environmental Policy Act

This document is intended to assist Federal agencies with analyzing cumulative effects during the NEPA process. It outlines general principles, common cumulative effects assessment methodologies, and resources for additional information and background data.
Date: January 1997
Creator: Council on Environmental Quality (U.S.)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Habitats at Risk: Global Warming and Species Loss in Globally Significant Terrestrial Ecosystems (open access)

Habitats at Risk: Global Warming and Species Loss in Globally Significant Terrestrial Ecosystems

This report studies how global warming could affect the planet's "crown jewels" of nature and rates Canada among those most vulnerable. Released by the David Suzuki Foundation and the World Wildlife Fund, the report highlights the urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Date: February 2002
Creator: Malcolm, Jay R.; Liu, Canran; Miller, Laurie B.; Allutt, Tom & Hansen, Lara
System: The UNT Digital Library
Climate Change 1995: IPCC Second Assessment Report (open access)

Climate Change 1995: IPCC Second Assessment Report

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) completed its Second Assessment Report in December 1995. The major conclusions are that greenhouse gas concentrations are increasing, the global climate has been changing, and will likely continue to change, probably due to human influence.
Date: 1995
Creator: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
System: The UNT Digital Library
GEO Year Book 2007: An Overview of Our Changing Environment (open access)

GEO Year Book 2007: An Overview of Our Changing Environment

This publication is an overview of major global environmental issues and policy decisions during the course of 2007.
Date: 2007
Creator: United Nations Environment Programme
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Promote Healthy Homes (open access)

The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Promote Healthy Homes

This guide describes steps that people can take to protect themselves from disease, disability, and injury that may result from health hazards in the home. The guide also describes society-wide measures to improve public health through healthy homes.
Date: 2009
Creator: United States. Public Health Service. Office of the Surgeon General.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Science Plan and Implementation Strategy (open access)

Science Plan and Implementation Strategy

The IGAC Science Plan and Implementation Strategy lays out the scientific objectives and key research issues of the atmospheric chemistry project of the International Geosphere Biosphere Programme (IGBP) as both IGAC and IGBP enter their second phase. It also lays out a framework for addressing these objectives and issues, recognizing the need for collaboration with partner programmes and projects. The scientific focus of this document emerged from the first decade of IGAC research, much of which was conducted in the context of focused, intensive measurement campaigns. The scope of IGAC in its next phase includes both regional characterisation and the extension into issues that cross more expansive boundaries in space, time and discipline. While local and regional-scale atmospheric chemical composition will be a primary focus, it is now clear that issues such as intercontinental transport and transformation of chemically active species and the interactions between atmospheric chemistry and climate must also be addressed in order to better understand atmospheric chemical composition and to provide guidance to the public and policy-making community.
Date: 2006
Creator: International Global Atmospheric Chemistry (IGAC)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Near-term Health Benefits of Greenhouse Gas Reductions: A Proposed Assessment Method and Application in Two Energy Sectors of China (open access)

Near-term Health Benefits of Greenhouse Gas Reductions: A Proposed Assessment Method and Application in Two Energy Sectors of China

This is a study of projected near-term health benefits associated with greenhouse (GHG) reductions resulting from changes in energy efficiency and structure of energy use in the power and household sectors of China. The work was commissioned by the former Office of Global and Integrated Environmental Health at WHO, in order to explore the scope for modelling in the assessment of such short-term health benefits. China was selected as an appropiate case study for this work, as it fulfilled most of the criteria required, including the fact that it is a large country, with data sets available on air pollution and health, and with information on projected trends in the consumption of fossil fuels
Date: March 1999
Creator: Wang, Xiaodong & Smith, Kirk R.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Lessons from PPP2000: Living with Earth's Extremes-Report from the PPP2000 Working Group to the Office of Science and Technology Policy Subcommittee on Natural Disaster Reduction (open access)

Lessons from PPP2000: Living with Earth's Extremes-Report from the PPP2000 Working Group to the Office of Science and Technology Policy Subcommittee on Natural Disaster Reduction

This book is a series of reports summarizing discussions and recommendations from a series of forums about strategies to deal with natural disaster. The focus is on changing human behavior and development in order to coexist with natural phenomena rather than trying to control natural phenomena.
Date: September 2001
Creator: Cohn, Timothy A.; Gohn, Kathleen K. & Hooke, William H.
System: The UNT Digital Library
State of Biodiversity Markets Offset and Compensation Programs Worldwide (open access)

State of Biodiversity Markets Offset and Compensation Programs Worldwide

The report provides the status and trends of biodiversity offset and compensatory mitigation programs by geographical region. It summarizes the total active programs and developing activities, and broad metrics like total known payments and land area protected. It also analyzes the characteristics of offset programs and looks at recent developments in nascent and existing programs in the region.
Date: January 2010
Creator: Madsen, Becca; Carroll, Nathaniel & Moore Brands, Kelly
System: The UNT Digital Library
Latin America and the Caribbean: Environment Outlook (open access)

Latin America and the Caribbean: Environment Outlook

This Global Environmental Outlook report (GEO LAC 3) is the third comprehensive environmental assessment of the status and perspectives of the environment in the Latin American and Caribbean region. It highlights the need to move away from sectoral, uncoordinated and short-term policies, and to work towards consolidating comprehensive and cross-sectoral environmental ones that put sustainability at the centre stage. GEO LAC 3 is part of UNEP’s contribution to catalyzing improvements to human well-being and framing a fresh debate around the concept of sustainability in the context of a world evolving from six billion, to nine billion people by 2050.
Date: 2010
Creator: United Nations Environment Programme. Oficina Regional para América Latina y el Caribe
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Sustainable Sites Initiative: Guidelines and Performance Benchmarks (open access)

The Sustainable Sites Initiative: Guidelines and Performance Benchmarks

This guide describes how to develop a site in a way that does the least damage to the ecosystem, and provides maximum ecological benefits, including improved air quality, storm water treatment, and energy efficiency.
Date: 2009
Creator: American Society of Landscape Architects
System: The UNT Digital Library
Arctic Flora and Fauna: Status and Conservation (open access)

Arctic Flora and Fauna: Status and Conservation

What is the overall state of the Arctic environment? The aim of this report is to answer the many aspects of this seemingly straightforward question. Although several national and international efforts have looked at parts of the Arctic, this is the first attempt to assess the state of Arctic flora and fauna as a whole.
Date: June 11, 2001
Creator: Program for the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF)
System: The UNT Digital Library
IPCC Technical Guidelines for Assessing Climate Change Impacts and Adaptations (open access)

IPCC Technical Guidelines for Assessing Climate Change Impacts and Adaptations

This guideline provides a means for assessing the impacts of potential climate change and of evaluating appropriate adaptations.
Date: 1994
Creator: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
System: The UNT Digital Library