- Interim Framework for Effective Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning
- This report describes policy recommendations for coastal and marine spatial planning in order to protect ecosystems while continuing to allow economic activity. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31122/
- Proposed National Objectives, Principles and Standards for Water and Related Resources Implementation Studies
- This document reflects planning efforts by the Executive Office of the President to design federal policy for the use of water resources. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31166/
- Our Planet : Climate Change - Copenhagen: seal the deal
- Our Planet is a periodical magazine published by the United Nations Environment Programme. This issue is devoted to the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference, know as the Copenhagen Summit, which sought an international agreement on climate change mitigation. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc28534/
- Annual Report on the Environment, the Sound Material-Cycle Society and the Biodiversity 2009
- The white paper on comprehensive environmental policy describes the role of Japan's economy in a sound global environment. In the first part, the report describes current the environmental conditions of the Earth and of Japan, human activities in Japan and overseas, their environmental impacts, and the pathway to the environmental century. The second part of the white paper reports on various measures. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc12064/
- Japan-U.S. Joint Message on Climate Change Negotiations
- A joint message on Climate Change Negotiations between Japan and U.S. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11918/
- Unleashing renewable energy power in developing countries: Proposal for a global renewable energy policy fund
- The document argues that renewable energy policies have not been implemented in the developing world due to financial costs, and also that the Clean Developing Mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol has been ineffective. The document proposes the use of Feed-In Tariff policies, and the use of a renewable energy policy fund. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc13718/
- Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance
- This executive order establishes sustainability and energy efficiency as priorities in the operations of the federal government. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31129/
- Synthesis Report on Observations, Projections, and Impact Assessments of Climate Change: Climate Change and Its Impacts in Japan
- The Japan synthesis report includes causes of global warming, the current state and future of global warming, the impacts of and adaptation to climate change, and methodologies for observing and projecting climate change and impact. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11857/
- Interim Report of the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force
- This report discusses the direction of a national policy to protect oceans, coasts, and the Great Lakes while coordinating with national security and foreign policy interests. The priorities include ecosystem restoration, water quality, resiliency to climate change and acidification, and improved environmental observation systems. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31145/
- Our Changing Planet: The U.S. Climate Change Science Program for Fiscal Year 2010
- The report describes the activities and plans of the Climate Change Science Program (CCSP), which incorporates the U.S. Global Change Research Program established under the Global Change Research Act of 1990, and the Climate Change Research Initiative that was established by the President in 2001. CCSP coordinates and integrates scientific research on climate and global change supported by 13 participating departments and agencies of the U.S. Government. The document highlights recent advances and progress supported by CCSP-participating agencies in each of the program's research and observational elements, as called for in the Strategic Plan for the U.S. Climate Change Science Program released in July 2003, and later modified in the 2008 CCSP Revised Research Plan. The document also describes how observational and predictive capabilities are being improved and used to create tools to support decisionmaking at local, regional, and national scales to cope with environmental variability and change. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11985/
- Our Planet : Sustainable Transport - on the right track
- Our Planet is a periodical magazine published by the United Nations Environment Programme. This issue is devoted to policies meant to reduce the carbon emissions from cars, trucks, and planes by converting fleets to cleaner, renewable fuels, and by moving government subsidies from highway infrastructure to public transportation. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc28537/
- UGEC Viewpoints, No. 2, September 2009
- Urbanization is a global phenomenon that has transformed and continues to alter landscapes and the ways in which societies function and develop. For this issue of UGEC Viewpoints, the editors collected case-studies presented at the Open Meeting that span across regions and themes: from Australia and the United States, as well as the less developed nations in Africa, megacities of Asia such as Dhaka, Bangladesh and Delhi, India, vulnerable coastal areas of the Yucatan Peninsula, and the largest rainforest in the world, the Brazilian Amazon. Currently, more than half of the world's population lives in cities; the United Nations projects that by 2030 the world will advance to the 60% urbanization threshold. Rapid urbanization effects will not only be present within the immediate locations (cities and their metropolitan areas), but will be experienced regionally and globally. The UGEC project seeks to better understand these implications and the complex dynamic systems of urban areas that affect and are affected by global environmental change (e.g., climate change, natural disasters, loss of biodiversity, freshwater ecosystem decline, desertification, and land degradation). Several commonalities are readily identifiable in the authors' research, some of which include an attention to the roles of the governance structures within cities; the functioning of ecosystem services, water, food, and sanitation service provision; as well as the role of research in assisting the successful development of sustainable urban plans and policies. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11943/
- State of the Climate in 2008
- This report describes observations of precipitation, temperature, and other climatology metrics from different global regions. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc29342/
- Recent Greenhouse Gas Concentrations
- Gases typically measured in parts per million (ppm), parts per billion (ppb) or parts per trillion (ppt) by volume are presented separately to facilitate comparison of numbers. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11963/
- Streamlining climate change and air pollution reporting: Final Report
- The environmental policies currently being negotiated are likely to require Member State (MS) to control and report their emission of greenhouse gases (GHG) and air pollutants (AP) more precisely. While there are likely to be associated costs, it is also likely that the cost of timely and targeted action will be less than the longer term cost of inaction. A number of European Union (EU) legal instruments are used to regulate emissions - several of these are under review. The review not only needs to anticipate future policy needs but also assess the alignment of the various instruments and whether the burden on users can be further minimized. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc29349/
- Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies
- This memorandum charges the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force with developing a national policy that ensures protection of oceans as well as a framework for effective coastal and marine spatial planning. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31123/
- Climate Change, Wildlife and Wildlands: A Toolkit for Formal and Informal Educators
- This is a lesson plan for grade levels 5-8 that guides educators through a lesson about coral reef ecology and how climate change affects the growth of coral reefs. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc29329/
- Climate Change, Wildlife and Wildlands: A Toolkit for Formal and Informal Educators
- This lesson plan provides educators with a lesson plan for grades 5-8 about coral reefs digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc29330/
- Ecoregion: Caribbean
- This document is part of a set of educational resources for educators to encourage climate literacy. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc29328/
- Ecoregion: Desert Arid
- This brochure describes the effects of climate change in the desert and arid regions of the United States. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc29333/
- Environmental Finance Services
- This document outlines how UNDP is helping governments to attract and drive private investment towards sustainable solutions by combining and sequencing various financial instruments to effect policy change. These environmental finance services of UNDP offer an innovative and robust approach to addressing climate change, and other environmental and sustainable development concerns. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc28502/
- Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States
- This brochure highlights a report that summarizes the science of climate change, and the impacts of climate change on the United States. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31114/
- Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States: Highlights
- This booklet highlights key findings of Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States, a state of knowledge report about the observed and projected consequences of climate change for our nation and people. It is an authoritative scientific report written in plain language, with the goal of better informing public and private decision making at all levels. The report draws from a large body of scientific information including the set of 21 synthesis and assessment products from the U.S. Global Change Research Program, the assessments of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and much more. It also includes new information published since these assessments were released. While the primary focus of the report is on the impacts of climate change in the United States, it also discusses some of the actions society is already taking or can take to respond to the climate challenge. These include limiting climate change by, for example, reducing emissions of heat-trapping gases or increasing their removal from the atmosphere. The importance of our current choices about heat-trapping emissions is underscored by comparing impacts resulting from higher versus lower emissions scenarios. Choices about emissions made now will have far-reaching consequences for climate change impacts, with lower emissions reducing the magnitude of climate change impacts and the rate at which they appear. The report also identifies examples of options currently being pursued to cope with or adapt to the impacts of climate change and/or other environmental issues. One example of adaptation is included in this booklet. There is generally insufficient information at present to evaluate the effectiveness, costs, and benefits of potential adaptation actions. This booklet includes a brief overview of the 10 key findings of the report, using examples from the report to illustrate each finding. References for material in this booklet, including figures, can be found in the full report. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11959/
- Impact of Climate Range on the Desert Pupfish
- This activity is a resource for teachers of grades 5-8 to conduct a lesson on the impact of climate change on a specific species. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31127/
- Manual for Quantitative Evaluation of the Co-Benefits Approach to Climate Change Projects. Version 1.0
- The wide diversity of developing countries dictates that sustainable development might include different measures in different contexts. This document provides information on quantitatively evaluating measures for sustainable development. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc13698/
- Regional Highlights from Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States
- This fact sheet draws highlights for Alaska from the Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc29326/
- Regional Highlights from Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States
- This fact sheet draws information from the Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States report that describes how climate change affects coastal areas in the United States. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc29332/
- Illinois Commodity/Waste Generation and Characterization Study
- This study was conducted to find ways to reduce waste and increase recycling and composting in Illinois. The report contains data on the composition of residential and commercial waste from around the state and makes recommendations for future consideration. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc28508/
- IPCC Expert Meeting on the Science of Alternative Metrics: Meeting Report
- This extended report of the IPCC Expert Meeting on the Science of Alternative Metrics that was held in Oslo 18-20 March 2009 is provided in response to an invitation from the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under Kyoto Protocol (UNFCCC AWG-KP) to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to undertake further technical assessment of alternative common metrics which are used to calculate the CO2 equivalence of anthropogenic emissions by sources, and removals by sinks, of greenhouse gases listed in Annex A to the Kyoto Protocol. The outcome of the expert meeting was an agreed set of key conclusions and recommendations to UNFCCC in response to the request of the AWG-KP as well as more specific recommendations to the scientific community regarding research needs and ones relevant to the scoping of the IPCC's Fifth Assessment Report (AR5). These were presented to the IPCC Plenary in a short report at its 30th session in Antalya, 21-23 April 2009. The current full report of the expert meeting amplifies those conclusions and recommendations and includes the extended abstracts of the meeting presentations as well as a general bibliography. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11872/
- Japan's Initiative on Climate Change
- Japan's Initiative on Climate Change defines the current state of climate change, summarizes diplomacy related to international environmental cooperation, and international climage change policy, with an outlook to the future. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc12063/
- Our Planet : Your Planet Needs You - practical action
- Our Planet is a periodical magazine published by the United Nations Environment Programme. This issue is devoted to examples of grass roots actions that result in positive changes around the world. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc28536/
- Draft Report of the 30th Session of the IPCC
- This meeting focused on the future of the IPCC, in particular the scoping of the 5th Assessment Report. Among other isues, the Panel considered the outcome of the Scoping Meeting for a possible Special Report on "Extreme events and disasters: managing the risks", and of the Expert Meeting on "Alternative common metrics to calculate the CO2 equivalence of anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of greenhouse gases". digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11916/
- Global Carbon Finance: A quantitative modelling framework to explore scenarios of the Global Deal on Climate Change
- According to the abstract, the purpose of this paper is to provide a quantitative research methodology for analyzing the costs of dealing with climate change. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc13705/
- The NSF Scientific Collections Survey: A Brief Overview of Findings
- This white paper describes the state of digital collections resulting from NSF funded research in biodiversity, ecology, environmental health, environmental education, and environmental resource management. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc25978/
- Climate Literacy: The Essential Principles of Climate Science
- This guide aims to help individuals and communities know and understand Earth’s climate, the impacts of climate change, and approaches to adaptation or mitigation. The guide aims to promote greater climate science literacy by providing an educational framework of principles and concepts. The guide can serve educators who teach climate science as a way to meet content standards in their science curricula. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11961/
- Creating Impact - Feed-In Tariff Laws: Making clean energy a reality for all
- The brochure describes evidence from fifty governments that Feed-In Tariff (FIT) policy speeds the transition to clean energy production and use. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc13700/
- Our Planet : Green Economy - The New Big Deal
- Our Planet is a periodical magazine published by the United Nations Environment Programme. This issue is devoted to so called "Green Economy" measures such as large public transportation plans, tree planting programs, and government policies that provide incentives for improving energy efficiency. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc28535/
- Annex VI to the Protocol of Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty : message from the President of the United States transmitting Annex VI on liability arising from environmental emergencies to the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (Annex VI), adopted on June 14, 2005
- This amendment to the Antarctic Treaty deals with preventing and managing environmental emergencies in the Antarctica Treaty area. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31112/
- Atmospheric Aerosol Properties and Climate Impacts
- This report critically reviews current knowledge about global distributions and properties of atmospheric aerosols as they relate to aerosol impacts on climate. It assesses possible steps to substantially reduce uncertainties in aerosol radiative forcing estimates. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc12022/
- Best Practice Approaches for Characterizing, Communicating, and Incorporating Scientific Uncertainty in Decision Making
- This report discusses the current state of understanding about the characteristics and implications of uncertainty related to climate change and variability to an audience of policymakers, decision makers, and members of the media and general public with an interest in developing a fundamental understanding of the issue. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc12036/
- Building Standards for State Buildings
- This map shows states with energy efficiency standards for government buildings. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31136/
- Climate Change Science Compendium 2009
- This document was compiled as an annual snapshot of peer-reviewed research about climate change. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc28501/
- Coastal Sensitivity to Sea-Level Rise: A Focus on the Mid-Atlantic Region
- This document is part of the Synthesis and Assessment Products described in the U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) Strategic Plan. The U.S. Government's CCSP is responsible for providing the best science-based knowledge possible to inform management of the risks and opportunities associated with changes in the climate and related environmental systems. To support its mission, the CCSP has commissioned 21 "synthesis and assessment products" (SAPs) to advance decision making on climate change-related issues by providing current evaluations of climate change science and identifying priorities for research, observation, and decision support. This Synthesis and Assessment Product (SAP), developed as part of the U.S. Climate Change Science Program, examines potential effects of sea-level rise from climate change during the twenty-first century, with a focus on the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. Using scientific literature and policy-related documents, the SAP describes the physical environments; potential changes to coastal environments, wetlands, and vulnerable species; societal impacts and implications of sea-level rise; decisions that may be sensitive to sea-level rise; opportunities for adaptation; and institutional barriers to adaptation. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc12028/
- Commercial Building Energy Codes
- This map shows states with building codes for energy efficiency of commercial buildings. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31124/
- Cultivating the Future: Food in the Age of Climate Change
- The brochure promotes government incentives for farmers to lower agricultural greenhouse gas emissions and expand carbon sinks by sequestering carbon through organic farming and reduced tillage; reducing nitrous oxide emissions through minimal use of nitrogen fertilizer, capturing methane emissions from anaerobic manure handling facilities; reducing the use of fossil fuels on farms; increasing the generation of electricity from wind, solar and small-scale hydro; expanding the use of practices like hedges, shelterbelts, and forested riparian zones; expanding local food supply for local consumption; and supporting the use of sustainable biochar derived from farm and urban organic wastes. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc13686/
- Decision-Support Experiments and Evaluations using Seasonal-to-Interannual Forecasts and Observational Data: A Focus on Water Resources
- This Synthesis and Assessment Product focuses on the connection between the scientific ability to predict climate on seasonal scales and the opportunity to incorporate such understanding into water resource management decisions. It directly addresses decision support experiments and evaluations that have used seasonal-to-interannual forecasts and observational data, and is expected to inform (1) decision makers about the relative success of experiences of others who have experimented with these forecasts and data in resource management; (2) climatologists, hydrologists, and social scientists on how to advance the delivery of decision-support resources that use the most recent forecast products, methodologies, and tools; and (3) science and resource managers as they plan for future investments in research related to forecasts and their role in decision support. It is important to note, however, that while the focus of this Product is on the water resources management sector, the findings within this Synthesis and Assessment Product may be directly transferred to other sectors. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc12037/
- Earth System Governance: People, Places, and the Planet
- This science plan elaborates upon the concept of Earth system governance, defined as the interrelated systems of formal and informal rules and actor-networks that are set up to steer societies towards preventing, mitigating, and adapting to environmental change within the normative context of sustainable development. The notion of governance here refers to a less hierarchical and more decentralized system than traditional governmental policy-making, inclusive of non-state actors such as non-governmental organizations, indigenous communities, and international organizations. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11867/
- FITness Testing: Exploring the myths and misconceptions about feed-in tariff policies
- The booklet argues that in spite of the recent surge in renewable electricity markets, the United States will need to dramatically increase the amount of installed renewable energy in order to improve energy security, create new jobs, and address the growing risks of climate change. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc13701/
- Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States: A State of Knowledge Report from the U.S. Global Change Research Program
- This book is the most comprehensive report to date on the wide range of impacts of climate change in the United States. It is written in plain language to better inform members of the public and policymakers. The report finds that global warming is unequivocal, primarily human-induced, and its impacts are already apparent in transportation, agriculture, health, and water and energy supplies. These impacts are expected to grow with continued climate change - the higher the levels of greenhouse gas emissions, the greater the impacts. The report illustrates how these impacts can be kept to a minimum if greenhouse gas emissions are reduced. The choices we make now will determine the severity of climate change impacts in the future. This book will help citizens, business leaders, and policymakers at all levels to make informed decisions about responding to climate change and its impacts. Likely to set the policy agenda across the US for the next few years Features examples of actions currently being pursued in various regions to address climate change. Summarizes in one place the current and projected affects of climate change in the United States digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc11960/
- Green Pricing Programs
- This map shows states that allow utilities customers to pay a premium price to guarantee that a percentage of their energy comes from renewable sources. digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc31135/