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Despite efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change, Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13 on Climate Action has seen an overall regression in progress in Asia and the Pacific. A 2023 ESCAP…

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The unique challenges posed to the Asia-Pacific region in the face of climate change, poverty and hunger are well known. The region plays a significant role in climate action as both the largest…

Photo credit: Unsplash/Arie Oldman Blog

While each Small Island Developing State (SIDS) has its own unique characteristics and circumstances, as remote island economies each share similar challenges and opportunities. They have limited…

Photo: ESCAP/Madan Regmi Blog

The Asia-Pacific region is experiencing a rapid increase in demand for passenger transport driven by high population and economic growth rates. While the crucial role of transport for economic and…

ESCAP/Caio Perim Blog

Stakeholder engagement: The case for a more strategic approach

After the isolating and unkind years of the COVID-19 pandemic, which shrank our networks and reduced social interactions, it was…

Photo credit: ESCAP/ Chanju Lee Blog

With a population of around 4.9 billion people, the Asia-Pacific region is home to 63 per cent of the world’s inhabitants. As of 2021, the region accounts for around 37 per cent of global GDP (USD 35…

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The recent climate talks in Egypt have left us with a sobering reality: The window for maintaining global warming to 1.5 degrees is closing fast and what is on the table currently is insufficient to…

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Secure and sustainable energy systems are a key driver of economic growth and social development. Together with technological innovations, which open new opportunities, the modern world faces…

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The world is facing multiple overlapping challenges. The recovery from COVID-19 and the impacts of climate change along with the food, energy and cost of living crises are straining the economies of…

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The Indonesia G20 Presidency has faced unprecedented challenges. The emergence of global geopolitical tensions from the start of 2022 have presented complexities in international relations and…

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The recently released IPCC report ‘Climate Change 2022 Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability’ published in February 2022 makes it abundantly clear that we must accelerate efforts to decarbonize our…

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The last two years have seen several significant disturbances to global energy markets. The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic shutdowns at first depressed demand, leading to significant…

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The inauguration of 414 km electrified standard gauge Lao-China railway line has a potential to change the dynamics of international transport among the ASEAN member States and beyond.

The railway…

A New Energy Bus in Beijing (Photo Credit: Yijia Cheng) Blog

The recently concluded United Nations Climate Change Conference 2021, or COP26, in Glasgow, recognized that rapid, deep and sustained reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions, including CO2, are…

Photo credit: Shutterstock/alex_aladdin Op-ed

Transport ministers from across Asia and the Pacific are meeting this week to consider a potentially transformational agenda for how people and goods are moved around the region and across the globe…

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The Asia-Pacific region accounts for over half of total final global energy consumption, 85 per cent of which comes from fossil fuels. The associated emissions are expected to increase as the region…

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On 24 September, the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, will convene the High-level Dialogue on Energy at summit level, under the auspices of the UN General Assembly. This will be…

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Asia and the Pacific is home to around 60 per cent of the global population with no access to clean cooking solutions. Clean cooking solutions refers to fuel-stove combinations with emissions…

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In New York this September, the High-level Dialogue on Energy will be convened by the Secretary-General of the United Nations at a summit level. In the first global energy meeting under a UN mandate…

Photo credit: iStockphoto/teppakorn tongboonto Blog

In the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, transport stands out as a continuous challenge as well as a tremendous opportunity for transitioning to economic, social and…