The Environment and Safeguards Group (ESG) of the IDB has examined how potential environmental and social risks of major Bank-supported road improvement investments in natural resource rich and socio-culturally diverse "frontier" regions have been identified and addressed in various parts of...

This paper proposes a concept of green infrastructure, centered on a multi-level approach to infrastructure development that addresses these impacts. The paper argues that only multi-level solutions, encompassing national policy, sector planning, and sound project engineering, will be able to...

El presente documento representa un esfuerzo coordinado entre varias instituciones y organizaciones de la región de América Latina y el Caribe por plasmar los resultados de una reflexión conjunta sobre el tema de la adaptación al cambio climático en la comunidad hídrica y en el marco de un...

Bank investments in tourism and other coastal development projects have been on the rise, generating an interest in the development of instruments and tools that would more effectively inform Bank staff on critical issues, and support the management of the environmental and social risks of the...

This document discusses the impact that global climate change has on food production both globally and in Latin America and the Caribbean. The author discusses environmental issues including extreme temperatures, water scarcity, flooding, and soil erosion. Using available information, this...

This paper explores options to minimize threats posed to IDB-financed physical investments by the impacts of climate change. A large proportion of projects are implemented in climate-sensitive sectors (e.g., agriculture, water resources, and transport). In these cases, the norm is to consider...

This paper provides an overview of the characteristics of Central American rivers and related freshwater ecosystem services, discusses trends in hydropower development and known environmental and social consequences, and offers suggestions for finding a balance between hydropower and the...

How can LAC governments promote the use of clean and green technology in the mining sector and what are the supporting instruments, regulations, infrastructure and institutional aspects that are needed to reinforce this role within public supervisory mining agencies? This technical note explores...

The Millennium Development Goals were formalized in the Millennium Declaration, which was endorsed by 189 Heads of State and Government at the United Nations Millennium Summit of 2000. Achieving these Goals through sustainable growth and advances in key areas such as education, health,...

The stories included in this volume were published originally in IDBAmérica and tell of new approaches the people of Latin America and the Caribbean are taking to protect the rainforest, reduce erosion, conserve marine life, create protected areas, and ensure a better future for themselves and...