The Shell Company of Thailand Limited recently participated in the Thailand SDGs Forum 2018: Localising the SDGs (Thailand’s Sustainable Business Guide) seminar organized by online news agencyThaipublica and the Thailand Sustainable Development Foundation.

Read more: Shell commits to ‘Believe-Become-Belong’ concept

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/997882/legarda-to-file-bills-to-ban-microplastics-single-use-plastics#ixzz5HYeiKk4m

5 June 2018

Indonesia - Despite growing pressures of development and urbanization, community members from Sendangsari village in Indonesia’s Yogyakarta province improved the local economy through sustainably managing their teak forest.

Read more: From the soil to the law, climate change efforts in Indonesia

Climate models predict that an increase in greenhouse gases will dry out the Amazon rainforest in the future while causing wetter conditions in the woodlands of Africa and Indonesia. Researchers at the University of California, Irvine, and other institutions have identified an unexpected but major factor in this worldwide precipitation shift: the direct response of the forests themselves to higher levels of carbon dioxide.

Read more: Scientists project a drier Amazon and wetter Indonesia in the future

As carbon dioxide rises due to the burning of fossil fuels, rice will lose some of its protein and vitamin content, putting millions of people at risk of malnutrition, scientists warned on Wednesday.

Read more: Global warming may have 'devastating' effects on rice: study

Urban areas have seen significant progress, with 91 percent of cities having access to an improved water supply and 73 percent having access to improved sanitation facilities.

Read more: Timor-Leste’s water sector can guide future investments, says a new report

One of the delights of the tropics is the delicious cool air in the evening. As the sun goes down, people move gratefully to their gardens or balconies, or flock to parks to enjoy the remains of the day—but not in Singapore. The city is too hot, especially in the evening, with temperatures that often remain in the high 20’s or low 30’s Celsius (82° – 86°F) throughout the night. This is not just, because Singapore has a tropical climate, but because the city has grown warmer in recent years due to the “Urban Heat Island” effect (UHI).

Read more: Cooling Singapore

MANILA, Philippines – The summer heat finally arrives in Manila and Filipinos are scouring malls for cooler alternatives and ice-cold treats. SM Aura Premier, however, takes the opportunity to bring to light a crisis affecting a species that badly needs its icy home back—the polar bears.

Read more: SM Aura Premier creates awareness on climate change this summer with polar bear exhibit

An international ocean conservation group has called for the formulation of science-based policy for the protection of the Philippine Rise as a precautionary approach to ensure sustainable use of the resources in the region, before any human activity can even be considered in the area.

According to Oceana Philippines vice president Gloria Ramos, the signing of a presidential proclamation declaring 17,000 hectares of the Philippine Rise as marine protected area and another 300,000 hectares as fisheries management area “paves the way for the conservation, management, and protection of corals, fisheries, and the rich biodiversity.”

Read more: Climate change, overfishing pose threats to Philippine Rise

by Wilson John Barbon (IIRR) and Eisen Bernardo (CCAFS Southeast Asia)

The establishment of Climate-Smart and Nutrition-Smart Villages in Myanmar is a major step in addressing food security and nutrition challenges.

In Myanmar, the adverse impacts of climate change are observed especially in the agriculture sector, due to increasing incidence of drought, more intense rains resulting in flooding, stronger cyclones, and salinization of farms. As an agricultural country with many smallholder farmers, the country’s food security, nutrition, and livelihoods are greatly affected by the threats of climate change.

Read more: Climate-Smart Villages launch in Myanmar