This paper is a synthesis of the key messages from the individual papers written by the Blue Planet Laureates, and discusses the current and projected state of the global and regional environment, and the implications for environmental, social and economic sustainability.

Preparations for the Rio+20 United Nations conference on sustainable development have begun, but the first round of preparatory meetings did not address important issues such as sustainable resource use, production and consumption.

Pollination of insect pollinated crops has been found to be correlated to pollinator abundance and diversity. Since organic farming has the potential to mitigate negative effects of agricultural intensification on biodiversity, it may also benefit crop pollination, but direct evidence of this is scant. We evaluated the effect of organic farming on pollination of strawberry plants focusing on if pollination success was higher on organic farms compared to conventional farms, and if there was a time lag from conversion to organic farming until an effect was manifested.

Despite the production of more food and extraction of more water
globally, wetlands continue to decline and public health and living
standards for many do not improve. This new report focuses on the often complex inter-relationships between wetland ecosystems and human health.

It is clear that in all regions of the world there will be continued growth in the demand for reliable supplies of water for climate change adaptation, food security, water security, human and economic development.

This publication provides corporate managers with a proactive approach to making the connection between ecosystem change and their business goals.

The UNEP Year Book 2012 depicts the status of key environmental indicators, shows that we have been experiencing an exceptional level of ecological extremes and highlights the benefits of soil carbon and decommissioning nuclear power plants.

 

Wetlands play a big role as the important recreational destinations which contribute to the increase in tourism industry. This paper evaluates the recreational value of Lake Victoria in Musoma Municipality. Primary data were gathered by administering the questionnaire to a sample of 120 recreationists. The socio-economic data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences. Quantification of wetland benefits was done by using Microsoft Excel. The travel cost method was mainly used to determine the recreational value of the Lake Victoria.

Wetlands are among the most productive and economically valuable ecosystems in the world. However, because of human activities, over half of the wetland ecosystems existing in North America, Europe, Australia, and China in the early 20th century have been lost. Ecological restoration to recover critical ecosystem services has been widely attempted, but the degree of actual recovery of ecosystem functioning and structure from these efforts remains uncertain.

Food security is a critical issue for Asia and the Pacific. The region is the world’s key supplier and largest consumer of food yet it is also home to the largest number of the world’s poor and hungry. It presents a stark contrast—a food bowl that is full to the brim but cannot feed those who need food the most just to survive.

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