Over the last 50 years, nine out of ten natural disasters around the world have been the result of extreme weather and climate events. Storms, floods, droughts, heatwaves, dust storms, wildfires and many other natural hazards threaten the lives and livelihoods of millions of people worldwide.
The South Asia Environment Outlook 2009 covers the state and trends of the environment (land, air, water, biodiversity) and five key issues - Climate Change, Food Security, Water Security,
International investors have recently shown a fast-growing interest in land in developing countries. The IIED, the FAO and IFAD drew attention to the phenomenon of large-scale real estate purchases. In this article, two of the study's authors bemoan that international media coverage has since emphasised the risks involved-without much regard for opprtunities.
