Extreme weather events, partly caused by climate change, are already wreaking havoc, especially in the South. Both floods and droughts are expected to become more frequent and more severe and more people will be forced to live in vulnerable area...   Read more>>

Twelve South American countries have decided to deepen regional integration by investing heavily in intraregional infrastructural projects. But economic rationale collides with social and ecological goals.   Read more>>

Dirk Willem te Velde is the programme leader of the Investment and Growth Programme at the International Economic Development Group of the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) in London, United Kingdom. A year on from the collapse of Lehman Brothers and talk in developed countries has moved from recession to recovery. Financial conditions in developed countries have improved, there has been a boost in business confidence, export orders are growing, industrial production is increasing an...   Read more>>

Codes of conduct are supposed to regulate working conditions in garment and sport shoe factories all over the world. Following a shift away from government regulation the codes are rooted in corporate self-regulation. Efforts to coordinate these voluntary initiatives have so far not been effective. Stronger and more binding initiatives are needed.   Read more>>