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Asia-Pacific Futures in 2040 : raising ambitions for a healthy environment
Get PDFThe Asia Pacific region is exposed to a risk landscape of natural disasters and environmental change, income inequality, gender-based and other socio-cultural discrimination, and economic and political pressures that are aggravated by climate change and COVID-19.
Ecosystem health, and the health of the region’s people, are increasingly entwined. In this setting Asian and Pacific economies have become among the most resource-intensive and waste-producing in the world. Biodiversity loss here is the most rapid and serious among all regions, amid Earth’s sixth mass species extinction.
Futures thinking and participatory foresight methods help explore worldviews and myths that underlie present and alternative futures. Workshops in 2020 brought together more than 100 government officials, civil society representatives, academics, development partners and ESCAP colleagues. The results of those workshops were synthesized and deepened to define alternative scenarios and a possible path forward.
Five drivers of systemic change were examined in this process and discussed in this report: (1) growing environmental consciousness, (2) evolving food systems, (3) increasing demand for natural resources and shifts in ownership and control, (4) rural–urban dynamics, and (5) environmental governance. Insights into each helped inform the scenarios and promote understanding of the changes needed for reaching a desired future.
This report provides brief insights on the current challenges, and considerations for the future in four environmental domains: climate action; clean air; healthy ecosystems; and sustainable urbanization, presented in the “Insights” special section. These four domains feature heavily in the four scenarios described in this report.
Four alternative scenarios provide clarity on the scale of ambition needed, and are presented to support social and institutional dialogue and decision-making.
- A Green Anthropocene - an “ideal” scenario.
- The Rivers Run Dry - a “disowned” scenario.
- Great Collapse - an “outlier” scenario in four parts.
- The Yangtze River Dolphin Returns -an “integrated” scenario.
The final chapter targets the 2040 scenario “the Yangtze River Dolphin returns” with a roadmap that opens opportunities for alternative futures. Possible milestones on the path to 2040 are defined in four phases:
- 2021 to 2024 — Building infrastructure for change.
- 2025 to 2029 — Confidence raises ambition.
- 2030 to 2034 — Consolidating the gains.
- 2035 to 2040 — Rising to new levels.
The milestones on the roadmap to 2040 focus on environment and development interventions. In keeping with the times, or perhaps as a reaction to the times, they are aimed at strengthening solidarity, cooperation and transparency, as a basis for reinvigorating multilateralism and forging new partnerships for an alternative, preferred Asia and the Pacific in 2040.<br
Energy transition pathways for the 2030 agenda : sustainable energy transition roadmap for Iskandar Malaysia
No full textTransitioning the energy sector to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the objectives of the Paris Agreement presents a complex and challenging task for policymakers. It needs to ensure sustained economic growth as well as respond to increasing energy demand, reduce emissions and, more importantly, consider and capitalize on the interlinkages between Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG 7) and other SDGs. While achieving the SDG 7 and NDC targets is principally a national effort, it requires a combined contribution from stakeholders at various levels, such as subnational jurisdictions and cities.
ESCAP has designed the National Expert SDG Tool for Energy Planning (NEXSTEP) which enables policymakers to make informed policy decisions to support the achievement of the SDG7 targets as well as emission reduction targets (NDCs). The tool is widely implemented in several countries and sub-national regions in the Asia Pacific.
The Iskandar Malaysia region is one of the first sub-national regions in the Asia Pacific to develop its Sustainable Energy Transition (SET) roadmap. The SET roadmap presents a detailed assessment of the region’s current energy situation against the SDG 7 indicators. Building on Iskandar Malaysia’s existing efforts, the SET roadmap offers a range of options across the economy, for reducing emissions, saving energy and lowering costs. It takes a holistic approach to energy system planning using scenario-based energy modelling and considers the complex synergies within the energy system in achieving the SDG and NDC targets.
ESCAP would like to extend our appreciation to Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) and the local stakeholders for their continued cooperation and support in developing this roadmap.</p
Asia-Pacific tech monitor. Vol. 22, No. 2, Mar - Apr 2005
No full textIncubation success : A start-up venture opportunity model for Asia and the Pacific / Bong Jin Cho
A greenhouse for SMEs : Technology business incubators in China / Yu Shi
Turning high-tech into new ventures : Government support through Taiwan's ITRI / C. J. Chang
IC design start-up venture : Opportunities in Hong Kong / Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation
Environmental protection in Opportunities for SMEs / Huang Long
Business incubation in Russia : Problems and perspectives / Veniamin Kagano
Statistical newsletter. No. 55, September 1984
No full textThe Statistical Newsletter is published quarterly by the Statistics Division of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)
Sustainable urban transport index (SUTI) report : Greater Suva Area, Fiji
No full textGreater Suva Area, includes four cities Suva, Nasinu, Nausori, and Lami Towns. Suva the capital of Fiji, is one of largest city in the Pacific with population of about 280,000 (2014 estimate). Due to population growth in urban areas and other emerging towns, Greater Suva Area suffers from various urban transport problems. Lack of reliable public transport systems, good transport infrastructures, bus stops and facilities, increasing fuel consumption and vehicle emission are few to mention. In order to assess the state of urban transportation systems and services in the Greater Suva area, the Sustainable Urban Transportation Index (SUTI) developed by UNESCAP is used which has 10 indicators. Through 10 indicators an urban transport system of a city can be evaluated. A quantitative analysis of Greater Suva urban transport system, is done in this report using SUTI tool. The basic benefit of this study is that it can provide the Town councils and the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, Fiji and Road Authority and other related stakeholders a policy direction to focus on improving overall accessibility and sustainability of urban transport systems and services. The data collection guideline developed by UN ESCAP is used for data collection and data analysis. Number of meetings took place in the Ministry, a workshop with key stakeholders was held at UNESCAP Pacific Office, SUTI was presented at the National Transport Forum in Lami on October 2018. The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, Fiji took the lead and coordinated with stakeholders for data collection and compilation (mostly based on secondary data). The geometric mean of the index is 53. 94 which interprets that overall transport system is in fairly good situation, However, the analysis indicates that the areas that needs attention. Firstly, the comprehensive city mobility plan should include facilities for pedestrian and cyclists, and the coverage of public transport accessibility is 60 per cent which needs improvement. The report also points out the need to have policies and actions in place to improve mode share of active and public transport, more investment in public transport, lack of air quality monitoring stations indicates the need to establish a new station, even though GHG emissions is within limit- in order to make transport carbon neutral – many policies and initiatives are required. In addition, Greater Suva area and Fiji should work towards improving overall SUTI score by improving the indicators mentioned above. For additional reports or materials on Sustainable urban transport index, please click here
The Covid-19 pandemic and violence against women in Asia and the Pacific
No full textIn the background of the global public health and economic turmoil of the Covid-19 pandemic lurks another crisis: rising rates of violence against women (VAW). This paper provides a preliminary understanding of how the Covid-19 pandemic influences the prevalence of VAW within Asia and the Pacific
E-resilience readiness of ICT infrastructure
No full textThe COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for digital connectivity and transformation to mitigate the impact of
economic slowdown, sustain well-being, and speed up e-resilience readiness, and build back better. Social distancing has
generated higher demand for fast and reliable broadband connectivity to support the growing information flows. Since
March 2020, data traffic has increased all over the world and surged the demand for broadband Internet connection to
overcome economic lockdowns, while challenging the adaptive capabilities of underlying Information and
Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure.
ESCAP has identified four important inter-dependent entry areas that must be covered under the e-resilience dashboard at
the national level and grouped ICT indicators under them:
ICT policy in different sectors build the foundation for e-resilience modelling;
ICT’s role in setting up new systems and applications is important in e-adaptation and
recovering from the current and future pandemics;
ICTs’ role in data management (gathering, analysis, and decision making) leads into actions and policies which influence
disaster resilience and adaptability;
ICT infrastructure resilience is a physical foundation for all the above.</p
Financing the SDGs to build back better from the COVID-19 pandemic in Asia and the Pacific
No full textThe 2021 issue of ESCAP’s Financing for Development Series, Financing the SDGs to build back better from the COVID-19 pandemic in Asia and the Pacific, reviews a range of financing instruments, strategies and mechanisms that can help Asia-Pacific economies recover from the pandemic and effectively pursue the SDGs. In particular, the report takes a “deep dive” on the role of innovative climate and digital finance strategies to address the financing gaps and support the achievement of the SDGs, and it suggests key regulatory and solution-oriented policy actions that can help scaling up financing in support of the SDGs.
While countries prioritize speedy economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is critical that financial flows are not diverted away from the SDGs and climate action and that policymakers “build back better” by enhancing the resilience of their economies. However, the rising debt burden faced by developing countries in the region is becoming a daunting challenge and squeezing fiscal space considerably. Therefore, innovative financing instruments are required to both streamline existing financial flows and generate additional financial resources in a fiscally responsible and sustainable manner. The “deep dive” chapter on innovative climate financing covers policy instruments and mechanisms such as thematic bonds, including green, sustainability, and SDG-linked bonds, climate risk disclosure and reporting, and debt-for-climate swaps. It also discusses the importance of enabling policy frameworks for climate action.
The other “deep dive” chapter looks at the potential of digital finance to support the achievement of the SDGs. Digital finance has the potential to transform how we engage in economic activities and do business. New innovative solutions in the digital space are enabling unbanked and underbanked individuals to access financing and engage in the real economy. Digital platforms linked with digital payment systems have also supported businesses to swiftly transition during the pandemic to online means of doing business. Despite the global shift towards digital finance, barriers still remain. Digital infrastructure, interoperable payment systems, the ability for financial clients to meet customer due-diligence processes are just a few of the critical challenges still faced by the policymakers and regulators in ensuring an inclusive and competitive digital finance ecosystem. The publication takes a critical look at these challenges and identifies opportunities and innovations which can drive digital finance adoption in the Asia Pacific region
