Miscellaneous Knowledge Notes
589 items available
Permanent URI for this collection
Items in this collection
1 - 9 of 9
-
Publication
The Role of Existing Social Protection Programs in Alleviating Poverty Caused by Large-Scale Negative Shocks
(World Bank, Malaysia, 2021-09-02)The deep global recession induced by Covid-19 (coronavirus) is putting at risk the gains in poverty reduction made over the past three decades. The ability of existing social protection programs to prevent a permanent increase in poverty is thus of obvious importance. Yet, research on their performance during and after large aggregate shocks is largely missing. This Brief provides evidence by examining the performance of cash transfer programs in Indonesia and the Philippines following two recent natural disasters. One of them, Typhoon Yolanda, is an extreme weather event of the kind expected to become more common as global climate change intensifies. The results presented also contribute to the broader discussion on adaption to climate change and the need to provide adequate protection mechanisms to affected populations. -
Publication
Livestock Wastes
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2018-03-23)The livestock sector is a major and growing source of pollution across the world as rising global demand for animal products including beef, pork, poultry, and dairy products is leading livestock operations to not only expand their output, but also to concentrate spatially, intensify, and separate from plant agriculture. Although livestock system outputs are growing faster than their spatial footprint—as managed grazing is giving way to confined, grain-based feeding—this pattern of development has major drawbacks and this note focuses on those related to animal wastes.1 In parts of both the developed and developing world, animal wastes have become a leading source of surface and ground water pollution as they are a major vector of unwanted nutrients, and alsocarry pathogens, antibiotics, hormones, heavy metals, other minerals, and pesticides. Through the release of particulate matter and other air pollutants, they are also a cause of foul odors, haze, acid rain, a loss of soil fertility, and air quality-related disease, while their potent greenhousegas emissions contribute to climate change. -
Publication
Plastics
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2018-03-23)Although the agricultural sector is not the largest user of plastics, their rapid appearance on farms the world over is quietly turning into a substantial pollution concern. Versatile and economical as they are, plastics are found all over farms. From machines to mulches, they are the stuff of bags and tubs, of tubes and tools, of tags and trays, and of pots and twine. Plastic films are used to cover greenhouses and hug plants around the root zone. Other kinds of plastics are used as ingredients in chemicals. Farms use millions of tons of plastics each year, costing them billions of dollars, a testament to how useful they are. To the extent that they can help to save water, dissuade pests, suppress weeds with less reliance on chemicals or fire, and save fuelby lightening equipment and containers, some of their wide-ranging benefits include ecological ones. Yet more than unsightly, discarded plastics can damage farmland and cause harm to humans and wildlife alike, making their celebrated durability a long-term pollution and public health worry. -
Publication
Field Burning
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2018-03-23)The practice of burning unwanted vegetation to prepare land for sowing crops or other farming activities is a worldwide and long-standing practice. Its tenacity, despite its harmful consequences for air quality, soil health, and the climate is a testament to its convenience and acceptance among farmers across a wide range of farming systems and agroclimatic zones. Burning is so broadly perceived as being natural that even its immediate toxicity is generally overlooked. Overall, there is no greater source of primary fine carbonaceous particles than biomass burning, and it is the second largest source of trace gases in the atmosphere. Yet while the polluting effects of burning are seldom a concern of agricultural producers, the act of burning often defies farmers’ own understanding of the multiple benefits of biomass residues, which include nourishing and improving soils. That said, the embrace in the past two decades of alternatives such as no-till farming on a fairly wide scale in parts of Europe, Asia, and especially the Americas, demonstrates that change is possible with the right mix of public sector support and regulation. -
Publication
Understanding the Role of Forests in Enhancing Livelihoods and Climate Resilience: Case Studies in the Philippines
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2017-03)This policy brief presents the findings of a recent study focusing on two important aspects of forest ecosystems: how forest ecosystems help enhance people’s resilience to climate impacts, and how forest ecosystems support livelihood development for the poor. -
Publication
The Cost of Fire: An Economic Analysis of Indonesia’s 2015 Fire Crisis
(World Bank, Jakarta, 2016-02)In a five-month period, man-made fire cost Indonesia $16.1 billion or 2 percent of GDP in 2015. An estimated 2.6 million hectares – an area four times the size of Bali – burned. While the 2015 fires were some of the worst in recent years (in part as a result of el Nino), they are by no means a singular event. Wide-scale fire crises occur annually in Indonesia. Indonesia’s fire story is not just one of loss and damage; fires contribute to significant economic upside for a diverse, if concentrated, group of actors. However, the majority of Indonesians suffer as a result of the economic and physical damage. This document provides a loss and damage analysis of the 2015 fires and explores not just economic costs, but environmental costs as well. It also looks at the important role that fire plays in commodity crops, particularly oil palm, and the actors who benefit. -
Publication
Promoting Green Growth through Water Resources Management: The Case of Republic of Korea
( 2016-01-01)Water security and water quality affect numerous economic sectors and areas: agriculture, energy, disaster management, and others. Countries need balanced and integrated approaches that are economically, environmentally, and socially sustainable. Threats related to climate change have added to the complexity, and to the importance, of water resource management. Korea’s integrated water resources management approach since the 1990s reflects the country’s “green” climate-resilient development path. The Korean Green Growth Trust Fund’s (KGGTF) 3rd “Knowledge Note”, Promoting Green Growth through Water Resources Management: the Case of Republic of Korea, outlines key responses to Korea’s water resource challenges. The report highlights the Korean Government’s “Four Major River Restoration Project (4MRRP)”, a multi-purpose, green-growth infrastructure initiative. Involving five ministries and 78 local authorities in a comprehensive and integrated approach, the Note showcases lessons from 4MRRP for other countries to learn from Korea’s experience overcoming institutional, legislative, governance, technical and financial hurdles. -
Publication
Leaping Forward in Green Transport: The Case of Korea
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015)What do Bangkok, Cairo, Lagos, Mumbai, and Nairobi have in common? These megacities, like others in burgeoning emerging market economies, are magnets for people seeking better opportunities. They also suffer from serious traffic congestion, high levels of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and heavy air pollution. These urban areas face a stark dilemma: economic expansion attracts more people and vehicles; but the resulting traffic and pollution hinder further growth while reducing the quality of life for their citizens. In spite of rapid growth, urbanization, and motorization, Korea has succeeded so well in expanding the use of public transport that it has stabilized energy consumption per capita in the road sector. In 2010, Korea took aim at a new 10-year goal with its green transport master plan: reduce GHG emissions by one-third while maintaining its competitiveness. To do so, Korea seems poised to create more cutting-edge transport innovations that can serve as models for other countries. -
Publication
The Green Growth Movement in the Republic of Korea: Option or Necessity?
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015)To achieve the new national development vision, Korean leadership took a strategic approach in which the government played an active role, similar to the visionary approach used to achieve rapid economic development in the 1960s and 1970s. The government established a legal framework on low carbon and green growth, set up a governance structure to implement green growth initiatives systematically, and established fiscal policies and budget resources to support the initiatives firmly. The purpose of this note is primarily to explain why Korea adopted a green growth strategy as a new national development paradigm and how it was implemented by the government. Section one gives overview; section two illustrates why green growth was a necessity in Korea; section three describes how green growth was implemented by the Korean government, particularly with respect to institutional arrangements and fiscal adjustments for green growth; section four presents the key outcomes thus far; and section five identifies lessons that can be applied in other countries.