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Ten days of Exploration in the Gardens of the Queen

JOINT STATEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE REPUBLIC OF CUBA ON COOPERATION ON ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

JOINT STATEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ANDTHE REPUBLIC OF CUBA ON COOPERATION ON ENVIRONMENTALPROTECTION

Finding Common Ground on Environmental and Safety Preparedness for Offshore Oil and Gas in Cuba  

President Obama’s decision to resume diplomatic relations with Cuba opens up a new level of collaboration and exchange with the Cuban partners that Environmental Defense Fund has cultivated for more than 13 years – while reminding us that the island’s much-needed economic development may also bring new environmental challenges. 

With relations between the United States and Cuba continuing to improve, we knew it was just a matter of time before this new political reality would trickle down to the ocean floor. 

As leaders of US non-profit organizations and academic institutions at the intersection ofscience and society, we look forward to working with you and your administration. Our purpose is to ask that in the first 100 days of your administration you resume diplomatic dialogue on environmental matters with the government of Cuba and reverse current administration policies and regulations that have restricted scientific and professional exchange between Americans and Cubans.

This publication is the product of the wisdom, research, field work, and commitment ofa highly diverse group of environmentalists from Cuba and the United States, many ofwhom have been working together for over two decades.

The shallow, nearshore and intertidal areas of tropical regions across the globe harbor some of the most productive and diverse, but also most heavily impacted, marine ecosystems in the world (Wilkinson 2008; De’ath et al. 2012). By virtue of their proximity, coral reefs are inextricably linked to mangrove forests and seagrass beds, in terms of both facing common threats and supporting common species

Currently there is a strong interest in Cuba in improving the performance of the fisheries sector with respect to social, biological, and economic outcomes. Many important fishery resources appear to be overexploited, and previous fishery regulations have had mixed success in restoring fishery stocks. 

A slow rate of economic developmentand a national commitment to sustainable developmenthas enabled Cuba to maintain some of the best preservedmarine ecosystems in the Caribbean region.

Coastal areas of Cuba harbor richbiodiversity that provide a variety of important ecosystemservices, including fisheries production. High-valueinvertebrate fisheries in Cuba are managed on the basis ofscientific assessments, but comparable data and analysesare lacking for the much larger number of exploited finfishspecies.

Sustainable livelihoods inCuba’s coastal zones:The challenge of achieving climateresilience in tourism, energy, fisheries,agriculture, and communities

Medios de vida sostenibles en las zonascosteras cubanas: el desafío de lograr laresiliencia climática en turismo, energía,pesca, agricultura y comunidades

The challenge is clear: if tropical deforestation were a country, it would rank fourth, only behind China, the US, and India in emissions. However, the solution is even clearer: these same forests can provide 23% of the cost-effective climate mitigation needed before 2030, if the right economic incentives are in place.[1] Despite numerous pledges, forest …

The Wittmans are using sustainable farming practices today to ensure their family farm endures changing climate conditions. 

The Canadian government is likely overlooking an important source of climate pollution. Surface casing vent flow and gas migration (types of underground leakage from oil and gas wells) has the potential to leak a lot of methane, but according to new research, neither governments nor companies know how much.

This week the House marked up five funding bills that would dramatically cut funding for federal agencies that protect our air and water and are tasked with reducing the pollution impacting our health, our climate and the severity and frequency of extreme weather, like Hurricane Beryl. House Republicans’ funding bills propose slashing EPA funding to 1998 levels, Department of Energy clean energy programs by 43% and NOAA funding by 11%, and collectively include over 50 harmful environmental provisions that do not belong in funding bills.

Statement from Rosalie Winn, Director and Lead Counsel, Methane and Clean Air Policy, Environmental Defense Fund

There is disagreement about the potential for regenerative management practices to sequester sufficient soil organic carbon (SOC) to help mitigate climate change. Measuring change in SOC stocks following practice adoption at the grain of farm fields, within the extent of regional agriculture, could help resolve this disagreement

The impacts from climate change will continue to escalate in the years ahead, and a growing number of scientists, philanthropies and companies have become interested in strategies to lower global temperatures more quickly. One of the options is reflecting some sunlight back into space.   Because the consequences of Solar Radiation Modification (SRM), as it’s called,

A hot topic we like to discuss is trade associations – and a coalition of organizations including Race to Zero and WBCSD have you covered

The 2014 Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) created, for the first time and on an unprecedented scale, a mandate to change how groundwater is managed statewide in California. While enacting SGMA was a tremendous step forward, communities and water districts now face the considerable challenge of creating successful groundwater management programs.

On June 17, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) was represented by our expert witnesses at a technical conference before the NC Utilities Commission (NCUC). Each of the intervenors in the Carbon Plan/Integrated Resource Plan docket, including EDF, were given a few minutes to briefly summarize testimony filed in May. EDF’s testimony centered around the need …

The last few years have seen big climate wins in the U.S. Here are five success stories you might have missed.