<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	>

<channel>
	<title>Council on Hemispheric Affairs &#187; Environment</title>
	<atom:link href="http://www.coha.org/category/browsebytopic/environment/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://www.coha.org</link>
	<description>COHA is an NGO specialized in monitoring Latin American and Canadian Relations for more than 30 years...</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:30:03 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en</language>
	<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
	<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
	<generator>http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1</generator>
		<item>
		<title>Re: &#8220;Food Crisis as Drought and Cold Hit Mexico&#8221; by Karla Zabludovsky</title>
		<link>http://www.coha.org/re-food-crisis-as-drought-and-cold-hit-mexico-by-karla-zabludovsky/</link>
		<comments>http://www.coha.org/re-food-crisis-as-drought-and-cold-hit-mexico-by-karla-zabludovsky/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 08 Feb 2012 20:09:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[COHA Letters to the Editor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[In the News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mexico]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Drought]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[In The News]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.coha.org/?p=15852</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In the article, Karla Zabludovsky discusses the harsh conditions in Mexico during its recent drought crisis, adverse crop-devastating weather patterns and how the indigenous and rural communities have been absorbing such blows. The indigenous communities that are located predominantly in the north are among the poorest in Mexico and those living there rely almost exclusively on subsistence farming. The land that they have is depleted and showing incredible signs of immense strain; it is estimated only seven percent of the land available for crop production is arable. This situation is expected only to get worse with the Mexican authorities already acknowledging that it will take at least five months to properly aid the most severely affected regions, when the rainy season begins and naturally ameliorate drought-related strains. Although the Mexican government has pledged over two billion dollars for temporary relief, five months without aggressive action could do irrevocable damage to crop supply. This would compound already existing problems involving crippling poverty and a deteriorating agribusiness sector. Not only is the land threatened but access to clean water also has been compromised. Without well thought out action and measured implementation of programs geared to alleviate desertification and to prevent the continual [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.coha.org/re-food-crisis-as-drought-and-cold-hit-mexico-by-karla-zabludovsky/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Rural Colombia: The Potential for the Future</title>
		<link>http://www.coha.org/rural-colombia-the-potential-for-the-future/</link>
		<comments>http://www.coha.org/rural-colombia-the-potential-for-the-future/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jan 2012 18:31:42 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Colombia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Indigenous Rights]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.coha.org/?p=15670</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The problems of Colombia’s rural populations have been extensively analyzed, mostly regarding their participation in the country’s historical domestic armed conflict. For example, numerous reports have focused on the violence of the guerrillas, paramilitaries, and narco-trafficking organizations that have forced families and even entire villages to abandon their native land and homes, becoming Internally Displaced People (IDP).[1] However, factors other than civil conflict can lead to the displacement of populations. Biofuel companies, the mining industry, and mega-construction projects have threatened the environment, food security, and agricultural biodiversity in rural Colombia, and have led to displacement and the dispossession of land.[2] Successive Colombian governments have exacerbated this problem by engaging in the indiscriminate allocation of exploitation licenses to private companies. Furthermore, several ongoing mega-projects fail both to uphold any standards of sustainability and to take into account the interests of the local population. This has created a need for a clearly defined national usage policy and an accompanying regulation and management system. These issues are rarely present in the national and international media, but have transformed the lives of many Colombians living in rural areas. El Quimbo Dam Expected to begin operating in 2014, the El Quimbo Hydroelectric Project Plant is located in Huila, a southwestern region of Colombia. It is [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.coha.org/rural-colombia-the-potential-for-the-future/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>From the Army Base to the Presidential Palace: What to Expect of Guatemala&#8217;s Otto Pérez Molina</title>
		<link>http://www.coha.org/from-the-army-base-to-the-presidential-palace-what-to-expect-of-otto-perez-molina/</link>
		<comments>http://www.coha.org/from-the-army-base-to-the-presidential-palace-what-to-expect-of-otto-perez-molina/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 10 Jan 2012 19:21:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[COHA Research]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Guatemala]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Human Rights]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Indigenous Rights]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.coha.org/?p=15542</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The turn-over in Guatemala’s leadership from Álvaro Colom to former army general Otto Pérez Molina demonstrates a dramatic shift in the population’s perceived priorities. In addition to tackling the nation’s notorious security problem, one of the worst in Latin America, among President-elect Pérez Molina’s most difficult challenges will be to foster foreign investment while respecting the territorial rights of the rural indigenous population. Skeptical human rights defenders around the globe will be watching Pérez Molina to see how serious he is about moving forward with investigations of civil war-era crimes and whether he will allow impunity to end for the suspected perpetrators of human rights violations and genocide. In a rare push to promote indigenous rights in his country, outgoing Guatemalan President Álvaro Colom promised during his campaign to create a government that would seek to unite the ethnically and culturally diverse nation. Following his 2007 electoral victory, he announced, “My objective is to convert Guatemala into a social-democratic country with a Mayan face, with a corn tamale scent, and with the natural beauty that God gave us. It will be a pure Guatemalan social democracy that strengthens the nation’s unity and identity.”[1] But the level of violence in Guatemala [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.coha.org/from-the-army-base-to-the-presidential-palace-what-to-expect-of-otto-perez-molina/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Brasil, Chile y Bolivia: El endeble equilibrio económico-ambiental</title>
		<link>http://www.coha.org/brasil-chile-y-bolivia-el-endeble-equilibrio-economico-ambiental/</link>
		<comments>http://www.coha.org/brasil-chile-y-bolivia-el-endeble-equilibrio-economico-ambiental/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:16:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Bolivia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Brazil]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Chile]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COHA Research]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Español]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.coha.org/?p=15291</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Esmerados en satisfacer su demanda de energía, los Gobiernos de Brasil y Chile impulsan proyectos de construcción de represas que enardecen la resistencia de grupos aborígenes. En Bolivia, se han organizado manifestaciones de tribus indígenas en rechazo de la propuesta de construcción de una autopista que atravesaría la zona donde subsisten. Involucrado en cada conflicto se encuentra también el poder judicial, que ha ordenado la suspensión de los proyectos en varias oportunidades. ¿Cuán compatibles son el impulso urbanizador y la búsqueda de la sostenibilidad ambiental y la conservación de los suelos? ¿Es concebible un modelo de desarrollo que no comprometa el medio ambiente y que respete los derechos de los grupos aborígenes? Interrogantes básicas de esta índole asoman en Brasil, Bolivia y Chile, tres países donde se registra un auge económico, en diversas manifestaciones, que exige inversiones en materia de energía e infraestructura. En cada miembro de esta tríada se debaten actualmente determinados proyectos que, salvando las considerables distancias, han provocado protestas y otros enfrentamientos entre gobernantes y gobernados. A su vez, enfocar tales conflictos desde un punto de vista global presenta la clásica pregunta: ¿Cómo actuar ante dos modos tan distintos de medir los beneficios del “progreso”? Brasil: La [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.coha.org/brasil-chile-y-bolivia-el-endeble-equilibrio-economico-ambiental/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Price of Civilization: Brazil, Bolivia, and Chile, Trapped between Development and Environmental Constraints</title>
		<link>http://www.coha.org/the-price-of-civilization-brazil-bolivia-and-chile-trapped-between-development-and-environmental-constraints/</link>
		<comments>http://www.coha.org/the-price-of-civilization-brazil-bolivia-and-chile-trapped-between-development-and-environmental-constraints/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 01 Dec 2011 17:13:12 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Bolivia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Brazil]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Chile]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[COHA Research]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.coha.org/?p=15226</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In Brazil and Chile, the government-backed plans to build two dams in order to increase their domestic energy supplies, have led to demonstrations by indigenous people to defend their access to their traditional lands. In Bolivia, a highway construction project has resulted in demonstrations by indigenous villagers living along the route of the proposed highway. Protests and demonstrations in these countries have been challenged in court where judges, in several key rulings, have suspended or halted construction projects. Introduction: Are urbanization and efforts toward environmental sustainability and land preservation compatible? Can we imagine a development strategy that does not destroy territory and also respects the rights of local indigenous populations? These are the fundamental questions that are arising in Brazil, Bolivia, and Chile; each of which are going through various types of economic booms that require investment in energy and infrastructure. In these countries, some projects under discussion, although widely different from each other, have generated protests and clashes between citizens and their governments. Placing these distinct disputes into a global perspective presents a classic problem: the clash between two different methodologies of weighing the benefits of “progress.” Brazil:  Belo Monte Dam The Belo Monte Dam, a proposed hydroelectric project [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.coha.org/the-price-of-civilization-brazil-bolivia-and-chile-trapped-between-development-and-environmental-constraints/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
		</item>
	</channel>
</rss>

