tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-156362182009-11-20T12:20:25.192+02:00Flow : information for Okavango Delta planningA service of the Harry Oppenheimer Okavango Research Centre (HOORC) Library to stakeholders in the management of Botswana's Okavango Delta.
HOORC is a research centre of the University of Botswana.Monica Morrison at OKACOM Secretariathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11900666913849662642noreply@blogger.comBlogger1041125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-22424586241649250322009-11-20T10:00:00.005+02:002009-11-20T12:15:10.103+02:00BIOKAVANGO Community of Practice LuncheonThis month's BIOKAVANGO Community of Practice luncheon was given a brief talk by Mr. Kent Burger on the the ongoing development of the Okavango Delta Information System (ODIS). The presenter stated that The Harry Oppenheimer Okavango Research Centre (HOORC) has participated in the Okavango Delta Management Plan (ODMP) as the custodian of the Okavango Delta Information System (ODIS).ODIS was HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-74537034663374455942009-11-19T08:43:00.000+02:002009-11-19T08:43:00.520+02:00New at HOORC's Library: conserving and valuing ecosystem services and biodiversityThis book is a collection of chapters addressing the economic, institutional and social challenges confronting scientists and policy makers in conserving biodiversity and ecosystem critical for sustaining human well being and development. The book covers a wide range of themes and issues such as economics and valuation of biodiversity and ecosystem services, social aspects of conservation HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-30722104533347078542009-11-19T08:00:00.006+02:002009-11-19T08:11:54.294+02:00New at HOORC's Library: conserving and valuing ecosystem services and biodiversity This book is a collection of chapters addressing the economic, institutional and social challenges confronting scientists and policy makers in conserving biodiversity and ecosystem critical for sustaining human well being and development. The book covers a wide range of themes and issues such as economics and valuation of biodiversity and ecosystem services, social aspects of conservation HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-18754407385146409782009-11-18T08:36:00.002+02:002009-11-18T08:41:39.710+02:00Indigenous Tourism and Biodiversity Website AwardThe Indigenous Tourism and Biodiversity Website Award is a collaborative effort between Planeta and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity/UNEP with the generous support of the Heidehof Foundation. The award is presented to indigenous tourism operations for their websites that promotes sustainable practices and educates visitors on cultural protocols and biodiversity HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-86742032713373427092009-11-17T07:51:00.002+02:002009-11-17T07:55:00.488+02:00Safe Water as the Key to Global HealthThe report presents statistics which highlight the consequences for communities in developing countries as a result of non-provision of these very fundamental human needs. Lack of access to safe water and adequate sanitation are the leading causes of morbidity and mortality, particularly amongst children. Indirect and adverse consequences on education levels, nutrition and economy are also HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-48642628800640826392009-11-16T09:39:00.003+02:002009-11-16T09:44:59.017+02:00Climate Change in AfricaThis book outlines current thinking and evidence on climate change, uses case studies to look at issues ranging from natural disasters to biofuels, and addresses what future there might be for Africa in a carbon-constrained world. Climate change is a major challenge for us all, but for African countries it represents a particular threat. This book outlines current thinking and evidence and the HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-73442922170533975662009-11-12T08:33:00.006+02:002009-11-12T10:17:07.397+02:00Assessing Progress in Africa towards the Millennium Development GoalsThis Report presents a picture that is slightly at variance with many other reports on Africa’s progress towards the targets of the MDGs. It shows that progress is being made in a number of areas such as primary enrolment, gender parity in primary education, malaria deaths, and representation of women in parliaments. If this rate of progress continues, the continent will be on course to meet a HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-79080998072156463962009-11-11T10:35:00.003+02:002009-11-12T13:02:13.163+02:00The Spread of New Diseases and the Climate ConnectionAs humans increasingly encroach on forested lands and as temperatures rise, the transmission of disease from animals and insects to people is growing. Now a new field, known as “conservation medicine,” is exploring how ecosystem disturbance and changing interactions between wildlife and humans can lead to the spread of new pathogens. See http://e360.yale.edu/content/feature.msp?id=2199HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-35392318143957930782009-11-10T17:38:00.003+02:002009-11-10T17:42:40.475+02:00Negotiating Natural Resources for Peace: Ownership, Control and Wealth-SharingNatural resources (such as oil, natural gas, diamonds, minerals, forests and water) are often a major source of national income, and are also a major cause of conflict and instability if mismanaged or shared unfairly. Countries with weak institutions often struggle to handle the potentially destructive force of corruption and attempts by various actors to capture the wealth generated by natural HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-21971068959803615192009-11-09T11:16:00.003+02:002009-11-09T11:38:52.971+02:00Arsenic in groundwater The International Groundwater Resources Assessment Centre (IGRAC) has published Arsenic in Groundwater: A World Problem, the report of a seminar held in Utrecht in 2006. The publication includes sections about sources and distribution of arsenic in groundwater and aquifers, geochemical experimentation and modelling tools for understanding the origin of arsenic in groundwater, a review of arsenicMonica Morrison at OKACOM Secretariathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11900666913849662642noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-63497491288692212732009-11-07T10:13:00.000+02:002009-11-07T10:13:00.122+02:00Two new reports about eflow methodologyEFlowNet recently featured two new World Bank reports that focus on address a fundamental shortcoming in most water resources investments, planning and policy reforms to date, particularly, the inadequate protection of environmental flow conditions in rivers, lakes, wetlands, estuaries and groundwater systems. You can download the full text of Environmental flows in water resources policies, Monica Morrison at OKACOM Secretariathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11900666913849662642noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-5991324612302884102009-11-06T17:06:00.000+02:002009-11-06T17:06:26.300+02:00Giant crack in Africa may create a new ocean - LiveScience- msnbc.comAnybody else worried about this 35mile wide crack in Ethiopia? I definitely am....Giant crack in Africa may create a new ocean - LiveScience- msnbc.comMasego Dhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01788146046499486774noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-85571616653792604292009-11-06T08:06:00.008+02:002009-11-06T08:12:27.620+02:00Community management of natural resources in Africa: Impacts, experiences and future directionsFor more than twenty years now, community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) has been viewed in many different parts of Africa as a strategy for rural development, local empowerment, and conservation. Led by new ideas about the merits of decentralized, collective resource governance regimes, and creative field experiments such as Zimbabwe’s CAMPFIRE, these community-based approaches HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-3176710586888702622009-11-05T07:51:00.003+02:002009-11-05T07:55:30.286+02:00The impact of South African supermarkets on agricultural development in the SADC: a case study in Zambia, Namibia and BotswanaTo assess the impact of supermarket chains on various participants in the supply chain, a survey was carried out in Botswana, Namibia and Zambia in 2004, 2005 and 2007. To determine the factors that influence the choice between the supermarket or traditional market channel and the impact of participation in the supermarket supply chain, a two-step treatment model was used. The results showed thatHOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-7407202786173224362009-11-04T07:51:00.007+02:002009-11-04T07:58:59.827+02:00Water as an an increasingly precious resource and sanitation as a matter of dignityHalf the population of the developing world still lives without basic sanitation and almost 900 million people lack safe and reliable water supplies. DFID’s new water policy has been adopted by the UK as response to these challenges. It sets out the steps to be followed if the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) on water and sanitation are to be met. It describes how it aims to help countries HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-84681092662464060342009-11-03T07:40:00.004+02:002009-11-03T07:44:11.501+02:00World Forestry Congress 2009At the XIII World Forestry Congress in Buenos Aires (18-23 October 2009), delegates called for the broadest possible coalition to address the many challenges the forestry sector is facing. A final declaration, adopted by the Congress, called for immediate “multi-sector responses” to rapid global changes. “Today, the major pressures on forests are arising from outside the forest sector, such as HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-31516537509438524752009-11-02T11:53:00.004+02:002009-11-02T11:56:11.528+02:00World Bank Group Environment StrategyThe World Bank Group (WBG) is preparing a new Environment Strategy to be presented to the Board of Executive Directors by December 2010. The new Strategy will propose an approach for achieving environmental sustainability at the WBG to ensure that its support to client countries leads to sustainable development outcomes. The WBG has made progress as an advocate for the environment since 1990, hasHOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-7499119473566012842009-11-01T17:52:00.006+02:002009-11-01T18:28:48.478+02:00Okavango river basin study at GEF International Waters Conference Angolans contributing to TDA study, courtesy of Chaminda RajapakseA delegation from the Permanent Okavango River Basin Commission (OKACOM) has just returned from the Global Environment Facility’s Fifth International Waters Conference in Cairns, Australia from October 24-29, 2009. There, the Environmental Protection and Sustainable Management of the Okavango River Basin (EPSMO) Project team Monica Morrison at OKACOM Secretariathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11900666913849662642noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-72199528614486778992009-10-29T08:16:00.010+02:002009-10-29T09:08:49.215+02:00Geological Society of America 2009 ConferenceHOORC scientist Dr. Sorcha Diskin recently attended the Geological Society of America conference in Portland, Oregon, from (18th – 21st October 2009), where she presented a paper entitled "Geochemical and mineralogical indicators of stratigraphy and provenance of the Karoo supergroup in Southern Botswana" in the Geochemical Approaches to Sedimentary Provenance Studies session. The conference was HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-3746791128931653332009-10-28T08:06:00.004+02:002009-10-28T08:09:13.140+02:00Change at hand: Web 2.0 for developmentWeb 2.0 tools and approaches are changing the ways we create, share, collaborate and publish digital information through the Internet. Participatory Web 2.0 for development – or Web2forDev for short – is a means of employing web services to intentionally improve information-sharing and online collaboration for development. Web 2.0 presents new opportunities for change as well as challenges that HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-67293237124383314342009-10-27T09:00:00.004+02:002009-10-27T10:25:31.062+02:00Beyond Aid: Climate Change and FundingThe lives of millions of poor people is being affected by climate related shocks which are occurring with increasing frequency and severity. Analysts have predicted that without urgent action, recent development progress will stall—then go into reverse.The international community must make a new commitment to fund adaptation to climate change. A global adaptation finance mechanism is needed, ableHOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-83988170411882025142009-10-26T09:00:00.006+02:002009-10-26T09:04:02.681+02:00Mapping drought patterns and impacts: a global perspectiveThis report looks at climate change and water adaptation aspects in ongoing processes of formulating and implementing National Adaptation Programmes of Action – NAPAs. It discusses that the NAPA’s main objective is to serve as a direct channel where the least developed countries (LDCs) may communicate their urgent and immediate needs, which by nature is urgent but which does not necessarily have HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-29774280175081720012009-10-24T14:09:00.002+02:002009-10-24T14:25:04.785+02:00African Water WeekThe South African Department of Water Affairs is arranging and hosting the Second African Water Week (AWW2) conference for the African Minister's Council on Water (AMCOW) for the period 9 to 11 November 2009 in Johannesburg. OKACOM Executive Secretary Dr Eben Chonguiça will co-chair a session, Managing Africa's Transboundary Waters on November 10th. AMCOW, as a region-wide ministerial body, has Monica Morrison at OKACOM Secretariathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11900666913849662642noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-14278399033943437142009-10-23T11:42:00.006+02:002009-10-23T11:58:31.673+02:00New in HOORC's Library: Best practices for teaching statistics and research methods in behavioral scienceThe book showcases "best practices" in teaching statistics and research methods .Its coverage includes the some of the following: how to promote ethical conduct, how to create writing intensive programs and offers tips on linking diversity to research methodology. This book appeals anyone interested in research methods and/or statistics in psychology and other behavioral sciences and serves as anHOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15636218.post-75246383161435906802009-10-21T08:28:00.002+02:002009-10-21T14:23:36.536+02:00Buffer zones and conservation of propertiesAccording to the World Heritage List, buffer zones have been cited as an important tool for conservation of properties. For a long time the implementation of the World Heritage Convention, and the protection of the “surroundings” of the inscribed properties was considered an essential component of the conservation strategy, for cultural and natural sites alike. The World Heritage Committee took HOORC Libraryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18013709459755554583library@orc.ub.bw0