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NOVEMBER 2004 HEADLINES
New
Edition of "The World's Water" Set for Release
The 2004-2005 edition
of "The World's Water: The Biennial Report on Freshwater
Resources" (Island Press) will be released on November 17
in Washington, DC at The Woodrow Wilson Center for International
Scholars. In conjunction with the release, Dr. Peter Gleick will
present a talk on "The World's Water Crisis and the Need
for U.S. Leadership." The talk, scheduled to start at 10:00
am, will be available online via web cast. The book is available
from Island Press, Amazon.com and other outlets.
The fourth edition
of this well-regarded series covers a wide range of important
water-related topics: how to meet the basic needs of over 1 billion
people without access to clean water, the controversy over public
vs. private water, the role of conservation and efficiency in
solving water problems, and concerns about skyrocketing bottled
water use. Other chapters delve into the economic value of water,
the unsustainable use of groundwater, and water policy and climate
change, while the Data Section contains updated and new data on
many critical water issues.
To find out more,
purchase the book or RSVP for the release please visit
us online.
Ditching Dirty Diesel:
Regional Conference Aims to Clear the Air
The San Francisco Bay area's
first regional conference on reducing diesel pollution was, according
to participants, a strong success. "Ditching Dirty Diesel"
brought together community groups, environmental justice organizations,
environmentalists, public health experts, and government officials
to focus on reducing diesel pollution and improving public participation
in the effort to cut air pollution. Diesel pollution, which is
prevalent in neighborhoods near freeways or ports, has been identified
as a key trigger, and even a cause, of asthma and other health
problems. The Pacific Institute's Community Strategies for Sustainability
and Justice program helped plan the conference and Pacific Institute
staff, including Fanta Kamakate and Margaret Gordon, gave presentations.
The issue-specific campaign groups formed at the conference will
meet again on December 3rd to further develop regional strategies
to reduce diesel pollution. For more information about participating,
please contact Emily Lee at elee @ pacinst.org
Who
Develops International Standards? Report Examines ISO Membership
As international
standards move into new areas that affect environmental and social
issues, the question of who creates these standards becomes much
more important. "Who Develops ISO Standards? A Survey of
Participation in ISO's International Standards Development Processes"
uses empirical data on ISO's membership and participation at international
meetings to draw conclusions about representation in ISO's standards
setting activities.
Written by Mari
Morikawa and Jason Morrison of the Pacific Institute, the report
is available without charge from our
website.
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UPCOMING
11/17/04,
The World's Water 2004-2005 Book Release [Washington, D.C.],
The Pacific Institute and Island Press will release the new edition
of The World's Water at the Woodrow Wilson International Center
for Scholars. Info online.
11/18-11/19/04,
POWER Conference [Los Angeles, CA], Michael Cohen will
discuss Colorado River basin drought conditions and solutions
on two different panels. Dr. Gary Wolff will present his paper,
"Economies of Scale and Scope in River Basin Management,"
to the Watershed Management panel. Info online.
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STAFF UPDATES
10/19/04, Emily
Lee and Margaret Gordon, in collaboration with InfoOakland and the
Urban Strategies Council, led a community workshop on redevelopment
in West Oakland. The workshop was part of a larger effort by Just Cause
to empower residents to respond to the draft environmental impact report
for the planned 16th & Wood Train Station Development.
10/15-10/16/04,
Margaret Gordon and Emily Lee participated in workshops on Environmental
Justice and the Environmental Public Health Tracking Initiative in Walnut
Creek, Calif. The workshops allowed for feedback and comments from environmental
juistice organizations on the progress and direction of the California
Environmental Health Tracking Program.
In mid-October,
Jason Morrison briefed the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility
on the findings of the Pacific Institute's recently released water and
business risks paper. The ICCR is an organization of religious investors
that conducts shareholder advocacy.
10/13-10/16/04,
The Pacific Institute co-hosted a conference at the Pontifical
Academy of Sciences on reducing risks to shared water resources and
the role of religion in reducing conflict. This meeting brought together
many of the world's leading thinkers on religion and the environment
and led to a series of fascinating discussions. A summary of the sessions
will be prepared for publication as an Institute report.
10/13/04, Emily
Lee, Margaret Gordon, and members of the West Oakland Environmental
Indicators Project met with City of Oakland traffic engineers to discuss
re-routing West Oakland's existing truck route. A new route that reduces
the impacts of diesel trucks on the community has been a long-term goal
of residents.
10/5/04, in Chicago,
Jason Morrison attended a Board of Regents meeting of the MSWG
Policy Academy on Environmental Management Tools. The purpose of the
meeting was to discuss the status of the current Policy Academy work
plan and to define priorities for 2005 and beyond.
10/4/04, Peter
Gleick presented the opening keynote address at the Water Environment
Federation annual meeting in New Orleans. The presentation on the state
of the world's water was given to an audience of roughly 1,500 people.
10/4/04, Margaret
Gordon and Azibuike Akaba of the West Oakland Environmental Indicators
Project gave comments and a presentation to the California Air Resources
Board's Land Use and Environmental Justice Study Group in Los Angeles.
In late September,
Jason Morrison briefed the Sierra Club's Investment Advisory
Committee on ISO 14000, with special emphasis on how much weight should
be given to companies that have pursued ISO 14001 certification. The
Committee screens investments for inclusion in the Club's mutual funds.
An HTML version of this newsletter
is available online: http://www.pacinst.org/online_update/
Problems, questions or comments:
newsletter_editor @ pacinst.org (remove spaces)
Copyright 2004, Pacific Institute,
www.pacinst.org
654 13th Street, Preservation Park,
Oakland, CA 94612, USA
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