Preface

Food security and sustainable use of natural resources: a 2020 Vision

UNESCO has been required by its Member States to assist in implementing the recommendations of the World Conference on Science, held in Budapest in June 1999. In particular, UNESCO should identify national strategies for biodiversity protection in biosphere reserves and similarly managed areas, with special emphasis on coastal areas, small islands and mangroves, South-South technology transfer and intensive training for the management of renewable natural resources in selected case studies throughout specific developing countries. With generous support from the Government of Japan, UNESCO is now implementing the ASPACO project from January 2001 to December 2003, in close collaboration with MAB-Japan, ISME and the UNU. The project emphasises the role of biosphere reserves as catalysts for both conservation and development. The complementary roles of UNESCO, ISME and UNU in scientific issues of nature preservation and sustainable use of natural resources are eminent for action in (1) integrated management and sustainable development of coastal areas, including economic zones, and the preservation of natural and cultural heritage via "ethical tourism"; (2) mangrove forest environmental protection, (3) sustainable use and conservation of renewable natural resources under national jurisdiction; and (4) strengthening international, including regional, co-operation and co-ordination. This project will pay particular attention to those countries having or planning biosphere reserves and to those countries whose governments have strong relations with the MAB of UNESCO. Training, capacity building and increase of local capabilities for research and management of sustainable use of renewable natural resources are key elements of the project. In particular, through the involvement of ISME, the project will promote exchange of information, research results and scientists with respect to preservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. It will help to disseminate knowledge of comparative research through publications and/or network databases. Within the framework of action for poverty eradication, the project will try to identify how to improve living conditions for the inhabitants of concerned areas as a basic requirement for human security, with special attention to food and fodder production and the rational use of biodiversity for the benefit of local populations. Capacity building for the development of biosphere reserves will be through North-South exchanges; exchange of experience by training of biosphere reserve managers will be through South-South exchanges. This includes strengthening of existing capacities and increase of local capacity for carrying out management, natural resources assessment, research and training, with special emphasis on the education of young women. Project activities will be located in selected countries of the Pacific region, including small islands of the Pacific and the West Coast of Latin America.

Various decision support methods are used to support the sustainable use of natural resources, but there is little evidence about these methods' actual performances. In this study, 35 carefully selected papers assessing the sustainable use of natural resources were evaluated. The evaluated papers utilized one of the following methods: optimization, cost- benefit analysis (CBA) and monetary valuation methods, multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) or hybrid approaches. Each method supported sustainability in a different manner. Optimization and CBA case studies rarely involved stakeholders and social sustainability was less processed. Monetary valuation case studies showed a regular participation of the general public, but in a passive role. Experts and stakeholders with an active role were typical participants in MCDA and hybrid case studies. Internationally and nationally defined indicators of sustainability were scarcely used because indicators were frequently defined by stakeholders or the authors of the studied papers. It was presumed that international and national indicators were unsuitable for local use. Sustainability indicators typically took both the quantitative and qualitative form, including gaps and uncertainties. MCDA could be a suitable method for assessing sustainability because it has no strict requirements on the form of the data, and the participation of stakeholders is comprehensive. For the problem structuring phase, however, MCDA might not provide efficient tools. The ideal method for assessing the sustainable use of natural resources could be a hybrid of two methods with different approaches: qualitative methods could be used in the problem structuring process, whereas quantitative methods could be used when priorities and thresholds are assessed.

In the contemporary world, many environmental and social crises such as climate change, pollution, resource depletion, energy waste, deforestation, desertification, extinction of species, environmental racism, forced migration, waste trafficking, hazardous waste dumping, environmental injustice, etc. are cumulatively threatening the existence of humans and the planet itself as a result of irresponsible and immoral natural resources exploitation. Sustainable use of natural resources is a normative approach that advocates for responsible and wise use of natural resources to meet the needs of present and future generations. In Islam, the idea of sustainable use of natural resources is not new as the religious scripture Al-Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) instructed us to use the resources wisely in limits. Islam advocates for a harmonious and respectful relationship between humans and nature. Every element of the universe including humans is created by the Almighty one and only Allah in balance with a purpose. Humans are provided with everything needed to survive and flourish from nature by Allah but as vicegerent of Allah, they bear a special responsibility to take care of His creations. Islam advocates for sustainable use of natural resources so that natural resources can be distributed with justice and equity among generations and the natural equilibrium stays intact. This paper unravels the teachings of Islam regarding natural resource usage and shows how it promotes sustainable use of natural resources for future generations. In this paper, it will be shown that the Islamic perspective on natural resource usage can serve as a foundation to mitigate pollution, resource depletion, energy wastage, and other environmental crises prevailing in the current time and motivate the present generation to be cautious, moral, and responsible regarding natural resource usage. Philosophy and Progress, Vol#75-76; No#1-2; Jan-Dec 2024 P 309-334

discussed among the widerpublic. Pressure points in-cluding climate change,waterandfoodavailability,price surges for strategicraw materials, and peakingglobal oil supply are con-verging rapidly in an un-precedented manner. Thecurrent global patterns ofproduction and consump-tion are hitting the reallimitsofglobalecosystems.The global economy seems to be at a turningpoint where decisions are urgent while informa-tion is incomplete.The urgency of addressing issues of industrialmetabolism

In this chapter the fate of those species that have been directly exploited for human use, either as food, materials, pets or status symbols is considered. The reasons for use, patterns of exploitation and the reasons why the harvesting has often been non-sustainable are discussed. A series of examples and case studies are used to illustrate the wide range of species that are threatened in this way. By reading this chapter students will gain an understanding of what is meant by sustainable and non-sustainable use of natural resources; gain a knowledge of the extent of exploitation of wild species and of the different types of trade that result in exploitation. What is sustainable use? The concept of sustainable use has different meanings in different contexts, for example, it would have different interpretations in economics and ecology. In conservation terms it generally means the use of species or natural communities in such a way that ensures they will remain in a ‘healthy’ state and be available for use by subsequent generations. The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 (commonly known as the ‘Earth Summit’; see Chapter 7) brought the idea of sustainable development to the centre of the world political agenda. Central to the idea of sustainable development is the sustainable use of natural resources, including wild populations of animals and plants. We saw in Chapter 3 that human societies and economic systems still operate under the ‘Frontier Ethic’: ‘there's always more and its all for us’.

Giller, K. E., C. Leeuwis, J. A. Andersson, W. Andriesse, A. Brouwer, P. Frost, P. Hebinck, I. Heitkönig, M. K. van Ittersum, N. Koning, R. Ruben, M. Slingerland, H. Udo, T. Veldkamp, C. van de Vijver, M. T. van Wijk, and P. Windmeijer. 2008. Competing claims on natural resources: what role for science?. Ecology and Society 13(2): 34. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-02595-130234

The creation and sound management of large protected areas in the Sahara is a sure means to addressing biodiversity loss. However, achieving this goal is rarely accepted by all the stakeholders involved and can generate confusion and instability: leading to land degradation instead of sustainable use of natural resources. Water is a key resource in the desert and governments, supported by donors and development partners, are willing to multiply boreholes and provide free water to a maximum number of herders ignoring that this can lead to overgrazing, habitat loss and desertification. Over the years, several innovative conservation projects in eastern Niger have been undertaken, run by the NGO Sahara Conservation Fund (SCF), with the support of the local population. Amongst these initiatives, a management committee composed of local leaders, community game guards and project staff was set up to assist with habitat protection in the Termit Massif: the last stronghold for an amazing array of species including the critically endangered dama gazelle and addax. Traditionally, the pastures of the Termit Massif are used by herders when pasture areas around the permanent wells outside of the Massif is not good enough. By curtailing the sinking of wells in the Massif, the management committee is endeavouring to manage sustainably the area’s precious and fragile natural resources. This article argues that innovation, awareness and traditional knowledge are a good combination to develop wise practices leading to sustainable use of the scarce natural resources for the benefit of both local communities and wildlife. Examples of the practices developed by the project are presented in this article and the challenges faced for the management of the recently gazetted Termit & Tin Toumma National Nature Reserve discussed.

Eutrophication is a major threat to the Baltic Sea, causing algae blooms and hypoxic bottoms. Ecological engineering methods aiming at help mitigating the nutrient imbalance problems have already been initiated or are being planned in the coastal zones of the Baltic Sea. This includes harvesting of reed, macro algae and blue mussels as nutrient and energy natural resources. The potential and feasibility of such methods to form the basis for sustainable use of natural resources is governed by the ecological, technical, economic and social aspects associated with the whole chain of processes from biomass to end products, e.g. biogas, fertilizers, and wastes. As a first step in a sustainability assessment, we show that biogas production from algae and reed is associated with a net energy benefit. Blue mussels do not result in a net energy benefit if used for biogas production, but represent the most efficient way of removing nutrients. Based on these preliminary results, we suggest that biogas production from reed and macro algae is worthy of further investigation, whereas for blue mussels, an alternative product must be found.

Co-management approach to sustainable management of marine protected areas: The case of Malaysia

The urgency of this article is to conduct a thorough analysis of the legal regulation of the right to receive public information about the state of use of natural resources in Ukraine, as well as to determine the peculiarities of access to such in-formation. The purpose of this article is to study the peculiarities of legal regulation of access and to receive information about the sustainable use of natural resources in Ukraine. Among the methods by which the study of this topic was con-ducted, one can distinguish: dialectical method, formalization method, legal method, formal-legal method, hermeneutical method, logical-legal method, sys-tematic, structural-functional method, axiomatical method, methods of induction and deduction, method of analysis and synthesis, etc. In the process of research the basic concepts, terms and phenomena, which are applied in the course of the given research, definition of the normative-legal base, which regulates the recep-tion of public information about the sustainable use of natural resources by the population, analysis of peculiarities of access to public information about the state of use of natural resources, were given; analysis of experience of regulation of the right to receive public information on the state of environment and use of natural resources in foreign countries and introduction of such experience in Ukrainian leg-islation. In the course of the research, author's definitions were formed, in particular, there are "public information", "environmental information", "right to access to public information about the use of natural resources", etc. The regulatory and legal framework for the regulation of access to public information was studied and the peculiarities of obtaining information about the state of use of natural re-sources in Ukraine were analysed; international experience of regulation of the rights of the population to receive public information has been studied. Forecasting the further development of the legal regulation of access to public information on the state of use of natural resources in Ukraine, it should be noted that the most expedient and effective way is to take into account the experience of regulation of this sphere in foreign countries. The practical significance of the research lies in de-veloping a strategy for improving the legal regulation of access to public infor-mation in Ukraine based on the obtained research results, in particular the use of experience of regulating access to public information in foreign countries.

Challenges and opportunities of knowledge co-creation for the water-energy-land nexus

The pressure on natural resources including water, energy and land is continuously growing through changes in climate and land use. Representatives of academia, industry, governments and society need to join forces in order to develop new pathways towards sustainable natural resource use and management. Such pathways start from the basic idea that natural resources are finite and interlinked and that human activities can affect these resources and links, with partly irreversible effects. We combine the water−energy−land nexus and the climate services concept and present a cross-sectoral approach of knowledge co-creation to inform natural resource use and management. The approach is tested in three case studies across Europe that face different challenges resulting from climate and socio-economic change. We present the process, applied methods and major results of knowledge co-creation for sustainable natural resource use and management, and we reflect on the challenges and opportunities from engaging multiple stakeholders. Even if a comprehensive, cross-sectoral approach encourages embedding the water−energy−land nexus into climate services and allows the development of pathways towards sustainable natural resource use and management, maintaining these achievements and partnerships beyond the lifetime of a research project remains challenging.

Green growth and sustainable development goals (SDGs) are two strategies to improve the productivity and competitiveness of countries with respect to environmental protection. In these strategies, science, technology and innovation (STI) plays an important role in generating new knowledge. Colombia is a highly diversified country that is currently seeking to promote green growth initiatives and the SDGs through five axes: policy, new economic opportunities from the sustainable use of natural resources, the efficient use of natural capital and energy in production, business and human competences and capacities in STI. In this context, this study seeks to analyse the main contributions and adequate measures that determine the relationships between green growth, SDGs and STI in Colombia over recent years using different econometric models. The results of this study suggest the importance of STI in promoting green growth and achieving SDGs. In other words, higher investments in STI promote lower pollution and higher productivity, competitiveness and development, and new knowledge and technologies are found to be important to increasing the sustainable use of natural resources in productive processes. These results suggest policy implications with regard to energy use and conservation, resource efficiency, and the reduction of pollution. It is important to formulate and frequently measure the indicators of STI related to green growth and SDGs from a baseline, as this will allow us to analyse improvements in competitiveness and productivity from a sustainable development perspective.

The relevance of this study is caused by the need to solve problems of sustainable use of natural resources in the Arctic region when implementing projects with international participation. The paper highlighted a number of the most significant problems of the region, which destroy the ecological balance. The areas of development of the natural resources of the Arctic region have been determined with the participation of countries interested in this, in particular, China, which is striving to become the leading export world power and influence the sustainable use of natural resources in the Arctic region. The paper analyzes the interests of China in the Arctic, identifies the strategy of China’s behavior and the main directions of international cooperation with the countries of Northern Europe and North America in the Arctic region. China is increasingly pursuing its Arctic policy, and international cooperation is an important way for China to strengthen its research and economic potential in the Arctic. The dominant interests of China in the Arctic are: the development of polar scientific research; the creation of a transport and logistics system; development of hydrocarbon energy and mineral resources; development of systems based on renewable energy sources; maintaining ecological balance, including through the development of a green economy in the region; environmental protection. In this regard, China is taking active steps to establish strong bilateral and multilateral relations with Western countries, the so-called Arctic G8 countries, and seeks to promote its interests in the region under consideration, including through large investments in the Arctic projects of these countries.