Integrated Development Plans (IDPs) have
been introduced in Romania as a prerequisite for accessing
EU funds under the Regional Operational Program (ROP). The
IDPs designed for growth poles represent a specific category
of strategic planning documents as: 1) they need to be
considered within the frame of the national policy to whose
implementation they contribute; and 2) they represent a
first endeavor to think of development across functional

Urbanization is undoubtedly a key driver
of development -- cities provide the national platform for
prosperity, job creation, and poverty reduction. But
urbanization also poses enormous challenges that one is
familiar with: congestion, air pollution, social divisions,
crime, the breakdown of public services and infrastructure,
and the slums that one billion urban resident's call
home. Urbanization is perhaps the single most important

This paper is a review of the experience of the Asian Coalition for Community Action (ACCA) Program operated by the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights (ACHR).

Environmental stress is a serious
concern in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Recent years have witnessed important changes that are
pushing the boundaries of the region's environmental
legacy. The current trends are declining water resources per
capita, shrinking arable land, deteriorating vulnerable
coastal zones and marine resources, rising energy use, and
mounting pollution, particularly in urban areas. This

According to the United Nations
population fund, the world is undergoing the largest wave of
urban growth in history, with more people now living in
cities than in rural areas. Cities are also responsible for
a high proportion of global carbon emissions, which are the
main driver of anthropogenic climate change. By taking the
lead on low carbon development, cities have the opportunity
to engage in an important dialogue about sustainable

The main objective of the report is to
analyze the current greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions inventory
process in Romania, and provide recommendations for
improving the system in order to increase the effectiveness
and efficiency of inventory development in compliance with
United Nations framework convention on climate change
(UNFCCC) and European Union (EU) requirements, including
emissions forecasting provisions. This report describes the

This report provides Mayors and other policymakers with a policy framework and diagnostic tools to anticipate and implement strategies that can avoid their cities from locking into irreversible physical and social structures. At the core of the policy framework are the three main dimensions of urban development.
· Planning— where the focus is on making land transactions easier, and making land use regulations more responsive to emerging needs especially to coordinate land use planning with infrastructure, natural resource management, and risks from hazards;

This strategic environmental assessment
(SEA) is a technical piece intended to assist in the current
and future identification of priority industrial pollutants
and economic instruments to minimize industrial waste. This
industrial sector SEA is one of six pieces of technical
support envisioned by the Himachal Pradesh (HP) inclusive
green growth (IGG) development policy loan (DPL) to fill
knowledge gaps and strengthen operational success of the

Decision makers facing abatement targets
need to decide which abatement measures to implement, and in
which order. This paper investigates the ability of marginal
abatement cost (MAC) curves to inform this decision,
reanalysing a MAC curve developed by the World Bank on
Brazil. Misinterpreting MAC curves and focusing on
short-term targets (e.g., for 2020) would lead to
under-invest in expensive, long-to-implement and

The state of national labor markets has
always been a concern for governments and development
agencies such as the World Bank. Key labor market
indicators, such as the rate of unemployment, send signals
about the health of an economy and mirror citizens'
attitudes. Being gainfully employed is an important aspect
of an individual's well-being both financially and
socially, as 'initial failures in finding a job can

Extractive industry companies,
particularly those operating in areas of high biodiversity
value, on indigenous lands, or in close proximity to
communities, face operational and reputational risks related
to their environmental and social performance, and can be
subject to intense scrutiny from stakeholders. PERU
Liquefied Natural Gas (PLNG), the first liquefied natural
gas plant in South America, is an example of a high-profile

Congo Basin countries rely more on
wood-based biomass to meet their energy needs than most
other countries in the world. Wood fuel production is
increasing in Congo Basin countries. Urbanization often
produces a shift from fuel wood to charcoal consumption,
because charcoal is cheaper and easier to transport and
store. Charcoal is produced mostly using traditional
techniques, with low transformation efficiencies. Under a