Environmental Policy Roundtable
Fall 2002

Sep 6 Presentations by Ken Cousins (GVPT) on Sustainable Forestry in Chile, and by Puja Jawahar (PUAF) on Modeling HIV Trends in India.

Sep 20 "Using Science and Financial Incentives to Protect Chile's Biodiversity" Margo Burnham, Chile Program Director, The Nature Conservancy

How do conservationists determine, based on the particular circumstances in each country, the most effective ways to protect priority conservation areas on the ground? Learn how The Nature Conservancy uses science to inform its conservation actions and measure how well conservationists are doing at maintaining or improving biodiversity health. In Chile, where most of the important unprotected biodiversity is on private, rather than public, lands, financial incentives for biodiversity conservation are key to protecting Chile's unique species and ecosystems. Margo will speak about the considerations above, highlighting two examples that the Conservancy and Chilean organizations are promoting: private land conservation incentives and forest carbon projects.

Oct 4 Three Short Films and Discussion "Life, Liberty, Pursuit of Happiness
and A New American Dream":

More Fun, Less Stuff: The Challenges and Rewards of a New American Dream is an entertaining, informative look at the hidden costs of the "more is better" definition of the American dream. Hosted by actor Danny Glover, this film features inspiring profiles of individuals, companies and organizations that are changing the way they consume to improve quality of life, protect the environment and promote social justice. See www.newamericandream.org

The Steady-State Revolution: Based on the book Shoveling Fuel for a Runaway Train: Errant Economists, Shameful Spenders, and a Plan to Stop them All by Brian Czech Americans have been conditioned to appreciate, cheer, and serve economic growth. Brian Czech argues that, while economic growth was a good thing for much of American history, somewhere along the way it turned bad, depleting resources, polluting the environment, and threatening posterity. Yet growth remains a top priority of the public and polity. In this revolutionary manifesto, Czech knocks economic growth off the pedestal of American ideology. Seeking nothing less than a fundamental change in public opinion, Czech makes a bold plea for castigating society's biggest spenders and sets the stage for the "steady state revolution." For more info see www.steadystate.org

Two Trevors Go To Washington: This movie is an insightful and humorous account of the April 16 IMF and World Bank meetings and protests, as seen through the eyes of two South Africans. In the film, South African Finance Minister Trevor Manuel (currently chairperson of the World Bank/IMF joint Board of Governors) calls for internal reform of these institutions. On the streets, Trevor Ngwane joins the protestors to call for immediate debt cancellation and an end to devastating policies promoted by the IMF and World Bank. The tale of globalization is told through contrasting perspectives and the intertwining adventures of the two Trevors. For more info see www.worldbankboycott.org

Oct 18 "Communicating with Policy Makers: How Researchers Can Reach This Essential Audience" Elizabeth Ransom, Policy Analyst, Population Reference Bureau

Have you ever thought how you might use your research to influence policy? In this presentation, you will learn how policy decisions can take place - it is often not a neat process! After a review of the key elements of the policy process, the different perspectives of policymakers and researchers, and characteristics of issues that capture policy makers' attention, Ms. Ransom will describe a case study of how the issue of safe motherhood made it on the policy agenda in Indonesia.

Elizabeth Ransom oversees the Population Policy Communication Fellows program, which trains graduate students from less developed countries to communicate research findings to policy audiences. She also collaborates with Save the Children's Saving Newborn Lives Initiative to produce a policy brief series on newborn health, and is designing a mentoring program for the Compton Foundation Population Fellows. Ms. Ransom has worked with international communication issues for nearly a decade, including work with the Population Council in Cairo during the UN Conference on Population and Development. She is co-author of "Making Motherhood Safer: Overcoming Obstacles on the Pathway to Care," which highlights successful maternity care programs, and "Healthy Mothers, Healthy Newborns: The Vital Link," which explains the strong association between the health of mothers and their newborns and suggests ways to build upon existing programs. Ms. Ransom has a Master of Science degree in Public Health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the College of William and Mary.

Nov 1 "Women and Environmental Policy" Miranda Schreurs, Associate Professor, Department of Government and Politics, University of Maryland at College Park

In this talk, Professor Schreurs will explore the leadership role that women have played in environmental policymaking in Asia, Europe, and the United States. She will also emphasize the special status accorded women in European Green Parties, efforts by women's organizations to link female representation in politics to environmental protection, and the leadership role played by many female leaders in environmental movements around the world.

Miranda Schreurs is Associate Professor of Government and Politics at the University of Maryland at College Park. Her primary areas of research are in Japanese and German global environmental policy formation, where she has conducted research on acid rain, stratospheric ozone depletion, and global climate change politics. She also researches Japanese involvement in environmental protection initiatives in China and Southeast Asia and Japanese politics sustainable development. Dr. Schreurs participated in the Social Learning in Global Environmental Risks project, which examined global environmental policymaking in Japan, Germany, Great Britain, the US, China, Russia, the European Union, and Zimbabwe. She recently completed a book that examines global environmental politics in Japan and Germany. Dr. Schreurs was recipient of a Fulbright Fellowship to Japan and a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship in International Peace and Security Affairs.

Nov 15: Environmentally Responsible & Affordable Housing in Washington DC

Abby Friedman, Director of the Environment Program for the National Association of Counties, President of GreenHOME a nonprofit organization dedicated to demonstrating and promoting affordable, sustainable design, construction, and landscape practices for homes and communities throughout the Washington, DC area.

Dec 6 EcoAgriculture: Strategies to Produce More Food That Also Protect and Restore Wild Biodiversity by Sara Scherr, Senior Economic Analyst at Forest Trends

Although food production systems typically have had devastating effects on the planet's wealth of genes, species, and ecosystems, that need not be the case in the future. Sara Scherr, one of the world's leading experts on conservation and development, examines the idea that agricultural landscapes can be designed more creatively to take the needs of human populations into account while also protecting, or even enhancing, biodiversity. She presents an overview of the innovative concept of "ecoagriculture"--the management of landscapes for both the production of food and ecosystem services, in particular the conservation of wild biodiversity. This talk examines the global impact of agriculture on wild biodiversity describes the challenge of reconciling iodiversity conservation and agricultural goals outlines the ecoagriculture approach and explores how policies, markets, and institutions can be reshaped to support ecoagriculture. Examples from around the world present proven strategies for farmers in developing and developed countries, and those involved in both small-scale and large-scale commercial production.

Sara J. Scherr is an agricultural and natural resource economist, specializing in the economics and policy of land and forest management in tropical developing countries. She serves as a member of the United Nations Millenium Project Task Force on Hunger, and an Adjunct Professor at the AREC Department at UMD. Dr. Scherr previously worked as Principal Researcher at the World Agroforestry Centre, in Nairobi, Kenya, and as Sr. Research Fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute in D.C. Her current research focuses on policies to reduce poverty and restore ecosystems through markets for sustainably grown forest products and ecosystem services. She has published numerous papers and 10 books; her newest is Ecoagriculture: Strategies to Feed the World and Save Wild Biodiversity (with Jeff McNeely, for Island Press).

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