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US Rice Exports Stalled at Japanese and European Borders	The Doha Round of trade negotiations was put into deep freeze on 24 July, after a meeting of ministers from six key trading nations collapsed over divisions on how to cut farm subsidies and tariffs. It is not clear when -- or if -- the talks, which started nearly five years ago, will resume. Kamal Nath, India's Commerce Minister, said that the round, though not dead, "is between intensive care and the crematorium". While some civil society groups lamented the breakdown as a missed opportunity for balancing the multilateral trade system, others welcomed the suspension as a chance to completely revise countries' approach to multilateral trade. more
Abidjan Toxic Waste Poisoning Raises Questions of Responsibility	Amid oil prices soaring above US$75 a barrel, global energy security was a central theme at the 15-17 July summit in St. Petersburg of heads of state from the Group of Eight (G8) industrialised nations. Leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the UK and the US focused mostly on how to increase oil field investment in order to raise production. To make that possible, the summit adopted the St. Petersburg Plan of Action on Global Energy Security which highlighted a number of approaches to deal with the interrelated challenges of energy security, air pollution control and reducing greenhouse gas associated with long-term global climate change. more

In Brief

Switzerland to Ban Hormone-Treated Beef to Comply with EC Bilateral Agreement Appellate Body Supports Canada in Lumber Dispute: 'Zeroing Condemned Again Bush to Sign Colombia FTA after Bogota Drops Ban on US Beef Imports Ozone Layer Recovery Likely to be Delayed World Water Management- Coming Up Short

Events    &   Resources
Events	10-13 September, Cambridge, United Kingdom: CONFERENCE OF THE GLOBAL IMPORTANCE OF THE BOREAL FOREST: MIGRATORY BIRDS AND THE PAPER INDUSTRY. This conference will feature discussions among industry, NGOs, governments, and the scientific community on promoting cross-sectoral collaboration and communication; in-depth discussions on the world's impact on Boreal ecosystems, especially in relation to migratory birds; a release of the State of the Paper Industry and the Environment by the Environmental Paper Network; and an unveiling of new tools and information to help papermakers and major paper buyers improve environmental performance. For further information, contact Jim Ford, email: jim@taigarescue.org.
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Resources	POVERTY, HEALTH, AND ECOSYSTEMS: EXPERIENCE FROM ASIA. Edited by Paul Steele, Gonzalo Oviedo, and David McCauley. (IUCN and the Asian Development Bank, 2006). This book presents a series of case studies focusing on the links between poverty, health and ecosystems in poor and often resource-dependent households across Asia. Case studies illustrate the links between livelihoods and ecosystems, highlighting pressures on some agricultural systems, effects of ecosystem pollution on health, as well as the complex linkages between gender, poverty and environment.
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ISSN 1682-0843