Sustainable markets blogs
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Photo exhibition highlights varied and vibrant informal economies
18 March 2016Photos exhibited at a recent conference on informal economies and green growth show people working in the informal sector in eight countries
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What makes community engagement meaningful in the extractive industries?
14 March 2016Getting community engagement right – making sure it is ‘meaningful’ – is critical to the social licence to operate for oil, gas and mining projects
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Green grows the informal economy
10 March 2016An event on the informal sector and the green economy established six principles for a new policy agenda on inclusive green growth
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Can mining dig rural women out of poverty in Ghana?
8 March 2016An IIED dialogue with small-scale mining communities discovered women see mining as a source of hope – but that their dreams are seldom realised
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Lessons from the informal sector
24 February 2016Could the informal economy provide the way forward for the green growth agenda? Ahead of an IIED event on 25 February, Mao Amis looks at lessons that can be learned
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The other half of the future – business' informal sector
4 February 2016Small businesses, not least those in the informal sector, have a crucial role to play in sustainable development, as an IIED conference will explore.
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Shaking up the private sector
22 January 2016The private sector has a key role to play in the new sustainable development agenda, says IIED's Mick Blowfield, but let's keep multinationals' commitment to change in perspective
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Finding solutions for less poverty and better ecosystems
15 December 2015Policy measures to tackle poverty often overlook environmental impacts, while environmental policies do not always deliver for the poor. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) require both – so how can governments combine efforts?
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A new kind of brew: smallholder coffee and carbon
8 December 2015Has shade coffee shed new light on the multiple benefits from improved agricultural systems? Ina Porras blends together a number of thoughts after a side event at the Global Landscape Forum
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Building trust through dialogue with street-food vendors
5 November 2015Street-food vendors' businesses are often threatened in the name of progress, but a new initiative from IIED and Hivos is looking to bridge the divide, protecting livelihoods and an important source of cheap food
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Lessons in informality from Kenya's dairy sector
3 November 2015Informal markets are at the heart of many developing country economies, but how can authorities work with the informal sector? A training and certification scheme for Kenya's informal dairy sector provides valuable policy lessons
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The SDGs speak and we like what we hear
15 October 2015Smallholder and community carbon projects have shown they can deliver local benefits and promote climate resilience. Now the Plan Vivo Standard and its partners, representing the oldest ethical carbon standard, have pledged their commitment to the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals
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'Sustainable development science' for transforming our world
9 October 2015IIED's Steve Bass proposes a 10-year review of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment as a guide for taking forward the SDGs
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Zero deforestation supply chains: promoting sustainable chocolate
16 September 2015How can we make chocolate more sustainable? This was one of the questions addressed by IIED researchers in a presentation at the World Forestry Congress in Durban.
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A sustainable ocean by 2030
14 September 2015A Sustainable Development Goal for oceans, seas and marine resources is a significant milestone, but how will it be financed and who will benefit?
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Painting Africa's economy blue
22 July 2015The first official day of the decade for African Seas and Oceans provides a timely reason to think about how marine resources could better contribute to Africa's economy
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Why universality is a taxing agenda…
20 July 2015IIED's director Andrew Norton reflects on the Financing for Development conference in Addis and the challenge of 'universality'
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Insuring farmers – adapting to climate change
16 July 2015Climate change is increasing the risks for farmers, but a new form of insurance may provide support
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Gold mining: the search for common ground
11 June 2015To better understand the wide range of people who depend on gold mining, IIED travelled to Tanzania to talk to some of them. Here are some of their stories
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Picturing the ASM space
5 June 2015Involving a wide range of stakeholders is helping create a common understanding of the issues in addressing artisanal and small-scale mining. Matthew McKernan looks at how IIED’s 'visioning workshop' has helped shape priorities going forward
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Sharing the load: who pays for energy access?
29 May 2015Finance for off-grid energy is increasing – the big challenge is working out how best to blend public and private investment to deliver energy services for poor communities
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Waking the lazy, sleepy giant
21 May 2015A two-day 'visioning workshop' on artisanal and small-scale mining generated a shared sense of optimism – and a vision to wake up the 'big lazy, sleeping giant" that is government
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A shared long-term vision for ASM
29 April 2015Diverse stakeholders from across the world of gold mining share a long-term vision of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) as a functional business sector
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Gold for life
24 April 2015Images from Geita District in northwest Tanzania show the diverse range of people that depend on gold mining for their livelihood
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A mine of information
20 April 2015As IIED prepares to launch its Multi-stakeholder Dialogue Series on Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining with a two-day "visioning workshop" bringing together influential stakeholders, we have pulled together a list of useful resources on ASM.