Julie McCarthy, NPR’s South American correspondent filed this in-depth, detailed and evocative feature about the struggle of the Amazonian Indians to stop the damming of the Xingu River. Her eyewitness report on the Xingu Encounter aired May 31

Originally published in the Atlanta Journal Constitution

Zipingpu Dam, Sep. 14, 2007 (AP Photo/GeoEye Satellite Image)

The tragic Sichuan Earthquake of May 12, 2008, which killed an estimated 80,000 civilians, also damaged hundreds of dams in Sichuan Province. Soon after the earthquake struck, the Chinese government reported that at least 391 dams had been damaged in the quake, including major cracks on the largest dam in the area, the Zipingpu Dam. Since then, the Ministry of Water Resources has reported that as many as 2,380 dams were damaged in the earthquake.

Increasing allegations of corruption and profiteering are raising serious questions about the UN-run carbon trading mechanism aimed at cutting pollution and rewarding clean technologies

Ten Perspectives on How Financial Institutions Can Protect the Environment

Financial institutions from countries such as China, Brazil, India and Thailand are playing an increasingly active role in financing infrastructure and mining projects around the world. With new loan approvals of $36 billion, China Exim Bank for example became the world’s largest export credit agency in 2007. Although they invest in environmentally sensitive sectors, many emerging financiers do not yet apply internationally accepted standards in their projects.

This new report discusses the experience with environmental standards and how it can be useful for new financiers.