Asia

In 2010, by means of 18th amendment to the constitution of Pakistan, provinces were made autonomous. This amendment opened up an opportunity to rethink and formulate provincial level policies across board. Civil society in this regard has been acting as a support for the provincial governments. Bargad-Organization for Youth Development initiated a process of supporting provinces (Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) in formulating youth development policies. hbs being a green foundation considered it worthwhile to support Bargad in launching of the environmental component of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa youth development policy on 29th November 2016. Following are some of the pictures from the event.

The provincial level resource equity dialogs were initiated based on the recommendations from the Federal level dialog on resource equity. The topic for each dialog at provincial level was selected around the water, land and energy nexus which was defined through the federal level dialog. The framework of each dialog was set around hbs' resource equity memo-“Resource Politics for a Fair Future”, so that the participants could be introduced to the global debate on resource equity.  Province-specific ecological case studies were also shared based on the book titled “Water in the Wilderness” to create a wider understanding of the basic ecological landscape of the province.

The NGO Natural Justice and its regional partners, with the support of the Heinrich Böll Foundation, have jointly assisted a number of communities to develop community protocols in the context of extractive industries. You can download them and the project report here.

Heinrich Boell Stiftung along with other partners supported a stakeholder dialog titled “Framing the Pakistan Agenda for COP 22”. The event was held with two main objectives; firstly to discuss various issues pertaining to climate policy and future for Pakistan and its agenda during COP22.  Secondly, the event was also a launch of a new initiative called “the Civil Society Coalition for Climate Change” (CSCCC), a new platform of like-minded organizations formed with the objective of raising awareness, strengthening adaptive capacity and fostering partnerships that will contribute towards building climate change resilience and reducing vulnerability in Pakistan.  The CSCCC is led by the Mountains and Glaciers Protection Organization (MGPO).

For those who have held the U.S. as the bastion of all things good and right, this may be a wake-up call.

Pakistan might be one of the most vulnerable countries in the world when it comes to climate change – ranking seventh in this year’s Long-Term Climate Risk Index brought out by Germanwatch – but it still not focused on protecting its 200 million strong population from serious impacts such floods, glacier lake outbursts, and sea level rise.

"One Cube" Three, yet one! - is a documentary film by Pramod Dev. Depicting three women who work in export-oriented sectors of India's economy, the film shows how the demands of trade impact upon the personal, familial, social, economic and cultural aspects of the lives of the protagonists.

Recent infrastructure projects and developments have become a threat to National Parks all over the world. Large companies and businesses want to invest in precious land, therefore, the National Parks become the apple of the eye. In Pakistan the malpractices around development projects, personal interests and corruption are having a toll on the National Parks. The violation of National Parks’ law is a common practice thus increasing wildlife vulnerability, pollution, and deforestation. To understand the gravity of the problem and discuss possible solutions, hbs initiated visits to National Parks in Pakistan that are threatened and are going through a struggle of existence.

The Welcoming Communities Transatlantic Exchange is a unique opportunity for leaders in Germany and the U.S. to share promising approaches to welcoming and integrating immigrants and refugees into their communities.

India likes to consider itself the “world’s largest democracy”. In practice, however, there are many restrictions on the freedom of expression. The space available to civil society organizations for action is increasingly restricted.