Contrary to reports from Burma's ruling military regime on the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA) (the plan to come out of the 1995 United Nations World Conference on Women), women in Myanmar do not enjoy equal rights with men. This paper, which is structured around the BPfA's critical areas of concern, reveals that military expansion and gross mismanagement of the economy have resulted in extreme poverty, systematic abuse of human rights and multiple problems for women and girls, particularly in rural areas and regions populated by ethnic minorities.

Increasing attention is being paid to the importance attached to environmental issues in recovery operations and the new challenges climate change will pose to communities already vulnerable to natural hazards. The purpose of this paper is to provide an introductory review of the current status of recovery operations in terms of integrating environment and long-term disaster risk reduction (DRR). The publication endeavors to assist decision makers by highlighting the following elements which are vital to good practices:

The paper finds that with increasing fuel demand projected for the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), biofuels could make a significant contribution to offsetting oil demand and to increased agricultural and rural incomes, though the overall benefits to the region's population depends largely on how risks to food security are managed and on the production system that is adopted.

As the Paris Agreement is formalised and NDCs are standardised, it is a fair to assume that other countries will look to HELE coal technologies as part of their emissions reductions plans.

Effective responses to climate change require efforts by both the public and private sectors to develop and disseminate new environmentally sound technologies (ESTs) on a global scale, as well as to adapt them to local needs. However, due to a number of market failures and specific uncertainties, the spread of green technologies is less than optimal, which necessitates additional incentives. Based on a review of recent literature, the present Global Challenges