The creation of Transboundary Biosphere Reserves (TBRs) is one of the most outstanding contributions of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Man and Biosphere Programme (MAB). Recent revisions have shown that there is a gap between its biodiversity conservation proposals and the theoretical convergence of nations towards sustainable development goals with the practices in action.

Innovation is an inevitable way to enhance regional competitiveness, promote urbanization and achieve sustainable development. The sci-tech park is one of the main land use types in the construction of a new town and the critical space carriers of urbanization. This study focuses on the correlation between higher education institutions (HEIs) innovation and sci-tech enterprises (STEs) development, and the Hangzhou West Hi-tech Corridor as a case study.

Agricultural systems are heterogeneous across temporal and spatial scales. Although much research has investigated farm size and economic output, the synergies and trade-offs across various agricultural and socioeconomic variables are unclear.

This paper offers an approach to Yucatecan social reality in terms of entrepreneurship and the process of creating companies dedicated to the production and/or commercialization of agroecological products, considering its contribution to sustainable rural development. The key actors’ perspective towards the existence of policies that favor land sustainability, assist in the development of rural areas and their population, and support these business initiatives is also presented.

Due to industrial civilization, the decline of the countryside has become a global phenomenon. Spain is a good example that reflects this issue in the rural areas of the European Union because more than half of all municipalities in the country are at risk of extinction. This manuscript aims at combining social engagement and the application of sustainable development goals (SDGs) to propose a sustainable rural revitalization plan.

The Amazonian economic occupation over the last forty years has been extremely harmful to the environment and to the traditional populations. One of the strategies to overcome this difficulty, dealing with sustainable development, is the development of productive units—starting with non-timber forest products (NTFP)—and the Payment for Environmental Services (PES) for the residents and/or owners of forest areas.

In an era of global warming, long-standing challenges for rural populations, including land inequality, poverty and food insecurity, risk being exacerbated by the effects of climate change. Innovative and effective approaches, such as Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA), are required to alleviate these environmental pressures without hampering efficiency.

National parks have been adopted for over a century to enhance the protection of valued natural landscapes in countries worldwide. For decades, China has emphasized the importance of economic growth over ecological health to the detriment of its protected areas. After decades of environmental degradation, dramatic loss of biodiversity, and increasing pressure from the public to improve and protect natural landscapes, China’s central government recently proposed the establishment of a pilot national park system to address these issues.

"There is no peace without tackling food security and eliminating hunger and there will be no food without tackling climate change.” A couple of days ago, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has published a new and all-encompassing framework on climate change. The organization acknowledges the enormous threats posed by climate change, and outlines how it will tackle environmental changes in the future.

The extractive industry can be an important source of human development, economic growth, government revenues and foreign investments. When well-managed, the sector provides possibility to create employment, build human capital, advance peoples mobility by improving infrastructure, and ultimately enhance the overall human development with a positive impact on poverty reduction efforts.

En 1962, René Dumont publiait L’ Afrique noire est mal partie. Ce livre, qui concernait essentiellement l’Afrique de l’Ouest, fit scandale à l’époque car il intervenait au lendemain des indépendances des colonies européennes, à un moment où les jeunes États africains pouvaient espérer un développement prometteur.

This Handbook provides a comprehensive and systematic overview of the role that Parliamentarians and Parliamentary Advisors can play in the creation of reliable, coherent, and transparent “enabling environments” in the range of areas related to investment in agriculture and food systems. It does so through guidance notes, examples of good practices, and very practical indications, and sets out key stages of processes and mechanisms for MPs and advisors to consider while promoting responsible investment in agriculture and food systems.