The latest updates to the EarthTrends database include revised information on the status of multilateral environmental agreements and more recent data for our education and literacy, public health, and CO2 emissions indicators.

EarthTrends has also added two global temperature indicators and three indicators of micro-, small-, and medium-enterprises (MSMEs) from the IFC to the searchable database. The MSME indicators are complemented by a new EarthTrends feature, "The Role of Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises in the Futures of Emerging Economies," written by Derek Newberry of WRI. Click 'read more' for a complete list of updated indicators. If you have any questions, please contact us.

Episode 3 of the EarthTrends Podcast--a collaboration between World Resources Institute, StopGlobalWarming.org, and the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival--is now available.

Listen to Episode 3 of the EarthTrends Podcast.

Episode 3 features interviews with WRI's Rob Bradley and artist Rick Lowenberg regarding the COP-12 meeting in Nairobi and the implications of global warming for Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as a musical performance by I Nine.

The World Resources Institute is currently accepting applications for an EarthTrends web development intern. We are looking for a highly motivated and innovative person to play a significant role in the continuing technical development and management of EarthTrends: Environmental Information. For a full description, please see WRI's joblist page or click "read more."

By Tim Herzog

The 2006 Atlantic hurricane season officially ended on November 30th, and thankfully, there weren't nearly as many destructive storms in 2006 as in 2005. No Atlantic storms made landfall in 2006 with hurricane strength on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Only 2 storms made landfall at all. By comparison, 8 storms made landfall at category 1 or higher in 2005, and 3 of those (including Katrina and Rita) were at least category 3.

But 2006 was not so quiet elsewhere.

By John Larsen

The 109th U.S. Congress considered no less than seven proposals to address global warming through the use of market-based, cap-and-trade mechanisms. The bills each specified emission caps using different formulas, such as a return to 2000 levels (McCain-Lieberman) or 1.5% reductions per year (Kerry-Snowe). Bills have different time frames; some run only through 2020, while others run through 2050, usually with reductions that increase in later years.

The following graphs show how different legislative proposals would cap U.S. emissions.

The governor of the Brazilian State of Pará, in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, has just signed a law that creates a network of protected areas covering over 16.5 million hectares, an area larger than England.

The law creates the largest set of protected areas in Pará's history. Under the new law, 59 percent of the state (an increase of 13 percent) and 42 percent of the Brazilian Amazon are now protected. The law is intended to slow and stop the loss of biodiversity and illegal deforestation.

By Janet Ranganathan

The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment determined that the capacity of ecosystems to provide people with valued goods and services, such as food, water, fiber, carbon storage, and control of floods, disease and climate, was degraded for nearly two-thirds of the ecosystem services examined.

The Ecosystem Challenges and Business Implications report warns that companies must transform their business models to avoid major economic losses caused by ecosystem degradation.

EarthTrends has just released a new set of topical Information Guides, accessible through the 'Quick Links' section of the homepage.

EarthTrends Information Guides serve as a great starting point for navigating the main content of EarthTrends, providing users with an easy way to assess the depth and variety of resources available on our site for a particular topic area. Each guide features a brief topic summary, a list of relevant EarthTrends content, and related links.

By Jeff Logan

Carbon dioxide emissions from China might pass those from the United States as early as 2009, according to the World Energy Outlook (WEO) 2006, released earlier this month by the International Energy Agency (IEA) in Paris. The recent forecast moves up by over a decade the agency's previous forecast of China's emergence as the nation with the greatest emissions, a position currently held by the United States. The revision is based on the 13 percent-a-year average expansion in Chinese coal use since 2003.

In September, EarthTrends launched a series of podcasts to spread awareness and factual information about global warming. The podcasts--a collaboration between World Resources Institute, StopGlobalWarming.org, and the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival--feature artist interviews and live performances from the 2006 Bonnaroo festival, facts and current analyses on climate change, and practical ways to lessen one's carbon footprint.

The EarthTrends Podcast: Episode 2 features a discussion of polar ice melting, sea-level rise, and a live performance by Blackalicious.