The 2006 Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) annual meeting is taking place this week (20-22 September) in New York City. Attendees include more than 50 current and former heads of state, plus a high-profile group of CEOs, philanthropists, journalists, and representatives from non-profit organizations. The CGI meetings are considered unique because of their action-oriented focus; participants are not just expected to bring ideas, but concrete funds and plans for change.

Nearly one billion people suffer from hunger and malnutrition, a root cause of poverty, illiteracy, disease, and mortality. While the global development community is making efforts to address this problem through numerous programs, including the Millennium Development Goals (the first goal calls for the eradication of complete poverty and hunger by 2015), two reports released in the past month underscore the challenges to achieving food security worldwide.

2005 was a year in which the scientific discoveries and new research on climate change confirmed the fears and concerns of the science community. Findings reported in peer-reviewed journals last year point to an unavoidable conclusion: the physical consequences of climate change are no longer theoretical; they are real, they are here, and they can be quantified.

In an issue brief entitled Climate Science 2005: Major New Discoveries (see http://pdf.wri.org/climatescience_2005.pdf), the World Resources Institute reviews 40 scientific papers from the past year. Findings are described, including full citations and brief comments about the implications of each discovery.

The full results of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations' (FAO's) Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) 2005 were officially released on February 15. Both on-line and print versions of the report are available.