SciDev.Net

Science and technology can contribute significantly to mitigating the impact of tropical cyclones.

The Myanmar cyclone and Chinese earthquake highlight the need for effective dissemination of information, both before and after a disaster.

A recent report is a welcome analysis of modern agriculture's future, but it fails to adequately recognise the role of science and technology.

Bill and Melinda Gates' forays into aid are to be welcomed, but they can only succeed alongside government involvement.

A commitment to biofuels should be based on a careful assessment of their prospective benefits and costs, not a blind leap of faith.

The world must not miss its second chance to take a radically different approach to energy consumption.

Last week's award of the Nobel peace prize signals the coming of age of the public communication of science.

The fight against biopiracy must embrace both legitimate science and social justice if biodiversity itself is not to suffer.

Almost unnoticed, Nepal is developing simple and cheap technologies that make the best of local resources and don't damage the environment.

Effective adaptation strategies will require reliable scientific data both on the nature of climate change and on its potential impact.

Building public support for genetically modified crops in sub-Saharan Africa means developing a homegrown solution to the region's own needs.

All members of the media must work together to ensure sustainable development is given the attention it deserves.

A combination of factors appears to be pushing the risk-benefit balance back into nuclear's favour as an energy option for developing countries. SciDev.Net readers are invited to comment.

The forthcoming meeting of heads of the world's industrialised nations must not let self-interest detract from the challenge of global poverty and efforts to soften the impact of globalisation on the developing world.

Next January, the heads of member states of the African Union will meet to discuss science and technology in what will be a unique opportunity to support the continent's scientific renaissance.

Although GM crops are controversial, they can still play an important role in meeting the world's food needs. But the controversies do highlight the need for a robust regulatory framework.

The political effect on the United States of its failure to anticipate Hurricane Katrina's full impact will hopefully generate a more considered attitude to the threat of climate change.

Walter Reid, Robert Watson and Harold Mooney defend the term 'ecosystem services' as an essential way of describing to policymakers the importance of the benefits that people receive from ecosystems.

Is preserving biodiversity compatible with achieving the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals? Judging by reactions to the most recent report on global biodiversity, the answer seems to depend on where one is coming from.

The media is often criticised for focusing excessively on 'bad' news about GM crops (indeed about events in general). Such criticism ignores the fact that the main problem is not media bias but inaccurate reporting.