Blog

Illegal farming is threatening Madagascar's largest dry forest in the Menabe Antimena Protected Area. With the support of USAID Hay Tao, the forests and their unique biodiversity have a better chance of withstanding the complex challenges facing one of the poorest countries in the world, whose citizens depend on its natural resources for their livelihoods.

• 10/11/2022
• Becky Band Jain

The story of Mrs. Rabi Abora from the Mazamni village in Niger is a stunning example of the devastating impact climate change is having on women's livelihoods, nutrition, and health. Her story also demonstrates concrete actions to help mitigate these impacts.

• 05/18/2022
• Shawn Baker

With agriculture driving deforestation, global climate protection and biodiversity conservation goals seem to collide with the drive to produce more food. Researchers warn of an impending “food security-biodiversity-climate” crisis and “looming land scarcity.”

• 10/12/2021
• Daniel Evans

Rwanda is among the smallest countries in mainland Africa, roughly the size of Maryland with twice the population. Less land area means harder decisions, such as balancing land allocated for agriculture versus areas designated for forest conservation.

• 07/14/2021
• Phoebe Oduor, Jake Ramthun

Cocoa certification may not be doing its job. The expansion of the international cocoa industry across the world’s tropical regions has caused significant destruction of tropical forests, releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and destroying habitat.

• 03/11/2021
• David Miller

“The water is pushing very hard on our islands and communities,” recounted the Bonthe Deputy Mayor, during a recent meeting with USAID staff in the southwestern district of Sierra Leone. His description captures the profound impacts that climate change is having on coastal communities.

• 04/29/2019
• Julia Bradley-Cook

In the West Gonja and Sene districts of northern and central Ghana, respectively, deforestation caused by charcoal production is affecting sustainable livelihoods.

• 10/18/2018
• SERVIR

From October 2016 to March 2018, experts from the USAID-funded Climate Economic Analysis for Development, Investment and Resilience (CEADIR) activity assessed the clean energy markets in eight West African countries and trained commercial banks interested in starting or scaling up clean energy lending on technologies and business models.

• 05/01/2018
• Edward Hoyt

The asymmetry between men’s and women’s participation in forestry decision-making is often rooted in two inter-related issues. First, forestry institutions and forest resources are generally male-dominated and second, village-level decision-making takes place in the public sphere. Women are traditionally associated with the private sphere of home and family life.

• 03/08/2018
• Christi Hang

USAID is building mutually beneficial partnerships with private sector actors that leverage their respective expertise, assets, technologies, networks and resources to achieve greater development impact.

• 02/26/2018
• Climatelinks

An Analysis of Nine USAID Agricultural Development Projects Shows How Low-emission Practices Contribute to Food Security and Mitigate Climate Change.

• 10/12/2017
• Julie Nash, Julianna White

A new case study analyzes the benefits of the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project (LTWP) and presents important lessons for maximizing social, environmental and economic returns for other large wind projects in the region and beyond.

• 02/13/2017
• Climatelinks

“Climate work is practical, common-sense, good development,” said Carrie Thompson, deputy assistant administrator at the Bureau for Economic Growth, Education, and Environment at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

• 12/29/2016
• Graham Norwood