Thursday Morning Linkage

7 March 2013, 0001 EST

Here is some Thursday morning linkage action:

  • In time for the CITES meeting on the trade in endangered species, scientists released a study that showed a 60% decline in the small forest elephant species in Africa in the last TEN years
  • Meanwhile, news accounts reported on the shadowy networks of criminals involved in the trade of endangered species (see here as well)
  • Scientists reported that they were able to cure a little girl infected with HIV by giving her large doses of a triple cocktail of antiretrovirals at birth; this is only the second reported case of someone known to have the HIV virus to be “cured” in some capacity
  • Another HIV clinical trial or pre-exposure prophylaxis (where people at risk take drugs before infection) failed because of low adherence
  • Here are some reported figures on the effects of sequestration on the foreign aid and humanitarian budget
  • The New York Times shuttered its Green blog and the Washington Post moved its Enviro reporter over to the White House
  • Obama admin picks for EPA and Energy may do some heavy lifting on policy in this admin (here, here)
  • State Department report suggests that Keystone XL pipeline won’t have much additional climate impact since oil sands will be exploited regardless
  • The EU emissions trading scheme is in need of an overhaul: low economic activity means firms have needed fewer permits than available, serious oversupply means low prices
  • Dan beat me to the punch on the “Call Me A Hole” mash up so I’ve posted this link to and embedded playlist for my SXSW 2013 Spotfiy playlist of bands that I’d like to and may see next week

Joshua Busby is a Professor in the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas-Austin. From 2021-2023, he served as a Senior Advisor for Climate at the U.S. Department of Defense. His most recent book is States and Nature: The Effects of Climate Change on Security (Cambridge, 2023). He is also the author of Moral Movements and Foreign Policy (Cambridge, 2010) and the co-author, with Ethan Kapstein, of AIDS Drugs for All: Social Movements and Market Transformations (Cambridge, 2013). His main research interests include transnational advocacy and social movements, international security and climate change, global public health and HIV/ AIDS, energy and environmental policy, and U.S. foreign policy.