| |  | |  Aid effectiveness summit set to kick off in South Korea Leaders of the development community are gathering in the seaside town of Busan in South Korea, with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton attending for the first time. The Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness includes private sector attendees for the first time. The event will also showcase the success of South Korea as a development aid recipient, going back to the country's emergence from its civil war in the 1950s. CNN (11/28), The Guardian (London) (11/28)     
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|  | "The first three days of Case 002 of the Khmer Rouge trial have seen both a total lack of penance, and a dogged determination to deflect blame for the death of millions of Cambodians from defendants 'Brother Number Two' Nuon Chea, former foreign minister Ieng Sary, and former Head of State Khieu Samran. Instead of looking to themselves and their own choices, the three former Khmer Rouge leaders have thus far preferred blame US carpet bombings, Vietnamese incursions into Cambodia, poor conditions created by French imperialists and previous Cambodian governments, and other outside forces for the miserable conditions their people suffered." UN Dispatch | |
- UN: Population is growing, yet farmland degraded
 Farmers the world over must produce 70% more food by 2050 in order to feed a projected population of 9 billion, even though a quarter of all arable land is highly degraded, according to the first-ever global assessment of the state of global land and water resources. The assessment, released today by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, found that the boost to crop yields brought on by new technologies, pesticides and high-yield crops is being negated by climate change and poor farming practices. The Washington Post/The Associated Press (11/28), The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia) (11/28) - UN report offers low-cost options to slow global warming
A report by the UN Environment Programme names diesel-powered vehicles and wood-fired cookstoves as major sources of climate change that, like methane, could be targeted to reduce by about half a degree Celsius the projected 2 degrees Celsius climb in global warming by 2050. Among 16 low-cost measures recommended by the agency to slash levels of black carbon are the introduction of subsidies and incentives to phase out traditional biomass cookstoves in favor of more efficient, fan-assisted ovens (or stoves fueled by liquefied petroleum gas, or biogas). The Guardian (London) (11/27), BusinessGreen (U.K.) (11/25)  | - Global Fund spending cuts raise concerns
Changes in donor contributions and allegations of mismanagement have forced the United Nations-backed Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria to announce a freeze on spending until 2014. Donor governments concerns over the fund's financial management and their own economic worries led to contribution cut backs that public health experts caution will leave millions across the developing world, particularly in Africa, without access to treatment. The Telegraph (London) (11/24), The Globe and Mail (Toronto) (11/25) - Public-private partnerships are the future of foreign policy
 Public-private partnerships such as the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves -- which has brought together more than 175 NGOs, government agencies, corporations and foundations to secure the use of 100 million clean cookstoves globally by 2020 -- are a "very useful took in the foreign policy toolbox," writes Anne-Marie Slaughter, former director of policy planning at the U.S. State Department. Not only do such alliances harness private incentives to public goals, Slaughter writes, but they are better at pooling global experience with local knowledge in developing countries. CNN/Global Public Square blog (11/25) - India's malnutrition efforts are falling short
India is struggling to improve child malnutrition levels despite agricultural growth and overall economic expansion, and is unlikely to achieve significant gain without a coordinated national policy, development experts warn. India was able to decrease the rate 3% between 2000 and 2006, significantly less than experts would expect in a country experiencing rapid growth. The Wall Street Journal/India Real Time blog (11/28) - A crackdown on child marriage in Bangladesh
Communities across Bangladesh are beginning to act decisively against the practice of child marriage in response to coordinated efforts by aid groups and local authorities. Prevention efforts include public awareness campaigns and the creation of local income-generating activities to help keep girls in school. The Guardian (London) (11/22) - Climate summit kicks off in Durban
Negotiators from around the world are gathering in Durban, South Africa, for climate negotiations with few observers expecting much progress on formulating a binding climate change battle plan amid accusations wealthy countries are bullying those in the developing world. United Nations Environment Program Executive Director Achim Steiner argues that climate policy is a work in progress and that any stumbling blocks can be overcome in the longer term. The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (11/27), Der Spiegel (Germany) (English online version) (11/25), The Guardian (London) (11/26) - Arab sanctions press Syria on peace plan
The Arab League on Sunday imposed sanctions against Syria, severing most trade and investment with the Arab world, in an effort to stop the country's eight-month crackdown on mostly peaceful anti-government protesters. The United Nations, in response to a call for assistance by the pan-Arab body, said it was ready to provide human rights staff for a potential observer mission in Syria intended to protect civilians. Reuters (11/25), The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (11/27) Top five news stories selected by UN Wire readers in the past week. - Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.
- World's best thinkers offer innovative ideas for improving global development
Ahead of the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness that kicks off in Busan this week, the UN Foundation's Pledge Guarantee for Health and Devex launched a dynamic conversation, presenting ideas from some of the world's best thinkers. Visit Devex.com to read thoughtful and provocative pieces from Grameen Bank founder and UN Foundation board member Muhammad Yunus, chairman of the OECD Development Assistance Committee Brian Atwood, and U.S. Agency for International Development's chief innovation officer, Maura O’Neill. From November 29 to December 1 2011, an estimated 2000 delegates will gather at the forum to review progress in improving the impact and effectiveness of aid, and make commitments that set a new agenda for development.
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Australian photographer Anne Geddes, known for her whimsical and charming photographs of newborn babies, is offering a free photo session and a trip to Australia to a pregnant woman (who is due to give birth before Valentine's Day) as part of the Million Moms Challenge. To enter, women can post their own belly picture on the 
Development efforts in their traditional form may hold little advantage for the world's 150 million tribal people, writes Stephen Corry, director of Survival International. Housing, education and medical programs are viewed with suspicion by tribal communities that have been self-sufficient for generations. 
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