Search results

Environmental mainstreaming (EM) is a policy instrument to integrate environmental risks and opportunities into planning and implementation. A body of knowledge exists on identifying barriers for EM at the national level. This paper identifies contributions of regional institutions for improving capacities for EM at the national level, using the Caribbean region as a case study. The methodology adopted combines in-depth interviews with senior policy-makers and participatory workshops for medium- and junior-level staff of government agencies. Four barriers for EM are analyzed with specific roles for regional agencies, including weak leadership, insufficient science–policy linkages, deficits in quantity and quality of human resources, and institutional aspects. Research findings identify regional leadership as crucial to supporting the science–policy interface, to share data and knowledge across countries facing similar challenges, to provide assistance with national policy development for EM involving transboundary issues, and to ensure cross-sectoral perspectives in regional initiatives, especially those on economic development.

Relevance of the research topic. The article discusses the foreign trade of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Latin American region in the context of economic integration. Formulation of the problem. The SMEs are particularly vulnerable if the country integrates into the trade block, opens up the domestic market and is subject to competition from foreign companies. This aspect requires further study. Analysis of recent research and publications. The issues of regionalization and integration were studied by the economists J. Weiner, B. Balassa, R. Cooper. A special attention was paid to small business and international entrepreneurship by the authors F. Weidersheim-Paul, J. Johanson, P. MacDougall, A.Danilchenko and D. Kalinin. Problem statement, research objectives. The purpose of the article is to summarize information about SMEs foreign economic relations, as well as directions to encourage internationalization in the Latin American trading blocks. Research methodology. When writing the article, the basic methods of general scientific study were used, an analysis of expert opinions and international databases was carried out. Presentation of the main research material (results of work). The article compares the state of the SME sector in the Latin American region. The author shows the imperfection of the support policy for enterprises and the limited opportunities for the internationalization of Latin American SMEs. It discusses the integrated approach to encourage the SMEs foreign trade and its implementation by the given governments. The field of the results application. The results of the study can be used by the relevant government agencies in developing support programs for SMEs internationalization. Conclusions according to the article. Currently Latin America and the Caribbean's have not reached a level of integration at which a unified sector development strategy and a support policy for SMEs internationalization are being developed. The governments have embarked on poverty alleviation issue and raising living standards through creating microenterprises in low value-added industries. Along with this, the measures are being taken to include SMEs in the supply chains of large businesses, encouraging the indirect internationalization of the sector. Integration with the developed countries will increase the chances of SMEs internationalizing. It will be facilitated by a vast foreign market, FDI and the establishment of supporting competitive industries among SMEs, as well as financial assistance from the regional funds.

The development of a legal framework and the establishment of an administrative system are two fundamental elements when building a biosafety regulatory system. Further, the ability to process applications and make decisions concerning the various uses of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are good indicators of an operational biosafety regulatory system. This study provides an update of the progress made by Latin American and Caribbean countries in the establishment of their biosafety regulatory systems, and focuses especially on the regulation of four key types of GMO use (e.g., contained use, confined use, unconfined use, and importation of GMOs or their derived products for food, feed, or processing purposes). It demonstrates that nine countries have operational biosafety regulatory systems with experience in all four types. The majority of countries, however, have little experience regulating GMOs. In fact, our study highlights common capacity deficiencies of these countries, upon which future assistance can be targeted.

Abstract
Air pollution is considered the world's most important environmental and public health risk. The annual exposure for particulate matter (PM) in the northern Caribbean region of Colombia between 2011 and 2019 was determined using PM records from 25 monitoring stations located within the area. The impact of exposure to particulate matter was assessed through the updated Global Burden of Disease health risk functions using the AirQ+ model for mortality attributable to acute lower respiratory disease (in children ≤ 4 years); mortality in adults aged > 18 years old attributable to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, ischaemic heart disease, lung cancer, and stroke; and all-cause post-neonatal infant mortality. The proportions of the prevalence of bronchitis in children and the incidence of chronic bronchitis in adults attributable to PM exposure were also estimated for the population at risk. Weather Research and Forecasting-California PUFF (WRF-CALPUFF) modeling systems were used to estimate the spatiotemporal trends and calculate mortality relative risk due to prolonged PM2.5 exposure. Proportions of mortality attributable to long-term exposure to PM2.5 were estimated to be around 11.6% of ALRI deaths in children ≤ 4 years of age, 16.1% for COPD, and 26.6% for IHD in adults. For LC and stroke, annual proportions attributable to PM exposure were estimated to be 9.1% and 18.9%, respectively. An estimated 738 deaths per year are directly attributed to particulate matter pollution. The highest number of deaths per year is recorded in the adult population over 18 years old with a mean of 401 events. The mean risk in terms of the prevalence of bronchitis attributable to air pollution in children was determined to be 109 per 100,000 inhabitants per year. The maximum RR values for mortality (up 1.95%) from long-term PM2.5 exposure were predicted to correspond to regions downwind to the industrial zone.