“Tackling climate change could be the greatest global health opportunity of the 21^st century,” asserts the newest report by the Lancet Commission on Health and Climate Change.

The landscape of the northeastern Indian state of Meghalaya is rapidly changing. What was once a predominately agricultural economy has shifted to coal mining with significant consequences for people and the environment. “Once you extract coal from the land, it’s really hard to go back to an agricultural economy,” says ECSP’s Sean Peoples in an interview with Wilson Center NOW, about the Global Choke Point film, Broken Landscape.

Researchers have been warning about future water scarcity for decades, but new data reveals a majority of the world’s largest aquifers are already running out of water.

A new report prepared by the UN Environment Program and UN peacekeeping operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (known as MONUSCO) found that just two percent of the total value of illicit natural resources smuggled from the country comes back to armed groups. Still, these funds, which amount to around $13 million a year, allow some 25 to 49 groups to continue operating in the country’s war-torn eastern provinces. Much more, as much as 50 percent, ends up in the hands of transnational criminal networks with the remaining profits flowing to individuals or companies elsewhere in the DRC or in Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi.

2015 is a major test for the international system. The Sustainable Development Goals are expected to be adopted in New York in September and expectations for the UN Climate Summit in Paris are higher than perhaps any other time. “It is a critical year,” said Alan Hecht, director for sustainable development for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “but our challenge is years of sustainable development. How do we take actions today, how do we prepare for the future in such a way that we will achieve a more sustainable outcome?” [Video Below]

From smoggy skies to rancid rivers and staggering slums, environmental challenges loom large for Asia. While much has been said about the role of government and NGOs in achieving a sustainable future, Mark Clifford, executive director of the Asia Business Council, believes companies are an indispensable but often overlooked part of the solution.

India occupies a precarious position in the global climate change order. It trails only China, the United States, and the European Union in total emissions, but per capita emissions are far lower. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi won the 2014 elections on a strong pro-development platform and continues to wave this flag at all levels, making energy security a major priority and pledging to expand the country’s coal mining industry. But he also insists he will work with the international community on mitigating climate change. During a recent visit to France, Germany, and Canada, he declared, “India will set the agenda for the upcoming Conference of Parties” in Paris this fall.