Overgrazing and uncontrolled livestock grazing threatens steppe, subalpine and alpine ecosystems. A third of pasturelands in the region are subject to erosion. Sheep grazing in the winter ranges and the steppes and semi-deserts of the eastern Caucasus has nearly tripled in the past decade. Intensive grazing has resulted in reduced species diversity and habitat degradation. Secondary plant communities now occupy 80 percent of grasslands in the sub...

The Caucasus ecoregion, with the countries Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia and parts of Russia, Turkey and Iran represents a region in transition. Poverty is a key factor in human and economic development. The highest levels are in the parts of the Russian Federation present in the region, as well as in Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia. The value for Turkey and Iran are for the whole of the countries, and the values may not be representative for the ...

The Caucasus region is important in terms of heavy industry. Being rich with natural mineral resources, extraction industry is playing an important role in the overall economic development. However, concerns related to unsustainable mining practices increasingly worries the public. Within the Southern Caucasus, Armenia displays the greatest number of mine sites and identified mineral deposits. Within Armenia, the mining industry is concentrated i...

The Caucasus ecoregion, with the countries Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia and parts of Russia, Turkey and Iran represents a region in transition. Poverty is a key factor in human and economic development. This map show still very high poverty, up to 73 per cent in regions such as Ingushetia and Georgia.

Over the recent number of years, as the economy came to a standstill, individual farms have replaced collective farming and subsistence agriculture and livestock breeding (cattle, sheep and goat) have became common. Along with the increase in farming, more and more land has been used as pasture land. Despite their low productivity, high Mountain areas are increasingly used as pasture grounds for sheep - leading to soil erosion and evoking avalanc...

Transportation routes through mountain regions have always been of vital importance not just for mountain dwellers but also for traders between regions. In the Caucasus, transport routes are of immense importance as they connect Asia and Europe and facilitate the transportation of crucial industrial inputs from one continent to the other. Increase in freight transportation occurred between the 1970s and 1980s and regained momentum in the late 199...

An ice-rock avalanche in the Kazbek region sheared off almost the entire Kolka Glacier and devastated the Genaldon valley. The satellite images show the region before (July 22, 2001) and after (October 6, 2002) the ice-rock avalanche of September 20, 2002.

The Arctic is extremely diverse in terms of landscapes, varying from pack and drift ice to rugged shores, flat coastal plains, rolling hills and mountains surpassing 6000 metres above sea level (Denali, 6,194 m asl, in sub-arctic and boreal Alaska). The region has rivers and lakes, tundra and the largest forests in the world (the Russian Taiga). This is a simple grayscale political map.

The Arctic represents one of the least populated areas in the world, with only sparse settlements and very few large cities and towns - in comparison with e.g. continental Europe. The largest cities are in Northwest Russia, and Reykjavik is the only national capital in the Arctic. The extraction of natural resources has emerge as a main interest and priority in the Arctic region, and this may cause increases and shifts in population.

The Arctic is extremely diverse in terms of landscapes, varying from pack and drift ice to rugged shores, flat coastal plains, rolling hills and mountains surpassing 6000 metres above sea level (Denali, 6,194 m asl, in sub-arctic and boreal Alaska). The region has rivers and lakes, tundra and the largest forests in the world (the Russian Taiga).

Except for the fact that glaciers are melting rapidly in many places, we do not have adequate data to more accurately project when and where water scarcity will affect irrigation schemes in full. Making accurate projections is also difficult because of variations in the effects on ground and surface water, as well as on water for urban needs and industrial purposes Furthermore, the cost of water may also increase, seriously complicating the water...

The world regions are sharply divided in terms of their capacity to use science in promoting agricultural productivity in order to achieve food security and reduce poverty and hunger. For every US$100 of agricultural output, developed countries spend US$2.16 on public agricultural research and development (R&D), whereas developing countries spend only US$0.55 (IFPRI, 2008). Total agricultural R&D spending in developing countries increased ...

There are huge regional differences in the above trends. Globally, poverty rates have fallen from 52% in 1981 to 42% in 1990 and to 26% in 2005. In Sub-Saharan Africa, however, the poverty rate remained constant at around 50%. This region also comprises the majority of countries making the least progress in reducing child malnutrition. The poverty rate in East Asia fell from nearly 80% in 1980 to under 20% by 2005. East Asia, notably China,...

Carbon cycle, carbon fluxes and stocks.

Left panel: Schematic of the Arctic Ocean, central basin (Canada and Eurasian basins) and arctic continental shelves (with approximate boundaries for each Arctic Ocean coastal sea), and major rivers draining into the region. Right panel: The three generic types of continental shelves (i.e., inflow, interior and outflow) are shown

A new assessment has estimated that there are 1,650 gigatonnes of carbon stored in the northern circumpolar permafrost region4, more than twice the amount of carbon in the atmosphere.

Population by region was calculated averaging the results forecasted by the scenarios of the GEO-4 report using the WaterGAP modeling.

Child mortality rates by cause and region, 2004. Source: WHO, 2008.

Multinational companies in the EU and in Asia, among other, operate through subsidiary companies in the DRC region and contribute directly or most often indirectly with funds for financing the illegal exploitation of resources in the DRC – without criminal investigations.

Annual rates of population change of individual murre colonies during 12 years after the 1977 climatic regime shift in the North Pacific and during 9 years after the 1989 shift, in relation to changes in sea surface temperatures around the colonies from one decadal regime to the next. Population data are from 32 U. aalge and 21 U. lomvia colonies, encompassing the entire circumpolar region. Ten sites supported both species, so 43 different study...