1 May 2014: In its April 2014 newsletter, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) International Environmental Technology Centre (IETC) features: Central Asian waste activities; planned collaboration with the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies; and an agricultural waste biomass project in Costa Rica.

IETC participated in a Central Asian Interstate Commission of Sustainable Development from 2-3 April 2014, in Dushanbe, Tajikstan. According to IETC, the meeting reconfirmed that waste is a priority for Central Asia in the framework of the Regional Environmental Action Plan (REAP), and requested IETC’s help in developing a Central Asia Waste Outlook.

IETC and the UNEP Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean (ROLAC) collaborated with the Government of Costa Rica on a project that converted waste agricultural biomass from the coffee sector into biomass. It also co-hosted a subregional dissemination workshop in San Jose, Costa Rica, from 28-30 April 2014, which facilitated the sharing of experiences and lessons learned.

IETC has also announced plans to establish a Collaborating Centre to enhance activities envisaged in the IETC Strategy. According to the newsletter, the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) has been selected to host the Collaborating Centre. [Publication: IETC Newsletter, April 2014]