The social and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the measures to contain it in Latin America could lead to a series of long run consequences that could impact the region’s achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). This article is the result of the collaboration of environmental economists from eight of the region’s countries and it discusses the possible pandemic effects on air pollution, deforestation, and other relevant environmental aspects related to the SDG.

Assessing progress on sustainability in fisheries presents an urgent need to evaluate how management reforms interact with fishing communities to not only assure the health of the fish stock, but also create social and economic benefits. A number of fisheries management reforms are undertaken every year in recognition of the important role fisheries play in providing employment and income to remote coastal communities, contributing to food security and poverty alleviation.

The triple-bottom-line (TBL) approach defines successful fisheries as those which are ecologically sustainable, capable of generating profits to fishermen, and socially accepted. This approach has brought two significant challenges to fishery managers. On the one hand, the TBL approach usually requires new types of data and analysis to guide scientifically-based fisheries assessment. Recent research suggests that scientifically-assessed fisheries have a better likelihood of success compared with scientifically-unassessed fisheries, which represent most developing country fisheries.

It is widely believed that forests help improve water quality by reducing soil erosion (and hence reducing silt) as well as filtering out nutrients and pollutants carried in water, which allows the municipal drinking water supply sector to simplify or expedite many costly water treatment procedures and thereby save on operating costs. This study statistically quantifies such cost savings in the contexts of China’s Sichuan province, by analyzing how drinking water treatment costs change in response to changes in upstream forest cover.

The household heating energy transition program in China has led to a sharp increase in household heating costs and has exacerbated energy poverty (high ratios of energy expenditure to income). This program is mandatory, with the goal of alleviating environmental problems and accelerating households’ transition to cleaner fuel. Specifically, it is intended to convert household heating fuel from coal to natural gas (coal to gas), electricity (coal to electricity), or cleaner coal (clean coal replacement), through mandates and subsidies.

The outbreak and spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is probably the most serious global challenge since World War II. While research has paid considerable attention to the technical, epidemiological and public health aspects of the pandemic in Africa, it neglects the social, economic and political dimensions.