Despite the current circular economy global movement, the amount of waste generated globally is still on the rise, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic when online shopping and take-out food services have been increasing. We must reduce waste and, simultaneously, recycle/recover resources from “waste.” This requires transformation along the entire value chain of production and consumption from product design and distribution to end of use and life.

Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) invited project officers, consultants, and practitioners to attend the Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) Lecture and Clinic on 15 September and 21 September.

Access to, and use of, digital technology in rural areas of developing countries has increased considerably in recent decades, underpinning a vast body of theoretical and empirical research on its implications for agricultural production, trade, and the wellbeing of rural households. Nevertheless, more research is needed to better understand how digitalization affects rural and agricultural development.

As countries begin to recover from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, policy makers must decide what type of economic recovery they want to pursue. Will they choose measures that continue with existing “business-as-usual” economic structures that have a negative impact on the environment? Or will they take up the challenge of rebuilding in a way that ensures an economically and environmentally resilient future?

This webinar highlighted Rohini Pande, Yale University economics professor and Director of the Yale Economic Growth Center, who discussed the interlinkage between poverty, inequality, and power and the role of policy in driving inclusive growth, with ADBI Dean Tetsushi Sonobe and experts.