The world has an unprecedented opportunity to improve the lives of bil­lions of people by meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the international community’s time-bound and quantified targets for addressing extreme poverty in its many forms.

Even though no MDG refers to energy explicitly, improved energy services—including modern cooking fuels, improved cook stoves, increased sustain­able biomass production, and expanded access to electricity and mechanical power—are necessary for meeting all the Goals.

Since the evidence linking provision of energy services with achievement of social objectives and generation of economic growth is strong, the MDG Review is working on promoting the idea of policy changes and addressing the levels of investments required for improving access to energy services in urban and rural areas through public –private partnerships.

Climate change presents significant threats to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals especially those related to eliminating poverty and hunger and promoting environmental sustainability. Variations in rainfall and extreme weather events are likely to place additional strains on poorer countries already facing serious challenges due to food insecurity, indebtedness, HIV/AIDS, environmental degradation, armed conflicts, economic shocks and the effects of globalization.

MDG Review is going to be focusing a little more on this subject of climate change and the effect it’s already having on the MDGs, and will be showcasing some of the worlds expects on the subject to share their views and have our readers debate on the various options available now.

Check out some of the editorial contributions from our current and past issues.