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Robert Watson

Robert Watson

4 commentaries

Robert Watson, a former chair of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, is a former director of the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science, and Technology for Development.

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  1. Feeding a Greener World
    watson3_GEttyImages_plantfarm Getty Images

    Feeding a Greener World

    Oct 13, 2020 Robert Watson calls for an end to agricultural practices that are bad for not just nature but also food security.

  2. Nature by the Numbers
    watson4_Yousuf TusharLightRocket via Getty Images_sundarbans Yousuf Tushar/LightRocket via Getty Images

    Nature by the Numbers

    Jul 31, 2020 Robert Watson highlights a new study's calculations of the economic benefits of protecting 30% of the planet by 2030.

  3. Business and Biodiversity
    globe environment noipornpan/Getty Images

    Business and Biodiversity

    Feb 22, 2019 Robert Watson argues that the despoliation of natural systems by global corporations can no longer be kept off the books.

  4. Sounding the Alarm on Biodiversity Loss
    Scientists observe biodiversity Boris Hovat/Getty Images

    Sounding the Alarm on Biodiversity Loss

    Nov 10, 2017 Robert Watson touts forthcoming research that should focus policymakers' attention on ecosystem health.

  1. stiglitz331_serggnGetty Images_techregulation serggn/Getty Images

    A Big Defeat for Big Tech

    Joseph E. Stiglitz

    Tech companies know that if there is an open, democratic debate about data security, consumers’ concerns about digital safeguards will win out. And while the industry's lobbyists tried to ensure that no such debate could ever occur, one of their more cynical moves has now been exposed and thwarted.

    details how the industry tried to slip extraordinary protections against regulation into US trade agreements.
  2. zizek27_Giles ClarkeGetty Images_jimmycherizier Giles Clarke/Getty Images

    Haiti’s Proud Boys

    Slavoj Žižek

    If we measure a failed state by the cracks in the edifice of its power, reflected in brewing ideological civil wars, deadlocked assemblies, and increasingly insecure public spaces, we must recognize that the United States is not so unlike Haiti. Both have given rise to violent gangs with political ambitions.

    warns that rich Western democracies are not immune to politically motivated gang violence.
  3. hedegaard11_y Dursun AydemirAnadolu via Getty Images_parliament elections Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu via Getty Images

    Unity Is Europe’s Greatest Asset

    Connie Hedegaard emphasizes the importance of stability amid persistent economic and geopolitical crises.
  4. qian34_PEDRO PARDOAFP via Getty Images_immigration PEDRO PARDO/AFP via Getty Images

    The Truth About US Immigration

    Nancy Qian warns that overheated campaign-season rhetoric is dangerously polarizing and ultimately self-defeating.
  5. mueller51_ David McNewGetty Images_gop trump David McNew/Getty Images

    The Zombification of Political Parties

    Jan-Werner Mueller argues that Donald Trump’s capture of the GOP’s organizational machinery recalls authoritarian tactics elsewhere.
  6. basu100_David Dee DelgadoGetty Images_newyork David Dee Delgado/Getty Images

    The Economic Consequences of Legal Behavior

    Kaushik Basu highlights the potential benefits of emphasizing adherence to the spirit of laws, if not their letter.
  7. brown106_KOLA SULAIMONAFP via Getty Images_nigeriaschool Kola Sulaimon/AFP via Getty Images

    For Nigeria’s Schools, Safety Must Come First

    Gordon Brown writes that the latest mass abduction of students underscores the dilemma facing parents throughout the country.
  8. owoo1_disabled iStock / Getty Images Plus

    Give Women with Disabilities a Chance

    Nkechi S. Owoo explains what is needed to protect and empower one of the world’s most vulnerable demographic groups.
  9. op_mkurz3_Spencer PlattGetty Images_rustbelt Spencer Platt/Getty Images

    How Capitalism Became a Threat to Democracy

    Mordecai Kurz examines the economic policies and market dynamics that have ushered in America's Second Gilded Age.

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