Editorial Klaus Toepfer, Executive Director, UNEP Unmatched opportunities Mohamed T. El-Ashry, Chairman and CEO, GEF, describes how the Global Environment Facility is linking the global environment to sustainable livelihoods Global priority James D. Wolfensohn, President, The World Bank, explains that achieving environmental sustainability is essential if poverty is to be reduced Partnerships for change Mark Malloch Brown, Administrator, UNDP, gives practical examples of effective and innovative projects to save the global environment Rising to new challenges Xie Zhenhua, Minister, State Environmental Protection Administration, China, sets out his hopes for the GEF Assembly, and calls for concrete action Much achieved, more to do Claire Short, UK Secretary of State for International Development, assesses the GEF’s achievements and suggests priorities for its second decade Message to the Second GEF Assembly Kofi A. Annan, UN Secretary-General At a glance: Africa Environment Outlook Critical energy José Goldemberg, Secretary of State for the Environment of the State of São Paulo, Brazil, describes how increasing the use of renewable sources of energy is essential for sustainable development

Mapping the health of the planet Robert T. Watson, Chief Scientist and Director, ESSD, The World Bank; and Board Co-Chair of the Millennium Assessment, describes the increasing impact of human activities on ecosystems, and the goods and services they provide, and outlines a new assessment of them Regaining ground Hama Arba Diallo, Executive Secretary, UNCCD, says that desertification is a global problem and that tackling it requires global support Two to tango Joke Waller-Hunter, Executive Secretary, UNFCCC Secretariat, describes the partnership between the GEF and the climate convention and looks at how it may develop in future Linking knowledge to action Julia Carabias, Chair of STAP, emphasizes the importance of integrating science and technology into solutions for environmental problems, and describes the work of the GEF’s Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel Globalizing benefits Leif E. Christoffersen, Team Leader of GEF’s Second Overall Performance Study, examines the GEF’s mission, evaluates its success in achieving it, and suggests areas for improvement Unpopular POPs Jack Weinberg, Northern Co-Chair of the International POPs Elimination Network (IPEN), explains why persistent organic pollutants are a global problem, and describes international efforts to reduce and eliminate them Message to the Second GEF Assembly Xiang Huaicheng, Minister of Finance, China