The proposed Facility will finance five small-scale activities to support preparation and implementation of transformative projects. The activities will include feasibility studies, detailed designs, preparation of safeguard documents, financial and economic analysis and operation and maintenance for ensuing projects, as well as pilot-testing of advanced technologies and management approaches, extending capacity building and implementation support, governance reform support and knowledge products.

The proposed TA will promote sustainable forest development for Papua New Guinea by (i) leveraging the effective management of existing Protected Areas and its expansion, (ii) promote low-emission loggings and timber legality standards for sustainable forest harvest, (iii) facilitate downstream processing and access to international market for timber and non-timber products, and (iv) exploring and piloting eco-tourism linked to a sustainable financing model for biodiversity and forest conservation.

The technical assistance (TA), which will be approved with the proposed Integrated Water Resources Management Project, will help the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology: (i) implement one of the activities of output 2 (para 6), (ii) inform rice farmers about and train them to implement innovative climate mitigative water management technology, and (iii) disseminate this innovative AWD technology to the entire country. The TA project's demonstration activities are expected to reduce emissions by 11,750 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.

The proposed project will increase access to livelihood training opportunities and support services for women and at-risk youth in the Marshall Islands, including through new facilities and targeted quality skills and livelihood development and support programs.

The U-Tapao International Airport is the core infrastructure of the EEC and its expansion project is to be implemented via Public-Private Partnership modality. Land transport network connecting the U-Tapao International Airport in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) to the rest of the Pattaya City and country cannot adapt to changing needs as a result of the expansion plan of the airport due to the limitations of the existing land transport network to cope with traffic increase.

The investment project is aligned with the following impact: Adequate, quality, sustainable, resilient, and safe transport infrastructure provided in the Greater Capital Region for the economic transformation of the country. The investment project will have the following outcome: Efficiency of road travel improved and the following outputs: (i) Output 1: Climate-resilient expressway along Laguna Lakeshore built; and (ii) Output 2: Institutional capacity of the Department of Public Works and Highways strengthened.

In the Laguna area, the government has prioritized improvement of public transport and is developing the South Commuter Rail Project, connecting Manila and Calamba. The government also released the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program in 2017 to improve the efficiency of road-based public transport operations, and started to establish bus terminals, such as the Paranaque Integrated Terminal Exchange, for more efficient and convenient bus operations.

Asia and the Pacific’s developing economies are projected to grow 5.0% this year on the back of resilient domestic demand and strong export growth, particularly in the electronics sector.

It is proposed to modernize the 1,147 km strategic railway line between Turkmenabat, Mary, Ashgabat, and Turkmenbashi (TMAT), which is located at the crossroads of major eastwest and northsouth international trade routes and accounts for over 50% of freight movements in Turkmenistan.

The project will support increased contributions of clean energy in Mongolia's energy mix while also supporting energy security, efficiency, and resilience. The project will finance the construction of a new 220 kilovolt (kV) transmission line to connect to the 90-megawatt (MW) Erdeneburen hydropower plant (HPP) to the existing grid network, which will increase supply in the Western Energy System (WES), eliminate costly and high-emission imports from the Russian Federation, and facilitate maximized utilization of wind and solar generating capacity.

Project objectives. The proposed project will assist the government in addressing climate vulnerabilities and enhancing public health and economic conditions by ensuring inclusive access to safe, reliable, climate-resilient, and sustainable WSS services for the residents of Andijan, Djizzak and Fergana provinces; and the Republic of Karakalpakstan. The project will help upgrade and expand the WSS infrastructure in the project regions and support regional suvtaminots in implementing transformational changes.

The proposed Northern China Agriculture and Food Ecosystem Net Zero Transformation Project (project) will support the PRC to achieve its climate commitment through catalyzing financing and strengthening institutional capacity for net zero transformation in agriculture and food ecosystem.

The TA will focus on evaluating the wind potential of various site/s for government investment in wind energy. A feasibility analysis of viable wind sites will be carried out, which will inform the government on the scale of wind projects and how best to develop this potential. The TA will also fund the equipment for measuring wind speeds and directions to confirm site selection and build capacity for wind energy development in the EA.

The project will support an expansion of Indonesia's geothermal generating capacity to contribute to the sustainability, resiliency, and sufficiency of the electricity system. The project will support PT Geo Dipa Energi (GDE), a state-owned geothermal company, to commission an additional 110 megawatts (MW) of geothermal electricity generating capacity at the Dieng geothermal field in Central Java.

Turning around and backing up out of pools found in tree hollows may help mating Charles Darwin’s frogs find a safe place to lay their eggs while fending off competitive males

Eight Australian sea lions were fitted with cameras and trackers to capture unprecedented insights into their behaviour and the marine habitats where they hunt

Blackworms are ultra-fast swimmers, and they tangle up into worm balls to protect themselves from predators – but leeches have an ingenious method of catching them called “spiral entombment”

Microwaves in homes, offices and laboratories have been found to host diverse microbiomes, highlighting the importance of regular cleaning

After the release of a shocking video showing Olympic rider Charlotte Dujardin whipping a horse, it is time for equestrians to educate themselves on the science of horse training, says Christa Lesté-Lasserre

Forget videos by gamers or influencers. For a real online thrill, watch the world's biggest flower emerging in a former web designer's greenhouse, says Annalee Newitz

Two nankeen kestrels have been filmed flying in a wind tunnel to learn how the raptors keep their heads in a fixed position under turbulent conditions

Invasive cane toads have decimated native freshwater crocodile populations in northern Australia, as the predators don't know they should avoid the toxic amphibians

This week, we journey to the early 2030s, when machine learning first allowed us to communicate with sperm whales. Rowan Hooper tells us what they have to say

Scientists have known for centuries that sunflowers wobble in seemingly random ways as they grow – but it seems that those movements actually optimise how much light each plant gets

The noises made by organisms like ants and worms as they move around in the soil can be used to assess whether an ecosystem is in good shape

From birds and bats to horses and great apes, Bill Schutt's seriously fun history of teeth, Bite, explains their role in both shaping evolution and our understanding of it

See the incredible shots that have won this year's BMC Ecology and Evolution and BMC Zoology Image Competition

Up to 100,000 extraordinary species, from spiders and beetles to salamanders and fish, live in subterranean caves and cracks. They aren’t as safe down there as we thought

A big rethink of our planet’s early years adds to growing fossil, chemical and DNA evidence that Earth was only a few hundred million years old when life began

The Origins and Habitability Lab at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a testbed exploring how geological conditions could impact life in environments such as early Earth, Mars or the icy moons of Jupiter

High-speed camera recordings show that springtails spin at up to 368 rotations per second when they jump away from danger

These photos showcase some of the intricately created birds' nests found in the Natural History Museum in Tring, UK, home to one of the world's largest ornithological collections

A survey found 66 species of insects making their homes in cobbled pavements on the streets of Berlin, and greater biodiversity near insect-friendly flower gardens

The largest pterosaurs, ancient reptiles that were the first vertebrates to master flight, may have mostly soared while smaller ones flapped their wings, a pattern that persists in today's birds

These images are taken from a new book, Seeds: Time capsules of life, which explores how plant life has flourished in the past 360 million years

The books, TV, games and more that New Scientist staff have enjoyed this week

Breaching is a common behaviour in a wide range of sharks and rays, and it is thought to have functions related to courtship, birthing and hygiene

A camera trap at an Australian nature refuge has captured a boisterous interaction between a northern hairy-nosed wombat and an echidna

X-ray videos of Japanese eels swallowed whole by dark sleeper fish have revealed how the eels can make a daring escape from being digested