TABLE OF CONTENTS STAGE SET FOR ACTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE, MARCHI, WIRTH TELL CGCP SYMPOSIUM READERS WRITE CGCP NOW THE CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY LAND-USE AND LAND-COVER CHANGES: AN OPPORTUNITY FOR CANADA SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE ON PROBLEMS OF THE ENVIRONMENT: A RENEWED CANADIAN PRESENCE GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE AND HUMAN SECURITY PROJECT STARTS UP GECHS — AN OVERVIEW MONTREAL — GREENHOUSE GAS MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES UNDER DEVELOPMENT IMAGES OF A TIGER*: HELP FOR THE ACRONYMICALLY- CHALLENGED CCP INFO THE CANADA COUNTRY STUDY: CLIMATE IMPACTS AND ADAPTATION CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE UNITED NATIONS FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE - HIGHLIGHTS THE EARTH SYSTEM: GEOLOGY LESSONS FOR OUR FUTURE INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM "ELECTRICITY PRODUTION AND GREENHOUSE GASES : FACTS AND PERSPECTIVES" May 4-7 1997, Montreal, Québec RECENT PUBLICATIONS EVENTS CALENDAR

Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment: A Renewed Canadian Presence Dave Henderson Canadian Global Change Program At its November 1995 Board of Directors' meeting, the Canadian Global Change Program (CGCP) assumed responsibility for re-vitalizing the Canadian National Committee (CNC) for the International Council of Scientific Union's (ICSU) Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE). The purpose of this article is provide the reader with a brief description of SCOPE, its research program and a proposed role for the CGCP-sponsored CNC in the growth and influence of SCOPE in Canada. SCOPE was formed by ICSU in 1969 to respond to a growing concern for and about issues of environmental quality and to heighten awareness of existing and potential environmental issues. SCOPE was originally established as an interdisciplinary body for the natural sciences but has evolved, as evidenced by its current work plan, to address societal constraints on the environment as well societal responses to the driving forces of global change. SCOPE's function is similar to that of the CGCP's — to bring together researchers to identify emerging environmental concerns, provide scientific assessments of global change, and to discover gaps in knowledge and recommend new directions and innovative approaches. It serves as a science-policy interface, providing the decision making community with the scientific underpinnings for informed policy decisions. SCOPE recently released its 1996-1998 Programme, which addresses a number of pressing environmental issues. The theme of the SCOPE Scientific Programme is concepts and practices of sustainability. There are currently 17 projects with this general focus, in various stages of maturity, which are organized into the following three clusters: Practices and Policies Sustainable Biosphere Project Environment and Economics Indicators of Sustainable Development Ecological Engineering and Ecosystem Restoration A Global Strategy on Invasive Species Earth-System Services and Human Population Solving Environmental Problems of the Oceans Ecosystem Process and Biodiversity Groundwater Contamination Nitrogen Transport and Transformation Earth Surface Processes DIVERSITAS (an international program on biodiversity science) Ecosystem Function of Biodiversity Biodiversity in Soils and Sediments Dynamics of Mixed Tree/Grass Systems Behavior of Large-Scale Ecosystems Health and Environment Scientific Group on Methodologies for Safety Evaluation of Chemicals Radiation from Nuclear Test Explosions Mercury Cycling in Ecosystems Although Canadians continue to play a vital role in the administration of SCOPE, they are conspicuously absent from the present work plan. The CNC for SCOPE will be similar in purpose and operation to other CGCP-sponsored national committees. It will be composed of CGCP Board members and possibly other scientific and policy experts who will meet prior to each CGCP Board meeting. The Committee will be responsible for communicating the progress and results of SCOPE activity to the Canadian scientific and policy communities, and for facilitating Canadian involvement in the SCOPE research program. The first meeting of the CNC for SCOPE will take place in mid-January 1997, in Vancouver. The CNC will be chaired by J.W.B. Stewart, current Dean of Agriculture at the University of Saskatchewan and past-President of SCOPE. He will be joined by K. Davies, Ecosystems Consulting; G. McBean, Atmospheric Environment Service; and J. Robinson of the Sustainable Development Research Institute at the University of British Columbia. If you would like additional information on any of the noted program areas, want to place your name on a mailing list to receive the SCOPE newsletter, or have specific ideas to be communicated to the CNC, please contact the CGCP Secretariat (address on page one).