| World Bank forms
nonprofit unit to combat climate change July 17 -- The World Bank has created the Clean Air Institute, a nonprofit organization that will work toward improving air quality in Latin America and fighting climate change caused by global warming. The institute will manage the Clean Air Initiative for Latin American Cities, a partnership for cities, the private sector and nongovernmental organizations. The World Bank previously created and operated the initiative. Latin America is the most highly urbanized region in the developing world, with more than 75 percent of the regionīs population living in urban areas, according to the World Bank. That is expected to grow to 89 percent by 2030. The transportation sector is the leading cause of air pollution in Latin America. "The Clean Air Institute will play a pivotal role in helping cities reduce greenhouse gas emissions and clean the air," said Mario Molina, chairman of the board for the newly created institute and the winner of the 1995 Nobel Prize in chemistry. Additional information about the World Bankīs work in Latin America is available on the Web at www.worldbank.org/lac.
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