World Soil Day 2024 Underlines Vital Importance Of Accurate Soil Data And Information For Food Security
06 December2024, Rome: At global celebrations marking Word Soil Day 2024, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) today highlighted the crucial need for accurate soil data and information to understand soil characteristics and support informed decision-making on sustainable soil management to ensure food security.
“You cannot manage what you cannot measure,” FAO Director-General QU Dongyu said in his opening video address for the official FAO World Soil Day (WSD) celebration held in Pak Chong, Thailand – marking the first time the event was hosted outside of FAO headquarters. “Globally, 1.6 billion hectares of land are degraded due to human activity, with over 60 percent of this damage occurring on valuable cropland and pastureland. To reverse this trend, we need sustainable soil management based on accurate soil data and information for informed decision-making,” Qu said.
The event in Thailand was connected via video link with a session of the 16th Conference of the Parties (COP16) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in Saudi Arabia, where WSD is also being celebrated as part of Agrifood Systems Day. The session in Riyadh saw the launch of the Regional Action Plan for Sustainable Soil Management in the Near East and North Africa (NENA).
Key participants in the celebration in Thailand included Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand and Akara Prompow, the country’s Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives. Participating from Saudi Arabia were Abdulrahman bin Abdulmohsen Alfadley, Minister for Environment, Water and Agriculture, Saudi Arabia and UNCCD COP16 President, Ibrahim Thiaw, UNCCD Executive Secretary and Alvaro Lario, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
Measurements and interpretation
Soil data provides raw measurements of the physical, chemical, and biological properties of soil, while soil information offers interpreted and synthesized data for practical applications and policymaking.
Accurate soil data and information can enable sustainable soil management and effective carbon sequestration, with soils capturing up to 2 gigatons of CO2 annually. Providing more data and information on soils among other site-specific information enables farmers to use fertilizers more effectively, potentially improving crop nutrient efficiency —particularly nitrogen—by 30 percent worldwide.
Healthy soils are essential for food security, nutrition, climate action, biodiversity and livelihoods. Yet, every year the world loses billions of tonnes of topsoil due to erosion alone, posing a major threat to soil health. Salinization, pollution, compaction and the climate crisis also threaten soils, at a time when hundreds of millions of people worldwide face hunger and billions are food insecure.
Working together with partners through key initiatives like the Global Soil Partnership, the Global Soil Laboratory Network, and the Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils Initiative, FAO promotes new soil technologies, such as soil sensors, digital mapping, and big data, to bring critical soil insights directly to farmers, scientists, and policymakers.
To date, the FAO’s Global Soil Partnership has trained over 1900 national experts through its International Network of Soil Information Institutions (INSII) comprised of 122 national institutions.
Green technology training could curb unemployment in Africa
African climate stakeholders have called for more green technology training in specialised higher education institutions as a transformative opportunity to curb surging unemployment and empower African graduates to take over the relay in the climate change drive.
During a panel discussion as part of a Green Education side event at COP29, climate change actors pointed out that, across Africa, the youth has shown innovative potential through emerging green technologies in the tech start-up sector that present unique opportunities to tackle climate challenges.
Harnessing these startups to fill the technology gap and curb youth unemployment will require targeted support because of existing barriers such as ill-equipped specialised training institutions, financing deficits, skills mismatches, gender disparities and regulatory hindrances.
The discussion, ‘Localising Green Technology Innovation: The role of the youth’, was held on 16 November 2024 and organised by the Africa Policy Research Institute (APRI) and the Strategic Youth Network for Development (SYND).
Priscilla Adogo Ahiada, head of the energy programme at the SYND, called on stakeholders to engage on pathways to bolster youth employment through green technology training in specialised higher education institutions.
Skills gap hinders progress
African governments were urged to invest in more green technology training at higher education institutions with specialisation in green technology for a climate-ready future.
“It is time to confront the fact that, [with] systemic poverty across Africa, the skills gap is limiting climate progress. Investing in green technology training is the way forward for Africa,” Ahiada said.
According to data from the African Development Institute, the youth population in Africa is expected to reach 850 million by 2050. However, despite policies aimed at youth employment such as the Africa Union Youth Charter and Agenda 2063, employment growth remains a challenge.
In the 6-hour mayhem of South Korea’s martial law, a woman’s act of resistance was a defining moment
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — In the groundswell of fury and defiance that erupted among South Koreans after their president declared martial law, curtailing the country’s hard-won freedoms, it was perhaps the iconic moment.
As parliamentarians scrambled to get inside the National Assembly building to reverse the emergency measure, a woman in a leather coat confronted one of the soldiers who was trying to stop the lawmakers, grabbed his automatic rifle and tried to tug it away while yelling “Aren’t you ashamed?”
As the soldier backed away, he raised the rifle’s barrel toward the woman. She pressed on, grabbing it as it was pointed at her chest, still yelling, before he gave up, turned and walked away.
Video of the encounter quickly went viral and became a social media rallying cry that helped fuel the six-hour outburst of protest before President Yoon Suk Yeol was forced to rescind the martial law order early Wednesday morning.
US imposes new export controls on China, targeting semiconductor technology
On December 2, 2024, the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS“) issued long anticipated and extensive new controls to impair China’s indigenous production of advanced semiconductors and other items that can be used in advanced weapon systems, AI, and advanced computing in support of China’s military-civil fusion program. The new rules have a particular focus on the tools used in semiconductor manufacturing and on certain high bandwidth memory (“HBM“), and this is also reflected in the type of entities newly-designated on the Entity List.
U.S. chips are ‘no longer safe,’ Chinese industry bodies say in latest trade salvo
The industry association warnings came after the U.S. launched its third crackdown in three years on China’s semiconductor industry, curbing exports to 140 companies.
Iran ‘dramatically’ increasing Uranium enrichment to nuclear bomb grade
MANAMA/VIENNA, Dec 6 (Reuters) – Iran is “dramatically” accelerating its enrichment of uranium to up to 60% purity, close to the roughly 90% level that is weapons grade, U.N. nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi told Reuters on Friday.
The International Atomic Energy Agency later confirmed in a confidential report to member states that Iran was speeding up uranium enrichment, a process that refines the raw material so that it can be used as fuel in civil nuclear power generation or, potentially, nuclear weapons.
The IAEA findings will deepen alarm in Western countries that say there is no justification for enriching uranium to such a high level under any civilian programme and that no other country has done so without producing nuclear bombs.
Iran denies pursuing nuclear weapons.
Tehran already has enough material enriched to up to 60% purity to be able to make four nuclear weapons if it enriches it further, according to an IAEA yardstick.
“Today the agency is announcing that the production capacity is increasing dramatically of the 60% inventory,” IAEA chief Grossi said on the sidelines of the Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain.
He said Iran’s production capacity was set to rise to “seven, eight times more, maybe, or even more” than the current level of 5-7 kg of uranium enriched to up to 60% purity a month.
In the report to member states, which was seen by Reuters, the IAEA said Iran had increased the enrichment rate of the material being fed into two interconnected cascades of advanced IR-6 centrifuges at its Fordow plant.
The plant had already been enriching uranium to up to 60% purity with material enriched to up to 5% purity. The material being fed in now has been enriched to up to 20% purity, accelerating the process of reaching 60%.
That change means Iran will “significantly” increase the amount of uranium it enriches to 60% purity, reaching more than 34 kg a month at Fordow alone, the report said.
Iran is also enriching uranium to up to 60% at another site, Natanz.
‘DANGEROUS AND RECKLESS’
Tehran was angered by a resolution last month put forward by Britain, Germany and France, known as the E3, and the United States that faulted Iran’s cooperation with the IAEA.
“This is a serious escalatory step by Iran, which we strongly condemn,” a German foreign ministry source said of Iran accelerating uranium enrichment to 60% purity. “It is obvious that such measures significantly worsen the framework for diplomatic efforts.”
Kelsey Davenport, director of non-proliferation policy at the Arms Control Association advocacy group in Washington, said Iran’s acceleration at Fordow was “a dangerous and reckless escalation that risks derailing the prospects for negotiations with the United States.”
“Increasing the capacity to move more quickly to multiple bombs’ worth of weapons-grade uranium increases the risk of miscalculation and military action,” she said.
After pulling the United States out of the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers, Trump pursued a “maximum pressure” policy that sought to wreck Iran’s economy. He is staffing his planned administration with hawks on Iran.
Barnier voted out in no-confidence motion: Three charts to explain France’s political uncertainty
After France Prime Minister Michel Barnier lost a no-confidence motion in the country’s Assembly, political uncertainty has risen again after Macron’s July snap elections. Here are three charts to explain the situation.
France’s current crisis is the second in only six months when French president Emmanuel Macron called a snap election in July to reiterate his government’s strength. However, the move backfired. Ensemble, the alliance that his party headed, won fewer seats than the previous election. The two other main alliances – left alliance New Popular Front and right alliance National Rally – increased their seat tally, with the NPF winning the most seats.
This resulted in a hung parliament, where no party wins a majority of 289 or more seats in the 577-seat Assembly.
The results cast uncertainty about the country’s political future. Credit rating agency S&P said in a post-election note that it anticipated a “struggle to implement meaningful policy measures” and “a persistent risk of a vote of no-confidence”, according to Reuters. A hung parliament makes it harder to pass legislation, since decisions have to pass through a broader consensus.
Selecting the Prime Minister
Since no party won a majority, Mr. Macron had to find a candidate who can withstand no-confidence motions in the future by garnering enough support. After negotiations across the board with both left and right parties, Mr. Macron appointed Michel Barnier, a moderate right-wing politician, as Prime Minister with tentative support from National Rally amidst protest from the NFP alliance. It accused Mr. Macron of “stealing” the elections by ignoring the “will of the people.”
Canada bans more types of firearms and proposes donating guns to Ukraine
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Canada said Thursday it is outlawing another 324 firearm varieties — guns the public safety minister said belong on the battlefield, not in the hands of hunters or sport shooters.
Ottawa also said it is working with the government of Ukraine to see how the guns can be donated to support the fight against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The move follows the May 2020 ban of 1,500 makes and models of firearms, a number that grew to more than 2,000 by November of this year as new variants were identified.
The latest restriction, announced Thursday by Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, follows expressions of concern from gun-control advocates that many assault-style firearms were not included in the 2020 ban.
“This means these firearms can no longer be used,” LeBlanc said.
Defense Minister Bill Blair said Canada approached Ukrainian authorities, who expressed interest in some of the guns.
“Every bit of assistance we can offer to the Ukrainians is one step toward their victory,” Blair said.
The federal government says it is working with provinces, territories and police on a planned buyback of prohibited weapons from individual owners.
Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada, but the newly announced measures come on the eve of the 35th anniversary of the École Polytechnique in Montreal shooting, where a gunman killed 14 women before killing himself. The Ruger Mini-14 used by the gunman, Marc Lepine, was among the weapons included in the 2020.
Nathalie Provost, a survivor who was wounded in the attack, said Thursday she was targeted for being a woman studying engineering.
“These are just killing weapons, war weapons, military weapons, so I’m proud we are doing something,” Provost said.
Canada has had far fewer mass shootings than the U.S. in part because of a lack of easy access to guns, though the U.S. population also is far larger than Canada’s. Officials have acknowledged guns smuggled into Canada illegally are often used by criminals.
Opposition Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre called the announcement a “stunt” by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government that attacks “licensed & law-abiding hunters and sport shooters.”
Traditional Medicine: 2024 World Conference on Traditional Medicine opens in Beijing
The 2024 World Conference on Traditional Medicine is co-sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO), in collaboration with the National Health Commission of China, the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine (NATCM), and the Beijing Municipal Government. The event take place in Beijing, China, from 3 to 4 December 2024 and will serve as an opportunity to improve global access to traditional and complementary medicine and its integration into healthcare systems worldwide.
Diversity, Inheritance and Innovation: Traditional Medicine for All
The conference is a pivotal platform to enhance dialogue and collaboration among international experts, policy-makers, health workers, and traditional medicine practitioners. It will help advance progress towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 3 on ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all. Discussions also align with the Global Strategy for Traditional Medicine (2025–2034), which WHO will present at the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly in May 2025.
It is the third time that China is hosting such a conference as traditional Chinese medicine is developing fast and integrating into today’s life both in China and other countries. Experts say, the best practices and experiences in traditional medicine in China can serve as an example for other countries.
Objectives
The conference focused on several key objectives:
Ensuring safe, effective, and people-centered traditional, complementary, and integrative medicine practices are accessible to communities globally.
Engaging stakeholders, policy-makers, and researchers to explore synergies between traditional medicine and modern healthcare systems, contributing to a One Health approach.
Enhancing the integration of evidence-based traditional medicine into national healthcare frameworks as affirmed by the UN Political Declaration on Universal Health Coverage.
The two-day event included a series of panel discussions and sessions covering diverse topics such as evidence-based traditional medicine, advanced technologies, AI applications in traditional medicine research, and the standardization and safety of herbal medicines. Keynote speakers addressed critical issues related to regulation, integrative medicine, and the role of traditional medicine in primary healthcare.
A Global Gathering for Health Leaders
With representatives from all WHO regions, the conference had gathered governmental health leaders, Nobel laureates, health workers, researchers, and public health officials. Participants will engage in collaborative discussions aimed at shaping the future of traditional medicine and its contribution to the highest attainable standard of health and well-being for all communities.
Woman’s World Editors Name the Best Books of 2024—See the Winners Across All Genres!
From romance to thriller and historical fiction, WW editors reveal the books that stole their hearts this year
As the holidays approach and the year winds down, Woman’s World editors are reflecting on their favorite books of the year. From sweeping fantasies to romances that made us believe in the power of love again to fascinating memoirs and many more, 2024 was a year filled with extraordinary stories.
And now, WW editors are celebrating a year of excellent books with our first-ever WW Book Awards! With dozens of books in the running, our editors curated and voted for their top reads of the year—the special, standout books that captured our imaginations and our hearts from page one. Keep scrolling to discover which books—written by beloved and debut authors alike—were crowned as “the best books of 2024” across 13 genres.
Unforgettable characters and deeply captivating moments abound in The Women, the international bestselling saga from beloved author Kristin Hannah. It’s 1965 and 20-year-old nursing student Frances “Frankie” McGrath joins her brother to serve in Vietnam in the Army Nurse Corps. Even after the overwhelming day-to-day of the war, the real challenge Frankie will face is coming home to a changed America. A story of the women who courageously served their country.
Iran planning to build nuclear missile? Launches heaviest space payload, bad news for Israel, US
The launch is the latest version of Iran’s programme.
Iran has successfully launched its heaviest space payload. This payload weighing 300 kg includes Fakhr-1 Telecommunication Satellite and Saman-1 Space Tug. SAMAN-1 is an orbital transmission system. The launch comes with the success of a domestically developed satellite carrier on Friday, 06 December 2024.
These payload satellites are designed to carry satellites from lower orbits to upper orbits. This launch is an operational step towards shifting satellites to upper orbits. The system was first introduced at a ceremony in February 2017 and was tested in 2022.
These payload satellites are designed to carry satellites from lower orbits to upper orbits. This launch is an operational step towards shifting satellites to upper orbits. The system was first introduced at a ceremony in February 2017 and was tested in 2022.
The launch is the latest version of Iran’s programme, which the West alleges will improve Tehran’s ballistic missile programme. The US and the West have repeatedly said that Iran’s launches could be used to make nuclear missiles. The timing of this launch by Iran is also crucial because of the Persian state’s ongoing conflict with Israel and America.
These payloads were launched using the indigenous Simorgh Satellite Carrier from the Imam Khomeini launch base in Semnan province.
Simorg is a two-stage liquid-fuel satellite launch vehicle. It has been developed by the Ministry of Defense of Iran. Iran said in September this year that it had successfully put the Chamran-1 research satellite into orbit using the Gham-100 carrier. Gham-100 has been built by the Aerospace Division of the Revolutionary Guards.
The US and Western countries have repeatedly warned Iran against such launches as they claim that the technology used for launching the satellite can be applied to ballistic missiles.
These ballistic missiles may be capable of carrying nuclear weapons.
However, Iran denies that it is seeking nuclear weapons and has consistently said that its satellite and rocket launches are focused on civilian and defence applications.
The United States has earlier claimed that Iran’s satellite launches defy a UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution and called on the Persian state to undertake no activity involving ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons.
Landmark space mission set to create artificial solar eclipses using satellites
Two satellites in Proba-3 mission expected to be launched on Wednesday in India and will work in tandem to study sun’s corona
Final preparations have begun for a landmark space mission that will use satellites flying in close formation to create artificial solar eclipses high above the Earth.
The Proba-3 mission is the European Space Agency’s first attempt at precise formation flying in orbit and calls for two spacecraft to loop around the planet in an arrangement that never deviates by more than a millimetre, about the thickness of a human fingernail.
All being well, the spacecraft will blast off from India’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, on the Bay of Bengal coast, at 4.08pm local time (10.38am UK time) on Wednesday. After a four-month voyage, the probes will reach a highly elliptic orbit that swoops as close as 370 miles to Earth before swinging out for more than 37,000 miles.
“It’s an experiment in space to demonstrate a new concept, a new technology,” said Damien Galano, the Proba project manager at ESA. “It’s very challenging because we need to control very well the flight path of the two spacecraft.”
If the satellites operate as intended, they will line up with the sun such that the lead spacecraft casts a carefully controlled shadow on its partner, allowing instruments on the latter to measure the sun’s corona, the outer layer of its atmosphere.
Data from the mission should shed light on the longstanding mystery of why the corona is so much hotter than the sun itself; the sun’s surface is about 5,500C, but the corona can exceed 1mC.
By better understanding the corona, scientists hope to improve their predictions of solar weather, coronal mass ejections – where pulses of plasma and magnetic field burst into space – and solar storms, which can damage spacecraft and cause power outages and communications blackouts on Earth.
The Proba-3 spacecraft will swing around the planet once every 19.7 hours for two years. For six hours in every orbit the satellites will fly in formation, drawing on optical sensors and flashing LEDs to locate one another, and a precision laser system to automatically finesse their distance and orientation. The first images from the mission are expected as soon as March 2025.
Beyond the mission’s main goals, ESA scientists have set aside time to test manoeuvres that may be helpful in the future to service faulty satellites or remove “uncooperative” hardware and debris from orbit.
‘Climate-induced poisoning’: 350 elephants probably killed by toxic water
Satellite data analysis suggests algal blooms could be behind mass die-off in Botswana that sparked flurry of theories in 2020
More than 350 elephants that died in mysterious circumstances probably drank toxic water, according to a new paper that warns of an “alarming trend” in climate-induced poisoning.
The deaths in Botswana’s Okavango delta were described by scientists as a “conservation disaster”. Elephants of all ages were seen walking in circles before collapsing and dying. Carcasses were first spotted in north-eastern Botswana in May and June 2020, with many theories circulating about the cause of death, including cyanide poisoning or an unknown disease.
The incident was the largest documented elephant die-off where the cause was unknown, according to the lead researcher Davide Lomeo, a geography PhD student at King’s College London. “This is why it sparked so much concern,” he said.
Now, a new paper published in the journal Science of the Total Environment suggests the elephants were poisoned by water that contained toxic blooms of blue-green algae, or cyanobacteria. The climate crisis is increasing the intensity and severity of harmful algal blooms.
Researchers used satellite data to analyse the distribution of the carcasses relative to watering holes (there was no direct testing of samples because none were available). The team believes that the elephants generally walked just over 100km (62 miles) from the waterholes and died within 88 hours of drinking. In total they examined 3,000 waterholes, and found those that experienced increased cyanobacteria blooms in 2020 had high concentrations of carcasses. “They have no choice but to drink from them,” said Lomeo. It is possible other animals died from drinking from the waterholes, but bodies may not have been spotted from aerial surveys, and smaller carcasses could have already been taken by predators.
Why Italy Passed New Law Banning Surrogacy, Calling It “Universal Crime”
While Italian law already prohibited surrogacy within Italy, the new ban will make it a crime for Italians to access surrogacy abroad even in countries where the practice is legal.
Rome:
The Italian Senate recently passed a law making surrogacy a “universal crime”. In a country where surrogacy is already illegal, and has been since 2004, this decision takes restrictions to a whole new level.
While Italian law already prohibited surrogacy within Italy, the new ban will make it a crime for Italians to access surrogacy abroad – even in countries where the practice is legal.
Why Italy Passed New Law Banning Surrogacy, Calling It “Universal Crime”
While Italian law already prohibited surrogacy within Italy, the new ban will make it a crime for Italians to access surrogacy abroad even in countries where the practice is legal.
Rome:The Italian Senate recently passed a law making surrogacy a “universal crime”. In a country where surrogacy is already illegal, and has been since 2004, this decision takes restrictions to a whole new level.
While Italian law already prohibited surrogacy within Italy, the new ban will make it a crime for Italians to access surrogacy abroad – even in countries where the practice is legal.
The use of the term “universal crime” (reato universale) to describe the ban has raised further concern. The language evokes the wording of the Italian criminal code for crimes considered so serious that they contravene “universal values”. The wording therefore puts surrogacy on a par with genocide and crimes against humanity.
Countries are not aligned on whether surrogacy should be allowed or prohibited. Several allow it, albeit with different restrictions and safeguards. In Greece, non-commercial surrogacy has been legal since 2002, allowing the intended parents to have legal parenthood at birth. In California, even so-called commercial surrogacy – where the surrogate receives compensation – is allowed.
Other countries, including France and Germany, prohibit surrogacy. This means that the surrogate is the legal mother when the child is born. But they still typically allow the intended parents to establish a legal bond with the child by other means, for example by giving legal recognition to the genetic father alongside the surrogate mother or to both parents via adoption, in cases where surrogacy has been sought abroad.
In the UK, the surrogate is the legal parent at birth but courts can transfer parenthood to the intended parents through a parental order, a surrogacy-specific mechanism designed to be less burdensome than adoption.
Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni called the new surrogacy ban “common sense” and celebrated it as protecting women and children from “commodification”. Others see the ban as the opposite of protecting women and children.
International rulings
The European Court of Human Rights often examines events in its member countries (which include Italy) to determine whether there is broader consensus on an issue. In 2014 it looked into surrogacy in its Mennesson v France judgment. And in 2019 it issued an advisory opinion on the matter.
While it found no consensus on the lawfulness of surrogacy arrangements, it decided that the rights of children born through surrogacy require “a possibility of recognition of a legal parent-child relationship”. Italy’s absolute ban goes against this reasoning.
In 2019, the British supreme court also invoked the child’s welfare as the main driver for judges to recognise intended parents as legal parents. To do otherwise in most cases, it concluded, risks leaving the child “legally parentless (and possibly also stateless)” – because they would be legally tied to a person living abroad and who did not intend to be their parent.
A UK study found that most surrogates don’t view themselves as the mother and would support recognising intended parents as legal parents from birth.
Meloni’s government, led by the far-right Brothers of Italy, has consistently focused on policies that promote what it sees as a “traditional” form of family. Running on a platform focused on the fascist motto of “God, family, fatherland”, Meloni’s government has been open about its anti-LGBTQ+ stance.
Banning surrogacy was in the party’s manifesto, along with policies against same-sex marriage and same-sex adoption. During the debate in the Senate, a Brothers of Italy senator called motherhood “the foundation of our civilisation”. Meloni’s policies, from banning surrogacy to restrictions on abortion, curtail reproductive choice – ideologically driven by an emphasis on “natural” motherhood.
While it is mostly straight Italian couples who use surrogacy by going abroad, many of them will hide the fact that they had a child this way. Same-sex couples are even more restricted since they obviously cannot fly under the radar in the same way. Under Italian law, they also have no other choices for having a child together: they are banned from accessing IVF or adopting.
Denmark will plant 1 billion trees and convert 10% of farmland into forest
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Danish lawmakers on Monday agreed on a deal to plant 1 billion trees and convert 10% of farmland into forest and natural habitats over the next two decades in an effort to reduce fertilizer usage.
The government called the agreement “the biggest change to the Danish landscape in over 100 years.”
“The Danish nature will change in a way we have not seen since the wetlands were drained in 1864,” said Jeppe Bruus, head of Denmark’s Green Tripartite Ministry, created to implement a green deal reached in June among farmers, the industry, the labor unions and environmental groups.
Under the agreement, 43 billion kroner ($6.1 billion) have been earmarked to acquire land from farmers over the next two decades, the government said.
Danish forests would grow on an additional 250,000 hectares (618,000 acres), and another 140,000 hectares (346,000 acres), which are currently cultivated on climate-damaging low-lying soils, must be converted to nature. Currently, 14.6% of land is covered by forests.
The deal was reached by the three-party Danish government — made up of the Social Democrats, the Liberals and the center Moderates — and the Socialist People’s Party, the Conservatives, Liberal Alliance and the Social Liberal Party.
A vote in parliament on the deal is considered a formality.
In June, the government said livestock farmers will be taxed for the greenhouse gases emitted by their cows, sheep and pigs from 2030, the first country to do so as it targets a major source of methane emissions, one of the most potent gases contributing to global warming.
Anti-government rebels breach Syria’s largest city for the first time since 2016
Aleppo has not been attacked by opposition forces since they were ousted from eastern neighbourhoods in 2016.
Insurgents breached Syria’s largest city Friday and clashed with government forces for the first time since 2016, according to a war monitor and fighters, in a surprise attack that sent residents fleeing and added fresh uncertainty to a region reeling from multiple wars. Aleppo, which is historically one of Syria’s largest cities and a pivotal commercial centre, has not witnessed such an opposition-led assault since 2016 when a ferocious aerial campaign by Russian forces helped President Bashar Assad reclaim control of the city.
The advance on Aleppo followed a shock offensive launched by insurgents Wednesday, as thousands of fighters swept through villages and towns in Syria’s northwestern countryside. Residents fled neighbourhoods on the city’s edge because of missiles and gunfire, according to witnesses in Aleppo. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the country’s unresolved civil war, said dozens of fighters from both sides were killed.
Now, this new round of offensive brings to light the ongoing instability in Syria, which has far-reaching consequences for the broader Middle Eastern region.
The renewed violence in Aleppo comes at a time when the geopolitical landscape is already tense, especially in the Middle East region given the Israel-Hamas war and US-backed conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon, both of which have strong ties to Iran.
According to Robert Ford, the last-serving US ambassador to Syria, the Israeli military’s strikes against Syrian and Hezbollah targets, coupled with a recent ceasefire, catalysed the motivation of the Syrian rebels to advance their position in Aleppo.
Why recent Syrian rebel is significant?
The significance of the fighting in Aleppo cannot be understated as it can turn around the power structure in conflict-hit Syria where President Bashar Assad has managed to steer away the opposition forces seeking his ouster for more than a decade.
This tussle has resulted in approximately half a million deaths and caused about 6.8 million Syrians to flee the country. This mass migration has impacted European politics, contributing to the rise of anti-immigrant movements across the continent.
Currently, the roughly 30% of Syria that is not under Assad’s control is governed by a mix of opposition factions and foreign troops. The United States has about 900 military personnel stationed in northeastern Syria.
Notably, Turkey also has a military presence in Syria and plays a significant role in influencing the coalition of opposition groups fighting in Aleppo.
At the forefront of the recent Aleppo offensive is Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a group designated as a terrorist organization by the US and UN since its inception. Its leader, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, rose to prominence as the head of al-Qaida’s Syrian branch early in the conflict.
In the past, Golani and his organization were responsible for numerous attacks, including bombings and threats against Western forces, while enforcing strict religious laws.
However, in a shift over the last few years, Golani and HTS have worked to reshape their image by focusing on governance in the areas under their control.
In the current climate, Israeli airstrikes have targeted Hezbollah weapon storage and Syrian military positions in Aleppo, as reported by independent monitoring groups.
The aim of the offensive was to reestablish the boundaries of the de-escalation zone, according to Turkish officials.
Cash-Strapped Sri Lanka Records Highest Deflation In 61 Years
An unprecedented financial crash in 2022 brought months of consumer goods shortages, with inflation peaking at nearly 70 percent that year.
Colombo:
Sri Lanka’s consumer prices fell by 2.1 percent in November, the highest deflation rate recorded by the economically fragile island nation since 1961, official data showed Saturday.
An unprecedented financial crash in 2022 brought months of consumer goods shortages, with inflation peaking at nearly 70 percent that year.
Since then, a $2.9 billion bailout loan from the International Monetary Fund, tax hikes and other austerity measures have slowly made headway in repairing the island’s economy.
“Headline inflation will remain negative in the next few months, deeper than previously projected, mainly due to larger downward adjustments in energy prices and reduction in volatile food prices,” Sri Lanka’s central bank said in a statement.
The bank said inflation was likely to return to its target level of five percent in the coming months.
Sri Lanka had already seen deflation of 0.8 percent in October and 0.5 percent in September.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who was elected in September, has vowed to maintain the IMF bailout programme negotiated by his predecessor that includes higher taxes and cuts to state spending.
Hamas Delegation To Hold Gaza Ceasefire Talks Today In Egypt: Official
The announcement came two days after a ceasefire went into effect between Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah, a Hamas ally.
Gaza City:
Hamas representatives will go to Cairo on Saturday for talks on a possible ceasefire in Gaza, an official in the Palestinian militant group told AFP on Friday.
“A Hamas delegation will go to Cairo tomorrow for several meetings with Egyptian officials to discuss ideas for a ceasefire and a prisoner accord in the Gaza Strip,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the topic.
The announcement came two days after a ceasefire went into effect between Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah, a Hamas ally.
The United States has also announced a new diplomatic effort with Qatar, Turkey and Egypt to reach a Gaza ceasefire and the release of hostages taken during Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel that set off the current fighting.
That attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,207 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
Israel’s retaliatory military offensive has killed 44,363 people in Gaza, according to figures from the territory’s health ministry, which the United Nations considers reliable.
Some 251 hostages were also taken on October 7, and 97 are believed still in Gaza, including 34 people who the Israeli army says are dead.
The only ceasefire so far, in November 2023, saw the release of about 100 hostages by Hamas and its allies in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
The United States, Qatar and Egypt have led multiple failed efforts since the start of the year to reach a new ceasefire and hostage release.
Encircled by geopolitical risks, Armenia builds a lively tech startup scene
The ex-Soviet state is betting on a growing tech eco-system to drive its economy in a region rife with geopolitical tensions.
Yerevan, Armenia – The rugged mountains of the southern Caucasus are not an obvious location for a thriving tech startup scene.
Situated 7,000 miles from Silicon Valley, landlocked Armenia is buffeted by geopolitical headwinds from all sides.
To the north and south, respectively, lie Russia and Iran, two of the most heavily sanctioned countries on the planet.
To the east and west, it faces Turkiye and Azerbaijan, adversaries whose relations with Yerevan, respectively, are marked by tensions over the 1915-1916 Armenian genocide and armed conflict over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Home to fewer than 3 million people, the ex-Soviet state has an economy that is barely larger than that of poverty-stricken Haiti.
None of that has dampened Armenia’s big ambitions for its tech start-up scene, which is making waves to an extent that belies the country’s diminutive size and difficult circumstances.
The number of IT-focused companies in Armenia more than doubled last year, while the number of employees in the sector increased by 30 percent, according to the Armenian government.
Armenian-founded startups such as Piscart, the creator of a popular photo and video editing app, meanwhile, have found success in Silicon Valley, which founders have in turn used to support offices and jobs back home.
The flow of investment has gone the other way, too, with big-name players such as Nvidia and Adobe in recent years announcing plans to set up operations in the country.
Armenia’s government has been eager to leverage the local scene’s links overseas to boost its profile on the international stage.
Armenia’s government says it is committed to doing what it can to make doing business seamless, including simplifying the process of registering a company to the point that it can now be completed in as little as 15 minutes.
Last month, the Ministry of High-Tech Industry introduced legislation, called the New Law on High-Tech Support, to reduce rates of personal income tax and corporate tax for tech start-ups during their formative years.
The government has also allocated 1.940 billion Armenian dram ($5m) to fund the construction of “Engineering City”, a public-private project that is envisaged to include facilities such as an engineering business accelerator, an advanced research centre, and supercomputing and cybersecurity facilities.
Iceland set for change of government as surging prices dominate election
COPENHAGEN, Nov 30 (Reuters) – Iceland held a snap election on Saturday with voters likely to topple the ruling coalition in their quest to escape a cost of living crisis, although a snowstorm made voting difficult for some and could delay tallying of ballots.
The North Atlantic island nation, home to 384,000 people, has enjoyed relative political stability since 2017 and ranks among the wealthiest countries in Europe per capita, bolstered by tourism, fisheries, and cheap geothermal- and hydroelectric-powered aluminium production.
However, inflation and borrowing costs that are near their highest level since the 2008 financial crisis have helped spark an economic slowdown, propelling growing hardship to the forefront of voters’ concerns.
A series of volcanic eruptions near the capital Reykjavik, causing displacement of thousands of people and costly infrastructure repairs, have also dampened tourism.
Polls opened at 0900 GMT and close at 2200 GMT, with a final result expected on Sunday morning.
However, a snowstorm hit the eastern part of the country on Saturday, which could delay vote counting. Authorities have this week encouraged voters to cast their ballots early.
Opinion polls ahead of the election indicated that the ruling coalition of the Left-Green Movement, the conservative Independence Party, and the centre-right Progressive Party, in power for the last seven years, is likely to be unseated.
Bangladesh freezes bank accounts of arrested ex-ISKON priest Chinmoy Das, 16 others: Report
Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) sent these directives to suspend all transactions related to the 17 bank accounts, including arrested Chinmoy Das.
Bangladesh authorities have ordered the freezing of bank accounts belonging to 17 people connected with the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), including former member Chinmoy Krishna Das, Prothom Alo reported on Friday. Chinmoy Krishna Das was arrested from the Dhaka airport this week on sedition charges.
The action follows the Dhaka high court’s rejection of a petition to ban ISKCON after a lawyer was killed during a clash between the Hindu leader’s supporters and security forces.
The report said the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) issued the directives to banks and financial institutions on Thursday, suspending transactions on these accounts for 30 days.
The BFIU, part of the Central Bangladesh Bank, instructed banks to provide updated transaction statements for the accounts associated with these individuals, including those related to their businesses, within the next three working days.
Why was Chinmoy Das arrested?
On October 30, a sedition case was filed against 19 individuals, including former ISKCON member Chinmoy Das, at Chattogram’s Kotwali Police Station in Bangladesh. They were accused of disrespecting Bangladesh’s national flag during a Hindu community rally in the New Market area of Chattogram.
Chinmoy Das, who served as a spokesperson for the Bangladesh Sammilita Sanatani Jagran Jote, was arrested on Monday at Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on sedition charges. After being denied bail on Tuesday, a Chattogram court sent him to jail, sparking protests from his supporters.
On Tuesday, India expressed concern over his arrest and denial of bail, urging Bangladesh to ensure the safety of Hindus and other minorities. By Friday, India reiterated its concern, stressing that the interim government in Bangladesh must fulfil its responsibility to protect all minorities, especially as extremist rhetoric and violence against Hindus, including attacks on temples, have increased.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told Parliament that India was “deeply concerned” about the violence against minorities in Bangladesh and emphasised that it is the primary duty of the Bangladeshi government to safeguard the rights of all citizens, including minorities.
On Thursday, November 16, a 5.4 magnitude earthquake shook the southeastern part of Korea, injuring 14 and damaging many buildings and roads. Arguably, a bigger shock was the government’s decision to postpone the Suneung, South Korea’s critical college entrance exam, by one week in response to the natural disaster.
Every November, hundreds of thousands of high school seniors sit down to take the eight-hour-long College Scholastic Ability Test, an exam that many students have been preparing for since kindergarten. A team of professors and high school teachers from across the country creates the exam in a secret location, often in a sparsely populated, mountainous region of Korea. The test creators must surrender their cell phones and are effectively cut off from the outside world as they cannot contact their friends or family for the month they are in isolation for fear of them leaking test questions. The subjects they write questions for include math, history, science, Korean language, and English.
The Suneung is the culmination of an entire academic career for a student in Korea. Especially in high school, students’ lives revolve around this test with most students arriving at school at 7am and not getting home until well past midnight. A typical day consists of around 10 hours of school, a quick dinner break, and the rest of the evening spent in study halls, cram schools, or libraries. For students, the exam can be a golden ticket to study at one of the country’s top universities and a future job in the government, the banking industry, or at a large industrial conglomerate.
On the day of the exam, stock markets, public offices, and many other businesses all open an hour later to keep traffic off the roads. As students walk to the exam centers on the morning of the test, well-wishers handed out yeot, a type of sticky candy that is eaten in the hope of good luck. Despite regular classes being cancelled, other students still turn out to cheer on the test takers and Korean celebrities record encouraging messages and post them on the internet. For students running late, local police officers escort them to the test centers for free. Even protesters will often suspend their demonstrations for the day. The army halts aviation exercises, and the taking off and landing of planes at Korean airports is banned during the English listening test. Many students’ parents pray at churches and temples and some even wait, pacing outside the school gates, while their children endure the eight-hour test.
Mysterious interstellar tunnel connects the Solar System with the constellation Centauri
Astronomers have discovered an “interstellar tunnel” near the Solar System, which can connect our zone with other star systems. According to a study in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, this tunnel is part of a large hot gas structure known as the Local Hot Bubble, with a radius of hundreds of light-years. Scientists suggest that this LHB may be connected with another, even larger bubble.
The idea of the existence of a Local Hot Bubble dates back more than half a century, when astronomers tried to explain the source of background X-ray radiation that should have been absorbed by the interstellar medium – the diffuse matter from which stars form. However, if there was a cavity in our zone of interstellar space, it would explain why X-rays can reach us. According to scientists, this “bubble” appeared about 14 million years ago due to a series of supernova explosions that blew away interstellar material and created a cavity with a diameter of 1000 light years. According to the researchers, the remnants of these supernovae can still be observed today.
Two versions of eRosita All-Sky Survey Catalogue (eRASS1) data (Right) the X-ray sky over earth (right) X-ray sources. Image credit: MPE, J. Sanders für das eROSITA-Konsortium
Although the Local Hot Bubble hypothesis has long had conflicting data, modern observations, particularly of young stars at its boundary, support its existence. According to the researchers, the interstellar tunnel may be part of a large-scale network of such cavities located in the Milky Way and created as a result of supernova explosions.
ZURICH, Nov 6 (Reuters) – A contentious Swiss prohibition on facial coverings in public spaces widely known as the “burqa ban” will take effect on Jan. 1, the government said on Wednesday.
Narrowly passed in a 2021 referendum in neutral Switzerland, and condemned by Muslim associations, the measure was launched by the same group that organised a 2009 ban on new minarets.
The governing Federal Council said in a statement it had fixed the start of the ban, and that anyone who unlawfully flouts it faces a fine of up to 1,000 Swiss francs ($1,144).
Piles of “Yes” ballots sit on a table at the district election office Stadtkreis 3 on the day of a Swiss referendum on banning burqas and other facial coverings, in Zurich, Switzerland March 7, 2021
The ban does not apply to planes or in diplomatic and consular premises, and faces may also be covered in places of worship and other sacred sites, the government said.
Facial coverings will remain permitted for reasons relating to health and safety, for native customs, or due to weather conditions, it said. They would also be allowed on artistic and entertainment grounds and for advertising, it added.
If such coverings are needed for personal protection in exercising freedom of expression and assembly, they should be permitted provided the responsible authority has already approved them and public order is not compromised, it said.
Social media ‘duty of care’ laws would force online giants to take preventative action on mental health harms
Social media companies would be required to take proactive steps to keep Australians safe online under a federal government plan to legislate a “Digital Duty of Care”.
It marks the latest move by the Albanese government to put responsibility on the shoulders of the social giants to ensure users, particularly children, are safe on their platforms.
The Digital Duty of Care was recommended in the yet-to-be released independent review of the Online Safety Act, handed to government last month.
It follows similar moves by the United Kingdom and European Union and would require platforms to shift from reacting to harm towards taking reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harms.
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said the obligations would build on existing complaint and removal schemes under the act.
“What’s required is a shift away from reacting to harms by relying on content regulation alone, and moving towards systems-based prevention, accompanied by a broadening of our perspective of what online harms are,” she said.
MIT engineers make converting CO2 into useful products more practical
A new electrode design boosts the efficiency of electrochemical reactions that turn carbon dioxide into ethylene and other products.
As the world struggles to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, researchers are seeking practical, economical ways to capture carbon dioxide and convert it into useful products, such as transportation fuels, chemical feedstocks, or even building materials. But so far, such attempts have struggled to reach economic viability.
New research by engineers at MIT could lead to rapid improvements in a variety of electrochemical systems that are under development to convert carbon dioxide into a valuable commodity. The team developed a new design for the electrodes used in these systems, which increases the efficiency of the conversion process.
The findings are reported today in the journal Nature Communications, in a paper by MIT doctoral student Simon Rufer, professor of mechanical engineering Kripa Varanasi, and three others.
“The CO2 problem is a big challenge for our times, and we are using all kinds of levers to solve and address this problem,” Varanasi says. It will be essential to find practical ways of removing the gas, he says, either from sources such as power plant emissions, or straight out of the air or the oceans. But then, once the CO2 has been removed, it has to go somewhere.
A wide variety of systems have been developed for converting that captured gas into a useful chemical product, Varanasi says. “It’s not that we can’t do it — we can do it. But the question is how can we make this efficient? How can we make this cost-effective?”
In the new study, the team focused on the electrochemical conversion of CO2 to ethylene, a widely used chemical that can be made into a variety of plastics as well as fuels, and which today is made from petroleum. But the approach they developed could also be applied to producing other high-value chemical products as well, including methane, methanol, carbon monoxide, and others, the researchers say.
Currently, ethylene sells for about $1,000 per ton, so the goal is to be able to meet or beat that price. The electrochemical process that converts CO2 into ethylene involves a water-based solution and a catalyst material, which come into contact along with an electric current in a device called a gas diffusion electrode.
There are two competing characteristics of the gas diffusion electrode materials that affect their performance: They must be good electrical conductors so that the current that drives the process doesn’t get wasted through resistance heating, but they must also be “hydrophobic,” or water repelling, so the water-based electrolyte solution doesn’t leak through and interfere with the reactions taking place at the electrode surface.
Unfortunately, it’s a tradeoff. Improving the conductivity reduces the hydrophobicity, and vice versa. Varanasi and his team set out to see if they could find a way around that conflict, and after many months of work, they did just that.
The solution, devised by Rufer and Varanasi, is elegant in its simplicity. They used a plastic material, PTFE (essentially Teflon), that has been known to have good hydrophobic properties. However, PTFE’s lack of conductivity means that electrons must travel through a very thin catalyst layer, leading to significant voltage drop with distance. To overcome this limitation, the researchers wove a series of conductive copper wires through the very thin sheet of the PTFE.
“This work really addressed this challenge, as we can now get both conductivity and hydrophobicity,” Varanasi says.
It’s possible there has never been a worse time for the United Nations to hold negotiations on climate change. Post-pandemic inflation has upended countries around the world, straining public budgets and distracting governments from climate action. Conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East continue to rage, scrambling the priorities of powerful countries like Russia, Iran, and those of the European Union. To top it all off, the United States just elected former President Donald Trump, who has called climate change a “hoax” and removed the U.S. from the 2015 Paris climate agreement during his first term in office.
Nevertheless, in a few days thousands of negotiators and activists will convene in Baku, Azerbaijan, to try to make progress on the global climate fight. This year’s conference, known as COP29, is widely acknowledged as a transitional affair without the marquee significance of the 2015 Paris talks — or even last year’s summit in Dubai, which saw the world’s nations finally agree to move away from fossil fuels. Still, next week negotiators plan to hash out key issues that could determine both how the world mitigates carbon emissions and also how it addresses the mounting toll of climate disasters in developing countries.
Here’s what to look out for:
A new goal for international climate aid
The top-line agenda item at COP29 is the so-called “new collective quantified goal,” a target stipulating how much climate aid money wealthy countries should send to poorer countries. This funding is supposed to help developing nations transition to renewable energy and adapt to climate effects like droughts and sea level rise.
Picking up slack from the U.S.
The first few days of every COP feature a parade of announcements from world leaders and their senior ministers, who take the stage to tout — and quantify — their country’s commitment to the climate fight. This year’s round of announcements will feature an elephant in the room: The United States, which is the world’s largest economy and its largest historic emitter, is likely to formally pull out of the international climate fight as soon as Trump takes office next year.
Coordinating the global energy transition
The big news out of last year’s COP28 was the “U.A.E. consensus” document, an agreement in which all the world’s major economies, including the United States and petrostates like Saudi Arabia, pledged to move away from fossil fuels. Language calling for “transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable manner,” was painstakingly crafted, but now it has to be put into practice.
Hashing out climate reparations
Two years ago, longtime wealthy nations vowed to provide what amounts to reparations for their role causing climate change. Because these early-industrializing nations have emitted the most greenhouse gasses historically, the argument goes, they should send money to poor countries to help them recover from climate-fueled disasters that the latter did little to cause. This commitment was the realization of a demand that small island states and developing countries in Africa had been seeking for years.
Squabbling over carbon markets
One of the major ways that large companies claim progress toward their emissions reduction targets is through what’s known as the voluntary carbon market. It works like this: When climate pollution is too difficult or expensive to directly abate, a company can simply buy credits representing prevented or sequestered emissions elsewhere (say, through an afforestation project that promises to keep carbon locked up in the trunks of newly-planted trees). Now, the United Nations is trying to create its own carbon market — but for countries, not companies.
Protesters call on Valencia governor to resign after deadly floods
About 130,000 Spaniards protest against perceived failings by Carlos Mazón’s regional government
Spaniards have taken to the streets of Valencia to demand the resignation of the regional president who led the emergency response to the recent catastrophic floods that killed more than 200 people.
Floods that began on the night of 29 October have left 220 dead and nearly 80 people still missing.
Residents are protesting over the way the incident was handled, with regional leader Carlos Mazón under immense pressure after his administration failed to issue alerts to citizens’ mobile phones until hours after the flooding started.
The Valencian government has been criticised for not adequately preparing despite the State Meteorological Agency warning five days before the floods that there could be an unprecedented rainstorm. Tens of thousands of people made their dismay known by marching in the city on Saturday. The official attendance was estimated to be about 130,000.
Some protesters clashed with riot police in front of Valencia’s city hall at the start of their march to the seat of the regional government, with police using batons to push them back.
Many marchers held up homemade signs or chanted “Mazón resign” Others carried signs with messages such as “You killed us”. One banner read: “Our hands are stained with mud, yours with blood.”
Thousands of UK farmers descend on Parliament to protest against inheritance tax hike
Thousands of UK farmers have gathered outside Parliament to protest against the government’s decision to increase inheritance tax in its latest budget.
The decision would see the end to a tax break dating from the 1990s that exempts agricultural property from the levy.
This means that from April 2026, farms worth more than £1 million (€1,197 million) will face a 20% tax when the owner dies and they are passed on to the next generation.
British farmers say such a hike will deal a ‘hammer blow’ to family farms which are already struggling from the impact of climate change, global instability, and the upheaval caused by Brexit.
Children on toy tractors looped round Parliament Square after a rally addressed by speakers including TV host and celebrity farmer Jeremy Clarkson. Another 1,800 farmers were invited into Parliament for a ‘mass lobby’ organised by the National Farmers’ Union.
“The human impact of this policy is simply not acceptable, it’s wrong,” NFU President Tom Bradshaw said. “It’s kicking the legs out from under British food security.”
The last decade has been turbulent for farmers. Many British farmers backed Brexit as a chance to get out of the EU’s complex and much-criticised Common Agricultural Policy. Since then, the UK has brought in changes such as paying farmers to restore nature and promote biodiversity, as well as for producing food.
But many feel they were let down by previous Conservative governments as well as Starmer’s Labour administration, with delays caused by bureaucratic issues and a lack of subsidies to keep up with inflation and new trade deals with countries including Australia and New Zealand that have opened the door to cheap imports.
Many feel the Labour Party government’s tax change, part of an effort to raise billions of pounds to fund public services, is the last straw.
“Four out of the last five years, we’ve lost money,” said Harrison, a fifth-generation farmer who grows cereal crops near Liverpool in northwest England. “The only thing that’s kept me going is doing it for my kids. And maybe a little bit of appreciation on the land allows you to keep borrowing, to keep going. But now that’s just disappeared overnight.”
Starmer’s centre-left government says the “vast majority” of farms – about 75% – will not have to pay inheritance tax, and various loopholes mean that a farming couple can pass on an estate worth up to £3 million (€3,591 million) to their children tax-free. The 20% levy is half the 40% inheritance tax paid on other land and property in the UK.
Situation in the State of Palestine: ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I rejects the State of Israel’s challenges to jurisdiction and issues warrants of arrest for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant
Today, on 21 November 2024, Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court (‘Court’), in its composition for the Situation in the State of Palestine,unanimously issued two decisions rejecting challenges by the State of Israel (‘Israel’) brought under articles 18 and 19 of the Rome Statute (the ‘Statute’). It also issued warrants of arrest for Mr Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr Yoav Gallant.
Decisions on requests by the State of Israel
The Chamber ruled on two requests submitted by the Israel on 26 September 2024. In the first request, Israel challenged the Court’s jurisdiction over the Situation in the State of Palestine in general, and over Israeli nationals more specifically, on the basis of article 19(2) of the Statute. In the second request, Israel requested that the Chamber order the Prosecution to provide a new notification of the initiation of an investigation to its authorities under article 18(1) of the Statute. Israel also requested the Chamber to halt any proceedings before the Court in the relevant situation, including the consideration of the applications for warrants of arrest for Mr Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr Yoav Gallant, submitted by the Prosecution on 20 May 2024.
As to the first challenge, the Chamber noted that the acceptance by Israel of the Court’s jurisdiction is not required, as the Court can exercise its jurisdiction on the basis of territorial jurisdiction of Palestine, as determined by Pre-Trial Chamber I in a previous composition. Furthermore, the Chamber considered that pursuant to article 19(1) of the Statute, States are not entitled to challenge the Court’s jurisdiction under article 19(2) prior to the issuance of a warrant of arrest. Thus Israel’s challenge is premature. This is without prejudice to any future possible challenges to the Court’s jurisdiction and/or admissibility of any particular case.
Warrants of arrest
The Chamber issued warrants of arrest for two individuals, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr Yoav Gallant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024, the day the Prosecution filed the applications for warrants of arrest.
The arrest warrants are classified as ‘secret’, in order to protect witnesses and to safeguard the conduct of the investigations. However, the Chamber decided to release the information below since conduct similar to that addressed in the warrant of arrest appears to be ongoing. Moreover, the Chamber considers it to be in the interest of victims and their families that they are made aware of the warrants’ existence.
There is still another sentiment which is more expanded than geo-sentiment – it is socio-sentiment. Socio-sentiment does not confine people to a particular territory, but instead pervades a particular social group. That is, instead of thinking about the welfare of a particular geographical area, people think about the well-being of a group, even to the exclusion of all other groups. And in the process, while they concern themselves with the interest of a particular group, they do not hesitate to violate the interests and natural growth of other groups. Perhaps this socio-sentiment is a bit better than geo-sentiment, but it is not altogether ideal; it is not free from defects.
The Liberation of Intellect: Neohumanism
THE END
November 9, 2024
Children
The government plans to ban under-16s from social media platforms. Here’s what we know so far
The federal government has taken a big step towards realising its ambitious plan to get children and young teenagers off social media.
After first announcing its intention to introduce legislation to set a minimum age for social media back in September, but staying quiet on what that minimum age would be, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Thursday announced he had settled on 16: the same age the Coalition has previously said it would support.
With both major parties in broad agreement and two sitting weeks left in this term, it seems likely the government will be able to achieve its aim of passing the legislation before the end of the year.
Who will the ban cover?
Australian children and teenagers under the age of 16, even if they already have a social media account.
The ban will also theoretically cover younger teenagers who have parental consent, although the government has said individuals won’t be punished if they don’t comply.
What platforms will it apply to?
The ban might apply to more platforms than you think because the law’s definition of social media is very broad.
Obvious ones like Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat and X would all be captured, and Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said on Thursday that “YouTube would likely fall within that definition as well”.
The definition may also capture gaming platforms such as Roblox and chat platforms such as Reddit or Discord, plus many smaller players.
After Trump’s win, many despondent Americans research moving abroad
As U.S. election exit polls began to point to a second presidency for Donald Trump, many Americans were already looking for another kind of exit: moving abroad.
Google searches for “move to Canada” surged 1,270% in the 24 hours after U.S. East Coast polls closed on Tuesday, company data shows. Similar searches about moving to New Zealand climbed nearly 2,000% while those for Australia jumped 820%.
The sudden enthusiasm for emigration echoes the interest in moving abroad seen after Trump’s 2016 victory. This time, however, the Republican’s re-election has followed a particularly divisive campaign in which nearly three-quarters of U.S. voters said they felt American democracy was under threat, according to Edison Research exit polls.
Many Americans are also worried that his presidency could drive a bigger wedge between Democrats and Republicans on issues such as race, gender, what and how children are taught, and reproductive rights.
But why are they looking to move?
For many who are considering leaving America, a second Trump presidency is the main cause. They are scared of the sweeping changes the Republican plans to bring into the US once he takes charge of the Oval Office.
Many women who are thinking of moving fear that a Trump presidency would rob them of their reproductive rights. Anti-immigration and anti-LGBTQ sentiments, fuelled by Trump rhetoric are also expected to rise, which is why people are mulling a move out of the US.
Campbell’s and Kind receive USDA support to advance regenerative agriculture for key ingredients
The soup giant secured $3.4 million in funding for tomato growers in California and Kind Snacks announced milestones for sustainable almond farming.
Campbell Soup Company and Kind Snacks announced projects that would advance regenerative agriculture practices for key ingredients with financial support from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Campbell’s received $3.4 million through USDA’s Regional Conservation Partnership Program to increase adoption of sustainable practices and reduce water consumption among tomato growers in California. Separately, Kind, a subsidiary of Mars Inc., said it will unlock more than $300,000 for regenerative agriculture in almonds through USDA’s Partnership for Climate-Smart Commodities Program.
“As farmers face increasing challenges from climate change, it is important that we support further adoption of climate-smart agriculture practices that improve soil health and enhance resilience,” Campbell’s Chief Sustainability Officer Stewart Lindsay said in a statement.
More major food companies are relying on the USDA and a collaborative network of nonprofits and suppliers as they make a herculean push to transform their supply chains in order to meet company sustainability goals. The Campbell’s project will be implemented alongside partners including USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and the American Farmland Trust.
“We salute the involvement of food companies that understand the importance of keeping these food ingredients sustainable and available for the future,” Tom Stein, California Regional Director at American Farmland Trust, said in a statement.
Kind’s project is part of Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture and the Environment’s regenerative services match program. The snacking company will leverage the sustainable farming institution’s expertise to provide growers with financial and technical incentives, as well as verification tools.
EPA urged to ban weedkiller linked to Parkinson’s disease
U.S. lawmakers are calling for the agency to prohibit the toxic herbicide, which has grown in use over the past few years.
More than 50 U.S. lawmakers are urging the Environmental Protection Agency to ban the use of a weedkiller linked to Parkinson’s disease and other health risks to humans.
In an Oct. 31 letter to the agency, seven U.S. senators said that paraquat, a chemical commonly used on farms across the country to protect row crops, fruits and vegetables, is a “highly toxic pesticide whose continued use cannot be justified given its harms to farmworkers and rural communities.”
The call for a nationwide ban came after 47 U.S. Representatives sent a similar letter to the EPA earlier in October. According to findings from a recent study, paraquat could more than double a person’s odds of developing Parkinson’s if sprayed more than 500 meters from where people live and work.
Paraquat is a highly toxic chemical that has been linked to Parkinson’s disease, thyroid cancer, and other health issues including kidney, liver, and respiratory damage. Although less widely used than its more popular alternative glyphosate — the main ingredient in Bayer’s Roundup — the herbicide has grown in use among farmers in recent years.According to the U.S. Geological Survey data, farmers applied more than 15 million pounds of Paraquat to their acreage in 2018. That is more than triple the amount used in 1992.“We urge you to protect the health of farmworkers and rural residents by banning paraquat,” the senators said in their letter to the EPA. The chemical is banned in more than 70 countries, including China, Brazil and members of the European Union.Paraquat is often used to clear fields before planting, but the chemical can stay in the soil for years before breaking down, according to a study cited in an Oct. 8 letter signed by a group of U.S. Representatives. It is also susceptible to spray drift and has been shown to disproportionately affect farm workers in largely Latino counties in California.
The index’s October reading was the highest since March 2022, which was the index’s peak and 20.5% higher than the latest figure, according to the release.
Four of the five categories of food commodities included in the index rose in October, per the release.
Vegetable oil prices jumped 7.3% and hit a two-year high, driven by concerns about production.
Sugar prices rose 2.6% due to extended dry weather conditions in Brazil and a shift of more sugarcane toward ethanol production amid rising crude oil prices.
Dairy prices were up 1.9% because of increases in international cheese and butter prices.
Cereal prices increased 0.9% due to unfavorable weather conditions impacting the price of wheat and transport challenges in Brazil affecting the price of maize.
The one category that saw prices decline in October was meat, the release said, adding that weak demand for pig meat was the primary reason for the 0.3% price drop.
The University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers found that consumer sentiment inched down in early October amid continued frustration over the pricesof goods and services.
Foodand shelter, among the most essential of all spending categories, are taking an outsized chunk of households’ paychecks — especially for lower-income consumers, PYMNTS reported in September.
At that time, spending on food accounted for nearly 13% of consumer expenditures, a figure that was 6.9% higher than it was in 2023. Food consumed at home (a proxy for groceries) was 6.1% higher, while food consumed away from home was up 8.1%.
Reason
1. Weather and Crop Issues: Excessive rain in Canada and Europe affected wheat supplies, while low water levels in Brazil and the U.S. hindered maize transportation. Sugar prices spiked due to poor crop forecasts in Brazil and India’s shift to using sugarcane for ethanol production.
2. Supply Chain Disruptions: Weather-related transport issues and production slowdowns for oils in Southeast Asia and the U.S. added pressure, raising prices for commodities like palm and soy oils.3. Increased Global Demand: Strong import demand for poultry and other meats also added to rising prices across various food sectors.
Google fined $20 decillion — more than world’s total wealth — by Russian court
U.S. tech giant Google has closed up shop in Russia, but that hasn’t stopped a court there from leveling it with a fine greater than all the wealth in the world — a figure that is growing every day.
The fine, imposed after certain channels were blocked on YouTube, which Google owns, has reached more than 2 undecillion rubles, Russian business newspaper RBC reported this week. That’s about $20 decillion — a two followed by 34 zeros.
The fine is significantly more money than the combined total global net wealth of $477 trillion, according to Boston Consulting Group, and the worldwide gross domestic product last year of about $105 trillion, according to the World Bank.
Google’s parent company, Alphabet — one of the five most valuable companies in the world — is valued at about $2 trillion. The fine is about 10 billion trillion times the company’s value.
Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary for Russian President Vladimir Putin, told reporters Thursday thatthe figure was symbolic and should be a reason for Google to pay attention to the Moscow Arbitration Court’s order to restore access to the YouTube channels.
The sum grew so large because the fine increases with time in noncompliance, with no upper limit. The order was made after 17 blocked channels joined a lawsuit against Google’s American, Irish and Russia-based companies, according to RBC. The lawsuit predates Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and was initiated in 2020 by a channel that YouTube blocked to comply with U.S. sanctions.
World’s first wooden satellite, developed in Japan, heads to space
Named after the Latin word for “wood,” the palm-sized LignoSat is tasked with demonstrating the renewable material’s potential in lunar and Mars exploration.
KYOTO, Japan — The world’s first wooden satellite, built by Japanese researchers, was launched into space Tuesday in an early test of using timber in lunar and Mars exploration.
LignoSat, developed by Kyoto University and homebuilder Sumitomo Forestry, will be flown to the International Space Station on a SpaceX mission and later released into orbit about 250 miles above the Earth.
Named after the Latin word for “wood,” the palm-sized LignoSat is tasked with demonstrating the cosmic potential of renewable material as humans explore living in space.
“With timber, a material we can produce by ourselves, we will be able to build houses, live and work in space forever,” said Takao Doi, an astronaut who has flown on the Space Shuttle and studies human space activities at Kyoto University.
With a 50-year plan of planting trees and building timber houses on the moon and Mars, Doi’s team decided to develop a NASA-certified wooden satellite to prove that wood is a space-grade material.
Wood is more durable in space than on Earth because there’s no water or oxygen that would rot or inflame it, Murata added.
After a 10-month experiment aboard the International Space Station, the researchers found that hinoki, a kind of magnolia tree native to Japan and traditionally used for sword sheaths, is best suited for spacecraft.
LignoSat is made of hinoki, using a traditional Japanese crafts technique without screws or glue.
Once deployed, LignoSat will stay in orbit for six months, with the electronic components onboard measuring how wood endures the extreme environment of space, where temperatures fluctuate from -100 to 100 degrees Celsius every 45 minutes as it orbits from darkness to sunlight.
LignoSat will also gauge wood’s ability to reduce the impact of space radiation on semiconductors, making it useful for applications such as data center construction, said Kenji Kariya, a manager at Sumitomo Forestry Tsukuba Research Institute.
“It may seem outdated, but wood is actually cutting-edge technology as civilization heads to the moon and Mars,” he said. “Expansion to space could invigorate the timber industry.”
Saudi Arabia discovers bronze age village in Khaybar Oasis
The Saudi Royal Commission for AlUla province has announced the discovery of an ancient Bronze Age village in Khaybar Oasis, located in northwestern Saudi Arabia.
Researchers, speaking at a press conference held at the Saudi Press Agency’s conference center in Riyadh, revealed that the village, known as “Al-Nata,” showcases evidence of advanced urban planning with distinct residential and funerary areas.
Dating back to between 2400 and 1300 BCE, Al-Nata is believed to have been home to around 500 inhabitants and spans 2.6 hectares. The site is encircled by a 15-kilometer stone wall that protected the oasis.
Situated at the meeting point of three valleys on the edge of the volcanic field of Harrat Khaybar, the village remained hidden under layers of basalt rock in the northern part of the oasis for millennia.
Researchers note that this find marks a significant societal transition from nomadic pastoralism to settled urban life in the region during the late third millennium BCE.
This insight challenges previous notions that nomadic and pastoral lifestyles dominated northwestern Arabia during this period. Further evidence points to walled oases connected to fortified cities like Tayma, indicating a flourishing urban network at the time.
The Israeli prime minister faces a dilemma that Yoav Gallant’s departure won’t solve.
On Tuesday evening, a political earthquake shook Israel: In the midst of war, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed his defense minister, Yoav Gallant.
The quake was inevitable, even if the timing was not. The coalition that keeps Netanyahu in power is built astride a political fault line. On one side are the ultra-Orthodox parties that have served as reliable partners for Netanyahu’s Likud party for decades. Their quid pro quo is government funding for their self-segregated community—and exemption from the military draft, on the grounds that young ultra-Orthodox men devote themselves to religious studies. The exemption, in their eyes, is essential for maintaining their separation from mainstream Israeli society.
On the other side of the fault line are two extreme right-wing parties, and at least part of Likud itself. This wing of the coalition sees the war as an opportunity to resume Israeli rule of Gaza and even Israeli settlement there. Pressure from this direction is at least one reason the war continues, with no end in sight. The policy translates into longer army service for draftees, extended stints of reserve duty for large numbers of Israelis, and photos of fallen soldiers leading the national news on a daily basis.
In June, Israel’s supreme court ruled unanimously that with the expiration of a previous draft law, no legal basis existed for continuing to exempt ultra-Orthodox men. The ultra-Orthodox parties are demanding a new law that would largely preserve the exemption. Satisfying that demand while continuing the war has produced rising public fury. Ignoring the demand could, in theory, break up the coalition and cause the government to fall.
Gallant has been the most prominent coalition politician to oppose a new law in the form that the ultra-Orthodox seek. On Monday, he approved an army plan to send draft notices to thousands of ultra-Orthodox men. The next day, Netanyahu fired him.
The formation of a World Government will require a world constitution. A charter of principles or bill of rights should be included in such a constitution and encompass at least the following four areas. First, complete security should be guaranteed to all the plants and animals on the planet. Secondly, each country must guarantee purchasing power to all its citizens. Thirdly, the constitution should guarantee four fundamental rights – spiritual practice or Dharma; cultural legacy; education; and indigenous linguistic expression. Fourthly, if the practice of any of these rights conflicts with cardinal human values then that practice should be immediately curtailed. That is, cardinal human values must take precedence over all other rights. All the constitutions of the world suffer from numerous defects. The above points may be adopted by the framers of different constitutions to overcome these defects.
Shri P R Sarkar
Requirements of an Ideal Constitution 22 September 1986, Calcutta
THE END
November 2, 2024
Environment
Disposable vapes to be banned in England next June, says Labour
Move is designed to combat environmental damage from single-use vapes and their widespread use by children
Move is designed to combat environmental damage from single-use vapes and their widespread use by children
The sale of single-use disposable vapes will be banned in England and Wales from June next year, the government has confirmed.
The government said it had worked closely with the devolved nations and they would “align coming into force dates” on bans, with Wales already confirming it will follow suit.
Vaping industry leaders have warned the move could fuel a rise in illegal sales of the products.
The Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra) said vape usage in England had grown by more than 400% between 2012 and 2023, with 9% of the British public now buying and using the products.
It is illegal to sell any vape to anyone under 18, but disposable vapes – often sold in smaller, more colourful packaging than refillable ones – are a “key driver behind the alarming rise in youth vaping”, the previous government said when it first set out its plan.
Public health minister Andrew Gwynne said banning disposables would “reduce the appeal of vapes to children and keep them out of the hands of vulnerable young people”.
Vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking, but it has not been around for long enough for its long-term risks to be known, according to the NHS.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd7n3zyp114o
Economy
Taiwan wants to join the IMF to get financial protection from China
Taiwan, a major economy the size of Poland but absent from global organizations, is making a longshot push to join the International Monetary Fund, the 190-country organization that offers members emergency loans and other financial assistance.
“Taiwan’s membership at the IMF would help boost financial resilience,” the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Washington said during this week’s IMF and World Bank annual meetings. The office serves as Taiwan’s de facto embassy in the U.S.
The push is part of a wider effort to boost the self-governed island’s global status. Taiwan also is seeking to participate in the U.N. World Health Organization’s annual World Health Assembly and join Interpol. The U.S. and its allies are Taiwan’s supporters.
But China, which sees Taiwan as a breakaway province and threatens to annex it by force, has blocked such efforts and insists it represent Taiwan in international forums. The island is now designated as “Taiwan Province of China” in IMF literature.
In 2020, then-President Donald Trump signed legislation making it U.S. policy to advocate for Taiwan’s membership or observer status in international organizations such as the IMF.
Transforming Agricultural Waste into Green Hydrogen
The combination of solar energy and organic waste could make it possible to produce green hydrogen at a very low cost, according to a study by the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Green hydrogen is emerging as a key complement to solar and wind energy on the path to global sustainability. Its benefits are numerous: it serves as an effective energy storage solution, can be used in vehicles like airplanes without the weight burden of batteries, and can power heating systems or industrial processes without emitting greenhouse gases.
The critical factor for green hydrogen to surpass fossil fuels lies in its production—achieving hydrogen in a clean and efficient manner. The University of Illinois Chicago has recently unveiled a groundbreaking technique for generating it from agricultural or livestock biomass.
How green hydrogen is produced
To start, a brief overview: green hydrogen is produced from renewable energies like wind or solar. Since hydrogen is not typically found in its pure form in nature, it needs to be extracted from compounds such as water. This extraction process, commonly performed through electrolysis, requires energy, which is where renewable sources come into play. If fossil fuels were used instead, it would result in gray hydrogen.
Green hydrogen from solar energy and biomass
The innovation from engineers at the University of Illinois Chicago introduces a method to produce green hydrogen from water using only solar energy and agricultural waste. This technique is remarkable for its energy efficiency, reducing the energy required by 600%. The process involves a solution of agricultural and livestock waste in sulfuric acid as biochar, significantly lowering the electricity needed to produce hydrogen.
So, what is biochar? It is a carbon-rich compound produced through the pyrolysis of biomass in the absence of oxygen. Biochar can sequester carbon in a stable form for many decades, preventing its release as CO2 and improving soil fertility.
In the recent research, adding a biochar solution to the anode during green hydrogen electrolysis reduced the electrical power needs. Experiments show that the most efficient biochar comes from cow manure, reducing the energy required for one unit of hydrogen to one-sixth.
Thus, a single 15-milliampere photovoltaic cell and a current of 0.5 volts—less than the power of an AA battery—were enough to produce green hydrogen. The carbon in the biochar solution reacts with the O2 produced in electrolysis to generate CO2, which can be captured and reused in other industrial processes, such as fertilizer production, as mentioned in this article.
According to the researchers, the high efficiency of the process, achieving a 35% conversion of solar energy into hydrogen, could offer a cheaper and more sustainable alternative to current green hydrogen production methods, reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Self-sufficient farms
One of the most intriguing prospects suggested by the researchers is a future where farms can combine energy from photovoltaic panels with plant or animal waste to generate green hydrogen, achieving energy self-sufficiency.
A hydrogen fuel cell offers high efficiency in powering machinery and complements other energy sources like solar or wind, regardless of weather or daylight hours. Moreover, the method developed by the University of Illinois Chicago isn’t limited to hydrogen production but can also generate other valuable products from agricultural waste.
29 Nigerian children may be sentenced to death for protesting against cost-of-living crisis
Twenty-nine minors in Nigeria could be facing the death penalty
ABUJA, Nigeria — Twenty-nine children could be facing the death penalty in Nigeria after they were arraigned Friday for participating in a protest against the country’s record cost-of-living crisis. Four of them collapsed in court due to exhaustion before they could enter a plea.
A total of 76 protesters were charged with 10 felony counts, including treason, destruction of property, public disturbance and mutiny, according to the charge sheet seen by The Associated Press.
According to the charge sheet, the minors ranged in age from 14 to 17 years old.
Frustration over the cost-of-living crisis has led to several mass protests in recent months. In August, at least 20 people were shot dead and hundreds more were arrested at a protest demanding better opportunities and jobs for young people.
The death sentence was introduced in the 1970s in Nigeria, but there have been no executions in the country since 2016.
Akintayo Balogun, a private lawyer based in Abuja, said the Child Rights Act does not allow any child to be subject to criminal proceedings and sentenced to death.
“So taking minors before a federal high court is wrong, ab initio, except if the government is able to prove that the boys are all above 19 years,” Balogun said.
The court eventually granted 10 million naira ($5,900) bail to each the defendants and imposed stringent conditions they are yet to meet, Marshal Abubakar, counsel to some of the boys, said.
“A country that has a duty to educate its children will decide to punish those children. These children have been in detention for 90 days without food,” Abubakar said.
Yemi Adamolekun, executive director of Enough is Enough, a civil society organization promoting good governance in Nigeria, said authorities have no business prosecuting children.
The United Nations committee on the elimination of discrimination against women said hundreds of thousands of people had been affected. The 23-member committee issued its finding after reviewing a joint complaint filed by five victims who were forcibly sterilised between 1996 and 1997. “The victims claimed that the forced sterilisations they underwent had severe and permanent consequences for their physical and mental health,” it said in a statement.
Botswana president concedes defeat in election after party’s six-decade rule
Results show Mokgweetsi Masisi’s Botswana Democratic party on track to lose by landslide
Botswana’s president, Mokgweetsi Masisi, has conceded defeat in Wednesday’s elections, which his Botswana Democratic party lost by a landslide after nearly six decades in power.
With almost all constituencies counted, the opposition coalition Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) had secured a parliamentary majority, with its leader, the lawyer Duma Boko, on track to become the southern African country’s next president.
Soaring unemployment has hit young people especially hard, fuelling a backlash at the ballot box against the BDP, which has ruled the country of 2.5 million people since it became independent from Britain in 1966. The election result is also part of a wider wave of popular discontent that has swelled across the continent, amid a lack of good jobs for growing youthful populations.
State television later showed that out of 55 of the 61 constituencies that had reported results, the UDC had won 32 seats, while the BDP was in last place out of four parties with just four seats. MPs will now elect the president.
Boko, who had pledged to raise the minimum wage and increase social grants, told the local news outlet Mmegi: “It shocked me, the numbers … I’m humbled.”
Botswana is the world’s second-largest diamond producer,. Income from the gems is credited with helping the country to be one of the region’s most stable and wealthy states.
Nevertheless, a global slump in demand for diamonds has led to a sharp economic contraction: the IMF predicts economic growth of 1% this year, down from 2.7% in 2023 and 5.5% in 2022. Unemployment has risen to 28%, while more than a third of 15- to 35-year-olds are out of work.
“The result was unexpected,” said Zoë McCathie, an analyst at Signal Risk. “Economic conditions in the country at the moment, specifically unemployment levels, have been a big factor.”
North Korea says will stand by Russia until ‘victory’ in Ukraine
North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui was in Moscow as the West says thousands of North Korean troops are in Russia and will possibly be used in Ukraine
North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui was in Moscow as the West says thousands of North Korean troops are in Russia and will possibly be used in Ukraine
North Korea will stand by Russia until its “victory” in Ukraine, Pyongyang’s Foreign Minister said in Moscow amid growing fears the reclusive country will enter the Ukraine conflict.
“We repeat that we will always stand firmly by our Russian comrades until victory day,” North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui said, according to a Russian translation.
“We have no doubt whatsoever that under the wise leadership of the honourable Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Russian army and people will surely achieve a great victory in their sacred struggle to defend the sovereign rights and security of their state,” she added.
The U.S. has said that 8,000 North Korean soldiers are training in Russia and could be deployed to fight in Ukraine.
On Thursday (October 31, 2024), Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking to South Korean media, denounced what he called inaction by his allies on the North Korean troop deployment.
Russia has sought to deepen its relations with North Korea since sending troops to Ukraine.
President Vladimir Putin signed a mutual assistance pact with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un when he visited Pyongyang this summer.
Electric motorcycle completes solar-powered 6,000-kilometer journey through Africa
An electric motorcycle, made by Swedish-Kenyan manufacturer Roam completed a 6,000-kilometer (3,700-mile) journey from Nairobi, Kenya, to Stellenbosch, South Africa, in 17 days, using only solar power.
While the world record for the longest electric motorcycle journey is 25,000 kilometers (11,300 miles), undertaken over 42 days in the US, Roam hopes that its stunt helps to prove the viability of renewable energy for long-distance travel even in remote areas with poor charginginfrastructure.
The batteries were charged en route through a solar panel charging system carried in a support vehicle, which would drive ahead each day, stopping to charge up the batteries, so that when the bike caught up it could swap the dead battery for a fresh one. During the journey, the motorcycle model, the Roam Air, achieved its new single battery record range of 113 kilometers (70 miles), and on the trip’s last day, it traveled 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) in less than 18 hours.
On average the team covered around 400 kilometers (250 miles) per day, with about 80 kilometers (50 miles) per battery.
Cloud cover
The biggest challenge the team faced during the journey was the weather. “You can’t force the sun to shine,” says Kituyi, and at some points they ended up adapting their route so that they could escape cloud cover and have an opportunity to recharge the batteries.
While Roam wanted to demonstrate the potential of solar energy as a solution for powering bikes in areas that lack charging infrastructure, Kituyi says that most of Roam’s customers charge their bikes at home with energy from the grid. However, he insists that this mammoth journey would still be possible for people without a solar support car.
“Anywhere you can charge your phone, you can charge the bike,” he says. “That means with enough planning and lodging in hotels that have electricity, you are able to do this journey yourself.”
A support car equipped with a solar panel charging system followed the motorbike along the route.
Death toll from Spain floods passes 200 as rescue teams search for missing
Spain’s worst natural disaster in decades leaves many communities without power, water and aid.
Rescuers in Spain are battling to reach areas still cut off due to heavy rains as the death toll from catastrophic floods rose to 205 in Europe’s worst weather disaster in five decades.
In Valencia, the eastern region that bore the brunt of the devastation this week, hundreds of soldiers were deployed to hunt for the missing and help survivors of the storm, which triggered a new weather alert in Huelva in southwestern Spain.
Officials said the death toll is likely to keep rising. It is already Spain’s worst flood-related disaster in modern history and the deadliest to hit Europe since the 1970s.
In a matter of minutes on Tuesday, flash floods caused by heavy downpours swept away everything in their path – destroying roads, railway tracks and bridges as rivers burst their banks. The flooding also submerged thousands of hectares of farmland.
Thousands of people across Valencia took part in a mass cleanup on Friday. Residents of Chiva, one of the towns that witnessed some of the worst rainfall, were carrying buckets, shovels, brooms, mops and water bottles.
“Around a year’s worth of rain fell in a single day, and as you can tell, it’s had a devastating effect on the community. They’re still cut off – no electricity, no connection to any sort of power system here,” Al Jazeera’s Sonia Gallego said, reporting from Chiva.
Cuba’s electrical grid collapses again amid restoration efforts
HAVANA, Oct 30 (Reuters) – The U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday overwhelmingly called on the United States to end its decades-long sanctions regime on Cuba, as the communist-run Caribbean island nation suffers its worst economic crisis in decades marked by collapsing infrastructure and shortages of basic goods.
The non-binding resolution was approved by 187 countries and opposed only by the United States and Israel, with Moldava abstaining. This was the 32nd consecutive year that similar non-binding resolutions were approved by huge margins.
The vote came just days before the U.S. election with the Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and Republican contender Donald Trump signaling little interest in changing policy.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said in a speech before the assembly that what is often referred to as the U.S. trade embargo is a “blockade” because the web of laws and regulations complicate financial transactions and the acquisition of goods and services not just from the United States but internationally.
“The blockade against Cuba is an economic, financial and trade war which qualifies as genocide,” said Rodriguez, charging the U.S. policies were deliberately aimed at promoting suffering among the Cuban people to force change in the government.
U.S. diplomat Paul Folmsbee, in a brief speech after the vote did not challenge the view that sanctions were undermining Cuba’s economy, but said they were aimed at promoting “human rights and democracy” and that the U.S. made exceptions for humanitarian purposes.
The United States has piled dozens of new sanctions on the Communist-run country since a trade embargo was put in place following Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution, most recently under former President Donald Trump.
Rodriguez blamed those new sanctions, which include some fuel exports to Cuba, for being largely responsible for the country’s current energy crisis and the temporary crash of the grid last week.
Finally, it should be remembered that economic democracy is essential not only for the economic liberation of human beings, but for the universal well-being of all – including plants and animals. Economic democracy will devise ways and means to effect the smooth progress of society by recognizing the unique value of both humans and non-humans alike.
Shri P R Sarkar
Prout in a Nutshell Part 21
June 1986, Kolkata
THE END
Space
October 26, 2024
Europe agency says it is in talks with SpaceX on tackling space junk: Report
The 22-nation agency is spearheading one of several efforts to roll back the mass of space junk swirling round the planet from past missions that poses a risk to active satellites.
European Space Agency is in talks with SpaceX about the possibility of Elon Musk’s space venture joining an international charter designed to reduce a growing swarm of debris in space, Director General Josef Aschbacher told Reuters.
The 22-nation agency is spearheading one of several efforts to roll back the mass of space junk swirling round the planet from past missions that poses a risk to active satellites.
Aschbacher said 110 countries or entities have joined ESA’s Zero Debris charter, which aims to stop any new orbital garbage being generated by 2030.
Asked whether SpaceX, whose satellites now make up some two thirds of spacecraft active in low Earth orbit, had signed up, Aschbacher said: “Not yet, but we are in discussion with them… This is a charter that keeps evolving and… we will keep raising the topics because they are so fundamental.”
Of the roughly 10,300 active satellites in orbit, roughly 6,300 are part of SpaceX’s fast-growing Starlink constellation, according to the U.S. Space Force.
China has begun to launch constellations of its own to compete with Starlink, as has Amazon, which expects to launch over 3,000 satellites for its Kuiper constellation this decade.
Amazon has signed up to the charter, Aschbacher said.
There are currently 18,897 pieces of trackable space junk in orbit, according to Jonathan McDowell, a Harvard astronomer who tracks such objects.
Space debris and junk are often used interchangeably, but some consider space junk to include inactive payloads and rocket bodies as well as debris, or errant shards of broken satellites.
There are no international laws on debris, but countries and space agencies have begun in recent years to devise proposals and national rules for tackling the problem.
Moscow’s Tourism Renaissance: How Festivals and Cultural Events Are Drawing in Millions
In recent years, Moscow has reestablished itself as a major destination for international tourists, with the city attracting 2.3 million foreign visitors in 2023. Tourists primarily hailed from countries such as China, Turkey, India, and Iran, with notable increases from the UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait, surpassing pre-pandemic numbers. Early data from 2024 suggests an even more promising year for tourism, with nearly half a million foreigners visiting the Russian capital in just the first quarter, marking a 40% increase from the previous year.
Tourists are increasingly drawn to Moscow not only for its iconic landmarks—like the Kremlin, St. Basil’s Cathedral, and the renowned Tretyakov Gallery—but also for the rich cultural and entertainment experiences the city offers. With its grand festivals, vibrant arts scene, and historic streets lined with elegant mansions from the 18th and 19th centuries, Moscow provides a blend of tradition and modernity that captivates both first-time visitors and returning travelers.
A Growing Portfolio of Cultural Events
One of the most remarkable events in Moscow’s recent history is the International Exhibition Forum “Russia,” which captivated millions over an eight-month run at VDNKh. Featuring interactive exhibits from all 89 regions of Russia, the forum allowed visitors to immerse themselves in the cultural diversity and achievements of the entire country. Drawing over 18.5 million visitors, it significantly boosted Moscow’s tourist numbers.
Similarly, the summer festival “Territory of the Future. Moscow 2030,” held across 30 venues, showcased the city’s forward-looking strategy with cultural, sports, and educational events. The festival culminated in a spectacular celebration for Moscow’s City Day, further cementing the capital’s status as a hub for large-scale events. Meanwhile, the “Summer in Moscow. Let’s Hit the Streets!” festival, spanning 100 days, invited visitors to participate in activities ranging from yoga and ping pong to art workshops and space exploration discussions. A distinctive feature of the festival was its community-driven agenda—25% of the 25,000 events were organized by local residents, businesses, or NGOs, making it a true reflection of Moscow’s vibrant civic life.
World Food Day: Pope urges leaders to listen to those at the end of the food chain
Marking World Food Day (16 Oct), Pope Francis says economic leaders must listen to the demands of those at the end of the food chain. And in a post on X he decries military spending and calls for investments to combat hunger.
Pope Francis chose a two-pronged approach for his message on World Food Day this year, decrying the fact that so much money is spent on weapons and armaments when it could be invested in fighting hunger, and separately calling on global leaders to listen to the demands of those at the end of the food chain.
“War brings out the worst in humanity: selfishness, violence and dishonesty,” he said in a post on X on Wednesday morning to mark World Food Day on 16 October. “Let us reject the line of reasoning that embraces weapons, and instead transform massive military expenditures into investments to combat hunger and the lack of healthcare and education,” he added.
As he usually does on this annual occurrence, he also addressed a message to the Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), appealing to economic leaders at the international level to “listen to the demands of those at the end of the food chain, such as small farmers, and to intermediary social groups, like families, who are directly involved in feeding people.”
In the message, read by Archbishop Chica Arellano, the Holy See’s Permanent Observer at the United Nations Organizations and Bodies for Food and Agriculture, the Pope reflected on the theme chosen for the World Day this year – “Right to foods for a better life and a better future” – and noted that solidarity, justice and a transformation of food systems is needed to ensure that every person has access to nutritious and affordable food.
Primary schools urged to teach kids about misogyny
The mayor of London has written to every primary school in London asking them to help counter the “pernicious influence” of misogynists such as Andrew Tate.
City Hall has funded a £1m programme to help educate children about healthy and respectful relationships as part of efforts to reduce violence against women and girls (VAWG).
It follows a similar scheme for secondary schools and comes amid fears children as young as nine may be being regularly exposed to misogynistic content online.
Working with the educational charity Tender, the mayor’s office has produced online courses to help teachers run classes, workshops, drama and interactive sessions for children aged nine to 11.
‘Equality and respect’
The programme is designed to be delivered by teachers, with the option of support from Tender’s specially trained workshop leaders, City Hall said.
It comes amid an increased focus on tackling VAWG in recent years, particularly since the 2021 murder of Sarah Everard in south London.
In July the National Police Chief’s Council declared the issue a violence against women and girls a “national emergency”, after it was revealed that over one million such crimes were recorded in England and Wales in 2022-23, constituting 20% of all crimes documented by the police.
The Labour government recently announced plans to halve violence against women and girls over the next decade, focusing on reforms that emphasise education and the accountability of perpetrators.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62ryze4g2qo
Awards
Nobel Prize in economics awarded to trio for explaining why some nations are rich and others poor
LondonCNN —
Three economists were awarded the Nobel Prize Monday for their research into how the nature of institutions helps explain why some countries become rich and others remain poor.
Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James Robinson will share the prize, which carries a cash award of 11 million Swedish kronor ($1 million).
The Nobel Committee praised the trio for explaining why “societies with a poor rule of law and institutions that exploit the population do not generate growth or change for the better.”
“When Europeans colonized large parts of the globe, the institutions in those societies changed,” the committee said, citing the economists’ work. While in many places this was aimed at exploiting the indigenous population, in other places it laid the foundations for inclusive political and economic systems.
“The laureates have shown that one explanation for differences in countries’ prosperity is the societal institutions that were introduced during colonization,” the committee added.
Countries that developed “inclusive institutions” – which uphold the rule of law and property rights – have over time become prosperous, while those that developed “extractive institutions” – which, in the laureates’ words, “squeeze” resources from the wider population to benefit the elites – have experienced persistently low economic growth.
Efforts by Russia, Iran and China to sway US voters may escalate, new Microsoft report says
— Foreign adversaries have shown continued determination to influence the U.S. election –- and there are signs their activity will intensify as Election Day nears, Microsoft said in a report Wednesday.
Russian operatives are doubling down on fake videos to smear Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign, while Chinese-linked social media campaigns are maligning down-ballot Republicans who are critical of China, the company’s threat intelligence arm said Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Iranian actors who allegedly sent emails aimed at intimidating U.S. voters in 2020 have been surveying election-related websites and major media outlets, raising concerns they could be preparing for another scheme this year, the tech giant said.
The report serves as a warning – building on others from U.S. intelligence officials – that as the nation enters this critical final stretch and begins counting ballots, the worst influence efforts may be yet to come. U.S. officials say they remain confident that election infrastructure is secure enough to withstand any attacks from American adversaries. Still, in a tight election, foreign efforts to influence voters are raising concern.
US startup charging couples to ‘screen embryos for IQ’
Heliospect’s services were marketed at up to $50,000 for 100 embryos, undercover footage shows
What is genomic prediction and can embryos really be ‘screened for IQ’?
A US startup company is offering to help wealthy couples screen their embryos for IQ using controversial technology that raises questions about the ethics of genetic enhancement.
The company, Heliospect Genomics, has worked with more than a dozen couples undergoing IVF, according to undercover video footage. The recordings show the company marketing its services at up to $50,000 (£38,000) for clients seeking to test 100 embryos, and claiming to have helped some parents select future children based on genetic predictions of intelligence. Managers boasted their methods could produce a gain of more than six IQ points.
Experts say the development represents an ethical minefield.
The information has emerged from video recordings made by the campaign group Hope Not Hate, which went undercover to investigate separate groups of activists and academics. The Guardian reviewed the recordings and conducted further research alongside Hope Not Hate.
The footage appears to show experimental genetic selection techniques being advertised to prospective parents. A Heliospect employee, who has been helping the company recruit clients, outlined how couples could rank up to 100 embryos based on “IQ and the other naughty traits that everybody wants”, including sex, height, risk of obesity and risk of mental illness.
The startup says its prediction tools were built using data provided by UK Biobank, a taxpayer-funded store of genetic material donated by half a million British volunteers, which aims to only share data for projects that are “in the public interest”.
BRICS Summit: Kazan declaration a blueprint for strengthening multilateralism and economic cooperation, says expert
The summit held in Kazan, Russia, saw productive discussions on strengthening multilateralism, countering terrorism, promoting economic growth, and addressing the concerns of the Global South.
Leaders of more than 20 nations, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, participated in the summit.
The 43-page final communiqué addressed a range of topics, including geopolitics, artificial intelligence, and the preservation of endangered species.
Key Outcomes of the Kazan Declaration
Geopolitical Concerns
Ukraine conflict
Middle East Crisis
Global Governance and Multilateralism
G20 Role
Financial Architecture Reform
Financial Innovation: The leaders encouraged new financial practices. “We welcome the BRICS Interbank Cooperation Mechanism (ICM) focus on facilitating and expanding innovative financial practices.”
International Monetary Fund: The declaration supported maintaining a strong IMF. “We reaffirm our commitment to maintaining a strong and effective Global Financial Safety Net with a quota-based and adequately resourced IMF at its centre.”
Economic Cooperation and Local Currencies
Cross-Border Payments: A key highlight of the summit was the agreement to strengthen trade and financial settlements in local currencies. The declaration welcomed the use of local currencies in BRICS financial transactions and supported the exploration of an independent cross-border settlement infrastructure.
“We recognise the widespread benefits of faster, low-cost, more efficient, transparent, safe, and inclusive cross-border payment instruments built upon the principle of minimising trade barriers and non-discriminatory access,” the document stated.
BRICS Clear depository: Looking ahead, the BRICS nations agreed to explore initiatives that could further integrate their economies, such as establishing a BRICS Grain Exchange and studying the feasibility of a BRICS Cross-Border Payment System and BRICS (Re)Insurance Company.
BRICS Grain Exchange: The establishment of a BRICS-based grain exchange was welcomed. “We welcome the initiative of the Russian side to establish a grain (commodities) trading platform within BRICS.”
BRICS Plus Partnership: With growing interest from nations in the Global South, the leaders endorsed the creation of a BRICS Partner Country category, welcoming new member countries, including Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
Pandemic Preparedness and Environmental Conservation
Health Initiatives: The summit emphasised the importance of strengthening health systems through collaboration. “We support the initiatives of the BRICS R&D Vaccine Center, further development of the BRICS Integrated Early Warning System for preventing mass infectious diseases risks and the operations of the BRICS TB Research Network.”
The leaders also recognised the threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR): “We welcome the outcomes of the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) High-Level Meeting on AMR… and note the timeliness of holding the first BRICS Conference on AMR in May 2024.”
Scientists are working on a way to detect cancer with sound waves
Scientists have developed a new technique to detect cancers. The method uses ultrasound to turn a small part of our body’s tissue into droplets that are released into the blood. These bubbles contain molecules like RNA, DNA, and proteins that allow the scientists to identify particular types of cancer.
Roger Zemp, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Alberta, Canada, led a recent study describing such a technique. He presented his team’s findings at the joint meeting of the Acoustical Society of America and the Canadian Acoustical Association at Shaw Centre in Canada on May 13.
A team of researchers from the University of Alberta, Canada, has demonstrated that applying intense ultrasound—at levels much higher than used for imagining—can cause the release of biomarkers from cells, allowing for earlier detection of cancer via liquid biopsy. Their work was presented today at the Acoustical Society of America and the Canadian Acoustical Association, being held this week in Ottawa.
“Ultrasound, at exposure levels higher than is used for imaging, can create tiny pores in cell membranes, which safely reseal,” said Roger Zemp, PhD, associated professor of in the Electrical and Computer Engineering at University of Alberta. “This process is known as sonoporation. The pores formed due to sonoporation were previously used to get drugs into cells and tissues. In our case, we care about releasing the contents of cells for diagnostics.”
Over 3 million without power as Hurricane Milton makes landfall in Florida
Hurricane Milton plowed into Florida as a Category 3 storm, bringing misery to a coast still ravaged by Helene, pounding cities with winds of over 100 mph (160 kph) after producing a barrage of tornadoes, but sparing Tampa a direct hit.
The storm tracked to the south in the final hours and made landfall Wednesday night in Siesta Key near Sarasota, about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of Tampa. The situation in the Tampa area was still a major emergency as St. Petersburg recorded over 16 inches (41 centimeters) of rain, prompting the National Weather Service to warn of flash flooding there as well as other parts of western and central Florida.
St. Petersburg residents also could no longer get water from their household taps because a water main break led the city to shut down service.
The storm knocked out power across a large section of Florida, with more than 3 million homes and businesses without power as of early Thursday, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks utility reports.
Some of the hardest-hit areas included Sarasota, Fort Myers, St Petersburg, St Lucie and other cities on the Gulf coast. Storm surge warnings were in effect along Florida’s east coast to Georgia’s Altamaha Sound.
Immediate impact
Hurricane Milton caused destruction in towns in areas of the west coast, central and east coast of Florida.
Officials reported downed trees, storm surges, flooding, destroyed homes, damaged roads, downed power lines and damage to infrastructure, power and water systems and more.
Officials have warned that around 11 million people are at risk of flash and river flooding after some parts of the state received histroric amounts of rain. St Petersburg received about 18in, as well as localized flooding. St John’s county also saw “widespread flooding” that caused some roads to become impassable, officials said.
As search and rescue efforts continued on Thursday morning, early reports indicated about 125 homes were destroyed, primarily mobile homes in senior communities.
This Russian Family Lived Alone in the Siberian Wilderness for 40 Years, Unaware of World War II or the Moon Landing
In 1978, Soviet geologists stumbled upon a family of five in the taiga. They had been cut off from almost all human contact since fleeing religious persecution in 1936
Peter the Great’s attempts to modernize the Russia of the early 18th century found a focal point in a campaign to end the wearing of beards—which was anathema to Karp Lykov and the Old Believers. Universal History Archive / Getty Images
Slowly, over several visits, the full story of the family emerged. The old man’s name was Karp Osipovich Lykov, and he was an Old Believer—a member of a fundamentalist Russian Orthodox sect, worshiping in a style unchanged since the 17th century. Old Believers had been persecuted since the days of Peter the Great, and Lykov talked about it as though it had happened only yesterday. For him, Peter was a personal enemy and “the Antichrist in human form”—a point he insisted had been amply proved by the czar’s campaign to modernize Russia by forcibly “[chopping] off the beards of Christians.” These centuries-old hatreds were conflated with more recent grievances; Karp was prone to complain in the same breath about a merchant who had refused to make a gift of 26 poods of salt to the Old Believers sometime around 1900. As the geologists filled him in on what he’d missed, he used a similar lens to form opinions about current events:
The events that had excited the world were unknown here. The Lykovs did not know any famous names and had heard only vaguely about the past war. When in recalling the “first world war” with Karp Osipovich the geologists engaged him in conversation about the last one, he shook his head: “What is this, a second time, and always the Germans. A curse on Peter. He flirted with them. That is so.”
Things had only gotten worse for the Lykov family when the atheist Bolsheviks took power. Under the Soviets, isolated Old Believer communities that had fled to Siberia to escape persecution began to retreat ever further from civilization. During the purges of the 1930s, with Christianity itself under assault, a Communist patrol had shot Lykov’s brother on the outskirts of their village while Lykov knelt working beside him. He had responded by scooping up his family and bolting into the forest.
That was in 1936, and there were only four Lykovs then—Karp; his wife, Akulina; a son named Savin, who was around 9 years old; and Natalia, a daughter who was only 2. Taking their possessions and some seeds, they had retreated ever deeper into the taiga, building themselves a succession of crude dwelling places, until at last they had fetched up in this desolate spot. Two more children had been born in the wild—Dmitry in 1940 and Agafia in 1944—and their knowledge of the outside world came entirely from their parents’ stories. The family’s principal entertainment, Peskov noted, “was for everyone to recount their dreams.”
The Lykov children knew there were places called cities where humans lived crammed together in tall buildings. They had heard there were countries other than Russia. But such concepts were no more than abstractions to them. Their only reading matter was prayer books and an ancient family Bible. Akulina had taught her children to read and write using sharpened birch sticks dipped into honeysuckle juice as pen and ink. When Agafia was later shown a video of a horse on the geologists’ television set, she recognized it from her mother’s stories. “A steed!” she exclaimed. “Papa, a steed!”
But if the family’s isolation was hard to grasp, the unmitigated harshness of their lives was not. Traveling to the Lykov homestead on foot was astonishingly arduous, as Peskov would later learn firsthand. On his first visit to the Lykovs in the 1980s, the writer—who would appoint himself the family’s chief chronicler—noted that “we traversed 250 kilometers [155 miles] without seeing a single human dwelling!”
Isolation made survival in the wilderness close to impossible. Dependent solely on their own resources, the Lykovs struggled to replace the few things they had brought into the taiga with them. They fashioned birch-bark galoshes in place of shoes. Clothes were patched and repatched until they fell apart, then replaced with hemp cloth grown from seed.
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Nearby exoplanet is a 1st-of-its-kind ‘steam world,’ James Webb Space Telescope finds
A nearby alien planet is the first of its kind, new observations by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) suggest.
Located around 100 light-years away from Earth, the exoplanet is shrouded in a thick envelope of steam. This world, designated GJ 9827 d, is around twice the size of Earth, three times more massive than our planet, and has an atmosphere almost entirely composed of water vapor.
Nihon Hidankyo: Japan anti-nuke group wins Nobel Peace Prize
The Japanese organization Nihon Hidankyo is the winner of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize for efforts to achieve a world free from nuclear weapon.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee on Friday named Japanese anti-nuclear organization Nihon Hidankyo, a grassroots movement of atomic bomb survivors from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as the winner of the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize.
The aging survivors of the two nuclear detonations, known as “hibakusha,” continue to campaign for a nuclear arms ban as they push to keep alive their efforts among younger generations.
What the Nobel Committee said
Joergen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said the award was made as the “taboo against the use of nuclear weapons is under pressure.”
Watne Frydnes said the award was made to the group “for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and for demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again.”
“This year’s prize is a prize that focuses on the necessity of upholding this nuclear taboo. And we have all a responsibility, particularly the nuclear powers,” Watne Frydnes told reporters.
He said testimonies of the survivors of the cities bombed at the end of World War II had made a “unique” contribution to generating “widespread opposition to nuclear weapons around the world.”
Watne Frydnes said the committee “wishes to honor all survivors who, despite physical suffering and painful memories, have chosen to use their costly experience to cultivate hope and engagement for peace.”
The Nobel prizes carry a cash award of 11 million Swedish kronor ($1 million).
This year, the prize was announced against a backdrop of devastating conflicts, notably in the Middle East, Ukraine, and Sudan. In total, 286 candidates were nominated, including 197 individuals and 89 organizations.
Institutions Across the World Share Common Challenges
ANCHESTER, U.K.—Spread across three days, the World Academic Summit drew global leaders from far and wide to discuss the complexities of higher education in a changing world.
The event, put on by Times Higher Education (Inside Higher Ed’s parent company), featured more than 40 sessions on a wide range of issues including business challenges, global partnerships and research innovation. Based on observations from various panel sessions and conversations with academic leaders, CEOs and students, it’s clear that despite geographic differences, institutions around the world are grappling with similar challenges.
Shaky Business Models
While many U.S. institutions are reeling from financial challenges due to declining enrollment, a Tuesday panel comprised of leaders from Canada, England and Japan noted that pressures on university business models are widespread and often driven by factors outside their control.
Global South’s Growing Influence
In a main-stage interview on Monday, Ivison said the next wave of entrepreneurs and scientists will likely hail from Africa and Southeast Asia, noting that they are navigating global challenges “with a fraction of the resources” that Western nations have to respond to crises.
Because of such innovation and resilience, Ivison said, he is eyeing partnerships in Africa and the Middle East.
Campus Tensions Have No Borders
Campuses across the world have been roiled by pro-Palestinian protests, and Manchester’s was no different. The first sessions hadn’t even begun Monday when protesters blocked access to the event’s registration, holding a banner that read, “1 year of Gaza Genocide” and “Israel out of academia.”
Geoffrey Hawtin: Crop Diversity Pioneer Who Won the World Food Prize
In this instalment of our Seed Heroes series, we celebrate the work of Geoffrey Hawtin OBE, a co-recipient of the 2024 World Food Prize, who believes that agricultural biodiversity is a significant part of the solution to the most significant challenges we face today. He is also the man behind one of the most recognizable moustaches in the plant genetic resources world.
Few people have done more for the cause of plant genetic resources over the past 40 years than Geoffrey Hawtin.
The British-Canadian plant geneticist – who served as the Crop Trust’s first Executive Secretary in 2004 – is among the most prominent figures in the modern-day history of crop diversity conservation. His dedication to food security was ultimately recognized when he was named as one of two laureates of the 2024 World Food Prize. He shares the honor with his long-time colleague Cary Fowler, both known for their pivotal roles in the creation of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, the ultimate backup facility for crop diversity.
On 9 May 2024, the foundation that confers the award named Hawtin and Fowler as this year’s laureates in recognition of “theirextraordinary leadership in preserving and protecting the world’s heritage of crop biodiversity and mobilizing this critical resource to defend against threats to global food security.”
Before the Seed Vault opened in 2008 on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen in the remote Arctic Svalbard archipelago, Hawtin was a member of the committee that assessed the feasibility of the proposed facility. He also helped develop the technical, management and policy specifications for the Seed Vault, which were used by the Norwegian government in its construction and operation.
But let’s go back to the beginning. Hawtin’s long career started with the Arid Land Agricultural Development (ALAD) program, under which he led teams in Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Turkey to collect local varieties of lentils, chickpeas and other legumes. At the outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War in the 1970s, Hawtin was young postdoctoral scholar. He drove down a mined road to the Syrian border to find a safe place for a precious collection of legume seeds. Little did they know that they would have had to make the journey three more times before he and his team were finally allowed to enter Syria and get themselves and the seeds to safety.
World’s co-operators prepare for the ICA global conference in Delhi
On 25 November, co-operators from around the world will descend on New Delhi for the 2024 ICA Global Cooperative Conference – which is being held on Indian soil for the first time. The event includes the ICA’s General Assembly as well as the official launch of the 2025 UN International Year of Cooperatives (IYC).
“Asia is a region that is demographically rich, culturally diverse, economically dynamic, and deeply rooted in history,” says ICA director general, Jeroen Douglas, who recently toured the region ahead of the event, meeting with government officials and leaders from the ICA Asia Pacific Office, the National Cooperative Union of India (NCUI) and Indian Farmer Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd (IFFCO).
IFFCO, along with the ICA’s other 17 members from India, are hosting the conference, which will take place at the Bharat Mandapam in the Indian capital on 25-30 November under the theme ‘Cooperatives build prosperity for all’.
“The conference theme is inspired by the motto of the Indian co-operative movement: peace, progress and prosperity,” adds Douglas. “At this conference, we want to foster global co-operation, highlighting co-operative regions of prosperity, inspirational regions, and promote co-ops as people-centred, purpose-led, and planet-conscious organisations. We will be framing keynotes, plenaries and workshops around four equally important priorities. Those priorities will be the guiding strategic action plan to accelerate and to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals.”
These priorities, says Douglas, include looking at how co-ops build enabling policy and entrepreneurial ecosystems; reaffirming the co-operative identity; nurturing purposeful leadership; and shaping a just, equal and resilient future.
Middle East latest: UN peacekeeper shot in Lebanon; Hezbollah using ambulances to transport weapons, Israel claims
A United Nations peacekeeper has been hit by gunfire in southern Lebanon, the organisation says. Meanwhile, Israel claims Hezbollah has been using ambulances to transport weapons and militant.
What is the U.N. peacekeeping force stationed in Lebanon?
As Israel pushes into southern Lebanon with the aim of eliminating Hezbollah fighters and destroying the group’s bases, its forces are increasingly coming into contact with members of a United Nations force that has been in place there for decades with a mandate to maintain peace and security along the volatile border.
On Thursday, two peacekeepers from the currently 10,000-strong United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, or UNIFIL, were injured when an Israeli tank shell hit an observation tower near the “Blue Line” dividing Lebanon from Israel and the Golan Heights. The incident followed an Israeli warning for UNIFIL to relocate from areas Israel said were near Hezbollah positions used to launch rockets into northern Israel. UNIFIL refused to evacuate.
Overview: What’s going on in Middle East in five bullet points
Israel says its attacks in neighbouring Lebanon are targeting Iran-backed Hezbollah militants, who regularly fire rockets across its northern border. However, some strikes have hit areas outside the group’s stronghold in Beirut’s southern suburbs, instead hitting regions where many people have fled to;
The world is waiting for Israel’s response to Iranian airstrikes on Israeli towns and cities last week, with Iran warning that it will not hesitate to take “stronger defensive actions” if the country retaliates;
Israeli troops have fired on peacekeepers in Lebanon, injuring four, with the international community condemning the attack and accusing Israel of violating international law;
Israel’s war against Hamas militants in Gaza is still ongoing, with Israeli forces issuing evacuation orders in the north of the enclave as they continue operating with “great force”;
More than 1,400 people have been killed in Lebanon by Israeli attacks, according to Lebanese authorities. In Gaza, the Hamas-run health ministry has said 42,126 people have been killed and 98,117 injured during the year-long conflict.
North Koreans deployed alongside Russian troops in Ukraine, sources say
North Korean military engineers have been deployed to help Russia target Ukraine with ballistic missiles, and fighters operating in occupied areas of the country have already been killed, senior officials in Kyiv and Seoul said.
There are dozens of North Koreans behind Russian lines, in teams that “support launcher systems for KN-23 missiles”, a source in Ukraine told the Guardian.
Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, last year travelled to Russia for a summit with Vladimir Putin where the two men bolstered their deepening ties with a secret arms deal.
Pyongyang’s ammunition shipments were vital in allowing Russian forces to advance in a grinding war of attrition in eastern Ukraine this summer. But it appears increasingly clear that the agreement went beyond supplying materiel.
A developed economy should consist of four parts – people’s economy, psycho-economy, commercial economy and general economy. This quadri-dimension of the economy is a vast expansion on the contemporary and co-contemporary conceptions of economic activity. Most economists today understand only a little of the principles of general economy and something of commercial economy, but both of these parts are still in an undeveloped stage. People’s economy and psycho-economy are totally overlooked by modern economists, and as such could find no place in the present mode of economic thinking.
Shri P R Sarkar
Quadri-Dimensional Economy
5 June 1986, Kolkata
The End
October 5, 2024
Biotechnology
How Stem Cells Reverse Diabetes For The First Time in History
A 25-year-old woman −with type 1 diabetes− began generating her own insulin three months after receiving a reprogrammed stem cell transplant.
For the first time in history, a multidisciplinary team of scientists managed to reversetype 1 diabetes in a 25-year-old patient, who received a reprogrammed stem cell transplant and less than three months later she started producing her own insulin.
She is the first human with type 1 diabetes to be treated using cells that were extracted from her own body. The results of his case were published on the specialized site Cell and the success of the procedure is already considered a milestone for modern medicine.
The paper, signed by 35 scientists from various Chinese institutions, explains that the analysis was carried out over a period of one year and corresponds to “a first phase I clinical trial in humans that evaluates the viability of autologous transplantation of islets derived from chemically induced pluripotent stem cells (CiPSC islets) under the anterior rectum abdominal sheath for the treatment of type diabetes 1.”
What Does It Mean that Stem Cells Can Reverse Diabetes?
This stem cell transplant that has successfully reversed type 1 diabetes in a Chinese patient represents a major step forward in the treatment of this disease, which along with type 2 diabetes, is considered a chronic condition affecting more than 500 million people worldwide.
For the specific case of the Chinese patient, the paper details: “she achieved sustained insulin independence starting 75 days post-transplantation. The patient’s time-in-target glycemic range increased from a baseline value of 43.18% to 96.21% by month 4 post-transplantation, accompanied by a decrease in glycated hemoglobin, an indicator of long-term systemic glucose levels at a non-diabetic level.”
The study adds that “thereafter, the patient presented a state of stable glycemic control, with time-in-target glycemic range at >98% and glycated hemoglobin at around 5%. At 1 year, the clinical data met all study endpoints with no indication of transplant-related abnormalities.”
Although the woman has chosen to remain anonymous, it is known that she lives in Tianjin, China, is 25 years old and recently gave a telephone interview to Nature magazine in which she said: “I can eat sugar now… I enjoy eating everything, especially hotpot.”
Austria’s Freedom Party secures first far-right national election win since World War II
The Freedom Party secured the first far-right national parliamentary election victory in post-World War II Austria on Sunday, finishing ahead of the governing conservatives after tapping into anxieties about immigration, inflation, Ukraine and other issues. But its chances of governing were unclear.
Preliminary official results showed the Freedom Party finishing first with 29.2% of the vote and Chancellor Karl Nehammer’s Austrian People’s Party was second with 26.5%. The center-left Social Democrats were in third place with 21%. The outgoing government – a coalition of Nehammer’s party and the environmentalist Greens – lost its majority in the lower house of parliament.
Herbert Kickl, a former interior minister and longtime campaign strategist who has led the Freedom Party since 2021, wants to be chancellor.
But to become Austria’s new leader, he would need a coalition partner to command a parliamentary majority. Rivals have said they won’t work with Kickl in government.
The far right has benefited from frustration over high inflation, the war in Ukraine and the COVID-19 pandemic. It has also built on worries about migration.
In its election program, titled “Fortress Austria,” the Freedom Party calls for “remigration of uninvited foreigners,” for achieving a more “homogeneous” nation by tightly controlling borders and suspending the right to asylum via an emergency law.
The Freedom Party also calls for an end to sanctions against Russia, is highly critical of Western military aid to Ukraine and wants to bow out of the European Sky Shield Initiative, a missile defense project launched by Germany. Kickl has criticized “elites” in Brussels and called for some powers to be brought back from the European Union to Austria.
About 300 protesters gathered outside the parliament building in Vienna Sunday evening, holding placards with slogans including “Kickl is a Nazi.”
Supreme Court flooded with prayers for relief from groups eager to promote religion
Religious interest groups are queuing up a series of high-profile appeals at the Supreme Court this fall that could further tear down the wall separating church and state, seeking to take advantage of a friendly 6-3 conservative majority that has rapidly pushed the law in their favor in recent years.
Catholic groups are challenging a New York State requirement that health insurance plans cover medically necessary abortions, for instance. A group of Muslim and Eastern Orthodox parents in Maryland want to opt their elementary school children out of reading books about gender and sexuality. And a Tampa synagogue hopes to advertise its annual ice-skating themed Hannukah celebration on public buses.
After winning a string of major victories from the court in recent years, several of the groups involved are anxious for a further expansion of the First Amendment’s free exercise clause, which guarantees the right to practice religion free of government interference.
“The free exercise litigators think they’ve got the votes now and they’re being pretty aggressive about pushing cases up there,” said Douglas Laycock, a University of Virginia law professor and a leading authority on religious law. “What you’re seeing is a response to the conservatives’ enthusiasm for free exercise.”
Targeting a controversial precedent?
Religious interests have won seven major cases since 2021, not including several significant victories on the high court’s emergency docket during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Last year, the court backed a mail carrier and evangelical Christian who said the United States Postal Service violated federal law by failing to reasonably accommodate his inability to work on Sundays.
A year before that, the court’s conservatives aligned to throw out a Maine prohibition that barred schools offering religious instruction from receiving taxpayer funding. The conservative majority coalesced again that year to reinstate a high school football coach near Seattle who lost his job after offering prayers on the 50-yard line.
Luke Goodrich, senior counsel at Becket, said that religious liberty shouldn’t be a partisan issue. Nor, he said, is it necessarily a Christian issue.
“The goal is to shape the law in the way that religion and religious expression is accepted as a natural part of human culture,” he told CNN. “As a matter of principle, it extends to people of all faiths.”
Critics say the court’s march toward expanding religious rights – often in cases decided along ideological lines – is reshaping the way Americans have for decades understood the relationship between the government and religion.
“We are bracing ourselves for more rulings in lockstep with the White Christian nationalist agenda that is becoming more clear to more Americans every day,” said Rachel Laser, president of the Americans United for Separation of Church and State. “When the Roberts court rules on religion, it’s almost always coming down in support of not just religion, but of mainstream Christian interests.”
World Teachers’ Day 2024: Educators in Asia Pacific call for governments to invest in teacher professional development and strengthen public education
On the 30th anniversary of World Teachers’ Day, celebrated on October 5th, Education International Asia-Pacific (EIAP) member organizations are calling on governments to invest in teacher professional development and strengthen public education systems.
Ensuring the teachers’ voice is heard via their unions
Celebrating all teachers around the globe since 1994, World Teachers’ Day is co-convened by UNESCO, the International Labour Organization (ILO), UNICEF and EI and commemorates the anniversary of the adoption of the 1966 ILO/UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers. The recommendation sets benchmarks regarding the rights and responsibilities of teachers, and standards for their initial preparation and further education, recruitment, employment, and teaching and learning conditions. The Recommendation concerning the Status of Higher-Education Teaching Personnel was adopted in 1997 to complement the 1966 Recommendation by covering teaching personnel in higher education.
During the event, which brought together educators from India, Maldives, Thailand, Australia, and Sri Lanka, EIAP Regional Director Anand Singh highlighted the critical role of teachers and referred to this year’s theme, “Valuing teacher voices: towards a new social contract for education”. He said: “Unions are the collective voices of teachers, amplifying their concerns, their ideas, and their demands for fair treatment and professional respect. It is through unions that we can ensure teachers’ voices are not just heard but acted upon. We must continue to support and strengthen unions globally, as they are key to forging this new social contract.”
Reshaping educational systems through a collaborative approach
The celebration also underscored the urgent need for increased funding and support for teachers, advocating for a collaborative approach to reshape educational systems where teachers’ voices are heard and valued throughout the education system.
EU Commission Proposes Delay for Anti-Deforestation Law
Yesterday the European Commission proposed a substantial delay in the implementation of its landmark anti-deforestation law. This is bad news for the climate-critical forests around the world as well as the human rights of Indigenous peoples and other forest-dependent communities.
The European Union’s Deforestation-Free Products Regulation (EUDR) is a piece of legislation that required considerable study, negotiation, and compromise. It requires EU companies to ensure the wood, palm oil, soy, coffee, cocoa, rubber, and cattle they export or import has been produced in conditions that respect environmental laws and laws on land use rights, and that the products were farmed on land that was not deforested after 2020. It also requires the European Commission to designate areas as “low, standard, or high risk” for deforestation and forest degradation using a country benchmarking process.
The regulation entered into force in 2022 and requires companies to start complying on December 30, 2024. The commission proposed to push back the start of enforcement by 12 months for large companies and 18 months for micro and small enterprises. It also proposed delaying the country risk benchmarking process until June 2025, stating that the majority of countries would be ranked “low risk.”
The commission’s proposed delay would enable at least one more year of deforestation and human rights violations in Sarawak, as well as other areas where deforestation is driven by the supply chains of products widely consumed by Europeans. It would also disregard efforts by many companies and EU trading partners who deployed resources to comply with the EUDR on time.
There is still a chance to reverse course, as the European Parliament and Council could refuse to approve the commission’s flawed proposal. The European Parliament and Council should oppose this delay and remind commission President Ursula von der Leyen of the urgency of enforcing this landmark environmental law.
As big supermarkets pursue profits, new research shows growing exploitation of shrimp farmers
BANGKOK — Indonesian shrimp farmer Yulius Cahyonugroho operated more than two dozen ponds only a few years ago, employing seven people and making more than enough to support his family.
Since then, the 39-year-old says the prices he gets from purchasers have fallen by half and he’s had to scale back to four workers and about one-third the ponds, some months not even breaking even. His wife has had to take a job at a watermelon farm to help support their two children.
“It is more stable than the shrimp farms,” said the farmer from Indonesia’s Central Java province.
As big Western supermarkets make windfall profits, their aggressive pursuit of ever-lower wholesale prices is causing misery for people at the bottom end of the supply chain — people like Cahyonugroho who produce and process the seafood, according to an investigation by an alliance of NGOs focused on three of the world’s largest producers of shrimp provided to The Associated Press ahead of its publication on Monday.
The analysis of the industry in Vietnam, Indonesia and India, which provide about half the shrimp in the world’s top four markets, found a 20%-60% drop in earnings from pre-pandemic levels as producers struggle to meet pricing demands by cutting labor costs.
In many places this has meant unpaid and underpaid work through longer hours, wage insecurity as rates fluctuate, and many workers not even making low minimum wages. The report also found hazardous working conditions, particularly in India and parts of Indonesia, and even child labor in some places in India.
Supermarkets linked to facilities where exploited labor was reported by workers include Target, Walmart and Costco in the United States, Britain’s Sainsbury’s and Tesco, and Aldi and Co-op in Europe.
Switzerland’s Co-op said it had a “zero tolerance” policy for violations of labor law, and that its producers “receive fair and market-driven prices.”
Russia Plans 30 Percent Defense Spending Hike in 2025
to more than $145 billion in 2025, a year in which it had intended to cut military spending.
The Russian government intends to increase its defense expenditures by about a quarter next year, according to a draft state budget released on Monday, signaling the Kremlin’s continued determination to allocate vast resources to the war in Ukraine.
Russia’s military spending in rubles has already more than tripled since President Vladimir V. Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine in 2022 and will reach 13.5 trillion rubles next year, a figure unmatched since the heights of the Cold War.
The draft document, submitted for review to the State Duma, the country’s lower house of parliament, calls for more than $145 billion in military spending in 2025, from $116 billion this year. It is a bold sign that the Kremlin anticipates that the war is likely to continue well into next year. In 2023, it had planned to reduce military spending by about 21 percent in 2025, but as the war dragged on, it had to reverse course.
As a rule, Russian lawmakers pass proposed budgets with minor amendments.
The increase means that the Kremlin is allocating more than 32 percent of its state budget to defense, more than to pensions and other social expenditures, health care and education combined.
“We are reaching the point when cannons become more important than butter,” said Alexandra Prokopenko, a former Russian central bank official now at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center in Berlin. “The main priority is the ongoing war in Ukraine and the restoration of arsenals and the country’s military potential.”
The Russian government anticipates 2025 revenues to rise to more than $433 billion from $388 billion this year, a result of increased income, corporate and other taxes, and the overall growth of its economy, which, in turn, is being boosted by increased military expenditures.
Overall, Russia’s budget would increase more than 11 percent in 2025. But economists have been warning that injecting vast sums of money into Russia’s overheating economy risks pushing it into an inflationary spiral. In September, the country’s central bank increased the key interest rate to 19 percent, making loans, including mortgages, prohibitively expensive.
After the budget announcement, MMI, a leading Russian economy and investment channel on the messaging app Telegram, said that “we can unequivocally say that we are dealing with a new inflationary shock from the side of fiscal policy.”
But in a war of attrition in Ukraine, the Kremlin might have little choice but to spend more. After more than 31 months of war, Russia needs to recruit and train servicemen and replace weapons and equipment. Mr. Putin recently ordered an increase in the size of Russia’s active military force by 180,000, to 1.5 million, but some analysts doubt that the army might reach that size.
At the end of July, Mr. Putin also doubled the federal sign-up bonus for new recruits to nearly $4,300, signaling increased difficulty in attracting them. The same month, an additional sign-up bonus in the city of Moscow reached $20,400. This summer, Moscow has been plastered with posters saying that on average an army recruit would get nearly $56,000 after one year of service in Ukraine. The average salary is about $880 a month in Russia.
And as the country brings on more workers to churn out more weapons and equipment, the unemployment rate has dropped to 2.4 percent. Unemployment, in turn, forced an increase in wages, further boosting inflation.
Iran launches more than 180 ballistic missiles at Israel followed by Israel targets presumed new Hezbollah leader in massive Beirut strikes.
Iranian state TV said Iran had fired 200 missiles towards Israel. These included hypersonic weapons, it said, while the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the strikes were in retaliation for the killings of the leaders of its allies Hezbollah and Hamas.
Within hours of the massive barrage on Tuesday evening local time, Israel’s military resumed air strikes against what it said were Hezbollah targets in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, Beirut.
US President Joe Biden said the Iranian missile attack appeared to have been “defeated and ineffective”. The US Department of Defense confirmed its forces had helped shoot down missiles in support of its Middle East ally.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the majority of missiles were “intercepted by Israel and a defensive coalition led by the United States”.
UN secretary general Antonio Guterres condemned what he called the “broadening conflict in the Middle East”, adding: “This must stop. We absolutely need a ceasefire.”
There was support for Israel from allies including Britain, France, Japan and Australia – with UK Defence Secretary John Healey issuing a statement saying the armed forces “had played their part in attempts to prevent further escalation in the Middle East”.
The missile attack came hours after Israeli troops began an invasion of southern Lebanon to remove what the military said were “Hezbollah terror targets” in border villages that posed a threat to residents of northern Israel.
Israel has gone on the offensive against the Iran-backed Shia Islamist political and military organisation after almost a year of cross-border hostilities sparked by the war with Hamas in Gaza, saying it wants to ensure the safe return of residents of border areas displaced by Hezbollah rocket, drone and missile attacks.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9dyxxgxv1jo
Pre World war
US air strikes target several cities across Yemen
Attacks hit key port city of Hodeidah as well as the capital, Sanaa, Houthi-run media and US sources say.
The United States military has struck a number of cities in Yemen, including the capital, Sanaa, and the key port city of Hodeidah.
Forces from the US Central Command (CENTCOM), the military command responsible for US forces in the Middle East, “conducted strikes on 15 Houthi targets in Iranian-backed Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen today”, it said on X on Friday.
“These actions were taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for US, coalition, and merchant vessels,” CENTCOM said in its post on X, adding that the strikes took place at around 1400GMT.
‘Yemen will not be deterred’
Israel has also struck Yemen with Israeli strikes on Hodeidah last month killing at least five people after the group said it targeted Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport with a missile.
The latest strikes came a day after the Houthis said they carried out a drone attack on Tel Aviv. The Israeli military said it intercepted “a suspicious aerial target” off central Israel overnight without giving further details.
The attacks also come just days after the Houthis threatened “escalating military operations” targeting Israel after they apparently shot down a US military drone flying over Yemen. And just last week, the group claimed responsibility for an attack targeting American warships.
It is a fact that the temperature of the sun will gradually decrease. One day it will become a dead star. The conversion of the sun into a dead star will mean a similar fate for its planets. The earth then will not be a congenial place to live. But the destruction of a particular planet or solar system does not mean the end of the human race. There are numerous other stars and planets in the universe. With the further development of science and with the help of interplanetary transportation, human beings will move to other planets. The dream of today will become the reality of tomorrow.
Shrii Shrii Anandamurti The Future of Civilization
THE END
September 21, 2024
Education
Geneva: Rajasthan NGO calls for global focus on education for peace at UNHRC
Geneva [Switzerland], September 18 (ANI): During the 57th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, Hansraj Singh of Rajasthan, Samgrah Kalyan Sansthan, emphasised the critical role of education in fostering peace and tolerance.
Singh highlighted that every child deserves an education that not only provides knowledge but also nurtures empathy, respect, and understanding.
He stressed that in a world increasingly divided by conflict, prioritising education for peace is essential.
The NGO’s initiatives aim to promote these values among children in rural and underserved communities, focusing on dialogue, mutual respect, and non-violence.
Singh praised India’s efforts, including the Samagra Shiksha initiative and the work of Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi, in advancing education as a means to combat child exploitation and build a more peaceful world.
Singh urged the United Nations to integrate education for peace and tolerance into global educational systems, establishing a universal standard that upholds these values in every child’s education.
An Era of Chinese Adoption Ends, and Families Are Torn Over Its Legacy
China announced this month that it was halting nearly all foreign adoptions, marking the end of a program that forged several generations of American families. More than 82,000 Chinese children have been adopted in the United States since 1992, around the time the program began, according to the State Department.
Several of those adoptive families said they were glad that the program was coming to an end, recognizing that it was a glaring byproduct of a harsh policy restricting many Chinese families from having more than one child. Though most treasure their adoptive experience, many also see the program’s abuses and the underlying trauma that came from removing children from their birth parents and culture.
Many participating parents and adoptees described the phaseout as bittersweet. For tens of thousands of aspiring parents, particularly single people and gay couples, the program for years offered a relatively straightforward path to starting a family, free of the bureaucratic hurdles that often bogged down the adoption process elsewhere. It also provided an opportunity for Chinese children with special needs to receive the medical and financial support overseas that they needed to thrive.
China announced this month that it was halting nearly all foreign adoptions, marking the end of a program that forged several generations of American families. More than 82,000 Chinese children have been adopted in the United States since 1992, around the time the program began, according to the State Department.
Several of those adoptive families said they were glad that the program was coming to an end, recognizing that it was a glaring byproduct of a harsh policy restricting many Chinese families from having more than one child. Though most treasure their adoptive experience, many also see the program’s abuses and the underlying trauma that came from removing children from their birth parents and culture.
Many participating parents and adoptees described the phaseout as bittersweet. For tens of thousands of aspiring parents, particularly single people and gay couples, the program for years offered a relatively straightforward path to starting a family, free of the bureaucratic hurdles that often bogged down the adoption process elsewhere. It also provided an opportunity for Chinese children with special needs to receive the medical and financial support overseas that they needed to thrive.
The need for international adoption in China had also seemed obvious. Between the late 1970s and 2016, China limited many families to one child because of overpopulation concerns. Many of the orphans were baby girls who, adoptive parents were told, had been abandoned because of the harshly enforced one-child policy as well as the traditional Chinese preference for boys.
The program’s reputation was tarnished when reports emerged that some babies had been abducted by traffickers or seized by family planning officials during the enforcement of birth restrictions. The babies were then sold to orphanages, who marketed the children as orphans to unwitting foreign families who were willing to pay relatively large sums of money.
Environment
Critical crops’ alternative way to succeed in heat and drought
Source:University of Birmingham
Summary:Scientists discovered that certain plants can survive stressful, dry conditions by controlling water loss through their leaves without relying on their usual mechanism — tiny pores known as ‘stomata’.
Research reveals that some plants have an advantage in coping with dry and stressful conditions.
Scientists have discovered that certain plants can survive stressful, dry conditions by controlling water loss through their leaves without relying on their usual mechanism – tiny pores known as ‘stomata’.
Nonstomatal control of transpiration in maize, sorghum, and proso millet – all C4 crops which are critical for global food security – gives these plants an advantage in maintaining a beneficial microclimate for photosynthesis within their leaves.
This allows the plants to absorb carbon dioxide as part of the photosynthesis and growth process, despite raised temperatures and increased atmospheric demand for water without increasing the water expenditure.
Facebook owner Meta says it is banning several Russian state media networks, alleging they use deceptive tactics to conduct influence operations and avoid detection on its platforms.
“After careful consideration, we expanded our ongoing enforcement against Russian state media outlets. Rossiya Segodnya, RT and other related entities are now banned from our apps globally for foreign interference activity,” Meta said.
In a news bulletin, RT newsreader Eunan O’Neill said the broadcaster “and Russia as a whole denies the accusations that have been coming en masse against this channel and others in the past number of days”.
The bans are expected to come into effect in the next few days.
Russian state media outlets have come under increased scrutiny over claims they have tried to influence politics in Western countries.
Ukraine bans Telegram app on state-issued devices due to Russian threat
Ukraine has banned government officials, military personnel and other defence and critical infrastructure workers from installing the popular Telegram messaging app on state-issued devices, describing the move as necessary for national security during the war with Russia.
Ukraine’s National Cybersecurity Coordination Centre said it issued the ban for the official devices of government employees, military personnel, security and defence workers, and critical infrastructure employees. The ban was announced Friday by Ukraine’s Security and Defence Council in a statement on Facebook.
During a meeting on Thursday, the Security Service of Ukraine and the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said Telegram is actively used by Russia for cyberattacks, phishing, spreading malware, establishing user locations and calibrating missile strikes.
Technology
New nano-material lights up old fingerprints in CSI breakthrough
Fingerprints have long been a key clue for detectives and crime-stoppers.
And now there’s a new tool that could soon lift prints from old cases.
“What we’re hoping is that we’ll be able to get fingerprints that current powders can’t get.”
Nick Ross is a PhD student at the University of Leicester’s School of Chemistry, which is studying this flourescent nanomaterial in collaboration with other researchers from the UK and Brazil.
The fingerprints we leave behind are made of mostly water, in the form of sweat and natural oils. And they can evaporate in certain conditions, leaving little evidence behind.
Ross says dusting for prints using nanoparticles, which are much finer than most powders, means more detail can be captured.
And – less of the fingerprint residue is needed for the particles to stick to.
“We should be able to get fingerprints that maybe someone’s washed their hands more recently and they’ve touched something, but they’ve left less residue behind. But we’re going to be able to get that using a more sensitive powder.”
It also means a print’s owner could potentially be identified even years later.
The new material consists of a silica nanoparticle, a fluorescent dye and chitosan, which can obtained from powdered shrimp, crab or lobster shells.
NASA’s ‘Hidden Figures’ women awarded Congressional Gold Medals
On Wednesday (Sept. 18), the women as a group and four individuals who have come to represent their collective experiences were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the highest civilian honors in the United States. As authorized by Congress, the medals were bestowed to Christine Darden and posthumously to Katherine Johnson, Mary Jackson and Dorothy Vaughan.
A separate Hidden Figures Congressional Gold Medal was also dedicated to all of the women who worked as mathematicians and engineers at NACA (National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics) and NASA between the 1930s and 1970s.
“These women didn’t just crunch numbers and solve equations,” said Rep. Mike Johnson, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. “They actually laid the very foundation upon which our rockets launched and our astronauts flew and our nation soared.”
“So today, for all their contributions to the space program and to society, it is my great honor to award these women with a Congressional Gold Medal,” Johnson said.
Hosted by the Speaker, the ceremony brought together other representatives and senators, NASA officials and the families of Johnson, Jackson, Vaughan and Darden in Emancipation Hall at the Capitol in Washington. (Darden watched live from her home in Connecticut.)
“The remarkable things that NASA achieves and that America achieves build on the pioneers who came before us, people like the women of Mercury and Gemini and Apollo,” said Bill Nelson, NASA Administrator. “The women we honor today made it possible for earthlings to lift beyond the bounds of Earth.”
The honorees’ contributions to the space program were first brought forward in the 2016 book “Hidden Figures” by Margot Lee Shetterly, which in turn inspired the feature film by the same title starring Taraji P. Henson, Janelle Monáe and Octavia Spencer as Johnson, Jackson and Vaughan.
In support of the work of the Space Task Group, Johnson calculated trajectories for NASA’s early human spaceflights, including the suborbital launch of the first American in space, Alan Shepard, and the first flight of a U.S. astronaut into Earth orbit, John Glenn. Johnson, who died in 2020 at the age of 101, was the first woman in NASA’s flight research division to be credited as an author of a research report.
The Outrageous Scheme to Capture and Sell Greenland’s Meltwater
A startup says shipping meltwater from Greenland’s glaciers internationally will boost the local economy and could help ease water pressures in arid regions—but what does that actually mean for the world?
FRESH WATER IS becoming increasingly scarce in many countries, but not in Greenland. Its ice sheet contains around 6.5 percent of the world’s fresh water, and over 350 trillion liters are estimated to run into the ocean annually. And with climate change accelerating Arctic melting, more and more of Greenland’s water is set to flow off the island every year.
In some places facing water shortages, those very same water molecules are potentially being taken from the sea and turned back into fresh water using desalination, at large electrical and financial cost. This has inspired a startup to pursue an unusual and ambitious business venture that has been partially approved by the Greenland government—harvesting glacier meltwater and shipping it abroad.
“We have one of the world’s finest resources in this area and plenty of it, and we want to push that message out to investors and potential markets,” says Naaja H. Nathanielsen, Greenland’s minister for business and trade.
The startup behind the idea, Arctic Water Bank, plans to build a dam in South Greenland, capture meltwater, and then transport it around the world by boat in bulk water carriers. If all goes according to plan, the company says the project will be completely carbon-neutral and inflict minimal damage to the local environment.
“This is some of the cleanest water in the world. Anyone who has tried Greenlandic water knows that it’s pure, white gold,” says Samir Ben Tabib, cofounder and head of international relations at the startup.
Arctic Water Bank is first and foremost, Ben Tabib stresses, a business, but he believes it could also provide a service to Greenlanders and the wider world. He argues that his company will help the people of Greenland by leveraging the country’s natural resources and paying taxes on income generated from them, and it’s an ambition the government shares. “The goal is twofold,” says Nathanielsen. “It is about new sources of income for the national treasury, and local business development and the associated creation of jobs.”
In the long run, Ben Tabib says, Arctic Water Bank might even help mitigate the impending global water crisis. “It’s probably not something our little business can solve alone, but in Greenland, fresh water is a resource that is just washing into the sea.”
Pagers that exploded in Lebanon, Syria made by Budapest company, says Taiwan’s Gold Apollo
Hundreds of people were injured across Lebanon on Tuesday, September 17, when their pagers exploded, Health Minister Firass Abiad said. A source close to Hezbollah told news agency AFP that its members were targeted and that dozens of Hezbollah members were injured in the incident.
Reuters reported, citing sources, that Israel’s Mossad spy agency planted a small amount of explosives inside 5,000 Taiwan-made pagers ordered by Lebanese group Hezbollah months before Tuesday’s detonations. “The plot appears to have been many months in the making,” several sources told Reuters.
According to the Associated Press, on Wednesday, Taiwanese company Gold Apollo said the pagers that exploded in Lebanon and Syria were made by a company in Budapest.
1. Lebanese Health Minister Firass Abiad said at least nine people were killed and some 2,800 were injured in pager explosions across the country on Tuesday, September 17. Among those wounded was Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon.
2. The sons of Hezbollah lawmakers Ali Ammar and Hassan Fadlallah were among the dead, a source close to the group told AFP. “Hundreds of Hezbollah members were injured by the simultaneous explosion of their pagers” in the group’s strongholds in Beirut’s southern suburbs, in south Lebanon and in the eastern Bekaa Valley, a Hezbollah source said.
3. In neighbouring Syria, 14 people were wounded “after pagers used by Hezbollah exploded”, said a Britain-based war monitor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
“We hold the Israeli enemy fully responsible for this criminal aggression,” Hezbollah said in a statement, adding that Israel “will certainly receive its just punishment for this sinful aggression”.
Israel planted explosives in Hezbollah’s Taiwan-made pagers, say sources
Israel’s Mossad spy agency planted a small amount of explosives inside 5,000 Taiwan-made pagers ordered by Lebanese group Hezbollah months before Tuesday’s detonations, a senior Lebanese security source and another source told Reuters.
The operation was an unprecedented Hezbollah security breach that saw thousands of pagers detonate across Lebanon, killing nine people and wounding nearly 3,000 others, including the group’s fighters and Iran’s envoy to Beirut.
“Very often we say that a particular individual or a particular community of people is badly exploited. Then, what we mean by “exploited” is this, that they are exploited in the economic stratum. But if we penetrate deeply into the matter, we shall discover that the exploitation has not been only in the economic stratum, but also in the other strata of human existence, in different forms, on various pretexts.”
Shri P R Sarkar
THE END
September 14, 2024
Education
International Literacy Association Releases 2024 Edition of Children’s Rights to Read Advocacy Manual
In recognition of International Literacy Day, September 8, the International Literacy Association (ILA) announced the next phase of its Children’s Rights to Read campaign, an initiative that continues ILA’s mission of promoting equitable access to literacies among individuals of all ages and diverse communities as a basic human right and a matter of social justice.
Children’s Rights to Read—which advocates for every child, everywhere, to have access to the education, opportunities and resources they need to read and be successful—was first launched in 2018. The list of 10 rights, including the right to diverse texts that offer opportunities for students to see authentic versions of themselves and others and the right to extended time set aside for reading, has been translated into 16 languages and has inspired similar campaigns around the world (such as the European Declaration of Digital Literacy as a Basic Right of Children).
This new phase—anchored by a 2024 edition of ILA’s Advocating for Children’s Rights to Read manual—aims to reignite global engagement with an emphasis on small-scale advocacy efforts. The manual provides actionable strategies for a range of audiences—everyone from classroom teachers and reading specialists to librarians and policymakers.
In addition to the manual, ILA has reintroduced a pledge to support Children’s Rights to Read, inviting educators, policymakers, literacy advocates, and community members to reaffirm their commitment to the 10 fundamental rights. To expand the campaign’s reach, signers are also invited to take the pledge and manual directly into their schools, communities and professional networks. Activating these signers as volunteers will play a crucial role in advocating for and protecting Children’s Rights to Read at the grassroots level.
“We are thrilled to bring new energy to our Children’s Rights to Read campaign,” said Nicola Wedderburn, executive director of ILA. “Literacy is the cornerstone not only of education but also of equity and social justice, and our renewed efforts will empower educators and advocates to work toward a world where every child can exercise their right to read.”
TikTok faces crucial court hearing that could decide fate in US
WASHINGTON, Sept 13 (Reuters) – TikTok and parent company ByteDance face a key court hearing on Monday in a legal battle seeking to block a law that could ban the app used by 170 million Americans as soon as Jan. 19.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia will hold oral arguments on the legal challenge, putting the fate of Chinese-owned TikTok in the middle of the final weeks of the 2024 presidential election.
Both Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are active on TikTok seeking to court younger voters.
TikTok and ByteDance argue the law is unconstitutional and violates Americans’ free speech rights saying it is “a radical departure from this country’s tradition of championing an open Internet.”
Driven by worries among U.S. lawmakers that China could access data on Americans or spy on them with the app, the measure was passed overwhelmingly in the U.S. Congress in April just weeks after being introduced.
The White House and other advocates of the law said the measure is a challenge to Chinese-based ownership of the app, and not a move to eliminate TikTok.
The White House says it wants to see Chinese-based ownership ended on national security grounds, but not a ban on TikTok.
A 13-year-old schoolboy has built a Lego robot that can solve a Rubik’s cube.
Ruarcc, from St Malachy’s College in north Belfast (Belfast North is a parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons.), first took steps to create puzzle-solving robot prototypes in his second year at school, aged 12.
This was made possible after the school launched its creative digital technology hub (CDTH) last year.
His creation uses 5,000 lines of Python code and can solve the puzzle from any pre-set variation using colour sensors.
Following the launch of the creative digital technology hub, the college started a new Key Stage Three curriculum.
This included programming Lego robots, such as Ruarcc’s, using block-based coding.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20rqyk27rvo
Health
No screens before age of two, Swedish health authority tells parents
Guidelines also stipulate teenagers should have no more than three hours of screen time a day
Children under the age of two should not be exposed to any screens whatsoever and teenagers should have no more than three hours of screen time a day, according to guidelines announced by health authorities in Sweden.
Parents and guardians should think about how they use screens with their children and tell them what they are doing on their phones when they use them in their presence, the advice says.
The guidelines, announced on Monday, mark the first time that Folkhälsomyndigheten, Sweden’s public health authority, has stipulated how parents should regulate screen time.
Screen use among two- to five-year-olds should be limited to a maximum of one hour, while children aged between six and 12 should not use screens for more than two hours. Among 13- to 18-year-olds, the limit is three hours.
This is a sharp reduction on the current average screen time figures among Swedish children and young people, which is estimated to be four hours a day for nine- to 12-year-olds and more than seven hours a day – not including schoolwork – for 17- and 18-year-olds.
“For far too long we have allowed screens and apps to steal time and attention at the cost of what we know is needed to feel well. We know that use of digital media can have negative health effects, including worsened sleep and symptoms of depression,” said the minister of social affairs, Jakob Forssmed.
“With these age-appropriate recommendations there is now an important support for children and young people, parents and other caregivers, for a more healthy, conscious and responsible use of screens and digital media.”
The health agency also recommended that children do not use screens before bedtime and that screens should not be allowed in bedrooms at night.
“Children’s health is paying the price for tech companies’ profits,” said Forssmed.
The guidelines, which are targeted at both adults and children, also include motivation and advice on how to think about the issue.
How farms are using ‘magic dust’ to capture carbon
Ryan Nelson sprinkles tonnes of “magic dust” across his farm near Culross, Fife. (Fife (Scottish Gaelic: Fìobha) is a county in the north east of Scotland)
The dust is crushed basalt – volcanic rock which can be found in abundance in quarries across the country.
The magic comes from its ability to both capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and help crops grow through a process known as enhanced rock weathering.
The dust is being given to farmers for free by a company which hopes to remove millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Ryan said: “It was on a croft and the crofter smashed up all the rock. The crop of fruit and vegetables that he was getting from this croft was remarkable.”
As well as storing carbon, basalt has been shown in trials to improve both crop yields and the quality of grazing for farmers.
Instead of capturing carbon over millennia, it takes a naturally occurring weathering process and accelerates it.
The rock is crushed up to maximise its exposure to the elements when it’s spread across agricultural land.
When it rains, the water droplets absorb small amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as they fall to the ground.
Once the rain hits the rock a chemical reaction occurs which solidifies the carbon and removes it from the atmosphere.
A company called Undo is now offering basalt free to farmers and sends its own contractors to spread it on the land.
Because it captures carbon, the process is funded by carbon credits which big companies buy to offset their planet warming greenhouse gas emissions.
British Airways, Microsoft and McLaren Racing are among those funding the project.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg3legn80xo
Neo Humanism
California city approves industrial park next to one of Earth’s oldest trees
After months of deliberation, the city of Jurupa Valley approved a development next to an oak tree that is at least 13,000 years old.
One of the world’s oldest living organisms — which once sprouted next to giant ground sloths and other prehistoric creatures — will soon sit 550 feet from industrial buildings.
After months of debate that thrust the small city of Jurupa Valley, Calif., into the national spotlight, the city council approved a plan on Thursday night to build a development next to the Jurupa Oak, an ancient tree that has survived since the last ice age. The vote was 3-2.
“It’s shocking and sad to see the city fail to protect an ancient plant that is truly a wonder to behold,” Meredith Stevenson, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement.
Scientists have estimated that the Jurupa Oak, a species known as the Palmer’s oak, is between 13,000 and 18,000 years old — putting it in rare company as one of the oldest living plants in the world. Unlike traditional oak trees, this species reproduces by cloning itself, allowing it to make genetically identical sprouts aftehttps://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/09/06/california-jurupa-oak-development/r being burned in wildfire.
The development — a 1.4-square-mile project that includes 1,700 homes, an elementary school and a light industrial park — has been under discussion for years. The developer, Richland Communities, has argued that the tree will be protected by a 450-foot buffer from construction equipment and a 550-foot buffer from any buildings. The company will also fund a preserve in the immediate vicinity of the oak.
Tim Krantz, an environmental scientist and conservation director at the Wildlands Conservancy, argued that the 550-foot buffer was insufficient to protect the tree. Paving the surrounding hills, he pointed out, could also keep groundwater from flowing to the tree.
“One can still do this project and create all the jobs and still maintain this iconic tree,” Krantz said. “This should be on your city emblem.”
Russia’s central bank warns Western banks not to discriminate against Russian clients
MOSCOW, Sept 13 (Reuters) – Russia’s central bank has warned subsidiaries of Western banks that remain in Russia not to yield to pressure from Western regulators and discriminate against their Russian clients by denying them services, such as money transfers abroad.
Austria’s Raiffeisen Bank International’s (RBI) (RBIV.VI), and Italy’s UniCredit (CRDI.MI), are the biggest foreign banks still present in Russia even as Western regulators, including the European Central Bank, pressure them to pull out. Both are on the central bank’s list of systemically important banks. Hungary’s OTP also has operations in Russia.
A Russian court froze RBI’s shares in its local arm earlier this month, blocking the biggest Western bank in Russia from leaving. The Austrian bank stopped transferring money abroad for Russian clients from Sept. 1.
“We are seeing pressure,” central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina said at a briefing following a policy meeting.
“The subsidiaries of European and other foreign banks in Russia were established according to Russian law. Complying with the requirements of the ECB and adhering to the sanctions of foreign states contradicts the Russian laws and discriminates against their clients,” she said.
Nabiullina said the Russian regulator has issued directives to the subsidiaries of Western banks in Russia, prohibiting them from refusing to process foreign currency transfers or creating technical obstacles for such transfers.
Nabiullina accused the subsidiaries of Western banks of “segregation” among their Russian clients, providing services to some while arbitrarily denying them to others.
She said the regulator has also banned the subsidiaries from providing their head offices with information about Russian clients that could be used to discriminate against them.
Myanmar’s military chief says foreign aid needed after deadly floods
More than 235,000 people have been forced from their homes after floods and landslides caused by Typhoon Yagi.
Myanmar’s military chief has made a rare request for foreign aid, state media reported, to cope with deadly floods that have displaced hundreds of thousands of people who have already endured three years of civil war.
Floods and landslides caused by torrential rains brought by Typhoon Yagi, one of the deadliest storms to hit Asia this year, have killed at least 33 people, the government said, adding that more than 235,000 people have been forced from their homes.
Myanmar’s military has previously blocked or frustrated humanitarian assistance from abroad.
The Myanmar Now independent news publication put the death toll at 66 from Yagi, which has killed at least 300 people in Vietnam, Thailand, Laos and the Philippines.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since a military coup in February 2021 and violence has engulfed large parts of the impoverished country.
An armed rebellion, comprising new resistance groups and established ethnic minority armies, is challenging the well-armed military, amid a crippling economic crisis that could be exacerbated by the floods
More than three million people have already fled the country since February 2021.
About a third of Myanmar’s 55 million people require humanitarian assistance but many aid agencies, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, cannot operate in many areas due to security risks.
Last year, the military government suspended travel authorisations for aid groups trying to reach about a million victims of Cyclone Mocha that hit the west of the country. At the time the United Nations called the decision “unfathomable”.
North Korea fires ballistic missile toward sea, South Korea says
SEOUL, South Korea —
North Korea fired a ballistic missile toward the sea Thursday morning, South Korea’s military said, days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to put his nuclear force fully ready for battle with its rivals.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a brief statement that the launch took place off North Korea’s eastern coast but gave no details, such as how far the weapon traveled.
Japan’s prime minister’s office also alerted on its X account that North Korea had launched a suspected ballistic missile, but it did not provide details.
The launch was North Korea’s first public weapons firing in more than two months. On July 1, North Korea claimed to have tested a new tactical weapon capable of delivering a “super-large” 4.5 ton-class warhead.
In a speech Monday, Kim said he would redouble efforts to make his nuclear force fully ready for combat with the United States and its allies. He said North Korea faced “a grave threat” because of what he called “the reckless expansion” of a U.S.-led regional military bloc that is now developing into a nuclear-based one.
Kim has made similar vows numerous times, but his latest threat came as outside experts believe North Korea will perform a nuclear test explosion or long-range missile test-launches ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November.
Last week, North Korea also resumed launches of trash-carrying balloons toward South Korea.
Since 2022, North Korea has significantly accelerated its weapons testing in a bid to perfect its capabilities to launch strikes on the U.S. and South Korea. The U.S. and South Korea have responded by expanding military drills that North Korea calls invasion rehearsals.
Last month, Kim had held off from missile tests or other provocative military demonstrations as the United States and South Korea conducted large-scale summertime military exercises. North Korea issued statements berating the allies for raising tensions.
Prabhata samgiita is a body of 5018 songs composed by Shri Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar, the propounder of Progressive Untilization Theory (PROUT). The collection contains songs for multifarious occasions here in are songs of devotion, songs of spiritual awakening, songs of nature, songs of social resurgence, folks songs, children’s songs, ballad etc.. Prabhata Samgiita represents a perfect blending of oriental Indian Classical music with Persian, Scandinavian, Middle eastern, Chinese and other important musical styles of the world. With each passing year of this decade .Prabhata Samgiita has reached new levels of popularity, and many luminaries in the musical world are now actively participating in the recording of Prabhata Samgiitaalbums.
THE END
September 7, 2024
Education
Report on Pakistan’s education crisis: More than 36% of children out of school
A staggering 25.3 million children aged 5 to 16 are currently out of school in Pakistan, representing 36% of the country’s school-age population.
The alarming figures are highlighted in a report titled The Missing Third of Pakistan, released by the Pak Alliance for Maths and Science (PAMS).
This report marks the first comprehensive analysis of out-of-school children (OOSC) at the tehsil level, based on data from the 2023 Population Census.
The report paints a grim picture of the country’s education system, with a significant majority of these children – 74% – residing in rural areas.
Efforts to increase enrollment in these regions face considerable challenges, including limited access to schools, poverty, and social barriers.
The data shows that the rural-urban divide in educational access is widening, with approximately 18.8 million out-of-school children living in rural areas alone.
Children aged 5 to 9 are particularly vulnerable, with 51% of this age group never having enrolled in school.
Even more concerning, over 50% of these children have dropped out or are no longer attending school.
These early setbacks are likely to have long-lasting impacts on literacy rates, as foundational educational skills are typically acquired at this stage.
The delay in enrollment is a major issue, especially in rural communities, where economic pressures and limited infrastructure prevent many children from entering the classroom.
In some tehsils, more than 80% of girls aged 5 to 16 have never attended school, highlighting the deep-rooted gender inequality in educational access.
This gap in educational attainment between boys and girls is widening, with cultural and socio-economic factors often preventing girls from pursuing education.
Urban centres, typically considered better equipped for education, are not immune to the problem.
Cities like Karachi and Lahore, dhttps://tribune.com.pk/story/2494052/report-on-pakistans-education-crisis-more-than-36-of-children-out-of-schoolespite being provincial capitals with more educational resources, still house significant numbers of out-of-school children.
Karachi alone accounts for nearly 1.8 million children who are not enrolled in school, further underscoring the gravity of the crisis.
Something exploded behind the Sun. Venus is in the firing line
A mysterious explosion occurred behind the sun’s southeastern limb on September 1, launching a significant coronal mass ejection (CME) into space.
This massive burst of solar material is not directed at Earth, but rather has set its sights on Venus, with Nasa predicting it will strike the planet on Tuesday, September 3.
This marks the third CME to hit Venus in just a few days, gradually eroding the planet’s cloudtops, which lack the protective magnetic field found on Earth.
The explosion that produced this CME was detected as a category M5.5 flare, yet experts believe it could have been even stronger, possibly reaching X-class intensity. The true magnitude remains uncertain due to the blast site being obscured by the sun’s edge.
A complex sunspot is now emerging over the sun’s southeastern limb, potentially the source of this powerful eruption. As it rotates toward Earth, scientists are closely monitoring its activity, though our planet’s magnetic field is expected to remain calm for the next few days since no Earth-directed CMEs are currently anticipated.
The recent series of CMEs heading toward Venus highlights the dynamic and unpredictable nature of solar activity.
Unlike Earth, Venus lacks a substantial magnetic field to shield it from such solar events, making its atmosphere more vulnerable to erosion by solar wind and CMEs. This ongoing bombardment could have long-term implications for Venus’s atmospheric composition and structure.
This period of heightened activity underscores the importance of continuous monitoring and research to understand the sun’s behavior and its effects on the solar system.
Tech layoffs 2024: Tech companies lay off over 27,000 employees in August
Tech industry has seen over 136,000 tech professionals laid off across 422 companies
The tech sector witnessed a significant increase in job losses in August, with over 27,000 employees affected. Major tech firms, including Intel, IBM, and Cisco, along with more than 40 smaller startups, announced substantial layoffs. So far this year, the industry has seen over 136,000 tech professionals laid off across 422 companies.
Tech layoff: Intel cuts 15,000 jobs
August 2024 tech layoff: Cisco to lay off around 6,000 employees
IBM lays off 1,000 employees
Tech layoff 2024: GoPro lays off 140 employees
Apple lays off 100 employees
Dell cuts jobs in sales teams
On Thursday, Intel announced in a memo to its employees that it will be cutting 15,000 jobs, representing more than 15 per cent of its total workforce. This decision is part of a broader strategy to reduce spending by $10 billion by 2025, following a poor earnings report and outlook for the second quarter. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Pat Gelsinger attributed the company’s revenue growth issues to high expenses and narrow profit margins, despite Intel’s historical dominance in the CPU chip market over the past 25 years.
Putin aide ‘crazy’ about eternal life orders research on anti-ageing treatments
Russian scientists are working on new anti-ageing treatments on the orders of a close aide of President Putin, who is reportedly consumed by the idea of eternal life.
Research institutes have been ordered to report on efforts to combat cellular ageing and osteoporosis, cognitive and sensory disorders and to boost immune systems.
The Russian leader is due to turn 72 in October.
3D bioprinting, a technology which scientists hope will enable organs and tissue to be ‘printed’, is also a keen interest of the health ministry.
Kovalchuk is the chief of the Kurchatov nuclear research institute and a senior member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, who is overseeing a state-backed research programme into genetics, the Times reported.
The Kremlin source said Kovalchuk “ran to the president [with the idea]” of the programme,
A source at the national medical research centre indicated that either Putin or Kovalchuk was pushing for research into prolonging lifespans, saying the “big boss” set the task while the officials “rushed to implement it in every possible way”.
According to one researcher, scientists have been “asked to urgently send all our developments” on the work ordered by Kovalchuk.
YouTube terminating Tenet Media channel after US indictment
YouTube said on Thursday it was terminating the Tenet Media channel and four channels operated by Tenet owner Lauren Chen, following an indictment from the U.S. Department of Justice.
The Justice Department on Wednesday filed money-laundering charges against two employees of Russian state media network RT for what officials said was a scheme to hire an American company to produce online content to influence the 2024 presidential election.
Justice Department officials said the two employees used shell companies and fake personas to pay $10 million to an unnamed Tennessee company to produce online videos aimed at amplifying political divisions in the United States.
Though the company is not named in the indictment, details provided in court filings match up with Tenet Media, a Nashville-based company that has posted nearly 2,000 videos to YouTube in less than a year.
This chemical-free method for treating seeds is winning over sceptical farmers in Sweden and beyond
Heat-treated seeds could offer farmers a chemical-free solution for pest control.
Typically, seeds are treated with chemicals to keep them healthy and kill pests, but this does not align with organic farming principles.
‘ThermoSeed’, an invention by former researcher Kenneth Alness, offers a sustainable alternative. It uses sharp blasts of steam, which kill pests and preserve the seeds.
The innovation has already been a success in Alness’s home country Sweden and neighbouring Norway.
How do steam-treated seeds benefit the environment?
Farmers who have tried the seed-treating method have praised its benefits to the environment and working conditions.
Farmer Gustaf Silén notes the absence of dust, a common issue with chemically treated seeds that can be harmful when inhaled during sowing.
“The bags with the seed, when you open them, can be quite dusty and you get this all over you. That is not the case with ThermoSeed – it’s much easier to handle,” he says.
Silén also highlights that leftover steam-treated seeds can be used as cattle feed or resold, unlike chemically treated seeds, which must be disposed of at a cost.
ThermoSeed is the brainchild of Kenneth Alness who has devoted his life to developing a chemical-free method to keep seeds healthy.
“Farmers in general are often sceptical of the non-chemical solutions,” Bjørn Stabbetorp, CEO of the Agricultural Division of Felleskjøpet, explains. “Chemicals have been a very good and effective solution for a number of problems.
“Non-chemical solutions have to really prove that they are competitive before the farmers are convinced. We put a lot of effort into this when we were introducing the ThermoSeed. And it has really worked very well.”
Alness has no plans to retire. Instead, he is focused on addressing the challenges that remain, such as the high cost of ThermoSeed equipment and the need for a scaled-down version of the machine to serve smaller markets, particularly in Asia.
Having sold the ThermoSeed license to Lantmännen BioAgri, Alness is now working on developing a more accessible, smaller version of the technology.
Israel-Gaza war – as it happened: Benjamin Netanyahu says he asked families of hostages for forgiveness as he holds press conference
The US president, Joe Biden, said that a “final” deal for the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza was “very close” but that he did not think the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, was doing enough to secure such an agreement. Netanyahu, in a press conference, said he did not believe that Biden made those comments.
Netanyahu, in a news conference, insisted that Israeli forces must retain control over the Philadelphi Corridor along the Egypt-Gaza border, which has emerged as a primary sticking point in Gaza ceasefire talks.
Protests against the Israeli leader’s government suffered a blow when a court ordered an early end to a general strike. Israel’s biggest trade union, Histadrut, said hundreds of thousands of people joined its strike. Israel’s labour court ruled that the strike, which affected many businesses, schools and transport routes, had to end at 14:30 local time (12:30 BST). It was due to finish at 18:00 local time (16:00 BST).
The demonstrations were prompted by the discovery of the bodies of six hostages in Gaza, and brought tens of thousands of Israelis out on to the streets to protest against the government’s handling of the war in Gaza and efforts to release dozens of hostages who remain in captivity.
Ben Gurion international airport near Tel Aviv saw some flights delayed, and none at all for two hours leading up to 10am. Tel Aviv and the northern coastal city of Haifa heeded the strike calls, but not all municipalities slowed down or ceased their activities.
Further protests took place outside Netanyahu’s residences in Jerusalem and Caesarea.
At least 40,786 Palestinian people have been killed and 94,224 injured in Israeli strikes on Gaza since 7 October, the Gaza health ministry said in a statement. The toll included 48 deaths in the previous 24 hours.
The UK moved to immediately suspend 30 arms export licences to Israel after a review by the new Labour government found a “clear risk” that UK arms may be used in serious violation of humanitarian law relating to the treatment of Palestinian detainees and the supply of aid to Gaza.
Gaza health officials said an Israeli airstrike targeting a group of police officers in a school sheltering displaced Palestinians killed at least 11 people on Sunday.
The UK will send hundreds more short-range missiles to Ukraine, it was announced ahead of a summit where Volodymyr Zelensky asked for authorisation to strike targets deep inside Russia with Western-supplied weapons.
The Ukrainian president made another impassioned plea for further military support during the opening stages of the summit at the Ramstein air base in Germany on Friday.
He said the eastern region of Donetsk, where Kyiv’s forces are facing Russian attacks, in particular depended on the swift delivery of aid.
Also at the summit is UK Defence Secretary John Healey who will confirm the £162 million package, which includes the supply of 650 Lightweight Multirole Missiles (LMM).
He said the new package would give an “important boost” to Ukraine’s air defences and show the government was “stepping up” its support.
But Prof Michael Clark, the former director-general of the defence and security think tank Royal United Services Institute, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme the supply would likely be “exhausted within a couple of months”.
He said Ukraine needed “more of everything at the moment” given the intensity of Russian advances and bombardments.
Lightweight with precision guidance, LMMs have low collateral damage and a range of more than 6km (3.7 miles), according to manufacturer Thales. Hundreds have already been delivered to Ukraine.
In July, UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer committed to sending £3bn a year to Ukraine for as long as needed.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjw3x8926l6o
Editors Note
You people of today are more enlightened. Your intellectual capacity is no less than anyone elseʼs. That is why you should write a new history of the human race by your collective endeavour. The history that you will write in future must unequivocally reflect such important factors as how human society has evolved through trials and tribulations; what difficulties were confronted and how human beings overcame them and moved towards their goal with firm steps; and how even today they are advancing by solving numerous problems.
Shri P R Sarkar
28 February 1980
Source: What Should History Be Like?
Published in : Discourses on Neohumanist Education
THE END
August 31, 2024
Education
AUSTRALIA
Some anger, some relief over international student cap
The Albanese government’s proposed cap on international student numbers starting in the upcoming academic year has predictably drawn strong criticism, specifically from highly ranked urban universities and international higher education stakeholders.
But it has also found some support among smaller, regional institutions that stand to gain from it.
Minister for Education Jason Clare announced on Tuesday that the overall number of international students starting a course next year will be set at 270,000 including higher education courses and vocational education and training courses.
The proposal followed two days of public hearings for the Senate Committee’s Inquiry into the Education Services for Overseas Students Amendment (Quality and Integrity) Bill 2024 [Provisions] that will release its report on 6 September.
Individual institutional caps
As per the proposed strategy, each of Australia’s 1,400 universities and colleges registered to teach overseas students would have a specific cap on its enrolment limits.
“For some universities, some big universities, it will be lower than it was last year. For some of the smaller universities, some of the universities that have been hit hard by Ministerial Direction 107, it will be higher next year than it is this year,” he said.
Why Relief Agencies Are Rushing Polio Vaccines to Gaza
A vaccine-derived polio case recently confirmed in Gaza has led to a two-round vaccination campaign targeting 640,000 kids set to begin this weekend in the war-torn region.
Israel and Hamas have agreed to a phased, limited 3-day pause in fighting to facilitate the vaccinations, beginning September 1.
According to this week’s report from the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), one circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) case was identified earlier this month in Gaza, the first case in 25 years.
Six cVDPV2-positive environmental samples have been reported in Gaza this year.
Today, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros NAME said on X, “We welcome the commitment to humanitarian pauses in specific areas, and suspension of evacuation orders for the implementation of the campaign. But the only lasting medicine is peace. The only way to fully protect all the children of Gaza is a ceasefire.”
We welcome the commitment to humanitarian pauses in specific areas, and suspension of evacuation orders for the implementation of the campaign.
1.2 million vaccine doses ready in Gaza
Tedros said today during WHO’s weekly briefing that more than 1.2 million doses of vaccine have been delivered to Gaza, and 2,180 healthcare workers and community outreach workers have been trained in vaccination strategies. Tedros said the goal is 90% vaccination coverage during each round of the campaign
In other polio news, the GPEI noted more wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases in both Afghanistan and Pakistan.
In Afghanistan, four WPV1 cases were reported in Kandahar, raising this year’s total to 17 cases. In Pakistan, two WPV1 cases were reported in Balochistan and Sindh, with 16 cases reported so far this year.
Chad, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and South Sudan also recorded cases, all cVDPV2.
Agriculture
Agtech seedlings: Google gets into climate smart agriculture with water conservation partnership
Google accelerates water conservation with Arable
Google is linking up with crop technology provider Arable in a new partnership to help farmers in southwest Nebraska, in United states conserve water.
The collaboration will provide farmers with Arable’s field monitoring technology to get real-time visibility of the water requirements of their crops, which then can be used to make decisions optimizing irrigation, according to a release.
Google is funding the deployment of Arable’s tech across 25,000 acres in the Twin Platte Natural Resources District in southwestern Nebraska, while Arable will monitor the success of the program and provide farmers with training.
The partnership ultimately aims to reduce groundwater pumping from the Platte River system, which has experienced drought, pollution and rising salinity levels over the years as a consequence of overuse.
Google has made water conservation a central pillar of its corporate sustainability goals, setting a target of replenishing more water than it consumes by 2030. The company is investing $1.2 billion in a Nebraska data center, which uses water as part of the cooling process.
Former U.S. Navy Seal Jonny Kim will be 1st Korean-American astronaut on ISS in March 2025
NASA astronaut Jonny Kim, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, will be the first Korean-American astronaut to perform a long-duration mission.
Kim will spend eight months on the International Space Station (ISS), starting in March 2025, as part of the Expedition 72 and 73 crews, NASA officials announced Wednesday (Aug. 28). He will fly to space aboard the Russian Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft alongside Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky; the cosmonauts’ assignments were announced in TASS (Russian state media) last week via Roscosmos, the Russian space agency.
How All-Female ‘Juries of Matrons’ Shaped Legal History
For more than 700 years, women in England could avoid the death penalty just by virtue of being pregnant. A pregnant woman sentenced to death would receive a stay of execution until the baby was born. This tactic was called “pleading the belly” and often resulted in the death sentence being reduced to a less severe penalty once the pregnancy was over.
Of course, anyone can say they’re pregnant without actually being with child. So how did courts determine whether the claim was true?
Until the early 20th century, it was standard practice to assemble all-female juries, called “juries of matrons,” to determine whether a woman was pregnant and could therefore avoid hanging for capital offenses.
Exploring the history of these juries reveals how the roles of women in our legal systems have changed over time. It also shows a shift in beliefs about who is an expert on the female body—and who gets to make decisions about women’s lives.
Highly regarded medical experts
All-female juries existed as early as 1140 in England and persisted until 1931. Their role in the courts was highly regarded. They were medical experts. If they found the woman was “quick with child” (pregnant), their findings were not disputed.
In addition to determining whether a woman was pregnant, these juries helped evaluate inheritance claims, examined women to determine whether they bore the physical marks of witchcraft and decide whether women accused of infanticide had given birth. They provided expert medical testimony for the courts but were not necessarily midwives.
As soon as French authorities arrested Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of Telegram, the far-right landscape in the U.S. began to buzz with concern about losing its preferred communication platform.
Telegram, the messaging and social media app, is used for mainstream communication across much of Eastern Europe and other continents. But in the United States, Telegram is an outlier.
Pavel’s arrest and charges in a wide range of crimes – related to Telegram’s alleged complicity in allowing users to trade in child pornography, drugs and money laundering – left those same users speculating about a possible upheaval.
German court upholds conviction of 99-year-old former Nazi camp secretary
A German court has rejected an appeal by a 99-year-old woman who was convicted of being an accessory to more than 10,000 murders in her role as a secretary to the SS commander of the Nazis’ Stutthof concentration camp during World War II.
The ruling on Tuesday by the Federal Court of Justice in Leipzig is final. It came four months before Irmgard Furchner’s two-year suspended sentence handed down by the Itzehoe Regional Court ends in December.
She was accused of being part of the apparatus that helped the camp near Danzig, now the Polish city of Gdansk, function.
Last month, Furchner’s lawyers cast doubt on whether she really was an accessory to crimes committed by the commander and other senior camp officials, and on whether she had truly been aware of what was going on at Stutthof.
In 2022, the Itzehoe court said that judges were convinced that Furchner “knew and, through her work as a stenographer in the commandant’s office of the Stutthof concentration camp from June 1, 1943, to April 1, 1945, deliberately supported the fact that 10,505 prisoners were cruelly killed by gassings, by hostile conditions in the camp”, by transportation to the Auschwitz death camp and by being sent on death marches at the end of the war.
Senior IMF official warns fragmentation in global economy could trigger ‘new Cold War’
Gita Gopinath, a senior International Monetary Fund (IMF) official warned during a speech in Colombia on Monday (Dec 11), that the world economy is on the brink of a second cold war, which could “annihilate” progress made since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
The IMF’s first deputy managing director also said that the fragmentation in the global economy into power blocs, such as China the United States and Russia, could impact global output and wipe out trillions of dollars.
Notably, the Cold War was a period of geopolitical tension between the US and the Soviet Union, as well as their respective allies, between 1945 and 1991.
“If we descend into Cold War II, knowing the costs, we may not see mutually assured economic destruction. But we could see an annihilation of the gains from open trade,” told the International Economic Association in Medellin, Colombia.
She said that losses could reach 2.5 per cent to seven per cent of global gross domestic product if the world economy fragmented into two blocs.
“While there are no signs of broad-based retreat from globalisation, fault lines are emerging as geoeconomic fragmentation is increasingly a reality. If fragmentation deepens, we could find ourselves in a new Cold War,” she said.
As she warned the world, she urged the leaders to pull back from the brink and work towards shared economic priorities.
Her remarks came amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, the war between Israel and Hamas, existing tensions between the US and China, and other conflicts which resulted in a slowdown in international trade.
“While there are no signs of broad-based retreat from globalisation, fault lines are emerging as geoeconomic fragmentation is increasingly a reality. If fragmentation deepens, we could find ourselves in a new cold war,” she said.
A Reuters report mentioned that China is no longer the largest US trading partner, with Mexico having assumed that role after years of increasing trade tensions and rising tariffs.
China’s share of US imports fell to 13 per cent in the first half of 2023 from 22 per cent in 2018. Around 3,000 trade-restrictive measures were imposed last year around the world – nearly three times the number imposed in 2019.
‘The costs could easily overwhelm benefits’
She said that such fragmentation has potentially serious consequences that could outweigh greater domestic economic resiliency and security.
Gopinath added, “If not properly managed, the costs could easily overwhelm these benefits, and potentially reverse nearly three decades of peace, integration, and growth that helped lift billions out of poverty.”
She said that the global fragmentation will make it harder to address common concerns such as climate change, and she urged governments to adopt “pragmatic” policies that preserve the benefits of free trade to the greatest extent possible.
Hostage held by Hamas in Gaza rescued by Israeli forces, IDF says
The Israeli military says commandos have rescued from an underground tunnel in Gaza a Bedouin Arab hostage who was kidnapped by Hamas during the 7 October attack on Israel.
Kaid Farhan Elkadi, 52, was rescued in a “complex operation in the southern Gaza Strip” by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Shin Bet domestic security service, according to a statement.
No further details could be published “due to considerations of the safety of our hostages, the security of our forces, and national security”, it said.
Mr Elkadi – the eighth hostage rescued by Israeli forces since the start of the war in Gaza – is in a stable condition in hospital, where he is undergoing examinations.
Israel’s Haaretz newspaper reported that he managed to escape his captors before being rescued, and that the soldiers attempted to understand whether he had been held with other hostages.
Mr Elkadi’s brother, Hatam, told Haaretz that he was “a little thin”.
“We told him that everything is fine and that everyone is waiting for him outside,” he said.
“We’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time. We hope that all hostages will get this moment, that they will all experience the same excitement and joy,” he added. “May all the hostages return, and may all the families feel this feeling.”
Mr Elkadi, a father of 11 and grandfather of one, is from a Bedouin village in the Rahat area of the Negev desert.
He worked for many years as a security guard at Kibbutz Magen, close to the Israel-Gaza border, where he was abducted 10 months ago.
IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in a video announcement that he could not go into many details about the operation in which he was freed.
But he added that he could “share that Israeli commandos rescued [him] from an underground tunnel, following accurate intelligence”.
Footage released by the IDF showed Mr Elkadi sitting down, smiling and speaking to soldiers, including the commander of the 162nd Division, moments after his rescue.
A senior Israeli military official confirmed that troops were operating in “a complex underground system where hostages were suspected to be held”.
Mr Elkadi was alone in the tunnel when he was found by Israeli troops when he was rescued, the official added.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3w67w47eego
Editors’ Note
The status of women
From time immemorial, human beings have been framing laws and rules to govern themselves so that the fundamental rights of each individual are secured and all the members of society can live peacefully. Such laws have been framed from time to time by the ruling class. On examining these laws it is evident that the ruling class framed them, keeping their own interest as the uppermost consideration in their mind.
—Shrii Shrii Anandamurtii Source: The Awakening of Women
THE END
August 24, 2024
Education
The Book Bag That Binds Japanese Society
“In Japan, cultural expectations are repeatedly drilled into children at school and at home, with peer pressure playing as powerful a role as any particular authority or law. On the surface, at least, that can help Japanese society run smoothly.
During the coronavirus pandemic, for example, the government never mandatedmasks or lockdowns, yet the majority of residents wore face coverings in public and refrained from going out to crowded venues. Japanese tend to stand quietly in lines, obey traffic signals and clean up after themselves during sports and other events because they have been trained from kindergarten to do so. Carrying the bulky randoseru to school is “not even a rule imposed by anyone but a rule that everyone is upholding together,” said Shoko Fukushima, associate professor of education administration at the Chiba Institute of Technology.
On the first day of school this spring — the Japanese school year starts in April — flocks of eager first graders and their parents arrived for an entrance ceremony at Kitasuna Elementary School in the Koto neighborhood of eastern Tokyo. Seeking to capture an iconic moment mirrored across generations of Japanese family photo albums, the children, almost all of them carrying randoseru, lined up with their parents to pose for pictures in front of the school gate… Traditionally, the uniformity was even more pronounced, with boys carrying black randoseru and girls carrying red ones. In recent years, growing discussion of diversity and individuality has prompted retailers to offer the backpacks in a rainbow of colors and with some distinctive details like embroidered cartoon characters, animals or flowers, or inside liners made from different fabrics.
Still, a majority of boys today carry black randoseru, although lavender has overtaken red in popularity among girls, according to the Randoseru Association. And aside from the color variations and an increased capacity to accommodate more textbooks and digital tablets, the shape and structure of the bags have remained remarkably consistent over decades. The near totemic status of the randoseru dates back to the 19th century, during the Meiji era, when Japan transitioned from an isolated feudal kingdom to a modern nation navigating a new relationship with the outside world. The educational system helped unify a network of independent fiefs — with their own customs — into a single nation with a shared culture…”
Switzerland offers cash prize to get munitions out of lakes
For years the Swiss military used the lakes as dumping grounds for old munitions, believing they could be disposed of safely there.
In Lake Lucerne alone there are an estimated 3,300 tonnes of munition, and 4,500 tonnes in the waters of Neuchatel, which the Swiss air force used for bombing practice until 2021.
Some munitions are at depths of 150 to 220 metres, but others in Lake Neuchatel are just six or seven metres below the surface.
Now, the Swiss defence department is offering 50,000 francs (£45,000) in prize money for the best idea to get it out.
Double danger
The fact that so many rounds were dumped in Swiss lakes – Brienz being another of them – has been known about for decades, though people have asked questions about safety more recently.
Retired Swiss geologist Marcos Buser, who advised the government on this topic, wrote a research paper ten years ago warning of the dangers of the dumps.
The munitions pose two risks, he said. First, despite the fact it is underwater, there is still a risk of explosion, because in many cases “the army did not remove the fuses before dumping the munition”.
Then there’s water and soil contamination – there is a real chance that highly toxic TNT could pollute the lake water and the sediment.
The Swiss government acknowledges that factors including poor visibility, magnetic iron and individual ammunition weights “represent major challenges for environmentally friendly ammunition recovery”.
An assessment of possible recovery techniques in 2005 showed that all proposed solutions for ammunition recovery posed severe risks for the sensitive ecosystems of the lakes.
Politics
On frontline island, Taiwan president rejects China’s rule for freedom
KINMEN, Taiwan, – Taiwan wants to continue its free way of life and rejects being ruled by China’s Communist Party, Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said on Friday, visiting a frontline island between the two sides to mark a key battle with Chinese forces.
China’s military carried out another round of manoeuvres around Taiwan as Lai was making the comments, underscoring what Taiwan’s government views as Beijing’s ongoing efforts to undermine regional peace and stability.
Taiwan has controlled the Kinmen and Matsu islands, which lay just off the Chinese coast, since the defeated Republic of China government fled to Taipei in 1949 after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong’s communists. No peace treaty or armistice has ever been signed.
The scene of on-off fighting during the height of the Cold War, China’s coast guard has since February conducted regular patrols around Kinmen following the death of two Chinese people on a speedboat which Beijing blamed on Taipei.
Dhaka: In a dramatic turn of events, a retired judge of Bangladesh’s Supreme Court, Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik, was detained by the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) late Friday while allegedly attempting to flee the country through the northeastern frontier in Sylhet. The incident marks a significant development amidst the ongoing political crisis that has engulfed Bangladesh following the collapse of Sheikh Hasina’s government on August 5.
Arrest at the Border
Manik, a former judge of the Supreme Court’s appellate division, was apprehended near the Kanaighat border in Sylhet as he tried to cross over into India. The BGB headquarters informed the media via SMS about the detention, stating that the former judge was held at a BGB outpost until midnight, according to reports from Prothom Alo.
Retired judge Manik came into limelight after he took part in a TV talk show and took then prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s side during the student protests.
High-Profile Arrests and Shelter in Cantonments
In addition to Judge Manik, several other prominent figures have been detained. Former law minister Anisul Huq and the ex-premier’s private sector affairs adviser Salman F Rahman were among the first to be arrested as they attempted to leave Dhaka via the Sadarghat river port. The Bangladesh Army has also provided shelter to several hundred leaders of Hasina’s Awami League, citing threats to their lives.
Other key arrests include former foreign minister Hassan Mahmud, former social welfare minister Dipu Moni, Workers Party chairman Rashed Khan Menon, and recently dismissed military and civil officials like major general Ziaul Hassan and rear admiral Mohammad Sohail. Even members of the media, such as TV journalist couple Farzana Rupa and her husband Shakil Ahmed, have been caught up in the crackdown.
Escalating Tensions
The political crisis in Bangladesh continues to intensify as the interim government and military seek to restore order. The detention of high-profile figures like Judge Manik underscores the volatility of the situation and the lengths to which authorities are going to prevent further destabilization.
Australia green lights world’s ‘largest’ solar hub
It is hoped that energy production will begin in 2030, providing four gigawatts of energy for domestic use.
SYDNEY: Australia approved on Wednesday plans for a massive solar and battery farm that would export energy to Singapore, a project billed as the “largest solar precinct in the world”.
Authorities announced environmental approvals for SunCable’s US$24 billion project in Australia’s remote north that is slated to power three million homes.
The project, which will include an array of panels, batteries and, eventually, a cable linking Australia with Singapore, is backed by tech billionaire and green activist Mike Cannon-Brookes.
“It will be the largest solar precinct in the world –- and heralds Australia as the world leader in green energy,” said Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek.
It is hoped that energy production will begin in 2030, providing four gigawatts of energy for domestic use.
Two more gigawatts would be sent to Singapore via undersea cable, supplying about 15 percent of the city-state’s needs.
SunCable Australia’s managing director Cameron Garnsworthy said the approval was “a landmark moment in the project’s journey”.
Numerous approval processes and other hurdles remain despite Wednesday’s green light.
The project depends on sign-offs from Singapore’s energy market authority, Indonesia’s government and Australian Indigenous communities.
Singapore’s energy market authority said in a statement it was in “discussions with Sun Cable on its proposal for electricity imports into Singapore” but did not provide further details.
Garnsworthy said: “SunCable will now focus its efforts on the next stage of planning to advance the project towards a final investment decision targeted by 2027.”
Chinese scientists use lunar soil to produce water, state media reports
In 2020, China’s Chang’e-5 mission retrieved lunar samples. Researchers have discovered that the minerals in this “moon soil” contain large amounts of hydrogen.
Chinese scientists have discovered a “brand-new method” of producing large quantities of water using lunar soil brought back from a 2020 expedition, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Thursday.
In 2020, China’s Chang’e-5 mission marked the first time humans had retrieved lunar samples in 44 years. Researchers from the state-run Chinese Academy of Sciences discovered that the minerals in this “moon soil” contain large amounts of hydrogen, which reacts with other elements when heated to very high temperatures, producing water vapor, CCTV reported.
“After three years of in-depth research and repeated verification, a brand-new method of using lunar soil to produce large amounts of water was discovered, which is expected to provide important design basis for the construction of future lunar scientific research stations and space stations,” said CCTV.
The discovery could have important implications for China’s decades-long project of building a permanent lunar outpost amid a U.S.-China race to find and mine the moon’s resources.
NASA head Bill Nelson has repeatedly raised the alarm about the rapid advances in China’s space program and the possibility of Beijing dominating the most resource-rich locations on the moon.
Using the new method, one metric tonne of lunar soil will be able to produce about 51 to 76 kilograms of water, equivalent to more than a hundred 500-millileter bottles of water, or the daily drinking water consumption of 50 people, the state broadcaster said.
How biogas can support the US strategy for reducing food waste
Anaerobic digestion can help drive progress on climate, but we have only just started to tap into the technology’s potential, writes the head of the American Biogas Council.
America wastes a whopping 92 billion pounds of food every year, with about 38% of the food going unsold or uneaten. This wasted food is responsible for 58% of landfill emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas.
In mid-June, the White House released a plan to address both this waste and resulting greenhouse gas emissions in the “National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics.” The strategy, developed by the Department of Agriculture, Environmental Protection Agency and Food and Drug Administration, lays out a path for the United States to meet its goal of cutting food loss and waste in half by 2030.
One key solution the plan highlights to reduce methane emissions from food waste is biogas systems. These facilities use anaerobic digestion to capture the renewable energy potential of decomposable waste. Anaerobic digesters process food waste that would otherwise go to landfills and combustion facilities. They also use natural microbes to produce methane in a controlled environment, which can then be used to replace conventional natural gas to provide heat or electricity.
Biogas systems are an effective strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from landfills as well as from fossil fuels. Moreover, the processed material is rich in nutrients that plants love and may be used instead of synthetic fertilizer to create healthier soils.
Some state and national programs are providing funding or tax credits for investment in food-waste-to-renewable energy facilities, with more infrastructure slowly being built. The United States has 110 biogas facilities utilizing food waste to create renewable energy, with three added in 2023, according to the American Biogas Council. Yet the industry estimates that more than 2,000 food waste biogas systems could be built across the country. In other words, we are tapping into just 5% of the potential.
Vladimir Putin spends big—and sends Russia’s economy soaring
A Ukrainian incursion into Russia represents an enormous embarrassment for Vladimir Putin and his military leadership. Tens of thousands of residents have been evacuated after Ukrainian troops stormed across the border. The Russian armed forces, caught off guard, are being slow to respond. The rouble is slumping, as worries mount about the future of the war. Yet on the home front, at least, things look better than ever for Mr Putin. Despite sanctions and pariah status, Russia’s economy is growing strongly. It turns out that bacchanalian spending, at a time of war, really gets things going.
Consumer confidence, as measured by Russia’s statistical agency, is well above its average since Mr Putin assumed power 24 years ago. You might expect him to be goosing the numbers. But the Levada Centre, an independent pollster, finds equally startling trends (see chart 2). Only once in the past three decades has sentiment been higher. Russians’ confidence in their own financial situation, according to official data, recently jumped to an all-time high. They are more inclined to make big purchases, such as a car or a sofa, and restaurants are bursting. Last year Russians imported 18% more cognac than they did in 2019, according to our estimate, while spending 80% more on imports of sparkling wine. Sberbank, the country’s largest financial institution, notes that in June overall consumer spending rose by 20% year on year in nominal terms.
US sanctions hundreds of firms accused of supplying war machine for Russia
The US imposed sweeping sanctions Friday on hundreds of firms in Russia and across Europe, Asia and the Middle East, accusing them of providing products and services that enable Russia’s war effort and aiding its ability to evade sanctions.
Among those sanctioned by the Treasury Department were 60 Russian-based technology and defense companies, including three Russian financial tech companies. Also sanctioned were firms in Turkiye, France and Hong Kong that act as suppliers to Russia-based Promtekh, a wholesale distributor of transportation equipment, and an ammunition procurement network connected to Italian and Turkish nationals, who also face sanctions.
Friday’s action is the latest in a series of thousands of US sanctions that have been imposed on Russian firms and their suppliers in other nations since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The effectiveness of the sanctions has been questioned, especially as Russia has continued to support its economy by selling oil and gas on international markets.
Additionally, the State Department designated people and firms involved in Russia’s energy, metals and mining exports; drone production; subsidiaries of Russian state-owned nuclear energy corporation Rosatom; and people the US says were involved in kidnapping Ukrainian children and making them identify as Russian.
Mpox: Key facts about monkeypox virus and how it transmits as WHO declares global health emergency
Mpox spreads through direct contact with infectious lesions, contaminated objects, and animal interactions. Symptoms include rashes, fever, and swollen lymph nodes.
According to officials there are now two strains of the monkeypox virus spreading through Congo — the endemic form as well as a new and little-known offshoot. It is transmitting through sexual contact as well as other close contact – such as among children in displacement camps in parts of Congo – and has now moved from eastern Congo to Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi and Kenya.
How is mpox transmitted?
Mpox can be transmitted from person to person through direct contact with infectious skin or other lesions such as in the mouth or on genitals. Infection can also occur through use of contaminated objects such as clothing or linens or in a community setting such as tattoo parlours.
Animal to human transmission of mpox occurs from infected animals to humans from bites or scratches, or during activities such as hunting, skinning, trapping, cooking, playing with carcasses, or eating animals.
What are the symptoms?
Mpox symptoms can be seen 1 to 21 days after exposure. Common indicators include rashes, fever, sore throat, headache, muscle ache, back pain, low energy and swollen lymph nodes. The symptoms typically last typically last 2–4 weeks but be extended for people with a weakened immune system.
The WHO announcement comes mere days after a similar label from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. A “public health emergency of international concern” is the highest form of alert that can be shared by the international health body.
Education International’s 10th World Congress makes a strong call for peace
Education union leaders meeting in Buenos Aires, Argentine for the 10th Education International World Congress have adopted several resolutions in solidarity with educators and students affected by war and armed conflict and that call for the protection of schools as safe sanctuaries. Unionists also highlighted the role of education in building world peace and justice and called on governments to prioritise education over military spending.
The effect of war on education and children
At the 10th World Congress, education unions warned about the global rise in armed conflict, noting that some states choose to ignore international laws that protect schools, education, and civilians, especially children. The destruction of school infrastructure undermines the provision of education and has long-term negative consequences for entire nations, fueling the cycle of poverty and inequality for generations.
Peace education
In another resolution, Education International member organisations reaffirmed their commitment to peace education, warning that while global military expenditure has reached record levels, 400 million children around the world are living in or fleeing conflict zones.
The education and wellbeing of children during periods of conflict
From Palestinian children unable to access even a basic education to Ukrainian children forced to learn online or in metro stations, from girls in Afghanistan who are forbidden from going to school to children at risk of being kidnapped from school by armed groups that operate in Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 222 million school-aged children are affected by crises and emergencies. 35% (78.2 million) of those children are out of school.
Teachers working in emergency contexts also face terrible circumstances. In addition to the threats to their personal safety, teachers working in areas of conflict face huge challenges in carrying out their role. The global teacher recruitment and retention crisis is particularly acute in areas of conflict.
The EI World Congress called for the urgent implementation of the UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate and lasting ceasefire, along with the entry of aid into the Gaza Strip, the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, action to prevent forced displacement, and the recognition of the rights of Palestinian people.
Congress also stressed the imperative need to reopen the Rafah crossing, the only lifeline for more than 1.5 million vulnerable people, and to vastly increase humanitarian aid in order to prevent further suffering.
Through the resolution, education unionists also expressed their support for the two-state solution as a key step in building lasting peace.
The Thai parliament elected its youngest-ever prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, on Friday, just days after the dismissal of former Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin.
Why was Srettha Thavisin removed as prime minister?
Constitutional Court judges voted 6-3 this year to accept a petition submitted by 40 senators to remove Srettha, of the Pheu Thai Party.
The senators argued that Srettha’s appointment of Pichit fell short of ethical and moral standards.
Who is the new prime minister?
Paetongtarn, 37, is the youngest child of billionaire Thaksin, 75, founder of the Pheu Thai party, with which Srettha was also affiliated.
Paetongtarn was elected easily on Friday, as her party and its allies hold 314 out of 493 seats in parliament, and she required the vote of at least half of the current legislators to become prime minister.
She studied at the elite conservative institute, Chulalongkorn University, in Bangkok.
What is the political situation in Thailand?
Paetongtarn’s appointment has come amid a long-running battle between the pro-royalist military establishment and populist parties linked to the Pheu Thai party.
What are Paetongtarn’s policies?
When she campaigned for election as a prime ministerial candidate last year, Paetongtarn’s promises included lowering Bangkok’s public transportation fares, expanding healthcare coverage and doubling the minimum daily wage.
People leave New Zealand in record numbers as economy bites
Economists say New Zealanders frustrated by the cost of living, high interest rates and fewer job opportunities, are looking to Australia, the U.K. and elsewhere.
Data released by Statistics New Zealand on Tuesday showed that 1,31,200 people departed New Zealand in the year ended June 2024, provisionally the highest on record for an annual period. Around a third of these were headed to Australia.
While net migration, the number of those arriving minus those leaving, remains at high levels, economists also expect this to wane as the number of foreign nationals wanting to move to New Zealand falls due to the softer economy.
The data showed of those departing 80,174 were citizens, which was almost double the numbers seen leaving prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the pandemic, encouraged by the then government’s handling of the outbreak, New Zealanders living overseas returned home in historically high numbers.
But the love affair with the country of 5.3 million, is over for some. Economists say New Zealanders frustrated by the cost of living, high interest rates and fewer job opportunities, are looking to Australia, the U.K. and elsewhere.
New Zealand’s economy is struggling after the central bank hiked cash rates 521 basis points in its most aggressive tightening since the official cash rate was introduced in 1999. The economy annual growth of 0.2% in the first quarter, unemployment rose to 4.7% in the second quarter and inflation remains high at 3.3%.
Furthermore, Australia has been recruiting and offering relocation packages in areas such as nursing, policing and teaching where they have skill shortages attracting New Zealanders, who do not need visas to work there. At the same time, the New Zealand government has undertaken a significant downsizing of the country’s public service leaving many skilled worked looking for jobs.
That is the conclusion of scientists based on seismic data obtained by NASA’s robotic InSight lander during a mission that helped decipher the interior of Mars. The water, located about 7.2 to 12.4 miles (11.5 to 20 km) below the Martian surface, potentially offers conditions favorable to sustain microbial life, either in the past or now, the researchers said.
“At these depths, the crust is warm enough for water to exist as a liquid. At more shallow depths, the water would be frozen as ice,” said planetary scientist Vashan Wright of the University of California, San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, lead author of the study published on Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The Martian surface is cold and desolate today but once was warm and wet. That changed more than 3 billion years ago. The study suggests that much of the water that had been on the Martian surface did not escape into space, but rather filtered down into the crust.
“Early Mars had liquid water on its surface in rivers, lakes and possibly oceans. The crust on Mars could also have been full of water from very early in its history, too,” Mr. Manga said. “On Earth, groundwater underground infiltrated from the surface, and we expect this to be similar to the history of water on Mars. This must have occurred during a time when the upper crust was warmer than it is today.”
Water would be a vital resource if humankind ever is to place astronauts on the Martian surface or establish some sort of long-term settlement. Mars harbors water in the form of ice at its polar regions and in its subsurface. But the depth of the apparent underground liquid water would make it difficult to access.
Plant-based diets gain traction in the EU but culture and economy still shape food choices
A shift in diets is central to tackling obesity and climate change, according to Eric Lambin, a member of the European Commission’s Group of Chief Scientific Advisors.
EU member states are increasingly integrating climate change concerns into their dietary guidelines, but economic and cultural differences among countries continue to stand in the way of an EU-wide consensus on sustainable and healthy diets.
Last week, Austria became the latest EU country to update its dietary guidelines, incorporating climate impact and introducing separate recommendations for vegetarians.
“Current developments, especially the food system as a driver of climate change, require an expansion of the Austrian nutritional recommendations to include climate and health parameters,” said a statement published by the Austrian Ministry of Social Affairs, Health and Consumers on 25 July.
Vienna is not alone in seeking to balance sustainability with health when helping citizens navigate food options, as Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden have made similar moves in recent years.
Their approach is in line with that of the World Health Organisation (WHO), whose director-general, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, called for a shift to “more plant-based diets” at the COP28 UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai last December.
We are what we eat
According to the Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), over 100 countries have developed national dietary guidelines to promote healthy eating patterns.
All EU nations have issued such documents, but they vary in their take on sustainability and product consumption, often influenced by local food cultures and traditions.
“What we eat has a lot to do not only with our culture and gastronomy but also with the society and economy in which we live,” Manuel Franco, a doctor and epidemiologist at the University of Alcalá (Spain) and the Johns Hopkins University (United States), said in an interview with Euractiv.
A good example is the varying recommendations on fish consumption across Europe.
While Austria’s updated guidelines suggest only one serving per week, Spain – the EU’s largest producer of fish – calls for at least three.
Franco said drafting dietary guidelines involves a “tension” between different parameters, such as the economy, health, and sustainability, leading to political decisions that may favour one aspect over another.
For instance, asking Spaniards to do with less fish for sustainability reasons would not be acceptable “either culturally or economically,” Franco noted.
Alcohol is another area where guidelines vary. Greece’s latest recommendations, from 2017, endorsed a “Mediterranean diet” that can include daily wine consumption “in moderation”.
“Sometimes decisions are made only by considering health (…), sometimes culture and gastronomy, and not science,” said the epidemiologist.
More – or less – plant-based
A common trend in revised dietary guidelines across the EU is a stronger emphasis on plant-based options at the expense of meat and dairy products.
According to Franco, efforts to reduce animal product intake is “a huge step forward” from a health and environmental perspective.
Austria’s revised recommendations advise limiting meat and fish to once a week, with an optional extra portion of either. This equates to 32.25 grams (gr) of meat per day – about three chicken nuggets per day.
Germany, like Austria, updated its guidelines in March to strongly favour plant-based foods. The message is clear: When it comes to meat and sausages, “less is more”.
Similarly, in 2015, the Netherlands recommended eating less “or no” meat and provided tips on becoming a vegetarian.
While the Dutch highlighted the sustainability of plant-based alternatives compared to meat and dairy, Italy took a more cautious approach in its 2018 guidelines.
Rome opted for “a few animal products”, noting that these are “still necessary” to avoid nutritional deficiencies.
Sweden and Denmark’s guidelines, from 2015 and 2021 respectively, also called on citizens to cut back on meat.
However, Stockholm pointed to trade-offs when reducing the consumption of dairy products.
“Butter has more of an impact on the environment than oils, but at the same time it can help bring about a rich agricultural landscape and biodiversity,” the guidelines stated.
Guidelines and society
Franco warned that as dietary guidelines evolve, it is crucial to ensure that society follows suit.He said investment in public procurement, especially school canteens, is the low-hanging fruit to bring healthy and sustainable diets closer to citizens.
The environmental NGO WWF Europe, which praised Austria’s initiative, also called for more public measures to encourage environment-friendly diets. The organisation suggested practical steps, such as price cuts for plant-based products and improving labelling on animal welfare conditions.
“Anyone who only relies on raising awareness will fail in this task. Politicians must face up to their responsibility instead of just outsourcing it to people,” the WWF said in a press release.
Franco highlighted the role of social justice in sustainability, emphasising that the best food options should be accessible to all citizens, regardless of their economic and social status.
“Diets and diet-related diseases in our countries today are still rooted in inequality and respond to a social gradient,” he noted.
The authorities have warned that the storm, which has already flooded some streets in the Tokyo area, could bring violent winds and cause landslides.
Typhoon Ampil neared eastern Japan with strong winds on Friday and dumped heavy rain on the greater Tokyo area, flooding some streets, forcing evacuations and causing widespread disruptions to businesses and travel.
The Japanese authorities have warned that the storm could bring violent wind, high waves and the risk of landslides. Ampil had maximum sustained winds of 132 miles per hour on Friday morning, similar in strength to a Category 4 hurricane, the U.S. Navy’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center said.
Ampil’s most powerful winds and heaviest rain were expected to reach Japan by Friday evening, though the storm was not expected to make landfall, forecasters said.
Up to eight inches of rain were forecast in the Tokyo area and the Izu Islands, south of the capital, for the 24-hour period starting Friday morning, the Japan Meterological Agency said.
Wind speeds of up to 56 m.p.h. were forecast in the Tokyo area, forecasters warned.
The agency on Friday issued flood, heavy rain and high wave warnings for the Izu Islands and areas around Tokyo, including Chiba, Fukushima and Shizuoka prefectures. Some of those warnings were expected to last into Saturday.
The city of Mobara, east of Tokyo, issued evacuation orders on Thursday for residents in areas prone to landslides and floods, citing the possibility of damage from the typhoon. The city also suspended its municipal buses on Friday.
Ampil has also disrupted Japan’s delivery system. Japan Post and Yamato Transport suspended operations in several prefectures. Sagawa Express said that delays caused by traffic restrictions and ferry and flight cancellations would affect areas as far as Hokkaido, in northern Japan.
Iranian Nobel Laureate Badly Beaten in Prison, Her Lawyer and Family Say
The Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi was violently beaten by prison guards last week after leading a protest against the death penalty, and her requests for hospital care and a meeting with her lawyer were denied, her lawyer said on Thursday.
The lawyer, Mostafa Nili, told Iranian news media about the violence against Ms. Mohammadi, raising concerns about the state of her health and well-being. He said that her cellmates had communicated her situation.
“My client says that she was beaten and has bruises on her body,” Mr. Nili was quoted as saying in the reformist-leaning Emtedad news outlet. “Despite the prison doctor’s orders, and considering my client’s heart condition,” he said, “she has not been sent to the hospital.”
Mr. Nili said that for the past nine months, the prison authorities had denied Ms. Mohammadi the right to make phone calls and to have visits with her family and lawyer.
From the women’s ward of the prison, she has organized workshops, talks, protests and sit-ins against the government’s human rights violations.
On Aug. 6, Ms. Mohammadi and other female prisoners staged a protest and chanted slogans against the planned execution of a Kurdish man, Reza Rasaei, 34, who was arrested during protests in 2022 and accused of having a role in the killing of a member of Iran’s security forces. He denied the allegations, and rights group said he had been convicted in “a sham trial.”
Ms. Mohammadi’s Instagram page also posted an audio from an earlier protest that she and other prisoners had staged that month against the death penalty. The women can be heard chanting, “Neither threats, nor repression, nor executions have any effect any more,” and “Death to the dictator.”
Their gathering on Aug. 6 turned violent, Ms. Mohammadi’s husband, Taghi Rahmani, and Mr. Nili said, when agents from the Intelligence Ministry who were stationed at the prison tried to quell their chanting and then anti-riot prison guards raided their protest in the prison yard. The women were violently beaten, pushed and shoved into their cells and locked inside, her husband said.
Ukraine has destroyed a strategically important bridge over the river Seym, as it continues its incursion into Russia’s Kursk region.
Russian officials have been quoted as saying the operation near the town of Glushkovo has cut off part of the local district.
The bridge was used by the Kremlin to supply its troops and its destruction could hamper their efforts.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian troops were strengthening their positions in Kursk, and called the captured territories an exchange fund, implying they could be swapped for Ukrainian regions occupied by Moscow.
Now in its second week, this is Ukraine’s deepest incursion into Russia since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion more than two years ago.
Ukraine’s surprise cross-border operation has resulted in more than 120,000 people fleeing to safety.
But amid Ukrainian claims of territorial gains, Kyiv has repeatedly maintained it does not wish to occupy Russia.
“Ukraine is not interested in occupying Russian territories,” a senior aide to Ukrainian President Zelensky said on Friday.
Mykhailo Podolyak said one of the key objectives they wanted out of their incursion into Russia was to get Moscow to negotiate “on our own terms”.
“In the Kursk region, we can clearly see how the military tool is being used objectively to persuade Russia to enter a fair negotiation process,” he wrote on X, adding Kyiv has proven “effective means of coercion”.
The head of the Ukrainian military, Oleksandr Syrsky, said on Friday that the offensive had made further progress.
“The troops of the offensive group continue to fight and have advanced in some areas from one to three kilometres towards the enemy,” he told President Zelensky in a video posted on social media.
Syrsky said he hoped to take “many prisoners” from a battle in the village of Mala Loknya, about 13km (8 miles) from the border.
As Ukraine’s advance continues, officials in Russia’s Belgorod region bordering Ukraine have said they will evacuate five villages starting on Monday.
“From 19 August, we are closing access to five settlements, removing residents and helping them bring out their property,” Belgorod governor Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on the Telegram social messaging app, naming small villages near the border.
However, as Ukraine moves further into western Russian territory, Russian forces are equally making gains in Ukraine’s east.
On Friday, Moscow said its troops had captured Serhiivka, the latest in a string of towns claimed by Russian troops in recent weeks.
The latest advances bring the Russians closer to the city of Pokrovsk, a vital logistics hub that sits on a main road for supplies to Ukrainian troops along the eastern front.
Pokrovsk lies north-west of the Russian-held Donetsk region, which has been under Ukrainian fire since Friday morning, leaving several civilians injured.
A message from the head of the city’s military administration, Sergiy Dobryak, on Thursday, urged people to evacuate as Russia was “rapidly approaching the outskirts”.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c628gk68p3po
Editors’ Note
As people become more generous and broad-minded, they rise above the feelings of casteism, tribalism, provincialism and nationalism, which evoke narrowness, violence, hatred and meanness. Those who enter the field of social welfare with feelings of “mine” and “yours” actually create divisions in human society. Those who wish to foster the welfare of living beings as a whole have to embrace universalism as the only alternative. If we look upon everything as our own, the question of “mine” and “yours” will dissolve; in universalism there is no opportunity for violence, hatred or narrowness.
Shri P R Sarkar
Problems of the Day
THE END
August 10, 2024
Health
CEPI and WHO urge broader research strategy for countries to prepare for the next pandemic
The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the World Health Organization (WHO) today called on researchers and governments to strengthen and accelerate global research to prepare for the next pandemic.
They emphasized the importance of expanding research to encompass entire families of pathogens that can infect humans–regardless of their perceived pandemic risk–as well as focusing on individual pathogens. The approach proposes using prototype pathogens as guides or pathfinders to develop the knowledge base for entire pathogen families.
At the Global Pandemic Preparedness Summit 2024 held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, WHO R&D Blueprint for Epidemics issued a report urging a broader-based approach by researchers and countries. This approach aims to create broadly applicable knowledge, tools and countermeasures that can be rapidly adapted to emerging threats. This strategy also aims to speed up surveillance and research to understand how pathogens transmit and infect humans and how the immune system responds to them.
To facilitate this, WHO is engaging research institutions across the world to establish a Collaborative Open Research Consortium (CORC) for each pathogen family, with a WHO Collaborating Centre acting as the research hub for each family.
These CORCs around the world will involve researchers, developers, funders, regulators, trial experts and others, with the aim to promote greater research collaboration and equitable participation, particularly from places where the pathogens are known to or highly likely to circulate.
EPA issues emergency order to suspend use of pesticide Dacthal
For the first time in nearly 40 years, the Environmental Protection Agency issued an emergency order on Tuesday to suspend use of the pesticide dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate, also known as DCPA and Dacthal. “DCPA is so dangerous it needs to be removed from the market immediately,” said Michael Freedhoff, an EPA chemical safety official.
Dacthal is a pesticide used mainly to control weeds in crops such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and onions. The EPA acted while the chemical was undergoing a periodic review, required by law. AMVAC Chemical Corp. is the sole manufacturer of Dacthal.
The agency said Dacthal could cause changes to fetal thyroid hormone levels in pregnant women that were “generally linked to low birth weight, impaired brain development, decreased IQ, and impaired motor skills later in life, some of which may be irreversible.”
Maui wildfires scorched a 150-year-old banyan tree. Now, it’s healing.
Maui wildfires in 2023 scorched the historic banyan tree of Lahaina, but thanks to conservation and restoration efforts, parts of it are sprouting back to life.
August 8, 2024 at 8:01 a.m. EDT
One year ago, wildfires devastated the historic Maui town of Lahaina, once the royal capital of Hawaii, leaving one of its most iconic symbols, a more than 150-year-old banyan tree, battered — but not beaten.
Now, thanks to arborists who have worked for the past year to save the tree, parts of it are slowly healing. Long branches with “hundreds of leaves” are growing back, Duane Sparkman, chair of the Maui County Arborist Committee, told the Associated Press, adding, “It’s pretty amazing to see that much of the tree come back.”
The 60-foot tree — a beloved local landmark which conservation experts believe is the largest of its kind in the United States — appeared charred, lifeless and covered in ash in the aftermath of the August fires that killed at least 102 people. In recent photos, parts of the tree were once again covered in bushy green leaves — a positive sign of growth that is likely to add to local residents’ hope of recovery following the fire, whose effects continue to be felt.
After the fires, volunteers began to work toward the tree’s recovery, carefully tending to its soil, monitoring it for signs of growth and even providing it with what they call “tree-loving soup,” Hawaii Magazine reported earlier this month.
The “soup,” a concoction of nutrients made by landscaper Chris Imonti, was created as part of the local mission to recover the tree. “Like many others, I have a personal attachment to the tree,” Imonti told the magazine. “We’re taking it to heart to try to bring back the tree, to give some hope to Lahaina.”
Leaves began to sprout on the banyan tree shortly after the fire. Sharing footage of the progress last September, Maui’s Department of Land and Natural Resources celebrated “positive signs of long-term recovery” and acknowledged the work of arborists who volunteered to save the tree.
Maui County arborist Timothy Griffin told ABC News the initial signs of recovery appeared earlier than expected, bolstering hopes that the tree would survive. Still, about 40 percent of the tree died in the fire, ABC reported.
Sparkman told the AP that volunteers removed the branches that died in the fires to conserve the tree’s energy and allow it to grow new branches. They monitored the equivalent of the tree’s vital signs — levels of sap in its branches — using sensors, Sparkman said, likening the technology to a heart monitor. “As we’ve been treating the tree, the heartbeat’s getting stronger and stronger and stronger,” he told the AP.
The wildfires destroyed thousands of homes and damaged nature in Lahaina. But out of the ashes of that tragedy, some environmental activists believe there is an opportunity to invest in conservation and restoration efforts to preserve the island’s natural environment.
As The Washington Post reported, a growing group of Native Hawaiian leaders, local advocates and elected officials are working to restore the wetlands that were a landmark of pre-colonial Lahaina but were reduced or damaged by centuries of water-intensive farming and construction.
Poetry Was an Official Olympic Event for Nearly 40 Years. What Happened?
Pierre de Coubertin hoped the modern Games would encourage the ancient Greek notion of harmony between “muscle and mind”
At the ancient Olympics in Greece, athletes weren’t the only stars of the show. The spectacle also attracted poets, who recited their works for eager audiences. Competitors commissioned bigger names to write odes of their victories, which choruses performed at elaborate celebrations. Physical strength and literary prowess were inextricably linked.
Thousands of years later, this image appealed to Pierre de Coubertin, a French baron best known as the founder of the modern Olympics in 1896. But today’s Games bear little resemblance to Coubertin’s grand vision: He pictured a competition that would “reunite in the bonds of legitimate wedlock a long-divorced couple—muscle and mind.”
The baron believed that humanity had “lost all sense of eurythmy,” a word he used to describe the harmony of arts and athletics. The idea can be traced back to sources such as Plato’sRepublic, in which Socrates extolls the virtues of education that combines “gymnastic for the body and music for the soul.” Poets should become athletes, and athletes should try their hand at verse.
That philosophy was a driving force at the 1912 Stockholm Games, where organizers introduced five arts competitions as official Olympic events. Modern history’s first written work to win an Olympic gold medal was “Ode to Sport,” a prose poem by Georges Hohrod and M. Eschbach.
PM resigns as student protests become national uprising
Pressure from a four-week student movement that began peacefully in early July and evolved into an anti-government people’s uprising in Bangladesh has forced Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to step down and flee the country.
A wave of euphoria swept the capital Dhaka as news spread of Hasina’s resignation and hurried departure from the country, with hundreds of thousands of university students, along with people from all walks of life, taking to the streets in delight.
Some unruly mobs stormed the Prime Minister’s office, Prime Minister’s Official Residence and the National Parliament building, which were ransacked.
University World News’ correspondent saw thousands of people enter Ganabhaban, the official residence of the prime minister, taking selfies, and taking away chickens, fish, furniture, even parts of refrigerators, air conditioners, as well as books and other belongings.
Some told University World News they were taking them as ‘memorabilia’ to remember the momentous day.
“I can feel the goosebumps. We waited for this moment for many days. I was not able to talk freely, I was not allowed to cast my vote,” Rafat Alam, a Dhaka University student, told University World News.
With the main opposition party boycotting the January election, many students did not vote.
In a televised address to the nation on Monday afternoon Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman said an interim government will be formed to run the country,
Later the same day, Bangladesh President Mohammed Shahabuddin held an emergency meeting with chiefs of the three armed services, representatives of various political parties and representatives of civil society at his official residence known as Bangabhaban on forming an ‘interim government’.
Shahabuddin said parliament will be dissolved soon and an interim government formed.
In his late-night television address, the President said everyone detained or arrested over the violence during recent student protests would be released and the families of those killed and injured will get compensation.
President Droupadi Murmu Addresses New Zealand International Education Conference
Speaking on the occasion, the President elaborated on the rich Indian tradition of pursuit of knowledge and the contemporary progress in the field of education, including the National Education Policy aimed at transforming the Indian education landscape by promoting multidisciplinary learning, critical thinking and global competitiveness.
She added that New Zealand is renowned for its high-quality education with focus on research & innovation, inclusivity and excellence. Many Indian students are gaining access to quality education at various institutions in New Zealand.
The President encouraged more educational exchanges and collaboration between our institutions, particularly in the fields of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, vocational and skills-based training, climate and environment studies, cultural exchange programs, research and innovation.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon of New Zealand also called on the President. Both the leaders held discussions on various issues ranging from deepening of cultural ties to commitment for regional and global security.
Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters of New Zealand also called on President Droupadi Murmu. Both leaders acknowledged the progress in bilateral relations and deliberated upon ways of enhancing cooperation.
The President also paid floral tributes at the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at Wellington Railway Station and laid a wreath to pay tribute to martyred soldiers at the Pukeahu National War Memorial in Wellington. Governor General Dame Cindy Kiro joined the President on both occasions.
In the last official engagement in Wellington, President Droupadi Murmu attended a banquet hosted in her honour by Governor General Kiro.
In her remarks on the occasion, the President said that India and New Zealand have, over the years, developed a warm and friendly relationship anchored by shared values rooted in democracy and rule of law. We both value diversity and inclusiveness, which is evident in the multicultural fabric of our societies.
The President said that as we look to the future, there is immense potential to deepen our engagement and explore new avenues of cooperation with New Zealand. The fields of artificial intelligence, green technologies, agricultural technology, commercial space explorations offer exciting opportunities for collaboration.
The President was happy to note that in the global arena, India and New Zealand have consistently worked together to address pressing challenges such as climate change, sustainable development, and international peace and security.
The exceptionally warm and cordial interactions between the two leaders during the State Visit brought out a special connection and affinity between them. Governor General Dame Cindy Kiro is the first woman of Maori origin to hold the post, while President Murmu is the first woman President of India from a tribal community. The two leaders also share a common interest and experience in the field of education.
Space Perspective unveils mothership boat for stratospheric balloon trips
The first-ever “marine spaceport” is now complete and begins preparing for launches of balloons transporting tourists to the edge of space.
Space Perspective has announced the completion of its new “marine spaceport” where its stratospheric balloons will take intrepid tourists to the edge of space.The vessel, Marine Spaceport (MS) Voyager (named in commemoration of Voyager 1 interstellar probe mission), took two years to build. Space Perspective says it is the first-ever spaceport for human spaceflight that will be on open water, and will be located on the Space Coast of Florida.
Culture
Nine countries unite for Romania’s international folklore festival
Hundreds of dancers from nine countries attended the International Folklore Festival in Romania on Sunday.
Mexican guitars, Greek flutes, Czech violins and Romanian shouts could be heard at the opening of the 12th edition of the country’s international folklore festival.
It was held on the streets of the Aiud municipality in Central Romania’s Alba county.
Nine countries sent ensembles to represent them at the festival on the banks of the Mures river.
Most of the 300 dancers sent to show their talent and passion for folklore at the festival are in Romania for the first time.
Residents of Aiud look forward to this festival every year — especially because the ensembles differ each time.
The festival ended Sunday evening with a laureate’s gala after a weekend full of music and dances from performers gathered from around the world.
Chinese organ harvesting victim woke up chained to bed with parts of liver and lung missing
The first known survivor of China’s forced organ harvesting campaign against religious prisoners said he was now ready to speak out and expose the “evil” of the Chinese Communist Party.
Cheng Pei Ming, 58, who will talk publicly for the first time in Washington on Friday, described how he still feels “extreme pain” 20 years after parts of his lung and liver were forcibly removed.
“I believed they would kill me. I’m not sure they thought I could survive, but I did,” Mr Cheng told The Telegraph as he took off his shirt to expose a scar that wraps around his chest all the way to his back.
The movement swept across the country, but was outlawed in 1999 and then brutally suppressed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which branded it an “evil cult” and a threat to the state.
Beijing has long viewed religious groups as a threat to social order and the party’s ideological grip on power.
In the decades after Falun Gong was banned and its followers were persecuted, China’s organ transplantation industry exploded. Vital organs became readily available within a matter of days in state-run hospitals – a timeframe no national transplantation system elsewhere in the world has ever been able to achieve.
In 2019, an independent tribunal in London ruled that the Chinese government continued to commit crimes against humanity by targeting minorities, including the Falun Gong movement, for organ harvesting.
The CCP has denied accusations of organ harvesting and repeatedly denied that Falun Gong practitioners have been killed for their organs.
But in 2021, UN human rights experts reported that along with Falun Gong practitioners, other minorities had been targeted, including Uyghurs, Tibetans, Muslims and Christians in detention in China.
Mr Cheng said he could not understand why they would crack down on a religion that promoted peace.
“Falun Gong teaches people to be good and to have compassion and empathy for all people. We mean no harm to society, the persecution against us should have never happened,” he said.
After 14 years of evading Chinese authorities, including five years in Thailand where he was granted UN refugee status, Mr Cheng reached the US in July 2020.
Mr Cheng was first arrested in September 1999. He said he was tortured and told to give up his faith and that when he refused he was expelled along with his family from his home in the eastern province of Shandong.
In the years that followed, he was “kidnapped by the CCP” five times, each time suffering “unbearable” torture, he said.
“I remembered asking: ‘Why don’t you kill me instead?’ And they said: ‘It is too easy, we get great pleasure in torturing you’,” Mr Cheng said.
In 2002, he was sentenced to eight years in jail. He recalled seeing other Falun Gong inmates disappear. Some were sent to so-called “re-education” labour camps; others were tortured to death.
In July 2004, Mr Cheng said he was dragged into a hospital where agents from the CCP’s infamous 610 office – dubbed “China’s gestapo” – tried to make him sign consent forms. When he refused, they knocked him down and put him to sleep.
His family was told that he was undergoing surgery and had a 20 per cent chance of survival.
Israel-Hamas Conflict: Airlines To Stop Flights To Key Cities In Middle East
Concerns over escalating tensions in the Middle East have prompted several international airlines to suspend their flights to the region. Among them, Air India has announced an indefinite halt to its services to and from Tel Aviv. The suspension, effective immediately, was implemented due to heightened conflict between Iran and Israel.
Air India, in a statement on X, said, “In light of the current situation in parts of the Middle East, we have suspended our flights to and from Tel Aviv with immediate effect.” This decision follows increased tensions after the assassination of key leaders from militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah, which has fueled fears of a broader regional conflict.
Other airlines have also adjusted their flight schedules in response to the deteriorating situation. Air France has extended its suspension of flights between Paris and Beirut until August 11, while Delta Airlines has halted its services between New York and Tel Aviv until August 31. Additionally, the Algerian airline has temporarily suspended flights to and from Lebanon until further notice, and a German airline has announced it will avoid Iranian and Iraqi airspace, suspending flights to several Middle Eastern destinations, including Tel Aviv, Tehran, and Beirut, through August 13. Singapore Airlines has also rerouted flights to avoid flying over Iranian airspace.
These suspensions come amid growing concerns over a potential Iranian retaliation following the killing of a top Hamas leader in Tehran. The assassination has escalated tensions between Israel and Iran, with Iran blaming Israel for the attack and vowing a strong response. Leaders from Hezbollah, Hamas, and other groups have also pledged retaliation, raising fears of a regional war and sparking international efforts to prevent further violence.
[One who attains Brahma is not afraid of anything.]
You should not be afraid of any power in the universe. Atom bombs are so insignificant. Human beings will discover much more powerful weapons in future, so there is no reason at all why moralists should be afraid of them.
Shri P R Sarkar
2 December 1978, Calcutta
THE END
August 3, 2024
Education
“250 million children worldwide are out of the classroom”
The Global Partnership for Education (GPE) is the largest global fund dedicated solely to building strong and resilient education in lower-income countries worldwide. For two decades, GPE has been working in countries racked by poverty and conflict — so that more children, especially girls, can get the education they need.
Laura Frigenti has been CEO of GPE since February 2021
We are unfortunately not on track and the bad news is that all the good progress made in previous decades has been partly reversed by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has kept schools closed in some countries for about three years. The bad news is that we see that children are not coming back — at least not in the volumes that we would like to see. And the particularly bad news is that girls are not coming back as much as boys are.
The needs are pretty much the same across all regions. We need to bring back into school those 250 million children worldwide that are out of the classroom at the moment. We need to make sure that when they are in the classroom they learn something. At the moment, in low-income countries worldwide, seven out of 10 children complete grade four and still cannot read or write a simple sentence, which means that all these investments in education haven’t actually brought good results.
How can we give extra help to the most vulnerable, such as girls and children with disabilities?
In the specific case of girls and vulnerable girls, a lot of the work needs to be done with the community. It’s often parents and the community at large that do not appreciate how important it is for girls, indeed all children, to be in school. That is our starting point, which is now yielding some good results.
What innovations can improve access to education? How can we best apply new technologies, policies and processes to ensure maximum impact?
The single most important thing is for governments to understand that nobody should be left behind. We then need to work closely with local leaders to understand what are the bottlenecks. For example, why do parents decide not to send children to school? Is it because the school is far from home and they think the journey is dangerous for girls? We have to correct that.
I would say that the most important innovation is actually something simple: You have to be grounded in local reality to understand what the specificity of your problems are.
America’s First Female Olympic Champion Never Knew She Was an Olympian
Margaret Abbott spent her life unaware that a golf tournament she won was part of the 1900 Summer Olympics.
After 22-year-old American Margaret Abbott won the women’s golf tournament at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, no gold medal was draped around her neck. There was no standing atop a podium as the Stars and Stripes was raised, no homecoming parade, no photo on the front of a Wheaties box.
In fact, Abbott walked off the course unaware that she had just become the first American woman to win an Olympic event, and she remained oblivious to her place in sports history until her death in 1955.
The 1900 Summer Olympics bore little resemblance to today’s global sporting spectacle. Far from consuming Paris, the second staging of the modern Olympic Games was a sideshow to the World’s Fair being held simultaneously in the French capital. The company that organized the 1900 Paris Exposition also managed the schedule of loosely organized sporting events that stretched over six months and included eclectic competitions such as tug-of-war, Basque pelota, kite flying and pigeon racing.
It was far from clear which events were part of the Olympic program and which ones were held in conjunction with the World’s Fair. When Abbott entered a golf tournament staged by the exhibition in October 1900, she thought she was competing merely for the championship of Paris.
Born in India in 1878, Abbott was an infant when her American father died and her novelist mother, Mary Abbott, brought her to the United States.
Women Make Their Olympic Debut in Paris
Much like the ancient Olympics after which it was modeled, the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 prohibited women from competing. Four years later, however, 22 women (out of nearly 1,000 athletes) were permitted to participate in the 1900 Summer Olympics in select sports deemed socially acceptable for women such as croquet, equestrianism, tennis and golf.
After her triumph, Margaret Abbott received an old Saxon porcelain bowl mounted in chiseled gold but no indication she had won an Olympic event. (Gold medals did not become the traditional prize for Olympic champions until the 1904 Summer Games.)
World’s forests failed to curb 2023 climate emissions, study finds
Forests and other land ecosystems failed to curb climate change in 2023 as intense drought in the Amazon rainforest and record wildfires in Canada hampered their natural ability to absorb carbon dioxide, according to a study presented on Monday.
That means a record amount of carbon dioxide entered Earth’s atmosphere last year, further feeding global warming, the researchers said.
Plant life helps to slow climate change by taking in huge amounts of carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas driving global warming. Forests and other land ecosystems on average absorb nearly a third of annual emissions from fossil fuels, industry and other human causes.
But in 2023, that carbon sink collapsed, according to study co-author Philippe Ciais of the Laboratory for Climate and Environmental Sciences (LSCE), a French research organization.
“The sink is a pump, and we are pumping less carbon from the atmosphere into the land,” Ciais said in an interview. “Suddenly the pump is choking, and it’s pumping less.”
As a result, the growth rate of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere jumped 86% in 2023 compared to 2022, the researchers said.
Scientists at Tsinghua University in China, the University of Exeter in England and LSCE led the research into what caused the shift. Their study was presented at the International Carbon Dioxide Conference in Manaus, Brazil.
A major driver was record high temperatures globally that dried out vegetation in the Amazon and other rainforests, preventing them from taking up more carbon while also fueling record fires in Canada, the study found.
If we are to lower food prices and support farmers, we need to restore land
Land restoration is the key to a well-functioning food system, healthier nature and stable climate.
In recent years, people everywhere have endured soaring food prices, coupled with growing concerns for the wellbeing of those who produce food. There are multiple reasons for these higher food costs: from geopolitical tensions to the COVID-19 pandemic to accelerating climate change. Farmers, retailers and consumers are all feeling the heat.
However, drought and land degradation, which are exacerbated by climate change, are the gravest threats to livestock and crops worldwide. This is one of the reasons why this year’s World Environment Day is calling for land protection and restoration to address land degradation, drought and desertification – and bring immediate social, economic and environmental net gains.
Land degradation and drought harm 3.2 billion people worldwide, including across East Africa, India, the Amazon basin, and large swaths of the United States. In Europe, even though summer is not yet in full swing, some areas are already on drought alert. In the near future, one in five people in China will face more droughts. Australia’s farmers are bracing for a 20-year-long megadrought. In the next 25 years, land degradation might reduce food productivity by 12 percent and raise food prices by almost a third. In the same period, the average family income will drop by 20 percent because of climate change. This is a global problem.
Delaying action on climate and nature loss pushes us into a vicious cycle: climate change further degrades soils, which makes farmers’ work harder and less profitable. They need more subsidies, chemicals and fertilisers to make more of less-fertile land, delivering less-nutritious food, and exacerbating the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and land loss, and pollution and waste.
We can stop this vicious cycle by helping nature to regenerate. The results already in are phenomenal. Multiple initiatives to build back degraded farmlands, forests, savannas, grasslands, peatlands and cities are making vast areas arable again and creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs. This is happening across the Mediterranean, in Africa, South and East Asia and in Small Island Developing States like Vanuatu. Areas like the Central American corridor that previously depended on aid have become self-sufficient following restoration efforts.
A new small study led by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers and published July 25th in the journal Nature Cardiovascular Research has revealed the impact of obesity on muscle structure in patients having a form of heart failure called heart failure with a preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF).
According to the Journal of Cardiac Failure, HFpEF represents more than half of all heart failure world-wide.
Originally, this form of heart disease was associated with having a high blood pressure and along with this, excess muscle growth (hypertrophy) to help counter the pressures. Over the past 2 decades, HFpEF is occurring more often in patients with severe obesity and diabetes according to the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. However, there are still very few effective HFpEF therapies, and a challenge in developing therapies has been the lack of studies in human heart tissue to determine exactly what is abnormal.
“HFpEF is a complex syndrome, involving abnormalities in many different organs,” says lead investigator David Kass, M.D., Professor of Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “We call it heart failure (HF) because its symptoms are similar to those found in patients with hearts that are weak. However, with HFpEF, heart contraction seems fine, yet heart failure symptoms still exist. While many prior efforts to treat HFpEF using standard HF drugs have not worked, success has since come from drugs used to treat diabetes and obesity.”
To perform the study, the research team obtained a small piece of muscle tissue from 25 patients who had been diagnosed with varying degrees of HFpEF caused by diabetes and obesity and compared them to heart tissue from 14 organ donors whose hearts were considered to be normal. They examined the muscle using an electron microscope that shows muscle structure at a very high magnification.
Mariam Meddeb, M.D., MS, cardiovascular disease specialist at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, who conducted the study says, “Unlike viewing the heart with a traditional microscope, the electron microscope allows us to magnify the image to 40,000 times its size. This provides a very clear picture inside the muscle cell, what we call ultrastructure, such as mitochondria that are the energy power plants, and sarcomeres (unit of muscle fiber) that generate force.”
The researchers found notable ultrastructural abnormalities were particularly present in tissue of the most obese patients who had HEpEF, which had mitochondria that were swollen, pale, and disrupted, had many fat droplets, and their sarcomeres appeared tattered. These abnormalities were not related to whether the patient had diabetes, and were less prominent in patients who were less obese.
A moon of Uranus could have a hidden ocean, James Webb Space Telescope finds
The Webb space telescope has new observations of Ariel – a moon of the outer planet Uranus – suggesting that Ariel might harbor an ice-covered, subsurface ocean. Icy ocean worlds in our outer solar system are a big deal. Scientists are so fascinated by the possibility that they’re sending a space mission to another potential ocean moon, Jupiter’s moon Europa. Why? Because they think these ocean moons might be homes for life! On July 24, 2024, a research team led by the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (JHUAPL) in Laurel, Maryland, pointed to the surprising presence of carbon dioxide on the surface of Ariel. They said these deposits might be replenished by a liquid ocean hidden in Ariel’s interior.
The researchers published their new peer-reviewed study in The Astrophysical Journal Letters on July 24, 2024.
The mystery of Ariel’s carbon dioxide ice
The major clue to a subsurface ocean comes from Ariel’s frozen surface. Ariel’s surface is geologically the youngest of Uranus’ 28 known moons. It is largely covered by water, carbon dioxide and ammonia ices.
The carbon dioxide ice surprised astronomers. Ariel has no detectable atmosphere, so even in the extreme cold where Uranus orbits the sun, it should sublimate (turn to gas). But since there is a fair amount of it on the moon’s surface, something must be re-supplying it on an on-going basis. Also, most of the ice is on Ariel’s trailing hemisphere. That’s the hemisphere that always faces away from the moon’s direction of motion in its orbit.
Scientists have proposed two main theories over the years. One is that charged particles in Uranus’ magnetosphere or solar radiation interact with Ariel’s surface. This could create carbon dioxide through a process called radiolysis.
The other possibility is that primordial carbon dioxide is trapped by water ice in Ariel’s interior. Outgassing could then leave deposits of carbon dioxide ice on the surface.
The new observations from Webb suggest the second option is more likely.
Kenya’s turmoil widens as anti-government protesters clash with emerging pro-government group
A wave of protests is sweeping through Kenya. Triggered by controversial proposed tax hikes, the movement has evolved into a wider campaign for more accountable governance in the country. Some demand the entire government’s resignation
NAIROBI, Kenya — Anti-government protesters in Kenya’s capital clashed with an emerging pro-government group on Tuesday, with hundreds swarming and burning a motorcycle belonging to people who expressed support for the country’s president. The military made a rare deployment as the protests focused on the country’s main airport.
The weeks of turmoil in East Africa’s economic hub have led to dozens of deaths, the firing of most Cabinet members and calls for President William Ruto’s resignation. Protests began with Kenyans’ rejecting a proposed bill to impose more taxes as millions in the country barely get by amid rising prices.
The pro-government movement has emerged to counter the youth-led anti-government one. In Nairobi on Tuesday, the pro-government group took to the streets ahead of the latest anti-government demonstration.
One protester, Charles Onyango, questioned why police were not confronting the pro-government demonstrators yet again dispersed those calling for change.
“Police are just standing by and letting these (suspected) hired goons to disrupt our protests and cause chaos,” Onyango said.
It was not immediately clear who was behind the pro-government movement.
Kenya’s main airport was meant to be the site of the latest protest, and anti-government demonstrators lit bonfires in a suburb along the highway that leads to it. Airport officials asked travelers to arrive early, and flights continued.
Police hurled tear-gas canisters at hundreds of protesters who blocked another road that leads to the airport, and the military was deployed to the Pipeline area east of the capital.
Protests also were reported in Kenya’s second largest city, the Indian Ocean port of Mombasa, as well as the city of Kisumu on Lake Victoria and Migori.
Kenya’s anti-government protests are in their fifth week. Under pressure, President William Ruto declined to sign the bill imposing new taxes and dismissed almost all Cabinet ministers, but protesters continue to call for his resignation.
At least 50 people have died and 413 others have been injured in the protests since June 18, according to the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights. The political opposition is demanding that families of those killed be compensated and that charges against those arrested during protests be dropped.
New Zealand to apologise after inquiry finds 200,000 children and vulnerable adults abused in care
WELLINGTON, – New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon expressed regret on Wednesday after a public inquiry found some 200,000 children, young people and vulnerable adults were abused in state and religious care over the last 70 years.
Nearly one in three children and vulnerable adults in care from 1950 to 2019 experienced some form of abuse, the report found, a finding that could leave the government facing billions of dollars in fresh compensation claims.
“This is a dark and sorrowful day in New Zealand’s history as a society and as a state, we should have done better, and I am determined that we will do so,” Luxon told a news conference.
An official apology will follow on Nov. 12, he added.
Survivors and their supporters filled the public gallery of the country’s parliament as the report was debated, while still more watched from a separate room.
After Luxon spoke, likening the abuse against children at one of the state care facilities, Lake Alice, to torture, many stood and sang an Indigenous Maori song about love and unity.
The report by Royal Commission of Inquiry spoke to over 2,300 survivors of abuse in New Zealand, which has a population of 5.3 million. The inquiry detailed a litany of abuses in state and faith-based care, including rape, sterilisation and electric shocks, which peaked in the 1970s.
Those from the Indigenous Maori community were especially vulnerable to abuse, the report found, as well as those with mental or physical disabilities.
Civil and faith leaders fought to cover up abuse by moving abusers to other locations and denying culpability, with many victims dying before seeing justice, the report added.
“It is a national disgrace that hundreds of thousands of children, young people and adults were abused and neglected in the care of the State and faith-based institutions,” the report said.
It made 138 recommendations, including calling for public apologies from New Zealand’s government, as well as the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury, heads of the Catholic and Anglican churches respectively, who have previously condemned child abuse.
PAYOUTS DUE
The report estimated the average lifetime cost to an abuse survivor, that is what New Zealanders would consider normal, day-to-day activities, was estimated in 2020 to be approximately NZ$857,000 per person, though the report did not make clear the amount of compensation available for survivors.
Luxon said he believed the total compensation due to survivors could run into billions of dollars.
US-Russia Prisoner Swap: Trump’s Promise, Delivered By Biden
In a high-profile prisoner swap that is being hailed by Biden supporters as a major victory for the administration, Russia released Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US marine Paul Whelan, along with 14 others.
In a press statement, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, “Under President Biden’s leadership, we have secured the release of dozens of Americans who were held hostage or wrongfully detained.” This set the tone for a political show of strength by the Democrats in the upcoming days as the party prepares for its big event in Chicago, the Democratic National Convention on August 19, where President Biden will be making his baton-handing speech.
In a high-profile prisoner swap that is being hailed by Biden supporters as a major victory for the administration, Russia released Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US marine Paul Whelan, along with 14 others.
In a press statement, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, “Under President Biden’s leadership, we have secured the release of dozens of Americans who were held hostage or wrongfully detained.” This set the tone for a political show of strength by the Democrats in the upcoming days as the party prepares for its big event in Chicago, the Democratic National Convention on August 19, where President Biden will be making his baton-handing speech.
A Win To Show
The prisoner swap provides him with the perfect opportunity to show that his administration got work done while the Republican nominee Donald Trump made false claims. What gives Biden a shot in the arm is that Trump had claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin would release Evan Gershkovich for him but not for anyone else (by which he meant President Biden, who was still running for a second term in May when Trump made this claim). He has been proven wrong in less than three months.
Here are the key points regarding President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race:
• Health and Age Concerns: There were growing concerns about Biden’s age and health, which influenced his decision.
• Poor Debate Performance: Biden’s performance in recent debates was seen as lackluster, contributing to doubts about his viability as a candidate.
• Party Pressure: Influential figures within the Democratic Party, including former President Barack Obama, urged Biden to step aside for the party’s best interest.
• Kamala Harris as Frontrunner: With Biden’s withdrawal, Vice President Kamala Harris has become the leading candidate for the Democratic nomination.
Source : Prout Universal Telegram group
THE END
July 20, 2024
Found in a cave in Indonesia, we can now show the world’s oldest figurative art is 51,200 years old
Karampuang Hill, where the artwork was found. Google Arts & Culture
Dated to at least 51,200 years ago, the art depicts an interaction between humans and a pig. It was found in a cave in Sulawesi, an island of Indonesia directly north-east of Bali and east of Borneo.
It’s a crucial piece of our history as humans, suggesting figurative art and storytelling have long been intertwined.
A new pioneering technique
In some limestone caves where people made rock art, dripping or flowing water occasionally led to the formation of mineral deposits on top of the paint layer, which provide a way to date the art scientifically.
Art to tell a story
We used this new technique to date a painting in a cave in southern Sulawesi named Leang Karampuang and showed it is at least 51,200 years old.
The painting consists of a scene dominated by a large naturalistic representation of a wild pig. In front of the pig are three smaller human-like figures. They appear to be interacting with the animal.
One figure seems to be holding an object near the pig’s throat. Another is directly above the pig’s head in an upside-down position with legs splayed out. The third figure is larger and grander in appearance than the others; it is holding an unidentified object and is possibly wearing an elaborate headdress.
We now know humans have used figurative art to tell stories for at least 51,000 years. Using our new dating method it may be possible in the future to fill in some of the many gaps in our knowledge of this key development in the history of art.
How a school in Colombia is teaching learners to preserve mangroves
The Mangroves Initiative is a project run by The Santa Fe Educational Institution, a public school in Turbo, Colombia. It promotes the analysis and understanding of local and regional environmental problems. In this initiative, participants learn about the importance of mangroves, being a source of carbon capture and as such contribute to the mitigation of climate change.
The school organizes field trips in the mangroves with students, teachers, parents, and environmental organizations to provide hands-on learning experiences and to help reforestation of this ecosystem.
Teaching innovative practices to preserve the environment
“Teaching for sustainability is an act of love for life: It’s the best way to build peace and reconciliation in the territories,” says Ms Mercado. “A challenge that the school must address, since we have a debt with the planet.”
The Mangroves Initiative embraces environmental education and actively engaging young learners to both preserve nature and understand how to tackle global environmental challenges.
The Santa Fe Educational Institution serves a total of 1,450 students from preschool to grade 11 and is committed to sustainability practices and initiatives. The Mangroves Initiative is an excellent example of how schools can use their local environment to promote innovative practices and activities to engage students to preserve the environment. This type of initiative can be adapted at a national scale and be included in national education plans. Colombia is now developing an education for sustainable development (ESD) country initiative aiming to integrate ESD into the national education system and to expand successful initiatives such as the Mangroves Initiative.
“As a guiding educator, I take pride in contributing to the holistic development of the children and youth who have breathed life into this wonderful initiative,” says Ms. Mercado. “I have been able to plant a seed for sustainability within them.”
Ezequiela Tovar Mercado was invited as a speaker to theESD-Net Learning Webinar heldon 28 March 2024 on Local and Indigenous Knowledge in ESD. Organized by UNESCO, the webinar addressed the importance of integrating traditional and cultural practices, and community-based approaches, into teaching and learning to foster environmental stewardship, social equity, and resilience among present and future generations in Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean.
‘Agroforest’ trial begins at RSPB’s arable farm, Cambridge shire (U.K.)
Thirteen varieties of apple trees, all juicing varieties, have been planted on the farm alongside cobnut and broadleaf trees
“The long term hope would be that by putting agroforestry on the farm, we have diversified the farm business so that it could actually be a useful tool for farmers to be a little bit more resilient when farming’s becoming increasingly more difficult,” said Ms Arnold.
“We’ve planted three different types of trees – 13 varieties of apples, all juicing varieties, three varieties of cobnuts, which is a commercial type of hazel which can hopefully be pressed for cobnut oil, and eight species of native broadleaves.”
The native trees will help protect the cropping species from “the big rolling winds that come through our flatland Cambridgeshire landscape”, she added.
They have been planted in eight six-metre (26ft) alleys, 24 metres (78ft) apart, on the RSPB’s Hope Farm, which it bought in 2000.
The charity took on the 181 hectare (447 acre)-farm to provide research-led evidence it was possible to encourage wildlife-friendly farming in one of the most intensively farmed bread baskets of England, alongside producing food and making a profit.
Today, 18 farmland birds are based on the farm, such as the linnet, yellowhammer and skylark, while others like lapwings, grey partridges and corn buntings have returned.
The RSPB set up the trial at Hope Farm as “the impact that some agroforestry practices may have on biodiversity is not well evidenced” – at a time of national tree-planting plans.
Ms Arnold said there will be “rigorous monitoring” of the agroforest “over biodiversity, the greenhouse gas fluxes, the business changes and diversity”.
“We aim to get a really thorough understanding of what it actually delivers before we could advocate for or against it in a policy sphere,” she said.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2v0eq50lzyo
Medicine
WHO Recognises 3rd Indian Institute For Traditional Medicine Research
This recognition has been granted for a period of four years.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has designated National Institute of Indian Medical Heritage (NIIMH) in Hyderabad, under the Ministry of Ayush, as a WHO Collaborating Centre (CC) for traditional medicine research, it was announced on Friday.
NIIMH, Hyderabad is a unit under the Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) which will now work as a WHO centre for ‘Fundamental and Literary Research in Traditional Medicine’.
This recognition has been granted for a period of four years.
New Delhi:
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has designated National Institute of Indian Medical Heritage (NIIMH) in Hyderabad, under the Ministry of Ayush, as a WHO Collaborating Centre (CC) for traditional medicine research, it was announced on Friday.
NIIMH, Hyderabad is a unit under the Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) which will now work as a WHO centre for ‘Fundamental and Literary Research in Traditional Medicine’.
This recognition has been granted for a period of four years.
CCRAS-NIIMH, Hyderabad, joins the ranks as the third WHO Collaborating Centre in the domain of traditional medicine, followed by the Institute for Teaching & Research in Ayurveda, Jamnagar, and the Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga (MDNIY), New Delhi.
“This designation by WHO is a significant milestone, reflecting our relentless efforts in the field of traditional medicine and historical research,” said Professor Vaidya Rabinarayan Acharya, Director General of CCRAS, NIIMH and Head of the WHO Collaborating Centre.
Established in 1956, the institute has been a pioneer in various digital initiatives of Ayush, including the AMAR Portal, which catalogues 16,000 Ayush manuscripts, featuring 4,249 digitised manuscripts, 1,224 rare books, 14,126 catalogues, and 4,114 periodicals.
The Showcase of Ayurvedic Historical Imprints (SAHI) Portal showcases 793 medico-historical artefacts, while the e-books of Ayush project provide digital versions of classical textbooks.
The NAMASTE Portal collects cumulative morbidity statistics from 168 hospitals, and the Ayush Research Portal indexes 42,818 published Ayush research articles.
Companies going bankrupt at the fastest pace since 2020 in ‘historic surge’
There is a “historic surge” of corporate bankruptcies underway in the US, as debt-saddled companies struggle to adjust to the new era of high interest rates.
New figures published by S&P Global Intelligence show that 75 companies filed for bankruptcy in June, the highest number recorded in a single month since early 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. That pushed this year’s total number of bankruptcies so far to 346, which is notably higher than comparable levels seen in the past 13 years.
Before this, the highest half-year figure recorded was in 2010, with 437 companies filing for bankruptcy from January through June.
The S&P report blamed high interest rates, supply chain issues and slowing consumer spending for the spike in bankruptcies this year.
The Federal Reserve raised interest rates sharply in 2022 and 2023 to the highest level since 2001 in a bid to crush high inflation, bringing to an end more than a decade of ultra-easy money. Officials are grappling with when they should take their foot off the brake amid signs that economic growth is slowing and inflation is once again falling.
Most investors expect the Fed to begin cutting rates in September or November and are penciling in just one or two reductions this year — a dramatic shift from the start of the year, when they anticipated six rate cuts beginning as soon as March.
Even then, rates will likely remain elevated.
Some economists have called on the US central bank to cut rates sooner, citing concerns that high interest rates pose a risk to the financial system.
“The economy has weathered the Fed’s higher-for-longer strategy admirably well, but there is a mounting threat that the ongoing pressure will expose fault lines in the financial system,” Moody’s chief economist Mark Zandi wrote in a recent Washington Post op-ed. “As last year’s banking crisis showed, the relentless strain of high rates can cause parts of the financial system to buckle in ways that are difficult to predict and control.”
Bankruptcies started to rise notably in April as companies continued to “feel the burden of high interest rates,” and as it dawned on many businesses that rates would likely remain at peak levels for some time.
“Fading hopes of lower interest rates are likely contributing to the increase in filings, as companies that may have held out hope for rate cuts at the beginning of the year come to terms with the reality that they will remain higher for longer,” the S&P said at the time.
Some of the notable bankruptcies in June included electric vehicle maker Fisker and Chicken Soup for the Soul, which owns DVD rental chain Redbox.
The world court says Israel’s occupation is illegal
But will the International Court of Justice’s ruling have any effect?
The UN’s top court has said Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories is against international law, in a landmark opinion.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) said Israel should stop settlement activity in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem and end its “illegal” occupation of those areas and the Gaza Strip as soon as possible.
In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the court had made a “decision of lies”.
The court’s advisory opinion is not legally binding but still carries significant political weight. It marks the first time the ICJ has delivered a position on the legality of the 57-year occupation.
The court was specifically asked to give its view on Israel’s policies and practices towards the Palestinians, and on the legal status of the occupation.
Step aside, Futurama: Scientists build robot that’s controlled by a brain in a jar
Living brain cells wired into a biocomputer could be the future of how robots learn to move.
There have been plenty of bizarre robots designed in the past, but this could well take the top spot. In a world first, this robot is more human than ever, kitted out with and controlled by a real-life brain.
This, of course, isn’t a real brain pulled from a human body. Cultured in vitro, these brains are created for the purpose of research – and, apparently, for integration into robots.
To control the robot, the researchers used the organism to make a so-called ‘brain-on-chip’. While the brain has some of the intelligent functions of a biological brain, it needs a bit of assistance.
The chip is added to the brain to allow the scientists to debug it, send signals to the outside world and thereby achieve specific functions, such as controlling the robot’s grabbing ability.
“The brain-computer interface on a chip is a technology that uses an in vitro cultured ‘brain’ (such as brain organoids) coupled with an electrode chip to achieve information interaction with the outside world through encoding and decoding and stimulation-feedback,” said Prof Ming Dong, vice president of Tianjin University.
Ukraine-Russia war – live: Trump claims he will ‘bring peace to the world’ after phone call with Zelensky
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky have spoken on the phone, just hours after the Ukrainian president said it would be “hard work” if the Republican returns to the White House.
Mr Trump said they had a “very good phone call” and promised to “bring peace to the world” and “end the war” if he is re-elected in November.
Mr Zelensky said they agreed to discuss steps to make “peace fair and truly lasting” and expressed thanks for US military assistance.
Their phone call comes amid concerns over a potential Trump administration’s policy on the Russia–Ukraine war if he wins the election. The Republican nominee has repeatedly promised to end the war in one day while criticising US military aid to Kyiv.
Earlier Antony Blinken said Ukraine was on its way to being able to “stand on its own feet” militarily as more than 20 other countries have pledged to maintain their own military and financial aid to the country even if the US were to withdraw its support under a different president.
Mr Blinken was for the first time directly addressing the possibility of Mr Trump winning the November election and backing away from US commitments to Ukraine.
The socio-economic philosophy of Ananda Marga calls for the elimination of capitalism. It clearly emphasizes the need to fulfil minimum economic needs and create an ideal congenial social environment in which there will be maximum utilization of collective wealth and the rational distribution of resources to solve all economic problems. Every human being will get ample opportunity to follow Prána Dharma.
Shri P R Sarkar
Prana Dharma
16 February 1967, Ranchi
THE END
July 13, 2024
4-Person crew leaves Mars simulator for first time in more than a year
Four volunteers have emerged from NASA’s simulated Mars environment after more than a year spent on a mission that never actually departed Earth.The volunteer crew members spent more than 12 months inside NASA’s first simulated Mars habitat at Johnson Space Center in Houston, which was designed to help scientists and researchers anticipate what a real mission to the planet might be like, along with all of its expected challenges. The crew exited the artificial alien environment on Saturday around 5 p.m., after 378 days.Kelly Haston, Anca Selariu, Ross Brockwell and Nathan Jones entered the 3D-printed habitat on June 25, 2023, as the maiden crew of the space agency’s Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog, or CHAPEA, project. The group consisted of a research scientist, a structural engineer, an emergency medicine physician, and a U.S. Navy microbiologist, respectively, who were selected from an applicant pool to head up the project’s first yearlong mission. None of them are trained as astronauts.Once they emerged, Haston, the mission commander, began with a simple, “Hello.””It’s actually just so wonderful to be able to say ‘hello’ to you all,” she said.Jones, a physician and the mission medical officer, said their 378 days in confinement “went by quickly.”The quartet lived and worked inside the space of 17,000 square feet to simulate a mission to the red planet, the fourth from the sun and a frequent focus of discussion among scientists and sci-fi fans alike concerning a possible voyage taking humans beyond our moon.The first CHAPEA crew focused on establishing possible conditions for future Mars operations through simulated spacewalks, dubbed “Marswalks,” as well as growing and harvesting vegetables to supplement their provisions and maintaining the habitat and their equipment.They also worked through challenges a real Mars crew would be expected to experience including limited resources, isolation and delays in communication of up to 22 minutes with their home planet on the other side of the habitat’s walls, NASA said.
Four-day week: Which countries are embracing it and how is it going so far?
Germany has become the latest testing ground for a four-day week with a new pilot project involving 45 companies starting in February. Where else has tried it?
Conversations around the four-day workweek were first reignited by the COVID-19 pandemic, with workers and employers rethinking the importance of workplace flexibility and benefits.
The idea is simple – employees would work four days a week while getting paid the same and earning the same benefits, but with the same workload.
Companies reducing their workweek would therefore operate with fewer meetings and more independent work.
Hailed as the future of employee productivity and work-life balance, advocates for the four-day workweek suggest that when implemented, worker satisfaction increases, and so does productivity.
Trade unions across Europe are calling for governments to implement the four-day working week, but which countries have embraced the idea and how is it going so far?
Belgium introduces a four-day workweek for employees who want it
Belgium became the first country in Europe to legislate for a four-day week.
In February 2022, Belgian employees won the right to perform a full workweek in four days instead of the usual five without loss of salary.
The new law came into force on November 21 last year, allowing employees to decide whether to work four or five days a week.
But this does not mean they will be working less – they will simply condense their working hours into fewer days.
German pilot for a shorter working week
Germany is already home to one of the shortest average working weeks in Europe. According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), the average working week is 34.2 hours.
Yet, trade unions have been calling for further reduced working hours – and now it looks like they might be getting what they want, though the reason for a change is linked to the shortage of workers experienced by the country.
As of February 1, 45 companies in Germany started testing the 4-day workweek in an experiment that would last six months in total.
The initiative, which only involves companies whose work can be adapted to a shorter workweek, is led by Berlin-based management consultancy Intraprenör together with the non-profit organisation 4 Day Week Global (4DWG).
China bans clinical research in germline genome editing as ‘irresponsible’
China has banned all clinical research involving germline genome editing under a newly released ethics guideline.
Germline gene engineering relates to altering the DNA in sperm, eggs or early embryos to introduce changes that can be inherited.
“Any clinical research involving germline genome editing is irresponsible and not permitted,” according to the Ethical Guideline for Human Genome Editing Research, released earlier this week by China’s Ministry of Science and Technology.
“Only when benefits, risks and alternative options are fully understood and weighed, when issues of safety and efficacy are addressed, broad social consensus is reached and rigorous evaluation is conducted, could clinical research be considered with strict supervision in place,” the guideline adds.
It also strictly prohibits the use of genome editing research on germ cells, fertilised eggs, or human embryos for reproductive purposes.
“The potential detrimental impacts and risks of germline genome editing are still unpredictable,” Zhai Xiaomei, a member of the National Science and Technology Ethics Committee, was quoted as saying by Science and Technology Daily.
Zhai said that though it was necessary to carry out basic and preclinical research to understand human embryonic development and relevant diseases, ethics mattered as well.
Even if gene editing is performed on early human embryos or germ cells, the modified cells are banned from being used for reproduction, according to Zhai.
He’s case, involving the world’s first gene-edited babies, triggered huge criticism in China and beyond. He was released from prison in April 2022 after serving a three-year sentence for illegal medical practice.
The left-wing alliance secured 188 seats in the National Assembly, according to official results. French President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist alliance is in second place with 161 seats. The far-right National Rally (RN) and its allies, which won by a clear margin in the first round, came in third with 142 seats.
The projected results mean that no party will obtain the 289 seats needed for an overall majority in the 577-seat assembly, setting the country of course for a hung parliament.
Netherlands announces ban on adoption from foreign countries
The Netherlands will no longer allow its citizens to adopt children internationally, the Minister for Legal Protection Franc Weerwind wrote on Tuesday. With this decision the minister responds to the motion passed by the Dutch House of Representatives in which the government was requested to come up with a plan to carefully reduce international adoptions.
The motion was passed for diverse reasons. The Dutch House of Representatives seriously doubted if it would be possible to design a realistic public law system in which abuses of the system could no longer occur. Several malpractices came to light in a 2021 report from the Joustra Committee, with the report concluding that the government had failed to combat adoption abuse. Furthermore international adoption is not a sustainable solution anymore to protect the interests of children, according to the government. The government states that the interests of children are best served when they can be safely cared for in their country of origin.
The topic of international adoption has been a discussion for a long time in the Netherlands, one of the reasons being that adopted children can not discover their origins and identity because of falsified documents and incorrect information in documents. Diverse abuses were being reported, from forcing parents to give up their child to child trafficking.
Practically the decision means that Fiom, the Dutch organisation that arranges international and domestic adoptions, can not accept any new registrations for international adoption. However procedures that have already started will be able to continue for the time being. The intended changes in time demand a changing of the law regarding international adoption, withWeerwind aiming to come up with a plan to gradually dismantle international adoption in September. This plan would need to provide clarity for all the ongoing international adoption procedures.
US firm unveils game-changing small nuclear reactor that can power 300,000 homes
US tech company, Westinghouse, has announced the launch of the AP300, a smaller version of its flagship AP1000 nuclear reactor, in an effort to extend access to nuclear power as demand for clean energy rises.
The AP300 nuclear reactor is scheduled to be operational in 2027 and will provide roughly one-third of the power of the flagship AP1000 reactor, according to an official press release by the firm on Thursday.
“The AP300 is the only small modular reactor offering available that is based on deployed, operating, and advanced reactor technology,” President and CEO of Westinghouse, Patrick Fragman, said in the statement.
“The launch of the AP300 SMR rounds out the Westinghouse portfolio of reactor technology, allowing us to deliver on the full needs of our customers globally, with a clear line of sight on schedule of delivery, and economics.”
Westinghouse’s decision marks a significant turning point in the nuclear industry’s effort to reinvent itself in response to climate change.
Nuclear fission reactor electricity produces no greenhouse gas emissions, and smaller nuclear reactors are less expensive to develop.
The AP300 is expected to cost around $1 billion per unit, compared to the AP1000’s anticipated cost of $6.8 billion.
What the world can learn from Denmark’s carbon tax on agriculture
Last month Denmark, a major pork and dairy exporter, reached a historic agreement with farming and conservation groups to introduce a carbon tax on livestock farming, making it the first country to do so.
To fulfill Denmark’s target of cutting its greenhouse gas emissions by 70% from 1990 levels, the deal calls for taxing farmers 300 Danish krone (about $43) per ton of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions. The tax, which would start in 2030, would apply to all greenhouse gas emissions from livestock digestion and manure handling and will be increased to 750 Danish krone by 2035.
From the start, Denmark wanted its tax to be a model for the rest of the world. Agriculture, forestry, and other land use contributed approximately 22% of human-made greenhouse gas emissions worldwide in 2019 — and in Denmark, at current rates agriculture and forestry are set to account for approximately
FACTS ABOUT THE AGREEMENT
Introduction of a CO2e tax on emissions from livestock. A fee of DKK 300 per ton CO2e in 2030 increasing to DKK 750 per tonnes of CO2e in 2035 with a deduction of 60%
Reductions in greenhouse gas emissions of 1.8 million tons of CO2e in 2030 with the potential of up to 2.6 million tons
Proceeds to be returned to the industry in the form of a Transition Support Pool to support the green transition of the industry
Establishment of a new Green Acreage Fund of DKK 40 billion to support afforestation, extraction of carbonaceous lowland soils, and investments in green initiatives and technology
Afforestation of 250,000 hectares
Extraction of 140,000 hectares of carbonaceous lowland soils incl. peripheral areas
‘We will not enlist:’ Ultra-Orthodox in Israel vow to defy orders to serve in the military
JerusalemCNN —
As thousands of men hurried towards the main square in Jerusalem’s ultra-Orthodox neighborhood of Mea Shearim on Sunday for a protest, they passed signs declaring “war” on a contentious order from Israel’s highest court.
The Supreme Court ruling on June 25 said the Israeli government must enlist draft-age ultra-Orthodox (or Haredi) Jews into the military, reversing a de facto exemption in place since the country’s founding 76 years ago.
Sunday’s rally in Shabbat Square, which drew thousands, was to demonstrate against the decision, which another poster said had “thrust a sword” through the “beit midrash,” or Torah study hall.
The protest highlighted the fault line in Israeli society between ultra-Orthodox Jews, who Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu relies on to maintain his government, and other Israelis, many of whom believe that all Jewish citizens should serve in the military, especially during wartime.
Many Haredi men spend much of their early lives out of the workforce, instead studying at religious schools known as yeshivas that are partly funded through government subsidies.
For many Haredis, the idea that they would be pulled from studying scripture and drafted into Israel’s military is simply out of the question.
An arrangement made during Israel’s founding exempted several hundred Haredi men from conscription. However, the community has since grown exponentially, allowing tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox men to now avoid the draft.
“We will not enlist,” said Yosef, 22, who traveled to the protest from his home in Beitar Illit, a large Haredi settlement in the occupied West Bank.
“Since the beginning of the state (of Israel), we have not enlisted… Now they want to make us (serve) by force. It will never work,” he said. “In a democratic state there is not much they can do besides put us in prison. We are not afraid of prison. We laugh about prison… and the more people that go into prison, the more demonstrations there will be in the country.”
As Yosef spoke, he looked up at a group of boys climbing a ladder to a nearby lamppost to hang a sign that read: “We will not enlist in the army.”
“We can’t watch as they tear the Torah to shreds,” said another man, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, due to the cultural norms of his community, some of whom are not open to speaking to the press. “We can’t be quiet. The High Court, the government, all the Knesset (parliament)… they are looking for ways for compromise and to send Haredi boys to be destroyed. We will die rather than be enlisted.”
Russia wants to confront NATO but dares not fight it on the battlefield – so it’s waging a hybrid war instead
When someone tried – and failed – to burn down a bus garage in Prague earlier this month, the unsuccessful arson attack didn’t draw much attention. Until, that is, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala revealed it was “very likely” that Moscow was behind it.
The accusation prompted alarm among security officials and governments because several similar incidents have occurred across Europe in recent months. The Museum of Occupation in Riga was targeted in an arson attack in February. A London warehouse burnt down in March and a shopping center in Warsaw went up in flames in May. Police in Germany arrested several people suspected of planning explosions and arson attacks in April, and French authorities launched an anti-terror investigation after detaining a suspected bomb-maker who was injured in a botched explosion earlier this month.
Multiple hacking attacks and spying incidents have been reported in different European countries. As the same time, the European Union has accused Russia and Belarus of weaponizing migration by pushing asylum seekers from third countries to its borders. There have also been several suspicious attacks against individuals: a Russian defector was found shot dead in Spain and an opposition figure exiled in Lithuania was brutally attacked with a hammer.
The seemingly random attacks have one thing in common: according to local officials, they are all linked to Russia. And while they might look minor in isolation, taken together these incidents amount to what security experts say is Russia’s hybrid war on the West.
“We are threatened by something which is not a full-fledged military attack, which are these hybrid threats … everything from meddling in our political processes, (undermining) the trust in our political institutions, disinformation, cyber-attacks (…) and sabotage actions against critical infrastructure,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said during an event in Canada last week.
Rod Thornton, a senior lecturer in defense studies at King’s College London, said there’s been a pattern of attacks linked back to Russia. “There has definitely been an increase over the last few months in these particular types of operations. It is something that the Russians are ramping up,” Thornton said.
In the capitalist structure, industry or production is governed by the profit motive, but in the Proutistic structure production will be governed by the motive of consumption.
From the book Prout in a Nutshell Part 15, by Shri P R Sarkar
The upcoming academic season will see an expansion of English language teaching to encompass 100% of the second year of education.
Rabat- The Ministry of National Education, Primary Education, and Sports has unveiled its plans for the upcoming academic year 2024-2025, encompassing various developments, programs, and projects.
A primary focus is the expansion of English and Amazigh language education. The ministry aims to increase the number of educational institutions offering Amazigh language courses, targeting a 50% coverage rate by the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year.
The ministry has outlined its initiative to introduce Amazigh language instruction in primary education, commencing in the 2023/2024 school year with full implementation expected by the start of the 2029/2030 school year.
To support these efforts, the ministry is implementing a comprehensive strategy across organizational, administrative, pedagogical, training, and support domains at central, regional, provincial, and local levels.
The ministry plans to recruit 600 specialized professors for Amazigh language instruction and annually train at least 2,000 dual-discipline teachers to facilitate this expansion.
The new academic season will also witness an expansion of English language teaching to cover 50% of preparatory education and 100% of the second year of education.
According to the decision issued by the Ministry on Thursday, July 4, 2024, the academic year will begin on September 2, 2024. The teaching staff will join the day after, on September 3, to be informed of the developments for the new season and to discuss the contents of the integrated institution’s project, especially the educational aspects related to the core learnings that the institution will focus on.
US, France, Canada, UK, Korea, and others back India’s bid to make GPAI the global AI regulator
India is making significant strides in its effort to establish the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) as the leading authority on all matters related to AI, including regulations and the development of a global framework.
Major countries such as the US, France, Canada, the UK, Japan, Korea, Brazil, and Argentina have agreed on this initiative, with a ministerial sign-off and final negotiations set for July 3, according to government insiders. A formal announcement is expected soon after.
India’s current chairmanship of GPAI reflects its commitment to responsible AI development and use. By expanding GPAI to include more countries, especially from the Global South, India aims to strengthen the alliance’s influence on global AI policymaking.
This expansion aligns with India’s vision of a more inclusive and participatory global AI governance structure.
Union Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw highlighted in December that New Delhi is actively negotiating with the 29 member countries of GPAI to reach a consensus on a declaration statement concerning the proper use of AI, establishing guardrails for the technology, and determining its treatment.
World Zoonoses Day 2024: History, Significance, Theme And All You Need To Know About The Day
World Zoonoses Day is observed on July 6 every year after 1885 to raise awareness about zoonotic diseases.
Zoonotic diseases are infections that transmit disease between animals and humans. These diseases, also known as zoonoses, include swine flu, rabies, bird flu, and various foodborne infections. Studies by the CDC indicate that approximately 60 percent of all known diseases are zoonotic in nature, and around 70 percent of emerging infections originate from animals. Learn about the zoonotic diseases, its history, significance and theme for 2024.
What are Zoonotic diseases?
Zoonotic diseases are infections that spread between humans and animals. These diseases can be classified based on the source of infection, which includes viruses, fungi, parasites, and bacteria. Examples of viral zoonoses are rabies and COVID-19, while ringworm is an example of a fungal zoonose. Zoonoses can be transmitted through wild animals, like bird flu from wild birds, or domestic animals, such as rabies from dogs.
History of this day:
On July 6, 1885, Louis Pasteur administered a rabies vaccine to a boy bitten by a rabid dog, saving his life. This historical event underscores the importance of understanding zoonotic diseases, their origins, and their impact on public health.
Significance of the day:
The primary goal of World Zoonoses Day is to raise awareness about the impact of zoonotic diseases on both humans and animals. It emphasises the importance of vaccinating pets, particularly in shelters where animals may not be properly vaccinated. Additionally, it highlights the need for more research to prevent outbreaks and educates those working closely with animals about the risks associated with zoonotic diseases.
Theme for 2024
The theme for World Zoonoses Day 2024 focuses on the three things, these are:
Preventing the spread of zoonotic diseases
Controlling zoonoses by managing threats for future infections
Designing a framework for preparedness and response to diseases
Central African Republic’s children are world’s most deprived, UNICEF says
This is a summary of what was said by UNICEF Representative in the Central African Republic Meritxell Relaño Arana—to whom quoted text may be attributed— at today’s press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva
GENEVA, 2 July 2024 — “Today, the three million girls and boys of the Central Africa Republic face the highest registered level of overlapping and interconnected crises and deprivation in the world.
“The Central African Republic (CAR) now holds the tragic distinction of being ranked first among 191 countries as the most at-risk for humanitarian crises and disaster. This dire status underscores the severe and urgent challenges faced by its youngest citizens.
“Ten years of protracted conflict and instability in CAR has left every single one of CAR’s three million children at risk.
“There is a host of distressing data that speaks to the lives of children in CAR; I will mention just four, though the briefing note James shares has more data:
1 in 2 children do not have access to health services.
Around just one-third (37%) of children attend school regularly.
Nearly two in three (61%) young women were married before the age of 18
Almost 40% of the children in the country suffer from chronic malnutrition.
“Weakened institutions and the constant threat of violence compound the multiple risks to the rights of children. The fact that the crisis in CAR has been stretched out over so many years – and that, sadly, so many other global crises continue to unfold in parallel – means that the children of CAR have become painfully invisible. But their pain and loss are profoundly evident.
“However, there is hope. Now is a critical moment; indeed, it is the moment for the international community to rally for a change of course for the children of CAR.
“The government’s new National Development Plan, alongside other major commitments to improve children’s rights, mean UNICEF and its partners have a viable mechanism to push for a change of course: to chart a new future for the children and the country.
“Amid this rare moment of opportunity, the greatest risk is that the champions these children rely on—international donors, global media, and an informed public—may turn their backs and look away in the face of simultaneous global crises.
“In my most clear and candid language: this will mean many children will unnecessarily die; many more will see their futures destroyed. A child is a child, and, as such, it is imperative that the international community does not forget the children of CAR.”
Transforming The Gambia’s Agriculture: From Subsistence to Market-Oriented Farming
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
The Gambia’s agriculture sector is undergoing an ambitious modernization.
A World Bank project is supporting 19 small and medium-sized enterprises to expand their operations.
The country’s agriculture sector is already seeing results in the shape of modern infrastructure, improved services, and more jobs.
Modernizing agriculture infrastructure and irrigation
Improving access to inputs and services
Jongfolo Korta looks at her rice field with satisfaction. She is among the many small farmers in the Eastern region of Jahally, in the Gambia, where agriculture is thriving.“I’ve applied fertilizer to the rice field, and now I have ploughing services using tractors that are available at the right time. So, I’m optimistic that this year my harvest will increase,” she said.Like many others in the Gambia, Jongfolo has relied on rice production for over five decades. She and many others are experiencing the advantages of the country’s transition from subsistence farming to a more productive and competitive agriculture sector with increased surplus to sell making it more market-oriented. This drive has been supported by the World Bank’s Gambia Inclusive and Resilient Agricultural Value Chain Development Project (GIRAV).A component of the project competitively selected 19 small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) out of 127 applicants and provided them with additional financing. In total, the project provided $3.9 million, while the SMEs themselves contributed a total of $2.6 million from privately mobilized capital and their own funding. The overall investment was used by the SMEs to finance infrastructure and equipment so that they can modernize and expand agribusiness operations.
If the problem of agriculture is solved, food security will be guaranteed.
Kemo Cham, CEO and founder of Sabiji Farm
However, in the Gambia, agriculture means more than that. The sector contributes around 20% of the country’s GDP and employs almost half of the country’s labor force. To unlock its full potential, the Gambia is transforming its agriculture sector which is currently dominated by subsistence-oriented rainfed crops and livestock. The GIRAV project support to small and medium agribusiness is a step in the right direction.
Group of 200 Investors Managing $15 Trillion Push for Corporate Action on Nature Policy Amid Growing Systemic Risks
The Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) has launched Spring, a stewardship initiative backed by over 200 investors managing $15 trillion in assets. The initiative focuses on reducing the financial risks associated with biodiversity loss by engaging with 60 key companies across various sectors. The effort emphasizes responsible political engagement and aligns with global biodiversity targets, aiming to mitigate operational risks and ensure sustainable practices.
Objective:
The Spring Initiative aims to address forest loss and land degradation, critical drivers of biodiversity loss and significant contributors to global CO2 emissions. This initiative aligns with the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use to halt and reverse these trends by 2030, recognizing the reputational, legal, market, and financial risks for businesses and investors associated with this issue.
Importance of the Initiative:
Economic Risks: Nature deterioration poses systemic and financially material risks to institutional investors. The World Bank projects a potential USD 2.7 trillion GDP contraction by 2030 due to ecosystem service loss.
Regulatory Recognition: Financial systems’ dependence on nature is increasingly acknowledged by central banks and financial regulators. Failure to address nature-related risks threatens financial stability.
Material Risks for Businesses: Forest loss and land degradation present both physical risks (e.g., lower agricultural revenues, land flooding) and transition risks (e.g., reduced market access due to regulations, stranded assets).
Engagement Approach:
Focus on Five Geographies: Prioritizes interventions in key areas most affected by forest loss and land degradation.
Investor Engagement: Engages companies to adopt and advocate for robust public policies to mitigate deforestation, land conversion, and related human rights abuses.
Responsible Political Engagement: Encourages companies to influence public policies positively, either directly or through affiliations with trade associations and think tanks.
‘Space potato’ spotted by NASA Mars satellite is actually something much cooler
NASA has posted a stunning photo of a “space potato” on social media — but it is actually Phobos, the Martian moon that is locked on a slow collision course with the Red Planet.
The space agency imaged the lumpy, starchy-looking moon using the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on board NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, which has been studying the Red Planet since arriving in its orbit in 2006.
UK Labour Party sweeps to power in historic election win. But impatient voters mean big challenges
LONDON —
Labour leader Keir Starmer officially became British prime minister on Friday hours after his Labour Party swept to power in a landslide victory after more than a decade in opposition.
Starmer was elevated to the nation’s leader after a private ceremony with King Charles III in Buckingham Palace.
In the merciless choreography of British politics, Starmer is taking charge in 10 Downing St. shortly after Conservative leader Rishi Sunak and his family left the official residence and King Charles III accepted his resignation at Buckingham Palace.
“This is a difficult day, but I leave this job honored to have been prime minister of the best country in the world,” Sunak said in his farewell address.
Israel to dispatch team to Qatar for follow-up ceasefire talks next week
Chief of Israel’s Mossad spy agency David Barnea has returned from the Qatari capital Doha following an initial meeting with mediators, and a team will be dispatched next week to continue the negotiations, Israeli Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has announced.
“It should be emphasized that there are still gaps between the sides,” the Israeli PMO said in a statement on Friday evening.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the dispatch of a delegation for negotiations on a ceasefire deal with Hamas in Gaza and the release of hostages, Xinhua news agency reported, citing a senior Israeli official.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that an official familiar with the hostage talks said that Mossad officials had told mediators that they are “optimistic” the Israeli cabinet will accept the ceasefire proposal currently under discussion.
According to Israel’s Channel 12 survey revealed on Friday, when asked what is most important at this moment, 67 per cent of the people interviewed said returning the hostages from Gaza, compared to 26 per cent who said continuing the war in Gaza and 7 per cent who said they didn’t know.
The recent development marks a renewed effort to negotiate an end to the nearly nine-month-long conflict, which, according to the Gaza-based health authorities, has resulted in the deaths of more than 38,000 Palestinians in the enclave.
Putin says Russia is not in a position to declare a ceasefire in Ukraine
President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Russia would not declare a ceasefire in Ukraine until Kyiv takes steps that are “irreversible” and acceptable to Moscow.
Putin said last month that Russia would end the war in Ukraine only if Kyiv agreed to drop its NATO ambitions and hand over the entirety of four provinces claimed by Moscow, demands Kyiv swiftly rejected as tantamount to surrender.
Putin also said that it was pointless for Russia to attempt to appeal to the Ukrainian Parliament when it came to Moscow’s ideas to end the conflict between the two countries.
A common penal code must be evolved. Legislation must be progressive and capable of gradual adjustment with the prevalent conditions. Any theory which does not hold a parallelism with the ever-changing conditions of time, place and person, is sure to decay and be lost in oblivion. Hence, there must be a never-ending effort for amendment with a view to rectification.
P.R. Sarkar
on the subject Common Penal Code
5 June 1959, Jamalpur
www.navacetana.com
THE END
June 29, 2024
Climate
Heatwave in Washington: Abraham Lincoln’s wax statue melts away as temperatures soar
The wax statue was created by Virginia-based artist Sandy Williams IV and is a part of ‘The Wax Monument’ series that features replicas of various popular public monuments and cultural symbols.
Amid heatwave conditions, a six-foot-tall wax statue of former US president Abraham Lincoln, outside an elementary school in Washington DC melted over the weekend. The famous statue, which replicates the Lincoln Memorial, started melting after the temperature reached 37.7 degrees Celsius in northwest Washington on Saturday, reports said. (Image: Sandy Williams/Instagram)
Commissioned by the non-profit CulturalDC, the statue is placed outside Garrison Elementary School. It was earlier the site of Camp Barker, a refugee camp from the Civil War era that once housed formerly enslaved and freed African Americans. (Image: CulturalDC)
The wax statue was created by Virginia-based artist Sandy Williams IV. It is a part of ‘The Wax Monument’ series, which features replicas of various popular public monuments and cultural symbols. The statue serves as more than just a visual representation, it further works as a candle. (Image: CulturalDC)
A viral photograph shows rising temperatures causing the wax replica’s head to detach, while one of his legs dripped off its torso. A foot of the statue turned into a blob. Further, the chair that supports the figure also sank into the ground, unable to withstand the heatwave conditions, BBC reported. The damaged head from the wax sculpture is currently undergoing repairs, leaving a wire protruding from the 16th president’s neck. However, this was not the first time this artwork melted. (Image: CulturalDC)
As per its official website, the installation is aimed at providing “direct commentary on DC’s history of Civil War-era Contraband Camps”. The head of the statue is expected to be reattached this week, local media reported. (Image: CulturalDC)
Big Picture model part of alternative education push to improve Australia’s school system
In short: An alternative education model called Big Picture, which runs in many high schools across Australia, boasts a student-led curriculum and no exams.
The stereotype that alternative education is only for “disruptive” students is not the case, educators in the system say.
What’s next? A diverse range of learning styles and a reduced focus on a university admission score could improve Australia’s education system, some researchers argue.
Kristin Van Wyk didn’t sit exams to get into university.
Instead, the now 21-year-old used a personalised portfolio she created in year 12, after completing a hands-on high school curriculum she designed herself.
Kristin is a graduate of Big Picture, an alternative education program that runs in dozens of high schools around Australia and also has a dedicated campus in Launceston, Tasmania.
“I’m a lot more independent than a lot of other people my age [as a result], I think,” Ms Van Wyk said, who went to the Big Picture school for years 9 to 12.
“Personal motivation” is a central tenet of the model, which sees students guided to develop a personalised curriculum based on their interests.
Students also learn on the job. If a child wants to be a mortician, for example, they approach one to shadow.
It is believed tens of thousands of Australian students take part in “alternative” education models outside the traditional university admission system, which relies heavily on an ATAR — or Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank — a number between zero and 99.95 that shows a student’s position in their year group.
While many educators who the ABC spoke to suggest alternative education models should not replace traditional schools, they argue a diverse range of learning styles and a reduced focus on ATAR could improve Australia’s education system.
‘Exhibitions’ take place of exams
Big Picture’s assessment system substitutes exams with “exhibitions”, where students present their work and answer questions from teachers and family.
“You have to publicly stand up in front of all the important people in your world, and say, ‘This is what I’ve been learning about, and this is what I’ve done’,” Ms Johnston said.
Rather than receiving grades in traditional subjects, students are assessed against the International Big Picture Learning Credential, or IBPLC.
The IBPLC measures students against outcomes such as “empirical reasoning” and “communication and personal qualities”.
It specifically avoids ranking students against one another, as an ATAR does.
Ms Van Wyk used the IBPLC and a portfolio to apply to the University of Tasmania.
US needs Indian students for sciences, Chinese for humanities: Top diplomat says
Kurt Campbell admits the US would like to see more Chinese coming to study humanities and social sciences, not particle physics, and their peers from India, considered a security partner, joinning science programmes in American universities.
The US Ambassador Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said more students for science, technology, engineering and mathematics programmes in the country should be from India, considered an important security partner of the country.
Campbell also said Chinese students should be considered more for humanities rather than science subjects, underscoring the US’ security concerns and escalating tensions with China on the trade front. “I believe that the largest increase that we need to see going forward would be much larger numbers of Indian students that come to study in American universities on a range of technology and other fields,” news agency Reuters quoted the second-ranked US diplomat as saying.
He pointed out that US universities intend to limit Chinese students’ access to sensitive technology, citing security concerns.
Campbell noted that not enough Americans were pursuing fields like science, technology, engineering and mathematics, for which recruitment from overseas is needed. “The US needed to recruit more international students for those fields, but from India – an increasingly important US security partner – not China.”
Chinese have been the largest group among international students in the US for many years. In the academic year 2022-23, their numbers reached nearly 2.9 lakh. Amid deteriorating US-China relations and fears of intellectual property theft, academicians and civil society leaders suggest that unwarranted suspicion has hindered scientific collaboration.
The US diplomat told the Council on Foreign Relations, “I would like to see more Chinese students coming to the United States to study humanities and social sciences, not particle physics”.
Campbell suggested that US universities have been “careful” to support continuing higher education for Chinese students. However, he reiterated that it is possible to curtail and limit certain kinds of access, particularly in technological programmes across the country.
Group of Cornish gardens on a global conservation mission
BOTANICAL GARDENS
There are several botanical gardens in Sicily. Among the most important is the Botanical Garden of Palermo, with over two hundred years of activity, it is one of the major Italian academic institutions. Others include the Pietro Castelli Botanical Garden in Messina, a small green lung in the city. The Nuova Gussonea Botanical Garden on Mount Etna has a miniaturised volcano landscape. The Agrigento Botanical Garden is close to the Valley of the Temples with archaeological treasures including natural caves that can be explored and fossil finds. The Paternò del Toscano Park Here you can enjoy a picnic under the oaks in the woods and have breakfast or snacks in the park. (ref.https://www.visitsicily.info/en/botanical-sicily-appeals-to-everyone/)
A collective of 14 Gardens in Cornwall are working to conserve rare species and protect the natural environment amid growing concerns over the climate crisis.
The Great Gardens of Cornwall, consisting of 14 well-known gardens and estates from across the county and Isles of Scilly, are highlighting the importance of protecting and safeguarding our Cornish landscapes with a number of pioneering and world-leading approaches to conservation.
Charles Williams, owner of the Caerhays Estate says “Cornwall’s microclimate and unique geology make it home to a number of globally rare species and habitats in need of our protection. As climate change takes hold it will increase the environmental pressures that face Cornwall’s wildlife and wild places, many of which are already in decline. We must continue to garden with the health of our soil, waterways and wildlife at the forefront of our mind.”
Each of the Great Gardens of Cornwall is doing their bit to protect the environment and help rare plant species flourish, and also set an example on a global scale. Official safe sites and dedicated propagation facilities are enabling species to flourish away from their endangered status.
Over 60,000 people march to parliament to demand politicians Restore Nature Now
Over 60,000 people marched through central London to parliament to send one simple but powerful message to all the UK’s political parties – that they must Restore Nature Now.
The march which included representatives from over 300 organisations, including the National Trust, RSPB, WWF, Wildlife Trusts and Woodland Trust is thought to be the biggest public demonstration in the General Election run-up and shows the strength of public opinion on the need for stronger political action to tackle the nature and climate crisis.
Harry Bowell, Director of Land and Nature at the National Trust said: “It is hugely shocking that the UK is one of the most nature depleted countries on earth. Today’s march is yet another powerful demonstration of how much people care about nature and want our leaders to take action to reverse nature’s decline.
“With the upcoming election we are at a pivotal moment where whoever forms the next government can decide to take bold action to prioritise nature’s recovery. The benefits will be vast; not only for our landscapes and wildlife, but improve our health and wellbeing while benefiting business and the economy too.
“It’s not too late to act. There is still time to turn things round – but we need prompt and energetic action to restore nature now!”
Beccy Speight, Chief Executive of the RSPB said: “Species from Avocets to whales and spaces from oceans to national parks have been championed at the march and it has been truly inspiring to see so many people stand up for nature and climate. With one in six species at risk of being lost from our shores, the natural world needs a strong voice now more than ever.
“There is definite hope that we can turn things around: while we know the threats, we also know so many of the solutions. But we simply aren’t acting fast enough or at a big enough scale to tackle the nature and climate crisis. We need to see urgent action and a much stronger commitment to restore nature at scale from politicians of all parties, because no species, including us, can afford to wait any longer.”
Craig Bennett, chief executive of The Wildlife Trusts said: “The devastating effects of climate change and nature loss affect every single one of us. We need nature to be restored and we need to act fast. That’s why thousands of people have united today to demand action from the next government. Our recent poll revealed that 79% of the public think that nature is important for our well-being and economic prosperity. With an election imminent, this is a critical moment if we want future generations to enjoy the thrill of birdsong, the buzz of pollinators, sustainable agriculture, a healthy economy, clean air and clean water. There’s still time for positive change and to Restore Nature Now!”
Chimpanzees seek out tree bark and ferns with medicinal benefits, researchers discover
In a recent study published in PLoS ONE, researchers investigated the behavioral and pharmacological effects of self-medicative plants in the diets of Budongo chimpanzees.
Background
Wild chimpanzees eat plants for nutrition and health, some containing bioactive poisons. Health professionals use these plants occasionally to treat illnesses. Chimpanzees have displayed therapeutic self-medication by eating leaves and chewing bitter pith, decreasing nematode infection.
In vivo investigations have demonstrated that pith extracts permanently paralyze mature Schistosome parasites. Chimpanzees and other primates may also engage in medical activities like bark feeding and dead wood chewing.
The researchers tested the bark of eight species consumed by Budongo chimps for antibacterial and anti-inflammatory compounds to improve their understanding of the function of bark-eating activities and their potential significance in chimp health maintenance. They tried a combination of bark and congealed resin on K. anthotheca, which Budongo chimpanzees preferred.
The researchers also examined the pharmacology of two kinds of dead wood (A. boonei and Cleistopholis patens) ingested by the Sonso chimp colony to investigate whether this habit served multiple purposes or provided health advantages.
Dairy farmers protest in Brussels over low price of milk
About a hundred farmers protested in front of European Union institutions, calling for a law on the price of dairy products
Farmers took to the streets in Brussels on Monday, demanding a law banning the sale of dairy products at a price below production costs.
Demonstrators, with fake cows painted in the colours of the European flag, marched between the headquarters of the European Parliament and the Commission in the Belgian capital.
Kjartan Poulsen, president of the European Milk Board, told Euronews that protesters wanted an EU-wide version of a Spanish law on “unfair commercial practices”, which forbids selling “products below cost at all stages of the purchasing chain.”
He said production costs vary from country to country depending on the cost of labour and features unique to where the farms are located.
But, in general, milk costs more for farmers to produce than what it costs to buy for consumers.
In some countries, such as Italy, the gap between production costs and selling prices is even greater than the European average, according to the president of the Po Valley Milk Producers’ Association Roberto Cavaliere.
“On average, the costs of an Italian company are around 60-65 cents per litre. Currently, Italian producers earn 50 cents. We still have a gap of 15 cents”.
“We ask for a fair price because the prices paid to producers over the last 25 years have never covered production costs.”
According to Cavaliere, the only companies in the sector that can survive what he calls an unbalanced and unprofitable market are those that use family labour, which cuts production costs because they do not pay for their work. Others simply close.
“In 1997 there were 110 thousand milk producers in Italy, in 2023 18 thousand. Almost 90 thousand companies have closed. These are alarming figures,” he said.
The Green Deal question
Among farmers’ other requests are anti-crisis tools for the agricultural sector and the creation of organisations that bring together producers from different dairy supply chains.
They also want clauses to ensure that milk imported into the EU respects the environmental requirements demanded by local producers.
European farmers have asked to be more involved in drafting European measures affecting the agricultural sector.
But, compared to other farmers’ protests in recent months, those protesting on Monday were less focused on the Green Deal, the EU plan to eliminate net emissions of climate-changing gases by 2050 that has strong repercussions on agriculture.
Seasonal fertilizer ban in effect from May 15 through Oct. 31
As Miami-Dade County enters the rainy season, the use of fertilizers containing nitrogen and phosphorus is prohibited from May 15 through Oct. 31. Fertilizers applied during our intense rainy season have the potential to wash away into our surface waters through storm drains, canals, or direct discharges, reducing the benefit to lawns of costly fertilizer applications. Fertilizers contain nutrients that can be harmful to the ecosystems found in our waterways, especially Biscayne Bay. Excess nutrients pollution from our urban watershed is affecting the health of Biscayne Bay and has contributed to seagrass die-offs, algal blooms and fish kills in the Bay.
A 2023 Biscayne Bay Economic Study revealed the combined economic impact of Biscayne Bay-related activities is an astonishing $64 billion in economic output. Whether you live or work in a waterfront community or the westernmost suburbs of Miami-Dade County, the actions of residents and businesses influence the watershed, and can have a positive or negative effect on the health of our shared water resources and Biscayne Bay
Do your part to help protect Biscayne Bay by following the regulations set forth in the fertilizer ordinance.
The fertilizer ordinance applies to commercial and residential fertilizer applicators and anyone who performs landscape management. The ordinance contains specific rules for when, how much and where you can use fertilizers; proper management of grass clippings and vegetative debris; and sets forth required training for local businesses. Make sure you know the rules and remain in compliance with the ordinance.
This ordinance was developed as part of a broad countywide effort to reduce nutrient pollution, in the form of excess nitrogen and phosphorous, in our urban watershed. Excess nutrients from fertilizer can enter our sensitive water resources like Biscayne Bay, where they have contributed to seagrass die-offs, algal blooms fish-kills.
Use the resources found in the marketing toolkit to help spread the word about the fertilizer ordinance.
People are commonly given misleading information about depression, study shows
A recent Finnish study shows that people are commonly given misleading information about depression. According to the researchers, the inaccurate information makes it harder for people to understand the causes of their distress.
Most psychiatric diagnoses are purely descriptive. For example, a diagnosis of depression is only a description of the various psychological symptoms – not the cause. Yet depression is often talked about as a disorder that causes low mood and other symptoms.
Researchers describe this as a form of circular reasoning, which means that psychiatric diagnoses are frequently talked about circularly, as if they described the causes for symptoms. This makes it difficult for people to understand their distress.
Depression should be considered as a diagnosis similar to a headache. Both are medical diagnoses, but neither explains what causes the symptoms. Like a headache, depression is a description of a problem that can have many different causes. A diagnosis of depression does not explain the cause of depressed mood any more than a diagnosis of headaches explains the cause of pain in the head.”
Jani Kajanoja, postdoctoral researcher and medical doctor specializing in psychiatry, University of Turku in Finland
This misconception is also perpetuated by mental health professionals, shows a recent study by the University of Turku and the University of the Arts Helsinki.
In the study, the researchers analyzed publicly available information on depression provided by leading international health organizations. The researchers selected the websites of English-language organizations whose information on depression was the most influential according to search engine results. The organizations included the World Health Organisation (WHO), the American Psychiatric Association (APA), National Health Service (NHS) in the UK, and Harvard and Johns Hopkins Universities, among others.
Most organizations portrayed depression on their website as a disorder that causes symptoms and/or explains what causes the symptoms, although this is not the case. None of the organizations presented the diagnosis as a pure description of symptoms, as would have been accurate.
“Presenting depression as a uniform disorder that causes depressive symptoms is circular reasoning that blurs our understanding of the nature of mental health problems and makes it harder for people to understand their distress,” says Kajanoja.
The researchers suggest that the problem may be caused by a cognitive bias.
“People seem to have a tendency to think that a diagnosis is an explanation even when it is not. It is important for professionals not to reinforce this misconception with their communication, and instead help people to understand their condition,” says Professor and Neuropsychologist Jussi Valtonen from the University of the Arts Helsinki.
Mayday in space: Sunita Williams ordered to shelter in Starliner as satellite breaks up
In Short
Mission Control instructed all crew members to seek shelter
Williams and Wilmore have been aboard the ISS since June 5
Mission Control closely monitored the path of the debris
The emergency order was issued as space debris threatened the orbiting laboratory on Wednesday.
In a tense moment aboard the International Space Station (ISS), Nasa astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore were forced to take emergency shelter in Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft and other return vehicles.
As a standard precautionary measure, Mission Control instructed all crew members to seek shelter in their respective spacecraft. Williams and Wilmore, who have been aboard the ISS since June 5, took refuge in the Starliner capsule.
For approximately an hour, Mission Control closely monitored the path of the debris while the astronauts remained in their protective shelters. After determining that the immediate threat had passed, the crew was given the all-clear to exit their spacecraft and resume normal operations on the station.
Originally scheduled for an 8-day mission, the astronauts have now been in space for over three weeks as Nasa and Boeing work to resolve helium leaks and thruster problems that have plagued the capsule.
Despite these challenges, Nasa has maintained that the Starliner is capable of safely returning the astronauts to Earth if absolutely necessary. This recent shelter-in-place event further underscores the spacecraft’s vital role in ensuring crew safety.
As space activities continue to increase, the management of orbital debris remains a critical concern for space agencies worldwide.
Mama’s boys and marital strife are no joke in today’s China
Tales about evil mothers-in-law have landed China’s wildly popular ultrashort dramas in trouble with official censors.
Bossy matriarchs who baby their adult sons are a staple of the latest entertainment craze among Gen Z in the country. They harangue daughters-in-law, the heroines of the shows, for subpar cooking and high electricity bills.
Sometimes, it gets weird. In one series, the older woman even helps her son shower and brush his teeth. Wronged and disgusted, the young wife plots revenge. In a dramatic finale, she reveals her mother-in-law’s bullying to her husband — or she dumps him and strikes out alone.
Rising official concern about the corrupting influence of micro-dramas will probably slow the meteoric rise of the industry in China, experts say, and may accelerate studios’ efforts to go global.
For Huang, the format has proven harmful to society in part because viewers are fed unrealistic plots that “vilify people and amplify conflicts” within families. Young people, who spend more time with their screens than real people, are becoming “emotionally deficient” and “unwilling to get married or have children,” he added.
Censors this month called out mother-in-law dramas for straying from “mainstream values” approved by the Chinese Communist Party. State media have since reported that the National Radio and Television Administration is conducting a nationwide review and will remove unapproved titles by June 1.
Since China’s population began to shrink in 2022, officials have stepped up controls on “unhealthy” portrayals of love and marriage in popular culture. At the same time, they have dialed up propaganda to encourage young couples to settle down and get busy having children.
But that effort to spread “positive energy” around marriage and childbearing has repeatedly clashed with the shifting ideals of young Chinese — particularly women — who are tired of government lectures about filial piety and familial responsibility.
Mexico elects Claudia Sheinbaum as first female president
Claudia Sheinbaum has been elected as Mexico’s first female president, in a historic landslide win.
Mexico’s official electoral authority said preliminary results showed the 61-year-old former mayor of Mexico City winning between 58% and 60% of the vote in Sunday’s election.
That gives her a lead of about 30 percentage points over her main rival, businesswoman Xóchitl Gálvez.
Ms Sheinbaum will replace her mentor, outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, on 1 October.
Ms Sheinbaum, a former energy scientist, has promised continuity, saying that she will continue to build on the “advances” made by Mr López Obrador, further building on the welfare programmes which have made the outgoing president very popular.
But in her victory speech she also highlighted what has set this Mexican election apart from previous ones. She told cheering voters: “For the first time in the 200 years of the [Mexican] Republic, I will become the first woman president of Mexico.”
She said it was an achievement not just for her but for all women.
“I’ve said it from the start, this is not just about me getting [to the top office], it’s about all of us getting here.”
She added: “I won’t fail you.”
Ms Sheinbaum also thanked her rival, Xóchitl Gálvez, who has conceded victory.
Mexico’s first female president breaks political glass ceiling
Prior to running for president, Ms Sheinbaum was mayor of Mexico City, one of the most influential political positions in the country and one that is seen as paving the way for the presidency.
Ms Sheinbaum, whose Jewish maternal grandparents immigrated to Mexico from Bulgaria fleeing the Nazis, had an illustrious career as a scientist before delving into politics. Her paternal grandparents hailed from Lithuania.
Both of her parents were scientists and Ms Sheinbaum studied physics before going on to receive a doctorate in energy engineering.
She spent years at a renowned research lab in California studying Mexican energy consumption patterns and became an expert on climate change.
That experience and her student activism eventually earned her the position of secretary of the environment for Mexico City at the time when Andrés Manuel López Obrador was mayor of the capital.
In 2018 she became the first female mayor of Mexico City, a post she held until 2023, when she stepped down to run for president.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp4475gwny1o
Politics
Anti-tax protesters storm Kenya’s parliament, drawing police fire as president vows to quash unrest
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Thousands of protesters stormed Kenya’s parliament Tuesday to protest tax proposals, burning part of the building, sending lawmakers fleeing and drawing fire from police in unrest that the president vowed to quash. Several people were killed.
The finance bill was meant to raise or introduce taxes or fees on a range of daily items and services including internet data, fuel, bank transfers and diapers. Some measures were stripped as anger grew. The proposals are part of the Kenyan government’s efforts to raise an extra $2.7 billion in domestic revenue.
It was the most direct assault on the government in decades. Journalists saw at least three bodies outside the complex where police had opened fire, and medical workers reported five people killed. Clashes spread to other cities. There was no immediate word on arrests.
“Today’s events mark a critical turning point on how we respond to threats to our national security,” President William Ruto said, calling the events “treasonous” and vowing to quash the unrest “at whatever cost.”
Kenya’s defense minister said the military had been deployed to support police during the “security emergency” and “breaching of critical infrastructure.”
Protesters had demanded that legislators vote against a finance bill imposing new taxes on East Africa’s economic hub, where frustrations over the high cost of living have simmered. Youth who had voted Ruto into power with cheers for his promises of economic relief have taken to the streets to object to the pain of reforms.
War
Putin calls for resuming production of missiles banned in scrapped treaty with US
President Vladimir Putin has called for resuming production in Russia of intermediate-range missiles that were banned under a now-scrapped treaty with the US.
The Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty was regarded as an arms control landmark when then-Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and US president Ronald Reagan signed it in the 1980s.
It banned ground-based missiles with a range of between 310 and 3,410 miles (500 to 5,500 km).
The US withdrew from the treaty in 2019, citing Russian violations.
“We need to start production of these strike systems and then, based on the actual situation, make decisions about where – if necessary to ensure our safety – to place them,” Mr Putin said at a meeting of Russia’s national security council on Friday.
Mr Putin said Russia had not produced such missiles since the 2019 treaty scrapping, but that “today it is known that the United States not only produces these missile systems, but has already brought them to Europe for exercises, to Denmark. Quite recently it was announced that they are in the Philippines.”
The US has tested missiles that would have been banned by the INF treaty since it was scrapped.
The end of the INF was a milestone in the deterioration of relations between the US and Russia.
The last remaining arms control pact between Washington and Moscow is the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, which limits each country to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers.
It is set to expire in 2026, and the lack of discussion about anchoring a successor deal has worried arms control advocates.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has said that Mr Putin’s statement was “part of the Kremlin’s ongoing reflexive control campaign… aimed at discouraging Western military assistance to Ukraine”.
“The Kremlin has invoked the fear of a nuclear confrontation between Russia and the West throughout its full-scale invasion to push the West to self-deter from providing Ukraine the weapons it needs to sustain its defence against Russian forces,” the ISW said.
“The Kremlin notably employs this effort during key moments in Western political discussions about further military assistance to Ukraine.”
In June, Mr Putin spoke to executives from international news organisations about Moscow’s use of nuclear weapons.
“We have a nuclear doctrine, look what it says,” he said. “If someone’s actions threaten our sovereignty and territorial integrity, we consider it possible for us to use all means at our disposal. This should not be taken lightly, superficially.”
Iran’s UN mission threatens ‘obliterating war’ if Israel launches Lebanon offensive
Iran’s mission to the United Nations said on Friday that if Israel embarks on a “full-scale military aggression” in Lebanon against Hezbollah, “an obliterating war will ensue.”
The warning came after the Israel Defense Force attacked several Hezbollah positions, in response to the Iran-backed terror group’s latest barrage on northern Israel hours earlier, amid escalating tensions on the Lebanese border.
Writing on X on Friday, the Iranian UN mission said that if Israel were to launch a war on Hezbollah, “all options, including the full involvement of all resistance fronts, are on the table.”
headquarters in New York, February 23, 2023. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
Iran’s mission to the United Nations said on Friday that if Israel embarks on a “full-scale military aggression” in Lebanon against Hezbollah, “an obliterating war will ensue.”
The warning came after the Israel Defense Force attacked several Hezbollah positions, in response to the Iran-backed terror group’s latest barrage on northern Israel hours earlier, amid escalating tensions on the Lebanese border.
Writing on X on Friday, the Iranian UN mission said that if Israel were to launch a war on Hezbollah, “all options, including the full involvement of all resistance fronts, are on the table.”
Iran’s “Axis of Resistance,” which includes Hezbollah, Hamas, Yemen’s Houthis, and other groups in Syria and Iraq, has been targeting Israel since October 7, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists stormed southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, sparking the war in Gaza.
Iran itself also launched an unprecedented missile-and-drone strike on Israel on April 14, two weeks after an alleged Israel airstrike near Tehran’s embassy in Damascus killed several senior officers of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Iranian strike was almost entirely repelled by Israel, the United States and other allies, though a 7-year-old girl was seriously injured in the attack.
“The value of money lies in its use. If more money is accumulated than is necessary, it becomes valueless for lack of use. The money you keep idle and valueless makes you responsible for the injustice done to the hungry and the naked. Spiritual practice does not teach forsaking the world. It teaches the right and correct use of all property, crude or subtle.”
— Shrii P.R. Sarkar
THE END
June 20, 2024
Education in politics
Trump Says He Would Give Green Cards to All Foreign College Students at Graduation
Mr. Trump’s promise to Silicon Valley investors was a sharp departure from immigration curbs he enacted during his presidency. His campaign walked it back soon after.
Donald J. Trump said he would push for a program that would automatically give green cards to all foreign college students in America after they graduate, a reversal from restrictions he enacted as president on immigration by high-skilled workers and students to the United States.
But hours after Mr. Trump’s remarks aired, his campaign’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, walked back the former president’s comments, saying in a statement that there would be an “aggressive vetting process” that would “exclude all communists, radical Islamists, Hamas supporters, America haters and public charges” and that the policy would apply only to the “most skilled graduates who can make significant contributions to America.”
Appearing with the host David Sacks, a Silicon Valley investor who backs the former president’s 2024 campaign, on a podcast that aired Thursday afternoon, Mr. Trump had repeated his frequent criticism of high levels of immigration as an “invasion of our country.” But he was then pressed by Jason Calacanis, another investor who hosts the podcast, to “promise us you will give us more ability to import the best and brightest around the world to America.”
USDA awards $50M to help farms hire migrant workers
The grants are part of a pilot effort to expand legal migratory pathways in northern Central America through the H-2A visa program.
Dive Brief:
The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Friday said it awarded $50 million for farms to attract temporary workers under the H-2A visa program, part of a pilot program to expand legal migratory pathways in Guatemala and other northern Central American countries.
Grants as high as $1.7 million went to 141 businesses across 40 states and Puerto Rico. The funding will assist 177 unique agricultural operations and over 11,000 workers, the USDA said.
The grants are meant to help farms address labor shortages while improving working standards and expanding regular migration pathways for workers in Northern Triangle countries including Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
Dive Insight:
As the U.S. grapples with a significant farmworker shortage, agricultural businesses often rely on the H-2A visa program to secure temporary, seasonal workers and fill labor shortfalls. However, the program is both expensive for farms and rife with abuse and exploitation.
The USDA effort, known as the Farm Labor Stabilization and Protection Pilot Program, is a small step toward bolstering labor standards in the farm industry while also addressing the mounting costs of the seasonal worker program. Farms are eligible for funding if they commit to fulfilling all baseline requirements of the H-2A visa program and pledge additional worker benefits and protections.
“These awards will largely support small and mid-sized farms to ensure they can hire and retain the workers they need to be competitive in the market,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a statement. ”Improving working conditions and quality of life for farmworkers, both U.S. based workers and those that come to our country to work, is one key step in building a stronger, more resilient food supply chain.”
The accelerating pace of climate change is undermining human rights across the board – including the most basic one of all: the right to life – WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo told a high-level presidential discussion at the United Nations Human Rights Council.
“The climate crisis is THE defining challenge that humanity faces. It is closely intertwined with the inequality crisis. It has cascading impacts on food security, population displacement and migration, health, energy, water. Every single one of the Sustainable Development Goals is affected,” said Celeste Saulo during the panel discussion.
Sea level rise is threatening the very existence of small island developing states. Heatwaves, floods, droughts, wildfires and rapidly intensifying tropical cyclones undermine multiple human rights – as witnessed by recent and ongoing extreme events, she said.
The event was entitled “The link between climate change, food security and health security, and their impacts on the enjoyment of human rights.” It was convened by the President of the Human Rights Council, Omar Zniber, and included top human rights officials and heads of Geneva-based UN organizations and specialized agencies.
WMO’s annual State of the Climate reports highlight the socio-economic impacts of climate change and extreme weather, with input from the International Organization, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, World Food Programme, World Health Organization and more.
Displacement: Weather and climate change impacts trigger new, prolonged, and secondary displacement. They increase the vulnerability of people who were already uprooted by conflict and violence.
At the end of 2023, almost 3 in 4 forcibly displaced people were living in countries with high-to-extreme exposure to climate-related hazards, according to UNHCR.
Food insecurity is on the increase.
The number of people who are acutely food insecure worldwide has more than doubled, from 149 million people before the COVID-19 pandemic to 333 million and people in 2023, according to WFP.
In 2022, 9.2% of the global population, or 735.1 million people, were undernourished.
Protracted conflicts, economic downturns, high food prices are at the root of high global food insecurity levels. This is aggravated by naturally occurring phenomena like El Niño and La Niña and long-term climate change the effects of climate and weather extremes, she said.
Climate change is sabotaging people’s health and setting back public health progress.
This is not the future we want for our children. Our children have the right to live and thrive on a sustainable and healthy planet.
However, there is hope. The transition to renewable energy can improve basic socio-economic rights – the right to development.
Renewable energy sources are available almost everywhere, making energy access more equitable and allowing countries to develop their economies. Currently, more than half of Africa people lack the access to electricity, but Africa continent possesses some of the world’s greatest potential for solar power generation.
Such potential holds the key to alleviate poverty and support socio-economic development.
“We are motivated by the fact that our work has a human dimension. To save human lives and protect human rights,” said Celeste Saulo.
If You Take These Medications, You May Have Higher Health Risks on Hot Days
As summer temperatures soar, it’s crucial for those taking specific medications to be extra vigilant about staying hydrated and managing heat-related risks. Prolonged heatwaves can adversely impact the effectiveness and safety of many commonly prescribed drugs, potentially leading to dehydration, dizziness, fainting, and other health complications.
Diuretics: A Heightened Risk of Dehydration
Diuretics, or “water pills,” are medications commonly prescribed to treat high blood pressure, heart failure and certain kidney disorders. These drugs work by increasing the excretion of water and sodium from the body, effectively reducing fluid volume. However, during a heatwave, this mechanism can quickly lead to dehydration, electrolyte imbalances, and exacerbate heat-related illnesses. So, make sure to rehydrate yourself.
Beta Blockers: Impaired Heat Regulation
Beta blockers are widely used to manage high blood pressure, heart conditions and migraines. These medications can interfere with the body’s ability to regulate temperature effectively. By blocking the effects of adrenaline, beta blockers can reduce sweating, which is the body’s natural cooling mechanism. Consequently, individuals taking beta blockers may experience increased body temperatures and are at a higher risk of heat exhaustion or heat stroke during hot weather.
ACE Inhibitors: Dehydration and Low Blood Pressure
Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme (ACE) inhibitors are commonly prescribed to treat high blood pressure, heart failure and kidney disorders. These medications can cause excessive fluid loss and dehydration, particularly during hot weather when the body is already losing fluids through perspiration. Additionally, ACE inhibitors may contribute to low blood pressure, increasing the risk of dizziness, fainting, and falls, especially in elderly individuals.
Antidepressants and Stimulants: Impaired Thermoregulation
Certain antidepressants, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), can affect the body’s ability to regulate temperature. Similarly, stimulant medications used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), like methylphenidate and amphetamines, may also impair thermoregulation and increase the risk of heat-related illnesses.
1. Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of water and fluids throughout the day, even if you don’t feel thirsty. Infuse them with electrolytes to ensure mineral balance. Avoid alcoholic and caffeinated beverages that may dehydrate you.
2. Use air conditioning: Spend as much time as possible in an air-conditioned environment, be it at your home, office or public buildings. If air conditioning is not available, seek out cooler areas or use fans to promote air circulation.
3. Limit outdoor activities: Avoid them during the hottest parts of the day. If you must be outside, take frequent breaks in shaded or cooled areas.
4. Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose-fitting clothing that allows for proper air circulation and perspiration.
NASA administrator says ‘at least a trillion’ other planets like Earth could exist in universe
NASA administrator Bill Nelson has made a bold statement that sparks curiosity and wonder by saying that there could be at least a trillion “Earth-like” planets in the universe. This incredible number suggests that the possibility of alien life is much higher than we might have thought.
Nelson made this statement while talking about NASA’s plans. The space agency is preparing to send astronauts back to the moon. “Four astronauts are set to orbit the moon next year,” Nelson said. But this mission is not just about returning to the moon. “We don’t need to go back to the moon just for the moon. We’re going back to learn new things. For us to go to Mars and beyond,” he explained.
At the same time, NASA’s Perseverance Rover is busy exploring Mars, specifically the Jezero Crater, which scientists think was once a lake filled with rivers. This area could have supported life in the past. Nelson talked about the rover’s tasks: “It’s getting samples and it’s drilling with this drill, creating these core samples about the size of a cigar and sealing them up in these titanium tubes.”
Bill Nelson Highlights NASA’s Broader Search for Alien Life
These samples are crucial for understanding Mars’ history. “We’re trying to figure out right now how we’re going to go back and get them and bring them back to Earth so that we got an idea of whether or not there was life there,” Nelson stated. NASA plans to bring these samples back in the 2030s with help from various companies.
NASA’s search for alien life goes beyond Mars. The agency, working with Firebird Diagnostics, is exploring other signs of life in the universe. “NASA’s mission is to go out, among other things, and discover whether or not we are alone,” expressed Firebird Diagnostics Founder Steven Benner. His company is helping NASA understand different forms of DNA that might exist in alien life.
Benner asks an intriguing question, “It’s a big question as to how molecular biology could be done if it was done by an organism that does not share a common ancestor, a common origin, with you and me.” This research could change our understanding of biology and life.
When asked about extraterrestrial life, Nelson shared his thoughts. “If you ask me directly, do I think that there are aliens here on Earth? I don’t think so. I don’t know. And I don’t think the US government is hiding anything from anybody. But if you ask me, ‘Do I think there’s life out there in the cosmos?’”
NASA’s ongoing exploration and research bring us closer to answering the age-old question of whether we are alone in the universe. Each mission and discovery offer new clues and keep hope alive that we might find signs of life beyond Earth
Woman finds priceless 2,000-year-old Mayan vase in Maryland thrift store
Most dedicated thrifters usually find junk on the clearance rack, but one Washington, D.C., woman discovered a link to ancient history when she purchased a 2,000-year-old Mayan vase.
The priceless artifact bought by Anna Lee Dozier in a Clinton, Maryland, thrift store came at a bargain, costing only US$3.99 (C$5.50).
Officials said the vase is believed to have been made by Indigenous Mayan people in Mexico between 200 and 800 CE.
Dozier, who told WUSA9 she purchased the vase five years ago, said she did not know the artifact was the real thing.
She said the vase looked “old-ish” and she suspected it to be a 20- or 30-year-old tourist reproduction of Mayan-style pottery. Dozier liked the vase anyway and decided to bring it home.
The vase stayed in Dozier’s residence until January of this year, when she visited Mexico’s Museum of Anthropology and realized the museum’s Mayan pottery looked strikingly similar to the one that she thrifted.
Dozier said she asked an employee at the Museum of Anthropology how she could go about repatriating her thrifted vase.
The staff member told Dozier it was a common question but seemed “skeptical” of her inquiry.
Regardless, Dozier contacted the U.S. embassy with details about the vase.
Dozier later learned the vase is, in fact, a ceremonial urn from the ancient Mayan community.
On Tuesday, Mexico’s ambassador to the U.S., Esteban Moctezuma Barragán, thanked Dozier for her “generosity” in repatriating the artifact.
He said the vase would be reintegrated in the country’s Museum of Anthropology, alongside other Mayan antiques.
Dozier told WUSA9 she’s “thrilled” to have repatriated the vase.
“I would like it to go back to its rightful place and to where it belongs,” she said.
Dozier admitted she wanted the artifact “out of my home” because she has three young sons and would have been “petrified that after 2,000 years, I would be the one to wreck it!”
She is not the only person to ever find a priceless, historical object for sale in a thrift store. In 2018, an art collector in Texas discovered a 2,000-year-old Roman marble bust at her local Goodwill and bought it for $35. The bust formerly resided inside a full-scale model of a villa from Pompeii in Aschaffenburg, Germany, but was stolen from the country during the Second World War.
Archaeologists unearth mystery stone building on site of new Crete airport
The airport is projected to be Greece’s second biggest when it opens.
An archeological discovery in Crete is puzzling experts – and could stand in the way of a major new airport which is under construction.
The round stone building was uncovered by archaeologists on the site where the new Greek airport’s radar station was meant to be built.
The original purpose of the building is puzzling experts. “It may have been periodically used for possibly ritual ceremonies involving consumption of food, wine, and perhaps offerings,” Greece’s Culture Minstry said in a statement.
It has been decided that the discovery will not stop the airport being built. Greece’s Culture Minister Lina Mendoni pledged that the find would be preserved while a different location would be sought for the radar station.
“We all understand the value and importance of cultural heritage … as well as the growth potential” of the new airport project, says Mendoni, who is herself an archaeologists.
“It’s possible to go ahead with the airport while granting the antiquities the protection they merit.”
Set to open in 2027, the Crete airport is projected to replace Greece’s second-biggest airport at Heraklion, and designed to handle up to 18 million travelers annually.
It’s one of 35 archeological finds at the site
Greece’s Culture Ministry said this week that the structure is a “unique and extremely interesting find” from Crete‘s Minoan civilisation, famous for its sumptuous palaces, flamboyant art and enigmatic writing system.
It’s not the first finding at the airport site. So far, at least another 35 archaeological sites have been uncovered during work on the new Kastelli airport and its road connections, the ministry said.
At the end of the last century, an entire hilltop fortified settlement from the 3rd millennium B.C. was excavated and then destroyed during construction work for Athens International Airport.
With roots in India, Yoga unites people with its values of balance, mindfulness, peace: UN chief Antonio Guterres
“Yoga has roots in India and is now embraced globally, uniting people with its values of balance, mindfulness and peace,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said.
In his message on the 10th International Yoga Day, Mr. Guterres urged people to be inspired by the ancient practice’s timeless values and its call for a more peaceful and harmonious future.
In December 2014, the UN proclaimed June 21 as the International Day of Yoga, recognising its universal appeal. The draft UN General Assembly resolution establishing the International Day of Yoga was proposed by India and endorsed by a record 175 member states.
“The International Day of Yoga recognises the ancient practice’s unmatched power to deliver healing, inner peace and physical, spiritual and mental well-being,” Mr. Guterres said in his message on June 21 as the world celebrated the 10th International Yoga Day.
“With roots in India but now embraced worldwide by people of all faiths and cultures, Yoga unites people with its values of balance, mindfulness and peace with people and planet alike,” Mr. Guterres said in the message posted on X by the Permanent Mission of India to the UN.
He noted that this year’s theme ‘Yoga for Self and Society’ reminds “us of Yoga’s important role in enhancing people’s lives and the wider community. On this important day, let us all be inspired by Yoga’s timeless values and its call for a more peaceful and harmonious future,” the UN chief said.
Hajj pilgrimage death toll climbs into the hundreds
The official death toll from this year’s Hajj pilgrimage has soared to almost 500 and the true toll could be more than double that as reports emerged that as many as 600 Egyptian worshipers perished on the route to Mecca amid extreme heat.
At least 14 Malaysians, 165 Indonesians, 75 Jordanians, 35 Pakistanis, 49 Tunisians, 11 Iranians and 98 Indians have died, according to authorities in each country. A further 27 Jordanians are hospitalized and around 14 are still missing, the Jordanian Foreign Ministry said.
The US State Department said multiple US citizens died during the Hajj pilgrimage but did not provide a number. “We can confirm the deaths of multiple U.S. citizens in Saudi Arabia. We offer our sincerest condolences to the families on their loss,” the State Department spokesperson said, adding that the agency stands ready to provide consular assistance.
Dozens of Iranians have also been hospitalized due to heatstroke and other conditions, the Iranian Red Crescent said Wednesday, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency.
According to a CNN tally, this brings the latest official death toll for this year’s pilgrimage to at least 480.
The death tolls are expected to rise much further, as Saudi Arabia and Egypt have yet to release official figures. Additionally, the governments are only aware of pilgrims who have registered and traveled to Mecca as part of their country’s quota – more deaths are feared among unregistered pilgrims.
The pilgrims made this year’s journey in dangerously high temperatures of up to 49 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit).
According to the Egyptian presidency, the crisis unit will be headed by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, and will “provide support for families of the deceased.”
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has also instructed the unit on “speedy coordination with Saudi Arabian authorities to facilitate the return of the bodies” of those who died, the statement added.
The official number of dead Egyptians stands at 28, according to an Egyptian cabinet statement Thursday. However, it is being widely reported by Reuters news agency and other outlets that as many as 500 to 600 Egyptians perished on the route.
Egyptian officials said they were working to gather an accurate tally of victims and missing persons. The discrepancy stems from vast numbers of unregistered pilgrims who are not accounted for among those who have registered and traveled to Mecca as part of their country’s quota.
Thousands more have been treated for heatstroke after an estimated crowd of 1.8 million Muslims contended with the high temperatures.
The Saudi Ministry of Health implemented safety measures including cooling stations along the official route, and urged pilgrims to use umbrellas and stay hydrated, The Associated Press reported. Despite this, this year’s event was overshadowed by tragedy, raising questions over whether more could have been done to ensure people’s safety.
It also highlights the dangers posed for the many unregistered worshipers who want to fulfil their religious duty despite not obtaining a Hajj permit, and who don’t have access to the official facilities.
NATO allies appear to have chosen their next leader ahead of summit
Mark Rutte, who looks set to be NATO’s next secretary-general, is a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin and a staunch ally of Ukraine who honed his skills as a political dealmaker during nearly 14 years as Dutch prime minister.
Rutte, 57, has been one of the driving forces behind Europe’s military support for Ukraine since Russia’s 2022 invasion, and says defeat on the battlefield for Moscow is vital to secure peace in Europe.
His view is heavily influenced by the downing of an airliner over Ukraine in 2014, which the Netherlands blames on Russia, and in which 196 of the 298 victims were Dutch. NATO must be powerful to counter Moscow, and other European Union leaders must not be naive about Putin’s Russia, he says.
“He won’t stop at Ukraine if we don’t stop him now. This war is bigger than Ukraine itself. It’s about upholding the international rule of law,” Rutte told the United Nations in September 2022, seven months after Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Rutte first took office in 2010 and went on to become the longest-serving Dutch prime minister before announcing last year that he planned to leave national politics.
After the downing of flight MH17, he went from being primarily domestically focused to one of the EU’s main dealmakers, playing an important role in European debates on immigration, debt and the response to COVID-19.
Under his leadership, the Netherlands has increased defense spending to more than the two per cent threshold of GDP required of NATO members, providing F-16 fighter jets, artillery, drones and ammunition to Kyiv and investing heavily in its own military.
Under his leadership, the Netherlands has increased defense spending to more than the two per cent threshold of GDP required of NATO members, providing F-16 fighter jets, artillery, drones and ammunition to Kyiv and investing heavily in its own military.
Stoltenberg said on Tuesday Rutte was a “very strong” candidate to replace him and a decision was near.
Under Stoltenberg, who joined a few months after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, the alliance has added Montenegro, North Macedonia, Finland and Sweden as new members.
Some members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization had hoped Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas would become the first woman to lead NATO but others saw her as too hawkish towards Russia.
Designer of World’s Tallest Building Wants to Turn Skyscrapers Into Batteries
The company behind Dubai’s 828-meter-high tower plans to harness gravity to offset construction emissions.
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill has developed a series of prototype designs that use electric motors to elevate massive blocks, creating potential energy that can be converted into electricity when the blocks are lowered. The designs are based on technology developed by partner Energy Vault Holdings as an alternative to lithium-ion batteries and other types of chemical cells. They are seeking developer partners interested in offsetting greenhouse gas pollution from buildings, which the United Nations estimates are responsible for almost 40% of global emissions.
The concept is similar to widely used pumped hydroelectric plants. Energy Vault completed its first major project this month near Shanghai, a stand-alone storage system that can supply as much as 25 megawatts of power for four hours. Other companies are testing new types of gravity storage systems, including ones using abandoned oil wells and mines.
Building owners and designers have a growing number of tools to limit carbon emissions from day-to-day operations, from better insulation to heat pumps. However, there are no substitutes for steel and concrete, which are critical components of modern buildings and major sources of carbon emissions. There are efforts to decarbonize those materials, but they remain far from reaching a meaningful scale. For building owners looking to zero out emissions, turning a skyscraper into a massive battery is one avenue, according to Bill Baker, a consulting partner at Chicago-based SOM.
SOM has created four storage system prototypes based on this concept. Three are standalone systems that use either heavy blocks or water, with two built into hillsides and a third that’s a tall, cylindrical tower. The last is intended for urban areas, a towering skyscraper that could include residential, retail and office spaces. Energy Vault’s Shanghai project is about 150 meters (490 feet) high, but SOM’s skyscraper batteries may be much higher, starting at 300 meters.
Baba says : “As regards the intellectual exploitation of others, nearly all vipras think alike, so when they operate their machinery of exploitation, quite a remarkable unity can be discerned among them. When Mahatma Buddha, Kabir, Chaitanya, Guru Nanaka and Hazrat Mohammed tried to make people aware of religious exploitation, the vipras of those times, irrespective of their religious affiliations or beliefs, united against them. Hindu priests and Muslim mullahs united to fight against Mahatma Kabir. The same thing occurred at the time of Mahaprabhu Chaitanyadeva.”
Reference : Human Society – 2, The Vipra Age
June 15, 2024
South Africa’s President Ramaphosa is reelected for second term after a dramatic late coalition deal.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was reelected by lawmakers for a second term on Friday, after his party struck a dramatic late coalition deal with a former political foe just hours before the vote.
Ramaphosa, the leader of the African National Congress, won convincingly in Parliament against a surprise candidate who was also nominated — Julius Malema of the far-left Economic Freedom Fighters. Ramaphosa received 283 votes to Malema’s 44 in the 400-member house.
The 71-year-old Ramaphosa secured his second term with the help of lawmakers from the country’s second biggest party, the Democratic Alliance, and some smaller parties. They backed him in the vote and got him over the finish line following the ANC’s loss of its long-held majority in a landmark election two weeks ago that reduced it to 159 seats in Parliament.
South Africa is the most unequal country in the world, according to the World Bank. Citizens are also contending with the highest sustained rate of unemployment in the world, rampant corruption, feeble economic growth, crippling power cuts and rising violent crime.
Black South Africans, who make up 81% of the population, are at the sharp end of this dire situation. Unemployment and poverty remain concentrated in the Black majority, in large part due to the failure of public schooling, while most White South Africans have jobs and command considerably higher wages.
CAIR-LA Condemns UCLA Administration’s Censorship of Pro-Palestinian Activism With Threats to Withhold Degrees From Peaceful Anti-Genocide Student Protesters
The Greater Los Angeles Area office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-LA) today condemned the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) for threatening to withhold degrees from 55 students who were arrested earlier this month for their participation in the school’s peaceful anti-genocide encampment in attempts to further suppress their pro-Palestinian advocacy.
On May 2, UCLA’s militarized police response to the university’s Gaza Solidarity Encampment led to the arrest of around 200 students peacefully protesting the Israeli government’s genocide in Gaza. At least 55 of those students have reportedly received letters from their school’s administration accusing them of violating the student code of conduct, including “disorderly behavior” and “disturbing the peace.”
The letters reportedly require the students to schedule a meeting with university leadership by Wednesday, June 5, where they will “be given the opportunity to explain this situation from [their] perspective.” Students were warned that an academic hold would be placed on their records if they didn’t attend their meetings, preventing them from registering for classes, receiving their final grades, or graduating. Some students say they already have active holds placed on their online accounts.
CAIR-LA is Southern California’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice and empower American Muslims.
Leading Scholars Call for Global Treaty on Free Education
Seventy eminent scholars, experts, and researchers from 30 countries have called for a new international treaty to recognize children’s rights to free early childhood education and free secondary education.
According to the experts, well-established scientific evidence shows “unequivocally” that education is foundational to children’s healthy development and lifelong prospects, but international law has not kept pace with research showing the benefits of education.
The 1948 Universal Declaration on Human Rights and subsequent treaties mandate that primary education be free and compulsory for all but are silent on early childhood education. They also stop short of requiring that secondary education be made available free, calling only on states to make it “available and accessible.”
After 70 years, the scholars say, “We believe it is time for that to change.”
The scholars call on all governments to support a new optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child to ensure recognition of the right to free early childhood education and free secondary education, alongside the existing explicit right to free and compulsory primary education.
The scholars note stark inequalities in access to education and children’s educational outcomes within and between countries, especially for children from disadvantaged and marginalized communities. The experts call for an “urgent renewed commitment” to education systems that will result in just and equitable outcomes for all children, and say it is essential this commitment be backed by a legal mandate to ensure its success.
The scholars’ call comes ahead of the 56th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, beginning on June 18, at which governments will likely consider a resolution led by Luxembourg, Sierra Leone, and the Dominican Republic to begin a process to create a protocol focused on the right to free education from pre-primary through secondary school.
Millions of children are missing out on schooling because of cost. A new global treaty mandating free education for all children from pre-primary through secondary would be transformative for children, families, and societies. According to the scholars, “Not only is education valuable in its own right, it has a multiplier effect—that is, education helps position children to secure their other rights during childhood and subsequently as adults. At a societal level, investing in education is any country’s most effective policy tool to ensure prosperity, social cohesion, and sustainable development.”
Could bird flu in cows lead to a human outbreak? Slow response worries scientists
By April 24, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) had reported 33 herd detections of H5N1 in eight states: Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Texas. In cattle, H5N1 virus shows up in the mammary glands. Infected animals typically produce less milk. The milk looks different, too, with an appearance like colostrum, the thick, nutrient-rich yellowish milk that new mothers produce for a few days following a birth. Cattle don’t die from H5N1 infection, and the isolated human case was relatively benign. The worker’s only symptom was conjunctivitis, or pink eye. (The worker may have been infected during milking procedures that can generate infectious aerosols or through hand-to-eye contact.)
Is milk a risk for humans? A recent preprint reports that cats residing in farms with infected cattle were infected (and experienced serious disease) after consuming raw milk. Human consumption of raw milk carries other infectious risks in any case, but at present it should be strictly prohibited until it is known whether these cattle H5N1 infections are a rare event or a precursor of an extended cattle-H5N1 interaction.
Is pasteurization thorough enough to alleviate the risks of H5N1 presence in the milk of infected cattle? An April 24 announcement from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) noted that viral particles were identified through testing in pasteurized milk samples, although the initial results from further experiments did not demonstrate the presence of “viable” infectious virus.
A previous study demonstrated that pasteurization for a period of six hours was adequate in inactivating numerous viruses in blood plasma, including an H5N1 strain, which did not behave differently from other enveloped viruses in this context. The virus would thus not be expected to demonstrate any peculiar resistance patterns to milk pasteurization, which remains an effective process of eliminating viral transmission risks. Another study focusing on chicken meat heavily infected with H5N1 showed that, at 70o Celsius, well below standard oven temperatures, 5.5 seconds of heating was sufficient to achieve a massive reduction of viral concentrations. Also, a study on avian influenza-infected eggs in the past showed that the virus was susceptible to thermal inactivation.
As the University of Guelph’s Scott Weese notes in a recent blogpost, even if infected milk enters the milk supply, milk from other sources will cause it to be rapidly diluted. Results of studies and experiments on the effect of pasteurization in H5N1-infected milk from the current outbreak could help alleviate the average consumer’s fears regarding milk.
Is cattle infection a step towards adaptation to humans? Researchers at Iowa State University investigated genetic markers in viral samples from infected cattle and demonstrated the presence of features suggesting the virus in cattle had increased affinity for receptors on human cells and increased mammalian virulence. In a preprint not yet peer reviewed, the researchers found certain point mutations that would increase the affinity that the hemagglutinin (HA) viral protein, responsible for binding to living species’ receptors, has for mammalian receptors.
Baltimore key shipping channel fully reopens after Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse
The main shipping channel into the Baltimore port was fully restored for commercial transit, after the March 26 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.
The bridge toppled after the cargo ship Dali crashed into the infrastructure.
The restoration follows a cleanup process that removed about 50,000 tons of bridge wreckage from the Patapsco River, allowing for the gradual reopening of the channel in the weeks since.
The main passageway into the Baltimore port was fully restored after the March 26 collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which left six people dead and obstructed maritime traffic into the harbor.
The bridge toppled after the cargo ship Dali crashed into the infrastructure, choking a major shipping artery into the U.S.′ busiest auto port.
The Port of Baltimore processed a record 1.1 million containers and $80.8 billion in foreign cargo value last year, according to state data. Six highway construction crew members who were carrying out overnight road work plunged to their deaths during the incident.
For millennia, ancient Egyptian doctors were trailblazers—and evidence detected on skulls suggests its doctors may have even attempted to treat cancer.
Ancient Egypt is perhaps best known for its pyramids, mummies and hieroglyphics. But its medical doctors might have had the most lasting influence on humanity. From surgery and dentistry to prosthetics and obstetrics, the ancient Egyptians made numerous medical advances over the course of their roughly 3,000-year-long civilization. They even made rudimentary attempts to cure cancer.
Thanks to several surviving medical papyri—as well as temple and tomb carvings and scientific examination of human remains—researchers have been able to glean much about medical practices in ancient Egypt. Egyptians took medicine seriously, referring to it as the “necessary art,” they established centers of medical learning, and both men and women could be doctors.
Egypt Was World-Renown for its Doctors
In fact, the first mention of doctors in recorded history comes from Egypt’s Old Kingdom, the era when the Great Pyramids of Giza were constructed. Around the 25th century B.C., a physician apparently cured the pharaoh of an ailment in his nostrils. Even earlier, commoner-born Imhotep, who was also an architect, priest and political advisor, received such renown as a medical practitioner that he was ultimately deified as a god of medicine.
Eventually, Egyptian doctors gained such a reputation for competency that leaders from Persia and elsewhere purportedly sought them out. In The Odyssey, the Greek poet Homer wrote that Egyptians “are more skilled in medicine than any of human kind.”
Much like today, some ancient Egyptian doctors served as specialists. “Each physician is a healer of one disease and no more,” wrote the Greek historian Herodotus. “All the country is full of physicians, some of the eye, some of the teeth, some of what pertains to the belly, and some of the hidden diseases.” There were even proctologists, the literal term for which translated to “shepherd of the anus.”
“We are talking about a society that at the time had the most advanced medicine that ever existed,” says Edgard Camarós, a paleopathologist at the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain.
Even the most vulnerable members of society, not just the rich and powerful, received some level of care. “The Egyptians were very considerate of people with deformities and disabilities. They didn’t treat them as outcasts,” says Rosalie David, an emeritus professor of Egyptology at the University of Manchester in England and co-author of Medicine and Healing Practices in Ancient Egypt. “That’s another big difference between Egypt and the rest of the surrounding world.”
Skull Cutmarks Suggest Attempts to Treat Cancer
The medical papyri and various engravings depict ancient Egyptian physicians operating on patients, using scalpels, forceps, scissors and other tools that remain in use today. Evidence exists that the Egyptians performed oral surgeries and amputations, and that they sliced open boils and abscesses to drain them of pus.
Back then (and to some extent today), cancer was incurable. The Egyptians themselves recognized this, with the so-called Edwin Smith Papyrus describing a breast cancer case for which there was no treatment. The graveness of the disease, however, didn’t stop them from trying to find a cure, according to a study published May 29, 2024, in the journal Frontiers in Medicine.
For the study, lead author Camarós and his team microscopically examined a more than 4,000-year-old skull from Egypt’s Old Kingdom. The skull, belonging to a male in his thirties, showed signs of nasopharyngeal cancer (a type of head and neck cancer), which the researchers already knew about. But they were shocked to discover cutmarks, likely made with a metal instrument, around three of the skull’s many secondary tumors.
Camarós believes this must have been the earliest-known attempt to treat cancer, or perhaps a postmortem autopsy to better understand the disease. Either way, Camarós says, “it cannot be any other thing but a surgical intervention with a medical focus,” which he calls “a milestone in the history of medicine.”
Prosthetics, Dentistry Were Among Practices
Indeed, the Egyptians excelled at healing broken bones, immobilizing them in linen-wrapped splints made of reeds or wood. They furthermore knew how to treat dislocations, how to cauterize, suture and bandage wounds, and how to keep them clean. “They knew that the wounds should be washed, that they should not be exposed to dirt,” Camarós says.
Egyptians also built the world’s oldest known prosthetic devices, including a 3,000-year-old artificial toe made of wood and leather, which probably served a practical, rather than purely aesthetic, function. “If you don’t have the toe,” Camarós says, “you don’t have stability when you walk.”
As for oral care, the Egyptians developed toothpastes made of such ingredients as egg shells, natron and pumice, and they used teeth-cleaning twigs and mouthwashes. However, their exact level of expertise is debated, with some scholars saying they lacked skilled professional dentists. “They had a lot of dental problems,” David says, adding that the teeth of the pharaohs “are just as bad as the ordinary people.”
Contraceptives and Pregnancy Tests
Though certainly not as effective as today’s methods, ancient Egyptian women apparently inserted crocodile dung, mixed with ground-up acacia leaves and honey or sour milk, into their vaginas as a contraceptive. The medical papyri likewise describe methods of abortion and inducing labor, as well as a pregnancy test that involved urinating on barley and emmer (a type of wheat).
Additionally, the ancient Egyptians made use of a ran
A New Documentary Linked Two Major Fragrance Brands to Child Labor
Revelations about the use of child labor have become all too familiar across any number of industries but are particularly troubling when it comes to luxury goods marketed to rich countries. Child labor practices, which are typically shrouded by opaque supply chains, are a scourge of many developing nations and are often the result of systemic economic injustices with which consumers are complicit.
In recent years, the apparel, beauty, and wellness industries have come under fire for child labor practices, including instances of children as young as four working in mines to source and gather mica (often used in shimmery cosmetics but also electronics and automobile parts, among other things) and the mining of “healing” crystals, which is sometimes done by children in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Myanmar, and other locations.
Now, labor policies in the fragrance industry have come into question. Children were reportedly working to harvest ingredients used in fragrances from two major brands, Lancôme and Aerin Beauty, the BBC found in an investigation that began last year. While researching perfume supply chains, the news outlet discovered that jasmine flowers, a popular fragrance ingredient, were being “picked by minors.”
The fragrances in question are Lancôme’s Idôle L’Intense and Aerin’s Ikat Jasmine and Limone Di Sicilia; both scents contain jasmine sourced from Egypt, which, as the BBC reports, “produces about half the world’s supply of jasmine flowers.” Both brands’ parent companies—L’Oréal and Estée Lauder, respectively—have codes of conduct designed to prevent the use of child labor in their manufacturing processes.
The findings were included in the BBC‘s new documentary, Perfume’s Dark Secret. “The BBC visited Egypt’s jasmine region during the harvest season in the summer of 2023 and found children—some as young as five years old—working in the jasmine fields that were supplying some global brands through factories in Egypt,” the BBC shared in a statement timed to the documentary’s May 28 release.
Letter to the UN, Security Council and Member States on Women’s Rights in Afghanistan
Dear Excellencies,
We write to you ahead of the third UN-convened meeting of Special Envoys and Special Representatives on Afghanistan on 30 June–1 July 2024 in Doha, Qatar (“Doha III”), to continue to discuss the international community’s approach to Afghanistan. More than one year since the first Doha meeting, there is growing concern that the international community lacks the necessary resolve to defend and advocate for the human rights of Afghan women and girls. Many Afghan women civil society have even called for a boycott of continued negotiations with the Taliban until women’s rights are restored.
Ahead of Doha III, we further urge you to ensure the following:
Women’s rights must be a central topic of discussions in Doha. Respect for women’s rights must be a core objective of the international community’s engagement on Afghanistan, and a standing agenda item at all upcoming and future discussions in Doha. Women’s rights must also be addressed in discussions on any other aspect of the situation in Afghanistan, such as the humanitarian crisis, a political process, climate change, counter-narcotics, counter-terrorism, the economy and development efforts.
Principled engagement requires centering human rights and accountability. We urge Member States to coordinate and establish clear safeguards around the following principles:
The full spectrum of women’s human rights must be respected, without exception, in accordance with Afghanistan’s international obligations,[4] including under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). All restrictions violating the rights of Afghan women and girls, including, but not limited to, education, work, movement, assembly, expression and dress must be immediately and unconditionally removed in accordance with Resolution 2681 (2023).
Women’s full, equal, meaningful and safe participation in all aspects of public life and decision-making, including in any political process, must be guaranteed.
All humanitarian actors and their donors must ensure safe, gender-responsive, principled and non-discriminatory humanitarian delivery to all Afghans in need. This requires calling on the Taliban to immediately lift the ban on Afghan women working for the United Nations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), which is in violation of the UN Charter and CEDAW; supporting the full and safe participation and leadership of women and women-led organizations in humanitarian decision-making and delivery; ensuring that women aid workers are not replaced by men; and increasing support to humanitarian organizations, particularly those led by Afghan women.
The targeting of all human rights defenders, including women protestors and civil society, peacefully exercising their freedom of expression and assembly, must end immediately.
Perpetrators of violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, including gender persecution and other abuses targeting diverse women and girls, must be heldaccountable.
The international community should reiterate its clear and unified demand for the Taliban to swiftly reverse all policies and practices that restrict the enjoyment by women and girls of their human rights and fundamental freedoms, as per Resolution 2681 (2023), and refrain from sending any countervailing signals that downplay the seriousness of the human rights crisis in the country. Afghan women have been clear that the international community must refrain from granting the Taliban a seat at the UN or inviting them to UN-convened meetings, reopening diplomatic missions in the country or handing over diplomatic missions outside of Afghanistan to them, or lifting sanctions—all of which risk legitimizing a regime that continues to violate women’s human rights, Afghanistan’s international legal obligations, and Security Council resolutions. International experts have further called on Member States to avoid normalization or legitimization of the Taliban until there is demonstrated, measurable and independently verified progress on all human rights, especially women’s rights.[5]
The full, equal, meaningful and safe participation of diverse women civil society and human rights defenders is essential to the legitimacy of the meetings in Doha. Meeting to discuss Afghanistan without half its population represented undermines both the Doha process and its outcomes, as well as any future engagement strategy by the international community. We therefore urge you to ensure that diverse Afghan women, including women human rights defenders, peacebuilders, protestors, youth, and those representing ethnic, religious, LGBTQI+, persons with disabilities and other marginalized groups, are full participants in all discussions and processes in Doha and beyond; that they have regular, and multiple, avenues and opportunities to express their views; that their recommendations are reflected in any outcomes; and that there is full transparency regarding both these processes and their outcomes so that Afghan women and civil society have clarity about how their perspectives inform the international community’s approach to Afghanistan.
The proposed UN Special Envoy for Afghanistan, due to be appointed, must be the principled voice of the international community. The Special Envoy must have a strong track record on human rights and women’s rights, as required by Resolution 2721 (2023); include senior gender and human rights expertise on their team; regularly and meaningfully engage with diverse Afghan women civil society and human rights defenders; and ensure that their views inform all aspects of the Envoy’s work.
A peace summit for Ukraine opens this weekend in Switzerland. But Russia won’t be taking part
Switzerland will host scores of world leaders this weekend to try to map out the first steps toward peace in Ukraine even though Russia, which launched the war, isn’t attending.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s government didn’t want Russia involved. But the Swiss insist that Russia must be involved at some point, and hope it will join the process one day.
The conference on Saturday and Sunday, underpinned by elements of a 10-point peace formula presented by Zelenskyy in late 2022, is seen as a largely symbolic effort on the part of Kyiv to rally the international community and project strength against Russian might.
But the question looming over the summit will be how the two countries can eventually end the war without Moscow attending.
The conflict has also led to international sanctions against nuclear-armed Russia and raised tensions between NATO and Moscow. The summit comes as Russian forces have been making modest territorial gains in eastern and northeastern Ukraine.
Here’s a look at what to expect from the weekend gathering at the Buergenstock Resort on a cliff overlooking Lake Lucerne.
Who’s going?
Among the stakes will be simple optics: How many countries the Swiss and Ukrainians can draw in.
Swiss officials sent out around 160 invitations. About 90 delegations, including a handful of international organizations like the United Nations, will attend. Roughly half will be from Europe. Zelenskyy led a diplomatic push in Asia and beyond to rally participation.
Several dozen attendees will be heads of state or government, including from France, Poland, Japan, the United Kingdom, Germany and Canada.
US Vice President Kamala Harris is meeting Zelenskyy on Saturday on the sidelines of the summit, and she’s also expected to deliver an address.
Who are the major no-shows?
US President Joe Biden, who was wrapping up a visit to Italy on Friday for a Group of Seven summit, opted to dispatch Harris and national security adviser Jake Sullivan.
Biden and Zelenskyy signed a 10-year security agreement Thursday at the G7 summit.
Russia’s key ally China won’t attend. The Chinese Foreign Ministry has said it believes a peace conference should involve both Russia and Ukraine.
The final list of attendees isn’t expected until late Friday, and question marks remain about how key developing countries like India, Brazil and Turkey might take part, if at all.
What can be expected?
Naysayers say the conference will be short on substantial achievements. President Vladimir Putin’s government doesn’t believe Switzerland, which has lined up behind European Union sanctions on Moscow over the war, is neutral.
Putin said Friday that “without Russia’s participation, without an honest and responsible dialogue with us, it is impossible to reach a peaceful solution in Ukraine and in general regarding global and European security.” He suggested that the conference is ”just another ploy to divert everyone’s attention.” Participants are expected to unite around an outcome document or a joint plan, and Ukraine will have a lot of input. But ironing out language that delegations can agree upon is still a work in progress.
G7 summit, Borgo Egnazia, Apulia, Italy, 13-15 June 2024
Main results
The G7 summit hosted by this year’s Italian G7 presidency took place in Borgo Egnazia, Apulia, Italy.
The EU was represented by the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
The summit in Apulia was an opportunity for G7 leaders to demonstrate their strong determination to uphold the international order based on the rule of law, and to strengthen their engagement with developing nations.
The main issues addressed during the six working sessions were:
At the end of the summit, the leaders adopted a leaders’ communiqué.
We, the Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7), gathered in Apulia to reaffirm our enduring unity and determination to meet global challenges at a crucial moment in history and as the international community confronts multiple interconnected crises.
We reiterate our shared belief in democratic principles and free societies, universal human rights, social progress, and respect for multilateralism and the rule of law. We commit to providing opportunities and pursuing shared prosperity. We seek to strengthen international rules and norms for the benefit of all.
Our work is grounded in our commitment to respect the UN Charter, safeguard international peace and security, and uphold the free and open rules-based international order. We will support more effective, inclusive and equitable global governance that reflects our changing world. We reaffirm our commitment to uphold human dignity and the rule of law in all parts of the world.
We are working together and with others to address the pressing challenges of our time. We are:
Standing in solidarity to support Ukraine’s fight for freedom and its reconstruction for as long as it takes. In the presence of President Zelenskyy, we decided to make available approximately USD 50 billion leveraging the extraordinary revenues of the immobilized Russian sovereign assets, sending an unmistakable signal to President Putin. We are stepping up our collective efforts to disarm and defund Russia’s military industrial complex.
United in supporting the comprehensive deal that has been put forward, that would lead to an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages, and a credible pathway towards peace that leads to a two-state solution. We also call for a significant and sustained increase in humanitarian assistance.
Engaging with African countries, in a spirit of equitable and strategic partnership. As they work to deliver sustainable development and industrial growth for their people, we are advancing our respective efforts to invest in sustainable infrastructure, including through the PGII, and we launched the Energy for Growth in Africa initiative, together with several African partners.
Acting to enable countries to invest in their future and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), recognizing that reducing poverty and tackling global challenges go hand in hand. We are doing our part to achieve better, bigger and more effective Multilateral Development Banks, making it possible for the World Bank to boost its lending by USD 70 billion over the next ten years. We are calling for action from the international community to address debt burdens.
Reinforcing global food security and enhancing climate resilience, including by launching the Apulia Food Systems Initiative.
Reaffirming our commitment to gender equality. Together with International Financial Institutions, we will unlock at least USD 20 billion over three years in investments to boost women’s empowerment.
Taking concrete steps to address the triple crisis of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss, including by submitting ambitious 1.5°C aligned Nationally Determined Contributions. We will spearhead global efforts to preserve forests and oceans, and to end plastic pollution.
Affirming our collective commitment and enhanced cooperation to address migration, tackle the challenges and seize the opportunities that it presents, in partnership with countries of origin and transit. We will focus on the root causes of irregular migration, efforts to enhance border management and curb transnational organized crime, and safe and regular pathways for migration. We launched the G7 Coalition to prevent and counter the smuggling of migrants.
Deepening our cooperation to harness the benefits and manage the risks of Artificial Intelligence (AI). We will launch an action plan on the use of AI in the world of work and develop a brand to support the implementation of the International Code of Conduct for Organizations Developing Advanced AI Systems.
Fostering strong and inclusive global economic growth, maintaining financial stability and investing in our economies to promote jobs and accelerate digital and clean energy transitions. We also remain committed to strengthening the rules-based multilateral trading system and to implementing a more stable and fairer international tax system fit for the 21st century.
Acting together to promote economic resilience, confront non-market policies and practices that undermine the level playing field and our economic security, and strengthen our coordination to address global overcapacity challenges.
In taking forward all these priorities, our partnership in the G7 will continue to be guided by our joint commitment to cooperate openly and transparently in a coordinated manner.
We are grateful for the presence of His Holiness Pope Francis and for his contribution.
In a spirit of shared responsibility, we warmly welcome the participation of the Leaders of Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, India, Jordan, Kenya, Mauritania, Tunisia, Türkiye, and the United Arab Emirates.
Biden ‘not confident’ ceasefire will happen soon – and says ‘Hamas has to move’
US President Joe Biden has said he is not confident that a ceasefire between Israel and Gaza will happen soon.
Mr Biden attended today’s G7 leaders’ summit in Italy, where he confirmed to reporters that a ceasefire plan was discussed.
When asked whether he was confident a ceasefire would happen soon, the president replied “no”.
He said that he hadn’t lost hope but added that “Hamas has to move.”
Mr Biden’s three-phase ceasefire plan was accepted by the UN Security Council this week.
The proposal was reported to include the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza and would involve Hamas handing over all of its hostages.
However, as we reported this morning, a senior leader of Hamas told Reuters that the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza was a change to the deal that they had requested.
Colombia says it will take in wounded Palestinian children for treatment
The Colombian government has announced it will receive injured Palestinian children and provide them with medical care.
Elizabeth Taylor Jay, Colombia’s deputy minister of multilateral affairs, was speaking in Stockholm where she was on a state visit with Colombian president Gustavo Petro.
“We have taken the decision to provide humanitarian support to Palestinian children who will travel with their families to Colombia for rehabilitation,” she said.
Ms Taylor Jay does not say how many children will be taken in by Colombia, nor how they would be transported from Gaza.
President Petro has been one of the most vocal critics on the world stage of Israel’s conduct in Gaza following the attack by Hamas on 7 October.
Colombia broke diplomatic ties with Israel in May.
Earlier this month, Mr Petro announced via a post on X that his country would suspend coal exports to Israel “until the genocide is stopped.”
Colombia is Israel’s largest supplier of coal, according to the American Journal for Transportation.
Subjective Approach through Objective Adjustment: As the sphere of knowledge increases, many secrets of the world do not remain secret. Yoga is such a secret. It is a cult, and by dint of practising this cult one comes in contact with the causal factors of many secrets. About seven thousand years ago a great yogi, Sadáshiva, systematized different branches of yoga. His spouse, Párvatii, was also a yoginii; and for the welfare of the entire human society Lord Shiva and Párvatii tried their best to create a practical cult. The questions placed before Shiva by Párvatii and the answers given by Shiva to Párvatii collectively form the shástras [scriptures]
Sri Sri Anandmurti Jee
A’NANDA VACANA’MRTAM
[ PART-14: CHAPTER: 18 of 21 ]
THE SUBJECTIVE APPROACH Through OBJECTIVE ADJUSTMENT
May 25, 2024
World News – Ananda Marga
Anand Marg said in Bangladesh Dharma Mahasammelan that peace is possible only through spiritual pursuit and fight against bad rituals.
28, 29 and 30 March 2024
With the efforts of Kolkata Region’s Regional Secretary Acharya Navrunanand Avadhoot, Senior Purodha Acharya Vimalanand Avadhoot went from Ranchi to Bangladesh to represent the Revered Purodha Pramukh Dada from Ranchi Anand Marg Jagriti Ratu Road to address the Bangladesh Dharma Mahasammelan. Historical Ramna Kali Temple in Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka, Held near Dhaka University. A three-day Dharma Mahasammelan was organized by Anand Marg Pracharak Sangh on 28, 29 and 30 March 2024. Due to some reason, revered Purodha Pramukh Acharya Vishwadevanand Avadhoot could not go to Bangladesh. To represent them, senior leader Acharya Vimalanand Avadhoot was sent on behalf of the organization to address the Dharma Mahasammelan. There were a lot of seekers in Bangladesh and people were very excited. The seekers practiced Guru Sakash, Panchjanya and Yogasana in Brahma Muhurta under the guidance of an experienced Acharya.
In the evening, after collective Dharma Chakra and Guru Vandana, a dance based on Prabhat Sangeet was presented by “Rava”. Let it be known that Prabhat Sangeet is a new family of music which has been given by the founder of Anand Marg, Shri Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar alias Shri Shri Anandmurthy ji. Senior leader Acharya Vimalanand Avadhoot ji said in the sermon that “Peace is possible only through spiritual pursuit and fight against bad values.”
.https://india.anandamarga.org/dms-in-bangladesh/
Summer Conference in USA 2024
Welcome to the Summer Conference at Ananda Kanan, Missouri, from June 30 to July 5, 2024! This year’s theme is One World – One Family.
This year’s theme is One World – One Family, and we will have workshops and classes related to that topic. The conference starts on Sunday afternoon, June 30, and finishes on Friday morning, July 5.
The organizing committee is working on creating an interesting program with various workshops on different topics, a neohumanistic symposium, seminar classes, daily Akhanda Kiirtana, the 4th of July program in Willow Springs, an outing to the river, Katha Kiirtana, and other interesting programs.
It is my great honor to invite you all to attend Dharma Mahá Sammelan in Taiwan at Ánanda Suruci MU, Hong Kong Sector dated 11 – 12 October, 2024. There will also be a pre-DMS program from 8 to 10 October with 5 days (96 hours) Akhańd́a Kiirtana with various social and spiritual programs. It has now been 13 years since the last DMS in Taiwan, which is a place of Baba’s devotees and the land of humbleness and kindness. Bábá came to visit Márgiis in 1979 for 15 days, so Taiwan is a special land for all of us. Let us come together and embrace the Divine light of Bábá’s knowledge, the structural solidarity of AMPS, and the compassion and Satsauṋga that unites us with moral and spiritual inspiration. May this DMS serve as a beacon, guiding us toward better understanding, universal love and harmony, and a deeper connection with a new phase of Bábá’s mission. Let’s forge a path of spiritual awakening, nurturing our souls and the world around us. Let us share our insights, experiences and love, fostering a global family, bound by the timeless pursuit of enlightenment and peace. This DMS will be very wonderful, so all Márgiis, please do come to attend and make this DMS very successful, by Bábá’s Grace.
In Him
Ác. Shubhaniryásánanda Avt.
Sectorial Secretary Hong Kong Sector
REF C.O/MUYEYE/05/2024 Qualifications Dip in clinical medicine and surgery. 2 years’ experience in a busy health facility. Must be registered with the Board. Have a valid pr
REF NO. KRCHN/MUYEYE/05/2024 Qualifications Diploma in: Kenya Registered Community Health Nursing from KMTC or any other recognized institution. At least 3 years’ experience.
REPORTS TO: SENIOR FINANCE OFFICER QUALIFICATIONS Must be a certified accountant for the last 2 years with at least 2 years of experience in project accounting.
India’s Literary Treasures Inscribed in the 2024 Memory of the World Committee for Asia and the Pacific Regional Register
Three significant works of Indian literature, Ramcharitmanas, Panchatantra, and Sahrdayāloka-Locana, have been inscribed in the 2024 Memory of the World Committee for Asia and the Pacific (MOWCAP) Regional Register. The announcement was made during the 10th General Meeting of MOWCAP, held from May 7 to 8, 2024, in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
The Meeting was hosted by the Ministry of Culture of Mongolia, the Mongolian National Commission for UNESCO, and the UNESCO Regional Office in Bangkok.
MOWCAP was set up in 1998 and since then, this is the first time India has had three nominations inscribed in one cycle. With the inclusion of all the three items in 2024 MOWCAP Regional Register, it is evident that India is joining the global efforts towards the preservation and promotion of its rich traditional and cultural documentary heritage and practices which play a vital role in fostering cultural diversity and peace.
Sahrdayaloka-Locana
The Sahrdayaloka-Locana is a Sanskrit treatise on poetics written byJagannatha Paṇḍitaraja in the 17th century.
It is considered one of the most important works of Sanskrit literary criticism.
The text discusses the concept of “Sahrdaya“, which refers to a sensitive or discerning reader or critic.
Geomagnetic storm scrambles tractor navigation systems
A powerful solar storm over the weekend that produced a dazzling display of northern lights also disrupted farm equipment navigation systems, interrupting operations at the height of planting season.
The geomagnetic storm, the strongest in over two decades, interrupted GPS systems that are used to inform planting decisions and keep rows straight with exact precision. Some farmers had no choice but to temporarily halt operations after the technology struggled to locate their position.
“I saw stuff on Friday I’ve never seen before,” one farmer wrote on Reddit. “We’re striptill farmers so in order for the planter to follow the strip tiller we need 1” accuracy. Wasn’t happening.”
A series of updates from John Deere dealership LandMark Equipment on Friday advised customers to turn off tools using GPS and real-time kinematic to prevent the tech from receiving conflicting signals from the geomagnetic storm. LandMark said Deere’s AutoPath tool, which uses historical data to create guidance lines for secondary passes such as spraying and harvests, may be difficult for farmers who were out working during the solar storm.
“When you head back into these fields to side dress, spray, cultivate, harvest, etc. over the next several months, we expect that the rows won’t be where the AutoPath lines think they are,” LandMark said in an updated advisory Saturday. “It is most likely going to be difficult — if not impossible — to make AutoPath work in these fields as the inaccuracy is most likely inconsistent.”
Singapore braces for COVID-19 surge with over 25,900 cases recorded in a week; govt urges citizens to wear masks
Singapore is experiencing a new wave of COVID-19, with authorities recording over 25,900 cases from May 5 to 11. Health Minister Ong Ye Kung advised the public to wear masks again on Saturday.
“We are at the beginning part of the wave where it is steadily rising,” Kung stated. “So, I would say the wave should peak in the next two to four weeks, which means between mid- and end of June,” he told The Straits Times.
Significant surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalisations
The Ministry of Health (MOH) reported that the number of COVID-19 cases increased significantly, from 13,700 the previous week to 25,900 in the week of May 5 to 11. Average daily hospitalisations rose to about 250 from 181 the previous week, while intensive care unit (ICU) cases remained low, increasing slightly from two to three daily.
Rocket Lab launches NASA cubesat to study heat lost from Earth’s poles
Rocket Lab launched a small Earth-observation satellite for NASA early this morning (May 25).
An Electron rocket lifted off from Rocket Lab‘s New Zealand site today at 3:41 a.m. EDT (0741 GMT; 7:41 p.m. local New Zealand time), carrying the first of two cubesats for NASA’s PREFIRE (Polar Radiant Energy in the Far-InfraRed Experiment) climate-studying mission.
Rocket Lab will also launch the second PREFIRE satellite. The date for that coming liftoff has not been announced, but it will occur within three weeks of today’s launch, according to the company.
Both PREFIRE satellites are 6U cubesats. The “U” stands for “unit,” a cube 4 inches (10 centimeter) on a side that’s the basic building block of cubesats. (So a 6U cubesat is the size of six such units.)
The PREFIRE cubesats will head to different 326-mile-high (525 kilometers) circular orbits above Earth. From that perch, they’ll measure how much heat is lost from our planet’s polar regions — something that has never been done systematically from orbit, according to Rocket Lab.
The PREFIRE duo “will criss-cross over the Arctic and Antarctica measuring thermal infrared radiation — the same type of energy emitted from a heat lamp — that will make climate models more accurate and help predict changes caused by global warming,” Rocket Lab wrote in a mission description.
Cooperatives Build a Better Future for All Theme for 2024 International Day of Cooperatives
This year on July 6, cooperatives around the world will celebrate the International Day of Cooperatives with the theme “Cooperatives Build a Better Future for All.” Cooperatives will have the opportunity to showcase their current and historical contributions to building a sustainable future, accelerating efforts to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by 2030. The theme aligns well with the objectives of the upcoming UN Summit of the Future whose theme is “Multilateral solutions for a better tomorrow”.
The cooperative identity, values, and principles set a strong system for achieving the SDGs. For the 2024 #CoopsDay, cooperatives can showcase their high standards for inclusive and sustainable growth, and serve as stewards for protecting the environment and fighting climate change. Through dialogue, democratic governance, and shared ownership, cooperatives set an example for peace and stability, bringing people from diverse backgrounds together on equal terms, and fostering mutual understanding and respect. The cooperative youth are empowered to lead the way by giving them opportunities, transferring knowledge, and ensuring diversity, equity and equality for all.
The 2023 UN Secretary-General Report on Cooperatives in Social Development acknowledged that cooperatives have a track record of promoting the economic and social development of all people including marginalized groups. Cooperatives consistently show their resilience in times of social and economic crises. The United Nations recognizes the cooperative movement as its key partner in accelerating sustainable development and calls on its member states to support and strengthen cooperatives’ entrepreneurial ecosystems. This can increase their capacity to create more social, economic, and environmental impact in society.
2025 International Year of Cooperatives
In November 2023, the UN General Assembly adopted the resolution A/RES/78/175 on cooperatives in social development calling for the proclamation of 2025 as an International Year of Cooperatives.
Talks On Landmark Global Agreement On Future Pandemics End Without Deal
Scarred by the devastation caused by COVID-19, countries have spent two years trying to hammer out binding commitments on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response.
Geneva:
Negotiations on a landmark global agreement on handling future pandemics ended Friday without a deal — though countries said they wanted to keep pushing for an accord.
Scarred by the devastation caused by Covid-19 — which killed millions of people, shredded economies and crippled health systems — countries have spent two years trying to hammer out binding commitments on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.
The talks gathered momentum in the final weeks, but failed to meet a final deadline before next week’s World Health Assembly — the annual gathering of the World Health Organization’s 194 member states.
‘Find my Friends for rhinos’: How high-tech tracking is keeping tabs on wildlife
It’s early morning in Sera Community Conservancy in Northern Kenya and sunlight beats down across this expansive semi-arid landscape. Birds calling and boots crunching are the only sounds for miles as a team led by Kenyan wildlife veterinarian Dr. Mukami Ruoro-Oundo carefully tracks white rhinos — the first of their kind to be found here in Samburu County.
Sera Conservancy has championed the country’s community-led rhino conservation efforts. In 2015 it established East Africa’s first community rhino sanctuary with the introduction of 10 critically endangered black rhinos. Today, that number has grown to 21 black rhinos which freely roam across 107 square kilometers (41 square miles) of designated sanctuary land, and in February 2024, they were joined by four white rhinos from the nearby Lewa Conservancy.
Prior to translocation, each of the four white rhinos was fitted with a GPS tag in its horns and ears, which sends a real-time location to remote devices like mobile phones, or to the conservancy’s operations center, where Dr. Ruoro-Oundo is able to monitor Sarah’s location and movements.
Iran’s president and foreign minister die in helicopter crash at moment of high tensions in Mideast
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and the country’s foreign minister have been found dead hours after their helicopter crashed in fog
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and the country’s foreign minister were found dead Monday hours after their helicopter crashed in fog, leaving the Islamic Republic without two key leaders as extraordinary tensions grip the wider Middle East.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say in the Shiite theocracy, quickly named a little-known vice president as caretaker and insisted the government was in control, but the deaths marked yet another blow to a country beset by pressures at home and abroad.
Iran has offered no cause for the crash nor suggested sabotage brought down the helicopter, which fell in mountainous terrain in a sudden, intense fog.
In Tehran, Iran’s capital, businesses were open and children attended school Monday. However, there was a noticeable presence of both uniformed and plainclothes security forces.
Later in the day, hundreds of mourners crowded into downtown Vali-e-Asr square holding posters of Raisi and waving Palestinian flags. Some men clutched prayer beads and were visibly crying. Women wearing black chadors gathered together holding photos of the dead leader.
The crash comes at a time of turmoil in the Middle East as the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas rages. The conflict has edged Iran, which backs the Islamist militant group, and Israel closer to all-out conflict. It’s led to other Tehran-supported groups, including the Houthis in Yemen and Shiite militias in Iraq, to attack ships around the Red Sea and US bases.
Taiwan’s new president calls on China to stop its ‘intimidation’ after being sworn into historic third term for ruling party
Taiwan President Lai Ching-te called on Beijing to cease its intimidation of the democratic island after he was was sworn in as president Monday, marking the start of a historic third consecutive term for the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which has championed democracy in the face of years of growing threats from authoritarian China.
In his inaugural address, Lai called on China “to cease their political and military intimidation against Taiwan, share with Taiwan the global responsibility of maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait as well as the greater region, and ensure the world is free from the fear of war.”
Lai has now said he favors the current status quo, proclaiming that “Taiwan is already an independent sovereign country” so there is “no plan or need” to declare independence, in a deliberately nuanced stance that mimics the one held by outgoing Tsai.
When asked about Lai’s inauguration in a regular briefing Monday, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry said “Taiwan independence is a dead end. No matter what pretext or banner one uses, promoting Taiwan independence and secession is doomed to fail.”
Lai’s inauguration ceremony was attended by national leaders from a handful of countries with which Taiwan still maintains formal diplomatic ties, several former American officials, and lawmakers from other countries, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Israel-Hamas war: Truce talks likely to resume next week as pressure piles on PM Netanyahu
Truce talks are all set to resume next week between Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel, who have been fighting in Gaza since October 7 last year.
If materialised, the deal would see Hamas release Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
the decision was taken after the chief of Israel spy agency Mossad met with the head of the US intelligence agency CIA and the prime minister of Qatar.
“At the end of the meeting, it was decided that in the coming week negotiations will open based on new proposals led by the mediators, Egypt and Qatar and with active US involvement,” the source said.
The source declined to be identified and didn’t reveal his nationality citing the sensitivity of the matter, the news agency reported.
International, domestic pressure piling on Netanyahu
This comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces increased domestic and international pressure to halt the war in Gaza and secure the release of remaining Israeli hostages held in the besieged territory.
Earlier on Friday, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Israel to halt the war in Gaza citing humanitarian issues.
On the other hand, protesters are set to gather in Tel Aviv on Saturday (May 25) evening to press the government to bring back hostages alive.
Putin calls for ceasefire on current frontlines, ‘will fight on’ if West, Ukraine don’t respond: Sources
According to Russian sources, Putin has sought to freeze the war on the current frontlines but is frustrated by the West and the Ukrainian President for refusing talks. Russia currently controls 18 per cent of territory in Ukraine and has launched a new offensive targeting the Kharkiv region.
Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin is prepared to halt the over three-year-long war with Ukraine with a negotiated ceasefire that recognises the current battlefield lines, but will continue to fight on if Kyiv and Western countries do not respond, four Russian sources told Reuters. This comes as Ukraine faces a shortage of weapons and ammunition as Russian forces continue to advance on the battlefield.
According to three Russian sources familiar with Putin’s plans, the 71-year-old leader had expressed frustration to a small group of advisers about what he views as Western-backed attempts to block negotiations and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s decision to rule out talks. “Putin can fight for as long as it takes, but Putin is also ready for a ceasefire – to freeze the war,” said one of the sources.
Putin on Friday said peace talks should restart. “Let them resume,” he said, adding that negotiations should be based on “the realities on the ground” and on a plan agreed during a previous attempt to reach a deal in the first weeks of the war. “Not on the basis of what one side wants,” he said. Putin’s comments come before the highly-anticipated peace summit in Switzerland in June.
There cannot be a socialistic government under a democratic framework. Those who speak highly of socialism from a democratic platform befool the public. It is just to circumvent the constitution and to secure public confidence that leaders speak on socialism and promise to establish a socialistic pattern of society, which is nothing but an absurdity. These so-called leaders are nothing but socialist show-boys.
Shri P R Sarkar’s Discourses on Prout, published in Prout in a Nutshell
THE END
Please Note – The next week Saturday Weekly will not be published on account of Anand Nagar DMS
May 18, 2024
UNESCO launches the third phase of the Better Education for Africa’s Rise Project
UNESCO and the Republic of Korea have successfully launched the third phase of the Better Education for Africa’s Rise (BEAR III) Project. This project, which will run from 2023 to 2027, aims to improve access to quality education and employment opportunities for young people in West African countries including Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone. The project is part of a joint effort between UNESCO, the Republic of Korea, and the African Union to enhance the socio-economic development of beneficiary countries by empowering their youth.
To kick off the project, a two-day regional launch event was held in Abuja, Nigeria, from 17-18 April 2024. The event brought together Education Ministers, government representatives, stakeholders, and TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) experts to discuss the experiences and outcomes of the previous phase (BEAR II) and to establish the expected results for BEAR III. The discussions focused on the relevance, quality, and attractiveness of TVET in the participating countries. The event provided an opportunity for the previous phase’s beneficiary countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, United Republic of Tanzania, and Uganda) to share their best practices and lessons learned, while offering important insights to the new beneficiary countries (Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone) to ensure the success of the BEAR III project.
According to the UNESCO Strategy for TVET (2022-2029), there are still 267 million young people aged 15-24 worldwide who are not engaged in education, employment, or training. Additionally, 1.25 billion workers globally are at risk of job loss or displacement. These statistics highlight the urgent need to address the skills gap and create opportunities for young people to thrive in the labour market.
The launch of the BEAR III Project marks a milestone in enhancing education and employment prospects for West African youth. Through collaborative efforts between UNESCO and the Republic of Korea, the project will continue its efforts focusing on skill development and socio-economic progress, empowering youth and fostering regional growth.
EPA proposes ban of acephate-based pesticides used on fruits and vegetables
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to cancel nearly all uses of acephate-based pesticides, which are commonly used in fruit and vegetable production, to protect human health.
The cancellation would ban agricultural and non-agricultural uses of the chemical, except for non-food bearing tree injections, which the EPA says do not pose risks to humans or the environment.
The interim decision is based on public health risk and drinking water assessments published last year that recognized acephate as a significant contributor to certain dietary and neurological issues, including tremors, fatigue and nausea.
Acephate is one of 18 organophosphate insecticides going through the EPA’s standard regulation review process to evaluate safety, which occurs once every 15 years or so. EPA will release updated proposed guidance for many of these pesticides between 2024 and 2026.
Acephate was banned by the European Union more than 20 years ago, though farmers in the U.S. still use the chemical to control aphids and other insects. The pesticide is a neurotoxicant and works by interfering with nerve cells, with research tying the chemical to intellectual disabilities in children.
Global life expectancy to increase by nearly 5 years by 2050 despite geopolitical, metabolic, and environmental threats
Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation
The latest findings forecast that global life expectancy will increase by 4.9 years in males and 4.2 years in females between 2022 and 2050. Increases are expected to be largest in countries where life expectancy is lower, contributing to a convergence of increased life expectancy across geographies.
The latest findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) 2021, published today in The Lancet, forecast that global life expectancy will increase by 4.9 years in males and 4.2 years in females between 2022 and 2050.
Increases are expected to be largest in countries where life expectancy is lower, contributing to a convergence of increased life expectancy across geographies. The trend is largely driven by public health measures that have prevented and improved survival rates from cardiovascular diseases, COVID-19, and a range of communicable, maternal, neonatal, and nutritional diseases (CMNNs).
“In addition to an increase in life expectancy overall, we have found that the disparity in life expectancy across geographies will lessen,” said Dr. Chris Murray, Chair of Health Metrics Sciences at the University of Washington and Director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). “This is an indicator that while health inequalities between the highest- and lowest-income regions will remain, the gaps are shrinking, with the biggest increases anticipated in sub-Saharan Africa.”
Unusual giant planet as fluffy as cotton candy spotted by astronomers
What is big, with a fluffy, cotton candy-like composition? Turns out, a planet.
An international coalition of astronomers has newly discovered an unusual planet, dubbed WASP-193b, that’s about 50% bigger than Jupiter and somehow still the second lightest planet ever found.
But WASP-193b, located beyond our solar system about 1,200 light-years from Earth, isn’t just a scientific oddity. The exoplanet could also be key to future research investigating atypical planetary formation, according to a study describing the find that published Tuesday in the journal Nature Astronomy.
This cotton candy planet isn’t alone; there are other similar planets belonging to a class scientists facetiously call “puffy Jupiters.” The lightest planet ever discovered is the superpuffy Kepler 51d, which is nearly the size of Jupiter but a hundred times lighter than the gas giant.
Puffy Jupiters have largely been a mystery for 15 years, said lead study author Khalid Barkaoui. But WASP-193b, because of its size, is an ideal candidate for further analysis by the James Webb Space Telescope and other observatories.
“The planet is so light that it’s difficult to think of an analogous, solid-state material,” said Barkaoui, a postdoctoral researcher of Earth, atmospheric and planetary sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in a news release. “The reason why it’s close to cotton candy is because both are mostly made of light gases rather than solids. The planet is basically super fluffy.”
Low-density planet presents big challenge
WASP-193b, which researchers think is made up of mostly hydrogen and helium, was a huge puzzle for researchers to piece together. Because the exoplanet’s density is so light for its size, calculating its mass became a challenge.
Usually, scientists determine mass using a technique called radial velocity, in which researchers analyze how a star’s spectrum, a graph that indicates the intensity of light emissions in wavelengths, shifts as a planet orbits it. The bigger the planet, the more the star’s spectrum can shift — but this didn’t work for WASP-193b, which is so light, it didn’t make any pull on the star that the team could detect.
Because of how small the mass signal was, it took the team four years to gather data and calculate WASP-193b’s mass, Barkaoui explained. Because the extremely low numbers they found were so rare, the researchers completed multiple trials of data analysis, just to be sure.
China is a socialist country, all land is either subject to government ownership or collective ownership. In principle, municipal land is subject to government ownership and land outside cities is subject to collective ownership. However, one can obtain the right to use the land.
BEIJING: China will permit local government officials to buy some houses at “reasonable” prices to provide affordable homes, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said.
According to China’s state-run news agency Xinhua, the Premier expressed these remarks during a meeting on housing policy. Premier He Lifeng also called for efforts to categorize and promote disposal of solid but difficult-to-deliver housing projects that are still under construction.
He said that in cities where there is a large inventory of commercial houses, the government can place orders and purchase some of the commercial housing at reasonable prices as suitable to use as affordable housing.
Indonesia evacuates hundreds near erupting volcano
Authorities raised the alert status for Mount Ibu, located on remote Halmahera island, to the highest level of a four-tiered system on May 16 after recording two huge eruptions for the second day in a row.
Authorities raised the alert status for Mount Ibu, located on remote Halmahera island, to the highest level of a four-tiered system on May 16 after recording two huge eruptions for the second day in a row.
“Residents in seven villages near Ibu — which spewed ash and smoke 5,000 metres (16,400 feet) into the sky — began evacuating to several shelters late Thursday after authorities raised the alert status,” local disaster mitigation agency official Muhammad Ade Fabanyo told AFP.
Authorities advised residents and tourists to stay out of the four-to-seven-kilometre exclusion zone and to wear a face mask in case of falling ash. Ibu is one of Indonesia’s most active volcanos, erupting more than 21,000 times last year.
More than 7,00,000 people lived on Halmahera island as of 2022, according to official figures. Indonesia, a vast archipelago nation, experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity due to its position on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”.
Last month, Mount Ruang in North Sulawesi province erupted more than half a dozen times, forcing thousands of residents of nearby islands to evacuate. Its status has since been lowered to the second-highest alert level.
Who is Robert Fico, the populist Slovak prime minister wounded in a shooting?
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot multiple times after a political event Wednesday afternoon, an episode of violence that punctuated his decades-long career in politics.
A hospital official where Fico was being treated said on Thursday that he was in serious but stable condition, and that he was being kept in an intensive care unit after a five-hour surgery.
Slovak authorities charged a man Thursday with attempting to assassinate the populist prime minister, saying the suspect acted alone in a politically motivated attack.
Fico, 59, was born in 1964 in what was then Czechoslovakia. A member of the Communist Party before the dissolution of communism, he took a law degree in 1986 and was first elected to Slovakia’s parliament in 1992 as a member of the Party of the Democratic Left.
He served for several years in the 1990s as a governmental agent representing the Slovak Republic before the European Court of Human Rights and the European Commission of Human Rights. In 1999, he became chairman of the Smer (Direction) party, of which he has been a pivotal figure ever since.
He and Smer have most often been described as left-populist, though he has also been compared to right-wing politicians like the nationalist prime minister of neighboring Hungary, Viktor Orbán.
Fico returned to power in Slovakia last year, having previously served twice as prime minister, from 2006 to 2010 and again from 2012 to 2018. His fourth term made him the longest-serving head of government in the history of Slovakia, a European Union and NATO member.
After five years in opposition, Fico’s party won parliamentary elections last year on a pro-Russian and anti-American platform. He vowed to bring an end to Slovakia providing Ukraine with military support as it battled Russia’s full-scale invasion, and has argued that NATO and the United States provoked Moscow into war.
Georgia’s prime minister joins tens of thousands in a march to promote ‘family purity’
Georgia Family Purity March
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze attends a celebration of the Day of Family Purity in the center of Tbilisi, Georgia, Friday, May 17, 2024. Tens of thousands of people including the prime minister on Friday marched through the Georgian capital to mark the Day of Family Purity, which celebrates so-called traditional family values in the country where animosity toward sexual minorities is strong. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)
TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Georgia’s prime minister joined tens of thousands of people on a march through the capital on Friday to mark the Day of Family Purity, which celebrates so-called traditional family values in the country where animosity toward sexual minorities is strong.
Observances of the day, which was initiated by the Georgian Orthodox Church in 2013, were also held in more than 20 other cities. Many of those in the Tbilisi procession carried icons and Christian emblems and wore traditional costumes with intricate patterns..
Liberal groups have complained that the event coincides with the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.
Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and parliamentary Speaker Shalva Papuashvili were among those who marched in Tbilisi. The march ended at the capital’s Trinity Cathedral, where Kobakhidze praised the event for “protecting the country’s identity, language and faith.”
“We are Georgians, and for us, faith is very important. It has withstood centuries, and it is important to stand together and defend our faith by all means. Our ancestors defended it in battles throughout the years and centuries, and it is our obligation to defend it as well,” said march participant Rusudan Tabatadze.
In March, the ruling Georgian Dream Party introduced a bill curtailing LGBTQ+ rights. If adopted, the bill will prohibit sex changes, adoption by same-sex couples, and gatherings that could be regarded as promoting same-sex relations.
Georgian Dream also has pushed through a bill to require news media and nongovernmental organizations to register as “agents of foreign influence” if they receive more than 20% of their budget from abroad. The bill set off mass protests this month in Tbilisi. Opponents refer to it as “ the Russian law ” because it resembles regulations in Russia.
President Salome Zourabichvili says she will veto the measure, which opponents say will obstruct Georgia’s bid to join the European Union, but its supporters have enough seats in parliament to override a veto.
Tension in Georgia over unorthodox sexual mores is strong. Last year, hundreds of opponents of gay rights stormed an LGBTQ+ festival in Tbilisi, forcing the event’s cancellation.
WASHINGTON, May 18 (Reuters) – White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan will visit Saudi Arabia this weekend for talks expected to touch on a civil nuclear cooperation agreement, one piece of a wider arrangement Washington hopes will lead to normalization of Israeli-Saudi relations.
Below is a description of the key issues involved in a U.S.-Saudi civil nuclear deal, what risks and benefits it may offer the United States and Saudi Arabia, and how it fits within U.S. efforts to broker Israeli-Saudi reconciliation.
WHAT IS A CIVIL NUCLEAR COOPERATION AGREEMENT?
Under Section 123 of the U.S. Atomic Energy Act of 1954, the United States may negotiate agreements to engage in significant civil nuclear cooperation with other nations.
It specifies nine nonproliferation criteria those states must meet to keep them from using the technology to develop nuclear arms or transfer sensitive materials to others.
The law stipulates congressional review of such pacts.
WHY DOES SAUDI ARABIA WANT A US NUCLEAR COOPERATION AGREEMENT?
As the world’s largest oil exporter, Saudi Arabia at first glance is not an obvious candidate for a nuclear pact typically aimed at building power plants to generate electricity.
There are two reasons Riyadh may wish to do so.
The first is that under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s ambitious Vision 2030 reform plan, the kingdom aims to generate substantial renewable energy and reduce emissions. At least some of this is expected to come from nuclear energy.
Critics cite a second potential reason: that Riyadh might wish to develop nuclear expertise in case it someday wished to acquire nuclear weapons despite the safeguards enshrined in any deal with Washington to prevent this.
The Saudi crown prince has long said that if Iran developed a nuclear weapon, Saudi Arabia would follow suit, a stance that has fueled deep concern among arms control advocates and some U.S. lawmakers over a possible U.S.-Saudi civil nuclear deal.
The Sunni Muslim kingdom and Shi’ite revolutionary Iran have been at odds for decades.
HOW WOULD THE UNITED STATES BENEFIT FROM A CIVIL NUCLEAR DEAL WITH SAUDI ARABIA?
There could be strategic and commercial gains.
The Biden administration has made no secret of its hope to broker a long-shot, multi-part arrangement leading Saudi Arabia and Israel to normalize relations. It believes Saudi support for normalization may hinge partly on striking a civil nuclear deal.
Xi Jinping is now Vladimir Putin’s ‘big brother’: How Russia-China ties changed over the years
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Beijing on Thursday for a two-day state visit to China, underscoring the solidarity between the two allies as Russia continues its new offensive in Ukraine.
Upon his arrival at dawn, Putin was greeted by an honor guard from the People’s Liberation Army, the military branch of China’s ruling Communist Party.
This is Putin’s first trip abroad since his March re-election and the second in just over six months to China.
However, this is Putin’s 19th visit to China since he became the Russian president.
In February 2022, China and Russia announced a “no limits” partnership during Putin’s visit to Beijing, occurring just days before he deployed tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine, sparking the most severe land conflict in Europe since World War Two.
Putin’s decision to choose China for his first overseas visit after being inaugurated for a new six-year term, extending his leadership until at least 2030, underscores the significance he places on his bond with Xi and his global strategic priorities.
In a discussion with China’s Xinhua news agency, Putin commended Chinese President Xi Jinping for fostering a “strategic partnership” between Russia and China, which he described as rooted in national interests and profound mutual trust.
This visit is not just a routine diplomatic engagement but a strategic display of defiance against Western pressures.
The frequency and depth of military collaborations, such as joint naval drills near strategic global areas, signal a growing military camaraderie.
However, these maneuvers signal more about the depth of their partnership than actual operational military alliances. The joint naval patrols near American waters and the inclusion of Russia in Chinese-led military drills are significant developments that the West views with increasing concern.
Moreover, the economic interdependence, highlighted by China’s role as a critical supplier to Russia’s defense sector, showcases the depth of their bilateral ties, which are becoming increasingly consequential in the global arena.
Why it matters
The strengthening bond between China and Russia is pivotal as both nations seek to assert their power on the global stage against a backdrop of American dominance.
This alliance is particularly critical for Russia as it continues to face extensive economic sanctions from the West.
China’s support not only bolsters Russia’s economy but also enhances its military capabilities through joint exercises and technology transfers.
As per a report in the Economist, the flow of Chinese technology and other valuable goods to Russian weapons manufacturers has become a significant concern for the United States. According to US secretary of state Antony Blinken China was the “top supplier” of various items considered be “dual use,” including machine tools, microelectronics, and nitrocellulose, a vital component in artillery shells. These items have both civilian and military applications.
“Russia would struggle to sustain its assault on Ukraine without China’s support,” Blinken said. In a later conversation with Borge Brende, the president of the World Economic Forum, Blinken said that over the past year, Chinese technology had been facilitating Russia’s production of weapons and ammunition, such as missiles and tanks, at an unprecedented rate in its modern history, surpassing even the levels seen during the Cold War era, the Economist report added.
Prout philosophy states, “Harsh social punishment…does not find place in our society. Ananda Marga has formed a society which frames its laws on the basis of common ideals in order to develop the idea of the oneness of all humanity.”
Shri P R Sarkar, Prout in Nutshell – 11, Ananda Marga: A Revolution
THE END
May 11, 2024
India-Nepal Joint Initiative to Promote Sanskrit Research and Education
Joint efforts aimed at Sanskrit research and education advancement. Highlights include annual international conferences, study center establishment, Gurukul support, designated study center.
The Indian and Nepalese governments, along with scholars from both countries, have collaborated to advance Sanskrit research and education. This partnership aims to strengthen bilateral relations and preserve the cultural heritage shared by India and Nepal.
Resolution Highlights
1. Establishment of International Sanskrit Conference
Proposal for an annual conference to foster collaboration and knowledge exchange among Sanskrit scholars from India and Nepal.
2. Creation of Sanskrit Study Center
Plan to establish a study center to research and publish Sanskrit scriptures, particularly focusing on Nepal’s vast collection of unpublished manuscripts.
3. Support for Gurukuls Development
Collaboration between Maharshi Sandipani Veda Vidya Pratisthan, Ujjain, and Niti Anusandhan Pratisthan of Nepal to aid in the development of traditional educational institutions (gurukuls) in Nepal.
4. Designation of Nepal-India Sanskrit Study Centre
Niti Anusandhan Pratisthan Nepal identified as the headquarters for the proposed center to conduct joint research, study Sanskrit manuscripts, and facilitate publication endeavors.
5. Training Program for Sanskrit Students
India to conduct specialized training programs for Sanskrit students in Nepal to enhance their proficiency and understanding of the language.
Additional Support
Central Sanskrit University, Delhi, committed to providing necessary books to Gurukul libraries in Nepal and supporting Sanskrit educational institutions across the country.
Promotion of Sanskrit Preservation
Agreement to promote the preservation of Sanskrit, Pali, and Prakrit languages, along with the associated religious, cultural, philosophical, historical, and archaeological heritage of both nations.
Men behind the doomsday seed vault in the Arctic win World Food Prize
Two men who were instrumental in creating a global seed vault designed to safeguard the world’s agricultural diversity will be honored as the 2024 World Food Prize laureates
DES MOINES, Iowa — As Cary Fowler and Geoffrey Hawtin began thinking about ways to prevent starvation and protect the world’s food supply, they came up with what Fowler called “the craziest idea anybody ever had” — a global seed vault built into the side of an Arctic mountain.
About 20 years ago, Fowler, now the U.S. special envoy for Global Food Security, and Hawtin, an agricultural scientist from the United Kingdom, envisioned the so-called “doomsday vault” as a backup spot for seeds that could be used to breed new crops if existing seed banks were threatened by wars, climate change or other upheaval. On Thursday, officials in Washington announced that Fowler and Hawtin would be named 2024 World Food Prize laureates for their work.
“To a lot of people today, it sounds like a perfectly reasonable thing to do. It’s a valuable natural resource and you want to offer robust protection for it,” he said in an interview from Saudi Arabia. “Fifteen years ago, shipping a lot of seeds to the closest place to the North Pole that you can fly into, putting them inside a mountain — that’s the craziest idea anybody ever had.”
The Svalbard Global Seed Vault on the Norwegian island of Svalbard opened in 2008 and now holds 1.25 million seed samples from nearly every country. The largely concrete structure, built into the side of a mountain, provides genetic protection for over 6,000 varieties of crops and culturally important plants.
Fowler and Hawtin were named the winners of the annual prize at the State Department, where Secretary of State Antony Blinken lauded the men for their “critical role in preserving crop diversity.”
They will be awarded the annual prize this fall in Des Moines, Iowa, where the food prize foundation is based, and will split a $500,000 award.
Hundreds of smaller seed banks have existed in other countries for many decades, but Fowler said he was motivated by a concern that climate change would throw agriculture into turmoil, making a plentiful seed supply even more essential.
Hawtin, an executive board member at the Global Crop Diversity Trust, said that there were plenty of existing crop threats, such as insects, diseases and land degradation, as well as political upheaval, but that climate change heightened the need for a secure, backup seed vault. In part, that’s because climate change has the potential of making those earlier problems even worse.
“You end up with an entirely new spectrum of pests and diseases under different climate regimes,” Hawtin said in an interview from southwest England. “Climate change is putting a whole lot of extra problems on what has always been significant ones.”
Fowler and Hawtin said they hope their selection as World Food Prize laureates will enable them push for hundreds of millions of dollars in additional funding of seed bank endowments around the world. Maintaining those operations is relatively cheap, especially when considering how essential they are to ensuring a plentiful food supply, but the funding needs continue forever.
“This is really a chance to get that message out and say, look, this relatively small amount of money is our insurance policy, our insurance policy that we’re going to be able to feed the world in 50 years,” Hawtin said.
The World Food Prize was founded by Norman Borlaug, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for his part in the Green Revolution, which dramatically increased crop yields and reduced the threat of starvation in many countries. The food prize will be awarded at the annual Norman E. Borlaug International Dialogue, held Oct. 29-31 in Des Moines.
AI for Earth: How NASA’s Artificial Intelligence and Open Science Efforts Combat Climate Change
Nasa is actively employing artificial intelligence (AI) and open science initiatives to tackle the challenges posed by climate change, demonstrating a commitment to both technological advancement and environmental stewardship.
Nasa (File photo)
In a recent showcase of these efforts, Nasa emphasized how Al technologies are being utilized to enhance our understanding of Earth’s climate systems and improve the effectiveness of interventions.
These Al-driven projects facilitate more accurate predictions of weather patterns, assessments of climate impact, and development of strategies to mitigate adverse effects.
Nasa’s approach integrates open science principles, promoting transparency and accessibility in climate research.
By sharing data and findings openly, Nasa aims to foster a collaborative environment where scientists worldwide can contribute to and benefit from this critical work.
The agency’s commitment to sustainability is evident not only in its research priorities but also in its educational outreach. Events like the Earth Day celebration at Kennedy Space Center engage young minds in environmental science, highlighting the intersection of space exploration and Earth preservation.
As part of these educational efforts, Nasa invited students from Andrew Jackson Middle School in Titusville, Florida, to participate in a special Earth Day event.
This initiative not only highlighted Nasa’s ongoing projects but also inspired a new generation to consider how they can contribute to environmental solutions.
The integration of Al and open science into climate research by Nasa not only enhances the scientific community’s ability to address urgent climate issues but also sets a precedent for how technology and transparency can lead to more effective environmental stewardship. Looking ahead, Nasa continues to develop and implement advanced technologies that will provide deeper insights into the Earth’s climate system, offering hope and direction as we strive to safeguard our planet for future generations.
Through these efforts, Nasa exemplifies a holistic approach to tackling climate change, leveraging cutting-edge technology and fostering a culture of open scientific inquiry and education.
Chad’s Military Dictator Idriss Deby Wins Presidential Election
Chad, officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country located in north-central Africa. It is the fifth largest country in Africa covering a surface area of 1,284,000 km2. Chad is bordered by Libya, Sudan, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Nigeria (at Lake Chad), and Niger
Mahamat Idris Deby Itno, Chad’s military dictator and interim president, has secured victory in the presidential election held on May 6, 2024. This provisional result, announced by the National Election Management Agency on May 10, 2024, is poised to extend Deby’s rule for another six years.
Background
Idriss Deby, Mahamat’s father, ruled Chad for 30 years with an iron fist until his death in 2021. Mahamat Idris Deby took over as interim president after his father’s demise, subsequently consolidating power with the support of army generals.
Election Outcome
Mahamat Idris Deby Itno clinched 61.03% of the votes, while his closest competitor, Prime Minister Succes Masra, garnered only 18.53%. However, the legitimacy of the result remains contentious, with allegations of government-backed election rigging.
Opposition and Controversy
Opposition candidate Succes Masra contests the election result, citing irregularities and potential manipulation. The disqualification of numerous opposition leaders prior to the election further exacerbates concerns regarding the fairness and freedom of the electoral process.
Regional Significance
Chad’s election marks a notable event in the Sahel region, being the first democratic election in a military-ruled country. The Sahel, characterized by political instability and insurgent activity, spans ten African countries and serves as a transitional zone between the Sahara desert and the humid savannas to the north.
Republic of Chad Overview
Situated in north-central Africa, Chad is the fifth largest country on the continent. The president serves as both the head of state and government, with a six-year term limit of two terms. N’Djamena serves as the capital, and the official currency is the CFA franc.
UK toddler has hearing restored in world first gene therapy trial
Opal Sandy can hear almost perfectly after groundbreaking surgery that took just 16 minutes
A British toddler has had her hearing restored after becoming the first person in the world to take part in a pioneering gene therapy trial, in a development that doctors say marks a new era in treating deafness.
Opal Sandy was born unable to hear anything due to auditory neuropathy, a condition that disrupts nerve impulses travelling from the inner ear to the brain and can be caused by a faulty gene.
But after receiving an infusion containing a working copy of the gene during groundbreaking surgery that took just 16 minutes, the 18-month-old can hear almost perfectly and enjoys playing with toy drums.
Her parents were left “gobsmacked” when they realised she could hear for the first time after the treatment. “I couldn’t really believe it,” Opal’s mother, Jo Sandy, said. “It was … bonkers.”
The girl, from Oxfordshire, was treated at Addenbrooke’s hospital, part of Cambridge university hospitals NHS foundation trust, which is running the Chord trial. More deaf children from the UK, Spain and the US are being recruited to the trial and will all be followed up for five years.
Prof Manohar Bance, an ear surgeon at the trust and chief investigator for the trial, said the initial results were “better than I hoped or expected” and could cure patients with this type of deafness.
Auditory neuropathy can be caused by a fault in the OTOF gene, which makes a protein called otoferlin. This enables cells in the ear to communicate with the hearing nerve. To overcome the fault, the new therapy from biotech firm Regeneron sends a working copy of the gene to the ear.
A second child has also recently received the gene therapy treatment at Cambridge university hospitals, with positive results.
The overall Chord trial consists of three parts, with three deaf children including Opal receiving a low dose of gene therapy in one ear only.
A different set of three children will get a high dose on one side. Then, if that is shown to be safe, more children will receive a dose in both ears at the same time. In total, 18 children worldwide will be recruited to the trial.
Opal is the first patient globally to receive the therapy and is “the youngest globally that’s been done to date as far as we know”, Bance said.
The gene therapy – DB-OTO – is specifically for children with OTOF mutations. A harmless virus is used to carry the working gene into the patient.
The trial is “just the beginning of gene therapies”, Bance said. “It marks a new era in the treatment for deafness.”
“Severe Geomagnetic Storm” hits Earth, NOAA warning in effect all weekend
May 10, 2024 at 7:31 PM EDT
NOAA Warning: Seven Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) are racing towards Earth
NOAA scientists have witnessed severe (G4) geomagnetic storm conditions today. Several additional Earth-directed Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) are in transit to Earth’s outer atmosphere, making it highly likely that geomagnetic storming will persist through the weekend.
A large, complex sunspot cluster (NOAA Region 3664), which has now grown to 17 times the diameter of Earth, has been the primary source of this activity. Experts still expect additional activity from this Region.
Since the current solar cycle began in December 2019, observers have only witnessed three Severe geomagnetic storms.
G4 and G5 level storms in history
The most recent G4 (Severe) storm occurred on March 23, 2024, while the Halloween Storms in October 2003 marked the last G5 (Extreme) event.
The G5 storm notably caused power outages in Sweden and damaged transformers in South Africa, underscoring the potential consequences of such powerful geomagnetic disturbances.
This newest storm, caused by seven streams of plasma ejected from the sun earlier this week, could rival the intensity of the 1859 Carrington event, which disrupted global communications and set telegraph stations on fire.
Potential impacts on modern infrastructure
In our technology-dependent society, a geomagnetic storm of this magnitude could cause widespread electrical disruptions, blackouts, and damage to critical infrastructure. Some of the potential impacts include:
Voltage control problems and mistaken tripping of protective systems in the power grid
Intensified induced pipeline currents
Surface charging and increased drag on low Earth orbit satellites
Tracking and orientation problems for spacecraft
Degraded or inoperable satellite navigation (GPS) for hours
Sporadic or blacked out high frequency (HF) radio propagation
Understanding geomagnetic storms
Geomagnetic storms occur when high-energy particles released from solar flares ejected by the sun reach Earth. Although the sun continuously erupts and hurls particles into space, Earth’s distance of 93 million miles from the sun usually prevents these particles from reaching our planet.
Canada slaps more sanctions on Belarus, citing human rights violations
Canada is imposing another round of sanctions against Belarus officials over continuing human rights violations after a 2020 presidential election that the opposition denounced as fraudulent, Ottawa said on Monday.
The punitive measures target 21 current and former senior government figures, including members of the security forces, public prosecutors and members of the judiciary system, the foreign ministry said in a statement.
Canada has so far announced 14 rounds of sanctions against a total of 211 individuals and 71 entities in Belarus. Foreign Minister Melanie Joly is due to meet exiled Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya this week in Ottawa. These individuals are current or former senior government officials involved in internal affairs, including security forces, public prosecutors, members of the judiciary and administrators of penal and “education” colonies. These individuals have been involved in suppressing protests, arbitrary detentions, arrests, prosecutions of Belarusians protesting the fraudulent elections and their ill treatment once they were falsely tried, sentenced and imprisoned.
Occupied by Nazi Germany, Belarus was retaken by Stalin’s Russia in 1944 and remained under Soviet control until declaring its sovereignty on July 27, 1990 and independence from the Soviet Union on August 25, 1991. It has been run by authoritarian PresidentAlexander Lukashenko since 1994.
Belarus continued to allow Russian forces to use the country’s territory in Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Alexander Lukashenko has been the president since 1994. Lukashenko has been quoted as saying that he has an “authoritarian ruling style” that he uses to run the country.The Council of Europe has barred Belarus from membership since 1997 for numerous voting irregularities in the November 1996 constitutional referendum and parliament by-elections. According to the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe, Belarus’s constitution is “illegal and does not respect minimum democratic standards and thus violates the principles of separation of powers and the rule of law”.[5] The Belarusian government has also been criticized by Human Rights Watch for human rights violations and its actions against NGOs, independent journalists, national minorities and opposition politicians.
Arrest and Detention of Perceived Opponents
Between October 2022 and September 2023, according to leading Belarusian human rights organization Viasna, more than 400 people were sentenced on politically motivated criminal charges, and another 3,300 faced politically motivated administrative charges. At time of writing, Viasna’s count of political prisoners was 1,462.
Authorities used a variety of bogus charges to prosecute their critics, including “defamation” charges over insulting Aliaksandr Lukashenka or Belarusian government or state symbols, “inciting enmity” against the “social group of law enforcement officers,” or “violent acts or threat of violence against law enforcement officers.” Authorities also widely used charges related to “extremism” and “terrorism” against critics for actions such as leaving critical comments on social media, following “extremist” Telegram channels, or having a white-red-white tattoo.
Belarusian authorities continued detaining and prosecuting people in connection with peaceful protests in 2020, including some who returned to Belarus from abroad. Workers of state companies faced mass layoffs in connection with their alleged participation in the protests.
After the first day of sessions focused on family and law, the second day addressed the role of the family and education in a rapidly changing world on May 9th.
Rabat – After an exciting first day of lively discussions and insightful speeches, the 49th Session of the Academy of the Kingdom of Morocco returned for its second day, where the main topics covered family, societal values and education in our rapidly changing world.
The event again brought together a variety of experts of top universities in Morocco and beyond, to speak together plainly as members of the academy, resulting in thought-provoking speeches and constructive debate.
Amid ongoing debate in Moroccan society about the country’s new family code, the “Moudawana,” the topic could not be more relevant.
The morning session featured a variety of experts from the Academy of the Kingdom of Morocco.Ali Benmakhlouf spoke on how modern reproductive technologies impact our concept of kinship, being a parent or a child amid changing technology and scientific changes. Next was Mohammed Noureddine Affaya, who spoke of the “anxiety of values,” brought upon by our increasingly digital lives and relationships, calling for a structural reevaluation in how we educate and communicate in an ever-changing digital landscape.
To add to the discussion about society and family, Aomar Boum presented a case-study on football hooligans in Morocco and how these groups lead to individuals alienating themselves from family traditional politics to find community in their community of ultras.
Next came Abdou Filali-Ansary, who detailed the difference between how family is often seen by economists, sociologists or politicians, and the realities of family in daily life. Abdallah Laouina next expanded on how climate change impacts the 2.6 million rural Moroccan families, who despite having remarkably strong bonds, face the need to migrate due to floods or drought, or see family members move to cities to supplement the family’s income.
After the third plenary session featured all Moroccan members of the Academy, the fourth plenary was opened by Luis Gonzalez Posada Eyzaguirre, who is a Peruvian member of the academy. He spoke eloquently about the deep, often lingering, impact that migration has on families and particularly children, who can find themselves traumatized or abandoned by the variety of conflicts around the world.
U.S. to Announce New Tariffs on Chinese Electric Vehicles
The administration could raise tariffs on electric vehicles from China to 100 percent in an attempt to protect American auto manufacturers.
The Biden administration is set to announce new tariffs as high as 100 percent on Chinese electric vehicles and additional import taxes on other Chinese goods, including semiconductors, as early as next week, according to people familiar with the matter.
The move comes amid growing concern within the administration that Mr. Biden’s efforts to jump-start domestic manufacturing of clean energy products could be undercut by China, which has been flooding global markets with cheap solar panels, batteries, electric vehicles and other products.
The long-awaited tariffs are the result of a four-year review of the levies that President Donald J. Trump imposed on more than $300 billion of Chinese imports in 2018. Most of the Trump tariffs are expected to remain in place, but Mr. Biden plans to go beyond
those by raising levies in areas that the president showered with subsidies in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.
That includes Chinese electric vehicles, which currently face a 25 percent tariff. The administration is expected to raise that to as much as 100 percent in order to make it prohibitively expensive to buy a Chinese E.V.
Mr. Biden has previously raised concerns about Chinese electric vehicles, saying that internet-connected Chinese cars and trucks posed risks to national security because their operating systems could send sensitive information to Beijing. He took steps earlier this year to try to block those vehicles from entering the United States.
The president is looking to ratchet up pressure on China and demonstrate his willingness to protect American manufacturing ahead of his face-off against Mr. Trump in the November presidential election.
Hamas says no budging from already-rejected hostage deal offer as Cairo talks break up
Demonstrators protest calling for the release of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip outside Hakirya Base in Tel Aviv, May 9, 2024. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
Indirect talks between Israel and Hamas over a deal to halt fighting in the Gaza Strip and free hostages kidnapped on October 7 appeared to break up with no discernable progress, as the terror group said it had no intention of budging from a proposal already rejected by Israel.
With negotiations seemingly once again stuck after the sides had appeared close to an elusive agreement earlier this week, Egypt said both Israel and Hamas would need to show “flexibility.”
Izzat El-Risheq, a member of Hamas’s political office in Qatar, said Thursday that the Hamas delegation had left Cairo for Doha, Qatar, where its leadership is based, after affirming it was sticking with the terms it had agreed to Monday.
A senior Israeli official said the Israeli team had also left after handing mediators a list of its reservations about the Hamas proposal.
On Monday, Hamas claimed to have accepted a truce agreement with Israel, though it later emerged that the proposal it said had come from Egyptian and Qatari mediators included several elements fundamentally different from what Israel had agreed to. Jerusalem swiftly rejected the proposal for falling short of its “vital demands,” but okayed dispatching a working-level delegation to the indirect talks in Cairo.
Tel Aviv, May 9, 2024. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
Indirect talks between Israel and Hamas over a deal to halt fighting in the Gaza Strip and free hostages kidnapped on October 7 appeared to break up with no discernable progress, as the terror group said it had no intention of budging from a proposal already rejected by Israel.
With negotiations seemingly once again stuck after the sides had appeared close to an elusive agreement earlier this week, Egypt said both Israel and Hamas would need to show “flexibility.”
Izzat El-Risheq, a member of Hamas’s political office in Qatar, said Thursday that the Hamas delegation had left Cairo for Doha, Qatar, where its leadership is based, after affirming it was sticking with the terms it had agreed to Monday.
A senior Israeli official said the Israeli team had also left after handing mediators a list of its reservations about the Hamas proposal.
On Monday, Hamas claimed to have accepted a truce agreement with Israel, though it later emerged that the proposal it said had come from Egyptian and Qatari mediators included several elements fundamentally different from what Israel had agreed to. Jerusalem swiftly rejected the proposal for falling short of its “vital demands,” but okayed dispatching a working-level delegation to the indirect talks in Cairo.
In a message to other Palestinian factions published by the group’s al-Aqsa TV mouthpiece Friday, Hamas said talks had ended after Israel “rejected the proposal submitted by the mediators and raised objections to it.”
It said Hamas had decided to stick to the terms of the proposal it agreed to Monday, rejecting the possibility of making any concessions.
“The ball is now completely in the hands of the occupation,” the statement read.
Ukraine war updates: Putin says Russia ‘will not allow anyone to threaten us’ as Moscow revels in military might
Russia’s leadership and military have been out in force for the annual “Victory Day” military parade on Thursday.
Russian servicemen involved in the country’s military action in Ukraine, march on Red Square during the Victory Day military parade in central Moscow on May 9, 2024.
President Vladimir Putin, commander-in-chief of the armed forces, was flanked by veterans as he watched thousands of Russian troops, tanks, armored vehicles and weaponry parade through a mostly rainy Red Square in Moscow.
The May 9 event commemorates the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II but the Kremlin keen to cast parallels between the Red Army’s victory in 1945 and the current conflict in Ukraine.
Editor’s Note
The minimum requirements can be assured through guaranteed purchasing capacity, which should be enshrined in the constitution as a fundamental or cardinal human right. This will give the citizens of the country legal power if their minimum requirements are not met.
Shri P R Sarkar on the subject Quadri-Dimensional Economy
THE END
May 4, 2024
This summer’s number one veggie food festival soon here. Suvilahti, Helsinki (Finland)
Organised in the last weekend of May in Suvilahti, Helsinki, this year’s World Village Festival will be a vegetarian-food-only event. This decision has inspired and been welcomed by many.
Responsible for festival exhibitors and vendors, World Village Festival Production Manager Maria Hopponen says that the vegetarian-only policy has sparked varied discussion.
“Most comments have been positive and welcomed the decision as a step in the right direction. The number and diversity of food vendors have also remained at last year’s level. We’ll have 50 food vendors serving street food from the various corners of the world, such as Tibet, Nicaragua and the Gambia. This year will also see more café-style stalls with a selection of lovely things to drink and eat, such as churros and bubble waffles.”
230 exhibitors from CSOs to educational institutions
In addition to food vendors, the festival will feature around 180 exhibitors, including 36 bazaar vendors and 136 civil society organisations (CSOs). New this year is the Book and Recycling World where you will find a vast variety of things to read from the Rosebud Books section as well as a broad range of circular economy actors. The Book and Recycling World will be set up in the Cirko centre, while the Kattilahalli hall on the other side of the festival site will be the venue for this year’s Market of Possibilities featuring CSOs and smaller stands.
World Village Festival is Finland’s leading event for global action for the whole family, an admission free cultural festival, and a trade fair for sustainable development. The event will be organised in the Suvilahti event venue, Helsinki, in 25–26 May 2024 with Courage as the theme. Festival’s core values are diversity, equality, responsibility, and communality. The event is expected to attract around 50,000 festivalgoers. Admission to all events is free.The festival organiser is Finnish Development NGOs Fingo and the main partners are Finn Church Aid, the European Commission Representation in Finland, the European Parliament Liaison Office in Finland, Radio Helsinki and Maailman Kuvalehti magazine.
Gaza War Kills More Children Than In 4 Years Of Global Conflict: UN Agency
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza indicating that more than 12,300 children died in the Palestinian territory between last October and the end of February.
Geneva:
More children have been reported killed in the war raging in Gaza than in four years of conflict around the world, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees said Tuesday.
“Staggering. The number of children reported killed in just over 4 months in #Gaza is higher than the number of children killed in 4 years of wars around the world combined,” Philippe Lazzarini said on X, formerly Twitter.
His post referenced United Nations numbers showing that 12,193 children had been killed in conflicts worldwide between 2019 and 2022.
It compared that to reports from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza indicating that more than 12,300 children died in the Palestinian territory between last October and the end of February.
“This war is a war on children. It is a war on their childhood and their future,” Lazzarini said.
The brutal war began with the unprecedented October 7 Hamas attack that resulted in about 1,160 deaths in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP count based on Israeli official figures.
The militants also took around 250 hostages, dozens of whom were released during a week-long truce in November. Israel believes about 130 captives remain in Gaza, including 32 presumed dead.
Israel’s retaliatory bombardment and ground offensive have killed 31,184 Palestinians in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the territory’s health ministry.
U.S. Paves Way for UN to Declare 2026 as International Year of the Woman Farmer
NEW YORK, May 2, 2024 – Today, in the presence of U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield and U.S. Department of Agriculture Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small, the UN General Assembly declared 2026 as the International Year of the Woman Farmer. The resolution, and the U.S. government’s efforts to generate support for it, were spearheaded by USDA and garnered more than 100 co-sponsors, underscoring the global importance of uplifting women throughout the agriculture sector.
“From the field to the factory, from the classroom to the boardroom, women are fundamental to the future of agriculture. As leaders, it is our responsibility to make sure the next generation of women farmers have equal access to economic, educational and leadership opportunities, and that we dismantle the unique barriers they face so they can continue to take on the challenges of meeting the world’s growing food, fuel and fiber needs,” Deputy Secretary Torres Small said. “USDA is proud to have led the U.S. government’s efforts in support of declaring 2026 as the International Year of the Woman Farmer, and we thank the many nations that signed on in support. We look forward to working with partners worldwide to scale up efforts that empower and advance women farmers while tackling global food security in 2026 and beyond.”
Women are responsible for roughly half of the world’s food production, and in many countries they produce between 60 and 80 percent of the food. Yet globally, the prevalence of food insecurity is higher among women than men. By shining a spotlight on women’s role in farming across the world, the International Year of the Woman Farmer will also raise awareness of constraints women face in areas including property rights and land tenure, access to credit and markets, and lack of technical and educational support. It will emphasize, as well, the importance of women in leadership roles to better ensure representation at the highest levels of decision-making.
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy, and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America.
AstraZeneca Covid vaccine: Court case, rare side effects, admission of guilt, and more.
British-Swedish company AstraZeneca, in conjunction with Oxford, developed its COVID-19 vaccine that is sold under brand names ‘Covishield’ and ‘Vaxzevria’ among others
Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca, in a damning revelation, has admitted that its Covid-19 vaccine ‘Covishield’ can, in “very rare cases, cause TTS”.
TTS or Thrombosis Thrombocytopenia Syndrome is a rare yet serious condition suffered by some vaccine takers, with symptoms including blood clots and platelet levels.
The revelation can potentially pave the way for AstraZeneca to cough up millions of dollars in legal payout.
Here’s all you need to know about the issue.
Covishield and rare side effects
British-Swedish company AstraZeneca, in conjunction with Oxford, developed its Covid vaccine that is sold under brand names ‘Covishield’ and ‘Vaxzevria’ among others.
The vaccine was initially rolled out in 2021, as hundreds and thousands of deaths from the dangerous virus were being reported from across the world.
At the time, the rushed rollout was criticised by many in the scientific community and questions were raised about how safe it is to rush vaccine administration.
Now, three years down the line, the question is back as AstraZeneca faces class action suits over claims that its vaccine caused serious injury or death in dozens of cases.
A confession?
In legal documents submitted to the UK High Court in February, the pharmaceutical giant accepted that its COVID-19 vaccine “can, in very rare cases, cause TTS”.
“It is admitted that the AZ vaccine can, in very rare cases, cause TTS. The causal mechanism is not known,” said the company in the document that is making headlines months after it was submitted.
“Further, TTS can also occur in the absence of the AZ vaccine (or any vaccine). Causation in any individual case will be a matter for expert evidence,” it added.
Medical claims against the company
The first case against the company was lodged by Jamie Scott, father of two, who was 44 when he received the vaccine.
Ten days after the jab, Scott complained of tiredness and started vomiting. Soon after, his speech got impaired, and he had to be taken to the hospital, where physicians diagnosed him with a suspected case of Vaccine-induced Immune Thrombocytopenia and Thrombosis (VITT).
He survived the ordeal but was left with a permanent brain injury.
Alongside Scott, 51 cases have been lodged against the company, with victims and grieving relatives seeking damages estimated to be worth up to £100 million ($125.36 million).
Lawyers for the victims argue that the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine is “defective” and that its efficacy has been “vastly overstated”. AstraZeneca has strongly denied these claims.
AstraZeneca vaccine side effects
As per the World Health Organization, side effects of the AstraZeneca vaccine include typically short-term and self-limiting mild-to-moderate symptoms.
The AstraZeneca vaccine has been associated with a range of common side effects, as reported by those who received it.
These side effects include discomfort at the injection site, a general feeling of being unwell, fatigue, fever, headaches, nausea, muscle and joint pain, swelling, redness at the site of injection, dizziness, sleepiness, excessive sweating, abdominal pain, and instances of fainting.
These, however, happen in less than 1 in 100 people.
Did nobody realise the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine’s dangerous side effects earlier?
Amid reports of adverse effects, including blood clots due to the vaccine, several countries suspended the COVID-19 vaccine’s use.
In March 2021, Austria suspended the use of one batch after two people developed blood clots after the vaccine jab and one of them died.
Over time, dozens of nations, many of them in Europe, suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine.
This includes Denmark, Ireland, Thailand, the Netherlands, Norway, Iceland, Congo, Bulgaria, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Canada, Sweden, Latvia, Slovenia, Australia, Indonesia, and Malaysia.
Wave of exceptionally hot weather scorches south and south-east Asia
India and Pakistan, severe heat waves
Warnings of dangerous temperatures across parts of Philippines, Thailand, Bangladesh and India as hottest months of the year are made worse by El Niño
Millions of people across South and Southeast Asia are facing sweltering temperatures, with unusually hot weather forcing schools to close and threatening public health.
Thousands of schools across the Philippines, including in the capital region Metro Manila, have suspended in-person classes. Half of the country’s 82 provinces are experiencing drought, and nearly 31 others are facing dry spells or dry conditions, according to the UN, which has called for greater support to help the country prepare for similar weather events in the future. The country’s upcoming harvest will probably be below average, the UN said.
April and May are usually the hottest months in the Philippines and other countries in south-east Asia, but temperatures this year have been worsened by the El Niño event, which brings hotter, drier conditions to the region.
Thai authorities said 30 people had been killed by heatstroke so far this year, and warned people to avoid outdoor activities. Demand for electricity soared to a new high on Monday night of 35,830 megawatts, as people turned to air conditioning for relief, local media reported.
In the capital Bangkok, temperatures reached 40.1C on Wednesday, while authorities warned of a possible “heat index” of past 52C on Thursday. This measure reflects what the temperature feels like, taking into account humidity levels – an important factor for human health because when the air is more humid, it is harder for the body to regulate its temperature by sweating.
The unusually high temperatures have caused disruption to education and agriculture across the Asian region. Bangladesh was also forced to close all schools this week after temperatures soared to between 40C and 42C in some areas.
About 33 million children in Bangladesh were affected, according to the charity Save the Children. “Leaders need to act now to urgently reduce warming temperatures, as well as factoring children – particularly those affected by poverty, inequality and discrimination – into decision making and climate finance,” said Shumon Sengupta, Country Director Bangladesh, Save the Children International.
In India, where a mammoth election lasting nearly six weeks, is now under way, the election commission met this week with officials from the weather agency to discuss how to mitigate the impact of the heat on voters. The country’s Roads Minister Nitin Gadkari fainted during a speech on Wednesday as he campaigned for the re-election of prime minister Narendra Modi’s government, saying later on social media that he had felt uncomfortable due to the heat during the rally.
The World Meteorological Organization warned in a report this week that Asia remained “the world’s most disaster-hit region from weather, climate and water-related hazards in 2023”. Floods and storms caused the highest number of reported casualties and economic losses, it said, while the impact of heatwaves became more severe.
Last year, severe heatwaves in India in April and June caused about 110 reported deaths due to heatstroke. “A major and prolonged heatwave affected much of South-east Asia in April and May, extending as far west as Bangladesh and Eastern India, and north to southern China, with record-breaking temperatures,” WMO said.
Human-caused climate breakdown is supercharging extreme weather across the world, driving more frequent and more deadly disasters from heatwaves to floods to wildfires. At least a dozen of the most serious events of the last decade would have been all but impossible without human-caused global heating.
Virgin Galactic to launch 7th commercial spaceflight on June 8
Virgin Galactic will fly again next month, if all goes according to plan.
The company announced on Wednesday (May 1) that it’s targeting June 8 for its seventh commercial spaceflight, a suborbital jaunt called, fittingly enough, Galactic 07.
Virgin Galactic uses an air-launch system that consists of two vehicles: A carrier aircraft called VMS Eve and a suborbital spaceliner known as VSS Unity.
Eve lifts off from a runway with Unity beneath its wings, then drops the spacecraft at an altitude of about 45,000 feet (13,700 meters). Unity then fires up its onboard rocket motor, blasting its way to suborbital space.
Passengers aboard the space plane experience a few minutes of weightlessness and get to see Earth against the blackness of space. A ticket to ride on Unity currently sells for $450,000.
Galactic 07 will depart from Spaceport America in southwestern New Mexico, carrying four passengers in Unity’s cabin. Virgin Galactic has not yet identified these people, but the company has given us a bit of information about them.
Three are private astronauts, one apiece from New York, California and Italy. The fourth is “an Axiom Space-affiliated researcher astronaut who will conduct multiple human-tended experiments,” Virgin Galactic wrote Wednesday in a Galactic 07 mission update.
Axiom Space is a Houston-based company that has organized three crewed trips to the International Space Station to date, all of them using SpaceX hardware. Axiom also plans to assemble and operate its own space station in Earth orbit later in the 2020s.
WTO forecasts rebound in global trade but warns of downside risks
Global goods trade is expected to pick up gradually this year following a contraction in 2023 that was driven by the lingering effects of high energy prices and inflation, WTO economists said in a new forecast on 10 April. The volume of world merchandise trade should increase by 2.6% in 2024 and 3.3% in 2025 after falling 1.2% in 2023. However, regional conflicts, geopolitical tensions and economic policy uncertainty pose substantial downside risks to the forecast.
In the latest “Global Trade Outlook and Statistics” report, WTO economists note that inflationary pressures are expected to abate this year, allowing real incomes to grow again — particularly in advanced economies — thus providing a boost to the consumption of manufactured goods. A recovery of demand for tradable goods in 2024 is already evident, with indices of new export orders pointing to improving conditions for trade at the start of the year.
WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said: “We are making progress towards global trade recovery, thanks to resilient supply chains and a solid multilateral trading framework — which are vital for improving livelihoods and welfare. It’s imperative that we mitigate risks like geopolitical strife and trade fragmentation to maintain economic growth and stability.”
High energy prices and inflation continued to weigh heavily on demand for manufactured goods, resulting in a 1.2% decline in world merchandise trade volume for 2023. The decline was larger in value terms, with merchandise exports down 5% to US$ 24.01 trillion. Trade developments on the services side were more upbeat, with commercial services exports up 9% to US$ 7.54 trillion, partly offsetting the decline in goods trade.
Import volumes were down in most regions but especially in Europe, where they fell sharply. The main exceptions were large fuel-exporting economies, whose imports were sustained by strong export revenues as energy prices remained high by historical standards. World trade remained well above its pre-pandemic level throughout 2023. By the fourth quarter it was nearly unchanged compared to the same period in the 2022 (+0.1%) and had only risen slightly compared to the same period in 2021 (+0.5%).
Downside risks
Moving forward, the report warns that geopolitical tensions and policy uncertainty could limit the extent of the trade rebound. Food and energy prices could again be subject to price spikes linked to geopolitical events. The report’s special analytical section on the Red Sea crisis notes that while the economic impact of the Suez Canal disruptions stemming from the Middle East conflict has so far been relatively limited, some sectors, such as automotive products, fertilisers and retail, have already been affected by delays and freight costs hikes.
Regional trade outlook
Strong import volume growth of 5.6% in Asia and 4.4% in Africa should help prop up global demand for traded goods this year. However, all other regions are expected to see below average import growth, including South America (2.7%), the Middle East (1.2%), North America (1.0%), Europe (0.1%) and the CIS region (-3.8%).
Merchandise exports of least-developed countries (LDCs) are forecasted to grow 2.7% in 2024, down from 4.1% in 2023, before growth accelerates to 4.2% in 2025. Meanwhile, imports by LDCs should grow 6.0% this year and 6.8% next year following a 3.5% contraction in 2023.
Trade in services
World commercial services trade grew 9% in 2023 despite a decline in freight transport, thanks to recovering international travel and surging digitally delivered services. In 2024, sports events to be held in Europe in the summer, as well as the easing of visa requirements by various countries, are expected to boost tourism and passenger transport.
Top Prizes for Reporting on Suicide Among Afghan Women, Persecution in Myanmar
(Taipei) – Today, marking World Press Freedom Day, Human Rights Press Awards in Asia announced the 2024 winners and runners-up. The seven categories of awards are administered by Human Rights Watch, the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University, and the foreign correspondents clubs in both Thailand and Taiwan.
Among the top winners are reporting on the rising number of suicides among Afghan women living under abusive Taliban rule; the persecution of religious minorities in Myanmar; and the Chinese government’s treatment of White Paper protesters who stood up against Covid-19 lockdowns.
“The Human Rights Press Awards recognize journalists who are uncovering some of the most pressing rights issues in Asia,” said Tirana Hassan, executive director at Human Rights Watch. “In an era in which rising authoritarianism generates autocratic leaders and mass disinformation, the role of journalists in exposing the truth is more critical than ever. We are thrilled to honor these courageous reporters.”
The seven categories of awards include the newly created “Newsrooms in Exile” category, as well as commentary, print, photography, video, audio, and multimedia. The winners will be honored at a ceremony in Taipei hosted by the Taiwan Foreign Correspondents’ Club (TFCC) on May 10, 2024.
“We are honored once again to be administering the Human Rights Press Awards,” said Dr. Battinto L. Batts, Jr., dean of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. “As part of our Cronkite Global Initiatives, we are proud to help recognize outstanding human rights journalism throughout Asia and the world.”
“It’s no coincidence that many winning entries are examples of brave journalism from Afghanistan, Hong Kong, and Myanmar, places where reporting has become increasingly difficult and dangerous,” said Thompson Chau, president of the Taiwan Foreign Correspondents’ Club. “The TFCC is honored to host the award ceremony in Taipei. Taiwan is an extraordinary place for a growing number of Asia-focused correspondents to live and work.”
Frontier Myanmar and Zan Times shared the top prize in the inaugural “Newsroom in Exile” category for their reporting on Myanmar and Afghanistan, respectively. Frontier Myanmar’s report uncovered the Myanmar military’s oppression of the Bayingyi, Roman Catholics of Portuguese descent. Zan Times gathered data illustrating the dire reality of the growing numbers of Afghan women and girls choosing death as preferable to living under Taliban repression.
“We’re increasingly seeing media under threat in countries across Southeast Asia, which is why the new Human Rights Press Awards category for media in exile is so critically important,” said Phil Robertson, program committee chair at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCCT). “In countries such as Afghanistan and Myanmar, there needs to be greater recognition of journalists who bravely report human rights stories from the homeland they were forced to flee, and the FCCT is proud to be a part of that effort.”
The award for multimedia went to Al Jazeera for its piece, “‘If I die, I die’: Pakistan’s death-trap route to Europe,” documenting the dangerous journey young Pakistani men undertake in search of work in Europe and the suffering of their families left behind.
The Initium won the investigative reporting prize in Chinese for its series on the anniversary of the White Paper Protest, featuring the lives and struggles of those who protested China’s “zero-Covid” lockdown policies in the wake of the pandemic.
The Guardian won the investigative reporting prize in English for its work, “Revealed: Amazon linked to trafficking of workers in Saudi Arabia,” which exposed the plight of Nepali migrant workers enduring forced labor and discrimination in Saudi Arabia. The reporting revealed the complicity of major multinational corporations that fail to police their supply chains.
Reporting on the Myanmar military’s airstrikes; abuses by the Bangladeshi elite police unit, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB); issues facing the LGBT community in Hong Kong; and a global private hospital group embroiled in a “cash for kidneys” racket all won honorable mentions.
Israel’s war on Gaza live: Diplomatic efforts stepped up to secure truce
The United Nations chief has called on Israel and Hamas to reach a truce deal. A Qatari delegation is headed to Cairo as diplomatic efforts are stepped up to stop Israel from going ahead with its offensive in Rafah – the last refuge for 1.5 million Palestinians.
A Hamas delegation has arrived in Egypt for what appear to be do-or-die negotiations on a ceasefire, with the movement saying it is “determined to achieve an agreement”.
Israel reportedly gives Hamas one week to agree to a ceasefire and prisoner-captive exchange deal, threatening it will launch its ground invasion of Rafah otherwise. The United Nations chief has called on Israel and Hamas to reach a truce deal.
A Qatari delegation is headed to Cairo as diplomatic efforts are stepped up to stop Israel from going ahead with its offensive in Rafah – the last refuge for 1.5 million Palestinians.
The head of the UN World Food Programme says northern Gaza is now experiencing a “full-blown famine”. Thousands of Palestinians are starving as Israel has restricted the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
At least 34,654 Palestinians have been killed and 77,908 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The death toll in Israel from Hamas’s October 7 attacks stands at 1,139 with dozens of people still held captive.
Kyiv can use British weapons inside Russia – Cameron
Lord Cameron met Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Thursday
UK Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron has said it is up to Ukraine to decide how to use British weapons and insisted it has the right to strike targets on Russian territory.
During a visit to Kyiv, he said the UK would provide £3bn ($3.75bn) per year for as long as necessary.
“Just as Russia is striking inside Ukraine, you can quite understand why Ukraine feels the need to make sure it’s defending itself,” Lord Cameron said.
Russia condemned what it called “another very dangerous statement”.
“This is a direct escalation of tension around the Ukrainian conflict, which would potentially pose a threat to European security,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Lord Cameron did not directly endorse the idea of British weapons being used to strike targets inside Russia.
But until now, the UK has generally let it be understood – without spelling it out – that weapons such as the long range Storm Shadow missile should only be used inside sovereign Ukrainian territory. There have been several examples of its successful use in Russian-occupied Crimea, including against elements of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.
However, coming on the heels of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s pledge to give Ukraine £3bn ($3.76bn) in military assistance every year for the foreseeable future, it seems Lord Cameron wanted to emphasise that it is up to Ukraine to decide what it does with it.
The US has reportedly urged Ukraine to halt its strikes on oil refineries in Russia, fearing it could provoke an escalation in the conflict.
Mr Peskov also took aim at French President Emmanuel Macron, who said this week that the West would “legitimately” have to consider whether to send ground troops to Ukraine “if the Russians were to break through the front lines, if there were a Ukrainian request”.
Mr Macron’s remarks to The Economist were a “very dangerous trend”, said the Kremlin spokesman. However, the French leader made clear in his interview that if Russia won in Ukraine, there would be no security in Europe.
Russian forces have seized several villages in eastern Ukraine during recent advances, taking advantage of Ukraine’s shortages of weapons and manpower.
Ukrainian intelligence officials also believe Russia is gearing up for a summer offensive in the north-eastern regions of Kharkiv and Sumy.
The commander of the national guard, Oleksandr Pivnenko, warned recently that Russia was preparing “unpleasant surprises” and quietly recruiting 30,000 people a month.
A Russian strike on Kharkiv on Friday killed an elderly woman in her home, and a tram carrying passengers also came under fire, according to Mayor Ihor Terekhov.
Ukraine’s military says Russia’s immediate target is the strategic hilltop town of Chasiv Yar, 15km (9 miles) west of the devastated city of Bakhmut.
Officials believe the eastern town could enable Russian forces to attack major eastern cities such as Kramatorsk and Slovyansk. The military has suggested Moscow is keen to seize Chasiv Yar before Russians mark victory in World War Two on 9 May.
However, a Ukrainian military spokesman has denied that Russian troops have broken through to the Siverskyi Donetsk-Donbas canal on the outskirts of the town.
Russia claimed on Friday that its forces had captured three villages in Ukraine’s east in the past two weeks. Military spokesman Lt Col Nazar Voloshyn said the invading force had gained a foothold in the village of Ocheretyne but Ukrainian soldiers were working to drive them out.
Lord Cameron, who met President Volodymr Zelensky in Kyiv, said it was Russia that had launched an attack into Ukraine and Ukraine “absolutely has the right to strike back at Russia”.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said his remarks were tantamount to admitting the West was involved in a “hybrid war” against Moscow.
The UK has provided billions of pounds in military support for Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, ranging from tanks and precision-guided missiles to air-defence systems.
A year ago the UK confirmed it had begun supplying long-range Storm Shadow cruise missiles with a range of more than 250km (155 miles).
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said he had appealed to Lord Cameron to help restore the country’s energy infrastructure which has been badly damaged by repeated Russian missile strikes.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c163kp93l6po
Editor’s Note
PROUT On samaj (im)migration
“All people have the right to travel and settle anywhere and everywhere they like and live as dignified human beings– this is their birthright …..What to speak of tiny earth, every planet, satellite, star, meteor and galaxy is the homeland of human beings! If anyone wants to deprive people of this birthright, human beings will have to establish it by force. ‘Sab deshe mor desh ache Ami sei desh laba bujhiya’
[All countries are my native land; I shall select my own homeland.]”
Shri P R Sarkar
Source: ‘Problem of the Day’ : 26 Jan 1958, RU Speech.
THE END
April 27, 2024
Oil price could exceed $100 a barrel if Middle East conflict worsens, World Bank warns
Increase in cost of crude could drive inflation up and force central banks to keep interest rates high
A serious escalation of tensions in the Middle East would push the price of oil above $100 (£80) a barrel and reverse the recent downward trend in global inflation, the World Bank has said.
The Washington-based institution said the recent fall in commodity prices had been levelling off even before the recent missile strikes by Iran and Israel – making interest rate decisions for central banks tougher.
But it added that its forecast that crude prices would average $84 a barrel this year would prove too optimistic in the event of the crisis worsening.
Fears of a full-scale war in the Middle East have already led to a rise in oil prices and dearer fuel costs for motorists. A barrel of Brent crude is trading at $87, while the average price of a litre of unleaded petrol in the UK has edged above £1.50 for the first time since last November.
The World Bank’s latest commodity markets report said: “A moderate conflict-related supply disruption could raise the average Brent price this year to $92 a barrel. A more severe disruption could see oil prices surpass $100 a barrel, raising global inflation in 2024 by nearly one percentage point.”
Between mid-2022 and mid-2023, global commodity prices plummeted by nearly 40% and were the driving force behind a near-two-percentage-point drop in global inflation over that period. Since mid-2023, the World Bank said its index of commodity prices had remained essentially unchanged.
Financial markets have already pared back expectations about the scale and pace of interest rate cuts this year in response to stickier than expected inflation.
Indermit Gill, the World Bank chief economist, said: “Global inflation remains undefeated. A key force for disinflation – falling commodity prices – has essentially hit a wall.
“That means interest rates could remain higher than currently expected this year and next. The world is at a vulnerable moment: a major energy shock could undermine much of the progress in reducing inflation over the past two years.”
Fox journalist among dozens arrested at Texas university as protests swell
Local and state police clash with demonstrators in state capital of Austin while rightwing governor says protesters ‘belong in jail’
At least 20 people were arrested, including a photojournalist, as police and demonstrators violently clashed at the University of Texas at Austin on Wednesday.
Hundreds of students walked out of class to protest against the conflict in Gaza and demand the university divest from companies that manufacture machinery used in Israel’s war efforts, carrying signs and chanting.
Dozens of local and state police – including some on horseback and holding batons – formed a line to stop protesters from marching through campus. Officers pushed them off the campus lawn and at one point sent people tumbling into the street.
According to local reporter Ryan Chandler, police ordered demonstrators to disperse via an audio announcement that could be heard across campus: “I command you in the name of the people of the state of Texas to disperse.”
A photographer covering the demonstration for Fox 7 Austin was arrested after being caught in a scuffle between law enforcement and students, the station said. Footage posted on social media showed the journalist being knocked down by officers. The network confirmed in its own reporting that their photographer was taken to jail.
England child alcohol use tops global chart, finds WHO report
A third of 11-year-olds and more than half of 13-year-olds in England have drunk alcohol – putting it top out of 44 countries examined in a report by global health experts.
Girls were found to be more likely than boys to be drinking and getting drunk aged 15 in England, Wales and Scotland.
The World Health Organization (WHO) report said alcohol, which can damage children’s brains, has been normalised.
It called on countries to introduce more measures to protect children.
The report looked at data from about 4,500 school-age children from each country in Europe, central Asia and Canada in 2021-22 on cigarette smoking, vaping, alcohol and cannabis habits among adolescents.
The UK has always had relatively high alcohol use among young people but it has been declining for some time.
Study coordinator Dr Jo Inchley, from Glasgow University, said signs that more children were starting to drink at a young age was “concerning”.
“Trying substances is part of growing up and experimenting but alcohol has long-term effects on health,” she said.
Dr Inchley said being exposed to more alcohol at home, changing attitudes of parents and the rebound effects after Covid lockdown could all be factors in the trend.
Research shows the earlier children start drinking, the more serious a problem it can become when they are older.
At age 13, the report found 12% of girls and 9% of boys in England had been drunk at least twice in their lives.
At 15, that had risen to a third of girls and a quarter of boys. More than a half of girls said they had drunk alcohol in the past 30 days.
https://www.bbc.com/news/health-68884005
Researchers find oldest undisputed evidence of Earth’s magnetic field
A new study, led by the University of Oxford and MIT, has recovered a 3.7-billion-year-old record of Earth’s magnetic field, and found that it appears remarkably similar to the field surrounding Earth today. The findings have been published in the Journal of Geophysical Research.
Without its magnetic field, life on Earth would not be possible since this shields us from harmful cosmic radiation and charged particles emitted by the sun (the ‘solar wind‘). But up to now, there has been no reliable date for when the modern magnetic field was first established.
In the study, the researchers examined an ancient sequence of iron-containing rocks from Isua, Greenland. Iron particles effectively act as tiny magnets that can record both magnetic field strength and direction when the process of crystallization locks them in place. The researchers found that rocks dating from 3.7 billion years ago captured a magnetic field strength of at least 15 microtesla comparable to the modern magnetic field (30 microtesla).
These results provide the oldest estimate of the strength of Earth’s magnetic field derived from whole rock samples, which provide a more accurate and reliable assessment than previous studies which used individual crystals.
Lead researcher Professor Claire Nichols (Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford) said, “Extracting reliable records from rocks this old is extremely challenging, and it was really exciting to see primary magnetic signals begin to emerge when we analyzed these samples in the lab. This is a really important step forward as we try and determine the role of the ancient magnetic field when life on Earth was first emerging.”
Boeing Starliner 1st astronaut flight: Live updates
The so-called Starliner Crew Flight Test will launch on a weeklong mission to the ISS from Space Launch Complex 41 of the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on May 6. Liftoff is set for 10:34 p.m. EDT (0234 May 7 GMT), with landing set for a week later in the southwestern U.S. Follow our live updates of the Boeing Crew Flight Test mission here from launch to landing!
The astronauts will launch to the ISS on Boeing’s Starliner and an Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station near KSC. Their one-week mission to the ISS is a final shakedown cruise for Boeing’s Starliner to prove it is ready for operational NASA crew flights. At the end of the mission, Starliner will parachute to Earth and make a land-based landing in the southwestern United States.
North East farmers offered carbon capturing volcanic fertiliser (U.K.)
Volcanic rock found in North East soil is being given to farmers in the hope of improving yields and environmental sustainability.
It follows a Newcastle University study into basalt rock powder which included a trial at Nafferton Farm, Stocksfield.
Researchers found the powder offered a potential yield increase of up to 22% while helping to capture carbon.
Manufacturer UNDO is giving the fertiliser to farms free of charge to encourage take up of the product.
Many parts of the UK – including north-east England – are rich in igneous (or volcanic) rock, which is easily accessible as a by-product of quarries across the region.
This rock is then ground into a powder which sucks up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere during rainfall in a process known as enhanced rock weathering.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-68818083
Tennessee governor plans to sign bill that would let teachers carry guns in schools (U.S. south west)
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said Thursday that he planned to sign a bill state legislators sent to his desk this week that would allow school staff members to carry concealed handguns on school grounds.
“What’s important to me is that we give districts tools and the option to use a tool that will keep their children safe in their schools,” Lee said at a news conference Thursday after he shared his plans to sign the legislation.
Under state law, Lee, a Republican, has the option to sign the bill, veto it or allow it to become law without his signature.
The Republican-controlled state House passed the measure Tuesday largely along party lines roughly a year after a shooter opened fire and killed six people at The Covenant School in Nashville. The state Senate, which is also controlled by the GOP, passed the measure this month.
Lee on Thursday highlighted the legislation’s requirements that faculty and staff members wishing to carry concealed handguns on school groundscomplete a minimum of 40 hours of approved training specific to school policing every year. They also must obtain written authorization from law enforcement, he noted.
“There are folks across the state who disagree on the way forward,” Lee said Thursday, adding that he thought the legislation would allow school districts the opportunity to decide “at the local level what is best for the schools and the children in that district.”
The triumphant return of the US’ sandcastle championships
Located on a barrier island just off Texas’ city of Corpus Christi, Port Aransas (population: 3,600) is barely more than a sleepy hamlet most of the year. However, for three days each April (19-21 April 2024), tens of thousands of people descend on this classic Texan beach town from all over the world when it becomes the epicentre of the sand-sculpting universe.
The largest “native sand” sand-sculpting competition in the world – using sand that is on site, rather than carted in – Texas SandFest began in the mid-1990s when two local women began creating sand art on the beach. Word spread, and in 1997, Port Aransas decided to make the artwork the star of a new beach festival. It started off as a small and local celebration. But as the saying prophetically goes, “Everything is bigger in Texas”.
“Our first festival was maybe 800 people, across 200ft,” recalls site manager Dave Gizicki, who is responsible for making sure everyone and everything has its allotted space on the beach. “SandFest now takes up 2,000ft, and from the ticket sales, we expect 30,000 visitors a day.”
This year represents an artistic return. Sculptor coordinator Suzanne Altamare tells how the festival inadvertently fell afoul of Texas’ controversial pandemic policies. Despite watchcries from medical professionals, the state reopened in 2021 even as Covid cases continued to rise. SandFest organisers likewise pushed for the festival to commence, even with the restriction of limiting outdoor events to 100 people. The artists that did attend used their sculptures for thinly veiled political statements; one sculptor had Abraham Lincoln facepalming.
Films chronicling Indian farmers’ protests, CAA to feature at Hot Docs festival
The 31st edition of North America’s largest documentary film festival begins in Toronto, Canada on Thursday and continues through May 5
Toronto: A pair of projects chronicling protests against legislation brought in by the Government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in India are among the Indian productions that will be featured at North America’s largest documentary film festival Hot Docs this year.
Among the world premieres this year will be Farming The Revolution, a documentary that follows the farmers’ protests that opposed three farm laws enacted by the Indian government. Director by Nishtha Jain, and co-directed by Akash Basumatari, the feature documentary tracks the protests from their beginning in late 2020 onto developments a year later as the government repealed the legislation.Another protest, that did not culminate with such success, was that against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Produced and directed by Nausheen Khan, it centres around the protests at Shaheen Bagh. As Hot Docs stated the film “explores the shared human experiences of exclusion, polarisation and repression, while showcasing the strength and resilience of the women of Shaheen Bagh. Their story provides a powerful precedent for a new form of public dissent in modern India”.
Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said: “After more than six months of hard work and many twists and turns in the road, America sends a message to the entire world: we will not turn our back on you.”
Reacting to the vote, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said it “reinforces America’s role as a beacon of democracy and leader of the free world”.
The Senate passed a similar aid package in February, but a group of conservatives who oppose new Ukraine support had prevented it from coming to a vote in the House of Representatives.
In the House on Saturday, a majority of Republicans in the chamber voted against the foreign aid package.
The bill also faced resistance among a handful of Senate Republicans who opposed any new aid to Ukraine.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68885868
Children in war zones face permanent mental health consequences, trauma
Around the world, children are disproportionately bearing the brunt of war. Childhood traumas can permanently change how the brain develops, but the effects often are not seen until adulthood.
The world is currently experiencing its highest levels of violent conflict in at least 30 years. Along with the ongoing war in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, there are at least 110 armed conflicts taking place across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Europe. Many of these wars are being fought in cities and crowded civilian areas. Indiscriminate missile and drone strikes across multiple war zones are affecting civilians, schools, hospitals, and children’s shelters.
Officials warn that, more than ever before in modern history, the biggest victims of these geopolitical battles are children. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has repeatedly warned that children are “disproportionately” bearing the brunt of modern conflicts.
Israeli war cabinet resumes hostage deal discussions, official says
A delegation from Egypt plans to travel to Israel on Friday to discuss “security coordination” after Israel’s war cabinet met to discuss hostage deal negotiations, according to an Israeli official who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the matter’s sensitivity, signaling a resumption of efforts to broker a cease-fire and hostage release after months of failed talks. The official said a proposed hostage deal could avert a planned Israeli offensive in Rafah, where much of Gaza’s population has been displaced.
More than 500 people have been detained over the past week in pro-Palestinian protests at colleges across the United States. Students — many demanding that their institutions cut ties with corporations doing business with Israel — have continued to gather on campuses despite the presence of police and exhortations from administrators.
President Biden named Lise Grande as the new U.S. special envoy for Middle East humanitarian issues, replacing David Satterfield. Grande recently headed the U.S. Institute of Peace and is a former U.N. official who oversaw humanitarian efforts in Yemen and Iraq.
The newly awakened humanity of today is anxious to herald the advent of one universal society under the vast blue sky. The noble and righteous persons of all countries, bound by fraternal ties, are eager to assert in one voice, with one mind, and in the same tune that human society is one and indivisible. In this voice of total unity and magnanimity lies the value and message of eternal humanism.
–P. R. Sarkar From PROUT in a Nutshell Vol. 2, Part 7
THE END
April 20, 2024
Thailand’s Maha Songkran World Water Festival welcomes over 784,000 festival-goers
Bangkok (VNA) – The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) claims that the “Maha Songkran World Water Festival 2024”, held at Sanam Luang and Ratchadamnoen Avenue from April 11-15 is a great success with more than 784,000 participants.
TAT Governor Thapanee Kiatphaibool said on April 17 that the five-day festive event, featuring various forms of entertainment, street food and a parade, among others, attracted over 784,000 visitors, including about 693,300 Thais.
She said that festive activities at Sanam Luang generates an impressive revenue of about 950 million THB (25.8 million USD) from selling food, drinks, souvenirs, transport and accommodation spendings and others.
The festival also generated incomes to about 500 vendors and about 2,000 workers.
The TAT head said holding the grand festival at Sanam Luang is a great success as it attracted both domestic and foreign tourists.
A survey showed that most of the festival goers were happy with the festival.
In addition, Thapanee emphasised that the festival and its venue – Sanam Luang – have been widely mentioned on social networks, contributing to promoting one of Thailand‘s important tourism destinations to foreign tourists.
Located in the centre of Bangkok, in front of the Royal Palace, Sanam Luang Park with an area of over 119,000 sq.m acted as a gateway to explore more of Bangkok’s festive landscapes, with nearby attractions like Khao San Road, Phra Arthit Road, and Bang Lamphu area playing supporting roles in this grand celebration of Thai culture. Thapanee highlighted the careful zoning and planning of the festival areas, ensuring a carnival that catered to young and old, locals and tourists alike, knitting everyone into the vibrant tapestry of Songkran.
Banquet hall with frescoes on the Trojan War discovered in Pompeii (Italy)
By Euronews with AP
Mythological figures are depicted in the halls of a Roman banquet hall discovered in Pompeii. The works were unearthed in almost perfect condition.
An imposing banquet hall, with elegant black walls decorated with mythological subjects inspired by the Trojan War, was discovered during ongoing excavation activities in insula 10 of Pompeii ‘s Regio IX and is now fully visible in all its glory.
The room was used to entertain in convivial moments for those living the “high life”, evidenced by the spaciousness of the space, the presence of frescoes and mosaics datable to the 3rd style, the artistic quality of the paintings and the choice of subjects.
Frescoes on the Trojan War in Pompeii
The runnings themes of the artwork found on the walls seems to be that of heroism, with heroes and gods of the Trojan War most prominent on the walls.
Mythological figures in Roman homes had the social function of entertaining guests and diners, providing cues for conversation and reflection on existence.
In addition to Helen and Paris, the figure of Cassandra, daughter of Priam, appears on the walls of the hall, paired with Apollo. In Greek mythology Cassandra was known for her gift of foresight and the terrible fate that prevents her from altering the future.
Mythological figures in Pompeii houses to talk about life and the past
The walls of the banquet hall were painted black, “to prevent the smoke from the lamps on the walls from being seen. Here people gathered to feast after dark, the flickering light of the oil lamps made the images seem to move, especially after a few glasses of good Campanian wine,” explains Pompeii Archaeological Park Director Gabriel Zuchtriegel.
“Today, Helen and Paris are all of us: every day we can choose to care only about our intimate lives or to investigate how this life of ours is intertwined with the great story,” Zuchtruegel adds.
More than 13,000 rooms discovered in Pompeii
The hall measures about 15 metres long by six metres wide and opens into a courtyard that appears to be a service hallway, open to the sky, with a long staircase leading to the second floor, devoid of decoration.
Under the arches of the staircase, a huge pile of yard material was found and set aside. Someone had drawn in charcoal on the rough plaster of the large staircase arches, two pairs of gladiators and what looks like a huge stylised phallus.
The excavation activity is aimed at protecting Pompeii’s vast heritage more effective and sustainable, which has more than 13,000 rooms in 1070 dwelling units, in addition to public and sacred spaces.
Excavation in the area so far has returned two interconnected dwellings, the facades of which were already brought to light in the late 19th century. Behind these two houses, sumptuous frescoed living rooms are emerging at this stage of excavation, again affected at the time of Pompeii’s eruption, by major renovations.
Representatives from 19 countries commit at a regional meeting to continue promoting assessment and evidence for educational quality
Between the 3rd and 5th of April 2024 in San Andrés, Colombia, the “Regional Meeting on Assessment in Latin America: Evidence for the Recovery and Transformation Agenda” took place. It was organized by the Colombian Institute for the Evaluation of Education (ICFES), with the support of the UNESCO Multisectoral Regional Office in Santiago and its Latin American Laboratory for the Evaluation of Educational Quality (LLECE). At the event, the Colombia Declaration was signed, expressing the signatories’ commitment to promoting the evaluation of educational quality.
Nineteen member countries of the LLECE Laboratory and representatives from the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the World Bank, and the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF), as well as representatives from various evaluation agencies of Latin America and the Caribbean, participated in the meeting. Attendees shared experiences on best practices in evaluation and to enhance collaborative work, focusing on the importance of generating evidence to make better decisions for recovery and transformation at the educational level.
During the three days of work, various thematic axes were addressed to promote improvements in the evaluation of educational quality in the region. Initially, the discussion centered on evaluation as a dynamic tool that can facilitate the identification of learning areas affected within the context of the pandemic. Then, the SER evaluation, a measure from the Secretary of Education of the District (Bogotá), was discussed, aiming to assess not only the academic knowledge of each student but also other aspects that encompass each individual’s holistic development.
On the last day of the meeting, experts worked on innovations in the evaluation of educational quality, recognizing that the methodologies applied must also evolve to reflect the current needs and contexts of the countries.
“The participation in this meeting reaffirms the purpose of UNESCO’s LLECE Laboratory to work and share experiences regarding the quality of education in Latin America and the Caribbean, to strengthen ties and synergies between the participating countries, and to share their good practices and educational innovations,” emphasized its general coordinator, Carlos Henríquez.
Henríquez added that this would be “promoting a concrete and mobilizing agenda that goes from commitment to action, as agreed at the meeting of ministers of Education held last January.”
On her part, the general director of ICFES, Elizabeth Blandón, assured that “evaluation is a powerful tool for change that, applied with discernment, has the potential to transform our educational systems. It is the pillar on which we can build a promising future for education in Latin America.”
The Latin American meeting on educational evaluation continued the event held in Venezuela at the end of 2023, which promoted an evaluation agenda to serve the educational improvements needed in the region. It is expected that through these meetings, a collective and collaborative construction will be generated, adding value to the evaluation processes as a way to continue contributing to the recovery, reactivation, and educational transformation.
During this event, efforts were made to contribute to the advancement of the regional framework for educational recovery and transformation committed last January at the Extraordinary Meeting of Ministers of Education of Latin America and the Caribbean, generating opportunities for input, enrichment, and nurturing a shared vision that focuses on the students of Latin America and the Caribbean to improve their learning and wellbeing.
Once the regional event concluded, the 19 attending countries signed the Colombia Declaration, which invited the countries to continue working under a purpose that drives:
The regional evaluation agenda and the role of UNESCO’s LLECE Laboratory as a coordinating body, which seeks synergy among countries and supports them in the development of their educational policies, always from a perspective of collaboration and shared commitment.
That contributions to the frameworks of recovery, reactivation, and educational transformation be considered, where evaluation plays a central role in improving educational systems with equity.
The creation of working commissions for early childhood, migration, and special educational needs, with the aim of exchanging experiences so that, from the perspective of educational evaluation, support can be provided to students who need it, recognizing diversity and their different contexts.
The reaffirmation of the countries’ commitment to UNESCO’s LLECE Laboratory on the occasion of its 30th anniversary, to continue enhancing a regional agenda that decisively contributes to action through evaluation based on evidence and a common vision among the countries.
Tall tales but no dessert: the storyteller of Karachi and his ice-cream cart library
In a country where 77% of 10-year-olds are illiterate, a reading scheme in Pakistan is reaching thousands of children in slums.
She has already heard the story from Mohammad Noman, who is entertaining more than a dozen children with the tale of Noori, an insecure yellow parrot. “I don’t mind listening to it again,” says Saira. “He’s so funny.”
Noman, 23, is spending two weeks in Lyari pedalling an old ice-cream cart through its lanes, stopping to read his stories and leaving behind books for the children to borrow.
He dropped out of school himself as a teenager but has returned to education and is now studying for his high school certificate.
He is also one of two storytellers working part-time for the Kahaani Sawaari (Stories on Wheels) programme, run by GoRead.pk, which is working to improve literacy among underprivileged communities in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city.
“I become a kid when I am around the children,” says Noman. In the past 18 months, he has visited 30 areas of Lyari, one of the most densely populated and deprived neighbourhoods of Karachi, with more than 660,000 residents, mostly from the marginalised Baloch ethnic group.
“I have learned so much,” says Noman. “It has brought a change in me as well. I’ve become more tolerant of people and developed patience. I think I have a certain rapport with children and they listen.”
Books and uniforms can be prohibitively expensive in Pakistan. Saira dropped out of school a year ago when her father, who worked in a toy shop, lost his job as Pakistan’s economy was hit by rocketing food and fuel prices.
About 15,000 children have attended more than 700 Kahaani Sawaari storytelling sessions since the project was launched in 2021.
Erum Kazi, GoRead’s programme director, says parents have told her how their children have developed a love for reading since the scheme began.
38 trillion dollars in damages each year: World economy already committed to income reduction of 19 % due to climate change
04/17/2024 – Even if CO2 emissions were to be drastically cut down starting today, the world economy is already committed to an income reduction of 19 % until 2050 due to climate change, a new study published in “Nature” finds. These damages are six times larger than the mitigation costs needed to limit global warming to two degrees. Based on empirical data from more than 1,600 regions worldwide over the past 40 years, scientists at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) assessed future impacts of changing climatic conditions on economic growth and their persistence.
“Strong income reductions are projected for the majority of regions, including North America and Europe, with South Asia and Africa being most strongly affected. These are caused by the impact of climate change on various aspects that are relevant for economic growth such as agricultural yields, labour productivity or infrastructure,” says PIK scientist and first author of the study Maximilian Kotz. Overall, global annual damages are estimated to be at 38 trillion dollars, with a likely range of 19-59 trillion Dollars in 2050. These damages mainly result from rising temperatures but also from changes in rainfall and temperature variability. Accounting for other weather extremes such as storms or wildfires could further raise them.
Huge economic costs also for the United States and European Union
“Our analysis shows that climate change will cause massive economic damages within the next 25 years in almost all countries around the world, also in highly-developed ones such as Germany, France and the United States,” says PIK scientist Leonie Wenz who led the study. ”These near-term damages are a result of our past emissions. We will need more adaptation efforts if we want to avoid at least some of them. And we have to cut down our emissions drastically and immediately – if not, economic losses will become even bigger in the second half of the century, amounting to up to 60% on global average by 2100. This clearly shows that protecting our climate is much cheaper than not doing so, and that is without even considering non-economic impacts such as loss of life or biodiversity.”
To date, global projections of economic damages caused by climate change typically focus on national impacts from average annual temperatures over long-time horizons. By including the latest empirical findings from climate impacts on economic growth in more than 1,600 subnational regions worldwide over the past 40 years and by focusing on the next 26 years, the researchers were able to project sub-national damages from temperature and rainfall changes in great detail across time and space all the while reducing the large uncertainties associated with long-term projections. The scientists combined empirical models with state-of-the-art climate simulations (CMIP-6). Importantly, they also assessed how persistently climate impacts have affected the economy in the past and took this into account as well.
Countries least responsible will suffer most
“Our study highlights the considerable inequity of climate impacts: We find damages almost everywhere, but countries in the tropics will suffer the most because they are already warmer. Further temperature increases will therefore be most harmful there. The countries least responsible for climate change, are predicted to suffer income loss that is 60% greater than the higher-income countries and 40% greater than higher-emission countries. They are also the ones with the least resources to adapt to its impacts. It is on us to decide: structural change towards a renewable energy system is needed for our security and will save us money. Staying on the path we are currently on, will lead to catastrophic consequences. The temperature of the planet can only be stabilized if we stop burning oil, gas and coal,” says Anders Levermann, Head of Research Department Complexity Science at the Potsdam Institute and co-author of the study.
Which countries have seen farmers’ protests in recent times?
Across the world, agriculture is turning into a key battleground. The people in power are trying to tame farmers while opponents are trying to harness their anger. This has become the latest skirmish in a wider culture war, much of it centered on the speed of the economic and social transition in response to climate change. From India, Spain, Italy and Belgium to Poland and Lithuania, here we list the countries that witnessed farmers’ protests in recent times.
some glimpses
Farmers’ protests in Delhi.
demands – a legal guarantee to MSP for all crops, full debt waiver for farmers, pension for farmers and withdrawal of cases against farmers during the 2020 protest.
Belgium: Hundreds of farmers on tractors blocked the roads to demand better pay and working conditions.
Farmers in Belgium and across Europe have been protesting for months, mainly to raise their concerns and anger about the excessively stringent European environmental regulations and falling incomes.
France: Farmers in France, the EU’s biggest agricultural producer, are protesting as they say they are not being paid enough and are choked by excessive regulation on environmental protection.
Farmers complain that the 27-nation bloc’s environmental policies, such as the Green Deal, which calls for limits on the use of chemicals and on greenhouse gas emissions, limit their business and make their products more expensive than non-EU imports.
Greece: Farmers in Greece are also protesting over high production costs
Greek farmers dealing with high energy prices and production costs say they have also been hurt by climate change-driven weather, with unpredictable flooding, extreme heat and wildfires making their work ever more hazardous.
Germany: German farmers kicked off a week of nationwide protests against subsidy cuts in January 2024.
The subjects of the protests are the abolition of tax breaks on farmers and the policies of the federal government.
Italy: Farmers have been peacefully protesting in Italy expressing their discontent.
Like their counterparts across the EU, falling incomes and rising costs remain at the heart of their concerns. They are also protesting issues such as the cost of fuel or European Union environmental regulations designed to mitigate climate change which they say are damaging their livelihoods.
Poland: In Poland, farmers have been particularly vocal about the impact of cheap food imports from Ukraine. They began a 30-day strike on February 9 that has seen them block roads across the country as well as border crossings with Ukraine.
Spain: Farmers in Spain staged similar actions as part of protests against European Union farming policies.
Spanish farmers are particularly incensed by what they view as the non-enforcement of the law guaranteeing wholesale major supermarket buyers pay fair prices, while consumer prices have soared, and by the competition from non-EU imports, which rose 80% in volume between 2012 and 2022
Japanese satellite will beam solar power to Earth in 2025
Japan’s upcoming space-based solar power demonstration will beam power to Earth next year.
LONDON — Japan is on track to beam solar power from space to Earth next year, two years after a similar feat was achieved by U.S. engineers. The development marks an important step toward a possible space-based solar power station that could help wean the world off fossil fuels amid the intensifying battle against climate change.
Speaking at the International Conference on Energy from Space, held here this week, Koichi Ijichi, an adviser at the Japanese research institute Japan Space Systems, outlined Japan’s road map toward an orbital demonstration of a miniature space-based solar power plant that will wirelessly transmit energy from low Earth orbit to Earth.
One kilowatt is about the amount of power needed to run a household appliance, such as a small dishwasher, for about an hour, depending on its size. Therefore, the demonstration is nowhere near the scale required for commercial use.
The spacecraft will use a 22-square-foot (2 square meters) onboard photovoltaic panel to charge a battery. The accumulated energy will then be transformed into microwaves and beamed toward a receiving antenna on Earth. Because the spacecraft travels very fast — around 17,400 mph (28,000 km/h) — antenna elements will have to be spread over a distance of about 25 miles (40 km), spaced 3 miles (5 km) apart, to allow enough energy to be transmitted.
“The transmission will take only a few minutes,” Ijichi said. “But once the battery is empty, it will take several days to recharge.”
Legalise abortions in first trimester, German commission says
A government-appointed expert commission has called on Germany to legalise the termination of a pregnancy within the first 12 weeks.
It might come as a surprise to many, but abortions are, in fact, generally illegal in the Western European nation.
There are, however, exemptions.
For instance, a woman is not punished for choosing to terminate a pregnancy within the first 12 weeks if she has an official medical consultation beforehand.
Other exemptions include cases of rape or when the woman’s life is in danger.
In other words, while abortions are in theory illegal, they are generally not prosecuted.
In some cases, charges are pressed against doctors or clinics and women are sometimes questioned by police, which can be traumatic.
The result of this legal limbo is that some clinics and doctors either don’t publicise the service on their websites, or refuse to carry out abortions at all out of fear of prosecution. Some women report that provision of terminations can be patchy or hard to find, particularly in rural areas.
Liberalisation campaigners say all this adds to the stigma surrounding abortions, making an already difficult situation unnecessarily stressful for women.
Hurdles, such as finding and organising a pre-termination consolation, mean that abortions are sometimes carried out later.
To clear up the confusion, a year ago Germany’s leftwing-led government set up an independent commission of scientific experts to recommend how to reform the system.
On Monday, they released their 628-page report, recommending that abortions be allowed within the first 12 weeks.
Liane Wörner, a lawyer who leads the commission, said on Monday in Berlin that keeping early-stage abortions illegal is “no longer tenable” given the constitution, human rights and European law.
So will the law on abortions now be liberalised in Germany? Not necessarily.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-68816693
Georgia advances ‘foreign agents’ bill as 20,000 rally against it
The ruling party suddenly reintroduced the bill earlier this month, after mass protests forced its withdrawal last year.
The Georgian parliament has advanced a controversial “foreign influence” bill through its first reading, as thousands joined a third day of anti-government protests.
The bill, first presented early in 2023 and withdrawn amid fierce public opposition, requires media and civil society groups to register as being under “foreign influence” if they get more than 20 percent of their funding from overseas.
Critics say the bill mirrors a repressive Russian law on “foreign agents” that has been used against independent news media and groups seen as being at odds with the Kremlin and will undermine Tbilisi’s aspirations for closer European Union ties and, ultimately, membership.
In a vote boycotted by the opposition in the 150-seat parliament, 83 politicians from the ruling Georgian Dream party backed the bill.
Some 20,000 people blocked traffic in front of the parliament building in the capital, Tbilisi, to show their opposition to the measure.
“No to the Russian law!” they shouted after listening to the Georgian national anthem and European Union’s Ode to Joy.
Speaking at the rally, opposition member of parliament Aleksandre Ellisashvili condemned politicians who voted for the bill as “traitors” and said the rest of Georgia would show them that “people are power, and not the traitor government”.
The Black Sea nation was once part of the Soviet Union but secured its independence in 1991 as the USSR collapsed.
Ukraine Russia war: US Congress close to passing long-awaited aid
After months of delay, the US House of Representatives is poised to hold a vote on tens of billions of dollars in American military aid for Ukraine and Israel this weekend.
Both measures have vocal opponents in Congress, however, and their hopes of passage have hinged on a fragile bipartisan coalition to overcome daunting procedural and legislative obstacles.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has said he is determined to bring the matter to a vote, even if it may put his hold on power in jeopardy.
The Ukraine vote will be closely watched in Kyiv, which has warned of an urgent need for fresh support from its allies as Russia makes steady gains on the battlefield.
The House is set to vote on final passage on Saturday, and the Senate may approve the package as soon as this weekend. President Joe Biden has pledged to sign it into law.
What’s in the aid bills?
Mr Johnson’s foreign aid proposal provides $60.8bn (£49bn) to Ukraine, $26.4bn to Israel and $8.1bn to the Indo-Pacific region, including Taiwan. The House of Representatives will vote on each component individually, raising the possibility that some components will be approved and others will fail.
The Speaker is also bringing a fourth piece of legislation to a vote, which includes requiring that Chinese company ByteDance divest itself of the TikTok social media app, authorising the sale of frozen Russian assets, and imposing new sanctions on Russia, Iran and China.
Whatever passes will be combined into one bill that will then have to be approved as a whole by the Senate before it reaches the president’s desk.
Mr Johnson has also promised to introduce an immigration reform bill that contains provisions favoured by conservative Republicans in an attempt to win over their support for the aid package.
But the border bill looks unlikely to pass as it would require the support of two-thirds of the House, reports the Washington Post.
Why have they been held up?
Opinion polls suggest that a growing number of Republicans oppose any new aid to Ukraine. Some liberals are against military support for Israel. While these sentiments were not enough to prevent the US Senate from passing legislation that contained support for both nations in February, it has been a different story in the House.
Mr Johnson has a slim majority in the chamber, and a handful of conservatives have threatened to push for his removal if he backs new Ukraine aid. The effort, led by Georgia congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, has two other supporters so far: Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Paul Gosar of Arizona.
Up until now, the Speaker has been reluctant to challenge his right-wing critics. On Wednesday, however, he reversed course, saying his goal was to “do the right thing and let the chips fall where they may”.
Meanwhile, left-wing Democrats who object to Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza have said that they will not allow the US to continue to be complicit in a human-rights catastrophe. The Israel aid bill contains $9bn in humanitarian aid, which may help win over some reluctant Democrats.
By allowing separate votes on Israel and Ukraine aid, Mr Johnson hopes to allow individual legislators to vote against provisions they dislike without sinking the entire effort.
What’s at stake?
Biden administration officials have warned that the situation in Ukraine is dire. The nation’s military is running short on munitions and morale is low, as the Russian army gains ground.
“There is a very real risk that the Ukrainians could lose on the battlefield by the end of 2024, or at least put [Russian President Vladimir] Putin in a position where he could essentially dictate the terms of a political settlement,” CIA Director William Burns said during a speech in Texas on Thursday.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68848277
From Editor’s Desk
Social, economic, and political consciousness is…indispensable for the success of democracy. Even educated people may be misguided by shrewd and cunning politicians if they are not sufficiently conversant with social, economic, and political issues. Democracy can be successful only when people imbibe these three kinds of consciousness. Without this awareness, the welfare of the society is not possible either in theory or in practice.
–P. R. Sarkar
From PROUT in a Nutshell, Vol. II, Part 6
That’s all for this week. Thanks for Reading
April 13, 2024
Colombian Amazon (south America) deforestation surges as armed groups tighten grip
Country had previously turned the tide on deforestation but armed rebels have revoked.
Deforestation in the Colombian Amazon is surging and could be at a historic peak as armed groups use the rainforest as a bargaining chip in peace negotiations with the government.
Preliminary data shows that deforestation in the region was 40% higher in the first three months of this year than in 2023 as armed groups tightened their control over the rainforest, said Susana Muhamad, the country’s environment minister.
“We are seeing an upward trend that is quite worrying and this has two main reasons,” Muhamad told a press conference in Bogotá. “The first is the very significant coercion [of local people] by armed groups in the area, and the second is obviously the favourable conditions [for fires] that have to do with the El Niño phenomenon.”
Colombia has been turning the tide on runaway deforestation in recent years after a 2016 peace accord with the country’s largest guerrilla group left forests unprotected.
Without the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) policing the jungle, a record 219,973 hectares (544,000 acres) were lost in 2017.
Gustavo Petro’s government – the first leftwing administration in the country’s history – has rapidly reversed the trend by negotiating with the armed rebels who have filled the Farc’s power vacuum.
Deforestation in the Colombian Amazon was 41% higher in the last three months of 2023 than it was the previous year, reaching 18,400 hectares. The concerning trend has continued this year, with 40% higher forest loss in the first three months of 2024, preliminary government figures show.
Brightest-ever cosmic explosion solved but new mysteries sparked
Researchers have discovered the cause of the brightest burst of light ever recorded.
But in doing so they have run up against two bigger mysteries, including one that casts doubt on where our heavy elements – like gold – come from.
The burst of light, spotted in 2022, is now known to have had an exploding star at its heart, researchers say.
But that explosion, by itself, would not have been sufficient to have shone so brightly.
And our current theory says that some exploding stars, known as supernovas, might also produce the heavy elements in the universe such as gold and platinum.
The explosion was detected by telescopes in October 2022. It came from a distant galaxy 2.4 billion light-years away, emitting light across all frequencies. But it was especially intense in its gamma rays, which are a more penetrating form of X-rays.
The gamma ray burst lasted seven minutes and was so powerful that it was off the scale, overwhelming the instruments that detected them. Subsequent readings showed that the burst was 100 times brighter than anything that had ever been recorded before, earning it the nickname among astronomers of the Brightest Of All Time or B.O.A.T.
Gamma ray bursts are associated with exploding supernovas, but this was so bright that it could not be easily explained. If it were a supernova, it would have had to have been absolutely enormous, according to the current theory.
The burst was so bright that it initially dazzled the instruments on Nasa’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The telescope had only recently become operational, and this was an incredible stroke of luck for astronomers wanting to study the phenomenon because such powerful explosions are calculated to occur once every 10,000 years.
As the light dimmed, one of JWST’s instruments was able to see there had indeed been a supernova explosion. But it had not been nearly as powerful as they expected. So why then had the burst of gamma rays been off the scale?
But what about the missing gold?
One theory is that one of the ways heavy elements – such as gold, platinum, lead and uranium – might be produced during the extreme conditions that are created during supernovas. These are spread across the galaxy and are used in the formation of planets, which is how, the theory goes, the metals found on Earth arose.
There is evidence that heavy elements can be produced when dead stars, called neutron stars collide, a process called a kilonovae, but it’s thought that not enough could be created this way. The team will investigate other supernova remnants to see if heavy elements still can be produced by exploding stars but only under specific conditions.
But the researchers found no evidence of heavy elements around the exploded star. So, is the theory wrong and heavy elements are produced some other way, or are they only produced in supernovas under certain conditions?
Russia Kazakhstan floods: High water levels swamp Orenburg houses
Floods in the Russian city of Orenburg have raised water levels to two metres above critical, leaving just the roofs of some houses showing.
Levels in Orenburg are likely to peak on Friday, but floods are expected to spread through neighbouring regions over the coming days and weeks.
Kazakhstan has also been badly affected, with 100,000 people evacuated from their homes in the last week.
The flooding is being described as the worst to hit the region in 80 years.
Last week, several rivers – including the Ural, Europe’s third-largest – burst their banks. A number flow back and forth between Russia and Kazakhstan.
High seasonal temperatures have led to rapidly melting snow and ice, compounded by heavy rains.
The Ural river reached 11.43m (37ft) in Orenburg on Friday. Authorities say that more than 10,000 people have been evacuated there, and 11,700 homes have been flooded.
Mayor Sergei Salmin has called for further mass evacuations in some districts.
“Leave your homes immediately. The situation is critical, don’t waste time!” he said on his Telegram channel, adding that the sirens being heard in the city were not an exercise.
The city has a population of half a million and is about 1,500km (930 miles) south-east of Moscow.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-68796487
Protesters in Spanish Canary Islands on hunger strike over mass tourism
Activists have begun a hunger strike on the island of Tenerife, in protest at what they see as the destructive growth of tourism on the Canary Islands.
Protesters are calling for a halt to the construction of a hotel and a beach resort in the south of the island.
They also want a moratorium on all tourism development projects.
The small group of hunger strikers began their protest on Thursday night after a deadline for local authorities to discuss the matter expired.
The move is part of a wider protest movement across the islands, calling itself Canarias Se Agota, or The Canaries Have Had Enough.
A total of 13.9 million tourists visited the Canary Islands in 2023, according to local chamber of commerce figures, 13% more than the year before. That is about six times more than the islands’ population of 2.2 million.
Other areas of Spain are seeing similar concerns about tourism. In Barcelona, campaigners are calling for more controls on arrivals. Authorities in Ibiza blame illegal tourist flats for a housing crisis which has left some local professionals sleeping in their cars.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-68797626
March 26, 2024 – Baltimore Key Bridge collapses after ship collision
The Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed early Tuesday after a massive container ship lost power and crashed into the iconic Baltimore bridge, sending people and vehicles into the frigid Patapsco River.
Six people, believed to be part of a road construction crew, are presumed dead and the Coast Guard has ended its active search and rescue mission.
Here’s what you should know about the historic bridge:
How old?: The Francis Scott Key Bridge, also referred to as just the Key Bridge, opened to traffic in March 1977 and is the final link in the Baltimore Beltway, according to the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA.) It crosses over the 50-foot-deep Patapsco River, where former US attorney Francis Scott Key found inspiration to write the lyrics to the Star Spangled Banner, the MDTA says.
How long?: The bridge was 1.6 miles long when standing, MDTA reports.
Traffic volume: More than 30,000 people commuted daily on the bridge, according to Maryland Gov. Wes Moore.
Maryland bridge collapse could affect agriculture
NBC News’ Rob Wile and Shannon Pettypiece reported Tuesday that “customers from the East Coast to the Midwest who were expecting goods shipped in via the Port of Baltimore could see significant cost increases as a result of Tuesday’s collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore” that has blocked access for ships to the port.
“Baltimore is the largest entry point in the U.S. for large agriculture and construction equipment like tractors, farming combines, forklifts, bulldozers and heavy-duty trucks that are bound for the Midwest, according to DAT Freight and Analytics, a freight-exchange service,” Wile and Pettypiece wrote. “Any disruption to agriculture and construction equipment shipments would come at a particularly bad time as Midwest farmers have begun to plant this year’s crops, while construction picks up in colder climates as the ground begins to thaw, said Dean Croke, principal analyst with DAT.”
“According to Steenhoek, the Port of Baltimore exports around 200,000 metric tons of soybeans,” Kramer wrote. “In comparison, the Mississippi Gulf near New Orleans is the No. 1 export region for soybeans and exports 35 million metric tons.”
Lancaster Farming’s Philip Gruber reported Tuesday that while there could be a disruption moving forward for farm machinery, “dealerships are well stocked these days, with manufacturers having overcome the pandemic’s supply chain problems,” Gruber reported. “As a result, the port blockage may have little effect on equipment inventory in the short term. But the longer it takes for Baltimore to recover, the greater the risk that inventories will draw down and prices will rise.”
New WIC rules provide families with more money for fruits and vegetables
The changes, meant to align with dietary guidance from nutrition groups, reduces allotments for dairy, drawing pushback from the sector.
Low-income families will have more money for fruits and vegetables under one of the largest rule changes in a decade to the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday that updates to WIC will increase the cash allowance for fruits and vegetables, plus expand the types of produce available for purchase. The changes also enhance access to whole grains and dairy substitutes such as plant-based yogurts and cheeses.
The revisions additionally decrease monthly allowances for milk and juice, reflecting dietary recommendations from groups including the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine.
Around 6.6 million mothers and children rely on the WIC program, and any changes to eligible purchases can shape consumer behavior with ripple effects across the entire food industry.
The revisions make permanent an increase to the fruit and vegetable benefit provided to WIC participants during the pandemic. State agencies will also be required to authorize one other form of fruits and vegetables other than fresh, such as frozen or canned.
“Research shows that participants purchased healthier foods, and WIC-authorized stores carried healthier products, as a result of updates implemented in 2009,” Georgia Machell, interim president and CEO of the National WIC Association, said in a statement. “We are confident that these newest updates will yield similarly positive outcomes.”
WIC enrollment increased for the first time in a decade in fiscal year 2022, and the changes are meant to allow participants to maximize their benefits. States will have two years to implement the new rules, which allow them to tailor food packages to accommodate cultural food preferences and special dietary needs.
WHO sounds alarm on viral hepatitis infections claiming 3500 lives each day
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) 2024 Global Hepatitis Report, the number of lives lost due to viral hepatitis is increasing. The disease is the second leading infectious cause of death globally — with 1.3 million deaths per year, the same as tuberculosis, a top infectious killer.
The report, released at the World Hepatitis Summit, highlights that despite better tools for diagnosis and treatment, and decreasing product prices, testing and treatment coverage rates have stalled. But, reaching the WHO elimination goal by 2030 should still be achievable, if swift actions are taken now.
New data from 187 countries show that the estimated number of deaths from viral hepatitis increased from 1.1 million in 2019 to 1.3 million in 2022. Of these, 83% were caused by hepatitis B, and 17% by hepatitis C. Every day, there are 3500 people dying globally due to hepatitis B and C infections.
“This report paints a troubling picture: despite progress globally in preventing hepatitis infections, deaths are rising because far too few people with hepatitis are being diagnosed and treated,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “WHO is committed to supporting countries to use all the tools at their disposal – at access prices – to save lives and turn this trend around.”
Updated WHO estimates indicate that 254 million people live with hepatitis B and 50 million with hepatitis C in 2022. Half the burden of chronic hepatitis B and C infections is among people 30–54 years old, with 12% among children under 18 years of age. Men account for 58% of all cases.
New incidence estimates indicate a slight decrease compared to 2019, but the overall incidence of viral hepatitis remains high. In 2022, there were 2.2 million new infections, down from 2.5 million in 2019.
These include 1.2 million new hepatitis B infections and nearly 1 million new hepatitis C infections. More than 6000 people are getting newly infected with viral hepatitis each day.
The revised estimates are derived fro
Global progress and gaps in diagnosis and treatment
Across all regions, only 13% of people living with chronic hepatitis B infection had been diagnosed and approximately 3% (7 million) had received antiviral therapy at the end of 2022. Regarding hepatitis C, 36% had been diagnosed and 20% (12.5 million) had received curative treatment.
These results fall well below the global targets to treat 80% of people living with chronic hepatitis B and hepatitis C by 2030. However, they do indicate slight but consistent improvement in diagnosis and treatment coverage since the last reported estimates in 2019. Specifically, hepatitis B diagnosis increased from 10% to 13% and treatment from 2% to 3%, and hepatitis C diagnosis from 21% to 36% and treatment from 13% to 20%.
The burden of viral hepatitis varies regionally. The WHO African Region bears 63% of new hepatitis B infections, yet despite this burden, only 18% of newborns in the region receive the hepatitis B birth-dose vaccination. In the Western Pacific Region, which accounts for 47% of hepatitis B deaths, treatment coverage stands at 23% among people diagnosed, which is far too low to reduce mortality.
Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, the Russian Federation and Viet Nam, collectively shoulder nearly two-thirds of the global burden of hepatitis B and C. Achieving universal access to prevention, diagnosis, and treatment in these ten countries by 2025, alongside intensified efforts in the African Region, is essential to get the global response back on track to meet the Sustainable Development Goals.
m enhanced data from national prevalence surveys. They also indicate that prevention measures such as immunization and safe injections, along with the expansion of hepatitis C treatment, have contributed to reducing the incidence.
Russia’s economy is now completely driven by the war in Ukraine – it cannot afford to lose, but nor can it afford to win
Two years after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia is still facing an unprecedented number of economic sanctions. It has been excluded from major global financial services, and around €260 billion (£222 billion) of its central bank assets have been frozen.
Russian airspace is closed to most western planes, and western ports are closed to Russian vessels. A formal cap has been imposed on buying or processing Russian oil sold for more than US$60 per barrel (world prices currently fluctuate between $80 and $100. And in theory, it is illegal to sell Russia anything that could be used by the military.
Sanctions have had some effects. According to the IMF, Russia’s GDP is around 7% lower than the pre-war forecast.
Despite all of this, Russia’s economy has not collapsed. But it does look very different, and is now entirely focused on a long war in Ukraine – which is actually driving economic growth.
In fact, the IMF expects Russia to experience GDP growth of 2.6% this year. That’s significantly more than the UK (0.6%) and the EU (0.9%). Similarly, Russia’s budget deficit (the amount the government needs to borrow) is on track to remain below 1% of GDP, compared to 5.1% in the UK and 2.8% in the EU.
One reason for this relative resilience is Russia’s strong, independent central bank. Since 2022, it has imposed massive interest rate hikes (currently at 16%) to control inflation (still above 7%).
Russian firms have also learned to sidestep sanctions, with the oil cap being a prime example. In theory, no Russian oil should be traded with the west above the cap, which would have a massive impact on Russia’s public finances.
Many countries have also made money playing the role of intermediaries. Turkey, China, Serbia, Bulgaria and India are among those which have reportedly circumvented sanctions, and carried on selling goods to Russia.
But perhaps the most worrying reason for the Russian economy’s resilience is the war itself.
For a long time, the economy of Russia has not been diverse, relying heavily on the export of natural resources such as oil and gas. And a major reason for the relatively high revenue of the Russian government today is precisely that the war has led to high energy prices.
A protracted stalemate might be the only solution for Russia to avoid total economic collapse. Having transformed the little industry it had to focus on the war effort, and with a labour shortage problem worsened by hundreds of thousands of war casualties and a massive brain drain, the country would struggle to find a new direction.
Thirty-five years after the fall of the Berlin wall, it has become clear that resource-rich Russia has become much poorer than its former Soviet neighbours such as Estonia, Latvia, Poland and Hungary, who pursued the route of European integration.
The Russian regime has no incentive to end the war and deal with that kind of economic reality. So it cannot afford to win the war, nor can it afford to lose it. Its economy is now entirely geared towards continuing a long and ever deadlier conflict.
International court rules Switzerland violated human rights in landmark climate case brought by 2,000 women
An international court in France on Tuesday ruled Switzerland’s failure to adequately tackle the climate crisis was in violation of human rights, in a landmark climate judgment that could have a ripple effect across the globe.
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg, France delivered its ruling in a casebrought by more than 2,000 Swiss women, the majority of whom are in their 70s, against Switzerland’s government. They argued that climate change-fueled heat waves undermined their health and quality of life, and put them at risk of dying.
The court ruled that the Swiss government had violated some of the women’s human rights due to “critical gaps” in its national legislation to reduce planet-heating emissions, as well as a failure to meet past climate targets.
This amounted to abreach of the women’s rights to effective protection from the “the serious adverse effects of climate change on lives, health, well-being and quality of life,” the court said in a statement.
It marks the first time the court has ruled on climate litigation. There is no right of appeal and the judgment is legally binding.
Environmental activist Greta Thunberg, who attended a demonstration, told reporters outside the court that “this is only the beginning of climate litigation.”
“All over the world more and more people are taking their government to court, holding them responsible for their actions,” Thunberg said, adding: “We are going to use every tool in the toolbox that we have.”
Tuesday’s judgment in favor of the Swiss women sets “a precedent for other international courts to follow,” Liston, from Global Legal Action Network, told CNN.
Rights groups file new case against German arms export to Israel
Protestors take part in a pro-Palestinian demonstration, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Berlin, Germany, April 6, 2024. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
BERLIN, April 12 (Reuters) – Human rights lawyers filed a lawsuit against a German government decision to approve the export of 3,000 anti-tank weapons to Israel, the second case of its kind this month filed over Berlin’s support of Israel in its war in Gaza.
Last week, Berlin lawyers said they had filed an urgent appeal to halt exports of war weapons to Israel, citing reasons to believe they were being used in ways that could violate international humanitarian law in the Gaza Strip.
In February, a group of German lawyers representing families in Gaza filed a criminal complaint against German officials for allegedly aiding and abetting genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza by providing Israel with weapons.
Israel has strongly denied accusations of genocide or violations of humanitarian law in Gaza, saying it is waging war to defeat the ruling Islamist group Hamas in the small, densely populated enclave.
Over 33,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s offensive, Gaza’s health ministry says, after 1,200 Israelis were killed in Hamas’ cross-border attack on Oct. 7, according to Israeli tallies.
Last year, Germany approved arms exports to Israel worth 326.5 million euros ($353.70 million), including military equipment and war weapons, a 10-fold increase compared with 2022, according to Economy Ministry data.
Joe Biden expects Iran to attack Israel ‘sooner than later’
US President Joe Biden says he expects Iran to attack Israel “sooner than later”, as fears grow of Iranian retaliation over an air strike that killed top commanders early this month.
Israel has not admitted attacking an Iranian consulate in Syria but is widely believed to have been behind it.
US officials have told CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, that a major attack on Israel could happen imminently.
Israel says it is ready to defend itself. Mr Biden told Iran : “Don’t.”
“We are devoted to the defence of Israel. We will support Israel,” Mr Biden said. “We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed.”
Iran backs Hamas, the Palestinian group fighting Israel in Gaza, as well as various proxy groups throughout the region, including some – such as Hezbollah in Lebanon – that frequently carry out strikes against the Israelis.
On Friday, Hezbollah said it had launched “dozens” of rockets from Lebanon towards Israel. An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman said around 40 missiles and two explosive drones had been launched. No casualties were reported and there were no indications of involvement from other actors.
A US official told CBS the barrage was separate from any expected Iranian attack on Israel.
BBC Security Correspondent Frank Gardner says Iran is deliberately keeping the Middle East and Washington guessing.
Ever since the lethal 1 April strike on the consulate building in Damascus, from which Israel believes Iran was directing its covert arms supplies to Iranian proxies in Lebanon and Syria, Iran’s security establishment has been debating its response.
Pragmatists in Tehran and Qom will be urging restraint, while hawks, including the ageing Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, will be demanding a firm response.
But Iran does not want a full-scale war, nor do its neighbours on the Arab side of the Gulf. Governments there have already asked Iran for restraint. The question now, our correspondent says, is whether it is the hawks or the doves who prevail.
Overall, the applied side of PROUT involves translating its principles into concrete policies and practices that promote socio-economic justice, environmental sustainability, cultural enrichment, and holistic human development.
That’s all for this week. Thanks for Reading
April 6, 2024
What the 3,500-year-old holiday of Nowruz can teach us in 2024
Nowruz is an occasion for honouring family, and people visit one another and feast together (Credit: GeckoPhotos/Getty Images)
Rather than fading from relevance, the values of this ancient festival – from taking a yearly reset to connecting with nature in a precarious time – are now more important than ever.
It’s the season of Nowruz, the annual 13-day festival that marks the start of spring, and millions of people all over the world with roots in the former Persian Empire are celebrating.
Nowruz was originally a Zoroastrianism holiday, part of the ancient monotheistic religion founded by the prophet Zoroaster in approximately 500 BCE. In the time of the Persian Empire (roughly 559-331 BCE), the rulers of all of the subject countries were summoned at Nowruz to bring gifts and pay homage to the king at Persepolis, the ruins of which remain in the Iranian city of Shiraz. In this way, the kings could show the ancestors that they were prospering, something that remains an important aspect of the holiday.
Zoroastrianism remained the official state religion of the Persian Empire for centuries (Persia, anchored in modern-day Iran, once stretched from Afghanistan and Pakistan in the east to Egypt and the Balkan Peninsula in the west, and it left behind an enduring cultural legacy that includes this vibrant celebration) until the Arab conquest around 632 CE, after which it became Muslim. But Nowruz was firmly established, and even under Islamic rule it remained, evolving over time into a secular holiday celebrated by all faiths, including Christians, Jews and Muslims. Today, Iran, along with Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, India, Pakistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan and other countries once under Persian influence, observe Nowruz, as well as diaspora communities in North America, Europe and elsewhere around the world.
Despite Nowruz dating back 3,500 years, celebrants believe that rather than fading from relevance, the lessons of Nowruz – from taking a yearly reset to valuing family to connecting with nature in a precarious time – are now more important than ever.
People sprout lentils and wheat during the weeks before Nowruz, mirroring the shoots and buds emerging outside.
Nowruz, which means “new day” in Persian, starts at the moment of the spring equinox when the sun passes over the equator on its way north. This year, it kicks off on 20 March at 06:36 in Tehran and 03:06 in London, and on 19 March at 23:06 in New York.
Nowruz customs around the world have unique traits. In Afghanistan, people eat a dessert made of seven different dried fruits and nuts soaked in syrup called mewa. In Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, vessels are placed around the house and filled with water before the clock strikes the new year. And in Afghanistan, riders on horseback play the national sport buzkashi, similar to polo but using the body of a goat instead of a ball.
The first step is cleaning the home from top to bottom, a practice called khoone takoone, which translates to “shaking the house” in Persian. It’s also important to resolve outstanding grudges by making amends to the wronged party with a gift of ajeel, a mix of dried fruit and nuts. It’s customary to sprout lentils and wheat during the weeks prior, mirroring the shoots and buds emerging outside. Then, on the Wednesday before Nowruz, everyone from children to grandparents jumps over a bonfire. This is to purge any negativity from the past year.
On the final day of Nowruz, it’s customary to pack a picnic, head into the countryside and toss the lentil and wheat sprouts into moving water, signalling a break with the previous year. It’s a day to spend time appreciating the outdoors after the long winter. For Persis Karim, director of the Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies at San Francisco State University, Nowruz is a reminder of our symbiotic relationship with the natural world. “The transition of the seasons at the same time each year has been imprinted in us through this ritualised holiday,” she said.
Edinburgh (U.K.) international book festival announces ‘relaunch’ as sponsor row remains unresolved.
New director Jenny Niven calls controversy over lead sponsor Baillie Gifford’s fossil fuel links ‘the nature of the beast’, but activists are still calling for authors to boycott the event
‘Very grateful for the funding’ … Jenny Niven, director of the Edinburgh international book festival.
Before last summer’s Edinburgh international book festival (EIBF) had even begun, it was already the subject of a high-profile boycott and petition.
In July, Scottish investigative news site the Ferret calculated that the festival’s lead sponsor, investment management firm Baillie Gifford, had up to £5bn invested in companies profiting from fossil fuels. Days later, Greta Thunberg pulled out from her scheduled talk, accusing Baillie Gifford of greenwashing. Soon, more than 50 authors and event chairs including Zadie Smith, Ali Smith and Katherine Rundell had signed a letter calling on the company to stop investing in fossil fuel-linked businesses. If that demand wasn’t met, the group said that Edinburgh should find a new sponsor – and if it didn’t, authors should boycott the 2024 festival.
Organisers are now gearing up for the August festival, and new director Jenny Niven says she sees this year as something of a “relaunch”. The founder of Edinburgh’s poetry and spoken word festival Push the Boat Out has taken over from Nick Barley, who ran EIBF for 14 years. Niven’s “relaunch” will see the festival move to a new venue: the Edinburgh Futures Institute, part of the University of Edinburgh located in the restored Royal Infirmary. The controversial sponsorship arrangement remains in place, however: Baillie Gifford will still be a “major part” of the festival, the new director confirms.
At last year’s EIBF, activist and author Mikaela Loach staged a protest against Baillie Gifford’s investments, and following the festival the campaign group Fossil Free Books (FFB) was formed. In October last year more than 150 authors and book industry professionals signed a statement by FFB calling on Baillie Gifford to divest from fossil fuels.
Organisers are now gearing up for the August festival, and new director Jenny Niven says she sees this year as something of a “relaunch”. The founder of Edinburgh’s poetry and spoken word festival Push the Boat Out has taken over from Nick Barley, who ran EIBF for 14 years.
The controversial sponsorship arrangement remains in place, however: Baillie Gifford will still be a “major part” of the festival, the new director confirms.
Crisis-stricken Argentina must dollarize and get rid of the central bank, veteran economist says
Argentina is in the grip of a profound economic crisis, and one veteran economist believes part of the solution is for President Javier Milei to deliver on his campaign promise to dollarize the economy and abolish the central bank.
Latin America’s third-largest economy is currently struggling to cope with the world’s fastest rising prices, which is hammering the purchasing power of Argentinians.
Data published Tuesday by the country’s statistical office showed that Argentina’s 12-month inflation rate through February rose to 276.2%, reaffirming Argentina’s position as having the world’s worst inflation.
Argentina’s government on Monday launched a massive peso debt swap in a bid to help stabilize the crisis-stricken economy and potentially pave the way for Milei to lift currency controls.
Steve Hanke, professor of applied economics at Johns Hopkins University, described the move as a “kick the can down the road type of operation.”
“They don’t need to buy any time, if they dollarized the economy and got rid of the central bank – something that Milei promised during his campaign, the thing would be fixed. And it is feasible to do that, and I think it is totally desirable,” Hanke told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” on Thursday.
Hanke said that in 1999 he had drafted a law at the request of former President Carlos Menem that would have dollarized Argentina’s economy. The economist has previously said he’d been in close contact with Milei’s technical team and described himself as an “informal advisor” on issues such as dollarization.
Sudan: Aid lifeline reaches Darfur region in bid to avert ‘hunger catastrophe’
Two aid convoys carrying lifesaving supplies have reached Sudan’s Darfurs for the first time in months, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Friday, as humanitarians try to avert a “hunger catastrophe”, after nearly a year of heavy fighting.
“The UN WFP has managed to bring desperately needed food and nutrition supplies into Darfur; the first WFP assistance to reach the war-wracked region in months,” said Leni Kinzli, WFP Communications Officer in Sudan.
The convoys crossed into Sudan from Chad in late March carrying enough food and nutrition supplies for 250,000 people facing acute hunger in North, West and Central Darfur.
Constant flow needed
Despite this welcome development, the UN agency spokesperson warned that unless the people of Sudan receive a constant flow of aid “via all possible humanitarian corridors from neighbouring countries and across battle lines”, the country’s hunger catastrophe will only worsen.
Last month, WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain warned that the war in Sudan risks triggering the world’s worst hunger crisis unless families in Sudan and those who have fled to South Sudan and Chad receive desperately needed food assistance.
This requires unfettered access, faster clearances, and funds to deliver humanitarian response that meets the huge needs of civilians impacted by the devastating war.
Humanitarian stakes
Securing safe and constant aid access to the Darfurs “has been extremely challenging”, WFP’s Ms. Kinzli explained, adding that the situation has been complicated further by the decision of the head of the Sudanese armed forces based in Port Sudan to refuse permission to humanitarians seeking to reach the Darfurs from Chad.
More than 600 people still stranded in Taiwan, three days after earthquake that killed at least 12
More than 600 people, including about 450 at a hotel in the Taroko park, remained stranded in various locations cut off by rockslides and other damage
Rescuers were planning to bring in heavy equipment on April 6 to try to recover two bodies buried under boulders on a hiking trail, three days after Taiwan’s strongest earthquake in 25 years.
At least 12 people were killed and more than 1,100 injured by the magnitude 7.2 quake that struck the island on Wednesday, with strict building codes and widespread disaster readiness credited with averting an even bigger catastrophe.
Schools close and crops wither as ‘historic’ heatwave hits south-east Asia
Governments across region grappling for response as temperatures soar to unseasonable highs
Thousands of schools in the Philippines have stopped in-person classes due to unbearable heat. In Indonesia, prolonged dry weather has caused rice prices to soar. In Thailand’s waters, temperatures are so high that scientists fear coral could be destroyed.
A “historic heatwave” is being experienced across south-east Asia, according to Maximiliano Herrera, a climatologist and weather historian. In updates posted on X, he said heat that was unprecedented for early April had been recorded at monitoring stations across the region this week, including in Minbu, in central Myanmar, where 44C was recorded – the first time in south-east Asia’s climatic history that such high temperatures had been reached so early in the month. In Hat Yai, in Thailand’s far south, 40.2 C was reached, an all-time record, while Yên Châuin north-west Vietnam hit 40.6C, unprecedented for this time of year.
The latest intense weather follows warnings last month by the World Meteorological Organization that the region had also been “gripped by severe heat conditions” in February when temperatures frequently soared into the high-30s – well above the seasonal average. It attributed the scorching weather to human-induced climate change, as well as the El Niño event, which brings hotter, drier conditions to the region.
“The level of heat the globe has experienced over the last 12 months, both on the land and in the ocean has surprised science,” said Prof Benjamin Horton, the director of the Earth Observatory of Singapore. “We always knew we were going to be headed in this direction with our increasing greenhouse gases, but the fact that we’re shattering all these records in 2023, and 2024, is perhaps slightly ahead of time.”
Why these scientists fly all over the world to study the sun’s corona during total solar eclipses
For scientists focused on unlocking the secrets of the sun, it’s not a newfangled invention but a cyclical celestial event — and an appetite for world travel — that offers them an unmatched opportunity to observe our nearest star.
Though, the high-tech equipment helps, too.
During total solar eclipses, which are visible from a different location on Earth roughly every one to two years, the moon briefly obscures the sun’s disk (i.e. the big, round circle) and reveals its corona, or outer atmosphere that radiates beyond it like a halo.
“Total solar eclipses let us study and see the corona in ways that just would not be possible at any other time and in any other way,” said Amir Caspi, a solar astrophysicist at the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado.
On April 8, the moon’s shadow will fall across North America in a path of totality that starts in Mexico and ends in eastern Canada.
A scorching solar mystery
Today, researchers are investigating the mystery of the corona’s temperature, which is mind-blowingly hotter than the solar surface.
“It’s a conundrum from the point of [view of] physics,” Habbal said. “Usually, when a surface is hot, as you go away from the surface, then the temperature drops.”
The sun’s surface clocks in at about 6,000 degrees Celsius, compared to 1 to 2 million degrees in its atmosphere above. The cause of this disparity isn’t yet clear. But today’s researchers, far removed from the technological limitations of antiquity, can glean new insights by training modern observational tools on the sun during eclipses. These tools work by taking in specific types of light, which reveal all sorts of information about the celestial objects they came from.
Temperature isn’t uniformly distributed across the corona, a dynamic region that contains multiple different structures, Habbal said. Some of that material forms 2-million-degree loops that make their way back around toward the solar surface. Solar wind, on the other hand, is closer to 1 million degrees, and it hurtles into interplanetary space as it leaves the atmosphere.
During a total solar eclipse in 2017, Caspi and his colleagues collected images of the corona in the midwave infrared range using a special camera aboard one of NASA’s high-altitude jets. That imager documented wildly different temperature ranges, including some coronal structures that measured tens of thousands of degrees yet somehow glowed at about the same brightness in the midwave infrared as other structures that were millions of degrees, Caspi said. For this year’s experiment, his team plans to make new observations to help explain the physics behind this phenomenon.
Harnessing the eclipse to study the corona
Caspi and Habbal are each spearheading different solar eclipse research projects that will use a combination of ground-based observations, as well as the instruments aboard the two NASA jets.
Those jets will reach 50,000 feet — above 90 percent of the atmosphere — during the eclipse, Caspi said. That’s important, he noted, because our atmosphere absorbs or blocks various types of light while also emitting its own glow. At their ultra-high altitude, the jets will have a much clearer view of the eclipse.
Plastic-free vegan leather that dyes itself grown from bacteria
Researchers at Imperial College London have genetically engineered bacteria to grow animal- and plastic-free leather that dyes itself.
In recent years, scientists and companies have started using microbes to grow sustainable textiles or to make dyes for industry — but this is the first time bacteria have been engineered to produce a material and its own pigment simultaneously.
Synthetic chemical dyeing is one of the most environmentally toxic processes in fashion, and black dyes — especially those used in colouring leather — are particularly harmful. The researchers at Imperial set out to use biology to solve this.
In tackling the problem, the researchers say their self-dyeing vegan, plastic-free leather, which has been fashioned into shoe and wallet prototypes, represents a step forward in the quest for more sustainable fashion.
Their new process, which has been published in the journal Nature Biotechnology, could also theoretically be adapted to have bacteria grow materials with various vibrant colours and patterns, and to make more sustainable alternatives to other textiles such as cotton and cashmere.
Lead author Professor Tom Ellis, from Imperial College London’s Department of Bioengineering, said: “Inventing a new, faster way to produce sustainable, self-dyed leather alternatives is a major achievement for synthetic biology and sustainable fashion.
“Bacterial cellulose is inherently vegan, and its growth requires a tiny fraction of the carbon emissions, water, land use and time of farming cows for leather.
“Unlike plastic-based leather alternatives, bacterial cellulose can also be made without petrochemicals, and will biodegrade safely and non-toxically in the environment.”
Germany’s refusal to send ‘Taurus’ missiles to Ukraine is highly contentious — but won’t break the government
Debate around military aid to Ukraine is deepening the cracks in Germany’s administration — but despite “extremely unusual” public rifts, Chancellor Olaf Scholz is expected to prevail.
The question at the heart of a months-long dispute is whether Germany will send Ukraine long-range Taurus missiles, which can independently locate and destroy a target after being released by a carrier.
Scholz has firmly rejected Kyiv’s request for these missiles — but he looks increasingly isolated in this position.
One key concern is that Ukraine may need on-the-ground help from German soldiers to work the Taurus missiles — a red line for Scholz.
According to leaked discussions by senior army chiefs reported by German media, there are very few copies of the complex data needed to program Taurus missiles. It means that Germany itself would likely lose access to the material if it handed those over to Ukraine, making it a potentially risky move.
Scholz has also said that Taurus weapons are sufficiently far-reaching that they could hit Russia, which the Kremlin could view as Germany becoming involved in the war. The country’s armed forces, the Bundeswehr, could not handle holding a defensive line against Russia, Scholz argues.
Resistance
Not everyone agrees.
The opposition Christian Democrats, or CDU for short, has played down the risk that Russia might view it as Germany entering the war, while the Free Democrats (FDP) and Greens — coalition partners to Scholz’s Social Democrats, or SPD — say the risks are manageable and worthwhile to avoid Russia winning the conflict.
Since last November, the CDU has repeatedly tabled votes on sending Taurus missiles to Ukraine in Germany’s parliament and failed. Even so, the debate has highlighted tensions within the ruling coalition.
“There’s clearly a rift between large parts of the Greens and the Free Democrats in favor of delivering Taurus to Ukraine and Chancellor Scholz and large parts of his Social Democrats vehemently blocking this decision,” Frank Sauer, senior research fellow at the University of the Bundeswehr Munich and head of research at the Metis Institute for Strategy and Foresight, told CNBC.
It comes as several members of parliament for the FDP voted in favor of a CDU motion following the latest parliamentary debate on Thursday.
Annalena Baerbock, Green party foreign secretary, meanwhile, discussed Taurus missiles with U.K. foreign minister David Cameron. She later said she would consider a so-called “Ringtausch,” whereby Germany sends Taurus missiles to the U.K. which in turn delivers some of its own long-range Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine.
Separately, a high-profile Green party MP joined forces with a prominent CDU politician to pen an op-ed advocating for the delivery of Taurus missiles.
Coalition chaos
“This level of open disagreement inside a governing coalition is extremely unusual for German politics. The coalition is in disunity because of Scholz’ refusal to deliver Taurus,” Ulrike Franke, senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, told CNBC.
US on high alert as Iran-Israel shadow war spurs chance of wider Middle east conflict
The United States is on ‘high alert’ amid an escalating Iran-Israel shadow war and the looming threat of a wider Middle East conflict. Tehran is currently preparing a ‘response’ after a suspected Israeli strike killed an Iranian military commander and several advisors this week. Meanwhile the Hezbollah — its main proxy in the Middle East — warned the Jewish state that it is prepared for war. Iran has asked the US to “step aside” if it wanted to avoid “getting hit”.
“In a written message, the Islamic Republic of Iran warns US leadership not to get dragged in Netanyahu’s trap for US: Stay away so you won’t get hurt. In response US asked Iran not to target American facilities,” tweeted Mohammad Jamshidi — the Iranian president’s deputy chief of staff for political affairs.
Meanwhile, US officials indicate that the country is in a “high state of vigilance” following reports of an attack next week. President Joe Biden discussed the matter during a telephonic exchange with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday. According to a Reuters report quoting a senior Biden administration official, teams from both countries have remained in “continuous contact”. Washington has also reiterated its ‘full support’ for Israeli defense against threats from Iran.
Overall, the applied side of PROUT involves translating its principles into concrete policies and practices that promote socio-economic justice, environmental sustainability, cultural enrichment, and holistic human development.
March 30, 2024
200,000 French students to benefit from the rollout of MIA, an AI-powered revision app
MIA, an AI-powered app to revise literature and mathematics, will be rolled out to the French lycée students in later this year.
Students in French lycées will be able to use a new educational tool powered by artificial intelligence (AI) to help revise literature and mathematics.
The app – called “Modules interactifs adaptatifs,” or MIA – was created by EvidenceB, a French EdTech start-up.
Making access widely available to 15-year-olds was one of the last decisions taken by former French education minister, Gabriel Attal before he became the country’s new prime minister in January.
The decision was made following the publication of alarming results regarding the educational level of French students.
The education ministry announced in a statement that it “will be made available for free to 200,000 Year 11 students over the next few months, before being rolled out to all next September”.
The app’s algorithm uses AI to give the student the best exercises to make progress.
“The application includes a dashboard for the teacher to monitor the progress of each student. This gives a very convenient overview,” Cécile Cathelin, a teacher who collaborated with EvidenceB for MIA’s resources, told Euronews Next.
According to her, the solution could help teachers save time. “Artificial intelligence will immediately see the strengths and weaknesses of students,” she added.
‘Not a miracle solution’
“It’s not a magic tool, it’s not going to change everything, it’s going to be a new tool with which we’ll be able to work,” Cathelin said.
Indoor Farming Businesses Meet Growing Demand for Local Produce
Commercial indoor farms have been riding a wave of technological innovation and financial investment, as these companies seek to satisfy consumer demand for locally grown produce while at the same time reshaping the nation’s food-supply system.
Many indoor farms focus on using sustainable farming practices to grow leafy vegetables, tomatoes, herbs and berries, supplying their crops to local supermarkets and restaurants that promote their local provenance. The growers say that not only are their products more sustainable than traditionally grown crops that often travel across the country after they are harvested, but they are also less exposed to weather fluctuations and other supply chain disruptions, such as those that occurred around the world during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Another benefit is that indoor farms are not exposed to livestock runoff, which has been a source of E. coli outbreaks in leafy greens.
Operators of indoor farms also maintain that they produce crops that are also more consistent in quality and flavor than those that are grown using traditional agricultural methods.
“We are excited to build and scale a better future for farmers and consumers by ensuring a safe, secure and sustainable food supply, regardless of calendar or climate,” said Steve Bradley, president of Cox Farms. “This is a significant milestone for us, as we are disrupting traditional agriculture and bringing the promise of indoor agriculture to fruition at a scale never seen before.”
Hydroelectricity is a hidden source of methane emissions. These people want to solve that
Commercialisation of the Bluemethane technology is being put to the test at United Utilities, a water company in the north-west of the UK: “Wastewater companies are already using anaerobic digestion, they take solid waste and churn it around without oxygen to create methane biogas, and at the end the liquid still has quite a lot of dissolved methane in it,” she says. “They already have biogas generators and use energy for power, so we’re not changing anything dramatic.”
Dams and reservoirs around the world are an underappreciated source of methane. Now start-ups want to capture that gas as a source of power.
It takes just one second for four Olympic-sized swimming pools-worth of water to charge through the turbines at the Tucuruí dam in northern Brazil. The rush of water here at one of the largest hydroelectric reservoirs in the Amazon region is deafening, but it’s what makes the dam the fifth largest power plant in the world.
As the water churns through a series of 25 turbines and spillways of the dam, however, something else is happening – it’s emitting greenhouse gases.
Often regarded as one of the oldest forms of renewable energy, hydroelectric dams and their reservoirs are responsible for the release of almost one billion tonnes of methane into the atmosphere as water approaches and then tumbles its way through the turbines that generate electricity. Methane is a greenhouse gas that’s more than 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 20-year lifespan, but it also breaks down faster in the atmosphere than CO2.
Out of the 51 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases emitted by people every year, three billion tonnes of those are from methane which escapes from water. When water is disturbed, methane comes out of the solution and turns into bubbles of gas. And one of the single biggest sources of this degassing methane is something of a surprise – hydroelectric dams like Tucuruí, brazil.
But there are now hopes it may be possible to catch this methane before it escapes into the atmosphere, and put it to use as a source of power.
While reducing fossil fuel use is part of the solution (40% of methane emissions come from the energy sector (i.e. oil and gas), methane comes from many other sources too, including livestock: 32% comes from burping and farting ruminants like cows. (Read more on the hunt for the hidden sources of methane.)
Less well known still is the significant contribution of water bodies to these emissions. Methane is also produced in sediments of freshwater when carbon-rich organic matter is decomposed by microbes in the absence of oxygen – that includes naturally occurring tropical swamps, peat bogs and waterlogged soils. With all these natural sources, their status as a source or sink of greenhouse gases such as methane can be a tightrope depending on land-use practices and climate change.
Then there are the manmade water sources of methane, including wastewater treatment plants and rice cultivations. In all these sources, bacteria are responsible for breaking down organic matter and releasing methane.
And then, of course, there’s dams and their reservoirs. Reservoirs contribute 22 million tonnes of methane per year – a little less than two-thirds of the methane produced by rice production or wastewater treatment (35 million tonnes each). The methane comes from decomposing organic matter at the bottom of the water body. In reservoirs as in sewage plants, when that water is churned up, it escapes.
Potential power source
Inside a 20-foot-long (6m) rust-red container at Cranfield University, water tumbles down through a series of pipes and containers under gravity. Here, Louise Parlons Bentata, chief executive and co-founder of Bluemethane, is developing tech that captures methane from bodies of water such as reservoirs and sewage treatment plants. Methane is the primary component of fossil natural gas, and it can be burned as an energy resource.
Contraceptive content shared on social media largely not from health experts, study finds
Brigham researchers (Boston), looked at tweets from 2014 to 2019 about contraceptive methods and found that only a small fraction were authored by health professionals.
Patients are quick to turn to social media for guidance on contraception methods, side effects and education, but what kind of content is being shared and who is sharing it? A new study conducted by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, looked at thousands of tweets about reversible contraceptive methods published from 2014 to 2019. Tweets were frequently posted by contraceptive consumers (about 50 percent), with a much smaller proportion (6 percent) posted by an official news or healthcare source. The findings point to opportunities for healthcare professionals to use social media to disseminate accurate contraceptive information. Results
are published in Contraception and Reproductive Medicine.
“Platforms like Twitter, now known as X, empower patients to access health information and make decisions about contraception that align with their values,” said Deborah Bartz, MD, MPH, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and an attending physician in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at BWH. “We see that individuals are making decisions about contraception based on anecdotal experience and advice from friends, family, and social media users. So how can we, as physicians, use social media to lead to better health encounters and ultimately better health outcomes?”
2024 Total Solar Eclipse: 10 interesting facts about the natural phenomenon
The 2024 Total Solar Eclipse will cross North America on April 8.
As North America prepares for its second total solar eclipse in seven years, on April 8, the Moon will cast a shadow over a portion of the Earth that will be shrouded in darkness. Mexico mainland will first witness the astronomical spectacle, which will wrap up the show in Canada. With the Moon moving between the Earth and the Sun, it’ll wrap the solar light and bar us from its direct view. The once-in-a-blue-moon alignment makes the two bodies appear similarly sized in the sky. The complete eclipse begins with its partial counterpart until the Moon fully shields the Sun. According to NASA, this phenomenon lasts for about 70 to 80 minutes. Totality occurs when the Moon blocks the Sun entirely.
Solar eclipse as an omen
According to ancient Greece’s lore, solar eclipses were perceived as ill omens because they were seen as a symbol of gods’ anger. Hence, the word’s Greek origins – ‘ekleipsis’ – which refers to “being abandoned.”
Total solar eclipses are seen only on Earth
Earth is the only planet in our solar system that witnesses a perfect total solar eclipse due to the relative size and distance ratio of the Sun and the Moon from the planet. No other planet’s Moon is of a similar size to facilitate the phenomenon.
No Total Solar Eclipses in about 600M years
Richard Vondrak, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Centre lunar scientist, had previously described a total eclipse as “a dance with three partners: the moon, the sun and Earth.” He also affirmed, “About 600 million years from now, Earth will experience the beauty and drama of a total solar eclipse for the last time.” Total solar eclipses occur because of the Moon and the Sun’s relative size and distance. While the Sun is about 400 times wider than the Moon, the latter is about 400 times closer to the Earth – both bodies appear to have the same size in Earth’s sky. However, a NASA statement addressed the growing distance – about 1.5 inches per year – between the Moon and Earth, affecting the resulting total solar eclipse due to the diminished size of the Moon in the sky. Therefore, “over time, the number and frequency of total solar eclipses will decrease.”
The 2024 totality will be the longest one since 2010
Nazas in Mexico will experience the greatest eclipse duration on April 8, with 4 minutes and 28 seconds of totality. This will exceed the 4 minutes and 40 seconds of totality witnessed by Rapa Nui in July 2010. The 2027 total solar eclipse is estimated to last 6 minutes and 23 seconds in Egypt.
Saros cycle: The same overlapping pattern will recur in 2042
Every 18 years, 11 days and eight hours, the same alignment between the Sun, Moon and Earth results in a similar solar eclipse. The April 8, 2024, alignment will similarly repeat its pattern on April 20, 2042.
First total solar eclipse in the continent US in 7 years
North America’s last total solar eclipse happened on August 21, 2017. Seven years ago, it traversed from Oregon to South Carolina. The next one will be witnessed 20 years later, on August 23, 2044.
A solar eclipse occurs only during one lunar phase – the New Moon. However, not every New Moon brings about a solar eclipse.
The Sun’s corona, i.e. the outermost part of its atmosphere, can be viewed only during a total solar eclipse. Since the corona is shrouded in the Sun’s bright light, it’s impossible to see it with the naked eye. During a total solar eclipse, the Moon shields the Sun’s ferocious brightness, allowing the corona’s white light to be seen as the Moon appears like a black disk over the Sun.
Solar eclipse results in two parts of the Moon’s shadow: the umbra (darker inner shadow) and penumbra (fainter outer shadow). The Sun’s light is entirely blocked in the umbra, so the observers must be within this phase of the shadow to observe a total solar eclipse. Those in the penumbra see a partial eclipse; outside the Moon’s shadow, there will be no eclipse.
In contrast to the total solar eclipse, an annular solar eclipse doesn’t fully cover the Sun’s disk. When this happens, the Sun’s outer edge is visible as an “annulus” or bright ring, also referred to as the “Ring of Fire” effect. Since the Moon’s orbit is elliptical and not a perfect circle, its distance from the Earth varies according to its location. Apogee is observed as the farthest point from Earth in the orbit, where the Moon appears smaller. During the annular solar eclipse, the Moon covers the Sun while it’s at or near the apogee.
World’s five richest men double their money as poorest get poorer
Oxfam predicts first trillionaire within a decade, with gap between rich and poor likely to increase.
The world’s five richest men have more than doubled their fortunes to $869bn (£681.5bn) since 2020, while the world’s poorest 60% – almost 5 billion people – have lost money.
The details come in a report by Oxfam as the world’s richest people gather from Monday in Davos, Switzerland, for the annual World Economic Forum meeting of political leaders, corporate executives and the super-rich.
The yawning gap between rich and poor is likely to increase, the report says, and will lead to the world crowning its first trillionaire within a decade. At the same time, it warns, if current trends continue, world poverty will not be eradicated for another 229 years.
Highlighting a dramatic increase in inequality since the Covid pandemic, Oxfam said the world’s billionaires were $3.3tn (£2.6tn) richer than in 2020, and their wealth had grown three times faster than the rate of inflation.
The report, Inequality Inc., finds that seven out of 10 of the world’s biggest corporations have a billionaire as CEO or principal shareholder, despite stagnation in living standards for millions of workers around the world.
Compiled using data from the research company Wealth X and Forbes, it says the combined wealth of the top five richest people in the world – Elon Musk, Bernard Arnault, Jeff Bezos, Larry Ellison and Mark Zuckerberg – have increased by $464bn, or 114%. Over the same period, the total wealth of the poorest 4.77 billion people – making up 60% of the world population – has declined by 0.2% in real terms.
World reacts to UNSC resolution demanding Gaza ceasefire
Many officials around the world have welcomed the resolution.
Many world leaders have welcomed a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution that demands an immediate ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza.
While the United States abstained from the vote on Monday, the remaining 14 council members voted for the resolution.
The resolution, which the US said it did not agree with in its entirety, calls for an “immediate ceasefire” for the duration of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which ends in two weeks. It calls for the ceasefire to lead to a “lasting” truce, for the release of all hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, and for respect for international law from each party when it comes to detainments.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Shortly after the resolution passed, Netanyahu cancelled the visit of an Israeli delegation to Washington, DC, which the US had requested to discuss concerns over a proposed Israeli invasion of Rafah, a city in crowded southern Gaza.
The US abstention was “a clear retreat from the consistent position of the US”, and would hurt Israel’s war efforts and bid to release the hostages still held by Hamas, the prime minister’s office said.
US signs on more bombs and warplanes for Israel amid war: Report
The new arms packages reportedly includes more than 1,800 MK84 2,000-pound bombs and 500 MK82 500-pound bombs.
The United States in recent days authorized the transfer of billions of dollars worth of bombs and fighter jets to Israel even as it publicly expresses concerns about an anticipated military offensive in Rafah, the Washington Post reported on Friday.
The new arms packages include more than 1,800 MK84 2,000-pound bombs and 500 MK82 500-pound bombs, the newspaper said, citing Pentagon and State Department officials familiar with the matter.
Washington gives $3.8 billion in annual military assistance to Israel, its longtime ally. The United States has been rushing air defenses and munitions to Israel, but some Democrats and Arab American groups have criticized the Biden administration’s steadfast support of Israel, which they say provides it with a sense of impunity.
White House to provide $300 million weapons package for Ukraine
The White House will provide $300 million in additional weapons to Ukraine, officials announced Tuesday, as more funding remains held up in Congress by Republican leaders.
The package will be made available through presidential drawdown authority, or PDA, which pulls weapons from existing U.S. stockpiles. The military equipment headed to Ukraine includes anti-aircraft missiles, ammunition, artillery rounds and anti-armor systems, the officials said.
The announcement comes as the Ukrainian military is facing dire weapons shortages in its two-year war with Russia.
“When Russian troops advance and its guns fire, Ukraine does not have enough ammunition to fire back,” national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in announcing the new aid package.
At the same time, the U.S. has “basically exhausted our funding to assist Ukraine,” a senior defense official said.
Defense officials said they were able to come up with the funding through savings in long-term contracts with weapons makers, but they described it as a one-time arrangement.
The military has been forced to come up with creative ways to pay for weapons packages for Ukraine because of the impasse in Congress. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has refused to bring a bill to the floor that would provide $60 billion in additional aid for Ukraine.
Japan Broadens Ban on Restraints of Jailed Women in Labor
Government Should Further Expand Prohibition on Restraining Pregnant People
The new directive, issued on March 18, now includes an effective ban on handcuffing pregnant women during “transportation to outside medical institutions” and “upon arrival at the medical institution and until entering the delivery room” as “situations during which use of restraints are inappropriate.”
Restraining imprisoned people during labor and childbirth contravenes international standards. The United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Mandela Rules) state that “[i]nstruments of restraint shall never be used on women during labour, during childbirth and immediately after childbirth.” In addition, expert commentary on the Bangkok Rules says that using “body restraints, such as shackles … on pregnant women during transfers to hospitals, gynecological examinations, and birth … violates international standards.”
During the Diet session, opposition lawmaker Mizuho Fukushima pressed the government to clarify its prohibition on restraints. “We understand that the Mandela Rules and the Bangkok Rules state restraints should not be used on women when they’re in labor, and our new directive takes them into account,” a justice ministry official responded.
The Japanese government should further expand the ban by forbidding the use of restraints on pregnant prisoners during health checkups, including gynecological examinations, and immediately after giving birth. Authorities should ensure imprisoned people are adequately informed about their legal right to seek permission to keep their child with them in prison, subject to approval by the prison warden, and encourage prison wardens to consider such requests expeditiously and sympathetically.
The government should also encourage prosecutors to use Japan’s Code of Criminal Procedures and suspend sentences for imprisoned people who are 150 or more days pregnant, among other grounds.
Bird flu identified in US livestock for first time
The case, detected in a goat at a Minnesota farm, highlights “the possibility of the virus infecting other animals on farms with multiple species.”
While avian influenza has been detected in mammals, it typically spreads to animals that eat infected birds or poultry. The identification of the virus in a goat is the first time bird flu has been found in a U.S. domestic ruminant, which also includes cattle, sheep and their relatives.
There is limited experimental data on HPAI infection in ruminants, and there are no prior reports of natural infection in goats. While there seems to be a lower risk of the virus infecting entire herds of cattle or goats at this time, the finding could push farms with multiple types of animals to take enhanced biosecurity measures.
“Thankfully, research to-date has shown mammals appear to be dead-end hosts, which means they’re unlikely to spread HPAI further,” Hoefs said.
The case was identified after the owner notified state officials of the unusual deaths of newly kidded goats on the property where avian influenza was previously identified in a poultry flock. One of the goat carcasses tested positive for H5N1 HPAI, the same virus that has devastated wild and commercial bird populations since the outbreak began in 2022.
Animals with weakened or immature immune systems are more susceptible to contracting the disease. Samples from the adult goats were negative for bird flu, and no more sick goat kids were reported since March 11.
Since the start of the outbreak, over 82 million birds have died or been killed to prevent further spread. More than 470 farms have been impacted, and the spread has also led to an increase in consumer egg prices, with costs rising 8.4% for shoppers from January to February 2024.
WHO launches new toolkit empowering health professionals to tackle climate change
World Health Organization (WHO) in collaboration with partners has developed a new toolkit designed to equip health and care workers with the knowledge and confidence to effectively communicate about climate change and health.
The toolkit provides comprehensive resources to help health and care workers understand the health impacts of climate change and the co-benefits of climate action, build confidence in communication, and engage with various stakeholders effectively. By empowering health and care workers to communicate about climate change and health, it aims to drive collective action towards mitigating climate change, building resilience and safeguarding public health.
The communications toolkit was developed by WHO in collaboration with the Global Climate and Health Alliance, George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication, Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health, Climate and Health Alliance Australia and the Canadian Medical Association. Health Canada’s funding has been instrumental in developing this toolkit.
Heatwaves, exacerbated by climate change, have been linked to adverse health effects, including heart attacks, kidney disease and mental health disorders. Changing weather patterns threaten food security by reducing crop yields, while air pollution alone leads to over 7 million premature deaths annually, mainly through cardio-respiratory illnesses. Furthermore, climate-induced water scarcity and contamination fuel competition for resources, forced migration and conflict.
The repercussions of climate change extend beyond physical health, impacting mental well-being through trauma, loss of livelihoods and anxiety about the future. Furthermore, health systems, already strained after a pandemic, an energy crisis and a cost-of-living crisis, face additional burdens from extreme weather events and supply chain disruptions.
Demand for study abroad in Australia, Canada, UK already affected by new international education policies
New, restrictive policies concerning international students in the UK, Canada, and Australia are already having a significant impact on prospective student demand for study in those countries.
IDP’s recent study, “The Voice of the International Student,” conducted in January 2024 across 67 countries with a total sample of 2,500 students, indicates that many students are reconsidering their plans to study in those countries, and that the US appears to be picking up share of interest.
Similarly, Studyportals research published this month found that prospective student demand for Canada, in particular, is dipping dramatically, while interest in the US increased significantly in 2023. Italy has also grown much more popular. Interest in the Netherlands picked up again leading into 2024, but may soon decline due to Dutch universities’ stated intention to reduce international student numbers and English-taught programmes.
New policies in Canada, Australia and UK are making it harder for international students to get visas and to bring their families with them.
This is causing many students to consider studying in the US instead.
The US is seen as a more welcoming destination with wider range of post-study work opportunities.The landscape of international education is constantly evolving, with new policies and regulations emerging that can significantly impact student mobility. Recent changes in Canada, Australia, and the UK have sparked concerns about their potential to dampen the appeal of these traditionally popular study destinations.
Several policy changes have been implemented in these countries, each with its own set of implications for international students:
Canada: The introduction of stricter visa requirements, including enhanced financial resources demonstration and limitations on postgraduate work permits, has created uncertainty and deterred some prospective students.
Australia: The tightening of post-study work visa options, particularly for specific fields of study, has made it less attractive for students seeking work experience after graduation.
UK: The post-study work visa reforms, coupled with a more selective visa application process, have instilled anxieties among international students regarding their long-term prospects in the UK.
First Arab woman to graduate from NASA astronaut programme
Nora AlMatrooshi, one of two Emiratis chosen from thousands of applicants, has become the first Arab woman to graduate from Nasa’s training programme. Like her ancestors before her, AlMatrooshi has spent much of her life gazing up at the stars and now her dream of flying to the moon will soon become a reality.
AlMatrooshi, a mechanical engineer by training who has worked in the oil industry, was one of two astronaut candidates chosen by the United Arab Emirates Space Agency (UAESA) in 2021 to enroll in a training program with US space agency NASA.
Now, after two years of hard work — including practice spacewalks — AlMatrooshi, her fellow Emirati Mohammad AlMulla and 10 others in their training class are fully qualified astronauts.
The group, known as “The Flies,” are now eligible for NASA missions to the International Space Station (ISS), Artemis launches to the Moon and, if all goes well, to even fly to Mars.
Over 3 billion people now live with a neurological condition:
New research shows that over 3.4 billion people throughout the world have a neurological condition.
These conditions include neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism, neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s, and movement disorders such as Parkinson’s.
A concerning aspect of the findings is that disability and deaths related to these conditions increased by 18% since 1990.
The researchers hope that the findings will increase awareness of neurological conditions and encourage public health officials across the world to invest in brain health and expanding healthcare.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently contributed to a new study that took a look at how neurological conditions affect people across the globe.
After analyzing data available from the Global Burden of Disease, Injuries, and Risk Factor Study (GBD) 2021, the researchers learned that around 3.4 billion people have a neurological condition. Additionally, neurological conditions are now the leading cause of disability.
The rise in neurological conditions is associated with an increase in premature deaths. The majority of these deaths occur in low and middle-income countries where neurological healthcare is limited.
The researchers for the present study focused on health loss that affects the nervous system including both neurological conditions and neurodevelopmental disorders. Some of these conditions include:
According to the study findings, neurological conditions are the leading cause of disability worldwide. They estimated these conditions affected more than 3.4 billion people, which is 43.1% of the global population.
Russia, China veto US-led UN resolution on Gaza ceasefire
The United Nations Security Council on Friday turned down a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and an Israel-Hamas hostage deal after Russia and China vetoed the measure proposed by the United States.
The resolution, on which Algeria also voted no and Guyana abstained, called for an immediate and sustained ceasefire lasting roughly six weeks that would protect civilians and allow for the delivery of humanitarian assistance.
Eleven of the 15 council members voted for the resolution, but the Russia and China vetoes stopped its passage.
The council will meet at 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT) on Monday to vote on an alternative resolution drafted by elected members of the Security Council, a diplomat said. The vote was planned for Saturday but was postponed because discussions were ongoing, the diplomat added.
That resolution, a draft copy of which was seen by Reuters, demands an immediate ceasefire for the current Muslim holy month of Ramadan, the release of all hostages and an expanded flow of humanitarian assistance to Gaza.
The Gambia (west Africa) votes to reverse landmark ban on female genital mutilation
Rights groups say proposed rollback of 2015 law will overturn women’s rights across the region as a whole.
The Gambia has taken steps towards lifting a ban on female circumcision, a move that could make it the first country in the world to reverse legal protections against the practice for millions of women and girls.
Politicians in the West African nation’s parliament voted 42 to four on Monday to advance the controversial bill, which would repeal a landmark 2015 ban on female genital mutilation (FGM) that made the practice punishable by up to three years in prison.
Jaha Marie Dukureh, of Safe Hands for Girls, an NGO seeking to end FGM, told Al Jazeera that the practice was “child abuse”. She, herself, underwent the practice and watched her sister bleed to death following the procedure.
“The people who applaud FGM in this country, a lot of them are men. These are men who don’t have the same lived experiences that we do, and women who have been through this practice continue to tell them every single day what their suffering is, what their pain is,” she said.
Seventy-six percent of Gambian females aged between 15 and 49 have undergone FGM, according to a 2021 report by UNICEF.
It can lead to serious health problems, including infections, bleeding, infertility and complications in childbirth, and impairs sexual pleasure.
The number of women and girls who have undergone FGM worldwide has increased to 230 million from 200 million eight years ago, UNICEF reported this month.
It said the largest share of those women and girls were found in African countries, with more than 144 million cases, followed by more than 80 million in Asia and the number surpassing six million in the Middle East.
300,000 more UK children fell into absolute poverty at height of cost of living crisis
About 300,000 more children were plunged into absolute poverty in a single year at the height of the cost of living crisis amid soaring levels of hunger and food bank use, official figures show, prompting calls for an overhaul of the UK’s creaking welfare safety net.
Campaigners accused the government of failing to protect the UK’s poorest families as the latest poverty statistics showed 600,000 more people fell into absolute poverty – ministers’ preferred poverty measure – in 2022-23 when inflation was at its 10% peak.
Overall, during the year 12 million people were in absolute poverty – equivalent to 18% of the population, including 3.6 million children – levels of hardship last seen in 2011-12 after the financial crash.
Ministers and opposition politicians faced calls to get a grip on rising poverty levels, with charities urging an increase to benefit rates to reflect the real cost of basics, such as food and energy, and the scrapping of policies such as the two-child benefit limit which is seen as a driver of family hardship.
Campaigners said the meagreness of welfare benefits was highlighted by sharp rises in food insecurity and food bank use. One in 10 people in poverty relied on food banks during the year, while 41% of universal credit claimants were food insecure, meaning they could not afford to buy sufficient food.
The figures show the reality of increasing concerns over rising poverty, and the prevalence of more extreme forms of hardship such as destitution, where individuals are unable to afford basic living essentials such as food, energy, bedding and clothing. Nearly 4 million people experienced destitution in 2022.
More than two-thirds (69%) of UK children in poverty lived in families where at least one parent works, while 44% of children in lone-parent families were in poverty.
An estimated 2.9 million children were in deep poverty, meaning their income was at least 50% below the poverty line. Nearly half (46%) of all families with three or more children were in poverty.
Nearly one in 10 (8%) of pensioners struggled to eat regularly, pay essential bills or keep their home warm, up 2 percentage points year on year, and the first increase in material hardship measures among the over-65s since 2014.
Child poverty also increased on the relative poverty measure that is preferred by campaigners, with 100,000 more young people pulled beneath the poverty line, meaning that a third of UK children (4.3 million) were in poverty in 2022-23 on this calculation.
Alison Garnham, the chief executive of the Child Poverty Action Group, said: “In a general election year, nothing should be more important to our political leaders than making things better for the country’s poorest kids. But child poverty has reached a record high, with 4.3 million kids now facing cold homes and empty tummies.”
The government said its cost of living support package, which included one-off cash payments and support with energy bills for low-income households, had helped alleviate pressure on poorer families and prevented more than 1 million people falling into poverty.
EU to impose tariff of up to 50% on Russia grain imports
The EU is set to impose a tariff of up to 50% on Russia grain imports amid fears the Kremlin could flood the bloc with cheap wheat to destabilise the European market.
The proposal, announced by the European commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, follows a plea on Thursday to EU leaders by the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, to do something about grain “stolen” by the Russians from occupied territories.
She said: “We propose the imposition of tariffs on these Russian imports to mitigate the growing risk to our markets and our farmers. They will reduce Russia’s capacity to exploit the EU for the benefit of its war machine.”
The measure is intended principally to head off a potential illegal dumping of grain as the Kremlin seeks to weaponise as much as it can in its war against Ukraine.
Russian grain attracts low or no customs duties when sold in the EU but the proposal would lead to the imposition of a tariff of €95 (£82) per tonne of grain, which currently sells for up to €220, depending on the quality of the wheat.
Russian grain exports to the EU had gone up from 960,000 tonnes in 2022 to 1.5m tonnes in 2023, while at the same time production had rocketed from 35m tonnes to 50m tonnes between 2022 to 2023, EU officials said.
Russia’s Ukraine invasion highlights the need for fundamental UN reform
Almost twenty months since the invasion began, few would argue that the devastating scale of Russia’s attack on Ukraine has highlighted the shortcomings of the United Nations. As noted by Tom Grant, a Senior Fellow at the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law, “Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is the most serious violation of the UN Charter in the Charter’s history.” How can a country engaged in Europe’s largest invasion since World War II and led by a man wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes be allowed to undermine an organization committed to maintaining world peace?
The absurdity of Russia’s position among the five permanent members of the UN Security Council is fueling calls for fundamental reform of the United Nations. For two years in a row, the reform of the United Nations Security Council has featured in US President Joe Biden’s annual address to the UN General Assembly. The reform debate centers on the need for the highest body at the United Nations to be more representative. At present, the UNSC lacks any permanent members from Africa or Latin America, and is also missing valuable input from emerging powerhouses such as India and significant developed economies including Japan.
One of the roadblocks to such reform is the current make-up of the Security Council, which under the existing regulations would be required to vote to approve any expansion of the UNSC. This would likely be blocked by Russia, due to perceptions in the Kremlin that any expansion would weaken the Russian position. Tellingly, other permanent members would also see their influence diluted by an expanded UNSC, and yet the push for this reform is being led by one of them, the United States.
Other possible reforms of the United Nations include the removal or restriction of veto powers for permanent members of the UN Security Council. This could potentially prevent individual countries from unilaterally derailing efforts to address global crises or uphold international law. Some critics feel even this would not go far enough, and argue for a complete rethink of the role played by the United Nations in international affairs.
The UN was founded in 1945 to maintain international peace and security, but it has been unable to prevent one of its leading members from invading a neighbor and committing war crimes not witnessed in Europe since the darkest days of twentieth century totalitarianism. Clearly, the UN Security Council is broken and the entire UN approach to issues of war and peace is no longer fit for purpose.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a watershed moment in world history that will have a profound impact on the future of international relations. If the United Nations wants to survive as an institution and remain relevant in the decades ahead, it must be ready to embrace fundamental reform.
With Russian presidential election, Vladimir Putin may cement longest reign since Stalin
Vladimir Putin, 71, Russia’s longest serving leader since Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, will almost certainly emerge victorious in the nation’s eighth presidential election. The vote takes place Friday to Sunday, and the winner will be inaugurated in a lavish ceremony in May at the Grand Kremlin Palace, former residence of tsars and empresses.
If, as widely expected, Putin cruises to another six-year term − the former KGB officer has held continuous positions as Russia’s president or prime minister since 1999
“This is not an election, it’s a selection,” said Alena Popova, a Moscow-based human rights activist.
“I support Putin and, of course, I will vote for him,” said Lyudmila Petrova, 46, who was shopping for Chinese-made counterfeit New Balance sneakers in southern Moscow at one of Russia’s largest wholesale markets.
“Putin raised Russia up from its knees. And Russia will defeat the West and Ukraine. You cannot defeat Russia – ever,” Petrova said. “Have you in the West gone completely mad? What is Ukraine to do with you?”
The West views Putin as an autocrat, a war criminal, a killer and even, as U.S. President Joe Biden said last month, a “crazy SOB” who U.S. officials say has enslaved Russia in a corrupt dictatorship that leads to strategic ruin.
March 13 (Reuters) – An uneasy quiet hung over Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince on Wednesday after the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, a 74-year-old neurosurgeon who came to power after the assassination of the country’s last president.
The news was met with some celebration as well as uncertainty over the response by armed gangs, the future of a planned security mission, Henry’s replacement and the country’s eventual elections, set to be the first since 2016.
World Science Festival Showcases Thinkers, Dreamers, Storytellers : Brisbane 15 – 24 March (Australia)
The World Science Festival Brisbane has kicked off for 2024 and will delight and fascinate audiences of all ages with a unique mix of hands-on science, art and culture.
This year’s theme For Thinkers and Dreamers embraces exploration and creativity with an impressive line-up of science stars sharing their passion for science and innovation, plus interactive art and cultural installations.
World Science Festival Brisbane features the Australian premiere of large-scale sculpture, ADA, by international artist Karina Smigla-Bobinski and the stunning Ghost Nets of Pormpuraaw, celebrating cultural practice and creativity by eight Pormpuraaw artists.
Renowned physicist Professor Brian Greene, Australia’s favourite science communicator Dr Karl Kruszelnicki and the War on Waste’s Craig Reucassel explore modern day challenges from climate, sustainable food production and artificial intelligence to the mysteries of deep space and our oceans.
The Miles Government is investing $9 million over the next three years to secure the World Science Festival Brisbane – the only event of its kind outside of New York City – until 2027.
World Science Festival Brisbane is predicted to deliver $1.4 million for the visitor economy with the festival’s regional program traveling to Toowoomba, Chinchilla, Ipswich, Townsville and Gladstone.
50 people die after drinking ‘mysterious liquid’ during witchcraft rituals in Angola (south west Africa)
Nearly 50 people lost their lives after they were forced to consume an herbal potion to prove that they were not sorcerers in Angola, as said by the police and local officials on Thursday (Mar 14).
Witchcraft’s dominance in Angola
In some rural communities of Angola, the people have a belief in witchcraft even though it is strongly opposed by the church in the country which is predominantly Catholic and a former Portuguese colony.
“It’s a widespread practice to make people drink the supposed poison because of the belief in witchcraft,” said provincial police spokesperson Antonio Hossi, while speaking about the radio network. He further warned that similar cases have been on the rise.
There are no specific laws against witchcraft in Angola which leaves communities to deal with the issue on their own.
The traditional healers or “marabouts” often settle the allegations of sorcery by making the accused drink a toxic herbal drink known as “Mbulungo.” It is believed by many people that if a person dies after drinking the toxic herbal drink, then he or she is proven guilty of practising sorcery.
Thousands of Turkish women defy ban to protest for equal rights (International women day)
ISTANBUL — Thousands of women took to the streets of Istanbul, Turkey, to mark International Women’s Day Friday despite a ban by the government, demanding equality and change of laws to protect women and help them gain their rights in the country and around the world.
Waving purple flags as a sign of International Women’s Day, they filled the air with slogans and rallying cries despite a ban on rallies by authorities.
“The world would shake if women were free,” “Resist for rebellion, resist for freedom,” and “Woman, Life, Freedom,” they chanted.
While the police had blocked access to the streets leading to the protest location several hours ahead, some women said they figured out their own ways to get there and participate in the protest.
Turkey was the first country to join the Istanbul Convention in March 2012 which aims at preventing gender-based violence by setting legally binding standards to protect victims and punish perpetrators. However, 9 years later, in 2021, Turkey became the first and only country that left the convention in a decision made by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s Islamic leaning government who believed the treaty eroded their conservative values.
According to We Will Stop Femicide, a prominent activist group in Turkey, 338 women have been murdered since March 2023, and 248 died under suspicious circumstances.
The campaign added that 212 of these women were killed at home, 134 of them by their husbands, 47 by their boyfriends, and 36 by their ex-husbands. Two of the victims did not know their murderers at all, according to the group.
Scientists develop new technology that generates essentially endless power from dirt: ‘The fuel cell can potentially last forever’
Scientists led by researchers from Northwestern University in Chicago have developed a new type of fuel cell that can be harvested from dirt. This dirt fuel could provide essentially endless electricity, eliminating waste and harmful effects of other sources of fuel.
In a study published in January, the researchers outlined their findings regarding harvesting electricity from microbes, tiny organisms such as bacteria or fungi, living in the dirt.
With this new type of fuel cell, scientists hope to harness sources of energy that could act as a replacement for batteries, which can release toxins into the water or soil, increase landfill waste, cause fires, and can lead to draining communities of their resources.
The researchers found that these units, each not much larger than the size of a paperback book, according to The Independent, could power sensors in farming and remote devices in the Internet of Things (IoT), the large network of objects that use software or technology to exchange data with other devices, such as smartwatches and self-driving cars.
The process of developing microbial fuel cells, the basis for dirt-fueled power, began in 1911 — as the Independent explained — when British botanist Michael Cressé Potter first successfully generated electricity from microorganisms. Potter found that these fuel cells could operate like a battery.
Authors withdraw from PEN America festival in protest over Israel-Gaza war
Group of more than a dozen writers decry organization’s inadequate response to ‘genocide’ being committed by Israel
More than a dozen prominent authors and literary figures have withdrawn from PEN America’s flagship World Voices Festival in protest of what they see as an inadequate response by the organization to the “genocide” being committed against Palestinians by Israel in Gaza.
The group of writers, which includes Naomi Klein, Michelle Alexander, Hisham Matar, Isabella Hammad and Zaina Arafat, sent a letter to PEN America asserting it had “betrayed the organization’s professed commitment to peace and equality for all, and to freedom and security for writers everywhere” by failing to call for a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza war.
The protest, first reported Thursday by Literary Hub, is the latest broadside directed at the literary freedom advocacy organization following a series of high-profile resignations and other denouncements in recent weeks.
Last month, hundreds of writers including Roxane Gay, Maaza Mengiste and Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah wrote to PEN condemning what they called its “silence” over “Palestinian journalists, writers, and poets murdered by Israel” outside of “press releases buried on its website”.
Literary Hub says that open letter has now surpassed 1,300 signatories.
In the latest missive, the 16 authors say their decision to pull out of the festival, scheduled to take place in New York from 8-11 May, follows PEN’s “failure” to support human rights organizations and the United Nations security council in demanding a Gaza ceasefire.
“Palestine’s poets, scholars, novelists and journalists and essayists have risked everything, including their lives and the lives of their families, to share their words with the world,” the letter states.
Israel-Gaza war : Aid reaches shore in Gaza after first sea delivery
The first crates of food are on dry ground, but how it will be distributed in Gaza remains unclear.
The first ship towing a barge of humanitarian aid to Gaza has unloaded supplies onto the shore.
The Spanish ship Open Arms left Cyprus on Tuesday with 200 tonnes of food desperately needed for Gaza, which the UN says is on the brink of famine.
It marks the start of a trial to see if sea deliveries are effective, after air and land deliveries proved difficult.
World Central Kitchen (WCK), which supplied the food, carried out the mission in co-operation with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to deliver the barge’s cargo of rice, flour, legumes, canned vegetables and canned proteins.
Gaza has no functioning port, so a jetty stemming from the shoreline was built by WCK’s team. How the food will be distributed in Gaza remains unclear.
WCK’s founder, celebrity chef José Andrés, wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that all the food aid from the barge had been loaded into 12 lorries.
“We did it!” he wrote, adding that this was a test to see if they could bring even more aid in the next shipment – up to “thousands of tons a week”.
In a statement, Israel said the Open Arms vessel and its cargo were inspected in Cyprus, and that Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops had been deployed to secure the shoreline.
Leaders of Germany, France, Poland meet to mend rifts over Ukraine war
The leaders of Germany, France and Poland are meeting in Berlin to resolve differences over how to support Ukraine as Russian voters go to the polls in an election that looks set to extend President Vladimir Putin’s reign.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hosted French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Berlin on Friday with the three members of the so-called Weimar Triangle set to hold urgent discussions on how best to support Ukraine, which is short on the military resources needed to definitively halt Russia’s two-year invasion of the country.
But simmering disagreements between Macron and Scholz threaten to undermine cooperation between the allies. Glaring divisions between the French and German leaders were laid bare at a gathering of European leaders last month when Macron created controversy by saying sending soldiers to Ukraine could not be ruled out and making pointed comments about allies refraining from being “cowards”.
Mental health leave offered to Taiwanese students as youth suicides double
Under the programme, high school students can apply for up to three days off each semester, taken as full or half days, without proof of need but with the permission of their parents. More than 40 schools have expressed interest in the trial run, according to the ministry of education.
The scheme is in response to rising concerns over mental health issues among young people in Taiwan. Between 2014 and 2022, the suicide rate among people aged 15 to 24 more than doubled, even as the overall rate declined.
In 2022, a senior official at the ministry of health and welfare came under fire from youth advocacy groups after linking the increase in suicides to the “growing number of tall buildings in Taiwan”. His comments were in response to a question from UN experts about whether Taiwan authorities had looked into systemic factors such as academic pressure, and were widely criticised as dismissive of growing concerns about the impact this had on students in Taiwan and other east Asian countries.
In 2022 the Child Welfare League Foundation conducted a survey of students, finding that more than 12% reported “severe” levels of stress, and was more than twice as bad among senior high school students than juniors. Almost a quarter of high school students said they had experienced severe depression. The survey said the top three drivers of stress reported were schoolwork (77%), future prospects (67%) and interpersonal relationships (43%).
Avocado giant Mission Produce bets on mangoes to fuel growth
The California-based producer has reinvested in areas to support sourcing of the popular tropical fruit, as sales grow for avocados and blueberries.
Mission Produce, founded in 1983, entered the mango category in recent years to meet global demand for the tropical fruit.
Mangoes typically grow during the avocado offseason, creating a unique synergy within Mission’s international farming business, Barnard said. In 2021, he called it a “natural addition” to the company’s growing portfolio, which also includes blueberries.
Mission owns about 700 acres of mangoes in Peru. Over the years, the company has broadened its sourcing and distribution capabilities for the fruit, with intentions of becoming a leader in the space.
“While our mango program is still in its infancy…the opportunity ahead is immense,” Barnard said in an earnings call Monday.
Despite being one of the most consumed fruits globally, mangoes have lagged in Western markets due in part to a lack of consistent, high-quality sourcing.
“We are eager to bring some greater execution to this fragmented industry and help drive greater consumption,” Barnard told investors. Recently, Mission has reinvested in the mango business with new leadership focused on sourcing, retail distribution and operational improvements.
Additionally, the avocado giant experienced robust blueberry sales growth in the first quarter, due in part to supply constraints that led to favorable market conditions. Mission has also been investing in premium blueberry varieties to drive stronger sales returns in the future.
Blueberry sales increased 9% to $32.5 million over last year. Segment prices nearly doubled in the first quarter, offset by lower volumes related to weather issues in Peru. El Niño has impacted volumes of blueberries, as well as avocados, in previous quarters, but signs of improvement are starting to show.
“Although it is still early to provide a reliable forecast of volume from our Peruvian operations, weather conditions have improved as El Niño conditions have dissipated, which should lead to a more predictable harvest for this coming season,” Barnard said.
Revenue totaled $258.7 million in the first quarter, a 21% increase from the previous year. The company attributed this to strong avocado pricing that fattened margins, as well as higher average sales in blueberries and mangoes. Net income was breakeven over last year
India’s first International Stand-Up Paddling event –
Paddle Festival: March 8 to 10, 2024
The World’s Best Stand-Up Paddlers Converge in Mangalore Ahead of Inaugural Event in India
The India Paddle Festival will be hosted at the pristine Sasihithulu beach in Mangalore from 8th-10th March 2024.
The Association of PaddleSurf Professionals World Tour (APP) announced its entry in India with the country’s first-ever International Stand-Up Paddling championship last month. The India Paddle Festival will be the first step in an exciting new development journey for the organization as a significant growth of the sport in the region over the coming years. Presented by Karnataka Tourism, and organized by the Surfing Swami Foundation, the India Paddle Festival will welcome a selection of top athletes from the APP World Tour, as well as other aspiring professionals from the region.
The India Paddle Festival will be a mix of sports, culture and entertainment, the details which were announced at a Press Conference held in the city today, which was attended by Tristan Boxford, CEO, APP World Tour, Dhananjaya Shetty, Chairman, and Surfing Swami Foundation.
How UNESCO Literacy Prizes laureates are advancing women’s education
8 March 2024
Since being awarded the UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy in 2011, the Alpha Ujuvi Collective from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been offering literacy courses and professional training to young Congolese girls and women who are victims of sexual violence. These skills are conducive to lead them to income-generating activities to recover from the trauma and stigma. Talitha Khoum, a centre dedicated to educating young girls, was also established by the Collective. Over 500 orphaned, displaced, and underprivileged girls have benefitted from its academic and social reintegration programmes. Despite facing numerous challenges, the Collective is dedicated to expanding its reach to more young girls and women. Mr Patrick N. Bunzigjye, Director in charge of communication and relations with partners of the Collective indicates “Education is internationally recognized as the most powerful tool for the advancement of women and girls and the protection of their rights. Investing in their education can transform, and even save lives: the lives of women and girls, but also those of their families and communities. It is one of the most effective ways to achieve positive and lasting change for everyone around the world.”
Texas fires leave ranchers with few options to feed cattle
The USDA is providing producers with emergency assistance and supporting relocation efforts that allow livestock to graze on certain conservation lands.
As record wildfires in the Texas Panhandle finally begin to die down, ranchers are still scrambling to keep their remaining cattle fed after blazes tore through vast swaths of grazing land.
The Smokehouse Creek Fire, 74% contained as of Thursday, has scorched over 1 million acres of land in the heart of Texas cattle country. Thousands of cows, horses and other livestock have died as some farmers have seen their entire operation burn to the ground.
As firefighters make headway in containing the blaze, ranchers are turning their attention to the long road ahead to recovery. Incinerated grasslands and hay supplies have left farmers with few options to feed their livestock.
“There’s just nothing left there for them to eat,” Jana Hance, a relief coordinator based in Montana, told local paper Great Falls Tribune. “It all burned.”
As farmers from neighboring states rally to provide hay donations, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is offering assistance including indemnity payments and low-interest loans to purchase feed. The agency is also opening up some acres under the Conservation Reserve Program to provide emergency grazing options for ranchers affected by fires.
World’s biggest pollution monitor launches into orbit
March 4, 2024
CNN’s Bill Weir reports on a new satellite that launched Monday to track methane on Earth so governments and fossil fuel companies can be held accountable for the emissions that contribute to global warming.
First satellite developed by an environmental non-profit will see methane emissions others can’t, paving the way for heightened accountability and faster reductions
(VANDENBERG SFB, LOMPOC CA – March 4, 2024) Just after 4:00pm Pacific Time today MethaneSAT effectively detached from SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that carried the emissions monitor into space. The groundbreaking satellite is designed to help protect the Earth’s climate by accelerating reductions of a powerful greenhouse pollutant, focusing first on oil and gas operations, a major source of methane.
Circling the Earth 15 times a day, MethaneSAT will measure changes in methane concentrations as small as three parts per billion. High sensitivity together with high resolution and a wide field of view will enable MethaneSAT to see the whole emissions picture
These unique capabilities usher in a new era of transparency for the industry. Interactive emissions data will be available to anyone directly from www.MethaneSAT.org and on Google Earth Engine, a premier geospatial data platform used by over 100,000 experts and analysts.
Nigeria’s Deepening Cost-of-Living Crisis Is Turning Deadly
…What People Do To Beat Hunger — Report
…Looting Of Food Warehouse Sign Of Bad Omen, Government Appears Clueless — Umar
…98,000 Women Die Annually While Providing Food For Families — WHO
Nigeria, a country long used to hardship, is facing a crushing cost-of-living crisis.
Prices for some vital food staples have doubled in a matter of months. Trucks hauling items like rice and pasta are being hijacked along rural highways. Protests have bubbled up in major cities and soldiers now stand guard to prevent grain warehouses from being ransacked by desperate citizens.
At the heart of the upheaval in Africa’s most populous country are aggressive reforms by President Bola Tinubu, who scrapped a popular but costly fuel subsidy and eased foreign-exchange controls shortly after taking office in May.
“At a macro level, Nigeria has taken bold reforms – including two naira devaluations and a big rate hike – to converge exchange rates, stabilize the naira and rein in runaway inflation. On the micro level, households and business are taking pain from these measures, particularly from high inflation that is eroding real income.”
The cost-of-living crisis is not just hitting the poor. Even in the upmarket shops used by affluent Nigerians, it’s becoming difficult to keep up with surging prices.
PZ Cussons Plc, which sells a number of household goods in Nigeria, told investors that it has raised prices 12 times in recent months.
The rapid devaluation of the Naira against major foreign currencies, coupled with inflationary pressures, has led to a rise in the prices of imported goods, including food, fuel, and essential commodities.
However, the volatility of global oil prices has exposed Nigeria to economic shocks. When oil prices plummet, as seen in recent years, Nigeria’s revenue declines, leading to a shortage of foreign exchange reserves.
Additionally, the lack of investment in agriculture deprives the country of domestic food production capacity, further driving up food prices. High unemployment rates, particularly among the youth, have further been identified to aggravate the cost of living crisis in Nigeria.
FDA Approves First OTC Continuous Glucose Monitor
March 6, 2024 — The FDA has approved the first over-the-counter continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system.
The Dexcom Stelo Glucose Biosensor System is meant for adults with or without diabetes who don’t use insulin. This would include people with diabetes who take oral medications, or those without diabetes who want to better understand how diet and exercise may impact blood sugar levels, There are about 25 million people in the U.S. with type 2 diabetes who do not take insulin, Dexcom said in a press release.
The company did not say how much the device will cost, but said it will be available this summer.
The system is not for people with low blood sugar, the FDA said in a statement.
The Stelo system contains a wearable sensor paired with an smartphone app. It measures, records, analyzes, and displays blood sugar values every 15 minutes. Each sensor can be worn for up to 15 days before it must be replaced. It is not intended to be used to make medical decisions without first checking with a health care provider.“CGMs can be a powerful tool to help monitor blood glucose. Today’s clearance expands access to these devices by allowing individuals to purchase a CGM without the involvement of a healthcare provider,” said Jeff Shuren, MD, director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health.
India says its citizens were ‘duped’ to serve in the Russian army. Now it wants them back
“Several Indian nationals have been duped to work with the Russian army. We have strongly taken up the matter with the Russian government for early discharge of such internationals,” said Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for India’s Ministry of External Affairs.
Late on Thursday, the Central Bureau of Investigation of India said it had busted several “major human trafficking networks” that were “targeting gullible youths” with offers of lucrative jobs abroad.
It comes amid a domestic labour crisis that has incentivized Indian nationals to seek jobs abroad.
India is seeking the release of its nationals who have been “duped” into serving in the Russian army, a spokesperson for the Indian Ministry of External Affairs said Friday, in a rare rift from Moscow.
“Several Indian nationals have been duped to work with the Russian army. We have strongly taken up the matter with the Russian government for early discharge of such internationals,” said spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal. “A case of human trafficking has been registered against several agents.”
He appealed to Indian nationals to “not be swayed by offers made by agents for support jobs with the Russian army. This is fraught with danger and risk to life,” stressing that New Delhi remains “committed to early release of our nationals serving as support staff with the Russian army and the eventual return home.”
Late on Thursday, the Central Bureau of Investigation of India said it had raided several “major human trafficking networks” that were “targeting gullible youths” with offers of lucrative jobs abroad. The CBI identified at least “35 instances” of Indian citizens being sent abroad as a result of these operations.
“These traffickers have been operating as an organized network and were luring Indian nationals through social media channels like Youtube etc and also through their local contacts/agents for highly paid jobs in Russia,” the CBI said in a statement.
Following their recruitment, Indian nationals were “trained in combat roles and deployed at front bases in Russia-Ukraine War Zone against their wishes, thus, putting their lives in grave dangers.”
“It has been ascertained that some of these victims also got grievously injured in the war zone,” the agency said.
It comes amid a domestic labour crisis that has incentivized Indian nationals to seek jobs abroad.
Hong Kong proposes new security bill with life imprisonment for ‘treason’ and ‘insurrection’
Hong Kong on Friday unveiled a draft security bill proposing up to life imprisonment for offences such as insurrection and treason.
The draft also proposed 20 years of prison sentence for espionage and 10 years for offences related to state secrets.
Hong Kong on Friday unveiled a new draft security bill proposing up to life imprisonment for offences such as insurrection and treason following a month of public consultation period for the bill.
Crimes that will incur up to a maximum penalty of life imprisonment include treason, insurrection, the incitement of a member of Chinese armed forces to mutiny, as well as colluding with external forces to damage or weaken public infrastructure to endanger national security.
The draft Article 23 also proposed 20 years of prison sentence for espionage and 10 years for offences related to state secrets.
Hong Kong’s Chief Executive John Lee on Thursday urged the need to pass the law “as soon as possible” amid an “increasingly complex” geopolitics backdrop.
According to a government statement, 98.6% of views showed support for the bill during the public consultation.
“The means taken to endanger national security can come in many different forms and the threat can emerge all of a sudden,” the statement read, adding that the sooner the legislative work is completed, the faster they can “guard against national security risks.”
The proposal will need to be scrutinized by lawmakers through several rounds of debate before it becomes law.
The draft legislation is necessary for Hong Kong to fulfil its constitutional duty to safeguard national security, China’s Ministry of National Security emphasized in its official WeChat account on Monday.
Beijing imposed a controversial law four years ago, which stamped out dissent and led to the arrest of many Hong Kong pro-democracy activists. China’s 2020 national security law aimed at prohibiting secession, subversion of state power, terrorism activities and foreign interference.
The U.S. State Department in late February expressed concerns about Hong Kong’s Article 23, and how it could be used to “eliminate dissent through the fear of arrest and detention.”
Sweden formally joins NATO military alliance, ending centuries of neutrality
Sweden officially joined NATO as its 32nd member on Thursday, almost two years after first applying to the military alliance.
Earlier on Thursday, the Swedish government said in a statement it was holding an extraordinary meeting to vote on joining NATO after all current members had approved its accession to the military alliance.
The news was then confirmed later Thursday with a statement from NATO, with Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg saying the country was “taking its rightful place at our table.”
“Sweden’s accession makes NATO stronger, Sweden safer, and the whole Alliance more secure. I look forward to raising their flag at NATO HQ on Monday,” he added.
Pakistan election: Imran Khan’s rivals PML-N and PPP reach deal to form government. Shehbaz Shariff is going to be new PM
Nawaz Sharif and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s parties in Pakistan have reached a deal to form a government after last week’s disputed election.
Mr Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party said it would help Mr Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League elect a prime minister.
The two parties were previously in a coalition that ousted Imran Khan from power in 2022. He is now in jail.
This time independent candidates backed by his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) unexpectedly won the most seats.
PPP leader Asif Ali Zardari told a press conference that although his party and the PML-N had contested elections against each other, they had come together in the interests of the nation.
To some, the return of Sharif, or his brother Shehbaz, as the leader of any coalition government cobbled together by the army, holds the promise of a thaw in ties with India, given his past camaraderie with PM Narendra Modi and his stated desire to improve ties with India.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-68287508
THE END
March 2nd, 2024
March is Agriculture Literacy Month in Saskatchewan
Government of Saskatchewan proclaimed March as Agriculture Literacy Month in Saskatchewan. Agriculture Literacy Month activities invite farmers, ranchers and industry experts into participating classrooms, offering students the chance to discover where their food comes from.
“Agriculture Literacy Month contributes to building an informed perspective on the significance of farming and ranching in Saskatchewan and its impact on the world,” Agriculture Minister David Marit said. “By ensuring our youth understand the many hands it takes to grow safe and nutritious food, we are helping to create a sustainable future for the industry.”
Throughout the month of March, industry volunteers, from all levels of food production, will join classrooms to share presentations and personal experiences to help students learn more about agriculture.
“Saskatchewan is known globally for supplying the world with high-quality food and fertilizer, as we have the best producers and agriculture experts in the world,” Education Minster Jeremy Cockrill said. “I thank the many industry professionals who visit schools to share with students how important agriculture is within our province and around the world.”
Agriculture in the classroom plays an important role in the agriculture industry by creating awareness and understanding and inspiring the next generation to care about the agriculture industry. This year, the Agriculture Literacy Month theme is “Promoting Diversity in Agriculture” and features a new storybook called “All the Famers You Will Know.”
“This year’s theme is important and timely for the industry,” Agriculture in the Classroom Saskatchewan Executive Director Sara Shymko said. “We will need diversity of thought, experience and skills to solve the challenges and capitalize on the opportunities the future holds.
The Alabama Supreme Court ruled on Feb. 16 that frozen embryos are people and someone can be held liable for destroying them.
The Alabama Supreme Court ruled Friday that frozen embryos are people and someone can be held liable for destroying them, a decision that reproductive rights advocates say could imperil in vitro fertilization (IVF) and affect the hundreds of thousands of patients who depend on treatments like it each year.
The first-of-its-kind ruling comes as at least 11 states have broadly defined personhood as beginning at fertilization in their state laws, according to reproductive rights group Pregnancy Justice, and states nationwide mull additional abortion and reproductive restrictions, elevating the issue ahead of the 2024 elections.
What Alabama’s frozen embryos ruling means for IVF across the U.S.
The Alabama case focused on whether a patient who mistakenly dropped and destroyed other couples’ frozen embryos could be held liable in a wrongful-death lawsuit. The court ruled the patient could, writing that it had long held that “unborn children are ‘children’” and that that was also true for frozen embryos, affording the fertilized eggs the same protection as babies under the Wrongful Death of a Minor Act.
“It applies to all children, born and unborn, without limitation,” the court wrote. “It is not the role of this Court to craft a new limitation based on our own view of what is or is not wise public policy. That is especially true where, as here, the People of this State have adopted a Constitutional amendment directly aimed at stopping courts from excluding ‘unborn life’ from legal protection.”
‘They only knew how to fight’: school helps girls to heal after Boko Haram
The militant group continues to abduct schoolchildren in north-eastern Nigeria, but one school is giving survivors hope of a better life through education.
The Lafiya Sarari school was set up in response to the terror Boko Haram has inflicted. Established in 2017 by the Neem Foundation, a Nigerian charity set up to help communities affected by violence, the school is designed to provide support and education to those who have suffered trauma.
“What we do is a trauma-informed learning approach,” says Dr Fatima Akilu, a psychologist who helped set up the foundation. “It’s not a set programme.”
She says: “Some people have post-traumatic stress disorder, some come in with depression, some come with anxiety – it changes.
Dr Fatima Akilu, a psychologist and executive director of the Neem Foundation. Photograph: Courtesy Neem Foundation
“We used to have a psychologist in the early days when we first started, but now all we have is a full-time counsellor who knows the girls, who has been with them throughout.”
Boko Haram has targeted schools as part of its campaign of atrocities in north-eastern Nigeria since 2010. It has carried out massacres and multiple abductions, including 2014’s killing of 59 schoolboys, the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls in Chibok in 2014 and 101 girls in Dapchi in 2018.
Between 2013 and 2018, according to the UN, Boko Haram abducted more than 1,000 children, using them as soldiers and domestic or sex slaves. Amnesty International has estimated that 1,436 schoolchildren and 17 teachers were abducted between December 2020 and October 2021.
Stability AI previews Stable Diffusion 3 text-to-image model
London-based AI lab Stability AI has announced an early preview of its new text-to-image model, Stable Diffusion 3. The advanced generative AI model aims to create high-quality images from text prompts with improved performance across several key areas.
According to Stability AI, Stable Diffusion 3 has significantly better abilities for handling multi-subject image generation compared to previous versions. This allows users to include more detailed prompts with multiple elements and achieve better results.
In addition to improvements with complex prompts, the new model boasts upgraded overall image quality and spelling accuracy. Stability AI claims these upgrades solve some consistency and coherence issues that have impacted past text-to-image models.
Readers can view 2 minute video to understand whats is Diffusion model 3
What was agreed at WTO (world trade organization) negotiations in Abu Dhabi?
ABU DHABI, March 1 (Reuters) – World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiators failed to break a deadlock on major reforms in the early hours of Saturday despite talks extending deep into overtime in Abu Dhabi, in what some delegates said was a triumph of national interest over collective responsibility.
Here is a summary of what was achieved and what was not:
E-COMMERCE
– Countries agreed to extend a moratorium, opens new tab on placing tariffs on digital goods until the next ministerial conference in two years’ time. Then the deal is set to expire at the start of that meeting, requiring more extensive negotiations.
– Several countries, including India and South Africa, were opposed to the extension of a moratorium on e-commerce backed by the vast majority of countries and seen as vital to businesses to avoid tariffs on digital goods like film downloads.
DISPUTE SETTLEMENT
– Countries agreed to commit to continue negotiations in 2024 to try to resolve a crisis in its dispute settlement system whose top court has been hobbled for four years due to U.S. opposition.
This means many trade disputes are unresolved since countries can appeal them into a legal void and the WTO’s rules cannot be enforced.
– India’s minister Piyush Goyal has said it is “sad” countries are obstructing outcomes. He did not mention Washington directly but said he had raised a lack of progress on fixing the WTO’s dispute system with U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai in a meeting earlier this week.
– Tai has said negotiations on this issue are positive and have shown progress. However, delegates say obstacles abound and are privately sceptical of them making much further headway in a U.S. presidential election year.
– A group of countries sought to reach a friendly agreement, supported by the European Union, to refrain from appealing WTO disputes into the void but this did not win consensus among members in Abu Dhabi, trade sources said.
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AGRICULTURE
– No agreement was reached in Abu Dhabi.
– India, which is facing farmer protests at home and has elections due by May, had sought a permanent solution on public stockholding (PSH) – a term that refers to state policies on food procurement aimed at ensuring food security.
– Two alternative solutions were envisaged in a draft agreement. One aimed to find a permanent solution to the issue at this meeting and the other one commits to intensify negotiations and extend to other developing countries the privileges only India currently enjoys under WTO rules.
– India rejected the second proposal, intended to appease them, in talks between a few key countries including the United States, Brazil and China, a source in the room said.
FISHERIES
– No deal was reached in Abu Dhabi.
– Countries had tried to agree to the second part of an international WTO agreement to curb government subsidies that critics say encourage industrial fishing fleets to empty the world’s oceans. A first part was agreed in 2022 and will take effect if and when enough countries ratify it.
– Many participants, including USTR’s Tai, saw this as the most likely topic where a deal could be reached. Environmentalists say it is vital for the world’s oceans.
– The chair of the talks issued a new draft agreement on Friday morning with a few sections still in yellow, indicating areas of non-agreement including rules for phase-in periods for developing countries.
Reporting by Emma Farge; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise and Diane Craft
Vladimir Putin announces Russia close to creating cancer vaccines
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday announced a significant breakthrough in cancer research. Putin said that Russian scientists are close to creating vaccines for the life-threatening disease of cancer, and it will be accessible to patients soon.
Speaking about future technologies at a Moscow forum, Putin said, “We have come very close to the creation of so-called cancer vaccines and immunomodulatory drugs of a new generation,” reported Reuters.
He added, “I hope that soon they will be effectively used as methods of individual therapy.” However, the Russian President did not clarify the types of cancer the proposed vaccines are for and how they would work.
According to Reuters, currently, several countries and companies are working on cancer vaccines. The United Kingdom government signed an agreement with a Germany-based biotechnology company BioNTech last year. The objective of signing the agreement was to launch clinical trials providing “personalised cancer treatments”, aiming to reach up to 10,000 patients by 2030, reported Reuters.
Additionally, pharmaceutical companies such as Moderna and Merck & Co are on the path of developing an experimental cancer vaccine that a mid-stage study has shown to cut chances of recurrence or death from melanoma, according to Reuters. Melanoma is considered the deadliest form of skin cancer.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there are six licensed vaccines against human papillomaviruses (HPV). But these vaccines also cause many cancers, including cervical cancer. Additionally, the vaccines against hepatitis B (HBV) may lead to liver cancer, according to WHO.
During the Coronavirus pandemic worldwide, Russia was the country that developed its own Sputnik V vaccine to fight against COVID-19. Following the development, Russia also sold the Sputnik V vaccine to several countries. However, domestically the vaccine ran up against the widespread public reluctance to get vaccinated, reported Reuters. President Putin claimed that he had taken Sputnik V to assure people of its efficacy and safety.
Putin warns Nato of risk of nuclear war in major speech to Russian parliament
Putin also said Russia will fight back and “defeat” Nato on their own territory against the threat of expansion, which he warned could trigger a nuclear war.
He said:
They are preparing to strike our territory and using the best possible forces most effective forces to do so.
But we remember the fate of those who tried to invade our territory and of course their fate will be much more tragic than anything that we could face.
They have to understand that we also have weapons. Weapons that can defeat them on their own territory and of course all this is very dangerous because it could actually trigger the use of nuclear weapons. Do they not understand that?
These people are people who have not been through arduous experiences. They’ve forgotten about it, but we did through the Caucasian war, for example, and now in the conflict in Ukraine.
Kremlin warns of conflict with Nato if alliance troops fight in Ukraine
Reuters reports
The Kremlin has suggested that conflict between Russia and the US-led Nato military alliance would become inevitable if European members of Nato sent troops to fight in Ukraine.
Sweden, Poland and the Czech Republic have distanced themselves from Emmanuel Macron saying on Monday that there was “no consensus” on sending western troops to Ukraine but “nothing should be excluded”.
“The very fact of discussing the possibility of sending certain contingents to Ukraine from Nato countries is a very important new element,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters when asked about Macron’s remarks.
Asked by reporters what the risks of a direct Russia-Nato conflict would be if Nato members sent their troops to fight in Ukraine, Peskov said:
“In that case, we would need to talk not about the probability, but about the inevitability (of a direct conflict).”
French officials have become worried there has been no single galvanising western force responding to Vladimir Putin putting his economy on such an effective war footing, and insufficiently clear practical responses had emerged from the west.
Ukrainian forces report shortages of weapons and ammunition, as a grinding stalemate gives way to Russian gains.
Israel Gaza: Biden hopes to see ceasefire by the start of Ramadan
US President Joe Biden has said he hopes to see a deal for a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza War in time for the start of Ramadan.
The Muslim holy month, during which members of the faith fast from dawn to sunset, will begin on 10 or 11 March.
Asked whether he expected a deal by then, Mr Biden said: “I’m hoping so. We’re still working real hard on it.”
It comes amid tense ceasefire negotiations and as pressure builds on Mr Biden to help curtail the conflict.
A proposed deal would see a 40-day pause in all military operations from the start of Ramadan as well as an increased flow of aid into Gaza, a source close to the talks told Reuters news agency.
It would also reportedly include an agreement for the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Israeli hostages at a ratio of 10 to one.
The exact start of Ramadan is marked by the first sighting of the crescent Moon, so can vary from place to place.
Biden treading carefully through political minefield
Calls for action to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza intensified on Thursday after more than 100 people were killed as crowds rushed around aid lorries delivering food.
Hamas, which governs Gaza, accused Israel of firing at civilians, but Israel said most had died in a stampede after it fired warning shots.
Following the incident, President Biden announced plans to airdrop aid into Gaza, saying: “Innocent people got caught in a terrible war, unable to feed their families. And you saw the response when they tried to get aid.
“But we need to do more, and the United States will do more.”
Around a quarter of the population of Gaza is currently at risk of famine, according to UN figures, but the planned air drops have been criticised by aid groups as costly and insufficient.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68453627
THE END
February 24, 2024
‘We are not letting the horror be forgotten’: artists mark second anniversary of Ukraine invasion
Museum of Civilian Voices in Kyiv is a repository of 100,000 stories relating to the war, including Column of the ruined lives (left). Vlada (right)is an 11-hour sequence of videos from Telegram channels in Ukraine, collected by the artists Nick Crowe and Ian Rawlinson, which will play at Outernet, central London, on 24 February
The people of Ukraine will be heard and seen as never before this weekend in events to mark the second anniversary of the Russian invasion.
Launched in Kyiv on 22 February, the Museum of Civilian Voices is a repository of 100,000 stories told by men, women and children living in the warzone. Meanwhile this Saturday 24th—the anniversary itself—members of the public in London will be able to see a “continuous artwork” based on thousands of clips and photographs uploaded from mobile phones in Ukraine, running in a dizzying 11-hour montage at the immersive institution Outernet.
Symbols of national resilience: the Museum of Civilian Voices
Curators at the Kyiv museum promise an immersive, multi-media space which will “plunge” visitors into the lives and experiences of the Ukrainian people. It covers events since 2014, when a revolution overthrew the then Moscow-friendly regime, which in turn led to militants armed with Russian weapons annexing Crimea.
Organisers believe that exhibits relating to everyday aspects of Ukrainians’ lives, including their possessions and images of their pets, will help outsiders identify with the trauma they’re going through. Nastia Tykha became known around the world after a photograph of her and her 19 dogs went viral. “We have evacuated with our entire animal shelter,” she explains. A woman called Nadiya Svatko says, “My wardrobe and cockerel are signs that victory will be ours.” Her belongings, which somehow survived the flattening of her home, are seen as symbols of national resilience.
Mexico overtakes China as the leading source of goods imported to U.S.
WASHINGTON (AP) — For the first time in more than two decades, Mexico last year surpassed China as the leading source of goods imported to the United States. The shift reflects the growing tensions between Washington and Beijing as well as U.S. efforts to import from countries that are friendlier and closer to home.
Figures released Wednesday by the U.S. Commerce Department show that the value of goods imported to the United States from Mexico rose nearly 5 percent from 2022 to 2023, to more than $475 billion. At the same time, the value of Chinese imports imports tumbled 20 percent to $427 billion.
Economic relations between the United States and China have severely deteriorated in recent years as Beijing has fought aggressively on trade and made ominous military gestures in the Far East. The Trump administration began imposing tariffs on Chinese imports in 2018, arguing that Beijing’s trade practices violated global trade rules.
President Joe Biden retained those tariffs after taking office in 2021, making clear that antagonism toward China would be a rare area of common ground for Democrats and Republicans.
As an alternative to offshoring production to China, which U.S. corporations had long engaged in, the Biden administration has urged companies to seek suppliers in allied countries (“friend-shoring”) or to return manufacturing to the United States (“reshoring”). Supply-chain disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic also led U.S. companies to seek supplies closer to the United States (“near-shoring”).
Mexico has been among the beneficiaries of the shift away from reliance on Chinese factories. But the picture is more complicated than it might seem. Some Chinese manufacturers have established factories in Mexico to exploit the benefits of the 3-year-old U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement, which allows for duty-free trade in North America for many products.
Overall, the U.S. deficit in the trade of goods with the rest of the world — the gap between the value of what the United States sells and what it buys abroad — narrowed 10 percent last year to $1.06 trillion.
Chiang Mai Flower Festival unveils a feast for the eyes, expects 1m visitors
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 04, 2024. Thailand
Chiang Mai Governor Nirat Pongsitthaworn said that the flower festival was one of the major annual events in the province. This festival has been celebrated continuously for a long time and stands as the only festival of its kind in Thailand.
The event features beautifully adorned floral floats, incorporating various flowers and plants to create visually stunning parade vehicles. When combined with various forms of art, cultural traditions, and distinctive performances representing the identity of the people of Chiang Mai, the flower festival has become well-known among both Thai and international tourists.
“The Chiang Mai Flower Festival serves as a valuable cultural asset and a significant soft power for the province. It plays a crucial role in enhancing cultural richness and continuing the legacy of organising events. The festival aims to evolve into a globally recognised celebration, serving as a key magnet to attract both Thai and international tourists. This strategic approach contributes to the further development of tourism potential and economic value for the province of Chiang Mai,” he added.
This year’s event features a spectacular parade of floats, with a total of 25 entries from various public and private sector organisations. Each procession is elaborately adorned with a diverse array of flowers, creating large and beautiful displays. Tourists have the opportunity to admire and photograph all participating floats at the Nong Buak Haad Public Park.
Chiang Mai has transformed a 12-rai (1.92 hectares) area into a vibrant space filled with a variety of flowers, creating a lively and fragrant atmosphere.
The entire area is adorned with meticulously crafted flower sculptures and illuminated artworks, showcasing winter flowers from both Thailand and abroad. Featured flowers include tulips, spray roses, lilies, hydrangeas, and even rare orchids, providing photo opportunities in the form of flower fields and flower stalls. The event is divided into eight zones, creating a visual spectacle at an estimated budget of over 20 million baht.
New research shows babies use immune system differently, but efficiently
Scientists have long believed that a newborn’s immune system was an immature version of an adult’s, but new research from Cornell University shows that newborns’ T cells—white blood cells that protect from disease—outperform those of adults at fighting off numerous infections.
This discovery was described in a paper published in Science Immunology on Feb. 23, co-led by Brian Rudd, associate professor of microbiology and immunology, and Andrew Grimson, professor of molecular biology and genetics.
For example, adult T cells outperform newborn T cells at tasks including recognizing antigens, forming immunological memory and responding to repeat infections, which has led to the belief that infant’s T cells were just a weaker version of the adult ones. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, many were surprised by the apparent lack of illness in infants, bringing this long-standing belief into question.
Interested in understanding these age-related differences, Rudd and Grimson discovered that newborn T cells are not deficient: Instead, they are involved in a part of the immune system that does not require antigen recognition: the innate arm of the immune system. While adult T cells use adaptive immunity—recognizing specific germs to then fight them later—newborn T cells are activated by proteins associated with innate immunity, the part of the immune system that offers rapid but nonspecific protection against microbes the body has never encountered.
Bridging Cultures and Minds: The Transformative Impact of Mother Tongue Integration in Curriculum Design
20 February 2024
UNESCO-IBE’s vision of the curriculum embraces local culture, values, and endogenous knowledge. Mother-tongue learning is an integral part of this approach.
Beyond cultural benefits, employing the mother tongue and local languages as the medium of instruction in education has proved to be one of the most effective ways to accelerate the acquisition of knowledge, foster skills development, and enhance the overall quality of learning outcomes.
UNESCO-IBE’s vision of the curriculum embraces local culture, values, and endogenous knowledge so that learners can learn and connect with different cultures while recognizing universal values and nurturing their local and global citizenship. Mother-tongue learning and multilingualism are an integral part of this approach.
Multilingualism has been a feature of particular importance and complexity in Africa, where school dropouts have been cited due to a lack of opportunity to learn in their mother tongue. UNESCO’s General History of Africa (GHA) initiative recognizes the need to revisit the colonial legacy of Africa’s education systems and incorporate language and culture to transform education across the continent. This shared effort ensures that the rich heritage of Africa’s history is integrated, acknowledged and celebrated, aligning with the aspirations of the Member States of the African Union.
Farmers in Alberta face growing risk of soil erosion events as drought persists
By Amanda Stephenson The Canadian Press
Posted January 22, 2024
Nearly a century after the mass agricultural disaster known as the Dirty ’30s, drought conditions on the Prairies are once again raising the risk that farmers’ valuable topsoil will go blowing in the wind.
Across southern Alberta, severe erosion events have been increasing in frequency and severity in recent years. In Lethbridge County, dry and windy conditions have been known to stir up dust clouds, obscuring the vision of drivers on local roads and filling irrigation canals to the brim with dirt.The drifting soil also reduces agricultural productivity, both by removing nutrients from the field where it blows from, and by spreading weeds and damaging crops where it lands.
“It’s pretty obvious when land blows. It fills the ditches; there’s literally drifts of soil,” said Ken Coles, executive director of the non-profit Farming Smarter.
Coles, who also has a farm in the Lethbridge area, got a first-hand taste of it a few years ago when strong winds picked up the top layer of a neighbours’ field that had been weakened by drought and recent tilling, depositing more than two feet of soil onto his own land.
“If you have a vulnerable field, as soon as particles of soil start moving, there’s a chain reaction. The next thing you know you’ve got the whole field moving,” Coles said.
“It’s a very extreme example of aerial soil erosion, something we saw much more in the ’30s. But it is still happening.”
During the 1930s, drought conditions and poor farming practices coalesced to set the stage for brutal dust storms across much of North America’s agricultural regions.
These storms were capable of turning the sky black in the middle of the day as millions of acres of topsoil were lifted into the sky, destroying crops and harming livestock.
Currently, 81 per cent of Canada’s agricultural landscape is classified as either abnormally dry or in moderate-to-severe drought conditions, according to federal government mapping.
When drought causes crops to fail, there isn’t enough residual plant life leftover on fields in the early spring to hold down the topsoil, said Henry Chau, a Lethbridge-based research scientist for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
Once the soil does start to blow, it can create a vicious cycle. The top layer of soil on a field is usually the most productive, Chau said, so losing it makes additional crop failures more likely.
Soil loss also makes it harder for the land to absorb the precipitation that does fall, thereby perpetuating the drought cycle.
What are space nukes, the ‘indiscriminate’ satellite weapon raising tensions between Washington and Moscow?
A fresh spat between Washington and Moscow has raised alarm about the potential risk of a space-based nuclear satellite attack which could cause chaos to critical communications systems on Earth.
Russia denied U.S. claims that it was developing a space-based anti-satellite nuclear weapon, with President Vladimir Putin saying Tuesday that the Kremlin was “categorically against” the deployment of nuclear weapons in space, and accusing the White House of scaring lawmakers into passing a new aid package for Ukraine.
It comes after a Reuters report emerged earlier Tuesday, citing one source, that said the U.S. believes Moscow is developing a space nuke whose detonation could knock out the satellites underpinning critical U.S. infrastructure, including military communications and mobile phone services. CNBC could not independently verify the report.
President Joe Biden later said Moscow appears to be developing an anti-satellite weapon but noted that it posed no urgent “nuclear threat” to the U.S. people, and said that he hoped Russia would not deploy it. However, one source familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that such a capability could be launched into orbit as soon as this year.
Analysts told CNBC that the deployment of such a weapon could cause “indiscriminate” damage, reaping havoc on the systems on which people rely for everyday services such as payments, GPS navigation and even the weather.
“Space is integral to our daily lives, whether we realize it or not,” said Kari Bingen, director of the aerospace security project and senior fellow in the international security program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
What are space nukes and what disruption could they cause?
Space-based anti-satellite nuclear weapons — or so-called space nukes — are a type of weapon designed to damage or destroy satellite systems. That might be for strategic purposes, for instance to incapacitate an opponent’s military operations, or disruptive aims, such as disabling civilian telecoms infrastructure.
A space nuke could be deployed either from Earth or from space, ultimately creating a huge electromagnetic pulse, or electrical surge, which could destroy satellites and fry electronic systems. The release of radiation into the Earth’s magnetic field could also degrade space-based satellites over time — though it is unlikely that radiation would cause direct harm to humans.
“It’s an indiscriminate weapon,” Bingen said. “Detonation would be omnidirectional.”
Israel’s PM Netanyahu lays out Gaza plan for after the war
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has laid out his vision for a post-war Gaza.
Under his plan Israel would control security indefinitely, and Palestinians with no links to groups hostile to Israel would run the territory.
The US, Israel’s major ally, wants the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority (PA) to govern Gaza after the war.
But the short document – which Mr Netanyahu presented to ministers last night – makes no mention of the PA.
He has previously ruled out a post-war role for the internationally backed body.
He envisages a “demilitarised” Gaza; Israel would be responsible for removing all military capability beyond that necessary for public order.
There would be a “Southern Closure” on the territory’s border with Egypt to prevent smuggling both under- and overground.
And “de-radicalisation” programmes would be promoted in all religious, educational and welfare institutions. The document suggests Arab countries with experience of such programmes would be involved, though Mr Netanyahu has not specified which.
Why is the Gaza war happening?
Under the plan Israel would also maintain security control over the entire area west of Jordan from land, sea and air.
Mr Netanyahu has been under pressure – at home and internationally – to publish proposals for Gaza since he began his military operation. He is keen to restore a crumbling reputation as a leader who can keep Israel safe and will want to appeal to right wing hardliners in his coalition government.
Mr Netanyahu repeated his rejection of any unilateral recognition by Western countries of a Palestinian state.
On Friday US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US was opposed to any reoccupation of Gaza by Israel as well as any reduction in the size of the territory.
“Gaza… cannot be a platform for terrorism. There should be no Israeli reoccupation of Gaza. The size of Gaza territory should not be reduced,” he said at a G20 ministers meeting in Argentina.
Meanwhile negotiators trying to broker a temporary ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages are expected to meet in Paris.
The US wants a deal in place before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins in just over a fortnight.
And, as the humanitarian situation worsens in Gaza, there is international pressure too for the war to end. The Hamas-run Ministry of Health reports that more than 29,500 people, mostly women and children, have been killed since the war began in October.
सिंगापुर में आनंद मार्ग प्रचारक संघ के वरिष्ठ सन्यासी आचार्य स्वरूपानंद अवधूत का निधन
सिंगापुर:आनंद मार्ग प्रचारक संघ के वरिष्ठ सन्यासी आचार्य स्वरूपानंद अवधूत का निधन आज सिंगापुर में आनंद मार्ग के अनुयायियों के बीच आध्यात्मिक उद्बोधन के पश्चात अचानक उनका निधन हृदय गति रुक जाने के कारण हो गया।
आनंद मार्ग की स्थापना 1955 में हुई थी। स्थापना काल से ही आनंद मार्ग के संस्थापक श्री श्री आनंदमूर्ति जी के आध्यात्मिक प्रेरणादायक विचारों से प्रभावित होकर आचार्य स्वरूपानंद अवधूत सन्यास धर्म को अपनाए ।आनंद मार्ग संस्था में उनका परिचय आचार्य स्वरूपानंद अवधूत के नाम से हुआ । आनंद मार्ग के हेड क्वार्टर आनंद नगर में उन्होंने 1975 में स्वर्गीय इंदिरा गांधी की सरकार के आपातकाल के दौरान दमनकारी नीति से नष्ट किए गए ,आनंद मार्ग के स्कूल ,कॉलेज को आचार्य स्वरूपानंद अवधूत ने पुनः स्थापित किया था ।इस दौरान वामपंथियों का भी कहर जारी था, परंतु यह एक ऐसे वीर सन्यासी थे की आनंदनगर कभी नहीं छोड़ा संघर्ष करते रहे । शिक्षा के जलाए हुए दीपक को कभी बुझाने नहीं दिए । पुरुलिया जिले के आनंदनगर काफी पिछड़ा इलाका है। हजारों बच्चों को शिक्षित कर उनके जीवन को संवारने में इनका बहुत बड़ा योगदान है ।आनंद मार्ग गुरुकुल यूनिवर्सिटी के उप कुलपति भी थे ।हाल ही में उन्होंने आनंद मार्ग के मुख्यालय आनंद नगर में बीएड कॉलेज की स्थापना की थी ।बहुत ही मृदु भाषी सन्यासी थे।पिछले दिनों सिंगापुर धर्म प्रचार के लिए गए हुए थे। वही अचानक उनका निधन आनंद मार्ग के उपस्थित भक्तों के बीच हो गया।
इस घटना से पूरा आनंद मार्ग विश्व परिवार शोक में है । इनके निधन से संस्था को बहुत बड़ी क्षति है।
Ac Swaroopanand Avadhur dadaji at GPIF platform on the occasion of GP Day
February 17, 2024
In Today’s Troubled World, Building Peace ‘Humanity’s Greatest Responsibility’, Secretary-General Stresses, Outlining Organization’s Priorities for 2024
Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ briefing to the General Assembly meeting on the priorities of the Organization for 2024, in New York, Feb 7th.
Our Organization was founded on the pursuit of peace. Peace is our raison d’être. Yet as I scan the landscape of today’s world, the one thing missing most dramatically is peace. And by that, I mean peace in all its dimensions.
As conflicts rage and geopolitical divisions grow, peace in our world is threatened. As polarization deepens and human rights are trampled, peace within communities is undermined. As inequalities explode, peace with justice is shattered. As we continue our addiction to fossil fuels, we make a mockery of any notion of peace with nature.
Around the globe, and across the range of issues, peace is the missing piece. People want peace and security. People want peace and dignity. And, frankly, they want peace and quiet.
There is so much anger and hate and noise in our world today. Every day and at every turn, it seems — it’s war. Terrible conflicts that are killing and maiming civilians in record numbers. Wars of words. Turf wars. Culture wars.
So many peddling the perverse math that says you multiply support by dividing people. This is especially troubling in a year when half of humanity will go to the polls.
Meanwhile, more and more families are falling behind. More and more countries are drowning in debt. More and more people are losing trust in institutions and faith in the political process.
Peace is the way out of these interlinked crises. Peace is more than a noble vision. Peace is a rallying cry. It is a call to action. Our obligation is to act together for peace in all its dimensions.
Despite the turbulence of our times, there are reasons for hope. At the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Summit, world leaders endorsed an SDG Stimulus and the need for far-reaching reforms of the international financial architecture.
Countries also reached agreement last year on the High Seas Treaty to protect precious marine biodiversity from pollution and overfishing. We are making some headway on climate justice. The loss and damage fund — provided that it is well-resourced — will help vulnerable countries recover from the impacts of extreme weather.
The Security Council agreed to our years-long call to back peace enforcement and counter-terrorism operations led by regional partners, notably the African Union, with mandates from the Council and supported by assessed contributions. The new High Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence launched a global conversation on how this all-pervading technology can benefit us all. Looking ahead, at the Summit of the Future in September, we have a chance to shape multilateralism for years to come.
For reading full article, press following link
https://press.un.org/en/2024/sgsm22127.doc.htm
What you need to know about culture and arts education
15 February 2024
Dance and music lessons. School trips to museums. Dialogue with indigenous peoples. Crafts transmitted from a generation to another. Theatre festivals, web design courses and fashion workshops. These are just some of the many shapes and forms that connect education and culture. Together, they help us appreciate the beauty, diversity and complexity of the world, acquire essential skills and behaviours to thrive and build bridges between peoples and nations, today and tomorrow.
Despite the obvious essential linkages between culture and education, they are still not sufficiently integrated into education policies and school curricula in many countries globally. These two fields are often considered as separate policy entities and trajectories. Culture and arts education, the result of the two complementary ecosystems, has the potential to bridge this gap.
UNESCO convened the World Conference on Culture and Arts Education in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates from 13 to 15 February 2024 where the first-ever global framework in this area was adopted. Here is what you need to know about this essential issue.
Why is culture and arts education essential?
Learners engaged in culture and arts education have better academic and non-academic learning outcomes. Engagement in various art forms, such as music, dance, and visual arts, can enhance academic achievements, reading skills, creative and critical thinking, agility and collaboration skills. Engagement in such education also correlates with improved attendance, stress reduction, resilience, perseverance, and classroom behaviours.
Culture and arts education expands the essence of learning and makes it fun by going beyond classrooms and traditional educational approaches from lifelong learning, to technical and vocational education and training (TVET). The theatre stage can be a learning space, NFT art can be a promising career, and indigenous ways of knowing and being can, and should, find their way in the curriculum.
Culture and arts education makes learning meaningful by connecting rural with urban, local with global. It plays a crucial role in valorizing and preserving one’s own culture, heritage and traditions while at the same time reflecting on them in the modern world, in the digital era, understanding everyone’s contribution and uniqueness.
USDA launches climate corps to advance sustainable agriculture
Published Feb. 13, 2024
The Biden administration will mobilize more than 100 young people in partnership with Americorps to help farmers improve soil health and adopt climate-smart production practices.
The Biden administration is recruiting the next generation of conservation leaders to advance regenerative agriculture and other climate-smart farming practices across U.S. farms.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Monday said it will create paid service opportunities for more than 100 young people to promote sustainable agriculture as part of the Working Lands Climate Corps.
The initiative is part of the American Climate Corps, an effort to train more than 20,000 young people and prepare them for careers in a clean energy economy.
Millions of Americans were put to work in the 1930s to restore the nation’s public lands as part of the Civilian Conservation Corps. Now the Biden administration hopes to revive central components of the program to create workforce opportunities for a new generation.
Participants of the Working Lands Climate Corps will conduct outreach and educate farmers about the availability of assistance programs to help transition to climate-smart agriculture.
“USDA’s Working Lands Climate Corps demonstrates how the President’s historic initiative is on the frontlines of addressing some of the most urgent challenges facing our agricultural communities,” Ali Zaidi, national climate advisor to President Joe Biden, said in a statement, “ensuring that farmers and ranchers continue to play a central and growing role in developing innovative climate solutions.”
The first cohort of members will serve with state and local organizations that support the adoption of climate-smart agriculture practices. The National Association of Conservation Districts will organize trainings for corps members on topics including climate-smart agriculture practices, conservation and resilience planning, environmental justice and outreach to farmers and rural communities.
USDA is one of the seven agencies that signed a memorandum of understanding to create the American Climate Corps, an initiative which puts young people on the path to jobs in conservation, clean energy and climate resilience. More than 50,000 young people have expressed interest in the climate corps program since it was announced in September.
One of the worst methane leaks ever recorded took place last year at a remote well in Kazakhstan, new analysis shared with BBC Verify has shown.
It is estimated that 127,000 tonnes of the gas escaped when a blowout started a fire that raged for over six months.
Methane is much more potent a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.
Buzachi Neft, the company that owns the well, denies a “substantial amount” of methane was leaked.
According to the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Equivalency Calculator, the environmental impact of such a leak is comparable to that of driving more than 717,000 petrol cars for a year.
The leak began on 9 June 2023, when a blowout was reported during drilling at an exploration well in the Mangistau region, southwestern Kazakhstan, starting a fire that raged continuously until the end of the year.
It was only brought under control on 25 December 2023. Local authorities told the BBC work is currently being carried out to seal the well with cement.
Natural gas is primarily made of methane, a gas that is transparent to the human eye.
This particular methane leak was first investigated by the French geoanalytics firm Kayrros. Their analysis has now been verified by the Netherlands Institute for Space Research and the Polytechnic University of Valencia, in Spain.
Looking at the satellite data, scientists found high concentrations of methane were visible on 115 separate occasions between June and December.
Based on those readings, they concluded that 127,000 tonnes of methane escaped from this single well.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-68166298
How a Simple Tool Is Saving Lives of Children with Cancer in Latin America
, by Nadia Jaber
Advances in the treatment of childhood cancer have led to remarkable progress. In high-income countries like the United States, more than 80% of children with cancer survive their disease.
In stark contrast, however, only 20% of children with cancer in lower-income countries survive their disease. Close to one-third of those deaths are caused not by the cancer, but by complications from the treatmentExit Disclaimer such as severe infections, organ failure, and hemorrhage.
But an international team led by St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is hoping to change that statistic in Latin America with a simple tool called a pediatric early warning system (PEWS). The warning system identifies children who are suffering from severe treatment-related complications and guides the clinical team through the next steps for care.
Early warning systems “are pretty ubiquitously used in hospitals that care for children in high-resource settings. But, prior to our work, [PEWS] were very underused in resource-limited settings,” said Asya Agulnik, M.D., M.P.H., director of the global critical care program at St. Jude.
Through a program called Proyecto Escala de Valoración de Alerta Temprana (EVAT), Dr. Agulnik and the team have supported implementation of an early warning system in nearly 100 hospitals across Latin America and Spain.
The results have been consistent and extremely positive: the early warning system has helped save the lives of many children hospitalized with cancer.
“Childrens’ health conditions were deteriorating, and we didn’t know until they were in critical condition,” said one nurse at a hospital in Ecuador. “But with [PEWS] everything changed … [now] we don’t wait until it’s too late” to escalate their care.
But will these hospitals continue to use the early warning system long-term?
That’s a critical question because only long-term use of tools like PEWS “results in truly beneficial progress,” said Marie Ricciardone, Ph.D., a program director in NCI’s Center for Global Health.
Through a 7-year project funded by NCI, a team of researchers at St. Jude and Washington University aim to learn what factors help keep the early warning system in use at low-resource hospitals in Latin America. And once they understand what makes PEWS stick, the funding will also help them develop strategies to keep the tool in use at hospitals that are struggling to maintain it.
There’s been very little research on what promotes sustained use of effective programs and tools, noted Virginia McKay, Ph.D., of Washington University in St. Louis, the project’s co-leader.
And even less is known about sustaining health programs and tools in low-resource settings, Dr. McKay explained. But sustainability is especially important in that context because the initial investment for implementing a new program or tool is typically expensive, she argued.
“In low-resource settings, you may only get one opportunity every once in a while to do something new because the resources are so constrained. So, it’s really important that [the new program or tool] is sustainable,” Dr. McKay explained.
“If [the new project is] successful, it has the potential to really remarkably change the outcomes for pediatric cancer in Latin America,” emphasized Dr. Ricciardone, who oversees the study’s funding.
Deaths related to cancer treatment
Childhood cancer is an unforgiving disease that, in many cases, requires intense and harsh treatment. Doctors strive to give each child enough treatment to knock the cancer out for good, but not so much that the child’s body is irreparably harmed.
It’s a delicate balancing act that isn’t always achieved. Sometimes, complications from the treatment can tragically take a child’s life.
While such deaths are a rare occurrence in high-income countries, they are a significant challenge in low- and middle-income countries, where there are few medical facilities and specialized resources to meet the unique needs of children with cancer.
Watch India launch powerful weather satellite to orbit on Feb. 17
Liftoff is scheduled for 17:00 hour IST on Saturday (Feb. 17).
India’s INSAT-3DS weather and disaster-warning satellite is seen shortly before its encapsulation into the payload fairing of its GLSV rocket. (Image credit: ISRO via X)
If all goes according to plan on Saturday, the three-stage GSLV will deploy INSAT-3DS into geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO). The satellite will then make its own way to geostationary orbit, which lies 22,236 miles (35,786 kilometers) above Earth.
At this altitude, satellites complete one orbit in the same amount of time it takes our planet to spin once around its axis (one Earth day). Geostationary spacecraft therefore seem to “hover” over the same patch of ground, making this a popular orbit for telecommunications and weather satellites.
INSAT-3DS falls into the latter category. The satellite, which was funded by India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences, “is designed for enhanced meteorological observations and monitoring of land and ocean surfaces for weather forecasting and disaster warning,” ISRO officials wrote in a mission description.
“The satellite will augment the meteorological services along with the presently operational INSAT-3D and INSAT-3DR satellites,” they added.
Japan’s economy unexpectedly slips into recession, hurt by weak domestic demand
Japan’s economy dipped into a technical recession, after unexpectedly contracting again in the October-December period, provisional government data showed Thursday. High inflation crimped domestic demand and private consumption in what’s now the world’s fourth-largest economy.
The latest gross domestic product print complicates the case for interest rate normalization for Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda and fiscal policy support for Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. It also means Germany took Japan’s place as the third-largest economy in the world last year in dollar terms.
Provisional gross domestic product contracted 0.4% in the fourth quarter compared with a year ago, after a revised 3.3% slump in the July-September period. This was way below the median estimate for 1.4% growth in a Reuters poll among economists. The GDP deflator in the fourth quarter stood at 3.8% on an annualized basis.
The Japanese economy also contracted 0.1% in the fourth quarter from the previous quarter, after shrinking a revised 0.8% in the third quarter from the second. This was also weaker than expectations for 0.3% expansion.
“Whether Japan has now entered a recession is debatable, though,” Marcel Thieliant, Capital Economics’ head of Asia-Pacific, wrote in a client note.
“While job vacancies have weakened, the unemployment rate dropped to an eleven-month low of 2.4% in December. What’s more, the Bank of Japan’s Tankan survey showed that business conditions across all industries and firm sizes were the strongest they’ve been since 2018 in Q4,” he added.
“Either way, growth is set to remain sluggish this year as the household savings rate has turned negative,” Thieliant said.
High inflation, weak domestic demand
Private consumption declined 0.2% in the fourth quarter from the previous quarter, in contrast to the median estimate for a 0.1% expansion.
While inflation has been gradually slowing, the so-called “core core inflation” — inflation minus food and energy prices — has exceeded BOJ’s 2% target for 15 straight months now. Still, the BOJ has “patiently continued” with the last negative-rate regime in the world.
The exact number of casualties is impossible to establish, with both sides giving little information about their losses, to avoid undermining morale among the troops and wider public.
In two years of war in Ukraine since the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022, tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians have lost their lives.
The exact number of casualties is impossible to establish, with both sides giving little information about their losses, to avoid undermining morale among the troops and wider public.
The UN’s human rights office said in mid-January it had confirmed the deaths of 10,382 civilians in Ukraine and a further 19,659 injured since Russia’s invasion but that the real number was likely higher.
The number of civilian casualties increased significantly in December 2023 and January 2024 compared with previous months, reversing a trend of decreasing civilian casualties earlier in the year, it said.
Nearly 8,000 of the deaths were in Ukraine-controlled territory and more than 2,000 in zones occupied by Russia.
Ukraine’s national police has recorded nearly 10,000 civilian deaths, along with 7,000 missing and 11,000 injured in the territory it controls, according to an official on January 31.
But Ukrainian authorities say thousands more civilians were killed during the siege of the southern port city of Mariupol in the early months of war, before it was taken over by Russia.
A town hall official told Ukrainian television in February 2023 that at least 25,000 civilians had been buried in mass graves there.
Across the Russian border, at least 138 civilians have been killed, according to the Russian news site 7×7.
‘Hundreds of thousands’ of soldiers
The military on both sides has kept its casualty figures under wraps due to their sensitivity.
The last official figures date back to mid-2022 and are therefore to be treated with caution.
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said in September 2022 that 5,937 Russian soldiers had been killed.
According to Kyiv, by August 2022, 9,000 Ukrainian troops had been killed.
All estimates since have come from foreign intelligence services.
In August 2023, the New York Times quoted US officials as putting Ukraine’s military losses at 70,000 dead and between 100,000 and 120,000 injured.
The report cited them as estimating 120,000 dead and between 170,000 and 180,000 injured on the Russian side.
On January 29 in a written response to a parliamentary question UK Armed Forces minister James Heappey put the Russian losses at more than 350,000 dead and injured.
On February 8 the Ukrainian army estimated it had killed or injured more than 392,000 Russian troops since the invasion.
Kyiv does not specify whether the tolls include losses among pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine and mercenaries from the Wagner paramilitary group or just the Russian army.
Israel’s war against Hamas, now in its fifth month, has devastated Gaza’s hospitals
February 14, 2024
JERUSALEM: The war between Israel and Hamas, now in its fifth month, has devastated hospitals in the Gaza Strip, with less than half of them only partially functioning as Israel’s daily bombardments kill and wound scores of people. Israel accuses the militants of using hospitals and other civilian buildings as cover.
Palestinians began evacuating the main hospital in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis, according to videos shared by medics on Wednesday. The Israeli military said it had opened a secure route to allow civilians to leave the hospital, while medics and patients could remain inside.
The number of Palestinians killed during the war in Gaza has surpassed 28,000 people, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza. A quarter of Gaza’s residents are starving.
The United States, which has provided crucial military and diplomatic support to Israel, has been working with Qatar and Egypt to try and broker a cease-fire and the return of the remaining 130 Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, around a fourth of whom are believed to be dead.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blamed Hamas for making unrealistic demands during cease-fire negotiations in Cairo. His remarks late Wednesday came hours after local media reported Netanyahu ordered an Israeli delegation not to return to the talks.
Smoke rises over an industrial site in Avdiivka on Feb 17th.
“Avdiivka is at risk of falling into Russian control,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said, citing Ukraine’s ammunition shortages.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed to do everything to “save as many Ukrainian lives as possible”.
Russian troops have made gains in Avdiivka, threatening to encircle it.
The town – which has been almost completely destroyed – is seen as a gateway to nearby Donetsk, the regional Ukrainian capital seized by Russian-backed fighters in 2014 and later illegitimately annexed by Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022.
At Thursday’s briefing in Washington, Mr Kirby said Avdiivka could fall largely “because the Ukrainian forces on the ground are running out of artillery ammunition”.
“Russia is sending wave after wave of conscript forces to attack Ukrainian positions,” he said.
“And because Congress has yet to pass the supplemental bill, we have not been able to provide Ukraine with the artillery shells that they desperately need to disrupt these Russian assaults.
Famine expert Alex de Waal on Israel’s starvation of Gaza
BOSTON, United States
While there hasn’t been an official declaration, famine is already taking place in parts of the Gaza Strip, UN officials said this week. It has arrived with unprecedented speed, as Israel has laid total siege to the enclave for more than three months and carried out a massive bombing campaign that has destroyed much of the infrastructure needed to sustain life.
The deliberate starvation of civilians is a war crime, and the allegation that Israel is creating the risk of death from starvation in Gaza is central to the case being brought by South Africa at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) accusing Israel of genocide.
To better understand the hunger situation in Gaza, The New Humanitarian sat down with Alex de Waal, executive director of the World Peace Foundation at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in the US, and an expert of famine and humanitarian crises.
As starvation and deadly disease outbreaks spread, UN agencies are calling for a fundamental change in the amount of aid entering Gaza as well as increased access and safety guarantees from Israel to allow humanitarian activities to take place inside the territory.
But even if there is a massive increase in the amount of assistance entering Gaza, the dire conditions are “not something that can be turned around overnight”, de Waal said. And if the aid delivery and access situation isn’t soon reversed, “it won’t be long before children, young children, start dying in large numbers of hunger and disease,” he added.
Israel’s war in Gaza has exposed a deepening global divide
When members of the legal team representing South Africa in its case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) arrived home this week, they were mobbed like rockstars by a crowd gathered at an airport in Johannesburg, waving South African and Palestinian flags.
Reactions from the Global North to the ICJ case have been mixed. While some nations have maintained a cautious diplomatic stance, others, particularly Israel’s staunchest allies in the West, have criticized South Africa’s move.
The US has stood by Israel through the war by continuing to ship arms to it, opposing a ceasefire, and vetoing many UN Security Council resolutions that aimed to bring a halt to the fighting. The Biden administration has rubbished the claim that Israel is committing genocide as “meritless,” while the UK has refused to back South Africa.
“The Israel-Gaza war and its subsequent events like this case are highlighting growing fissures between the once dominant West and its key allies like Israel and emerging powers gathered around BRICS states like South Africa,” Remi Adekoya, a political lecturer at the University of York in England, told CNN.
Much of the non-Western world opposes the war in Gaza; China has joined the 22-member Arab League in calling for a ceasefire, while several Latin American nations have expelled Israeli diplomats in protest, and several Asian and African countries have joined Muslim and Arab nations in backing South Africa’s case against Israel at the ICJ.
Israel sided with the West against Soviet-backed Arab regimes during the Cold War, and Western countries largely view it “as a fellow member of the liberal democratic club,” he added. “Some of this explains the continued strong Western support for Israel – which has now largely become reflexive.”
A fire in the dormitory of a kindergarten and elementary school in central China killed 13 people, Chinese state-owned news media reported on Saturday.
A 14th person was being treated for injuries in a hospital after the fire broke out on Friday night, China Central Television said. Firefighters were called at 11 p.m., and the blaze was extinguished by 11:38, according to the television report, which also said that the head of the school had been taken into custody. The CCTV report provided no further details, including whether any of the dead were children.
A teacher from the school told an online media outlet, Zonglan News, that all the victims were in the same third-grade class. It did not give the teacher’s name.
The spark that ignited the flames here was probably the publication of the latest consultation on the Sustainable Farming Scheme.
This is the Welsh government’s big plan for funding the industry after Brexit – which puts a lot more emphasis on the environment.
In order to gain access to the scheme, farmers will have to commit to planting 10% of their land with trees, and earmark another 10% as wildlife habitat.
Arguing that this isn’t practical while keeping a farm business going, many are concerned that the other requirements of the scheme will overwhelm them with paperwork.
On the other hand, the government is also under pressure from environmentalists to ensure that the plan is ambitious.
As 80% of Wales’ landscape is under the care of farmers, the argument is that they have a key role to play in helping the effort to tackle climate change and the losses in nature.
For more details please read full article at
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-68254174
Scientists at C3S said the global mean temperature for the past 12 months (February 2023-January 2024) was the highest on record and 1.52° Celsius above the 1850-1900 pre-industrial average
Every month since June last year has been the warmest such month on record.
The world last month experienced the warmest January on record, with the global mean temperature for the past 12 months exceeding the 1.5° Celsius threshold, according to the European climate agency.
However, this does not imply a permanent breach of the 1.5-degree Celsius limit specified in the Paris agreement, as it refers to long-term warming over many years.
Scientists attribute the exceptional warming to the combined effects of El Niño — a period of abnormal warming of surface waters in the central Pacific Ocean — and human-caused climate change.
Paris agreement
In 2015, countries agreed in Paris to limit the average temperature rise to well below 2° Celsius, and preferably to 1.5° Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels (1850-1900), to avoid worsening climate impacts.
Multiple reports suggest that the world is significantly off track to limit global warming to 1.5° Celsius. To achieve this goal, countries together need to cut down the emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane by 43% by 2030.
In a disheartening turn of events, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has announced that it’s laying off about 8% of its workforce. That means that about 530 JPL employees will be let go, along with about 40 employees of the Lab’s contractors. That sucks for the people being let go, but the bigger concern for the rest of us is what will happen to upcoming missions like Mars Sample Return (MSR)?
These layoffs have nothing to do with the individuals affected or with JPL’s activities. It’s all budget wrangling, something that is a near-constant in a democracy. There’s only so much money, and there’s always an excess of things to spend it on.
In this case, NASA has passed on funding constraints to JPL, and while JPL has tried to manage them, the result is this announcement.
“After exhausting all other measures to adjust to a lower budget from NASA, and in the absence of an FY24 appropriation from Congress, we have had to make the difficult decision to reduce the JPL workforce through layoffs,” a statement from JPL explained.
Without a Fiscal Year 2024 appropriation, there isn’t enough money in NASA’s budget to keep everything going. In fact, NASA and JPL have been waiting for an appropriation of some kind of final word on 2024 funding for the MSR mission but haven’t received any clear indication. JPL has been dealing with the uncertainty by streamlining operations and making changes in the last several months, but now they say their hand is forced.
“While we still do not have an FY24 appropriation or the final word from Congress on our Mars Sample Return (MSR) budget allocation, we are now in a position where we must take further significant action to reduce our spending, which will result in layoffs of JPL employees and an additional release of contractors,” said JPL’s statement.
China’s central bank encourages local businesses to accept foreign payment cards
BEIJING — China is encouraging banks and local businesses to accept foreign bank cards and is considering other steps to make mobile pay for international visitors even easier, said Zhang Qingsong, deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China.
“Banks and vendors (such as hotels, restaurants, department stores and even coffee shops) are encouraged to accept foreign bankcards,” Zhang said.
His written comments, exclusive to CNBC, come as Beijing has stepped up efforts to encourage visits from foreign tourists and business people. In the last few months, authorities have enacted visa-free travel policies for residents of several European and Southeast Asian countries — after stringent border controls during the pandemic.
Mobile pay took off in China in the last several years. But while it’s been convenient for locals to scan a QR code with a smartphone to pay, financial system restrictions have also meant foreigners often found it difficult to make payments. Shopping malls have increasingly preferred not to accept foreign credit cards.
But that’s started to change in recent months.
Last summer, the two dominant mobile pay apps WeChat and AliPay started allowing verified users to connect their international credit cards — such as those from Visa. Tencent owns WeChat, while AliPay is operated by Alibaba affiliate Ant Group.
“We are fully aware that foreign visitors care very much about their privacy,” Zhang said “We take this issue seriously and have put in place measures for information protection.”
“Now, when using Alipay or WeChat Pay, foreign visitors do not need to provide ID information if their total annual transaction volume is under $500,” he said. “It is estimated that over 80% transactions are below this threshold. We are also looking at the possibility of raising the $500 threshold in the future.”
Putin, in Rare U.S. Interview, Says Russia Has no Interest in Attacking Poland or Latvia
By David Ljunggren, Ronald Popeski and David Brunnstrom
12:04 JST, February 9, 2024
Feb 8 (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview that aired on Thursday that Russia will fight for its interests but has no interest in expanding its war in Ukraine to other countries such as Poland and Latvia.
Putin made the comment in a more than two-hour interview with Tucker Carlson, his first with an American journalist since before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine nearly two years ago.
Asked if he could imagine a scenario in which he would send Russian troops to Poland, a NATO member. Putin replied:
“Only in one case, if Poland attacks Russia. Why? Because we have no interest in Poland, Latvia or anywhere else. Why would we do that? We simply don’t have any interest.”
whereas, Trump has called for de-escalation of the war in Ukraine, in which the Biden administration has strongly backed the government of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, and complained about the billions of dollars in aid sent so far.
In Today’s Troubled World, Building Peace ‘Humanity’s Greatest Responsibility’, UN Secretary-General Stresses, Outlining Organization’s Priorities for 2024
Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ briefing to the General Assembly meeting on the priorities of the Organization for 2024, in New York.
Our Organization was founded on the pursuit of peace. Peace is our raison d’être. Yet as I scan the landscape of today’s world, the one thing missing most dramatically is peace. And by that, I mean peace in all its dimensions.
As conflicts rage and geopolitical divisions grow, peace in our world is threatened. As polarization deepens and human rights are trampled, peace within communities is undermined. As inequalities explode, peace with justice is shattered. As we continue our addiction to fossil fuels, we make a mockery of any notion of peace with nature.
Around the globe, and across the range of issues, peace is the missing piece. People want peace and security. People want peace and dignity. And, frankly, they want peace and quiet.
There is so much anger and hate and noise in our world today. Every day and at every turn, it seems — it’s war. Terrible conflicts that are killing and maiming civilians in record numbers. Wars of words. Turf wars. Culture wars.
So many peddling the perverse math that says you multiply support by dividing people. This is especially troubling in a year when half of humanity will go to the polls.
Meanwhile, more and more families are falling behind. More and more countries are drowning in debt. More and more people are losing trust in institutions and faith in the political process.
Peace is the way out of these interlinked crises. Peace is more than a noble vision. Peace is a rallying cry. It is a call to action. Our obligation is to act together for peace in all its dimensions.
To read full article press below link
https://press.un.org/en/2024/sgsm22127.doc.htm
That's all for this week. Stay tuned to Navacetana Saturday weekly. Your feedback, Suggestions, Creative criticism is always welcome at navcetana@gmail.com
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February 3, 2024
U.S. hits Iranian proxies in Iraq, Syria in retaliation for deadly strikes
Biden administration escalates military’s effort to deter militias after drone killed U.S. troops in Jordan
The airstrikes, which used more than 125 precision munitions, came at 4 p.m. ET Friday and struck more than 85 targets, U.S. Central Command said in a statement.
“The facilities that were struck included command and control operations, centers, intelligence centers, rockets, and missiles, and unmanned aired vehicle storages, and logistics and munition supply chain facilities of militia groups and their IRGC sponsors who facilitated attacks against U.S. and Coalition forces,” CENTCOM said, referring to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps.
John Kirby, a spokesman for the National Security Council, told reporters Friday that in all seven facilities used by IRGC and its proxies were hit — three in Iraq and four in Syria. The strikes, he said, occurred over 30 minutes. The Iraqi government was informed beforehand, he said.
In a statement after the strikes, Biden said: “Our response began today. It will continue at times and places of our choosing. The United States does not seek conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else in the world. But let all those who might seek to do us harm know this: If you harm an American, we will respond.”
The U.S. attacks were telegraphed for days. Biden told reporters outside the White House earlier this week he had decided on a response. And lawmakers were told by senior administration officials that the president wanted military options “a level or two up” from the “whack-a-mole strikes we had been doing on (militia) storage and launch sites.”
A U.N. Agency Is Accused of Links to Hamas. The Clues Were There All Along.
The Western-funded group providing lifesaving aid in Gaza has long struggled to defend its neutrality from militants
For years, international relief workers and the Israeli military have reported weapons caches occasionally found in schools operated by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, the organization that for decades has provided schooling, healthcare and other assistance to Palestinian refugees in Gaza.
Suspicions that Hamas and other militant groups wielded untoward influence over Unrwa spread worldwide this week after Israeli intelligence reported that a dozen employees of the U.N. agency allegedly participated in the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel.
What began as a small agency providing tents, food and other emergency relief for refugees of the 1948 Arab-Israeli war has grown into an organization with a staff of 30,000 people, nearly all Palestinians, operating in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. Western nations pay for most of its roughly $1.3 billion budget.
Sudan civil war: UN receiving reports of starvation deaths
By Kalkidan Yibeltal, BBC News
The World Food Programme (WFP) says it is receiving reports of people dying of starvation in Sudan, where a war has displaced millions of people since last April.
Violence is escalating between the army and a rival paramilitary force as they fight for control of the country.
Security threats and roadblocks have made the work of humanitarian agencies nearly impossible.
Nearly five million people across Sudan now face emergency levels of hunger.
This is twice the number since the start of the conflict, according to the WFP.
The humanitarian body says it has only been able to deliver vital aid to 10% of those in need in areas embroiled in the conflict.
These include the capital, Khartoum, and the western Darfur region, which have endured some of the worst violence.
Earlier this week, the UN’s refugee agency said almost eight million people had been force from their homes by the conflict.
Both sides in the conflict – the army and the Rapid Support Forces – have been accused of war crimes.
Attempts to broker peace between the warring factions have so far failed, and in recent weeks fighting has only intensified.
And in about 1 in 8 American aquifers — roughly 12 percent — the collapse of underground water levels has sped up during the 21st century, the researchers found.
“Groundwater levels are declining rapidly in many areas,” co-author Scott Jasechko of the University of California, Santa Barbara told The Hill.
Water basins where groundwater is in rapid decline
“And what’s worse, the rate of groundwater decline is accelerating in a large portion of areas,” Jasechko said.
The impacted aquifers support much of the U.S. food system, as well as providing water used by many Americans. And the country is not alone in its losses: The study found rapid loss of water in aquifers that supply hundreds of millions of people worldwide.
But the researchers added that these grim findings came with a bright spot: Many once-declining regions have bucked the trend.
“Long term groundwater losses,” they wrote, “are neither universal nor inevitable.”
To read the full article please click the following link: https://thehill.com/policy/equilibrium-sustainability/4426143-majority-of-americas-underground-water-stores-are-drying-up-study-finds/
Ukraine war: How Russia’s war is changing childhood in Ukraine
Russia’s war has transformed everything in Kharkiv, including childhood.
Missiles are fired on Ukraine’s second city from across the Russian border which is so close by that there are only seconds to stop them. If they’re aimed at Kharkiv there’s every chance they’ll hit – and little chance of reaching shelter.
School and kindergarten buildings have been closed for almost two years for safety, and playgrounds stand empty. Now, as the full-scale war heads towards its third year, parts of life in Kharkiv are moving underground. Deep down in the metro, specially built classrooms run parallel to the platform at five stations. The local authorities began offering school lessons beneath the city streets several months ago.
They’ve just added preschool classes on the weekends.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-68170396
British MP slams BBC over Ram Mandir coverage, calls for debate in House of Commons on BBC impartiality
LONDON: A British MP has slammed BBC’s coverage of the consecration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.
Conservative MP Bob Blackman said on Thursday, on the floor of the House of Commons: “Last week Ram Mandir was consecrated in Ayodhya-the birthplace of Lord Ram-in Uttar Pradesh in India. That caused great joy to Hindus across the world. Sadly, BBC reported that it was the site of the destruction of a mosque, forgetting that it had been a temple for more than 2,000 years before that, and that the Muslims had been allocated a five-acre site adjacent to the town on which to erect a mosque.”
He called for a debate on “the impartiality of the BBC and its failure to provide a decent record of what is going on all over the world.”
Leader of the House of Commons Penny Mordaunt responded that a recent BBC review had raised very important “issues”.
Kenya gas explosion kills at least three and injures hundreds
Feb., 2. More than 280 taken to hospital after truck blast on gas storage site that had unsuccessfully applied for permit to operate
A lorry loaded with liquid petroleum gas cylinders exploded and set off a late-night inferno that burned homes and warehouses in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, killing at least three people and injuring more than 280. The death toll is expected to increase.
At least 24 people were critically injured, the Kenya Red Cross said, after a huge fireball erupted from the gas depot. Some gas cylinders were thrown hundreds of metres, sparking several separate fires.
The lorry was parked inside a gas cylinder storage and filling site that had multiple applications to operate there rejected last year because it was too close to residential areas, Kenya’s Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority said, raising questions about whether the site was operating illegally.
“The government knew this liquid petroleum gas plant was existing in a residential area, but they did nothing,” resident Charles Mainge said. “They should make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
Witnesses said they heard a sound they suspected to be gas leaking from inside the storage site before at least two explosions and the massive fire, which broke out at about 11.30pm on Thursday. A huge fireball lit up the night sky.
Many people were probably inside when the fire reached their homes in the Mradi area of the Nairobi neighbourhood of Embakasi, the government’s spokesperson, Isaac Mwaura, said.
A flying gas cylinder set off a fire that burned down a nearby garment and textile warehouse, Mwaura said. Several other vehicles and businesses were damaged in the blaze.
Videos taken by witnesses showed the fireball erupting after an explosion next to blocks of flats. People could be heard screaming.
At the scene on Friday morning, several houses and shops were burned out. The roof of a four-storey residential building about 200 metres from the explosion was broken by another flying gas cylinder. Electrical wires lay on the ground.
Nothing remained at the burned-out gas storage site except the shells of several trucks.
Editor Desk - Navacetana Saturday weekly is a weekly supplement of GPIF's, (Delhi Sector) monthly magazine - Navacetana' - The Voice of Girls Proutist
Jan 27th
Australia funds rare earth research as West seeks China alternatives
Canberra to spend $14m to boost rare earth and critical minerals sectors.
SYDNEY — Australia’s government will funnel 22 million Australian dollars ($14 million) into rare earth and critical mineral research as it endeavors to be a “global clean energy supplier,” its resource minister said on Monday.
“The path to net zero by 2050 runs through Australia’s resources sector,” Madeleine King said. “The new research will help Australia further develop critical minerals and rare earths processes, and encourage downstream processing to produce components for clean technologies.”
Those technologies include electric vehicles, batteries and wind turbines.
The package is part of a broader Australian government-backed, multi-billion dollar push that has two goals: to stake out a place in the global supply chains feeding the green energy transition and to reduce reliance on China, a major supplier and the main processor and refiner of the vital metals.
The announcement comes weeks after China tightened export controls on technologies used to turn rare earths into permanent magnets, a core component of EV engines and wind turbines.
The funding announced by Australia will be split between three projects.
Almost AU$14 million will go to the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) for research to accelerate the discovery, extraction and processing of rare earth elements from lower-grade deposits.
Thailand discovers nearly 15 million tonnes of lithium
BANGKOK, Jan 19 — Thailand has discovered nearly 15 million tonnes of lithium deposits, a government spokesman said today, a boost for the kingdom’s goal of becoming a regional hub for electric vehicle production.
The find means Thailand has the third largest lithium resources, behind Bolivia and Argentina, but it is not yet clear how much can be exploited commercially.
The 14.8 million tonnes of lithium are distributed between two separate sites in the southern province of Phang Nga, government deputy spokeswoman Rudklao Intawong Suwankiri told The Nation television station.
Lithium is a key component in the manufacture of batteries used in electric cars, as well as smartphones and other electronics.
The government of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, which took over in August, has made it a priority to try to boost Thailand as a regional production hub for electric vehicles, building on the kingdom’s history of assembling conventional cars.
During the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Srettha met industry leaders including the deputy chairman of Bosch to urge him to invest in EV production in Thailand.
“It’s good news. It’s an opportunity for Thailand to become self-reliant in the production of EV batteries,” Rudklao said of the lithium discovery.
In December 2023, two Chinese EV giants said they would invest 2.3 billion baht (RM301 million) to develop Thailand as a production hub. — AFP
‘Zombie’ virus threat: Scientists warn of terrifying new pandemic
(Published 24 January 2024, 19:16 IST)
Researchers identified strains of these dormant microorganisms and raised the alarm that Earth’s warming climate could unleash a catastrophic disease outbreak.
Scientists in Siberia have warned against a new pandemic threat—Methusealah microbes—colloquially known as ‘zombie’ viruses.
These ancient viruses are frozen in the Arctic permafrost, but researchers fear that the warming climate and its effects on the the permafrost cover could one day release these viruses, thereby sparking a catastrophic disease outbreak.
To help keep tabs on the situation, a plan for an Arctic monitoring network by scientists is being made to detect early instances of diseases caused by the microbes, which will help prevent the spread of an outbreak, if any, beyond the Arctic regions.
Geneticist Jean-Michel Claverie of Aix-Marseille University told The Guardian, “At the moment, analyses of pandemic threats focus on diseases that might emerge in southern regions and then spread north”.
“By contrast, little attention has been given to an outbreak that might emerge in the far north and then travel south – and that is an oversight, I believe. There are viruses up there that have the potential to infect humans and start a new disease outbreak”, he added.
Virologist Marion Koopmans of the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam emphasised the unpredictability of these zombie viruses. “We don’t know what viruses are lying out there in the permafrost but I think there is a real risk that there might be one capable of triggering a disease outbreak,” he said.
A scientific expedition led by Claverie in 2014 unveiled live viruses in Siberia, showcasing their resilience even after millennia in permafrost. Recent research further revealed the existence of diverse viral strains across seven Siberian sites, capable of infecting cultured cells.
Claverie clarifies that while the isolated viruses pose no risk to humans, the genomic traces of known human pathogens like poxviruses and herpesviruses have been identified in permafrost.
Permafrost covers a fifth of the northern hemisphere. It is made up of soil that has been kept at temperatures below zero for long periods and some layers have remained frozen for hundreds of thousands of years.
The immediate threat, according to Claverie, arises not solely from melting permafrost but from the impact of vanishing Arctic sea ice. “Huge mining operations are being planned. Those operations will release vast amounts of pathogens that still thrive there. Miners will walk in and breath the viruses. The effects could be calamitous”, he warned.
Koopmans, meanwhile, stressed on the history of epidemic outbreaks, highlighting factors reponsible. “If you look at the history of epidemic outbreaks, one of the key drivers has been change in land use. Nipah virus was spread by fruit bats who were driven from their habitats by humans. Similarly, monkeypox has been linked to the spread of urbanisation in Africa. A complete change in land use could be dangerous, as we have seen elsewhere,” he told The Guardian.
Scientists believe that permafrost, at its deepest levels, may contain viruses that are far older than our own species, which is thought to have emerged about 300,000 years ago.
Claverie and others are working with the University of the Arctic on plans to establish quarantine facilities and provide medical expertise that could pinpoint early cases and treat them locally to try to contain the infection.
“We now face a tangible threat and we need to be prepared to deal with it. It is as simple as that,” Claverie said unambiguously.
India, UAE Settle Trade In Rupees For Gold Among Other Commodities, Says Official
15 Jan 2024, 10:54 PM IST
December trade data showed that import of gold, in particular, witnessed a 156% YoY jump, as compared with the same period last year
Trade between India and the UAE for gold is being settled in rupees, according to an official with knowledge of the matter. Gold is among other commodities, which are traded with UAE, that utilise the rupee settlement as a payment mode, the official quoted above said, while speaking on the condition of anonymity.
In July 2022, the Reserve Bank of India decided to allow the settlement of India’s international trade in rupee. December trade data showed that import of gold, in particular, witnessed a 156% YoY jump, as compared with the same period last year. In December itself, it came up to $3.02 billion. The export of gems and jewellery have also witnessed improvement in December, although it’s still experiencing an export decline in comparision with last year. On a month-on-month basis, gems and jewellery exports saw a 14.07% rise, according to Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal, who addressed the media during the monthly trade data briefing. https://www.ndtvprofit.com/economy-finance/india-uae-settle-trade-in-rupees-for-gold-among-other-commodities-says-official
Goldman Client Survey Shows Geopolitics Is Biggest Risk In 2024
Geopolitics poses by far the biggest risk to markets and the global economy this year, with inflation no longer viewed as such a major threat, according to a client survey by Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
(Bloomberg) — Geopolitics poses by far the biggest risk to markets and the global economy this year, with inflation no longer viewed as such a major threat, according to a client survey by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Some 54% of respondents picked geopolitics as the top risk in the survey, conducted as part of the bank’s annual global strategy conference in London this month. The US election, which will be held on Nov. 5, came in second place with 17%.
The results underscore a major shift in global market sentiment as inflation — the main bugbear of recent years — slows back toward central banks’ targets. While a resurgence remains a threat, the Goldman survey shows investors are increasingly concerned about how to position should wars in Europe and the Middle East spread, and with tensions rising between China and Taiwan. https://www.ndtvprofit.com/global-economics/goldman-client-survey-shows-geopolitics-is-biggest-risk-in-2024
SORTING OF BIO-WASTE WILL BECOME MANDATORY IN 2024 IN FRANCE
From 1st January, the recycling of organic waste will be obligatory in France. Here’s how the government says it will work.
Cities like San Francisco have been doing it for a quarter of a century with impressive results, but in France, the idea of recycling organic waste is relatively new. The country’s bio-waste plans originated in 2015 and were furthered by the Anti-Waste Circular Economy Law, which was passed in February 2020. Things have been percolating ever since, and now a 1st January 2024 deadline for the obligatory sorting of bio-waste by households is looming.
With that date is fast approaching, the government has published a set of guidelines to help the public follow the new rules, but there are still valid questions on how and when compliance will realistically be possible.
DEALING WITH BIO-WASTE
Bio-waste is a rather narrow category that includes food and catering waste, like leftover meals, vegetable peelings and expired food products, as well as garden waste, such as grass clippings, dead leaves and twigs from pruning.
Traditionally, most of these items have disappeared into general household waste bins destined for rubbish heaps or incinerators. As of 1st January 2024, however, French households will be legally obliged to separate these compostable organic materials, which account for roughly a third of the annual waste produced in the home, as part of a larger EU-wide plan concerning garbage.
HOW IT WILL WORK
Municipalities are being given relatively free reign on how to implement the new rules. Some are choosing to distribute small counter-top bins that can be left outside the home for a dedicated collection service to pick up while others are installing municipal collection points, like those already available across much of the country for glass, plastic and paper waste.
Whatever the method of collection, the bio-waste recuperated will then be processed and turned into compost to be used for other purposes.
To lessen the burden on towns and cities, the government is also encouraging home composting as an alternative for those who have the type of property where this is possible.
Poland secures EU concession to limit food exports from Ukraine
The New Voice of Ukraine
Warsaw has won concessions from the European Union in its battle to limit Ukrainian food exports, the Financial Times reported on Jan. 22, citing the bloc’s trade commissioner, Valdis Dombrovskis.
Dombrovskis said Brussels would control the influx of farm products if they risk depressing prices in Poland and other neighboring countries.
The proposal, which is expected this week, will likely include “country-specific safeguards” allowing the EU to block imports if a particular country’s market is flooded.
“We will look at how we can provide additional assurances to Poland and other member states, and one way of doing this is introducing country-specific safeguards,” Dombrovskis said.
Russia-Ukraine war live updates: Kyiv begins EU accession talks; Russia to boost defense output
UPDATED FRI, JAN 26 20249:46 AM EST
Ukraine formally started the screening process to begin talks over its future membership of the European Union on Thursday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
In a post on X, the Ukrainian leader said he welcomed the start of “substantial preparations for Ukraine’s EU accession talks” in Brussels, following an agreement reached with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
“The thorough work of assessing the conformity of Ukrainian legislation with EU norms, the formation of Ukraine’s delegation, and our negotiating position are all ahead of us,” Zelenskyy added.
“I expect full engagement of Ukrainian government team and the first intergovernmental conference to be held already this spring.”
Across the Atlantic, bipartisan U.S. Senate negotiations over a border security deal that ties in aid for Ukraine have hit a critical juncture, Republican Senator John Thune told reporters on Thursday, according to Reuters. The White House said last week that the U.S. money supply to Ukraine has now run out, which could leave Kyiv ill-equipped to repel the Russian invasion.
A small bipartisan group of senators is seeking a way to please Republicans aligned with Donald Trump, the front-runner for the party’s presidential candidacy, who has openly pressured allies not to compromise on legislation that would help President Joe Biden in the run-up to November’s election.
Meanwhile, Moscow and Kyiv continue to trade allegations over the shooting down on Wednesday of a Russian military transport plane that was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war and nine Russians.
Russia blamed Ukraine for the plane crash, saying it had used Western missiles to shoot the military transport Ilyushin-76 plane down over the border region of Belgorod, killing all on board, while the aircraft was en route to a prisoner exchange.
A senior Russian lawmaker also alleged Ukrainian military intelligence had been given a 15-minute warning before the plane entered the area.
Ukraine has denied that it was given a warning, but has neither confirmed nor denied that its forces shot down the plane. Zelenskyy said Kyiv will fully investigate the circumstances around the crash, adding that “facts” were a key priority. He accused Russia of “playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners, with the feelings of their relatives and with the emotions of our society.”
Conflict, climate change and AI get top billing as leaders converge for elite meeting in Davos
The World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, hosts over 60 global leaders discussing pressing issues like climate change, Al’s impact, and regional conflicts. Despite criticism for elitism, it remains a crucial platform for cross-sectoral dialogues. Key focuses include the Middle East situation, the rise of Al with sessions on education and ethics, concerns about misinformation affecting democracies, and renewed efforts to combat climate change. Notable speakers include Israeli President Herzog, China’s Prime Minister Li Qiang, and discussions led by climate advocate John Kerry.
Israel to face Gaza genocide charges at World Court
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is holding hearings on accusations of genocide in Gaza, brought by South Africa against Israel. Israel faces claims of violating the 1948 Genocide Convention in its war against Hamas militants. The hearings focus on South Africa’s request for emergency measures to suspend Israel’s military actions during the case. Israel’s offensive in response to Hamas actions has caused a humanitarian crisis, displacing nearly all of Gaza’s population. The ICJ process could take years.
Over 50 countries go to the polls in 2024. The year will test even the most robust democracies
More than 50 countries that are home to half the planet’s population are due to hold national elections in 2024, but the number of citizens exercising the right to vote is not unalloyed good news. The year looks set to test even the most robust democracies and to strengthen the hands of leaders with authoritarian leanings. From Russia, Taiwan and the United Kingdom to India, El Salvador and South Africa, the presidential and legislative contests have huge implications for human rights, economies, international relations and prospects for peace in a volatile world.
Indian-owned Tata Steel is to cut about 3,000 jobs at a plant in Wales, as the industry struggles to finance greener production of the metal.
The company will on Friday confirm the closure of two blast furnaces at the Port Talbot steelworks, resulting in the loss of over one-third of staff, the source with knowledge of the plan told AFP.
