Sierra Leone sells rainforest for Chinese harbour, human rights group slams move
Rights groups and conservationists have criticized a $55m deal struck by the government of Sierra Leone with China to build an industrial fishing harbour on 100 hectares (250 acres) of beach and protected rainforest.
Reflect nature’s ‘true value’ in economic policies and decisions, UN chief urges
New York: Nations must start weighing up the cost of economic profit against damage to the environment if they are to have a chance at a sustainable future, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Tuesday.
Scale up funding for climate adaptation programmes, Guterres urges
New York: The UN Secretary-General on Monday called for urgent scaling up of funds for climate change adaptation and resilience building programmes, so they can offer real and lasting protection against the impact of major events such as droughts, floods and rising sea-levels.
People, planet on ‘collision course’, warns UN Development Programme
New York: Countries must redesign their development pathways to reduce pressures exerted on the environment and the natural world, or risk stalling humanity’s progress, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has cautioned.
UN makes progress on 'greening the blue'
New York: In 2019, the UN system continued to make steady progress towards reducing its environmental footprint, recording decreases in emissions and implementing advanced environment management systems.
Address water scarcity ‘immediately and boldly’, urges UN agriculture agency chief
New York: More than three billion people live in agricultural areas with high levels of water shortages and scarcity, the UN agriculture agency said in a new report launched on Wednesday.
Carbon dioxide levels hit new record; COVID impact ‘a tiny blip’, WMO says
New York: Levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere hit a new record of 410.5 parts per million in 2019, and are expected to keep rising this year, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said in its annual Greenhouse Gas Bulletin on Monday.
Climate crisis: ‘Nowhere near the finish line’, says UN chief
New York: Pointing to its “pioneering legislation and policies”, on Thursday the UN chief hailed the 27-member European Union (EU) as a “a leader on climate action”, that had shown that it was possible to cut emissions while achieving economic growth.
The natural environment is also a casualty of war, Guterres warns
New York: The UN Secretary-General has called for better management of natural resources and ecosystems, highlighting that doing so could pave a path towards peace in war-torn societies and help crisis-affected countries boost sustainable development.
Bad situations ‘only get worse’ without disaster risk governance, UN chief says on International Day
New York: With nations facing multiple crises simultaneously and a dramatic rise in extreme weather events in recent decades, the UN Secretary-General has called for strengthening disaster risk governance, to build a safer, more resilient world.
‘Staggering’ rise in climate emergencies in last 20 years, new disaster research shows
New York: The first 20 years of this century have seen a “staggering” rise in climate disasters, UN researchers said on Monday, while also maintaining that “almost all nations” have failed to prevent a “wave of death and illness” caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
UN report highlights links between ‘unprecedented biodiversity loss’ and spread of disease
New York: The continued degradation of the environment is increasing the likelihood of diseases spreading from animals to humans, warns a UN report on biodiversity, released on Tuesday.
Science, solidarity and solutions needed against climate change: Guterres
New York: Concentrations of greenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere are at record levels, and emissions that saw a temporary decline due to the pandemic are heading towards pre-COVID levels, while global temperatures continue to hit new highs, according to a major new UN report.
RANDOM THOUGHTS: When the hills cry
Monsoon time. The sky pours, the earth looks fresh and distressed at the same time as flood waters submerge the landscape. I remember a time like this a couple of years ago. We were travelling to Guwahati from upper Assam. It had been raining heavily the previous day but now the sky was blue and a cool breeze was blowing. We were about to reach Jorabat. The name connotes a twin or joint- road. It is from this junction that one drives upwards to Meghalaya, the abode in the clouds, or continues towards the capital city of Assam, and vice versa.
New York: The first International Day of Clean Air for blue skies is being commemorated around the world, on Monday, following the recognition by the United Nations General Assembly of the importance of clean air for the health and day-to-day lives of people.