Argentine Locals Want Power Transformers Out of Neighborhoods

Scientific uncertainty about the health impacts of electromagnetic fields is fueling worries among people in the Argentine capital who are demanding that energy power transformers be located far from their neighborhoods.

Going Far, and Fast, on Electrofuels

A speeding ticket for driving an electric vehicle may seem at first a far-fetched possibility, but no. The director of Northern Lights Energy – a company specialising in promoting electric cars – was recently fined for driving 124 km per hour in a 90 km zone in Iceland in a Tesla Roadster vehicle.

Argentine Locals Want Power Transformers Out of Neighborhoods

Scientific uncertainty about the health impacts of electromagnetic fields is fueling worries among people in the Argentine capital who are demanding that energy power transformers be located far from their neighborhoods.

Study Links Kidney Disease in Sri Lanka’s Farm Belt to Agrochemicals

A new report links the high prevalence of chronic kidney disease in Sri Lanka’s main agricultural production regions with the presence of heavy metals in the water, caused by fertiliser and pesticide use.

Q&A: Brazil Invited to Join U.N. Palestinian Refugee Agency

The policy of pacification of Rio de Janeiro’s violent favelas, or shantytowns, could serve as a model in some respects in Palestinian refugee camps, says Filippo Grandi, commissioner-general of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestine refugees, in this interview with IPS.

Beating the Weather With Sustainable Crops

Narrow, cobblestoned lanes separate the rows of mud houses with cool interiors and mud-smoothened patios, some with goats tethered to the wooden posts. This is Tajpura village, deep in this water-stressed, drought-prone region of northern India.

Gazans Punished Again for Others’ Crimes

With more restrictions placed on the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza, and access to the Palestinian territory’s smuggling tunnels increasingly blocked, human rights groups say Gaza’s 1.6 million residents are unfairly being punished for the attack on an Egyptian military base in Sinai.

One Year Later, Still Suffering for Loyalty to Gaddafi

One year has passed since the Tawerghans fled their coastal town during Muammar Gaddafi’s violent overthrow, and displaced residents are still waiting for a chance to return.

Beating the Weather With Sustainable Crops

Narrow, cobblestoned lanes separate the rows of mud houses with cool interiors and mud-smoothened patios, some with goats tethered to the wooden posts. This is Tajpura village, deep in this water-stressed, drought-prone region of northern India.

Immigration Policies Wreak Unseen Havoc on U.S. Communities

Deportation is a devastating experience for a family, breaking it apart and leading to emotional and mental stress for its members. But a new report from the Centre for American Progress shows that such duress extends beyond families and into the larger community as a whole.

Criticism of Uganda’s Government Leads to Harassment of NGOs

In the face of rising public criticism over a range of controversial political manoeuvres, the Ugandan government has become increasingly hostile to the work of non-governmental organisations, particularly those advocating for the rights of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, according to a new report from Human Rights Watch.

Mauritania’s Date Palms, Cultural Heritage and Means of Survival

"The palm tree is a means of survival," said Tahya Mint Mohamed, a 44-year-old Mauritanian farmer and mother of three children. “We eat its dates; we make mats, beds and chairs from palms; the leaves are also used to make baskets and to feed our livestock.”

As Green Climate Fund Finally Meets, Funding Remains Uncertain

Five months behind schedule, the board of the newest and largest international financing mechanism aimed at dealing with the effects of climate change, the Green Climate Fund, is finally slated to meet this week, just ahead of a late-summer deadline.

Immigration Policies Wreak Unseen Havoc on U.S. Communities

Deportation is a devastating experience for a family, breaking it apart and leading to emotional and mental stress for its members. But a new report from the Centre for American Progress shows that such duress extends beyond families and into the larger community as a whole.

Ecobreves – CUBA: Promoting Wind Energy

Cuba is striving to develop wind power and contribute to its expansion in the rest of the Caribbean, said energy specialist Conrado Moreno, organizer of a world conference on this energy source to be held for the first time ever in Latin America.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Government to Build Aerodrome in Maya Archeological Area

The government of Honduras plans to build an aerodrome near Copán Archeological Park, but will ensure that it has no environmental impacts on the Amarillo River, which flows through the area.

Ecobreves – CHILE: Pascua Lama Announcement Criticized

Chilean environmentalists have criticized an announcement by the Canadian mining company Barrick Gold that it will postpone the execution of the Pascua Lima binational mining project by one year and increase initial investment by three billion dollars.

Ecobreves – VENEZUELA: Women Entrepreneurs Learn to Recycle

Some 200 women in eastern Caracas will benefit from a program that will provide them with training in recycling and the manufacture and sale of clothing, bags, ornaments, cards and various crafts.

“The Trend in the Western World is the Dissolution of Cities”

An area where people only go to sleep is the antithesis of a city, says Spanish urban planner Jordi Borja in this interview.

Hydropower Dam to Flood Sacred Amazon Indigenous Site

The Sete Quedas or “seven waterfalls” on the Teles Pires River, which runs through the Amazon rainforest states of Mato Grosso and Pará in central Brazil, are a spiritual oasis venerated by several indigenous groups.

Northern Iraq Instead of Syria: Turkish Army’s New Target?

With attacks by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) multiplying and spreading to a larger number of Turkish provinces, Ankara is under increasing pressure by nationalistic parties to take tougher measures against Kurdish activism, including a full-blown land incursion by the Turkish armed forces into northern Iraq.