Saturday, June 10, 2023
News and Views from the Global South
Myanmar’s ‘Forgotten War’ Lurches Deeper into Horror
Food is passed around a campfire, and a guitar strums as cool night air tumbles down mountain cliffs, relieving the jungle of its heat. A dozen or so young Myanmar activists – some having just travelled long distances evading military checkpoints, others already living in exile – have come together in a jungle camp for a training course with a difference. Instead of armed combat, their chosen role is enabling the overthrow of the military junta through non-violent means.
UN Hobbled by Junta and Under Pressure Over Myanmar Aid Crisis
Nearly 18 million people – about one-third of Myanmar’s population – need humanitarian aid this year because of civil war and the post-coup economic crisis, according to the latest United Nations estimates.
Africa Fights Back Against Wildlife Poachers, but Drought is Devastating
Elephant populations are starting to recover in parts of Africa as law enforcement agencies and local communities turn the tide in their long-running battle against wildlife poachers and traffickers.
A Voice for African Wildlife: A Conversation with Kaddu Sebunya
The CEO of the Nairobi-based African Wildlife Foundation, Kaddu Sebunya – in London to mark AWF’s 60th anniversary while fundraising and lobbying – shares his thoughts with IPS on the climate and food crises, how Africans have their voice, why western countries need a ‘reset’ with Africa, what Prince Charles should say to the Commonwealth, how China is eating western ‘cake’, and what worries him more than anything else.
IUCN World Conservation Congress Warns Humanity at ‘Tipping Point’
The world’s most influential conservation congress, meeting for the first time since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, has issued its starkest warning to date over the planet’s escalating climate and biodiversity emergencies.
Wildlife Trafficking to Come under Fire at IUCN Congress
A recent seizure at Johannesburg’s international airport of a large consignment of rhino horns confirmed worst fears – illegal trafficking of wildlife and the plundering of treasured species is back with a vengeance after a Covid-19 lockdown lull.
Stopping Marine Plastic Pollution: A Key IUCN Congress Goal
Documented images of albatross chicks and marine turtles dying slow deaths from eating plastic bags and other waste are being seared into our consciences. And yet our mass pollution of Earth’s seas and oceans, fuelled by single-use plastics and throw-away consumerism, just gets worse.
Despite Conflict and COVID-19, Children Still Dream to Continue Their Education in Afghanistan
As if four decades of war were not enough, then came the pandemic. For each of the past five years, Afghanistan has been identified by the United Nations as the world’s deadliest country for children and, despite progress made in peace talks between the government and the Taliban, child and youth casualties from the ongoing conflict continue to mount in 2020.Conservation Congress Votes to Ban All Domestic Trade in Elephant Ivory
The international conservation community has taken an important step towards saving African elephants from mass slaughter by voting at a major congress to call on all governments to ban their domestic trade in ivory.
Conservation Congress Sets Ambitious Target to Protect Oceans
A major environmental conference of governments and NGOs has called on nations to set aside at least 30 percent of the world’s oceans as “highly protected” areas by 2030, but delegates said opposition from China, Japan and South Africa had seriously undermined chances of success.
Japan and South Africa Try to Block Proposed Ban on Domestic Ivory Trade
Japan and South Africa have ignited a furore at a major conservation congress by coming out against a proposed appeal to all governments to ban domestic trade in elephant ivory.
Big Oil and Activists Unite to Protect Endangered Whales
A rare case of intensive and decade-long collaboration between Big Oil, scientists and environmental activists has been hailed as a success story in protecting an endangered species of whale from extinction.
Eastern Gorilla, Our ‘Closest Cousin’, Added to Endangered Species List
Our closest cousin in the animal world, the Eastern Gorilla, is sliding towards extinction because of illegal hunting, the IUCN announced today in the latest update of its Red List of Threatened Species.
U.S. and China Formally Join Paris Agreement in Show of Unity
The world’s super-polluters - the United States and China - have formally joined the Paris Agreement on climate change in a symbolic show of unity.
Elephant Census Ramps Up Pressure to Stop Domestic Trade in Ivory
A dramatic decline in Africa’s savanna elephant populations caused by poaching - as exposed by the results of a three-year aerial survey released this week - has piled pressure on reluctant governments to back proposals that would lead to bans on domestic trade in ivory.
Dire Warnings But Also Hope as IUCN Environmental Congress Opens
A congress billed as the world’s largest ever to focus on the environment has opened to warnings that our planet is at a “tipping point” but also with expressions of hope that governments, civil society and big business are learning to work together.
Obama Stresses Climate Change Urgency Ahead of IUCN Congress
U.S. President Barack Obama has stressed the urgency of tackling climate change in a speech to Pacific leaders in his home state of Hawaii.
‘What Can We Do for You?’ Aid Projects Pour Into Myanmar
International aid agencies, big and small, are beating a path to Myanmar, relishing the prospect of launching projects in a nation of 51 million people tentatively emerging from more than five decades of military rule.
The Week with IPS
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Tracking global progress towards a sustainable world
