Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Sugar Cane Straw Reduces Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Researchers at São Paulo State University in Brazil have determined that leaving sugar cane straw in the soil after harvesting reduces carbon emissions. They reached this conclusion after having compared two methods of harvesting sugar cane: mechanized harvesting and manual harvesting after the straw has been burned off the sugar cane plants.

“The Battle for Patagonia Has Just Begun"

HidroAysén will create an energy duopoly that cuts off access to the market for other actors who want to participate with clean energy sources, says environmentalist Sara Larraín in this interview.

PAKISTAN: Bomb Survivors Vow to Pursue Taliban Attackers

Survivors of the twin suicide attacks on Shabqadar Fort in Charsadda town in north-west Pakistan said they were eager to take on their assignments as new members of the Frontier Constabulary (FC), even as some are still recuperating from wounds inflicted by the attacks.

Netanyahu Rejects Obama Proposal on Pre-1967 Borders

U.S. President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held an extended meeting Friday amid controversy over Obama's call for negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians based on the borders that existed before Israel's victory in the 1967 war which saw it occupy the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem.

U.S.: Congress Pushes for Vote on Libya Intervention

As the War Powers Act, which purportedly authorised U.S. President Barack Obama to wage war in Libya for 60 days without Congressional approval, expires Friday, experts here continue to question the strategic focus of the NATO-led operation, with pressure mounting from Capitol Hill on the Obama administration to lay out what its desired end game in Libya will be.

PAKISTAN: Militancy Keeps Refugees Far From Home

Back home, Abdur Rehman’s family had a spacious house that could easily fit the 10 members of his family. Now they all have to squeeze into a small tent in a refugee camp near Peshawar in north-west Pakistan.

EUROPE: Watching Aid Fall Short

The European Union missed its target of aid to developing countries by 15 billion euros in 2010 and is on course fall well short of future goals, according to a report on the world’s largest donor.

LIBYA: Ajdabiya Seeks Semblance of Peace

Although the front line is at its gates in eastern Libya, the city of Ajdabiya is trying to get back to normal under threat of attack by the troops loyal to Muammar Gaddafi and, especially, under the risk posed by unexploded ordnance in streets, gardens and houses.

Still Awaiting a Roadmap for Sustainable Development

The road to the crucial Rio+20 conference on greening the world economy next year has hit a setback with the breakdown of the 19th session of the U.N. Commission on Sustainable Development after 10 days of intense negotiations.

DR CONGO: Measles Claims Lives as Public, Private Resources Stretched Thin

More than 3,000 cases of measles have been recorded in the past three months in two districts of Maniema Province, in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

MIDEAST: When Talks Fail, Try Belly Dance

"Hop-a-li, Hop-a-la!" On the stage of the Arab-Hebrew Theatre established in the ancient Arab port of the vibrant Jewish metropolis, a troupe of Israeli men and women interlaces, belly dancing to a frenetic Hafla tune.

South Africans are voting for new municipal councillors, with more than 200 thousand special ballots expected to be made before Election Day.

South Africans are voting for new municipal councillors, with more than 200 thousand special ballots expected to be made before Election Day. The chief electoral officer, Advocate Pansy Tlakula, is happy with the preparations and progress, but she is concerned about the lack of women candidates.

Obama Faces Mounting Arab Disillusionment

On the eve of a much-anticipated address by President Barack Obama on U.S. policy in the Middle East, a new survey suggests that disillusionment with both Obama and Washington's approaches to the region are once again on the rise throughout the Muslim world.

ST. LUCIA: Shootout Fuels Debate over Extrajudicial Killings

By their own account, the police said they had been monitoring five men who attempted to rob a restaurant in the south of the island, and in the ensuing gun battle, four were shot and killed, while the fifth died a few days later in hospital.

SOUTH AFRICA: Woman Navigating a Tough Political System

Victoria Zanele KaMagwaza-Msibi admits she is no angel. But for 30 years she’s navigated through South Africa’s tough political landscape, mainly as a member of a male-dominated party, and now as the leader of her own political party.

Israel Prepares to Confront Historical Shifts

Back in August 2000, just weeks after the failed Camp David peace summit and weeks before the outbreak of the second Palestinian Intifadah uprising, Marwan Barghouthi, leader of the Fatah armed forces, laid out his alternative strategy for ending the Israeli occupation.

PAKISTAN: Parliament Backs Army and Intel Service

Pakistan’s Senate and National Assembly closed ranks behind the country’s prime spy agency, the Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI), which the U.S. government suspects of having harboured Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.

Caribbean Struggles to Make Complex Trade Deal with EU a Reality

When Caribbean journalists met in Antigua in late March to discuss the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) that was signed between the European Union and the Caribbean Forum (CARIFORUM) countries in 2008, they were told that the absence of tax treaties, foreign exchange controls and language barriers were among the factors preventing the full implementation of the accord.

Ecobreves – MEXICO: Cleaner Buses Take to the Streets

Public transportation contractors are introducing environmentally friendly buses in the eastern section of Mexico City.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Clean-up of Yojoa Lake Begins

Over the past month, more than 33,000 square meters of parasitic plants have been removed from the waters of idyllic Yojoa Lake in western Honduras.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Nanotechnology Turns to Sugar Cane

The University of São Paulo Polytechnic School has developed a new technique to produce carbon nanotubes, microscopically thin cylinders of carbon atoms, using the gases generated by burning sugar cane bagasse, a by-product of sugar production.