Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Overlooked Waste Recycled into Plastic Products

A technique developed by the Lorena School of Engineering at the University of São Paulo takes advantage of plastic wastes that are rarely recycled to produce plastic panels for automobiles, furniture and other uses.

Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Joining Forces to Save the Zambuco Lagoon

Idyllic Zambuco Lagoon in the northern Honduran community of Esparta is being restored through a joint wetlands conservation project involving the government, civil society and local residents.

No Time Left to Adapt to Melting Glaciers

Water flows from Peru’s Cordillera Blanca, which has the most glaciers of any tropical mountain range in the world, are in a state of permanent decline 20 years sooner than forecasted.

THAILAND: Land of Smiles – and Grimaces

The ‘Land of Smiles’ attracts some 14 million tourists annually to its tranquil beaches and glistening temples. But to many Thais, their country is becoming one of grimaces, thanks to its draconian lese-majeste (LM) law.

SRI LANKA: Tsunami Demons Haunt the Coast

Seven years after monster waves crashed into homes, hotels and vehicles on Sri Lanka’s coast, people in this island nation continue to be haunted by demons from the sea.

BRAZIL: Providing Alternatives for Small-Scale Tobacco Farmers

The fall in world tobacco consumption, especially in industrialised nations, is a sign of the urgent need for producer countries like Brazil, China, India and the United States to offer their farmers alternatives to growing tobacco.

CUBA: Racism Finally Debated in Parliament

The Cuban parliament finally included the problem of racism, long a taboo issue in this country, in its debates this week. And the question is also on the agenda of the governing Communist Party's upcoming national conference.

U.S. Limits Mercury Pollution as Big Coal Retreats

Environmental advocates praised a recent new rule limiting pollution of mercury and other air toxins announced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, one of several new air pollution standards set under the Barack Obama administration.

Cubans Hope for Migration Reform

Whether or not they live in Cuba, whatever their political affiliation, most people consulted by IPS want changes to Cuban migration policy that include three key elements: freedom, rights and normalisation.

VENEZUELA: Putting (Mothers’) Faces to the Violence

These women are not fashion models, nor are they advertising any product, yet their images look down on passersby from giant black-and-white posters in the Venezuelan capital. There are 52 of them, and they are all mothers who have lost one or more children to the criminal violence that is plaguing the country.

SIERRA LEONE: The Isolation of Epilepsy Sufferers

Elizabeth Zainab Kargbo was a successful young woman, eight months pregnant and working in Sierra Leone’s civil service, when she had her first seizure.

MIDEAST: Some Comfort Fails to End Agony

Yousef walks barefoot into a children's room with four beds and points to a snoopy-blanketed bed by the window. "That's where I sleep," he says. A red remote-controlled toy racecar sits atop a new mini-laptop. The closet is full of clothes, a pot of soup simmering on the gas range in the spacious kitchen, and the wooden dining table is piled with seasonal fruit.

ARGENTINA: Anti-Terrorism Law Upsets Harmony Between Government and Activists

Human rights groups and legal experts are concerned that a law passed by the Argentine Congress in the early hours of Thursday morning to crack down on terrorism could be used to criminalise social protest.

PORTUGAL: All-Out Privatisation Gets Underway

The most far-reaching programme of privatisation of state enterprises in the history of Portugal kicked off Thursday with the sale of almost all of the state's shares in the Energias de Portugal (EDP) utility to China's Three Gorges Corp.

EL SALVADOR: Women Demand to Be Included in Climate Solutions

Some 100 rural women in El Salvador demanded that the government halt mining and hydroelectric projects that are harming their communities and establish specific programmes with a gender perspective for combating climate change.

New Rules Leave Canadian Aid Groups in Limbo

Many Canadian civil society organisations working in international development are still awaiting a definitive answer about future government funding, a months-long lag critics argue has hampered overseas operations and only worsens Canada's global reputation when viewed in light of other issues in recent years.

SIERRA LEONE: Local Communities Divided Over Mining in Rainforest

Sierra Leone’s Gola Rainforest remains a centre of contention as the local community here plan to take their chief to court next week over a controversial 50-year land lease to a mining company.

Mass Tragedy Feared as Closure of MEK Camp Looms

The Barack Obama administration and the United Nations are struggling to convince the leadership of the Mujaheddin-e Khalq (MEK), an Iranian opposition group with cult-like characteristics, to vacate a camp in Iraq and allow residents to move to another location in the country or risk the lives of as many as 3,200 people.

PROFILE: Kim Jong-un

Kim Jong-un, the youngest son of Kim Jong-il, is widely believed to be his father's choice as heir to the North Korean leadership.

Ecobreves – CARIBBEAN: Building a Common Natural Disaster Strategy

Academic institutions and cooperation agencies from Spain and Cuba are organizing a forum in Havana on natural disaster risks in the Caribbean, with the aim of contributing to the design of integrated regional response strategies.

Ecobreves – BRAZIL: Companies Violate Rules on Waste Tires

Tire manufacturers and importers in Brazil have been failing to fulfill their obligation to ensure the proper disposal of used and waste tires since 2002, according to a study by engineer Carlos Lagarinhos from the Polytechnic School of the University of São Paulo.