Sustainable Food Systems; Why We do Not Need New Recipes

Many believe that the food and agricultural sector is different to all other economic sectors, that it is unique, and that it requires special economic models to thrive. After all, we expect the global food and agricultural system to respond to many different goals. It needs to deliver abundant, safe, and nutritious food. It needs to create employment in rural areas while protecting forests and wildlife, improving landscapes, and preventing climate change through lower food production emissions. Well-functioning food systems are also considered essential for social stability and conflict prevention. In fact many politicians today go as far as to argue that food systems need to thrive so as to stem rural-to-urban migration and the cross-border flow of desperate people fleeing food insecure nations.

“Green Development Has to Be Equal for All”

IPS caught up with Dr. Frank Rijsberman, director-general of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), at the end of the flagship side event of the GGGI during the 51^st Annual Meeting of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Manila on May 4, 2018, which featured the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and its potential to create sustainable infrastructure and promote green growth pathways.

To Have Children or Not: The Importance of Finding a Balance

While the world’s population has changed dramatically over the last 50 years, little is still understood about fertility transition and the reasons behind it. Over the last half a century, the global fertility rate has halved, reaching a level of 2.5 births per woman.

20 Water-Stressed Countries Have Most Solar & Wind Potential

Most power generation consumes water, whether to cool steam in thermoelectric plants or power turbines for hydropower. And the global demand for both water and electricity will continue to increase substantially in the coming decades.

Recipe to Save 700,000 Young Children a Year: Clean Water & Decent Toilets

They are the foundations of a happy, healthy childhood: good nutrition, health care which includes immunisations and preventative care as well as treatment for illness, a good education. How many among us would even think to list clean water to drink, a safe place to go to the toilet and the ability to keep hands, bodies and surroundings clean with soap and water?

“I Wake Up Screaming”: Gaza’s Children Bear the Brunt of Violence

Reham Qudaih wakes up nightly to the same nightmare: her father shot, lying on the ground in a pool of blood. “In my dreams he is on the ground shot. When I have that dream – which I’ve had more than once I wake up screaming,” she told the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).

Belt and Road Initiative Vows Green Infrastructure with Connectivity

"My son in primary school did not attend a birthday celebration because it was cancelled due to bad air -- and we live in Seoul, a great place to live," said Dr. Frank Rijsberman, director-general of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI).

FAO Releases Alarming Report on Soil Pollution

Soil pollution is posing a serious threat to our environment, to our sources of food and ultimately to our health. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) warns that there is still a lack of awareness about the scale and severity of this threat. 

In South Sudan, Denial of Humanitarian Aid is a War Tactic

When I visited South Sudan last year, I heard story after story about health professionals and humanitarian workers being prevented from doing critical work. Government officials regularly increased fees for nonprofits trying to alleviate the effects of conflict, stopped humanitarian convoys from delivering life-saving supplies, and erected bureaucratic obstacles designed to impede access to civilians in need.

Human Trafficking for Organs: Ending abuse of the Poorest

Organ transplantation is one of the most incredible medical achievements of the past century. Since the first successful transplants, which took place in the 1950s, organ transplantation has saved the lives of hundreds of thousands of people worldwide.

Occupational Safety Improves in Latin America, Except Among Young People

Despite progress achieved in occupational safety in Latin America, the rates of work-related accidents and diseases are still worrying, especially among young people, more vulnerable in a context of labour flexibility and unemployment.

From Declaration to Action: Improving Immunization in Africa

Inviolate Akinyi, a 46-year-old grandmother, is certain that her grand-daughter needs to get all her vaccines for her to grow up healthy and strong. She uses a mix of private and public clinics in Kibera, one of the largest informal settlement in Nairobi, to get the 15-month-old the shots she needs.

The Gang Rape and Murder of an 8 Year Old Child in India

Grotesque and barbaric, is the only way to describe the rape and murder of an 8 year old child, in a country where women and girls are traditionally revered as Goddesses.

Child Soldiers Released, But Risk Remains

More than 200 child soldiers were released by armed groups in war-torn South Sudan, and help will be needed to ensure their safe and bright future, according to a UN agency. The release took place in Western Equatoria State and follows a similar release last month that saw 300 children freed.

Solving Japan’s Fertility Crisis

While much of the global discussion for decades has been focused on overpopulation and its consequences, less can be said of the risks of low fertility and an ageing population—risks that are currently threatening the future of Japan.

Responding to Needs of Families Living with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Shuchona Foundation is a not-for-profit policy advocacy, research, and capacity-building organization specializing in neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) and mental health. It is the culmination of the efforts to coordinate and mainstream policies and programs for mental health and NDD’s that began with the launch of the of the GAPH-Bangladesh in 2011.

World Autism Awareness Day 2018

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a name that covers a range of similar disorders affecting a person's interaction, communication and behaviour.

Conflicts Force Up Global Hunger Levels

Largely driven by conflict, the number of hungry people has dramatically increased around the world, reversing decades of progress, according to a new report.

El Salvador’s Shameful Treatment of Women Who Miscarry

Mayra Veronica Figueroa Marroquin (34) was released from prison earlier this month after serving time for what she argued was a miscarriage. Her sentence was reduced from 30 years to the 15 years she had already spent behind bars.

Celebrations Herald a New Set of Hurdles for Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s great strides in human development were widely celebrated this month, although they come at the potential cost of Western trade benefits that have helped underpin the nation’s export success for decades.

Accelerating Universal Health Coverage in Kenya-How do we get there?

The Government of Kenya has prioritized universal health coverage (UHC) in its Big 4 agenda over the next 5 years. This is a significant and perhaps the most important strategic priority. Why? Every year over a million Kenyans get trapped into poverty because of a catastrophic out of pocket payments due to health reasons.