Ten African Countries to Benefit From USD 100 Million Released by Green Climate Fund

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) has announced the release of USD 100 million at the ongoing United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 28th Conference of Parties (COP 28) in Dubai, UAE, to support 10 African countries in adapting food loss reduction solutions.

Pacific Leaders Announce Largest Conservation Effort in History

Pacific people live at the nexus of oceans, climate, and food systems, and the interaction of climate and ocean is raising sea temperatures and threatening habitats and resources vital to the region’s sustenance, Palau’s President Surangel Whipps, Jr., said at the launch of an effort to protect and rejuvenate the region's ecosystems and empower communities through to the year 2050—in what is considered to be the biggest single conservation effort in history—Unlocking Blue Pacific Prosperity.

ECW’s Emergency Appeal for Crises Impacted Children Facing Double Tragedies

Across the globe, the number of crisis-affected school-aged children facing climate shocks amplified by climate change keeps rising. The Somalia region of Ethiopia is facing the worst drought in 40 years. Last year in Pakistan, unprecedented flooding damaged more than 26,000 schools. Tropical Cyclone Tej recently made landfall in Yemen, affecting thousands of people.

Human Rights Crucial as Wealthy Nations Reap Energy Transition Benefits

As the world converges for COP 28, the urgency of addressing climate change has never been more palpable. In an exclusive interview with IPS, Yamide Dagnet, the Director for Climate Justice at Open Society Foundations, delves into the intricate details of this pivotal conference—from the unprecedented start to key challenges and opportunities in climate finance. She offers a comprehensive and nuanced perspective on global climate discourse.

Why Agroecology Should Be Considered as Key for Climate Negotiations

Students of St Denis Libolina Primary have used agroecology farming techniques to transform the entire school garden and any free space into food forests and gardens for different vegetable varieties, legumes, and herbs. Now the students, who are physically challenged, have challenged their parents, villagers, and farmers in the outskirts of Myanga Township, in Kenya’s Bungoma County, in the Western region, to do the same.

Salvadoran Rural Communities Face Climate Injustice

For decades, poor fishing and farming communities in southern El Salvador have paid the price for the electricity generated by one of the country's five dams, as constant and sometimes extreme rains cause the reservoir to release water that ends up flooding the low-lying area where the families live.

This Doctor Helps Himalayan Women Ward off Cervical Cancer

While working as a doctor in the initial months of his medical career in southern India, a telephone call from his home in the Ladakh Himalayas convinced Nordan Otzer to involve himself with cervical cancer awareness.

Suicide, Another Face of the Crisis in Venezuela

In the wee hours of one morning in early November, Ernesto, 50, swallowed several glasses of a cocktail of drugs and alcohol in the apartment where he lived alone in the Venezuelan capital, ending a life tormented by declining health and lack of resources to cope as he would have liked.

Right Here, Right Now: ECW’s USD 150 Million Climate Appeal to Save Children at Risk

A catastrophic surge in the frequency, intensity, and severity of extreme weather events has placed children on the frontlines of climate emergencies. Nearly half of the world’s children, or one billion, live in countries at extremely high risk from the effects of the climate crisis. Most of these children face multiple vulnerabilities.

Young Musician’s Death Exposes Zimbabwe’s Collapsing Health System

A rising Afropop musician, Garikai Mapanzure, popularly known by his stage name Garry, has become the latest high-profile victim of Zimbabwe’s deteriorating health facilities. Garry, who was 25, died in mid-October after sustaining grave injuries in a horrific accident near his home in Masvingo, 295 kilometres from Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare.

Latin America Heads to COP28 with Insufficiently Ambitious Goals

Throughout 2023, Latin America has suffered heat waves, long, intense droughts, destructive floods and devastating hurricanes - phenomena related to the effects of a climate crisis derived mostly from the burning of fossil fuels.

Latin America Still Has a Long Way to Go to Eliminate Gender Violence

"The Latin American and Caribbean region has made many advances in the fight against gender violence, but now we are facing reactions that show that our rights are never secure and that we must always be on the alert to defend them," said Susana Chiarotti, a member of Mesecvi's Committee of Experts.

Africa Will Not Cope with Climate Change Without a Just, Inclusive Energy Transition

A just transition should be viewed as an opportunity to rectify some of the wrongs where women are not prioritised in the energy mix, yet their experience of the impact of climate change is massive, says Thandile Chinyavanhu, a young South African-based climate and energy campaigner with Greenpeace Africa.

COP28: Strengthen Climate Resilience in Small and Vulnerable Countries

With a focus on strengthening the resilience of small and vulnerable member countries, Unnikrishnan Nair says the Commonwealth Secretariat is working to align development and climate finance for maximum impact.

For Every Child, Every Right—Delivering Psychosocial Support for Crisis Impacted Children

As the global community marks World Children's Day, every child should be guaranteed their rights, including those in the Gaza Strip, where heavy bombardment and military operations by Israel have killed more than 11,000 people, 40 percent of them children.

Pacific Games Channels Youth Aspirations in the Solomon Islands

The Pacific Games, the most prestigious sporting event in the Pacific Islands region, will open in the Solomon Islands in the southwest Pacific on 19 November. And it is set to shine a spotlight on the energy, hopes and aspirations of youths who comprise the majority of the country’s population.

Argentines Get Used to the Fact that Inflation Can Always Get Worse

People in Argentina have become accustomed to the fact that nothing costs the same today as it did the week before and they take price hikes in stride with resignation, says Mariano Cohen. "Almost nobody gets angry or complains anymore. They just don't buy something if they can't afford it," he explains in his disposable goods store in Villa Crespo, one of Buenos Aires' most commercial neighborhoods.

Forced Labor: Exposing Dark Web of Fisheries Labor Abuses

It is a terrifying life experience, cut off from the world and trapped in forced labour aboard fishing vessels, often in high seas or seas beyond the territorial waters of any state. The fishers are isolated under hazardous and horrific working conditions under limited regulatory oversight. More than 128,000 fishers were trapped in forced labour aboard fishing vessels in 2021 alone.

Smallholder Farmers Gain Least from International Climate Funding

Smallholder farmers from the Global South benefit from a grossly disproportionate 0.3% of international climate finance despite producing a third of the world's food and despite holding the key to climate-proofing food systems.

Time to Convert Climate Change Rhetoric into Action, Says WFP’s Gernot Laganda

It is crucial to narrow the gaps and ensure that climate finance goes to where people are most vulnerable, says Gernot Laganda, Director of Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction at the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP)—especially as the most fragile states only receive USD 2.1 per capita while non-fragile states receive USD 161.

‘Taking Palestine Back to 2005’ — UN Warns of Socioeconomic Impacts of Gaza War

One month into the war in Gaza, Palestine has already seen major setbacks in development that will have severe ramifications for the people of Palestine that will impact any future efforts toward its economic recovery.