Environment

Recycling Revives Art of Glass-Blowing in Lebanon

By Oriol Andrés Gallart
In the Khalife workshop, in the southern coastal village of Sarafand, four men stand beside an oven, fixed in concentration despite the oppressive temperature. Blowing through a long tube, one of the group carefully shapes white-hot melted glass into a small ball, while two others coax it into the form of a beer glass. The fourth, the veteran of the group, cuts off the top of the glass, creating an opening from which beer will one day flow.

Deforestation in the Amazon Aggravates Brazil’s Energy Crisis

By Mario Osava
In Brazil water and electricity go together, and two years of scant rainfall have left tens of millions of people on the verge of water and power rationing, boosting arguments for the need to fight deforestation in the Amazon rainforest.

Global Civil Society to the Rescue of the Amazon

By Kwame Buist
A global civil society petition to save the Amazon is circulating on the internet and its promoters say that once one million signatures have been collected indigenous leaders will deliver it directly to the governments of Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela.

Millions of Dollars for Climate Financing but Barely One Cent for Women

By Amantha Perera
The statistics tell the story: in some parts of the world, four times as many women as men die during floods; in some instances women are 14 times more likely to die during natural disasters than men.

Curbing Tobacco Use – One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

By Diana Mendoza
The numbers are in, and there’s not much to celebrate: every year, about six million people die as a result of tobacco use, including 600,000 who succumb to the effects of second-hand smoke.

Opinion: World Leaders Lack Ambition to Tackle Climate Crisis

By Dipti Bhatnagar and Susann Scherbarth
World governments expect to agree to a new global treaty to combat climate change in Paris in December. As the catastrophic impacts of climate change become more evident, so too escalates the urgency to act.

Pledges for Humanitarian Aid to Syria Fall Short of Target by Billions

By Thalif Deen
When United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stood before 78 potential donors at the Bayan Palace in Kuwait Tuesday, his appeal for funds had an ominous ring to it: the Syrian people, he remarked, "are victims of the worst humanitarian crisis of our time."

U.N. Water Report Not “Doom And Gloom”, Says Author

By Josh Butler
The lead author of a United Nations water report has spoken out about media depictions of his findings, denying the report lays out a “doom and gloom” scenario.

A “Year of Eye-Catching Steps Forward” for Renewable Energy

By Sean Buchanan
Driven by solar and wind, world investments in renewable energy reversed a two-year dip last year, brushing aside the challenge from sharply lower oil prices and registering a 17 percent leap over the previous year to stand at 270 billion dollars.

Nicaragua’s Future Canal a Threat to the Environment

By José Adán Silva
The new interoceanic canal being built in Nicaragua has brought good and bad news for the scientific community: new species and archeological sites have been found and knowledge of the local ecosystems has grown, but the project poses a huge threat to the environment.

Opinion: A Major Push Forward for Gender and Environment

By Joni Seager, Deepa Joshi, and Rebecca Pearl-Martinez
Experts from around the world gathered in New York recently to launch work on the Global Gender Environment Outlook (GGEO), the first comprehensive, integrated and global assessment of gender issues in relation to the environment and sustainability.

Q&A: “Protect Your Biodiversity”

By Desmond Brown
Richard Huber is chief of the Sustainable Communities, Hazard Risk, and Climate Change Section of the Department of Sustainable Development of the Organisation of American States (OAS). Its objective? Foster resilient, more sustainable cities – reducing, for example, consumption of water and energy – while simultaneously improving the quality of life and the participation of the community.

Pollution a Key but Underrated Factor in New Development Goals

By Stephen Leahy
Pollution is likely to be the most pressing global health issue in the coming years without effective prevention and clean-up efforts, experts say.

Joan Baez, Ai Weiwei Awarded Amnesty International’s Top Honour

By Josh Butler
Folk singer Joan Baez and Chinese artist Ai Weiwei were announced Tuesday as the winners of Amnesty International’s Ambassador of Conscience Award.

Global Citizenship Essential for Gender Equality: Ambassador Chowdhury

By Josh Butler
At a recent panel discussion on women’s leadership during the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women, Ambassador Anwarul Chowdhury was the lone male voice.

Pacific Islanders Say Climate Finance “Essential” for Paris Agreement

By Catherine Wilson
As Pacific Islanders contemplate the scale of devastation wrought by Cyclone Pam this month across four Pacific Island states, including Vanuatu, leaders in the region are calling with renewed urgency for global action on climate finance, which they say is vital for building climate resilience and arresting development losses.

Hold the Rich Accountable in New U.N. Development Goals, Say NGOs

By Thalif Deen
When the World Economic Forum (WEF) met last January in Switzerland, attended mostly by the rich and the super-rich, the London-based charity Oxfam unveiled a report with an alarming statistic: if current trends continue, the world’s richest one percent would own more than 50 percent of the world’s wealth by 2016.

Gates Foundation Slammed for Plan to Privatise African Seed Markets

By Josh Butler
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) has been attacked by activists over alleged support of a plan to privatise African agricultural markets.

Opinion: The Scourge of Illegal Wildlife Trade

By Steven Broad
On Feb. 13, 2014, heads of state and ministers from 41 countries met in London to inject a new level of political momentum into efforts to combat the growing global threat posed by illegal wildlife trade to species such as elephants, rhinos and tigers.

Four Fast Facts to Debunk Myths About Rural Women

By Jacqui Ashby and Jennifer Twyman
We are lucky to live in a country that has long since abandoned the image of the damsel in distress. Even Disney princesses now save themselves and send unsuitable “saviours” packing. But despite the great strides being made in gender equality, we are still failing rural women, particularly women farmers.

Opinion: Water and Sanitation in Nigeria – Playing the Numbers Game

By Clinton Ikechukwu Ezeigwe
In Nigeria, it’s all about the numbers. My nation recently became the largest economy in Africa by some distance, with a GDP of well over 500 billion dollars.
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