TerraViva Europe

Even Death Feels Weight of Crisis in Spain

By Alexandra Di Stefano Pironti

Even in death, people in Spain cannot escape the economic crisis. Funeral services carry the highest VAT (value added tax) rate, alongside entertainment like nightclubs, and luxury products.

Cameroonians See REDD

By Monde Kingsley Nfor
Uncertainty over property rights and access to forest land is potentially a major stumbling block for implementing the United Nations collaborative initiative on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation in Cameroon.

Zimbabwe’s Electoral Commission Shaken by Vote

By Jeffrey Moyo
As a second commissioner from the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) resigns, local opposition parties and analysts are questioning the organisation’s credibility and President Robert Mugabe’s victory. 

Ancient Kings Fight Climate Change

By Amantha Perera
Life for a widow with young children in Sri Lanka’s poor agrarian areas can be harsh. Families in remote areas like Anuradhapura in the North Central Province barely eke out a living through paddy cultivation or through vegetable and other crops planted in cleared jungle shrub - Chena cultivation as it is called.

Govt, Energy Industry Accused of Suppressing Fracking Dangers

By Jared Metzker
New signs have emerged in recent days which indicate that extreme measures are being taken in order to suppress evidence of the pernicious effects of the energy extraction method known as hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking".

Tapping Rural Culture for Development Potential

By Constanza Vieira
“I was a hunter. I killed many animals,” said Rosalino Ortiz, a representative of Mashiramo, a campesino organisation that monitors biodiversity in Colombia’s Massif range in the southern department of Huila.

U.S.-Russia Rift Could Impact Upcoming Nuke Talks

By Thalif Deen
The growing political rift between the United States and Russia triggered by the granting of temporary asylum to U.S. whistleblower Edward Snowden, who is now holed up in Moscow, is threatening to further undermine relations between the two superpowers at the United Nations.

Environmentalists Alarmed at Tourism Plans for Small Islands

By Humberto Márquez
The Venezuelan government’s plans to develop tourism infrastructure on virtually uninhabited highly biodiverse small islands in the southern Caribbean have triggered warnings from environmentalists.

More Kids Pushed Into Labour in Lebanon

By Zak Brophy
With Lebanon fraying at the seams under pressure from the neighbouring Syria conflict and the economy stuttering amid a political vacuum, more and more children are being pushed into labour.  

Troubled Kurds Draw Closer

By Karlos Zurutuza
"The Islamists’ announcement that god supported the killing of Kurds in Syria made us react," recalls Farouk Aziz Khadir. This 60-year-old Iraqi Kurd is ready to take up arms to defend his kin in the neighbouring war-torn country. And there are many more like him.

Supporting Rural Community Self-Management in Southern Peru

By Milagros Salazar
Some 40 multicoloured tents were set up to showcase the fruits of community-based rural development projects in the main square of this village in southern Peru during a visit by IFAD president Kanayo Nwanze.

Migrant Workers Finding Opportunity in Russian Far East

By Evgeny Kuzmin
Traditionally the bulk of migrant labourers in Russia’s Far East have come from China, with a few North Koreans mixed in. But of late, workers from Central Asia have been pushing their Chinese competitors off the lowest rung on the labour ladder in eastern Siberia.

Interpol ‘Misused’ by Human Rights Abusers

By Ida Karlsson
The world's largest international policing organisation Interpol is being used by governments to track down political opponents and human rights campaigners, an IPS investigation reveals.

China Trade Deal Raises Hackles in Taiwan

By Dennis Engbarth
A broad coalition of Taiwanese labour, human rights and other civil society organisations are campaigning to block legislative ratification of the controversial Cross-Strait Services Trade Agreement signed Jun. 21 by representatives of Taiwan and China.

Fear of Isolation Gets Israel Talking

By Pierre Klochendler
The fresh Palestinian-Israeli peace drive stems from the realisation by all parties involved in the process that diplomatic isolation constitutes a strategic threat to Israel. This isolation whip will be held above Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s back for as long as it takes for him to agree to the pre-1967 lines as basis for the end of the 46-year occupation.

Australian ‘Outsourcing’ of Refugees Challenged

By Catherine Wilson
The Australian asylum policy of rejecting boat arrivals has been condemned by the United Nations Refugee Agency, Pacific island leaders, migration experts and human rights organisations.

Alberta’s Oil Sands Bring Jobs, Services and Despair

By Flossie Baker
“First the bugs began to disappear,” says Eriel Deranger, spokesperson for Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation.

Therapeutic Abortion Faces Political Resistance in Chile

By Marianela Jarroud
Nearly a quarter century after Chile’s return to democracy, there is still a lack of political will to legalise therapeutic abortion, analysts say, even though Congress is debating several draft laws on the question.

Cuba, a Country with a Broken Heart

By Leonardo Padura
For Cubans, baseball is not a sport, much less a game: it is almost a religion, and taken very seriously.

Geothermal Energy Stuck in a Hole in Switzerland

By Ray Smith
An accident in a flagship project threatens the future of geothermal energy in Switzerland. The mishap that was followed by earthquakes has come as a warning that geothermal deep drilling still has a long way to go.

Underage Girls Are Egypt’s Summer Rentals

By Cam McGrath
Each summer, wealthy male tourists from Gulf Arab states flock to Egypt to escape the oppressive heat of the Arabian Peninsula, taking residence at upscale hotels and rented flats in Cairo and Alexandria. Many come with their families and housekeeping staff, spending their days by the pool, shopping, and frequenting cafes and nightclubs. Others come for a more sinister purpose.
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