On August the first, the Italian daily
La Repubblica published an interview with David Grossman, Israel’s most renown author and supporter of a “two-state solution”, as well as an outspoken critic of Israel's violence against Palestinian civilians.
Once relegated to the periphery of Africa’s economic map due to their lack of coastline, the continent’s landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) are now reframing their geographic constraints as gateways to opportunity.
Eighty years ago, the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki left a lasting reminder to humanity of the inhuman nature of nuclear weapons. Kazakhstan, too, is a nation deeply scarred by nuclear tests conducted during the Soviet era. Having covered the activities of
Soka Gakkai International (SGI) in Kazakhstan—including its support for
exhibitions and
documentary productions on nuclear abolition in Astana—, INPS Japan recently interviewed Zhanna Shayakhmetova, editor-in-chief of
The Astana Times, a leading English-language newspaper in the country that continues to convey messages of disarmament and peace to the world. In the interview, Shayakhmetova spoke about the role of religious leaders who will gather in Astana from around the world this September, the importance of passing on memories to younger generations, and the responsibility journalism holds in this endeavor.
The contamination of pharmaceutical medicines through toxic excipients is killing many and harming others. The UN agencies for health and drugs and crime warn that systemic vulnerabilities in the global supply chain have been exploited to introduce industrial-grade toxic chemicals into medicines, harming thousands of people, including children.
On 16th July this year I was at the University of Chicago, attending a Nobel Laureate Assembly, and visited the site where at 15:25 PM local time on 2 December 1942, the nuclear physicist Enrico Fermi achieved the first self-sustaining atomic fission chain reaction.
“The term ‘negotiation' must be understood in ethical context… When an arsonist comes and burns down my house and then asks me to negotiate so I can rebuild my house, that becomes the paradox.”
Agriculture is a critical sector in landlocked developing countries, as more than half (55 percent) of the population is employed in the agriculture sector – significantly higher than the global average of 25 per cent. As such, the deterioration of food security in landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) is an unfolding catastrophe.
CIVICUS discusses Bolivia’s upcoming presidential election with Juan Carlos Uribe and Lucas Illanes from ChequeaBolivia, an initiative that monitors and verifies social media content.
Technological progress and the course of human history have moved forward together; more recent technological innovations have emerged with unprecedented speed and reach, deeply influencing many areas of human activity.
As Russian forces continue to lay waste to civilian areas of towns and cities across Ukraine, Roma in the country are struggling to access compensation to help them rebuild their damaged homes.
At the United Nations media stakeout on Tuesday, Israeli officials kept focus exclusively on the hostages, avoiding questions entirely.
In the glass-panelled hallway straddling Buildings 2 and 3 at the Awaza Congress Centre, two smartly dressed young Turkmens stood behind an ornate national pavilion—anxious, alert, and surprisingly eloquent.
The beauty of the majestic Piton mountains, vibrant culture, dazzling beaches and lush landscapes of Saint Lucia are invaluable assets. The country also takes pride in having two Nobel laureates, which is remarkable for a nation with a population of over 180,000.
Heads of State, ministers, investors and grassroots leaders are gathered in Awaza on Turkmenistan’s Caspian coast for a once-in-a-decade UN conference aimed at rewiring the global system in support of 32 landlocked developing countries whose economies are often ‘locked out’ of opportunity due to their lack of access to the sea.
As the world’s youngest and fastest-growing nations, LLDCs are home to immense untapped potential, yet remain cut off from the currents of international commerce and opportunity. Imagine being surrounded by opportunity, yet separated from it by mountains, borders, and vast distances from the nearest port—this is the daily reality for the world’s landlocked developing countries (LLDCs).
They are lightweight, cheap, and able to be used in every sector of every supply chain. Few materials have revolutionized manufacturing and the global economy as much as plastics have. They are essential in almost everything, however this comes at a cost. A cost of
1.5 trillion annually in environmental damage, and a 75 percent waste ratio of all plastic ever produced.
One would expect that this year’s
wetter than average rainy season in parts of Africa would be viewed with relief, not fear. Yet many areas in the region sits at a knife’s edge—still recovering from years of drought and a historic famine, too much rain leads to flooding and water-borne diseases. Both varieties of extreme weather place enormous stress on livestock systems across the region, on which communities rely for both sustenance and livelihoods.
Rice queues – something once unthinkable – began appearing around May. As the country’s staple food hit record prices, frustrated shoppers found themselves breaking a cultural taboo by switching to rice from South Korea. It was a symbol of how far Japan’s economic certainties had crumbled, creating fertile ground for a political shift.
There is no question that most climate activists and governments were delighted when Brazil offered to host the 2025 UN Climate Conference taking place this November.
The 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II triggers the question: Is nuclear testing dead or is it still alive--and threatening?
The August 6-9 anniversary marks the devastating bombings, which claimed the lives of between 150,000 and 246,000 civilians-- and still remains the only use of nuclear weapons in an armed conflict.
Successive United States governments have prided themselves on being governed by the Constitution of 1788. The
First Amendment introduced in 1791 lays the foundations for secularism, respect for fundamental freedoms, and the right to seek redress of grievances.