Sharing our new section on Water – The study of rivers requires far more attention than has generally been given by historians or social scientists.
Category: Environment
World wakes up to climate migration
Harjeet Singh Millions of people worldwide are being displaced by natural disasters triggered partially by climate change, and the international community is finally taking steps to mitigate the suffering.
‘Strike the right balance to feed the world’
Rome, 7 June 2018 – Ending poverty and hunger top the list of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, but achieving this shared ambition by 2030 will only happen if the world finds the right balance between meeting rising food demands…
Rohingya Issue: Dhaka responds to ICC request
Dhaka – Bangladesh, being one of the State Parties to the Rome Statute, has responded to the request of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Rohingya issue as Bangladesh is seeking a “sustainable solution” to the crisis.
Study warns of alarming decline in Australian fish
Conservation experts warned Wednesday of alarming falls in Australian fish populations and called for more marine reserves and better management to halt the decline.
Drug-resistant bug behind Pakistan’s deadly typhoid outbreak
In February, scientists reported a major outbreak of typhoid fever in Sindh, Pakistan caused by an extensively drug-resistant superbug strain.
Land pooling for sustainable expansion of Bhutan’s capital city
Bhutan’s capital city of Thimphu is growing fast, and like many cities in Asia, its development has outpaced urban planning. Buildings were constructed before the roads, utilities, and public spaces needed to serve them.
Environmental protection, development possible, given a will
SANDRP How is development possible along with environmental protection? There are two kinds of answers possible to this question. The standard kind of reply would try to provide a list of options that are available to a given development need.
Plastic tsunamis threaten coast in Latin America
Although Latin America produces just five percent of the world’s plastic, it imports billions of tons annually for the use of all kinds of products, some of which end up in the sea as garbage.
Bangladesh denies knowledge of Teesta deal speculation
Amid the media speculation that the Teesta water-sharing deal will be signed with India before the next general election for an interim period, Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali on Tuesday said he does not know anything about it.
Rohingya say Myanmar targeted the educated in genocide
The last time Mohammed Hashim saw his brother alive, he begged for his life, his arms bound behind his back as soldiers marched the 35-year-old teacher away.
Manila ‘trash bin’ waterway choked with plastic
The blanket of trash on a creek that flows between the makeshift homes of a Manila slum is so dense it appears one could walk across it like a paved street. However, the thick and fetid mosaic of plastic bottles,…
Stop plastic making: BD imports Tk20 bn raw materials a year
Dhaka, June 4 – Traders are importing Tk 2,000 crore worth of plastic raw-materials every year in the country, which seriously created an adverse impact on the environment.
Bangladesh urged to submit Rohingya docs to ICC
Speakers at a seminar in the city on Monday urged the government to submit its observations and documents relating to Rohingyas forced out from Myanmar to the International Criminal Court (ICC) within the given timeframe and assist ICC in building…
BNP committees for Dhaka North City Unit
Dhaka, Jun 4 – BNP Dhaka North city unit announced full-fledged committees of its all thanas and ward units on Sunday night. Dhaka North city unit BNP President Abdul Quayum and General Secretary Ahsanullah Hasan approved the committees, said a…
At least 46 migrants drown off Tunisia; 9 killed off Turkey
Madrid, Jun 4 (AP/UNB) — A boat carrying migrants toward Europe sank off the coast of Tunisia and at least 46 people drowned, though dozens more could be missing, the North African nation’s defense ministry said Sunday.
Whale dies in Thailand after swallowing 80 plastic bags
A whale has died in southern Thailand after swallowing more than 80 plastic bags, officials said, ending an attempted rescue that failed to nurse the mammal back to health. Thailand is one of the world’s largest consumers of plastic bags,…
Decision to sign MoU first, must before Rohingya repatriation: UN
The decision to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between United Nations agencies and Myanmar is being seen as a first and necessary step since the “conditions are not yet conducive” for return of Rohingyas, says the United Nations.
Swedish team witnesses climate change adaptation initiative in Khulna
Swedish Ambassador to Bangladesh Charlotta Schlyter today visited Deluti Union Parishad of Paikgacha upazila of the district to see the initiative of Gender Responsive Climate Change Adaptation. The visiting team also included Counselor and Head of Development Cooperation in Swedish…
World Environment Day highlights deadly cost of plastic
By Sopho Kharazi Rome, May 31, 2018 (IPS) – On June 5th, World Environment Day will be hosted under the banner of “Beat Plastic Pollution,” aiming to raise awareness and civic engagement alongside creating a global movement to reduce the…
The coming wave of climate displacement
Kumi Naidoo Johannesburg – Governments around the world are engaged in a series of talks that could fundamentally alter how the movement of people across borders is managed. One dialogue is focused on the protection of refugees; the other on…
UN, Myanmar agree on first steps towards return of Rohingya
Yangon, Jun 01 (AP/UNB) — Myanmar and the United Nations agreed to take steps to create conditions for the safe return of about 700,000 Rohingya Muslims who have fled military-led violence into Bangladesh.
1000 female migrant workers back home from KSA in 5 months
Dhaka, May 31 – Around 1,000 female workers have returned home from Saudi Arabia in last five months, and many female workers are waiting at safe houses and different jails there for a return to the country.
Heavy downpours cripple life in Capital Dhaka
Heavy rains and thundershowers on Thursday morning crippled city dwellers’ life as most roads in different parts of the capital went under water, causing immense sufferings to commuters.
Conditions not created yet in Myanmar for repatriation: UNHCR
UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, on Thursday said the relocation of Rohingyas to Bhasanchar Island in Noakhali would not be realistic right now as they first want to see what the facilities are available there.
Japan whale hunt killed 122 pregnant minkes
Japan killed 122 pregnant minke whales during a highly controversial annual whaling expedition that Tokyo defends as scientific research but conservationists call “gruesome and unnecessary.”
Making agriculture work for – not against – biodiversity
Incorporating biodiversity as a priority in agriculture can yield multiple benefits Rome 29 May 2018 – FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva has called for transformative changes in how we produce our food, grounded in sustainable agricultural systems capable of…
Great Barrier Reef on sixth life in 30,000 years
Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, under severe stress in a warmer, more acidic ocean, has returned from near-extinction five times in the past 30,000 years, researchers said Monday. And while this suggests the reef may be more resilient than once thought,…
Conflict theory and biosphere annihilation
Robert J. Burrowes In a recent article titled ‘Challenges for Resolving Complex Conflicts’, I pointed out that existing conflict theory pays little attention to the extinction-causing conflict being ongoingly generated by human over-consumption in the finite planetary biosphere (and, among…
Farmers Create ingredients to reverse climate change
Danielle Nierenberg I am here at the 2018 General Assembly of the World Farmers’ Organization (WFO), an organization representing farmers and agribusinesses of all sizes. This year’s theme is how farmers around the globe are coping with climate change. Last…