Within minutes of using an app to book a ride, Agostino Fernandes was looking down on lush greenery from a helicopter taxi high above Bangalore — one of several Uber-style chopper services taking off to help commuters tackle increasingly congested…
Category: Environment
TIB concerned at coal-fired power plant deal near forest
The Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has expressed its deep concern for signing power purchase agreement (PPA) with contractors to build coal-fired thermal power plants by the Power Development Board (PDB) in protected forest near Tengragiri without environmental clearance from the…
Time for a global financial makeover
Liu Zhenmin NEW YORK – In 2015, United Nations member states came together and committed to achieving a comprehensive and universal set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) spanning all dimensions of economic and social development.
Chocolate’s sustainability challenge
Jeff King HERSHEY, PENNSYLVANIA – In the 1970s and 1980s, when multinational firms first linked sustainability to business success, the chief catalyst was vulnerability, not altruism. Consumer pressure, political boycotts, and costly lawsuits were damaging companies’ bottom lines, and environmental…
Canada takes the lead on methane emissions
Scott Vaughan and Durwood Zaelke OTTAWA/WASHINGTON, DC – In the fight against climate change, carbon dioxide attracts the bulk of regulators’ attention. But while long-lived CO2 is a key contributor to rising temperatures, it is not the only culprit. Other…
1mn Rohingyas being vaccinated against cholera
A massive cholera vaccination campaign began here on Sunday to protect nearly one million Rohingyas and their host communities living in and around the camps to prevent any potential outbreak during the ongoing monsoon season.
OIC foreign Ministers form ministerial body on Rohingya
The two-day 45th session of foreign ministers meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) concluded here today with a call for accountability for the atrocities and human rights violations in Rakhine state and to hold the perpetrators to account.
Climate literacy training held successfully in Dhaka
To build climate literate-youths in Bangladesh, a special programme, ‘Climate Literacy Development Training’ organised by the Youth Environment and Social Development Society (YESDS) was held at the Alliance Française, Dhaka on 30 April.
Total EU carbon emissions rise 1.8 percent last year: Eurostat
Carbon emissions from burning oil, coal and gas rose in most European Union countries in 2017, data showed Friday, in a sign the bloc was struggling to reduce greenhouse gas blamed for climate change.
PM Hasina opens OIC Foreign Ministers’ confce
She renews call for maintaining international pressure on Myanmar Dhaka, May 5 – Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday appealed to the Muslim countries under the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to firmly stand beside the forcibly deported Rohingyas to…
Should ‘modalities’ for finance info be part of Paris mandate
Bonn, 4 May (Meena Raman) – Parties were divided on whether the issue of ‘modalities’ for the biennial communication of indicative information on the financial resources available to developing countries under Article 9.5 of the Paris Agreement (PA) is part…
Recommendations for agroecological transitions
Agroecology has been gaining worldwide interest in recent years as a strategic pathway to transition to sustainable food and agriculture systems.
Top 7 disruptive technologies for cities
By Abhas Jha Imagine you were working in development and poverty reduction in the early 1990s (I was!). Only one website existed in all the world in August 1991 (today there are over 1.5 billion). Mobile phones were expensive, rare,…
PM to open OIC-CFM Saturday; Rohingya issue in focus
The 45th Ssession of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers (OIC-CFM) begins here on Saturday with a special focus on Rohingya issue and other challenges facing the Muslim Ummah.
Green groups seek steps to keep Dhaka air
Dhaka, May 3 – Speakers at a programme in the city on Friday urged the government to take effective steps to make Dhaka a dust and smoke-free city.
Some bloody immigrants think they should get all The Perks
According to the latest figures of Italy’s National Institute for Statistics (ISTAT), 184,638 non-EU citizens acquired Italian citizenship in 2016. Of these 5,799 were Brazilians, placing this nationality seventh in the ranking, behind Albanians (36,920), Moroccans (35,212), Indians (9,527), Bangladeshis…
Nine out of 10 people breathing polluted air: WHO
More than 90 percent of the global population is breathing in high levels of pollutants, the World Health Organization said Wednesday, blaming poor air quality for some seven million deaths annually. Fresh data from the UN health body showed that…
BNP castigates govt over Rohingya issue
Describing the current government as a ‘spineless’ one, BNP on Wednesday said it will not be able to send Rohingyas back to their home in Myanmar.
9 out of 10 people worldwide breathe polluted air: WHO
Nine out of 10 people breathe air containing high levels of pollutants, shows new data from the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO).
U.N. could help Myanmar gather evidence of crimes against Rohingya: British envoy
Britain’s U.N. envoy on Tuesday suggested the U.N. Security Council could consider helping Myanmar collect evidence of crimes committed during a military crackdown of the Rohingya people, denounced by the world body as ethnic cleansing after most recent bout of…
California leads coalition against new car emissions standards
A coalition of 18 US states on Tuesday sued President Donald Trump’s administration over plans to roll back vehicle emissions standards. The suit, which was led by California, seeks to protect standards passed under Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama that would…
Thirteen cities commit to creating green & healthy streets.
13 pioneering mayors have committed to the Green and Healthy Streets Declaration pledging to procure only zero-emission buses from 2025 and ensure that a major area of their city is zero emission by 2030. Signatories to the Green and Healthy…
Suu Kyi underscores Myanmar’s readiness to receive ‘verified’ Rohingyas
Myanmar’ State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi underscored Myanmar’s readiness to receive the verified Rohingyas and necessary cooperation of Bangladesh to expedite the repatriation process.
Myanmar army chief denies rape allegation of Rohingas
Myanmar military commander-in-chief Sr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing in a meeting with the UN Security Council delegates in the capital Naypyidaw claimed that no sexual abuse took place during the crackdown on Rohingya Muslims.
Gazipur Mayoral candidates promise to build a clean city
Dhaka, April 30 – The mayoral candidates in Gazipur City Corporation polls Monday Promised to build a clean and modern city as well as solve the important problems of city peoples. They also placed their various plans to solve these problems…
World’s oldest known spider dies in Australia
The world’s oldest known spider has died at the ripe old age of 43 after being monitored for years during a long-term population study in Australia, researchers said Monday.
Eco-friendly production prerequisite to achieve SDG, say expert
Dhaka, April 30 –To achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by 2030, the private industries have to be more eco-friendly, said experts at a roundtable in the city on Monday.
China, Russia, India, Japan; help resolve Rohingya issue:PM
Dhaka, Apr 30 – Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday said Bangladesh expects China, Russia, India and Japan to play a major role in resolving the Rohingya crisis. “We expect China, Russia, India and Japan to play a major role…
UNSC to work sincerely for immediate Rohingya solution
Visiting high level UN Security Council (UNSC) team today observed that the Rohingya crisis came from Myanmar and vowed that they will work sincerely for a quick solution.They acknowledged that the Rohingya issue is a crisis of Myanmar and the…
Australia pledges half a billion to restore Great Barrier Reef
Australia pledged half a billion dollars to restore and protect the Great Barrier Reef Sunday in what it said would be a game-changer for the embattled natural wonder. The World Heritage-listed site, which attracts millions of tourists, is reeling from…