GLOBAL ISSUES – Page 202 – IDN-InDepthNews

PLANET EARTH2013-06-282023-07-10

‘It’s the Earth Democracy We Need To Create’

As India reels under the havoc caused by devastating floods in the country’s northern Himalayan region, the call by eminent environmental activist Vandana Shiva [1] for a new economic model that respects the planet and all species of life in a keynote address at the Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum in Bonn on June 19, assumes an added significance. IDN is reproducing extracts of the speech transcribed by its partner Pressenza international press agency.

By Vandana Shiva* | IDN-InDepth NewsViewpoint

My home is in my heart and in my mind because I come from the Himalaya. 40 years ago ordinary peasant women came out and told the world something the world had forgotten; that somehow forests were connected to water because the market value of timber – and it was a German forester, who set up the system for the British in India on how to exploit forests – forests were just that much square foot of timber.

Latin America & the Caribbean2013-06-282023-07-12

Quo Vadis, Brazil?

By Paulo Genovese, Pressenza

IDN-InDepth NewsReport

The writer, a member of the Humanist Movement, gives not only a personal account of protests that appeared to have come from nowhere, but also looks behind the scene and beyond.

SAO PAULO (IDN) – Millions of Brazilians have been protesting in the streets since June 6 when students blocked streets in downtown Goiânia, set fire to car tires, threw homemade bombs, and broke windows of police cars.

GLOBAL ISSUES2013-06-262023-07-10

Creating New Values Through Gift Economies

By David Andersson | IDN-InDepth NewsViewpoint

This is the text of a presentation at a workshop – ‘Turning a Crisis into an Opportunity: Humanizing the Economy’ – organised on June 18 by IDN partner Pressenza International Press Agency at the Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum 2013 in Bonn. It is being reproduced by arrangement with Pressenza.

Gift economies could be very potent and effective organizing tools for creating value. We have many examples of gift economies in our world today, such as community gardens or free/open software, where no money is paid for the creation and maintenance of this resource but instead people contribute time and talent and get recognition and respect as well as shared access to the resources.

GLOBAL ISSUES2013-06-252023-07-10

What is the Edward Snowden Saga All About?

By Alexander Holstein* | IDN-InDepth NewsAnalysis

Contrary to the widespread view, Edward Snowden does not fit the traditional whistleblower profile. He has neither protected anyone’s rights nor guaranteed individual freedom. A former technical contractor for the U.S: National Security Agency (NSA) and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) employee – his actions could in fact prove more damaging than those of traditional double agents such as Edward Lee Howard, Aldrich Ames and Robert Hanssen. On par perhaps with the most damaging spy of the entire Cold War – Kim Philby, the senior British intelligence officer and KGB mole who defected to the USSR, where he died as a Hero of the Soviet Union.

GLOBAL ISSUES2013-06-242023-07-10

New Coalition To Face Law Suits on Investment Treaties

By Martin Khor* | IDN-InDepth NewsReport

GENEVA (IDN | SouthNews) – Leaders of several Latin American countries have set up a new coalition to coordinate actions to face the growing number of international legal suits being taken against governments by transnational companies.

A ministerial meeting of 12 countries held in Guayaquil, Ecuador, decided on several joint actions to counter the threat posed by these law suits, which have claimed millions or even billions of dollars from governments.

“No more should small countries face law suits from big companies by themselves,” said Ecuador’s Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino, at a media conference after the meeting which he chaired. “We have now decided to deal with the challenges posed by these transnational companies in a coordinated way.”

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT2013-06-222023-07-10

Revisiting Essentials Underlying the MDGs

By Deepak Nayyar, South Centre* | IDN-InDepth NewsEssay

GENEVA (IDN) – The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) began life a decade ago. There were three dimensions to the significance of the MDGs. It was an explicit recognition of the reality that a large proportion of people in the world were deprived and poor.

Climate Change2013-06-152023-07-10

Up To 5.3°C Rise in Global Temperatures Likely

By Richard Johnson | IDN-InDepth NewsReport

LONDON (IDN) – The world is not on track to limit the global temperature increase to 2 degrees Celsius, says the World Energy Outlook Special Report, Redrawing the Energy-Climate Map, urging governments to swiftly enact four energy policies that would keep climate goals alive without harming economic growth.

“Climate change has quite frankly slipped to the back burner of policy priorities. But the problem is not going away – quite the opposite,” said the International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Maria van der Hoeven launching the report in London on June 10.

GLOBAL ISSUES2013-06-132023-07-10

The World’s Poorest Heave A Sigh of Relief

By Jaya Ramachandran | IDN-InDepth NewsAnalysis

BERLIN (IDN) – Forty-nine of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable courtiers spanning across Asia-Pacific, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean are no longer threatened by a modern-day Damocles’ sword – not until July 1, 2021 at least. The group known as the least-developed countries (LDCs) can in fact request further extension of the waiver on abiding by the Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).

GLOBAL ISSUES2013-06-072023-07-10

Solar Trade Wars Affect Climate Change Fight

By Martin Khor* | IDN-InDepth NewsAnalysis

GENEVA (IDN) – Amidst the gloomy news in the deteriorating climate change situation, is this bright spark – the cost of solar energy has been going down dramatically. This source of clean and renewable energy is seen as one of the major saviours that could help power the world without emitting greenhouse gases.

The drawback is that solar energy has traditionally been more expensive to use carbon-intensive coal or oil. But in recent years solar power has become much cheaper. Energy experts predict that its cost could match that of conventional fuels in the next few years in some areas.

GLOBAL ISSUES2013-06-062023-07-10

Another Run At Ending Global Hunger

By Ernest Corea* | IDN-InDepth NewsAnalysis

WASHINGTON DC (IDN) – Yet another high-level panel has designed yet another “roadmap” to universal prosperity and a hunger-free world – by 2030. A new set of goals is likely to replace the current Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). “Once again, the goalposts of development are being moved instead of the goals being met,” says a jaded observer of international affairs.

The panel was created by UN Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon. Its co-chairs were Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and British Prime Minister David Cameron.