By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — As massive floods and endless droughts, unleashed by global climate change, take lives and leave homes a twisted pile of sticks, the Democratic Republic of Congo will take a dangerous step backwards—opening up the Congo Basin to fossil fuel development. Sections of a renowned tropical […]
A New Study Tells Where Our Food Comes From
By J Nastranis NEW YORK (IDN) — Since the start of agriculture 10,000 years ago, many crops have been domesticated. However, not all are made equal as some play an important role in providing food and nutritional security globally, including wheat, corn, rice, and potatoes. At the same time, the globalization efforts of the past […]
G7 Carped for Failure to Tackle Hunger Crisis
By Jutta Wolf BERLIN (IDN) — “Faced with the worst hunger crisis in a generation, the G7 have simply failed to take the action that is needed. Many millions will face terrible hunger and starvation as a result,” declared Max Lawson, head of inequality policy at Oxfam International. “Instead of doing what is needed, the […]
Achieving SDGs by 2030 in Peril
By Kalinga Seneviratne SYDNEY (IDN) — After two issues focusing mainly on the impact of the Ukraine-Russia war on the achievement of SDGs, this month we wanted to shift the focus, but it was not as easy as reflected in the articles published here. The United Nations has revised its global growth estimates due to […]
There Should Be No Crisis in World Food Supplies
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden (IDN) — The world is lather about the jump in world food prices in world food prices. Just this last weekend the Minister of Agriculture of Egypt was saying that, without assured grain supplies from Russia and Ukraine, he expected a rise of widespread malnutrition.
Southern Africa Feels the Pinch of Russia-Ukraine War
By Jeffrey Moyo HARARE, Zimbabwe (IDN) — Life is no longer the same for Zimbabwe’s shop owner, 34-year-old Richwell Mhasi in the capital Harare who has had to park his car at home, switching to his bicycle, cycling to and from work amid the rising prices of fuel since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine war […]
Behind India’s Wheat Fiasco
By V Sridhar This article was issued by NewsClick, and is being republished courtesy of that independent media organization in India. NEW DELHI (IDN) — The month of May seems to be the Narendra Modi Government’s favourite month for conjuring a crisis out of thin air. Exactly a year ago, it was the vaccine fiasco; […]
Sri Lanka: Government’s Badly Planned Organic Farming Policy Upsets Rice Farmers
By R.M.Samanmalee Swarnalatha POLLONNARUWA, Sri Lanka (IDN) — Sri Lankan government’s badly planned organic farming policy that has banned the use of chemical fertilizer in farms has upset farmers in this rice growing heartland and a political stronghold of the ruling coalition. The policy has also drawn criticism from agricultural experts, who warn that Sri […]
UN Warns of Food Insecurity in 20 Countries and Regions
By Jaya Ramachandran ROME (IDN) — A new report by two UN agencies has identified “hunger hotspots” across 20 countries and regions where parts of the population are expected to face a significant deterioration of acute food insecurity in the coming months that will put their lives and livelihoods at risk. This warning of spiralling […]
COP26: Indigenous Peoples Join UN Representatives in Calling to End the ‘War on Nature’
By J Nastranis NEW YORK | GLASGOW (IDN) — Mother Nature, or “Pachamama“, as they say in Latin America, took centre stage as the critical UN climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland, reached the halfway point on November 6. No one knows more about how best to protect nature, than the indigenous peoples of the world, […]