By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — UN Secretary-General António Guterres has warned that the current devastating war in Ukraine has an equally destructive impact on the outside world: an assault on the world’s most vulnerable people and countries. The worst affected are the world’s poor as food, fuel and fertilizer prices are skyrocketing while […]
MiniMines Mixes Lithium Extraction with Circular Economy and UN SDGs
By Anupam Kumar B.Tech*** NEW DELHI (IDN) — In 2018, the notion of circular economy and its inherent link to the UN SDGs gained currency globally especially after the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly. UNCTAD defines a circular economy entailing markets that give incentives to recycling and reusing products, rather than scrapping […]
A Timely Book to Encourage Teaching of Mindfulness to Children
By Kalinga Seneviratne This article is the 49th in a series of joint productions of Lotus News Features and IDN-InDepthNews, flagship agency of the Non-profit International Press Syndicate. Click here for previous reports. SYDNEY (IDN) — The recently published book ‘Developing Mindfulness in Young Children’* is a timely addition to educating our next generations to […]
NATO Is Far from Obsolete
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden (IDN) — What does ex-president Donald Trump think about NATO? Twice during his campaigning, he rubbished it publicly, saying it was “obsolete”. Three years ago the French president, Emmanuel Macron, said NATO was “brain-dead. Is it obsolete or brain-dead or both?
Ukraine: ‘We Need Peace Now’ Declares the UN Chief & Warns of Global Hunger Meltdown
By UN News UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — Ukraine is being “decimated before the eyes of the world” with Russia’s military offensive against civilians “reaching terrifying proportions”, said the UN chief on March 14, warning that a resulting meltdown of the global economy is provoking a hunger crisis that is hitting the poorest, hardest. Secretary-General António […]
Three UN Agencies Call for Stopping Attacks on Health Care in Ukraine
By Jaya Ramachandran GENEVA | NEW YORK (IDN) — Three UN agencies have called for an immediate ceasefire in the Ukraine-Russia conflict, enabling unhindered access so that people in need can avail of humanitarian assistance. “A peaceful resolution to end the war in Ukraine is possible,” says a joint statement issued by UNICEF Executive Director, […]
Striving for a Global Treaty to Combat Plastic Pollution, ‘One of the Greatest Human-Made Threats our Planet Faces’
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — In the 1967 Hollywood box office hit “The Graduate”—a romantic comedy directed by Mike Nichols and based on a novel by Charles Webb—the newly-graduated Dustin Hoffman gets an unsolicited piece of advice: “The future is plastics”. The widely disseminated one-liner was hailed as a boost for the world’s […]
Feminist UN Campaign Report Wants UN Chief to Walk the Talk
By J C Suresh WASHINGTON, D.C. (IDN) — “Talk less, act more …. All words are like feathers in the air,” commented an informant of the Feminist UN Campaign‘s report on UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ commitment to gender equality in his five-year first term. In fact, key informants reported that staff remain disillusioned with the […]
Int’l Women’s Day: Nigerian Lawmakers Quashed Gender Equality Bill
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — For the third time in five years, Nigeria’s National Assembly has voted against a bill providing affirmative action for women in political party administration. The lawmakers also voted against a provision to create special seats for women in the national and state assemblies.
Russia Battles Its Own Weapon Systems in Ukraine — As US Provides Over A $Billion in Arms
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — Perhaps one of the biggest ironies of the current military conflict is that Ukraine may be using mostly Soviet-era weapons against the Russians, including combat helicopters, T-64 battle tanks and AT-6 anti-tank missiles acquired from the former USSR. But that military scenario is expected to change significantly with […]