By Jan Servaes* BRUSSELS, 12 March 2023 (IDN) — As expected, China’s National People’s Congress (NPC) clapped hands to confirm Xi Jinping’s third term as president. In March 2018, Xi Jinping had already shaken up the Chinese political system through a constitutional amendment allowing him to remain in office indefinitely.
Traditional Institutions as Springboards for Forms of Co-Governance
By Saisha Shrestha and Simone Galimberti KATHMANDU, 12 March 2023 (IDN) — Guthi, an ancient social institution of the Newari community in Nepal, if made more inclusive, could herald new ways of people-centred decision-making. Can traditional forms of community decision-making herald a new way of decision-making and therefore pave the way for a different form […]
European Parliamentarians Call for Advancing Nuclear Disarmament
By Jamshed Baruah GENEVA, 12 March 2023 (IDN) — European parliamentarians have emphasized the need for taking “concrete steps” towards nuclear disarmament so that it becomes “a priority for the year 2023”. This, they said, should be “complementary to stigmatising nuclear weapons and strengthening disarmament treaties such as the TPNW“, the United Nations Treaty on […]
Forest Elephants Enhance Carbon Capture—Keep Them Alive
By Ngala Killian Chimtom YAOUNDÉ, Cameroon, 11 March 2023 (IDN) — While African forest elephants have traditionally been thought of as playing a destructive, negative role in forests, the big munchers are now seen as critical to saving a climate in peril. Scientists now suggest that the perceived destructive nature of the African forest elephant […]
Atoll Futures — Defining Habitability
By Carol Farbotko and John Campbell* This article was issued by the Toda Peace Institute and is being republished with their permission. QUEENSLAND, Australia | HAMILTON, New Zealand, 10 March 2023 (IDN) — The risk of atoll uninhabitability in the context of sea level rise is a well-known issue, often simplified to assume an inevitable […]
Vanuatu’s Cyclone Destruction Makes ICJ Opinion Critical
By Kalinga Seneviratne SUVA, Fiji, 9 March 2023 (IDN) — After two destructive cyclones and an earthquake within a week, people of the small Pacific Islands state of Vanuatu are slowly picking up the pieces after the destruction from winds and rains that flooded many properties. This devastation should strengthen Vanuatu’s ongoing initiative at the […]
Israel’s Liberal Supporters Are Taking Their Denial to a New Level
By Norman Solomon* SAN FRANCISCO, 9 March 2023 (IDN) — This week, when the New York Times featured an opinion piece by billionaire Michael Bloomberg, it harmonized with a crescendo of other recent pleas from prominent American supporters of Israel.
Why Sabotage Is a Growing Form of Warfare in Ukraine
By John P. Ruehl This article was produced by Globetrotter. John P. Ruehl is an Australian-American journalist living in Washington, D.C. He is a contributing editor to Strategic Policy and a contributor to several other foreign affairs publications. His book, Budget Superpower: How Russia Challenges the West With an Economy Smaller Than Texas’, was published […]
Are Indian Americans Taking Over the US—Slowly but Steadily?
By Thalif Deen NEW YORK, 9 March 2023 (IDN) — When Nina Davuluri became the first Indian American woman to be crowned Miss America back in September 2013, she virtually re-wrote history The victory at the beauty pageant—traditionally considered the intellectual birthright of white and Black Americans—came amidst the achievements of a rising generation of […]
International Women’s Day Puts the Spotlight on Digital Gender Equality
UN News NEW YORK, 8 March 2023 (IDN) — The UN General Assembly was awash in a sea of blue on Wednesday as some 1,800 people gathered to mark International Women’s Day, which this year focused on the need for inclusive and transformative technology and digital education. Many attendees wore suits, scarves or other items […]