Viewpoint by Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden (IDN) – Do we know how to end poverty in the Third World? Do we know why some economies expand and others don’t? Not really. There is no clear formula for growth. The two Nobel economics prize winners of last year, the husband and wife team of Abhijit Banerjee […]
Incoming African Union Chief Announces End of Colonialism
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) – A stirring call to action was delivered this week in the august hall of the African Union (AU) headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, spoken by the incoming AU president Cyril Ramaphosa to distinguished members of the continental a continental union consisting of 55 member states […]
COP26 Will Be the Litmus Test of The Paris Agreement
COP25 Ignored Demands for Climate Justice Viewpoint by Mary Church* EDINBURGH (IDN) – The outcomes of the longest ever meeting in the history of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) – the COP25 negotiations in Madrid – have failed to reflect the urgency of the crisis or any grasp of the real solutions […]
Strengthening Women & Girls Participation in Ocean Science
Viewpoint by Michael W. Lodge The writer is Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority (ISA), an autonomous international organization established under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 1994 Agreement relating to the Implementation of Part XI of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. ISA […]
Looking Forward to Scotland’s Return to EU Membership
Viewpoint by Nicola Sturgeon The following are extensive excerpts from the address of Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon at the European Policy Centre, a leading Brussels-based think tank, on February 10. She was in Brussels for a series of engagements to make Scotland’s voice heard in Europe. BRUSSELS (IDN) – This is the first time […]
Australia’s Exceptional Vulnerability to Climate Change
Viewpoint by Andrew Walter* MELBOURNE (IDN) — The bushfires now ravaging Australia’s flora, fauna and rural communities on an unprecedented scale underline the country’s exceptional vulnerability to global heating and its strong interest in global climate change mitigation and adaptation. Decarbonisation should be taken as an economic opportunity and it could elevate Australia’s leading role […]
Towards a Constitutional Crisis: Scotland and Britain After the General Election
Viewpoint by Michael Keating* ABERDEEN (IDN) – Choppy waters lie ahead for both defending and defeating the union that is the United Kingdom, with Scotland and England having diverged sharply in their choices at the recent general election (December 2019). Campaigns in both countries focused on Brexit but in Scotland equal prominence was given to […]
Accelerating Actions Towards Zero Female Genital Mutilation
By Caroline Mwanga NEW YORK (IDN) – While significant progress in eliminating the practice has been made in the last 30 years, approximately 200 million girls and women alive today have had their genitals mutilated. This can lead to long-term physical, psychological and social consequences, warns a joint statement by UN Women, UNFPA, UNICEF and […]
The UN at 75 Moving From a Talking Shop to a Listening Post
By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN | NEW YORK (IDN) – Bob Dylan in “Blowin’ in the Wind”, one of the ‘Greatest Songs of All Time’, poses a series of rhetorical questions about peace, war, and freedom. The refrain “The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind” has been described as “impenetrably ambiguous: either the answer […]
2020 Priorities and the Work of the United Nations
Viewpoint by António Guterres The following are extensive excerpts from the UN Secretary-General’s remarks to the General Assembly on 22 January on his priorities in 2020. NEW YORK (IDN) – 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the United Nations. I draw tremendous strength from all that we represent and all that we have achieved together. […]