Vatican convicts ex-bank chief in property embezzlement scam
Rome, ItalyAP The Vatican’s criminal tribunal on Thursday convicted the former head of the Vatican bank and his lawyer of embezzling millions of euros in proceeds from the sales of Holy See-owned real estate, and sentenced them to nearly nine years in prison each. The court also awarded the bank, known as the Institute of […]
This Life: Amanda Gorman, my grandma and the Black tears we cried
US writer and student DANTÉ STEWART, in an article first published on Religion News Service, reflects on how his grandmother saw this week’s US presidential inauguration…
At inaugural prayer service in the US, a message of renewal and ‘repairing the breach’
Washington DC, USRNS Dozens of faith leaders participated in a virtual edition of the interfaith National Prayer Service hosted by the Washington National Cathedral on Thursday, gathering digitally for a service that articulated a spiritual endorsement of diversity, healing and “repairing the breach.” As both President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris watched with […]
COVAX aims to supply 1.8 billion COVID vaccine doses to poor in ’21, warns of uncertainties
London, UKReuters The COVAX vaccine sharing platform designed to ensure equitable access to COVID-19 shots said on Thursday it aimed to deliver 1.8 billion doses to poorer countries in 2021 and hoped to fulfil supply deals for wealthier ones in the second half of the year. But COVAX, which is co-led by the GAVI vaccine […]
World urged to act swiftly to end child labour as COVID-19 threatens gains
Thomson Reuters Foundation The world must urgently swap promises for action in the drive to end child labour as the coronavirus pandemic threatens decades of progress in combating the practice, United Nations agencies and a Nobel peace laureate said on Thursday. Several organisations and activists spoke at an event to mark the International Year for […]
World welcomes US return to Paris climate accord, readies wish-list for Biden
Brussels, BelgiumReuters Climate-change leaders and campaigners worldwide welcomed US President Joe Biden’s move to rejoin the 2015 Paris Agreement but said Washington must also cut emissions and use its influence to encourage other countries to do the same. In one of his first acts as president, Biden issued an executive order on Wednesday to bring […]
A Sustainable Life: Home-delivered food has a huge climate cost. So which cuisine is the worst culprit?
Having food delivered to the home has become the new norm for many thanks to the coronavirus pandemic. Australian academic ROBERT CRAWFORD – in an article first published on The Conversation – weighs up the environmental cost of food that’s delivered to your door…
Tokyo Games may be too big a gamble, disease expert says
Tokyo, JapanReuters As embattled Tokyo Olympics organisers enter the final six months of preparations for the delayed Games on Saturday, virus experts believe hosting the world’s biggest sporting event may be too big a gamble. The Olympics are due to start on 23rd July but with much of Japan in a state of emergency and […]
Catholicism in the capital: With his inauguration, Biden makes his return to ‘Catholic Washington’
As the second ever Catholic President takes office in the US, JACK JENKINS, of Religion News Service, looks at Catholic influencers in Washington, DC…
100 hours in the dark: How an election internet blackout hit poor Ugandans
Nairobi, Kenya/Kampala, UgandaThomson Reuters Foundation When Uganda ordered an internet shutdown on the eve of the presidential election, groundnut seller Susan Tafumba’s trade collapsed. The 34-year-old sells groundnuts at Kampala’s Nakawa market, but much of her business now comes through a mobile phone app that customers use to order goods to be delivered to them […]