Essay: Mass starvation, extinctions, disasters: the new IPCC report’s grim predictions, and why adaptation efforts are falling behind
Three vice-chairs of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – MARK HOWDEN, JOY PEREIRA, and ROBERTO SÁNCHEZ – look – in an article published on The Conversation – at the findings of the latest IPCC report…
US urges North Korea to focus on needs of its people, not missiles
United NationsReuters The United States called on North Korea on Monday to defund its nuclear and ballistic missile programs and prioritise the needs of its own people, as Russia and China blamed sanctions for worsening the humanitarian situation in the hermit Asian state. Russia put sanctions under the spotlight at the UN Security Council as […]
Bird flu spreads in Europe and Asia
Paris, France Reuters Several outbreaks of severe bird flu in Europe and Asia have been reported in recent days to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), in a sign the virus is spreading quickly again. The spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, has put the poultry industry on alert after […]
Asia’s gig workers strive to match global gains on labour rights
Bangkok, ThailandThomson Reuters Foundation Emboldened by the victories of delivery riders from New York to the Netherlands, gig workers in Asia are increasing pressure for better conditions from app-based businesses that have thrived during the pandemic. The platforms, like their counterparts in the United States or Europe, have taken advantage of lax labour protections to demand long […]
Air quality improved slightly in 2020 during lockdowns, UN agency says
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters Key air pollutants temporarily plunged by unprecedented levels during coronavirus lockdowns last year, with fine particle pollution falling by more than a third across parts of Asia, a UN agency said on Friday. Particulate matter (PM 2.5) fell by up to 40 per cent across Africa, South America and Southern Asia and by […]
More cyclones than usual forecast for east Asia by September
SingaporeReuters Half of the roughly 20 tropical cyclones expected to form in the western Pacific Ocean through September this year are predicted to hit land in east Asian nations, forecasters said on Friday, making for a season that is busier than usual. Tropical cyclones, also known as typhoons and hurricanes, can pack wind speeds ranging […]
Climate change: Five places where global warming is a security risk
Thomson Reuters Foundation From Louisiana’s battle with two hurricanes and an icy polar vortex in the past year to Kenya’s struggle with locusts, drought and floods, climate risks are piling up – and colliding with other threats like COVID-19, making them harder to manage. “By the time you start to recover from one direct hit, […]
Asian garment makers fashion united front to pressure Western brands
Dhaka, BangladeshThomson Reuters Foundation Manufacturers from the six nations that make most of the world’s clothes have forged a common front to negotiate better terms with Western fashion brands, whose cancelled orders devastated Asian garment workers early in the pandemic. “We want to come together to tackle the common problems we face. This is not […]
Asia becomes second region to exceed 10 million coronavirus cases
Reuters Asia surpassed 10 million infections of the new coronavirus on Saturday, the second-heaviest regional toll in the world, according to a Reuters tally, as cases continue to mount in India despite a slowdown and sharp declines elsewhere. Behind only Latin America, Asia accounts for about one-fourth of the global caseload of 42.1 million of […]
Pandemic seen rolling back conditions in Asia garment factories
Phnom Penh, CambodiaThomson Reuters Foundation The pandemic risks triggering a race to the bottom that could push tens of millions of Asian garment workers into greater hazard on the factory floor, with women hardest hit, the International Labour Organization said on Wednesday. About 40 per cent of workers furloughed or laid off by the COVID-19 […]