Good News Agency – Year XI, n° 175
Weekly – Year XI, number 175 –
23rd July 2010
Managing Editor: Sergio Tripi, Ph. D.
Good News Agency carries positive
and constructive news from all over the world relating to voluntary work, the
work of the United Nations, non governmental organizations and institutions
engaged in improving the quality of life – news that doesn’t “burn out” in the
space of a day. It is
distributed free of charge through Internet to 10,000
media and editorial journalists in 54 countries and to 3,000 NGOs and 1,600
high schools, colleges and universities. It is an all-volunteer
service of Associazione Culturale
dei Triangoli e della Buona
Volontà Mondiale, an
educational charity associated with the United
Nations Department of Public Information. The Association has been recognized by UNESCO as “an actor of the global movement for a culture of peace” and it is a
member of the World Association of Non Governmental Organizations.
International
legislation – Human rights – Economy
and development
– Solidarity
Peace and
security – Health – Energy and Safety – Environment and
wildlife
Religion and spirituality – Culture and education
General Assembly
adopted a resolution on “The Right to Education in Emergency Situations.”
July 15 - The Resolution was approved unanimously by
all 192 Member States, and underscores the fact that education is an essential
and integral part of any sustainable post-crisis humanitarian response
strategy. In effect, the Resolution instructs
New
international treaty to better integrate environmental and health concerns into
political decision-making
The Protocol on Strategic
Environmental Assessment to the UNECE Espoo
Convention, signed by 35 governments and the European Community back in May
Ján Kubiš, UNECE Executive Secretary, described this new
international law as “making environmental protection an integral part of the
development process”.
The Protocol also encourages
the application of this powerful tool to higher levels of decision-making as
well, requiring governments to endeavour to assess
also their policies and legislation. It will also provide a legal basis for the
health sector to have a role in development planning, requiring for the first
time that health authorities are always consulted on development planning.
The entry into force of the
Protocol will be a concrete step towards achieving Millennium Development Goal
7, to “ensure environmental sustainability”, and its first target: “Integrate
the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental
resources”. (…)
http://www.unece.org/press/pr2010/10env_p22e.htm
European
justice at a click
An Italian travelling
in
Ten million citizens in the EU
are engaged in cross-border judicial procedures each year. With the new
electronic one-stop-shop the answers to their questions – in 22 languages –
will be only a click away. The portal helps citizens, businesses, lawyers and
judges with legal questions involving another member state.
The first release with more
than 12,000 pages provides links to laws and practices in all member states.
You may find information on legal aid, judicial training and videoconferencing
in a user-friendly language and have online access to legal databases, case
law, insolvency, land and will registers. The portal also gives access to legal
glossaries.
http://www.consilium.europa.eu/showFocus.aspx?id=1&focusid=500&lang=en
Darfur
rebels JEM, UN to sign child protection deal
July 19 - Sudanese rebel group
JEM is to sign a landmark deal with the United Nations this week on the
protection of children caught up in the
"As part of the
agreement, the JEM (Justice and Equality Movement) commit to taking all steps
necessary to ensure the protection of children in
UNICEF director for Sudan Nils Kastberg will attend the signing
ceremony in
The Centre for Humanitarian
Dialogue said Darfur's Justice and Equality Movement
(JEM) and the United Nations children's agency UNICEF would sign the agreement
in
"This is a very important
and positive step. It is the result of more than a year's worth of dialogue
between the U.N. agencies and JEM, sponsored by the HD Centre," the centre's humanitarian adviser, Dennis McNamara, said in a
statement.
Under the accord, UNICEF will
have unimpeded access to all JEM locations to verify compliance and UNICEF will
work with all sides to help protect children from the conflict.
http://www.worldbulletin.net/news_detail.php?id=61502
Geneva (ICRC) July 14 -
Immediately after the unrest began in the southern city of Osh,
the ICRC and the Red Crescent Society of Kyrgyzstan stepped up their
humanitarian operation, which gave priority to responding to the needs of
wounded, sick and particularly vulnerable people, such as those internally
displaced (IDPs) and those whose houses were
destroyed. Immediately after the unrest began in the southern city of
The ICRC's
activities will mainly focus on continuing to assist affected communities in
their area of residence, internally displaced people and host families. The
organization also seeks to gain access to all persons detained, in particular
those arrested in connection with the violence, and to help families to find
out what happened to their loved ones who went missing.
The ICRC has enhanced its
presence in
To date, the ICRC has
distributed two-week rations of flour and oil to over a quarter million people,
and essential household items to more than 45,000 people. Thanks to the
installation of water tanks, the use of water trucking and other quick solutions,
some 15,500 people also have improved access to clean water and, as a result,
better hygiene conditions.
http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/kyrgyzstan-news-150710?opendocument
Colombo (ICRC)July 9 – The
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has purchased 118 tonnes of locally-grown tea in Sri Lanka and shipped it to
Jordan and Pakistan for distribution to internally displaced persons (IDPs) and resident populations affected by armed conflict
and internal violence.
The first 48 tonnes of tea were sent to Karachi In May this year, and
from there the ICRC distributed it to 34,000 IDPs
living in camps or with host families.
Khalid Hasan is living in the ICRC-run Khungi
Sha camp in Lower Dir District, north-west
A consignment of 28 tonnes reached
Finally, the ICRC has sent a
shipment of 42 tonnes to its Middle East logistics
hub in
http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/sri-lanka-news-090710
MCC
and MEDA collaborate to help
MCC and MEDA collaborate to
repair and rebuild hundreds of homes in Haiti, primarily those of microfinance
clients, most of whom are women.
by Wally Kroeker
MCC contributed $1.43 million
to rebuild and repair about 775 homes of microfinance clients, most of whom are
women. MEDA will administer and monitor the 18-month project, expected to be
completed on Nov. 30, 2011.
Recipients of the assistance
are clients of Fonkoze, the country’s leading
microfinance provider, with 46,000 microloan clients.
Fonkoze has been a long-term partner of MCC and MEDA.
Fonkoze will coordinate
the training of community teams of masons and carpenters in techniques for
building and repairing homes that will be earthquake and hurricane resistant.
Those teams will predominantly do the building and repair in their home
communities, north and south of
http://mcc.org/stories/news/mcc-and-meda-collaborate-help-haiti-s-homeless
Lives
stake in
The fragile Sahel region is a narrow band south of the Sahara desert
that includes
Media Relations and Ext. Comm.s: Katie Taft k.taft@ifad.org
- David Paqui d.paqui@ifad.org
CARE
brings shelter, dignity to thousands in
Six
months after deadly earthquake, women lead rebuilding, healing
CARE, which is constructing 25
to 30 transitional shelters per week, is on pace to complete up to 2,000 of the
structures by December. And CARE plans to distribute 20,000 shelter
reinforcement kits containing wooden planks, nails, rope, hurricane straps and
other materials. Strengthening self-built structures will be particularly
critical as
''In many cases we're working
with widows, women-headed households and other vulnerable people,'' said Dr.
Helene Gayle, president and CEO of CARE
In camps of displaced people,
CARE has supported the formation of volunteer committees that, like the camps
themselves, tend to have more women than men. In many cases these women have
stepped into leadership roles, assuring CARE reaches those most in need and spreads
life-saving information about hygiene, health and psychological support for
children. These women leaders also are helping raise awareness about the
prevention of gender-based violence.
Whenever possible, CARE is
helping families move out of camps and back into their communities. Building on
its 56 years of experience in
http://www.care.org/newsroom/articles/2010/07/Haiti-six-months-after-earthquake-20100709.asp
In addition, the ICRC will be
providing 2,000 fishermen with fishing equipment.
Around 1,000 houses are to be
repaired by local workmen, who will receive payment for their work and support
from volunteers of the Red Cross Society of the
Dongo, in the district
of Sud-Oubangi, has been hit particularly hard by the
armed violence affecting the region since October 2009. Tens of thousands have
been displaced, with most of them taking refuge in neighbouring
countries. People have lost a major part of their harvests, their equipment and
their livestock. What little infrastructure remains, such as schools, health centres and the market, were partly destroyed by looters.
The ICRC had already
distributed seed and farming equipment to over 27,000 people in the region back
in March this year. The ICRC has been working in the RDC since 1978 and opened
its Dongo office in June this year. The organization
is working with the Red Cross Society of the
http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/congo-kinshasa-news-060710
Unprecedented
number of non-governmental organizations from Asia-Pacific
region join United Nations Department of Public Information
New York, UNDPI - On June 30,
at the first biannual meeting of the Non-Governmental Organizations Committee,
62 non-governmental organizations were associated with the United Nations
Department of Public Information. This
brings to 1,588 the number of non-governmental organizations that work with the
Department in the area of communications and information.
United Nations
Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, Kiyo Akasaka, welcomed the large and diverse group: “I am
delighted to see the increase in geographical diversity of non-governmental
organizations associated with the Department of Public Information with
applications from all the different regions of the world.” The organizations presented for review their
work on a wide range of issues, including on global health; improvement of the
quality of life for indigenous, underprivileged and marginalized peoples; substance
abuse; ensuring safe birthing environments; non-violence and human rights;
poverty alleviation; and more.
Among the non-governmental
organizations newly associated, 32 were from
The new additions contribute
to solidifying the trend of increasing geographic diversity among the
non-governmental organizations affiliated with the Department of Public
Information, a result of the Department’s recently revised policy, whereby
priority is given to associating organizations based in the region hosting the
Annual United Nations DPI/NGO Conference.
The registration for the 63rd
Annual UN DPI/NGO Conference has been extended to Friday, 6 August. For details
related to the Conference and to register, please visit our Conference website
at www.undpingoconference.org
For further information,
please contact DPI/NGO Relations: dpingo@un.org.
The Directory of non-governmental organizations associated with the Department
of Information is also available at http://www.un.org/dpi/ngosection/index.asp
Conservation
farming, the growing of crops with minimum disturbance to the soil, is quickly
becoming the preferred farming method for several small scale farmers in the
rural areas of
By Valerie Chanda
Chibuye, Food Security and Relief Programme
Officer at DanChurchAid
June 30 - The Lutheran World
Federation (LWF), Department of World Services Zambia, has been promoting the
adoption of conservation farming among its target groups in the Food Security
and Livelihood (FOSELI) project since 2006. The project focuses on building the
capacity of the targeted beneficiaries in conservation farming and other
agricultural technologies that promote soil and water conservation.
Conservation farming promotion
mainly focuses on the use of locally available soil nutrient enhancing
resources such as animal and plant residues. Conservation farming is done by
‘ripping’ (using a ripper that is driven by oxen) or making permanent planting
stations or ‘basins’. Basins are made by hand using a hoe following standard
dimensions of depth, width and length.
Conservation farming has
proved to be a very appropriate technology to move poor marginalized rural
population out of perpetual food insecurity into more food secure households.
By reducing the cost of production, it has increased the ability of these
household to have increased access to food even with very minimal financial
resources. Conservation has also reduced hunger in times of drought because it
is also a very good adaption mechanism for extreme
weather. It should therefore be highly promoted in adapting to the negative
effects of climate change.
http://www.danchurchaid.org/news_publications/news/conservation_farming_improving_crop_yields
Photo
Essay: ACDI/VOCA's continuing work in
ACDI/VOCA is proud that we
managed to feed and support more than 150,000 people in
After initial disruption,
ACDI/VOCA has been able to maintain our USAID-funded agricultural development
projects in
See images below [http://www.acdivoca.org/acdivoca/PortalHub.nsf/ID/feature-Haiti-Photos-Six-Months-Later-ACDI-VOCA] of an
ACDI/VOCA-supported seedling nursery and farmers as they harvest beans and
prepare their June crop to sell at local markets. To learn more, visit our
Haiti Relief and Recovery page here: www.acdivoca.org/haitirecovery
Pope
to donate $250,000 to rebuild Haitian school
The administrative council of
the Populorum Progressio Foundation, formed of Catholic prelates from across Latin
America and representatives of the Pontifical Council "Cor
Unum," will meet this year in
During what is their first
annual meeting in a Caribbean nation, they will be discussing the allocation of
funds destined to finance projects that aid indigenous, mestizo
and African-American laborers in the Caribbean and throughout
At the meeting, 230 projects
from 20 different countries from
Also on that day, they will
meet with representatives from humanitarian aid organizations and visit
Caritas' national headquarters, where the president of "Cor Unum," Cardinal Paul Josef Cordes,
will make a $250,000 donation on behalf of Pope Benedict XVI towards rebuilding
St. Francis de Sales school in
http://www.catholic.org/international/international_story.php?id=37403
InterAction
launches initiative to map recovery projects in
July 15 - Agencies and donors
participating in the ongoing recovery and rehabilitation efforts in
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Business Civic Leadership Center (BCLC); FedEx; and InterAction,
the largest alliance of U.S.-based international nongovernmental organizations
(NGOs) focused on the world’s poor and most vulnerable, are working together to
develop a web-based mapping platform to bring transparency and accountability
to these efforts in Haiti. This online platform will share critical data about
resource allocation, programmatic activities deployed in
Humanitarian organizations –
primarily those with membership in InterAction – will
provide data on their activities and ongoing needs, while donors will be able
to generate real-time reports about where they can provide the most assistance.
The completed mapping platform will provide aggregated information about the
different sectors, the financing of projects, and planned spending in
http://www.interaction.org/article/interaction-launches-initiative-map-recovery-projects-haiti
Niger/Mali:
290,000 people benefit from massive aid operation
Niamey (ICRC), July 9 -
Farmers and stockbreeders in northern regions of
Meanwhile, in northern
The ICRC is buying up
livestock at the prices breeders were obtaining before the crisis. Since May,
the organization has bought 38,000 head of livestock from 12,000 stockbreeding
families in the regions of Agadez (
"The ICRC's
operation will ultimately help some 290,000 farmers and stockbreeders,"
explains Jürg Eglin, who runs ICRC operations in
http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/niger-news-090710
By Necephor
Mghendi and Afrhill Rances in
July 9 - More than 600
families, who were left homeless when typhoons Ketsana,
The 630 families –
Construction of the
transitional shelters is being carried out through bayanihan
– the common tradition in the
http://www.ifrc.org/docs/news/10/10070902/index.asp
All
Norwegian cluster munitions destroyed
July 20 [NorwayPost]
- With 11 days left until the Convention on Cluster Munitions enters into
force,
http://www.mineaction.org/overview.asp?o=1337
Darfur
rebels, UN to sign deal to protect children
July 19 - Rebels in
The statement made no
reference to recruitment of child soldiers but officials who asked not to be
identified said one of the points of the deal was to stop this scourge in
Under the accord, UNICEF will
have unimpeded access to all JEM locations to verify compliance and UNICEF will
work with all sides to help protect children from the conflict. (…)
http://www.africagoodnews.com/women-and-youth/darfur-rebels-un-to-sign-deal-to-protect-children.html
African
Union appoints peace ambassadors for
July 19 - The commission of
the African Union have announced the appointment of an Advisory Council and
Peace Ambassadors to support the implementation of the 2010 Year of Peace and
Security. The Advisory Council and Peace Ambassadors were drawn from multiple
sectors and multiple regions, with appointees declaring that they are ready to
make peace happen. For the Advisory Council, all African Nobel Laureates and
other eminent Africans were approached.
The announcement was made
during the inaugural meeting of the Year of Peace and Security Advisory Council
Members and Peace Ambassadors held at the African Union headquarters in
The 26 will support the
Commission in conflict resolution and peace building efforts on the continent
by advocating for the ratification and implementation of various AU instruments
and commitments. This will include the African Charter on Democracy, Elections
and Governance, mobilising resources, generating
popular support and awareness and implementing specific activities developed by
the Commission such as encouraging businesses to sign the Make Peace Happen
Industry Charter and encouraging schools to use the Make Peace Happen Lesson Plan.
They will also play a key role in the implementation of various activities
leading up to and on Peace Day.
http://www.africagoodnews.com/conflict/au-appoints-peace-ambassadors-for-africa.html
Donors
visited cleared land
By Claus Nielsen, DCA’s Programme Manager, Mine
Action,
July 12 - On June 15, the
Ambassador of Cyprus to
Earlier this year, DCA
received a grant of 100,000 Euro from CyprusAid
(through ITF) to fund its cluster munitions clearance activities in
The visit allowed Ambassador Kouros to observe the positive impact his governments’
donation has had on the
Overall, both visitors were
impressed by the high socio-economic impact DCA clearance efforts have had in
http://www.danchurchaid.org/news_publications/news/donors_visited_cleared_land
UN
gears up for discussions on first-ever arms trade treaty
July 9 – With the first round
of United Nations-backed talks on a global, legally-binding treaty on the
import and export of weapons set to kick off next week, the official chairing
the discussions said today he hopes that the pact will be concluded in 2012.
The priority given to the
question of the weapons trade stretches back decades to the League of Nations,
the forerunner to the UN, Ambassador Roberto García Moritán of
Currently, 80 per cent of the
global trade in conventional weapons is dominated by a handful of countries,
but with globalization, new producers are entering the market, with over 100
nations producing some type of weapons.
“So the ATT is an effort to
try to put a little bit of predictability into a very complex and sensitive
issue,” Mr. García Moritán
said at a press conference in
The ultimate goal, he added,
“is to try to have common standards to be applied by all countries when they
export or import weapons.”
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=35285&Cr=weapon&Cr1=
US Conference of Mayors calls
for the abolition of nuclear weapons
(The
Sunflower, July) - The
The
statement reads in part, “[We] call on President Obama
to work with the leaders of the other nuclear weapon states to implement the UN
Secretary-General’s Five Point Proposal for Nuclear Disarmament forthwith, so
that a Nuclear Weapons Convention...can be agreed upon and implemented by the
year
To
read the US Conference of Mayors’ full statement on nuclear disarmament, click here.
www.wagingpeace.org/menu/resources/sunflower
ICAN
Report on the NPT Review Conference
(The Sunflower, July) - A new
report from the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) provides
a day-by-day analysis of the NPT Review Conference, with a focus on the growing
support for a Nuclear Weapons Convention, efforts aimed at delegitimizing
nuclear weapons and bringing humanitarianism into the disarmament debate. ICAN
notes that while nuclear-weapons states claim that they are fulfilling their
legally binding obligation to disarm, such claims seem tenuous in light of the
fact that there are 23,000 nuclear arms in the world 40 years after the
inception of the NPT. They further observe that the popularly adopted
incremental approach to disarmament has not even satisfactorily curtailed
nuclear proliferation. The report describes the practice of applying different
nuclear standards to different states as “Nuclear Apartheid,” and urges immediate
action. It reads, “Pursuing a convention would fundamentally alter the
discriminatory status quo of nuclear ‘haves’ and ‘have nots,’
by establishing a universal ban on nuclear weapons for all.” To read the full
report, click here.
www.wagingpeace.org/menu/resources/sunflower
Environmental
Peacemaking
The
public is invited to attend the presentation in the EU Parliament on June 29
This month a delegation of FoEME representatives were invited to present the Jordan River Rehabilitation Project to the European
Union Parliament in a special workshop organized by the S&D Group. The presentation entitled " The Jordan River: Rehabilitation and Trust building: Friends of the
Earth Middle East's Jordan River Rehabilitation Project" brought
together EU Members of Parliament, parliamentary staff, policy advisers and
external supporters.
FoEME is currently
working to advance support for a regional rehabilitation plan for the
To complement FoEME's recently released environmental flows study
entitled "Towards a Living Jordan River: A Regional Strategy to
Rehabilitate the
The Jordan River
Rehabilitation Project is supported by USAID, the Richard and Rhoda Goldman
Fund, the Green Environment Fund and the Global Nature Fund / Ursula Merz Foundation.
ViiV
Healthcare announces further initiatives to improve access to HIV medications
for people living in the least developed countries
Voluntary
licence policy extended to 69 countries, where 80% of
all people with HIV live
ViiV Healthcare is also
making the groundbreaking step of making all patents available to generic
manufacturers in these countries for all future pipeline developments, such as
the novel integrase inhibitor jointly under
development by Shionogi-ViiV Healthcare LLC.
Voluntary licences
are granted by patent holders to allow a generic company to manufacture and
sell versions of their products. ViiV Healthcare will
now make this available, royalty free, to generic companies for their entire
current portfolio, including the newer innovative products as well as future
pipeline developments.
Project
HOPE and RAD-AID, with support from Philips, begin
work to bring radiology to medically-underserved areas
The initiative utilizes RAD-AID’s Radiology-ReadinessTM
framework – a structured multidisciplinary approach addressing economic
development, technology implementation and optimized clinical applications, for
assessing and planning sustainable long-term medical imaging in communities
with limited health care resources.
The partnership, which focuses
on health facilities with which Project HOPE has relationships, is designed to
expand and optimize vital medical imaging services as a component of HOPE’s health care programs. The initiative serves as a
model public-private partnership leveraging the expertise of Philips with two
global nonprofit organizations for developing innovative approaches to health
care development.
http://www.projecthope.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_us_press_releases_07_15_10
New
polio eradication plan launched
by Dan Nixon
Rotary International News,
July 12 - The World Health Organization and UNICEF cohosted
a meeting with Rotary International and other stakeholders in Geneva on 18 June
to launch the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) Strategic Plan
2010-12.
The new plan comes at a
critical time for the GPEI. Key endemic countries are witnessing historic gains
against the disease. Nowhere is progress more evident than in
In May, the World Health
Assembly welcomed the new plan while expressing deep concern about the
substantial funding gap over the next three years. The shortfall is a serious
risk to ending polio and highlights the need for Rotary to reach its goal of
raising US$200 million. (...)
An essential element of the
plan is the bivalent oral polio vaccine, which is being used effectively
against wild poliovirus types 1 and
The plan also focuses on known
polio migration routes, which have made outbreaks of the disease largely
predictable. Aggressive synchronized immunization campaigns are now being used
to help prevent and stop outbreaks.
The partners of the GPEI are
exploring every option to secure fresh funding and are managing existing cash
flow to limit any threat to the eradication effort. The risk of not stopping
polio in endemic countries was made clear when a large outbreak occurred in
“The complete eradication of
polio is an absolute goal, and it requires absolute commitment from us all,”
says
http://www.rotary.org/en/MediaAndNews/News/Pages/100712_news_GPEIplan.aspx
Kaiser
Permanente and
$1
million grant from Kaiser Permanente Funds construction of environmental model
of excellence for community clinics
San Diego, USA, July 16 - With
today's ribbon-cutting ceremony,
Working
to improve pediatric care in Boost hospital, Helmand
province,
July 10 - In November 2009, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)
started supporting Boost provincial hospital in the outskirts of Lashkargah in
“Pediatrics is one of the most
important components of the hospital’s services,” said Dr. Dorian Job, MSF
medical coordinator . “In
“We’re seeing around 20 new
children a day,” said Dr. Sergio Cabral, MSF’s
pediatric doctor. “With only 16 beds in two wards, we’re stretched to capacity,
so we put nine extra beds in the corridors. Clearly, this situation is far from
ideal, which is why we are hoping to expand the pediatric ward soon.” As such,
Dr. Cabral’s main goal over the past months has been to train pediatric staff
in proper diagnosis and treatment. Since January 2010, over 1,500 children have
received care in Boost hospital’s pediatric department.
Progress
toward poliomyelitis eradication in
The reasons behind the progress, from traditional
leadership to improved operations, and plans to safeguard the progress.
July 9 – This report provides
an update on poliovirus epidemiology in
http://www.polioeradication.org/content/general/LatestNews201007.asp#01
Medical
mission touches the 'unreachable'
By Ryan Hyland
Rotary International News – July 6 – Organized
by Past RI President Rajendra K. Saboo
and Vivek Tankha,
additional solicitor general of
The magnitude of the effort
exceeded Tankha's expectations."The
patient turnout, voluntary assistance rendered by Rotary and the state
government, and the sight of the entire task force working under the banner of
Rotary was something which I neither anticipated nor imagined," he said.
"This mission presents a perfect example of people's participation towards
a healthy society."
The medical camps were
organized by treatment type. Four venues --
The doctors and volunteers
performed 3,500 dental procedures and 2,000 major surgeries, including
reconstructive surgery, orthopedic work, and eye operations. (...)
http://www.rotary.org/en/MediaAndNews/News/Pages/100706_news_medicalmission.aspx
(top)
Jatropha - a bioenergy crop for the poor
FAO/IFAD
review anti-poverty potential of jatropha development
But the report stresses that jatropha is still essentially a wild plant sorely in need
of crop improvement. Expecting jatropha to substitute
significantly for oil imports in developing countries is unrealistic. Many of
the actual investments and policy decisions on developing jatropha
as an oil crop have been made without the backing of sufficient science-based
knowledge," the report said. "Realizing the true potential of jatropha requires separating facts from the claims and
half-truths."
A promising crop - Jatropha curcas L. grows
reasonably well in dry areas on degraded soils that are marginally suited for
agriculture. The roots of the low-growing jatropha
trees reach water deep in the soil. The surface roots assist in binding the
soil and can reduce soil erosion. Jatropha seeds can
be processed into lesser polluting biodiesel than
fossil diesel to provide light and cooking fuel for poor rural families. Seed
cake, a by-product from this process may be valuable as fertilizer and animal
feed after detoxification. Unlike other major biofuel
crops, such as maize, jatropha is not used for food
and it can be grown on marginal and degraded lands where food crops can not
grow.
The report says jatropha has the biggest potential in dry and remote areas
where - because of the high price of inputs such as fertiliser and transport
costs - food production is not competitive. However, to obtain sustained yields
in degraded soils in dry areas, inputs such as water and fertilizer are needed.Particularly smallholder farmers, oil mill outgrowers and members of community plantation schemes or
workers on private-enterprise jatropha plantations
can earn an income from jatropha production.
Contact: Erwin Northoff erwin.northoff@fao.org Farhana Haque Rahman
f.haquerahman@ifad.org
http://www.fao.org/news/newsroom-home/en/
"The Chopper" - the
new generation of wind turbines
The
major shortcoming of the current wind turbines is that only about half of the
wind force is rotating the turbine to generate electricity. The other half of
the wind energy is actually working against us - as it applies strong forces
against the propeller, the tower and the base. This not only reduces the
electrical output of the turbine but also affects the lifespan of the blades
and requires a more expensive infrastructure (tower and base) All this leads to
an increased cost of the wind generated energy.
The
good news is that this situation may soon change thanks to a new VAWT turbine
created by Canadian engineer Dan Bostan.
Here
is a brief illustration of this solution nicknamed: "The Chopper"
People
are invited to communicate with us to test it, to produce it, to spread it. For
any inquiries please write to: hw@humanwisdom.ca
Pentair
commits to sustainable water recycling exploration, grants money to the WateReuse Research Foundation
Initiative marks unique
corporate-nonprofit partnership to conduct and promote applied research on
water reclamation, recycling, reuse and desalination
The first project, a $125,000
grant, will provide guidance for implementing water reuse in new buildings and
developments to achieve sustainability goals. The project's end result will arm
developers and architects with effective methods to implement satellite water
recycling systems for new and mixed-use developments. Satellite treatment
systems, which are onsite, stand-alone technologies, harvest and treat
rainwater and graywater – including wash water from
sinks, showers and washing machines – and present one of the strongest growth
opportunities for sustainable recycled water applications. Reusing graywater can reduce the demand for municipally treated
water by 30 to 60 percent.
Pentair has also granted
$50,000 to the WateReuse Research Foundation to examine
graywater treatment technologies in the
Posted on July 6 - Polar
bears, walruses, sea otters, and other endangered species are all set to
benefit from a Russian decision to boost its national protected areas to nearly
3 percent of its territory by
“For the first time,
development of protected areas in
An existing 9 reserves and 1
national park will see their areas increased by 500 thousand ha.
The decision was based on an
analysis of WWF in cooperation with The Nature Coservancy
and MAVA Foundation, carried out between 2006-2008,
and is aimed at fulfilling
The UN has declared 2010 the
International Year of Biodiversity, culminating in October at the 10th
Conference of the Parties in
Illegal
trade in natural resources: what can Brussels do?
European
Economic and Social Committee 29-30 September 2010
The over exploitation of
natural resources is recognised as one of the main
challenges affecting our planet today and has been a growing concern of the
international community for several years. At the same time, natural resources
are extensively used by protagonists in local armed conflicts to finance wars
that have resulted in the death of millions of people in recent years.
By organising
the Pathfinder Conference, the Institute for Environmental Security and its
Partners seek to address the issues and discuss the role the European Union
could play to reinforce the legality of international trade in natural
resources. Attendance to the conference is by invitation only. Please contact
the conference secretariat for more
information.
www.envirosecurity.org/pathfinder
HOW-TO
for successfully knowing each other in classrooms, camps, neighborhoods,
nations
Below
are tools -- a how-to for the practitioner of face-to-face engagement. This is
for difficult relationships that require crossing daunting chasms and lowering
old walls to reach people's hearts.
Film Evening - A dozen very short films with popcorn highlighted last
Monday evening, 12 July 2010, to celebrate the 18th Anniversary of the
Jewish-Palestinian Living Room Dialogue. Fifty youth and adults in the large
circle together viewed the short videos then sat in triads of three to answer
two questions: (1) What touched you? (2) What creative ideas occurred to you?
http://traubman.igc.org/eveningprogram2010.pdf
New
TV Series "If You Really Knew Me"
- Beginning Tuesday, 20 July 2010 at 11:00 pm on MTV, a new,
long-awaited,12-episode TV series will demonstrate that the miracles of
connection and compassion are available to everyone. Week after week -- from 12
different
After viewing, practice the
tool of If you really knew me by having people
share their experience of the show and how it applies to their lives. A
small-group guide is at
http://www.challenge-day.org/downloads/If_You_Really_Knew_Me.pdf
After each episode, a discussion guide will posted at http://www.challengeday.org/mtv
More information is at MTV -- http://www.mtv.com/shows/if_you_really_knew_me/series.jhtml and with the pioneering creators, Challenge
Day -- http://www.challengeday.org
Check your local listing for the broadcast where you live. These and hundreds
of other success stories are preserved at: http://traubman.igc.org/messages.htm
"Voices
of
Wednesdays,
14 July - 11 August at 6:30 p.m.,
The Jerusalem Fund and the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown
University are pleased to present their annual summer film series highlighting
recent documentary and feature films from and about Palestine that explore the
social, cultural and political complexities of Palestinian life and
identity.
The annual film series is
hosted jointly by The Jerusalem Fund for Education and Community Development
and The Center for Contemporary Arab Studies,
The Jerusalem Fund for
Education and Community Development is an independent 501(c)(3)
non-profit organization based in
http://www.thejerusalemfund.org/ht/d/sp/i/3821/pid/3821
Vuvuzelas ring for education as FIFA World Cup ends
July 15 - Hours before the FIFA World Cup final on 11
July, UNESCO’s Director-General and political leaders from across the African
continent gathered in
Youth
look to ‘Raise The Radio' at
Construction
underway on facility that seeks to end the cycle of poverty through technology
training, health and education services, and radio station
The youth of Mukuru say the center is like a rain cloud, "One
raindrop will not do much, but a number of raindrops falling down within a
community is enough to allow seeds to grow into new
plants." The center will address the needs of the young people living in
the slums of
Local architects and
contractors are heading up construction efforts. They have erected the building
walls and community residents soon will be able to see the technology center
take shape. Leaders from the sponsoring organizations are raising funds to
complete the structure. They feel an added sense of urgency since a devastating
fire burned down SIDAREC's original center in
Nairobi, which housed 99.9 Ghetto FM, a library, computer lab, health clinic
and afterschool program. Thousands of children and
youth were left without services or a safe place to gather.
Media Contact: Diana Bianchini, Architecture for Humanity: press@architectureforhumanity.org
Teachers
and students join to promote student-centered learning
July 7 - As part of its
ongoing project with the European Students’ Union (ESU), EI [Education
International] organised a training seminar on
student-centered learning (SCL) recently from 1-4 July in
The main aim of the training
session was to empower the participants, down the road from theory to practice,
for further dissemination of their acquired knowledge on SCL to their
colleagues and peers. As the positive evaluations of the training have shown,
the participants have widened their scope of arguments for SCL and are ready to
continue their support in common EI-ESU effort to promote SCL.
For more information about EI-ESU’s project “Time for Student-Centered Learning”(T4SCL), please visit the project website: www.t4scl.eu
http://www.ei-ie.org/en/news/show.php?id=1314&theme=highereducation&country=malta
“EU –
The InBev-Baillet Latour Chair at the
College of Europe and the Madariaga – College of
The event will open with a
keynote by Mr. Chen Baosheng,
Vice - Chairman of the China Reform Forum (CRF) and Vice - President of the
Discussions will range from
whether or not the Lisbon Treaty makes real changes to
the EU’s policy towards
The seminar, organised with the support of the Chinese Mission to the
EU, will be held from 9.00 to 12.30 at the Conseil
central de l’économie (17-21, Avenue de
CIVICUS
9th World Assembly-2010, Palais des congres, Montreal, Canada, 20-23 August
The CIVICUS 9th World Assembly
The Assembly will focus on
economic justice as its core theme underpinned by development effectiveness and
climate justice. It will offer the media an opportunity to interact with the
key figures involved in global and local governance.Translations
will be available in French, Spanish and English. Media accreditation is
available prior to the World Assembly by contacting CIVICUS
(communication@civicus.org)
CIVICUS: World
* * * * * * *
(top)
Good News Agency is published in English
on one Friday and in Italian the next. Past issues are available at www.goodnewsagency.org.
Managing Editor: Sergio Tripi, Ph.D.
Editorial research by Fabio Gatti, Arianna Cavallo, Azzurra Cianchetta. Webmaster: Fabio Gatti.
Media and NGOs coverage: Maurizio Palazzoni.
Good News Agency is distributed free of charge through Internet to 10,000 media and editorial journalists of the daily newspapers and periodical magazines and of the radio and television stations in 54 countries: Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bermuda, Bosnia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Caribbean Islands, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Holland, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Oceania, Philippines, Portugal, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad & Tobago, Turkey, Ukraine, Uruguay, Venezuela, USA. It is also distributed free of charge to 3,000 NGOs and 1,600 high schools, colleges and universities.
It is an all-volunteer service of Associazione Culturale dei Triangoli e della Buona Volontà
Mondiale, a registered educational charity
chartered in Italy in 1979 The Association operates for the development of
consciousness and promotes a culture of peace in the ‘global village’
perspective based on unity in diversity and on sharing. It is based in Via Antagora 10, 00124