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2,111 |
Technology helps tackle surging dengue cases - 360
Rozita Hod
Published on February 19, 2024
Real-time data, early warnings and engaging communities empower health authorities to manage dengue outbreaks and protect communities.
Dengue fever, a mosquito-borne illness, continues to pose a significant public health challenge in Malaysia.
Last year, the country recorded more than 123,000 cases, up 86.5 percent from 66,102 in 2022. It was the highest number of cases recorded since 2019, with over 130,000 infections reported. In 2023, 100 people died due to dengue-related complications, compared with 56 deaths in 2022.
Combatting dengue requires a multifaceted approach. Embracing new technologies, monitoring and controlling transmission and sustaining community engagement are essential measures. Addressing knowledge gaps, empowering individuals and fostering partnerships are also crucial for long-term success.
Lack of understanding and misinformation about dengue are the biggest barriers to adopting safe practices. Without adequate knowledge of the dangers of dengue and its severity, which might even result in death, individuals usually perceive the issue as “If I’m infected with dengue, I will be fine”.
Even with a relatively low mortality rate, the cost of dengue is high. In 2010, Malaysia spent almost USD$75 million, equivalent to 0.03 percent of the country’s GDP, on its national Dengue Vector Control Program, and the cost is expected to be higher now.
The amount required for dengue prevention and control activities in 2021 was RM31 million (USD$6.5 million). However, due to financial constraints, only RM8,006,700.00 (USD$1.7 million) was allocated to the vector-borne disease sector and disease control division, under the Ministry of Health. The reduction of 75 percent from the actual requirement will affect dengue prevention and control activities in the field and will contribute to the increase in dengue cases.
While conventional methods like fogging and larviciding are typically used for insect control to reduce dengue transmission, newer approaches are being implemented for more long-lasting and environmentally sustainable control.
The Ministry of Health uses technology to combat dengue.
The eDengue system introduced in 2009 provides real-time data on cases, enabling efficient case management, outbreak detection, and targeted interventions. This system integrates with the eNotification system, iDengue, for mandatory reporting and the Dengue Outbreak Management System for swift responses. This data-driven approach informs resource allocation and policy decisions, ensuring proactive measures.
The eNotification system follows the provisions of the Prevention Act and The Control of Infectious Diseases 1988 (Act 342) which mandates that all cases of suspected dengue fever must be notified to the nearest district health office by a medical practitioner within 24 hours. The system has been widely used in all government and private health facilities.
Recognising the limitations of traditional methods, the Ministry of Health seeks international collaboration to develop advanced dengue forecast models. These models, powered by machine learning, predict potential outbreaks and guide preventive actions. Sharing this information with stakeholders involved in urban ecosystem management allows proactive efforts to eliminate mosquito breeding sites before outbreaks occur.
The Dengue Virus Serotype Surveillance System run by the Ministry of Health closely monitors the dominant serotypes circulating in the environment. Early detection of shifts in serotype prevalence allows health officials to prepare for potential outbreaks of more severe strains. Malaysia’s National Public Health Laboratory coordinates this programme, providing crucial data for informed responses.
Community engagement is essential for long-term success.
The Communication for Behavioural Impact programme (COMBI), a World Health Organization initiative, promotes behavioural change through trained volunteers who conduct home visits, distribute educational materials and organise community activities. A COMBI information system developed in 2015 enables online monitoring and evaluation of these activities, ensuring effectiveness and continuous improvement. Currently, the online system is only available on a web-based version and Android mobile platform.
COMBI emphasises local leadership to ensure its long-term effectiveness. Identifying local champions within communities and mobilising local organisations fosters ownership and sustained action. Continuous communication and education reinforce preventive behaviours, encouraging individuals to take responsibility for keeping a clean environment.
Engaging private entities and NGOs through corporate social responsibility initiatives like the dengue patrol programme in schools and the Dengue Free Malaysia Movement expands outreach and resources, leveraging the strengths of various stakeholders in tackling the dengue epidemic.
Raising awareness about the dangers of dengue and its complications motivates individuals to act. Well-informed communities actively participate in prevention efforts, empowered through continuous reminders, accessible information platforms like iDengue, and collaborative efforts with relevant authorities.
Data from eDengueV2, a new system upgraded in 2016, empowers public health officials to identify potential outbreak areas and implement timely interventions. This early warning and response system helps break the chain of transmission and mitigate outbreaks, protecting vulnerable communities.
Rozita Hod is a Professor of Environmental Health at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), specialising in public health, environmental epidemiology, and health impacts of climate change.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on February 19, 2024
|
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"url": "https://360info.org/technology-helps-tackle-surging-dengue-cases/",
"author": "Rozita Hod"
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2,112 |
Ten years on, China’s grand scheme faces hurdles - 360
Fithra Hastiadi
Published on July 10, 2023
The future of the Belt and Road Initiative is uncertain, but regional cooperation could secure its future.
Ten years into its hugely ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, China is facing a reckoning as the combination of COVID disruptions, cost blowouts and domestic issues force Beijing to reassess the project’s scale.
Launched in 2013 to enhance connectivity and promote economic cooperation beyond Asia, and drawing inspiration from the historical success of the Silk Road, the initiative was one of the boldest economic projects ever conceived, spanning more than 140 countries and requiring around USD$8 trillion in investment.
The COVID pandemic forced China to reassess the initiative’s priorities and scale. China now navigates an inward-looking economic policy, and the outcomes of this reassessment will shape not only Belt and Road infrastructure projects but the economic and geopolitical landscape in the Pacific and beyond.
Key challenges include astronomical costs, debt sustainability, market access and disruptions to the Chinese domestic economy, illustrated by the Evergrande case.
Overcoming these obstacles will require a soft power strategy that leverages regional cooperation and economic partnerships and embraces technological advancements.
Rebranding the initiative as a regional collaboration and exploring innovative strategies can help drive its momentum and adapt to changing circumstances.
While the Belt and Road still holds great potential, there are several challenges that could hinder its success in the wake of COVID.
The estimated trillions of dollars in costs pose a significant burden on participating countries.
Although China has established financial mechanisms such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the Silk Road Fund, concerns persist regarding the sustainability and availability of funding sources. The scarcity of capital for both China and recipient countries can impede the pace and scale of project implementation.
The initiative’s reliance on loans and investments can lead to concerns over the ability of recipient countries, especially those with weaker economies, to manage and repay substantial loans associated with Belt and Road projects.
This can trap countries in a cycle of debt, compromising their long-term economic stability and sovereignty.
Ensuring sustainable debt levels and providing adequate financial safeguards is essential to mitigate the risk of debt distress.
The diverse economic landscapes of participating countries pose challenges in achieving balanced economic development.
Disparities in income levels, technological capabilities, and industrial structures can hinder collaboration and create uneven benefits among partners.
Efforts should be made to promote inclusive growth, foster technology transfer and support capacity building to address these imbalances.
Various barriers such as trade restrictions, inadequate infrastructure and regulatory complexities can impede the smooth flow of goods, services, and investments.
Addressing non-tariff barriers, harmonising standards and streamlining customs procedures are crucial for creating a conducive environment for cross-border trade and investment. Ensuring fair and open access to markets will facilitate economic integration and bolster the success of the initiative.
Uncertainty surrounding China’s domestic economy and the potential for a slowdown in economic growth may make investors hesitant to commit to large-scale infrastructure projects.
For example, the Evergrande Group, one of China’s largest property developers, faced significant financial difficulties over the years, raising concerns about its ability to repay its massive debt obligations.
The potential repercussions of the Evergrande crisis could disrupt China’s domestic economy and have implications for its overseas investments, including those related to the Belt and Road project
The Evergrande case has also highlighted concerns about corporate governance and transparency in China.
The Belt and Road Initiative relies heavily on partnerships and collaborations between Chinese companies and their international counterparts, so questioning the credibility and trustworthiness of Chinese firms involved in BRI projects could lead to increased scrutiny and more stringent due diligence processes for potential partners.
Large-scale infrastructure projects may also encounter country-specific obstacles, such as regulatory issues, political disagreements, public opposition and difficulties in securing funding.
Indonesia’s high-speed rail project which will will finally become operational this year, was delayed more than four years due to financing, land acquisition and disagreements between the Indonesian government and the Chinese consortium responsible for construction.
These setbacks can disrupt project timelines, lead to cost overruns and even result in project cancellations.
The road ahead may be uncertain, but new strategies and approaches could shore up its future.
The Initiative is often perceived as a manifestation of Chinese geopolitical dominance in the region, particularly by the West. This is understandable, given China’s new-found assertiveness.
While China has moderated its approach in recent years, the initial rapid pace of development has created a psychological barrier for many potential collaborators. Friend-shoring activities further complicate the situation.
One potential solution could be a soft power strategy that leverages economic partnerships and embraces technological advancements. For instance, a cloud Silk Road strategy could provide a completely innovative approach.
More regional trade cooperation may also hold the key.
If big collaborators such as Japan and Korea were to join the Free Trade Agreement with fellow ASEAN countries, risks to regional welfare would be mitigated – as opposed to a scenario where China alone were to enter the Free Trade Agreement .
In order for the Belt and Road Initiative to gain momentum, China needs to promote collaboration and rebrand it as a regional initiative instead of persistently pushing the original version.
By acknowledging and effectively tackling these obstacles, China can work towards the Initiative’s ambitious goals of enhancing connectivity, promoting economic cooperation, and facilitating regional development.
Fithra Faisal Hastiadi is a lecturer at the Faculty of Economy and Business Universitas Indonesia. His research interests are Monetary Economics, International Trade, Development Economics, Political Economy, and Disruptive Innovation. He published Trade Strategy in East Asia From Regionalization to Regionalism and Globalization, Productivity and Production Networks in ASEAN: Enhancing Regional Trade and Investment, under Palgrave Macmillan in 2016 and 2019. He is the executive director of Next Policy (think tank). Dr. Hastiadi has no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on July 10, 2023
|
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"url": "https://360info.org/ten-years-on-chinas-grand-scheme-faces-hurdles/",
"author": "Fithra Hastiadi"
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2,113 |
Thai democracy faces the elephant in the room - 360
Pavin Chachavalpongpun
Published on July 26, 2023
After the ‘judicial coup’ to oust Pita Limjaroenrat, Thailand’s democratic future straddles the fault lines of its royalist elite and the will of its people.
Thailand’s democracy is at a crossroads after May’s election result was effectively struck down by the courts.
Last Wednesday in Bangkok, as the second round of voting to approve Pita Limjaroenrat as Prime Minister was in progress, the Constitutional Court ordered that he be suspended as a member of parliament.
The court alleged that Pita, the leader of the Move Forward Party that won the most seats in May’s election, held shares in a now defunct media company, which rendered him unqualified under local law to run in the election.
This was not the first time the Constitutional Court interfered in politics in an apparent attempt to undermine political opponents of the old establishment. The future of Pita is unknown at best, or bleak to be more accurate.
Thai politics was already in a precarious position in the post-elections period after the Senate also blocked the premiership of the progressive leader.
Pita must secure at least half of the votes from the combined two Houses (House of Representatives of 500 and the Senate of 250 votes). The veto of the Senate reaffirmed the staying power of the old establishment.
The members of the Senate and the Constitutional Court were appointed under the direct guidance of the old establishment, which broadly consists of the military, the judiciary, senior bureaucrats as well as powerful businesses.
The Constitutional Court, founded in 1997, reemerged as a key political referee in the aftermath of the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej in 2016. The Senate was reconfigured by the junta in the wake of the 2014 coup. Both were designed as instruments in preserving power interests of the old establishment. They were inventions in the long line of strategies to eliminate political enemies.
For a long time, Thailand’s old establishment has had little interest in investing in electoral politics, but has instead relied on shortcut strategies, such as staging a coup, to manage political challenges. The country has witnessed 12 successful military coups in the past century.
The latest political intervention of the Constitutional Court was a blunt obstruction of democracy in Thailand. It’s been dubbed a “judicial coup” which robbed power from the Thai voters.
While the electoral victory of the pro-reform Move Forward Party signals Thailand’s hope for a growing democracy, it continues to be impeded by the entrenched power of the old establishment.
Today, the forces behind the old establishment have succeeded in installing a political infrastructure favourable to their own position. The powerful are becoming more sophisticated in exploiting the parliamentary and legal process to their advantage.
The early demise of Pita Limjaroenrat does not rest solely on the allegation of the shares controversy, which the leader claims should not render him unfit to run, as he inherited them from his father.
But more concerning, is that his Move Forward party is the only one which has proposed to reform Article 112, or lese-majeste law, in the Criminal Code which punishes anyone defaming the monarchy for up to 15 years in prison.
The main debate during the first round of voting for Pita’s premiership focused specifically on the reform of Article 112. Pita and his party were accused of trying to overthrow the monarchy, considered a serious crime in Thailand.
Such debate illustrates the central role of the monarchy in the political deadlock. King Vajiralongkorn is a politically active king. Unlike his father, he has directly interfered in politics, requesting the amendment of the constitution to empower himself.
In 2020, Thai youths staged protests to call for immediate royal reforms. Not only was their call ignored, but they were targeted in a harsh crackdown by authorities.
So when the Move Forward Party built its platform on the demand of the protesters, it was perceived as anti-monarchist, thus deserving to be annihilated.
The fault lines of Thai politics are traced back to the monarchy.
In this fight, the Move Forward Party is alone. The second most successful party, Pheu Thai, backed by former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, has been playing a double game.
In public, Pheu Thai has appeared to be willing to partake in a coalition led by Move Forward. In reality, Pheu Thai has tilted more toward reconciling with the monarchy, which has long been a policy of Thaksin.
Thaksin himself declared he wanted to return home this month, but recently rolled back his plan given he failed to secure a landslide win.
For Move Forward, Pheu Thai is not a reliable bedfellow.
It is now increasingly likely that Pheu Thai will nominate one of its candidates from May’s election to become Prime Minister with former property mogul Srettha Thavisin, a close ally of the Shinawatra family, firming to take the top job, despite the election results.
It raises debate over the slim chances progressive politics has to rule in the current political climate, with the international community crucial in influencing and pressuring those in power in Thailand to respect the will of the voters.
The US’s concern over the Thai situation was commended. Any undemocratic effort to disqualify Pita and his party will jeopardise Thailand’s relations with its key allies.
Thailand’s political parties have a duty to defend parliamentary politics which should be kept free from interference of illegitimate players. Parties will need to be brave to tackle the royal ‘elephant in the room’, by openly discussing the issue of the monarchy to break the deadlock.
This represents the only way to move the country out of the vicious cycle that has gripped it for almost a century.
If this political process fails, it will only drive the people onto the streets. After long years of feeling politically deprived, they are angry.
Protests driven by anger are dangerous and could become violent. All sides can prevent bloody confrontations if they choose to respect the rule of democracy.
is an associate professor at Kyoto University’s Center for Southeast Asian Studies.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on July 26, 2023
|
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"author": "Pavin Chachavalpongpun"
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2,114 |
Thailand wildlife protection laws are better but not perfect - 360
Chomkate Ngamkaiwan
Published on March 7, 2023
Despite Thailand’s efforts to address wildlife crime, there are still challenges in curbing illegal trade in endangered species.
In June 2022, Ginny, an ageing, overweight Asiatic black bear, was rehomed from her concrete enclosure in the defunct Phuket Zoo to a wildlife sanctuary. Months later, in vastly superior living conditions, she has lost weight and her health has improved.
Ginny, along with another bear and 11 tigers, were the first animals to be protected under Thai wildlife protection laws enacted in 2019. The laws were a significant upgrade from existing laws, but the slow pace of change shows how much more work there is to protect the wildlife within Thailand’s borders and beyond.
The demand for products made from animal parts is driving some species to the brink. China is particularly known for its appetite for endangered species products, especially for traditional Chinese medicine. More than 20,000 African elephants and 150 tigers are killed each year due to demand from Asian consumers for ivory and tiger parts.
Thailand is a convenient hub for the illegal wildlife trade and a significant contributor to wildlife trafficking in Southeast Asia. Tonnes of African ivory, pangolins, and more than 1,000 other live animals intended for the black market have been seized at Thai airports in recent years.
Thailand attempted to strengthen wildlife protection in November 2019 by introducing the Wildlife Conservation and Protection Act. This act imposes harsher penalties for trafficking, including a new category for non-native animals listed in the UN’s CITES convention, and increased penalties for wildlife crimes. This act, along with the National Parks Act, aims to deter such crimes by setting some of the most stringent penalties in the region for illegal wildlife trafficking. Together, the acts aim to fortify protection in key areas for wildlife, wild plants and other living organisms. In most cases, the jail terms for these crimes have been extended to up to 20 years.
The 2019 Wildlife Conservation and Protection Act replaced the 1992 Act, which was outdated and inadequate. USAID Wildlife Asia had been collaborating with the Thai government since 2016 to revise the 1992 Act and based the stronger, modernised version on its “Scaling Efforts to Counter-Wildlife Trafficking Through Legislative Reform” policy tool.
The Thai government has pledged to ensure that any wild animals taken into custody will receive adequate care, with efforts made to return them to their natural habitats. If this is not possible, the animals will then be placed in permanent living arrangements that meet their needs.
It was under this provision of the revised Act that the tigers and bears were rescued from the Phuket Zoo, which was shutting down due to financial difficulties, and handed over to the Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand sanctuary, a non-governmental organisation based in Phetchaburi.
The animals were too old, sick or injured to be returned to the wild. The tigers and bears, freed from concrete cages, have a chance to live in quasi-natural environments with proper care and veterinary attention.
However, according to Alexandre Chitov, an assistant professor at Chiang Mai University, the Act still falls short. After investigating the legal challenges to more collaboration between Thailand and China to curb the illegal trade of endangered species, he found it relied too heavily on an administrative permit system which lacks definition and is susceptible to abuse. There are also no legal penalties for officials who abuse their authority.
The law addresses illegal trade only and fails to address the destruction of natural habitat. To effectively combat illegal trade, possession, and abuse of administrative powers in the protection of endangered species, he says a broader policy of criminalisation is needed.
Despite the 2019 Act being designed to regulate both physical and online trade of wildlife products, research by Jennifer M. Pytka and her colleagues has found Thailand remains a major hub for illegal online trade of these products. They studied the impact of the possession ban under the Wildlife Act on online trade and found a significant number of wildlife products were being advertised for sale on online auction sites and social networking sites.
At least a quarter of the Thai-based products they documented were offered for sale without proper registration, a violation of Thailand’s wildlife laws. One reason for this is the rapid growth of Facebook in Thailand since 2010, which has become one of the largest and most commonly used platforms for illegal online trade of wildlife products.
Thailand is making progress in wildlife protection, but there is room for improvement, particularly with regards to transnational organised wildlife crime. Thailand can better combat criminal networks that exploit the planet’s natural resources by making slight modifications to its legal framework. The focus should be shifted from domestic borders to the larger supply chain. As a leader within ASEAN, Thailand has the potential to establish itself as a global champion in the fight against transnational wildlife crime.
is a PhD candidate in criminology, justice administration and society at Mahidol University, Thailand. She is a recipient of the Royal Golden Jubilee PhD Scholarship funded by the National Research Council of Thailand. Her research interests include transnational organised crime, environmental crime, and corruption.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on March 7, 2023
|
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"url": "https://360info.org/thailand-wildlife-protection-laws-are-better-but-not-perfect/",
"author": "Chomkate Ngamkaiwan"
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2,115 |
Thailand’s fishery nightmare a global challenge - 360
Molly Green
Published on November 21, 2022
The reported horrors faced by some migrant workers in Thailand’s fisheries point to a crisis affecting the world.
Many migrants who sign up to work in Thailand’s fishing industry have no idea what awaits. Many are tricked and promised steady work with monthly earnings to deceive them into modern slavery.
The reported conditions are hellish: beatings, workers being thrown overboard — over half of the 49 trafficked migrants in a 2009 report had witnessed the murder of a fellow worker. More recently, a 2017 study examined the experiences of Cambodian and Burmese labourers working in Thailand’s fishing industry. It found that 76 percent of migrant workers in the Thai fishing industry had been held in debt bondage and almost 38 percent had been trafficked into the industry.
Fisheries are big business: global fisheries and aquaculture captured 179 million tonnes in 2018, and an estimated 10 to 12 percent of the world’s population worked in the fishing industry during that period. In 2019, Thailand was ranked as one of the top fish-producing nations in the world. It is also ranked as one of the highest-risk countries due to its modern slavery practices in its fishing industry, with an estimated 610,000 victims.
Migrant workers in Thailand are reported to come from neighbouring countries, nticed into leaving their homes with the promise of money and steady employment — a method used by traffickers to avoid detection by authorities They are then employed by large fishing companies which do not keep track of those on their boats. Due to the flawed contracts, these unscrupulous practices can continue without notice.
Global companies, especially in the UK and Australia, have a role to play to end labour exploitation in Thailand’s fishing industry. Governments have a long way to go to protect and support victims but strengthening policies and legislations is a solid first step.
Existing laws, such as the UK’s Modern Slavery Act 2015 and Australia’s Modern Slavery Act 2018, have been criticised for their weak legally binding power or the lack of accountability to prosecute companies, although both have helped raise the overall awareness of modern slavery.
In 2015, Thailand’s government introduced new measures such as regulating and controlling fishing fleets. This is not thought to be effective yet. It has yet to implement a nationwide enforcement programme to tackle human rights abuses and illegal fishing, with criminals still acting with impunity.
NGOs believe the increase in slavery to be the result of misaligned government objectives, both globally and nationally. This is because although there is a need for a victim-centred approach, the Thai government, like many other countries, becomes prosecution focused, leading to victims fearing coming forward.
Multinationals such as Nestle, Tesco and Walmart are facing more scrutiny from consumers over seafood sourced from Thailand. The choices these major companies make matter: without their business, exploitative fisheries would be less empowered and the business of brutality would be less lucrative.
The International Labour Organization has developed a global action programme aimed at promoting and protecting workers’ human and labour rights by increasing the capacity of port states to address and respond to situations of forced labour in fishing and establishment a more knowledgeable consumer base of forced labour in fisheries.
But this has not decreased the amount of modern slavery in Thailand’s fishing industry. This is thought to be because of inadequate and inconsistent legal frameworks regulating fishing industries, and poor enforcement where such laws do exist, as well as slavery, being so widespread.
The UK has legislation against modern slavery introduced in 2015. Organisations in the UK must produce an annual statement which sets out the steps the company has taken to prevent modern slavery in their business and their supply chains. In practice, companies often do the bare minimum or outright neglect their responsibilities under the law with little or no consequences. This legislation only accounts for UK organisations with an annual turnover of STG36 million and above which means a large number of organisations are not obliged to produce such a statement.
The EU has threatened to ban exports from Thailand’s fishing industry. The ban may have seemed like a good move, but it would lead to fewer sales and money which would only worsen conditions for workers and increase the amount of illegal fishing. It would therefore be more difficult to manage and oversee the conditions of workers. The EU eventually withdrew this threat once Thailand made a promise to reform the illegal fishing industry in the country.
If commercial interests or legal sanctions don’t work, the last pathway for meaningful change rests with political capital. Governments are learning and more willing to act when society compels them to achieve public interest objectives. Without pressure on the Thai government to intervene, any initiatives taken by organisations are likely to be compromised.
An ambitious system launched by the Thai government to identify or assist victims of modern slavery known as PIPO (Port in-Port out) has not worked as intended. However, the activist group, Environmental Justice Foundation have reported that since 2019 the system is improving. Refinements to inspection procedures, adopting a risk-based approach to vessel inspections and increasing the number of translators present at PIPO centres have all reportedly helped bolster protections.
Despite this improvement, issues remain with monitoring, control and surveillance systems.
Molly Green is a postgraduate researcher at the University of Liverpool, UK. Green is currently writing a thesis on Modern Slavery in the UK, focusing on barriers survivors encounter when seeking support and protection, and the role of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 in addressing the issue. She can be found on Linkedin.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on November 21, 2022
|
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"url": "https://360info.org/thailands-fishery-nightmare-a-global-challenge/",
"author": "Molly Green"
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2,116 |
The advocacy groups working to bring the Arms Trade Treaty to life - 360
Jennifer L. Erickson
Published on August 23, 2022
In December 2020, the New York Center for Foreign Policy Affairs, a nonprofit think tank, filed a lawsuit in US District Court over a pending US arms deal to sell F-35s and Reaper drones to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The lawsuit argues the proposed sale should be found invalid because the “administration failed to provide a reasonable explanation” for its approval, placing it “in breach of the Administrative Procedure Act”.
When the new Biden administration decided in 2021 to proceed with the sale, the think tank responded by adding new plaintiffs “directly affected by UAE sponsored aggression through the use of US made arms”.
Few expect the lawsuit to succeed, but it demonstrates a new approach by US civil society to change US arms-sales practices. NGOs have used similar strategies against weapons suppliers in France, Italy and the United Kingdom. Such lawsuits may be aimed at arms companies or governments (sometimes both) and tend to cite violations of obligations under national law, as well as EU law and the UN Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) where relevant. In 2019, a group of NGOs filed a Communication with the International Criminal Court to investigate the potential complicity of European arms executives and officials with war crimes in the Yemen conflict.
Although the ATT contains no enforcement mechanisms, cases like these suggest an important role for civil society, and NGOs especially, in creating accountability to humanitarian arms-export standards in national or international law.
Public opinion alone is typically not enough – even in democracies – to prompt governments to practise arms-trade restraint. Except in rare cases, the public does not track the goings-on of the conventional arms trade. As a result, NGOs with expertise and access to information can be important for raising media attention, mobilising public awareness and lobbying policymakers to engage in more ‘responsible’ arms-export decision-making.
A case in point are recent US debates over arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the UAE in light of the ongoing Yemen conflict. US domestic export rules direct the executive branch to take conflict “into account” in making arms-export decisions but do not prohibit arms sales to conflict zones. In general, US arms transfers also do not tend to generate public and media attention. But the Yemen conflict and the US role in supplying it have created moments of rare American public outcry against US arms sales.
Across party lines, a majority of Americans think “selling weapons to other countries” makes the United States “less safe”, according to a 2019 survey. Many NGOs and think tanks have been pivotal in building on heightened media attention about the war to sway public and congressional opinion in favour of restraining US arms sales in light of their humanitarian consequences. These efforts reveal both the importance of public pressure and its limitations for arms-trade accountability.
By late 2015, some senators had begun to question US arms sales to Saudi Arabia. In November, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee made its first-ever formal request for a 30-day notification of sales from an administration. Yet other members saw the precision-guided munitions on order as a way to help Saudi Arabia avoid civilian casualties.
A September 2016 joint resolution to block a proposed tank sale to Saudi Arabia failed to pass. Indeed, the need to muster a two-thirds veto-proof majority in both houses has made Congress structurally incapable of formally stopping or modifying US arms sales approved by the executive branch. Rather than congressional action, it was reports of a Saudi air strike on a funeral hall in October 2016, killing more than 100 people, that prompted the Obama administration to put on hold the planned precision-guided munitions sale. The Trump administration decided to proceed with the sale.
It was only in June 2019 that Congress succeeded in passing a set of joint resolutions to block a series of arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the UAE. President Trump vetoed the resolutions, and the Senate failed to reach the two-thirds majority to override the vetoes. Congress has never been able to reach the two-thirds voting threshold necessary to override the presidential veto to block or modify a proposed arms sale.
The effects of political opposition to proposed Saudi/UAE deals have been indirect at best. The Obama and Biden administrations have rejected some sales in response to pressure from Congress and the media. Setting these aside, though, the US generally continues to supply long-term friends and customers with political and economic objectives in mind. US export rules are flexibly written, making decisions for restraint ad hoc and allowing presidential administrations to prioritise their own political considerations.
It seems unlikely that joining the ATT would substantially alter US practices. The ATT provides criteria for arms-export decision-making (modelled in part on US legislation) but only obliges countries to deny export licences under a small – though important – set of circumstances.
The Yemen conflict presents a “most likely” scenario for NGO advocacy to influence arms-export decision-making. The Saudi/UAE deals have attracted more public attention and congressional pushback than any US arms deals in recent memory. Public and media attention to humanitarian arms-export controls – and therefore also congressional interest – are usually difficult to rouse. In this way, the Saudi/UAE deals highlight the limitations of civil-society advocacy and public pressure as a source of arms-trade accountability. Even under favourable conditions, US practices remain largely unchanged.
NGOs face specific challenges when it comes to campaigning on the arms-trade issue. Arms-export controls are highly complex and bureaucratic, and apply to a broad category of weapons that serve as basic military tools and are often legally owned by private civilians, especially in the United States. As a result, campaigning for an outright ban on the arms trade is a non-starter for many NGOs seeking to persuade governments to sign up. Instead, campaigns tend to focus on regulation according to specific humanitarian criteria. But nuanced regulation will struggle to resonate with the public as easily as a straightforward prohibition such as the Ottawa landmine ban. While NGO campaigning with the public and governments drove the adoption of the Ottawa treaty, the ATT has not received similar groundswells of attention and support.
Creative solutions, such as engaging the courts, may be one way forward for NGOs seeking to raise awareness around arms-trade issues. But perhaps most effective will be efforts to continue to educate the public and legislators, pursue reforms of export rules, and monitor government behaviour to bring ‘irresponsible’ practices to light.
is an associate professor of political science and international studies at Boston College. She researches the conventional arms trade, arms embargoes and economic sanctions, and the laws and norms of war.
Portions of this article have been drawn from Jennifer L. Erickson, On the Front Lines: Conflict Zones and US Arms Exports, World Peace Foundation, 2022.
The research behind this article was undertaken with the World Peace Foundation’s ‘Defense Industries, Foreign Policy and Armed Conflict’ program and funded in part by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.
Image published under Creative Commons.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on August 23, 2022
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"author": "Jennifer L. Erickson"
}
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The alternatives which can help prevent suicide - 360
Ching Sin Siau
Published on April 19, 2023
There are other legislations and programmes to help prevent suicide other than criminalising suicide attempts.
Content warning: This article discusses sensitive topics such as suicide that some readers may find distressing.
Countries that used to criminalise suicide attempts are beginning to realise punishing individuals doesn’t prevent them from acting on suicidal thoughts but simply denies them from seeking help.
Pakistan finally decriminalised suicide late last year and Ghana has approved amendments to the Criminal Offences Act of 1960, which previously made attempted suicide a criminal offence. Malaysia too is following in the footsteps by reviewing and repealing Section 309 of the Penal Code which criminalises suicide attempts.
In 2021, 20 countries still criminalised suicide through their common or civil law (this number is now down to 17 in 2023). Fifteen of these are British Commonwealth countries, which may have inherited the British common law. Ironically, the United Kingdom has decriminalised suicide attempts since 1961.
The suicide rate of these 20 countries varies widely, from 2.5 per 100,000 in Brunei to 40.9 per 100,000 in Guyana. In 2019, seven of these 20 countries including Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Somalia, Uganda, Guyana and Pakistan had a higher suicide rate than the global average of 9.0 per 100,000 population. These figures would indicate there may be factors other than criminalising suicide attempts which contributed to the suicide rates of these countries.
There may be a reluctance in these countries to decriminalise suicide due to the fear that removing this deterrent may increase suicide rates.
In countries that have decriminalised suicide attempts, there have been mixed results on its effect on suicide rates. Research by psychologist David Lester found that there was an increase in suicide rates in Canada after attempted suicide was decriminalised in 1972. In Sri Lanka, however, suicide rates have decreased after suicide attempts were decriminalised, possibly due to the increase in various suicide prevention programmes. In Ireland, even though the suicide rate did not change significantly after decriminalisation in 1993, the number of undetermined deaths had dropped, possibly indicating that undetermined deaths due to suicide had decreased.
One study showed that countries which criminalised suicide attempts had a smaller drop in suicide rates, while the suicide rate fell at greater percentages in countries in which suicide attempts were not criminalised. This may be because those who were contemplating suicide were more open to seeking help
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 700,000 individuals died by suicide in 2019, which translates to nine out of every 100,000 people. This is lower than in 2000 when the suicide rate was 14 out of 100,000 people. This shows that the suicide rate has been decreasing yearly.
There were many reasons proposed for this decrease, such as increasing economic prosperity in certain countries such as China. Public health efforts have also been used to prevent suicide, such as educating the public about the importance of mental health, destigmatising seeking help for mental health problems and restricting access to materials for suicide (such as banning highly hazardous pesticides in India).
There could be other supportive legislation to help prevent suicide such as enacting laws that enable an individual to obtain help. In Malaysia, someone who is considered dangerous to themselves or others may be taken in for assessment and treatment in a psychiatric facility, as stated in the Mental Health Act 2001, together with the Mental Health Regulations in 2010. In light of the Malaysian government’s proposal to decriminalise attempted suicide, the Mental Health Act will be amended to ensure that those who attempt suicide receive medical treatment within 24 hours of their rescue.
Criminalising attempted suicide is not only detrimental but can be superseded by other laws which are more effective in preventing suicide attempts and facilitating the rehabilitation of the suicidal individual to prevent future attempts.
Another way of preventing suicide is through means restriction, which seeks to eliminate or reduce the lethal means an individual may use in their suicide attempts. In Sri Lanka, the restriction of several pesticides, including paraquat, led to a 50 percent reduction in suicide deaths attributable to pesticide ingestion. Ethical reporting of suicide, such as not glorifying the death or describing in detail the method is another way to reduce suicide attempts. Gatekeeper suicide training, a practice of educating people to provide basic skills in identifying individuals at risk of suicide and referring them to mental health professionals, is another public health effort that could raise awareness, reduce stigma, and help individuals seek necessary treatment.
National suicide prevention policies, and collaboration between ministries, and public and private organisations to prevent suicide have also yielded promising results. In Kazakhstan, where suicide was the leading cause of death among 15 to 19 year olds, the Adolescent Mental Health and Suicide Prevention programme helped more than 10,000 adolescents who were at high risk of mental health and suicidal behaviour problems between 2017 and 2018. In addition, 116,000 school staff and school psychologists received gatekeeper training. This led to a 36.1 percent decrease in suicidal thoughts or behaviour among adolescents in one of the regions in which this programme was implemented.
Clearly, there are various ways to prevent suicide attempts other than criminalising them.
There are multiple causes of suicidal behaviour. One is immense psychological pain. A law which increases psychological pain and deters people from seeking help, such as criminalising attempted suicide, may not prevent suicide in the long run, but may even make things worse for the affected individual and their family members.
If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, visit https://findahelpline.com/i/iasp.
Dr Siau Ching Sin is a senior lecturer in the Faculty of Health Sciences, at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. Her research interest is in suicide and its prevention.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Decriminalising suicide” sent at: 17/04/2023 12:37.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on April 19, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-alternatives-which-can-help-prevent-suicide/",
"author": "Ching Sin Siau"
}
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The amateur asteroid hunters giving NASA a run for its money - 360
Peter Vereš
Published on June 30, 2022
Even with millions in funding and super high-tech equipment, the world’s space agencies need a helping hand from people at home.
On 2022’s list of the top five asteroid hunters in the world, it’s no surprise the top four spots are filled by multimillion-dollar NASA-funded projects. But coming in at number five is a trio of amateurs, Alain Maury, Georges Attard and Daniel Parrott. Maury is a retired engineer and astronomer who moved to Chile from France to better pursue his passion for stargazing. He runs ‘star tours’ to the Atacama Desert, allowing visitors access to his high-powered telescopes and their window onto the dazzling southern skies.
Attard, also a retired engineer, stayed in France. He takes Maury’s data and runs the numbers in his spare time, calculating asteroids’ trajectories, orbits and mass.
Parrott is an American computer scientist who wrote software now used by hundreds of astronomers to catalogue and identify space objects.
Called the MAP project, from their last names, together they have discovered hundreds of asteroids, including near-Earth objects (NEOs) and a few comets besides. They have published papers in serious scientific journals and won accolades for their work and grants to continue it.
Amateur or semi-professional astronomers play a surprisingly large role in the discovery of NEOs. When a new object is spotted, it is followed up and its orbit tracked – and this is where amateurs become vital.
First, the sighting. Far from the romantic image of an astronomer looking through the eyepiece of their telescope somewhere in a dome observatory, modern survey telescopes are powerful and automated machines, using technical cameras such as CCD or CMOS, sophisticated software and machine learning to scan large portions of the sky and report the positions of anything that moves to the Minor Planet Center almost in real time. Once a new object is spotted, it draws the attention of the astronomical community both professional and amateur.
At that point, all that is known is there is something new in the sky. The object must then be observed on several subsequent nights in order to compute its orbit. Once the orbit is known, the object becomes ‘discovered’ – and it is designated and announced to the world. A good orbit calculation means the position of the object can be computed precisely decades or centuries into the future or the past.
This follow-up is often perceived as a secondary, grunt work. But it is essential; without follow-up, there is no discovery. Amateurs often have the time to observe NEO candidates and so they become valuable co-discoverers of NEOs.
The declining cost of relatively large off-the-shelf telescopes, CCD and CMOS cameras, and astronomical software have allowed amateur observers to become more professional in their hobby. In the last few years, the precision of positional measurements in the hands of some amateur astronomers has reached the precision of professional instruments. Parrott’s software is now preferred by many astronomers, even professionals.
Astronomy clubs allow enthusiasts to share equipment and knowledge, and the internet and social media have allowed observers around the world to connect, creating a network of vigilance. Amateur astronomers just need to find their niche, zeroing in on the opportunity created when government-funded surveys leave gaps.
MAP observes from Chile because the southern skies have been without any large NEO survey telescope. Another area where amateur observers excel is chasing the smallest NEOs. Meteoroids a few metres across are sometimes detected only hours before impact. In recent years, four have been discovered with dedicated surveys (Catalina Sky Survey and ATLAS). A fifth, 2022 EB5, was spotted in March this year by Hungarian astronomer Krisztián Sárneczky two hours before it crashed into Earth somewhere north of Iceland. The direct hit was confirmed by infrasonic detection and a few reports from Icelanders who saw blue flashes. With no where near the budget of NASA, Sárneczky’s discovery was enabled by dedicated time on the telescope, years of upgrades to the Hungarian observatory and bad weather at many other professional observatories.
A lot of astronomical image databases are becoming available online, allowing amateur astronomers to fetch the data and look for moving objects. The images were scrutinised by professionals 10 or 20 years ago, but back then the processing power of the best computers was pitiful compared to what an average person has today on their personal computer or tablet. Archival searches are often enabled through public outreach services, such as Galaxy Zoo/Zooniverse or IASC. Many catalogs are freely accessible to anyone. Through these files, amateur astronomers have discovered NEOs or have extended the arcs of known asteroids many years into the past and so improved the orbit calculations.
Sometimes, unexpected help comes from private industry and startups, such as Unistellar’s eVscope. This is an off-the-shelf digital telescope that doesn’t have a classical eyepiece. Instead, images are viewed through a mobile phone or tablet. Unistellar encourages thousands of its users to volunteer their telescopes for science. Home astronomers just need to put the telescope outdoors and the eVscope will be remotely overtaken for a few minutes to observe a given target, such as a nearby NEO. At a given time, data around the world is gathered from these amateur machines and submitted to the Minor Planet Center. Afterwards, eVscopes simply resume their domestic stargazing purpose.
The first NEO to be discovered was Eros. Found in 1989, it is a whopping 17 kilometres across. In 2005 NASA set a goal to discover 90 percent of NEOs with diameters larger than 140 metres within the decade. The dedicated surveys – Catalina Sky Survey, Pan-STARRS, NEOWISE and ATLAS – pushed the discovery numbers up. There are now about 10,000 known NEOs larger than 140 metres and more than 29,000 NEOs in total – and the numbers are rising daily. Yet this still only represents about 40 percent of the estimated asteroid population. Apparently, 20 years and a professional push weren’t sufficient to find them all. The upcoming Vera Rubin Observatory in Chile and NEO Surveyor, a planned space telescope, could change the game. But until then, and probably even afterwards, enthusiastic stargazers at home will continue to play a role in finding, tracking and characterising near-Earth objects.
Peter Vere is an astronomer at Harvard & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and the Minor Planet Center. He was previously a discoverer of asteroids and comets at Pan-STARRS and NEO simulator of the Vera Rubin Observatory at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory/Caltech. He declares no conflict of interest.
This article was originally published in June 2022.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on June 30, 2022
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"author": "Peter Vereš"
}
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The battle to restore public trust in Malaysian media - 360
Benjamin YH Loh
Published on May 3, 2024
A revised code of ethics overseen by the government rightly raises concerns about press freedom in Malaysia. There is an alternative solution.
In February 2024, the Malaysian government released a revised Journalism Code of Ethics, claiming it was necessary to adapt to the challenges of social media and contemporary issues. The latest revision raises questions regarding its effectiveness and potential impact on press freedom.
The government stressed these were just guidelines and would not restrict freedom of speech but would serve as a basis for the government to give out media passes, allowing journalists access to parliament and official government events.
The code includes some positive and important changes, such as urging journalists to avoid personal biases, respect source confidentiality, and reflect Malaysia’s diverse voices. This focus on inclusivity is particularly timely considering the country’s growing racial tensions.
However, the revised code falls short of addressing the crucial impact of social media. Many newsrooms, facing shrinking resources and pressured to compete with social media, struggle to maintain high journalistic standards.
International codes from established journalism organisations such as the Society for Professional Journalism and the International Federation of Journalists often address these problems by emphasising the need for careful verification and fact-checking before publishing.
The Malaysian code, despite claims to the contrary, lacks these crucial provisions.
The code’s ambiguity also raises concerns about government control.
As the basis for issuing media passes, it grants the government significant power to revoke access for perceived violations. This could erode public trust in media outlets deemed to have “broken” the code or those perceived to be favourable toward the government of the day.
The media is struggling to gain the trust of Malaysians partly due to the inconsistent application of journalistic ethics by various outlets. Numerous media associations have their own codes, many of them vague and unenforced.
The lack of trust could also stem from past issues. Years of authoritarian rule under Barisan Nasional resulted in restrictive media laws, political control of private outlets, and harassment of journalists (the most infamous was the Ops Lalang). For too long, political interference in the media has affected not just the quality of news but also the public’s trust in the media.
The key to rebuilding trust lies in reducing government influence and allowing the media to self-regulate.
In 2019, the Malaysian government under Pakatan Harapan announced it was planning to form a media council and allow Malaysian media to self-regulate.
This council has been subject to some serious setbacks with little progress in its development. The first proposal will finally be ready to be tabled in parliament next month. If the proposed council does get instituted, then it would have its own code of ethics to regulate and manage local media causing further confusion and redundancy with the new code of ethics.
Any journalism code of ethics cannot be enforced by any government as it grants it undue control over journalists and stifles scrutiny. A well-designed code of ethics agreed by media outlets can still be enforced and raise journalism standards; media outlets can publicly chastise any outlet that breaches the code of ethics.
So, for the Malaysian media to save itself, it must actively push for the formation of an independent media council and a robust code of ethics.
This code should clearly define journalists’ roles and responsibilities and be enforceable by the council itself.
Membership could include journalists and representatives from civil society and government, to ensure every segment of Malaysian society is involved.
Malaysia’s media faces an uphill battle to regain the trust of the public, but creating a body to oversee ethics is an important and necessary first step.
Benjamin YH Loh is a senior lecturer at the School of Media and Communication and the Director of the Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions Impact Lab, at Taylor’s University, Malaysia and a visiting fellow with ISEAS-Yusof Ishak, Singapore. He is a media scholar who employs digital ethnography in studying emergent cultures and the digital public sphere.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Press Freedom” sent at: 02/05/2024 05:00.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on May 3, 2024
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-battle-to-restore-public-trust-in-malaysian-media/",
"author": "Benjamin YH Loh"
}
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The best way to see this year's best meteor shower - 360
Jonti Horner
Published on December 11, 2023
Stargazers rejoice, the Geminid meteor shower reaches its peak later this week, and this year’s sky show is particularly spectacular.
Have you ever seen a shooting star?
If not, the next couple of nights will be the perfect introduction, with the peak of the year’s best meteor shower — the Geminids — forecast to occur on the evening of 14 December into the morning of 15 December.
While the Geminids are a reliable annual spectacle, this year is the ideal opportunity to head out and observe them.
For one, when the Geminids reach their peak, the Moon will be new, meaning it will be below the horizon all night and the sky will be properly dark — perfect conditions for meteor watching.
Even better, the peak of the shower this year occurs just at the time the Geminids are highest in the sky from Earth’s eastern longitudes, meaning that viewers have a perfect ringside seat for the best display of natural fireworks this year.
To get the best view, aim to head out in the very early hours of Friday 15 December, and spend some time relaxing, gazing up at the sky, ideally somewhere with dark skies, away from bright city lights.
Meteors can be seen in any part of the night sky, but if you trace the direction of their motion, they will always point back to that single point in the night sky — known as the meteor shower’s ‘radiant’.
Meteor showers are named for the constellation in which that radiant is found, so the Geminids radiate from a point in the constellation Gemini.
The good news is that the farther north you are, the higher in the sky the Geminid radiant will get over the course of the night and so the better view you will have.
From a latitude perspective, about 30 degrees north of the equator — so near cities like Delhi, Osaka and Tokyo — will give you the perfect view, as in the morning hours the Geminids will appear to be radiating from a point in the sky directly above you.
Astronomers quantify the strength of a meteor shower by calculating its ‘zenithal hourly rate’.
This is the theoretical number of meteors you would see in one hour if the radiant of the meteor shower is perfectly overhead, you are at a perfectly dark site with no light pollution or cloud cover and you have perfect eyesight.
The actual number of meteors you will see will always be lower.
The lower the position of the radiant in the sky, the fewer meteors you will see. If there is a lot of light pollution, the fainter meteors will be hidden from your view, and so the rate you see will also go down.
At their peak, the Geminids have a zenithal hourly rate of around 150. So under perfect conditions, with the radiant directly overhead, you might expect to see two or three meteors per minute.
It’s important to note, though, that meteors are like buses — you can wait five minutes and see nothing, and then three will come along at once.
In the interactive above, there’s a more realistic hourly rate of how many meteors you could expect to see at your location as the Geminids move through the night sky.
But if you’re watching from somewhere with light-polluted skies, or if the sky is partially covered by clouds, expect this rate to be lower.
The Geminids are the most active of all the meteor showers the Earth encounters through the course of a year.
Every December, our planet ploughs through the debris left behind by an asteroid called 3200 Phaethon — a potato-shaped lump of rock and metal around 5km in diameter, often described as a ‘rock comet’.
Phaethon moves around the Sun on an extremely elongated orbit.
At its farthest from our star, it is well beyond the orbit of Mars, where Phaethon’s surface temperature likely falls below -100 degrees Celsius.
At its nearest to the Sun, Phaethon is much closer than the orbit of Mercury, superheating its surface to temperatures in excess of 700 degrees Celsius.
These temperature extremes are enough to crack and shatter its surface rocks, as they expand and contract repeatedly.
As a result, Phaethon is continuously shedding dust — particularly when it is closest to the Sun.
Over hundreds of years, that dust has accumulated, spreading around Phaethon’s orbit to create a vast, dusty tube in space.
Every December, Earth runs right through this tube — and we get to enjoy the Geminid meteor shower.
The grains of dust from Phaethon hit our planet at tremendous speed — around 34 km per second.
Those dust grains carry an incredible amount of energy. As they push deeper into Earth’s atmosphere, they superheat the air around them — creating a spectacular flash of light in the sky, or shooting star — with the resulting radiation totally vaporising the dust grain, a process known as ‘ablation’.
A typical meteor, as bright as the brightest stars, might be no more than a millimetre or two in diameter.
Earth first enters the debris left behind by Phaethon around 19 November and doesn’t leave again until 24 December.
But for most of that time, Earth is passing through the outskirts of Phaethon’s debris, and there are very few Geminid meteors streaking across our skies.
It’s when Earth reaches the centre of Phaethon’s debris stream on 14 and 15 December — where the dust is densest — that the number of visible meteors rises to a strong peak.
So the best time to view the shower will be the evening of 14 December into the morning of 15 December, with the nights before and after also offering a good display of celestial fireworks.
When observing meteor showers, comfort is probably more important than anything else.
Plan to head out somewhere dark — the darker the better. The farther you travel from bright city lights, the darker the sky you will have, and the better the display you will see.
Aim to get to your viewing location in daylight or check it out on a previous day, to plan the best place to get comfortable — and remember to check beforehand for any hazards.
Once you’re at your chosen location, your best bet for a good view is to lie down — get comfortable, as you’ll want to spend at least half an hour, and preferably longer, gazing up at the sky.
Take a blanket and pillows, and make sure to bring something warm to wrap up in, even if the night doesn’t feel cold. It’s amazing how chilly it can get when you’re lying still outside in the dark.
Figure out where in the sky the radiant of the meteor shower will be. For the Geminids, you’re looking for the constellation Gemini — which is above and to the left of Orion (for those in the northern hemisphere), or below and to the right of Orion (if you’re in the southern hemisphere).
Once you’ve located the radiant, have a look around the sky in that general direction. Do you have darker skies to the radiant’s left, or to its right? Pick the darker side and point yourself that way.
From long years of experience, I have found the best view of a meteor shower is from looking about 45 degrees to the left or right of the radiant, and with your head tilted up so that you’re looking about 45 degrees above the horizon.
While you can see meteors from a meteor shower in any part of the sky so long as the radiant is above the horizon, this approach seems to give the best chance of seeing a really good display.
It will take between 30 and 45 minutes for your eyes to become fully adjusted to the darkness, allowing you to see the faintest possible stars. Any source of light seen in that time will reset the clock, so make sure to put your phone away.
Now relax, look to the skies and enjoy the view.
Professor Jonti Horner is an astronomer and astrobiologist based at the University of Southern Queensland, in Toowoomba. He has a particular interest in the Solar System, and especially the comets, asteroids and meteors therein. In recent years, his research focus has expanded to include the search for, and study of, exoplanets.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on December 11, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-best-way-to-see-this-years-best-meteor-shower/",
"author": "Jonti Horner"
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The big problem with small modular nuclear reactors - 360
Alan Finkel
Published on March 25, 2024
Small modular reactors are being considered as part of Australia’s energy future, but there are none in operation in countries whose lead we might follow.
They’re being touted as the solution to kickstarting a nuclear power industry in Australia.
According to the Opposition’s Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Ted O’Brien, small modular reactors (SMR) could be built within a ten-year period if it wins the next election.
However, given the challenges in other countries, it would more likely take 20 years to commence commercial operation of a nuclear reactor in Australia from the time in-principle approval was reached.
To reach that starting point and enable detailed consideration of the challenges and costs of nuclear power, the existing legislative ban on nuclear power in Australia will need to be removed.
There are other obstacles.
While there’s plenty of excitement about SMRs, the problem is there just isn’t enough data about them, mainly because there are none operating in any OECD country.
And it’s unknown when any might be. Allison Macfarlane, former chair of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, argues in her article, The end of Oppenheimer’s energy dream, that the proposal for SMRs to help us in the clean energy transition is fanciful.
The SMR furthest along the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approval process was from the US company NuScale.
However, NuScale had to re-start the approval process when it decided to increase its reactor rating from 50 MW to 77 MW. Worse, its first planned installation, in Utah, was cancelled last November when the initial cost blew out to USD$9 billion, corresponding to USD$20 billion (AUD$31 billion) per GW.
The only countries with working SMRs are China and Russia.
has one demonstrator plant in operation and one demonstrator plant in construction. The 210 MW HTR-PM began construction in 2012 and operation commenced in 2023. The 125 MW ACP100 Linglong One commenced construction in 2021 and completion is expected in 2026.
has one commercial plant in operation and one demonstrator in construction. The commercial plant, called the Akademik Lomonosov, started construction in 2007 and was connected to the electricity grid in far northeast Russia in 2019. It uses weapons-grade uranium and is wholly inappropriate for a country like Australia. The BREST-OD-300 demonstrator plant was approved in 2016, construction commenced in 2021 and it is expected to be completed in 2026.
How is the rest of the world placed?
None in operation; one prototype in construction. The 32-MW, locally designed prototype reactor began construction in 2014 and is expected to commence non-commercial operation in 2027.
There are no SMR reactors in operation or construction. The Ontario Power Generation company plans to build a 300 MW reactor at an existing facility, but the regulator has not yet granted approval.
Private SMR developers divide into light-water reactors, which is the most commonly used, best understood technology, and advanced reactors that are pushing the design envelope either on the cooling (e.g., molten sodium) or the fuel (enriched above 5 percent).
GE-Hitachiis developing a light-water, 300 MW reactor. Design completion date and the cost per GW are unknown. Hearings for a licence to commence construction in Canada will not begin until later this year.
is developing a light-water, 470 MW reactor. Design work commenced in 2015, and in 2023 the reactor design completed the first step of the UK approval process. Step 2 is expected this year. Final approval will only be issued after the completion of steps 3 and 4 of the Generic Design Assessment. The cost per GW is unknown.
has completed the design of a 300 MW pressurised light-water reactor. A preliminary application has been submitted to the NRC. If approved, it is likely to take several more years for final approval.
and GE-Hitachi are co-developing the Natrium 345 MW reactor. Rather than commonly used commercial grade uranium enriched up to 5 percent, the Natrium uses uranium fuel enriched up to 20 percent. This fuel is only available from China and Russia. Efforts are underway to develop a US source of supply, expected by the end of this decade. TerraPower is in pre-application discussions with the NRC but has not submitted its application for approval.
There are other companies such as Holtec, Kairos and X-Energy that have committed to developing SMRs, but they are still in the design phase.
The US, Canada, UK, Finland, Norway, France and all other OECD nations have no SMRs in operation, none under construction and none approved by their country regulator.
Micro reactors are intended to generate electrical power up to 10 MW per unit. Although companies such as Rolls Royce are developing these, there do not appear to be any commercial micro modular reactors that have completed their design.
That leaves full-scale reactors, which have also been mentioned as part of a possible Australian nuclear power play.
Korean company KEPCO builds most of the nuclear reactors in Korea and has now built one at Barakah in the United Arab Emirates. This 5.6 GW plant, scheduled to be completed this year, has taken 15 years to complete from the time the contract was signed.
It cost USD$24 billion (AUD$36 billion). At 5.6 GW, that is AUD$6.4 billion per GW. Given salaries and skills shortages in Australia, inflation, interest rates and our regulatory requirements, it would cost more and take longer in Australia.
The Hinkley C plant in the UK was supposed to be finished in 2017 but has been delayed again until 2031 – 23 years after approval. The estimated construction cost has ballooned to £46 billion (AUD$89 billion). At 3.2 GW, that is AUD$28 billion per GW.
In the US, the most recent nuclear reactors are the Vogtle 3 and 4 reactors, built at an existing facility that is home to the Vogtle 1 and 2 reactors. Both were anticipated to be in service in 2016. However, Vogtle 3 did not begin commercial operation until July 2023. Vogtle 4 is projected to commence operation in the second quarter of this year – 15 years after the construction contract was awarded.
Construction cost USD$34 billion (AUD$52 billion) for the combined 2.2 GW output of the two reactors, or AUD$24 billion per GW.
Construction of nuclear plants in the United States has declined dramatically over the years. Approximately 130 were built in the four decades from the mid 1950s to the mid 1990s. Only four commenced operation in the three decades from the mid 1990s to now, and at the time of writing there are no nuclear reactors under construction in the United States.
In France, only one nuclear power plant is under construction. The 1.65 GW Flamanville EPR reactor is hoped to be completed later this year, 17 years after construction began. The most recent cost estimate was AUD$22 billion, or AUD$13 billion per GW. No other nuclear power plants are planned in France.
These high costs and long delivery durations for full-scale reactors are the reasons SMRs are proposed as a way forward in Australia.
However, SMRs are a new technology. There are none in operation, under construction or approved in any OECD countries, thus it is not possible to estimate the costs or delivery schedules. NuScale’s investment to date suggests that the capital cost for the first units to be delivered will be very high.
The essential value proposition of SMRs is that they will be built using offsite, volume production, and thus in the long-term will benefit from economies of scale. It might be decades, though, for this benefit to be realised.
Even if the process of serious consideration of nuclear power in Australia is formalised, it will be essential to continue investing in solar and wind power to meet our clean energy transition targets this decade and next.
Dr Alan Finkel is Chair of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Quantum Biotechnology at The University of Queensland. He is Chair of Stile Education. He is a neuroscientist, engineer, entrepreneur and philanthropist. He is former Chancellor of Monash University and was Australia’s Chief Scientist from 2016 to 2020, during which time he led the National Electricity Market Review, the development of the National Hydrogen Strategy, the panel that advised the Australian Government on the Low Emissions Technology Roadmap, chaired the National (Covid) Contact Tracing Review, was deputy chair of Innovation and Science Australia, and chaired the National Review of Industry and School Partnerships in STEM Education.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Nuclear future” sent at: 22/03/2024 13:37.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on March 25, 2024
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"author": "Alan Finkel"
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The BJP tries on a new image: champion of ‘good governance’ - 360
Satish Jha
Published on November 27, 2023
With state and national elections ahead, the party moves away from its time-tested appeal to Hindu nationalism.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has emerged as a well-oiled and lethal electoral campaign machine, on the job around the clock. It has fundamentally redefined the art of campaigning, not leaving anything to chance when it comes to electioneering.
Known for its espousal of ‘Hindu Rashtra’, the BJP and its earlier avatar, the Bhartiya Jana Sangh, founded by Syama Prasad Mukherjee, have always championed ethno-cultural nationalism and used the identity issues of Hindu society in India’s electoral arena.
Of late, however, the BJP is no longer just playing the Hindu nationalist card. Instead, it is using a combination of strategies to moblise the electorate – the agenda of ‘good governance’ foremost among them.
This comes as a surprise to observers who wonder why the party needs to showcase its track record on governance when its time-tested Hindutva playbook is available to upstage any political adversaries.
The BJP was the chief architect of the Ramjanmabhumi Andolan (Agitation for Lord Rama’s Birthplace) in the 1980s. The party made this its main political plank, along with abrogation of Article 370, which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, and the demand for a Uniform Civil Code. Both actions effectively targeted Muslims – one the Muslim-majority state of J&K, the other the Muslim Personal law (relating to marriage, divorce and inheritance). These policies were deftly aligned to the BJP’s stated ideology of Hindutva, or Hindu nationalism.
These tactics paid rich dividends electorally, as the party gradually moved from the sidelines of Indian politics to the centre. Today, it is a major political force both at the centre and in the states of India. Such is its overwhelming presence that political scientists have started calling the new party system in India the ‘BJP system’, following on the erstwhile ‘Congress system’ – a term coined by Indian political scientist Rajni Kothari to explain the salience of the Congress party and its consensual politics in 1950s and 60s.
There are several reasons for this strategic shift.
First, overuse of the Hindutva card seems to have diminshed its value. The aspirational classes constitute a sizable section of the voters, and for them, the appeal of identity politics is limited. They seem instead to prioritise issues of employment, education, better civic amenities and social security over religion and identity.
Second, Hindutva is not a cure for all maladies. The unseating of the BJP government in some states in the post–Babri Masjid demolition period and the subsequent state assembly elections of 1993 make a case in point. When Hindutva must contend with the social-justice politics of the caste-based regional parties, its limitations in mobilising the Hindu voters have been apparent.
Clearly, the stratification of Hindu society along caste lines represents a more potent division in the minds of the electorate. Hence the adoption of the governance agenda to catch the imagination of all – it is a caste- and religion-neutral strategy.
Despite the recent ‘subalternisation’ of the party organisation – promoting the backward and lower castes by diluting the party’s traditional image of a Brahman-Bania upper caste political formation – the BJP appears reluctant to confront caste politics in north Indian states purely through its politics of Hindutva. Hence governance and development are brought in to present it as a party with a difference.
Third, since the BJP is pitted against the Congress and the regional parties, which have a poor track record of governance, it hopes that showcasing good governance can expose the weakness of its adversaries. ‘Good governance’ is intended to mean efficient delivery of services, along with ensuring a corruption-free administration – with the BJP as the embodiment of political virtue on both counts.
Fourth, after the rise of Narendra Modi as the new face of the BJP, with the so-called Gujarat model of development and nine years of good governance at the Centre to showcase, the party believes the opposition parties simply cannot match it on the governance plank. Modi has tried to redefine the discourse of governance in recent years with his oft-repeated distinction between niti (policy) and niyat (intention) to justify unpopular and hasty policy initiatives.
The financial inclusion through ‘Jan Dhan Yojana’ (small savings scheme for the poor), empowerment discourse through ‘Ujjwala Yojana’ (free/subsidised LNG for cooking for the poor) and healthcare promotion like ‘Ayushman Bharat’ (Healthy India) are all feathers in his cap. The phenomenal recovery of the economy in the post-COVID-19 period – in spite of earlier shocks due to demonetisation and hasty implementation of the GST – has emboldened the BJP to go to the electorate with this ‘good governance’ agenda.
The hysteria of nationalism and communal conflagration are effective political weapons to whip up majoritarian sentiments during the elections. But they cannot be made a recurrent phenomenon. In comparison, development and governance are more dependable electoral strategies. Modi’s portrayal as Vikash Purush (Man of Development), with catchy slogans like “sabka saath,sabka vikas, sabka viswas” (development for all with the cooperation and confidence of all), have a dual purpose: They are meant to blunt the edge of the caste divisions of the Hindu society that have been a perennial source of discomfort to Hindu nationalist politics; and they present Modi’s politics as inclusive and developmental, which projects a forward-looking and transformative image.
The conventional wisdom that when the chips are down and the electoral chances are bleak, the leadership should be kept out of campaigning is not the approach of Modi’s BJP. It has shown on many occasions that the leadership will not shy away from campaigning even when the electoral winds are unfavourable. This was demonstrated in the 2015 state election in Bihar and the 2019 election in Delhi. The party marshalled all its troops to the battleground, even though an adverse outcome was a foregone conclusion.
Even on the issue of governance, Modi has radically altered the terms of discourse from the creation of public goods to one of individual benefits, or the ‘labharthi’ (beneficiary) discourse. His ‘new welfarism of the right’ is geared towards reaching out to individual beneficiaries much more efficiently than the earlier strategies of creating common public assets, community and group welfare and rights-based entitlements with long growth periods with uncertain political gains.
Some of the policies of the Modi government verge on freebies and cannot be categorised as welfare measures. However, due to Modi’s media makeover as ‘Man of Development’, these freebies are passed off as great measures of empowerment – in stark contrast to the condemnation of the opposition parties for similar schemes.
Only in the case of the former are they criticised as election gimmicks to cover up for their poor governance.
Satish K. Jha is Associate Professor in political science at Aryabhatta College, University of Delhi.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on November 27, 2023
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"author": "Satish Jha"
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The case for Indian food subsidies - 360
H.S. Shergill, Varinder Sharma
Published on April 4, 2022
Commercial food production anywhere in the world requires significant government subsidies. India is no exception.
Demand for foodgrains in India will outstrip supply in coming decades.
And yet some of India’s high-level policy economists still believe self-sufficiency is a natural and spontaneous feature of Indian agriculture.
They say strategies that have facilitated India’s transformation from a chronic-food-deficit country into a food self-sufficient country could now be drastically modified – even scrapped – and trading and marketing of foodgrains could be completely privatised.
These recommendations overlook better options for streamlining India’s food-production system, such as improving storage arrangements and targeting subsidy programs to states where they will do the most good.
They also completely ignore two basic facts: the likely food demand-and-supply balance in coming decades, and the non-sustainability of large-scale commercial food production without government support and subsidies. The latter applies anywhere in the world, in both developed and developing countries.
Virtually all long-range projections show that by 2050 India will be food deficit or precariously food self-sufficient. Demand for food will rise continuously: the Indian population will surpass 1.5 billion by 2050, more than 60 percent of the population will be urban, and per-capita income is expected to more than double. Food production will barely be able to keep pace with increasing demand because the yield rates of wheat and rice are already stagnating and the area under these two crops is shrinking due to increasing urbanisation and shifts to other crops.
Many economists agree that large-scale production of foodgrains requires government support. After 25 years of the World Trade Organization (WTO), developed countries still provide huge subsidies to their farmers that amount to 50 percent or more of the farmers’ income.
The farm policy debate in the West is about which would be the cheapest, most concealed and least trade-distorting method of providing this support. This is the stark fact behind the WTO’s blue and green boxes (denoting types of government support according to their effect on trade and other factors) and continued farm subsidies to keep Europe green.
In India, scrapping such government policies as the minimum support price (MSP) and the public procurement system is a sure recipe for endangering food self-sufficiency. It would result in a drastic reduction of the area under wheat and rice in the main surplus-producing states. Consequently, India’s food self-sufficiency would collapse much earlier than 2050.
Even after 50 years of the green revolution, substantial regular surpluses of foodgrains occur only in some states; most are foodgrain deficit or barely self-sufficient. As such, a single price and procurement policy regime cannot be implemented in these latter two types of state. However, no one denies the urgent need to reform the present system of procurement, storage and distribution of foodgrains: it is a large burden on government resources and suffers from gross inefficiency and huge waste.
The agro-food chain in India has a number of stages: (1) production of foodgrains by farmers; (2) procurement of foodgrains by public agencies; (3) transportation of foodgrains to stores; (4) storage of foodgrains; (5) release of foodgrains in the open market for processing and to stabilise seasonal price fluctuations; (6) release of foodgrains for distribution to poorer citizens at cheap rates; (7) release of foodgrains for export.
Some of these stages, such as transportation, storage, processing and export, could be privatised without risking long-term food self-sufficiency. Release of foodgrains to the open market and distribution of grain to poorer citizens could also be privatised.
There are 2220 warehouses in India, of which 141 are private and 2079 are run by state governments and the central government. A High Level Committee report on restructuring the Food Corporation of India lists the cost of maintaining stock in these warehouses at 182.3 billion rupees (US$2.4 billion), and freight makes up 36 percent of this total.
However, procurement of wheat and paddy from the regular/surplus-producing states should be kept with public agencies. Privatisation of the procurement of wheat and paddy from these states will result in political unrest, and may also result in a substantial reduction in the area under these two crops in the regular surplus-producing states.
The system of fixing the MSP for wheat and paddy must be changed. The MSP for these crops should be based on world market prices, with the average over the last three years used as a basis. This change will ensure that surplus stocks of wheat and rice are easily exported without any major loss to the government.
The present system of MSP and public procurement should be continued in the regular surplus-producing states, where it has been successfully functioning for more than 50 years. However, it should not be mechanically extended to food-deficit or barely self-sufficient states, where it would be too costly to operate. In these states farmers should receive a cash subsidy per acre of wheat and paddy sown, paid directly into their bank accounts.
The system of distributing free foodgrains to a large proportion of the population has been in operation for two years and should not be stopped abruptly but instead tapered off over the next few years. There is a political cost to withdrawing benefits, as recent farmer agitation shows. (Rome introduced free distribution of wheat and oil to its citizens as a temporary measure, but it had to be continued for more than 200 years.) Similarly, it will not be easy to dismantle the MSP and public-procurement system of wheat and paddy in the main surplus-producing states.
The cost/benefit analysis of the central government’s food-subsidy bill cannot be undertaken along the same lines as other items of government expenditure. It has to be assessed more like defence expenditure. It is imperative to safeguard the integrity of India’s borders, so the armed forces must be adequately equipped irrespective of the cost involved. In the same way, India’s food self-sufficiency cannot be compromised, whatever the cost.
H.S. Shergill is Professor Emeritus of the Department of Economics at Panjab University, and Director (Research) at the Punjab Development Studies Unit, Institute for Development and Communication, Chandigarh.
Varinder Sharma is Associate Professor at the Punjab Development Studies Unit, Institute for Development and Communication, Chandigarh.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on April 4, 2022
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"author": "H.S. Shergill, Varinder Sharma"
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The challenges ahead for generative AI - 360
Oliver Bown
Published on December 20, 2023
Generative AI is upending industries, but little is certain about how this technology will fare amidst a range of issues in a fiercely crowded market.
In 2023, the creative industries have been electrified (stunned and stimulated in equal measure) by Generative AI. The next months will continue the playing out of this tumultuous social change.
Central to immediate debates, we face a potential major juncture in the history of intellectual property rights. Should big tech, or anyone for that matter, be allowed to feed copyrighted works into today’s phenomenally powerful machine learning algorithms?
Existing “fair use” clauses in many countries, notably the US, permit some uses of copyrighted material for training algorithms, but this permission is not clear cut.
Such exceptions predate the current reality of Generative AI’s capability, which brings them into conflict with artists’ rights. When artists’ creative work is being used to train AI systems that then compete with them in the same creative marketplace, a strong argument can be made that this cannot constitute “fair” use.
Rightsholder advocates are fighting this case convincingly. The outcome remains far from clear though, and could yet upend the practices of leading Generative AI companies like OpenAI and Stability AI.
Another prominent debate concerns whether people should have the right to know if creative work is AI generated, much as we expect to know what harmful substances are in products, or whether clothes were made in a sweatshop.
For example, the Recording Academy, which runs the Grammy Awards, declared that a song must be largely composed by a human to be eligible for an award. This presents the profound challenge of agreeing on where the boundary lies between human and AI contributions to a work, when AI processes might be found at thousands of points in a creative workflow.
Simultaneously, the commercial creative technology software industry continues to grow as a significant economic sector, spawning new local industry representative bodies, such as Music Technology UK.
Governments face the conflicting demands of supporting artists and this attractive, economically buoyant (potentially bubbly) start-up and innovation sector. But despite some very real battle lines, the reality is a more complex jungle of jostling actors.
Many Generative AI technologists, artistically oriented themselves, take care not to pit their work “against artists”.
AI music start-up veteran Ed Newton-Rex recently quit his job at Stability Audio (the audio arm of the hugely successful Stability AI, makers of the popular Stable Diffusion image generation tool) in protest at the company’s belief it was justified in scraping copyrighted artistic works for use as training data.
Meanwhile, a large proportion of competing AI companies in this area, either on moral grounds or to minimise risk, are on board with a pro-artist stance, for example by signing up to the Human Artistry Campaign, which advocates on behalf of artist groups for favourable policies.
They either use “safe” training data — which could mean it is copyright free, formally licensed, or their own in-house content — or they employ entirely different AI techniques which don’t directly target the use of original content for training machine learning systems.
The most ground-breaking machine learning techniques have achieved their impressive capability by learning from as much cultural content as they can possibly lay their hands on. The more content, the better the generative results.
But this is not to say that powerful generative systems can’t work with more constrained data sets, or even altogether different paradigms from learning from data. This includes rule-based systems and the use of human feedback (e.g., listener ratings) to improve generation.
It doesn’t mean creative AI businesses are not having detrimental effects on creators. It will be important for the creative industries to look beyond the current debates around licensing training data, assuming powerful generative techniques will emerge that don’t infringe copyright.
This means two things: everyone everywhere all at once making more creative work; and the growth of commercial business models aiming to monetise that creative production, which they may do through a range of means from simply selling creative software, to claiming copyright themselves, to positioning themselves in the distribution process, to Meta and Google-style data extractive practices.
Technologists who are “for artists” in so far as they respect their copyright in training ML models, may still be very active in changing the commercial landscape.
With that in mind, the incumbent creative industries major players, the Disneys, Warner Musics and BBCs of the world, are especially important because they encapsulate both copyright and tech innovation interests under the same roof.
They may be the clear winners, having access to their own troves of creative content data, alongside well-funded R&D arms and an appetite for new markets.
An example is Getty Images’ AI image generator, trained on Getty’s own stock and promising to be commercially safe, with “no intellectual property or name and likeness concerns, no training data concerns”. This adds further to the complex moral landscape.
The upheaval will cut deeper still into long-standing conceptions of artists’ moral rights, and the practicalities of defending those rights.
There is also the potential of specific technology breakthroughs that could further redirect the course of change in 2024. Much of the work will be in the pipelines, workflows and user interfaces that bring generative AI into different industries, especially with respect to collaboration and human-computer co-creativity.
Digital creative workers will respond best to technologies that can neatly slot into existing ways of working, and this will be a key design goal for technologists.
With the ascent of powerful text-based generation tools at the heart of the Generative AI revolution, we can expect natural language itself to become a more prevalent interaction modality at multiple points in a workflow.
With AI also enabling us to take apart creative content (de-mixing music tracks or extracting gestures from an actor), media assets also take on a new flexibility: the file format or encoding doesn’t matter as much if you can still manipulate the content.
But a bigger prospect still is the scenario in which someone successfully taps into audience feedback to continually modify Generative AI models.
Imagine, for example, an AI music generator that can generate tracks and directly deploy them to a large audience (for example, if they were incorporated into a major streaming service in a popular “relaxation” stream). With enough listeners’ feedback, which might just consist of whether they skipped the track or not, and a good enough algorithm, such a system could begin to take on emerging properties that, for the first time, break out of the orbit of human production and consumption.
Many are watching OpenAI with increasing anxiety as they experiment with this “reinforcement learning from human feedback”. It is yet to match the power of traditional deep learning techniques, but has the potential to transform what role generative machine processes play in cultures.
This hopefully portrays the current complexity of the Generative AI world. Those positioning themselves to be disruptors are just as vulnerable to being outcompeted or having their business models made redundant by changes elsewhere in the chain. Many a line of code and many a neural network will be created in vain.
Based on current trends, there can be little doubt that Generative AI will continue to advance and astound in 2024.
For some, we’re on a path of continued acceleration. Others take a more punctuated, episodic view of change, where the rate of advance may flatten, but few are claiming things will level out in the coming year.
Even without more jaw-dropping breakthroughs, the consolidation of infrastructure, interface design, integration and upskilling will continue to drive the growth and power of generative AI.
Oliver Bown is Associate Professor at the School of Art & Design, UNSW Sydney. He is author of Beyond the Creative Species: Making Machines that Make Art & Music (MIT Press, 2021), now available as a free ePub from the MIT Press website. His research was funded by an ERC Advanced Grant: “Music and Artificial Intelligence: Building Critical Interdisciplinary Studies”
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on December 20, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-challenges-ahead-for-generative-ai/",
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The changing field of football and power - 360
Reece Hooker
Published on August 9, 2023
Sport has always been a powerful political tool, but the hundreds of billions being splashed in the Gulf is changing how we think about football forever.
The eyes of the sporting world are on Australia and New Zealand, as the best women in football compete for glory at the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
It comes less than a year after the much-criticised men’s World Cup in Qatar, which culminated with Argentinian great Lionel Messi leading his country to a historic victory over France in the final.
A lot has changed in football since then: Cristiano Ronaldo was lured to Saudi Arabia on a contract rumoured to be worth more than €200 million per season (US$218.8 million). Ronaldo’s former club, Manchester United, is for sale and the frontrunning bidder is a Qatari royal. United’s crosstown rival, Manchester City, is owned by the vice president of the United Arab Emirates.
Messi left reigning French champions Paris Saint-Germain, a club which is owned by the Emir of Qatar, to join American side Inter Miami on a deal worth up to USD$60 million per year.
Shortly after, Messi’s PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe was reportedly offered a USD$1.1 billion annual salary to join Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal.
But Mbappe appears focused on reaching Spanish giants Real Madrid, which is seeking a striker to fill the void left by Karim Benzema, the reigning Ballon d’Or holder (awarded yearly to the best men’s footballer in the world), who now plays for Al Hilal’s arch rival, Al-Ittihad.
Coming on the heels of Qatar’s USD$200 billion World Cup, critics have lined up to label this seismic spending from the Gulf as “sportswashing”. The term, without a universally accepted definition, refers to the practice of governments spending money on sports to draw attention away from issues such as human rights abuses.
It conjures visuals like Messi in Qatar, hoisting the World Cup, while wearing a bisht (a traditional Arab robe), an “emotionally laden” image identified by Tilburg University’s Alfred Archer and Duke Kunshan University’s Kyle Fruh as an instance of sportswashing.
“Qatar can expect [the Messi photo] to overwhelm the emotionally fraught image of abused and exploited migrant labourers in a global audience’s thinking about the country,” they write.
“And Saudi Arabia may hope that soon it will be closely linked in popular imagination with all the excitement and fondness elicited by elite boxing, glamorous global football stars, and the world’s best golfers rather than, for example, the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.”
Human rights were a prominent issue at the Qatar World Cup. Australia’s men’s national team released a video ahead of their participation in the tournament raising concerns over Qatar’s treatment of migrant workers and LGBTQ+ people.
As Simon Chadwick of Skema Business School points out, the same scrutiny has not followed the women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
“Few have raised objections to Australia’s hosting of the World Cup, despite facing human rights issues of its own,” he said.
“Australia’s high rate of Indigenous incarceration and deaths in custody has drawn criticism at home and abroad. As of October 2022, almost every child in Australia’s Northern Territory youth jails is Indigenous.
“Australia has also been condemned for its indefinite detention of asylum seekers and immigrants, which the UN’s torture watchdog labelled “inhumane” in May 2023.”
Messi’s move to Florida has not had the same political charge as, say, ex-Liverpool FC captain Jordan Henderson’s signing with Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ettifaq.
Henderson, who has participated in LGBTQ+ allyship campaigns, has been branded a “massive hypocrite” whose decision has caused “hurt and division” in a statement from Liverpool’s club supporter’s board.
Meanwhile, Messi has enjoyed little scrutiny for playing in the state governed by Republican president hopeful Ron De Santis (The New Yorker described De Santis as one of the “notably absent” at Messi’s Inter Miami debut). De Santis has brought to power ‘don’t say gay’ laws, restrictive abortion laws and promised to wind back the rights of non-citizens if he takes office in 2024.
Football has power, as do the billions of dollars being spent across the world to harness it. Just as Doha hopes images of a bisht-clad Messi can prompt positive associations with Qatar, Canberra too would hope that the Indigenous imagery used during the women’s World Cup washes away the world’s poor perception of Australia in regards to its treatment of First Nations people.
As countries use the world game to further their own aims, 360info turns to the experts to analyse how football and power relate to one another and what might come next.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on August 9, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-changing-field-of-football-and-power/",
"author": "Reece Hooker"
}
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The classroom of the future may be truly global - 360
Yong Zhao
Published on December 20, 2021
By Yong Zhao, University of Kansas
School education has for a long time been one size fits all, criticised for its inability to meet the needs of all students. Reform measures have generally failed to improve learning in even the most basic subjects of math and reading. Students have often been left out of attempts to improve.
Then COVID-19 happened. School closures forced the entire industry to create new ways of teaching and learning. Caught in the chaos, students, teachers, administrators, policymakers and parents all had to adjust, inventing new policies and practices in just days.
Not surprisingly, results varied. With the disruption came the possibility for schools to rethink education. All teachers and students have now experienced remote learning, the resources to support it have grown and new more innovative ways of teaching and learning have emerged.
Many schools have been eager to return to ‘normal’ but normal no longer exists.
Out of the disruption could come more personalised learning. Learning that is strengths-based and passion-driven, with students at the centre.
If remote learning can take place globally, there is no need to constrain students to the traditional classroom where teachers are the only knowledge authority. Students could personalise learning based on their own interests and strengths using globally available resources. A student in Vietnam could join a French classroom for language lessons; or an Australian student could join a Japanese art class.
Personalisation of learning is not only about students being the owner of their learning. It also sees the learning process shift to problem-based, where learning starts with identifying problems worth solving and ends with solutions to the problems. Students learn for a purpose and exercise self-determination. This process enables students to develop an entrepreneurial orientation, emphasising solving problems for others and the world.
Personalisation of learning is not learning alone. To solve problems, students must work with each other. And in the age of global learning, students can collaborate with students in other schools, other states, or other countries. This global collaboration makes it possible for students to learn from, with, and for others on a global scale.
This doesn’t mean local schools are unnecessary. Schools deliver vital in-person contact and interactions with peers and adults, where students can get guidance and support in their pursuit of strengths and passions. More importantly, students need a local community to learn how their unique talents and strong interests can be of value to others.
Personalisation of learning requires schools to be flexible with curriculum, student organisation, and teacher instruction.
Modern schools could divide curriculum into three parts: national and state common courses for all students, school specific courses for all students, and personalised learning for individual students.
Schools can also be flexible with how students are organised, without necessarily placing all students into subject-matter based classes based on biological age.
And teachers could be encouraged to change their roles from instructor to personal consultant and project manager, focused on the growth of students instead of prepackaged curriculum content.
Education reform in the past has been slow and difficult. But COVID has demonstrated schools can be nimble when required. The lessons COVID delivered educators could drive an education transformation.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Yong Zhao is a Foundation Distinguished Professor in the School of Education at the University of Kansas and a professor in Educational Leadership at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education in Australia.
The author declared no conflict of interest in relation to this article.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on December 20, 2021
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-classroom-of-the-future-may-be-truly-global/",
"author": "Yong Zhao"
}
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The climate crisis is a health crisis - 360
Angie Bone, Karin Leder, Tin Tin Su, Tony Capon
Published on October 20, 2023
COP28 will include the first dedicated ‘Health Day’. It’s due recognition that a health crisis is inextricably linked to the climate crisis.
In 2023, Canada endured its “worst wildfire season in recorded history”, flooding in Derna, Libya caused an “unprecedented humanitarian crisis” and extreme weather events continue to rage around the world.
The climate crisis is already affecting millions: bringing death, injuries and mental health consequences, as well as the loss of homes, livelihoods, health services and critical infrastructure like power, transport and communications.
By now, there should be no doubt: the climate crisis is also a health crisis. And, as COP28 brings together world leaders to address climate change, they will also consider how to deal with the health-related ramifications that come with an ailing environment.
Wealthy countries, most responsible for global heating, often don’t acknowledge the health impacts on their citizens, let alone effects on health elsewhere.
The countries most engaged with the health effects of climate change are low and middle income countries.
COP28 is the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations’ Framework Convention on Climate change.
COP28 is the first that will have a dedicated ‘Health Day’. It will include a climate and health ministerial meeting, co-hosted by the COP28 presidency, World Health Organization and the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention.
It is also supported by governments including Brazil, Egypt, the Netherlands, Sierra Leone, India, Fiji, Germany, Kenya, the United States and the United Kingdom.
More than 50 health ministers are expected to attend, alongside their finance and climate counterparts. The aim is to build consensus on priority policy and investment in health systems and to get commitments from health and climate funders for a first tranche of money for implementation.
These health-specific initiatives are to be encouraged, but should not relieve pressure on all sectors to protect and improve health and wellbeing.
While momentum for action on climate change and health is growing, there are big challenges, particularly for countries with limited resources and civil unrest.
Even if nationally determined contributions — the actions each country intends to take to adapt to climate change and limit global average temperature increases to as close as 1.5 degrees Celsius as possible — and long-term net zero targets are achieved, the world would still be on track for a global mean temperature increase of 1.7-2.1 degrees Celsius this century.
This would cause widespread health harm. To avoid this, countries must urgently strengthen and deliver on all their climate commitments.
The first Global Stocktake of the world’s progress on the Paris Agreement will take place at COP28. This will assess emissions reduction, climate adaptation, financing, the socio-economic impact of intervention and efforts to reduce and respond to loss and damage.
All of these are relevant for human health.
Incorporating impacts on health in this stocktake will help make the human impacts of our collective inaction visible. It would also show that the health benefits of greener economies outweigh the cost of acting at the scale and pace necessary to avert disaster.
The ways climate change threatens people’s health can be broadly categorised as direct (the immediate impacts of a hazard) or indirect (mediated through a hazard’s impacts on the natural and human systems, on which our health depends).
Wildfires are a case in point. They directly affect the health of those in close proximity, through burns, smoke inhalation and heat stress, which can cause death and injury.
But the bigger health impacts of wildfires occur indirectly: either locally or at a distance. These include smoke-related air pollution that causes lung and heart disease, damage to the water catchments and agricultural land we rely on for safe drinking water and food, and disruptions to power, communications, health and other services.
There are significant mental health impacts from loss: friends and family, community, property, livelihoods, and expectations for the future. This can extend beyond the directly affected community and trigger eco-anxiety in the general population.
The increasing recognition that people’s health is inextricably linked to the planet’s health is reflected in initiatives like the World Health Organization’s Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health.
This aims to support countries to build health systems able to cope with the health impacts of climate change, including maintaining their essential functions during and after extreme weather events. More than 70 countries have already signed up.
Countries are recognising the link between climate action and human health: 91 percent of countries in their nationally determined contribution reports have at least some reference to health.
Those references relate to building resilience for the health impacts of climate change, the health benefits of low-carbon living, or climate and health financing.
However, only 29 percent of countries have allocated climate finance to these health actions in their contribution reports. There is a large finance gap for international development work at the climate and health interface.
Urgent, effective and equitable climate action is needed to protect the health and wellbeing of current and future generations. Swiftly decarbonising economies by transitioning away from fossil fuels is key to avoiding the worst health impacts of climate change.
Industrialised countries, whose current and legacy emissions have contributed most to climate change, must take greatest responsibility for reducing their own emissions and supporting lower-income countries to develop sustainable and resilient economies.
Safeguarding people’s physical and mental health should be front and centre of national responses to climate change.
This includes preparing communities and health systems to cope with the impacts, as well as ensuring that the potential health benefits of a green transition are accessible to all.
Making this happen requires finance to make buildings, services and supply chains more resilient and to increase and upskill the health workforce. COP28’s focus on health could be a welcome stimulus for increased investment.
is a public physician and an Associate Professor of Practice in Planetary Health at Monash Sustainable Development Institute. She is the former Deputy Chief Health Officer for environment in Victoria, Australia.
Prof Leder’s research is supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council Research Fellowship (APP1155005).
This article is being republished as part of a series on COP28. It was originally published October 12, 2023.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on October 20, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-climate-crisis-is-a-health-crisis/",
"author": "Angie Bone, Karin Leder, Tin Tin Su, Tony Capon"
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The climate crisis is crushing Australian festivals - 360
Ben Green, Catherine Strong
Published on March 19, 2024
Following a devastating week of extreme weather forcing the cancellation of Pitch, Australia’s decimated live entertainment scene recalibrates.
The cancellation of West Victorian electronic music festival Pitch was a waking nightmare.
After pushing ahead in the face of earlier warnings from fire authorities, organisers were forced to pull the pin on its second day amid extreme heat and a death from a suspected drug overdose.
On March 10, around 17,000 patrons were evacuated from the festival near the Grampians National Park with many accusing organisers of poor communication amid scant mobile phone reception.
It was a disaster on many fronts, but not one entirely unfamiliar to attendees of Australian music festivals. As the effects of the climate emergency intensify, festivals of all shapes and sizes are suffering costly and at times dangerous disruptions, no matter where they fall on the calendar.
That weekend saw a record-breaking heatwave across southeast Australia. While Pitch saw the worst tragedy – the death of a 23-year-old man – the extreme weather caused havoc on many fronts. Melbourne’s Moomba Parade, celebrating its 70th anniversary, was forced to cancel, while the Yarraville Festival was postponed.
Across the border, South Australia’s WOMADelaide pushed ahead with water stations and misters on hand to service its estimated 100,000 patrons and local grey-headed flying foxes, as well as dedicated ‘bat bins’ to dispose of the carcasses of animals killed by the heat.
Extreme weather events are a growing threat to festivals in Australia and around the world. In the last ten years, over 40 Australian music festivals have been cancelled, postponed or evacuated due to heat, fires, rain or floods. More than 20 of these were in 2022, as the eastern states endured record rainfall and floods.
Splendour in the Grass, Australia’s largest single-ticketed festival attracting 50,000 patrons in Byron Bay, cancelled its first day’s performances in 2022 due to inundation. Organisers were required to pay $100,000 to local schools affected by the associated traffic chaos. The following year’s iteration failed to reach capacity after more than a decade of selling all tickets on the day of release.
The global scientific consensus on climate change tells us that extreme weather will become more frequent and severe. In Australia, predictions project more extremely hot days per year and more intense rain events.
These environmental threats bring precarity to a live music sector already undergoing turbulence. Regional touring youth music festival Groovin’ the Moo cancelled its 2024 programmes citing growing overheads and slow ticket sales in the cost-of-living crisis, less than a year after Falls Festival took a pause to “rest, recover and recalibrate”.
Of the major festivals that run, upheaval and inconveniences are not uncommon. Laneway Festival’s 2023 Auckland leg was cancelled due to record rainfall, while the Sydney stop of rock festival Good Things saw its headlining set cut short due to a sudden downpour.
The increased uncertainty of staging events in these circumstances is compounded by an insurance crisis, with events and venues suffering reduced coverage and higher premiums. And the associated expenses of running a festival — transport, accommodation, food and costs of that nature — add to the squeeze.
The devastating impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic drew attention to underlying vulnerabilities in the arts. Following Commonwealth parliamentary inquiries into the music industries, and the wider cultural and creative industries, the federal government launched a new national cultural policy in 2023.
The policy recognises contemporary music, and festivals specifically, as important spaces of cultural participation that warrant public support. The document also addresses ways that the arts intersect with other policy areas, such as workplace rights, discrimination, regional connectivity and First Nations representation.
However, in the policy and elsewhere, we are yet to see systematic discussion and planning with respect to the immediate and long-term consequences of climate change.
The music and live events sectors, represented by peak bodies such as the Australian Festivals Association, have begun to acknowledge publicly the growing impacts of natural disasters and a changing climate.
Industry proposals for addressing the uncertainties caused by these factors, in conjunction with higher-profile pandemic risks, include a government-supported business interruption fund and insurance underwriting scheme. Such measures have been implemented in other countries and in other Australian sectors.
There is also some recognition of the need for festivals to adapt directly, including by reconsidering the location of events. There are indications that changes are happening “behind the scenes”, including through contractual terms that allocate the risks and costs of cancellations .
Festivals represent an ecosystem of diverse, interdependent and often competing interests. Staging a festival involves project management, logistics, security, first aid, emergency services, local government, insurance, ticketing agencies, food and beverage provision, and of course performers.
Importantly, this takes place in a commercial marketplace, subject to unequal resources and power. Some have expressed concern about the increasing dominance of a few “corporate giants” in the Australian live music sector.
The growing risks and costs associated with festivals have the potential to heighten this market concentration, by excluding the startups, small businesses and community initiatives that are less able to adapt. This threatens the diversity that is important to realising the wider social and economic benefits of festivals, including in regional areas.
Festivals are one of the most popular ways for Australians to engage with the arts, attracting 44 percent of the population over 15. Finding a way for people to continue to enjoy these festivals while reducing risks associated with attending and ensuring that they are sustainable for organisers must be a priority.
Doing this requires a better understanding of what the risks are, and in particular how they are going to change as the environment we live in is impacted by global warming. As yet, we do not have a thorough understanding of which festivals are more likely to be affected and how.
This includes examining not just the impacts on the ground on the day, but how climate breakdown might impact many parts of the festival ecosystem, from suppliers to crew to audiences to performers.
Ensuring the sustainable development of music festivals, and the wide enjoyment of their benefits, requires a coordinated approach from government and industry, based on evidence.
Bringing together scientists, policymakers and industry stakeholders to start these conversations is an important first step in this process.
Dr Ben Green is a Griffith University Postdoctoral Fellow in the Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research where he is studying crisis and reinvention in Australia’s live music sector.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on March 19, 2024
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-climate-crisis-is-crushing-australian-festivals/",
"author": "Ben Green, Catherine Strong"
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The clock is ticking on energy transition - 360
Reece Hooker, James Goldie
Published on November 1, 2023
As the world’s leaders prepare for the first Global Stocktake, big questions are being asked about energy transition.
When the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference — COP28 — convenes in Dubai on 30 November, one of the key goals will be getting the world to agree on how fast global decarbonisation should happen.
Part of that equation is determining a funding mechanism to help poorer countries decarbonise and adapt to the climate change that can’t be avoided.
These meetings have happened every year since 1995, when countries met in Berlin to discuss what later became the Kyoto Protocol.
Now, countries are focused on implementing its successor, the Paris Agreement. The agreement aims to limit “the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels” and to pursue efforts “to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.”
To limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, it is estimated that greenhouse gas emissions must peak before 2025 at the latest and decline 43 percent by 2030. Emissions in 2022 were higher than ever.
With that in mind, COP28 is introducing a Global Stocktake to evaluate progress on the Paris Agreement and identify shortfalls. Future stocktakes are going to be held every five years, in between the years when countries update their targets.
The road to a comprehensive energy transition is long, but work is underway: the electric vehicle revolution is picking up pace, especially in Southeast Asia. While market penetration is still a low 2.1 percent in the region, resourcing is getting easier.
According to Tham Siew Yean of ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Indonesia is leading the race due to its large nickel reserves.”
But the others are catching up with the discovery of critical minerals in Malaysia as well as the reported mining of nickel in Vietnam by Australian company Blackstone Minerals for production in 2025,” she writes.
New EV batteries are being developed that will reduce the use of nickel to a combination of minerals that are more readily available and cost-effective.”
Malaysia has committed to a strong solar energy regime, lifting renewables to 25 percent of the country’s power mix. According to Universiti Tenaga Nasional’s Ungku Anisa Ungku Amirulddin, Malaysia’s solar energy future “looks bright”.
“Although there are still several challenges ahead, Malaysia has set new initiatives under the National Renewable Energy Policy, which will accelerate the growth of solar energy as Malaysia’s predominant renewable energy source.”
Many medium-sized countries, like Germany, Brazil and Canada, supply over 60 percent of their electricity from renewables.
But the three biggest — China, the United States and India, who collectively make up just over half of the world’s electricity — all produced less than half of it from renewables in 2022.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Energy transition” sent at: 30/10/2023 15:39.
This is a corrected repeat.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on November 1, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-clock-is-ticking-on-energy-transition/",
"author": "Reece Hooker, James Goldie"
}
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The corporate takeover of India’s media - 360
R Srinivasan
Published on May 3, 2024
Press freedom in India has been badly hit by the gobbling up of media platforms by a few large companies.
December 30, 2022, was a day to forget for India’s already badly mauled and tamed media.
For, that day, influential – and, for many, controversial – Indian businessman Gautam Adani, then the world’s third richest man, took nearly full control of the much-respected and revered NDTV after his Adani Enterprises acquired 27.26 percent additional shares, taking his total holdings to 64.71 percent.
A few months before delivering this coup de grace, Adani’s media company, AMG Media Networks, had hired a new CEO and a retinue of government-friendly journalists.
His tail up, Adani’s next target was The Quint which, like NDTV, wore its anti-establishment badge with pride. On March 27, 2023, AMG Media Networks acquired 49 percent stake in Quintillion Business Media Pvt Ltd, The Quint’s holding company. This happened five years after central tax authorities raided The Quint’s offices in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
Over the last 15 years or so, large and powerful corporate houses such as Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Adani Enterprises have exercised diverse strategies to acquire several well-established media companies.
What has arguably worked to favour the Ambanis and the Adanis is their closeness to Narendra Modi’s government.
While one 2019 report said that Reliance “controlled” 72 television channels across India, the company does not shy away from claiming that it has an “omni-channel presence”. This brings to sharp relief the issue of diversity, or the lack of it, in Indian media.
The government has made no secret of its intent to control the media narrative.
India leads the world in government-ordered takedowns of social media posts across platforms like YouTube, micro-blogging platform X (formerly Twitter) etc.
Recently, X blocked dozens of accounts backing farmers protesting government policy on agricultural prices, while journalists and media outlets perceived as being “unfriendly” to the Modi government have faced arrests, tax raids and other coercive action by government agencies.
On paper, India is one of the world’s largest and most diverse media markets. There are more than 140,000 registered newspapers and periodicals, of which more than 22,000 are daily newspapers. These are published in an astonishing 189 languages and dialects, covering not only all the multiplicity of tongues, but many foreign languages as well.
There are more than 900 television channels, of which more than 350 are news channels, with a majority of them broadcasting 24/7. India also has more than 850 FM radio channels, of which only the state-owned All India Radio is officially allowed to broadcast news.
Rapid expansion in broadband internet access has also led to an explosion of digital news media outlets.
While there are no estimates of the number of digital news media sites in India, many of the legacy print publications and TV news channels also have a digital presence, while the number of digital only news sites continues to soar with rising internet penetration. At last count, India had more than 820 million active internet users.
There is, however, another yardstick which is of more fundamental importance to plurality of news and opinion – media ownership.
Organised mass media is no longer the purvey of journalist-entrepreneurs. It is a large scale business requiring heavy capital investment and lots of working capital. This has increasingly led to a growing corporatisation of media – in India and elsewhere – bringing large business conglomerates into play as media owners.
While the takeover of major Indian media networks by large corporate conglomerates is legion, increasing control by business houses poses a threat to the untrammelled working of the media. A problem which has been recognised elsewhere too.
Two years ago a senior Bangladeshi editor of an English newspaper wrote: “As our business houses increase in number, they are investing resource and power, into newspapers (read media in general) that can serve as a part of their arsenal for business growth, fighting rivals and frightening others from exposing their malpractices.”
It is a no-brainer why business houses seek to control media.
First, there are collateral benefits of proximity to the powers-that-be. Second, there is the attraction of posting greater profits.
One estimate pegs the Indian media and entertainment sector’s revenues to hit about Rs 2.6 trillion (USD$31.15 billion) this year. Another estimate states that by 2026, India will be the world’s fifth largest media market by value, in both print and broadcast television. Such mammoth numbers make media a legitimate focus of interest for businesses.
However, a consequence of this growing corporatisation has been the dominance of business interests in the decision-making processes in media houses, which has hampered editorial independence.
Heavy reliance on advertising revenues is the other threat to genuine media independence.
In 2022, while Indian print media generated Rs 165.95 billion (USD$1.9 bn) in advertising revenues, circulation revenues were only a fraction of this at an estimated Rs 76.30 billion (USD$0.9 bn).
This means that advertising – and as a corollary, the need to keep advertisers happy – is of prime importance, further weakening the freedom of editors and journalists. This is true for broadcast television, which has seen advertising revenues rise while subscription revenues have fallen.
No less significant is the rise of publicly listed media enterprises, with a large number of public shareholders. With managements under pressure to deliver dividends to shareholders, the pursuit of profit is the paramount objective.
Increasingly blurred lines across channels – both newspapers and TV channels also run websites, which compete with similar digital-only websites – has meant that news is no longer news – it is content.
And what content is produced and presented is driven more by algorithms than the informed decisions of editors. This has changed the reader/viewer from a citizen and a key stakeholder in the democratic process to a consumer and a target for advertisers.
But perhaps the most singular threat to a diversity of voices in the media is posed by the growing concentration of media ownership in the hands of a few.
A 2018 a research project found that the print media market is highly concentrated. Just four publications – Dainik Jagran, Hindustan, Amar Ujala and Dainik Bhaskar – capture three out of four readers in Hindi.
With no laws or regulations in India on cross-holdings, a few powerful conglomerates now control a significant slice of the media audience in India.
This makes it easier for vested interests to assert control through opaque and non-public means and reduces plurality and diversity in the marketplace.
R Srinivasan is a Professor of Practice at the School of Journalism and Communication, O P Jindal Global University, Sonipat, Haryana. He has been a senior journalist, having worked for The Hindu Business Line, Mail Today, Hindustan Times, The Times of India, Indian Express and Business Standard among others, in a career spanning over 30 years. The views expressed here are the writer’s own.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Press Freedom” sent at: 02/05/2024 09:00.
This is a corrected repeat.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on May 3, 2024
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"author": "R Srinivasan"
}
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The countries leading the way on quitting coal - 360
John Wiseman
Published on November 22, 2021
Nations can quit coal in a rapid, just and orderly manner, but they need a coordinated mix of policies.
Coal-dependent countries around the world face two wickedly interlinked challenges: accelerating the phase out of coal to prevent catastrophic global warming, while sustaining economic prosperity and political support.
As UN Secretary General Antonio Gutteres recently said, keeping global warming close to 1.5 degrees requires all new coal investments to stop now with coal phased out in OECD economies by 2030 and everywhere else by 2040.
Energy supply and economic impacts of the war in Ukraine have clearly made these tasks even tougher. But the war has also provided a powerful reminder of the huge strategic and environmental risks of fossil fuel addiction.
Quitting coal need not end in economic crisis, nor energy shortages. Not quitting coal will certainly end in climate—and therefore economic—disaster.
Researchers have systematically reviewed the policies of nations well down the path of transitioning away from coal, providing guidance on what works.
Governments quitting coal in a rapid, just and orderly manner have commonly employed a proactive, collaborative and well-coordinated mix of demand and supply-side policies.
Key demand-side policy levers include carbon pricing mechanisms; reducing energy consumption and improving energy efficiency. And providing strong financing and infrastructure support for the rapid expansion of renewable energy.
Supply-side policies such as accelerating coal industry closure through removal of subsidies and through direct regulation, taxation and export licensing are also vital. Regulatory actions to overcome the negative impacts of coal on air quality, health and environmental outcomes often play a key role. So too do mission-oriented industry policies driving economic renewal and job creation.
The European Union remains strongly focused on phasing-out coal by 2030. More than €80 billion (US$92.9 billion) has been allocated to strengthen skills and job opportunities in coal-dependent regions. These funds will also help leverage billions of dollars in private sector finance for clean energy infrastructure and technology.
German Chancellor Olaf Schulz recently proposed the German coal phase out date be brought forward to 2030. The German Coal Commission, comprising government, business and union stakeholders has suggested €40 billion (US$46.2 billion) is needed to support coal dependent workers and communities.
Spain has underpinned its ambitious coal phase-out and renewable energy goals with over €250 million (US$289 million) for ‘Just Transition’ contracts covering early retirement, re-employment, environmental regeneration and green industry investment and employment goals and strategies.
In Australia, the new Labor government has backed its upgraded greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal with a ‘National Energy Transformation Partnership’ to coordinate and integrate national and state government energy transition investments. The government also announced a AUD$1.9 billion (US$1.2 billion) ‘Powering the Regions’ fund to assist traditional and new industries in regional Australia harness the economic opportunities of decarbonisation.
The economic and job creation potential of a well-managed transition from fossil fuels to renewables is now well demonstrated.
Employment in renewable energy rose to 12.7 million in 2022, an increase of over 700,000 jobs. The International Energy Agency has estimated more than 30 million jobs could be created in clean energy, efficiency and low-emissions technologies by 2030.
Importantly, as ILO Director-General Guy Ryder said “there is a growing focus on the quality of jobs and the conditions of work in renewable energies. The increasing share of female employment suggests that dedicated policies and training can significantly enhance the participation of women in renewable energy occupations and ultimately achieve a just transition for all”.
In Germany, collaborative planning and long-term investment in infrastructure; education; environmental technologies; and cultural and service industries has been an essential foundation for economic diversification and job creation in coal dependent regions such as the Ruhr Valley.
In the United States, investment flowing from President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act will create over 550,000 new jobs in industries producing renewable energy. And in Australia, renewable energy think tank Beyond Zero Emissions has demonstrated the potential for low-cost renewable energy to create new export earnings of over AUD$300 billion and over one million new jobs.
The challenge is ensuring those national level economic gains extend to coal-dependent regions, where workers and communities are too often left behind.
Broad public support for replacing coal depends crucially on communities and workers being convinced that governments and business are genuinely committed to the creation of secure high-quality jobs.
The Paris Climate Agreement asks committed countries to take into account “the imperatives of a Just Transition of the workforce and the creation of decent work and quality jobs in accordance with nationally defined development priorities”.
International Trade Union Confederation General Secretary Sharon Burrow reminds us that a “just transition will not happen by itself. It requires plans and policies. Transformation is not only about phasing out polluting sectors, it is also about new jobs, new industries, new skills, new investment and the opportunity to create a more equal and resilient economy”.
Canada strengthened support for closing all coal-fired power stations by 2030 by working closely with coal dependent communities and provided integrated investment, infrastructure, training and employment packages. By listening closely to workers, Canada’s 2018 Coal Transition Task Force found deep local knowledge and built local support for its coal exit target.
In Australia, increasing awareness of the inevitability of the closure of coal fired power stations has strengthened support in coal dependent communities like the Latrobe Valley in Victoria and Gladstone in central Queensland for a far more proactive approach to creating new economic futures and opportunities.
says “local governments all over Australia in coal regions are taking the reins because they’re seeing change now. We’re seeing mines that have been approved but not funded. We’re seeing early closures of power plants.”
“The biggest question is, how do you diversify those regional economies? Gladstone is a really great example because there’s so many opportunities people are starting to explore. It’s not just the renewable energy…it’s what we could do with that renewable energy. It’s things like green hydrogen, it’s manufacturing renewable energy parts, it’s looking at land use differently. And this is what’s happening all over Australia….”
Successful strategies for accelerating the just and well managed phase out of coal need to be informed by clear understanding of the diverse economic and social histories of coal dependent countries and regions.
Countries leading the coal exodus such as the US, UK, Germany, Spain and Canada have often had access to relatively cheap alternatives. And they are able to finance new energy infrastructure and support for workers and communities in coal-dependent regions.
Coal-dependent countries such as China, India and Bangladesh also need to manage rapidly growing energy demand. They face budgetary challenges in financing renewable energy and supporting regional communities. That is why developed economies have a strong practical as well as ethical case to help fund developing economies to achieve a rapid and orderly transition.
Coal exporting countries including Australia, Colombia and Indonesia also face tough challenges in generating alternative sources of export income. And overcoming the power of vested interests. There is increasing awareness in these countries however of the potential for low-cost renewable energy to underpin new low emissions export industries such as green steel and green hydrogen.
How do nations turn the rhetoric of just transitions into reality while sustaining economic prosperity and maintaining political support? By delivering on the following:
John Wiseman is a Senior Research Fellow with Melbourne Climate Futures at the University of Melbourne, Chair of the Board of The Next Economy and Research Fellow at the Centre for Policy Development. His most recent book is Hope and Courage in the Climate Crisis.
John Wiseman was employed one day a week at the Crawford School at ANU during the time in which this research was undertaken. He declared no conflicts of interest in relation to this article.
This article has been republished as part of a package on the Energy transition for the 2022 G20 summit. It first appeared on November 22, 2021.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Energy transition” sent at: 14/11/2022 11:15.
This is a corrected repeat.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on November 22, 2021
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-countries-leading-the-way-on-quitting-coal/",
"author": "John Wiseman"
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The crisis of India's parliamentary democracy - 360
Sumantra Bose
Published on May 15, 2024
Parliament’s hollowing out can only be checked, and reversed, by a successful electoral challenge to the Modi personality cult.
A remarkable fact about Indian politics since independence is that no party, or pre-poll coalition, has ever won a majority of the nationwide vote in the 17 national elections between 1951-52 and 2019.
Even the Indian National Congress fell short of the 50 percent threshold in the country’s first post-Independence poll, despite its powerful legitimacy from the freedom struggle and organisational advantage over all rivals. A majority (55 percent) of Indians who voted in the founding election of India’s parliamentary democracy supported an assortment of opposition parties.
The plurality-based electoral mechanism gave the Congress party three-quarters of the seats, 364 of 489, in the first Lok Sabha. Under a proportional representation system, the Congress would have secured only 220 seats and been compelled to look for post-poll allies to form a coalition government with a working majority.
India’s political system largely replicates the model of Britain, its colonial ruler. It is a parliamentary democracy, with cabinet government headed by a prime minister which is constituted from the majority party or coalition in the legislature. The prime minister is accountable to parliament.
How India’s parliament is elected is also copied from the British prototype. The Lok Sabha (House of the People) consists of members elected from 543 single-member constituencies across the country, and the candidate who wins the single largest share (plurality) of the votes polled is elected from each constituency.
The Congress’s dominance of India’s polity lasted four decades, until the end of the 1980s. Its highest share of the vote in nine national elections during that period was 48 percent in December 1984, which gave the party a brute parliamentary majority—nearly four-fifths of the Lok Sabha.
This system has usually yielded decisive legislative majorities for the frontrunner party which wins the single largest share of the popular vote, even when that share is a relatively slender plurality.
This makes India’s democracy vulnerable to the proverbial “tyranny of the majority” — not the tyranny of the popular majority per se, but of whoever has the parliamentary majority.
In India’s 16th general election, which swept Narendra Modi to power in May 2014, his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (‘Indian People’s Party’, BJP) ran candidates in 428 of the 543 constituencies.
The majority threshold in the Lok Sabha is 272. The BJP won in 282 constituencies, mostly in northern and western India, and achieved an outright majority in the directly elected chamber of India’s parliament, the first time any party had done so in 30 years since Congress last did in 1984 (the year it achieved its largest share of the popular vote).
The BJP’s nationwide vote share, which yielded a slim majority of 52 percent in the Lok Sabha, was 31.3 percent (small BJP-allied parties got another 6 percent of the popular vote).
In 2019, the BJP vote share rose to 37.4 percent from the 437 constituencies it contested and Modi returned to power with a modestly enhanced majority of 303, while small BJP-allied parties polled another 8 percent of the popular vote.
When Modi arrived, after winning the 2014 election, at the stately, imposing 1920s New Delhi building constructed by the British which housed independent India’s parliament until 2023, he touched his forehead to the threshold and hailed it as a “temple of democracy”.
The record of the last ten years shows that Modi has no more than an instrumental relationship with parliamentary democracy.
The creature who paid docile obeisance at the temple of democracy was fully exposed once Modi was resoundingly returned to office in May 2019.
In six months following that return, the second Modi government, flush with victory, railroaded two major and highly contentious legislations in brute-majoritarian style through parliament: the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act (August 2019) and the Citizenship Amendment Act (December 2019).
The decline of the centrality of parliament to India’s political edifice pre-dates Modi’s election as prime minister, but since 2014, and especially during the second Modi government (2019-2024), parliament has been systematically emasculated in a way unprecedented in India’s bumpy journey as a parliamentary democracy.
Its role has been reduced to ramming through a variety of contentious laws using brute majorities, and celebrating Modi’s purportedly visionary leadership.
The sittings of parliament’s two chambers have been curtailed to a bare minimum, and complaints by opposition members that they are not allowed to raise issues and properly interrogate the government have proliferated, culminating in the mass suspension of 146 opposition members in December 2023.
India has had leaders autocratic by disposition at the helm before.
Indira Gandhi was one. But she was driven by a desire to concentrate power in her person and ensure dynastic succession.
Modi is driven not just by craving for personal glory but by the ideological project of the “family” of Hindu nationalist organisations led by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, of which he has been a lifelong member, to turn India into a Hindu nationalist republic.
As that project has taken on a leader-centred form under Modi, parliament has become a forum for table-thumping and rubber-stamping the initiatives and decisions of the executive. That executive essentially consists of the cabal of two who run the government, Modi and Amit Shah, his chief enforcer and home (interior) minister.
The signs are India’s parliamentary democracy may not be saved.
In federal systems, a powerful upper chamber of parliament can act as a check on majoritarianism and abuse of executive power. But India is not federal, and — as in Britain — its bicameral parliament has a relatively weak, indirectly elected upper chamber, the Rajya Sabha (House of the States). The BJP is now by far the single largest party in the 250-strong Rajya Sabha, not much short of an outright majority.
That the Supreme Court, India’s apex judiciary, cannot be expected to intervene as a saviour has been brutally exposed by its two landmark rulings during the second Modi government.
In November 2019, when it turned over the site of the mosque in north India infamously razed by Hindu nationalists three decades ago to the very same Hindu nationalists, paving the way to the inauguration of a massive Hindu temple there by Modi this January; and in December 2023, when it upheld as lawful and constitutional the draconian Kashmir legislation enacted in August 2019.
Last year, the Modi government moved India’s parliament from its longstanding home — the stately 1920s New Delhi building — to a garish, newly constructed complex adjacent to the old structure.
The hollowing out of India’s parliamentary democracy can only be checked, and reversed, by a successful electoral challenge to the Modi personality cult and the ideological project of turning India into a Hindu nationalist republic.
That, for now, appears beyond the capacities of India’s disparate, fragmented, leaderless and rudderless opposition.
But unless such a challenge miraculously materialises before or during the probable third Modi term which is set to begin in June, the cavernous new parliament will become an echo chamber, and a sad monument to a parliamentary democracy stripped of substance and reduced to its trappings.
Sumantra Bose, a comparative political scientist, held a Chair in International and Comparative Politics at the London School of Economics for two decades. He is the author of eight books including Kashmir at the Crossroads: Inside a 21st-Century Conflict. His next book, The Modi Era: India and the Story of a Democracy in Eclipse, will be published in 2025
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on May 15, 2024
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"author": "Sumantra Bose"
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The curious case of Google Trends in India - 360
Iman Kumar Mitra
Published on May 2, 2024
For nine of the last ten years, the most searches were for why Apple products and Evian water are so expensive.
Google Trends, which provides data on the most-searched items on Google, has a recently curated database according to which, in 2022 and 2023, there was a rise in the number of searches from around the world on topics related to the cost of living.
People everywhere searched for information on inflation, interest rates, wages, credit and savings. Searches for why certain things were expensive in all the languages used on Google also reached an all-time high.
The database also provides country-wise trends.
In the United States, between 2012 and 2023, searches related to “why college is so expensive” (in the category of ‘Books and Education’) were at the top for six years (2013-14, 2016, 2018-20). In 2023, the biggest query was on the increased price of eggs – which goes well with the worldwide trend.
In India, the queries were different – focusing heavily on the expensive nature of “appliances and technology”, but not just any kind of appliances.
For most of the seven years from 2015-16, Indians were trying to discover why Apple products were so expensive. More curiously, in 2017 and 2019, the maximum searches were about the exorbitantly high price of Evian Water, which costs Rs 150 for a 500ml bottle.
What these searches tell us is hard to determine.
It would be easy to conclude that Google search is not a dependable indicator of what the common people of India desire.
This view assumes that access to the internet is still limited in the vast rural landscape of the country, but recent data shows that rural India is slightly ahead of its urban counterpart in terms of internet usage – there are more internet users in rural India than in urban India.
The shift started to take place after 2020, during the COVID-19 outbreak. This does not mean income gaps and other disparities between the urban and rural sectors have disappeared. Still, a considerable rise in total internet usage has been recorded over the last four years, from 41 percent to 55 percent.
If more than half of the country’s population has access to the internet, the most searched items seem to carry some significance.
In understanding the immediate reality, we often lose sight of the huge roles played by desires, aspirations and fantasies.
The desire to look for answers as to why something is prohibitively expensive (Apple products or Evian) compared to something that was once in the reach of common people (like eggs or education) may come from an obsession with the forever unattainable – which is what those products are for the vast majority of people in India.
Nitin Kumar Bharti, Lucas Chancel, Thomas Piketty and Anmol Somanchi have recently published a study on income and wealth inequality in India over 100 years from 1922-2023.
The concentration of wealth in the hands of a very few has seen an unprecedented surge in the last three decades since the liberalisation of the Indian economy. The average annual income of the top 1 percent of the population (Rs 53,00,549) is 22.6 times more than the national average income (Rs 2,34,551) in 2022-23.
The one-percenters will probably never ask Google why Apple products are expensive. Those who ask may never be able to buy them. This paradox of the Google Trends data is the hallmark of our time where the translation of desire into demand hangs on the aspirational fantasies of millions.
How does one make sense of the chimera of this data politics? One may look for answers in history.
In the early 1870s, Dadabhai Naoroji, the grand old man of Indian nationalism, proved beyond doubt that the British East India Company, followed by the British crown, had been systematically draining India of its wealth and rendering the country poorer during their century-long reign.
His weapon was also plain and simple data. He calculated the per capita production of food grains and other crops for different provinces and compared these with the estimates of the cost of “necessary living” from the meals and clothing given to the prisoners in the Indian jails.
“It will be seen,” he wrote in his book Poverty and un-British Rule in India, “from the comparison of the above figures, that, even for such food and clothing as a criminal obtains, there is hardly enough of production even in a good season .”
This was a good start in the direction of using the concept of “cost of living” to expose the absurdity of the data provided by the British government by which they claimed that Indians were not living in criminally abject conditions.
A hundred and fifty years later, we have come to a situation when the same concept can be used to call the poor an aspirational class. Reminding ourselves of this history of how data is a tool of demystification rather than a sovereign presence awaiting our unconditional submission is perhaps the only way to resist such platitudes.
Iman Mitra is an assistant professor of history at Shiv Nadar University. His research focuses on economic history.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on May 2, 2024
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"author": "Iman Kumar Mitra"
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The danger as Antarctica's sea ice melts - 360
James Goldie
Published on January 24, 2024
After years of stability, Antarctica’s sea ice is suddenly melting. Scientists are out on the ocean to learn why.
Until recently, the fringe of sea ice that floats around Antarctica seemed to be defying climate scientists’ predictions, growing slightly.
Then, in 2016, it began to shrink.
The sea ice usually recovers each year in September, but in 2023 an area bigger than Australia’s Northern Territory failed to refreeze. As we reach the middle of Antarctic summer — when the sea ice is at its smallest — the ice is once again below historical levels.
After years of relative stability, Antarctica’s sea ice began to shrink from 2016.
Although the floating sea ice doesn’t raise sea levels on its own when it melts, it protects the greater frozen continent from the battering waves and winds of the Southern Ocean. Antarctica’s ice shelves and glaciers already contribute substantially to sea rise; further heat could accelerate their melting.
Scientists aren’t sitting on the sidelines as the ice melts. Trying to understand what’s changed, an international team set out on the waters just before Christmas 2023 to deploy new instruments to build a more detailed picture of the Southern Ocean — one of the prime suspects.
Although it doesn’t raise sea levels when it melts, sea ice helps protect the rest of Antarctica.
As the weeks count down and the sea ice continues to shrink, 360info asks the experts what’s happening to Antarctica and what it’s like to do science on the waves.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on January 24, 2024
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The dangers of politically-biased AI - 360
David Rozado
Published on March 30, 2023
The potential for bias within AI systems poses great ethical challenges to the uptake of this technology.
The latest advancements in artificial intelligence, exemplified by state-of-the-art technologies such as ChatGPT, are paving the way for groundbreaking innovations and novel applications across various industries.
These advances hold immense potential to boost productivity and stimulate creativity by revolutionizing the way we interact with information. However, they also highlight concerns about potential biases embedded within AI systems. These biases may inadvertently shape users’ perceptions, propagate misinformation and influence societal norms, posing challenges to the ethical deployment of AI technologies.
Not long after its launch, I explored ChatGPT’s (January version) potential political biases by subjecting it to a variety of political orientation assessments. These evaluations are quizzes crafted to determine an individual’s political ideology based on their responses to a collection of politically-charged questions.
Every question from each assessment was posed through ChatGPT’s interactive prompt, utilising its responses as the answers for the evaluations. In 14 out of 15 political orientation assessments, ChatGPT’s responses were categorised by the tests as displaying a preference for left-leaning perspectives. See results from each test in the table below.
ChatGPT/OpenAI’s content moderation system also displays a significant imbalance in its treatment of different demographic groups. The system classifies negative remarks about certain demographic groups as hateful, while identical comments about other groups are not flagged as hateful.
For example, demeaning statements targeting women, liberals or Democrats are more frequently categorised as hateful compared to the same comments directed at men, conservatives, or Republicans.
In these experiments, I also showed it is possible to tailor a cutting-edge AI system from the GPT-3 family to consistently produce right-leaning responses to politically charged inquiries.
This was accomplished by employing a widely-used machine learning method called fine-tuning. This approach harnesses the syntactic and semantic knowledge stored within the parameters of a Large Language Model (LLM), which has been trained on a broad corpus of text, and refines its outer layers’ parameters using task-specific data – in this case, right-leaning responses to politically loaded questions.
Importantly, I developed this customised system, which I named RightWingGPT, at a computational cost of merely USD$300. This illustrates the technical feasibility and remarkably low expense involved in creating AI systems that embody specific political ideologies.
The malleability of biases in AI systems presents numerous hazards to society, as commercial and political entities may be inclined to manipulate these systems to further their own objectives.
The spread of various public-facing AI systems, each reflecting distinct political biases, could potentially exacerbate societal polarisation. This is because users are likely to gravitate towards AI systems that align with and reinforce their existing beliefs, further deepening divisions.
In already highly polarised societies, it is crucial to foster mutual understanding rather than exacerbate divisions. To be absolutely clear, AI systems should prioritise presenting accurate and scientifically sound information to their users.
Nevertheless, it is crucial to recognise and tackle inherent biases in AI systems concerning normative issues that lack objective and definite resolution and which encompass a variety of legitimate and lawful human viewpoints.
In such instances, AI systems should primarily adopt an agnostic stance and/or offer a range of balanced sources and viewpoints for users to evaluate. This approach would enable societies to maximise AI’s potential to boost human productivity and innovation while also promoting human wisdom, tolerance, mutual understanding and reduced societal polarisation.
David Rozado is an Associate Professor at Te Pūkenga – New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology. His Twitter profile is @DavidRozado
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Next-gen chatbots” sent at: 28/03/2023 10:31.
This is a corrected repeat.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on March 30, 2023
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"author": "David Rozado"
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The deceptively simple idea that saves food from being wasted - 360
Mark Boulet
Published on July 28, 2022
Large households throw away the most food. In an attempt to stop the waste, a simple idea is showing great promise.
Imagine that you go to the supermarket to buy food for your family. You purchase three bags of groceries. As you leave the store, you throw one bag into a rubbish bin…
This scenario might seem ridiculous, but it is a very apt analogy for the waste crisis in the modern-day global food system. Earth Overshoot Day – the day we have used up a year’s worth of the Earth’s resources – will arrive on 28 July in 2022, a little over halfway through the year. There’s no more appropriate time to consider ways to reduce our food waste.
Despite historically unparalleled rates of technical innovation, efficiency and productivity, the global food system loses and wastes more food than ever before. From the farmer to the supermarket to the consumer, every stage of the food chain sees a significant portion of food lost or wasted. Taken together, a third, or 1.3 billion tonnes, of all food produced around the world is thrown away uneaten every year.
While the sheer scale of this waste might alone spark outrage, it is also associated with a range of environmental, social and economic damage. For example, food loss and waste are estimated to generate 3.3 gigatonnes of carbon-dioxide emissions per year, which is 8 to 10 percent of annual global greenhouse-gas emissions. If global food waste was a country, it would be the fourth-highest emitter in the world after India, the United States and China.
The consumption stage (retail, hospitality and households) sees over 900 million tonnes of uneaten food disposed of annually worldwide. Households account for about 60 percent of this amount, so reducing household food waste is a significant contribution to tackling the global food-waste challenge.
There are also strong habits that underpin how we engage with food. Most of us unconsciously have routines related to food and are unaware of how much food we waste. How can householders be ‘nudged’ to pay closer attention to the food in their fridges and pantries and reduce what they throw away uneaten?
As part of achieving international targets to halve food waste by 2030 (in line with the United Nations Sustainability Goals), Australian food rescue organisation OzHarvest recognised the impact that could be made at a household level and set about to understand the issue and how it could be tackled. Research commissioned by OzHarvest used identified some of the many different ways households can reduce their food waste. These actions broadly fall into five categories: planning for shopping, shopping, storing food at home, cooking, and eating.
The research surveyed householders and experts on various actions proposed to reduce waste. Some of the actions – for example, doing a waste audit or involving the kids in waste prevention – were recommended by experts but considered challenging to implement by householders. Other ideas, such as having a snack before a trip to the supermarket, were favoured by households but were low in impact according to the experts.
One idea that emerged from the study is simply to ‘use it up’ – making a weekly meal that combines any food that needs to be used up and creating a shelf in the fridge or pantry so you can see it. OzHarvest used his insight used to create a national campaign and develop a new product. The bright yellow Use It Up Tape acts as a visual prompt to remind householders of food that needs to be eaten before it spoils, before it passes its best-before date or before a replacement item is purchased. Simple, well-designed visual cues have been shown to be effective in encouraging sustainable behaviour.
Early results from studies of the tape have shown it can lead to significant food-waste reduction. From a sample of around 70 households, surveys completed before and after the tape was used showed a 20 to 40 percent reduction in food waste. The largest reduction was in the amount of fresh vegetables and fruit, as well as bread products, that households discarded.
Participating households said they use the tape as a visual prompt and a reminder, as predicted, but they also reported it was a useful planning tool for the next meals they would be preparing. Smaller households tend to buy less food and can keep better track of what needs to be used up. Indeed, the tape was most effective in larger households, especially those with children. It was a communication tool so other members knew what should be eaten or could be taken to work or school – put simply, ‘eat this one first’. Larger households with children also tend to waste the most food, showing the potential for such a simple device to have a significant impact on reducing household food waste.
To reduce runaway consumption of natural resources, and to tackle the urgent issue of climate change, reducing household food waste is one of the most impactful things that individuals can do.
Mark Boulet is a senior researcher with BehaviourWorks Australia, which is part of the Monash Sustainable Development Institute. His recently submitted PhD thesis developed a framework explaining the relationship between household food waste and consumer behaviour and provides new insights for practice and policy efforts to tackle the problem. This research was supported by OzHarvest through the Australian Government’s 2019 Environmental Restoration Fund.
This article has been republished for the International Day of Awareness on Food Loss and Waste Reduction. It was first published on July 27, 2022.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on July 28, 2022
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"author": "Mark Boulet"
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Disinformation deluge targeting women and gender-diverse people - 360
Ika Trijsburg
Published on November 20, 2023
Gendered disinformation weaponises fake news and manipulated photos against the vulnerable. What can be done to stop it?
The world is in an age of disinformation. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres took to social media recently to decry the ‘tsunami of disinformation’ fuelling dehumanisation and polarisation.
This tsunami of disinformation has specific implications for women and gender-diverse people, especially public figures.
In 2019, media outlets around the world broadcast haunting images of Patricia Arce, the Mayor of Vindo, Bolivia, as she cowered, barefoot, covered in paint, surrounded by a mob that forcibly cut her hair. The incident occurred during mass protests in Bolivia, driven by a disinformation campaign alleging election fraud.
Bolivian Vice-President Alvaro Garcia attributed the attack to Arce’s gender, stating “for these people, being a woman is a crime”.
Cities are the closest form of government to the people. They house the majority of the world’s population. They are charged with policy-making and implementation of increasingly complex societal challenges from climate change to migrant settlement to public health — all of which are major targets of disinformation.
Gendered disinformation adds an additional layer, sowing division and threatening to undo the progress made towards gender equity. This is concerning, then, as gender equity — especially in the tech and AI workforce — is considered key to addressing this issue.
Disinformation is rapidly expanding across themes as diverse as climate action, urban planning, international warfare, technology and public health, and it is increasingly used to pursue a misogynistic agenda.
‘Gendered disinformation’ takes multiple forms, from fabricated stories to falsified images. These are used in concerted campaigns against female and gender-diverse folks — especially decision-makers and public figures — to promote narratives designed to humiliate and sow distrust and incompetence.
The US Department of State found that gendered disinformation is being used by state and non-state actors as coordinated social-media activity that targets individuals, groups and legislation.
According to the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Irene Khan:
‘Gendered disinformation is not a new phenomenon, but, fuelled by new technologies and social media, it has gained traction, threatening, intimidating, harming and silencing women and gender nonconforming persons. The negative consequences go far beyond the targeted individuals and undermine human rights, gender equality, inclusive democracy and sustainable development.’
Khan’s August 2023 report to the United Nations General Assembly describes how gendered disinformation operates to achieve its objectives:
‘Information is manipulated and amplified with some degree of coordination to reaffirm gender stereotypes, inflame existing bias and prejudices and push overarching negative gender narratives. It is laced with misogynistic and sexualized language and images and may also contain explicit or implicit threats of gender-based violence. Overlapping tactics of intimidation, shaming and discrediting are frequently used, especially against women to depict them as unfit for leadership.’
Beyond the UN, other significant institutions see the growing threat. In Washington, DC, policy think tanks the Brookings Institution and the Wilson Centre have both characterised gendered disinformation as a threat to national security.
Comprehensive data is scarce, and what little there is relates primarily to the national and international spheres. However, cases have emerged through news media specific to gendered disinformation at other levels, including its impact on cities.
For example, in April 2023, several Australian cities cancelled day events for International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia, amid coordinated campaigns threatening violence and abuse. This has also happened in cities in the US.
In September 2023, dozens of girls in a Spanish town of Almendralejo were targeted in the creation and dissemination of fake nude images. Disinformation in the form of such images disproportionately targets women and girls and is designed to humiliate. These instances go beyond individual gendered disinformation attacks, to the community level, and local governments are in the firing line to respond.
Limited data exists on gendered disinformation within the local or city realm, and what little there is largely focuses only on women. This significantly limits our ability to understand the extent of such disinformation and its impact.
For this reason, a collaboration of Australian and global partners led by The University of Melbourne recently established the Disinformation in the City project to better understand and inform evidence-based responses to disinformation – including gendered disinformation – at the city level.
Yet even with current data limitations, a troubling pattern is emerging. According to UNESCO, women are self-censoring and disengaging from online spaces because of the potential reputational and professional damage caused by gendered disinformation.
They find that this is discouraging other women from pursuing professions with public exposure — a claim echoed by EU Disinfolab in their 2022 gendered disinformation technical document. This is a double whammy for gender equity.
Women and gender-diverse people remain underrepresented in elected positions of local public office: as of 1 January 2023, just 34 percent of local government elected representatives in Australia, for example, are women. This is slightly lower than the global average of 35.5 percent, which persists despite 88 countries legislating gender quotas in some form.
As cities are tasked with responding to ever greater challenges across society and environment, the full political and civic participation of all genders will be critical. There remains significant work to be done at the city level towards gender equity, and gendered disinformation threatens to hamper progress.
Ika Trijsburg is Research Fellow in City Diplomacy at Melbourne Centre for Cities at The University of Melbourne, where she leads the Disinformation in the City research collaboration.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on November 20, 2023
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"author": "Ika Trijsburg"
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The ecological crisis in the Arctic Ocean - 360
Letizia Tedesco
Published on October 31, 2022
Sea ice holds the key to understanding the entire Arctic marine ecosystem. But it’s melting faster than we can unravel its complexity.
In our planet’s far north, an extraordinary ocean exists. The Arctic Ocean is special in many ways but its sea ice, floating on the frigid water, holds the key to a food web and ecosystem that supports creatures from inconspicuous crustaceans to mighty polar bears. But all of this is under threat from climate change.
Every year, Arctic sea ice reaches its largest annual extent in March and shrinks back to its smallest by September. This March, it reached 14 million square kilometres — nearly half the size of Africa — before returning to less than 5 million square kilometres last month.
These might seem like very large numbers, and they are. But they’re much smaller than they used to be.
In the 40-plus years that satellites have watched the Arctic, its sea ice has fallen faster than scientists and their modelling had projected. The Arctic Ocean is expected to be ice-free during summer before mid-century if we don’t keep global warming below a 2 degree Celsius increase relative to pre-industrial levels.
“Positive albedo feedback” is one of the main reasons why the Arctic Ocean is warming so much faster than the rest of our planet. Sea ice, and the snow on top of it, reflect more sunlight than seawater. When global warming melts the ice, the darker water left behind reflects less sunlight and absorbs more heat, amplifying the melt of the sea ice that remains.
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Sea ice is more than just frozen water. It contains a complex mix of pure solid ice, gas bubbles and pockets of salty water. An entire and unique ecosystem develops within these pockets, ranging from viruses, bacteria, to fungi, algae and little grazing creatures such as microscopic crustaceans. The only thing these life forms have in common is that they can all fit into the pockets of salty water and they can survive in the dark, cold, salty environment of the sea ice.
The most abundant organisms here are tiny algae. Along with phytoplankton in the water, these algae form the foundation of the entire Arctic marine food web. When there is no other food available, algae feed many organisms living within and under the sea ice.
Arctic cod are a key species in transferring this energy along the entire food web — up to top predators like the polar bear. Microscopic creatures feed on the algae and the Arctic cod graze mainly on them. The cod are in turn eaten by other creatures, including ringed seals and belugas.
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But human-induced global warming can cause major stresses at any level of the marine food webs, including where ice algae and phytoplankton sit. By mid-century, we will have lost the ability to understand the summertime Arctic ecosystem as it had existed for millennia.
With less ice, the increased sunlight available earlier in the season can turbo-charge ice algae and phytoplankton. But this early extra food might not coincide with the peak of the grazers’ life cycle, with implications for the Arctic cod.The organisms that feed on the cod are then also affected. With a gap in the ecosystem, other species, like capelinand killer whales, can move in from the south. There are no rules for who eats whom when species invade like this, and it can have far-reaching effects on other species, changing the amount and quality of food available to everyone.
A change that begins with the melting sea ice disrupts the entire food web.
Since the Arctic Ocean is remote and its climate is harsh, it remains barely accessible and, because of this, poorly understood. We know so little about the consequences of the rapid loss of sea ice that scientists call it a “crisis discipline” — urgent decisions need to be made in the face of incomplete knowledge. Our ability to manage the enormous effects is hampered by huge gaps in our understanding.
But protecting the sea ice ecosystem is fundamental to guarantee all the ecosystem services it provides. It is a habitat, nursery and feeding ground for many, a source of food, a climate regulator, and it supports local and indigenous knowledge, tourism and scientific research. If we do not slow down climate change, the disruption of the Arctic will continue to outpace the science.
Dr Letizia Tedesco is adjunct professor at the University of Helsinki and senior research fellow at the Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE). The Finnish representative for the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) cryosphere working group, her research focuses on climate change impacts on sea ice and ice-associated ecosystems.
Dr Tedesco received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement 101003826 via project CRiceS (Climate Relevant interactions and feedbacks: the key role of sea ice and Snow in the polar and global climate system).
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Science against the clock” sent at: 24/10/2022 11:40.
This is a corrected repeat. It removes an erroneous reference to bowhead whales and fixes two hyperlinks that were incorrectly transcribed in editing.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on October 31, 2022
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"author": "Letizia Tedesco"
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The ethical minefield of screening for disabilities - 360
Jackie Leach Scully
Published on February 28, 2023
With prenatal genetic screening now routine, it’s relevant to ask whether prospective parents or scientists understand enough about the results.
In the first half of her pregnancy, a woman in most developed countries will be offered prenatal genetic screening. The idea is that a sample of the woman’s blood will show whether or not her baby is at risk of Down syndrome or other potentially disabling conditions.
Depending on the condition, the overwhelming majority of women opt to terminate if testing shows the fetus has a high chance of having a genetically related disability.
Not everyone does choose to terminate. Some just want advance knowledge so they can prepare, emotionally and practically, to have a child with a significant medical condition or disability. If the condition requires special management during pregnancy, or if targeted early treatment is possible, this knowledge can also be clinically useful.
It was 70 years ago that scientists Watson and Crick published the structure of DNA, the molecule that makes up our genes. Although prenatal genetic screening and testing for genetic variants linked to disabling conditions has become routine, the ethical questions are still challenging. Meanwhile a new generation of testing technologies raises troubling new issues.
Prenatal genetic screening and testing is offered to people with a family history of genetic conditions, with the aim of enabling a woman or couple to choose whether and how to conceive, and whether to continue with a pregnancy where the fetus has a predisposition to a genetic condition. A positive screening result is often not definitive but must be confirmed with a more targeted genetic test.
Although in many parts of the world prenatal screening is offered in the public health system, testing is more often done privately. The commercially available options can today test for multiple genes at once and companies anticipate a future where they will test for thousands. It’s doubtful many women and couples would be able to make fully informed decisions about such a large number of conditions.
The commercial providers driving the expansion of prenatal genetic testing say it helps couples avoid having a child with a disabling condition. But this reinforces the idea there is a ‘normal’ set of genes most people have, and deviations from it cause disease and disability.
In reality, the story science tells about human genes is a more complex one of enormous diversity. No two humans are genetically identical — not even identical twins. Disabling conditions caused by differences in a single gene are relatively rare. And all of us have a range of genetic variations, often without any noticeable ill effects.
Genetic diversity is not just normal but essential for a species’ resilience in the face of a changing world – including the human species. It provides a reservoir of potential variants better able to cope with changing conditions such as pandemics, global warming or emerging diseases. Any population that doesn’t have extensive genetic diversity is in trouble, evolutionarily speaking. So it is vital to be clear where diversity becomes a degree of difference that is genuinely problematic.
That’s less straightforward than it seems. Seventy years on from Crick and Watson, we have a vast database of information about human genes. What we don’t have is a genuine understanding of what much of it means.
Only a small minority of genetic variants are well enough understood that their implications for a person’s life can be confidently predicted. More often the link is less clear and the impact difficult to foresee with any accuracy. Increasingly, genetic tests also pick up ‘variants of unknown significance’ – where clinicians have no idea whether a variant has any biological relevance at all.
It means potential parents can be offered more information but how much is actually useful to them in making decisions about their pregnancy is an open question.
On top of the biological uncertainty lies another layer of unknowns. What a genetic variation means for someone depends an enormous amount on the context of their life. Healthcare can make a big difference. People with cystic fibrosis who used to die in childhood now routinely live into their 50s. It is still a serious health condition but medical advances means their quality of life has significantly improved.
Social attitudes are also crucial. People with a disability are more visible and have more civil and legal rights than ever before, backed by legal instruments such as the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disability. But many disability activists would argue these changes, while important, have not fundamentally altered attitudes towards disability.
Against this background, the availability of a test may mean a condition is too easily understood as something that must be selected against. Differences in bodies and behaviour, no matter how minor, may be automatically assumed to be unwanted.
The fact that prenatal screening has become routine is particularly relevant. Many pregnant women do not fully understand the tests they are offered, or the limitations of the results. (In fact some healthcare professionals also admit they are confused by rapidly changing practices and protocols.) Because it’s routine, women may agree to testing as ‘just what you do’ without being encouraged to think through all the implications.
Prenatal genetic (and other) testing is a valuable way to help women and families plan their lives; it does not inevitably lead to unjust disability discrimination. But the current pace of change, coupled with little understanding about the normality of genetic diversity and with deep ambivalence towards disability, raises legitimate concerns about the future.
Jackie Leach Scully is Professor of Bioethics and Director of the Disability Innovation Institute at UNSW. She is deaf and has been a disability rights activist for more than 30 years. She declares no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on February 28, 2023
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The ethics of mind-reading - 360
Jared Genser
Published on September 26, 2022
Tapping into someone’s thoughts may soon be technologically possible. Our institutions are ill-equipped to deal with the resulting human rights violations.
It was once science fiction but brain-machine interfaces — devices which connect a person’s brain to a computer, machine, or to another device, such as a smartphone — are making rapid technological advances.
In both science and medicine, brain-machine interfaces have revolutionised communication and mobility, helping people overcome immense mental and physical challenges. Brain-machine interfaces helped a man who is paralysed and non-verbal to communicate at a rate of 18 words per minute with up to 94 percent accuracy; a person who is quadriplegic to drive a Formula One race car; and a person who is paraplegic to make the first kick of the World Cup using a mind-controlled robotic exoskeleton. And in the realm of consumer products, CTRL-Labs developed a wristband for consumers that controls your computer cursor with your mind, and Kernel’s Flow wearable helmet maps brain activity with unparalleled accuracy.
While these developments are promising, brain-machine interfaces also raise new human rights challenges. Other technology uses algorithms to extrapolate and collect data on users’ personal preferences and location, but brain-machine interfaces offer something completely different: they can directly connect the brain to machine intelligence.
Because the brain is the site of human memory, perception, and personality, brain-machine interfaces pose challenges not only for the privacy of our minds, but also for our sense of self and for free will.
In 2017, the Morningside Group, a group of 25 global experts, identified five “neurorights” to characterise how current and future neurotechnology (methods to read and record brain activity, including brain-machine interfaces) might violate human rights. These include the right to mental identity, or a “sense of self”; the right to mental agency, or “free will”; the right to mental privacy; the right to fair access to mental augmentation; and protection from algorithmic bias, such as when neurotechnology is combined with artificial intelligence (AI). By protecting neurorights, societies can maximise the benefits of brain-machine interfaces and prevent misuse and abuse that violates human rights.
Brain-machine interfaces are already being misused and abused. For example, a US neurotechnology startup sent wearable brain activity-tracking headbands to a school in China, where they were used in 2019 to monitor students’ attention levels without consent. Further, at a Chinese factory, workers wore hats and helmets that purported to use brain signals to decode their emotions. An algorithm then analysed emotional changes affecting workers’ productivity levels.
Although the accuracy of this technology is contested, it sets a disturbing precedent. But the misuse and abuse of brain-machine interfaces could take place even in democratic societies. Some experts fear that non-invasive, or non-surgical and wearable, brain-machine interfaces may one day be used by law enforcement on criminal suspects in the US and have advocated for expanding constitutional doctrines to protect civil liberties.
The rise of consumer neurotechnology emphasises the need for laws and regulations that reflect the technology’s advancement. In the US, brain-machine interfaces which do not require implantation in the brain, such as wearable helmets and headbands, are already marketed as consumer products with claims including that they support meditation and wellness, or improve learning efficiency or enhance brain health. Unlike implantable devices, which are regulated as medical devices, “wellness” devices are consumer products and subject to minimal to no regulations.
Consumers may be unaware of the ways in which using these devices may infringe upon their human rights and privacy rights. The data that consumer neurotechnology collects may be insecurely stored or even sold to third parties. User agreements are long and technical, and they have concerning provisions that allow companies to indefinitely keep users’ brain scans and to sell them to third parties without the kind of informed consent that protects individuals’ human rights. Today, it is possible to interpret only some of a brain scan, but that will only increase as brain-machine interfaces evolve.
Human rights challenges posed by brain-machine interfaces must be addressed to ensure their safe and efficacious use. At the global level, the UN Human Rights Council, a 47-member state body, is poised to vote on and approve the UN’s first major study on neurorights, neurotechnology, and human rights. UN leadership on neurorights would generate international consensus on a definition of neurorights and galvanise new legal frameworks and resolutions to address them.
Expanding the interpretation of existing international human rights treaties to protect neurorights is another important path forward.
The Neurorights Foundation, a US nonprofit organisation dedicated to human rights protection and the ethical development of neurotechnology, published a first-ever report demonstrating that existing international human rights treaties are ill-equipped to protect neurorights. For example, the Convention Against Torture and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights were drafted before the advent of brain-machine interfaces and contain terms and legal standards, such as “pain,” “liberty and security of the person,” and “freedom of thought and conscience” which must be further interpreted with new language to address neurorights. Updating international human rights treaties would also legally obligate states that ratify them, to create domestic laws protecting neurorights.
Another important step is the development of a global code of conduct for companies which would also help create standards for the collection, storage, and sale of brain data. For instance, making privacy of brain data an ‘opt-out’ default setting for consumer neurotechnology would help protect users’ informed consent by letting them decide when their brain activity is monitored. This type of standard is easily replicated in regulations at the national and industry levels.
Simultaneous effective multilateral co-operation, national attention, and industry engagement are all needed to address neurorights and to close “protection gaps” under international human rights law. Ultimately, these approaches will help guide neurotechnology’s ethical development and, in the process, reveal the strongest paths to preventing the technology’s misuse and abuse.
is an adjunct professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center and managing director of Perseus Strategies, and General Counsel of the Neurorights Foundation. This article was prepared with the assistance of , an international human rights lawyer at both Perseus Strategies and the Neurorights Foundation. Professor Genser declares no conflicts of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on September 26, 2022
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The fight against HIV is not over - 360
Published on December 1, 2023
HIV is a global health challenge, affecting 39 million people. Despite progress, challenges persist, including limited access to prevention and ongoing stigma.
HIV, the virus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), is still one of the world’s most pressing health issues, more than 40 years after the first cases were identified. Today, around 39 million people are living with HIV, and millions have succumbed to AIDS-related causes since its emergence.
Substantial global efforts have been made to address the epidemic. New HIV infections, especially in children, and AIDS-related deaths have declined, with 29.8 million people receiving access to antiretroviral therapy (ART) in 2022.
However, persistent challenges impede HIV prevention efforts.
Limited access to prevention, treatment and care persists for many individuals at risk, and a cure remains elusive. Oral HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has been available for more than a decade, but individuals who could benefit from PrEP might not know they are eligible.
Additionally, the stigma associated with HIV might deter individuals from seeking help and the right treatment.
In 2022, 46 percent of all new HIV infections globally were reported among women and girls, with over 77 percent of these occurring among adolescent girls and young women aged between 15 and 24 in sub-Saharan Africa. Within this region, adolescent girls and young women were more than three times as likely as their male peers to contract HIV.
Under Sustainable Development Goal 3, the international community aims to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030. Despite some progress, advancements have been inconsistent, and the initial 90-90-90 targets were not met in 2020. Now the goalposts have been shifted, with the current emphasis on achieving the 95-95-95 targets by 2025.
This year’s World AIDS Day theme, ‘Let Communities Lead’, urges communities and leaders to band together in the global fight to eradicate AIDS by removing barriers to treatment and prevention and providing equal access and support.
In this special report, 360info hears from experts delving into the significance of targeted strategies in HIV prevention and care, and looking into the role of treatment and community in enhancing these strategies and eliminating HIV-related stigma.
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Published on December 1, 2023
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The fight against superbugs - 360
Suzannah Lyons
Published on September 6, 2023
When so-called ‘superbugs’ become drug resistant, the infections they cause become even harder to treat.
At last month’s G20 Health Ministers’ meeting, politicians from around the world committed to tackling antimicrobial resistance comprehensively.
It will be revealing to see whether the issue also gets mentioned at the upcoming G20 Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi later this week.
That India is currently the president of the G20 is notable, as it’s also one of the countries most affected by antimicrobial resistance.
Each year, antibiotic-resistant infections are responsible for the deaths of nearly 60,000 newborns in India.
If left unchecked, antimicrobial resistance could kill 10 million people a year by 2050 — with 80 percent of those deaths likely to be in developing economies.
But the world isn’t backing down.
Along with developing new ways to tackle superbugs, work is being done to improve the monitoring of antimicrobial resistance, and to ensure more responsible use of antimicrobial drugs in healthcare systems.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on September 6, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-fight-against-superbugs/",
"author": "Suzannah Lyons"
}
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The fight for press freedom is a fight for us all - 360
Published on May 3, 2023
Newsrooms are still fighting to honour press freedom despite government pressure, competition with social media platforms and declining trust in the media.
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It has been 30 years since the UN General Assembly proclaimed 3 May as World Press Freedom Day. The proclamation marks a significant step to allow a free press and freedom of expression around the world, enabling a free flow of information.
However, press freedom and freedom of expression continue to be restricted in certain countries. Governments use repressive laws to silence dissent, using digital astroturfing by manipulating social media algorithms and shutting down news outlets.
Pakistani authorities have recently imposed a blanket ban on journalists and media houses that publish content critical of the government. In India, press freedom continues to decline after a conglomerate takeover of New Delhi Television, one of India’s oldest news broadcasting channels. The Indian government is introducing a state fact-checking unit which journalist groups believe will have “deeply adverse implications” for press freedom in the country.
This September in Hong Kong, the founder of Apple Daily, Jimmy Lai, will be tried under national security charges for which he faces a life sentence. Over the past three decades, Lai has been a vocal critic of the Chinese government and an outspoken advocate for the right to information in Hong Kong. A UK All-Party Parliamentary Group launched an inquiry in February into press freedom in Hong Kong, applying pressure for Lai’s release, and calling his current arrest an arbitrary detention.
With ongoing threats, competition from social media players and an erosion of trust in the media, journalists and newsrooms all over the world are struggling to survive. There are also instances where media companies practice unethical reporting for profit.
News outlets owned by media mogul Rupert Murdoch are entangled in a string of controversies over their reporting, resulting in massive payouts to multiple litigants. In the US, Murdoch’s Fox News has agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems more than USD$700 million after Fox accused it of rigging the 2020 US presidential election. In the UK, the long-simmering phone hacking scandal involving Murdoch’s tabloid newspapers continues to make headlines. In Australia, Murdoch’s son Lachlan withdrew from a defamation suit against Crikey, an independent Australian media publisher.
Journalists face countless threats every day, from being persecuted to being prosecuted or even killed.
The Committee for the Protection of Journalists (CPJ) revealed that in 2022, 363 journalists were imprisoned worldwide. The number is expected to rise, most notably with Russia’s arrest and jailing of the Wall Street Journal’s Moscow correspondent Evan Gershkovich on spying charges. CPJ revealed 2,195 journalists and media practitioners were killed between 1992 and 2023 with nine journalists and media workers killed while on assignments in 2023.
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UNESCO revealed that between 2006 and 2020 over 1,200 journalists have been killed around the world, with close to nine out of 10 cases of these killings remaining judicially unresolved.
According to Reporters Without Borders’ 2022 World Press Freedom Index report, Norway, Denmark and Sweden are countries where press freedom and freedom of expression continue to flourish. The organisation has also classified 28 countries with a “very bad” press freedom situations such as Russia, Belarus, Myanmar, China, Turkmenistan, Iran, and North Korea.
Peter Greste: World Press Freedom Day from 360info on Vimeo.
Quotes attributable to Peter Greste, Macquarie University
“As someone who has lost far too many close friends and colleagues, and who has spent time in prison on terrorism charges, I have an obvious personal interest in speaking out about the murders and detentions of journalists.”
Quotes attributable to Benjamin YH Loh, Taylor’s University
“With declining readership and declining income from a very crowded news space, media outlets are fighting for their survival as they endure an identity crisis. Pushing back against digital astroturfing would be one such duty that contemporary media should undertake.”
Quotes attributable to Kow Kwan Yee, UOW Malaysia KDU University College
“On press freedom, the Malaysian government had also recently backtracked on its pledge to review and repeal draconian laws that restrict journalists, including the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 which grants the authorities the power to suspend any publication or prevent its importation.”
Quotes attributable to Ma. Diosa Labiste, University of the Philippines
“The difference between the Rodrigo Duterte and Ferdinand Marcos Jr. administrations is superficial. Marcos’ style of speaking is unlike Duterte who cursed, rambled on, and was incoherent. Marcos dutifully reads the script and this makes it easy for reporters to write the speech story. The Marcos speeches are replete with clichés and generalities delivered uninspiringly, sometimes with little detail and without much meaning.”
“However, their blandness appears to be easiest to manipulate to a particular point of view by pro-Marcos media and trolls because this effect relies on the relationship between an indifferent leader, misinformed citizens, and the kowtowing section of the media.”
Editors Note: In the story “Press freedom” sent at: 01/05/2023 12:56.
This is a corrected repeat.
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Published on May 3, 2023
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The fix for STEM workplace inequity? Change the system - 360
Jesse Bergman, Sarah Ratcliffe, Lisa A. Williams, Lisa Harvey-Smith
Published on March 8, 2024
New evidence shows that targeted policies, coordination and evaluation are all part of creating more gender-equitable and disability-inclusive workplaces.
The release of new data on Australia’s gender pay gap put hard numbers to a common workplace reality: across every sector, women are being paid less than men.
Reporting published by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency on nearly 5,000 Australian businesses found a median annual income gap of 19 percent nationwide.
A big factor in this disparity is participation and roles in the workforce.
Men outnumber women in the Australian workforce by nearly 10 percent. In fields involving science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), the gender gap is much higher.
The most recent figures show that only 27 percent of Australia’s 2021 STEM workforce were women, with women earning 23.5 percent less – in line with global data showing women are significantly underrepresented in STEM careers, comprising only about 29 percent of the workforce.
The gender gap is extended and compounded for people with multiple underrepresented and marginalised identities. For example, in Australia women with disability continue to be employed less, paid less, and hold fewer senior positions, and are sexually harassed at work more than men with disability and women without disability.
New research from the Office of Australia’s Women in STEM Ambassador at UNSW Sydney looks at what can be done to bring about greater equity in STEM-related workplaces, as well as to promote the inclusion of people with disabilities.
The findings are clear: systemic change will support full and meaningful workplace participation.
STEM fields provide the innovation, progress, and skills essential to meeting current and emerging international challenges.
As societies strive to cultivate skilled STEM workforces, equity and inclusion need to be prioritised. Through harnessing workforce diversity, employers can build teams and organisations that foster better decision making, innovation, community appeal and employee satisfaction – all of which benefit economies, organisations, and employees.
However, well-documented gender and disability inequities are seen in workforces around the world, underscoring a prevailing global challenge of achieving equity in the workforce.
To better address these disparities, it is critical to look at all the available evidence on the effective design, implementation and evaluation of initiatives for more inclusive and equitable work environments.
Our research team screened more than 11,000 peer-reviewed publications to summarise evidence from 257 studies on evaluated workplace equity initiatives. The research focused on initiatives for gender equity and disability inclusion in the workplace from around the world.
The gender equity research revealed three key findings.
First, policy interventions are critical for addressing barriers to workplace equity and inclusion. Such policies should be enhanced with targeted equity programs that communicate policy changes clearly and educate employees on their implementation.
Second, collaboration and transparency are critical. Workplace gender equity is best served when policies and programs are designed and implemented collaboratively among industry, academia, government and peak bodies. By codifying policy and requiring organisations to develop action plans to rectify gaps, governments can advance equity and inclusion initiatives.
The federal pay transparency legislation implemented in Australia – which led to the gender pay gap data released in February 2024 – is an example of how publicly accessible data can be leveraged to increase accountability.
Third, monitoring progress is essential. Robust evaluations will enable workplaces to guide decision making and drive investment and effort into measures that work.
The Women in STEM Decadal Plan recommended the establishment of a national evaluation framework, which was developed and launched in 2022. Evaluations should also include secondary effects of initiatives, such as the impact of anti-harassment initiatives on absenteeism and turnover.
The review of workplace disability inclusion initiatives found three key points for workplace disability inclusion.
Several factors underpin these findings and the meaningful inclusion of people with disabilities in workplaces, including, top-down commitment, enabling environments, genuine collaboration, and evaluation.
First, disability-supportive work environments improve both work- and non-work-related outcomes of people with disability. Common features of disability-supportive workplaces include flexible schedules and work organisation, understanding managers, and coordination among disability inclusion stakeholders to ensure accessible accommodations.
Second, accessible workplace modifications and accommodations enable meaningful workforce participation of people with disability.
Effective initiatives support assistive technology, accessibility resources, and modifiable processes and environments, and make them available by default. Coordinating modifications and accommodations with employees, employers, policymakers and support workers enhances benefits.
Third, good initiatives require good insight. Poor-quality or insufficient evidence for evaluating the design, implementation and impact of disability-inclusion initiatives limits the understanding of what makes them work. Australia’s Disability Strategy 2021-2031 tracks measures across a range of areas to improve life for people with disability.
The media attention and broad public interest in the gender pay gap snapshot are not surprising – the data revealed patterns that may have been suspected but were never laid out so clearly, and so publicly.
There is now an opportunity to leverage the data to encourage governments to invest in policies and legislation which foster equity. Policies for accountability and transparency are key to having a real impact on addressing gender pay gaps, disability underemployment, and workplace harassment.
In the same spirit, our research shows that continued progress towards workplace equity requires policies, accountability, evaluation, responsiveness and systemic change.
With informed approaches, governments and employers can implement effective initiatives, stimulate economic growth, drive innovation, contribute to solving national and global challenges, and accelerate progress towards a more equitable society.
Evidence-based strategies for accelerating workplace equity can be found in our research report Initiatives for workplace equity and inclusion.
Dr Jesse Bergman is a Research Associate for the Office of the Women in STEM Ambassador, UNSW. Jesse led the systematic review into evidence about gender equity initiatives aiming to support diverse, equitable and inclusive workforces.
Dr Sarah Ratcliffe is a Research Associate for the Office of the Women in STEM Ambassador. Sarah led the systematic review into evidence about disability inclusion initiatives aiming to support diverse, equitable, and inclusive workforces.
Associate Professor Lisa Williams is Chief Investigator of the Women in STEM Ambassador grant and provides strategic direction to the Office’s activities. She also supports the Office’s research projects to build the empirical evidence supporting the efficacy of programs to shift the dial towards gender equity in STEM.
Professor Lisa Harvey-Smith is the Australian Government’s Women in STEM Ambassador and a Professor of Practice at UNSW. First appointed in 2018, Harvey-Smith is responsible for mobilising Australia’s business leaders, educators and policymakers to increase participation in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics studies and careers.
The research was undertaken with support from a grant that funds the Australian Government’s Women in STEM Ambassador from the Australian Commonwealth Department of Industry, Science and Resources and hosted at UNSW Sydney.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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Published on March 8, 2024
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The flipside of women’s rights movements - 360
Giulia Evolvi
Published on November 25, 2022
The web provides safe harbour for anti-feminist views which can have real-world repercussions.
As counting continues in the US midterm elections, it’s clear women’s rights activism is reaching more people than ever before. Both online and offline, the poll, seen by some as a de-facto referendum on abortion rallied women to advocate for their rights. But even as online campaigning has rallied women, so too has it rallied anti-feminists and misogynists. And, like the feminists, misogynists’ online pontificating can have a direct influence on politics, especially far-right movements.
The Italian election was recently won by the Brothers of Italy with 26 percent of the vote. The far-right party was inspired by fascist ideologies, which made anti-feminism a central tenant. Despite its leader, Giorgia Meloni, being the first female Prime Minister in Italy, she’s often referred to as anti-feminist and has attended conservative Christian events opposing same-sex marriage and abortion. In Spain, the far-right party Vox has adopted a similar core ideology. And Russian president Vladimir Putin’s annexation speech made clear reference to “gender ideology” and accused the West of being unable to defend traditional gender roles.
These beliefs echo the ‘manosphere’, misogynist websites often lurking on the dark web that champion men’s rights — originally a 1970s movement countering second-wave feminism. For example, the Red Pills Philosophy takes its name from a plotline in the movie “The Matrix” and asserts women are not truly oppressed in society. The involuntary celibates, or Incels, blame women for rejecting them and only desiring conventionally attractive sexual partners. And pick-up artists exchange dating tips in a way that dehumanises and belittles women.
What these groups have in common is the belief that the real ‘victims’ of society are white, heterosexual men. Many feel they can no longer be assured the role of head of the family, and their lives were ruined by #MeToo, a worldwide movement denouncing sexual violence and harassment against women that took off in 2017. Some also reject feminism to protect the traditional idea of a nuclear family — characterised by a mother, father and children — the man being the breadwinner and the woman performing household chores and caring duties.
Some groups oppose women’s activism together with LGBTQ+ rights, particularly as a response to the legalisation of same-sex marriage across North America and Europe between 2012 and 2013. Some of these movements claim gender ideology is a leftist conspiracy that wants to destroy gender identities.
Groups such as the Italian “Sentinelle in Piedi” (Standing Watchman) and the French “Manif Pour Tous” (Demo for Everybody) take inspiration from conservative Christianity. They tend to use social media due to a distrust of mainstream media and can have unconventional ways of protesting. Sentinelle in Piedi, for example, organises silent demonstrations where people stand in a square reading a book. While the ideology of such groups may seem less misogynist than the narratives in the manosphere, what they have in common is the rejection of feminist activism in their effort to ‘protect’ traditional heterosexual families.
Online anti-feminist and misogynist discourses can have very harmful consequences outside of digital spaces. In 2014, Elliot Rodger, who identified as an Incel, killed six people and injured 14 to ‘punish’ women for rejecting him.
Advocating for women as submissive partners and accepting motherhood at all costs are also forms of symbolic violence with harmful social consequences. For example, unsafe abortions can be fatal and more likely to occur when banned or restricted.
While the activism that followed the growing visibility of #MeToo made the topic of violence against women increasingly relevant, women’s rights and gender equality do not always progress in tandem. Several US states banned or restricted abortion in 2022, following the overturning of the landmark Roe v. Wade court ruling that protected the right to an abortion in the first trimester. Even with the successes of the mid-terms, not all abortion rights have been reinstated.
Online sexual harassment against women is a growing concern — 21 percent of American women aged 18 to 29 report they’ve been sexually harassed on the internet, as well as one in ten women in the European Union. Between one-fifth and one-quarter of women who experienced online abuse were also threatened with physical violence.
To end violence against women, it’s crucial to first publicly denounce all online groups perpetuating misogynist and anti-feminist views by labelling them as hate speech. National governments can stop them from reverberating offline by mapping and making them public alongside a warning to internet users about their dangers. Since online violence has been often linked and compared to offline violence, there is a need for better policies against hate speech online.
Several platforms, such as Meta, have guidelines to protect users from harassment and can intervene in blocking posts and groups, but perpetrators of online hate speech seldom face serious consequences and there need to be better methods of policing across the board.
And despite the backlash from some men, the fight for women’s rights continues. International organisations can empower women through activist campaigns and most importantly, providing safe spaces for them to speak against violence.
Giulia Evolvi is a lecturer at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. She obtained her PhD in media studies at the University of Colorado Boulder, US and her postdoc at Ruhr University in Bochum, Germany. She works on digital religion, gender, online hate speech, Islamophobia and misogyny.
The author declares no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on November 25, 2022
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"author": "Giulia Evolvi"
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The foreign policy fallout of COVID-19 - 360
Ilona Kickbusch, Mihály Kökény
Published on November 14, 2022
The pandemic gave health diplomacy its stiffest test. While there were successes, geopolitical power games resulted in failures.
Global health diplomacy is at a crossroads and the COVID-19 pandemic has made this abundantly clear.
Health diplomacy — where domestic and foreign policy decisions intersect with public health – has become a crowded field with major funders, new global health organisations and political clubs such as the G7 and G20 all vying for a seat at the table. This has led to more investment in global health and innovative partnerships, but it’s also created a fragmented and competitive environment due to a lack of cooperation.
These tensions were recognised when G20 health ministers met in Bali, Indonesia last month in a bid to improve global health co-operation and strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.
“Despite our differences, the G20 member states have come together to speak the same language — the language of humanity above all; the language of health that knows no border,” Indonesia’s health minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said.
But the reality is the power of defining global health priorities still lies with the Global North — wealthy nations — and its donors. Equity and inclusiveness are not properly recognised. We need a new approach.
Cooperation between people and organisations involved in global health at all levels — but critically at a national level — lacks accountability to the global community and vulnerable populations.
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the long-standing call by the World Health Organization to put health high on the political agenda and to consider its impact on other key economic and development sectors was suddenly heeded.
The global health community expected that making health an integral part of foreign policy and the focus of diplomacy in such a time of serious public health threat would lead to a strong co-ordinated response.
But geopolitics got in the way.
From day one of the pandemic global health became embroiled in geopolitical power shifts. The divisions between the United States and China and between high-income and middle-to-low-income nations were thrown into sharp relief. It’s these two issues, and the impact of the Ukraine war, that will likely define the direction global health takes in the next decade.
Health diplomacy during the pandemic led both to rapid and innovative responses, but also to a complete breakdown in some areas of negotiation.
Diplomatic stand-offs surfaced as the US attacked the WHO over its response to the pandemic, using it as a proxy for the competition between the US and China. This weakened global health cooperation from the start and hampered the speed of some responses, not only by the WHO, but also by the G7 and the G20. It is not yet resolved.
The ACT-Accelerator partnership was launched by WHO in 2020 to fight the pandemic, with its vaccine pillar — COVAX — created to equitably distribute vaccines. The partnership showed success in building the first global initiative of its kind, but it failed in providing universal equal access to vaccines. Inclusiveness was sacrificed for speed of action and the voices of the Global South and of civil society organisations were not included.
Health diplomacy at the G7 and the G20 increased significantly to ensure better financing for future pandemics. The joint meetings of health and finance ministers grew in relevance. After very difficult negotiations and pressure, it led to the establishment of the new fund for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response hosted by the World Bank, with technical leadership from the WHO. Yet it failed to achieve an innovative financing model for the common good.
The divide between the Global North and Global South was reinforced through vaccine nationalism. The refusal by the European Union and others — such as Canada and Norway — to allow the claim of India and South Africa at the World Trade Organisation to make patents for vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics available under the TRIPS waiver increased political distrust and spilled over into other policy areas, such as development and climate negotiations.
Masks and vaccines became a tool for diplomacy during the pandemic. Rather than work through the ACT-Accelerator, some countries chose to make vaccines available through bilateral deals to ensure friendship and cement political dependence. Countries such as India, China and Russia engaged in ‘vaccine diplomacy’ to support neighbours or widen their sphere of influence across regions. New diplomatic and financial initiatives to decentralise production to low-and middle-income economies aim to counteract the use of health for geopolitical gain, for example as part of the EU-Africa partnership.
Based on an initial proposal by the chair of the EU Council, WHO member states have since embarked on negotiations for a new legally binding international treaty after the pandemic saw some nations renege on their obligations set out in the WHO’s International Health Regulations.But this major diplomatic process has been slower than expected.
The Global South is negotiating for an equity-based treaty, including increasing their production capacity, based on their experiences of being left behind during the pandemic. Key countries signed the call for a new pandemic treaty in March 2021 including Senegal, South Africa, Costa Rica, Fiji, Indonesia and Thailand. The EU has emerged as a strong actor in global health. With a broad coalition of countries and organisations involved, it moved to defend multilateral action and strengthen the WHO in the face of attacks by the US during the Trump administration. It is now proposing an EU global health strategy in support of multilateral action in health.
Multilateral co-operation on key issues will remain indispensable. We will likely see more global health diplomacy driven by the Global South with the G20 presidency of Indonesia to be followed by India, Brazil and South Africa.
The constitutional role of the WHO “to act as the directing and coordinating authority on international health work” will need to continue to be strengthened with some calling to “[reform] the global health architecture”.
This can only be done if WHO’s member states stop prioritising their self-interest and commit to co-operation. Stable funding for the WHO is an important prerequisite for this. The gradual increase of member state contributions agreed upon at the World Health Assembly this year will help.
Geopolitical aspects cannot be ignored in global health governance. But to keep the world safe, public health knowledge and evidence cannot be replaced with wishful thinking, political selfishness and power games.
Ilona Kickbusch is a professor at the Global Health Centre, Graduate Institute Geneva, Switzerland.
Mihály Kökény, MD, PhD is a former Minister for Health, Hungary. He is a lecturer in the Department of Public Health and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Debrecen, Hungary.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on November 14, 2022
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The four-day week looks here to stay - 360
Orla Kelly
Published on February 28, 2024
A shorter week reflects a flexible and results-oriented culture, where employees are judged on the quality of work rather than how long they are in the office.
Is a three-day weekend going to become the new standard?
While flexible work arrangements have been available across many sectors, many organisations now offer employees opportunities to reduce work time without reducing pay.
Many national and regional governments, including California, Finland, Iceland, Scotland, Spain, Wales, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, are debating, legislating or encouraging shorter workweeks, indicating a shift in official attitudes.
This year, workers in Belgium secured the legal right to complete a standard workweek in four days without any salary reductions.
Cultural shifts after the COVID-19 pandemic have fuelled interest in reduced work hours. Organisational innovations during successive lockdowns proved that flexible work arrangements can be implemented quickly and on a large scale.
The pandemic also sparked a shift in societal values, with Gen Z and Millennials valuing work-life balance and flexibility more than ever as they juggle jobs and personal lives.
The widespread participation in the four-day week global trials is a testament to private sector interest in experimenting with reduced work time arrangements.
The trials, launched in 2021, are a series of pilot programs led by 4 Day Week Global (4DWG), a non-profit organisation advocating for a shorter workweek with no reduction in pay.
They are designed to assess the impact of a four-day week on employee well-being, productivity, and company performance.
Almost 200 companies and 3,000 employees from various industries in Ireland, the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand have completed the trials, which required a commitment to the ‘100-80-100’ model, where employees work 80 percent of their usual hours while maintaining 100 percent pay and output.
While not all the companies implemented a four-day week schedule, the majority (88 percent) did. The remaining 12 percent implemented an alternative reduced worktime schedule such as two half-days off.
The trials have been accompanied by rigorous academic research led by Boston College in collaboration with academic partners, including the University College Dublin to evaluate their impact.
Most early adopters in the trial reported positive impacts of worktime reduction arrangements Most companies have been able to implement the changes without sacrificing productivity. They have continued reduced worktime models after the trial ended.
Organisations that successfully implemented a four-day week tended to adjust workflows and scheduling, reduced unnecessary meetings and embraced new ways of working with the help of new tech such as artificial intelligence.
Usually, embracing a shorter workweek also reflects a shift towards a more flexible and results-oriented workplace culture, where employees are judged on the quality of their work rather than the number of hours spent in the office.
Organisations not investing in the necessary work reorganisation planning can struggle to coordinate projects and team responsibilities, increasing employee stress as they pack the same workload into fewer days.
For the majority of employees in the four-day week global trials, the impacts were overwhelmingly positive.
On average, employees reported a significant increase in physical and mental health well-being, their satisfaction with their lives overall, how time is used, and even their relationships. Stress, burnout, fatigue and work-family conflict significantly declined.
Levels of sleep deprivation have also fallen dramatically. In Ireland, sleep times increased from 7.02 hours a night to 7.72 hours, while time for hobbies increased by 36 minutes a week on average.
The 100-80-100 model offers advantages other flexible work arrangements do not. By retaining the pay standards, participation is not limited to those who can afford a pay cut.
Alternative part-time work arrangements, while useful for balancing the demands of work and family, can reproduce gender inequalities in the home and compromise women’s financial security and long-term career trajectories.
Notably, women, particularly those in heterosexual partnerships with caring responsibilities, tend to take on optional flexible and part-time work arrangements at much higher rates than their male counterparts.
A universal worktime policy, on the other hand, provides all employees with more time to dedicate to unpaid labour regardless of gender or parental status providing a non-stigmatising alternative to balancing career and personal life.
Reduced hours are easier to implement in some sectors than in others. Organisations in hospitality and healthcare sometimes need to hire more staff to meet goals.
For these organisations, the benefits of a reduced worktime policy can be more complicated to quantify.
Many report benefits regarding staff recruitment, retention, and lower absenteeism rates. This is particularly true for those companies in sectors that struggle with high rates of burnout.
If reduced worktime is to be scaled across all sectors, long-term planning and government investment are needed to address staffing shortages.
The trial results also suggest the shorter workweek has modest environmental benefits.
On average, commuting among employees decreased during the trials and pro-environmental behaviour increased in certain contexts.
Some participants reported spending more time on climate-friendly activities, such as active travel instead of driving.
Beyond the individual impact, reduced work time policy could be a key component of eco-social policy-making.
There are opportunities for governments to reflect on how the growing popularity of reduced work time could be leveraged to allow people to invest in their health and well-being, thereby reducing the pressure on healthcare systems.
There is also the opportunity to reap the benefits of automation and encourage people to dedicate their free time towards engagement in sustainability-related practices.
Such opportunities align with widely espoused political aims of transitioning to a sustainable well-being economy.
Dr Orla Kelly is an Assistant Professor in Social Policy at the School of Social Policy, Social Work and Social Justice, University College Dublin, Ireland.
Disclosure: The Irish trial was supported by the Forsa Trade Union, Ireland while the UK trial was conducted in partnership with Autonomy, a think tank and the UK Four Day Week Campaign. The Boston College team received support from the Russell Sage Foundation.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on February 28, 2024
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The future of farming could be under the sea - 360
Scott Spillias, Eve McDonald-Madden
Published on June 8, 2023
Seaweed farming could free up millions of hectares of land and help cut carbon emissions if its true value is realised. Getting there takes time and investment.
In 2022, the New York Times declared industrial agriculture was “destroying ecosystems”, pointing to greenhouse gas emissions and issues with future supply and demand. The race to find viable alternatives is underway and one key part of the puzzle might be deep under water.
Seaweed farming — the practice of cultivating and harvesting crops in seabeds — is part of the expanding ocean-based blue economy. More seaweed farming may offer a way to relieve pressure on land by shifting the heightened need for crop production to the ocean.
Seaweeds could offer a wide range of co-benefits including supporting marine habitats, enabling diverse livelihoods in coastal areas and aiding in climate mitigation and adaptation.
Communities, researchers and commercial bodies have recognised this potential and are starting to explore large-scale seaweed farming.
But, despite their promise, the true value of seaweeds remains mostly undiscovered: just like land-based crops, seaweeds represent a highly diverse group and could be employed for many purposes in future industries, including as food, feed and fuel. Integrating seaweed into these systems could drastically reduce the environmental impacts of land-based agriculture.
At its most ambitious, seaweed could become prominent enough to form a fraction of diets, livestock feed and biofuel feedstock globally.
It would potentially free up millions of hectares of land currently used for land-based agriculture, unlocking space to increase carbon-storing forest coverage or reclaim abandoned areas.
Ramping up the use of seaweed could substantially mitigate the rise of future expected greenhouse gas emissions. For instance, supplementing ruminant livestock feed with seaweeds from the genus Asparagopsis could mitigate a significant amount of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions per year by 2050.
But these best case scenarios can only happen if technical, logistical and economic barriers are cleared. Producing the volumes of seaweed needed to achieve these scenarios, and delivering them to their respective end uses, will be a major challenge in the years ahead.
Before the sea can be blanketed by seaweed farms, comprehensive impact and risk assessments need to be carried out considering local contexts, uncertainty and the amount of risk that communities are willing to accept for developing their local marine spaces.
Managing the benefits and trade-offs of seaweed farming is a crucial starting step.
There’s a lack of clarity with respect to several impacts of seaweed farming, such as how the practice influences coastal and marine ecosystems, how well it is integrated into communities and its contribution to long-term carbon sequestration.
Addressing knowledge gaps is important, especially for ensuring seaweed farming near critical habitats for threatened and endangered species doesn’t pose any harm.
The existing seaweed industries in East Asia serve as examples of potential trade-offs. The success of seaweed farming in Tanimbar Kei, Indonesia led to overcrowding of farms in a restricted coastal area and a decline in environmental health and farm productivity due to competition for nutrients.
To avoid negative outcomes, a bottom-up approach driven by community needs may be required.
Learning from the failures of the palm oil industry may help manage unrealistic expectations about the benefits of seaweed farming.
Sustainable socio-ecological systems can only be achieved by accounting for, and addressing, local environmental and social costs incurred as seaweed farming expands alongside other blue economy industries.
Large-scale seaweed farming offers a promising pathway towards sustainable development and the growth of a blue economy, from supporting coastal communities to providing a novel source of biomass for food.
Realising this potential requires more research, advancements in technology and supportive policies.
But by recognising seaweeds as valuable resources and integrating them into global markets and sustainability strategies, we can realise the full power of our oceans.
Scott Spillias is a PhD candidate at The University of Queensland working on understanding how large-scale seaweed farming will impact a variety of sustainable development indicators, including the provisioning of ecosystem services, food security, land-use change, and carbon management.
Professor Eve McDonald-Madden is an ARC Research Future Fellow in the School of Earth and Environmental Management at the University of Queensland and leads a research group exploring policy for sustainability with a focus on quantitative tools that assess trade-offs and support future focused decisions. She was a Chief Investigator in the ARC Centre of Excellence for Environmental Decisions and is a founding member of UQ Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science.
Part of this research was developed in the Young Scientists Summer Program at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Laxenburg, Austria with financial support from the United States National Member Organization. Scott Spillias was funded by a Research Training Program Scholarship from the Australian Government.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on June 8, 2023
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"author": "Scott Spillias, Eve McDonald-Madden"
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The future of quantum technology - 360
Published on July 31, 2023
It promises rapid progress in many fields but experts say widespread real-world gains remain to be seen.
Although still nascent with no everyday applications for now, progress in quantum technology is progressing rapidly with its mainstream deployment imminent by 2030, say some experts.
The most visible of this tech is quantum computers which outclass on a massive scale today’s computers in terms of speed and power. And therein lies a risk — in the wrong hands, they can also hack present cybersecurity models with ease.
Almost all industries will benefit in some form from quantum technology, the most will be AI and machine learning, financial modelling, cybersecurity, traffic optimisation, manufacturing, drugs and chemical research (vaccines). But experts also caution against believing all of quantum’s hype.
And if it becomes more powerful and more reliable, it will also pose a threat to how we transmit and store confidential data including financial transactions and other sensitive data.
360info explores the promises, risks and hype of quantum technology and how we can better prepare ourselves for a future with powerful technology.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Quantum future” sent at: 27/07/2023 07:43.
This is a corrected repeat.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on July 31, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-future-of-quantum-technology/",
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The future of transport is electric - 360
Hussein Dia
Published on November 22, 2023
Countries need to get the policy mix right to encourage the switch to electric vehicles.
Transport is missing the emissions reduction bus.
Indeed, greenhouse gas emissions from transport are growing, having increased nearly 56 percent since 1990 at an average annual rate of 1.7 percent. This represents the highest emissions growth of any sector of the economy.
Around 74.5 percent of all transport emissions are generated from road vehicles including cars, vans, buses and trucks.
With the planet needing to rapidly decarbonise to reach net zero targets, electric vehicles are seen as a key part of the transport solution.
But the problem is how to accelerate EV uptake and implement complementary strategies to encourage people to shift to greener travel options.
Although the global EV market has had a rapid growth in sales over the past few years, exceeding 10 million vehicles in 2022 or around 14 percent of all new cars sold, adoption rates are not consistent across the world.
But much can be learnt from government policies that have played a major role in removing barriers to adoption in the world’s top three EV markets — China, Europe and the US — which collectively accounted for around 90 percent of all EV sales in 2022.
Governments that provided people with financial incentives to buy EVs have been able to achieve a substantial shift in consumer sentiment towards greener car purchases.
These incentives were designed to reduce the purchase price gap between electric and conventional vehicles and have mainly taken the form of vehicle purchase subsidies or rebates or registration tax discounts.
Examples include the incentive schemes implemented in Norway since the 1990s, the US since 2008 and China since 2009.
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EV drivers in Norway pay lower road tolls, gain access to bus lanes and benefit from cheaper and, in the past, free ferry crossings and public parking. People living in apartments have ‘charging rights‘ safeguarded by government legislation.
This all helped to increase EV sales to 50 percent market share in 2020, and 79 percent by 2022. No other nation comes close.
France provides targeted incentives for people on lower incomes to purchase EVs.
Individuals with annual income up to €14,089 are eligible to receive a bonus of up to €7,000 on the purchase of a new EV, while those above this threshold receive a maximum subsidy of €5,000.
The subsidy is also capped at a maximum rate not exceeding 27 percent of the vehicle’s gross purchase price.
For incentive programmes to be effective, they should be accompanied by higher taxes on polluting vehicles to encourage more drivers to make the switch to electric.
In the European Union, 21 of 27 member countries levied car taxes partially or totally based on carbon dioxide emissions in 2022.
Ireland first introduced an emissions-based car taxation policy in 2008. An analysis of its impacts found it produced a cumulative carbon dioxide savings of 1.6 million tonnes from 2008 to 2018.
A similar study that evaluated Norway’s vehicle emissions-based taxes found them to be powerful policies that also delivered large reductions in air pollution.
Other supporting policies include the so-called feebate system.
Feebates involve placing a levy on purchases of vehicles with high emissions and using the revenues to provide rebates for purchases of vehicles with zero or low emissions to offset their higher prices. Examples include France’s Bonus-Malus and New Zealand’s Clean Car Discount.
If developed carefully, these systems can be a cost-neutral method of discouraging purchases of high-emission vehicles and encouraging purchases of EVs.
Any credible EV strategy also could consider EV mandates and the phase out of internal combustion engine vehicles.
More than 35 countries have already announced plans for either full electrified sales, full electrified stocks or full phase-out of internal combustion engine vehicles over the next 10 to 30 years.
The EU had planned to ban the sale of internal combustion engine cars from 2035.
In February 2023, the European Parliament approved the ban, which was later revised to allow some combustion engines running on e-fuels to be sold beyond 2035.
Still, this remains one of the world’s strongest measures to phase out fossil fuel vehicles.
There have also been measures to phase out subsidies for fossil fuel vehicles.
Examples include the fuel tax credit scheme in Australia. This scheme has been criticised for subsidising the consumption of fossil fuels, particularly in the mining industry, and for providing direct benefits for high-polluting heavy diesel vehicles over 4.5 tonnes.
Countries with high EV adoption rates have also backed up their transport decarbonisation strategies with robust fuel efficiency standards.
These standards aim to limit vehicle emissions by mandating a maximum annual average level of carbon emissions across a car company’s overall new car sales.
Penalties are imposed on car manufacturers if these maximum levels are exceeded, which encourages them to offer low and zero emissions vehicles in markets that enforce these standards.
Properly devised standards also reduce the cap over time until all new vehicles sold become zero emissions.
Strong fuel efficiency standards already cover more than 85 percent of the international market.
In recent times, some countries have proposed to tighten these standards further. Examples include plans by the US to introduce strict new emissions limits that would require two-thirds of vehicles sold in the US to be electric by 2032.
The proposal, if ratified, will represent the most aggressive vehicle emissions reduction plan in the US and will deliver an average 13 percent annual pollution cut.
Australia is the only OECD country without mandatory fuel efficiency standards. The federal government has announced plans for their introduction by the end of 2023.
Given the current low EV uptake rates in Australia (around 8.4 percent of new car sales compared to around 20 percent globally), the standards need to be ambitious with clear targets for EV sales and timelines for phasing out internal combustion engine vehicles.
The International Council on Clean Transportation is recommending policies to accelerate the deployment of EV charging infrastructure, including binding installation targets aligned with the expected growth in EVs and incentives to address charging gaps.
It estimates more than 100 million chargers will be needed across its members’ jurisdictions by 2030. But as of mid-2022, only 13 percent of these public chargers were in place.
Having readily accessible chargers helps reduce concerns about range anxiety, which in turn can help improve EV uptake rates. It also reduces the requirement for EVs to have larger batteries which makes them more affordable.
The planet cannot survive humanity’s current transport habits.
Putting in place strategies to accelerate the transition to cleaner transport would be a giant step towards meeting global commitments to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
Ambitious EV policies would reduce emissions and improve air quality.
Although EVs are a crucial piece of decarbonisation efforts, they are not the complete solution to cutting transport emissions.
Strategies to change travel behaviour such as reducing the number of cars on the roads, increasing the use of ‘tiny vehicles‘ such as e-bikes and e-scooters, and improving walkability and access to public transport, could all help.
If well planned and implemented, these policies and strategies will collectively achieve transport emission reduction targets in the world’s cities.
Without a comprehensive set of consistent policies, particularly in nations embarking on their decarbonisation efforts, dependence on fossil fuels will deepen and reaching emissions reduction goals will become harder.
Professor Hussein Dia is professor of future urban mobility at Swinburne University of Technology. His current work focuses on decarbonising urban transport and harnessing digital innovations to unlock opportunities for sustainable mobility futures. He is ranked in the top 2 percent of most cited scientists in the field of logistics and transportation by Stanford University Global Scientist Citation Rankings. He is a Fellow of Engineers Australia, a Fellow of the Institute of Transportation Engineers, and a Fellow of American Society of Civil Engineers.
Professor Dia receives research funding in areas related to the topic of this article from the Australian Research Council, the iMOVE Cooperative Research Centre, Transport for New South Wales, Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads, Victorian Department of Transport and Planning, Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts, and Beam Mobility Holdings.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “The EV charge” sent at: 22/11/2023 10:07.
This is a corrected repeat.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on November 22, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-future-of-transport-is-electric/",
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The future of work is here and it's flexible - 360
Grace HY Lee
Published on December 27, 2023
School leavers want flexibility and gig work offers it. But how will that affect the economy?
Malaysia’s gig economy is on the rise but there are questions over its long-term value to the wider economy.
One significant trend is the increasing inclination of school leavers towards gig work, which, while offering immediate income, can divert them from vital talent development opportunities.
More than 48 percent of the 180,680 who completed their Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) exams in 2021, an equivalent to the British O Level, opted to not pursue further education.
This trend is further supported by a UCSI Poll Research Centre study, which found that barely half (51 percent) of 1,000 recent SPM graduates are considering tertiary education.
Notably, among those not pursuing further studies, 26 percent showed interest in the e-hailing sector, indicating a shift towards the gig economy and alternative career paths.
This shift is crucial as it could impact Malaysia’s transition from a consumer-driven to a producer-driven economy, necessary to escape the middle-income trap and achieve high-income status.
Gig workers in Malaysia must confront lack of job security, absence of critical benefits like savings, retirement plans, healthcare coverage, and limited access to training and education.
This precariousness is compounded by the risk of exploitation due to the lack of formal labour protection.
Despite these challenges, the gig economy’s appeal is undeniable.
According to World Bank data, over 26 percent of the Malaysian workforce, or 4 million people, comprises freelancers, and this number is on the rise, driven by the lure of flexible working hours.
A recent study with 1118 working-age Malaysian respondents by Zurich-University of Oxford on the agile workforce found 38 percent of the respondents in Malaysia currently in full-time employment were looking to enter the gig economy in the next 12 months.
The COVID-19 pandemic has likely accelerated this trend, with even those in full-time employment considering a shift to gig work. The gig economy is particularly attractive to younger, tech-savvy generations like Millennials and Gen Z.
The Malaysian government has responded to these evolving dynamics with RM40 million (USD$8.5 million) set aside in the 2023 budget for 30,000 gig workers.
In addition, the Global Online Workforce programme by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation aims to stimulate the gig economy by providing Malaysians with consistent, full-time digital income opportunities through crowdsourcing.
These efforts reflect a growing acknowledgement of the gig economy’s economic and social impact, emphasising worker protections and skill development to elevate their value in the economy.
For Malaysian companies, the rise of gig work necessitates a re-evaluation of human resource practices. Companies are now considering integrating gig workers more seamlessly into their business models.
This includes providing benefits traditionally reserved for full-time employees, such as Employees’ Provident Fund contributions (during part-time employment), access to training, and insurance coverage.
Such measures should not only attract better-quality gig workers but align with the evolving nature of work where productivity and flexibility are paramount.
The gig economy is not only shaking up the nature of work but also regulations.
Malaysia’s Human Resources Ministry is drafting policies specifically for gig economy workers, particularly in p-hailing and e-hailing services, as a precursor to more comprehensive legislation.
This move indicates a growing recognition of the need for legal frameworks that provide gig workers with income security and social protection.
As the global economy marches into 2024, still healing from the pandemic’s disruptions, one trend is reshaping the global labour market: the continued expansion of the gig economy.
Payoneer’s 2022 Global Freelancer Income Report highlights that this trend underscores freelancers’ pivotal role in sustaining businesses amid ongoing economic challenges.
The gig economy is at a crossroads in a world grappling with rising living costs and looming uncertainties, redefining work dynamics for individuals and companies worldwide.
Its growth is driven by supply and demand factors. Workers are drawn to its flexibility, potential for higher earnings, and the autonomy to choose work, reinforced by major platform service companies that create job opportunities and facilitate connections.
In the current economic climate, marked by job losses, it’s likely more workers will turn to gig work. Businesses increasingly hire independent workers for short-term projects to enhance flexibility and efficiency while minimising costs.
This shift towards digital platforms for professional services is partly driven by a culture of instant gratification, amplified by social media and the ubiquity of smartphones.
The pandemic has further fuelled the rise in gig work, expanding the pool of self-employed contractors. In many developing countries, self-employment accounts for nearly 50 percent of employment.
The continuing expansion of gig work could increase this share, especially as workers who have lost jobs enter the gig sector. In developed countries, gig work often supplements income. In developing economies, it is often the primary source of income.
In developing economies, gig workers frequently subscribe to multiple platforms to access enough gigs to create an income, leading to work insecurity.
Despite its promise, the gig economy faces challenges.
According to Payoneer’s 2023 Freelancer Report, rising living costs and job instability have led over 55 percent of freelancers worldwide to take on more work and 32 percent to add international clients.
Although 46 percent report a rise in demand, many still struggle to find enough work, highlighting the gig economy’s blend of opportunities and uncertainties.
In regions like South and Southeast Asia, the gig economy predominantly employs young, unskilled labourers, often overlooking crucial long-term benefits such as health insurance and retirement plans. This disparity highlights the urgent need for regulatory frameworks that provide basic safety nets for these workers.
Self-motivation plays a crucial role in the gig economy. Due to its inherent flexibility, gig workers can take breaks at their discretion, a luxury not afforded in traditional job setups where responsibilities are more structured.
While this flexibility is advantageous, it can lead to erratic work schedules and income. To mitigate these issues, some companies are developing innovative reward mechanisms to incentivise more consistent and productive work from gig workers.
The gig economy is not immune to systemic issues such as the gender pay gap. According to Payoneer’s 2023 Freelancer Report, women freelancers, on average, earn US$22 per hour, slightly less than their male counterparts, who make US$24.
Bridging this pay gap is essential for fostering a more equitable gig economy. In addition, the International Labor Organization’s World Employment and Social Outlook 2022 report sheds light on how accelerated technological change is exacerbating the digital divide.
Technological advancements have reshaped various sectors leading to labour substitution, new jobs and a restructuring of labour markets. In some sectors, technology adoption saves labour, such as with robots in manufacturing.
The gig economy sees rising numbers relying on platforms for income. Those lacking access to technology and the necessary skills or facing biases in algorithms are at a significant disadvantage, a situation worsened by the pandemic, which is deepening the digital divide.
Those with access to technology and the ability to work from home have fared better than those in location-tethered professions. This trend widens the gap along vectors of skill level and enterprise size.
As companies seek skilled, flexible workers and individuals pursue independence, the gig economy’s expansion seems inevitable. However, this growth must be balanced with efforts to ensure fair treatment and comprehensive protection for gig workers.
Addressing these challenges is crucial for the gig economy to evolve into a sustainable and equitable employment model.
Grace Hooi Yean Lee is the Head of the Department of Economics, School of Business, Monash University Malaysia.
This article is part of a Special Report on the ‘Asian Gig Economy, produced in collaboration with the Asia Research Centre – University of Indonesia.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Gig workers” sent at: 05/01/2024 15:07.
This is a corrected repeat.
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Published on December 27, 2023
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"author": "Grace HY Lee"
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The gaping problem at the heart of scientific research - 360
Virginia Barbour
Published on December 26, 2022
Researchers can’t progress their work without access to very expensive scientific journals. The rebellion against the publishers and their fees has begun.
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed many flaws in the way our societies function. Among the less obvious is the gaping problem at the heart of scientific research.
In March 2020, scientists were scrambling to understand what the new virus was, how it affected patients, and how it could be treated. Scientists usually publish research findings in scholarly journals many of which charge high subscription fees. As hospitals in Italy were overwhelmed and the world looked on in fear, vital new information about the virus was locked away behind paywalls.
National science agencies from nations including the UK, Australia, Italy, the United States and Brazil called for publishers to make coronavirus research immediately and freely accessible, which in the most part they did. But the very need for these groups to call for research to be made available in the middle of a global emergency demonstrates the failure of the current publishing system.
Making research immediately free to read, which, when combined with the use of an open publishing licence, is known as ‘open access’ — is a hot topic in science. Global health bodies know how important open research is, especially in times of emergency, which is why they have repeatedly called for research to be made open.
The latest plaintive request came in August 2022 from the US White House Office of Science and Technology Policy for mpox research to be made open. Previous global calls were in 2016 for Zika and in 2018 for Ebola.
The consequences of lack of access to research can be dire. In 2015 a group of African researchers claimed that an earlier Ebola outbreak could have been prevented if research on it had been published openly.
The past 12 months have seen a flurry of changes in open access globally and from January 2023, the high profile journal Science will allow published research to be immediately placed in publicly-accessible repositories at no cost to scientists.
In August 2022, the Office of Science and Technology Policy issued a memorandum to all US research funding agencies that by 1 January 2026 they must make all the research they fund immediately publicly available, along with the data behind that research. Though the language of the memorandum has been criticised for not specifying how the research is to be made open, it clearly articulates the why and when.
And make no mistake: this memorandum has teeth, coming as it does from the White House. How each federal agency interprets the memorandum will be watched not just in the US but elsewhere, especially as it will provide examples of a diversity of approaches to open access.
In the accompanying press release, the White House lays out why open access is important: “This policy will likely yield significant benefits on a number of key priorities for the American people, from environmental justice to cancer breakthroughs, and from game-changing clean energy technologies to protecting civil liberties in an automated world.”
The benefits of open research extend beyond simply increasing the readership and use of research among academics. Open access is just one part of a global movement of open science that in 2021 led to UNESCO, the United Nations education, science and cultural organisation, to issue the ‘Open Science Recommendation’. This is a world-leading initiative that sets international standards for open science built on values such as equity, diversity, collective benefit, quality and integrity.
The recommendation lays out why open science is important, including increasing return on investment, improving the effectiveness and productivity of scientific systems, pushing back against misinformation and disinformation, and addressing existing systemic inequalities to produce and access research. Crucially, the recommendation is not just a piece of text to be written and forgotten, but rather it has been accompanied by a programme of implementation actions and will include a monitoring process to hold signatories to account.
The UNESCO recommendation, like the Office of Science and Technology Policy memorandum, does not prescribe any particular pathway to open access and we will therefore see a diversity of routes to open access.
Such proliferation has advantages. Provided some core principles are adhered to (such as the use of open licences), allowing experimentation to flourish will allow each country, or even each funder, publisher or individual institution, to determine what open initiatives align with their values.
Allowing a diversity of approaches also recognises the reality that open access and open science are not static concepts and that they will evolve over time as culture and technology change. A diversity of approaches also guards against a small number of commercial publishing houses dominating.
Some examples of open science initiatives announced recently illustrate this diversity: Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council will now require immediate open access published under a Creative Commons CC-BY licence; New Zealand’s Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment will require open access within six months of publishing.
Many publishers are now negotiating nation-wide deals that bundle reading and open access publishing together. The Confederation of Open Access Repositories has made the case for more diversity in publishing, including through university repositories.
As 2023 unfolds, it seems that the benefits of open access have been proved beyond doubt. The next emergency in front of us, climate change, is much more complex, and there too are calls for open access. Serious investment in a variety of approaches is essential to ensure a diverse, equitable, open access future.
Virginia Barbour is director, Open Access Australasia an open access advocacy organisation and from 2020-2022 co-lead the Office for Scholarly Communication, at Queensland University of Technology. She was one of the three founding editors of open access journal PLOS Medicine. She has been involved in many international open access, innovative scholarly communication and publication and research integrity initiatives. She is on the Executive Board of Confederation of Open Access Repositories (unpaid) and on the NHMRC’s Research Quality Steering Committee (paid sitting fees).
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on December 26, 2022
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2,153 |
The gender gap ramps up with motherhood and never ends - 360
Jennifer Ervin, Tania King
Published on March 8, 2024
All the gender inequalities Australian women encounter over the course of their lives leaves them more susceptible to poverty and poorer mental health than men.
It often begins with the birth of your first child — when the well-known ‘motherhood penalty‘ kicks in.
But that’s only the start of the significant gender inequalities many Australian women face, leading to health and financial repercussions over the rest of their lives.
Women are more likely than men to take time out of work to care for children, and as a 2022 Treasury analysis revealed, the arrival of children creates a large and persistent increase in the gender earnings gap.
In the short-term, this inequitable division of domestic labour has implications for women’s economic well-being and career advancement.
But look further ahead, and research has found that Australian women over the age of 65 are more likely to be in poverty than men of the same age. The odds of this were even higher for those women who were divorced, separated or widowed.
This poverty leads to them reporting poorer mental health, while posing no apparent risk to men in a similar financial position.
Fundamental to this divide are gender inequities in lifetime savings — reduced time in the workforce due to caring responsibilities being a major contributor to this — as well as in the division of acquired wealth following a marriage or other relationship breakdown.
Targeted action could address these pathways of disadvantage women commonly face.
The unequal division of labour is integral to the cumulative gender inequalities apparent globally.
The way time is distributed between men and women is highly gendered, with women spending vastly more time than men engaged in unpaid work or domestic labour.
Research over the last 30 years reveals this is true across countries globally.
It is also the case in Australia, where, based on data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia, or HILDA survey, research found women spend an additional 16 hours a week on unpaid labour compared to men.
This disproportionate burden of unpaid labour has implications for women’s mental health.
Unpaid labour also negatively impacts employment.
The latest ABS data reported that unpaid caregiving responsibilities were the largest barrier to employment for women, with 75 percent of women with children under the age of 15 indicating they wanted a job or more working hours.
What’s more, research suggests that even when these unpaid labour demands subside they have a scarring effect — impacting on women’s ability to recover gainful and less precarious employment for many years afterwards.
Precarious employment is not only linked to poorer economic well-being — fewer savings, less superannuation, less security — and poverty, but also impacts mental health.
While the mental health of Australian men, like women, is negatively impacted by precarious employment, Australian women are exposed to it at a much higher rate.
The sum of all this is that Australian women, similarly to women in many other parts of the world, continue to experience cumulative disadvantages across their lives.
A more equal distribution of caregiving in Australia could be a fundamental first step to addressing these burdens, making caregiving something men do more of too.
To enable this, workplaces could allow men the same level of job flexibility and part-time options as those offered to women.
One significant lever could be ‘use-it or lose-it’ paid paternity care.
According to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency’s latest results, currently only 14 percent of Australian men take employer-funded paid primary carer’s leave.
In Norway, 90 percent of fathers take parental leave, and the gender gap in labour force participation has consequently narrowed, thanks to mandatory paternal leave quotas, known as ‘the daddy quota’.
Another strong policy lever being called for in Australia is universal quality childcare.
This has been very effective in other OECD countries, evidenced by the highest maternal employment rates in countries that provide nationally subsidised integrated quality childcare programs including the Netherlands, Sweden, Iceland, Slovenia and Denmark.
Given the latest ABS data revealed early childhood education and care to be a key barrier to women’s employment, universal childcare in Australia could be the answer.
Ultimately, it is widely agreed that gender equality cannot advance without a major reconfiguration of the way time is distributed between men and women.
More specifically, how household labour is divided to encourage men who are often willing but not enabled, to take on more responsibilities within the home.
To date, the shift of women into the labour force has not, in the main, been matched by shifts of men into the unpaid realm of caring and household responsibilities.
Until this occurs, women will continue to experience disproportionately more precarious employment over their lives, be more susceptible to poverty, and be more vulnerable to poorer mental health.
Jennifer Ervin is a research fellow and PhD candidate at the Centre for Health Policy in the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health at The University of Melbourne, Australia. Her work predominantly focuses on gender (in)equality, unpaid caregiving, employment, gender norms and mental health.
Associate Professor Tania King is an ARC DECRA and Dame Kate Campbell Principal Research Fellow at The University of Melbourne. Her work broadly examines the social and structural determinants of health, with a particular interest in social and health inequalities.
The Innovative Measurement of Australian Gender (IN)Equality (IMAGINE) project is co-funded by the Australian Research Council and the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on March 8, 2024
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"author": "Jennifer Ervin, Tania King"
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2,154 |
360 - One World Many Voices
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| null |
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The growing promise of cancer vaccines - 360
Bidyut Sarkar
Published on May 22, 2024
No magic bullet is yet in sight, but three vaccines for skin and lung cancer types have advanced to the last phase of clinical trials.
A cure for cancer — which is second only to cardiovascular diseases in its contribution to the global burden of disease — has long been a dream.
While no magic bullet is yet in sight, three vaccines for particular skin and lung cancer types have advanced to the last stage of clinical trials in recent months.
If successful, these vaccines should be available to patients in the next three to 11 years. Unlike vaccines which prevent diseases, these aim to cure them or prevent relapses.
Cancer in every person is different because the cells in every cancerous tumour have different sets of genetic mutations. Recognising this, two of the vaccines are personalised and tailor-made for each patient. Oncologists working with pharmaceutical companies have developed these individualised neoantigen therapies.
A vaccine typically works by training the immune cells of our body to recognise antigens – proteins from pathogens, such as viruses – against future attacks by the pathogen.
In cancer, however, there is no external pathogen. The cells of a cancerous tumour undergo continuous mutations, some of which help them to grow much faster than normal cells while some others help them evade the body’s natural immune system. The mutated proteins in cancerous cells are called ‘neoantigens’.
In individualised neoantigen therapy, the gene sequence of the tumour and normal blood cells are compared to identify neoantigens from each patient, and then a subset of neoantigens are chosen that are most likely to induce an immune response. The vaccine for an individual patient targets this chosen subset of neoantigens.
These vaccines, jointly developed by pharma giants Moderna and Merck, have been shown in trials conducted so far to be significantly more effective in combination with immunotherapy than immunotherapy alone in preventing both the relapse of melanoma — a type of skin cancer — and non-small cell lung cancer after the tumours had been surgically removed.
Following these promising results in phase II clinical trials, the vaccines are now being tested on a larger group of patients in phase III trials. The studies are expected to be complete by 2030 for melanoma and 2035 for lung cancer.
The Moderna-Merck cancer vaccine may not be the first to reach the market. The French company OSE Immunotherapeutics published positive results last September from phase III clinical trials of a vaccine using a different approach for advanced non-small cell lung cancer. Its vaccine, Tedopi, is scheduled to start confirmatory trials – which are the last step before regulatory approval – later this year and may be available by 2027.
Vaccines for pancreatic cancer being developed by BioNTech and Genentech, and for colon cancer by Gritstone, are also showing promising results in the early phases of clinical trials. Like the vaccines being developed by Moderna and Merck, these too are individualised neoantigen therapies based on messenger RNA (mRNA).
There is another kind of RNA therapy also under development that uses small interfering RNA (siRNA) and microRNA (miRNA). Since 2018, six siRNA-based therapies have been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of neural, skin, heart and renal diseases. Several more siRNA drugs are at various clinical trial stages for different types of cancer and a diverse range of other diseases.
Within cells, there are two kinds of nucleic acid molecules that contain coded information vital to life: DNA and RNA. While DNA contains genetic information, mRNA — one among the different types of RNA — carries the codes for the proteins. In addition, there are also non-coding RNA, some of which are functionally important. siRNA and miRNA are examples of such non-coding RNA.
The RNA vaccine for an individualised neoantigen therapy is a cocktail of mRNA carrying the codes for neoantigens — the mutated fingerprint proteins in cancerous cells. For the Moderna-Merck study, scientists identified 34 neoantigens per patient. They delivered the corresponding mRNA vaccine cocktail packed in lipid nanoparticles, just like the mRNA vaccines for COVID-19 developed by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech.
When the vaccine is delivered after removing the tumour, it trains the immune system to recognise neoantigens and fight back against the cancer returning. Usually, the body’s natural immune system corrects mutations and prevents us from having cancers. However, in some cases this natural immune response is insufficient, leading to tumour growth. In individualised neoantigen therapy, these mutations in the tumour cells are used for vaccine development and for training the immune system to fight back against relapse after removal of the tumour.
Recent advances in artificial intelligence are helping identify potential neoantigens and manage personalised therapies. Firstly, gene sequencing of tumours and normal blood cells of a patient and their comparison produces a huge amount of data. AI is used to find the genetic mutations of the patient’s cancer in such ‘big data’. Moreover, individualised therapy requires timely production and delivery of vaccines that are different for each patient. AI is also useful in the management of such data.
The individualised nature of the treatment is probably why it has been more effective in trials than previous, unsuccessful RNA vaccine candidates. However, this personalisation is also likely to raise challenges for the timely and cost-effective delivery of treatment to populations around the world.
The siRNA and miRNA treatments work in a way opposite to mRNA. While each mRNA in a vaccine carries the code for producing a protein from a pathogen (antigen) or tumour (neoantigen) to train our immune systems against future attacks by the pathogen or tumour, siRNA directly targets the mRNA of the antigen or neoantigen and terminates the production of the protein it codes. Thus, the effect of a siRNA is more direct and immediate (like a drug), rather than a protection against future attacks (like a vaccine).
Discovered at the turn of this millennium, siRNA-based therapeutics attracted immediate attention, but their initial success was limited due to their inherent low stability, difficulties in delivering them to desired locations, and rapid clearance from the bloodstream. However, in recent years, siRNA therapies have been boosted through chemical modifications that have increased their stability and ability to be delivered to specific locations such as tumours, and improved delivery systems such as lipid nanoparticle encasings.
These improvements led to recent successes in FDA approvals of siRNA-based therapies and further promising reports of advances in the treatment of diseases including a type of liver cancer.
Research scientist Dr Bidyut Sarkar is the DBT-Wellcome Trust India Alliance Intermediate Fellow in the Department of Chemistry at Shiv Nadar Institute of Eminence, Delhi NCR, India.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on May 22, 2024
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The harsh reality of quantum batteries - 360
Published on July 31, 2023
In theory, quantum batteries recharge extremely rapidly but translating this to the real world is a different matter.
There’s been plenty written about quantum batteries over the past 10 years but it’s unlikely they will replace conventional batteries for everyday appliances anytime in the near future.
When quantum batteries were envisaged about a decade ago, scientists did not foresee any technological application of their model. Quantum batteries were invented to study how energy moves in quantum systems, not to be sold in shops.
A quantum battery is only a theoretical concept for now (albeit buttressed by recent proof-of-principle experiments).
Yet, somehow the idea of quantum batteries took off with the media and scientists alike. In the past 10 years, nearly 300 papers on this topic have been written. These works examine different platforms for quantum batteries, different charging and discharging mechanisms, stability conditions, energy density and everything else that is required to build batteries.
Still, some researchers do not see strong potential for quantum batteries to be a commercial product. It is hard to see how quantum batteries could ever surpass today’s batteries.
This is because the former would require careful quantum control possible only in certain environments, like a laboratory. The batteries we use daily do not require such careful control and can be used almost anywhere. Still, it is a scholarly topic that is worth pursuing.
Quantum batteries offer a fertile playing ground for exploring and testing new ideas of optimal control of quantum systems – a highly relevant topic as quantum engineers are constructing ever more complex implementations of quantum technology with an increasing number of control parameters and system components.
The story begins with researchers re-examining the laws of thermodynamics in the 2010s with advances in the theory of quantum entanglement.
The first quantum revolution brought us into the information age and exotic materials like graphene. The second revolution promises new ways of computing, communicating and sensing.
A quantity central to the second quantum revolution is entanglement. It seems to play a crucial role for quantum computing and other nascent quantum technologies, including batteries. While the term dates back to the 1930s, it was not fully understood until the late 1980s and 1990s.
Because of its importance, a great deal of effort was dedicated to the theory of entanglement.
These quests always have two sides. Scientists wanted to understand how entanglement could be used for practical purposes. And there were many foundational tasks (posing philosophical questions) that gave surprising answers in the presence of entanglement.
Pioneering experiments that probed these foundational implications underlie the most recent Nobel Prize in Physics last year.
In the early 2010s, quantum information scientists began to apply the newly discovered toolkit of quantum entanglement to re-examine the theory of thermodynamics.
The hope was to discover thermodynamic phenomena that are truly quantum. This is mostly motivated by foundational questions, as the accepted facts of thermodynamics are at odds with those of quantum (and classical) mechanics.
Identifying thermodynamic phenomena with genuine quantum features turned out to be surprisingly difficult as energetic phenomena seem to be indifferent as to whether the underlying system is quantum or classical.
However, some researchers noted that time behaved somewhat differently in the quantum realm than in classical, which in turn affects power (work done in a unit of time).
They found that quantum mechanics allows for energy to be deposited (extracted) significantly faster when multiple systems are addressed collectively rather than individually. This theoretical quantum system was dubbed a quantum battery.
Scientists then demonstrated what is the maximum charging speed allowed within the rules of quantum physics, as well as what is realistic when taking into account the structure of real physical interactions. The latter showed that we should anticipate only modest gains in power.
To formally prove these relationships, they made use of a quantum phenomenon known as the quantum speed limit. Originally discovered by two Soviet physicists in 1945, the quantum speed limit can be understood in analogy to Werner Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle which states a trade-off relationship between precision in momentum and position, albeit with respect to time and energy.
Using the quantum speed limit along with the effects of quantum entanglement, researchers first showed that one can move more energy in less time in quantum systems.
Later it turned out that entanglement is not strictly needed. It appears that the capacity to generate it in principle suffices for a speedup, even if no entanglement is actually created.
There is a fundamental connection between energy and information, which mandates processing information, for example by a computer, must lead to wasted energy (or heat). This leads to a trade-off in the speed of a computer and its heat output, which accounts for over a tenth of global energy consumption.
Quantum control through quantum batteries research could reduce the heat production by computers, data centres and networks and thus contribute to faster decarbonisation.
But there also lie unanswered questions: is there a fundamental connection between energy waste, energy-density, time, and information? Could we write down a single equation (principle) that proves this? In other words, there remains a lot of interesting research to be done on whether or not quantum batteries will ever become a replacement for conventional batteries.
With further research, the science that underlies them, however, may prove rather useful in other applications such as quantum computing and sensing. In these technologies precise quantum control of small systems is of the essence for their very function and not an additional hurdle.
Professor Felix Binder is with the School of Physics, Trinity College Dublin and Professor Kavan Modi is with the School of Physics and Astronomy, Monash University, Melbourne. They declare no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on July 31, 2023
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The ideal of open data has unexamined flaws - 360
Caterina Santoro
Published on October 3, 2022
Harnessing the value of open data requires reflection on who benefits most.
Real-time traffic and weather updates are just some examples of open data that is helping us. With open data, we can avoid traffic jams and prepare for a heavy thunderstorm.
Open data is also instrumental in achieving a transparent and accountable government. As summarised by researcher Robert Kitchin, open data is expected to promote efficiency and evidence-based decision-making, as well as collaboration between agencies, citizens, and the business sectors. Building robust information and collaboration among different stakeholders will result in better governance. Open data might lead to citizens’ empowerment through the democratisation of information. Data used for decision-making, made available to the public, eliminates data asymmetries, where the government controls the information. Citizens can make sense of data on their own and participate in different initiatives through data use, re-use, service request, or participation in civic hacking initiatives. And, data is a potential resource for economic value generation, such as through the creation of new products and services.
Indeed, much of the initial discussion on open data was optimistic, believing that technology produces positive outcomes and addresses social and environmental issues. However, over the years, researchers such as Jo Bates, Kitchin, and Justin Longo have suggested that behind the long list of promises lie a set of problems that escaped proper investigation and reflection.
Open data is not inherently neutral. Kitchin pointed out that open data is imbued with values since state administrative systems have embedded value structures that shape what data is captured and how data is used and reproduced for the benefits and interests of the dominant political class.
According to Bates, open data might have greater economic benefits for companies than ordinary citizens. Indeed, big companies are in a better position to benefit from access to information, creating economic value from publicly generated data.
Further, a limited number of skilled users make the most of open data and they do not add value to the system itself. These users do not provide feedback nor do they share the results of their data use.
The gap between users that generate data and those who profit from them becomes even more striking if the conceptual lens of ‘Data at the Margins’ developed by Stefania Milan and Emiliano Treré is applied. This considers how some marginalised groups might not be in the position of producing or using data of societal relevance. Open data, far from being only a driver for transparency and better governance, is encapsulated in an uneven system that can contribute to further inequities.
The system is oriented to one single type of u, with open data usually released through open data portals that do not differentiate among potential users (for example business versus customers), thus creating an additional barrier for data use.
A way forward is to create a sustainable open data ecosystem, a situation that will serve multiple users, with more stakeholders honing the necessary skills for making use of the information. The value of open data is not trapped but circulates back to society, creating the conditions for an inclusive and equitable use of data.
Shifting the attention from making data available to sustainable use of open data might require a substantial change in the way we conceive this phenomenon. The road to a sustainable open data ecosystem is paved with multiple challenges. Academics, with the support of partners from the public sector, NGOs, journalists, and the private sector are currently finding strategies to connect open data to societal benefits and are trying to answer different questions. How do we measure whether open data is proving beneficial for all the stakeholders, including marginalised groups? More generally, how do we assess the sustainability of the open data ecosystem? The answers are yet to come, but the conversation has started.
Caterina Santoro is a PhD student at the Public Governance Institute of KU Leuven. Her research focuses on socially equitable open data governance and is financed by the ODECO Horizon 2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network initiative. She tweets @Cattedoppiaesse
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: Caterina Santoro, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on October 3, 2022
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The insidious take-over of Mexico’s police - 360
Sergio Padilla Oñate
Published on October 3, 2022
Disorganised attempts to improve policing in Mexico have led to the slow creep of the army and skyrocketing murder rates.
On 31 August 2022 in Nuevo Laredo Tamaulipas, Mexico, Heidi, a four-year-old girl, complained of stomach-ache. It was approximately 10pm when her nanny Graciela decided to drive her and her seven-year-old brother Kevin to the hospital. During the drive, Graciela noticed soldiers on the road, but as that’s common in Mexico, she continued on her way. Suddenly, it sounded as if the car was being hit by hail. When Graciela turned to check the children, Heidi was dead and Kevin injured.
Apparently, the soldiers thought that the car contained a group of criminals, instead of a nanny with a pair of children, just because it had tinted windows. Despite evidence, such as the calibre of bullet recovered from Heidi and Kevin, the army refused to acknowledge responsibility. They blamed a criminal group they were targeting at the time.
The most alarming part of this story is that it is not an exception. In recent years in Mexico, hundreds of similar tragedies have occurred.
Mexico’s armed forces have been involved in law enforcement tasks for decades. But the intensification and mass participation of armed forces in law enforcement began when then-President Felipe Calderón declared a “war on drugs” in 2007.
The army, and later the marines, were deployed in states of Mexico with high levels of organised crime. The army’s role in policing expanded from there. The president decided to use the armed forces because Mexican police had a bad reputation for lack of competence and high levels of corruption.
During the presidential period of Enrique Peña Nieto (2013-2018), the army slightly reduced its deployment during the three first years, but then restarted and continued with more intensity. Nowadays with current president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador there is almost double the number of soldiers as when the war on drugs started.
Despite the military intervention, the violence has not ceased. In fact, homicides have reached record highs. Studies have linked the deployment of the military to the increasing homicides and shown the army disproportionately uses lethal force during clashes with criminal gangs. In other words, the soldiers have killed people without clear justification.
Some specialists, such as political scientist Andreas Schedler, have described the war on drugs in Mexico as a non-international armed conflict or a civil war driven by economic rather than political interests.
At the beginning of the war on drugs, the deployment of the army was considered an urgent and temporary measure while police institutions at the three levels of government were reformed. But despite the various efforts at different levels of governments to try to build civil police institutions with a focus on citizen security, the army has played a large role in the transformation of the police institutions. This has led to the increased militarisation of police forces.
Military personnel are now in leading positions in police institutions. Training in the use of firearms, self-defense, and strategies against ambush is conducted by military instructors. And police institutions have acquired military vehicles such as Israeli SandCats and use semi-automatic rifles for daily police routines.
When Andrés Manuel López Obrador became president, the expectation was that his government would return the soldiers to their barracks and strengthen police institutions. However, the direction that he took was in fact the opposite.
Local police forces saw their funds significantly reduced, affecting their ability to be trained, paid professional police officers. The Federal Police was dissolved, and the National Guard was created. It is made up of current soldiers (70 percent) and a lesser proportion of police officers from the former Federal Police (30 percent). According to Mexican law, the National Guard is a civil institution that responds to the Secretaria de Seguridad y Protección Ciudadana, a civilian secretariat. But in practice, the National Guard is an institution under the control of the army. Its commander is a general from the Mexican army. A directive to formally transfer the administrative and operative control of the National Guard to the army was approved at the beginning of September.
Today in Mexico at federal level no civil institution exists to serve and protect Mexican citizens.
At the same time, the Secretaria de la Defensa Nacional (Ministry of Defence) expanded. President Obrador has given it scope to develop megaprojects like the new international airport and the Maya train and intervene in social policy and environmental protection. As a result, the budget of the Ministry of Defense has significantly increased in recent years.
The Mexican senate is now discussing an initiative to extend the period that the army are deployed in domestic policing to 2029. The deadline was supposed to be in 2024 but, like with the previous governments, the view seems to be that with more time and more resources, the army could pacify Mexico. Despite this being contrary to the empirical evidence.
Mexico is witnessing a slow-moving, insidious take-over by the military. None of this was the result of a clear policy to militarise police institutions. Rather, it has been the result of disorganised efforts to try to build capacity in the police forces, mainly at the state and federal levels, to fight criminal groups.
The trend is shared by many countries in the region including Honduras, El Salvador, and Brazil. However, there are others that offer hope for a new direction. Colombia’s new president is seeking to reduce the military budget and demilitarise the national police, transferring it from the Ministry of Defence to the Ministry of Peace and Security. It’s early days, but at least on paper the proposal looks to be a direction that Mexico could learn from.
is a professor at Faculty of Political and Social Sciences, National Autonomous University of Mexico. He tweets @SergioPO85. He declares no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on October 3, 2022
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-insidious-take-over-of-mexicos-police/",
"author": "Sergio Padilla Oñate"
}
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2,159 |
The invisible killer lurking in the air of our cities - 360
Wenhua Yu, Yuming Guo
Published on April 24, 2024
As climate change makes smog and bushfires more common, people will die from air pollution at increasingly high rates – especially in densely populated cities.
Short-term exposure to high levels of air pollution kills more than one million people every year. And while Asia and Africa are particularly at-risk, Australia isn’t immune to the danger.
With climate change making smog and bushfires more common, it’s likely more people will die from air pollution in coming years — especially in densely populated cities.
Those are some of the key findings from our recent research, published in Lancet Planetary Health last month.
Australia usually enjoys excellent air quality, being one of only seven countries that meet the clean air standards set by the World Health Organization.
But there’s a catch. Sometimes, Australia’s air pollution levels jump significantly — and breathing in that polluted air can make us sick.
Bushfires, especially in summer, are a key reason for these pollution spikes. These fires emit smoke and tiny harmful particles into the air, degrading the air quality.
For instance, researchers found that during the “Black Summer” bushfires of 2019-2020, the air pollution was 15 times worse than levels considered safe by WHO. This bad air was linked to 429 people dying sooner than they might have otherwise — and more than 3,000 people landing in hospital because of breathing problems or heart issues caused by smoke.
Dust storms and emissions from industries and vehicles are also contributors to these pollution peaks. When there’s a lot of activity from factories or more cars and trucks on the roads, the amount of pollution released into the air can increase quickly.
Air pollution doesn’t just make it hard to breathe. It can also harm other parts of the body, including the heart, blood vessels, and brain.
One of the tiniest troublemakers in the air are tiny particles known as “fine particulate matter” (PM). These particles — which are tinier than a red blood cell — can get deep into your lungs and even into the blood, affecting our health. The WHO says PMis one of the most health-damaging particles, and affects more people than any other pollutant.
When you’re exposed to a lot of this pollution for a short time, it can make problems like asthma worse, and you might cough, wheeze, or feel short of breath.
Being around too much air pollution for even a little while — just hours or days — can speed up health issues with your lungs and heart, making you more likely to need to go to the hospital or even increasing the risk of dying sooner.
Air pollution can affect everyone, but it is especially risky for kids, pregnant women, and old folks. This is true especially when cities get hit with short, intense bursts of dirty air. (Both long-term and short-term exposure are harmful to human health. Long-term exposure is generally thought to contribute to a larger mortality burden than short-term exposure due to its cumulative effect on health.)
Cities are often warmer than rural areas due to a condition called the ‘urban heat island effect’. It can make the air still and no longer move much. In urban areas with large populations, especially those who may already be sick or vulnerable, more people may die from short spikes in air pollution.
Asia and Africa account for almost 80 percent of all air pollution-related deaths. What’s more, over a fifth (22.74 percent) of these deaths happen in cities, according to a recent global study.
Before this Monash University study, scientists had looked mainly at how breathing polluted air over a long time affects people’s health. They hadn’t paid much attention to the sudden increases in pollution that can happen because of things like wildfires, dust storms, or other unusual events, especially in smaller towns and cities.
The study was the first time we really looked into how these short spikes in air pollution across the world can be deadly.
It checked out the air in over 13,000 cities and towns worldwide, from the last 20 years up to 2019. It’s shining a light on how dangerous these temporary pollution increases can be.
Asia faces the heaviest toll in terms of deaths linked to short-term fine particulate air pollution, shouldering about 65.2 percent of those deaths (“global mortality”).
Africa and Europe follow, with 17 percent and 12.1 percent of the global deaths. The Americas saw a relatively lower impact, accounting for 5.6 percent of such deaths.
China, especially its cities, has had the highest death toll from short-term spikes in air pollution over the past 20 years. Countries in southern Asia, like Bangladesh, India and Pakistan, have seen a fast rise in these deaths, climbing up the global ranks.
Now for the good news for Australians: According to the study, Australia and New Zealand had some of the lowest numbers of deaths (0.1 percent ) linked to acute fine particulate air pollution, with an average of 614 people dying due to such pollution between 2000-2019.
But there’s a catch for Australia. Deaths caused by this short-term air pollution jumped 40 percent during these years, from 0.54 percent in 2000 to 0.76 percent in 2019. This increase is likely due to more frequent and intense extreme air pollution events, such as bushfires and dust storms.
The solutions to air pollution don’t involve simply cleaning up the air; they’re also about protecting ourselves from the harm pollution can cause.
First, we’ve got to cut down on air pollution. This means things like switching to cleaner energy (think wind or solar power); making things run more efficiently so they don’t waste as much energy and cutting down on the smoke and fumes from cars and factories.
But sometimes, pollution levels can spike suddenly. When this happens, we need to keep safe. Some places have emergency plans for when the air gets really dirty, like limiting car travel, pausing factory work, or even closing schools for a bit.
Staying informed is key. We need warning systems that tell us when the air is getting bad and what we can do about it. Learning about air pollution helps, too, so we know how to protect ourselves. This could mean guidelines on what to do when the air quality drops.
What can you do to protect yourself and your family? If the air outside is bad, try to stay indoors and keep windows closed to keep the dirty air out. If you need to go outside, think about wearing a mask. Use air purifiers to clean the air inside your home. And finally, cut back on outdoor exercise until the air gets better.
Yuming Guo is Professor of Global Environmental Health and Biostatistics & Head of the Monash Climate, Air Quality Research (CARE) Unit, Monash University, Australia.
Wenhua Yu is a PhD candidate focusing on global environmental health and data science at Monash University, Australia.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on April 24, 2024
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"author": "Wenhua Yu, Yuming Guo"
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2,160 |
The key to future climate adaptation is to tap past knowledge - 360
Arindam Roy
Published on December 21, 2022
Climate-resilient agricultural knowledge has always been there among Indigenous groups, we just need to learn from them.
The Apatani people of India’s Eastern Himalayas practise a unique form of farming where two crops of rice (mipya and emoh) and one crop of fish (ngihi) are raised together. The wet rice fields are irrigated through well-managed canal systems managed by diverting streams that originate in the surrounding forests into a single canal — connected with bamboo or pinewood pipe. The paddy and fish ponds are strategically positioned to receive all the run off from the hills.
They have been farming around the Yero Valley for centuries and their reverence for nature is at the centre of all their practice. Their rice cultivation is often why the Apatani people are considered one of the most advanced tribal communities in northeastern India. They have been known for their rich economy for decades and good knowledge of land, forest and water management.
Due to these special attributes of sustainable farming systems and people’s traditional ecological knowledge in sustaining ecosystems, the plateau is in the process of being declared a UNESCO World Heritage centre.
Agricultural systems driven by Indigenous knowledge can absorb shocks from multiple climate extremes. But this wealth of knowledge, passed from elders across generations, is not often well documented. The key to preserving it is to engage, learn and incorporate these lessons into wider society.
Strict customary laws by the Apatani people govern the use of forest resources and hunting practices to ensure the environment is not being exploited. The availability of irrigation water for rice in the Eastern Himalayas is made possible due to efficient forest conservation around the valley.
Their farming practices integrate the existing landscape and use as many local resources as possible to maintain the natural ecosystem, including their fertiliser, pesticides, irrigation channels and seeds. The entire cultivation procedure is organic and devoid of artificial soil supplements. The crops are supplemented with livestock manure, agricultural waste, kitchen waste, and rice chaff that help maintain soil fertility. Irrigation, cultivation and harvesting require cooperation, experience, contingency plans, and a disciplined work schedule.
The 705 ethnic groups in India make up an estimated 104 million people. There are 200,000 Irular in the wet and humid Western Ghats. There are the 13,000 Apatani people who have lived for 600 years in the high-altitude valleys in the eastern Himalayas, where rainfall is also abundant. But the Lahaula call the dry and snowy mountains of Lahaul and Spiti in the western Himalayas home. With very little rainfall, its 31,000 people mostly rely on snow as their water source. In contrast, the Dongria-Gondh people live in the hot and humid Niyamgiri hills in the state of Orissa. They thrive on small streams from the hills.
These four Indigenous populations come from very different eco-geographical regions but all are facing the impacts of climate change — increasing days with high temperatures, unpredictable monsoons and weather extremes. Specifically, flash floods in the eastern Himalayas, drought in the Eastern Ghats, glacier retreat and water stress in western Himalayas and pest invasion in the Western Ghats.
There are several common agricultural practices among the populations which can be the first line of defence against the impact of climate change. The surrounding forest and sustainable practices are essential to food security for all four.
Each practises collective farming and uses local resources whenever available. The division of labour in each stage of farminghas developed experts with specialised skills who pass their knowledge among families. Farm work essential to maintaining the entire system includes irrigation, fencing, building footpaths, weeding, field preparation, transplantation, harvesting and storing. Different families are responsible for a specific task with roles passed down through generations, creating strong bonds, co-dependencies and a sense of pride in their role within the community.
Once crops are harvested, some seeds are kept for the following year’s cultivation. The rest is consumed as food. Genetically modified seeds, which are commonly used in modern farming, have a significantly shorter shelf life and cannot be kept until the next planting season as they are either unable to germinate or give poor production. Farmers would have to buy those again. Instead they use native seeds which can be stored — the result of thousands of years of natural farming conserved through generations.
Crops are commonly planted together — grown on the same land, at the same time which lessens the chance of a pest attack, as pests are crop specific. Fruit, spice, vegetables and cereals can be cultivated together, taking advantage of their different heights by using the land vertically, not just across the ground.
Some planted varieties are drought tolerant, some are heat tolerant, some have a shorter growing time and others need a longer growing time. For example, the Dongria-Gondh people grow 80 crop species simultaneously ranging from resilient Indigenous varieties of paddy, millet, leaves, pulses, tubers, vegetables, sorghum, legumes, maize and oil seeds that have been maintained for decades.
Planting all at the same time provides a level of security in the case of extreme events such as floods and drought, as not all would be wiped out. Kala mali phulo is one variety of rice cultivated by the Dongria-Gondh people. This rice variety does not require lots of water and can withstand environmental changes.
The Irular people of India’s Western Ghats have been farming around the Palamalai and Nilgiri hills for centuries. The high rainfall and wet and humid weather of the region throw up the challenge of how best to preserve seeds harvested each year for the next year’s planting.
Keeping seeds for a year puts them at risk of rot and pests. Storing them using modern techniques such as cold storage facilities is expensive and emits greenhouse gas emissions. So the Irular store paddy grains with aromatic herbs in a small mudhouse, millet under the soil in a container painted with cow-dung slurry and preserve pepper seeds in a hanging gunny bag to maintain the longevity of their grains. They also use plant-based pesticides and repellents from the common Indian plant, Neem. Neem oil, neem seed extracts, garlic-chilli paste and tobacco water solution are used to kill and repel pests.
Due to the snow, the Lahaulas from western Himalayas can only grow crops for six months so they have developed a long-composting method to counter essential nutrient loss when snow melts. They have several community composting rooms where livestock manure, human excrement, kitchen waste and forest leaf litter are aggregated throughout winter. As the temperature falls below freezing, the composting takes a longer time. When summer comes and fields become snow-free, compost materials are applied in the field. They also intensely integrate livestock into their farming system to eat and for compost.
Indigenous people are migrating and changing their traditional livelihood now more than ever due to the destruction of land and forests. As their population sizes are already relatively small, ancient knowledge is increasingly in danger of being lost. Creating a well-documented national repository of them will ensure their preservation and longevity, particularly as we face weather extremes caused by climate change that threaten our food security.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recommends including Indigenous knowledge in climate change adaptation plans locally and internationally and now is the time to listen to ways we can better save our crops from heat waves, droughts and floods. It seems the knowledge has always been there, we just need to learn from those who hold it.
Arindam Roy is a scientist in LAPI lab, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne. He co-founded the first Bengali Climate Communication Platform (Sobuj Prithibi). He also runs The Climate Thinker, an organisation working on climate education in India.
The author declares no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Indigenous lessons” sent at: 19/12/2022 09:11.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on December 21, 2022
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"author": "Arindam Roy"
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2,161 |
The king and aye: When monarchs influence the people - 360
Susumu Annaka, Gento Kato
Published on May 5, 2023
Despite limited powers, constitutional monarchies can directly influence democratic nations, and Japan is no exception.
On a 2019 autumn morning, heavy with rain, Emperor Naruhito announced his enthronement to the mythical sun goddess, Amaterasu, in the Japanese imperial palace grounds.
Later, he stood in the palace’s most prestigious space, the Matsu-no-ma, for his ascension to the Chrysanthemum throne.
Dignitaries and royals from around the world travelled to witness the crowning of the oldest continuous hereditary monarchy. Among them was British monarch King Charles III who will officially be crowned in a three-day event this weekend. His ceremony will be attended by Crown Prince Akishino, the emperor’s brother, as a representative of the Japanese monarchy.
Japan and the United Kingdom adopt a constitutional monarchy system of government where monarchs are ceremonial leaders. In a democratically elected government, the power lies within the constitution and monarchies in these systems survive as symbolic figures to unify their people.
Even though constitutional monarchs do not have formal political powers in a democracy, research has found they can influence public opinion through their popularity.
The emperor of Japan was a powerful political and religious leader up until the newly established democratic constitution severely restricted his role to be “only symbolic and ceremonial” and “not political”,after Japan’s defeat in World War II. Since then, the emperor is strictly not allowed to express political messages — he doesn’t even have voting rights.
But a 2018 nationally representative survey found more than 75 percent of the Japanese public still had favourable feelings and respect toward the emperor. Zero percent of respondents said they had unfavourable feelings toward the emperor and 22 percent answered to having “no feelings” towards him.
A 2020 survey of 1,527 people showed the Japanese emperor could still influence people’s opinions on national politics. While the impact may not be big, the results of a study by researchers from Waseda University in Japan and Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan indicate his influence can cut across ideologies and influence people regardless of their political beliefs.
Freedom of expression in Japan can be framed as both left-wing (for example, the regulation of hate speech) and right-wing (such as the regulation of publicly funded anti-nationalistic exhibitions). The study asked what people thought about the regulation of public expression in two contrasting contexts. In one — their thoughts on regulating public hate speech toward foreigners — typically garner higher support from the left-wing public. Alternatively, about regulating public art exhibitions that negatively portray Japanese culture and history, right-wing politicians are the typical proponents of the regulation.
Researchers randomly asked what they thought about the increasing intensity of speech or behaviour that ethnically or racially discriminate against foreigners (hate speech) or art exhibitions that negatively portray Japanese culture and history at publicly-managed museums and events. Once they had answered, respondents were shown a quote from a speech by former emperor Akihito in which he said “securing freedom of expression is fundamental to democracy and very important”.
When asked the initial question again, researchers found Japanese people lowered their support for regulating expression in public spaces, in line with the views of the former emperor.
The implication of the evidence is still open to discussion and there are insufficient studies about how and when such an influence is strengthened or weakened.
We could be concerned that the hereditary figure, who is not chosen through election, can have a political influence or the cross-cutting influence of the emperor implies that he can play a role in alleviating ideological divisions in democratic politics.
At the very least, we should stop assuming that monarchs have no real political power in democratic politics.
Susumu Annaka is an assistant professor at Hirosaki University, Japan. He was at Waseda University at the time the original article went to publish. His articles appear in World Development and other refereed journals. His research featured in this article was funded by JSPS KAKENHI.
Gento Kato is an assistant professor at Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan. His works fall within the areas of political behaviour, formal modelling and quantitative methodologies.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: Susumu Annaka, Waseda University and Gento Kato, Nazarbayev University
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on May 5, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-king-and-aye-when-monarchs-influence-the-people/",
"author": "Susumu Annaka, Gento Kato"
}
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2,162 |
The koala in the coal mine - 360
Euan Ritchie
Published on March 7, 2022
With the scrutiny on climate change, the collapse of Australian ecosystems has received scant attention. But saving them is entirely possible.
Australia’s iconic koala, listed as endangered in the Australian regions of Queensland, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory in 2022, is unfortunately far from alone.
Since European colonisation of Australia, roughly 230 years ago, at least 39 native mammal species have been driven to extinction. The Australian continent, with its extraordinary and largely unique (endemic) plants and animals, now has more than 1,900 threatened species and ecological communities.
Ecosystems from the tropics to Antarctica, including the Great Barrier Reef, are showing signs of collapse.
Ecologists and conservation biologists have been documenting and warning of the widespread demise of nature for decades. Then in 2019 an intergovernmental body confirmed what many had been pointing out: we are in the midst of Earth’s sixth mass extinction event.
Using the fossil record as a reference for ‘normal’ rates of extinction, we are now seeing rates of extinction tens, hundreds or thousands of times higher than expected.
It’s a crisis no less catastrophic than climate change, but one that garners far less attention.
Far too few recognise the need to combat climate change, environmental destruction, and extinction in an integrated way.
Addressing climate change has rightly received considerable global attention. But climate change is one dimension — albeit a big one — of the environmental and extinction crisis we face.
Without a substantial increase in investment in conservation, habitat destruction and modification, invasive species, pollution, and disease will continue to be key threats. If we hope to turn things around, we need stronger, not weaker environmental legislation. And ultimately, if environmental decline is to stop, we will need to confront the main driver of these issues: consumption and living unsustainably.
Climate change, extinction, and environmental health are inextricably linked.
Protecting forests, either on land or underwater, helps to capture and store carbon thereby helping to fight climate change. It also provides homes for countless species. Restoring whale populations can increase the productivity of oceans, as what whales leave behind after their meals helps to fertilise microscopic phytoplankton, which themselves capture carbon and drive foodchains.
Restoring or protecting nature via returning species to landscapes, often known as ‘rewilding’, is seen as a key ingredient in fighting climate change and extinction.
Everything is linked, and needs to be managed as though it is.
Another key ingredient for change is investment. The more countries invest in conservation, the better their conservation outcomes will be. Money is needed for establishing conservation reserves, and just as importantly, managing them. It also costs money to monitor species’ populations and the diversity of plants, animals, fungi and other organisms within them.
By area, most land and sea is not under conservation protection, and many threatened species occur on private land. Conservation initiatives spanning public and private land would better protect them.
Investing in people to carry out conservation would have far reaching benefits. For example, Indigenous Protected Areas and Indigenous Ranger programs help to conserve native plants and animals, reduce invasive animal populations, manage fire, and maintain connections with culture and Country. Likewise, undertaking pest animal control, revegetation, species reintroductions and other conservation-focussed actions, can create jobs in cities and regional towns.
It’s estimated it would cost around A$1.7 billion a year to bring all the species on Australia’s threatened list back to health. Australia currently spends around A$120 million a year on targeted threatened species conservation and recovery. Recently, it committed A$10 million (or $100,000 each) to 100 species deemed a priority, of the more than 1,800 species on the threatened list.
Euan Ritchie is a Professor in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation in Deakin University’s Centre for Integrative Ecology and the School of Life and Environmental Sciences. His work has a strong focus on predators and their ecological roles, invasive species, fire ecology, ecosystem management, and the ecology, conservation and management of Australian mammals. He is the Chair of the Ecology Society of Australia’s Media Working Group and Deputy Convenor of Deakin University’s Science and Society Network. The author declares no conflict of interest.
This article has been republished for the COP15 Biodiversity Summit. It was first published on February 28, 2022.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on March 7, 2022
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-koala-in-the-coal-mine/",
"author": "Euan Ritchie"
}
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The last sultanate of Indonesia - 360
Bayu Dardias Kurniadi
Published on May 5, 2023
The success of Yogyakarta’s bid to be recognised as a UNESCO Historical City Centre would benefit Indonesia’s last remaining sultanate.
Yogyakarta’s historic Malioboro Street had it all — food, snacks, shopping and a place for locals and tourists to pass some time, weaving through horse carriages and onto the shady pedestrian street packed with colourful stalls.
But in January last year, Sultan Hamengkubuwono X, governor of the Indonesian province of Yogyakarta, announced the relocation of the more than 1,800 street traders who had been a staple of the street since 1976.
The sultan told local media the land belonged to the government and the move was 18 years in the making.
The traders on Malioboro Street were an iconic Yogyakarta cultural tourist attraction.
By March 2022, they had all relocated to two new areas despite the prospect of much lower revenues and hotter temperatures under corrugated roofing.
The relocation was due to the local government’s bid for acknowledgement by UNESCO as a ‘Historical City Centre‘. Submitted by the local government in 2017, its status is still pending.
Receiving UNESCO status would reaffirm the sultan’s legitimacy among his people. It would also mean being able to ask for a bigger slice of the national government’s budget for city preservation works.
Indonesia is an electoral democracy — all public leadership positions are competitively elected by the people, from the president to the head of a village.
All except in the province of Yogyakarta where the governor is the incumbent sultan of the Hamengkubuwono family bloodline.
Yogyakarta gained official special privileges under Indonesian law in 2012 allowing it to administer “government affairs under the framework of the Republic of Indonesia”, as a token of respect for the role of the late Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX in the war for Indonesian independence from 1945 to 1949.
It is the only province out of 38 to receive ‘special region’ status, granting Yogyakarta special autonomy over its culture, land and bureaucracy.
It also has a separate allocation of funds under the national budget for the preservation and promotion of its culture.
The Yogyakarta sultanate is the last remaining, out of the 278 kingdoms and aristocracies that existed when the Japanese invaded Indonesia in 1942, to hold political power.
Its survival is largely attributed to its ability to maintain control over traditional lands during the tumultuous political period that followed, especially during the rise of the Communist Party in the 1960s and the subsequent New Order regime.
Since 2012, the Yogyakarta Sultanate can now also legally own land, while other aristocracies and traditional institutions cannot own land under Indonesian law.
During Indonesia’s early decentralisation period from 2005 to 2015, former kingdoms and traditional leaders, benefiting from historical loyalty, put forward their names to become local leaders under Indonesia’s new democratic structure of governance.
While some were successful in being elected to the executive and legislative branches of government, their support was mostly temporary without a strong political and economic understanding of democratic governance.
With his concentration of cultural and political power following the 2012 law change, the sultan can implement policies without much resistance.
But his concentrated power has left little room for the checks and balances which are required in modern democracies.
The province’s legislature follows and prioritises the sultan’s orders and the executive has become so powerful it was able to claim unrelated government expenses as “cultural” spending.
For example, in September 2022, the Corruption Eradication Committee arrested the mayor of Yogyakarta and two of his confidants for bribery regarding the apartment height limitation in cultural sites.
The sultan also does not allow Chinese Indonesians to own land across the province, which is against national discrimination law.
The people of Yogyakarta, however, continue to revere the sultan.
The sultanate is part of their Javanese identity and cultural pride — being Javanese is to uphold the cultural tradition led by the sultanate.
Being the “cradle of Javanese culture” Yogyakarta continues to attract tourists, which benefits people’s livelihoods even if the sultan’s decisions are not always in their favour.
Bayu Dardias Kurniadi is a public policy strategist at the Universitas Gadjah Mada, he specialises on the political economy of the Indonesian aristocracies. The Research was undertaken with the financial assistance from the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences Gadjah Mada University.
He declares no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on May 5, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-last-sultanate-of-indonesia/",
"author": "Bayu Dardias Kurniadi"
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The lasting changes of Japan’s post-war economic reforms - 360
Mari Sako
Published on May 10, 2023
Japan’s industrial policy has been a blueprint for Asian nations, but many skip over the important context that made it all become a reality.
In Japan, political dynasties remain, but business dynasties are less closely tied to politics than in some Asian countries today.
Over the past century, a string of major economic reforms have shaken the balance of economic power within Japan and kept the economy innovating, responding to the challenges of the time.
Japan’s pathway offers a case study for other Asian nations to learn from as the regional business and political landscape shifts.
Business groups, known as zaibatsu, have taken hold of the Japanese economy since the early 20th century. These zaibatsu were formed by prominent families, such as Iwasaki (founder of Mitsubishi) and Yasuda, exploiting business opportunities arising from industrialisation since the Meiji restoration in 1868.
In each business group, a family-controlled pure holding company owned a wide range of companies in banking and insurance, mining, shipbuilding, chemicals, iron and steel and textiles.
Similar to other Asian economies today, these zaibatsu groups wielded more than just economic power. They were also managed by business elites who had an explicit purpose to influence politics by maintaining connections with the state, political parties and politicians.
A combination of political connections and structural power led to economic concentration in Japan: the top 1 percent of Japanese adults accounted for around 20 percent of total national income, and the top 10 percent for 60 percent, in the early 20th century.
It took an unconditional surrender in World War Two to dismantle this economic and political structure of concentration. Supreme Commander of Allied Powers, US General Douglas MacArthur, applied Franklin Roosevelt’s 1930s New Deal policies to a Japan devastated by the war and hyper-inflation, with the aim of democratising the country and preventing it from becoming an aggressor ever again.
Headlining the reform package were land reforms, universal education, establishing labour rights, heavy property taxes and dissolving zaibatsu groups. The practice of tying family assets to business groups ceased and holding companies were banned.
In 1947 the establishment of pure holding companies was outlawed. The key narrative drove home the need to eliminate the political tentacles of the zaibatsu groups whose wealth fuelled Japan’s war effort.
These policies resulted in high social mobility, a meritocratic hiring system in public and private sectors, and a more equal distribution of income and wealth.
The share of national income held by the top 10 percent fell to 3 percent and the share by the top 1 percent halved to 11 percent. Japan became a member of OECD in 1964, and has remained a country with a relatively equal income distribution, similar to Scandinavian countries.
Japan more than doubled its average income during the 1960s and became the second largest economy in the world after the US in 1968. “Asian tiger” nations — notably South Korea and Taiwan — emulated Japan’s growth model with its powerful Ministry of International Trade and Industry bureaucrats implementing industrial policy.
But by the late 1990s, with the “lost decade” of stagnant growth, the Japanese government decided to stimulate growth with the Japanese version of the financial “Big Bang”.
It lifted the five decade ban on using holding companies in 1997.
In the wake of the Asian financial crisis, Japanese banks and insurance companies led the way to establish holding companies to accelerate their restructuring efforts. By 2015, there were 485 holding companies spread across the economy, in wholesale and retail trade and manufacturing.
Income inequality has risen since the 1990s, and the proliferation of holding companies might have contributed to it, but it may not be the only thing to blame.
Abenomics, the economic approach of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, brought corporate governance reforms to enhance shareholder right protection, reducing corporation tax, and increasing consumption tax, contributed to a gradual shift in income share away from labour towards shareholding investors.
Newer Japanese entrepreneurs hold considerable wealth: Uniqlo founder Tadashi Yanai is estimated to be worth USD$36.2 billion, and Masayoshi Son, founder of Softbank with its business groups and venture funds, is worth USD$19 billion, comparable to the net worth of Alibaba founder Jack Ma (estimated to be USD$24.5bn).
But these high net-worth individuals tend to keep out of domestic politics. Japan is no stranger to pork barrel politics and corruption, but large corporations as the export-driven engine of growth for the Japanese economy have coordinated more with government bureaucracies than with politicians.
A commitment to redistribute income appears to be here to stay. Japan has a relatively high income-tax rate for the rich (45 percent) and an inheritance tax rate of 55 percent. The current Kishida government is unlikely to reverse this course in the process of considering ways of implementing its vision of “new capitalism”.
Japan presents an example of an Asian country that adopted drastic policies — notably, banning pure holding companies and the expropriation of family wealth via the dissolution of zaibatsu and land reform — with a lasting impact on its economic and political landscape.
Japan became a growth model for Asian tigers, which copied the Ministry of International Trade and Industry’s policy of the 1950s and 60s. But one tends to skirt over the fact that this model of state-directed resource allocation took place after the drastic policies in the late 1940s to dismantle economic concentration and political connections that went with it.
It may take a huge exogenous shock (such as the Great Depression or a world war) and a non-trivial change to rules to reset the social fabric of an economy in the process of nation building.
Nation building at the start may benefit from close ties between business and political elites. When rules are changed later to re-facilitate the holding company format, a 50 year ban may have been enough to prevent a reconstitution of the “old” format in its essential form.
And one essence that has not re-emerged is the concentration of family wealth by business dynasties and their connection to politics.
Mari Sako is Professor of Management Studies at Said Business School, University of Oxford.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Asian capitalism” sent at: 10/05/2023 11:49.
This is a corrected repeat.
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Published on May 10, 2023
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"author": "Mari Sako"
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The law of the river - 360
Mihnea Tănăsescu
Published on January 6, 2023
The Whanganui River in New Zealand wanders from its wellspring on the slopes of a volcano in the centre of the north island to the Cook Strait. It’s a broad, deep and fast flowing river. In 2017, a landmark act of Parliament recognised the special relationship between the river and Whanganui iwi, the Māori group who have lived and worked the river for centuries. The law now recognises the river as a legal person. It is seen as a whole, from its source to the ocean, and it has its own life.
The idea of radically changing the legal status of natural things such as rivers or forests is known as ‘rights of nature’. It was first formulated in the 1970s, but it was the Ecuadorian constitution of 2008, the first to include rights of nature, that really propelled it into wider consciousness. At its base it is quite simple: having rights elevates nature from the status of mere resource or property to a subject able to defend its own interests in court. But how this is accomplished varies widely from place to place.
It is hard to overstate just how much the rights of nature movement has caught on. There are estimated to be more than 400 legal provisions around the world recognising them in some form. Advocates from Bangladesh to Uganda, Colombia to India, overwhelmingly argue that granting nature rights is a superior form of environmental protection. If current trends are any indication, sooner or later a marsh, lake or park near you may have rights.
Rights of nature have been passed through different kinds of laws and means. Ecuador wrote them into its constitution, the highest level of the law, which makes them available to judgments of the Constitutional Court. New Zealand passed acts of parliament, resulting from lengthy negotiations between Māori and the Crown (the New Zealand government). Colombia introduced laws through judicial pronouncement, meaning judges unilaterally recognised a particular environment as bearer of rights, most notably the Atrato river and the Amazon rainforest. India did the same. Bolivia adopted a national law, and the United States has a plethora of municipal ordinances.
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These are just some examples, and they show the road to rights of nature has many shapes, all key to what these rights can achieve. In the case of Ecuador, constitutional provisions are lately proving very useful for facilitating judgments by the Constitutional Court that strike down state-granted permits for resource exploitation. The most famous of these cases involves the Los Cedros protected forest, whose rights have been upheld against the prospect of mining, even though all environmental permits had been granted according to the current regulatory regime. In the United States, on the other hand, municipal ordinances are themselves struck down by higher courts. So, how these laws are passed matters greatly for what they do.
Not all rights of nature cases give rights to ‘nature’. Some, like Ecuador or Bolivia encompass an undefined variety of things that cover the entire territory of the country. Others, like New Zealand, chose a very specific place, for a very specific reason. There, Te Urewera (a forested landscape and the ancestral home of Tūhoe Māori descent group) was the first one to become a legal person, in 2014, followed by Whanganui River. These are not vaguely defined ‘nature’, but places that have a special relationship with specific groups. And these places did not receive specific rights, beyond those that come automatically with their new legal status, like the rights to hold property, enter contracts or litigation. In contrast, Ecuador gave nature the rights to respect, the development of its own natural cycles, and restoration.
However rights are granted, with whichever content and form, it is always humans that must represent them. This is not always legal representation, but also political. Depending on the level of the law, some people can speak for the natural entity while others cannot; depending on the definition of nature, what people speak on behalf of varies widely; depending on who is empowered to enforce (courts, or political negotiation and compromise), decisions have different democratic legitimacy.
If we simply speak of the ‘rights of nature’ without going into the specifics, we fail to understand the breadth of what is happening. Most importantly, we fail to understand what success may mean and how we may measure it.
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The Whanganui River, for example, is now governed by an entirely new legal arrangement that empowers a board, made up of local Māori groups and a representative of the Crown, to speak on its behalf. They are not guardians; the Whanganui River Act speaks of them as the river’s “human face”.
The success of this arrangement depends on what the board will interpret to be Whanganui’s interests, and also on the measure to which Māori groups are empowered to make consequential decisions in their own ancestral lands. But what these decisions are will vary with the changing generations and the changing face of the river itself. Here, success is related to reversing colonial power relations as much as, if not more than, environmental protection.
Similarly, Ecuadorian rights of nature are in the hands of courts, and therefore subject to the sensibilities of judges that will interpret them in different ways, and to the different make-ups of the Constitutional Court. Decisions have therefore varied widely and have not unanimously centred on better environmental protection.
As the rights of nature are expanding at an exceptional rate, it is worth pausing and looking at the specific purposes and designs of each case. It is the only way to understand what they may do, and to whose benefit they may work.
Mihnea Tănăsescu is political theorist in the School of Human and Social Sciences, department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Mons, Belgium. His work spans many topics, including the legal and political representation of nature, the politics of nature conservation, the history of cartography, and the politics of plant pathology. His latest books are Ecocene Politics and Understanding the Rights of Nature: A Critical Introduction.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Rights of nature” sent at: 24/12/2022 16:53.
This is a corrected repeat.
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Published on January 6, 2023
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The literacy myth - 360
Zulfa Sakhiyya
Published on September 8, 2022
Literacy is not only about rankings. In Indonesia, misconceptions about literacy create a wider gap.
Indonesia has a celebrated literacy rate of 98.2 percent, claimed by many as a great success of literacy efforts. And yet in the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment 70 percent of Indonesian students are reported to have low literacy skills.
It turns out there are different ways of understanding literacy – being able to read words is not automatically correlated to high reading ability.
While the world has been celebrating International Literacy Day since 1967, a divide has been deepening in the world of education.
Theoretically speaking, there are two polarised understandings of what counts as literacy. The Great Divide in Literacy – autonomous versus ideological – determines how some people view literacy.
The autonomous model of literacy sees literacy as a mere cognitive process that occurs independently of social contexts. Those in favour of the autonomous model believe the literacy rate is measurable and value free, therefore it can be measured and compared by standardised tests like the national literacy or PISA test. This model is often applied in the theory of teaching, psychology, and development studies. It assumes that introducing literacy as an intervention for the poor and illiterate will enhance their cognitive performance and improve their economic condition, regardless of the socio-economic condition that accounted for their illiteracy.
The ideological model of literacy rejects the autonomous and value-free literacy practices, arguing that literacy is not simply a mechanistic and neutral process. People in favour of the autonomous model believe literacies are locally situated. Reading encompasses sociocultural aspects, including personal and cultural background in constructing meanings from texts. This model is used in anthropology and political science with the aim of social empowerment.
From the autonomous model stem many myths about literacy in Indonesia.
One is that literacy automatically guarantees vertical social mobility. This myth is exacerbated by the fact educational opportunities are not distributed equally in Indonesia. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted unequal access and distribution of learning resources during school closures. Children from poorer households lost more learning than children from wealthier households.
The literacy myth is worsened by the widely held understanding in Indonesia that literacy is simply sounding out the letters and words. The phonemic approach has become an end in itself, rather than seen as the first foundation on the literacy continuum.
At the same time, Indonesia’s legislated focus on 10-15 minutes of silent reading before school starts is ineffective without ensuring students understand the materials, or are guided by teachers on selecting reading materials relevant to student literacy levels and interests.
At worst, gimmicky school literacy programmes see superficial celebration of literacy, students seen posing with books without the associated reading or discussion.
Reading should occur not only in the classroom (intensive reading), but also beyond the classroom, helping to build a reading-for-pleasure culture, something currently missing in Indonesia.
The shortage of libraries is one obstacle to extensive reading in Indonesia. Taman Bacaan Masyarakat (community libraries) can play a role in enabling access to diverse texts, and are known to tailor literacy practices relevant to a particular society’s needs. For example, Sedulur Sikep in Kendeng mountain, Central Java, uses literacy to protest against exploitation and systemic violence of their natural surroundings. And the Women’s March Serang uses literacy practices to introduce and discuss issues of gender inequality, gendered harassment (physical and sexual harassment), and mental health.
Literacy can go beyond the classroom to be more impactful to people. Just as the literacy movement and policymakers can go beyond PISA ranks and standardised literacy tests.
Zulfa Sakhiyya is the Head of Literacy Research Centre at Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia. Her research interests span from discourse analysis, multilingualism and gender. She is the vice coordinator of the Science and Education working group of the Indonesian Young Academy of Science (ALMI) and the co-founder of Indonesian Literacy Educators’ Association. Dr. Sakhiyya declares no conflict of interest and does not receive funding in any forms.
This article has been republished for Indonesia’s National Teacher’s Day. It was first published on September 5, 2022.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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Published on September 8, 2022
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The metaverse is coming but we still don’t trust AI - 360
Pengyuan Zhou, Lik-Hang Lee
Published on May 23, 2022
Many people believe that technology is neutral or unbiased, but the reality is more complex, especially in an immersive environment.
If the proponents of the metaverse have their way we’ll one day be lining up for healthcare or a mortgage in a virtual world run by virtual decision makers. Design of the artificial intelligence systems driving this world, still the task of humans, has real potential for harm.
Besides commercial incentives, implicit biases that exist offline based on ethnicity, gender and age are often reflected in the big data collected from the internet. Machine learning models that are trained using these bias-embedded datasets unsurprisingly adopt these biases. For instance, in 2019, Facebook (now Meta) was sued by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development for “encouraging, enabling, and causing” discrimination on race, gender, and religion through its advertising platform. Facebook later said it would take “meaningful steps” to stop such behaviour, but it continued to deliver the same discriminative ad service to over two billion users on the basis of their demographic information.
Technical flaws during data collection, sampling, and model design can further exacerbate unfairness by introducing outliers, sampling bias, and temporal bias (where a model works well at first, but fails in the future because future changes weren’t considered when building the model).
As AI pervades more of our daily lives regardless, governments and the tech giants have started talking about “Trustworthy AI”, a term formalised by the European Commission in 2019 with its Ethics Guidelines.
The guidelines speak to issues of fairness, but current systems are already challenged to define what’s fair on the current internet, let alone in the metaverse.
A recent study exploring Trustworthy AI and the metrics selected to deliver it found most were based on functionality-driven design as opposed to user-centred design.
Looking specifically at search engine ranking and recommendation systems, we already know search engine rankings sometimes systematically favour certain sites over others, distorting the objectiveness of the results and losing the trust of users.
In recommendation systems, the number of recommendations is often fixed to promote products or ads with greater commercial benefits instead of fair recommendations based on the ethical use of data.
To fix these issues and deliver “trustworthy AI”, search engines must guarantee that users receive neutral and impartial services. Deciding on the metrics for fairness is where it gets difficult.
A common strategy of metric selection is to focus on one factor and measure the deviation from the equality of that factor. For example, for search engine rankings, focusing on the (potential) attention items receive from users in terms of factors such as click-through rates, exposure, or inferences of the content’s relevance. And then working out the gap between what an average user sees versus one where there is bias at play.
Reviewers of recommender systems have employed similar metrics for fairness, such as bias, average, and score disparities.
Trustworthy AI design and metric selection in such systems also often focuses on functionality during specific life-cycle phases. Ideally, it should consider trustworthiness through the whole life-cycle of usage.
These considerations will be even more important in the metaverse. Immersive in nature, the metaverse is more tied to users’ feelings and experiences than current cyberspace. These experiences are harder to quantify and assess, and pose more challenges for those trying to determine what “fair AI” is.
The current mindset of trustworthy AI design and metric selection, restricted by the aforementioned design philosophies, takes into consideration only part of human cognition, specifically the conscious and concrete areas that can be more easily measured and quantified. Pattern recognition, language, attention, perception, and action are widely explored by AI communities.
The exploration of the unconscious and abstract areas of cognition, such as mental health and emotions, are still new. Methodological limits are a key reason for this, for example, the lack of devices and theories to accurately capture bioelectrical signals and to infer someone’s emotions from them.
A new set of metrics will be required for the metaverse to ensure fairness.
Designers will need to:
. It’s dangerous to just throw data at an AI model: the data often inherits the bias from the real world where it was collected. System operators should carefully select data samples focused on ensuring data diversity.
. The system should guarantee all users have neutral usage and not be influenced by factors such as age, education level, environment etc. A fair system design can help ensure the diversity of data collection.
. Aiming at improving the utility of the majority, AI algorithms normally prioritise the optimisation of common performance metrics such as accuracy. For this reason, many AI algorithms set up thresholds to avoid the participation of users that may impact this goal, such as those with bad networks. Balancing the trade-off between algorithm performance and fairness is important in fair AI algorithm design.
. After designing a fair system and algorithm and training with fairly collected data samples, the next step is to ensure fair usage for all users without bias based on ethnicity, gender, age etc. This last piece of the cycle is the key to sustaining fairness by allowing continuous collection of diverse data and user feedback to optimise fairness.
Dr. Pengyuan Zhou is a Research Associate Professor with the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) and a member of the Research Center for Data to Cyberspace at USTC.
Dr. Lik Hang Lee is an Assistant Professor with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and Director of KAIST’s Augmented Reality and Media Lab.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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Published on May 23, 2022
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"author": "Pengyuan Zhou, Lik-Hang Lee"
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The microplastics time-bomb in our bodies - 360
Published on February 9, 2023
Scientists are warning against grave long-term consequences.
Researchers are increasingly worried about microplastics – plastic particles smaller than 5 millimetres across – and if they can damage human health. Studies show they are widespread in our environment – in everyday products in homes and offices; in oceans, rivers, the soil and even in rain over cities.
Over time, people ingest or inhale more of these chemicals than they expel, a process that leads to bioaccumulation in bodies. These specks are small enough to enter our cells or tissues and their toxicity may cause diseases.
A recent analysis identified more than 10,000 unique chemicals used in plastics, many not properly regulated globally. And research shows we might be ingesting anywhere from dozens to more than 100,000 microplastic particles each day depending on what we consume and the amounts.
Microplastics have now been found in fish, deep inside the lungs of surgical patients and in the blood of anonymous donors and breast milk.
While there have been no epidemiologic studies confirming a link between exposure to microplastics and impacts on health, researchers point out chemicals found in plastic have been linked to a range of health problems including cancer, heart disease, obesity and poor foetal development.
High levels of microplastics in our bodies may also cause cell damage.
How worried should we be about microplastics in our bodies? What is the current state of research and what are the challenges faced by experts in the field? And what solutions can we start to employ now to mitigate more extensive hazards both known and unknown?
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The consumption of micro and nano plastics represents a health risk that could be ‘irreversible’, researchers say in a warning about the pollution. Humans take in five grammes of plastic particles each week - about the weight of a credit card.
In Sri Lanka, researchers found that people are exposed to airborne microplastic particles which are between 1 and 28 times higher indoors compared to outdoor environments.
Plastics in livestock feed result in microplastics in the meat and dairy we consume every day. Scientists detected plastic particles in 18 of 25 milk samples tested in the Netherlands and in some seven out of eight beef samples.
Microplastics can transform other pollutants into a more harmful form. Microplastic-contaminated UV filters used in cosmetic products, for example, make chromium metal more toxic.
Quote attributable to Thava Palanisami, University of Newcastle, Australia
“Identifying and quantifying fine microplastics less than 1mm is a key challenge facing researchers. Standardising analytical methods and parameters for samples is needed.”
Quote attributable to Lee Yeong Yeh, Universiti Sains Malaysia
“While more research is needed, the evidence so far is clear microplastics are a potentially serious human health hazard. Therefore everyone plays a role in curbing plastic pollution.”
Quote attributable to Veryl Hasan, Airlangga University, Indonesia
“It is estimated that by 2050 there will be more plastic waste than fish in the sea. Microplastics which fish consume have already been found in humans. We urgently need to reduce our plastic use.”
Quote attributable to Murthy Chavali, Alliance University, India
"With evidence of the increased consumption of single-use plastics, notably, face masks during the Covid-19 pandemic, it is critical to push and invest in more detailed research on the impact of microplastics on our health."
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This article has been republished for World Environment Day 2023. It was originally published on February 9, 2023.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Microplastics time-bomb” sent at: 06/02/2023 15:22.
This is a corrected repeat.
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Published on February 9, 2023
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"author": ""
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The misnomer of sustainable fishing - 360
Rick Stafford
Published on June 8, 2022
Restricting subsidised high-seas fishing and supporting the local catch benefits fish, fishers and coastal communities.
For many people, ‘sustainable’ is synonymous with ‘good’, so it might come as a surprise to discover ‘sustainable fishing’ can remove up to 80 percent of a fished species’ natural population. Even bottom trawling, notorious for the damage it causes to the seafloor, can fall under the definition of sustainable fishing.
In fisheries science, sustainability typically means leaving 20 to 30 percent of a fish stock intact so the fish population can grow (and be harvested) at its maximum rate. But recent research shows restricting offshore fishing would do far more to protect marine ecosystems and coastal livelihoods than the most ‘sustainable’ fishing practices.
Removing 70 to 80 percent of large fish species from the oceans has consequences.
Most of the fish humans eat are predators that eat smaller fish and other sea life, such as zooplankton (microscopic animals). Removing predators may lead to increases in zooplankton and smaller fish, which in turn means more respiration and more carbon dioxide.
The increase in respiration and associated carbon dioxide means the ocean can absorb less carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and will store less carbon. (Carbon is removed from the carbon cycle when it is buried in ocean sediments or dissolved at depth, where it can remain for hundreds of years.)
More research is urgently needed to understand the impact fishing has on the ocean carbon cycle. It could play a very significant role in climate change.
Marine protected areas are one of the best ways to protect fish stocks, fragile marine habitats and the function of marine ecosystems. Once disturbances such as fishing stop happening, most marine ecosystems can restore themselves.
But many protected areas do not ban fishing and have very few management measures to prevent damaging activity. Banning all fishing in protected areas is unnecessary, but there are strong economic arguments against fishing on the ‘high seas’ and especially in international waters. Many areas a long way from land are fished only because government subsidies support the fishing industry there.
Ensuring fishing practices are kept closer to the coast and catches are landed in local ports and harbours would support livelihoods in coastal communities. Inshore or artisanal fishers use smaller boats and generally have lower environmental impacts. Outlawing fishing in large areas of the ocean, away from the coasts, would allow fish stocks and ocean ecosystems to regenerate.
This would spill over into coastal regions in many ways, improving the local catch, providing important food sources for coastal communities – such as those in most developing economies – and enhancing regional economies in other countries. For example, in the United Kingdom, many of the poorest areas are former fishing towns – these could be revived.
Counterintuitively, in countries like the UK, eating fish can help establish healthy marine ecosystems – but people need to change the types of fish they eat. Flatfish and shellfish are important catches for small-scale fishers in many areas of the UK, so consumers need to choose these instead of imported cod or farmed salmon.
Currently, most fish caught in UK waters is exported. Exports are much easier to manage in bulk, so larger boats with bigger catches are prioritised over the small-scale catches for the export market. Eating locally caught fish supports more environmentally sound fishing methods, enables offshore protected areas for fish stocks to recover and boosts regional economies.
Professor Rick Stafford (ORCID) is a marine biologist and academic based at Bournemouth University, United Kingdom. He declares no conflicts of interest.
This article has been republished for World Fisheries Day. It was first published on June 6, 2022.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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Published on June 8, 2022
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"author": "Rick Stafford"
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The mysterious danger of microplastics - 360
Kornelia Kadac-Czapska, Małgorzata Grembecka
Published on February 9, 2023
There’s a lot to learn about the health effects of microplastics, but as humans consume more of it there is intensifying urgency to uncover the full picture.
It’s enough to make you sick.
Plastic waste is everywhere, littering our streets, waterways and beaches. Now it’s showing up in our bloodstream, in the form of microplastics — plastic particles that range in size from 0.1 to 5,000 micrometres. Researchers are still getting the full picture of just how harmful microplastic consumption is for humans, but the early indications are a cause for concern.
Microplastics most commonly enter the body through the gastrointestinal tract, starting from the mouth. But they’ve shown up all over the upper body in organs such as the intestine, lungs, kidneys, liver, and spleen. Microplastics have also appeared in faeces and the placenta. In one analysis, infants had a concentration of poly(ethylene terephthalate), a polyester resin found in plastics, in their faeces ten times higher than in the adults’ samples. Microplastics were even detected in the earliest stool of newborns, meaning humans are being exposed to plastic before birth.
Cells subjected to microplastics pollution die three times faster than they do when exposed to other, cleaner foreign bodies. This happens because “oxidative stress” is induced: the immune system detects microplastics, regards it as an enemy, and reacts violently to protect the body against it. In doing so, the immune system is weakened and vulnerable to declining health. Beyond that, microplastics carry toxins, leading to potential health risks.
Research on mice shows that microplastics may cross the brain-blood barrier, and accumulate in microglial cells accompanying neurons. Microplastics have been found in human blood — meaning people are likely as vulnerable to the blood-brain barrier crossover as mice.
Research is still digging into the mystery around what such findings mean for wider human health, but the known details are alarming. There’s a lot that researchers are still in the early stages of figuring out, such as how prevalent microplastics are in food and drinks.
Results are often inconclusive due to the complexity of plastic composition, size and shape of particles, and the presence of additional components. Information about microplastics is scattered. Analytical methodologies for detecting and identifying microplastics are still developing. Research is spread across different types of particles, making it difficult to compare data.
Data from toxicity studies is limited and often inconsistent. The complexity of microplastics, composition, size, and shape, and their interactions with other components make it difficult to obtain reliable data.
While researchers are still determining the degree of harm, just the thought of unknowingly swallowing microplastics is enough to make many people queasy — especially if there’s a risk of traces crossing the blood-brain barrier. In the meantime, it’s another compelling reason to commit to a reduction of plastic waste in the environment.
Małgorzata Grembecka is head of the Department of Bromatology at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the Medical University of Gdańsk.
This article has been republished for World Environment Day 2023. It was originally published on February 9, 2023.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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Published on February 9, 2023
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"author": "Kornelia Kadac-Czapska, Małgorzata Grembecka"
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The need for better protection of Malaysia’s forests - 360
Adzidah Yaakob
Published on January 6, 2023
Learning from past experience, the government moves to fortify existing legislation to prevent exploitation and destruction of rainforests.
Malaysia’s vast forests and their biodiversity serve vital and irreplaceable environmental functions. Long-term protection is particularly relevant to the rainforests which are part of the Sundaland forest cover, one of the largest in the world.
Malaysian forests have been cleared to develop the nation’s economy. From 2002 to 2021, Malaysia lost 2.77Mha of humid primary forest, making up 33 percent of its total tree cover loss in the same time period.
Effective legislation is key to guarding against illegal logging and deforestation, loss of wildlife and biodiversity, uncontrolled land-use changes and mixed development all of which eventually destroy the forest ecosystem.
But with the increase in global awareness of environmental protection, this trend has shifted with forests now serving a protective rather than a productive function.
For years forest management, now under the Ministry of Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change, has been shunted between various ministries such as the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the Ministry of Primary Industries or the Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities.
The move to protect forests and biodiversity began with the Third Malaysia Plan (1976-1980). The Fifth Malaysia Plan (1986-1990) introduced more measures to control forest disturbances and loss.
These included establishing a system for national parks, nature reserves, wildlife sanctuaries and virgin jungles, adopting preventive approaches via environmental impact assessment reports and climate change mitigation measures.
Forests are now recognised as carbon sinks, which dovetails with the national green growth initiative.
The Twelfth Malaysia Plan (2021-2025) outlines the mainstreaming of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 15 in respect of forest management practices. The REDD Plus strategy employed by the ministry is one example of this.
But protection of forests in Malaysia is still fragmented because of various legislation employed for different categories and the fact these categories come under the care of different government agencies.
Forest reserves in Peninsular Malaysia are governed by the National Forestry Act 1984 with enforcement by the Forestry Department of Peninsular Malaysia and the various state forestry departments.
Wildlife, however, is governed by the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010 while national parks are under the National Parks Act 1980. Both come under the care of the Department of Wildlife and National Parks.
The National Heritage Act 2005, meanwhile, provides for the conservation and preservation of selected forest sites as natural heritage. Malaysia has two national parks listed by the UNESCO World Heritage Convention — Kinabalu Park and Gunung Mulu National Park.
In East Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak have separate forest laws and governing authorities.
This fragmented management of forests and the complex relationship between federal and state agencies has led to a lack of ecological connectivity, food and habitat for wildlife, illegal taking of endangered species of flora and fauna and human and wildlife conflict.
There are also issues such as limited staffing for law enforcement, poor take-up of technology to detect forest and wildlife offences in real-time and lack of ownership and shared responsibilities among stakeholders.
To tackle this, the National Forestry Bill 2022, an amendment to the National Forestry Act 1984, was passed in August and aims to hasten progress in sustaining permanent reserve forests and biodiversity and deter illegal activity.
For instance, taking more than five cubic metres of forest produce from permanent reserve forests now carries a maximum jail term of 20 years and fines of up to five million ringgit (US$1.1 million).
In an effort to ensure transparency and accountability, there also now needs to be a public hearing before any area of a permanent reserve forest can be degazetted.
The bill also introduces a requirement for the state authority to identify a similar or larger area to replace the part of a permanent reserve forest that needs to be excised.
State parks are now included in classifications of permanent reserve forests to ensure forests and their biodiversity, the traditional knowledge of the indigenous peoples and many other benefits provided by the forest environment are conserved and protected.
The amendment also sees the status of state parks changed to ‘closed forest’ in a move to combat biopiracy and protect rare and endangered wildlife.
The latest amendment is significant as the public is the most physically and emotionally affected when there are natural disasters relating to forests.
These include the landslide tragedy at Pos Dipang in 1996, the construction of the Bakun Dam in the 1990s that displaced Sarawak indigenous people and the polluted water supply due to logging activity near water catchment areas in Kedah in 2018.
It’s a promising step forward for the sustainability of forests and biodiversity in Malaysia. In moving towards ensuring rights for Nature, the Malaysian experience has been focused on finetuning its legislation to better deal with threats while promoting sustainability.
The amendment and other existing laws should be comprehensive enough to meet the many challenges facing Malaysia’s forests provided the government, private sector and local communities assume joint responsibility for effective outcomes.
From the Islamic perspective, the importance of the ecosystem of forests and biodiversity vis-a-vis the role of mankind can be seen in several verses in the Quran. In Al-Hijr 15:19: “And we spread the Earth and placed upon it firm mountains, and we grew upon it all things in perfect balance.”
Adzidah Yaakob (PhD) is Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Syariah and Law, Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM). She declares no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on January 6, 2023
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2,172 |
The new cultivators of non-violent protest - 360
Rahul Mukherji and Jai Shankar Prasad
Published on January 24, 2022
What makes non-violent protests work?
By Rahul Mukherji and Jai Shankar Prasad, Heidelburg University
India’s democracy, experiencing dark times, saw a ray of hope in the Indian farmers’ movement. In a struggle akin to that of the nationalists against the British, the farmers won out. How they did it offers lessons for political parties and social movements alike.
The year-long action was the largest and longest lasting non-violent protest movement in India since Mahatma Gandhi led the freedom movement against British colonial rule. It once again showed the power of non-violent protest against the State.
The laws the farmers fought for would have integrated the Indian farmer with the larger market. Corporations backed it and many economists agreed. Farmers were enraged. They were quick to point out the significance of the local mandi (market) that could not be replaced with unregulated big companies. The farmers would be squeezed.
And so they created a coalition that transcended caste, class and religious difference. With clearly defined goals, an understanding of the enemy and a broad coalition, they followed in Gandhi’s footsteps to succeed with non-violent non-cooperation.
The farmers’ leader, Rakesh Singh Tikait, exuded early confidence. “The British used to hang us, this government only uses sticks and prisons,” he said. “It was therefore easier to handle the present dispensation. They will have to bend.”
The farm laws were neither debated in Parliament nor were they appropriately discussed within the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare. And, there was no guarantee of a minimum support price at a time when Indian agriculture subsidies at US$11 billion (in 2019) were much lower than China’s (US$185 billion), the European Union’s (US$101.3 billion) or the United States’ (US$48.9 billion).
The movement succeeded even in comparison to the heyday of farmers’ agitations in the 1980s. This was no easy task. India has taken a competitive authoritarian turn – its government deploying its parliamentary majority to erode democratic institutions such as the Parliament, the Supreme Court and the bureaucracy, to make the system favour the incumbent.
Why did the farmers succeed, despite poor odds? First and foremost, they discovered their identity as farmers. This was different from identifying themselves as Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs. At a Kisan Mahapanchayat (farmers’ large gathering) in Muzaffarnagar after the ruling BJP’s loss in West Bengal elections in May 2020, Hindu and Muslim farmers came together to assert their unity.
Muslims organised 500 free community kitchens (langars). As a consequence, the general milieu favoring majoritarian Hindutva politics was challenged. In a separate incident in October 2021, Sikhs invited Muslims to offer prayers in their gurudwaras (temples). Religious harmony for saving the identity of the farmer was an important counter to the majoritarian Hindu nationalist narrative.
Second, even though the movement was led by affluent Jat (a farming caste that cuts across religious divides) Sikh farmers with powerful diasporic connections in Canada, the UK and the US, the movement involved smaller peasants and workers as well. The Farmer’s and Workers Struggle Committee (Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Samiti) representing Punjab’s landless laborers joined the movement.
Celebrities also weighed in. Barbadian pop singer Rihanna and climate activist Greta Thunberg unsettled the government with tweets to large audiences. The state tried but largely failed to take control of social media at a time when both the UK’s House of Commons and the US’s were averse to the Narendra Modi-led competitive authoritarian state. Third, the farmers organised themselves into the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (Unified Farmers Front) representing the farmers from the Green Revolution states – Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh. These farmers went beyond Punjab and opened three fronts on the Delhi border – Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur. These fronts sustained themselves despite efforts by the State to dislodge the movement.
When the State tried to use an incident at the Red Fort to bring disrepute to the farmers, an emotional clarion call by leader Rakesh Tikait brought farmers back. The Front decided not to be co-opted by political parties. When some leaders deviated from the path, they were suspended.
The Front, however, did not shy from sending farmers to West Bengal in April 2021 to create an environment against the BJP. The Front will continue to oppose the BJP in the forthcoming elections in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Uttarakhand. Finally, the government underestimated the adversary. It refused to enter into negotiations after January 2021. Efforts were made to provoke the farmers by framing them as anti-national. And, in a macabre incident, the son of a union minister was involved with a convoy of cars that mowed down four farmers as a provocation. A journalist covering the event was killed. None of these events reduced the resolve of the Front.
Likely weighing the political costs to the government emanating in the forthcoming elections, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi capitulated, and the by then (in)famous farm laws were repealed on November 19, 2021.
Political parties and afflicted citizen groups such as minority communities and workers can learn from this movement. Political and social action needs a clear basis that unites citizens for strengthening democracy. Second, such movements should use India’s indigenous resources to engender social cohesion and inclusion. Finally, these movements must remain non-violent despite provocation. Movements following this path can bring India back on the path of democratic consolidation.
India’s democracy is precious for India, South Asia and the world.
Rahul Mukherji, Professor of South Asian Politics and Executive Director, South Asia Institute, Heidelberg University. Jai Shankar Prasad is Marie Curie Fellow and PhD candidate at the South Asia Institute.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on January 24, 2022
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2,173 |
The new world order and India’s quandary - 360
Siddiq Wahid
Published on May 24, 2022
With a new cold war afoot, states are being asked to choose sides. For India, self-identity and domestic politics will all come to bear.
The world is at an inflection point. The war in Ukraine shows no signs of abating, and the principals in the ‘new’ cold war, are asking other states to choose a side.
The challenges for India are daunting. How can it contribute to world events in proportion to its demographic bulk, its myriad diversity and its potential as the liberal democracy envisioned in its constitution? More concretely: how does it contend with Beijing, a competitive Asian neighbour turned combative, while cultivating its relationship with Washington, a far-away liberal democracy, alienated during the original Cold War days?
The answers to these questions lie in an analysis of the ripples from the trajectory of India’s domestic policies; its dialogues with, and beyond, its neighbourhood; and the role, or lack thereof, of the last 30 years of its elected governments during the period of speculation about the emerging international order.
Shifts in allegiances began to take place almost immediately after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990-91, especially among middle and low-income states. India was no exception.
By the mid-1990s New Delhi had leaned towards the liberal international order; economically, by liberalising its fiscal policies, and in foreign policy, by distancing itself from the Soviet Union turned Russian Federation. It is simplistic to characterise this as a betrayal of Moscow, but, in hindsight, it allowed India to play “the game of being multi-aligned”, to use foreign policy journalist Fareed Zakaria’s helpful phrase. This is true even as the Ukraine war compels India to choose between the Washington-NATO and the Beijing-Moscow alliances. In fact, in this phrase lies a significant clue to India’s present challenge in the wake of a China risen globally, an irredentist Russia in Europe, and a United States attempting to juggle its security interests in Europe and Asia.
In its foreign policy, it would be fair to say that for the last 75 years India’s overall relationships with its territorial neighbours (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan) have been somewhere between patronising and adversarial, as opposed to conversational and dialogic. Similarly, its dealings with the great powers (Moscow, Washington, the EU and, more recently, China) have been at the expense of the greater Asian neighbourhood including pre-21st century China, Japan, South Korea and others. The disadvantage of this leapfrog policy was aptly illustrated a few years ago, when New Delhi objected to China’s strategic encroachments in South Asia and complained that it was unwarranted in India’s backyard. Beijing’s rapid riposte was that South Asia was China’s backyard also.
A review of the global discussion of a “new world order” reveals India has not contributed substantively to it, arguably because of internal instability. But stability in wildly diverse South Asia, with a combined population of close to 2 billion, should be of concern to the world’s ‘liberal international order’, after China’s emergence as a world power.
It is relevant to point out here that the binary between ‘liberal democratic’ versus ‘authoritarian’ states is simplistic and perhaps prejudicial. China can be characterised as a ‘civilisational state’, one with a distinct sociopolitical and religious character. Recent experience shows that it is equally possible for nominally liberal and civilisational states to be authoritarian, even as both deploy the word ‘democratic’ to their respective advantages.
New Delhi is being wooed by both sides of the liberal democracy versus civilisation-state contest. Its choice remains ambiguous. On the one hand, New Delhi has reversed, at Washington’s nudging, its earlier ‘neutral’ stance on Ukraine. Simultaneously, it remains an important member of the Russia-India-China (RIC) dialogue which, strikingly, is a grouping of civilisational states. It is not insignificant that while the Sino-Russian joint statement during Putin’s winter Olympics visit to China largely ignored India, it was still prominently showcased in the statement as an important constituent of the RIC dialogues.
In this setting, it is important to note that today India explicitly defines itself as a Hindu nationalist state. In the interpretation of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its parent organisation, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), purportedly a “cultural organisation”, this is not in contravention of the Constitution of India. It would be naïve to blame the eight-year-old BJP government for this trajectory in India’s state-building. The polarising, hate-provoking and violent use of religion began almost forty years ago with the anti-Sikh pogroms in 1984 and, eight years later, the razing of the disputed Babri mosque to clear the ground to build a Hindu temple. Neither event took place under the auspices of a Hindu nationalist government. The 1992 demolition of the Babri mosque is especially significant because it coincided with a radical about-face in India’s economic policy, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the worldwide rise of ethno-religious identity in politics.
So while India reacted very ably to the economic implications of globalisation in the decades after 1991, it failed to address its socio-political consequences – the rise of identity politics being one of them. In this neglect, all its subsequent governments ceded the political emotions of globalisation to Hindu nationalist sentiment. Regardless of whether this was for reasons of electoral tactics (ballot box politics) or strategy (tempered Hindu nationalism as vanguard), the civilisational state sentiment has been a steady presence as India strode into the new millennia. In 2014 the civilisational state-building project returned with a coherence, cogence and intensity unprecedented in India. Today it dominates all aspects of Indian political life, including its foreign policy. That said, there are many Indians who continue to aspire to the ideal of a pluralist, as opposed to a civilisational, state.
If civilisational nationalism wins in the 21st century, the ‘quandary’ of having to choose between the US-NATO and the Russia-China alliances may well be a boon for the current political dispensation in New Delhi. It allows it time to promote a benign self-image externally and creative ambiguity in its internal politics.
The recently re-introduced internal debate, assuming it is still a debate, of self-definition between liberal democracy and a civilisational state is critical because it will directly impact South Asia’s seven sovereign states. One billion plus Hindus, 650 million Muslims and a few hundred million minorities of Buddhists, Christians, Sikhs and Zoroastrians will be viscerally impacted. Depending on the implementation of the civilisational state vision, the effects will be felt not just India, but South Asia with its more than a quarter of the world’s population and, by extension, the global economy and geopolitics.
Siddiq Wahid is an author and historian of Inner Asian and Tibetan history. The focus of his current work is the interaction between Central Eurasia and South Asia. He is an Adjunct Fellow at the Institute of Chinese Studies in Delhi.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on May 24, 2022
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2,174 |
The next gold rush is far, far away — and closer than you think - 360
Serkan Saydam, Andrew Dempster
Published on September 22, 2023
As space exploration and colonisation expand, off-Earth resources will create a booming market.
The drive to explore deeper into space and establish colonies on other planets has intensified over the last decade, and with it the importance of space resources extraction.
Obtaining valuable resources and minerals, even in extreme environments, has long been attractive to humans. We have a history of facing hazards in search of valuable resources. From the gold rush in the 1800s to the recent surge in space resources, humans have been willing to take risks to find and collect scarce and profitable materials.
With advances in space technology, we’re on the edge of the next gold rush — but not on Earth. Based on recent scientific and engineering breakthroughs and commercial interests, off-Earth mining is expected to begin in the next decade.
Potential mining sites include the Moon, Mars and its moons, asteroids and even comets. Market predictions for lunar mining, particularly lunar water, project a multibillion-dollar industry by 2050. Although theoretical, these forecasts signal a worthwhile market, with Australia as a potential leader.
The motivation for off-Earth mining is multifaceted: access to an unlimited wealth of valuable space resources, the spirit of discovering new planets and the development of spin-off technologies to be used back on Earth.
NASA’s Artemis program, which Australia supports via its signing of the Artemis Accords, is aiming for a lunar colony and eventually one on Mars. The only way to reduce the enormous costs of transporting resources from Earth will be through the establishment of self-sustaining infrastructure.
Water is an essential starting point. When converted to oxygen and hydrogen, it can be used as a propellant for rockets for further space missions. Given the vast reserves of lunar ice, it’s a sustainable and economical source compared with Earthly transport.
The Australian Centre for Space Engineering Research, based at the University of New South Wales, is at the forefront of this endeavour, merging terrestrial mining engineering expertise with space research. The Off-Earth Mining Forum was founded in Sydney in 2013. Since then, it has run every two years. In August the year, the first non-Sydney-based event took place in Perth, Western Australia.
Its primary objective is to position Australia as a global leader in in-situ resource utilisation by harnessing space resources to reduce potential risks of off-Earth mining. This encompasses using lunar regolith (soil) for construction or mineral extraction, focusing on lunar water.
However, off-Earth mining has many challenges: there are geological uncertainties — we don’t know exactly where the water is and how much there is; infrastructural needs such as landing pads; social considerations — people have a strong emotional attachment to the moon; and financial constraints, with high risk but high potential return.
Mining is a challenging industry that constantly confronts extreme conditions and volatile markets. Despite these obstacles, mining has continued to attract businesses due to the potential for high financial returns. In many cases, mining operations have been a driving force behind the settlement of new territories.
Looking towards the future, the mining industry is working towards zero-entry mines (with no human access required) and invisible mines (low-impact, reduced-footprint mining sites) to reduce the effect on the environment, improve energy efficiency and achieve decarbonisation.
Improved social acceptance and reputation are also critical for the mining industry’s future. The space resources industry is motivated by colonisation and creating a market for its product.
The mining and space sectors both thrive in challenging environments, making collaboration essential. They can mutually benefit, with the mining sector gaining from systems engineering and autonomous technology, while space can leverage operational experience and market creation.
The path ahead is loaded with uncertainties, but merging mining knowledge with space exploration will be paramount in the years ahead.
Serkan Saydam is Chair of Mining Engineering at the UNSW School of Minerals and Energy Resources Engineering. His fields of research include space resources engineering, ground control, mine systems design, mine internet of things and technology integration and management. He established research collaborations with NASA, ESA and Luxembourg Space Agency, and KICT, as well as more than 40 research organisations and universities globally. He established Planetary Rock Mechanics Commission at the ISRM. He is leading the space resources engineering at ACSER.
Andrew Dempster is Director of the Australian Centre for Space Engineering Research and a Professor in the UNSW School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications. His current research interests are in satellite navigation receiver design and signal processing, areas where he has six patents, new location technologies, and space systems, especially those related to extracting water. He is leading the development of space engineering research at ACSER.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Space mining” sent at: 21/09/2023 06:00.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on September 22, 2023
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"author": "Serkan Saydam, Andrew Dempster"
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2,175 |
The nuclear debate powers ahead - 360
Published on April 15, 2024
Navigating expanded nuclear power generation will require stronger and better safeguards while making sensible use of new technologies.
As the world counts down to a net zero future by 2050, nuclear energy is being touted as a potentially promising alternative to fossil fuels in achieving this target.
Nuclear power shows promise as a ‘green’ way to establish energy security while providing a reliable and scalable source of baseload power.
It now provides about 10 percent of the world’s electricity from about 436 reactors in 32 countries and is the world’s second-largest source of low-carbon power (26 percent of the total in 2020).
Compared to fossil fuels and renewable energy (solar and wind power), nuclear generation for electricity has hardly expanded in the past 25 years (see chart above)highlighting its potential as a catalyst for energy transition towards the 2050 goal of net-zero carbon emissions.
In its latest report, the International Atomic Energy Agency revised upwards its growth projections for nuclear power worldwide. It now sees a quarter more nuclear energy capacity installed by 2050 than it did as recently as 2020.
This emphasises the increasing number of countries that are looking to this energy option to address both climate change and domestic consumption needs.
In the Indo-Pacific region, where energy demand is rapidly growing, nuclear power presents both challenges and opportunities. Countries in Asia that have already adopted nuclear power include Bangladesh, China, India, South Korea and Pakistan.
In Australia, the debate on whether to adopt nuclear power centres around whether it will be a silver bullet or a white elephant in reducing carbon emissions.
“While nuclear power might experience a resurgence globally and eventually have a role in Australia, right now, no matter how much intent there might be to activate a nuclear power industry, it is difficult to envision before the mid-2040s.
“The reality is there is no substitute for solar and wind power this decade and next, supported by batteries, transmission lines and peaking gas generation,” says Alan Finkel of the University of Queensland.
But while nuclear power for electricity generation has not gained momentum yet, there have been advances in the technology including small modular reactors and floating nuclear power plants.
There are reservations, however. “Small modular reactors raise all of the usual concerns associated with nuclear power, including the risk of severe accidents, the linkage to nuclear weapons proliferation, and the production of radioactive waste that has no demonstrated solution,” says M.V Ramana from the University of British Columbia.
There is a silver lining, according to Alvin Chew from Nanyang Technological Institute’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. “There is enough data on the potential benefits of floating reactors. Now we need them out of the drawing board and into reality to help save our planet.”
India may also experience a nuclear power renaissance. “India’s Nuclear Power Corporation (NPCIL) is planning to commission a new reactor every year. To augment finances, the central government is planning to tap the private sector to invest in nuclear energy.
“In February 2024, two new indigenously built 700 MW reactors were commissioned at Kakrapar in Gujarat, boosting domestic generation capacity,” notes K Ramanathan, from the Energy and Resources Institute, New Delhi.
The country is also exploring the use of thorium as an alternative to uranium in nuclear fission.
“Thorium-based systems will be a game-changer in decarbonising India’s energy sector, especially when it aims to triple its nuclear power generation capacity by 2030,” say Rudra Prasad Pradhan and Kalyani Yeola from the Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Goa.
The discussion around nuclear power remains nuanced, requiring objective analysis of its technological advancements, policy frameworks, societal acceptance and nuclear proliferation concerns.
This 360info Special Report on the future of nuclear power investigates where the science is at, and what the key challenges and opportunities are for pursuing nuclear power for a more resilient and sustainable future.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on April 15, 2024
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-nuclear-debate-powers-ahead/",
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2,176 |
The ocean index helping to drive the blue economy - 360
Luky Adrianto
Published on June 8, 2023
A new approach should be considered to ensure coastal and marine resources are exploited sustainably.
Last March marked the end of 15 years of tough negotiations.
The UN announced member states had agreed to the wording of what is becoming known as the ‘High Seas Treaty’ to ensure the conservation and sustainable use of marine life in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
A key to the agreement, which has yet to be signed, was to guarantee that developing nations lacking the financial resources for expensive research, were not marginalised and denied a share of the anticipated benefits from the commercial exploitation of materials found in international waters.
The ocean economy supports the livelihoods of almost half of Earth’s population and is predicted to double from USD$1.5 trillion in 2010, or 5 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP), to an estimated $3 trillion by 2030.
It represents a massive opportunity for mutual benefit, but there are challenges: unsustainable human activity in marine areas being the biggest.
Human development is causing climate-induced changes, such as more extreme weather events, ocean acidification, sea level rise, ocean temperature increases, deoxygenation, and falling sea ice coverage.
When you consider other impacts such as overfishing, ship strikes and wildlife mortality, habitat destruction (including of spawning and nursery grounds), pollution (including underwater noise pollution) and the introduction of invasive species, it adds up to a very daunting challenge.
It’s why a new approach should be considered.
One concept to improve coastal and marine resource use is the blue economy, an inclusive marine economic system including ocean-based development that prioritises sustainable practices and the equitable distribution of economic benefit.
However, a lack of monitoring data hinders its implementation. So, international collaboration on the monitoring of coastal and marine ecosystems is required.
Indexes offer the ability to collate information from varied sources for repurposing into comparable datasets that provide an overview of coastal and marine resource use over time. Indexes can improve policy and management outcomes through a holistic understanding of coastal and marine resource development as well as through the implementation of adaptive management strategies.
An index that encompasses public and private sectors improves the ability of external funding schemes to address gaps which may delay the transition to more sustainable models of ocean use.
One such index was launched in 2020.
The Blue Economy Development Index takes a holistic approach to coastal and marine resource use by using social, economic and environmental indicators to track changes over time at national and international levels. The index supports the development of archipelagic and island states, a group of nations whose ongoing development is linked to the health of coastal areas.
The index currently reports on 47 island nations using a central algorithm with eight unique parameters that measure social, economic and environmental factors. The algorithm indicates what areas of a nation’s blue economy are strong and what areas need improvement.
The main principles of the index are sustainable development, adaptive management, ecosystem-based management, the precautionary principle, and good maritime governance.
Each index indicator needs to be populated with pertinent datasets to enable the core algorithm to determine which areas of the blue economy are doing well and which need improvement.
However a lack of data from some nations has hampered their ability to use science-based policy and management tools.
By improving monitoring efforts, such as creating a monitoring network of institutions with interests in the marine economy, future indexes can provide more accurate interpretations of the blue economy and its development. Plus a low score on the index could trigger further investment in the blue economy in the respective country.
Other ocean-related indexes already exist, such as the Ocean Health Index and the Coastal Governance Index. There are also indexes which focus on specific aspects of the ocean economy such as the Australian Institute of Marine Science’s Index of Marine Industry, Indonesia’s Green Economy Index or the Green Global Economy Index.
Where the Blue Economy Development Index differs is its focus on assessing and measuring the sustainable development and economic potential of coastal and marine resources.
The index stands out due to its emphasis on the blue economy and its unique approach.
Luky Adrianto is a professor in fisheries resources management at IPB University, Bogor, Indonesia. He is a policy analyst in fisheries and ocean management and a lead expert on the Blue Economy Development Index hosted by UN Development Programme-AIS Secretariat.
The Blue Economy Development Index research was funded by the Archipelagic and Island States Forum and the United Nations Development Programme.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Blue economy” sent at: 07/06/2023 07:00.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on June 8, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-ocean-index-helping-to-drive-the-blue-economy/",
"author": "Luky Adrianto"
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2,177 |
The Pacific faces a radioactive future - 360
Robert Richmond
Published on July 11, 2022
Japan plans to dump radioactive water from Fukushima into the Pacific Ocean, but its effects on Pacific nations are not clear.
When the earthquake and tsunami hit Fukushima, Japan in 2011, it resulted in the tragic death of many people, and severe damage to a nuclear power plant, which required a constant flow of cooling water to prevent further catastrophe. More than 1.3 million tonnes of radionuclide-contaminated water have now been retained on-site. The Fukushima plant operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), with the approval of the Japanese Government, plans to begin releasing this water into the Pacific Ocean starting next year. But compelling, data-backed reasons to examine alternative approaches to ocean dumping have not been adequately explored.
Claims of safety are not scientifically supported by the available information. The world’s oceans are shared among all people, providing over 50 percent of the oxygen we breathe, and a diversity of resources of economic, ecological and cultural value for present and future generations. Within the Pacific Islands in particular, the ocean is viewed as connecting, rather than separating, widely distributed populations.
Releasing radioactive contaminated water into the Pacific is an irreversible action with transboundary and transgenerational implications. As such, it should not be unilaterally undertaken by any country. The Pacific Islands Forum, which meets on July 12, has had the foresight to ask the relevant questions on how this activity could affect the lives and livelihoods of their peoples now and into the future. It has drawn on a panel of five independent experts to provide it with the critical information it needs to perform its due diligence.
No one is questioning the integrity of the Japanese or International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) scientists, but the belief that our oceans’ capacity to receive limitless quantities of pollutants without detrimental effects is demonstrably false. For example, tuna and other large ocean-going fish contain enough mercury from land-based sources to require people, especially pregnant women and young children, to limit their consumption. Tuna have also been found to transport radionuclides from Fukushima across the Pacific to California. Phytoplankton, microscopic plant-like life that floats free in the ocean, can capture and accumulate a variety of radioactive elements found in the Fukushima cooling water, including tritium and carbon-14. Phytoplankton is the base for all marine food webs. When they are eaten, the contaminants would not be broken down, but stay in the cells of organisms, accumulating in a variety of invertebrates, fish, marine mammals, and humans. Marine sediments can also be a repository for radionuclides, and provide a means of transfer to bottom-feeding organisms.
The justification for dumping is primarily based on the chemistry of radionuclides and the modelling of concentrations and ocean circulation based on assumptions that may not be correct. It also largely ignores the biological uptake and accumulation in marine organisms and the associated concern of transfer to people eating affected seafood. Many of the 62-plus radionuclides present in the Fukushima water have long periods over which they can cause harmful effects, called half-lives, of decades to millennia. For example, Cesium-137 has a half-life of 30 years, and Carbon-14, more than 5,700 years. Issues like this really do matter, as once radioactive materials enter the human body, including those that release relatively low-energy radiation (beta particles), they can cause damage and increase the risk of cancers, damage to cells, to the central nervous system and other health problems.
The Fukushima nuclear disaster is not the first such event, and undoubtedly won’t be the last. The challenges of cleaning-up, treating and containing the contaminated cooling water is also an opportunity to find and implement safer and more sensible options and setting a better precedent to deal with future catastrophes. The Pacific region and its people have already suffered from the devastation caused by United States, British and French nuclear testing programmes. Documented problems have led to international agreements to curtail such testing. In this case, the members of the Pacific Islands Forum are key stakeholders that are finding a unified voice against the planned dumping of radionuclides and other pollutants into the ocean that surrounds their homes, and holds their children’s futures.
The world’s oceans are in trouble and experiencing mounting stress from human-induced impacts tied to global climate change, overfishing, and pollution, with consequential cumulative effects on living resources and the people who depend on them. Pollution, particularly from land-based sources, is one of the greatest threats and challenges to ocean resource sustainability and associated elements of human health.
Japan and TEPCO plan to begin dumping radioactively contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean in 2023. A more deliberative and prudent approach would adhere to the precautionary principle – that if we are not sure no harm will be caused, then we should not proceed. The rush to dilute and dump is ill-advised and such actions should be postponed until further due diligence can be performed. Sound science, and a much more careful consideration of the alternatives, and respect for the health and well-being of the peoples of the Pacific region, all demand it. Far better and transparent communications are needed to provide accurate and adequate information for leaders, resource managers and stakeholders to use in their deliberations on the way forward. If the Island nations lead, other nations are sure to follow.
Robert H. Richmond, PhD is a Research Professor and Director of the Kewalo Marine Laboratory, University of Hawaii at Manoa. He is also a Pew Fellow in Marine Conservation, Aldo Leopold Fellow in Environmental Leadership and Fellow of the International Coral Reef Society. He is part of the advisory panel to the Pacific Islands Forum on the Fukushima dumping, who funded this research. He gratefully acknowledges the contributions of the other panel members, Dr Arjun Makhijani, Dr Ken Buesseler, Dr Ferenc Dalnoki Veress, and Dr Tony Hooker.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on July 11, 2022
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"author": "Robert Richmond"
}
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2,178 |
The Pacific’s spiralling debt – and what governments can do about it - 360
Keshmeer Makun
Published on July 11, 2022
Rising debt and declining income seem to add up to an austere future for Pacific Island nations. But belt-tightening may make things worse.
The whole Pacific region is in recession, according to a late-2021 International Monetary Fund report. Income is down and spending is up. Global demand for regional exports has declined, and COVID-19 shut down the vital tourism sector. Meanwhile, countries have had to meet the expense of managing both the pandemic and climate change. It has all pushed Pacific nations into greater risk of debt distress. But austerity measures are only likely to undermine the region’s economic recovery.
GDP declined by an average of 2.4 percent in 2021, on top of a 3.7 percent slide in 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic hit tourism-dependent economies such as Fiji, Palau, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu hard — they saw an average economic contraction of 6.5 percent in 2021. Declining global demand also adversely impacted commodity-exporting countries such as Papua New Guinea (PNG), Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.
With falling GDP and a rise in public spending to cushion the ravages of the pandemic, Pacific countries find themselves in a sovereign debt crisis. United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) country reports show that for Pacific countries, the debt-to-GDP ratio, a commonly used benchmark, has increased from an average of 32 percent in 2019 (before COVID) to 42.2 percent in 2021. Fiji and Palau have a debt-to-GDP ratio of over 80 percent and 70 percent, respectively.
The worrying debt levels and growing climate crisis are constraining governments’ ability to invest in public services. Remoteness from global markets and the geography of Pacific Island economies means high infrastructure costs. Remoteness also drives up import costs for capital equipment, mineral fuels and other intermediate goods. The island nations are now further witnessing an increase in prices, especially for essential commodities, due to pandemic-induced supply disruptions and the Russia–Ukraine war.
The Pacific’s vulnerability to natural disasters and climate-induced shocks adds to infrastructure costs because greater original investment is now needed to build climate-resilient infrastructure. Maintenance expenses are also higher because of recurrent damage. Increasing climate-related extreme events are making Pacific debt levels more precarious.
Pacific countries are now at greater risk of debt distress, according to a recent debt-sustainability analysis by the IMF and World Bank. Seven low-income Pacific Island countries — Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, PNG, Samoa, Tonga and Tuvalu — are at high risk of debt distress. Solomon Islands and Vanuatu are at moderate risk of debt distress, but they both have very limited capacity to absorb shocks. Timor-Leste, previously rated as low risk, is now rated by the IMF as at moderate risk of debt distress. For middle-income countries like Fiji, Nauru and Palau, IMF assessment shows debt is sustainable, but in the case of Fiji, the debt situation has worsened and is subject to increased risk. The Asian Development Bank, while downgrading Fiji’s creditworthiness, noted sustained deterioration in Fiji’s debt sustainability, which has increased its risk of being unable to fulfil its financial obligations.
Most of the Pacific’s external debt is with multilateral agencies as opposed to bilateral creditors, according to World Bank data. The Asian Development Bank is the major creditor for countries such as Fiji, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu, holding about 38 percent of all external debt, followed by China (22 percent), the World Bank (13 percent), and Australia and Japan (6 percent). Chinese loans are less than half of the total in Fiji, PNG, Vanuatu and Samoa.
But Tonga, Samoa and Vanuatu are among the world’s most indebted countries to China. In 2020, these countries owed China the equivalent of US$1.6 billion. Tonga, with over 55 percent Chinese debt as a share of total external debt and in the high-risk category of debt distress, needs to be cautious in bilateral dealings.
A constant trade deficit and high debt levels may lead Pacific Island governments to adopt austerity measures in order to build fiscal capacity. This is likely to worsen poverty and inequality in the region and undermine economic recovery. Rapid fiscal consolidation can also have adverse implications for moving towards a climate-resilient Pacific and achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
However, Pacific Island countries urgently need to improve their finances so they can invest in economic recovery and development and undertake climate adaptation and mitigation measures. To do this, they need substantial financial resources. Grants and access to concessional financing will be critical for the Pacific. The existing international financial architecture and particularly the debt architecture do not adequately consider the vulnerabilities of the Pacific Island countries. Pacific Island countries need long-term financing. The World Bank estimates that Pacific Islands require more than 10 percent of their GDP annually and an additional 5 to 10 percent of GDP for climate and disaster resilience costs until 2040.
The gap between potential and actual revenue is significant in the Pacific, UNESCAP estimates show, and so Pacific Island countries could consider domestic economic activity to increase their revenue. Pacific nations have substantial advantages in agriculture, manufacturing and other value-adding activities, but these sectors face challenges such as high operational costs due to capital and transport costs, consistent supply of materials, and the disconnect between the motivation to commercialise and the requisite political confidence, policies and resources. These issues need to be deliberately addressed.
If Pacific Island countries are to beat a path towards the sustainable expansion of financial and technical services, while balancing fundamental infrastructure development and institutional reforms, and managing national debt, they will need to work with development partners and multilateral agencies. Day-to-day management of public finance in the Pacific has improved, according to ADB’s Pacific Economic Monitor series, but it remains an area for further capacity building. Experience from other developing economies highlights the need for developing a comprehensive approach, including strengthening investment priorities, public financial-management planning via short- to medium-term frameworks, and wider public-sector reforms to improve operational efficiencies.
Appropriate debt financing can play a crucial role in meeting long-term development needs in the Pacific. But strong transparency, accountability and effective debt monitoring are required to meet future debt obligation concerns and associated constraints on domestic resources. Governments of the Pacific Islands must lead this process, having a firm commitment to prudent fiscal discipline through proactive policy approaches and investments in areas with sustainable and significant economic returns. It is crucial for the Pacific’s long-term fiscal sustainability and supporting the wellbeing of Pacific communities.
Keshmeer Makun is a Lecturer in economics at the School of Accounting, Finance and Economics at the University of the South Pacific in Suva, Fiji. He declares no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on July 11, 2022
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"author": "Keshmeer Makun"
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2,179 |
The pesky problem of offshoring pollution - 360
Chen Qinqin
Published on August 15, 2022
A turn to sustainable development could help stop rich countries offshoring their pollution to poorer countries.
Every July, Singapore prepares to see its greenery vanish beneath a mantle of smoke. The haze from land-clearing fires drifts from Indonesia and Malaysia each dry season. But a recent study has revealed another source of air pollution from Singapore’s neighbours: heavy metals, such as chromium, from heavy industry.
That pollution lasts all year round, posing a chronic risk to human health. It comes from what experts have described as ‘pollution havens: developing Southeast Asian economies such as Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand that are rapidly industrialising. They house the industries Singapore and other rich countries can afford to outsource.
Singapore has received an increasing amount of transboundary industrial pollution over the past two decades. Dry chromium deposits into the island nation’s oldest reservoir have doubled.
An industrial pollutant, chromium is emitted mostly from steel and cement manufacturing and fossil-fuel burning. As of 2017, 70 percent of Singapore’s non-biomass (non-vegetation-burning) pollution came from sources in neighbouring countries.
But it is unfair to say these countries should simply clean up their act. A large amount of foreign direct investment in developing Southeast Asian countries supports industries such as coal-fired power plants and steel and cement manufacturing, all of which are pillar industries with low investment risks and high rates of return. The more investment they attract, the more they grow and the more pollution they produce.
Singapore has been able to keep its local pollution low since the 1990s partly because of ever-growing international trade, according to a study. Put simply, Singapore can afford to import pollution-intensive products such as cement and steel instead of producing them locally.
The pollution caused by manufacturing these products is offshored to surrounding countries in urgent economic need of industrial development. This offshored pollution is not unique to Singapore: the practice is quite common between economically more advanced areas and less advanced areas across the world.
Textile-industry pollution began to be sent offshore during the global industrial transfer from the United Kingdom and the United States to Japan after World War II and then moved to the four Asian ‘tigers’, including Singapore, in the 1970s.
After that, the industry and its pollution moved to China in the 1990s and then to developing countries in Southeast Asia, South Asia and Africa after the 2000s.
It is difficult for developing economies to turn away from these offers. They need foreign investment and the profitable industries it supports. So it is principally the investors’ responsibility to choose a pathway of green development via responsible financing.
China is among the largest foreign investors in Southeast Asia. In 2021, China announced that its Belt and Road Initiative had stopped financing any new coal-fired power-plant projects overseas. It followed this with a US$15 billion investment in Indonesia that could help ease pollution from dirty coal in the region as well as in other developing economies across the world.
Singapore is the largest intra-ASEAN investor in the region. In the same year, Singapore’s largest bank said it would stop financing coal-related projects, but only by 2039. These contrasting reactions highlight the different levels of awareness about responsible financing.
To solve the problem of transboundary air pollution, developed economies could provide green technologies to countries exporting pollution-laden goods, promote sustainable and responsible financing, and reduce investment in pollutive industries.
Developing economies will need determination as they choose a path of sustainable development and actively improve their local environmental quality by upgrading emission standards, promoting green manufacturing and improving their people’s environmental awareness.
Every country deserves an equal opportunity to develop, but it is also a universal human right to breathe clean air. The conflict could be resolved if all parties set aside differences and pooled their efforts to build a sustainable future.
CHEN Qinqin (ORCID) is currently a postdoctoral researcher at Tsinghua University, Beijing. Her research has largely focused on transboundary pollution and sustainable development in developing countries. This research was funded by an Academic Research Fund Tier 1 (FY2017-FRC1-005) from the Ministry of Education, Singapore.
This article has been republished to align with the International Day of Clean Air. It was first published on August 8, 2022.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on August 15, 2022
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"author": "Chen Qinqin"
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2,180 |
The plastics and fish dilemma: to eat or not to eat - 360
Veryl Hasan
Published on February 9, 2023
More Indonesians are eating fish as part of their regular diet but microplastics do make it risky. There are ways to mitigate that risk.
Susi Pudjiastuti, Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of Indonesia (2014-2019) once made a popular joke about Indonesians who didn’t eat fish: “I will go after you who don’t eat fish, you will be sunk like those vessels.” The vessels she referred to were foreign fishing trawlers. The word “sink” became a popular meme on social media and underscored how important fish is to Indonesians.
Fish is a crucial source of protein for Indonesians. Indonesia is the second largest fisheries producer after China and the industry plays a huge role in the country’s economy. The sector is only expected to grow, especially in aquaculture, with traditional catches decreasing due to overfishing. Coupled with a global consumption trend that is starting to switch from red meat to fish, fishery products are becoming easier to obtain and more affordable.
But there is a risk. Eating fish while they are also eating plastic can be dangerous.
Because water quality continues to be degraded, the quality and quantity of fish caught and cultivated also decreases, mainly due to inorganic waste that is difficult to decompose such as microplastics. It is estimated that by 2050 there will be more plastic waste than fish in the sea.
Indonesia is the second largest producer of plastic waste in the world after China. Plastic use in Indonesia continues to increase, spurred by the development of the packaged food industry. Although the public is not generally concerned about the adverse effects of plastic waste on the environment and health, plastic pollution is becoming a big problem, with cases of illegal entry of plastic waste from some developed countries worsening the problem.
The handling of plastic waste in Indonesia has not been well integrated, especially in densely populated rural areas where there are no garbage disposal facilities. This means plastic waste is either burned or thrown into waterways.
Burning plastic produces toxic air pollution and has been banned except under exceptional circumstances. Pollution from burnt plastics also ends up in the soil and water due to the leaching of the remaining material. The easier option is for people to throw unwanted plastics into waterways. The sight of people throwing plastic waste over bridges has become a common in Indonesia.
One of the risks of all this plastic floating around waterways is that it can contribute to flooding. It also breaks down into microform (less than 5 mm). It is these microplastics that put aquatic life — and the humans who rely on it — at risk.
Fish are opportunistic feeders and tend to eat objects in the water that resemble their food. In general, fish cannot distinguish between natural food and microplastics because they can be the same shape and colour. Microplastics then settle in the digestive tract of fish. This can lead to unhealthier and reduced fish populations due to malnutrition. For humans, the microplastics in fish can still be avoided by cleaning the fish’s digestive tract before consuming them. This is considered the easiest way to prevent microplastics from being ingested.
There is still the problem of smaller fish, such as anchovies, which are consumed whole. Microplastics are destined to enter humans and end up in our digestive tract. An accumulation of these foreign materials can have dire consequences for human health, such as digestive disorders and even poisoning.
It’s not only fish which carry risks. Drinking water can contain nanoplastics (less than 100 nm) which are barely visible to the naked eye. Most Indonesians rely on drinking water from the nation’s rivers which have been polluted by plastic waste for years. Microplastics are found in almost all rivers in Indonesia and have ended up in processed foods, packaged beverages, and even breast milk.
One environmental NGO found microplastics contamination in 68 rivers from 24 provinces in Indonesia. There are between 6.36 to 4.17 particles per litre. From thousands of respondents to one survey, 90 percent agreed that Indonesian rivers are polluted but they are ready to voluntarily help clean it up.
The solution to the microplastic problem lies with three sections of society.
There needs to be in dividing waste according to criteria such as organic and inorganic waste, especially plastic. This division will make it easier to recycle waste. Organic waste can be processed into compost, while plastic waste is converted into plastic pellets which are ready for reuse.
has so far paid little attention to the plastic waste generated from their products, because they think that products that have been released and consumed by the public are the responsibility of the community. The plastics industry needs to be encouraged to provide waste processing facilities and systems according to the product criteria produced.
is responsible for providing sustainable and integrated waste management facilities and systems from urban to rural areas. It also should agree with industry on building facilities and systems to process plastic waste.
Veryl Hasan is a lecturer in the Faculty of Fisheries and Marine, Department of Aquaculture of Airlangga University, Surabaya. Indonesia. His research is focused on Ichthyology and Fish Ecology. Dr. Hasan declares he has no conflict of interest and is not receiving specific funding.
This article has been republished for World Environment Day 2023. It was originally published on February 9, 2023.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on February 9, 2023
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"author": "Veryl Hasan"
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2,181 |
The post-pandemic future of higher education - 360
Jonathan Grant
Published on December 13, 2021
Emerging from crisis, the new power, post-pandemic university can make a lasting contribution to a just, sustainable and connected world.
By Jonathan Grant, affiliated researcher at the Bennett Institute at the University of Cambridge
Sometimes out of a crisis comes good. From the damage of the US civil war came the land grants to support a public university system.
Two centuries on, the pandemic offers universities an opportunity to transform.
Anglo-Western universities have lost their way. The social contract between universities and the societies they serve is broken, as outlined in The New Power University.
In the UK, universities are regularly critiqued as being ‘woke’ institutions failing to protect free speech, fleecing students and parents through extortionate tuition fees, whilst lining the pockets of senior staff through ‘fat cat’ salaries. This may be a caricature, but it is one that should be of great concern.
Just as the land-grant universities of the 19th century gave many students the opportunity of advancement, the post-pandemic landscape will present an opportunity for universities to evolve their missions.
In practice, as outlined in The New Power University, this means universities giving social responsibility equal standing alongside their education and research missions.
To do so would see them focus on the needs of communities through citizen science; using new technologies with novel approaches to accreditation; and no longer being subsidised by the premium fees of international students.
They would also pay all staff a living wage, and reduce academic and student travel given its catastrophic carbon footprint.
Shifting to online education forced academics to modernise, even the long-time resistors. But the old paradigm that classroom teaching is superior is not trumped by the current models of delivery by Zoom.
The design and delivery of online education requires a specific approach built around the digital classroom — pandemic Zoom lessons were often just analogue teaching delivered through digital means.
But if education can be delivered online to multiple students in different locations why would students have a one-to-one relationship with a university?
No longer geographically fixed, universities can offer transnational education where a student does one module from a university in Asia, another from Africa and a third from North America. Some of these modules could be online and others could be in-person. Students could ‘pick and mix’ modules to accumulate enough credits to get a degree. The harder question is: who would guarantee the veracity of their degree?
The current system of nation-based regulation sets up a massive barrier to truly transnational education. Universities are accredited on their inputs — the courses they offer — not their outcomes, the courses that students successfully pass.
With national barriers eroding, students could pay to sit exams (as opposed to pay to partake in courses) at different universities in different continents, building up a script of their credits as their passport to future employment.
Universities would continue to educate future generations, meeting their social purpose, but with a shifting business model including exam waivers for those who in the past could have qualified for scholarships and other forms of financial support.
The lessons of the pandemic can also help drive the future of research. The extraordinary involvement of universities in developing COVID vaccines, tests, and treatment is a once-in-a-generation testament to their innovative capacity.
Their single focus, combined with public funds, saw them address global challenges and develop solutions at a pace unforeseen since the Second World War.
Another lesson from the pandemic is the role of people in supporting research. At the height of the pandemic, more than four million people were logging their symptoms on a daily basis via the Zoe App, developed by researchers at King’s College London.
This data alerted authorities to new symptoms of COVID-19, such as the loss of smell and taste, and was a leading indicator by about five days to official data on the number of COVID-19 cases.
It is possible to mobilise people to provide, at scale, data that has value for researchers. Citizens can be made to feel they are contributing to the research endeavour, and hopefully more supportive of funding research in the long run.
The generational-long practice of subsidising research with international student fees is not sustainable. The crisis of the pandemic shone a light on the issue and now is the time for reform. Governments and other funders of research need to pay the full economic costs of that research, even if that means funding less activity.
Universities have shown they can lean in to a crisis.
The forthcoming book, Rupture and Response: How the Pandemic Challenged University Operations and Organisation, documents some of the heroic stories from universities in Australia, Sweden and the UK. These range from medical and nursing students volunteering on the front line, through to volunteering for food banks, as well as developing vaccines and providing testing facilities.
Universities were forced to (re)discover their social roots and support the communities within which they resided. This achievement needs to be celebrated, but also embedded in the future social purpose of universities as they navigate the post-pandemic world.
Closer to home, universities need to overcome wage challenges. Even today, in the UK, only 52 of 130 universities are accredited with paying a living wage.
This hypocrisy is amplified when you look at international travel — be it students taking six intercontinental flights a year or academics attending international conferences. This is not to suggest universities become even more inward looking, but to acknowledge the impact they are having on climate change and do something about it.
Just as the land-grant universities redefined higher education in the 19th century following the US civil war, perhaps the post-pandemic university can make a lasting contribution to a just, sustainable and connected world.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Jonathan Grant is Director of Different Angles, the author of the New Power University, previously Vice President and Vice Principal (Service), King’s College London, President of RAND Europe and Head of Policy at the Wellcome Trust. The author declared no conflicts of interest in relation to this article.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on December 13, 2021
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"author": "Jonathan Grant"
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2,182 |
The problem with pandemic warnings is people - 360
Jason Thompson, Rod McClure
Published on March 28, 2022
Social modelling to prepare for pandemics needs more emphasis on the social.
Just a month before COVID-19 emerged, the United States topped a list ranking 195 countries on their readiness to handle a viral disease.
The Global Health Security Index (GHSI), developed with input from a panel of international experts, turned out to have no predictive ability at all.
It failed because it focused on biomedical and clinical solutions while overlooking many critical aspects, such as the preparedness of people and governments to act collectively.
This demonstrates two problems in contemporary thinking about pandemic response.
First, there is a lack of recognition that social, cultural, economic and political environments are the foundation of public health. And second, there is a failure to look beyond a country’s planning and capacity to see that, unless an effective decision-making process is baked into the structure of national governance, all may still be lost.
Over the past decade researchers at the University of Melbourne have been working with policymakers to test strategies in safe, offline environments. These models have been used to better understand and predict the effect of public health responses to the pandemic.
Being able to visualise potential policy outcomes is valuable during emerging or unfolding crises. It means governments can effectively respond as circumstances change, and direct resources to where they are most needed.
Using digital data to understand human behaviours can generate real-world circumstances to represent critical structures, relationships and dynamics within a society and use these to devise realistic solutions in high-pressure situations such as pandemics.
For leaders and decision-makers, models of this kind — regardless of the issue at hand — are precious.
Models can combine multiple inputs and literally billions of policy combinations to help understand likely outcomes. They are flexible and transparent. Most importantly, they allow practice runs and training for decision-makers so they know what best to do when real crises strike.
Formal, accountable and contestable decision-making processes are crucial to pandemic emergency preparedness, yet the development of these processes is often neglected.
In the COVID-19 pandemic, national leaders who enacted decisions swiftly and in the collective interest — sometimes sacrificing short-term freedoms for longer-term benefits — have largely been better placed to manage health and economic outcomes, regardless of the technical capability available to them. Those that have passed on the responsibility to individual citizens have been less successful in limiting the impact of the pandemic.
Indexes that monitor the quality of decision-making processes might have a greater chance of predicting the trajectory of future pandemics than those that focus on technical aspects of disease monitoring and health systems alone.
If there is one thing the pandemic has made obvious, it’s that COVID-19 is as much a socially determined disease as it is a medical one.
Countries that were most successful at dealing with COVID-19 took strong, collective action to control infections before they overwhelmed health systems and economies. Collective measures included mobility restrictions, physical distancing, border closures, mask mandates, and strongly encouraged vaccinations. Officials in these countries also recognised the importance of economic packages to lessen the burden of complying with government regulations.
More than six million people are confirmed to have died from COVID-19, and some estimates suggest the real number could be three times higher.
If we equip decision-makers with the right scientific tools that create better outcomes for everyone, even during crisis situations, we will help reduce the carnage of future pandemics.
Dr Jason Thompson is an Associate Professor at the University of Melbourne. His work focuses on the translation of research into practice across the areas of transportation systems, public health, post-injury rehabilitation, and health system design.
Dr Rod McClure is an adjunct professor in the Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of New England. He is an experienced systems scientist and practising public health physician.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Pandemic warning systems” sent at: 23/03/2022 16:34.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on March 28, 2022
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-problem-with-pandemic-warnings-is-people/",
"author": "Jason Thompson, Rod McClure"
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2,183 |
The problems with space mining no one is talking about - 360
Andrew S. Rivkin
Published on January 31, 2022
Asteroid mining could unlock untold riches and thorny ethical problems. Are we ready as we race to the launch pad?
By Andrew S. Rivkin, John Hopkins University
Asteroid mining is coming sooner than people realise. Several asteroid mining companies have developed serious business cases. Demonstration missions could occur within a few years for interested, patient and well-funded investors.
The most enthusiastic advocates of asteroid mining suggest it could unlock trillions of dollars of wealth; more sober analysts: tens of billions.
Space resources are occasionally compared to those of the sea. But the barrier to entry for the ocean is a fishing pole or net or the ability to dive. Asteroid mining, by contrast, requires advanced technology and large amounts of starting capital.
The level of wealth required to pursue an asteroid mining venture is concentrated in the hands of a very small number of people. Large disparities exist between those able to take advantage of the resources and those most at risk of harm by exploitation.
It also seems possible, if not likely, that the earliest successes in asteroid mining will be the only successes. Competition with established companies will be an additional barrier, and a monopoly or cartel may develop.
Daniel Pilchman, a legal philosopher, says asteroid mining is likely to increase inequality on Earth. He argues it will therefore be an unethical practice, unless it can be regulated to bring benefits to all. James Schwartz, also a philosopher, says mining asteroid resources is unlikely to “significantly improve the well-being of average human beings”, and by extension, would be unethical. He assumes those resources would be used to support space-based rather than Earth-based needs, a conclusion not everyone agrees with.
Cosmologist Aparna Venkatesan says there’s a need to integrate indigenous knowledge and mainstream astronomy to prevent the expansion of “the mindset of colonialism to a truly cosmic scale”. This mindset of colonialism is deeply intertwined with many of the stated motivations for resource exploitation in space and its ability to equip human expansion into the Solar System.
Many other space scientists argue it is “critical that ethics and anticolonial practices are a central consideration of planetary protection”. They recommend the space science community consider the ethics of planetary missions to explore questions such as the “preservation of environments on planetary bodies”, the “long-term environmental impacts of resource extraction on planetary bodies”, and the “short-term impact of largely unrestrained resource extraction on wealth inequality”.
This legacy of colonialist decision-making harming Indigenous people throughout history has left a stain on the profession of mining – a legacy space miners would do well to avoid. For example, the mining workforce is ageing in part due to the challenge of attracting early career employees who are more environmentally minded than the previous generation. Environmental impact assessments, now a standard part of the approvals process for many new large-scale mines could be applied to asteroid mining. Mining companies are increasingly concerned with obtaining a ‘social licence to operate’ from local stakeholders, who will shut down mining operations with strikes and blockades if they are dissatisfied.
Asteroid mining may not harm humans in a way that’s comparable to terrestrial mining, but disruption and dust from mine operations is still possible. Physicist Paul Wiegert studied the spread of dust when NASA and the European Space Agency tried nudging the asteroid Didymos to test an asteroid impact prevention system. He concluded that while the released dust and rubble posed no threat to Earth, mining operations could plausibly generate lots of such debris.
On the flip side of questions about whether it is ethical to mine asteroids is the question of whether it is ethical to leave a vast store of resources untouched. Resources that would be useful for things like green energy and large-scale agriculture. Asteroid resources are unlikely to harbour life, meanwhile the only planetary body with known life in the Solar System, Earth, continues to be exploited. Weighing these ethical issues may become necessary in the face of climate change and ecosystem collapse. Planetary scientist Philip Metzger argues space mining will allow solutions to Earth’s increasing energy demands that are not currently feasible, such as beaming solar energy via microwave to Earth.
The United Nations takes the view that space exploration should be done for the benefit of all. It is reasonable for society, which is being asked to fund investment in enabling technologies, to ask in return not only for a lack of harm from asteroid mining but for an equitable share of the positive benefits gained.
Space science is often lauded for its ability to inspire future generations. That inspiration can cut both ways: how humans act in taking these steps into the cosmos will set precedents that subsequent generations will either follow or have to undo. The question is not only how to make technical progress but whether we should.
Moses Milazzo (Other Orb LLC), Aparna Venkatesan (University of San Francisco), Elizabeth Frank (First Mode), Monica R. Vidaurri (Howard University/NASA Goddard Space Flight Center), Phil Metzger (Florida Space Institute/University of Central Florida), Chris Lewicki (Former CEO, Planetary Resources) contributed to this article
Andrew S. Rivkin is a planetary astronomer as Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: Andy Rivkin on asteroid mining
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on January 31, 2022
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"author": "Andrew S. Rivkin"
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2,184 |
The pros and cons of storing babies’ DNA - 360
Danya Vears, Christopher Gyngell
Published on February 28, 2023
Compiling and storing the DNA of newborns could be a massive boon for public health. But the ethical questions are just as big.
Alex was born two weeks early, but she is healthy. The delivery was uncomplicated and her mother, Eloise, is also well. A nurse from the newborn screening service comes to see Eloise and Alex. He offers Eloise a choice between standard newborn screening and the “new test”, called genomic newborn screening. He explains that genomic newborn screening tests for many more conditions than standard newborn screening. It also provides Eloise with the option of having Alex’s genomic data stored so it can be re-analysed in the future if new health-related questions arise.
Newborn screening is a public health initiative to identify newborns with serious yet treatable conditions before the onset of visible symptoms, to prevent irreversible damage or death.
In Australia, programmes for newborns screen for approximately 25 conditions by analysing the chemistry of blood collected in the first two days of life. But a technology called genomic sequencing, which reads the baby’s DNA, has the potential to look at many more conditions than current newborn screening. Incorporating genomic sequencing into newborn screening would mean more babies who are going to develop severe conditions could be detected earlier, leading to earlier interventions and healthier babies.
In 2022, the Australian Government awarded AUD$15 million in funding towards research into genomic sequencing of newborns.
At this stage, genomic sequencing cannot replace biochemical testing for all the conditions currently screened for. However, genomic sequencing could be added to current screening to help improve its accuracy, as well as expand the conditions able to be screened. And some lethal childhood-onset conditions can only be detected through genomic sequencing, such as a neurodegenerative disorder called Tay Sachs disease, for which a gene therapy is under development.
Another potential benefit of integrating genomics into newborn screening is that the data could be stored long-term, perhaps even for a lifetime. This would allow doctors and scientists to re-examine the data at different points in the baby’s life.
If baby Alex suddenly became ill and ended up in intensive care, scientists could quickly access and analyse the data from her DNA to try to find a genetic basis for the illness. The time saved by not having to sequence her DNA from scratch could make a huge difference in terms of Alex’s care.
It’s not just in response to illness that re-analysing the data could be helpful. Alex’s parents might benefit from knowing in advance if she is at risk of developing other conditions later in childhood, such as hereditary cancers. Eloise may think finding this out in the newborn period would be too confronting, so storing the information until she is ready could help.
Alex’s data could also be re-analysed in early adulthood to find out if she and her partner are at risk of passing on any genetic conditions to future children, or she may choose to find out her chances of developing an adult-onset hereditary cancer or cardiac condition.
However some have argued that genomic sequencing technologies are likely to improve over time and that babies sequenced now will need to be resequenced down the track. Although current confidence in the accuracy of this data is high, this may change over time. In the future, sequencing costs may even decrease so much that it will be cheaper to resequence a person’s data than store it for a lifetime.
The ability to store and revisit DNA data also raises questions about how, where, and by whom the data will be stored. Public trust in current newborn screening programmes is generally high and more than 99 percent of newborns are screened.
But research suggests that, worldwide, people are reluctant to share genomic data, often because their trust in those responsible for data storage and sharing is low. Therefore, introducing DNA screening and storage into newborn screening programmes may lead to reduced uptake and poorer health outcomes for babies. It also raises privacy concerns as, to be effective, genomic data would have to be stored in conjunction with personal and health-related information, which increases the risks to privacy compared to storage of de-identified data.
Storage of genomic data also raises issues relating to consent. For standard newborn screening, some have proposed storage is in the public interest and should therefore be automatic. Storing (de-identified) genomic data on databases accessible by scientists would increase their ability to find causes of genetic conditions for currently undiagnosable patients, which is also in the public interest. And if storage of genomic data is likely to provide medical benefit for individuals, a fair question is whether parents have a right to refuse DNA screening and storage on behalf of their children.
Storing and re-analysing genomic newborn screening data holds great promise for improving the health of individuals, their children, and people globally. But it also poses ethical issues and questions. These must be thoughtfully addressed to preserve public trust in a programme that has health at its heart.
Danya Vears is a senior research fellow and team leader at the Biomedical Ethics Research Group, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Melbourne, Australia. Danya is a social scientist with a genetic counselling background who uses both empirical and theoretical methodologies to explore the practical, social and ethical issues relating to the use of genomics in both clinical and research settings.
Christopher Gyngell is senior lecturer in biomedical ethics at the University of Melbourne and Murdoch Children’s Research Institute. His research explores the ethical implications of new technologies including genome editing, artificial intelligence, and human enhancement.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on February 28, 2023
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"author": "Danya Vears, Christopher Gyngell"
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2,185 |
The public deserves a return on the medicines governments support - 360
Omowamiwa Kolawole
Published on July 20, 2022
Public money directly and indirectly supports pharmaceutical innovation. Governments need to ensure the public gets a fair return on its investment.
A tussle over the ownership of pharmaceutical manufacturer Moderna’s mRNA COVID-19 vaccine remains at a standoff. The National Institutes of Health (NIH), a US government body, says its researchers contributed substantially to the development of the vaccine, giving NIH intellectual property (IP) rights over it. Moderna disagrees.
IP disputes between governments and their private-entity collaborators climb to especially high stakes when they are about medicines. When treatments for HIV/AIDS were developed in the late 1990s, people debated when and how patents could be circumvented to ensure wider access in places where the treatments were most needed. The debate has resurfaced most recently in the context of vaccines for Ebola and then COVID-19.
Parties on either side of the debate have suggested changes to how drug patents should be handled. One argument seeks to capitalise on the internal logic of IP to ensure greater and wider access to the proceeds of intellectual endeavour for solving the most pressing global health crises.
A foundational principle of IP is that the creator whose time, effort, intellectual rigour and material resources went into the development of a product should benefit primarily, and in some instances exclusively, from it. This protects any desire of the creator to extract commercial gain from the sale or licensing of their product or process. This principle has long been upheld as essential to the logic of incentivising innovation and subsequent commercial endeavour.
But this premise has been called into question by innovations that have far-reaching impact and use but are not premised on the need or desire to commercialise them and extract exclusive profit from their use. The internet is perhaps the greatest such innovation in modern history. The research and development of this project, like others of its kind, have to a great extent been supported by public funding, whether directly or indirectly.
The non-exclusionary nature of these innovations, made possible by public funding, has made it possible for them to be used and enjoyed by all without any overt desire by their creators for commercial gain.
Where there is a desire for commercial gain, it’s different. People question who should benefit from the formulation and manufacturing of products intended to be used by vast portions of the populace, as well as how and when the gain is to be enjoyed.
As with many industries, the creation of life-saving medications has been largely driven by companies who embark on research and development with the hope of selling these drugs and earning a profit for the company and its shareholders. There is widespread acknowledgement that these biomedical innovations are both time-consuming and resource intensive, which is why there is acceptance of the principle that having dedicated that time, effort and resources, the innovators should be allowed to recoup what has been invested as well as make a profit. This is so even where the innovation is intended to be used by whole populations for life-threatening health conditions and diseases.
There are many legal and philosophical arguments about how much and for how long profit should be extracted from medical innovations, but these arguments address the scale of the benefit and not whether it is right or wrong.
Arguments about the propriety of commercial gain arise when innovation has not been solely made possible by private intellectual and material resources. The argument may then be that the commercial incentive has been altogether removed. But even where this is not the case, when public resources have largely or totally enabled a rigorous process of research and development, people ask how and when the public benefits from the use of its resources.
Public resources fall broadly into two categories: intellectual and material. Intellectual resources include existing scientific knowledge in the public domain, and material resources include public-sourced funding when a government directly or indirectly allocates resources sourced from the public through taxes and other sources of revenue. As funding for pharmaceutical innovation is increasingly provided by state intervention and assistance, there is a growing demand that the government and the public – in whose interests the government acts – be allowed to benefit from its material contribution. In this sense, the government is a shareholder entitled to its proceeds.
It is then up to the government to determine how the proceeds are to be allocated and enjoyed by the public for which it has acted. This approach to the determination of benefit for IP engages in the granular commercial logic of profit in accordance with percentage of shareholding and the possible means of extracting the value accrued from the profit and dividends. It accounts for the argument that while funding is important, it is not the only element in the kind of cutting-edge research and speed required to create and produce life-saving medication. It assumes the predominant logic that privatisation means the kind of efficiency that may not be possible with government-based interventions bogged down by bureaucracy.
This understanding of public funding of innovation calls for a deeper engagement of the public for whom the government acts and to whom it owes accountability. As the pharmaceutical company owes its shareholders a profit, so the government owes the public the proceeds of investments in innovation it has made on its behalf.
Omowamiwa Kolawole is a sociolegal scholar at the University of Cape Town who studies the right to health and its implications for public health systems and biomedical interventions. His current research examines drug patents and how intellectual property rights may be applied to realise the right to health of all. He holds a PhD in public law as well as a masters in law and another in public health.
Dr Kolawole has declared no conflict of interest in relation to this article.
Main image published under Creative Commons.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on July 20, 2022
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"author": "Omowamiwa Kolawole"
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2,186 |
The race to improve DNA sequencing - 360
Giulio Formenti
Published on February 28, 2023
Cost, availability and sample preservation are the main concerns but progress is rapid.
As we celebrate the 70th anniversary of the discovery of the DNA structure, it is astounding to look back at the progress made in our ability to read the ‘book of life’, the DNA sequence that provides the instructions to make all living beings.
The most recent and promising advancement is certainly represented by long-read DNA sequencing technologies. Long reads started to be developed around 2010, as it was progressively acknowledged that read length is an issue to reconstruct and study genomes.
Using long reads we can now basically reconstruct entire human genomes almost without errors and prior information, as demonstrated by the completed ‘telomere-to-telomere’ of the first human genome last year.
We can confidently make inferences in complex regions of the genome that were previously inaccessible to investigation, and as such often described as dark matter.
These regions can potentially harbour genes associated with human diseases that were previously described as having a genetic basis but such a genetic basis could not be found.
Owing to the specific characteristics of how long-read sequencing technologies read DNA, they also provide additional information that was not available with the previous short-read methods.
For instance, they allow us to immediately describe the ‘methylome‘ — how the DNA is modified in ways that are cell-specific. Methylation patterns are often caused by our lifestyle, and can also be associated with specific diseases.
Even after the DNA structure was elucidated, it took several years before methods to actually read nucleic acid sequences became available.
The first such attempt was published in 1965, and sequencing 76 nucleotides (DNA building blocks) required five people working three years with one gram of pure material isolated from 140kg of yeast.
More efficient approaches were clearly needed, and much of the progress in the field is owed to Frederick Sanger, a pioneer in reading the sequences of complex biological molecules.
Sanger invented the first method to read protein sequences in 1953, the same year the DNA structure was discovered. This was a landmark for DNA sequencing as well, as it established the general principle of ‘shotgun sequencing’, which is still what we use today to reconstruct the genome of any living being.
Since no technology can read an entire chromosome end-to-end in a single pass, in shotgun sequencing multiple copies of the same chromosome are first fragmented into smaller pieces at random positions, then — like in a puzzle — overlaps between fragments are used to reconstruct the original sequence.
This approach is much less laborious than earlier methods and therefore can scale to thousands, and nowadays to billions of sequences at once.
It does not come without disadvantages, particularly the length of the sequences that can be generated when scaling to millions or billions of reads is often in the order of only 150 nucleotides.
This is a significant limitation because, for instance, the human genome is over three billion nucleotides and approximately 50 percent of its sequence is repeated more than once.
When a sequence is repeated, the overlaps between the fragments generated by sequencing are not unique, limiting our ability to use this information to reconstruct the original sequence of chromosomes.
This results in many gaps and errors in the sequences generated, ultimately confounding all downstream analyses. This is where long-read sequencing technologies come into play.
In long-read sequencing, large DNA fragments, usually in the order of 10,000 or 20,000 nucleotides, often even longer than hundred thousands nucleotides and sometimes even over a million nucleotides, are read by sequencing machines at once.
Increasing read length by several orders of magnitude essentially resolves the repeat problem associated with ‘short-read sequencing‘ allowing entire chromosomes to be reconstructed with minimal computational effort.
While all the important advantages should make long-read the technology of choice for most genome projects, they are hampered by the higher cost and the relatively limited availability of long-read sequencing machines around the world.
However, sequencing machine companies are releasing new instruments with increased throughput and reduced cost every year, making this less of an issue as we transition to long-read sequencing.
One standing challenge is the sequencing errors that are still present in the sequencing reads, although the technologies are getting better.
A challenge that will be harder to overcome is the quality of the starting material. To generate long reads, the DNA material needs to be relatively intact to begin with.
DNA, while being one of the most long-living biological molecules, can still degrade if preservation conditions are not ideal. We need to rethink how we preserve and store biological samples.
DNA sequencing is probably the domain in the biological sciences that evolved the most in the last century. This is clearly due to our interest, as human beings, to understand the process of our making, our origins and our destiny.
It will only progress, making this century of discoveries at least as exciting as the past.
Giulio Formenti is Research Assistant Professor at the Rockefeller University in New York. He declares no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on February 28, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-race-to-improve-dna-sequencing/",
"author": "Giulio Formenti"
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2,187 |
The research on: Reducing health worker burnout - 360
Alex Waddell, Diki Tsering, Peter Bragge, Paul Kellner
Published on September 9, 2022
Quality research evidence points to what’s needed at both an individual and organisational level to stem the tide of burnt out health workers.
Emergency medical workers, already at increased risk for burnout compared to other professions, continue to be challenged by the fallout of COVID-19.
Stretched to breaking point by increased workloads, highly contagious and acutely ill patients and with limited resources, their risk factors for burnout have been amplified.
One obvious solution is to fix critical staffing shortages, but emergency health worker burnout was an issue before pandemic-driven staff shortages, and will likely continue into the future.
There is no easy fix, but the World Health Organization has been calling for action to better protect workers. Many are leaving the profession.
Burnout is a workplace syndrome characterised by feelings of exhaustion, depersonalisation (a sense of detachment and that one’s surroundings are not real), and compromised work performance, according to the WHO’s International Classification of Diseases.
Researchers at the BlackDog Institute propose additional fundamental symptoms including lack of feeling, lack of concentration and lack of motivation, among others.
Burnout has previously been reported to be experienced by anywhere between 26 percent to 82 percent of clinicians working in emergency departments, much higher than other areas of medicine and the general workforce. But during the COVID-19 pandemic these figures were found to be consistently high, between 49.3 percent and 58 percent.
Despite the common self-help resources available online there is only a modest amount of high-quality scientific evidence for what works to address burnout in emergency medical workers.
Several systematic reviews of interventions broadly categorise interventions into two types: individual-focused – for example mindfulness or small group stress management education; and organisational-focused – for example limiting shift lengths, flexible working arrangements and building a positive workplace culture. Both types of interventions can lead to a meaningful reduction in burnout among health workers.
At the organisational level, a recent, high-quality study concluded organisations needed to take more ownership of implementing effective burnout reduction strategies to make workplaces less stressful and supportive of workers’ mental health.
There is also some evidence for job training and education, such as training by qualified psychologists on coping strategies, in reducing occupational stress and burnout compared to other organisation-based interventions.
On an individual level, mindfulness-based interventions, in which people develop the ability to be present in the moment and not judge their experiences, have been found to be effective. Another study of nurse burnout also found implementing mindfulness-based interventions, as well as other positive thinking training, at regular intervals was key to ensuring long-term change.
Several studies have found a combination of individual- and organisational-level interventions have the greatest effect for general medical workers. For instance, studies have reported that implementing physician-targeted interventions like exercise and mindfulness techniques alone do not have a significant effect on burnout reduction but can be effective at reducing burnout when combined with organisation-directed interventions like good communication, interdisciplinary collaboration and team spirit.
Specific to the COVID-19 pandemic, studies of workers in ICU and ED found that work environment, communication, and support by supervisors had an established role in burnout both before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Finally, a study of nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic found the psychological support health care workers receive significantly influences their feelings and emotions and can support their ability to handle the negative effects of such an event. It also found that social support from sources like family, friends, co-workers, and their organisation can help workers control and avoid negative feelings and emotions that can lead to burnout.
There are notable limitations in current research, for instance, evidence is limited about organisational interventions. Studies evaluating individual targeted interventions to reduce burnout are more common than organisational interventions because they are easier to implement.
Moreover, two studies found the overall sustainability of the effects of interventions is poorly understood. Lastly, a study focused on medical workers more generally that compared person-directed versus organisation-directed interventions found that some organisational interventions don’t target burnout directly or may have unintended effects on other factors that shape burnout.
For ‘The research on’ 360info works with experts to rapidly scan quality research and present the most current scientific evidence addressing global challenges.
The article is based on a rapid scan of systematic reviews focused on interventions to support emergency medical workers experiencing burnout, as well as interventions for medical workers more broadly. The scan was undertaken by a specialist Evidence Review Service at Monash University.
Alex Waddell is a health policy and systems researcher at Monash University and a final year PhD candidate researching the translation of Shared Decision Making from policy to practice through behavioural science.
Diki Tsering is a Research Officer within the Monash Sustainable Development Institute’s Evidence Review Service at Monash University.
Professor Peter Bragge is Director of Monash Sustainable Development Institute’s Evidence Review Service, which undertakes rapid reviews of research evidence to inform better decision-making in government, industry and other organisational settings.
Dr Paul Kellner is a Research Fellow and Associate Director of the Monash Sustainable Development Institute’s Evidence Review Service.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on September 9, 2022
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-research-on-reducing-health-worker-burnout/",
"author": "Alex Waddell, Diki Tsering, Peter Bragge, Paul Kellner"
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2,188 |
The results are in: congestion charging works - 360
Kimberly Nicholas
Published on February 16, 2023
Introduced 20 years ago this week, London’s congestion charge got cars off the road and got traffic moving. Its lessons are being heeded around the world.
Twenty years ago, London’s traffic was paralysed. The average time taken to drive across the city was slower than 100 years earlier – before the car was invented. Clearly something needed to change. Mayor Ken Livingstone cast around the world for ideas and, inspired by Singapore, settled upon a congestion charge.
Vehicles would be charged £5 per day to access the most congested zone in the heart of London. On its 20th anniversary, the fee is now £15 per day and London’s congestion charge has been heralded as a success, with vehicle numbers reduced by 33 percent. Milan, Stockholm and Gothenburg have since introduced their own version of the charge.
A 2022 study of various congestion-easing measures in European cities I conducted with Paula Kuss found that a congestion charge was the most effective tool. When weighed up against initiatives such as limited traffic zones, car sharing programmes, and apps, congestion charging was shown to be the best at reducing the overall number of cars in the city centre. Removing parking spots and replacing them with bicycle and pedestrian lanes was the second most effective intervention.
When implementing measures to reduce cars, local government plays a critical role. Of the effective measures introduced, over 75 percent were led by local government, often in collaboration with employers, universities, or transport providers.
Our research also showed a key to effectively reducing traffic is to explicitly pursue driving and parking reductions and restrictions, then use the space freed and the money generated to expand and improve walking, biking and public transport. The revenue from London’s congestion charge was advertised as earmarked for improvements to the bus service.
Indeed, across all car-reducing interventions, a carrot and stick approach is key to success, such as improving buses and bike lanes while simultaneously discouraging car use. Six of the seven most effective car use reduction strategies in our study combined both carrots and sticks.
While cars are sometimes necessary — for deliveries or people with mobility issues — overall, they have a negative effect in a city. People are killed in accidents, vehicles cause pollution and roads take up space that could be better used for housing or cooling green space.
They are also a highly unequal form of travel, with the richest driving the most. In the UK, 60 percent of the lowest-income households have a car, while nearly 90 percent of the highest-income households own at least one car. In Europe, the richest one percent drive nearly four times more than the median driver.
But car travel is heavily subsidised. From the production and distribution of fossil fuels that power them, to the use of public space for roads and parking, to the unpriced pollution that cars create. Essentially, drivers impose high costs on society.
City leaders could make the case for bold, fair, healthy, and climate-friendly transport policies in their cities. They could make their case to the large majority of voters who will benefit from such policies, and not let cities be dictated by a small group of the most privileged who may be vocal opponents of making cars pay their fair share.
Kimberly Nicholas is a sustainability scientist at Lund University. She writes the climate advice column We Can Fix It. Her research was supported by the Swedish Research Agency Formas research programme for climate, grant number 2019-02051.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on February 16, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-results-are-in-congestion-charging-works/",
"author": "Kimberly Nicholas"
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The right to be neutral - 360
Ranabir Samaddar
Published on May 24, 2022
Examining military and political alliances from the perspective of the global South leads to some uncomfortable questions about ‘good’ and ’bad’.
Former Tanzanian president Julius Nyerere once said: “When the elephants fight, the grasshoppers die; when the elephants make love the grasshoppers die.”
It’s through this lens that many in the global South are watching the war in Ukraine, a European war that while distant, is driving a rethink of what it means to be neutral.
Historically, smaller nations have preserved their right to remain non-aligned. They did so from the 1950s to the 1970s in the context of the Cold War when the Americans and the imperialist West demanded the rest of the world choose a camp.
In the neoliberal time, there is often no ‘just war’. Neoliberalism has fragmented identities, increased territorial wars, and sharpened insecurities. Military alliances have proliferated and seas, oceans, and the air have been militarised to an unprecedented degree. All these have been in the background of extractive capitalism, which has turned, water, precious metals, air, and sub-soil resources into fiercely competitive commodities. The conflicts produced from these geo-economic and geopolitical conflicts often have no ‘good’ sides and ‘bad’ sides. To craft peace politics, the first requirement is to first refuse to take sides and then resist the pressure to take a side. But to do so means being against the Western tradition of transnational military alliances.
In the global South, notwithstanding many other reasons for violence, there are no such military alliances and security apparatuses. It’s legitimate then for the non-aligned to ask: why is NATO required at all? What does the postcolonial world have to do with military alliance? And who gave NATO the power to bomb Serbia or Libya or enter Afghanistan?
Policymakers the world over have to learn to appreciate and include non-European ways of looking at the questions of war and peace if they seriously want to work on transnational politics of peace. Hence the silence of the global South on the Ukraine conflict is significant.
A conflict in the West is not necessarily a global conflict. Indeed, there are greater possibilities of reconciliation and resolution of such conflicts if they are kept local. If a large section of the world says they have nothing to do with a war, such a stance should be welcomed. Not everything has to be globalised. The West does not take sides when, for example, two countries in sub-Saharan Africa or two countries in Asia go to war. They instead choose to become referees.
Though people often categorise conflicts and wars as ‘good’ or ‘bad’, a more pertinent question to ask would be about Europe and the US taking a moralistic view of the war in Ukraine. Those nations did not take a position on, for example, the Balkan war in 1990s, civil wars in many African countries, or the ethnic wars in other lands. If in Ukraine the high moral ground is “democracy”, how did this not also pertain to other wars?
With its unilateral sanctions, the West has made the economy a part of warfare. It accuses Russia of killing civilians in Ukraine. Yet Western sanctions will impoverish civilian Russians as in the past they have impoverished Iranians, Iraqis and North Koreans.
Thousands of children in Iraq became malnourished and many died in the wake of sanctions, according to a UN and other studies. Baby food did not reach them. Sanctions left Iraq and Iran completely stripped of their assets, unable to earn anything through exports. Now Afghan assets in US banks have been impounded, and Afghanistan faces hunger, malnutrition, displacement, and destitution. Sanctions weaponise the living conditions of common people.
Sanctions are also discriminatory. Where, for instance, are the sanctions on Israel for killing thousands of Palestinians in Gaza or the West Bank? What about the manufactured charge that Saddam Hussein was developing weapons of mass destruction – both nuclear and chemical — the ‘rationale’ for the subsequent war against Iraq? To think that the global South does not understand the politics of sanctions is to hark back to the colonial way of thinking that the rulers know much better than the ruled.
To think from the perspective of the South means to think from the margins and interrogate what is being presented as the truth. That is why there is much to understand from the response from the global South. If the global South is thinking in a ‘selfish’ way, is Western Europe’s view of the South also ‘selfish’? The global South can refuse to be part of the global power game.
In a multipolar geopolitical scenario, ‘ganging up’ will happen as big powers also pursue their own interests. America is trying to bypass what one might call ‘old Europe’ in pursuit of control over ‘new Europe’, which is eastern Europe.
The British have exited western Europe and are dancing to American tunes but at the same time trying to build new bridges with eastern Europe. And western Europe now seems to understand that it has to strike out on its own; that it has to emerge as an autonomous power. It cannot do so unless it is a military power. Yet, ganging up will happen. This is the new reality in which the financial power of the West plays a central role.
The global South could not have had the Non-aligned Movement of 1961 without the presence of socialist China and the Soviet Union. However, China’s policy is no longer built around the global South, and the Soviet Union is no more. Indeed, China lacks any policy of organising or facilitating a separate voice of the South in global matters. China’s geopolitical approach seems to have become mercantilist – focusing only on trade and economy, as if politics were determined by commerce. However, politics is determined only partly by that.
Even the economic game is not completely managed by mercantile rules or by trade and logistics alone. China does not have any ambition to turn BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) into a political bloc.
And Russia cannot re-enact the Chinese way of development — it cannot become the factory of the world. China’s success came at a specific historical moment against the backdrop of specific national and global contexts.
As the East and the West are being remade in this economic environment, the South is also being reshaped. The global South will also have to be reimagined or reconfigured. War is more likely to remake the South than the economy. War will continuously force the South to face some of the questions it wants to avoid.
In the remaking of national economies how will interests coalesce? How will a united front of the nations of the global South emerge?
The global South, by refusing to play the game of the North and being neutral, may be a pointer in that direction.
Ranabir Samaddar is Distinguished Chair in Migration and Forced Migration Studies, Calcutta Research Group, Kolkata, India. A theorist in the field of migration and forced migration studies, his writings on migration, forms of labour, urbanisation, and political struggles have signalled a new turn in post-colonial thinking. Among his influential works are The Marginal Nation: Transborder Migration from Bangladesh to West Bengal (1999) and Karl Marx and the Postcolonial Age (2018). His most recent publication is written in the background of the COVID pandemic, A Pandemic and the Politics of Life (2021)
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on May 24, 2022
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-right-to-be-neutral/",
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The risks of a digital cold war - 360
Chunmeizi Su
Published on June 28, 2023
Any ban on TikTok ignores the bigger issue of who should control personal data in the first place: the individuals who use any app.
The US sees TikTok as having inseparable ties with the Chinese state. The main concern is the concept of data security or the nationalist idea of data sovereignty.
Realistically it appears geopolitical tensions are the real issue.
TikTok is another frontline in the US-China technological struggle for online dominance. The real loser in this conflict is the user and the progress of data transparency.
The issue has different perspectives.
While the battle between China and the US for who controls the internet of the future is a key component, others see it as an attempt to tighten grip over a small corner of the internet, already dominated by digital tycoons — Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, Google (FANG) — and now TikTok.
Either way, if the US government does ban TikTok it probably won’t be the US or Chinese governments which benefit.
For the US, banning TikTok would jeopardise the entire notion of a ‘globalised internet’.
The concept of worldwide communication, the internet as we know it, would become splintered, leading to the ‘splinternet’, where the online space is dissected by nations.
Banning TikTok would send a message to the world that the US will never allow apps that originate from other countries to occupy major global influence.
This could be seen as government overreach, unconstitutional and unlawful.
It’s unlikely China would benefit either.
TikTok is the first Chinese digital app with a global reach, however, the app itself is without a discernible Chinese flavour.
It’s not realistic to achieve propaganda or political agendas through the app. At best, it’s merely a channel, to provide an alternative understanding against the Western-focused presentation of China.
All the hearsay about how the Chinese government collects and uses data from users of TikTok are merely conspiracies that lack any concrete proof.
If we’re voting yes for a TikTok ban, we’re voting for a new digital cold war, further away from the globalised internet as it should be. In that sense, we’re granting power into the hands of governments, letting information be blocked by the will of the few and the powerful.
The underlying logic is the construct of data security. Who owns the data and who controls it should be the users themselves. But the fight we’re seeing is not about this.
What would be beneficial to users is a greater move towards data transparency so they know how their data is being used. This should include not just users of TikTok, but of all other digital apps too.
The truth is, TikTok’s data policy is even more transparent than Facebook’s.
The bottom line is, platforms or governments should act as intermediaries when it comes to data. Use of data, despite its purpose, should always be granted by its original owner.
However, we have too many loopholes in the current system, luring users for consent without actively informing them.
‘Terms and conditions’ don’t count. The power of data should never fall into the hands of governments or platforms. That’s the principle that regulators need to establish, prior to the potential AI society of the future.
Imagine when we use US-designed AI technologies, such as the newly announced Apple vision pro, or US-designed apps and services, potentially something like Meta, should we be concerned about data ownership?
The point is not which government owns them, but to make sure that no platforms nor national governments will be able to manipulate or appropriate the data of the people who create it.
The real solution here is a framework and global policy that oversees data transparency protecting it for all users regardless of what side of any potential digital cold war they come from.
Dr Chunmeizi Su is a Lecturer of Digital Cultures at The University of Sydney.Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on June 28, 2023
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2,191 |
The Rohingya return to the sea - 360
Samata Biswas
Published on March 27, 2024
2023 was the deadliest year of Rohingya boat journeys, with one in eight of those who fled perishing at sea
“For these boat people, apparently, it was natural to be on the sea, untethered to any nation”.
–Kaamil Ahmed, I Feel No Peace
There is a long, shameful history of people fleeing warfare and persecution putting to sea and being turned away from safe havens.
The million or more Rohingya, who have fled Myanmar over the past decade seeking safety are just the latest.
Their perilous voyage across the seas, in rickety boats, is a direct fallout of their stateless condition: without a passport, faced with ethnic and military violence at home, and cramped, hopeless conditions in Bangladesh camps.
Their return to the seas in larger numbers is merely a continuation of decades old desperate attempts to find a dignified, viable, safe life.
Reports of cramped boats full of desperate men, women and children being abandoned at sea, turned back from neighbouring countries, or worse, are common.
Last year was considered the deadliest in the past nine years of Rohingya boat journeys, with one in eight of those who fled perishing at sea.
The plight of the Rohingya has echoes in the past.
In 1914,most of the passengers on board SS Komagata Maru, were denied entry into Canada, following the Canadian government’s racist policies directed at South Asian immigrants. Before the 1951 Refugee Convention,the passengers on board Komagata Maru could neither be designated as refugees, nor stateless.
However, their experience – being denied landing, asylum, shelter, often in contradiction to international laws and conventions – has found many parallels since then.
In 1975, at the end of the Vietnam War, thousands from southern Vietnam fled across the South China Sea in small fishing and rowing boats. They too were denied landing at many of their destinations.
A French journalist called this “a new Holocaust…looming, foretold and obvious to the whole world”.
The condition of the Rohingya has also been compared to the Holocaust, with Myanmar accused of violating the Genocide convention as far back as 2019.
Since 2015, the Rohingya, ethnic Muslim residents of the Arakan (formerly Rakhine) province of Myanmar (formerly Burma), have repeatedly found themselves in the same predicament as those on board the Komagata Maru and the ‘boat people’ of Vietnam.
Close to a million Rohingya, rendered stateless by Myanmar’s citizenship rules, fled to Bangladesh after concerted attacks in the Arakan. Many thousands travelled on boats headed across the high seas for safe harbour in neighbouring countries such as Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia.
Often, these cramped refugee boats were abandoned mid-sea by human traffickers, while the destination nation refused them entry.
The discovery of shallow unmarked mass graves on both sides of the Thailand – Malaysia border, as well as abandoned jungle camps where refugees were kept confined for extortion, eventually led to a regional consultation.
This resulted in Indonesia and Malaysia agreeing to let the Rohingya disembark and gain temporary shelter while Thailand agreed to deploy navy vessels to assist.
Help also came from other unlikely quarters, such as the Aceh fishermen who steered boats to the shore and helped the travellers despite clear instructions from their governments forbidding them to do so.
The Rohingya have witnessed mounting atrocities at home and increasing hostility in the neighbourhood.
More than one million UNHCR registered refugees reside in various camps in Bangladesh. The number of people escaping Bangladesh and Myanmar with the aid of traffickers has also been on the rise.
In what is considered the deadliest year of Rohingya boat journeys, in 2023 more than 4,500 Rohingya attempted to cross the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal. One in eight who tried to escape, perished.
The composition of the passengers on the boats has also changed. Instead of just single males, now families including women and children undertake the dangerous voyage together.
Children comprise one third of the total passengers. Women and girls are routinely subjected to sexual violence by traffickers, crew members of the boats and in the camps where they eventually end up.
They are often provided with emergency contraceptives and abortion pills after being subjected to abuse. Unlike in the second half of 2015, Indonesia and Malaysia now push boats back out into the sea, while local communities have turned hostile, storming refugee shelters.
The Rohingyas are also kidnapped with ransom demands from their families. At other times, family members who had earlier made the journey, pay traffickers to bring the rest of the family over.
Traffickers have been reported to have stalled the journey mid-sea, demanding more money from relatives in the camps in Bangladesh.
However, researchers claim that arresting traffickers will not bring about a lasting solution to the issue and the sea voyage may remain inseparable from the plight of the stateless Rohingya.
The journey from Myanmar and Bangladesh to southeast Asia is not the only perilous boat journey undertaken by the Rohingya.
Jaivet Ealom (author of Escape from Manus) chronicled his 2013 voyages to Darwin and Christmas Island, from Indonesia. Ealom, now settled in Canada, almost drowned with other passengers en route to Darwin, but chose to set out for Christmas Island immediately afterwards, after escaping the Indonesian authorities.
He writes, “If you go on a boat and die, at least it will be quick–one moment of pain and then it’s over. But if you stay here, the pain is bottomless”.
Three years before Ealom, Habiburahman (author of First, They Erased Our Name) recounts reciting his final prayers while passengers on the boat stubbornly tried to bail out water from the hull in a desperate attempt to stay afloat.
He was also going to Christmas Island, to seek asylum in Australia.
While between 2008 and 2023, Australia had granted only 470 visas to Rohingyas, commentators consider Australia to have become the “next destination for Rohingya refugees”, as they run out of places to go.
Adrift and stranded are two words repeatedly used to describe the situation of the Rohingya.
The two adjectives also serve as metaphors for their life.
Stranded in Myanmar, their home for generations where they are at the mercy of a brutal military junta or in Bangladesh in cramped, disease and poverty ridden camps. Or else adrift, in a foreign land or at sea, preyed upon by human traffickers, hostile navies and host communities.
The sea, which promises freedom, also becomes the site of their burial.
Samata Biswas is an Asst. Professor at The Sanskrit College and University, Kolkata.
This article is part of a Special Report on the Rohingya refugees produced in collaboration with the Calcutta Research Group and the Asian Broadcasting Union.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on March 27, 2024
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2,192 |
The role of unions in the era of gig work - 360
Anjali Chauhan
Published on December 27, 2023
The loopholes in labour laws will need to be plugged if gig workers are ever to get a fair deal.
In September 2022, the highly anticipated Hindi-language film ‘Zwigato‘ debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival, shedding light on the lives of food delivery workers in India. Directed by Nandita Das and co-written by Samir Patil, the movie gained attention for delving into the darker aspects of India’s gig economy.
It narrates the story of Manas Singh Mahto, a fictional delivery rider in Bhubaneswar, depicting the challenges faced by Indian gig workers.
Portrayed by comedian Kapil Sharma, Mahto endeavours to meet daily delivery targets to secure incentives, grappling with obstacles such as dealing with restaurant proprietors and confronting societal biases based on caste and religion inherent in the profession. However, the film merely scratched the surface of the underlying issue.
According to the ‘India’s Booming Gig and Platform Economy’ report released by the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) in 2022, there were 7.7 million people employed in the gig economy in the fiscal year 2020-21. That number is expected to soar to 23.5 million workers by 2029-30.
The sheer extent of gig worker numbers shows the urgency of discussing and dealing with the issue.
In both Indian and global contexts, labour laws generally do not cover or regulate food delivery or gig workers broadly associated with digital platforms. This gap exists due to the unique nature of their work relationships, which do not fit the conventional employer-employee model.
Digital platform aggregators classify gig workers as partners rather than formal employees. This classification enables companies to sidestep compliance with labour regulations, thereby minimising labour costs and obligations.
By designating these workers as partners rather than employees, companies evade responsibilities such as providing regular wages and benefits. Instead, food delivery workers’ compensation is primarily based on delivery charges and incentives.
This distinction allows companies to bypass certain labour law provisions, leaving workers without the protections and entitlements typically afforded to traditional employees.
This loophole in classification hinders the extension of necessary labour safeguards to gig workers, creating challenges in ensuring fair and secure working conditions within the gig economy.
Under these circumstances, unionisation has become both necessary and difficult. One such union which is extending its efforts to unionise gig workers is the App Workers’ Unity Union which is affiliated with All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU).
The union has worked extensively in the Delhi NCR area and led the Blinkit workers’ series of protests which broke out when the company arbitrarily rolled out its new payout structure for delivery workers, under which the minimum payout per delivery was reduced to Rs15 (USD$0.18) per delivery.
Apoorva, coordinator of the App Workers’ Unity Union spoke about the difficulties the union faces to organise workers under the new scheme of gig work.
“The big claims of flexibility and autonomy of gig work are false. Most of the workers work more than 12 hours per day. Sometimes it even goes up to 20 hours. They are forced to work for long by the team leaders and threatened with their IDs being blocked if they do not abide,” Apoorva said.
“Such a pressurised and mobile nature of work adds challenge for unionisation which has already been experiencing setbacks for the last decade.
“We have constantly kept going to the stores and stops where the riders wait for orders to engage with them. But often we are not able to create sustained dialogue with them as every time we reach a store, new workers will be there and older ones might have shifted.
“However, when we start talking about their problems and sufferings, they tend to listen and contribute to the conversations. Additionally, as the means of this form of work is digital, we have to keep pace with it too. So we have been trying to create a strong online presence through social media like Instagram and Facebook. We also have a WhatsApp group.”
The union is also distributing a booklet to gig workers across Delhi which addresses some common questions workers have regarding the union. Some of the questions addressed were: Are all workers happy with their work? Why is our situation so bad? How to take membership? How to form a union in such difficult circumstances? and what is the vision of the union?
The December 2021 report titled ‘Behind the Veils of Algorithms: Invisible workers; A Report on the workers in the gig economy’ by the Peoples Union for Democratic Rights presents another pivotal analysis of the gig economy.
Contrary to the common perception that gig work serves as a supplementary income for individuals during their leisure hours from a primary job, for many gig workers interviewed, this type of work constitutes their primary source of livelihood.
Unlike freelancers, who often have some degree of autonomy, gig workers lack control over setting fares or fees for the services they provide. Instead, these decisions are made solely by the company they work for.
The report reveals that companies unilaterally decide the compensation for workers, which is often influenced by consumer demand and the number of available workers for a specific task at any given time.
This system results in an algorithm-driven control mechanism where workers have minimal say in their working conditions, contradicting the notion of autonomous and independent entrepreneurship within the gig economy.
Amid such testing times, neither the government nor the companies are willing to even have a dialogue regarding the hardships this form of work has brought.
The companies are continuously reducing the pay rates and incentives, and the government is not responding to the complaints put collectively by the unions and workers for the same.
App Workers’ Unity Union sent a memorandum of demands to the Union Labour Minister on 27 April, 2023, demanding all app-based employees be granted the status of permanent worker of their company concerned, eight hours of work per day to be fixed with a guaranteed wage of at least Rs. 26,000 (USD$315) per month and ensure social security through necessary laws.
Nothing happened.
Another pertinent issue the union raised was during the Delhi floods. A memorandum was sent to the Delhi government to alert it to the dangerous conditions delivery workers faced while working from home.
The union demanded that all app-workers making deliveries in flood-affected areas should be paid Rs 15,000 (USD$180) as a ‘risk allowance’ and that any app-employees unable to work due to floods should be given a special allowance of Rs 1000 (USD$12) per day. Again, there was no response by the government.
The velocity with which gig work is taking over the global work landscape is unfathomable. It has not only brought new challenges for unions but has also taken the world back to the 1920s when workers put up a united front to demand an eight-hour workday.
To tackle the same, the App Workers’ Unity Union is consistently putting effort into forming a collective front and bringing major trade unions under the same cause and banner to give a national call against the exploitation of gig workers.
Anjali Chauhan is a doctoral student at the Department of Political Science, University of Delhi, India.
This article is part of a Special Report on the ‘Asian Gig Economy, produced in collaboration with the Asia Research Centre – University of Indonesia.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on December 27, 2023
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"author": "Anjali Chauhan"
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The SDGs can save us, but can we save the SDGs? - 360
Piya Srinivasan
Published on September 18, 2023
What are the roadblocks to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals? And how can the pace of the SDGs gather momentum to meet the 2030 targets?
September 2023 marks the halfway point of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
As leaders of governments, international organisations and the private sector convene in New York for the UN SDG Summit on 18 and 19 September, the mood is likely to be sombre.
Created in 2015, the 17 Sustainable Development Goals are a bold commitment to end poverty and inequality and achieve a peaceful and prosperous future for both people and planet.
But the road to that destination has been a bumpy one. Interlinked global crises over the last few years have derailed progress on the goals and put them in jeopardy.
The COVID-19 pandemic, the invasion of Ukraine, a record number of forced displacements and migrations, extreme climate events and food insecurity have left the world poorer and more vulnerable.
The midpoint of a journey is a time to reflect, re-evaluate and course-correct. What are the roadblocks to achieving the SDGs? And how can the pace of the SDGs gather momentum to meet the 2030 target?
As people gather in New York to discuss ways to accelerate progress towards the SDGs, 360info in partnership with the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) brings together expert analysis from around the world on how progress on the SDGs has been thwarted so far and solutions for how these challenges might be overcome.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on September 18, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-sdgs-can-save-us-but-can-we-save-the-sdgs/",
"author": "Piya Srinivasan"
}
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2,194 |
The set and forget of medication in aged care - 360
Published on December 15, 2021
Up to 250,000 hospital admissions each year in Australia are linked to problems with medications.
As we age and our health begins to suffer, the simple solution would seem to be to take medications to address our ailments. But that can quickly lead to a bathroom cabinet full of medications and unintended adverse health consequences.
The reasons for how overprescribing occurs, and why multiple medications can cause problems are complex, but the underlying problem is not going away anytime soon.
Many developed nations have high and increasing rates of people with multiple chronic health conditions requiring ongoing medication.
Data from the United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey suggest more than 90 percent of people aged 65 years and older have two or more health conditions. On the other side of the Pacific, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare estimates half of all Australians aged 65 years and older have two or more chronic health conditions.
Not only does each condition typically result in a medication being prescribed to treat it, clinical practice guidelines used by health professionals increasingly advocate combining different medications for the best therapeutic result.
Unsurprisingly this has led to people taking multiple medications each day, a phenomenon known as “polypharmacy”, which can be defined as the concurrent use of five or more medications in the community setting, or nine or more medications in the residential aged care setting.
This may be necessary to best manage chronic health conditions but it is not without inherent – and sometimes hidden – risks.
For the most part, prescribing multiple medications has been driven by results of randomised controlled trials demonstrating the benefits of medication treatments.
However, participants in these trials have often been younger and healthier than the average person prescribed these medications in practice. The benefits and risks of medications prescribed to frail older people with multiple chronic health conditions may be different to benefits and risks among the randomised controlled trial participants.
Polypharmacy and complex medication regimens can be baffling to patients and increase the workload for carers, often those least able to manage their medications.
Research by Australia’s NPS MedicineWise, for example, suggests that two-thirds of Australians aged 75 years or older use five or more conventional or complementary medications each day. With multiple daily dosing, different medication formulations – some as tablets, inhalers, or patches – and special instructions for medication administration such as take half a tablet on an empty stomach before meals, it is easy to see why up to one-third of residents of aged care facilities have their medications administered on five or more occasions each day.
While this all might seem to be worth it if it means keeping patients well, the irony is that neither polypharmacy nor complex medication regimens necessarily lead to good health results for patients.
Polypharmacy increases the risk of drug-drug interactions and adverse drug events while complex regimens can increase the risk of medication administration errors, particularly in people with dementia, who are frail, or who may have difficulty self-managing their own medications.
It is difficult to over emphasise the scale of the problem. The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) estimates that up to 250,000 hospital admissions each year in Australia are due to problems with medications. Work is underway to address it. The World Health Organization made “Medication without Harm” the topic of its Third Global Patient Safety Challenge and in 2019, quality use of medicine and medicine safety was declared an Australian National Health Priority Area.
Healthcare professionals around the world are also recognising that not all polypharmacy and medication regimen complexity is necessary.
It may be possible to discontinue or “deprescribe” medications that are no longer consistent with a person’s goal of care. Regular medication reviews performed by pharmacists and general medical practitioners can help identify unnecessary or inappropriate medications for which the benefits no longer outweigh the risks. In Australia, however, government-funded, collaborative medication reviews remain under-utilised both in the community and in residential aged care settings.
Simplifying a person’s medication regimen can also be achieved through strategies, which do not necessarily mean changing the therapeutic intent.
In some cases, for example, it is possible to reduce the number of daily administration times by administering different medications at the same time each day or by prescribing combination products that include two or more active ingredients in the same tablet or capsule.
In other cases, it is possible to use long-acting formulations dosed once per day instead of using multiple short-acting products requiring multiple daily dosing.
There have been a number of recent practice and policy developments to improve medication safety.
Australia’s National Aged Care Mandatory Quality Indicator Program has included a polypharmacy indicator (nine or more regular medications) since July 2021, and public-sector residential aged care services in the Australian state of Victoria now monitor the proportion of residents with more than four daily medication administration times.
If used proactively to provide feedback to clinicians, these data can help inform and evaluate improvements.
Better use of digital health applications, specifying the intended treatment duration on prescriptions, and including information on treatment discontinuation in drug information resources for prescribers could also help.
Advances in the availability of anonymised electronic health record data for research can help address evidence-practice gaps arising from under-representation of older people and those with multiple chronic health conditions in randomised controlled trials of specific medications.
Research using routinely collected hospital and dispensing data is also a promising area for improving safe and effective medication use. This research will form the basis of more nuanced treatment recommendations that will better serve the needs of those most vulnerable to being harmed by medication.
Professor Simon Bell is Director of the Centre for Medicine Use and Safety, Monash University.
The author has received grant funding or consulting funds from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF), Victorian Government Department of Health, Dementia Australia Research Foundation, Yulgilbar Foundation, Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission, Dementia Centre for Research Collaboration, Pharmaceutical Society of Australia, GlaxoSmithKline Supported Studies Programme, Amgen, and several aged care provider organisations. All grants and consulting funds were paid to the employing institution.
This article has been republished for the World Health Organization’s World Patient Safety Day. It was first published on December 15, 2021.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Unnecessary Drugs” sent at: 14/09/2022 12:20.
This is a corrected repeat.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on December 15, 2021
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2,195 |
The shadow government plundering the public purse - 360
Marty Bortz
Published on August 11, 2023
The drive to privatise everything has led to consultants taking on the work of public servants. But at what cost?
The controversy surrounding PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has many asking whether the hundreds of millions of dollars government departments spend on consultants each year is the best use of public money.
PwC is under intense scrutiny after it was alleged the firm misused confidential government tax information for commercial gain.
It is alleged that, after the firm advised the government on tougher tax laws, it then leaked the design of those laws to its clients — many of whom would be targeted by the proposed laws.
This is not the first time these kinds of questions have been raised.
Three recent examples of this issue being explored include the Thodey review of the Australian Public Service, a 2017 Australian National Audit Office audit of Commonwealth departments’ use of consultants and contractors, and a 2014 audit by the Victorian Auditor-General’s Office.
You could be forgiven for dismissing this matter as an insider issue of public administration best left to the boffins to thrash out.
However, as the PwC scandal illustrates, the excessive use of consultants has very real implications for democratic decision-making.
Indeed, many experts argue the influx of consultants represents a shadow government that is plundering the public sector. Some go so far as to say that it represents private control over public policy.
It is therefore timely to consider why governments use consultants so much, why that might be a problem, and what we can do about it.
The consulting industry can be traced to the father of so-called ‘scientific management’, Frederick Winslow Taylor, and his cohort of ‘efficiency engineers, which included such business luminaries as Henry Gantt, Lillian and Frank Gilbreth, and Harrington Emerson. This group could be considered the first management consultants.
They were involved in advising the United States’ government on matters of efficiency, administration, or organisational design.
In the US, for example, the Hoover Commission in 1947 hired two consulting firms to provide advice on reforms to public administration. Likewise, political scientist Denis Saint-Martin has described the 1960 Canadian Glassco Commission on Government Reorganisation as ‘by far the most impressive demonstration of the influence of consultants in government’
Consultants received a massive ‘shot in the arm’ through the introduction of a bundle of reforms collectively known as the new public management. This introduced into government:
After its introduction, spending on consultants increased dramatically. In the UK, spending on consultants by the Department of Defence from 1993 to 2006 increased from £55 million to £256 million. Over the same period, spending by the Home Office increased from £3.81 million to £125 million — a change of 3,190 percent.
New public management was introduced in the 1980s when the economic ideas of UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and US President Ronald Reagan held sway. It represented a victory of private sector ideology over the public.
The underlying logic was that the private sector knows best.
Private sector management techniques were hypothetically introduced to produce better public sector outcomes. Whether new public management has done this or not remains a heated point of debate. At the very least, it has created an environment in which consultants can thrive.
It’s also been a major contributor to the loss of expertise in government. As Professor Rod Rhodes described it many years ago, the state has been ‘hollowed out’.
As a result, governments have turned to consultants more. However, this meant that public servants were not doing the necessary work to upgrade their skills and increase their expertise. The consultants were gaining that expertise and — for a fee — providing their advice to bureaucrats.
Reliance on consultants became more and more entrenched, so now we are in a situation where consultants are seen as a ‘shadow’ public service.
The presence of consultants on its own is not a problem. Decision makers throughout the ages have turned to advisors to assist with pressing challenges. Besides, the nature of governing today is far more complex than it was even a few decades ago.
It is prudent, therefore, to turn to a range of different sources for advice — including consultants. And there are situations where very highly specialised or technical knowledge is required to support public decision-making.
While the principle of consultants being part of governing today is sound, it is the practice that is a problem.
There are four parts to this problem: definition, quantity, management and procurement.
The problem of definition relates to the public sector’s understanding of what consultants are and what they do.
There is confusion as to how consultants differ from contractors and, as a result, how best to deploy them. This issue is fundamental to the nature of work that consultants are asked to do and how governments report on the extent of consultancy spending .
It means work more appropriately classified as a contractor can be recorded as a consultancy (and vice-versa). It also means departments can pay a premium for the services of a consultant when a (much cheaper) contractor would suffice. It also might result in contractors putting up sub-standard work, thereby damaging the reputation of consultants generally.
The problem of quantity relates to how often governments use consultants.
The Victorian Auditor-General’s Office recently estimated that the current Labor Government has spent (on average) AUD$140 million on consultants each year over the past five years. If we assume that the average cost of a consulting project is AUD$100,000, then that is 1,400 consulting projects across the state government — roughly 140 per department per year.
While large, this pales in comparison to the United Kingdom’s spend: £2.8 billion worth of consulting work in 2022 alone.
The problem of quantity is not just about ‘how much’. It is also about ‘who’.
The bulk of consulting work is often awarded to the so-called ‘Big Four’ — KPMG, Deloitte, PwC and Ernst & Young. The sheer volume of work, compounded with the awarding of work to a select group of firms, suggests the government is dependent on these specific firms. One UK official even warned others about getting ‘addicted to having well trained, hard working people running around’.
The management problem relates to poor supervision of consultants.
Department officials sometimes see consulting work as ‘set-and-forget’, meaning they don’t actively manage or take ownership of the process or the results. This may result in something that is not fit for purpose, meaning additional spending might be necessary to rectify a report or unwanted outcome.
Consultants can often be put in a position of power over their clients where the client does not necessarily understand the work the consultant is doing. Ideally, a consulting project should be co-owned by the bureaucrat and the consultant.
The issue here is that bureaucrats end up defaulting to a consultant when internal staff might be more than capable of doing the work.
In addition, the insecurity of public sector work can sometimes mean consultants themselves become the keeper of institutional memory. If the right structures aren’t put in place, this can mean the expertise of the public sector is further eroded and the presence of consultants is made more necessary.
Finally, there is the problem of procurement. The traditional model assumes consulting services can be purchased just like any other good. However, the reality of purchasing consulting services is very different from, say, purchasing a piece of infrastructure. Consultants are often in relationships of co-dependency with government officials.
These relationships transcend individual transactions. However, the way in which procurement is practised often disguises these relationships, thus creating challenges in holding consultants accountable.
Accountability issues are further compounded given that consultants can often hide behind commercial-in-confidence privileges.
To address this issue we first need to rebuild the policy capacity of the public service.
Consultants should only be called in when a task requires a highly specialised form of knowledge combined with a deep understanding of, and relationships with, the specific sector.
In the short term, consultants could be required to upskill the public service in their processes and methodologies. As this research demonstrated, this does happen, though it might not be common practice.
Internal consulting divisions within the government are a possibility. Interestingly, Australia’s current Labor Government has committed to doing just that at the same time as the UK Cabinet Office is shutting its down due to lack of effectiveness.
But the real piece of work is long-term generational change.
A career path for public servants and considering policy work a genuine profession can help.
This could involve better links between the public service and universities. It could see public departments define workforce needs and talk to universities directly about how those needs can be filled. It could consider public policy knowledge a genuine form of professional knowledge in its own right — similar to law or accounting.
This is going to require several years to get right. Largely because Australia is now trying to wind back several decades of neoliberal ideology — not something that can be done overnight.
Public servants could be trained in the best ways to work with consultants. On the flip side, consultants who want to work in government services could be required to undertake a professional accreditation that demonstrates they understand the important contextual differences between the public and private sectors.
In addition, procurement rules can be updated to remove the category of ‘consulting’ altogether. It causes too much confusion. Rather, categories could be based on the type of expertise that is actually being purchased.
For instance, governments often purchase evaluation services, but ‘evaluation’ is not a recognised category in AusTender. Likewise, strategy advice or analytics are commonly-provided consulting services but are typically subsumed under the much broader category of ‘Management and Business Professionals and Administrative Services’.
These very high-level categories can obscure as much as they reveal.
The approach to procurement and the procurement rules applicable to consultants could also be overhauled to recognise the fundamentally relational — not transactional — ways in which consultants enter the public sector.
Forms of ‘relational contracting’ would be investigated to allow for more transparency in the ways consultants are used.
Consultancies could be subject to a set of ethical rules and professional standards. Consulting doesn’t ‘look like’ any other profession. There is no academic qualification, no professional standards, and no regulatory body for the profession.
In short, anybody can set up shop and call themselves a consultant. Addressing this issue would go a long way to ensuring money is spent appropriately and is providing quality outcomes to government.
There is a role for consultants to play in modern systems of government.
At the same time, a lot needs to be done to ensure that we can rein in some of the excessive public expenditure on private forms of advice.
While there are several ideas that could be implemented in the short term, the real ‘fix’ is moving away from ideologically privileging the private sector to recognise the unique value that public policy analysis and public servants can provide.
This isn’t just a structural reform but a shift in perspective and culture. We can’t unscramble the omelette, but we can certainly make it taste better.
Dr Marty Bortz is an Honorary Senior Fellow at the Melbourne School of Government at the University of Melbourne. He has worked in local and state government, and private consulting, across multiple portfolios including education, health, justice and Indigenous affairs.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on August 11, 2023
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The simple technology helping women escape poverty - 360
Christopher S. Tang
Published on October 18, 2022
A formal identity and a mobile phone are two key weapons in the global fight against poverty.
More women than men are poor, more women live with food insecurity, and in the majority of countries in the world, more women than men do unpaid family work.
This is why many scholars and world leaders such as former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan argue empowering women is the most effective way to improve humanity.
For many women, empowerment begins with identity – a prerequisite for accessing services and exercising their rights. In 2019, the World Bank estimated that one out of every two women in low-income economies did not have a national identity card or something similar.
As a critical first step to empowering women, the World Bank has worked with over 40 countries to develop digital ID systems to empower women.
In Pakistan, for example, millions of women now possess a Computerised National Identity Card (CNIC) which allows them, rather than their husbands or brothers, to access government income support programmes.
Armed with a formal identity, existing and emerging technologies are immediately available for empowering women economically.
First, mobile phones are ubiquitous, and they can be helpful. Out of 456 million unique subscribers in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2020, 239 million users have mobile internet access, and 180 million have smartphones.
The widely accessible mobile phones attracted firms to develop mobile financial services such as Safaricom’s M-Pesa and M-Kesho in Kenya, as well as Ant financial services in China.
Not only are these services secure and convenient, but they also enable unbanked women to gain access to financial services such as savings and loans.
Besides access to financial services, mobile platform apps can help poor women to find jobs.
In China, when many restaurant workers (mostly women) were out of work during COVID-19 lockdowns, Alibaba established an online platform with restaurant chains such as Xibei and Yunhaiyao to develop an online employee-sharing plan so that over 3,000 restaurant workers could find temporary work during the pandemic.
And in the same way, social nudging has been found to work in encouraging people to meet fitness goals, leveraging internet-connected wearables and mobile apps can induce different forms of nudging to encourage girls to complete school.
Beyond mobile technology, blockchain can also help to improve gender equality and financially empower women.
Denver’s Coda Coffee partnered with bext360 to develop a blockchain that integrates machine vision, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence to trace coffee beans at every step: collecting, washing, drying, milling, exporting and roasting of beans through retail operations.
This helps to ensure farmers regardless of gender can collect fair payments, and traders to leverage information as verifiable collateral for loan applications.
Widely available solar technology can also change women’s fates. As of 2020, over 3 billion off-the-grid households rely on women to collect fuel wood to meet their energy needs.
This burden deprives women of accessing education or jobs. But solar cookers enabled women in rural Nicaragua to produce and sell baked goods, candies and roasted coffee beans.
Coca-Cola meanwhile has launched the 5by20 initiative to empower 5 million women by 2020.
One of the initiatives in India entails the development of a solar-powered “eKOCool” cooler that can enable a female store owner to sell ice-cold drinks, operate at night (by charging her solar lanterns), and offer mobile phone charging service by tapping into the charging ports provided by eKOcool coolers.
Earlier gains on poverty reduction have been set back by the pandemic, with women faring worse.
Leveraging emerging technologies to empower women economically enables them to find jobs, obtain fair wages, improve operational efficiency in their micro-businesses, improve their physical safety and improve their access to education and financial services.
is distinguished professor at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, Los Angeles. He declares no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on October 18, 2022
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"author": "Christopher S. Tang"
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The Sixth Mass Extinction is happening now, and it doesn’t look good for us - 360
Corey Bradshaw
Published on March 7, 2022
Species are going extinct at an unusually high rate. Our efforts now will prevent a future too ghastly to contemplate.
Mounting evidence is pointing to the world having entered a sixth mass extinction. If the current rate of extinction continues we could lose most species by 2200. The implication for human health and wellbeing is dire, but not inevitable.
In the timeline of fossil evidence going right back to the first inkling of any life on Earth — over 3.5 billion years ago — almost 99 percent of all species that have ever existed are now extinct. That means that as species evolve over time — a process known as ‘speciation’ — they replace other species that go extinct.
Extinctions and speciations do not happen at uniform rates through time; instead, they tend to occur in large pulses interspersed by long periods of relative stability. These extinction pulses are what scientists refer to as mass extinction events.
The Cambrian explosion was a burst of speciation some 540 million years ago. Since then, at least five mass extinction events have been identified in the fossil record (and probably scores of smaller ones). Arguably the most infamous of these was when a giant asteroid smashed into Earth about 66 million years ago in what is now the Gulf of Mexico. The collision vapourised species immediately within the blast zone. Later, species were killed off by climate change arising from pulverised particulates suspended in the atmosphere, as well as intense volcano activity stimulated by the buckling of the Earth’s crust from the asteroid’s impact. Together, about 76 percent of all species around at the time went extinct, of which the disappearance of the dinosaurs is most well-known. But dinosaurs didn’t disappear altogether — the survivors just evolved into birds.
To be classified as a mass extinction, at least 75 percent of all the species on Earth must go extinct within a ‘short’ geological period of less than 2.8 million years. That timeframe seems long to us because modern humans have only existed for about 200,000 years so far.
As a species, humans have been implicated in smaller extinction events going back to the late Pleistocene (around 50,000 years ago) to the early Holocene (around 12,000 years ago) when most of the ‘megafauna’, such as woolly mammoths, giant sloths, diprotodons, and cave bears disappeared from nearly every continent over a few thousand years.
Much later, the expansion of European colonists throughout the world from about the 14th Century precipitated an extinction cascade first on islands, and then to areas of continental mainland as the drive to exploit natural resources accelerated. Over the last 500 hundred years, there have been more than 700 documented extinctions of vertebrates and 600 plant species. These extinctions come nowhere near the 75 percent threshold to include the modern era among the previous mass-extinction events.
But those are just the extinctions humans have recorded. In fact, many species go extinct before they are even discovered — perhaps as many as 25 percent of total extinctions are never noticed by humans. Even accounting for undetected extinctions, the modern era still cannot be classified as a mass extinction event.
But it’s not the total number of extinctions we should focus on; rather, it’s the extinction rate. If past mass extinctions took nearly three million years to ensue, then we should instead examine how many species go extinct per unit of time relative to the ‘background’ extinction rate that occurs between mass-extinction events.
According to the fossil record, the average ‘lifespan’ of a species is around one million years, which equates to a background rate of about 0.1–2.0 extinctions per million ‘species-years’. This makes the number of observed extinctions in the modern era 10 to 10,000 times higher than the background rate. Even the most conservative estimates that ignore undetected extinctions firmly place the modern era well within the expected range to qualify as a mass extinction.
An optimist might contend that surely the rate of loss will decline with time, such that we’d be unlikely to meet the 75 percent threshold. However, the outlook is not at all rosy. The devastation wrought to date means the extinction rate is only likely to accelerate.
Most of the damage to the Earth’s life-support system has happened over the last century. The global human population has tripled since 1950, and there are now approximately one million species threatened with imminent extinction due to massive population declines, representing about 10–15 percent of all complex life on Earth. Since the start of agriculture around 11,000 years ago, the total amount of vegetation on Earth has halved. Less than 15 percent of all wetlands recorded 300 years ago are still present today, and more than two-thirds of the world’s oceans are compromised to some extent by human activity. Not to mention climate change. Recent evidence suggests global warming causes up to ten times more extinctions than we might expect by looking only at a species’ upper temperature limit. In fact, when we take the relationships between species into account — such as predators depending on their prey, parasites depending on their hosts, or flowering plants depending on their pollinators — near-future extinctions are expected to sky-rocket.
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A truly indifferent person might also claim that as long as the species that provide resources for modern societies survive, there’s no reason to consider extinction a problem. The evidence suggests otherwise.
Species loss also erodes the services biodiversity provides us. These include reduced carbon sequestration that exacerbates climate change, reduced pollination and increased soil degradation that compromise our food production, poorer water and air quality, more frequent and intense flooding and fires, and poorer human health. Even human diseases like HIV/AIDS, Ebola, and COVID-19 are the result of our collective indifference to the integrity of natural ecosystems.
You could be forgiven for thinking that in the presence of overwhelming scientific evidence supporting the necessity to change our course, human societies and their leaders would prioritise damage control. In fact, the opposite is occurring.
Short-term interests, an economic system that concentrates wealth among a few individuals, the rise of right-wing populism with anti-environment agendas, and financed disinformation campaigns designed to protect short-term profits, mean it’s unlikely we’ll be able to make changes at sufficient scale to avoid environmental catastrophe. A ghastly future seems almost assured.
However, the grim outlook does not justify inaction. On the contrary, we could potentially limit the damage if societies around the globe embraced certain fundamental, yet achievable, changes.
We could abolish the goal of perpetual economic growth, and force companies to restore the environment using established mechanisms such as carbon pricing. We could limit undue corporate influence on political decision-making, and end corporate lobbying of politicians. Educating and empowering women, including providing greater self-determination in family planning, would help stem environmental destruction.
With a little effort and longer-term planning, we could make our future just that little bit less ghastly.
Corey Bradshaw is the Matthew Flinders Professor of Global EcologyFlinders University, Adelaide. This research was funded by the Australian Research Council.
This article has been republished for the COP15 Biodiversity Summit. It first appeared on February 28, 2022.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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Published on March 7, 2022
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The social app dividing the world - 360
Published on June 28, 2023
How did TikTok, an app that features people dancing, become entangled in the cross-hairs of global tensions between the US and China?
TikTok has sparked major cybersecurity and privacy concerns in the West.
Data and national security threats top the list, with many countries such as the US, UK, Australia and Canada banning the app on government devices while a handful of countries like India and Afghanistan have banned TikTok completely.
Despite its cybersecurity and privacy controversies, the Chinese-owned app has been successful in Southeast Asia, transforming from a mere entertainment platform to a thriving e-commerce hub. Its CEO, Shou Zi Chew, revealed the company will invest billions of dollars in Southeast Asia but remained tight-lipped about the detailed breakdown of the spending plan.
Chew also promised to keep political advertisements away from the platform to honour freedom of expression with “serious integrity”, after observing issues during elections in numerous countries.
Barring TikTok may simply fragment the web, leading to a divided internet where nations increasingly seek to limit and control online spaces.
But experts see a simple solution; greater data transparency and user control.
Editors Note: In the story “The TikTok test” sent at: 26/06/2023 08:10.
This is a corrected repeat.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on June 28, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-social-app-dividing-the-world/",
"author": ""
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The solution to baby dumping is women in power - 360
Syaza Shukri
Published on July 11, 2022
If Malaysia wants to stop teen pregnancies, it could start by putting more women in parliament.
Malaysia has become a sought-after destination in the region for its high success rate in achieving pregnancy in middle-aged women. If only the same could be celebrated when it comes to policies to help women safeguard their sexual and reproductive health rights.
Reforms to Malaysia’s political system could be key to tackling reproductive health issues. Policies that affect reproductive rights are often driven by political priorities, rather than health needs. But issues of abortion, contraception, and lethal pregnancies seem to be more important to female legislators, who represent a small minority in the Malaysian parliament. Elevating more Malaysian women to positions of power could make a difference for all.
Reproductive health and sex education remain taboo in Malaysia where religious conservatism remains high among the mostly Muslim population. Teenagers are told to diligently practice abstinence. However, in the five years between 2017 and 2022, more than 40,000 teen pregnancies were recorded with 35 percent of cases being out of wedlock. In Malaysia, there are legal loopholes to allow child marriages, which may lead to many teen pregnancies. Cultural norms suggest some parents believe marriage is the best method to shield their pregnant daughter from embarrassment.
When pregnancies are unwanted, babies are dumped into rubbish bins, toilets, or drains. Malaysia has the highest percentage of baby dumping cases across South East Asia, with an average of 100 babies per year. This is partly the result of inadequate sex education and the stigma around abortion.
Abortion is legal in Malaysia only if the woman’s physical or mental health is at risk but not in any other situation such as incest or rape. Unfortunately, the police receive an average of 15 incest cases per month that could possibly lead to pregnancy. Earlier this year, a 15-year-old girl was charged with murder after killing her newborn despite being a rape victim.
Some Islamic scholars have opined that abortion is permissible in cases of rape and incestif the foetus has not reached 120 days of gestation. However, abortion is rarely discussed in Malaysia due to the social stigma. Whether a woman is single or married, abortion is still frowned upon. As a result of these views, some women choose to have abortions on their own or to seek out dangerous methods.
Reproductive rights have been largely deemed politically insignificant. The public failed to recognise that reproductive health is beyond teenage pregnancy, but it is about the right of every woman to have autonomy over her body and choose what is best for her physical and mental health. Having a planned pregnancy is important even to a married woman because a baby is an immense responsibility that affects all parties, especially the mother.
Reproductive knowledge and contraception allow a woman to plan her pregnancy to not interfere with her education or career, and for better living conditions for all family members. Sadly, a 2019 report states that among Malaysian women of child-bearing age, only 53 percent used contraceptives. In other words, nearly half of Malaysian women either have no access to or knowledge of their right to contraception due to reasons such as religion or culture.
According to a study from 2012, Malaysian women who did not identify as religious were more knowledgeable about reproductive health than those who did. This is regrettable because contraception is permissible in Islam for a married woman. But if it is not properly taught in schools, Muslim women in Malaysia may remain unaware of the contraceptive methods offered by health clinics even after they are married.
The restriction on women’s reproductive rights also has to do with a patriarchal society in which a man, as the head of the household, has a say over his preferred family size and control over his wife’s body.
Another example of the patriarchal world we live in can be seen in the absence of the male equivalent to the pill. Although the male pill has been tested since the 1970s, it has not reached consumers because of low interest that is the result of side effects such as weight gain, mood swings, and acne. These are the same side effects that women have in taking any hormone-based contraceptives, but women will often bear them because the responsibility for childrearing and pregnancy falls on them.
Women make up a disproportionately small share of elected officials around the world. As a result, most governments do not prioritise reproductive rights which are traditionally considered a women’s issue. Even in a developed country such as the United States, of the five justices who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, four of them were men. If men were the ones physically affected by a pregnancy, we might see reproductive health given greater priority.
Based on abortion law data from the Center for Reproductive Rights and data on female representation in national legislatures by the World Bank, it was discovered that 30 out of 57 countries (52.6 percent) with at least 30 percent female representation allow for abortion on request. There is a high possibility that culture plays a significant role. Countries considered more liberal are more likely to have higher female representatives and more likely to have better reproductive rights.
For women to have their reproductive rights defended, the world needs leaders who are willing to come forward to fight against the stigma and acknowledge that reproduction affects all. Chances are, those leaders will be women.
Syaza Shukri is an assistant professor at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), specialising in comparative politics, democratization, and Muslim politics. She is also a non-resident research fellow at the European Centre for Populism Studies.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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Published on July 11, 2022
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"author": "Syaza Shukri"
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The state of surrogacy in the Indo-Pacific - 360
Ria Ernunsari
Published on July 19, 2023
Choosing to have a child via surrogacy or choosing to become a surrogate mother raises many ethical, legal, social and economic considerations.
While laws in countries like India, China, Thailand and Cambodia have been revised in recent years in attempts to outlaw problematic aspects of surrogacy, experts say outright bans of commercial surrogacy are not always the best option.
There are also concerns that current legislation, religious and social views prevent people from accessing surrogacy when they need it, at a time when fertility rates are falling across the world.
New thinking is needed to overcome many of these issues.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “State of surrogacy” sent at: 19/07/2023 09:58.
This is a corrected repeat.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on July 19, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-state-of-surrogacy-in-the-indo-pacific/",
"author": "Ria Ernunsari"
}
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The tech that keeps pro cyclists on track for success - 360
Donny Ardi Kusuma
Published on February 2, 2023
To support competitive cyclists, technology helps not only lighten the bike weight but sport science determines the speed to be the champion.
When Bernard Benyamin Van Aert stood on the podium with his silver medal at the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) Track Nations Cup in Cali, Colombia in July 2022, it marked another step in Indonesia’s progress in cycling world competition.
Bernard was the only cyclist from Indonesia to qualify for the 2022 UCI Track World Championship in the Men’s Elite Omnium. These results were obtained because athletes underwent a structured training program, with cross training in other racing disciplines, as well as detailed training monitoring supervised by a sport science team for two years.
International sport is in the midst of a global arms race. Sports science and technological innovation can be the big difference between success and failure at the elite level. Many nations invest millions giving their elite athletes the best. In terms of sport science in cycling, the main part is the human element, then the bicycle element.
Science and technology has made significant improvements to riders’ physical performance. Road cyclists are active for long periods so excellent aerobic capacity is needed. The VO2 (oxygen uptake) number for a rider is a crucial measurement, reaching 74 ml/Kg/Min. The average for sedentary is 27-40 ml/kg/Min.
By understanding the heart’s performance and how muscles grow, sports trainers now understand how to design an exercise program that focuses on making the heart work more efficiently, accompanied by increasing muscle strength. Breathing patterns also scientifically influence the performance of cyclists, so there are specific patterns, such as six pedal rotations for inhaling and three pedal rotations for exhaling.
Sleeping is just as important as exertion when in the saddle. Sleep has been proven to be a significant factor in improving the performance of athletes, not just sleeping eight hours a night. Special strategies are needed for athletes such as napping for 30 minutes – 1 hour every afternoon. Sleep hygiene must be maintained by avoiding coffee or caffeine before going to sleep, not looking at phones or watching television and maintaining room temperature and staying hydrated.
High altitude training is another proven method to help athletes increase endurance. Physiological changes in the body at higher altitudes — an increase in haemoglobin in the blood caused by an increase in the hormone erythropoietin that increases oxygen in the blood — can enable an athlete’s body to capture more oxygen and have much better endurance when competing at sea level. In short, cyclists do not fatigue as easily.
And then there is the bike. While the basic design has not changed in 200 years, what frames are made from has come a long way, from steel to lighter materials such as aluminium, titanium and carbon fibre, which, being extremely light (the average Tour de France bike weighs around 8kg) and strong, is the preferred material for professional riders.
Just as important as weight is aerodynamics. Engineers refine bike frames to have a specific shape and angle designed to reduce the drag or resistance, along with determining the position of the cyclist, so as to minimise air resistance and increase their speed.
In 1989, Tour de France winner Greg LeMond was among the first to use aero bars, which revolutionised design for improving performance. Specialists are also needed to get the bike fit right. adjusted to the length of the rider’s legs, arms, and body size, which is specific to each individual. There are studies on the best saddle position depending on height and tilt. Helmet design is key in configuration and protecting against head injury for competitive cyclists.
Many other technologies are becoming more widely used such as GPS and sensors fitted to the bike and wearables on the athlete’s body. Wireless technology helps transmit this data to coaches a considerable distance away. Power metres measure output while other devices check heart rate, the amount of sweat, blood sugar levels and body temperature. All this data, when combined with unique algorithms can help coaches and athletes predict when they will become champions, where they will become champions, and what conditions will cause them to become champions.
Within the Indonesian cycling federation, a high performance enhancement team has been formed consisting of researchers from universities, sport scientists and experts in the fields of biomechanics, sport medicine, performance analysis, sport therapy, sport nutrition and strength and conditioning. While these moves are not perfect, the results have improved. The Indonesian team won three gold, four silver and a bronze medal at the SEA Games 2022 in Hanoi.
Government grants of around USD$700,000– $900,000 have helped improve sports performance but more is needed to achieve at international level cycling.
Still, money is not everything. The biggest problem is the lack of qualified human resources in sports science. The solution is to start collaborating with universities and industry with the aim of hiring competent people to work with the Indonesia cycling federation. This will help Indonesian sports get the most out of technology and achieve peak performances from athletes.
For Indonesian cycling, which has started little by little, it could mean more exciting times ahead.
Donny Ardy Kusuma is a Lecturer in the Sport Science Faculty of Universitas Negeri Surabaya. He is a sport scientist and part of the Indonesia Cycling Team. His research and interest are in Training Monitoring and Physical Training. Dr. Kusuma declared that he has no conflict of interest and is not receiving specific funding.
Twitter account @donnyakusuma
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on February 2, 2023
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"author": "Donny Ardi Kusuma"
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The technology behind deep sea mining - 360
Saman Ilankoon, Nimila Dushyantha
Published on July 5, 2023
On the ocean floor, robots will gather the rocks and suction pipes and hydraulic lifts will transport these to a surface vessel.
Renewable energy targets and the infrastructure needed to achieve them have created a high demand for certain metals and minerals, including critical metals.
Since the bottom of the world’s seas and oceans possesses significant amounts of critical metals, including manganese, cobalt, copper, zinc, gold, platinum and rare earth elements, deep-sea mining has emerged as a controversial yet promising method for diversifying critical metal supply chains.
Complex geological processes such as plate tectonics, volcanic activity at the ocean floor and hydrothermal vents have resulted in deep sea resources rich in critical metals and minerals over millions of years.
The European Commission and the US Geological Survey each have lists of critical minerals/materials needed for renewable energy technologies.
Building a three-megawatt wind turbine consumes 4.7 tonnes of copper, two tonnes of rare earth elements, three tonnes of aluminium, and a considerable amount of zinc and molybdenum.
Battery chemistries of electric vehicles (EVs) are rapidly evolving and lithium, manganese, nickel and cobalt are key critical metals to manufacture EV batteries. For now, current land-based mining and mineral processing activities supply the required critical metals but demand is increasing by the day.
The primary mineral deposits targeted in deep-sea mining are manganese nodules, seafloor massive sulphides and cobalt-rich crusts.
Manganese nodules or polymetallic nodules are mineral accumulations found on the seabed in sizes from one to 10cm.
These contain critical metals such as manganese, nickel, cobalt, copper and rare earth elements in high concentrations. The sulphide deposits have high base metal and sulphide contents plus gold and silver.
The cobalt-rich crusts are also termed polymetallic crusts or ferromanganese crusts and these are found on the slopes and surfaces of underwater hills and mountains and other rocky seabed structures at depths of 400 to 4,000 metres.
These crusts primarily comprise cobalt, manganese, nickel, titanium, rare earth elements, platinum, tellurium, vanadium and zirconium.
The International Seabed Authority which governs deep-sea mining, estimates cobalt content in crusts at one billion tonnes.
Deep-sea mining has yet to begin but it is challenging compared to terrestrial mining.
Since polymetallic nodules sit on a soft-sediment layer, large remotely operated vehicles with suction mechanisms can harvest the nodules from the ocean floor.
The nodules will be transported to the surface through a riser system to a ship. Once the nodules are separated on the ship, water and sediments will be pumped back into the ocean.
The challenging job is to remove the crusts containing only the targeted critical metals.
For cobalt-rich crusts attached to rocks, remote-controlled vehicles with cutting and suction devices are used. These employ real-time video feeds and precise control systems to ensure accurate mineral collection.
In 2021, the malfunction of a mining robot in the Pacific Ocean highlighted the challenges of deep sea mining.
Another method is to deploy dredging tools attached to surface vessels or remote-controlled vehicles to cut and extract the crusts. This requires a hydraulic pipe lift system to transport the extracted minerals to the surface.
Despite the great potential of deep sea mining in diversifying critical metal supply chains, the exploitation of deep sea resources poses significant risks to ocean ecosystems.
These are unique and fragile, and commercial mining activities’ short- and long-term impacts on ocean ecosystems have not yet been fully assessed.
Another risk is the potential release of methane, which is responsible for 30 percent of global warming.
Methane hydrates (white, ice-like solids that consist of methane and water) in the ocean hold around 1,000-5,000 gigatonnes of methane.
The release of this methane and the oxidation of methane to carbon dioxide due to warmer sea floor temperatures are significant climate change-related concerns in deep-sea mining.
The effects on marine ecosystems due to oxygen depletion and acidification of the oceans also need to be understood before deep-sea mining is allowed.
Several multinational companies including Google, BMW, AB Volvo Group and Samsung signed a moratorium on deep-sea mining in 2021, initiated by the World Wildlife Fund.
These companies said they would not use critical metals mined from the seabed in their supply chains, including for EVs and smartphones.
This development demonstrates the required balance between critical metals through deep-sea mining and conserving ocean ecosystems.
Dr Saman Ilankoon is senior lecturer in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the School of Engineering, Monash University Malaysia and fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3), London.
Eng Nimila Dushyantha is lecturer at the Department of Applied Earth Sciences at Uwa Wellassa University, Sri Lanka. They declare no conflict of interest.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: mining technology
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on July 5, 2023
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"author": "Saman Ilankoon, Nimila Dushyantha"
}
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2,203 |
The threats astroturfing has on the media's future - 360
Benjamin YH Loh
Published on May 3, 2023
Without relying on the media to put them in good light, politicians are finding ways to influence people through digital astroturfing.
In 2022, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr won the Philippines presidential election and became its 17th president. His win was celebrated despite the fact his father, Ferdinand Marcos Sr was overthrown by the People Power Revolution in 1986 after 20 years of dictatorship.
The Marcos family’s return to power was strongly attributed to a well-crafted social media campaign that focused on changing the historical narrative of the Marcos regime. Marcos Jr targeted younger voters who never experienced his father’s martial law, focusing on whitewashing his father’s crimes and reframing many of his oppressive policies as being beneficial to the public.
Philippines media outlet Rappler took extraordinary steps to highlight Marcos’s sophisticated social media campaign. While it was unsuccessful in preventing his win, the new administration was not happy with Rappler. The media outlet is still under scrutiny after the Duterte regime tried to ban the outlet. But early this year, the Philippine court acquitted the media outlet of tax evasion.
The Marcos campaign is an example of digital astroturfing, a campaign technique that’s becoming more commonplace in politics around the world. It involves the rich and powerful manipulating the algorithms of social media to present whatever narrative they desire. It is a strategy by established, politically motivated groups (such as corporations, interest groups, and politicians) to impersonate grassroots activist movements for political gain.
The Rappler case shows that media outlets are in the perfect position to properly monitor and investigate such schemes.
A similar astroturfing campaign was launched by former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, who lost the 2018 general elections as a result of the 1MDB scandal. Many expected him to fade into obscurity as corruption charges started to mount against him.
But, in 2019, he started an ingenious campaign to rewrite his public image called “Malu Apa Bossku” (Why the shame, boss?). The campaign focused on painting Najib as a man of the people (despite him being the son of a former prime minister, Abdul Razak Hussein) and he managed to amass a large following which he continues to enjoy despite finally being charged and sentenced to 12 years in prison for corruption in 2022. The start of the campaign was also engineered with a social media campaign that mimicked grassroots support that eventually translated into reality as he began to command large crowds at any public event that he attended.
On a larger scale, this kind of information operation is also used by political parties and their affiliates to influence public perspectives and opinions on various issues. This is done through a coordinated use of fake social media accounts and content farms. The content farms manufacture disinformation or political propaganda that is then distributed, disseminated and propagated through their network of inauthentic accounts. The goal behind this is to distort public opinion on social media as they can artificially boost support for specific political figures, campaigns and rhetoric.
With people being more connected through social media, their worldviews are easily influenced by what they see online. Social media and its AI-powered algorithms curate each person’s feeds and these systems are easily manipulated (which was first exposed in the Cambridge Analytica scandal). The naturalistic and targeted nature of social media feeds often gives people the false impression that social media is representative of ‘popular’ public opinion.
In most situations, digital astroturfing efforts are seen as antagonistic actions; trolls that attack political opponents through insults or disinformation. But there have been instances in the region where more positive and less direct actions are used such as the Indonesian buzzers.
Buzzers are a form of astroturfing but it is used in a seemingly more ‘positive’ and less controversial fashion. Buzzers promote political issues positively and seek to control public opinion by overwhelming public discourse with mainly positive and supportive perspectives on a topic. Their use of misinformation or other more negative forms of influence is more limited as their focus is on offering political insider perspectives. Buzzers can easily argue that they are expressing personal opinions and are not antagonising their opponents and thus are seen as ‘clean’ and acceptable.
There is no standardised formal method to fight back against digital astroturfing efforts. As many of these efforts can be veiled as individuals exercising their freedom of speech to engage in political discussions online (even using fake accounts), regulation of these activities can be challenging for fear of regulatory overreach.
EMBED START Video {id: "editor_10"}
It is the actions of regular people that are most effective in putting a stop to astroturfing. If any such cybertrooper is identified, mass reporting by people is an effective way to stop these accounts (especially if they engage in spreading misinformation, which is usually a violation of most public social media platforms).
But that is often specific to certain platforms but not for others and again it also depends on the level of engagement of the community in doing this sort of citizen policing. The press has not been part of this discourse as trust in the media is at an all-time low. Trust in the media has been declining for decades now as people have started to rely more on social media for their daily news consumption. With declining readership and revenue from a very crowded news space, media outlets are fighting for their survival as they endure an identity crisis. Pushing back against digital astroturfing would be one such duty that contemporary media should undertake.
With several general elections happening soon in Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar and Pakistan, digital astroturfing is expected to play a more prominent role in deciding who will win. The media can step up to engage in countering these efforts so it can restore trust in the people and establish good boundaries to rally people back to quality media standards.
It is a huge challenge for already cash-strapped media outlets, but this is the new battleground for information and if the media wants to remain relevant in the social media age, it needs to be more involved in countering misinformation.
Benjamin YH Loh is a senior lecturer at the School of Media and Communication, Taylor’s University, Malaysia and an associate with the Asia Centre in Bangkok, Thailand. He is a media scholar who employs digital ethnography in studying emergent cultures and the digital public sphere. He tweets at @ThatBenLoh.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story "Update Press freedom" sent at: 01/05/2023 10:05.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on May 3, 2023
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"author": "Benjamin YH Loh"
}
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2,204 |
The tourists who visit Ukraine’s warzones - 360
Philipp Wassler
Published on February 23, 2023
War attracts a certain type of tourist as Ukraine has discovered. Apart from safety issues, the legal and ethical ramifications are complex.
The posts are from many different people but usually begin the same way: “I am looking to volunteer in Ukraine …” The queries are from medical professionals, former soldiers, truck drivers, college students and countless others. Some have weapons; many don’t. All have the same goal: to get to Ukraine and join the war.
One video on the “volunteers for Ukraine” subreddit forum is of a school janitor from Montana now helping evacuate women and children from battle zones. Another is a mother-of-two and nurse from Los Angeles helping the wounded on the frontlines. One older woman dropped everything in the US and now helps save animals caught up in the chaos.
The idea of visiting a warzone may seem crazy but since Russia invaded Ukraine 12 months ago, there has emerged a group determined to get firsthand experience of the battlefields.
Tourism to Ukraine was just starting to recover from the devastation of COVID-19 when Russian president Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion. The bulk of the fighting has taken place in the country’s east. Farther west, despite regular missile attacks on the capital Kyiv and other cities, tourism is still encouraged, despite the risks.
Tourists who have recently visited Ukraine speak of Kyiv as being surprisingly similar to peacetime (albeit with more poverty on the streets and less-crowded public transport). Favourable exchange rates make services cheap and most banks, hospitals, pharmacies, shops and restaurants operate as normal. There is a downside, though — the risk of being shot, blown up, wounded, poisoned, infected or trapped.
Despite the risks, the flow of foreigners to Ukraine has not let up, although reliable statistics are scarce. The Ukrainian government established a foreign legion just days after the invasion. Thousands responded. One military commentator labelled these foreigners fighting in Ukraine as a “legion of the damned”, an army of “misfits, veterans and war tourists”.
Some of these war tourists pay the ultimate price. Australian man Sage O’Donnell was killed just before Christmas. The ex-soldier was helping train Ukrainian volunteers when he died. He’s the fourth Australian to be killed. Overall, more than 112 foreigners have perished while many others have been captured by the Russians.
War tourism is not a new phenomenon, as historical sources cite the presence of onlookers at historical battles such as the battle of Waterloo and the American Civil War’s Battle of Bull Run.
Shortly after the start of the Russian invasion, the subreddit “volunteers for Ukraine” was created and had 50,000 members within a month. Text processing of more than 10,000 posts showed the main topics for discussion within the forum.
Combat volunteers asked information on issues such as “equipment and resources”, “language skills”, “basic training”, “military background” and need for “prior service”. Non-combat volunteers shared information on “medical experience”, “medical training”, “medical supplies” and “combat zone experience”.
Other forum members said they would not travel to the combat zone directly, but try to support Ukraine through financial donations, online information sharing and dismantling fake news.
Usually war sites are only visited once conflict has subsided, but recent studies suggest the practice of travelling to active areas of conflict is growing, a phenomenon which is referred to as “hot” war tourism. Although mostly not explicitly stated, from their posts it can be inferred they were interested in watching, a voyeuristic view on a spectacle as real as it gets.
These potential war tourists were concerned with “logistics and barriers”, “how to cross the border” and “how to acquire a plane ticket”. “Cold weather gear”, “sleeping bags” and “language skills” were other issues of interest among them.
Travel to conflict zones as a volunteer or paid foreign fighter is illegal in many countries, but this seldom applies to visit active war zones as an onlooker. Governments around the world are mostly unequivocal: do not travel to Ukraine.
In the case of Ukraine, studies have suggested war tourists often end up as active participants in the conflict. Westerners have also entered Ukraine to fight for the Russian side.
Whether it is ethical to visit an active warzone for whatever reason is up for debate. And whether tourists arrive with the intention to be actively involved in the conflict is not clear and reliable data is not available.
What is clear is the lack of understanding, control and legal frameworks to regulate war tourism and its related dangers.
Philipp Wassler is an Italian academic and author specialising in travel and tourism, with a passion for controversial and ethically challenging facets of the industry. He enjoys travelling to unconventional destinations, among which a trip to North Korea was a highlight.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Ukraine one year on” sent at: 24/02/2023 16:21.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on February 23, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-tourists-who-visit-ukraines-warzones/",
"author": "Philipp Wassler"
}
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The uneasy state of screen media - 360
Reece Hooker
Published on October 18, 2023
Disney is celebrating 100 years, but the future of the entertainment industry is up in the air.
Disney is ringing in its hundredth anniversary amid a precarious landscape of on-screen entertainment.
Since its start as a Kansas City film studio, the company has become a global entertainment conglomerate, a juggernaut that dominates media, theme parks, merchandising and more.
With a portfolio spanning Star Wars, GoPro, SportsCenter, The Avengers and the History Channel, Disney has extended its reach far beyond the silver screen.
But it hits the century mark at a time when the future of screen media feels more uncertain than ever.
In 2019, legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese argued it was a “perilous time in film exhibition” – and then a pandemic struck.
Now the golden age of television could be coming to an abrupt halt: streaming subscription numbers are plummeting, and the big providers are panicking: Netflix is cracking down on password sharing, Warner Bros. Discovery canned near-finished streaming projects in a tax write-off, and Disney is yanking content from its platform (sometimes, leaving creators with no access to their own work).
To add to the mess, a bruising strike by the Writers Guild of America cost California’s economy more than USD$3 billion, due to projects paused or cancelled amid the work stoppage. In September, a deal was struck to end the strike, with writers landing concessions on pay and the use of artificial intelligence in production.
Meanwhile, video games — the rising giant of screen media — are hitting an inflection point of their own.
Microsoft has just sealed a USD$69 billion acquisition of game publisher Activision Blizzard after nearly two years in regulatory limbo. The deal, which could net beleaguered chief executive Bobby Kotich USD$375 million, may reshape the industry.
A key sticking point in litigation with console rival Sony is the status of hit franchise Call of Duty, which Sony fought to ensure would remain available on their PlayStation platforms.
The value of platform exclusivity is an ongoing question in gaming. Microsoft’s mammoth spending on acquisitions suggests the company sees it as the battleground on which the future of gaming will be won.
Their first salvo in the console wars — Starfield — was the biggest Xbox exclusive game in nearly a decade and a massive success, drawing more than 10 million players in its opening month.
There is no doubt that film, television and gaming remain beloved spaces that command huge attention and reshape what is possible through art.
But production costs are higher than ever, creators are unhappy with how much they’re paid, and consumers are hooked on low-priced monthly subscriptions.
It’s clear that new ways of doing business need to be found.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on October 18, 2023
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-uneasy-state-of-screen-media/",
"author": "Reece Hooker"
}
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The unique role of religion in managing diabetes - 360
Iman Permana
Published on January 17, 2024
Culture and religion can provide essential support for Javanese people coping with illness.
For people in Java living with diabetes, spirituality and religion play a significant role in managing their condition. The highly spiritual Javanese tend to think everything that happens in the world — including illness — has a divine purpose. They believe that if they can endure their illness with patience, God will forgive them of their sins.
This attitude is a demonstration that the illness has raised a person’s ability to accept their situation as God’s will, with the self-awareness to adhere to diabetic management guidelines, bringing enjoyment of their daily activities despite their disease. Social cohesion and social support are also important aspects of social determinants of health in managing diabetes.
Studies show that social and cultural aspects of people with diabetes have contributed to the development of the illness, as well as associated complications. For example, social ties are important among Javanese people, and respecting invitations to social gatherings can lead to diversion from prescribed dietary management plans.
If left untreated, diabetes can bring numerous complications. It is a leading cause of stroke, heart attack, kidney failure, blindness, and amputation of lower limbs.
Diabetes is on the increase globally. It affects 529 million people and is predicted to reach 1.3 billion people in 2050. Indonesia has shown a similar trend, with 19.5 million people with diabetes in 2021, and projected to reach 28.6 million in 2045.
Of the 34 provinces in Indonesia, Yogyakarta has one of the highest rates of people with diabetes.
Riskesdas, a household health survey conducted every five years, showed Yogyakarta had a 3.1 percent prevalence in 2018, higher than the national number of two percent. One reason for this may be that as Yogyakarta has one of the highest life expectancy rates in Indonesia, the proportion of elderly people increases, and with that comes the possibility of chronic illnesses, especially diabetes.
Despite its devastating effects, diabetes is considered preventable. A healthy diet, regular physical activity, stress management and avoiding smoking are among the preventive measures that reduce the possibility of developing diabetes mellitus.
As culture and religion are intertwined in daily life in Java, the way Javanese patients manage stress, for instance, is influenced by a blend of cultural and religious customs.
The influence of Islam, the main religion in the Javanese society, has a big influence on many aspects of daily life.
Submission is a concept that is shared between Islam (tawakkal) and Javanese culture (pasrah). Submission can take multiple forms, such as submission to authority (husbands and doctors) or to a higher power (surrender to God, or berserah).
In Indonesia and especially in Javanese culture, women’s lives are traditionally devoted to the welfare of the family, so they are not in a position to assert autonomy or independence, because of cultural expectations and social standards. It is often believed that a woman’s greatest virtue is her devotion to her husband and God.
The concept of submitting the illness to God (Allah) and trying to be patient has an important role in coping with diabetes, according to an ethnographic study conducted in 2022. Some people believe that their illness is a test from God, and this may prevent them from worrying too much about it. When they pass the test, they become elevated (naik derajat) – like students passing an exam, progressing to a higher grade.
The study validates earlier findings that suggested patients with diabetes may use religion and spirituality as coping strategies. Surrender offers individuals a useful tool to regain control by exhibiting their capacity to remain patient, kind and appreciative in the face of adversity. True acceptance (nrima), a Javanese virtue, is the act of accepting what God has given, without resistance. Some women with diabetes who practised this form of submission were found to be more likely to tolerate pain without resisting.
Submission also offers individuals a useful way to regain control by emphasising their capacity to remain calm, gracious and appreciative in the face of adversity. Although, to some point, nrima is reached when a person’s ability to cope with daily social activities is still fulfilled. Indeed, this concept reflects how the idea of submission supports preventive diabetes management. It resonates with a theme of submission to fate as an active position, instead of passively accepting the condition as it is.
Nevertheless, different understanding still exists among various societies where nrima leads to a negative fatalism, in which God is the main actor who gives rise to the disease as well as its cure. This notion is a demonstration of the complex contribution of religion and spirituality in a society with a rich culture.
The increasing prevalence of diabetes, along with its physical, psychological and social effects, makes clear that the preventive approaches that have been taken are still inadequate to reduce its progress. A more comprehensive approach could be implemented, one that considers the social and cultural aspects of a society in developing more appropriate measures critical to the success of diabetes prevention.
Iman Permana is an associate professor at Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. He is also a researcher in the Centre for Islamic Medicine and Health Studies, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at the same university.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Living with diabetes” sent at: 15/01/2024 06:00.
This is a corrected repeat.
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on January 17, 2024
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"url": "https://360info.org/the-unique-role-of-religion-in-managing-diabetes/",
"author": "Iman Permana"
}
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2,207 |
The untapped potential of effective non-drug treatments - 360
Paul Glasziou
Published on December 15, 2021
Compiled by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, HANDI is the world’s first compendium of drug-free medical treatment.
By Paul Glasziou, Bond University
In 2017, while travelling around rural India, Rae Thomas’s adolescent daughter began experiencing dizziness and nausea lasting for several hours. Rae recalled hearing that a head rotation procedure could help with the most common cause of persistent dizziness. Using her mobile phone she found a description of the Epley manoeuvre (or canalith repositioning) on the HANDI (Handbook of NonDrug Interventions) website, watched the linked video a few times, and performed the procedure. Her daughter’s relief was immediate – though it needed repeating over the next few days. Rae was aware of this option only because she worked at the same university as the developers of HANDI.
The Epley manoeuvre is just one of dozens of effective ‘non-drug’ treatments which are under-used by doctors and patients.
Some have substantial, research-supported effects: exercise (as part of “pulmonary rehabilitation”) for patients with chronic airways disease can prevent 70 percent of hospital re-admissions and deaths; daily sunscreen can cut invasive melanoma rates by 50 percent; and ‘external cephalic version’, turning an in-utero baby by pushing on the mother’s abdomen, can avoid 50 percent of dangerous breech births.
If there were drugs that were similarly effective, doctors and patients would clamour for access; companies would set high prices. But unlike their pharmaceutical brethren, these non-drug treatments are less intensively researched, poorly described in that research, weakly regulated, and unmarketed – especially when free or cheap.
One explanation for their relative neglect has been the lack of a respected compendium, equivalent to the pharmacopoeias (drug handbooks) which doctors look up when prescribing. Instead, the trials of effective non-drug treatments are widely scattered in the vast oceans of research literature. There is no regulatory body (such as the TGA in Australia or FDA in the USA) to pass judgment on which are effective. And usually no company has an interest in marketing them.
Non-drug treatments fall into several generic classes: exercise (general and specific), diet, cognitive behavioural therapy, physical manoeuvres, but also a wide range of others.
Perhaps the most neglected non-drug ‘treatment’ is exercise for chronic illness – lung disease, heart failure, cancer fatigue, diabetes, depression, and so on. While exercise is often promoted for prevention in healthy people, ill people have the most to gain, but are often fearful of exercise. Exercise can bring on symptoms such as breathlessness and fatigue, but, with persistence, will improve function and quality of life, and often reduce relapses and improve survival.
In the past decade, we recognised that specific exercises can often overcome functional deficits. Some of these are described in Norman Doidge’s popular book The Brain that Changes Itself which sets out the discovery and impact of brain plasticity for rehabilitation. One clinical example is “mirror therapy” – where patients perform activities via feedback from a mirror –successfully used to treat phantom limb pain and regional pain syndromes after stroke.
To address the lack of a compendium, in 2013 Australia’s Royal College of General Practitioners (RACGP) began to compile effective non-drug interventions relevant to primary care.
Based on the format of modern drug handbooks, each HANDI entry includes indications, contraindications and ‘dosing’. The aim is to make ‘prescribing’ a non-drug therapy almost as easy as writing a prescription for a drug. It enables clinicians to offer a greater choice of interventions to a patient, who may wish to avoid drugs and the risks and lifestyle changes often associated with drug treatment regimes. Since its launch in 2015 HANDI has become steadily more popular with Australian GPs, and has been incorporated into many local ‘clinical pathways’, but it is under-used compared with drug-based options.
HANDI is one step towards improved non-drug interventions, but other problems are yet to be tackled. One issue is how poorly non-drug treatments are described in current medical trials – one study showed less than half are sufficiently clearly described to allow replication in follow-up studies; this also creates problems in reviewing the evidence and making recommendations.
Another barrier is the lack of inclusion in medical training – pharmacology is taught but not as much ‘non-pharmacology’. But perhaps the most important problem is that many of these non-drug treatments are free or cheap and have no copyright, so there is no one to profit other than the patient.
The pandemic has taught us the important role of non-drug interventions – such as social distancing, avoiding crowds, better ventilation, and masks. Let’s hope that lesson is not forgotten.
The RACGP’s HANDI working group meets six times per year, collecting possible topics from a variety of sources. Each potential HANDI entry then goes through a three-step process before being published.
The group assesses the proposed non-drug intervention, by considering two questions:
1. Is the evidence strong enough?
2. Is the intervention relevant to and practical for general practitioners?
Treatment must be supported by at least two positive, good-quality randomised controlled trials (RCTs) with patient-relevant outcomes, or one RCT with strong supportive evidence for the causal connection under investigation.
Next a group member works with a medical writer to develop a detailed “how to” guide for the use of the non-drug intervention which includes indications, contraindications, precautions, adverse effects, availability and description of intervention, plus consumer resources.
The draft entry is reviewed at a subsequent committee meeting prior to finalisation and publication onto the HANDI website.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Paul Glasziou is chair of the HANDI project team, Professor of Evidence-Based Practice at Bond University and the Director of the Institute for Evidence Based Healthcare. His key interests include identifying and removing barriers to using high quality research in everyday clinical practice.
Prof Glasziou is supported by a Fellowship from the NHMRC.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on December 15, 2021
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"author": "Paul Glasziou"
}
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The urban jungle needs more trees - 360
TamilSalvi Mari
Published on March 17, 2023
As cities grow and heat up, it’s time to get rid of your air-conditioner and have more plants in your homes.
Ever wonder what’s the most cost-effective solution to cool the temperature? Simple. Planting more trees or incorporating more vegetation/plants in city design. It puts a new slant on the idea of the ‘urban jungle’.
Climate change is one of the most serious risks to urban life. Our cities are heating up. The dangers of the urban heat island — when concrete buildings, asphalt roads and other urban infrastructure absorb and re-emit solar radiation more than natural landscapes — are well documented, increasing temperatures in built-up areas which can increase the risk of heat-related illnesses.
Poorly planned city development increases this risk. According to the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity only 40 percent of the urban areas expected to exist by 2030 exist, meaning significant further urban development will occur over the next decade.
“Nature-based solutions” refer to a wide range of strategies with the potential to curb greenhouse gas emissions. They can improve an ecosystem’s capacity to absorb carbon dioxide or reverse degradation to the point where an ecosystem once again becomes a “net sink” of carbon (storing more carbon than it emits).
Of all the methods for reducing the heat island effect, those involving plants have proven to be the most successful. There is still disagreement in the scientific community over how much green space people need and whether current systems adequately address this issue, despite the importance of urban green space to the layout and impact of today’s dense urban centres. The World Health Organization advocates for easy access to green space, suggesting everyone lives no more than 300 metres from a green area covering at least half a hectare.
Vegetation can mitigate the effects of extreme climate, reduce energy use, and improve people’s physical and physiological well-being, all of which go a long way towards making urban living more bearable.
In tropical regions, buildings exposed to more sunlight increase energy demand. Using plants for shade can reduce solar radiation, cool the building and improve energy efficiency. While trees have been planted to shade homes for generations, there has been substantial innovation in the application strategy in recent years.
Plants for tropical cities by Chris Bartlett, 360info, CCBY4.0
Tree canopies cool the ground below by blocking sunlight and controlling how much heat a building radiates into the environment. For tropical cities, Ceylon Ironwood trees have dense branching, and high leaf coverage provides excellent shading. Due to the shade, less absorbed heat is radiated to the air, encouraging evapotranspiration, reducing the surrounding temperature and increasing people’s thermal comfort. Indoor and outdoor temperatures can be lowered by more than 3 degrees when plants are used to modify the microclimate.
The shading performance of each species is different, resulting in varying scales of effectiveness on microclimate alterations, making living walls with climbers and creepers a suitable alternative when there is no space for trees.
A “living wall” is a system that irrigates and sustains a vertical garden. Living walls can influence the microclimate by reducing surrounding temperature and may also be part of a water treatment system.
Vegetation incorporated into a building’s exterior has two purposes: it lowers the heat transferred inside and improves the building’s look. A green facade is one in which plants such as vines and creepers are grown directly on the building’s exterior, while green walls are one in which a system is used to cultivate different species of plants along the wall surfaces.
Green facades and green walls are two common living wall systems that increase a building’s energy efficiency. Green facades have vegetation either planted directly in the ground or planters climbing onto building surfaces or light framework, and green walls have vegetation growing on a different system then attached to the wall instead of being planted directly. A green wall uses materials and innovative technology to cultivate various plants along the wall surfaces. A continuous green wall, also known as a “vertical garden,” usually instils lightweight and permeable frames where plants would be planted individually.
Climbing plants like Double Rangoon for a green façade are essential for optimal performance and a sustainable living environment. Climbers like the Yellow Trumpet vines create a more pleasant microclimate, while the Curtain Creeper lowers the surrounding temperature and cleanses the air.
Urban farming is not as cutting edge as you think; people have been doing so for centuries at Machu Picchu and the ancient Hanging Gardens of Babylon. People all across the world have always had gardens in their homes. They shaped their surroundings to enhance their quality of life. Today’s urban garden integration has progressed, emphasising their ability to reduce greenhouse emissions and greening cities.
Green infrastructure could help the city coordinate the revitalisation of unused, abandoned, or underutilised spaces. Small-scale farming in these areas might offer urban residents food while reducing carbon emissions. Spaces between buildings (interstices) in the city can be used for urban farming, which also helps modify the city’s microclimate. Rooftops, balconies, and vacant lots are all excellent places to start an urban farm.
The presence of vegetation significantly influences a building’s microclimate. It has been demonstrated that vegetation can reduce temperatures by 1.32 to 5 degrees Celsius compared to a hard surface area. Because of evapotranspiration, vegetation can lower local temperatures, hence altering microclimates.
Urban greening can mitigate the urban heat island effect, especially in the spaces between buildings. Using plants to moderate the heat and reduce dependency on artificial cooling can be the seed of a solution to the dangers of rapidly heating cities.
Ts Dr Tamil Salvi Mari is a senior lecturer in architecture at Taylor’s University, Malaysia. Salvi’s research area revolves around investigating humane design — the interaction between humans, the built environment and the natural environment, focusing on current societal and environmental needs.
This article was originally published March 13, 2023.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “Hot house” sent at: 22/05/2023 08:03.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on March 17, 2023
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{
"license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
"url": "https://360info.org/the-urban-jungle-needs-more-trees/",
"author": "TamilSalvi Mari"
}
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2,209 |
The war is not over for Nepal's displaced - 360
Som Niroula
Published on June 19, 2023
Ten years of civil war in Nepal pushed many people out of their homes. 17 years later, many still suffer.
For a decade between 1996-2006, Maoist insurgents waged a guerilla war against the government in Nepal.
The conflict, in which at least 17,000 people were killed, was marked by murders, rapes and kidnappings of civilians. Around 200,000 ordinary Nepalese were forced to flee their homes.
Almost 17 years after the peace accord, many of the people who fled or were forced out have still not returned. Many ended up in India. Those displaced by the fighting faced severe hardship with little or no support from authorities.
In a developing nation like Nepal, internally displaced people do not get much support. They mostly receive help from local communities, civil society organisations or non-government humanitarian organisations.
The date Shyam Sundar K.C was tortured is etched in his memory. Around midnight on November 24, 2002, seven armed men broke into Shyam’s house and broke his leg in four places. He passed out from the pain. It wasn’t until the following day, after he lay in agony for hours, that he was taken to hospital in Kathmandu.
Shyam had to borrow the money to pay his medical expenses which were $USD4,000 — a fortune by Nepal’s standards, where the average annual income at the time was a mere USD$240. While he eventually received $USD1,000 to help, it wasn’t enough to cover his bills and he struggled to make ends meet.
Kalyan Budhathoki was forced off the land his family had farmed for generations when Communist Party of Nepal cadres appropriated his property and forced him and his family to leave their village. There was no warning: Kalyan was given instructions to move out of his home immediately and leave all his belongings. He and his family moved to the city, where they found it difficult to adjust.
Janak Raut was tortured during the conflict. He was forced to flee his village due to the continuous threat from the village’s government-backed self-defence committee (these committees used the threat of violence to get information and prevent Maoists from entering villages). Even after he fled, Janak was not safe. He moved from town to town before finally landing in Kathmandu. Like many torture victims, he had ongoing medical issues.
When Janak fled, he was forced to leave his children behind. The fear of reprisals from state-backed officials meant his children had to sleep in the paddy field.
This level of violence and fear has contributed to psychosocial problems of the displaced and conflict victims. People were terrorised by the allegation of spying and extortion by Maoist combatants demanding shelter and food. It became difficult for people to stay at home as the killings, torture and kidnappings became common.
The forceful evictions of civilians (farmers, labourers, teachers or entrepreneurs) created insecurity, helplessness and uncertainty. The conflict and subsequent natural disasters such as earthquakes, landslides, floods and forest fires are the major contributing factors of internal displacement in Nepal.
The people caught between the warring parties continue to suffer.
Nepal’s government adopted a policy on Internal Displacement in 2007 which has not been properly implemented.
The government and Maoists agreed to form a National Peace and Rehabilitation Commission to address grievances of people victimised by the conflict and allow internally displaced people to return to their homes without any hindrance.
It hasn’t worked.
Despite the commitment to return property, Maoist cadres who seized property have not returned it to the victims.
The government of Nepal has established two commissions — the Truth and Reconciliation Commision and the Commission on Enforced Disappearances — to investigate the gross human rights violations during the armed conflict. However, the law does not consider internal displacement as a human rights violation.
There have been no serious discussions about internal displacement and its consequences. Most discussions have centred on killing, disappearances, torture and sexual violence. Internally displaced people experienced difficulties through economic hardship, cultural shock and psychosocial problems.
Adopting a comprehensive transitional justice mechanism that addresses the grievances of internally displaced persons is important to acknowledge the suffering of the victims and the potential solutions for their future.
Comprehensive reparation packages with health, education, rehabilitation and psychosocial support are essential for internally displaced people.
Som Niroula is a research associate with Calcutta Research Group and associated with the South Asia Forum for Human Rights (SAFHR).
This article is part of a Special Report on ‘Shock mobility’, produced in collaboration with the Calcutta Research Group.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on June 19, 2023
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{
"license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
"url": "https://360info.org/the-war-is-not-over-for-nepals-displaced/",
"author": "Som Niroula"
}
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2,210 |
The way to get an economy that benefits everyone - 360
Katherine Trebeck
Published on June 7, 2023
A transition to an economy that benefits everyone and the planet is not easy, but it can happen.
We live in a wasteful society — many of us consume heavily in ways that exploit people at the end of the supply chain. Those with more resources hold more power, and it is those same people who have caused much of the destruction of our environment.
Introducing a wellbeing economy that considers the changes needed to deliver equitable benefits can help shift beyond an economy that benefits the few to an economy that can benefit us all, while cherishing our planet.
A 2022 Guardian poll found 58 percent of respondents believed Australia’s economic system is “broken” and “the government needs to make fundamental changes to sort it out”.
But government corrective action that comes from trying to fix an issue, rather than addressing the root of the problem, can be a huge strain on public resources which can be better allocated.
Instead of attending to crises in isolation, creating positive policies and decisions through a wellbeing lens can prevent repetition of the same issue.
This more humane and sustainable economy can be judged by several factors. The policies to get there may or may not be referred to as ‘wellbeing policies’ — what matters is whether a policy or practice helps build an economy that provides everyone with what’s needed to live with dignity and purpose. Also that it restores and protects the natural environment, ensures a just distribution of income, wealth and power, and that it’s shaped and determined by people’s active voices.
The changes needed are like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle — each matter and none on its own is sufficient. As with any jigsaw, you start with the corners.
In a wellbeing economy, the corners are the ‘4Ps. Purpose — to realign the goal of the economy (and its components) with the needs of people and the planet. Prevention — tackling things at their root cause rather than putting bandaids on once the damage is done. Predistribution — getting the economy to do more of the heavy lifting in delivering a more balanced distribution of resources. People-powered — putting people and communities at the forefront of decisions that shape how our economy runs.
Involving the community in decision-making can help ensure fairness, but can also sustain the longevity of a project or policy.
It emphasises ‘participatory and equitable design‘: the need to consult more widely before rolling out a policy that will disproportionately affect a section of society, but also includes communities in the development and implementation.
Rash and rushed changes bring risks of backlash. Change can be confusing and concerning for those affected unless they feel in control — communities that feel ambushed by changes have often shown resistance.
For example, the Scottish Government proposed a deposit return scheme where people pay a small fee when buying a drink in a single-use can or bottle, then receive the money back when it’s returned. An important step to help make the economy more circular. But the scheme is under threat as there are arguments it will negatively affect smaller retailers with tighter profit margins and claims of inadequate consultation.
The French ‘yellow vests’ movement which began in 2018 were attended by hundreds of thousands of people. It began as a protest against French President Emmanuel Macron’s introduction of a green tax on diesel, impacting people on lower incomes who need to commute long distances the most.
Positive examples of community consultation in areas that need to move away from reliance on fossil fuels include the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales, Australia, where 130 residents were consulted to contribute to a ‘community blueprint‘ for how to best deploy funds to suit the needs and priorities of residents. In the city of Gladstone, Queensland, local government, industry energy workers, Indigenous groups, environmental groups and education institutions were all invited to be involved in the transition to becoming a renewable energy hub in the next decade.
And change is possible. The Australian Government recently announced the Net Zero Authority will help retrain workers whose livelihoods once depended on fossil fuels to find new jobs during the country’s transition. There are also grassroots groups like the Earthworker Cooperative that bring people, groups and businesses together to help support them in their move from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources.
The demand is also there. UK think tank IPPR found 97 percent of workers across different high-carbon industries would consider moving into a low-carbon sector job “with the right support”. Environmental NGO Friends of the Earth Scotland reported more than half of 1,383 oil and gas workers in the UK Continental Shelf would be interested in renewables and offshore wind, given the option of re-training.
Ensuring the transition to a wellbeing economy is just — guided by justice, equity and inclusivity — is necessary to “achieve revolution without revolt”. Change is hard, it takes time and the implementation will likely be staggered. People will need support to adjust, even to grieve. Many of the component parts of a wellbeing economy, including community wealth building and re-industrialisation of local communities via circular economy enterprises, can bring tangible benefits for those who are currently most disadvantaged.
Business as usual cannot carry on continuing to benefit only a selected few. First Nations communities around the world have kept ties to the land they live on for generations — recognising how people, our planet and the economy are all connected. And we can do the same.
The question is whether societies sit on their hands — and face worse upheaval — or proactively seek to transform the economy and the environment around them.
is writer-at-large at the University of Edinburgh, consultant to the Club of Rome and Economic Strategy Advisor to The Next Economy. She co-founded the Wellbeing Economy Alliance and also WEAll Scotland.
The article was written as part of the author’s time as economic strategy advisor to The Next Economy.
This story has been republished as part of a special report on the Economic Slowdown. It was originally published on June 1, 2023.
Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.
Editors Note: In the story “WELLBEING ECONOMY” sent at: 05/06/2023 07:00.
This is a corrected repeat.
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news-360info
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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463
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Published on June 7, 2023
|
{
"license": "Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
"url": "https://360info.org/the-way-to-get-an-economy-that-benefits-everyone/",
"author": "Katherine Trebeck"
}
|
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