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Choosing the right trees for a changing climate - 360 Manuel Esperon-Rodriguez, Sally Power, Mark Tjoelker Published on February 28, 2022 Climate change is killing trees in cities, forcing changes in urban planning. Just as climate change has damaged over 10 million hectares of forests in the Canadian province of British Columbia, it is killing trees in cities too. In urban environments, trees are threatened by heatwaves and lack of rain, both predicted to increase in coming decades. Towns and cities are often home to a great diversity of trees, including those with a high tolerance of climate extremes, but species’ selection criteria and climate-risk assessments are poorly documented. Tree selection and planning are important. Urban forests are made up of trees, shrubs and other plants grown in streetscapes, parks and greenways, as well as already existing native vegetation. They benefit humans by reducing heat, absorbing air pollution, providing homes for wildlife, and improving health. These forests surround built environments, such as concrete structures, streets, pedestrian walkways and bike paths, all of which amplify the effects of climate warming. People also enjoy looking at trees, which is important. Access to these green spaces enhances our connections with nature and improves mental health, particularly during pandemic lockdowns. Although urban forests are affected by climate change, they are also critical in making our cities liveable and resilient to climate change. For example, planting and preserving trees, particularly large ones, can help reduce urban heat by shading buildings and pavements, providing natural cooling and reducing energy use. Urban trees also help via transpiration — the evaporation of water that is released to the air through plant leaves — resulting in localised cooling. Many cities around the world are now building resilience through urban greening, as governments and communities gain a better understanding of the changing climate. However, climate projections have not been readily accessible or widely used in urban landscape planning. Increases in tree canopy cover need to be planned decades in advance due to their slow growth. But so far, local government decisions are more often based on what’s been historically planted, which may no longer suit  — contributing to the failures of urban species in extreme climate conditions today. For example, more than half (53 percent) of 1,342 tree species currently growing in 22 Australian cities are vulnerable to high temperatures and low rainfall in at least one city where they are planted. The lack of data on the environmental tolerance of urban plants exacerbates uncertainties around decision-making. Councils and municipalities do not keep consistent records of failure rates of new or established trees. Anecdotal knowledge is instead shared by staff, contractors and community members, but has limited applicability to areas outside the specific municipality and is not publicly available. Urban forests are typically closely stewarded and managed — including by watering through periods of drought — combatting some of the negative effects of climate change. This can help some tree species to survive in regions where they would not naturally occur. However, irrigation is not a sustainable solution in many places due to globally increasing water shortages. We need to choose the right trees for the right location. Identifying and quantifying what leads to poor growth or death can optimise resources and minimise financial losses for local governments and residents. To maintain sustainable urban forests in a changing climate, it will be necessary to improve our knowledge of urban plants’ heat and drought tolerance, along with efficient maintenance of urban plantings and detailed monitoring through time. The trees left to protect the hotter cities of the future will depend on the planning actions we make today. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Dr Manuel Esperon-Rodriguez is a postdoctoral fellow at Western Sydney University. His current areas of research mainly focus on urban ecology, landscape ecology, vulnerability and climate change. Professor Sally Power is an ecosystems ecologist t Western Sydney University. She studies the direct and indirect effects of climate change on plants and ecosystems, including urban ecosystems. Professor Mark Tjoelker is the Associate Director of the Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment at Western Sydney University. He an internationally recognised expert on the physiology and ecology of forest trees and climate change biology, particularly the role of climate effects on tree physiology and growth. The authors received funding from the Hort Frontiers Green Cities Fund, part of the Hort Frontiers strategic partnership initiative developed by Hort Innovation, with co-investment from Macquarie University, Western Sydney University and the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment and contributions from the Australian Government. This article has been republished in the wake of heatwaves in India, China and Europe. It first appeared on March 11, 2022.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 28, 2022

Cities can be safe havens for endangered plants and animals - 360 Sarah Bekessy, Georgia Garrard, Tasha Wibawa Published on October 31, 2022 Creating better connections between humans and nature is the first step to bringing back animals into our cities. In the grassy bushland of the Adelaide Hills Barossa Valley, a little fluffy bird, no bigger than the size of a ping pong ball, hops along the unmarked path — the superb fairywren. A proud puffed chest of navy feathers, perhaps from being crowned Australia’s bird of the year several times. The striking blue cap adorning its head in contrast to the muted greens and browns of the land is hard to miss — an encouraging result of conservation efforts by the South Australian government. But further southwest in Adelaide city lies a far less habitable ground for the little blue birds. Cities are hotspots for plants and animals that are threatened with extinction. Habitats of some of the most critically endangered plants, animals and even entire ecosystems are being destroyed at an alarming rate to accommodate urban sprawl. Australia’s urbanisation has steadily grown since 2002, reaching its highest ever growth rate in 2020. And it’s likely to continue growing as we clear out nature to make room for homes, freeways, car parks and backyard pools. As a result, Australian species like the koala are disappearing before our eyes. So are ones you may not have heard of like powerful owls, grassland earless dragon, the southern brown bandicoot. Or wild flowers like the sunshine diuris orchids and the button wrinklewort. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Creating urban environments that conserve biodiversity through careful planning, design and architecture can bring back nature into our cities. With some policy rethink and clever designs, cities could be safe havens for species to thrive and recover. An important first step is to reframe the way nature is considered in urban planning. Rather than considering nature as a constraint, or a ‘problem’ to be dealt with, it can be an important asset and opportunity. It’s a valued resource to be preserved and maximised at all stages of planning and design. This means carefully regulating to ensure the protection of remaining natural assets — from patches of vegetation to single trees. Otherwise it’s too easy for vegetation to be whittled away to make way for development. Mitigating the impacts of development and creating better connections between humans and nature is the first step in biodiversity-sensitive urban designs. New builds should assess whether there are threatened ecological species in the area, and retain existing native plants and vegetation as much as possible during development. Working with developers, designers, councils, community groups and Traditional Owners to choose species to target will help with conservation. Species can be chosen on the basis that they are charismatic or culturally significant. Or that they provide an important ecosystem service like pollination. The cities of Melbourne and Adelaide, for example, have specifically chosen vegetation that will improve the habitats of birds like the superb fairywren. Cities can be hostile places for plants and animals. The next step is to consider how they will have food, shelter and water to survive — away from threats and predators. In many cases, planting native vegetation can provide much needed food and shelter. In addition, new solutions, like biodiverse green roofs, habitat boxes and insect hotels can also provide food and shelter for a range of animals in cities. Stormwater runoff which can negatively impact native plants and animals such as frogs can be mitigated by vegetated swales and rain gardens. Space is highly contested in cities so finding places where vegetation can benefit people and biodiversity is essential. Installing bird-friendly glass can stop the death or injury of bird collisions and wildlife-friendly lighting is designed to be safe for light sensitive species like moths. Incorporating bird nesting boxes into the external walls of buildings provide safe homes and can encourage breeding.  Road underpasses can also provide animal safety from cars. Nature in cities delivers a raft of additional benefits for threatened species and people. Local biodiversity can create a unique sense of place and is an important opportunity to connect with and build respect for First Nations history and culture. ‘Everyday nature’ delivers a remarkable array of physical and mental well-being benefits and can help make our cities more resilient to extreme weather events, like heat waves, storms and floods. While remnant vegetation, parklands and waterways will be core elements of the ecological network, biodiversity-sensitive urban design also highlights the potential for the built components of our cities to provide critical resources for other species. Other opportunities to incorporate nature for people and other species include streetscapes, backyards, green walls, green roofs, roundabouts, pop-up-parks, school yards, transport routes and office building courtyards. Sarah Bekessy has been teaching in Sustainability and Urban Planning at RMIT University since 2004. She leads the Interdisciplinary Conservation Science research group and has recently commenced an ARC Future Fellowship investigating socio-ecological models for environmental decision making. She received funding from the NHMRC, the H2020 scheme through the European Commission, the Ian Potter Foundation and the Australian Research Council. Georgia Garrard is a senior lecturer in sustainability in the Office for Environmental Programs and School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences at The University of Melbourne. She is an interdisciplinary conservation scientist whose research addresses the critical challenges of conserving bioidiversity in human-dominated landscapes. Georgia Garrard receive funding from The Myer Foundation, the Australian Research Council, and the Ian Potter Foundation The authors declare no conflict of interest. This article has been republished for the COP15 Biodiversity Summit. It was first published on October 26, 2022. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Science against the clock” sent at: 26/10/2022 14:47. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 31, 2022

Citizen action to stem microplastic pollution - 360 Liz Marchio Published on June 8, 2022 For producers of microplastic ‘nurdle’ pellets, the price of packaging is often more than the cost of letting it spill into the ocean. ‘Nurdle’ sounds pretty cute. Is it a sea creature or perhaps a children’s toy? Not even close. Nurdles are microplastics – pre-production pellets the size of lentils. And they are transported everywhere, used to make water bottles, feminine hygiene products, and fast-food containers and utensils. Poorly packaged in their journey from the manufacturer, they frequently leak into oceans and other natural environments. Citizen action can help force manufacturers to stop the leaks and limit the pollution they cause. In 2019 concerned citizens in Texas held Formosa Plastics Corporation to account for polluting local waterways. The people collected nurdles and other pollutants as evidence and filed a civil lawsuit, arguing Formosa had been in violation of its state-issued permit since January 2016. They were awarded US$50 million in damages. The Formosa case means other manufacturers may be held to a similar standard. Other places around the globe, especially in the United States, can use this method of citizen action as a template. Nurdles can be collected anywhere in the world and reported to citizen-science projects such as Nurdle Patrol. This project asks people to take 10 minutes to monitor their local environment – usually waterways and rail lines – for microplastics. Nurdle Patrol uploads their information to a public map and colour-codes it according to the number of nurdles collected. The map can be used to find a good location to start ‘nurdling’. Meanwhile, the pollutants gathered for Nurdle Patrol are stored in the Environmental Microplastics Collection at Southeastern Louisiana University, which attributes collection data to each 10-minute batch of nurdles collected. Monitoring nurdles released into the environment, and studying potentially company-specific chemical composition and nurdle shape, may allow researchers to pinpoint the party responsible for the pollution. Suppliers such as Formosa Plastics Corporation and Dow Chemical make nurdles in pellet formso manufacturers can easily melt them and shape them into a range of plastic items. Nurdles are cheap to make. Their packaging is prone to leakage because it is generally cheaper to lose some nurdles in transit than to package them properly. When nurdles break free of their packaging, they become environmental pollution. They are so small it takes a large spill before the public sees the damage they cause. Even when companies lose nurdles en masse, they usually face little to no responsibility for the environmental clean-up. Laws making it easier to identify and prosecute those responsible for environmental destruction will help reduce nurdle spills. The US state of Louisiana is inching in this direction. It paused the ‘Sunshine Project’, which planned to build a US$9.4-billion plastics manufacturer in an area nicknamed ‘Cancer Alley’: a strip of over 150 petrochemical plants that threatens the health of nearby residents. Cleaning up environmental pollution can be frustrating: it involves picking up other people’s mess. But collective action helping to track and measure nurdle spills will help hold polluters to account and encourage preemptive measures to stop the damage being done in the first place. Better information will also drive improvements in how plastic is produced and transported. Dr Elizabeth Marchio studies public participation in science as a leisure activity, including citizen science projects such as Nurdle Patrol. After a New Orleans nurdle spill in August 2020 her academic interests merged with her attachment to the city of New Orleans, pushing her to monitor nurdles as well as the public perceptions of plastic pollution in Louisiana. Donations of nurdles can be made to the Environmental Microplastics Collection by contacting Dr Liz at microplasticmuseum@gmail.com. Dr Marchio declared no conflicts of interest in relation to this article. This article has been republished for World Environment Day 2023. It was originally published on June 8, 2022. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on June 8, 2022

City where the promise of good health turns to ash - 360 Pinki Chahal, Durairaj Kumarasamy Published on April 24, 2024 Regular stakeholder consultation is needed to address climate change and lessen pollution-related health impacts. India’s air pollution kills more than 2 million people a year. The heavily industrialised city of Panipat, around 80km north of Delhi, is a microcosm of a far wider problem. The city, which is home to more than 20,000 industries and 300,000 workers at sites that include eight Major Accident-Hazardous (MAH) industrial units, has an industrial-sized problem with its citizens’ health. There has been an unprecedented spike in cases of non-communicable diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure, skin and pulmonary diseases in the area. About 93 percent of the households have a history of health issues over five years, according to a primary survey (based on previous reports) of households within 5km of major industrial clusters conducted by the authors from 2022-2023. Respondents reported that about 20 percent of deaths were due to chronic illness, such as heart-related, non-communicable, diabetes, high blood pressure, skin allergies, and asthma. About 87 per cent of the households reported a significant increase in medical expenditure, including frequent doctor visits. About 84 per cent of households had deteriorating health conditions. Burning fossil fuels accounts for over 75 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 90 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions. Industrialisation increases air pollution-related environmental health risks, causing respiratory disorders, asthma, heart and lung disease, cancer, and reduced cognitive function in children. Since 2015, low- and middle-income countries have accounted for more than 90 percent of all pollution-related fatalities worldwide. India is third among 100 most air polluted cities globally. Eighty-three of the most polluted cities are in India. Panipat is in the top 10 percent of 690 air-polluted districts in India and 11th among industrial areas in India due to its highly polluted environment. The effect the pollution from these operations is having on the population would take your breath away. In Khukhrana village, for example, one elderly woman with diabetes and high blood pressure lost vision in her left eye in 2023. Her case is just one of thousands. The source of their suffering: polluted groundwater, air pollution and ash dust due to the proximity of hazardous industrial units. Between 1983 and 1991, 84 hectares of land in Khukrana village were acquired by the Panipat thermal power station. More than half the families in the village sold their land in the hope of jobs and a decent price for their land. The fly ash generated by the coal-fueled thermal plant’s power-generating activities is dumped in a landfill next to the village. From there the ash spreads into nearby areas, causing a spurt in non-communicable diseases and breathing-related ailments. In 2022, a petition was filed against the station operators over hazardous industrial pollution activities, alleging illegal fly ash dumping that led to numerous diseases. It stated that 70 percent of people have asthma, 90 percent have eye illnesses, 70–80 percent have skin illnesses, and 30–40 people have died from cancer. Research has established the relationship between air pollution and non-communicable diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure. Heavy industrial installations, including chemical and oil refineries, pose potential risks to humans, plants, property, and the environment as indicated by the District Disaster Management Plan. But little is being done about it. A survey by the Central Pollution Control Board revealed that 413 industries — approximately 45 percent of 924 gross polluting industries in Panipat — discharge untreated effluents into the Yamuna, the only river flowing through the district’s eastern boundary. A 2010 survey revealed poor water quality in six Panipat city villages, with 36.12 per cent of households experiencing chronic illness. Pollution from cement and power plants was cited as a major factor. Medical visits by local residents soared, with 43.21 percent of residents in Assan Khurd and 43.33 percent in Khukrana reporting multiple visits to local hospitals for a high incidence of respiratory, eye and skin diseases. Villagers have been waiting for decades for the promised relocation. Their homes have been damaged and their health has been severely impacted due to bad water, air, and other conditions. Even the community hall and primary health centre in Khukrana village are in disrepair. Recently, the district administration acquired 40 acres (16 hectares) of land to relocate Khukhrana’s residents. But the families are still not settled or adequately compensated. Additionally, the families’ assets and resources are losing value as hazardous waste is dumped in agriculture fields by industries. Our research also shows that about 38 percent of farmers reported the dumping of hazardous effluents in agriculture fields and 60 per cent reported a reduction in land property price due to infertility of land in various villages in Panipat city. Industries often overlook the social and health costs resulting from industrial emissions and pollution from the manufacturing process, which are borne by the public. Lack of institutional monitoring and accountability further contributes to environmental degradation. Lack of coordination between local residents and industrial stakeholders causes key delays in addressing health-related problems. Industries often fail to release funds for activities to demonstrate corporate social responsibility in local communities, resulting in aggravated health issues. Promoting community-based approaches can generate capacity building for mitigating pollution-related health problems. Industries can take steps to ensure the wellbeing of residents by organizing health camps to detect diseases resulting from their production activities. Commercial areas can be separated from residential areas for preventing health-related hazards. Incentives such as tax rebates can encourage industries to create a safe environment in their places of operation. Licences could be provided through bidding processes by encouraging competition among stakeholders, and allowing more firms to enter the market to combat pollution at lower costs. The Indian government has increased funding for the Control of Pollution scheme, with an allocation exceeding Rs 4 billion in 2019 and Rs 7.5 billion in 2023-24. However, only half of the estimated Rs 4 billion allocated to states was effectively used, with most states barely using 50 percent of the funds. The World Health Organization estimates that outdoor or ambient air pollution is linked to 4.2 million deaths yearly. Additionally, greenhouse gas emissions negatively affect the climate. The relationship between rising emissions and human activities has not been widely acknowledged by society. Emitters are therefore typically not held accountable for the costs of pollution resulting from the emission of greenhouse gases. These costs are ‘externalized’ to society and referred to as market failures by economists. The Polluter Pays Principle can be effectively implemented in developing nations. Pollution reduction techniques should not be based on compensation or penalties. It must be the responsibility of the producer to adopt the latest technologies that prevent the release of hazardous waste into the environment. Pinki Chahal is a Research Scholar at the Department of Economics, School of Behavioural and Social Sciences, Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies, Haryana, India. Durairaj Kumarasamy is Associate Professor and Head, Department of Economics, School of Behavioural and Social Sciences, Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies, Haryana, India. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 24, 2024

Civil society the key to preventing an Indonesian police state - 360 Robertus Robet Published on October 3, 2022 Reforming the Indonesian police needs to be driven from the bottom up by civil society groups. A fatal oversight in Indonesia’s history of political reform is the absence of efforts to reform Indonesian police. The militaristic nature of the police lingers despite two decades of institutional separation with the armed forces. But any efforts to reform them cannot be left to the hands of the president, parliament, or the internal police structure. Instead, reform must come from those who represent civilians. Since President’s Suharto regime was toppled in 1998, demands to reform the police appeared only sporadically, dying down as soon as they surfaced. Both reformists and post-Suharto governments never exerted a concerted attempt to push police reformation. The post-Suharto police force was better than the military in combating drug-related crimes, terrorism, and public security during the critical moments of regional and national elections. But they continue to violate human rights. Throughout Joko Widodo’s presidency, press, non government activists and academics have been wary of the emergence of an Indonesian “police state”, as high-ranking police officers assume leadership posts in powerful state institutions such as the Indonesian Intelligence Agency, Corruption Eradication Commission, and several ministries. The numerous privileges president Joko Widodo granted for police officers has led to a “police double-function” (dwi fungsi polisi) that risks evoking demands from the military to be treated in equal fashion. The end result, it is predicted by a Tempo editorial, will be the erosion of democracy and civilian authority in the future. The recent high-profile murder case of police officer Brigadier Joshua Hutabarat in July 2022  by his own superior, Two-Star-General Ferdy Sambo, has helped pull back the curtain on the acute internal problems within the force. Sambo had assumed the roles of both overseer and executive — an abuse of power. His unit has also been thrown into the spotlight for their roles in the more covert “political functions” of the police, such as criminalising human rights activists. In 2007, then-President Abdurrahman Wahid called for comprehensive reform of the police force. Wahid asserted that the State Police of the Republic of Indonesia (Polri) reporting directly to the President was worrying, as it allowed Polri to take action without prior coordination with other relevant state institutions. He also suggested the police force’s official roles should be chiselled down to only matters of security and public order, with criminal investigation and inquiry tasks handed over to the state attorney’s office. As a result of these reforms, he said the police force would fit better under the purview of the Ministry of Home Affairs. In 2021, the Governor of Lemhannas Agus Widjojo repeated a similar opinion. Yet these ideas, like so many others, quickly dissipated. All this leads to the question: are police reforms still feasible in Indonesia? The study conducted by Harvard public policy researcher Yanilda Maria Gonzalès on police authoritarianism in Latin America might offer a clue. Gonzalès explored why police in Colombia, Brazil, and Argentina reproduce their cultures of violence, cruelty, and corruption in spite of democratic transitions in those countries. She concluded that “inequality pervades policing practices”. In other words, police behaviour is determined by the fragmented ‘demands’ of a society. As long as the political elite selectively endorse the needs of the upper-class, the police will continue being authoritarian in their efforts to meet those demands. The authoritarianism of police forces contains an inherently discriminatory dimension towards those of the lower-class. The main lesson from Gonzalès’ study is that political elites tend to deliberately privilege the police force. As such, police reform cannot be left to the hands of the president, parliament, or internal police mechanisms. Instead, they have to first and foremost be formulated and contested by those who represent civilians ‘from below’, such as by Indonesian human rights organisations. And these struggles must be complemented by simultaneous efforts to foster a norm amongst the political elites to adhere to human rights and dignity. As long as the gist and fervour of police reform is not conducted by a strong civil society alliance, the changes won’t amount to much. Robertus Robet is a lecturer in the Faculty of Social Science at State University of Jakarta, Indonesia. He is a human rights activist who is a founder of Perhimpunan Pendidikan Demokrasi, Imparsial, and Amnesty International Indonesia (2018-2021). During 1998’s riot and Timor Leste’s election, Dr Robet was the member of fact-finding committees. He declared he has no conflict of interest and did not receive any specific funding in any forms. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 3, 2022

Classzoom: how online learning can work - 360 Michael Phillips Published on December 20, 2021 Giving an effective online lesson is a specialised skill. Understanding what works has led to successful online schools. By Michael Phillips, Monash University Online learning during COVID was reportedly “hell” for many parents and teachers. But for tens of thousands of students around the world, attending face-to-face classes is not an option, even when a pandemic isn’t occurring. They rely on virtual schooling to achieve their educational aspirations. ‘David’ is 14 years old and has chronic fatigue. He quickly becomes overwhelmed by the huge variety of inputs in traditional classrooms. ‘Tayla’ is suffering from trauma caused by recent family violence. She is reluctant to leave her mother or her family home for extended periods of time. ‘Greg’ is an elite athlete who has an incredibly busy training schedule as he hopes to represent Australia at the Winter Olympic Games next year. ‘Anne’ is living in a regional area and is the only student in her local community who wants to study Japanese at senior level. Students like these are catered for by virtual schools. Large-scale virtual schools with enrolments of tens of thousands of students exist in many countries around the world. Many people don’t realise that the largest school in the Australian state of Victoria – Virtual School Victoria (VSV) – is fully online with more than 5,000 students enrolled from Foundation to Year 12. Virtual schooling with specially qualified teachers can not only be highly effective, it can be a vital part of an education system, providing equity and opportunity for students who would otherwise miss out. It works because teachers working in virtual schools do things differently from teachers who were required to shift to online teaching as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. A study of interviews with experienced online teachers helps to explain how. When compared with teachers who were required to rapidly shift to online learning, teachers in virtual schools have a complex and interconnected understanding of the use of technologies. They manage their relationships with students differently and actively critique their own teaching practice and the technologies they use. They also understand online instructional design principles, since they’re so critical to their job. The pandemic paved the way for student teachers to undertake virtual placements, developing the knowledge, skills and capacities to become effective online teachers. A pilot project in 2020 took all the learnings from interviews with experienced online teachers to deliver a new virtual school, with classes taught by student teachers under the supervision of fully qualified, registered and experienced secondary school teachers. Final-year exam revision classes were quickly snapped up. Post-pandemic, the school’s focus is on supporting disadvantaged girls and young women studying STEM subjects. More than 60 student teachers can continue to develop the knowledge, skills and capacities to become effective online teachers – an essential component of any mature educational system, not just one that supports learning during a pandemic. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Michael Phillips is the Associate Professor of Digital Transformation in the Faculty of Education, Monash University. His work focuses on the knowledge expert teachers develop when integrating  educational technologies into their practice. Additionally, Mike  researchers the ways in which expert teachers make active decisions  about their classroom technology integration. The research was undertaken with support from the Department of Education and Training Victoria.

news-360info

2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on December 20, 2021

Climate change can lead to more food poisoning - 360 Byomkesh Talukder, Nilanjana Ganguli Published on April 7, 2022 We may not be able to stop food being contaminated, but computer models could help us predict where the next big risk might be. Contaminated food kills more than 420,000 people every year. Now, scientists are turning to predictive computer modelling to help us be better prepared for it. Food contamination can happen at almost every level from farm to fork. Contamination can spread from bacteria entering animal feeds, by being in contact with dust or animal faeces, through infections transferred during slaughter and food processing, or from inappropriate storage. Climate change has created extreme and rapid changes in air and water temperatures, impacted the frequency and intensity of rain, and amplified humidity, altering the production of food with grave consequences. While it’s difficult to predict the direct links due to the range of factors involved, changes in the environment have allowed more possibilities of transmission between animals and humans.Extreme weather events like floods and droughts can contaminate soil, water and animal feeds with chemicals from sewage and run-offs from industrial and agricultural land containing toxins and pesticides. A warmer climate and limited rain in already resource-strapped countries such as Malawi, not only have had a detrimental impact on the availability of food, but also created more favourable conditions for aflatoxin (poisonous carcinogens from fungus) contamination in maize — a main source of grains. While in California, United States, and parts of Canada, outbreaks of E. coli found in romaine lettuce may have been fromcontaminated runoffs flowing into produce fields after heavy rainfall. Contamination can also be caused by close interaction between domestic and wild animals in wet markets or when farms overlap with forests, causing spill-over events. Bushmeat is also a well-established source for food-borne zoonotic diseases such as Ebola. Climate change induced food scarcity can exacerbate the consumption of bushmeat or unsafe foods, and the expansion of farmlands into forests.Designing better interventions will require a holistic model which can integrate and assess the many variables that continuously interact and influence different outcomes. Researchers from York University, Canada, have developed a conceptual model that can capture the complex, unpredictable and dynamically evolving interactions across food-borne zoonotic diseases and their influencing factors. These include analysing the relationship between extreme weather events, environmental degradation, food supply chains, food safety practices, disaster management and domestic public health policy. Computer modelling simulations based on these interactions can develop potential risk scenarios for outbreaks. For example, the model could predict a potential contamination risk of crops during a heavy rainfall event, using the proximity between cropland sewage systems and the lay of the land. Due to the increasingly interconnected nature of our global food systems, additional transparency through decentralisation of data is critical to minimise errors in data collection and management, which may influence the model’s predictive abilities. Using blockchain technology to store data can enhance transparency, standardisation, and governance making the model reliable and versatile to users ranging from community members to different levels of governments. The peer-to-peer network-based management system in blockchain can also promote collaboration and trust in a growing issue which affects us all. Modelling the effects of climate change on food-borne diseases will be a useful tool for building resilient national and global food safety systems. The proposed model can be a game-changer in the fight against food insecurity by boosting food safety and facilitating interventions that are socially, economically, and ecologically sustainable. Dr Byomkesh Talukder is a Planetary Health Fellow at the Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research of York University, Canada. Nilanjana Ganguli is a PhD candidate, and research assistant at the Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research of York University, Canada. The authors declare no conflict of interest. This article has been republished for World Zoonoses Day. It first appeared in our Changing climate, changing diseases package. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 7, 2022

Climate change doesn’t have to mean more insect-borne disease - 360 Ilan Kelman Published on April 7, 2022 As the world warms, diseases transmitted by insects may spread, but prevention strategies can break the link. Human-caused climate change has a complex effect on insect-borne diseases. Many may be spreading more, but effective strategies exist to manage this risk. These strategies are available to all countries, rich and poor. llnesses carried and transmitted by mosquitoes, such as malaria, dengue fever and encephalitis (the latter also spread by ticks), are likely to spread more widely in a warming world. Other insect-borne diseases such as Lyme disease (spread by ticks), leishmaniasis (spread by sandflies) and West Nile fever (spread by mosquitoes) should be closely watched so the impact of climate change on them can be assessed — especially in tandem with the effects of urbanisation and expanding human encroachment into ecosystems. As the world’s temperatures increase, summers are lasting longer and the life cycles of many insects — and the microbes or parasites they carry – are speeding up. Many insects and parasites mature earlier and breed more often. They can also go through more life cycles in a year, and the insects might bite more frequently. Yet the relationships between life-cycle timings and environmental temperatures are not linear. For one dengue-carrying mosquito, both its survival rate and its ability to complete a blood meal decline as temperatures rise above 28°C. Where rising temperatures support insect survival, their number within a geographic area increases, providing more opportunities for insects and humans to meet. The insects also extend their territories, moving up slopes to higher elevations as well as north and south to higher latitudes. People living in these places are not used to these insects, pathogens or diseases, so they might lack immunity and be less aware of symptoms and possible countermeasures. Other animals contribute to the transmission of insect-borne diseases. For example, birds host the West Nile virus, helping mosquitoes to spread it to humans. And so the influence of climate change on the birds and their ecosystems is part of the overall impact of climate change on the disease. Altered ranges of insect-transmitted diseases are not just about changing climates but also about possible countermeasures. Some worry that malaria may appear in Europe and North America due to climate change, but the disease has already made its way there in recent times for other reasons. Isolated cases are frequently identified, from mosquitoes hopping off aircraft in Frankfurt, Germany, to people returning from malarial areas and then becoming sick in Ontario, Canada. The disease has a long history in places such as England — until it started declining noticeably in the 19th century — and Colorado, United States, where mosquitoes with parasite-carrying potential remain. Measures to eliminate malaria and keep it from returning include draining wetlands, using netting on porches and windows, and using insecticides. But insecticides can lead to other problems, notably cancer. The effect of one mosquito species that spreads chikungunya, dengue fever, mayaro fever, yellow fever and Zika can be limited by effective management. In less developed economies, improved hygiene, sanitation and healthcare reduced vulnerability to these diseases by 34 percent from 2000 to 2017. Simultaneously, more developed economies reduced their populations’ vulnerability to the diseases by more than 61 percent. This is despite for transmitting these diseases since the 1950s. For instance, the number of months suited to malaria transmission increased by 15 to 39 percent in the highland areas of less-to-medium developed countries. China’s Hainan Island is highly prone to malaria, and more so as the climate warms, yet it eliminated the disease through interventions including medications and insecticide-permeated bed nets. The lesson is that diseases transmitted by insects can be controlled, even as social and environmental conditions become more amenable to their spread. And not all of climate change’s impacts support the spread of insects and the diseases they carry. In many places, rainfall is becoming more intense due to climate change. This means more areas might get wet, promoting insect breeding, but it also means eggs and larvae can be washed away, breaking the insects’ life cycles. Drought impacts are equally complex. Mosquitoes appear to adapt to drier conditions by finding all available water sources, while ticks tend not to — although there must be survival limits when most moisture disappears. Rising sea levels are adding salt to coastal waters. Some mosquitoes carrying malaria and Ross River virus thrive in brackish waters, while those carrying dengue and yellow fever can manage, depending on the salt concentration. Ticks in the US showed much poorer survival in brackish water and saltwater than in freshwater. Irrespective of the insects’ ability to survive, measures to control them can be put in place. Proper drainage of irrigated land significantly reduces the risk of disease transmission, including when fields become saltier. Sealing rainwater collection and storage containers prevents insects from using them as breeding sites – although financial and technical support is required for this practice to become widespread. Ultimately, health measures available to everyone are the most effective ways to limit the spread of insect-borne disease. Prevention-focused social and medical changes include reducing human–insect contact, developing vaccines, and improving health systems for disease detection and treatment. In these ways, the links between insect-borne diseases and human-caused climate change can be severed. Ilan Kelman is Professor of Disasters and Health at University College London, England, and a Professor II at the University of Agder, Kristiansand, Norway. His overall research interest is linking disasters and health, including the integration of climate change into disaster research and health research. The author declares no conflict of interest. This article has been republished for World Zoonoses Day. It first appeared in our Changing climate, changing diseases package. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 7, 2022

Climate change hardly a burning issue for Indian voters - 360 Sajan Thomas, Titto Idicula Published on May 15, 2024 The expectation for Indian politicians to ‘be with the people’ now encompasses standing with them through their lived experiences of climate change. Unprecedented climate change disasters — prolonged heatwaves, flash floods, drought, agricultural devastation and landslides — are affecting people in India. As 968 million people head to polling booths across the nation, the Election Commission of India is going to great lengths to ensure that a ‘green election’ is conducted. In the southern state of Kerala, for instance, the commission collaborated with the Local Self Government Department to ensure plastic-free polling, with election officials served tea in steel mugs instead of the standard paper cups with a thin plastic coating. However, this attention to detail isn’t matched by political parties contesting the election. Or by voters, who don’t seem to care about climate change. The CSDS-Lokniti 2024 pre-poll survey indicates that Indian voters are primarily concerned with unemployment and inflation. A detailed review of the election manifestos revealed that, except for the regional party Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), none of the major political parties in India have concrete grassroots-level plans to mitigate the impact of climate change. India’s electoral scene features only a modest and oblique reflection of issues related to climate change. In forest-adjoining areas throughout the country, it’s increasingly common for wild animals to enter human settlements and cause damage. This is mostly caused by food and water shortages in summer and alterations in wildlife habitats because of climate change. In the Wayanad constituency where Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is contesting, human-wildlife conflicts have already become a hot electoral issue. A poster on a street wall in a village on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border read, “It is the people who vote in elections, not the animals that are encroaching into human settlements. Stop animal rule!” Such sentiment arises from a prevalent anthropocentric worldview, where the state forest and wildlife departments are criticised for prioritising animals over human beings. In Lok Sabha constituencies in the Western Ghats, the authors observed that environmental concerns hardly influence electoral politics, despite the fact that the daily lives of people in those regions are closely intertwined with nature. Perhaps the best illustration of this would be the popular protests a decade ago against the Madhav Gadgil–K. Kasturirangan committee reports. These reports aimed at safeguarding the ecologically fragile Western Ghats, a 1600km-long mountain range from Gujarat to Tamil Nadu, by restricting human construction and certain types of agriculture. The inhabitants of the Western Ghats, which is identified as one of the world’s eight ‘hottest hotspots’ of biological diversity, managed to win a Lok Sabha seat in the 2014 election with the support of Left parties and succeeded in stopping the committee’s pro-environment recommendations from being implemented. Even though the Western Ghats are one of the worst-hit areas in terms of climate change-triggered casualties, especially from landslides and agricultural loss, the electoral politics of the region largely revolve around conventional issues. The attitude in the Western Ghats is in stark contrast to Europe, which votes in early June to elect the next European Parliament. A poll conducted by Euronews and Ipsos in 18  countries found that 52 percent of voters prioritise the fight against climate change over other issues. The so-called ‘climate voters’ in Europe are mostly young people. One of the hot topics during elections is the European Green Deal, which aims to make the continent climate-neutral by 2050. A World Wildlife Fund survey showed that European political parties are particularly focused on combating climate change, as they “shared support for ending fossil fuel use, transitioning to 100 percent renewable energy, and adopting nature-based solutions to tackle climate change”. In Europe, green parties have been actively pushing environmental issues since the 1970s, now holding a major share of the vote in many countries and are putting the climate agenda at the forefront of elections. While not a key issue in the Lok Sabha elections, more extreme temperatures have begun to establish new standards for how Indian voters engage with and assess candidates during campaigning. An incident encountered during fieldwork in a Lok Sabha constituency in South India, where there is a tight contest between two high-net-worth candidates from the Congress and BJP, illustrates this. A fruit seller devised his own ‘political thermometer’ to compare candidates based on their body language during road shows. This campaign tool is less popular in the 2024 general elections due to rising temperatures. “Just look at his downcast face, wearied under the sunlight. Is this AC-living guy going to speak for us in Parliament? Two days ago, the other candidate passed through this junction in an open jeep. As he did during previous elections, he stood energetically despite the scorching heat, raising his hands to the people with a smile,” he said. In another constituency, people held high regard for an MP who spent hours wearing a local costume and coordinating rescue operations during floods. Amid the climate crisis, the long-held expectation for any Indian politician to ‘be with the people’ now also encompasses standing with them through their lived experiences of climate change. However, Indian democracy is yet to breed a new category of ‘climate voters’ as its electoral landscape is still conservative with practically very little space for environmental politics or green agendas. Sajan Thomas is a novelist and columnist who teaches Political Science at St. John’s College, Anchal, which is affiliated with the University of Kerala. He holds a doctoral degree from the University of Bergen, Norway, and his other accomplishments include a fellowship from Harvard University and being a visiting scholar at NIAS, Copenhagen. Titto Idicula is a consultant neurologist and researcher at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim. He is a fellow of the American Board of Neurology and Psychiatry, Chief Editor of NevroNEL, and a columnist at onmanorama.com. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 15, 2024

Climate change is killing us — in more ways than one - 360 Grace Jennings-Edquist, James Goldie Published on April 24, 2024 We’ve all heard about climate change’s effect on our planet, but what about its catastrophic impact on human health? We’ve all heard about climate change’s effect on our planet — but do you know about the many ways it also impacts human health? Climate change is expected to cause an estimated USD$2-4 billion in direct damage costs to health by the year 2030, according to the World Health Organization. But the human health toll is more devastating. Increasingly frequent heatwaves, storms, bushfires, hurricanes and floods can cause death and injury. The smoke from bushfires contributes to respiratory illness and premature death, especially in busy cities. Already, 37 percent of heat-related deaths can be attributed to human-induced climate change — a figure that will likely rise along with temperatures. As the latest Global Burden of Disease study revealed, heat and air pollution have become bigger problems in many parts of the world since 1990: Extreme weather events also spread disease. Changing temperature and weather patterns can create conditions for waterborne or foodborne illnesses such as cholera, and vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever to thrive. The impact of these weather disasters on food security can be devastating. With crops impacted by changing weather and drinking water rendered unsafe, climate change can lead to malnutrition. Malnourished children have a higher risk of death from common childhood illnesses such as malaria. Young children also bear the brunt of foodborne diseases: Children under five also account for 30 percent of foodborne fatalities. Climate change can also undermine many social determinants for good health, such as livelihoods and social support structures; and can cause mental health issues, including climate anxiety, post-traumatic stress (including in frontline workers such as firefighters and health workers), and long-term disorders due to displacement and other life upheavals. Those in marginalised communities, or in areas with weak health infrastructure are most at risk of many of these health impacts. Women also face greater risks of violence as a result of climate change — with weather disasters often linked to higher rates of domestic violence, sex trafficking and other forms of gender-based abuse. Another, often-overlooked, threat is the interaction between pandemics and climate change. A recent comprehensive meta-analysis revealed that climate change could aggravate more than 50 percent of known human pathogens, meaning it could lead to an increase in pandemics and epidemics. Worse, some studies show an increase in vaccine hesitancy since the COVID-19 pandemic in some populations — making building vaccine confidence all the more urgent in the face of climate change. The climate crisis threatens to undo the last 50 years of progress in development, global health and poverty reduction, the World Health Organization has warned. It also raises significant human rights issues. While climate change has not traditionally been seen as a health and human rights concern, that may be changing. Recent high-profile court cases in India’s Supreme Court and the European Court of Human Rights framed climate change health issues as a human rights concern. Against that backdrop, this special report — which coincides with the 2024 World Health Summit, a regional meeting hosted by Monash University on April 22-24 — examines the various ways in which climate change, health and the health sector intersect, spotlighting current key challenges and solutions.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 24, 2024

Climate change poses dire health and human rights risks - 360 Chris Beyrer Published on April 24, 2024 Human health relies on healthy ecosystems, but these are under threat. Securing the right to live in a healthy environment is crucial for all. Climate change has not traditionally been seen as a health and human rights concern — but that may be changing following recent high-profile court cases. On April 9 the European Court of Human Rights ruled in favour of a group of elderly Swiss women who claimed the government’s inadequate efforts to combat climate change put them at risk of dying during heatwaves. And in India, the Supreme Court on April 6 recognised a right against the adverse effects of climate change as a distinct fundamental right in the Constitution. In that judgement, one of the judges said the rights to life and equality couldn’t be fully realised without a clean, stable environment. The court also highlighted the connection between climate change and the right to health. The World Health Organization has declared climate change to be the greatest threat to health that humanity faces. Since climate change affects so many aspects of our lives, its effects on health and health care are complex, multiple, and highly variable across geographies, ecozones and development levels. There are direct impacts on our bodies and communities, such as have emerged with extreme heat, droughts, floods, fires and other climate change-driven catastrophic events. There also are more complex and indirect impacts, such as increasing food insecurity, the rising threat of infectious diseases, increased exposure to water and air pollutants, the health impacts of forced mobility and migration, and the mental health and social impacts of the climate crisis that affect us on our deepest levels. Yet climate change has not traditionally been seen as a health and human rights concern — a reality which, arguably, needs to change. In a report published last month in The Lancet, ‘Under threat: The International AIDS Society-Lancet Commission on Health and Human Rights’ we suggested several pathways through which climate change bears on the right to health. A foundational principle of human rights is universality. We do not derive rights from citizenship or social standing, but from the fundamental basis of our shared humanity. Indeed, the founding document of the modern human rights movement is called ‘The Universal Declaration of Human Rights’, precisely because the rights it enshrines are held to be universal — shared by us all. A terrible irony of the climate crisis however, is that the burdens of climate change are not shared equally by all. Those who have done the least to impact the climate — the peoples of low- and middle-income countries, the rural poor and Indigenous communities — are by far the most affected. This raises the issue of climate justice: what do the highly industrialised nations, which have so damaged the climate, owe to those whose health, livelihoods, and very survival are being impacted by the crisis? Many of the worst-affected states, including the small island nations, have argued that reparations are essential if they are to survive. Indigenous peoples, particularly those still living on their traditional lands, are literally fighting for their lives against loggers, miners, ranchers, farming interests, the energy industries, and others who seek the bounty they have preserved for us all. Without protection for Indigenous rights, we may lose the world’s last great forests. Earth has essentially three lungs; the Amazon Basin, the Congo Basin, and what remains of the forests of Southeast Asia. Without these great generators of oxygen and capturers of carbon, Earth’s atmosphere would soon cease to be breathable for mammals, including humans. This makes Indigenous rights inextricably linked to all of our health and wellbeing. Another major form of health inequity is increasing exposures to water and air pollutants, again most impacting those who have done the least to impact the climate. Premature deaths due to diseases caused by these chemical pollutants were estimated to top nine million in 2015. Access to health care, even in the wealthiest societies, has also been affected by climate crises. The multiple hurricanes which devastated Puerto Rico in 2017 led to widespread disruptions in health care facilities, and forced thousands of people on chronic medications, including antivirals for HIV, to have sustained treatment interruptions. Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath led to significant destruction of healthcare facilities in the US, primarily through flooding, and led to multiple deaths, including among elderly and disabled patients in long-term care facilities. Strikingly, the death rate was almost 50 percent higher among Black residents of New Orleans than among Whites — demonstrating that health inequities can be sharply worsened during catastrophic climate events. Same storm, yet significantly worse outcomes for minority communities. The threat of infectious diseases is also rising, including in the Global North, as climate change shifts the best habitats for some species, bringing animals and humans closer together, and hence increasing the risk of diseases spilling over from one to the other. The climate crisis is also responsible, in part, for the enormous levels of population displacement, mobility, and migration we are now seeing. There are an estimated 110 million people—the largest number ever recorded — who are displaced either internally in their home countries, or outside their homelands. While many have fled conflict and war, many others are forced to leave their homelands due to climate-driven changes in rainfall, droughts, floods and fires — all increasing food insecurity and driving people to seek better futures. Providing even the most basic health care services, such as childhood immunisations, prenatal care, and adequate water and food is an enormous challenge and will likely only increase. And as we have seen in many countries, the rise in migration and displacement can have potent impacts on political culture — increasing nationalism, xenophobia, anti-immigrant policies, and racism. How will humanity cope with these interrelated challenges? The human rights movement does have some compelling examples of success. Multiple cases, including several brought by young students, have successfully argued for a new right: the right to live in a healthy environment. This is another universal right we all share by virtue of our human status. It is essential to protect human health, and the health and wellbeing of all the living things with which we share the planet. Realising any right is always a struggle, and the resistance is always immense. But this is a right we really have no choice but to fight for. We cannot maintain human health without healthy ecosystems. And that requires we extend the right to live in a healthy environment to all of us now living, and for the generations to come. Professor Chris Beyrer MD, MPH is the Gary Hock Distinguished Professor in Global Health and Director of the Duke Global Health Institute at Duke University. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 24, 2024

Climate change’s dangerous new fires - 360 Jason Sharples Published on May 22, 2023 Climate change is creating a new kind of dangerous wildfire. It will take all our tools to keep communities safe. Heatwaves have been going through some extraordinary changes in recent history. Since midway through the 20th century, their intensity, frequency and duration have increased across the globe – and these changes are happening faster and faster. Research indicates that this is simply not possible without human influence on the climate. A child born today could see an extra 30 to 50 heatwave days every year by the time they are 80, up from roughly 4 to 10 days today. Southern states of Australia, such as Victoria and South Australia, which already experience the country’s hottest heatwaves, could see hot days become hotter by up to 4 degrees Celsius. Across Europe, heatwaves may become hotter by up to 10 degrees Celsius and some heatwaves will last up to two months by the end of this century. In just the next 20 years, the US will experience three to five more heatwaves every decade compared to the second half of the 20th century. Heatwaves are closely linked to droughts. Generally, a large amount of energy from the Sun goes into drying out moisture in the landscape. But as the amount of moisture available for evaporation declines during a drought, more energy is available for heating the air and the temperature rises. This can become a vicious cycle of increasing evaporation and desiccation of the land surface. And of course, during times of heatwaves and droughts, wildfires will ignite more readily, burn more intensely and spread faster. The link between wildfire and heatwaves has been seen across the world in numerous examples. The Australian 2019-20 fire season, known as the ‘Black Summer’, saw huge areas of the populated eastern seaboard dramatically ablaze. The fact that it coincided with Australia’s hottest and driest year on record was no accident. Extreme fire weather rolled across the continent on an almost weekly basis. First a heatwave would develop across southeast Australia, with hot and dry air funnelled from the centre of the continent drying out dead litter and branches and even live vegetation. This, combined with strong north-westerly winds forming ahead of a cold front, required just a spark to result in what became known as ‘firestorms’. Then, the cold front would arrive, further escalating fire behaviour and triggering thunderstorms and lightning strikes – many of which would flare into the next round of wildfires. Deep and extensive drought all but guaranteed the fires found fuel that was fully available to burn. In lock-step with heatwaves, wildfires are a worsening global problem and extreme wildfires, in particular, are affecting fire-prone regions such as western North America, Eastern Russia, and Mediterranean Europe. For example, the Russian heatwave in 2010, when 300,000 hectares were destroyed by simultaneous wildfires; the 2016 western Canadian heatwave and the Fort McMurray wildfire; and the more recent 2021 record heatwave in British Columbia where temperature records were smashed by up to 5°C, and which was immediately followed by the destruction of the town of Lytton by wildfire. With climate change driving more heatwaves, associated weather and climate-related factors will increase the incidence of extreme wildfires. A Royal Commission initiated after Australia’s Black Summer fire disaster pointed to an urgent need to improve disaster management capabilities in order to respond to more frequent, intense, complex and costly fires under a changing climate. This can be done in all of three ways: first, limit the vulnerability of communities and ecosystems to fire; second, limit communities and ecosystems exposure to fire; third, limit the fire itself. For example, improving community information and fire preparedness reduces vulnerability. Improved development planning, building standards and management of the forest-urban boundary reduces exposure. Land management that reduces the opportunity for large fires to develop, or firefighting to extinguish fires once they start, reduces the fire itself. Information about forest dryness is useful for early warning and preparedness for extreme fires. Similarly, mapping climate variability across many years can help predict extreme years. Recommendations of the Royal Commission included improving national systems of collecting and sharing bushfire related information, including information on climate change and fuel loads. ‘Hazard reduction burns’ are a practice that is widely used to reduce forest fire risk in Australia. However, scientific studies have found no clear indication of how much fuel load matters in extreme wildfires. Given that fuel loads are one of the few elements of fire that humans can control, this is concerning, as it suggests hazard reduction burning may be of only limited effectiveness. Of course, there are limits to how much the risk of wildfires can be mitigated. As climate change moves fire outside of the range of human experience, disaster management will become increasingly challenging and potentially less effective. While efforts can be made to limit vulnerability, exposure and fire itself, it is clear that the contribution of climate change to fire risk would be lower if greenhouse gas emissions were curtailed. Pursuing ambitious global greenhouse gas mitigation alongside national and local measures to adapt to a climate changed world, is a necessary strategy if we are to limit further increases in fire risk. Jason Sharples is Professor of Bushfire Science at the University of New South Wales. Nerilie Abram is a Professor of Climate Science at the Australian National University Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick is an ARC Future Fellow at the School of Science, UNSW Canberra. This article has been republished as part of a package on Record heat. It first appeared on January 20, 2022. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Record heat” sent at: 22/05/2023 07:00. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 22, 2023

Climate change’s dangerous new fires - 360 Jason Sharples, of New South Wales Published on January 18, 2022 Climate change is creating a new kind of dangerous wildfire. It will take all our tools to keep communities safe. By Jason Sharples, University of New South Wales, Nerilie Abrams, Australian National University, Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick, University of New South Wales Heatwaves have been going through some extraordinary changes in recent history. Since midway through the 20th century, their intensity, frequency and duration have increased across the globe – and these changes are happening faster and faster. Research indicates that this is simply not possible without human influence on the climate. A child born today could see an extra 30 to 50 heatwave days every year by the time they are 80, up from roughly 4 to 10 days today. Southern states of Australia, such as Victoria and South Australia, which already experience the country’s hottest heatwaves, could see hot days become hotter by up to 4 degrees Celsius. Across Europe, heatwaves may become hotter by up to 10 degrees Celsius and some heatwaves will last up to two months by the end of this century. In just the next 20 years, the US will experience three to five more heatwaves every decade compared to the second half of the 20th century. Heatwaves are closely linked to droughts. Generally, a large amount of energy from the Sun goes into drying out moisture in the landscape. But as the amount of moisture available for evaporation declines during a drought, more energy is available for heating the air and the temperature rises. This can become a vicious cycle of increasing evaporation and desiccation of the land surface. And of course, during times of heatwaves and droughts, wildfires will ignite more readily, burn more intensely and spread faster. The link between wildfire and heatwaves has been seen across the world in numerous examples. The Australian 2019-20 fire season, known as the ‘Black Summer’, saw huge areas of the populated eastern seaboard dramatically ablaze. The fact that it coincided with Australia’s hottest and driest year on record was no accident. Extreme fire weather rolled across the continent on an almost weekly basis. First a heatwave would develop across southeast Australia, with hot and dry air funnelled from the centre of the continent drying out dead litter and branches and even live vegetation. This, combined with strong north-westerly winds forming ahead of a cold front, required just a spark to result in what became known as ‘firestorms’. Then, the cold front would arrive, further escalating fire behaviour and triggering thunderstorms and lightning strikes – many of which would flare into the next round of wildfires. Deep and extensive drought all but guaranteed the fires found fuel that was fully available to burn. In lock-step with heatwaves, wildfires are a worsening global problem and extreme wildfires, in particular, are affecting fire-prone regions such as western North America, Eastern Russia, and Mediterranean Europe. For example, the Russian heatwave in 2010, when 300,000 hectares were destroyed by simultaneous wildfires; the 2016 western Canadian heatwave and the Fort McMurray wildfire; and the more recent 2021 record heatwave in British Columbia where temperature records were smashed by up to 5°C, and which was immediately followed by the destruction of the town of Lytton by wildfire. With climate change driving more heatwaves, associated weather and climate-related factors will increase the incidence of extreme wildfires. A Royal Commission initiated after Australia’s Black Summer fire disaster pointed to an urgent need to improve disaster management capabilities in order to respond to more frequent, intense, complex and costly fires under a changing climate. This can be done in all of three ways: first, limit the vulnerability of communities and ecosystems to fire; second, limit communities and ecosystems exposure to fire; third, limit the fire itself. For example, improving community information and fire preparedness reduces vulnerability. Improved development planning, building standards and management of the forest-urban boundary reduces exposure. Land management that reduces the opportunity for large fires to develop, or firefighting to extinguish fires once they start, reduces the fire itself. Information about forest dryness is useful for early warning and preparedness for extreme fires. Similarly, mapping climate variability across many years can help predict extreme years. Recommendations of the Royal Commission included improving national systems of collecting and sharing bushfire related information, including information on climate change and fuel loads. ‘Hazard reduction burns’ are a practice that is widely used to reduce forest fire risk in Australia. However, scientific studies have found no clear indication of how much fuel load matters in extreme wildfires. Given that fuel loads are one of the few elements of fire that humans can control, this is concerning, as it suggests hazard reduction burning may be of only limited effectiveness. Of course, there are limits to how much the risk of wildfires can be mitigated. As climate change moves fire outside of the range of human experience, disaster management will become increasingly challenging and potentially less effective. While efforts can be made to limit vulnerability, exposure and fire itself, it is clear that the contribution of climate change to fire risk would be lower if greenhouse gas emissions were curtailed. Pursuing ambitious global greenhouse gas mitigation alongside national and local measures to adapt to a climate changed world, is a necessary strategy if we are to limit further increases in fire risk. Jason Sharples is Professor of Bushfire Science at the University of New South Wales. Nerilie Abram is a Professor of Climate Science at the Australian National University Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick is an ARC Future Fellow at the School of Science, UNSW Canberra. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: By Jason Sharples in Australia

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on January 18, 2022

Climate damage: Who pays and how - 360 Michael Dolan Published on October 23, 2023 COP28 will take stock of the step change in ambition needed, but the gulf in climate finance promises and realities presents an obstacle to a stronger action. Dubai’s COP28 coincides with many climatic firsts: Antarctic sea ice tracks at record lows and record sea surface temperatures continue apace while July was the hottest month ever measured. The conference, framed by these anomalies, also marks two firsts that will be front and centre come November: there will be the first formal deliberations to make loss and damage arrangements reality after the landmark agreement at COP27 to establish a funding mechanism, and the first Global Stocktake will reach its conclusion. Yet while both processes are procedurally novel, the dynamics guiding negotiations will be anything but. Instead, the positions of parties’ are more than likely to rest on historically embedded frictions, cast along lines of equity and distributive justice that precede the Paris Agreement and have indelibly shaped its implementation. Loss and damage, for example, constitutes a vital, long gestating dimension of climate justice, appearing for the first time in UN climate negotiations in 1991, when the Alliance of Small Island States proposed an insurance scheme to compensate countries vulnerable to rising sea levels. Loss and damage forms a third dimension of climate action alongside mitigation and adaptation. It recognises that certain impacts of climate change cannot be addressed by the other pillars. The COP27 decision recognised a need for financial support for countries vulnerable to these impacts, a decision built on the back of decades of incremental progress. What the decision hasn’t resolved is who will pay into the fund or the recipients. These questions are likely to be highly contested, cutting across political fault lines that have affected deliberations before the term was even included in the Paris Agreement. Debates range from differing interpretations of culpability to concerns by developed economies about legal implications. Wording of Article 8 on loss and damage, kept ambiguous to help progress the Accord, hasn’t helped to allay these issues. Another potential source of friction is whether China and India should be obliged to contribute to the fund as globally significant emitters. That issue is further complicated by United States special envoy on climate change John Kerry’s insistence that the US will not contribute. These debates bubble while work by the transitional committee established at COP27 to design funding arrangements continues. While the funding arrangements are unlikely to be resolved by COP28, the provisions are vital for Small Island Developing States, among them Pacific Island communities whose vulnerability to climate change has only compounded over the past three decades. The other first at COP28, the first Global Stocktake, is an assessment of collective progress on mitigation, adaptation and resilience and finance measures. The Stocktake is intended to be the basis for stronger global ambitions in the next round of climate targets, expressed through Nationally Determined Contributions. Its results are not expected to yield many surprises: drawing on assessments already made by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and UN Environment Programme, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change has released its technical synthesis report. noting that current pledges are well off track in relation to the Paris Agreement’s objective of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. This is also true of finance. The target enshrined in the Paris Agreement — USD$100 billion annually by 2020 for mitigation and adaptation from developed to developing nations — has not been met and is among the most visible and enduring symbols of unrealised distributive justice. As the COP28 President has implied, it is also a fundamentally destabilising force in the push to raise global mitigation ambition, eroding trust where the pledge-and-review design of the Paris Agreement requires it. COP27’s mitigation agenda was hindered by stasis over climate finance, while the mid-year Bonn Climate Change Conference, an important step on the road to COP, was brought to a near-standstill by the insistence of the Like-Minded Developing Countries bloc that climate finance shortfalls be addressed. However, fixating on the quantum of the climate finance target alone risks overlooking the distributive imbalances that make these public flows so important for developing economies. The current macroeconomic environment is one such source as rising debt characterised by higher borrowing costs and reduced fiscal space are borne disproportionately by developing economies. A particularly acute example of this is found in the fiscal realities facing the 37 Small Island Developing States, of which Pacific Island Nations are part. Between 2016 and 2022, climate finance totalled just USD$1.5 billion while 22 nations paid more than $26 billion to external creditors. The costs of decarbonisation are also higher for developing economies, particularly for clean energy uptake, complicating the COP28 President’s push to gain global support to triple renewable energy capacity. In what has been dubbed the ‘climate-investment trap’, low and middle-income economies, with the exception of China, face capital costs between two and three-times higher than industrialised economies for clean energy projects. This is also true for Southeast Asia, one of the only regions where capital costs for clean electricity utilities can exceed those powered by fossil fuels. High capital costs are often linked to local conditions, policy uncertainty, inadequate regulatory frameworks and market issues. Amid an environment of rising interest rates globally, a product of monetary tightening, these costs are being further exacerbated. The scope and depth of these challenges — along with other barriers inhibiting the flow of private capital into emerging economies — indicates that increased financial flows alone are no panacea. However, given the urgency of reversing emissions trajectories across developing nations — those of Southeast Asia in particular — that are projected to account for a high proportion of future emissions, there is a significant need and opportunity to channel affordable public finance in the short term in ways that crowd-in private finance while reducing capital costs. Analysis by Climateworks Centre addresses some of these interventions including the use of concessional finance to anchor and cornerstone green bond issuances and the strategic deployment of public finance in the form of credit enhancement provisions and de-risking instruments. Despite these needs, clean energy investment in developing economies, with the exception of China, has been essentially flat over the past four years.. Southeast Asia is no exception, having received under 4 percent of total clean energy investment in emerging markets last year, a sum representing only a 7 percent increase over inflows in 2015. The region also had among the lowest share of financing from multilateral development finance institutions tasked with providing concessional capital. In this environment of macrofinancial and economic flux, it is likely that the spectre of climate finance will continue to unsettle the balance between shared responsibilities and increasingly divergent capacities to respond and transition as COP28 nears. While efforts to reform global climate financial architecture are gathering momentum and suggest a promising path forward in Dubai, they should complement — not replace — bigger commitments by industrialised economies. Collective action by multilateral development banks, governments and the private sector is required, especially as the post-2025 climate finance target — which will likely shift the cost from billions to trillions — comes into view. After modest progress on advancing the mitigation agenda at COP27, taking measures to bridge these divides will be a vital condition of restoring the trust needed to turn the first Global Stocktake into action. is a Senior Analyst of Global and Regional Affairs at Climateworks Centre, focusing on the political economy of climate action, regional and global climate policy, and climate finance. Since joining the organisation, he has contributed to a range of international projects and initiatives on accelerating the low-carbon transition in Southeast Asia, a key geography of Climateworks Centre’s work. This article is being republished as part of a series on COP28. It was originally published October 19, 2023. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 23, 2023

Climate solutions are already in our nature - 360 Sali Jayne Bache, Astra Rushton-Allan Published on October 23, 2023 From natural seawalls to mangroves, countries are starting to combat climate change with nature-based solutions. COP28 might drive more of these efforts. Fiji’s coastal defence to the rising rate of cyclones is a natural seawall that combines mangroves, rocks and vetiver grass. The natural seawall brings the benefits of hard protection — a barrier separating sea and land — without the erosion that often comes with conventional seawalls. It is a nature-based solution, one of many opportunities in the Pacific to draw on organic resources to address climate change, with benefits to mitigation and adaptation. This form of ‘green-grey infrastructure’ is an attempt to merge soft engineering with the natural ecology of the region, basing adaptation efforts on solutions that reflect the place in which they are embedded. At the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP28 in Dubai in November, world leaders will have a chance to increase investment in nature-based solutions to back a climate agenda that integrates biodiversity goals, conservation of carbon sinks and local perspectives and interests. As the world gets warmer and more greenhouse gases are released, nature’s ability to perform important ecosystem functions — like sequestering carbon, regulating the earth’s temperature and providing clean air and water — is jeopardised. These functions are integral to limiting climate change and for building resilience to its impacts. This is particularly key for Asia Pacific islands, where the effects of climate change are most prominent and where nature remains a more foundational component of daily life than more-urban environments. The International Panel on Climate Change recognises nature as a climate solution and a key to achieving the 1.5 degree target in the Paris Agreement that, if exceeded, poses significantly increased risks to human health, livelihoods and well-being. Some experts estimate that 37 percent of the greenhouse gas cuts required to meet  the Paris Agreement’s 2030 targets could be achieved through nature-based solutions. Nature-based solutions are important for their capacity to provide carbon sinks in climate mitigation efforts, but also to assist with adaptation and resilience, especially in coastal areas. Nature-based solutions limit the consequences of climate change. They reduce emissions by stopping  — or at least minimising — the degradation and destruction of ecosystems. These programmes help identify and extend new areas of high carbon storage and adaptation value for protection, reforestation and regeneration. Nature-based solutions also build resilience to climatic events and reduce disaster risk. At their best, nature-based solutions combine adaptation and mitigation interventions, balancing the need for sustainable development with emissions-reduction strategies. Fiji demonstrates this perfectly: mangroves naturally draw down carbon and their replanting provides coastal protection and support for a sustainable ecosystem. Combined with rocks and vetiver — a non-invasive clumping grass — these efforts provide a nature-based solution that supports mitigation and helps boost the country’s capacity to adapt to rising sea levels and more storm surges. While focused primarily on climate outcomes, they also interact with the broader Sustainable Development Goals, placing a strong emphasis on the social dimensions of climate change. Nature-based solutions are closely linked to broader social, environmental and economic outcomes, including poverty reduction, livelihoods, equity and zero hunger. While climate change causes ecosystem degradation, loss of habitats and biodiversity decline, nature-based solutions are intrinsically linked with positive biodiversity outcomes. The world is starting to acknowledge this: in March 2023, nearly 200 countries signed a UN treaty that explicitly recognises “the need to address … biological diversity loss and degradation of ecosystems of the ocean”, highlighting the “climate change impacts on marine ecosystems”. There is hope that linkage will extend beyond the high seas treaty into broader action to protect nature’s intrinsic value. The capacity of vegetated coastal and marine ecosystems to capture and store carbon is referred to as blue carbon. Blue carbon ecosystems tend to be mangroves, seagrasses and saltmarshes. Left unprotected, these ecosystems can be damaged or degraded and contribute to climate change, shifting from acting as carbon sinks to instead generating greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. COP28 host nation the United Arab Emirates intends to plant more than 100 million mangroves by 2030, capturing an estimated 43,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually. This is part of the country’s project to restore degraded mangroves and is significant for its carbon capture and because mangroves improve community resilience to storm surges and are hotspots for biodiversity. Such actions demonstrate the climate-positive impacts and co-benefits for ecosystem health and human well-being from nature-based solutions. The definition of nature-based solutions can also be extended beyond human interventions in nature to include infrastructure developments and using technology for climate mitigation, like renewable energy generated from wind, solar and ocean-based technologies. The mitigation impact of these solutions is particularly meaningful for island states, which can leverage coastal and marine resources to create consistent, clean and sustainable power sources. Indonesia’s ocean-based climate mitigation potential is explored in a 2023 ClimateWorks Centre study. The Southeast Asia Framework for Ocean Action Mitigation assessed the combined impact of ocean-based climate action through offshore energy, shipping decarbonisation and blue carbon nature-based solutions. It found ecosystem protection of mangroves and seagrass could have a massive impact on Indonesia’s emissions profile by 2030 and investment in offshore wind and ocean energy could provide big long-term emissions benefits. Combined with shipping decarbonisation, these ocean-based actions could by 2050 fill nearly half of the gap between current pledged action and what is needed for Indonesia to align with its net zero-by-2060 ambition. This year’s United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Global Stocktake provides an opportunity to identify similar gaps and momentum in climate action. It is a critical tool with which the climate community can engage with the integral element of nature-based solutions for successful adaptation and mitigation efforts. This will in turn be key in facilitating raised country ambition in particular as reflected in revised Nationally Determined Contributions, due in two years time. Dr Sali Jayne Bache works in ocean conservation and climate change with a focus on the Asia Pacific region. She has a research, academic and diplomatic background and leads programs on offshore governance and the ocean-climate nexus. She is currently coordinating Monash University’s delegation and pavilion for COP28 in Dubai. Astra Rushton-Allan is a senior project manager at Climateworks Centre where she focuses on the ocean-climate nexus across Southeast Asia, collaborating with a multidisciplinary team on partnership development, fundraising, and program design and delivery for the development of sustainable blue economic activities across the region. The SEAFOAM project was delivered by Climateworks with generous support from Quantedge Advancement Initiative and Mr Philip Wang Monash University is participating at COP28. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 23, 2023

Cloak-and-dagger policing - 360 Thomas Nolan Published on October 3, 2022 While people were worrying about military-style policing, US law enforcement quietly deployed the tools of spycraft against their fellow citizens. We don’t usually think of local police officers in the United States as spies or military covert operatives, but until recently we didn’t have images of police officers as soldiers either, until we did. The images of luridly militarised police in the United States emerged following the exaggerated response of American police to widespread protests that occurred in the aftermath of the August 2014 shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. Over-the-top militarised and violent responses from police continued in the widespread protests that followed the May 2020 murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota at the hands of then-police officer Derek Chauvin. The conspicuous display of military vehicles (tanks, armoured personnel carriers, mine-resistant ambush protected vehicles), aircraft, watercraft, weapons, uniforms, and other military hardware has become the focus of media attention and public consternation, and even efforts to curtail its use. But other more secretive and invasive military technologies have emerged as a means of widespread surveillance of the American public by local police departments in the United States. The continued and escalating acquisition of these technologies has largely remained ‘under the radar,’ yet has alarmed privacy and civil rights and civil liberties advocates. Facial recognition technology traces its history in the United States to the 1960s, where it had funding and support from the military and federal intelligence services. According to a 2022 report by the Brookings Institution, about one in four state and local law enforcement agencies in the United States have access to facial recognition technology, and 20 of the 42 federal agencies that employ law enforcement officers also use facial recognition technology. The report lists concerns with the history of the “oversurveillance of communities of colour” by police in the United States, and the police profiling and surveillance of civil rights and Black Lives Matter activists, as well as Chinese-American academics, Muslims, and immigrants at United States borders. According to Brookings, in 2019 “the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) published a study of 189 commercial facial recognition programs, finding that algorithms developed in the United States were significantly more likely to return false positives or negatives for Black, Asian, and Native American individuals compared to White individuals.” Facial recognition technology poses significant risks to people of colour being identified as perpetrators of crimes that they are not connected to. According to a 2021 brief prepared by think-tank, the Open Technology Institute at New America, “many law enforcement agencies have adopted face recognition technologies in secret, without the input or approval of policymakers or the public. In cases where the public has learned of an agency’s use of face recognition, key details about how the system works and how it’s used often remain concealed, even from criminal defendants.” The use of facial recognition technology may contravene US Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable government searches, as well as First Amendment protections on freedom of assembly and free speech. Where facial recognition technology proliferates in public places, people exist in a perpetual lineup and may be deterred from engaging in public assemblies or peaceful demonstrations for fear of being recorded and identified by police. Seven states as well as many cities in the United States have passed laws regulating or even prohibiting the use of facial recognition technology by police, but the results of such efforts are an uneven patchwork of often confusing and inconsistent guidelines around its deployment. The proliferation of the police use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones) in the United States follows their recent history and ongoing deployment by the US military in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations in the protracted war on terrorism. According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and the Atlas of Surveillance, 1,172 police agencies in the US are using drones, what the EFF has dubbed “flying spies.” And the New York Times reported that drones were used by police departments and federal Homeland Security officials in 15 cities across the US to monitor Black Lives Matter protests following the murder of George Floyd in 2020. While drone use by police may have some utility and legitimacy (for example in locating lost children or documenting accident scenes), there are ongoing concerns that unregulated and unfettered use of drones by police conducting aerial surveillance and recording public assemblies, could impact people’s privacy, civil rights and liberties. Although the International Association of Chiefs of Police current policy regarding the arming of drones recommends that drones “shall not be equipped with weapons of any kind,” North Dakota became the first US state to legislate in favour of police using drones armed with “non-lethal” weapons in 2016. In 2021, international relations scholar Christian Enemark, raised ethical concerns with the police using armed drones in domestic law enforcement, arguing that policing is morally governed by respect for individual human rights and has different ethical expectations to that of military on the field of battle. More recently, law enforcement in the United States has been using technology that tracks 250 million mobile devices nationwide via popular apps that use location data to provide directions, weather reports, restaurant locations, and countless other services to mobile device users. Fog Data Science — a private company which purchases such raw location data from “data brokers,” claims that its data “can be used to learn about where its subjects work, live, and associate.” Although Fog also claims that its data contain no personally identifiable information such as names and addresses, it markets this technology to federal, state, and local law enforcement as “mass surveillance on a budget”, selling access to detailed histories of regular people’s lives. The use of the Fog Reveal technology is largely kept secret from the public, and even from defence attorneys representing clients whose devices may have been monitored using the service. Facial recognition, drones, and Fog data, are just three of the many technologies that are in everyday use by police in the United States to surreptitiously identify, surveil, record, and monitor people in the United States without their knowledge, awareness, or consent. These surveillance activities by police often run afoul of the US Constitution and are done intentionally, secretly, and deliberately so as to avoid judicial and public scrutiny and interrogation. Citizens concerned about police violence and lawlessness in the public domain should also be concerned about the activities that police engage in while removed from the glare of the public spotlight. Particularly when police engage in strategically and tactically militarised surveillance activities, which undergo constitutional gyrations and gymnastics to avoid accusations of lawless excess. Tom Nolan was a city of Boston, Massachusetts police officer for 27 years and until recently, a visiting associate professor of sociology at Emmanuel College Boston. He is the author of Perilous Policing: Criminal Justice in Marginalized Communities. He has taught criminal justice courses in colleges and universities throughout New England and New York since the 1990s. He declares no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 3, 2022

Closer ties will meet Quad goals - 360 Srikanth Kondapalli Published on June 21, 2023 India and the US have developed closer ties through the resurrected Quad alliance, but Modi’s White House visit could bring the countries even nearer. The United States’ latest push for India’s loyalty has been in swing for over half a decade, notably marked by the revival of the Quad in 2017. But, as US President Joe Biden prepares to host Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Modi’s first White House visit since 2014, it’s clear that the charm offensive is still just beginning. US and India relations have grown through the Quad, a geopolitical body of the two nations, Australia and Japan that was brought back to life in 2017 after nine years on ice. When the Quad re-started, it began as a slow-moving alliance with a narrow agenda. But, as the quartet have met year on year, its ambitions have sped up — going beyond the initial scope of vaccines into discussions on conflicts, growing trade and investing in regional infrastructure. One thing conspicuously absent in Quad discussions is the perceived challenge from China. Whether Modi and Biden will discuss it at the White House remains to be seen. All Quad members have heavy economic interdependence on China, which blunts potential explicit opposition to Beijing. Still, the US hasn’t shied away from picking fights: a spy balloon, TikTok and Taiwan are just a few arenas in which the Biden administration has been willing to provoke Beijing. India has a finer balance in the way it approaches China. Aside from territorial disputes and fallouts in 1962 and 2020, India has carefully managed its approach to China, which is reflected in it joining the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank or the China-backed Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, or working with Beijing on climate change and trade-related issues. But an incident three years ago in Galwan, which left 20 Indian soldiers dead, has become the tipping point in their relationship. The Quad alliance has been the key plank from which Modi has grown closer to Washington. Meeting in its current form since 2017, starting on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit, the Quad has gradually grown into its own event of significance. Bit by bit, the rebuilt Quad strengthened ties — agreeing to joint military drills and tabletop exercises on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. After the September 2021 meeting, the Quad jointly called for a free and open Indo-Pacific region with better supply chain resilience and a better pandemic response. The Quad leaders have met twice each year since 2021. The quick succession of high-level meetings is a reflection of urgent challenges confronting the region: a global pandemic and an ongoing conflict in Ukraine. The first meeting of 2023 in Sydney was called off as Biden grappled with domestic debt ceiling negotiations, but the countries still managed to meet on the sidelines of the G7 in May. Explicitly, the outcomes from these Quad meetings have been modest. However, the true significance of the meetings lie in the intangible outcomes. For instance, the Quad agreed to facilitate the production and distribution of a billion doses of Johnson & Johnson vaccines by 2022. Under the agreement, the US was to transfer technology to a firm based in Hyderabad, India. Japan would provide financing and Australia was to help distribute the vaccines. As the pandemic situation improved, the Quad shifted its priorities elsewhere. But the collaborative spirit of the four countries, leveraging their respective national strengths, offered an insight into the unified power that an allied US, India, Japan and Australia could wield in the region. Similarly, the Malabar naval exercises — joint training involving the navies of Quad nations — has been an annual show of force and intelligence sharing that has added another dimension to the US and India relationship. While the Quad’s resurrection has been a relative success, setting the stage for Modi to return to the White House for the first time since Barack Obama’s presidency, the real work might be yet to start. When the question of Ukraine arose at the third Quad virtual meeting in March 2022, India expressed concerns at the topic’s inclusion. But, as the conflict wears on and the global cost mounts, Biden may press Modi to pull India away from the relationship it enjoys with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Biden has sought to restore the US as the world’s leader of democracy after the reign of former President Donald Trump. Standing up to the rising threat of China and Russia will be key to re-establishing his nation’s power. Modi’s visit to the White House this month may be an important step to continuing the positive momentum of the Quad. is Dean of School of International Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on June 21, 2023

Coal-fired contradictions: why climate action needs a circuit breaker - 360 Yuen Yoong Leong Published on September 18, 2023 Slow efforts to decarbonise are blamed on low political will — but time is running out to transition, and a circuit breaker is needed. China is the world leader in renewable energy investment, pouring in nearly half of the world’s total low-carbon spending for 2022 alone. Yet, it is also a great example of the contradictions dogging global efforts to decarbonise as part of attempts to fight climate change. The USD$546 billion spent made China the world’s biggest market for renewable energy, increasing its capacity to nearly 1.2 terawatts — the equivalent of illuminating 120 billion LED bulbs. China is also among the fastest at reducing its energy consumption intensity, dropping 28.7 per cent between 2011 and 2020, and plays a leading role in global cooperation by promoting sustainable development in countries that participate in its Belt and Road Initiative. Despite its stellar results, China continues to build new coal power plants at an astonishing rate. It has six times as many coal plants starting construction as the rest of the world combined, permitting an average of two new plants a week last year. The consolation here is that China is shutting smaller and more polluting coal power plants and replacing them with larger, less polluting ones. China is not alone — such contradictions are widespread across the world, notably in the Japan, India, Indonesia and Vietnam. Coal power plants are one of the worst polluters of the environment due to the large amounts of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, they emit. They also emit other pollutants, such as sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, which can cause serious respiratory and other health problems. The United Nations addresses climate action in Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13. SDG 13 focuses on taking action to combat climate change and its impacts, including extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and melting ice caps. It aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, adapt to climate change impacts, build resilience, and raise awareness of climate change. The term climate action captures a range of activities, such as reducing energy use, conserving water, recycling and composting, planting trees and reducing motorised transport. It also includes increasing active transport, including walking and cycling, as well as supporting businesses that weave sustainability into their DNA. The slow progress on decarbonisation is often chalked up to a lack of political will, which leads to low public awareness. The reverse can also be said to be true. In 2021, only 57 percent of 12,096 respondents to a global survey believed that a political candidate’s record and position on climate action affected their voting decisions. This underscores the need for greater civic engagement so that politicians are increasingly held accountable for their legislative contribution and public investment in climate action. The Indo-Pacific is home to countries with different levels of development and priorities, but all are affected by climate change. Many countries have conflicting actions in response to climate change because of the dilemma between development and carbon reduction. In November 2022, Indonesia accepted a USD$20 billion deal to help retire coal power plants early, mitigate the economic impact and increase renewable energy. This deal required loans, grants, and other financial tools from the United States, Japan, Citigroup and the Bank of America. Despite international assistance, Indonesia has an exemption clause to its commitment to stop developing new coal power plants. The ban does not apply to plants already in the pipeline or attached to ‘nationally strategic projects’, like the world’s biggest green industrial park in North Kalimantan. High cost is also a barrier to the transition to a low-carbon economy because many countries do not have the resources. Developing economies, especially in small island states, find the challenge particularly steep. Southeast Asia needs to invest about USD$210 billion a year leading up to 2050 to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The investment is more than 2.5 times the amount actually planned by Southeast Asian governments to reach their goals. There are also technological challenges in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. More efficient ways to store renewable energy need to be developed to enable its higher penetration in the grid. Other examples include carbon capture and storage and nuclear fusion. Advanced materials are still in the early stages of development, but carry the hope of leapfrogging efficiency, increasing safety and reducing the costs for solar panels, wind turbines, energy storage, carbon capture and storage, and nuclear fusion. The need for meaningful planning and effective implementation is clear. This is what the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network sets out to encourage and mobilise. For instance its ASEAN Green Future project — a collaboration with Climateworks Centre and researchers across Southeast Asia — builds an analytical foundation for inclusive regional power decarbonisation. It leverages economies of scale, shared resources, coordinated policy-making and enhanced cooperation for cross-border electricity trading. This project strengthens regional knowledge sharing and helps ASEAN member states better design and implement green transformation of economies. It also enables collective engagement with decision-makers across Southeast Asia to translate evidence from analysis into targeted and measurable actions. Fostering greater political will to decarbonise involves raising awareness of the climate crisis, demonstrating the benefits of meaningful decarbonisation, building a coalition of support, electing leaders who are supportive of meaningful decarbonisation, and ultimately holding leaders accountable. The development-decarbonisation contradictions highlighted show that climate problems cannot be solved exclusively with materialistic solutions, which do not address the addictive lock of increasing consumption. Human progress needs to shift from outward, which is about consumption and territorial expansion, to inward, which is about properly establishing the relationships between humans and the universe. This requires drawing from ancient wisdom traditions – teachings that have been passed down through generations. They offer insights into the human condition, how to live a good life, and the symbiotic relationship between humans and all other living beings. This can fruitfully guide the use of technological and political power in climate action as we work towards achieving SDG 13. Yuen Yoong Leong is the Director of Sustainability Studies at the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN). She is also a Professor at Sunway University. This article is part of a special report on the ‘State of the SDGs’, produced in partnership with the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on September 18, 2023

Coal mining in India has a human cost - 360 Shatabdi Das Published on June 19, 2023 Communities living close to coal mines in India face the constant threat of coal fires and land subsidence forcing them to flee their homes. The richest coal fields in India are also the most precarious for workers and those who live on them. The threat of homes collapsing or burning down due to ground subsidence and coal fires — some of which have burned for a century — is a clear and present danger to thousands of people in Jharkand and Raniganj regions, around 300 kilometres northwest of Kolkata. The risks of sudden death and injury frequently force people, in particular vulnerable migrant workers, into having to suddenly abandon everything and flee. This sudden exodus results in the loss of jobs and sources of income. It also leads to social disintegration and exposes the migrants to further poverty as they struggle to find work and settle in new places. In the Jharia coalfields, where underground fires have been burning for over 100 years, sudden land subsidence results in houses catching fire, people being killed and families being forced to abandon their properties and flee. These are common occurrences in Jharia, but its mines also produce the finest quality coal in India, which in 2020 accounted for 44 percent of India’s primary energy demand. Despite the ever-present danger, many of those working the mines find it difficult to migrate and settle elsewhere, because local people fear losing their daily source of income from coal picking. In the absence of alternate means of income, gathering burnt high-grade coal to sell in the market helps them make a living. Even if they want to move to escape the hazards of living next to a coal mine, without any resettlement and rehabilitation schemes, most do not find an appropriate place to resettle. The Jharia Rehabilitation and Development Authority has been created to provide people with alternative job options and help their resettlement in safer environments. However, relocation to stable land away from coal mines often becomes a hurdle to earning a livelihood in the absence of higher wages and dearth of work opportunities in manufacturing industries, and other sectors without formal education, and results in people choosing to return to live in their dilapidated homes and engage in informal mining despite the constant dangers. The proportion of homeless people engaged in illegal coal extraction is also quite high. This makes planning for people to live sustainably elsewhere ineffective, as many choose not to settle there. India’s Central Mine Planning and Design Institute has identified more than eight mine areas in the Raniganj Coalfield as high risk and unstable, with more than 100,000 people in danger of being forced to flee due to buildings collapsing, ground subsidence, mine fires or other accidents. The Ratibati colliery of Raniganj Community Development Block is highly susceptible to land subsidence because of the vacant labyrinth beneath the crust, and a population of above 30,000 threatened with either an imminent cave-in or becoming a victim of shock mobility. Houses have suddenly collapsed in the towns of Parashkol, Jambad, Majhipara and others near coal mines in Ondal Block as the ground beneath them gave way. In 2020, an exodus of people followed because of ground subsidence in the Madhabpur open-cast mine of Raniganj Coalfield. More than 400 people fled to find shelter elsewhere, as their houses developed cracks or collapsed. Normally, those fleeing due to such shocks are offered compensation at a safer site for the land and houses they have lost, and one member of the displaced family is offered a government job. However, the rehabilitation agencies allege that many residents encroach on land owned by Coal India Limited and then claim rehabilitation benefits. The local inhabitants blame the lack of coordination between the Asansol Durgapur Development Authority and officials of the mining company, Eastern Coalfields Limited, and the housing department of West Bengal, for the lack of implementation of rehabilitation packages. In cases of land subsidence and mine fire outbreaks, residents living in land adjoining the collieries are sometimes swiftly shifted to abandoned Eastern Coalfields Limited quarters that only have piped water connections. At times potable water is unavailable due to pipes being broken by land subsidence and people have to struggle with daily life amidst these uncertainties. The monsoon also brings more risks for inhabitants with excessive rainfall causing flooding. The September 2021 deluge in the Raniganj coalfield flooded the open-cast mines and stranded people without water, food and medical supplies in submerged areas near the collieries for almost a week, with coal seams remaining inaccessible to workers for about three months. They had to be rescued and shifted away from their waterlogged homes by the disaster response forces of the Disaster Management and Civil Defence Department of West Bengal. In many ways the sudden, mass movement of people in coal mining regions is inevitable. Coal mining draws poor and marginalised people to eke out a living from the burning seams, foraging through scraps of half-burnt coal, despite the risks to their lives. The expansion, operations and production of coal in India makes land unstable, prone to subsidence and fire. In this era of global pledges for the reduction of carbon footprints and greenhouse gas emissions, this brings into question whether expanding coal mining operations should continue. Perhaps now is the time when planning for the transition to sustainable energy should also include devising alternative livelihoods for residents dependent on coal scavenging and informal coal mining. If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, visit https://findahelpline.com/i/iasp. Dr Shatabdi Das is a researcher with the Calcutta Research Group. Her research interests include human migration, displacement, borderlands, issues of urban development and climate, and environmental and ecological studies. 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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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on June 19, 2023

Communicating with seemingly unconscious patients - 360 Steven Laureys Published on September 26, 2022 Brain-machine interfaces can decipher thoughts and help give some coma survivors a voice. But first we must ensure they’re responsive. Consciousness is not binary; it’s gradual, with many dimensions. While that might seem like a consideration to be pondered by philosophers, it can have major real-world implications. In 2009, a 21-year-old woman was assessed by the team of Dr Laureys at the University Hospital of Liège in Belgium. She was considered comatose on arrival. But a recording of her brain’s electrical activity showed she could respond to her name in a list of random names. Her brain activity responded to simple questions — she was hearing, understanding and doing what she was asked to do. In other cases, she would have been deemed comatose or vegetative but her brain showed she was conscious, yet suffering from a total locked-in syndrome with no means of speaking or moving. The moment was significant as clinicians were discussing end-of-life decisions with her family at the time. She subsequently recovered and was eventually able to control a wheelchair. There has been a historical misconception that consciousness is either ‘all or nothing’ — that comatose or vegetative patients are completely unaware. Clinicians sometimes fail to recognise minimal signs of consciousness after a coma. And often it’s the family who first realises there’s more going on in the brain of a patient. Consciousness is possible, despite not visibly appearing to be. Patients who exist in the shades of consciousness receive little attention — a literally silent epidemic. Much as we have progressed from using leeches in medicine, understanding consciousness has developed since the early days of ‘squeeze my hand’. Clinicians can now look directly at the brain responses of patients instead of their motor responses, limiting the chances of a misdiagnosis. Coma survivors or those who are paralysed can still have an active brain. And these machines can help decipher brain waves to help with communication. An EEG (electroencephalogram) —  a net of wires and electrodes — placed on the head of a person can measure the electrical activity of their brain and show what happens when you ask them questions. A machine that decodes that information is called a brain-machine interface. It’s non-invasive, meaning no surgery is involved, and it’s portable. By decoding electrical activity into a yes or no response, brain-machine interfaces can give a voice to patients who have no other way of communicating. It allows the possibility for patients to express their thoughts and wishes, increase their quality of life and have some control over their environment. Once doctors know a patient is aware and hearing, they can ask questions or give commands through images, touch and audio. Algorithms, artificial intelligence and classifiers used by the brain-machine interface can turn the electrical activity from the brain into functional information. The challenge is enabling brain-machine interfaces to be used more widely. There is enough scientific evidence to show the concept works, but it’s now a matter of making it accessible and affordable around the world. It currently depends on what industry partners and engineering companies can offer to create the technology at scale. Ethical challenges will arise as the technology becomes more widely used. Studies show we should be very careful when addressing, assessing or protecting the quality of life of those with severe motor deficits or who are minimally conscious. Imagine a patient who expresses the need for rehab, is in pain, or asking to die because there is no quality of life. There are currently no parameters in defining informed requests for those who are not verbally or physically responsive. We still need to define the level of competency those with brain damage have. Messages from the brain-machine interface will need to be representative of the patient’s true wants and needs. Patients’ families, physicians, and engineers will need to trust that the machine can accurately decode information and be able to make sound judgments. Families and medical staff will also still need to be there as caregivers. These are big challenges as medicine becomes hyper-specialised and technological — we are still dealing with human beings and their emotional needs, after all. Brain-machine interface technology can add a lot of value to modern neuroimaging, and understanding consciousness. Butwe are still very far from understanding thoughts, perceptions and emotions. In the meantime, the research and scientific community can benefit from remaining humble. False hope for patients’ families is just as bad as false despair. Dr Steven Laureys is an award-winning neurologist and neuroscientist, recognised worldwide as a leading clinician and researcher in the field of the neurology of consciousness, recovery after severe brain injury and concussion. He is head of the Centre Cerveau (Brain Clinic) at the Liège University Hospital in Belgium, founder of the ‘Coma Science Group’, director of the GIGA Consciousness Research Unit at Liège University & Invited Professor at CERVO Brain Centre, Laval University, Canada. www.drstevenlaureys.com The research featured in this article is supported by grants from the Belgian National Fund for Scientific Research (FRS-FNRS), Human Brain Project, National Natural Science Foundation of China), Mind Science Foundation, European Foundation of Biomedical Research FERB Onlus, BIAL Foundation, European Space Agency, fund Generet of King Baudouin Foundation and Mind Care International Foundation. The author declares no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on September 26, 2022

Community groups key to multicultural health messaging - 360 Delvin Varghese Published on December 20, 2021 By Delvin Varghese, Monash University The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted governments in Australia to fund and directly support community groups in creating their own communication materials.It wasn’t always this way. A parliamentary inquiry looking at the Victorian state government’s initial response to COVID-19 found engagement with multicultural communities severely lacking. Governments realised too late that culturally and linguistically diverse communities didn’t tune-in to mainstream news channels or access translated material on English-language government websites. Multicultural media outlet SBS had limited outreach during COVID-19 due to its lack of emergency broadcaster status. Both federal and Victorian state governments were embarrassed by mistranslations and cultural faux-pas in health information shared through official channels.But there’s more to multicultural engagement than language accessibility. The pandemic made state bodies realise their lack of reach with multicultural and multi-faith communities. Many people of migrant backgrounds do not trust politicians, governments or people in authority. Mass media was overemphasised and technologies designed for trusted small networks were not sufficiently utilised. Misinformation, often originating from overseas, was left to spread through social media networks. Many multicultural communities rely on advice from friends and family using informal messaging groups and apps like WhatsApp, Viber and Facebook Messenger. Governments mistakenly assumed the social media box could be ticked by relying on one-off social media posts. Mass media campaigns were not supplemented with decentralised communication strategies. State bodies gradually realised the role community groups play in diverse communities. Millions of dollars in funding was directed to expanded health messaging and support for multicultural organisations undertaking welfare relief work. This meant organisations with boots on the ground, best suited to responding to their own communities, could counter misinformation on their turf. Young people also play an important role in their communities, often serving as intergenerational messengers. They often receive and translate information from multiple sources such as their places of work or education, social media and news media and deliver it in simple terms to parents, grandparents, peers and the broader community. In multicultural suburbs across the country, community groups have repeatedly identified a lack of multilingual messaging and digital literacy as barriers to vaccine uptake. Community leader Ramdas Sankaran argues for better use of the “ethnic grapevine”. Despite multiculturalism’s integrality to Australian society and its economy, Australia’s communications infrastructure was not designed to fully support multicultural communities in crisis situations. Community organisations didn’t sleep when the pandemic hit. They worked around the clock to fill in gaps in government communications, became vaccine ambassadors and stepped up food and welfare relief programs. Many received little praise or pay, and were often expected to work voluntarily, often juggling paid full-time jobs. Victoria later moved to offer grants to help local civil society organisations engage their own communities. Academics, adept at applying for grants, delivered clinics to help community organisations innovate in their delivery. While COVID-19 presents perhaps the greatest health challenge in living memory, it has also laid bare the importance of early, attentive engagement with local community groups which, in turn, are the key to safeguarding those communities. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Devlin Verghese is a research fellow at Monash University and a leader of the Youth Social Media Playbook project.Conflict of interest: Received funding from the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (Victorian government) to design future grant clinics. The researcher has received previous funding from Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPC Victoria) to carry out research around young people and social media use. The researcher has also been funded to establish further grant clinics in 2022 by Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH Victoria).

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on December 20, 2021

Community living a solution for India's ageing population crisis - 360 Amit Seth, Anandajit Goswami, Anita Prasad Published on October 1, 2023 Community living isn’t well known in India and has a stigma among those who do know it. Yet embracing it could be a boon to its ageing population. Community living — a form of aged care common and often first-choice in Australia and other developed countries — is relatively rare, and even shunned in India. Yet it might offer the world’s most populous country one of its best solutions to housing and caring for its rapidly ageing population. India is braced to feel the force of the globally ageing population harder than most. It has about 140 million people aged 60 and above. By 2050, it is predicted that 19 percent of India’s population will be in this bracket. This fits a worldwide trend — the World Health Organization and the United Nations declared 2021–2030 the Decade of Healthy Ageing. A robust rise in the ageing population has prompted demand for proper housing and health facilities to suit a society with more older people. This is very important for households in India’s middle- and lower-income classes, which are most vulnerable to a changing society that has seen India’s traditional joint family system degenerate. More elderly people live alone as their adult offspring pursue careers and start nuclear households. It breaks the tradition of keeping multiple generations under the same roof and leaves more senior citizens isolated, without the same degree of practical and emotional support from family. It’s hard to reverse a cultural change once it starts. To stop senior citizens becoming isolated, community living — in simple terms retirement homes — could be the best substitute. Such a model offers staffed, around-the-clock assistance for elderly residents and is rich with the potential for tailored care. About 35 percent of India’s ageing population stays alone but India’s contribution to the global senior living industry is less than 1 per cent. That leaves a lot of senior citizens in need and an untapped market for community living providers. Aside from supply issues, a lot of older people in India aren’t aware of their community living options. For those that do know, there’s often a stigma attached to families that send their elderly to another place. It’s seen as unacceptable by many, even though it can eradicate loneliness and provides an environment for older people to spend quality time with others of the same age group. The demand is there, even if cultural attitudes are lagging a bit behind. There are about 57 senior living projects operating in India, ranging from affordable facilities targeting middle-income groups to ones aimed at the most affluent sections of society. Affordable community living places are available for rent starting from INR₹17,000 (USD$205) to ₹30,000 per month ($361), based in Haridwar, Dehradun, Jaipur, Mathura, Coimbatore and Bengaluru. Some of these community living arrangements cater to lower- and middle-income sections of society, with very nominal maintenance charges of roughly INR 200 ($2.41) per month. A couple can secure their living for around INR 10,000 ($120.31) to INR 12,000 ($144.38) per month. Rather than pay a monthly fee to stay, affordable living facilities also offer one-time fees for lifetime residency. For obtaining lifetime residency, couples could pay about INR₹3,00,000 (USD$3,609) and a single person could pay ₹2,00,000 ($2406). Even at a base level, these facilities offer a suite of medical services as well as religious spaces and activities for leisure and learning, including libraries. At the other end of the spectrum, the wealthiest flat-based community living facilities charge a one-time fee starting from INR₹24,00,000 (USD$288,648) for a space of about 76 square metres to INR₹60,00,000 ($721,647) for about 137 square metres. These facilities have more extravagant amenities, including full-scale hospitals, cinemas, spas, gyms, clean natural environments and clubhouses. The spectrum of elderly care-based community living highlights the role of wealth in the quality of care. It’s possible to bridge this gap, but that fix can only be addressed with commitment and policy. Funding community living and giving incentives like tax exemptions to organisations that build this kind of housing could spark a boom. The government could also offer free land packages to certain registered bodies — such as non-government organisations, trusts and cooperative societies — so they could offer affordable retirement homes to seniors. Such a model might be a ‘Senior Citizen Cooperative Society’ — a representative group of senior citizens — that could receive land free or at a concessional rate and benefit accordingly, securing legal titles to apartments or at least subsidised construction of homes. Dr Amit Seth is Professor at School of Leadership & Management and Director in MR NewGen IEDC at Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies in Faridabad, India. Anita Prasad is a PhD Scholar and Research Assistant in the Department of Economics at Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies in Faridabad, India. Dr Seth, Dr Goswami and Ms Prasad’s research has been funded by the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 1, 2023

Comparing wellbeing measurements - 360 Ambalika Gupta, James Goldie Published on June 7, 2023 Comparisons show people’s subjective happiness does not always correlate with the United Nations Development Programme’s measurement of development. EMBED START Image {id: "editor_0"} EMBED END Image {id: "editor_0"} The variations in people’s happiness could be influenced by many factors including the state of the economy, employment, sense of security or large outbreaks of diseases. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Wellbeing economy” sent at: 05/06/2023 08:13. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on June 7, 2023

Computer modelling to aid search for HIV vaccine - 360 Kumitaa Theva Das Published on April 22, 2022 The search continues at a brisk pace thanks to rapid developments in generating more potent computing power. Underway since the 1980s, the search for a vaccine for HIV has delivered several encouraging leads, though no panacea. Now, bigger than ever data and computing power offers new approaches. Vaccines are often developed from the immunity of recovered individuals. Molecules produced in the immune system response – antibodies – can be isolated and analysed and used as a basis for vaccine research. However, HIV attacks the immune system itself, disabling the usual mechanisms that help a vaccine do its job. The few individuals worldwide who have been cured of HIV to date became well after undergoing stem cell transplants. Their immune system was dramatically altered in order for them to recover. Another route for vaccine development also closed to HIV research is what’s known as attenuated viruses. These are versions of the original virus modified so that they don’t cause severe disease. But for HIV, the attenuated version may raise safety issues. The HIV virus also changes often, developing new strains, which complicates finding a consistent immune response. This has not discouraged attempts at HIV vaccine development. In recent years, a Thai trial (RV 144), the largest HIV vaccine trial, reduced new infections by 30 percent. The trials were eventually stopped as 30 percent is deemed too low, but it provided hope that an effective HIV vaccine may one day be possible. Two other large HIV vaccine trials – Imbokodo (HVTN 705) and Mosaico (HVTN 706) have sparked ideas and more research. These trials used the ‘adenovirus type 26’ common cold virus – similar to the one used in the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine – to deliver a computer-designed combination of molecules that induce an immune response. The computer combined antigens from multiple HIV strains and included proteins from the external coating of the virus as boosters. The Imbokodo studies showed that the vaccine triggered a strong and long-lasting immune response. However, the vaccine didn’t target enough HIV strains and the trial was halted a few months ago when the efficacy was shown to be only around 25 percent. For some reason, however, this vaccine had quite good effectiveness in older women, which shows there is much yet to learn about this virus. The parallel Mosaico trial is still underway. In contrast to Imbokodo, the booster in Mosaico includes external coat proteins from a larger variety of HIV strains. Other researchers are exploring a variety of new approaches, including the mRNA technology which was successfully used in the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. Early in 2022 as part of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, vaccine manufacturer Moderna and the American National Institutes of Health launched a trial of their HIV vaccine with mRNA technology. This first phase tests the safety of different doses of the vaccine in real people. They had earlier obtained promising results in mice and monkeys. With encouraging data from the Imbokodo and Mosaico trials, could computer models be the key to better vaccines? Modelling seems to assist scientists tremendously In viruses that have multiple variants and subtypes. Mathematical and computational models have also been used in making decisions about doses in vaccine trials. This can cut down on development time and optimise immune responses. Modelling is also expected to detect unwanted immune responses, which could be especially helpful in populations who require non-standard dosings such as children, the immunocompromised and certain ethnic groups. America’s Food and Drug Administration received its first submission of a vaccine product created using modelling to optimise dose-response relationships just a few months ago, paving the way for future vaccine research. Kumitaa Theva Das holds a Ph.D. in genetics from the University of California, Davis and her tasks at Universiti Sains Malaysia focus on gene therapy against HIV/AIDS. She currently undertakes COVID-19 research. The author declares no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 22, 2022

Conditions ripe for Polar Silk Road - 360 Henry P. Huntington, of Ottawa, the University of Greenland, of China Published on February 1, 2022 Distant, uninhabited and irrelevant: the Arctic is none of these things. And the effects of climate change on the Arctic will be felt by the world. By: Henry P. Huntington, Ocean Conservancy, Andrey Zagorsky, Russian Academy of Sciences, Bjørn P. Kaltenborn, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Hyoung Chul Shin, Korea Polar Research Institute, Jackie Dawson, University of Ottawa, Maija Lukin, Kotzebue, Alaska, Parnuna Egede Dahl, Aalborg University and the University of Greenland, Guo Peiqing, Ocean University of China, David N. Thomas University of Helsinki, Finland. Many people never give the Arctic a second thought. But people the world over are affected in ways large and small by what is taking place in the North. As long as 200 years ago, the British naval captain Edward Parry (quoted here) noted that a change in sea ice near Greenland affected the quality of whale oil and led to crop failures and colder summers far to the south. Similar connections can be seen today. Weather in the Northern Hemisphere has been widely affected as Arctic sea ice loss has changed the patterns of the jet stream. This effect has produced cold winters in North America and East Asia. It’s among the reasons China now considers itself a “near Arctic state”. Movement of water in the North Atlantic, driven in part by warmer Arctic waters, may affect global ocean circulation including the Gulf Stream that keeps Europe warmer than its latitude would suggest. An understanding of such meteorological connections is essential for accurate weather prediction and for long-term planning and preparation for extreme weather. The loss of Arctic sea ice amplifies global warming by allowing more of the Sun’s energy to be retained instead of reflected. Economic estimates of the cost of sea ice loss are as much as hundreds of billions of dollars. The change may be occurring in Arctic waters, but the entire globe will feel — and pay for — the effects. Changing access to Arctic resources may also affect global commodities markets and create economic benefits. Liquefied natural gas from northern Siberia is already being shipped to East Asia and Europe, providing energy while tapping into the shipbuilding prowess of the Republic of Korea and helping Russia maintain the Northern Sea Route as a viable transportation corridor. Shipping through the Arctic, as distinct from shipping to and from Arctic destinations, has also attracted great interest, if not yet a huge increase in vessel traffic, due in part to variable ice conditions that make passage unpredictable and hazardous. For the longer term, Arctic shipping features prominently in strategies such as China’s One Belt One Road initiative, though no actual Arctic projects have so far been undertaken. A changing Arctic may also shift international relations by raising the stakes associated with access to and control of Arctic waters. Apart from relatively minor maritime boundary disputes, international boundaries in the Arctic are fixed and universally recognised. The main unsettled issues concern the extended continental shelf and the overlapping claims of several countries to seabed resources. In a context of uncertainty, many countries are pursuing influence and engagement in a variety of ways, which include military, economic, scientific, and other forms. A changing Arctic Ocean is only likely to exacerbate both the uncertainty and the range and magnitude of responses around the Arctic and the world. In the 1950s, the United States built an extensive radar detection system from Greenland to the Bering Strait, just as the Soviet Union used Novaya Zemlya to test nuclear weapons. Today, Russia maintains major naval bases on the Kola Peninsula, north of the Arctic Circle, and its Northern Fleet was raised to equal status as a fifth major military district in the country as of the start of 2021. Militarisation remains a concern for many, for example, in the United States’ claimed justification for increasing its military presence in the warmer parts of the region as a response to other countries’ actions. Moreover, nuclear submarines from the major powers can operate in these waters, with the noise from moving ice helping prevent sonar detection of submarines, providing a further incentive to use the Arctic Ocean for military purposes. Arctic resources and access are behind at least some of these concerns as can be seen in two recent and prominent examples. The Polar Silk Road, the northern component of China’s vision for One Belt One Road, includes a spate of infrastructure proposals across northern Eurasia and entangles economic opportunity through shorter shipping routes with geopolitical aspirations. The difficulty of distinguishing between the interests of Chinese companies and those of the central government will make it all the harder to tell which is the overriding factor, at least for those outside of China. The European Union and three Asian states joined six Arctic states to complete the Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement, a recognition of major non-Arctic interests in Arctic marine resources. Should fish species shift farther north and increase in abundance, pressure will likewise increase to turn a fishing moratorium into a fisheries management regime. Political disputes over other matters may clash with a need for economic and other partnerships in the Arctic development. Arctic scientific research is relevant locally and regionally and is also growing in significance as a mode of international relations. This is both in response to change and as a way of exerting influence. Significantly, science is prominently featured in the Arctic policy statements of many non-Arctic countries such as China, India, Japan, and Korea, as is also the case for Arctic states. Arctic research is costly, but the benefits can outweigh the cost. The Arctic Council’s Agreement on Enhancing International Arctic Scientific Cooperation is an important step in this regard, as is the commitment to the joint scientific program being set up under the Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement. Even high-quality science, however, will not necessarily translate to effective policies and practices without broader efforts to engage society and its leaders in recognising and addressing both threats and opportunities posed by change. International relations are of course shaped by circumstances around the world. The Arctic has in many ways remained apart from other clashes. In 1988, the Soviet Union sent icebreakers to assist Alaskans trying to free grey whales trapped in ice near Point Barrow, even as the Cold War continued. In 2018, Russia and the United States cooperated to propose Bering Strait shipping routes to the International Maritime Organization despite clashing over Crimea and other issues. The Arctic states have shown an exemplary will to cooperate through the work of the Arctic Council while keeping security matters at arm’s length. More recently, however, global tensions have spilled over into Arctic affairs, for example, as the United States named China and Russia as threats. Physical and biological changes in the Arctic Ocean are not even the primary factor determining how the Arctic is considered in global affairs. But environmental changes affect both reality and perception of an increasingly accessible and relevant Arctic, giving the Arctic increased prominence on the global stage and drawing greater interest, scrutiny, and concern. Henry P. Huntington is Arctic Science Director at Ocean Conservancy. Andrey Zagorsky is Head of Department of Disarmament and Conflict Resolution at the Primakov National Research Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO) of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Bjørn P. Kaltenborn is a geographer and senior research scientist with the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA). Hyoung Chul Shin is the Vice President of Korea Polar Research Institute, ex-officio the chief scientist of the institute. Jackie Dawson is an Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Environment, Society, and Policy at the University of Ottawa and is a Co-Scientific Director of ArcticNet. Maija Lukin is Inupiaq from Kotzebue, Alaska, involved in managing natural and cultural resources in Alaska. Parnuna Egede Dahl is a joint PhD Fellow at Aalborg University and the University of Greenland. She is an Inuk from Greenland. Guo Peiqing is a Professor at School of International Affairs and Public Administration, Ocean University of China. David N. Thomas is a Professor of Arctic Ecosystems Research at the University of Helsinki, Finland. His work on this project was partially funded by Natural Environment Council (UK) and German Federal Ministry for Education and Research Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. An earlier version of this article appeared here. Editors Note: Huntington et al, Arctic

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 1, 2022

Conflicts in a river’s revival reveals a way out - 360 Theresa Marie E. Lorenzo, Vivian H.Y. Chu, Jessica M. Williams, Winnie W.Y. Law Published on September 28, 2022 After decades of decline, a formerly pristine river with high ecological value in Hong Kong is on the path to revitalisation. Hong Kong’s Lai Chi Wo river is ecologically unique. Stretching 2.6km long, the river boasts 45 different freshwater species, and is home to the most extensive mangrove and seagrass bed in Hong Kong. But for decades, the Lai Chi Wo river has been getting left behind as its village population dwindles. The river is located in a village of the same name, a valley surrounded by hills on three sides and an estuary on the other. Traditionally, its community relied on subsistence farming, capitalising on the village’s abundant water supply and cultivating growing fields in the catchment areas and terraced fields in the hillsides. But Lai Chi Wo’s luck changed in the 1970s and 1980s as many, mirroring greater demographic trends in Hong Kong, moved to urban areas and abroad, leaving only a few residents behind. This became problematic for the Lai Chi Wo river. The village’s agricultural production rested upon the river’s management, and keeping the river functioning well was labour-intensive work: previously, farmers were required to actively manage the whole river catchment for irrigation and domestic purposes, villagers actively cleared stream sediments, maintaining stream depth and protecting irrigation structures. With the migration of many villagers, this crucial and labour-intensive desiltation work could no longer continue, reducing the river’s agricultural potential and its capacity to regulate flooding and intense rainstorm events. A rural revitalisation project centering on Lai Chi Wo was launched by the Centre for Civil Society and Governance (CCSG) of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) in 2013, and received UNESCO recognition in 2020. From traditional subsistence crops, the revitalisation project expanded the village’s economy and produced more economic opportunities for the villagers, while also encouraging the settlement of new community members. But it has been difficult for the major players around the Lai Chi Wo river to reach consensus on the river’s management. Inhabitants view more intensive dredging and river bank stabilisation as necessary for the success of agricultural revitalisation efforts and to address problems faced during floods and droughts. However, Lai Chi Wo river’s official designation as ecologically significant prohibits desiltation activities. Complicating matters further, the river is located in government land with jurisdiction for the Lai Chi Wo fragmented between different departments bearing responsibility for different sections. The revitalisation project is tasked with bringing together different groups. To ease tensions, CCSG has asserted itself as a policy broker, facilitating liaison meetings and informal conversations in which locals, experts, green groups and government departments were given opportunities to talk, build trust with one another, and resolve conflicts. The discussions seem fruitful. Villagers have developed a better understanding of the reasons and requirements behind designating the Lai Chi Wo river as an ecologically important stream with adequate protections, while government departments have better appreciation of traditional practices and local knowledge. Despite the progress, the government departments remain reluctant to take further action regarding river stabilisation due to the low village population, a lack of resources, and its ecologically sensitive location. But the dialogue has led to some compromises. An informal understanding has been reached among the parties that villagers can undertake occasional desilting using hand tools to alleviate some of the river’s issues. External NGOs and government agencies have helped to run volunteer-based desiltation programmes. However, the conflict between nature conservation and the villagers’ requirement for more intensive desiltation has not been fully resolved. As part of the brokering, platforms have been created where decisions on maintaining the river and resolving disputes over shared irrigation channels can be discussed, negotiated and agreed upon. Tensions have eased. The community now regularly coordinates collective maintenance, desiltation activities, dredging of farming areas, typhoon preparation, and drought mitigation. Through the new platform initiated by the revitalisation project, the community members’ adaptive capacity and overall community resilience has increased. Amid a collection of different players, the presence of a neutral third-party focused on linking issues and brokering collaboration has made a difference. The government and the village community are engaging and communicating better, with both sides showing a willingness to come to the table and discuss water issues. The villagers are eager and proactive in water system maintenance and management. Participatory resource management processes such as these are vital for the success of rural revitalisation as a whole. The early success in the Lai Chi Wo river offers a blueprint to broker river disputes in other communities where cooperation has stalled or conflicts are blocking sustainable governance. Climate change is one of many major strains on the health of the world’s rivers, alongside intensified urban development. Finding cost-effective interventions to optimise river management will be paramount. Tactfully mediating compromises is a step in the right direction. ’s research interests lie in collaborative governance and resource management to ensure sustainable development, particularly in developing countries. Her recent research focuses on the governance of commons across the urban-rural spectrum in Hong Kong and its’ neighbouring countries. The authors declare that they are employed by the University of Hong Kong, who was in charge of and received funding for the Living Water and Community Revitalisation: An Agricultural-led Action, Engagement and Incubation Programme at Lai Chi Wo and the HSBC Rural Sustainability Programme, the study of which this article is based. The authors declare that research funding has been provided by Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (HSBC). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on September 28, 2022

Conflicts loom if we don't solve the global water crisis - 360 Reece Hooker Published on March 25, 2024 Tensions around access to and management of water are heightening all over the world. Finding ways to de-escalate and innovate is a matter of life and death. The world is facing a water crisis. Four billion people — almost two thirds of the world’s population — face severe water scarcity for at least one month each year. By 2030, experts predict that demand for fresh water will outstrip supply for 40 percent. Heightened scarcity prompts a higher propensity for conflict. As we face a future where some parts of the world will be chronically short of water, so too comes the increased risk that groups will be drawn into conflict and wars over access to and sovereignty over water. But water conflict isn’t just a risk of the future, it’s happening before us now. In February 2024, Israel confirmed it was pumping seawater into a network of tunnels in Gaza, claiming it was “neutralising underground terrorist infrastructure”. But the action “will definitely” contaminate an aquifer holding Gaza’s groundwater, imperilling Palestinians already facing bombing, imminent famine and a death toll exceeding 30,000. With this backdrop, the UN is commemorating World Water Day with the theme ‘water for peace’. It brings to light not just the conflicts raging over water in the present, but pathways to resolution. Conflict takes many shapes and forms. While the weaponisation of war in Gaza presents the most imminent threat to human life, other major water struggles happen more gradually — diplomatic disputes and bureaucratic arm wrestles have cause immense friction in major waterways, such as Australia’s Murray-Darling Basin and Malaysia’s Johor River. The management of the Murray-Darling Basin is a “cautionary tale of what and who can get in the way of good practice and how reform can, sometimes, go backwards, as well as forwards”, according to Quentin Grafton of The Australian National University. “On paper, it doesn’t make sense: Australia is a stable democracy with a robust public service. It could be a model case study of sustainable river management. Instead, it has been derailed by dispute and bureaucratic in-fighting.” This is not uncommon. As Shafiqul Islam of Tufts University notes, “blame shifting, fault finding and panic” are “the usual reaction to water crises all over the world.” To reverse the trend of water scarcity, reform will have to move quickly and comprehensively. From finding ways to end the use of water as a weapon in conflict to foster stronger cohesion in river management to innovations that help maximise the remaining water supply we have left, bringing peace around water is an ambitious but vital challenge for the world.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 25, 2024

Confronting ageing: the talk Australia has to have - 360 Lee-Fay Low Published on October 4, 2023 Australian society will be reshaped as its population ages, it needs to have some confronting conversations about ageing and how it pays the inevitable cost. Australian society is facing monumental change as it ages  — and that change will reshape workplaces, national and household finances and the structure of communities. It means Australians face potentially uncomfortable conversations about who will pay to support older Australians. It could also mean redefining how they think about ageing and retirement. Australia is getting older, faster. By 2026, more than 22 percent of Australians will be aged over 65  — up from 16 percent in 2020, which was already double the 8.3 percent at the start of the 1970s. This demographic change is partly due to the baby boom of the 1950s and 1960s and a falling birth rate, but it’s underpinned by something positive: Australians are living on average 30 years longer than they were a century ago. For children born between 2019-2021, boys have a life expectancy of 81 and girls 85. As they grow into adulthood, this will change how Australia looks at and thinks about ageing. The makeup of our society will trigger a drastic change in the services needed and how many need them. The way communities are built will shift as the population does: more health centres might be needed rather than schools or more seniors’ gyms instead of playgrounds. The old-age dependency ratio is the number of people aged 65 and over for every 100 people of traditional working age — 15 to 64. It is projected to climb to a point where, by 2063, for every five working age Australians there will be almost two older people. Older Australians understandably use the most healthcare and keeping people alive longer requires greater resourcing of our health systems. The rising number of older Australians is projected to increase the country’s health spending on them to more than double to AUD$270 billion (USD$174 billion) by 2035, even if the cost of providing care to each older person is static. Australia, already short of care workers, is projected to need another 285,800 workers for aged care, disability and mental health support by 2050. A royal commission into Australia’s aged care system reported in 2021 that the sector had been chronically underfunded, despite it already being the fifth-largest area of government expenditure at AUD$29.6 billion (USD$19 billion) in 2023. Australia spends 1.2 percent of its GDP on aged care, which is low compared with other high-income countries. Denmark, for example, spends 4.3 percent of GDP. Across multiple intergenerational reports, the cost of aged care to government has been raised as a concern and is a priority in discussions about reforming the sector. The most direct way to better fund the sector is to increase taxes, specifically adding to Australia’s Medicare levy to fund aged care. A 1 percent levy was recommended by an Aged Care Royal Commissioner and 0.65 percent was suggested by Australia’s Health Services Union with backing from aged care peak bodies. Australia’s aged care minister flagged in June 2023 that changes to the levy were possible.Another solution could be drawing from a United States-based approach and soliciting greater contributions from the person receiving care, depending on their means. This might involve changes to means-testing, such as including the value of the family home in assets, and charging more to those deemed able to pay. Countries like the Netherlands and Korea have aged care insurance, a private or public option to cover the long-term cost of care. Australia doesn’t have private long-term care insurance, with debate over whether there is a market for it. Public aged care insurance might function like superannuation, where workers contribute a proportion of their pay and this accumulates for use in older age. Otherwise, the shifts could be cultural rather than policy-based — children of older people, and their wider families, could bear a greater responsibility to contribute to costs of care, as is the case in countries like Singapore and France. Discussions into funding models are not just economic: they tap into conversations Australians will have about what is fair and valuable to the wider public. Questions will be asked about the responsibility Australians have for their own families and how they should contribute to their own aged care. The role of taxation underpins all of these discussions. The issue of intergenerational fairness will arise if today’s workers are taxed more to pay for the care of older people who paid less tax when they worked. Any changes are likely to be politically unpalatable because the public pays one way or another. Sustained public support  is needed to achieve proper reform. Funding changes need to be developed in detail, legislated and implemented. Reforms like this require collaboration across departments within the federal government and with the states and territories. All of it could be derailed by changes during election cycles. As government services and taxes change, so must the way Australian society perceives ageing. The age pension was introduced to Australians 125 years ago with a retirement age of 65, when men had a life expectancy of 55 and women 59. In 2023, the Australian pension age is 67, but people now are expected to live for 16 years after retirement. Society is starting to shift its thinking around what retirement means. Working part-time, working on a passion project and volunteering are all common. While evidence suggests that keeping active is beneficial for health, delaying retirement and active retirement might also have health benefits. Businesses could start to view older people as a workforce asset — older workers have valuable soft skills and expertise. Ageist stereotypes about older people in the workforce hurt would-be workers and their potential employers, who miss their talents. To entice older people to keep working, incentives like flexible working conditions can be brought in, allowing longer periods of unpaid leave for travel or allowances to care for grandchildren. Businesses already recognise older people are powerful consumers and are tailoring entertainment, leisure and healthcare to them. We all have a story in our head about how our lives may play out, stories from our families and our communities. These are usually grounded in ageist thinking, tending to show a simple arc where you grow up, get a job, get a partner, have children, grow old and die. There are far fewer stories about growing old and finding new loves, starting new jobs and having more adventures. This shift in demographics will change society, meaning we will need to develop new stories of the third age about contribution and fulfillment instead of stories of decline, care and death. Communities can embrace the opportunities that can come with getting older and shift the conversation from financial burden, to societal benefit. Lee-Fay Low is Professor in Ageing and Health at the University of Sydney. She is a registered psychologist and conducts research around health and aged care systems. She chairs the Sydney Dementia Network and sits on federal and state advisory committees relating to dementia and aged care. Prof Low declares that she has collaborated on research and practice improvement projects with HammondCare, the Whiddon Group, Calvary Health Care, BaptistCare, Scalabrini, Catholic Healthcare, Summitcare, Montefiore, Australian Nursing Home Foundation, Chinese Association of Social Services, FECCA, Volunteering NSW, NSW Health, Primary Healthcare Networks,  Dementia Australia, Alzheimer’s Disease International. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Generational change” sent at: 27/09/2023 15:21. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 4, 2023

Connection to Country has role in climate adaptation - 360 Linda Payi Ford, Veronica Matthews, Sotiris Vardoulakis Published on December 21, 2022 Building resilience by sharing Indigenous knowledge on climate change strategies can benefit all Australians. Climate change is at a crisis point for Aboriginal and Torres Islander people in remote parts of Australia who are experiencing impacts differently from Australians living in cities on the eastern seaboard. Increased temperatures, sea level rises, vegetation and wildlife changes and water quality issues are all adversely affecting how people live on, manage and use Country. For Mak Mak Marranunggu people, who have a unique connection to Country and a keen eye for observation of the changes on our traditional homelands, it is clear how rapidly the climate is changing and how unpredictable weather conditions have become. These rapid changes have hindered our communities’ ability to appropriately adapt — like we have done during major climate transitions in the past. This unreliability makes it very challenging for Mak Mak Marranunggu people in the Northern Territory to draw from old traditions. For example, there have been changes in the fruiting of native plants such as the local plums and native white apples. In some cases animals have changed their life cycle, from laying their eggs to birthing, to fit in with the weather, particularly when the wet season starts with the build up (usually around October) and in heavier monsoonal troughs. On the Finniss River floodplains of Kurrindju in the Northern Territory, local sea level rise is impacting our ability to practise cultural traditions and caring for Country — we’re unable to visit to manage the land, saltwater and freshwater resources or to harvest traditional bush food. Traditional fire management practices have suffered due to rapid growth of woody trees and weeds that make up the under-storage in savanna and floodplain country. Fire management has had to be modified according to the fuel loads of the new levels of vegetation, impacting native plants and animals  including threatened species such as the northern quoll and bandicoots. More worryingly, good, clean, deep water is becoming less accessible due to erosion from saltwater intrusion as the sea levels rise. Roads and construction also contribute to shallower waterways. This affects fisheries, crocodiles, crustaceans, molluscs and other animals, as well as degrading their habitats on the Finniss River and coastal floodplains. More waterways are drying up and struggling to hold good drinking water. While animals and people can travel elsewhere, plants cannot. And they are dying. Climate change has a disproportionate impact on our mob. Torres Strait Islanders are at risk of having their lands and their culture washed away.  In the centre of Australia, extreme heat and prolonged heat waves highlight the inadequate housing that exists in this region. Families can’t adequately shelter from heat that regularly passes 35 degrees. On Warumungu Country (Tennant Creek), the design of remote community housing has not improved. There is a lack of community consultation on appropriate designs. Instead, new homes are generally besser-block and concrete with limited insulation. They are not elevated and do not have breeze-ways, having only small eaves and verandahs, without landscaping or outdoor shade. It’s impossible to escape from the heat and dangerous conditions particularly for anyone with chronic disease. The greatest enabler for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is our knowledge. Indigenous knowledge has been here for more than 60,000 years as the oldest continuing living culture in the world. We know and understand the country with knowledge passed down from generations through our songs, dance, performance and our language. The wisdom that First Nations people hold as a result of our cultural and spiritual connections to Country means we have a deep understanding of environmental systems and the changes being seen due to climate change. We have special insights into key issues like ecosystem health, protecting biodiversity and sustainable land management which in turn provide essential building blocks for human health such as clean air, well-functioning waterways and food security. Through Indigenous Australians’ long attachment to living on Country, we are offered new ways to understand the contemporary events of climate change. The new realities of the unknown elements of climate change — pests and disease — are bearing down on us. Our instinct is to survive the changing elements of climate conditions and their impacts. How well we do this together is the challenge. Through greater awareness and integration of Indigenous knowledge systems with other forms of scientific knowledge, we can all develop a better understanding of how to look after the environment and improve human health in the face of climate change. More Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be involved in the dialogue.  That is what’s been missing in the past in discussions nationally on climate change, and that is one of the key aims of the Healthy Environments and Lives (HEAL) Network. The network supports Indigenous leadership and collaboration in addressing the health impacts of climate and environmental change with practical, context-specific solutions. Procedural Justice is required to address the impacts of climate change for First Nations people in a way that is fair and equitable. This is a qualitative process we can use to unpack the decision-making and Aboriginal governance processes to participate equally in the climate change debate and provide leadership on matters which disproportionately affect us. It is about ensuring First Nations people are included in these discussions from the beginning and that their knowledge systems and governance processes are respected and incorporated into policy making. Linda Payi Ford is a Rak Mak Mak Marranunggu, from south west of Darwin, NT.  She is a Senior Research Fellow at the Northern Institute, in the College of Indigenous Futures, Education, & Arts, Charles Darwin University, NT. Veronica Matthews is a Quandamooka woman from Minjerribah, North Stradbroke Island, Queensland. She is a Senior Research Fellow at the University Centre for Rural Health, School of Health Sciences at the University of Sydney in Lismore, NSW. Sotiris Vardoulakis is inaugural Professor of Global Environmental Health and Director of the NHMRC Healthy Environments and Lives (HEAL) National Research Network at the Australian National University. The authors acknowledge the Healthy Environments and Lives (HEAL) National Research Network, which receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council Special Initiative in Human Health and Environmental Change (grant no. 2008937). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Indigenous lessons” sent at: 19/12/2022 09:42. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on December 21, 2022

Connections that threaten Asian growth - 360 Simon Commander, Saul Estrin Published on May 10, 2023 Many Asian economies may not realise their full potential unless they roll back the mutually beneficial links between business and politics. Asian Capitalism from 360info on Vimeo. ‘National champion’ Adani the beneficiary of favours – Tejpavan Gandhok, Jindal Global University Cosy alliances holding Asia back – Simon Commander, IE Business School and Saul Estrin, London School of Economics Are Korea’s chaebol set to enter the twilight zone? – Michael Carney, Concordia University, Montréal Asian innovation rests with scaling up – Costas Markides, London Business School The lasting changes of Japan’s post-war reforms – Mari Sako, Oxford University There’s no doubt that Asia is a rising economic force — its share of the world economy has risen from nine percent in the 1970s to nearly 40 percent now. However Asia’s economic growth has been driven by mutually beneficial links between dynastic business houses and political elites, or what experts call the Connections World. These arrangements, which have been advantageous until now, have begun to threaten future Asian economic growth.  This may have a direct bearing on whether the 21st century will belong to Asia, or whether its economies will falter as major fragilities are exposed. Asian countries have many differences but they share common features, notably the ubiquitous and embedded political and economic networks that exert a massive influence on how these economies are structured and perform. This has implications far wider than particular acts of cronyism and preferential behaviour. The interactions of business and politicians/political parties in the ‘Connections World’ are transactional and reciprocal. Politicians look to firms to make campaign or personal contributions, pay bribes and provide jobs for family or associates while also providing favours, such as creating jobs in regions or at moments that are politically advantageous. At the same time, businesses look to politicians for protection from foreign or domestic competition, and to supply subsidies, loans and/or public sector contracts. By such means, they commonly manage to acquire very substantial market power and profitability. Reciprocity ensures that all parties derive advantage. Development policy in Asia has usually placed emphasis on the role of the state. Activist industrial policy has tended to focus on providing infrastructure, finance and support for priority sectors and businesses (‘national champions’), including through protection from competition from foreign firms. On the other side of these informal coordination arrangements sit Asia’s powerful and ubiquitous business groups. These groups cut across political systems, being as important in Vietnam, say, as they are in Thailand or Indonesia. They are large, diversified firms, but they also have organisational structures that have long been outlawed or rarely used in advanced economies. These business groups are marked by their extent of crossholdings, as well as pyramidal structures. The aim of such opaque ownership arrangements is to keep control ‘in the family’. Share pyramids, for instance, allow the family to own a smaller proportion of shares than would be implied by the extent of control that they possess. Such arrangements facilitate tunnelling which can involve non-transparent, inter-group loans, as well as non-transparent capital flows between different parts of the group. Business groups are also exceptionally suitable for transacting with political elites in legal and illegal ways as they provide concentrated points of contact for the political class, thereby reducing complexity in their relationships. However, it seems the ‘Connections World’ will be far less supportive of economic growth than in the past. This is because of several factors. Neither politicians nor business groups have an interest in stimulating competition whether domestic firms or foreign multinationals, except when the latter bring critical technologies. As a consequence, business groups entrench themselves and often are in a position to exert major market power. While this will translate into profits, it also high levels of concentration (indicated by the share of total revenues for the largest five firms relative to GDP), which reach levels of around 30 percent in South Korea and exceed 10 percent in the much larger economies of India and China. Most of these firms are either business groups or state-owned companies and this concentration measure shows far higher levels than, for example, in the United States where it is around 3.3 percent. Although Asia has grown rapidly, jobs – particularly high productivity ones – have not followed. Indeed, labour productivity mostly remains unimpressive. Relative to the US productivity level, only South Korea has reached more than 50 percent; a few others hover around 30 percent and, on average, GDP per worker in Asia is only 10-15 percent. Asia faces serious challenges. Just to keep the share of employment stable, it has had to generate over two million jobs a month.  Whilst business groups do create jobs with high wages, security and productivity, the problem lies with their limited numbers. As a result, most job creation occurs in Asia’s massive informal sector, where fragile, low wage, low productivity jobs abound. These informal economies tend to account for over two thirds of employment but barely a fifth of GDP on average. The ‘Connections World’ breeds income inequality, not least through the wage differentials that come from these dual labour markets. But even more striking is the extraordinary expansion of wealth and the proliferation of ultra-wealthy families. In China alone, the number of billionaires has shot up from zero in 2000 to nearly 400 by 2020. However, the biggest concern for future Asian growth relates to the nature and evolution of the development model. The margins for further extensive growth – the application of more capital and labour – are shrinking and some countries – notably China — already need to pivot towards more intensive growth based on technology, knowledge and skills as drivers of innovation. What does the ‘Connections World’ look like through that lens? In fact, the business groups are quite efficient at identifying and allocating resources, and evidence suggests their  affiliates innovate more than non-affiliates.  However, we also find business groups often focus on making short term profits through their connections and can act as a brake on innovation by crowding out non-business-group firms from innovating, not least by restricting access to markets and limiting the availability of external financing. Business groups also suppress the levels of entry and exit of firms in general which restricts the capacity of the economy to shift from lower to higher value-added activities. For Asian economies to raise productivity and enhance innovation they must come to grips with the entrenched power of the ‘Connections World’. To achieve that they’ll need measures designed to transform business groups into more transparent and better governed business organisations, while also radically weakening the links between politicians and business. This will not happen naturally because the mutual benefits from market entrenchment and political connections outweigh any gains from reform. It will require policies to accelerate the disappearance of business groups, including changes in corporate governance, undercutting pyramidal ownership structures, mergers and cross-holdings, imposing inheritance taxes and shifting to new types of, and the targets for, competition policy. At the same time, measures are needed to limit the discretionary scope and incentives for politicians to leverage their connections for personal or family benefit. The proclamations of the 21st century being the ‘Asian Century’ are premature. Unless policies are introduced to roll back the tentacles of the ‘Connections World’, many Asian economies will be far less well placed to exploit their potential in the coming decades. *Analysis and examples in this article can be sourced in Connections World, Commander and Estrin (2020). Simon Commander is Visiting Professor of Economics at IE Business School in Madrid & Managing Partner, Altura Partners, London. He previously worked at the European Bank for Reconstruction & Development and the World Bank. Saul Estrin was the founding Head of the Department of Management at LSE & formerly a Professor of Economics & Associate Dean at London Business School. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 10, 2023

Conservation actions work to save species - 360 Philip McGowan Published on March 7, 2022 Research shows species on the brink of extinction have successfully been saved. Applying the same approaches more broadly could help the planet. It was a target the world spectacularly missed: “By 2020, the extinction of known threatened species has been prevented and their conservation status, particularly of those most in decline, has been improved and sustained.” It was an Aichi Target, set in 2010, that stemmed from the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity. By the time of a 2020 review, most indicators of the 20 Aichi Targets had continued to decline. But research from 2020 shows the goal is in fact, “eminently feasible”. Conservation efforts between 1993-2020 prevented the extinction of 28–48 bird and mammal species. Were the same approach applied to other creatures many could be saved from extinction. It’s information that augurs well for the future of other threatened species. Researchers around the world collaborated on the study, which was published in the journal Conservation Letters, and featured in the Convention’s 2020 review. To be included in the study, species had to have been listed on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s ‘Red List’ of threatened species at any time since 1993. The researchers looked only at birds and mammals listed in the categories of extinct in the wild, critically endangered or endangered at some point since 1993. They also needed to have ongoing threats at that time, and to have benefitted from conservation action. Frogs, lizards, fish, plants and other life are still hugely important to ecosystems around the world, but the researchers focused on birds and mammals because they had the most comprehensive Red List data available to make realistic and comparable assessments. These criteria left them with a shortlist of 39 birds and 21 mammals. At least 28–48 bird and mammal extinctions were prevented between 1993–2020. At the same time, 15 confirmed or strongly suspected bird and mammal extinctions were documented, including one since 2010, a pretty brown bird called the Alagoas foliage-gleaner (Philydor novaesi), that lived in the forests of Brazil. This means the number of extinctions would have been up to 4.2 times higher for 1993–2020, had conservation efforts not intervened. For some species, such as the Hawaiian crow or ʻalalā (Corvus hawaiiensis), it was clear how humans had intervened: these creatures were ‘extinct in the wild’ meaning their only remaining examples were in zoos and conservation breeding programs. Captive breeding programs helped 63 percent of species overall. For many of the creatures, their remaining population was on islands, where they were able to persist away from invasive predators, such as cats and rats. Controlling invasive species helped 66 percent of species. The other winning strategy was to protect the remaining habitat of the threatened species, as human expansion through hunting and farming were two of the biggest threats. Introducing legislation to protect animals from hunting or collecting was especially helpful for the mammals in the study. Two formerly extinct in the wild species were successfully reintroduced to their former homelands since 1993: Przewalski’s horse (Equus ferus) and Guam rail (Hypotaenidia owstoni). Not all species in the study have been complete conservation successes. For example, for the vaquita (Phocoena sinus), a Mexican porpoise, just six individuals were known to remain in September 2018. A costly ban on gill-net fishing may have slowed the catastrophic decline but with illegal use still rife, it appears to be failing to halt it. Conservation may have avoided extinction so far, but it is still a significant possibility, if not likely. The conservation actions were implemented by a combination of governments, non-government organisations, zoos, scientists, volunteers and others. Despite the good news, many of the species in the study remain highly threatened. Most require continued care and substantial investment to ensure their survival. The threats to these and other species remain present and growing. Even greater efforts will be needed to prevent the extinction and improve the status of the 6,811 species currently assessed as critically endangered on the Red List. Early action to prevent decline and critical endangerment would be a more cost-effective approach to prevent species loss than captive breeding programs and reintroduction. The strategies to save species are available and, as this study showed, effective. What remains lacking is the widespread support for and adoption of these and emerging approaches. Extinction is not inevitable. Philip McGowan is a professor of conservation science and policy at Newcastle University, UK. The author has no conflicts to declare. This article has been republished for World Wildlife Day 2023. It was first published on February 28, 2022. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 7, 2022

Conservation law takes a step forward in Indonesia - 360 Noviar Andayani Published on March 7, 2023 Strong legislation backed by science and technology could help protect Indonesia’s wildlife. After almost a decade of revision, Indonesia’s law on conservation is finally progressing on the national legislative agenda. Parliament (two commissions) in collaboration with six ministries and regional representatives are working to amend key laws. The work sends a strong signal to the public that conserving Indonesia’s valuable natural resources and ecosystems matters to the country. The key conservation policy or Conservation Law (1990) is no longer adequate to address the growing threats to biodiversity. Ongoing threats such as habitat loss, illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade, and human-wildlife conflict, are now amplified by climate change. Meanwhile, rapid progress in information technology has changed the practices of illegal wildlife trade into an unprecedented scale through the massive use of social media. These are just two reasons of many others that underline the urgency of revising the law. At the heart of this urgency is a sad fact that extinction simply cannot wait. With over 17,000 islands stretching 5,400 km along the equator, Indonesia is a fertile cradle for biodiversity and a home for many internationally renowned and charismatic species, such as orangutans, whale sharks and komodo dragons. Its 120.5 million hectares of forest help 37.2 million people earn a living, while at the same time playing a critical role to mitigate the adverse impacts of climate change. Recognising the extensive need for major economic-driven activities like agricultural expansion, mining, and infrastructure development, Indonesia’s government pushes efforts to balance it without sacrificing conservation. In 2011 the government issued a forest moratorium policy, coupled with other regulations to curb deforestation. The deforestation rate has been consistently decreasing for the past 4 years compared to 2018. Under Indonesia’s conservation law, all species included in the protected list are prohibited from commercial use, whereas the non-protected species can be exploited under certain terms and conditions. In 2018 the government added 227 new species to the list meaning 904 species have been protected and prioritised in the government’s conservation programs. But the challenges in nature and biodiversity conservation have become increasingly complex. Understandably, the legal context set up three decades ago is less effective today as demand grows for natural resources to support the world’s human population. The revised conservation law should include actions addressing the core values of conservation such as protecting wildlife and habitats, minimising human impact on the environment, promoting sustainable development and utilising resources responsibly. Taken together, this reform could ensure that ecosystems stay intact and species in decline can recover. It’s also an opportunity to mitigate pathogen spillover that can lead to pandemics such as COVID-19. The harvest of a species from the wild should be limited and be science-based, respect the breeding season, and most importantly, be traceable. New developments in science and technology can complement conservation efforts. Various monitoring technologies, from remote sensing to track forest cover, to GPS collars to understand a species’ ranging pattern, are useful to enable conservation and sustainability targets. There are also many modelling approaches to map the extent and distribution of biodiversity. There could also be space in the law for public participation in research and monitoring. Citizen science can help the government in collecting the data and information needed for managing and conserving Indonesia’s biodiversity. The more people can be engaged in conservation efforts, the closer we can get to sustaining the planet’s support system for biodiversity and humanity. Noviar Andayani is a lecturer at the Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Science and Mathematics at the University of Indonesia. She is also a leading wildlife conservation scientist for almost 30 years which innovates ground-breaking efforts to conserve wildlife in Wildlife Conservation Society Indonesia Program. Dr. Andayani declared that she has no conflict of interest and is not receiving specific funding in any form. She can be found on Twitter at @noviarandayani. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 7, 2023

Consultants and the beast with seven heads - 360 Stuart Kells Published on August 14, 2023 The ‘Big Four’ consultants are coming under increased pressure over their relationships with governments, which present a series of risks. The world’s biggest consulting firms have grown large and profitable by walking all sides of the street in their relationships with governments. The Big Four, Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC), Deloitte, Ernst & Young and KPMG, have branched out from accountancy and auditing into new areas, and as they have done so, their own dangers and exposures have multiplied. Each new service line has brought with it a bundle of new risks. At the same time, the diversification of the major accounting firms has presented new risks for governments, which have been influenced by the misplaced idea that the firms are systemically important and therefore too big to fail. There were warnings five years ago that the cultural and commercial tensions facing the Big Four would necessitate radical changes in how they are structured and how they operate. Today, the tensions have predictably intensified, and the firms’ diversification strategy is no longer viable. In Australia, the PwC scandal has enabled a rare level of scrutiny and criticism. It is not an exaggeration to say that the firms are fighting to preserve their social licence to operate. The reason why is simple: Their failure to manage the conflicting interests of diversified firms. A PwC tax partner, who was privy to secret information about Commonwealth Government plans to address tax avoidance, shared this information with some other PwC partners, and they reportedly used it to market tax minimisation services to major commercial clients. The allegations are now at the centre of a Senate inquiry into the four firms and how they operate. Through an organic process of mergers and expansion over more than 100 years, the Big Four now dominate public company auditing around the world. And through the firms’ parallel ‘supermarket’ strategy of diversification, they now offer services that span a diverse range of fields including management consulting, corporate finance, tax, infrastructure, insolvency, marketing, IT, human resources and the law. Until recently, the strategy of diversification and growth served the firms well. They built strong positions in several other markets beyond traditional accounting and auditing, including the provision of advice and other services to governments. Now employing nearly 1.5 million staff and collecting USD$190 billion in annual revenue, the firms have travelled a long way from their modest origins in the provision of a narrow set of accounting and audit services. In 2018, KPMG’s Australian chair Alison Kitchen remarked that her firm had enjoyed almost double digit growth for the five years up to that point: “With the economy growing at about 3 percent during that time, clearly that cannot continue indefinitely or else we’d end up taking over the world.” From the point of view of governments, the Big Four collectively are a seven-headed beast. Head one: Ally and fellow traveller in the pursuit of corporate integrity Governments care about corporate conduct and the integrity of financial information. Accordingly, governments care about – and are eager consumers of – the public good outcomes that arise from corporate audits. Those outcomes are aligned with and supportive of the goals that governments seek through corporate regulation. The activities of the Big Four also align with the goals of government in other ways. They have long served as sources of and training grounds for junior staff looking to work in public sector roles that entail accounting and audit skills and nearby capabilities. Head two: Supplier of services and, occasionally, provider of ‘flak jacket’ protection Around the world, governments are prominent direct purchasers of Big Four products and services, such as evaluations, business cases, forensic investigations, policy reviews, stakeholder engagement support, market soundings, internal audits, asset valuations and project management services. The Big Four serve also as a ‘body shop’ or resource bank for governments, by enabling temporary or permanent outsourcing of public sector functions. Government purchases of Big Four services extend across a wide range of major portfolios including defence, healthcare, infrastructure and utilities, education, research bodies and environmental management. They also extend across all levels of government, including the local level. Within western governments, Big Four advisory reports serve a complex anthropological purpose. When ministers and senior officials are making decisions about the use of public money and state power, the presence of a Big Four-branded report is often a source of safety and reassurance. Until recently in Australia, few people were ever fired for engaging a Big Four consultant to provide advice. Sometimes, the perceived value of a Big Four advisory report is warranted, but more than once, such reports have functioned merely to wrap a non-government veneer or security blanket around something that officials already knew, and could have produced themselves (see ‘competitor’ points, below). Sometimes the reports are long and deliver a satisfying ‘thud’, even though the analysis and findings could have been expressed more succinctly. (This ‘thud factor’ is sometimes a basis for pricing of consulting reports.) And sometimes, the reports are merely examples of what Andre Spicer has aptly termed ‘business bullshit’. In these and other ways, Big Four products serve complex functions in how politicians, officials and government agencies fulfil their own roles and manage their own risks. The anthropological value of Big Four reports is highly vulnerable to episodes such as tax scandals and botched audits that damage the Big Four brands. Head three: Regulatee and (possibly) auditee As organisations, the Big Four operate conspicuously outside the frameworks for taxation and corporate governance that apply to corporations. This is because the four are not corporations at all. They are owned by their partners, rather than shareholders; and they are not subject to typical corporate reporting and auditing requirements. But aspects of the Big Four’s activities do attract attention from the regulatory and oversight functions of governments. In the US, for example, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB, referred to as ‘Peekaboo’) oversees the quality of Big Four assurance services. In Australia, some Big Four tax services are scrutinised (with mixed success) by bodies such as the Tax Practitioners Board and the Australian Taxation Office. The PwC leaks scandal has led to a multi-pronged regulatory response. Australia’s Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers has promised to strengthen the Tax Practitioners Board, for example, and other responses are emerging in the domains of competition policy, integrity agencies, law enforcement and the courts. Though the Big Four are not subject to external audits in the way public corporations are, aspects of their activities could be subject to more audit-style scrutiny. One example is the pending demerger of PwC’s government advisory business into the new entity, ‘Scyne Advisory’ in Australia. The new entity is a corporation, with outside shareholders. The carve-out of this business gives rise to numerous practical problems, and potentially more serious legal and contractual ones, such as with regard to existing government engagements, membership of government ‘panels’, and the handling of government client files. For instance, if a government client has contracted with PwC, and PwC is now withdrawing from that service area, and Scyne intends to take over that service area, can Scyne have access to historical files and other information? Carving out Scyne will inevitably involve decisions like this, and there is a case for a suitable public sector oversight body, such as the Australian National Audit Office, to observe in real time the unwinding of contracts and the treatment of confidential information. Head four: Substitute and competitor In providing services (such as policy advice, policy development and project management services) that have traditionally been delivered by the public sector, the Big Four have become in some respects competitors to and substitutes for some functions of government. In Australia, the scale of outsourcing of services to the Big Four is very large, and there have been calls during the PwC scandal to return those services to the public sector. The suggestion has even been made that the federal government should ‘nationalise’ the public-sector-related functions of one or more Big Four firms. (There have been similar calls in the UK.) The Big Four compete with government departments and other government agencies in other ways as well. They are engaged in a competition for influence. Ministers and senior officials have looked to major consulting firms in the past as an alternative source of informal counsel. The substitutability of Big Four activities for certain public sector functions is a further complication. It is also a potential source of conflicting interests, such as when the firms might recommend in an advisory report that public functions should be outsourced. Head five: Opponent and counterparty As well as standing alongside public sector clients as trusted advisors, the Big Four sometimes sit on the opposite side of the table, advising corporates and other entities in conflict with government and, sometimes, in conflict with the public interest. Take for example tax avoidance or advice to cigarette manufacturers and other heavily regulated industries. The Big Four dominate the global tax-avoidance industry with their services estimated to cost taxpayers more than US$1 trillion per year in lost revenue. The firms have had their share of tax scandals. In 2005, the US Department of Justice accused KPMG of marketing tax shelters that were ‘abusive’ and ‘fraudulent’. In 2013, a British parliamentary committee report described the tax authorities as fighting an unwinnable battle against the Big Four’s provision of sophisticated avoidance advice. Head six: Integrity quicksand and landmine In numerous ways the Big Four are sources of integrity risk for governments and public sector agencies. Risks arise from political donations and from the recruitment of former ministers and senior officials into senior Big Four roles. Problems with ‘revolving door’ personnel movements between government and the Big Four have previously been identified in the UK and Europe, and the issue was also prominent in the PwC scandal in Australia. There also have been calls for an end to Big Four political donations. PwC Australia pledged that it would no longer make donations to any political parties. Head seven: Weaver of the neoliberal ether This role for the Big Four is somewhat more abstract than the others and more pervasive. During the peak decades of neoliberalism, the Big Four have been champions and extenders of that pattern. Their consulting toolkit, along with their general advice and advocacy, has helped perpetuate neo-liberal ideas and expand the scope of their application, such as into social services and environmental policy. Standard neoliberal tools in the Big Four kit include asset valuation methods, ‘cost of capital’ concepts, risk management tools, project management tools and market-based instruments, all of which have helped maintain the dominant position of neoliberal ideas in public policy – even though several of the tools rest on fragile or contentious theoretical and empirical foundations. To borrow a term from finance, the Big Four have been able to ‘arbitrage’ across and between their respective service lines. The phenomenon of arbitrage involves exploiting differences across separate markets, such as by buying an asset in one market and selling it for a premium in another. The Big Four have engaged in reputational and branding arbitrage between auditing, advisory and tax services. Auditing gives their brands an aura of integrity and the firms have exploited that aura in other, non-audit fields. They have also engaged in informational arbitrage across their different relationships with government, such as between their relationships as advisors and their relationships as competitors and counterparties. In the UK and elsewhere, the firms have seconded consultants to tax authorities, to provide advice on tax law changes. The consultants have advised corporate clients on the same changes. Such relationships have been described as ‘poacher, turned gamekeeper, turned poacher again’. Through this arbitrage strategy, the Big Four have successfully monetised gaps in public sector regulation and oversight of their conduct. The benefits from reputational and informational arbitrage seem to be significant drivers of the firms’ overall diversification strategy. The Big Four have grown large and profitable by walking all sides of the street in their relationships with governments. As a result, conflicts of interest loom large. The 2018 book ‘The Big Four’ (Ian Gow and Stuart Kells) warned that, by 2023 or thereabouts, the regulatory, technological, cultural and commercial tensions facing the Big Four would necessitate radical changes in how they are structured and how they operate. Today, the tensions have predictably intensified, and the firms are more or less on schedule. The firms’ diversified, multi-dimensional ‘arbitrage’ strategy is no longer viable. One reason is there exists a new culture of institutional openness, and there are new technologies enabling that culture. A wave of transparency has swept through hitherto dark places such as navy ships, locker rooms, casting couches and the offices of tax advisors. Arms-length commercial functions that depend on secrecy are increasingly untenable. For other reasons, too, the diversified model has an impending use-by date. Governments and regulators around the world have increased their scrutiny of the Big Four. A natural next step will be to require the Big Four to unwind their highly diversified mega-partnerships. The identified conflicts of interest in Australia have escalated to become an existential moment for the Australian PwC partnership. In recent years, regulators have baulked at the idea of the Big Four turning into the Big Three or fewer. Those scenarios, regulators have feared, would have systemic consequences for corporate governance and potentially for the financial system and the wider economy. Those fears were misplaced. All of the Big Four service lines have substitutes, and indeed most of them are subject to significant competitive pressure, including from innovations such as AI and ‘audit bots’. The Big Four have successfully positioned themselves as seemingly indispensable, but in reality they are certainly not ‘too big to fail’. Stuart Kells is Adjunct Professor at La Trobe University’s College of Arts, Social Sciences and Commerce, and Honorary Senior Fellow in Federation University’s Collaborative Research Centre in Australian History. He was formerly a research fellow at the University of Melbourne’s Melbourne Institute, and a member of Monash University’s Centre for Regulatory Studies. His numerous books and shorter works have been published around the world. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on August 14, 2023

Consultants find climate crisis is good for business - 360 Christopher Wright Published on August 16, 2023 As the climate crisis unfolds, the big consultancy firms are attempting to offer advice to government and the major polluters. The global climate emergency is proving very lucrative for consulting firms. As the preferred advisers to governments and the world’s largest corporations, management consultancies have discovered that designing policies and shaping the regulation of climate responses is a new and very profitable line of business. One of the best recent examples was in Australia in April 2021, when the then Prime Minister Scott Morrison hastily announced his government’s long-awaited modelling outlining a pathway to ‘net zero by 2050’. Stressing a heavy emphasis on ‘carbon offsets’, new technologies and limited reduction in fossil fuel extraction, the modelling for this report had been prepared not by the government’s major scientific body, the CSIRO, but by the world’s most expensive and elite management consulting firm, McKinsey & Co. Despite costing the Australian taxpayer over AUD$6 million, the modelling, as critics quickly notedcontained dubious assumptions, ignored the cost of future climate impacts and notably failed to outline how net-zero carbon emissions would actually be achieved by mid-century. Nevertheless, the choice of McKinsey as the experts modelling these scenarios seemed to fit with a government keen to continue the expansion of the fossil fuel sector. McKinsey, after all, had worked for 43 of the 100 largest carbon polluters in the world including ExxonMobil, Gazprom, Shell, BP and Saudi Aramco. It wasn’t always like this. In Australia, as the political ‘climate wars’ raged during the 2010s, and prime ministers rose and fell on the back of various climate policies, many large corporations were already anticipating the regulatory, reputational, market and physical risks that climate change would inevitably bring to bear on their operations and were establishing sustainability functions in response. Yet, throughout this period, the management consulting industry, which prided itself as being at the forefront in predicting future business risks and opportunities, seemed remarkably quiet on an issue which scientists and policy analysts had long recognised posed an existential threat to the future of our societies and indeed a large proportion of life on the planet. Sure, on the back of the Stern Review in the UK in 2006, McKinsey had developed a greenhouse gas abatement cost curve which had been promoted in different countries, and boutique sustainability consultancies had emerged to work with corporate clients on report writing. However, climate change, and environmental sustainability more generally, was seen as something of a niche area for management consultants and certainly not a core driver of consulting revenue. If there was a point when this changed, it was when Mark Carney as head of the Bank of England gave a speech at insurance giant Lloyd’s of London in 2015 and highlighted the threat that climate change posed for stranded carbon assets. Soon after the Financial Stability Board published recommendations for the disclosure of climate risk in corporate financial reporting and major institutional investors like BlackRock, HSBC and the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund announced plans to reduce their exposure to fossil fuel stocks and focus on ‘green’ investment opportunities. Suddenly, climate change had arrived in the halls of finance and the major consulting firms started to pay attention. While management consultancies like to present themselves as management fashion setters, research suggests that if anything they tend to follow the demand preferences of their corporate and government clients. Following the 2015 UN Paris Climate Agreement, in which 195 of the world’s governments committed to take action to avoid warming the planet more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, the question has been how that might actually be achieved. While the traditional policies of emissions regulation through carbon pricing and taxes have been seen as too politically contentious, in the intervening years the policy answer has been for government and increasingly, large corporations, to commit to achieving ‘net-zero’ carbon emissions by mid-century. Here then has been a ready source of demand for advice into which the world’s large consulting firms have now entered. What started as a trickle of sustainability consulting suddenly transformed into a flood and in the last several years, management consulting has found its climate mojo. The ‘Big Four’ accounting majors (Ernst & Young, Deloitte, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers) quickly snapped up smaller boutique sustainability consultancies to establish their own climate and sustainability practices and bullishly announced multi-billion investments in environmental, social and governance (ESG) capabilities. In 2021, Boston Consulting Group established its own Center for Climate and Sustainability and the firm was announced as the ‘Consultancy Partner’ for the 26th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Glasgow that year. Not to be outdone, shortly afterwards the most venerable of the blue-chip consulting firms, McKinsey & Co, launched its own new practice, titled McKinsey Sustainability and its regular publications were now filled with advice and reports on the urgency of climate change and how different industries could seize the opportunities of the new climate economy. However, as evangelists for the neoliberal economic order, global management consultancies face a dilemma in advising governments about how to tackle the climate crisis. Any meaningful response to global warming actually requires the rapid cessation of fossil fuel energy and an industrial-scale shift to renewable energy sources; no mean feat in a world still reliant for over 80 percent of its energy needs from coal, oil and gas. Moreover, any consulting advice to governments or business needs to square with their clients’ commitment to the continued expansion of economic growth, the maximisation of shareholder value, while at the same time appearing to provide some appearance of future emissions mitigation. Not surprisingly, much of the net-zero policy advice falls on the net-side of the equation with a heavy emphasis on carbon off-sets (paying others to plant forests or at least promise not to cut forests down), the expansion of costly technologies of carbon capture and storage (CCS), and investment in, as yet, unproven carbon removal via direct air capture. Missing here is the inconvenient truth that the world’s carbon budget to avoid dangerous climate change has now run out, and that even the International Energy Agency now argues that there can be no new oil, coal or gas development if the world is to have any hope of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. Yet, a perusal of McKinsey Quarterly, or indeed any of the other major consultancy publications, reveals a surprisingly upbeat story for the fossil fuel sector in the short to medium term. Yes, a decline in coal as an energy source but oil and gas are still seen as stable investments over the next decade. There’s also a rosy future for renewables as well as hydrogen, bio-feedstocks and carbon capture and storage. As an elite government and corporate adviser, it pays not to talk down potential future clients and markets. Much of the big consulting assignments are not just in the corporate sector but increasingly working for governments. This shift to public-sector consulting has a long history, with major consultancies like McKinsey, BCG, Accenture and the Big Four having provided advice and implementing changes in public sector settings such as health, education, social services and utilities for many decades. As the philosophy of new public management has spread around the world, so the ‘politicised expertise’ of management consultancies has been used by governments to justify the neoliberal retreat of the state from the provision of public services. It has also led to some disastrous policy outcomes, such as McKinsey’s work in advising governments in developing economies on the REDD+ program aimed at reducing rainforest deforestation, which paradoxically resulted in policies increasing deforestation. A major problem in advising governments and the public sector more generally is that unlike the established public service bureaucracy, which at least in the Westminster system maintains a level of independence and an ability to provide advice to government ‘without fear of favour’, management consultancies are profit-seeking commercial businesses. Their survival depends upon winning and maintaining client relationships such that an on-going line of business contracts is maintained. As critics have noted, the large consultancies work across multiple industries and from project to project. Despite claiming they internally manage potential conflicts of interest through systems of ‘Chinese walls’,  numerous corporate scandals from Enron to more recent times show these conflicts appear a feature of the business. Indeed, when it comes to climate change, it’s not as if the consulting firms’ own employees haven’t noted the ethical and moral dilemmas of advising on emissions reduction while at the same time maintaining very profitable on-going relationships with the key producers of the climate crisis. Some years ago, when researchers interviewed a partner in one large consultancy that worked for major coal mining companies, he noted that while many of his younger consultants were quite passionate about climate change and did research in their own time, ‘That’s nice, but if a client doesn’t want to hear it, they’re not allowed to say it!’. While these tensions are often hidden from public view, in 2021 in the lead-up to COP26 in Glasgow, 1,000 of McKinsey’s own employees signed an open letter expressing outrage at the firm’s continued engagement with the likes of BP, ExxonMobil, Gazprom and Saudi Aramco. The signatories observed that the ‘climate crisis is the defining issue of our generation’, and urged McKinsey to publicly disclose the aggregate amount of carbon pollution produced by its clients and warned: ‘Our positive impact in other realms will mean nothing if we do not act as our clients alter the Earth irrevocably’. While the company’s partners responded by claiming McKinsey should be seen as helping the planet transition to a net-zero future, its staff pointed out that much of the consultancy’s work actually focuses on improving the efficiency of fossil fuel extraction and enhancing corporate profitability. In the words of one departing employee: “Having looked at the actual hours billed to the world’s largest polluters, it is very hard to argue today that McKinsey is the ‘greatest private-sector catalyst for decarbonisation’ … It may well be the exact opposite.” Management consulting is an industry which has evolved historically in tandem with the emergence of industrial capitalism and management as a professional class. Far from the image it likes to portray as a provider of independent expertise and advice, consultancy is itself a global business driven by the profit motive and the need to maintain on-going commercial relationships with its corporate clients. The fact that governments worldwide now turn to management consultants rather than their own public servants as the preferred source of policy and technical advice is an indicator of how thoroughly neoliberalism has denuded and corrupted the state and the collective interests of civil society. Climate change is now the most urgent and threatening issue facing the future of human society. It says something about the parlous state of our democratic institutions that even on an issue of such critical importance, this too is now being handed over to the partisan whims of an already all-powerful corporate class. Christopher Wright is Professor of Organisational Studies at the University of Sydney Business School and a key researcher at the Sydney Environment Institute. His research explores societal and corporate responses to climate change. His most recent book on this topic is Organising Responses to Climate Change: The Politics of Mitigation, Adaptation and Suffering (Cambridge University Press, 2022). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on August 16, 2023

Consulting for Covid: outsourced experts or overpaid temps? - 360 Andrew Sturdy Published on August 14, 2023 In the absence of any specialist government department to deal with specific emergencies such as COVID, politicians tend to spend big on consultants. Consultancy UK, one of the leading voices in the industry, spoke on 10 March 2020 of a darkening outlook with the “UK consulting market books slowest growth in seven years.” With Brexit heavily weighing on the local economy, the numbers predicted a wider global downturn. The National Health Service, which a month earlier claimed parts of it were“seriously financially unstable”, was meanwhile dealing with the sixth death from the spreading COVID-19 virus, which would be announced as a pandemic the next day by the World Health Organization. By the end of the month, 1,789 would be dead from the virus while the prime minister, health minister and future king had tested positive and the entire country was in lockdown. It wasn’t only the NHS struggling. The functions of government within the UK were already working overtime to keep up with the pace of a nation undergoing enormous change stemming from Brexit. Taxpayer money spent on consultants within the government had been increasing year on year from £700 million in 2016 to £1.2 billion in 2019-20. These numbers would surge during the pandemic, with the UK government spending £2.5 billion in 2020-21. The media was full of stories of how much governments were spending on consultants to support various pandemic-related activities, a cost which might have been justified on the basis of the scarcity of expertise and the short-term nature of the role. By October 2020, it was reported that £175 million had been spent, with The Guardian claiming: “The government has bought consulting services from almost 90 different companies as it scrambled to fill gaps in the civil service’s pandemic response.” By the end of the pandemic’s first full financial year, government and public bodies had issued £664 million in Covid-19 consulting contracts. However, no one seemed to be questioning why management consulting firms would have the requisite skills to organise for a pandemic. Or, at least, why would they have better skills than say civil servants, healthcare managers or even regular and cheaper temporary staff such as interim managers. Indeed, in the absence of any convincing case for specialist skills, it seems that consulting firms were used as expensive ‘temps’. By 2022 the UK government had reportedly contracted £2.8 billion worth of work from consultants, while the National Health Service quadrupled its budget on outside advice in the same year. Spending caps brought in more than a decade ago by then British PM David Cameron appear to have been quietly dropped within the halls of powe despite the constant reaching for the consultant’s button being described as a “lazy habit” by cabinet minister Theodore Agnew. So what else could the government do to deal with a pandemic? The concept of a government department solely set up for such rare events, brought into action when required, staffed by experts, and deploying the latest technologies might seem ridiculous. Nevertheless, some sort of contingency or capacity, perhaps shared by multiple governments, is more plausible. However, in the UK and elsewhere, there was no such availability. Because, as many claim, the public sector has been ‘hollowed out’ to the extent that when extra staff are needed, there is no capacity. This is the dominant view in most research and news media, with the added irony that public sector staff cuts were often the result of earlier advice from the consultants issued the contract to analyse the efficiency of government departments. However, this does not explain why the most expensive option is chosen and for a sustained period. Research elsewhere suggests that the strong brand (for some) of management consulting in general and specific firms in particular is important. This reflects deference to private sector ‘solutions’ over civil/public service expertise and values as well as close and ‘revolving’ relationships between decision-makers and consultants. In short, senior civil servants and politicians have developed a consulting ‘habit’. In fact, this is sometimes the case whether or not their own management is hollowed out. The – consultants are not simply substitutes. While it is difficult, if not impossible, to establish whether others would have done better than externals for less. A further irony is that the immediate availability of consultants was partly founded on a COVID-induced downturn in consulting business generally, which should have led to a significant reduction in rates. If it is true that governments have been hollowed out, the obvious question should be what can be done to fix it? What lessons can be learned from the COVID experience and what, if anything, has changed? For example, a new ‘crisis’ is being constructed by consulting firms around AI which will be leveraged to sell more business. First, however, we should note that many of these issues are not new, even if the scale of government consultancy use has extended beyond the early neoliberal adopters. This means that various policy options are readily available and some are even in use and occasionally re-launched. Watchdogs such as national audit bodies and parliamentary accounts committees have repeatedly urged government departments to plan for future demand for generic skills (e.g. project management) and, in the case of new specialisms, to insist on knowledge transfer and sharing from consultants as a priority. A recent example of this is the publication of a Consultancy Playbook by the UK Cabinet Office which is used to help clients and purchasing departments to be more effective. Similarly, in 2022, The Australia Institute called for the publication of consulting reports to government departments. Such initiatives conform to demand-side approaches more generally which prioritise various forms of insourcing such as internal consulting and, when this is not possible, professional purchasing. These need to be implemented more effectively, but also reinforced. For example, they could be combined in the idea of public-public (not private) partnerships which trade skills between similar agencies or ‘progressive purchasing’ which is more specific and flexible. Likewise, ‘serial purchasing’ could be introduced, where repeat business with a particular supplier is highly constrained. More could be done with systems to share not just knowledge gained from consulting projects, but evaluations of firms’ or individuals’ performances – something akin to an internal ‘Trip advisor’ or ‘ratemyconsultancy.com’. The latter illustrates the idea of governance through the market, an approach which, in general, would find favour among some clients and consultants. The problem  — one which plagues many policy issues in consulting — is that management consulting is mostly ambiguous, opaque and often co-produced with clients. This makes it often hard to specify in advance and identify clear failure/poor quality or attribute blame for it. Clients need to rely on trust and may well also not want their own actions made transparent. This is one reason why many are not keen on a more transactional or transparent approach to purchasing and may seek to resist or bypass rules. The classic example is ‘chaining’ where a large number of small projects are created to avoid invoking the need to make a business case which is required for projects over a certain size . Reputation concerns are a clear impediment to transparency . For these and other reasons — such as a reluctance of politicians to invest in internal resources for the long term — demand-side governance is vulnerable. Certainly, in the UK for example, the recent 2023 removal of a fees cap on government departments noted earlier and the closure of a government-wide internal consulting alternative suggests that the political will to govern consultancy usage is intermittent at best. Besides,  there will always be some need for external advice.  Perhaps additional attention could be given to the supply-side. Here, governance, beyond that which applies to any service and the market, has been difficult or has taken the form of self-regulation. This comprises mainly professional ethics codes for which there is little evidence of enforcement or prospect of improved effectiveness. Where most attention is needed is in the reform of the reward systems in consulting which prioritises ‘sell-on’ – the selling of further or ‘repeat’ business, regardless of client, need to secure long-term income and short-term rewards This applies to both global firms and individual practitioners as well as those in between. It partly derives from the importance of trust, noted above, which makes securing new versus repeat clients a costly and time-consuming business. However, it is also rooted in the structures of large firms where selling, not effectiveness is the key criterion for promotion and financial reward – ‘eat what you kill’. The traditional ‘partnership’ structure was long considered to temper individual ‘greed’ by sharing profits among partners , but this also encourages long-term tenure of senior managers who therefore seek long term business growth. Such structural reform (along with the need for firms to declare to their clients any conflicts of interest e.g. other clients) is the most pressing policy issue. Even with the introduction of more ‘balanced’ ‘scorecard’ reward systems and demand-side pressures such as serial purchasing, such a change requires broader organisational structural change. This implies a shift in values as well, perhaps towards those of traditional professional notions of being ‘social trustees’. In particular, external consulting operations, where selling and profit are not the driving forces of business or even of the (management) services offered, could be developed further. Historically, these are quite common such as bodies linked to industry associations or Organisation Development and process-based consulting traditions There are also signs that alternative approaches are appearing and in demand. With the financial and climate crises, combined with technological developments and the values of GenZ recruits, apparently new forms of consulting are emerging with a different ethos or structure such as the BCorp  (Benefit Corporation) model of purpose-led business which makes companies accountable to stakeholders, not just shareholders or other owners such as partners. Such an approach might sometimes be more of an exercise in branding or ‘cosmethics’ than different values or priorities –   a de-growth consulting firm has yet to be found! At the same time, even if consultants can be considered to be ‘genuinely radical’ or progressive, as Soline Blanchard suggests in her work, it is important to acknowledge that the paid consultant role is ultimately to serve clients ie ‘servants of power’. And, as Jeremy Fyke and Patrice Buzzanell wrote about in their work on consultants selling ‘conscious capitalism’, clients are often very conservative and so limit the possibility for change. Nevertheless, compared to the relentless neo-liberalism since the 1990s, there is at least some potential here for such new forms of consultancy to do more than simply exploit a hollowed-out and sometimes addicted civil service with ‘expensive temps’. And, in our emerging post-COVID world, it would certainly be more effective in the long term than a permanent department for pandemics. Andrew Sturdy is a Professor of Organisation and Management at the University of Bristol. His current work looks at the use of management consultants in the UK health service; the governance of consulting use; and ‘socially responsible consulting’. This research was partially funded by QS impact grant from UKRI, a UK government funding council. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on August 14, 2023

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Controversy surrounds Indonesia's election result - 360 Harkristuti Harkrisnowo Published on April 22, 2024 Indonesia’s recent election results have sparked controversy and raised questions about the integrity of the Indonesian electoral process. Indonesia’s election, held on February 14th, determined the country’s next president and selected legislative bodies at both the national and provincial levels. But allegations of fraud and misconduct before, during and after voting day have cast a shadow on the legitimacy of the results. Former general Prabowo Subianto and his running mate, Gibran Rakabuming (son of former president Joko Widodo), were declared winners by the election commission, garnering 58.5 percent of the vote. But just three days after the announcement, candidates, Anies Baswedan – Muhaimin Iskandar (AMIN) and Ganjar Pranowo – Mahfud MD (GAMA) filed petitions against that result to the Constitutional Court. Protests against the results had been anticipated. One of the key points of contention revolves around changes to election laws, particularly regarding the age requirements for presidential and vice-presidential candidates. On October 16, 2023, the Constitutional Court changed the 2017 Election Law, which required presidential and vice-presidential candidates to be  40 years or older. The new version of the law specified that candidates must “currently hold or have held  state positions elected through elections, including regional head elections.” The Constitutional Court’s decision to amend the law allowed Gibran Rakabuming, who was at the time 36 years old and the Mayor of Solo, to run as a vice-presidential candidate. The controversy deepened when it was revealed that the chief justice overseeing the decision was Gibran’s uncle, raising concerns about impartiality and nepotism within the judiciary. On November 7, 2023, the Honorary Panel of the Constitutional Court decided that this was an ethical violation of the Constitutional Court’s decision and the chief justice was dismissed. Eight other judges were also examined, but the decision was not overturned. The Election Organiser Honorary Council ruled that all commissioners of the Indonesian General Election Commission violated ethics in the nomination of Gibran as a vice-presidential candidate.  The commission was accused of processing Gibran’s registration without adjusting the minimum age requirement in accordance with the Constitutional Court’s decision, further undermining the credibility of the electoral process. Pork-barrel politics is common practice among  incumbents seeking re-election in Indonesia, but the recent election took the practice to new heights. Massive cash transfers, particularly through social aid programs like Bansos, have raised suspicions of vote buying and electoral manipulation. The Minister of Finance said there was a 135 percent surge in  social assistance payments to 27.7 million people across Indonesia in January 2024 alone. The distribution of funds, totalling trillions of rupiah, has been questioned, with allegations  that these funds are being distributed in areas where there are many supporters of the Anies-Muhaimin and Ganjar-Mahfud. Financial incentives were also reportedly used to secure support for Prabowo-Gibran among government employees, police and military officers, some of whom received salary increases in exchange for support. There have also been reports of intimidation tactics influencing support for specific candidates in Indonesia’s 82,395 villages.  Since 2015, these villages have received Village Funds. While well intentioned, these funds are often problematic. Not all village heads have the ability to manage these funds and many are considered corrupt. On November 29, thousands of village heads attended a rally at the GBK stadium in Jakarta, declaring their support for Prabowo-Gibran. The attendance of these village heads was voluntary, but many of them were allegedly intimidated with threats that if they did not attend, the management of village funds would be audited and examined by law enforcement. The intimidation also caused the head village to compel  their people to vote Prabowo-Gibran. The neutrality of former president Joko Widowo has also been called into question. The Election Law 2017 mentions several provisions requiring the president to maintain his neutrality, but there have been many incidents of non-neutrality by some active ministers and president Joko Widodo himself, and sub-national interim officials being pressured to support the Prabowo-Gibran. Even the UN Human Rights Committee specifically questioned Joko Widodo’s neutrality in the election. The decision to hold the election in a single round, rather than two, has added to the controversy. While Prabowo argued that a single-round election would be less messy, tiring and costly, critics question the fairness and transparency of such a process. The single round election issue was most controversial in Papua. Since 2004, elections in Papua have used the Noken system, allowing a single candidate to get all votes cast, resulting in a 100 percent win. According to Election Law, 19 provinces must exceed 20 percent of votes for a one-round election. Despite a moratorium, President Joko Widodo added three provinces to Papua on November 17, 2022. This move was seen as favourable for ensuring a one-round election, crucial for Prabowo-Gibran’s chances of victory. Academics and civil society groups have voiced their concerns, highlighting the importance of upholding democratic principles and ethical conduct in elections. The election was marred by irregularities and controversies, prompting protests and calls for accountability. As legal disputes unfold in the Constitutional Court and parliamentary inquiries are launched, the future of Indonesia’s electoral process hangs in the balance. The outcome of these investigations will determine whether the alleged violations will go unpunished or if measures will be taken to ensure fair and transparent elections in the future. Harkristuti Harkrisnowo is a Professor at the Faculty of Law, University of Indonesia. Her main interests are criminal law, criminal justice, criminology and human rights. She is also the chair of the Council of Professors, University of Indonesia. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Trust in elections” sent at: 08/04/2024 10:50. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 22, 2024

Convention could lock in China’s Mekong cooperation - 360 Kenneth Stiller Published on February 28, 2022 This article was commissioned by 360info as part of a collaboration with Water Science Policy, including an interactive river journey of the Mekong. You can enjoy the full experience and learn more about this unique river here. The success and survival of the Mekong River rests with China: the largest, wealthiest state in the region, positioned in the strategically important upstream. As the Mekong enters its fourth year of drought, certainty about China’s cooperation is no longer desirable — it is essential. No institutional Mekong agreement simultaneously addresses transboundary effects, meaning Lower Mekong countries are dependent on the goodwill of China. China and Myanmar are the only countries in the region who are not member states of the Mekong River Commission, both are instead ‘dialogue partners’. At times, China’s interest has aligned well with that of its neighbours. In 2016, it released emergency water supply from the Lancang River to tackle a drought in the Mekong. It is volunteering more data to the Mekong River Commission. China has also taken to, at times, notifying governments when it is set to reduce water flow of the river ahead of doing so in a goodwill gesture. However, a framework built on ad hoc cooperation creates an uneasy situation for other Mekong states: China’s cooperation could cease at any point. Convincing China to become a member of a broader governance framework decreases the likelihood of China reversing the progress made in transboundary cooperation. A powerful upstream country, China has little reason to deviate from current policy. There is little chance it will join the existing Mekong agreement or Commission any time soon. Issue linkage could be a path to incentivise China to sign up a framework governing the Mekong waters, amongst other environmental areas — China could be compelled to participate more closely with regional partners on the Mekong through a transboundary environmental impact assessment, a holistic framework that includes — but is not limited to — the Mekong River and basin. China is no stranger to issue linkage. By launching the Lancang-Mekong River Dialogue and Cooperation Mechanism, China successfully linked the issue of water governance to bring regional partners to the table on a raft of political and security issues. National environmental impact assessments vary vastly, not at least in terms of compatibility with China’s system. The Lower Mekong countries have a streamlined environmental impact assessment process that follows similar principles and procedures.  However, these lack any transboundary elements. At the same time, there is a growing need for a transboundary impact assessment framework as larger projects in energy, water supply or traffic infrastructure increasingly have repercussions beyond individual states. Lower Mekong countries could leverage issues that are in China’s interest, such as nuclear energy, to create a general transboundary framework. Recent cooperation agreements signed by Russia with Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam indicate nuclear energy might be a developing issue in the medium to long-term. Lower Mekong countries could also benefit from their pivotal role in China’s belt and road initiative (BRI). So far, China’s envisioned ‘Green BRI’ depends on diplomacy and voluntary environmental commitment – which stands in stark contrast to environmental impact assessment rules within China. Since the dynamic economies of mainland southeast Asia are crucial to China, these states have leverage to claim a general need for a general transboundary environmental impact assessment framework. An agreement of this nature would not be contradictory to Chinese interests. China’s President Xi Jinping’s concept of an ‘ecological civilisation’ (生态文明) draws an intrinsic link between environmental and commercial interests – and highlights the origin of environmental concerns in China’s own values and traditions. A general framework for a transboundary environmental impact assessment would help increase the legitimacy for Chinese development in the Lower Mekong countries amid increasing resistance to its investment. Finding itself in competition with Japanese or Western companies when it comes to major infrastructure development, China is disadvantaged by growing scepticism. Any attempt at creating a framework for a transboundary environmental impact assessment would have to bridge meaningfully diverging preferences, but there’s a blueprint to follow in the Espoo Convention, a transboundary agreement bridging parties in Europe, Central Asia and North America. The convention brings together diverse interests and countries, giving its parties some leeway on how their transboundary environmental impact assessments are conducted. Institutionalised transboundary frameworks for environmental impact assessments are indispensable for sustainable governance of the Mekong river and basin, and beyond. Entrenching a more systematic approach to cooperating with China is in all parties’ interests. Kenneth Stiller is a DPhil researcher at the University of Oxford. Kenneth holds a BA (distinction) in Political Science and Economics from the University of Mannheim, Germany and was an Adam-von-Trott scholar at the University of Oxford, where he obtained a master’s degree (distinction) in International Relations, focussing on political economy and quantitative methods. Mr Stiller declared no conflicts of interest in relation to this article. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: Kenneth Stiller

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 28, 2022

Cooperation, commitment will save the Mekong - 360 Rafael Schmitt Published on February 28, 2022 Rising sea levels, accelerated land degradation and reduced sediment supply is hurting the Mekong. But it doesn’t have to be that way. The Mekong Delta is sinking: sea levels are rising while land is subsiding, the resulting sea level rise far outpacing the effects of climate change alone. Increasingly deprived of the building material that created it in the first place, the Mekong struggles to offset parts of the accelerated relative sea level rise. Nearly 90 percent of the Delta land would fall below sea levels by the end of the century if business as usual continues. The consequences would be severe: the delta supports 17 million people, hosts some of Vietnam’s most vibrant economic centres and cities, and grows a significant part of the region’s food. It is possible to live and farm below sea level: the Netherlands is a whole country below sea level, with land kept dry by an intricate system of dikes and waterworks. Could a similar future be possible for a subsided Mekong Delta? The Mekong Delta has the same area as the Netherlands, but nearly twice the coastline. The Netherlands has had centuries to develop infrastructure for coastal protection. In the Mekong Delta, similar works would need to be completed in decades — a herculean task. Such hard engineering also imbues enormous costs to construct and maintain. Without those protections and continued high levels of subsidence, part of the delta’s productive surface would turn to marshes or become flooded in the near future. There are other approaches. Sediment delivery from the Mekong Basin is a natural solution that could build new delta land. If dam development continues as planned, more than 95 percent of the basin sediment will be trapped in reservoirs rather than delivered to the delta. To meet sustainability goals, sand mining in the lower basin would have to be reduced. This would  increase sediment delivered to the delta and reduce the negative effects  the practice has on rivers and water quality in the delta. To reduce rates of subsidence and accelerated relative sea level rise, the rate of groundwater pumping must slow. All of those measures are costly. Sediment is naturally transported in rivers, but maintaining its free passage might require foregoing — or even removing — some hydropower projects. This would mean giving up the gains from electricity sales and slowing regional progress towards low-carbon energy systems. Similarly, using less groundwater for agriculture may require abandoning some water-intensive cropping practises and accepting lower yields. Trade-offs will have to be navigated in a strategic manner and guided by the latest advances in science and numerical approaches. For example, dams built in the lower Mekong Tributaries trap 90 percent of the sediment once delivered and exploit 50 percent of their hydropower potential. By developing a different set of dam sites, the same amount of power — or more — could have been produced, while trapping only 15 percent of the basin’s sediment. This would have meant that some developers would have lost their projects in favour of others that produce more power and trap less sediment. In a basin where decision-making is deeply fractured and development strategies are politically complicated, a major shift of some form is required if the Mekong is to survive. Determining what that shift looks like is the answer to an existential question for one of the most productive regions in Asia. Rafael Schmitt is a research engineer at Stanford University. Rafael’s research regards modelling and managing water, energy, and ecosystem services provided by the world’s large rivers. As part of the Natural Capital Project, Rafael is currently working on developing models to quantify the role of nature to provide sediment retention and flood and landslide prevention. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: Rafael Schmitt in California

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 28, 2022

Cooperation, conflict to shape Pacific leaders’ meeting - 360 Reece Hooker Published on November 8, 2023 The Pacific Islands Forum Leaders’ Meeting comes at a critical time for climate, economy and peace. Coming together amid conflict will be key to the agenda. On 6 November, leaders from the 18 nations will meet in Rarotonga, Cook Islands for the Pacific Islands Forum. Last year’s meeting was a strong re-affirmation of the unity in the region, particularly in the arena of climate change. But a year on and climate disasters aren’t going away. The Pacific remains the most vulnerable region to the effects of extreme weather, despite its relatively small role in the onset of such events. The Loss and Damage Fund promised at COP27 — a vital mechanism to help the region adapt to climate disasters it has not been responsible for causing — is yet to come to fruition. An October meeting of the Transitional Committee failed to result in an agreement on key funding provisions, including who hosted it, its scale, its sources of funding and allocation of resources. Of the USD$100 billion in climate finance pledged to developing economies in 2019, small island developing states only had access to USD$1.5 billion. But matters of climate are complicated by the geopolitical shadow that looms over the Pacific, with China and the US vying for power and influence. Determining where loyalties lie will be an ongoing discussion at PIF.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 8, 2023

Coordination and action would protect India from pests - 360 Achyut Kumar Banerjee Published on March 7, 2022 India’s future prosperity is threatened by invasive species. Yet action on the problem is piecemeal or missing. The Indian subcontinent has been colonised multiple times, starting with the Arabs around 1200, followed by the Mughals and the Europeans. With the colonisers came numerous plant and animal species. Some of them eventually escaped cultivation or captivity to become invasive pests. According to a global estimate, India currently has 88 alien animals and 2,082 alien plants, of which 16 animals and 266 plants have become invasive. The number of new invasive species and their impacts will increase in the coming decades due to globalisation and climate change. As a signatory to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, India has adopted the Aichi Biodiversity Targets that include identifying and prioritising invasive species, controlling or eradicating the priority species, and implementing measures to prevent their introduction and spread. India currently has ten pieces of legislation related to invasive species. However, the existing regulations barely cover the broad spectrum of invasive species present in the country. For example, the list of plants that are prohibited, restricted, and regulated for trading in India has just 57 species, most of which are hosts of important pests or diseases of crops and forestry. Agencies like the Indian Council of Agricultural Research naturally focus on agricultural pests, but this has led to inaction on other invasive plant species. The quarantine list does not even include species recognised by other government and research agencies in the country. A lack of consensus on the number of invasive species also persists between government agencies. For example, the National Biodiversity Authority and ENVIS Centre on Floral Diversity, both operating under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, have recognised 62 and 173 alien invasive plant species in India, respectively. The promotion of invasive Acacia species by the Government of Tamil Nadu for plantation programs is one of the many examples of lack of coordination between central and state agencies. Also, there are no mechanisms to prevent the accidental introduction of alien species at sea-, land- or air-ports. Similarly, in the absence of a national policy or legislation to regulate movements of invasive species within India, nearly one-third of the recognised alien invasive plant species are actively sold by online nurseries. Several roadblocks prevent implementation of existing policies. Lack of public awareness, consumer preference for aliens, resistance from industry, and heavy dependence on abundant aliens for income generation often make policy implementation difficult. Invasive species with productive uses are sometimes promoted by non-governmental organisations for the welfare of marginalised people. In these endeavours, over-exploitation of these species is viewed as a management measure often without any scientific evidence to support it. When the long-term effects on human livelihood, not to mention on other life forms, are eventually recognised, community dependence on these invasive species will be a further hindrance for policy implementation. To date, the lack of a dedicated biosecurity infrastructure, overarching legal oversight, and complete or partial failure in enacting the existing policies have accelerated the unregulated introduction and spread of invasive species in India. To prevent future invasions and minimise the impact of ongoing invasions, India will need to go further. Many countries, for example The Philippines, have a National Invasive Species Strategy and Action Plan. If India were to implement such a plan, biosecurity infrastructure dedicated to the invasive species problem would be required. This could take the form of a decentralised system that would act as a platform for scientists, policymakers, and trade regulatory bodies to make consensus decisions. Scientific evidence coupled with understanding social perspectives towards management measures should be integral components of the decision-making processes. The system would act as a coordinated national network between different agencies working on invasive species to ensure smooth and effective information sharing across different levels of government. As in other countries, the system could adopt a standardised risk assessment framework to categorise aliens based on their impacts, and formulate regulatory policies to prevent new introductions and manage established invasive species. It would need to accommodate changes to the species categories based on regular risk assessment exercises. It would also be essential to ensure compliance from all quarters to implement the policies effectively. Similar to the Biological Diversity Act of 2002 and the Biological Diversity Rules of 2004, a legal framework would need to be formulated to deal with the invasive species. The legal wing of the system would be responsible for the effective implementation of the policies and hold any person or organisation accountable for unintended impacts caused by the invasive species. Engaging the public would help. A national campaign on invasive species and publishing articles in popular newspapers and magazines could be a practical start towards building public awareness. Social media, interactive web portals, and mobile applications can also play a helpful role. Citizen science initiatives related to invasive species should be encouraged and promoted widely, as they are in other countries. The agency could also identify research gaps and encourage active participation of the scientific community in furthering research activities and policy discussion. Identifying pathways and vectors of invasive species spread, recognising factors that cause the aliens to become invasive, quantifying the impacts in monetary terms, and finding native species with similar consumer benefits could be prioritised for research and supported by necessary funding. A trained taskforce could enforce laws and improve border security, disseminating agency activities, and creating public awareness. Training sessions for public and government agencies, like those organised by the National Institute of Plant Health Management, would work in this context. This practice will help in capacity building and strengthening the existing biosecurity infrastructure of the country. The invasive species threat to the Indian economy and environment is real and looming large with each passing day. India has the potential to deal with it, as it is doing for many other environmental concerns. An action plan and dedicated biosecurity infrastructure would safeguard the country from ongoing and upcoming disasters by these species. Achyut Kumar Banerjee is currently a research associate at Sun Yat-sen University, China. He has more than 12 years of research experience on invasive plant species in India and has published many peer-reviewed journal articles on this topic. The author has no conflicts to declare. This article has been republished for World Wildlife Day 2023. It was first published on February 28, 2022. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 7, 2022

Cop shows perpetuate a guns-blazing style of policing - 360 Clare Farmer, Rich Evans Published on October 3, 2022 The high profile of firearms in American crime dramas so far appears to be the most persuasive argument for why police need guns. Season five of “The Rookie”, an American police drama, returned to screens this week. The enormously popular show, screened in more than 180 territories, is standard cop-show fodder: cops busting crims, car chases, a dash of romance. But its viewers see and absorb an extreme level of gun violence, much of it perpetrated by police officers. In the three-minute trailer for the show’s first season, a gun is held, raised or fired twenty times: once every nine seconds. The officers’ trusty service-issue Glocks are the weapons most often brandished on-screen. It’s an example of weapon product placement, the sponsored use of recognisable branded firearms in screen dramas. Glock’s marketing is assisted greatly by the frequent and prominent use of its pistols in many popular US police television dramas. Its website proudly proclaims that “law enforcement agencies around the world trust Glock to deliver the reliability and firepower necessary to protect their officers in the line of duty”. The arms manufacturer promises, literally, “perfection”. The on-screen guns do indeed deliver something like perfection: the weapons never jam or misfire, the officers never kill a bystander, and the audience does not see the blood or hear the screams of those who are shot. Such is the fantasy world of television. Meanwhile, in the real world, in Australia, the Kumanjayi Walker coronial inquest is inquiring into the circumstances of the death of the 19-year-old Indigenous man. Mr Walker had a personal history of abuse, neglect, mental illness and trouble with the law – a familiar story in Australia’s Indigenous communities. When police sought to arrest him for breaching his bail conditions, Mr Walker stabbed one of the arresting officers, Constable Zachary Rolfe, with a small pair of scissors. Constable Rolfe fatally shot Mr Walker three times at close range with his service pistol, a Glock. The specific events, along with wider issues of police training, mental health, weapons protocols, and institutional racism will be considered by the Coroner in hearings during October and November 2022. One thing is certain: nothing about this complicated human tragedy is anything like “perfection”. It may seem a stretch to link the fantasy world of a popular US police drama with a tragic real-world death at the hands of police, half a world away. But the two things are connected, beyond the brand of the firearm involved. In the modern State, police are the sole agents of authorised violence. In the past thirty years, police across the world have become increasingly militarised. Arming police, making their weapons more numerous and more visible, and adopting uniforms with a military appearance, is justified with the argument that it is ‘common sense’ that police need to be armed, otherwise they would be unable to do their job. Criticism of police use of firearms comes primarily from socially and politically progressive scholars and commentators suspicious of police violence. Police reaction to such criticism tends to be defensive and framed in terms of safety: policing is difficult and dangerous, and police need to carry firearms to do their jobs. And while the safety of police officers is a legitimate concern, deaths in the community caused by police firearms, particularly when those killed are vulnerable, is also a legitimate concern. There are few detailed studies of the implications for police and community safety when police carry firearms. However, comparisons can be made with the small number of jurisdictions where individual police officers do NOT routinely carry firearms, such as Great Britain. Research comparing Great Britain with jurisdictions where individual officers are routinely armed, such as Australia and Canada, found that the routine arming of police does not make the community safer, particularly vulnerable people such as those with a mental illness. The rate of fatal police shootings of civilians is notably higher in the armed jurisdictions, at both national and city level. In Britain, guns are difficult to obtain and few police are armed. A person suffering a mental health crisis is less likely to be able to cause serious harm to other people, and the attending officers almost always resolve such a crisis without a fatality. In Australia, guns are also difficult to obtain but individual police officers are routinely armed. The risk of fatality for a person suffering a mental health crisis is heightened (for example Kumanjayi Walker). In the US, firearms are easily accessible, and police officers are routinely armed. In the US, people with an untreated mental illness are 16 times more likely than the general population to be killed by law enforcement. In the first 24 days of 2015, police in the US fatally shot more people than police did in England and Wales, combined, over the previous 24 years. No definitive evidence is yet available to support the contention that routinely arming police officers improves community or police safety, whether by deterring violent crime, creating a level of reassurance, or through higher levels of effective police intervention. When comparing routinely armed Canada with unarmed England and Wales, the latter jurisdiction is ‘safer’ by all measures except robbery; homicide levels are lower; and the rate of fatal police shootings is approximately 18 times lower. In terms of police safety, the rate of violent, non-accidental police deaths is higher in routinely armed Canada than routinely unarmed England and Wales. It would seem that the fewer guns there are in a community, whether in the hands of civilians or of police, the safer that community and the police are. New Zealand police officers carry firearms, but not on their person, rather, in a secure locker in patrol vehicles. An Australian police official expressed incredulity to his Kiwi counterparts: “It boggles our minds that you guys don’t wear guns on your hips. What is it doing in the boot of your car when you are dealing with a violent offender?” Such comments encapsulate the ‘armed tradition’ of policing: the uncritical assumption that police must have immediate access to lethal weapons to be effective, to ensure the safety of officers and the security of the wider community. Yet the assumption that police need guns for their own safety and for the safety of the community lacks hard evidence to support it. Where does this assumption come from, and how is it sustained? American-made crime and policing dramas dominate the cultural landscape of English-speaking screen entertainment. These productions glorify firearms as an integral and essential part of policing – encouraged and often funded by branded product placement. Guns are worn visibly and used often. The role of media in shaping public opinion and policing styles is complex, but with positive depictions of police gun violence in US television so widespread and long running, it is plausible that media depictions of police violence, including the use of firearms by police, influence beliefs about policing. In these shows, police gun violence is presented as a good thing, a consequence-free response to crisis situations, in which heroic and admirable characters demonstrate their bravery and capacity to protect the community and each other. It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that the real-life support for the armed tradition of policing is substantially maintained by, and perhaps also derived from, the fantasies of American scriptwriters. Richard Evans is a criminologist and historian based in Geelong, Victoria. He is an Honorary Fellow with Deakin University. His most recent book is W.J. MacKay and the NSW Police, 1910-1948: A Dangerous Man (Palgrave 2022). Clare Farmer is a senior lecturer in criminology at Deakin University. Her research examines procedural fairness across the criminal justice system, with a focus on discretionary policing and summary justice. Dr Farmer served as a magistrate in England and is a current member of Victoria’s Adult Parole Board. In 2020, Dr Farmer and Dr Evans published their book Do Police Need Guns? Their second book, an edited volume entitled ‘Policing & Firearms: New Insights & Perspectives’, is due to be published by Springer in October 2022 Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 3, 2022

Coronation of King Charles shines spotlight on monarchies - 360 Tasha Wibawa Published on May 5, 2023 Monarchies were once the most common forms of government. 360info looks at the role they play in our modern democratic societies. This weekend’s coronation of King Charles III has put the role of monarchies back in the spotlight. The role of Charles as the head of the Commonwealth is largely ceremonial. Despite this, the Archbishop of Canterbury has asked the public to pledge allegiance to the King in a “chorus of a million voices”, for the first time in history. Traditionally, hereditary peers were expected to kneel before touching the crown and kissing the monarch’s right cheek. “A transition to a new sovereign inevitably prompts questions about whether the monarchy remains fit for purpose,” said Sally Raudon, social anthropologist at the University of Cambridge. She said 2015 research looked at how the crown functioned in Australian society compared to the United Kingdom and the post-colonial Commonwealth realms of Canada and New Zealand, and predicted the likelihood of republican reform in any of these countries. Members of the Commonwealth have varying support for the king, ranging from Jamaica’s push towards becoming a republic to New Zealand retaining ‘God Save the Queen’ (now ‘God Save the King’) as its second national anthem. “With the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the glue that bound 56 disparate nations is gone,” said Craig Prescott, Lecturer in Law at Bangor University. “Elizabeth II personified the monarchy’s link to the past. For good or ill, she was part of the Commonwealth story. “The Commonwealth [now] faces two main questions: the constitutional future of the Commonwealth realms, and the future of the Commonwealth itself.” Monarchies represent many things to people — power, history, culture and colonialism. These hereditary institutions were once the most common form of government before a 20th-century shift towards republicanism saw the majority lose their legitimacy, placing power in the hands of the people. Research by Catherine Ouellet at the University of Toronto, Nadjim Fréchet at Université de Montréal and Yannick Dufresne at Université Laval found support for or against the monarchy is based more on symbolic factors rather than rational concerns. “Some people’s reluctance to break away from the monarchy could be seen as a nationalist response to growing ethnic diversity and the perception of a cultural threat,” they said. “Citizens favouring the monarchy are more likely to display negative sentiments towards cultural groups they are not a part of — Asians and Indigenous Australians in Australia, and Quebecers and Indigenous peoples in Canada.” Modern monarchies take on several different forms. From constitutional monarchies with restricted political power, to absolute monarchies with influence across all aspects of government. People in the Pacific island nation of Tonga pride themselves on being the last remaining monarchy in the Pacific and having never ceded their sovereignty. In the mountain-locked country of Bhutan, the king has been crucial in the transition from absolute monarchy to democracy. And while Japan’s constitutional monarchy may have lost its governing power following World War II, research found the emperor’s opinion can still have a lot of sway. Where the public once looked at monarchies as a representation of continuity, stability and tradition, much of their powers have now diminished, with only a few still hanging on — modernised and in new forms. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Monarchies in modern democracy” sent at: 03/05/2023 11:51. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 5, 2023

Cost barrier for cutting-edge carbon solution - 360 Deanna D'Alessandro, Sam Wenger Published on October 25, 2023 Direct air capture of carbon dioxide faces political and technological challenges but ambitious targets have been set in fighting the climate crisis. The United Nations Climate Change Conference presents the world with an opportunity to showcase technologies that might limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius. Carbon dioxide removal is on the agenda at COP28 as a potential solutionhe Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has stressed carbon dioxide removal as a key component of the global strategy. The panel recognises that, while efforts to reduce emissions at their source are essential, some sources of greenhouse gas emissions — such as in the heavy-duty transport and agriculture sectors — are hard to eliminate. There are two main ways to remove carbon dioxide. The first is by enhancing natural sinks: storing carbon in soils, planting more trees or enhancing ocean-based carbon sinks. The other is using technologies like direct air capture, a complementary approach that directly removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This could help achieve the ambitious emissions reduction targets necessary to avoid catastrophic climate change. In direct air capture, air is pushed through filters that remove carbon dioxide from atmospheric gases like nitrogen, oxygen, argon and water vapour. After the process, the air has a much lower concentration of carbon dioxide and that which is captured is collected for removal or more processing. Direct air capture is different from carbon capture and storage. Carbon capture and storage focuses on directly capturing emissions from large industrial sources like power plants before they are released into the atmosphere. Upon capture, the carbon dioxide is transported and kept underground in geological formations, preventing it from contributing to greenhouse gas accumulation. In contrast, direct air capture allows emissions from dispersed sources— considered hard to abate — to be targeted. Direct air capture is difficult because of the extremely dilute nature of carbon dioxide in natural air. It comprises just 0.04 percent of molecules in the atmosphere, compared with the relatively higher concentration in carbon capture storage applications — typically 10-15 percent. It’s one factor making it extremely difficult to design a chemical process to selectively capture carbon dioxide in a highly reversible way while using commercially available materials and requiring minimal energy. The most conventional early processes rely on temperature and pressure swings— or a combination of both—for filters to react with dilute carbon dioxide at ambient temperatures and pressures. Once the filters are saturated, heat and a vacuum, or both, are applied to the filters, releasing the carbon dioxide-rich gas. The energy required to capture and release carbon dioxide now limits the technology and should be a focus for improvement. The International Energy Agency says it hopes to remove 85 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide by the end of the decade through direct air capture. By 2050, that number skyrockets to 980 million metric tonnes. There are 18 operational direct air capture facilities, with Iceland housing the biggest. There are several megaton-scale facilities planned in the United States. The US has offered USD$3.5 billion in government grants, compared with the United Kingdom’s pledge of USD$124 million for direct air capture research and development. While commercial direct air capture plants have started operating over the past few years, they are relatively expensive to operate, costing between USD$600 and USD$1000 for each tonne of carbon dioxide. More extensive research on novel materials, greater economies of scale and experience could see that cost reduced, with future estimates near between USD$125 and USD$335 per tonne of CO2 for a large-scale plant built today. The aim would be to significantly lower the process cost in a similar way other climate technologies like lithium-ion batteries and photovoltaic solar cells became cheaper. Direct air capture also faces several social and political hurdles. Scaling a novel technology to gigaton-scale within decades requires a whole-of-society approach. It requires governmental support to commercialise the technology, a skilled workforce to manufacture, operate, maintain and improve it, expansive supply chains and a greater understanding of how the technology will affect local communities. Professor Deanna D’Alessandro is a Professor at the Schools of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering and Chemistry at the University of Sydney. She is the Director of the Net Zero Initiative with the Faculty of Engineering. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 25, 2023

Cost of living challenges cut deep - 360 Mia Jeremic, Reece Hooker Published on May 2, 2024 Flights, fuel and eggs are among the top issues for internet users in the cost of living crisis. Policy interventions are coming, but it won’t fix everything. Dinner table conversations about the cost of living crisis have shifted from casual complaints to genuine lifestyle-altering concerns. Household budgets are under pressure when it comes to everything from groceries and housing to healthcare and transportation. This has many wondering why basic necessities have become so expensive. Recent data from Google indicates that across the globe, people are searching for answers. In 2023, cost of living related searches were higher than ever before. With queries ranging from “why are eggs so expensive” to “why are Apple products so expensive” there is a growing sense that economic doldrums are pervading every aspect of daily life, leaving people grappling with stretched budgets and limited purchasing power. For Australians, the affordability of flights has become a dominant search term. It’s not an issue that seems likely to disappear, as pressures on the price of fuel seem set to stay. Despite signs that inflation is slowing down in Australia, prices are still too high to meet the needs of the population. Australia’s Treasurer Jim Chalmers has indicated that the upcoming federal budget will provide some relief, but for many feeling undernourished, stressed and overworked, the remedy may be too late. Soaring healthcare fees raises questions about equity in a sector already burdened by racialised practices and colonial history. Financial instability and health are also cyclically related: medical issues make it harder to earn money, and financial challenges cause stress and anxiety. Women are often the shock absorber of poverty and are disproportionately affected by financial strain. A report by the EU commission states that “women are more likely to have accumulated less wealth and earn wages that do not keep pace with inflation.” Unless there is an intersectional policy approach, we risk further entrenching an already stark divide. Coupled with climate change, populism, and international conflict, this perma-crisis will induce us to reimagine our attitudes towards value. But for now, it seems that cost-of-living pressures will continue to dominate our thinking. Searching for the good life is a luxury few can afford.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 2, 2024

Cosy business alliances holding Asia back - 360 Simon Commander, Saul Estrin Published on May 10, 2023 For future economic growth, Asian economies need effective policy interventions to foster, not limit, competition and innovation. Close ties between big business groups and political elites are ubiquitous in Asia. We term these links the Connections World. In this world, business group structures facilitate opaque corporate governance, weak minority shareholder rights and a raft of undesirably close relationships with politicians. They also leverage their connections to build substantial market power. Although Asia’s high levels of concentration and business entrenchment have not been a barrier to growth, they have resulted in constraints on competition and, in particular, a brake on innovation, threatening Asia’s prospects. Yet neither businesses nor politicians have incentives to deviate from their mutually rewarding relationships. To start loosening this chokehold of the Connections World to induce greater competition along with more entry and exit of companies, something can be done to lower the appeal of the business group format. The most radical approaches to do this were taken in the US in the 1930s and in Japan post-1945, where Roosevelt and then Macarthur respectively pushed through policies to effectively eliminate the business group format. Limits were placed on the number of levels or tiers, higher taxes were imposed on inter-group dividends, consolidated group tax filing was eliminated and constraints imposed on financial institutions acting as controlling shareholders as well as on business groups controlling public utilities. However, such drastic policies were undertaken at a time of economic depression or defeat in war and a backlash against incumbent companies. It is unlikely anything so sweeping would now be feasible in Asia. Rather, incremental policies that address corporate governance, taxation and market structure have far more chance of success. Asian business groups, with few exceptions, have highly opaque corporate governance. This facilitates the dominant (mostly family) owners exerting control, usually at the expense of the minority shareholders. Improving protection of minority shareholders by giving them legal rights to call shareholder meetings and to limit the dilution of shareholdings by the majority shareholders can begin to address this imbalance. Reducing non-transparent inter-group financial transfers can also be aided by requiring the publication of plans for related party transactions and ensuring minority shareholders have a say in such transactions. This could be done through voting at shareholder meetings and mandatory veto rights over the sale of additional shares. Policy initiatives are needed to govern how businesses configure themselves. A variety of policies have been tried to reduce the number of levels permitted in pyramid structures along with the number of subsidiaries. Policies to restrict crossholdings and the use of holding companies have also been adopted. Yet these measures have largely failed. An alternative approach taken in Israel, for example, has been to give business groups a specified and limited time in which to reduce to no more than two layers, while also banning large companies from controlling both financial and non-financial entities. This approach has proven relatively effective. Using tax policy to influence how a business is organised is another option. Although, in principle, higher taxation of dividends could restrict inter-group transfers, most Asian business groups do not rely on dividends for these purposes, using loans and transfer-pricing instead. Imposing additional tax liabilities, over and above normal corporate tax rates, on closely held family businesses (but excluding young entrepreneurial family firms) is more promising. By targeting the business entity, the value of any control premium is effectively attributed and taxed to all the relevant members of the family. This has the additional advantage of targeting the format of the business group. A further tax intervention could be the adoption of inheritance taxes. South Korea — following in the footsteps of Japan — has recently introduced a 50 percent inheritance tax rate (Commander, 2022). The effective tax rate in 2020 on the value of the deceased Chairman of the Samsung Group shares amounted to over 58 percent (Commander, 2022). This has led the current Chairman to announce he does not intend to hand over management to his children. Over time, inheritance taxation may prove to be an effective way of curtailing family business groups and also help address the high levels of wealth inequality in Asia. In most Asian economies, competition laws are in place, as are bankruptcy laws. All — except Malaysia — have merger control laws. Yet, their implementation has been erratic and the competition authorities have often been captured by the same entities whose behaviour they seek to check. To deal with the anti-competitive impact of business groups, authorities need to move beyond evaluating marginal changes to market structure via mergers and acquisitions. Following Israel’s experience in the 2010s, policy measures could explicitly target the overall levels of market concentration, as well as sectoral market concentration. One way to do this is to set limits on the maximum market share a firm or business group can hold — say, 30 percent — and then require that existing firms be broken up to ensure the thresholds are not exceeded, sector by sector. The thresholds might be lowered when firms are affiliates of the business groups to counter their ability to leverage resources and market power through their position in other markets. Although this sort of approach would be more stringent than in most advanced economies, it could be the starting point in much of Asia where there is far more market power vested in a limited number of business groups. Of equal importance is to apply pressure on politicians and political parties to limit their leveraging of connections with business. This requires greater involvement of civil society by increasing transparency and creating a workable enforcement system. Yet these are all hard to achieve, even in democracies. Plenty could be done. Rules regarding political contributions can be tightened. Except for South Korea, no other country has banned or limited political contributions by businesses. Compulsory asset and interest declarations also have a role to play. Although many Asian countries do notionally mandate such declarations, much depends on how such reporting is designed, let alone implemented. Registers of interests — individual and family — can be used for parliamentarians and ministers. Pushing for greater automatic disclosure along with easy and wide access, along with measures aimed at limiting corruption in public spending decisions, are necessary. Such measures include frequent external audits. Some countries have achieved traction by setting up dedicated and autonomous anti-corruption agencies – for instance, Indonesia’s KPK – that have sufficient political support to take on sensitive cases. Asia’s sustained growth has been built on the concentration of resources, assets and market power. These features will be less benign in the future. Dismantling the hold of business groups and limiting the ability of politicians to leverage connections to business are some of the most urgent policy challenges now on the table. *Analysis and examples in this article can be sourced in Connections World, Commander and Estrin (2020). is Managing Partner of Altura Partners providing policy advice to governments and companies in emerging economies. He is also Visiting Professor of Economics at IE Business School in Madrid and was previously at London Business School. From 1998 to 2011 he worked at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London and from 1988-1998 at the World Bank in Washington DC. was the founding Head of the Department of Management at LSE and formerly a Professor of Economics, and Associate Dean at London Business School. He researches in international business and entrepreneurship, especially with reference to emerging economies. He is former President of the European Association for Comparative Economic Systems. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 10, 2023

Could AI bring Marilyn Monroe and John Wayne back to our screens? - 360 Daniel Gervais Published on April 3, 2024 Late stars of yesteryear on the silver screen again may be one way Hollywood seeks to use AI in film, but ethical qualms and potential legal disputes await. Imagine, for a moment, Marilyn Monroe cast as the Julia Roberts character in a remake of Pretty Woman, or John Wayne playing the bad guy in a Quentin Tarantino take on the western. Hollywood is on the cusp of a cinematic revolution that could see these long-dead legends return to the big screen in new roles by 2028 thanks in large part to advancements in Large Language Models. The 2023 Hollywood strikes highlighted concern among writers and actors about their existential future in the industry — a sentiment echoed by Zeke Alton of the The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) negotiating committee, who said studios were forcing workers to “negotiate and bargain for our very existence”. Sora is our first video generation model – it can create HD videos up to 1 min long. AGI will be able to simulate the physical world, and Sora is a key step in that direction. thrilled to have worked on this with @billpeeb at @openai for the past year https://t.co/p4kAkRR0i0 pic.twitter.com/Hipku1LFRM — Tim Brooks (@_tim_brooks) February 15, 2024 OpenAI’s Sora text-to-video model is a milestone in proving the feasibility of converting scripts directly into visual stories without human intervention. While AI-driven scripts and movies may not immediately garner the acclaim of productions like Oppenheimer, the real challenge lies not in the quality or recognition but in persuading audiences to embrace films produced by AI. One solution proposed to help cross the dreaded “uncanny valley”, the eerie feeling induced by seeing non-humans exhibit human-like traits, is to resurrect renowned actors from the golden age of Hollywood through CGI — a practice that will likely be introduced incrementally. This fusion of human-aided productions with AI-generated scenes could be the initial step toward audience acceptance. Already commonplace in science fiction, placing CGI actors alongside real-life artists could lay the groundwork for the future portrayal of well-loved figures like Monroe or “the Duke”. Human-AI partnership is set to rise exponentially, too. A human-composed script could be fine-tuned by an AI for better market viability, a concept not unlike the use of AI in music production — where the appeal is algorithmically matched to historical patterns in commercially successful tracks. Streaming giant Spotify is already allegedly seeding its platform with AI-generated tunes, foreshadowing a trend where shorts and video reels populate social media platforms such as YouTube, TikTok and Instagram on a vast scale. From a legal standpoint, uncertainties remain. Large Language Models dependent on existing copyrighted material for learning hover in grey zones of fair use — a position AI companies are holding onto while nearly 20 lawsuits wait in the wings. It’s a high stakes bet: AI companies hope for a cultural shift that would consider their training methodologies as indispensable and beneficial before a definitive US Supreme Court ruling. Another looming question is script and audiovisual production by Large Language Models, and whether this could potentially infringe on the copyright of existing works — a determination to be made individually, akin to human creative disputes. Meanwhile, the use of the likeness of yesteryear’s actors brings into focus the right of publicity. For now, the likenesses of stars such as Monroe and Wayne are fair game in many jurisdictions, barring any future legislative changes. As for consumers, transparency issues are on the rise with demands for AI-created content to be clearly labelled. While the industry may resist such regulations, the European Union has taken steps to lay down such tenets in the AI Act recently passed by the European Parliament. The societal implications are profound. Suppose machines become the main purveyors of our arts, literature, and journalism — fields integral to our comprehension of the world. If the interpretation of our reality falls predominantly into the realm of machine intelligence, the trajectory of our future and our role in it will change. And, while human creativity will never truly fade, a machine-dominated industry could overshadow much of human output. Daniel Gervais is the Milton R Underwood Chair in Law at Vanderbilt University where he teaches intellectual property and the law of artificial intelligence. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “AI and the arts” sent at: 28/03/2024 08:56. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 3, 2024

Could bird flu lead to the next pandemic? - 360 Vinod RMT Balasubramaniam Published on May 24, 2024 The first case of H5N1 bird flu was reported in Australia this week. Is the world prepared for what could lead to the next pandemic? The detection of a case of the widespread H5N1 strain of avian influenza in Australia is a cause for concern. On Wednesday, health officials in Victoria reported a child had contracted the virus in India and became ill on their return to Australia in March. According to the Victorian Department of Health, the child experienced a severe infection but has since fully recovered. Contact tracing found no evidence of transmission within Australia, and officials stated the risk was low since H5N1 does not spread easily among people. This was the first case of H5N1 in animals or people in Australia, making the continent the last to detect it even after Antarctica. Detections of avian influenza at farms in Victoria and Western Australia are understood to be different, and less worrying, strains. But any emergence of H5N1 avian influenza is a global concern and underscores the looming threat of a pandemic. Avian influenza viruses — colloquially known as bird flu — pose significant challenges to global public health due to how widely they circulate and their high rates of death. While its current mode of transmission primarily involves contact with infected birds, the potential for human-to-human spread looms large. Genetic mutations could fuel this transition, amplifying the risk of sustained outbreaks. Bird flu viruses can be classified based on their pathogenicity, or how effectively they cause disease. Some are categorised as highly pathogenic and others as low pathogenic. This is determined through the intravenous pathogenicity index test, a laboratory technique used to assess how well avian influenza viruses cause disease in poultry. Highly pathogenic strains — such as H5N1, H5N8, and H7N9 — pose significant public health threats, with H5N1 being the most pathogenic, causing a high number of deaths in both chickens and humans. The World Health Organization has already expressed its enormous concern over the risk of H5N1 becoming more easily able to spread between humans. Understanding the distinctions between strains and lineages is crucial for tracking the virus’s evolution, developing effective vaccines, and implementing appropriate public health measures. A strain refers to a genetic variant or subtype of the virus with distinct mutations. The strain that infected the child in Victoria differs from the one causing outbreaks among poultry and dairy cows in the United States. The current global H5N1 outbreak among animals underscores the urgent need for a comprehensive understanding of this virus and its public health implications. Since the initial highly pathogenic H5N1 outbreak in 1959 among Scottish poultry and its transmission to humans in 1997 in Hong Kong, numerous bird flu outbreaks have been recorded. While Australia has strong genetic surveillance capabilities and comprehensive pandemic preparedness plans, the Indo-Pacific region’s frequent encounters with H5N1 have driven more specialised and intensive surveillance and response mechanisms in other countries. The higher risk in these countries has fostered stronger collaborations, greater funding, and more frequent real-world testing of their pandemic response systems, making them more agile in dealing with H5N1 specifically. From 2003 to mid-2023, the WHO reported 878 human cases of H5N1, resulting in 458 deaths across 23 countries. The current global H5N1 outbreak, linked to the A/goose/Guangdong/1/96 strain, is the largest ever recorded among wild birds. It is affecting a large range of diverse animal hosts — including both land-based and marine mammals and animals as geographically disparate as cows and penguins — and is causing significant deaths among sea lions in Peru. Although rare, human infections typically result from direct contact with infected birds or their environments, with sporadic cases reported globally, including recent occurrences in Egypt, Vietnam, and China. But the fact it’s infecting a large range of hosts means the risk of it spreading to humans is higher. India continues to experience sporadic H5N1 outbreaks in poultry, with recent instances in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that, from January 2022 to April 25, 2024, there have been 26 human H5N1 cases in eight countries. These cases included severe, critical and fatal outcomes, with most linked to contact with sick or dead poultry. Eleven cases involved an older H5N1 clade (2.3.2.1c) in Cambodia and Vietnam, while others were attributed to a newer clade (2.3.4.4b) circulating globally. A clade in this context refers to a group of related virus strains that have evolved from a single ancestral virus. Humans can be infected through direct contact with infected animals during activities like handling, culling, slaughtering, or processing, as well as indirectly through environments contaminated with bodily fluids from infected animals. Although H5N1 primarily spreads to humans through contact with infected birds, there is potential for human-to-human transmission, especially through genetic reassortment when a person is infected with both a human influenza virus and an avian influenza virus at the same time. If this were to occur the two viruses could exchange genetic material between themselves, which could result in the emergence of a new influenza virus able to better spread from person to person. Australia has established a comprehensive framework to confront the potential threat of H5N1 avian influenza, drawing on stringent biosecurity measures, vaccination strategies and a robust public health infrastructure. Central to this framework are the country’s sophisticated genomic surveillance capabilities, driven by institutions like CSIRO’s Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness and various universities. These facilities possess advanced genetic testing and sequencing facilities, allowing for rapid analysis of viral genomes to monitor mutations and trace the virus’s spread. Australia also engages in international collaborations and data-sharing partnerships with organisations such as the WHO and the Global Initiative on Sharing Avian Influenza Data, ensuring access to global insights and facilitating swift responses. Despite robust surveillance and containment efforts, systemic challenges in other parts of the world like Cambodia, Vietnam and South Africa such as strained healthcare infrastructures and the rapid pace of globalisation pose formidable hurdles. Without decisive international cooperation and resource allocation, H5N1 could spiral into a full-blown global crisis. Dr Vinod Balasubramaniam is an Associate Professor of Molecular Virology and Leader of the Infection and Immunity Research Strength in the Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences at Monash University Malaysia. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 24, 2024

Could climate change lead to the next black plague? - 360 Kirk Douglas Published on April 7, 2022 Rodents are well known reservoirs of disease, and our lives will increasingly intersect as our shared environment warms. American historian Henry Adams, once wrote “Chaos often breeds life, when order breeds habit”. Yet it is truly humankind’s bad habits that have placed us on the path towards ruin. One potential source of our downfall is zoonoses (infectious diseases spread from animals to humans), which are becoming more prevalent as we encroach further into their natural ecosystems and impact entire ecosystems via climate change. The COVID-19 pandemic shows just how serious these pathogens can be. And among wildlife, rodents are well known as dangerous reservoirs of zoonotic pathogens. Historical accounts of the Black Plague estimate it killed up to 60 percent of people in Europe in just seven years, while more recent deadly outbreaks of hantavirus and arenavirus (Lassa Fever) infections cemented the reputation of rodents as one of the most filthy animals. Infection can occur in a number of ways, from direct rodent bites, bites from rodent-fleas, touching infected rodent excrements or simply from breathing contaminated air. More recent rat-fueled zoonotic outbreaks include pulmonary syndrome, haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, leptospirosis, arenavirus, lymphocytic chorio-meningitis, rat plague and rat typhus fever. Climate change has influenced the distribution and size of rodent populations. The displacement of wildlife from their natural habitats due to human activities such as deforestation, expansion of urban sprawl and poor sanitation continues to fuel zoonotic outbreaks. According to research based on existing peer-reviewed studies, three main climate factors: rainfall, temperature, and humidity, have influenced the infections of hantavirus in Latin America and the Caribbean. There is strong evidence of hantavirus disease being linked to high levels of rain and habitat type factors, but its relationship to temperature and humidity is still unclear. The interaction of climate and hantavirus diseases in these areas is complex due to missing gaps in data, unknown identities of all animal hosts of the virus, the circulations of multiple hantavirus strains, varieties in agricultural and land-use and challenged public health systems. But we know that as temperatures increase, so too does the daytime activity of rodents searching for food or seeking shade and refuge from the heat. While low temperatures reduce daytime activities, rodents seek warmth and shelter in vehicles, homes, or buildings, increasing human-rodent contact and the chances of zoonotic transmission risks. High rainfall fosters vegetative growth and increased food availability for rodents, and softer soil for burrowing. In Belgium, heavy rains led to mast events (seed production from primarily oak and beech trees) multiplying bank vole rodent populations. These populations seek shelter in human homes to survive the winter months and increase hantavirus outbreaks. Leptospirosis, a rare disease caused by Leptospira bacteria in the urine of infected mice and rats, is also influenced by climate change and infects the kidneys of animals and humans. The bacteria lives in wet, moist soil environments and thrives in hot and humid conditions.In the Caribbean region of Guadeloupe, record leptospirosis cases were reported between 2003-2005 following very hot and wet seasons linked with two El Niño events. Hotter temperatures also increase the chances of humans bathing in waters which are exposed to leptospiral. People are also exposed to the disease during floods where there are unsanitary conditions, and regular waste management is disrupted. Climate predictions estimate higher temperatures of 1.4 – 5.8°C by 2100, and an increase in rainfall, cyclone and hurricane intensities with higher flooding risks particularly for tropical countries where leptospirosis is endemic. Approximately two out of every three new infectious diseases are caused by a zoonotic pathogen — highlighting the importance of understanding the true risks behind human-animal connections. To be effective, solutions should be holistic: simultaneously targeting humans, the environment and our infrastructures.Predictive infectious disease risk modeling can be useful in helping public health officials prepare and anticipate any patterns of concern ahead of time. Climate change is the ubiquitous monster haunting every corner of the globe. The rising temperatures, melting of the polar ice caps, sea level rise, weather extremes, raging wildfires, severe flooding and droughts are all resulting in the continuous disruptions of ecosystems which were previously in balance. Climate change impacts are disproportionately felt in regions and countries with pre-existing social, health and economic vulnerability. A renewed focus on rodent-based zoonoses is vital to safeguard the lives and livelihoods of people, especially those in small island developing countries which are heavily impacted by the changing climate. Dr. Kirk Douglas is the director at the Centre for Biosecurity Studies at the University of the West Indies, Barbados. He is senior scientist recognised in the fields of microbiology, climate, infectious diseases, biosecurity, virology and zoonoses. The author declares no conflict of interest. This article has been republished for World Zoonoses Day. It first appeared in our Changing climate, changing diseases package. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 7, 2022

Could polling feedback loop shape referendum result? - 360 Samantha Vilkins Published on October 11, 2023 Polling is back in vogue during the Voice referendum debate and those results — rather than the substance of the debate — could influence the way some vote. Australia’s view on the Indigenous Voice referendum has been keenly centred on  political polling. News outlets regularly fixate on poll results, which they treat as crystal balls forecasting the referendum outcome, months in advance. Political polling in the debate reflects a self-fulfilling prophecy, where the numbers become the story rather than being used to help tell it. Polling is centre stage in Australia now, but only four years ago it was on the brink: the country’s second-largest media company, Nine Entertainment, declared it would stop publishing weekly polls from Ipsos after the 2019 federal election result defied pollsters’ predictions. But polling has surged back to prominence amid a narrative of declining support for the Yes campaign, which extends with each fortnightly poll update. Different outlets approach the same poll data with their own twists: The Guardian reports each new Essential poll as a “slim majority” for the No vote, while Sky News Australia coverage of Roy Morgan results says support for a Yes vote “plunges“, “freefalls“, and “plummets“. This renewed attention on political polls is not surprising, given their potency within the political and media ecosystem. Polls — especially those conducted regularly — provoke reaction and are big business, with complex, often obscured long-term relationships between news outlets and pollsters. Backlash to polls in Australia came after the 2019 federal election, in which federal Opposition leader Bill Shorten lost an “unlosable election” after spending two years ahead in polling. The disparity between polling and the outcome led some commentators to describe the failure to predict Shorten’s loss as “worse than the Trump polling fail” in 2016. Criticism centred on the polls’ accuracy, but also on the strong expectation for a result that did not eventuate that these polls helped to create. In 2019, statisticians and scientists, notably including Nobel Laureate physicist Brian Schmidt, called for major reviews of pollsters’ methodologies, warning of “undue, or undeserved, influence” on vote results. A group of pollsters — YouGov, Essential, and uComms — responded by forming the Australian Polling Council to reassure journalists and the public of the quality of their data and improve accuracy in reporting. But worries about poll accuracy in reporting distract from more critical issues — like how polls are used to further existing political narratives, and the impact of reporting poll results in the first place. Schmidt’s commentary focussed on the likelihood of pollsters adjusting— probably unintentionally — poll results to match each other. But this concern should extend beyond just those conducting the polls. The media too readily overlooked the effects of constantly polling and publishing poll results to the public. The most effective use case for polling data is often internally, providing political campaigns with regular profiles of the voters they are fighting to win. This doesn’t mean they should be published more widely: if the aim of the media is to inform the public, the question must be asked what benefit there is from knowing how others will vote. Aspects of the Voice referendum might generate increased attention to political polls — and generate greater susceptibility to simple narratives. The increased focus on polling could be due to the heightened stakes in any referendum, given its binary nature. A referendum takes a weighty issue and funnels it into two opposite responses. But, unlike an election, referenda require a majority of states to approve the constitutional change, as well as a national majority. Reporting that highlights the fact that the national figures do not reflect the full picture, and that there are still a substantial number of uncertain voters, might be missed entirely. The ABC and the Guardian maintain multi-poll trackers to try to produce a more powerful picture of campaign performance beyond the limits of individual polls. But in doing that, they remove undecided respondents, “to give a forced yes/no response”. This is the poll reporting trade-off: a clearer image, but one constructed by removing nuance. This can have an unchecked effect on how we perceive the campaign. Beyond technical issues with getting polling right, it’s hard to regulate against people using polls out of context. Some Australian voters say they don’t understand the constitutional changes or feel the involvement of non-Indigenous Australians in this issue is fundamentally unethical. In any case, there could be more demand from people seeking cues on how to vote. However, there is a clear desire from the campaigns to be aligned with the way Indigenous people intend to vote. The Yes campaign frequently references 80 percent Indigenous support, a figure which has been contesteddrawn some contestation. Fact-checking from August concluded that, while the figure could be outdated and more uncertain than reported, actual support was still most likely above 50 percent. Most crucially, experts agreed there was no equivalent evidence for No vote support. To counter his claim, the No campaign’s pamphlet reads “many Indigenous Australians do not support this”. The No campaign has centred prominent dissenting Indigenous voices, though in at least one case has been accused of misrepresentation. Documents like the Uluru Statement from the Heart are central to the agenda. But near the end of the referendum campaign, nearly a third of more than 1000 voters surveyed claim to have never heard of it. Using poll data to glean popular opinion is a convenient, but problematic shortcut for voters as they make their decision. Such coverage creates a feedback loop. Simplified snapshots offer a quick alternative, disconnected from deeper engagement with the issue. This would mean voters are using poll results as a summary of the debate, with their vote guided by duelling polling worms. Just like the herding effects of pollsters unconsciously adjusting their results to mimic each other, the constant reporting of polls can have a self-fulfilling effect. The extent of this effect on individual beliefs is hard to measure, but much clearer in terms of how repetitive polling and a fixated media ecology can result in exaggerated narratives and distort perceptions. Researchers at the Queensland University of Technology’s Digital Media Research Centre investigated the drivers behind polarisation. There was a particular focus on the importance — and difficulty — of distinguishing perceptions of polarisation from actual differences in voting intention, and the role of the media in both. Researchers asked Essential Media to conduct a brief survey on perceptions of division during the referendum debate. Older people were far more concerned about the effects of social media amplification, power-hungry politicking and media bias than other respondents, but all were concerned about the effects of businesses prioritising profits in driving up the cost of living and worsening social divides. These results could reflect the effects of destructive feedback loops from the kind of narratives that political polling coverage helps to perpetuate. The 1,151 participants were also asked their voting intent for the Voice referendum. Those who saw Australia as a divided country were more likely to vote No (59 percent) — while those who saw Australia as united were more likely to vote Yes (58 percent). The overall response was 27 percent “quite or very united” to 42 percent “quite or very divided”, with 31 percent neither. This has implications for the focus of the No campaign, which has centred on claims the Voice will be divisive for Australia. But perceptions of division and Voice voting intent do not completely overlap. This survey data raises more questions about the motivations and existing tensions mobilised during the referendum campaign. While solutions like the Australian Polling Council regulations can improve the accuracy of poll reporting, poll reporting will still never tell the full picture. Samantha Vilkins is a postdoctoral research associate at the Queensland University of Technology’s Digital Media Research Centre. Samantha Vilkins receives funding from the Australian Research Council through Laureate Fellowship FL210100051 Dynamics of Partisanship and Polarisation in Online Public Debate. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 11, 2023

Could Putin’s war of aggression end with reparations for victims? - 360 Erin Pobjie Published on May 23, 2022 If Putin is brought to justice for the crime of aggression committed in Ukraine, it may open the door for a world-first. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is an illegal act of aggression, a violation of international law that may set into motion a historic legal outcome. The prospects of getting Russian President Vladimir Putin to trial in the International Criminal Court are slim, given the jurisdictional and logistical challenges to clear. But an eventual hearing might allow individuals to claim reparations as victims of the crime of aggression. The crime of aggression is committed when a leader of a country plans, prepares, initiates or executes an act of aggression by one country against another. The crime of aggression as such has not yet been prosecuted before an international judicial body. Crimes against peace (defined as ‘planning, preparation, initiation or waging of a war of aggression’) were prosecuted before the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg and Tokyo following World War II. For the first time in history, individuals who suffer harm as a result of a crime of aggression have a right to be recognised as victims under international law. The change was formally made in 2017, when parties to the ICC agreed to activate the court’s jurisdiction to include the crime of aggression in certain situations. According to official tolls, at least 6,952 civilians have been killed and 11,144 injured in Ukraine during the recent Russian aggression against Ukraine, with the actual casualties likely to be thousands higher. All of these civilian casualties of the war, as well as the thousands of Ukrainian military casualties, are victims of Putin’s illegal war of aggression. Now for the first time, individuals who suffer harm as a result of a crime of aggression have a right to be formally recognised as victims. Until recently, only countries — not individuals — could be considered victims of aggression under international law. The prohibition of the use of force between States under international law — introduced by Article 2(4) of the United Nations’ Charter in 1945 — and the corresponding prohibition of aggression, were for the protection of State sovereignty and territorial integrity, and international peace. Although victims of Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait received some compensation from the UN Claims Commission, individuals did not have legal standing before the commission and had to present their claims through their own government or through an international organisation. The historic development at the ICC means that if Putin were ever brought before the ICC — as unlikely as that may currently seem — Ukrainian civilians, members of the Ukrainian armed forces, and even Russian civilians who have suffered harm from his war of aggression, can be recognised as victims at the ICC. Significantly, and in a historic first, victims of the crime of aggression also have a right to seek reparations from the convicted person. This shift comes as part of an emerging trend in international law, which has moved towards recognising the rights of individuals as victims of aggression (rather than only as victims of the ensuing war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity). For example, the UN Human Rights Committee has recognised that unlawful acts of aggression between states that result in individual deaths ‘ipso facto’ (by the fact itself) violates that person’s right to life. This was reflected by Agnes Callamard, former UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, who found that the killing of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani in 2020 by US drone strike violated his right to life. When the International Criminal Court was given jurisdiction over the crime of aggression, this opened the door to individual victims of wars of aggression being recognised before an international court and seeking reparations for the harm they have suffered. Although Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is a manifest violation of the United Nations Charter, the most obvious forum for prosecuting Putin (and other senior Russian political and military leaders) — the International Criminal Court — does not have jurisdiction over the crime of aggression in this situation. Since Russia is not a party to the International Criminal Court, the only way the ICC can exercise jurisdiction over this crime is by referral of the UN Security Council, on which Russia wields a veto. Alternative avenues for prosecution are being explored, including the creation of a special tribunal, subject to the thorny issue of immunities for sitting Heads of State. A unique benefit of prosecuting Putin and other leaders for the crime of aggression at the International Criminal Court — perhaps possible after regime change in Russia — is that it would allow Ukrainian victims of the war of aggression to participate in the proceedings, have their voices heard and seek reparations for the harm they have suffered. Dr Erin Pobjie is a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in International Law at the University of Essex and a Senior Research Affiliate at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law in Heidelberg, Germany. Dr Pobjie disclosed no conflicts of interest in relation to the article. This article has been republished to mark one year since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.  It first appeared on May 23, 2022. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Ukraine one year on” sent at: 20/02/2023 10:51. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 23, 2022

Could the Israel-Hamas war benefit Russia and China? - 360 Guy Burton Published on November 13, 2023 As lines of division around the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza become more pronounced, questions arise about where big powers may position themselves. While most Western governments have united in supporting Israel’s right to self-defence, China and Russia have made their own calculations. Along with the broader Global South, they have not shied from criticising Israel’s military response in Gaza and its impact on Palestinian civilians. Whether the fighting between Israel and Hamas benefits Russia and China will largely be a matter of perception. While the West may view Russian and Chinese positions as opportunistic and driven by their desire to oppose Western countries for strategic advantage, the opinion of the Global South may well still be up for grabs. But Russia and China will need to make sure they do not suffer the same fate as the West, by being criticised for their hypocrisy in their contrary treatment of the Ukraine and Gaza crises. To demonstrate their status as great powers and capture the support of the Global South, they will have to match their words with deeds by acting to protect civilians and uphold legal and humanitarian obligations, as expressed in the recent UN resolution they supported. The division between the West and the Rest over Gaza has deepened since Hamas launched a surprise attack on 7 October, in which the Islamist organisation invaded Israeli territory, killing hundreds and taking more than 200 hostages. Israel’s security establishment was caught off guard and the international community was shocked by the violence. While many Western countries swiftly aligned with Israel, Russia and China sought greater balance in their statements, which included criticism of Israel’s response which has included displacing over a million civilians, placing the territory under a tight siege and restricting humanitarian assistance while also withholding the supply of electricity and water. While the immediate impact of Israel’s military action in Gaza may well be at the forefront of Russian and Chinese policymakers’ minds, there are also wider regional and global considerations influencing their positions. In the weeks following the Hamas attack, the UN Security Council struggled to reach a consensus. Four attempts to draft resolutions failed due to vetoes from the United States on one side and Russia and (occasionally) China on the other. Although most of the proposed resolutions condemned attacks on civilians, American objections included the absence of any acknowledgement of Israel’s right to self-defence and only a commitment to ‘humanitarian pauses’ to allow aid into Gaza. By contrast, neither Russia nor China objected to the draft resolutions’ lack of a call for a ceasefire. They have also differed from the West in not openly criticising Hamas. Indeed, a Hamas delegation even visited Moscow to discuss the prospects of a ceasefire and resolving the hostage situation. Although both countries have cultivated diplomatic and economic relations with Israel in recent decades, from Chinese investment in the country to Russian and Israeli coordination during the Syrian civil war, they are mindful of public opinion in the Arab world, which has been critical of Israel’s military response. So great has been the anger that even governments in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, who have little patience for Hamas and had either normalised relations with Israel (like the UAE) or were in the process of doing so (like Saudi Arabia) have felt the need to publicly distance themselves from Israel. Additionally, Russia and China’s positions have reflected wider global sentiment. In the absence of a UNSC resolution, the General Assembly, where all member states are represented, successfully passed a non-binding resolution for a humanitarian truce on October 27. The resolution condemned attacks on civilians and called for the “protection of civilians and upholding legal and humanitarian obligations.” Russia and China, along with most of the Arab world and the Global South were among the 120 member states that voted in favour, with 14 against (including the US, which opposed the exclusion of any explicit reference on Hamas) and 45 abstentions, including Australia. Russia’s position may also be influenced by its ongoing war in Ukraine, where it has occupied parts of the country since February 2022. Moscow may hope that the Israel-Hamas conflict could deflect Western attention and practical assistance away from the Ukraine, including supplies of weapons. While Russia and China’s positions have so far been in line with that of the broader Global South in relation to the Israel-Hamas War, their stance could potentially work to their disadvantage. For one, the past few weeks have contributed to increasing distrust of Russia and China within the Israeli political establishment. Israel has never regarded Russia and China as allies or as offering comparable assistance as the United States, so the slowness of their response to the 7 October attacks followed by the criticism of Israel’s military response could have repercussions down the line. In recent years Chinese officials have played up Beijing’s interest in becoming a conflict mediator in the Middle East, including on the Palestinian question. But given Israeli suspicion, it is unlikely that China would be welcome in any future peace process. Such an exclusion could be damaging to its aspirations of becoming a global power, with interests and influences beyond its own immediate neighbourhood. The same might go for Russia. Moscow is already a member of the Quartet, a group of external parties (along with the UN, the US, the EU ) concerned with and supportive of the (currently frozen) Oslo peace process. Successive Israeli governments had tacitly accepted Hamas rule in Gaza, but the 7 October attack has uprooted those calculations. Now Israel’s government looks intent on eliminating Hamas. That has made Moscow’s channel to Hamas less useful than before. Besides, Russia’s refusal to condemn Hamas and its preparedness to host them only serves to offend the Israeli leadership further. Russian and Chinese positioning on the Israel-Hamas war could potentially create problems with their partners, both in the region and beyond. If those partners perceive Moscow’s and Beijing’s stances as driven by self-interest and not by principle, this could lead to suspicion and doubt about their own relations with each. The goodwill generated in the recent past — through China’s Belt and Road Initiative for instance, or their assistance to developing countries during the pandemic in the form of medical equipment, guidance and vaccine — could be undermined. Dr Guy Burton is a Visiting Fellow working on the Sectarianism, Proxies and De-sectarianisation Project at Lancaster University and Author of Rising Powers and the Arab-Israeli Conflict since 1947 (Lexington, 2018). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Gaza crisis” sent at: 09/11/2023 06:00. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 13, 2023

Could we sue Mother Earth for storm damage? - 360 Govind Singh Published on January 6, 2023 The recognition of natural entities as living persons has generated awareness but its contribution to their legal protection remains uncertain. Each year deadly storms rip through communities across the globe, destroying homes, infrastructure and ending thousands of lives. In most cases, insurance companies (or the government) usually foot the bill for the millions of dollars in damages. But could we see a scenario where Mother Earth herself is sued? Environmental personhood attempts to ascribe rights to a natural entity or ecosystem as a legal person. It gained traction towards the latter half of the 20th century and has found some integration with law in recent decades. It calls for legal protection of forests, rivers and other natural ecosystems. Assigning legal rights to an environmental entity is also seen as a recognition of indigenous knowledge systems which are believed to personify nature and natural resources. The motivation that drives environmental personhood is conservation using law as a tool. Law is conventionally more concerned with regulating human behaviour, customs and practices and delivering justice. To consider any natural component of the environment as a person, therefore, allows for its greater inclusion in the legal process. But the legal translation of environmental personhood, especially where indigenous and traditional communities are involved, needs a cultural reality check. The rights of nature have recently been recognised by courts in countries such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia and India, among others. The natural entities that have been declared legal persons include national parks, rivers, lakes, the greater natural environment and Mother Earth. This recognition has helped generate awareness about the need for their protection and conservation. But how much it has contributed to legal protection is an ongoing discussion that has already raised several concerns. These include questions about the guardianship of the environmental person, quantifying harm to the environmental person, fixing liability if the environmental person causes harm, applicability of international law and about deciding who or what can or cannot be an environmental person. The environmental personhood conundrums pose limitations that prevent wider adoption of this concept. If rivers or lakes, for example, are located near indigenous populations, it may be easier to identify such groups as their guardians and representatives. However, when this is not the case, who should be considered a guardian? The concept becomes redundant in case the state takes this responsibility, since the environmental laws in most countries in any case require the conservation of such natural entities. Considerable ecological research is required to quantify the scale of what constitutes harm to the environmental person. Data-based evidence on the different stages of dying of a river or a waterbody, for example, will help the courts better protect or award penalties when the life of the environmental person is put under threat. The frequency and intensity of storms have increased due to global warming. The recognition of Mother Earth as a legal person could well invite lawsuits when a disaster cannot easily be attributed to anthropogenic climate change. In such a case, who will pay the damages and to what extent, remains a pertinent question while advocating environmental personhood. Environmental entities like rivers flow through different political boundaries. A river may be declared a legal person in one state but not in the adjoining state. When the river crosses an international border it will lose its rights. This ambiguity is not only counterproductive, it limits wider adoption of the environmental personhood concept. While these concerns can still be addressed through deliberation and public consultations, it is difficult to decide the limits – if at all – of environmental personhood with no real answers. These challenges pose a litmus test for the validity and applicability of the environmental personhood concept. They also highlight other issues such as why do we need a legal mechanism to understand the ecological interconnectedness of nature. A river is a living, breathing ecosystem because of the nutrients and aquatic biodiversity it carries. Any barriers to its flow, or addition of pollutants or excessive withdrawal of water will be bad for its health. The state, through environmental protection laws, is already responsible for its conservation. Similar environmental protection laws exist for forests, wetlands and other natural capital found within a state. Does the environmental personhood concept not infringe the state’s responsibility for maintaining its natural capital and public health? And how can one ensure that this concept does not become an excuse for the state to ignore its responsibilities towards nature? There is also a need for a more nuanced understanding of indigenous and traditional personification of nature. In India, where the legal personhood status of rivers has been both given and challenged in the court of law, rivers are sacred entities. River Ganga (Ganges), considered the holiest of the holy rivers, is personified as a mother and a goddess by the Hindus. However, the legal person status conferred to the river should not stop Hindu devotees from bathing in it, collecting its water, cremations along its bank, immersion of ashes in it and the use of its nutrient rich water for drinking and irrigation. Preventing industrial effluents from flowing into the river has been a state responsibility under various environmental laws. The need to recognise environmental personhood in the case of River Ganga, after the failure of the state machinery to prevent it from being polluted, is therefore not very encouraging. The law should instead be used to check these failures. Panch tatwa (Sanskrit; panch – five, tatwa – elements) is an ancient Indian philosophy that reminds us of our interconnectedness with nature. According to this philosophy, everything — including ourselves — is made up of five elements: Earth (soil and minerals), Sky (space), Air, Fire (energy) and Water. This philosophy is as relevant today as ancient times. If every human being is made aware of this philosophy, that is all that should be required to protect and preserve the very building blocks of life. Nature can survive without us, but we cannot survive without nature. Nature is therefore much more than a legal person, and if declaring it as the latter is the only way left to protect it, our civilization is in serious trouble. is Associate Professor of Environmental Studies and Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs at Jindal School of Environment & Sustainability, O.P. Jindal Global University, India. He can be reached at govind@jgu.edu.in Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on January 6, 2023

COVID-19 helped make the case for global health diplomacy - 360 Vijay Kumar Chattu Published on December 8, 2021 The ease in which billions of people travel makes public health a security issue as major health events require coordination beyond national borders. By Vijay Kumar Chattu, University of Toronto If COVID-19 has taught us anything, it’s that major health events require coordination beyond national borders. The pandemic, and others that will follow, has changed our understanding of health. Chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs), emerging infectious diseases and bioterrorism, are now clearly understood as direct threats to security.The ease with which billions of people travel, along with the emerging global threat of climate change makes global public health security a priority issue — stronger partnerships between nations and coordination between domestic ministries more important than ever. The pandemic exposed various weaknesses of global partnerships. Geopolitics, nationalism and national wealth status discrimination took the lead over multilateral cooperation. But setting the global health agenda has often been politicised. Health has also commonly taken a backseat to economic relations and security discussions which are seen as more pressing in diplomatic meetings. For example, in 2018 the Trump Administration opted to reduce the size of the National Security Council’s global health security directorate, and in 2020 it stopped funding the WHO, leaving the United States less prepared for COVID-19. But the pandemic also became a touchstone for international actors to work together to avoid future crises. Global health diplomacy is what links health and international relations to address health security. It was this diplomacy that delivered political commitments from many corners of the world to push for COVID-19 medicines and essentials, the development of new partnerships and initiatives, and the creation of COVAX — the global scheme to vaccinate people in lower-income countries — and , dubbed “the fastest, most coordinated and successful global effort in history to develop tools to fight a disease”. Another example of effective global health diplomacy is the 2007 Port of Spain Summit Declaration where 15 Caribbean states worked together to fight a region-wide burden. The summit was the first in the world where the heads of government focused on prevention and control of NCDs — diseases that are not directly transmissible such as Parkinson’s, heart diseases and strokes — and created a clear roadmap for localised policy implementation and collective action. Global health diplomacy promotes peace, improves and strengthens global leadership and international cooperation. Despite moves toward more bilateral deals, global coordination is necessary in fighting a pandemic, and was useful for negotiating Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) for COVID-19 vaccines, promoting vaccine equity and strengthening bonds between nations. It has also addressed other health challenges, for example in the formulation of International Health Regulations, the and Universal Health Coverage. The evolution of the Global Health Security Agenda, the United Nations Political Declaration on the Prevention and Control of NCDs, and the WHO Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of NCDs are some excellent examples of successful health diplomacy in recent years. Multi-nation blocs such as the G7, G20, BRICS, and the EU also play a critical role, particularly when it comes to  any global action to meet developing countries’ needs for primary health care. Although much of the agenda on these platforms focus on economics and finance, leaders have increasingly discussed a broader range of topics including security, development, health and climate change. National representatives should be well prepared and coherent in their approach — it’s crucial they are trained in both health and diplomacy, as many seldom are. Applying interdisciplinary knowledge and skills surrounding health threats can provide robust strategies to create better policies. For example, the World Health Organization’s (WHO)  One Health approach recognises that health is connected in humans, animals and its shared environment, which have been increasingly important due to the changing interactions accelerated by globalisation and deforestation. The WHO should continue to apply this approach and work closely with the World Organization for Animal Health, the Food and Agriculture Organization and countries, to identify the source of the COVID-19 virus, and reduce further risks of emergence and transmission of zoonotic diseases. Addressing the challenges of non-medical factors that influence health, gender-sensitive programs, prioritising endemic neglected tropical diseases, can also reap benefits in global equity on an immediate and long-term basis. However, progress can only be achieved with strong domestic political support. Originally published under by 360info™. Dr Vijay Kumar Chattu is a medical doctor with specialisations in Community Medicine, International Health Development, Health Management, and International Relations. He is Research Fellow- Digital Health and Occupational Medicine at the University of Toronto. Dr Chattu decalred no conflicts of interest in relation to this article.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on December 8, 2021

COVID not only to blame for tourism’s staffing crisis - 360 Tom Baum Published on September 7, 2022 The pandemic forced workers to jump to other sectors where they found better prospects. There are no quick fixes to bring them back. As the world slowly recovers from the pandemic, a lack of travel and hospitality industry workers has seen cancelled flights, support staff shortages, venue closures and disruptions. While COVID-19 has been made the scapegoat, scant mention is made of the precarious working conditions and low pay the industry has historically laboured under. The industry now has a chance to rebuild itself for the better. Across the European Union, the World Travel and Tourism Council reports that the travel and tourism industry is facing a staffing deficit of 1.2 million in 2022, with Italy the most hard-hit country. Unstable and transitory work contracts, a lack of respect for employees, absent or inconsistent career advancement, unsocial hours and evidence of workplace abuse are cultural attributes that travel and hospitality employers have tacitly ignored. Pay is a major issue in key sectors of the industry, especially in hospitality. In Australia and the United Kingdom, the hospitality sector had the lowest average pay levels even before the pandemic. In part, this reflects the fact that the industry has a far higher proportion of what the UK’s Office of National Statistics calls ‘elementary occupations’, plus a disproportionate representation of young workers, women, minorities and recent migrants. It also tells a tale of the wider uncertainties of the jobs available, often with fractional hours, seasonal positions and zero-hours contracts in the formal, informal and gig economies. The realities of sudden job losses as well as health and safety issues that affect some of society’s most vulnerable workers are not new. What we’re witnessing are the consequences of long-term structural and cultural cracks that have expanded into chasms since the arrival of COVID-19. Many of the travel and tourism workforces moved to other industries and liked what they experienced. Attitudes to employment, working conditions and work-life balance among many, especially younger workers, appear to have altered dramatically since 2020. It’s perhaps linked to wider trends that are bundled as the ‘Great Resignation’. Addressing employment issues in tourism requires more than a quick fix. It needs sustainable, coordinated, inclusive responses and to be recognised for its convoluted nature, what economists describe as a ‘wicked’ problem. This will need a significant change in the mindset of key stakeholders, particularly managers and operators in travel and tourism enterprises. Addressing the issue of pay is a must, but it’s not the only solution. The immediate mandate from industry leaders must be that a living wage replaces minimum wage requirements, regardless of age. This also includes transparent career structures, based on industry-wide standards, levels and pay bands. Encouraging employers in Europe to embrace the International Labour Organisation’s principles of Decent Work, including better rights at work, social protection and social dialogue, with gender equality, could be a great start. To better understand what individuals are looking for from their jobs, employers could engage with workers. Responding to these expectations and offering development opportunities, within operational constraints, can ensure staff retention and loyalty. Listening to all employee voices, unionised and not, can facilitate collaborative and mutually beneficial working environments. Employers could also create an environment free from abuse by colleagues, managers and customers. This can be done by endorsing and implementing zero-tolerance practices to challenge and prosecute (where appropriate) perpetrators of abuse. Another vital area is implementing duty-of-care responsibilities for transport options for those working in the night-time economy. There have been multiple studies and reports aimed at solving labour issues in the UK’s travel and tourism industry, these have often failed due to recommendations that don’t address the deeper issues. But the recently released UK Hospitality’s Workforce Strategy for the Industry aims to ‘fix the crisis’ by recognising the wider drivers of staffing shortages. These include addressing affordable housing, local transport and access to digital communications. The Inquiry into the Hospitality Industry, launched in June by the Fair Work Convention in Scotland, may offer greater potential for long-term and sustainable solutions. The 18-month inquiry will consider the experience of fair work in the industry and how to balance the “rights and responsibilities of employers and workers” in ensuring a fair and equitable workplace, with active participation from all stakeholders including tourism workers and their representatives. Tom Baum (PhD DLitt) is Professor of Tourism Employment, Department of Work, Employment and Organisation, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Scotland. He declares no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on September 7, 2022

Cracking the code to cut back misinformation - 360 Anya Schiffrin Published on February 14, 2022 Balancing freedom of expression with targeting misinformation is an ongoing challenge, the approaches to tackle it highly variable. By Anya Schiffrin, Columbia University The year 2016 was a watershed year for misinformation. Much of the world looked on with fear and horror as the UK voted in favour of Brexit, Donald J. Trump was elected 45th President of the United States and Cambridge Analytica was revealed to be manipulating our data on Facebook to sway those elections. According to media think-tank Data & Society, “weaponisation of the digital influence machine” had taken place. The horror gave rise to a flurry of ‘solutions’ to the problem of misinformation. But people wanted to take action before they actually knew what precisely the problem was and what would work. The intervening years have allowed us time to assess which of those responses was more effective and the advantages of each. And how the world moves in a decentralised way to combat problems like these as they arise. Among the many solutions proposed were ideas such as fact checking units in newsrooms, greater support for quality journalism, adjusting social media algorithms to promote quality journalism, regulation to crack down on platforms sharing misinformation, and content moderation. At least nine different ways of tackling the problem, with countless variations, have been floated and implemented since 2016. The proliferation of solutions reflects the approach of the people proposing them. For example, journalists always think the solution to every problem is more journalism. Some journalists believed that if they’d written more articles, better articles, about the problem of the tech companies and misinformation, the problem would never have arisen. Europeans tend to believe in regulation so their proposals were more regulatory. The US, meanwhile, has an aversion to government regulation so their response was that the tech companies should solve their own problems. Everybody believes that what they do is the right thing which is part of why we saw very different solutions. We’ve also learned since then that different financial interests are involved. Social media platforms make money from engagement and so have no incentive to highlight worthy information that doesn’t travel. They make money from outrage, fear, anger and, looking short term, have no incentive to clean up their platforms. Then there is the exposure effect, as described back in 1968 by psychologist Robert Zajonc. He said that repeated exposure to an idea breeds support for it. Organisations do what they always have and the familiarity makes them believe it is the right course of action. This can lead to escalating commitment once a path is pursued, regardless of whether it turned out to be the right approach. The solutions posited to misinformation since 2016 can be grouped into two camps: supply and demand. The supply side of journalism is where news is produced and disseminated; the demand side is where it is consumed and reaches the audience. Demand-side solutions seem easier to implement in that they don’t require controversial government regulation. Charitable foundations are investing money in demand-side solutions, and journalists are already making efforts to build trust and promote their profession. Demand-side solutions are also more attractive for the social media platforms, because it takes the onus off them and puts it on journalists and consumers. However, demand-side solutions are difficult to scale and slow to work (if they do work) — evidence of their success is mixed. For instance, bolstering media literacy efforts is a broad solution that contains many groups and efforts. It aims to raise awareness about journalism and contributes to civic engagement, but it’s chronically underfunded and has not been adopted as widely as needed. Finland is held up as the admirable exception. On the supply side, journalists acting as watchdogs can help show the way forward. Journalists such as The Guardian’s Carole Cadwalladr, who helped to expose the Cambridge Analytica scandal, have formed the Real Facebook Oversight Board to hold Facebook to account and ensure the social media giant is not undermining democracy and free and fair elections. A proposed supply side solution that goes hand-in-hand with watchdog journalism is to employ fact-checkers and task them with labelling misinformation, encouraging readers to reject it. The idea has intuitive appeal, but its execution is complicated. Establishing the credibility of fact-checkers is difficult, and it is a challenge to ensure the readers exposed to the misinformation see the later clarification. Corrections may also aggravate the problem: due to the exposure effect, audiences seeing something twice may believe it more; or corrections may only enhance distrust in the media. More recent studies suggest that exposure to fact-checks may reduce beliefs in misinformation and that warning labels may reduce the likelihood of sharing false information. Establishing more prevalent fact-checking also helps create and support a culture of truth and signalling, and may build relationships among journalists. The creation of global standards for truth could help advertisers make better decisions about who they support, and build trust back in the media. Controlling what information is shown through algorithms and content moderation has been floated as a way to eliminate misinformation efficiently and at scale. Artificial Intelligence on its own is not able to fully distinguish false/true/illegal information, so human moderators are still required. However, moderators lack historical context and understanding. The job takes a toll and humans can get tired and burn out. And existing approaches have failed to keep up with misinformation  phenomena — QAnon, for instance, took root despite Facebook’s moderation practises. It’s a truism to say the media landscape is changing quickly, but it’s also true. In the last year, Facebook launched their ‘supreme court’ to review de-platforming decisions, Germany updated its NetzDG regulations governing social media, several African countries passed fake news laws, Australia forced Google and Facebook to fund journalism, and several other countries moved forward with digital services legislation. The problem is urgent, but solutions remain decentralised. Balancing freedom of expression with targeting misinformation will be an ongoing challenge. Each country will continue to have different values and approaches to tackling the problem, meaning the proliferation of solutions will only persist. Anya Schiffrin is a senior lecturer at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs in New York. This article was first published on February 14, 2022. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 14, 2022

Creditors, politicians and 'morons': who's really caught in the government debt trap? - 360 Toshiro Nishizawa Published on February 27, 2023 When nations get caught in spiralling debt, it’s future generations who will end up paying the price. The queues of cars from Laos waiting to fill their tanks at petrol stations across the border in Thailand have sparked fears the landlocked Asian country’s debt is spiralling out of control and could go the way of Sri Lanka. Laos has been struggling with heavy debt mainly due to mega infrastructure projects, such as the Laos-China railway.  Around half of the country’s projected debt stock of over 100 percent of GDP is owed to China, but despite claims to the contrary, Laos is not debt-trapped by Beijing. The answer to why lies in the mutual dilemma both countries face. Indebted infrastructure projects can affect both the debtor and the creditor — a ‘debt trap’ for a debtor often suggests a ‘debt trap’ for a creditor with non-performing assets. It is therefore within both nations’ interest to contribute to Laos’ economic growth and generate sustainable economic and social returns from projects. As the world’s public and private debt reached 247 percent of global GDP in 2021 (almost 20 percent above pre-pandemic levels), according to the latest available figures, knowing which countries might default and risk plunging into economic turmoil can make a difference to future outcomes. Along with Laos, Sri Lanka and Japan also have a growing mountain of public debts. The origins of their debt may vary but are connected by a common thread — it will fall on the next generation if left unchecked. How the debt story plays out depends on the actions of both the debtor and the creditor. Sri Lanka defaulted on its debt in May last year and its sovereign debt reached 103 percent of GDP in 2021. Two-fifths are owed to diverse external creditors, exposing Sri Lanka to complex coordination challenges. One expert described the crisis as caused “almost entirely by unwise policy decisions made by the Rajapaksa administration” — Mahinda Rajapaksa was sworn in as President in 2005 before appointing family members to senior political positions. Years of poor political decisions resulted in loss sharing between ordinary Sri Lankans, foreign taxpayers and wealthy investors. The government reached an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in September 2022 on a four-year program to be supported by a USD$2.9 billion financing arrangement. However, the IMF’s financing precondition requires burden sharing, in line with a ‘comparability of treatment’, among Sri Lanka’s diverse creditors — nations and international bondholders in the market. Official bilateral creditors such as China, India and Japan are now in a tug-of-war due to their geopolitical interests.There is also tension between official creditors and profit-motivated private investors Japan is also a concern, with its government gross debt at 262 percent of GDP at the end of 2021, nearly doubling since 2000. There’s been repetitive government growth strategies such as Japan’s Revitalisation Strategy, and politically driven extravagant spending, which ended up as unaccomplished aspirations. The IMF points out the government’s tendency to present optimistic growth prospects and recommends ‘adopting more realistic projections.’ The government’s funding gap is being filled by just one taker. “The Bank of Japan is effectively the only willing purchaser in the market for Japanese government bonds,” Japanese economist Kato Izuru wrote last month. The bank’s prolonged purchase of bonds since 2013 has allowed the illusion of affordability and for government borrowing to persist — creating distorted bond market conditions. In January, the central bank decided to maintain its policy to purchase bonds without setting an upper limit. It allowed ten-year bond yields to remain at around zero percent. The government and the central bank are trapped in a vicious cycle of excessive debt burden. There is a shadow of fiscal dominance where central bank caps interest rates at low levels to reduce the costs of servicing government debt. Economics tells us that Japan cannot keep interest rates low, maintain a stable currency and keep up free capital flows simultaneously. The theory is called ‘the impossible trinity.’ The yen, staying around 130 per US dollar, has lost value since the beginning of global monetary tightening trends and is 42 percent cheaper than the highest value of 76 yen per dollar in January 2012. A weaker yen implies the products and services offered by Japanese labour are at bargain prices while households face import-induced price hikes. Core consumer prices rose by 4.2 percent in January 2023, compared to a year earlier, the highest since 1981. A rise in interest rates will soon become inevitable despite the bank’s insistence on easing monetary policy, as long as capital control is an inconceivable option. Japan’s political motives cannot survive market forces in the long term. Politically motivated narratives negate a sense of urgency, prolong the affordability illusion and postpone needed actions. Still, market forces do not wait forever and penalise unwise policy decisions. A nation’s bargaining power over market forces is submissive. We are yet to see how long Japan can escape the ‘moron risk premium’. What if Japan faces such a premium while emergency measures by its central bank may be depleted, unlike the UK? International politics can mislead our understanding of finances through geopolitically ill-motivated narratives. For example, claims of debt trap diplomacy or a campaign for enhanced defence capabilities against security threats. Geopolitical motives may sound plausible initially, but turn out to be a false alarm or groundless. Economic rationale matters for the debtor and the creditor. As there is no such thing as a free lunch. So who eventually can be trapped with the debt burden? The answer varies depending on if or when the policymakers take precautionary or remedial action to avoid overburdening current and future generations. Toshiro Nishizawa is Professor at the Graduate School of Public Policy, the University of Tokyo. He declares no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Governments in the red” sent at: 24/02/2023 13:53. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 27, 2023

Criminalising suicide only makes it worse - 360 Leah Utyasheva Published on April 19, 2023 If the aim of criminalising suicide attempts is to deter people from ending their lives and protect the vulnerable, it’s failed. Content warning: This article discusses sensitive topics such as suicide that some readers may find distressing. Punishing those who attempt to kill themselves is an example of legislation designed for public good that actually makes the problem of suicide worse. But even if suicide attempts were not criminalised, the threat of police involvement and the stigma associated with suicide may contribute to the perception it is against the law. Interestingly, although attempted suicide has never been criminalised in Nepal there is a widely held perception it is, creating barriers to suicide reporting and prevention. In Nepal, the idea of criminalising attempted suicide is associated with the need to protect vulnerable groups, particularly women and children. In this low-income country of 30 million, there have been a few cases where women were driven to suicide by domestic violence, abuse from in-laws, and dowry-related murders disguised as suicides. Nepal’s 2017 Criminal Code introduced the criminalisation of aiding and abetting suicide, which prohibits provoking or generating a situation that encourages someone to take their life. Anyone found guilty under this clause is liable to a five-year jail sentence and a fine. This is a legitimate policy measure: UN Women advises that legislation should criminalise any act and attempts to intentionally advise, encourage, abet or assist another in ending their life. The criminalisation of aiding and abetting suicide should not be confused with the criminalisation of suicide attempt. While the offence of aiding and abetting suicide is a legitimate measure of protection for vulnerable groups from violence, intimidation, threats, and pressure, criminalisation of suicide attempt is an outdated concept that is widely criticised due to its many harmful effects. A handful of countries still criminalise suicide attempts. Several have only just recently repealed this measure (Cayman Islands, Cyprus, India, Singapore, Pakistan, and Guyana). Criminalising suicide attempt hinders the achievement of public health and human rights goals. If its aim is to deter people from ending their lives and protect the vulnerable it does not achieve these purposes. Studies show that the suicide rate is no lower in countries that punish it than in countries that do not. Overall, no data supports the belief the threat of incarceration or fine has a preventative effect. On the contrary, the threat of punitive action reinforces the stigma associated with suicide and deters people from seeking mental health and social support services. It also creates barriers to suicide reporting, leading to underreporting and misreporting of suicide, resulting in an inaccurate picture of the scale of the problem. The criminalisation of suicide attempt is an example of a law that, although created for public health purposes, inhibits it and creates barriers to addressing the problem it is created to solve. The criminalisation of suicide attempt is harmful, not only from a public health approach, but from a human rights perspective. In 2019, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health called for a human-rights approach to suicide prevention to make life more livable. People who attempt suicide need help not punishment. They – as any other person — have rights to heath, life, dignity, autonomy and protection from discrimination. The right to health, the most relevant of these rights, is entrenched in Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights. It states that everyone has the right “to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health”. When people who attempt suicide are punished, and not given help to access prevention, treatment and support services, this contradicts the human rights approach. It may also constitute a denial of health care and suicide prevention services, undermining the right to health. The criminalisation of suicide emerged in Europe in the Middle Ages when, due to the disapproval of suicide by Christianity, suicide was considered a sin against God, and a crime against nature and society. Life was a gift of God, which only he can take away. It was also seen as belonging to the monarch who was the ultimate ruler of their subjects’ lives. The idea that a person might have ownership of their own body and life seemed preposterous. With the Enlightenment, the increased autonomy of citizens, and a decrease in the authoritarianism of state rule, suicide was decriminalised in many European countries. It happened much later in England in Wales where, until the passage of the Suicide Act in 1961, both attempted suicide and suicide were punishable acts. Several non-European cultures that had permitted or sanctioned religious or altruistic suicide in certain circumstances were influenced by the laws in England and Wales. This led to them adopting similar laws, making suicide and suicide attempt illegal. At least 12 countries where suicide attempt is still an illegal act are members of the Commonwealth. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the views on suicide changed from an offence to a mental health problem, with survivors seen as needing care and treatment, not punishment. Later in the 20th century, this attitude changed further to encompass a public health perspective. It was realised that criminalisation did not deter people who wanted to die but kept them from seeking help and receiving treatment. Currently, with a deepened understanding of personal dignity, autonomy, and human rights, the attitude is further changing. Human beings have become rights-bearers, with the autonomy to decide their fate and matters related to life and death. Acceptance of a person’s autonomy has led to the possibility of medically assisted suicide or euthanasia, in limited circumstances and following strictly defined rules. With the change in emancipation and autonomy, suicide has become viewed as a complex socioeconomic problem rather than a mere medical condition. Every state has a legitimate interest in preserving the lives of its residents. It is done through the adoption of suicide prevention and mental health strategies, the provision of suicide prevention and mental health services, and other policy and treatment measures. In Nepal, the government is working on a comprehensive strategy to address suicide. It will include a suicide prevention registry to improve the reporting of suicide, the provision of mental health support, and restrictions on highly hazardous pesticides as means of suicide. It is hoped its suicide prevention measures will include helping police, health care workers, media and civil society become more sensitive to the stigma associated with suicide, and make more people aware that suicide attempt is not illegal. Means restriction – one of the most reliable and cost-effective suicide prevention methods – consists of restrictions on the availability of the means of suicide, including installation of barriers on bridges and railway platforms to prevent jumping, restrictions on the sale of highly toxic chemicals and medicine to prevent poisoning, and a restriction on the sale of guns. These measures together with responsible media reporting, fostering life skills of young people, and early identification and support of everyone affected are recommended by the WHO as the most effective suicide prevention measures. These measures and not criminalisation of suicide can be given priority in governments’ response to suicide. If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, visit https://findahelpline.com/i/iasp. is a human rights and law specialist with experience in policy and law analysis and reform. Her interests include human rights-based approach to pesticide management, prevention of pesticide suicide, policy initiatives to improve suicide reporting, and decriminalization of suicide attempt. Dr Utyasheva is a Policy Director for the Centre for Pesticide Suicide Prevention (CPSP), an initiative of the University of Edinburgh, UK. The Centre for Pesticide Suicide Prevention, University of Edinburgh is funded by a grant from the Open Philanthropy Project on the recommendation of GiveWell, USA. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 19, 2023

Crisis weighs heavy on COP27 but climate opportunity awaits - 360 Frank Jotzo Published on November 7, 2022 The COP26 UN climate conference a year ago in Glasgow forged some promising agreements and announcements to push ahead with climate action. This year’s COP27 in Egypt takes place in a very different world, following Russia’s war in Ukraine and the resulting turmoil in energy markets. Increasing strategic competition including between China and the West, worry about energy supply security and the struggle with high energy prices take precedence right now. These are spanners thrown into the works of global climate policy. But in some ways they may make it easier to act on climate change in the longer term. The most contentious issue in climate negotiations is money. It is accepted that rich countries need to help the developing world financially to reduce emissions and deal with climate change. How and how much has been a big topic in climate negotiations for decades. But developing economies do not see money flowing their way at anywhere near the scale needed. The finance pledges from the  2015 Paris Agreement have still not been properly met. At COP26 last year, developed countries promised to double their climate adaptation finance to developing economies by 2025, in response to the fact that the gaps are largest for this type of climate finance which developing economies need most. But developed economies have big public debts from the COVID-19 pandemic, and huge pressure at home to help people and businesses cope with energy bills. The German government alone is preparing to spend around €200 billion (US$200 billion) to buffer gas and electricity price rises. And interest rates are rising. So funding pledges now look much harder to fulfil. This could become a particularly sore point as this year’s COP is hosted in Africa, a continent highly vulnerable to climate change and with generally poor financial resources. It’s likely there will be a strong focus on climate change adaptation and international equity. In a basket yet harder is the so-called ‘loss and damage’ debate. Developing countries argue that they should receive financial compensation for inevitable climate damages, given that it is mostly the rich that have caused climate change. The moral case is sound, but the politics in most rich countries is firmly stacked against sending money to poorer countries as compensation, as distinct from support for actions to reduce emissions or help deal with climate impacts. Loss and damage could become a bigger and bigger roadblock in climate negotiations. Stepping back from controversies over money, the overarching topic for international climate policy is ambition. The Paris Agreement framework is geared to continually ratchet up the ambition in countries’ commitments to cut emissions. Last year’s COP decided that countries that had not yet updated their 2030 emissions targets should do so by now. But only a few have done so, and the overall strength of pledges remains insufficient. The next important marker will be countries’ emissions targets for 2035, and COP27 is a waypoint to these. How climate ambition will fare over coming years as governments focus on national security and energy affordability is uncertain. Where geopolitical and energy pressure shifts policy and politics and especially where it has installed populist or right-wing governments, climate policy will tend to take a back seat. But it may also come back strongly on the agenda. This could come as a corollary of clean energy and industry policy, because of rising concerns about climate impacts, or as a way to strengthen international alliances between like-minded nations. The short term effect of Russia’s aggression is that European countries are compensating for lacking Russian gas by slowing the shift away from coal and nuclear power, by building infrastructure to import gas from elsewhere, accelerating renewable energy deployment and saving energy. High energy prices in world markets encourage continued investment in new coal, oil and gas production, which runs counter to the climate objective. But they also promote investment in clean energy supply, investments to use energy more efficiently, and shifting from fossil fuels to electricity for example through heat pumps and electric cars. The sky high prices of 2022 will not last. Europe’s big Russia lesson is that dependence on energy imports can be dangerous. Diversification of import sources helps but there is a fundamental sense that a safe energy supply needs domestic energy production. For any country not rich in fossil fuels this means renewable energy, or in some cases nuclear — climate-friendly options that also avoid the risk of future energy price shocks. In the words of Germany’s finance minister, “renewable energy is freedom energy”. The new USInflation Reduction Act gives huge subsidies for American clean energy industries. Europe supports its own emerging zero-carbon industries, as does China and other East Asian countries. The International Energy Agency in its flagship annual report released last week, finds that global clean energy investment is poised to rise quickly. For countries strong in clean energy technology, there can be a positive feedback effect on climate policy. If domestic industries benefit from the shift to zero carbon energy, then that is an extra reason for setting stronger emissions targets, and encouraging other countries to do the same. And those greater investments in advanced green technologies tend to bring prices down, also making large scale deployment more affordable in developing countries. This has been seen in the dramatic reductions in the cost of solar panels over the years, and it can be the case with other technologies from energy storage to electric cars. The quest for industrial leadership in the shift to zero-emissions energy, industrial and transport systems holds real promise to drive global greenhouse gas emissions down. In this light, the COP27 climate negotiations offer a chance for countries to affirm their commitment to cut emissions and strengthen their targets. That will hardly make up for the troubled state of affairs on climate finance. But it could be helpful in keeping the global climate talks on a positive track in difficult times. Finally, the geopolitical shifts of this year may cause some countries to reposition on international climate action. New alliances could emerge, and ideas like the G7 ‘climate club’ could blossom. The crisis of 2022 sets global climate action back in the first instance, but the shakeup also holds opportunity. Frank Jotzo is a professor of climate change economics and policy at the Australian National University. He has also been a senior author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. He declares no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 7, 2022

Cross-country skiing not quite the marathon - 360 Published on February 9, 2022 Cross-country skiing is one of the most captivating endurance events at the Olympics — so how do the athletes get back on the snow so quickly after a race? By Ken Nosaka, Edith Cowan University Cross-country skiing has been an integral part of the Winter Olympics since its debut in the inaugural Games in 1924. It has since expanded and evolved — the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will include 12 cross-country skiing events, 11 biathlon events (involving skiing and target shooting) and three events in Nordic combined (ski jumping and cross-country skiing). Many of us will never experience cross-country skiing, but we’ve run over the same distance (events range from 5km to 50km). Much like marathon running, cross-country skiing is a demanding endurance sport, and because of the use of both leg and arm muscles, metabolic demand is greater for cross-country skiing than running.  In cross-country skiing, competitors’ heart rates reach over 80 percent of the maximal level throughout a race. However, while marathon runners can only complete a few events per year, cross-country skiers routinely manage several races over four months. The key to this extraordinary rate of recovery lies in the muscle damage: cross-country skiing is a severe fatiguing sport, but leaves its competitors with very little muscle damage. Movement in sports is driven by skeletal muscle. When going down stairs, front thigh muscles work to stop the body moving forward by performing “eccentric muscle contractions”. In eccentric muscle contraction, contracting muscles are lengthened by greater external load than muscle force in contrast to concentric muscle contraction, in which muscles are shortened. Eccentric exercise is easier to perform than concentric exercise as less oxygen is required for going downstairs than up. Muscle pain is felt after performing “unaccustomed” exercise that has never been performed previously or has not been performed for a long time. Generally, this pain develops hours after exercising and exacerbates in the days after — known as delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). DOMS is induced only after exercise that consists of eccentric muscle contractions. Since eccentric exercise induces “muscle damage” characterised by a prolonged decrease in muscle function and increase in muscle specific proteins in the blood indicating plasma membrane damage, DOMS is considered as an indicator of muscle damage. However, “muscle damage” does not necessarily mean that many muscle fibres are injured or destroyed. Actually, the number of muscle fibres that become necrotic even after a high-intensity eccentric exercise is very small, especially for leg muscles (<1 percent of whole muscle fibres). Interestingly, other structures such as connective tissue surrounding muscle fibres or fascia surrounding muscle fascicles appear to be more affected by eccentric contractions, which appears to be a cause of DOMS. Long-distance running, including the marathon (officially marked at 42.195 km), induces muscle damage indicated by ultrastructural alterations of muscle fibres, increased muscle proteins such as creatine kinase and myoglobin in the blood, decreased muscle function, and DOMS. Recovery from a marathon race takes several weeks at least, even for well-trained marathon runners. In contrast, elite cross-country skiers can take part in races separated by a relatively short time. Although the exercise time is similar for a 50-km cross-country ski race and a marathon (approximately two hours for elite athletes), the number of races the athletes participate in during a season is very different. The difference between skiers and runners could be that cross-country skiers suffer less muscle damage in competition. Changes in blood markers of muscle damage are less following a cross-country ski race than a marathon race. In an examination of 11 moderately trained university student cross-country skiers, the maximal strength of knee extensors decreased 27 percent immediately after the race — but returned to pre-exercise values within the following 24 hours. All blood markers increased following the race, peaking either immediately or 24 hours later, but the magnitude of the changes was not large. Muscle soreness developed in the leg, arm, shoulder, back, and abdomen muscles immediately after the race, but decreased after 24 hours, and disappeared by 48 hours post-race. This suggests that the muscle damage induced by a 50km cross-country ski race was mild and recovery from the race did not take long. Ground reaction force in low-speed running is reportedly 1.5 times body mass during the heel strike phase. In contrast, ground reaction force in cross-country skiing is about 0.5 times body mass immediately after a ski touches the ground in the diagonal technique. It is likely that the higher the ground reaction force, the greater the eccentric load for the muscles to absorb the impact. When comparing the classic and skating styles, it seems the classic style is more friendly to muscles, thus inducing less damage. The magnitude of eccentric load is less in cross-country skiing than running because of the smaller impact from the ground in cross-country skiing. Cross-country skiing remains a severely exhausting sport, and the achievements of the competitors in the Winter Olympics are captivating. It seems astounding that competitors can recover from a 50-km ski race as fast as they can — another testament to the incredible restorative power of the human body. Professor Ken Nosaka is currently the Lead of Exercise and Sports Science in the School of Medical and Health Sciences at Edith Cowan University (ECU). He worked in Japan for nearly 20 years before relocating to ECU in April 2004 as an Associate Professor, and became a full Professor in December 2009. He has published more than 310 peer-reviewed journal articles, and about 80 percent of them are related to “eccentric exercise.” His research has been internationally recognised, and he is considered as a world leader in the area of eccentric exercise research. Professor Nosaka declared no conflicts of interest in relation to this article. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: Ken Nosaka in Joondalup

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 9, 2022

Crowdfunding on the front lines in Ukraine - 360 Olga Boichak Published on February 23, 2024 Faced by an enemy with military superiority and deep resources, Ukrainians have adopted innovation to defend their country. The lead-up to the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has been marked by Russia’s daily aerial attacks, obliterating residential neighbourhoods and killing whole families in their sleep. As Ukraine continues to face severe ammunition shortages due to international military aid delays, Ukrainians have had to innovate in many ways, from the battlefield to the digital frontlines, to take the fight to a much better equipped and better funded enemy. The cost of Russia’s invasion, in the early stages of the war, was running at an estimated USD$900 million a day. Pentagon officials claim that Russia has already spent as much as USD$210 billion on its invasion. However, that figure does not include the decade-long war in the Ukrainian regions of Crimea and Donetsk occupied by Russia since 2014. The Russian forces’ defence budget of around USD$101 billion dwarfs Ukraine’s defence budget, estimated at around USD$31 billion. Yet despite this imbalance, for the past two years, Ukraine’s military has managed to push Russian forces from the outskirts of the capital Kyiv back to the south-east of the country. One way to offset the ups and downs of foreign military aid has been the use of crowdfunding. This grassroots approach has helped shape the course of the war. Collective fundraising is not new, but online platforms have enabled a dramatic shift in its scale and scope. Since the mid-2000s, crowdfunding platforms have made it much easier to raise large amounts of money by soliciting small donations from many supporters. Ukrainians have elevated crowdfunding’s significance to match the existential threat they face. Over the past decade, Ukrainians and their allies have aptly used this tool to co-fund major defence and national security priorities, including unmanned aerial vehicles, tactical medicine kits, veteran rehabilitation and even a reconnaissance satellite. Contributors to crowdfunding campaigns often expect to yield certain benefits, such as equity in the venture. Now, imagine a venture the size of the second-largest country in Europe, backed by 80 percent of its citizens. In this country of more than 40 million people, up to 60 percent of the adult population claims to donate to Ukraine’s defence from every paycheque. Along with this, 46 percent have contributed various non-monetary items such as clothes, and 16 percent contribute in-kind through volunteering. Ukrainians are not the only ones who understand what’s at stake in containing the Kremlin’s imperial ambitions: many of the campaigns have been organised by Ukraine’s friends around the world. Crowdfunding Ukraine’s defence comes in various shapes and forms. Many of the better-known crowdfunding platforms, such as Kickstarter and GoFundMe, were not built for this purpose — their terms and conditions explicitly prohibit purchase of military equipment. Those platforms are still being widely used to support a range of humanitarian, social and cultural initiatives to benefit Ukrainians, such as helping young authors publish their first book or delivering critical medical supplies to a child displaced by the war. According to GoFundMe, over USD$280 million was donated to projects supporting Ukrainians in the first year of the war. Just days after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, crowdfunding giant Patreon froze over USD$250,000 collected by the Come Back Alive nonprofit for the purpose of training Ukrainian military personnel and providing them with digital tablets and vehicles. Considering the trail of destruction left by the Russian military, this decision could be considered neither ethical nor procedurally fair. Yet, regardless of where one stands on crowdfunding military support, it’s important to acknowledge the drastically different security landscape in the world at the time those platforms were created. The future will tell whether crowdfunding tech policies will change in response to rising geopolitical tensions in many regions of the world. But for now, there are dedicated platforms operated by Ukrainian defence nonprofits. It may sound like a contradiction — defence and philanthropy are rarely close — but large volunteer-run organisations such as Come Back Alive and People’s Project have been major contributors to Ukraine’s defence since 2014, and both operate bespoke crowdfunding platforms. People’s Project is currently raising funds for drones, satellite-powered communication centres and charging stations for the military. It also ran large targeted humanitarian initiatives, such as providing aid to those affected by the Kakhovka Dam explosion. In addition to providing drones and other tactical equipment, the Prytula Foundation, famous for crowdfunding a radar satellite for military intelligence, helps provide modular housing and runs a demining project on Ukraine’s recently liberated territories. Crowdfunding success has inspired the Ukrainian government to create United24 — Ukraine’s official crowdfunding platform launched by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Celebrities such as Star Wars actor Mark Hamill are listed as United24 ambassadors, each spearheading a particular defence, humanitarian, educational and post-conflict reconstruction stream. Ukraine’s National Bank operates an official account to raise funds for Ukraine’s Armed Forces, which has already transferred more than USD$930 million to the beneficiaries. Outside the realm of ‘traditional’ crowdfunding platforms, there is a whole ecosystem of micro-donations organised on social media by individuals. These are usually highly creative, interactive, vernacular forms that have emerged in opposition to strict platform policies. In this case, Facebook users might post original selfies with cryptic requests to help fund flying and gliding creatures. Twitter users resort to a different tactic of sharing a fascinating life story like ‘Here’s why I hated piano lessons growing up’, which inadvertently ends with a donation request. YouTube and Twitch users organise entertaining and interactive live streams in which they give away creative prizes to their audience. Often, these campaigns are facilitated through Monobank — a decentralised blockchain-based technology that affords fast transfer of digital assets between users. Defending Ukraine from Russian aggression, Ukrainians and their allies around the world will continue to #ragedonate, channelling their creative efforts into innovative technological solutions to resist Ukraine’s occupiers. Dr Olga Boichak is a senior lecturer in Digital Cultures and Director of the Computational Social Science Lab at the University of Sydney. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Ukraine two years on” sent at: 22/02/2024 08:59. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 23, 2024

Crowdwork pitfalls may need a (block)chain reaction - 360 Mary Tate Published on May 23, 2022 The gig economy offers workers flexibility – but inadequate labour protections. Blockchain may be the solution. The gig economy has shifted the way people commute, order food, run businesses and make a living. But the platforms that make gig work possible face accusations of exploiting workers, raising housing prices and fostering unsafe working environments. Secure, automated blockchain may be the key to fairer gig contracts. Crowdworkinvolves taking a job traditionally performed by an employee and outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people in the form of an open call. Crowdworkers are in transport (e.g. Uber driving), design work, translation, coding and many other areas. Up to 16 percent of the US population has at one point earned money through crowdwork. Workers and bosses agree that change is needed. At the heart of the problem are contracts and work practices. In most cases, crowdworkers are treated as independent contractors, not employees. This means they cannot access labour protections such as maternity leave, sick leave, anti-discrimination policies and occupational health protection. Benefits such as superannuation are also not provided. Since crowdwork is associated with low rates of pay, it helps create a new class of “precariat”: people whose income is irregular and not guaranteed beyond the next gig or crowdsourced job. Like gig work generally, crowdwork has attracted accusations of unethical employment practices. The challenge of managing a very large number of small contracts may be one of the reasons organisations using crowdworkers are reluctant to provide protections and benefits. Crowdwork arrangements are frequently out of step with traditional employment arrangements. Contracts can lack clarity, including about how variations can be made. Prompt payment and open lines of communication with management are not guaranteed. Many crowdwork platforms, such as Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, offer traditional employment arrangements to some degree. But Mechanical Turk has been widely criticised for low pay and systems that advantage task requesters over workers. New technology can assist with the challenges of managing these new forms of labour. Distributed ledger (blockchain) technology offers a fully distributed database of transactions, consisting of chains of timestamped and cryptographically verified blocks of data. It is a highly secure mechanism for carrying out transactions of many types. The best known are cryptocurrency transactions such as bitcoin, but blockchain solutions are also being used for transactions as diverse as land records and the provenance of artworks. Transparency is a feature of distributed ledgers. Every transaction (if blockchain were used to track crowdwork, a transaction would be a completed job) is searchable and uniquely identified, but cryptographic identifiers are used, so individual privacy is protected. Each distributed ledger also has a ‘distributed database’: every node on the blockchain has a record of every transaction. This provides network integrity, as a failure of one node will not affect the whole network. And as every transaction is irreversible (added to the block and cryptographically linked to all other transactions), distributed ledgers come with built-in trust in all financial records without requiring an intermediary such as a bank. This all enables the creation of ‘smart contracts’. Since the blockchain is fully digital, transactions created on the chain can be triggered by automated rules and algorithms. A rapidly developing area is cross-chain protocols, so that information can be passed from one chain to another – for example, an entry on a land record chain could be created when cross-chain protocols looking at a payment chain have verified that an appropriate payment had been made. There are some disadvantages to blockchain. Since every transaction is recorded on every node, distributed ledgers consume large amounts of energy. They can also be slow, inefficient and difficult to scale up. Even so, the distributed, confidential, trusted and automated nature of blockchains could offer solutions to the challenges of managing crowdworkers.Automating labour hire enables the increasing use of crowdwork platforms: rather than committing to hiring an employee, organisations can flexibly source labour. Blockchain technology can be used to record task requirements, track task completion and evaluation, manage payments, retain records of communications, and retain worker and reputation records. Cross-chain protocols allow these records to be verified or exchanged. This offers the potential for gig workers to develop a trusted CV of work records and credentials that can be verified. Importantly, it offers the opportunity to improve availability of labour benefits for gig workers, as these records could also be created upon completion of a job. One chain could keep a record of the jobs a worker has completed on a particular crowdwork platform, and using cross-chain protocols this information could be passed to another chain that, for example, calculated and accumulated entitlements for sick leave and superannuation. Although this is technically possible, the funding of these entitlements becomes a political issue. Should the costs be included in the charges for using a crowdwork platform to source workers? Should they be met by the government through taxation? These questions are likely to pose as many puzzles as the technical solutions themselves. Digital technologies such as blockchain can offer a way forward for better, more secure, trusted, verifiable and transferable work records in an increasingly casualised crowdwork environment. They can automate some of the processes involved in managing workplace protections and benefits, making these easier to offer to crowdworkers. As well as being technical, these solutions are political. New technologies can enable new work forms that accord with social goals for the fair and ethical management of work. is an Associate Professor in Information Systems at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. She specialises in digital services involving new technologies. Associate Professor Tate declared no conflict of interest in relation to this article. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 23, 2022

Cultivating a ‘third space’ to boost teen literacy - 360 Faizah Idrus Published on September 8, 2022 The home and the classroom by themselves often may not offer the best environment for getting adolescents to read. Adolescent literacy in Malaysia is deficient, with 162,000 primary or secondary school Malaysian students being rated as illiterate. Malaysian learners’ overall English literacy rate is only 27.2 percent. Adolescent literacy targets students aged 13 to 17, a stormy phase, but literacy research has centred mostly around early literacy skills as well as adult literacies. Comparatively, little attention is given to how to sustain and upskill adolescent literacy. US literacy advocate, Joan Sedita has said that adolescent literacy should not be just limited to teenagers but should be expanded to students in grades 4 to 12. The axiom is that up to grade 3, students are learning to read, but beginning in grade 4 they shift to reading to learn, making grade 4 the logical place to make the jump from early literacy to adolescent literacy. A critical, contributing factor is that reading is seen by many adolescents as ‘boring’. One way to encourage adolescents to read is to create a space for them. One space is the student’s own homes. A second space is the classroom. But these two spaces are the very spaces where they find the act of reading dull. The notion of the ‘third space’ refers to a place that brings people together. This space can be physical or abstract. It can be an informal meeting space (online or face-to-face) for students to meet and read or to exchange reading materials. The third space can free students from the rule-based constraints of the other two spaces. If they are allowed to make their own decisions on their reading spots and set their own rules (as long as these don’t violate any other rules), it is more likely adolescents will pick up a book and then discuss the content with their friends. Teachers have a wider role to play too when it comes to reading. Teachers must first be reading themselves. It is a painful fact, but not many teachers are reading. Teachers could use the third space for their own reading and role-modelling behaviour for their students. The third space can allow teachers and students to negotiate understanding that is sometimes neglected in mainstream classes, for example, students may communicate and reflect on their cultural practices and beliefs that may not be understood by other students of different cultural backgrounds. Storytelling is one of the best ways to get students to use the third space effectively with students encouraged to choose texts and stories to be shared with others. Discussion about the story can lead to healthy communication. Third spaces reinforce students’ learning. They give students the opportunity to share and demonstrate their understanding in real-world environments with real-life examples. However, creating the third space has challenges. Students do not always have the skills to create a third space and facilitation from teachers may be required to encourage student interactions. Teachers must be wary to not dominate, unlike in classroom settings, so that students will feel that the space is not another classroom situation. Another challenge is that academically strong students have the potential to dominate the space. If a third space is to be a success, it must be encouraged and supported by educators first and foremost. More importantly, funding needs to be allocated. One path forward is to ensure adolescent literacy is on the main agenda of the Malaysian Ministry of Education’s blueprint to enable it to develop on par with the early literacy and adult literacy movements. There is still hope to see reading become popular again in Malaysia. With the proper framework, approach, tools, and support from the authorities and the community, this is not so far-fetched. Faizah Idrus is an  Associate Professor at the Kulliyyah of Education, International Islamic University Malaysia. She declares no conflict of interest in the above article. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on September 8, 2022

Cyclone-proofing Vanuatu's language records - 360 Nick Thieberger Published on August 16, 2023 Vanuatu’s rampaging cyclones are the latest extreme event to threaten the country’s cultural records. A digitisation project could be key to protecting them. When cyclones ripped through Vanuatu’s Port Vila in March 2023, they left a trail of crumpled buildings, mud-stricken roads and decimated powerlines in their wake. Among those affected was the Vanuatu Cultural Centre, the country’s main storehouse for cultural records, which sustained damage on its roof and entrance as well as losing computer equipment. Vanuatu is one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world and, along with other low-lying coastal communities across the Pacific, it will become more unviable as rising seawater damages garden crops. As this happens, the risk of local languages being lost gets bigger and bigger. Already, a number of the world’s 7,000 languages are no longer spoken. In the Pacific, where a quarter of the world’s languages are, this erosion is happening in part because of increasing urbanisation. Traditionally, people in the Pacific region lived in villages and had little need to travel outside. They spoke or understood neighbouring languages and passed their own onto their children. Speakers of Pacific languages represent two major language families: Austronesian and Papuan. Speakers of Papuan languages first settled in Papua New Guinea and nearby islands around 40,000 years ago, while Austronesians arrived over the past 5,000 years. One way languages get lost is when speakers of many languages move and meet in cities and switch to national languages for ease of communication. In the 18th century, initial contact with Europeans led to disease and depopulation that prompted many to abandon their villages and move to larger settlements. Today, the risk of climate change making parts of the Pacific uninhabitable may be what pushes people from their homes and into urban centres where languages are lost. The region is prone to extreme events like cyclones, floods, earthquakes, and tsunamis. For example, when the west coast of Aceh was hit by a tsunami in 2004, a number of villages were wiped out, and with them, a number of local languages. As climate change leads to rising seawater, it makes it impossible to grow food in coastal communities. Coastal villages have to move inland, if possible, or find other islands to live on. The IPCC’s 2022 report notes more than 20 million people per year since 2008 have been displaced by extreme weather events, many of which were exacerbated by climate change. This all leads to the loss of languages as speakers move into multilingual locations and their children are exposed to new dominant languages. While efforts are being made to support these communities, an additional consideration is the many records and recordings of these languages held in the region and their vulnerability to the effects of humidity and rain. Since 2003, a consortium of Australia universities has run a project to locate and digitise records of these languages. The project, called the Pacific and Regional Archive for Digital Sources in Endangered Cultures or PARADISEC, includes audio, film, photographs and manuscripts. The Pacific Manuscripts Bureau is a similar project which has been working for more than 50 years to copy at-risk manuscripts in the region. PARADISEC works closely with cultural agencies to help digitise tapes and manuscripts, returning digital copies and keeping a safe copy to return in case of disaster. This is a careful, delicate process. Tapes are increasingly difficult to play, there are no playback machines in many locations and tapes are fragile, needing special care. Recorded heritage can provide the basis for relearning ancestral knowledge, and also links people today to their great-grandparents. For some languages, these may be the only records that exist, making their survival so much more important. Nick Thieberger is the director of PARADISEC and is a linguist who works in Vanuatu. He is an associate professor at the University of Melbourne. Associate Professor Thieberger’s research has been funded by the Australian Research Council. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on August 16, 2023

Danger of poor housing in remote communities - 360 Sotiris Vardoulakis, Veronica Matthews, Linda Payi Ford, Supriya Mathew, Catherine Anne Joyce, Shiva Nagendra, Karina Martin Published on March 22, 2023 People in remote communities have survived thousands of years of weather extremes but need proper housing and clean energy for climate change resilience. At first glance, remote communities in Outback Australia and villages in India don’t have much in common. Look closer, however, and there are striking similarities. As we get closer to global warming above two degrees, many off-grid, rural and remote communities in these two regions – separated by thousands of kilometres – have much in common. The residents struggle with access to clean and reliable energy, despite being in areas with abundant sunshine ripe for solar power generation. Making the switch from the commonly used diesel power generators or solid fuels in these communities has become an urgent priority from a health, environmental, social and economic perspective. Diesel is costly, difficult and dangerous to transport, and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. In Australia, access to diesel power is also often dependent on government subsidies for remote communities which have high populations of Indigenous people. First Nations people in Australia already suffer extreme social and health inequities, and need self-determination in the clean energy transition rather than policies which only further harm their health and that of the planet. Before the onset of climate change, Indigenous communities across the world have successfully survived in harsh landscapes for thousands of years, drawing upon specialised environmental knowledge, agricultural and farming practices and myriad other skills for coping with weather extremes and scarce resources. In Australia, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have survived and flourished, using their knowledge, traditional environmental practices and Connection to Country to access water, food, and shelter from weather extremes. In India, farmers have traditionally made shifts in planting and harvesting schedules and adopted climate tolerant crop varieties in response to changes in temperature and rainfall patterns. With the world expected to experience at least two degrees of warming, many rural and remote communities are now at significant risk. Heatwaves are intensifying, becoming more frequent, more prolonged and more severe. But housing in these areas is often inadequate to protect people. Heatwaves are among the most dangerous natural hazards for human health, but the full extent of their impact can be hard to estimate and can depend on the severity of the heatwave, availability of climate-resilient housing, and the resilience and preparedness of health services and populations. People living in Australia and India’s tropical and sub-tropical areas are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of extreme heat, which can be amplified by high humidity in certain regions. Health impacts can include exhaustion and heat stroke, dehydration, increased risk of stroke, exacerbation of existing health conditions such as diabetes, kidney and heart disease, and death. Research has shown that in Australia, over 36,000 deaths associated with heat occurred between 2006 and 2017 (around 2 per cent of total deaths in the country for that period). There are specific problems with home construction which increases the vulnerability of communities during heatwaves; such as poor orientation, a lack of insulation, little shading, and a lack of active cooling systems such as fans and air conditioning. In Australia for example, construction of Aboriginal housing in remote regions has been plagued by design that is unsuitable for specific climate zones and the cultural requirements of the residents. They are usually built from cheap, substandard materials and there is inconsistent maintenance. In combination with poor energy security prevalent in remote Aboriginal communities, substandard housing reduces people’s ability to control indoor temperatures, and can lead to poor sleep, cardiovascular and respiratory illness, and poor mental health. In rural India, rural houses appear to be inadequate for protecting people from heat stress. For example, poorer houses with tin roofs have higher indoor temperatures compared to cement-roofed houses. Lack of affordable, secure and appropriate housing can further compound the social injustices and inequities experienced by many rural and remote people. The combined issues of a lack of affordable, reliable, clean energy and poor housing construction bring many risks to the health and wellbeing of marginalised remote and rural communities in Australia and India, while also compounding extreme social and economic inequities. A recent report by the Australian Council of Social Service found that Australians on the lowest incomes experienced the worst and most enduring impacts from heatwaves, with a lack of access to energy efficient homes a key factor. The report recommended governments invest to improve the energy efficiency of low income, public and community housing, and switch to solar or other forms of renewable energy. However, some experts argue retrofitting existing housing and building new housing in line with current building standards will not meet the infrastructure challenges brought on by climate change. Instead, construction policies and practices need to be updated. This may include improved insulation, ventilation and shading, as well as controlling emissions from cooking and other domestic activities. While there are clear challenges for the provision of safe and healthy housing in a plus-2 degree world, transitioning to renewable energy remains an urgent priority for Indigenous and other remote and rural communities worldwide. To help address this need, a research team within the HEAL Network involving collaborators in Australia and India are working to enhance understanding of the challenges to implementing renewable energy solutions in remote and rural communities in the two countries. The project, Clean Energy for Healthy Environments and Lives (CE4HEAL), is concerned not just with the technological, logistical and economic barriers to transitioning to renewable energy, but the social and cultural dimensions of energy use among Indigenous, and other rural and remote communities. The project aims to support Indigenous leadership that can drive better policy and energy service provision in their communities. It places Indigenous community members’ knowledge, experiences, cultural traditions and needs at its centre. This approach helps to ensure these communities have greater self-determination in their response to climate change, which has been brought on by forces outside of their control, yet often causes them to pay the highest price in relation to health, social, cultural, environmental and economic impacts. Sotiris Vardoulakis is inaugural Professor of Global Environmental Health and Director of the NHMRC Healthy Environments and Lives (HEAL) National Research Network at the Australian National University. Linda Payi Ford is a Rak Mak Mak Marranunggu, south west of Darwin, NT. She is a Senior Research Fellow at the Northern Institute, in the College of Indigenous Futures, Education, & Arts, Charles Darwin University, NT. Veronica Matthews is a Quandamooka woman from Minjerribah, North Stradbroke Island, QLD. She is an Associate Professor at the University Centre for Rural Health, School of Health Sciences at the University of Sydney in Lismore, NSW. Supriya Mathew is a Senior Research Fellow at the Menzies School of Health Research based in Alice Springs, Northern Territory. Catherine Anne Joyce is a PhD candidate at the Centre for Renewable Energy, Research Institute for Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, NT. Karina Martin is Knowledge Exchange Coordinator at the Healthy Environments and Lives (HEAL) National Research Network. Shiva Nagendra SM is Professor in Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Madras and Director, Clean Environment and Planetary Health in Asia. The authors acknowledge the Healthy Environments and Lives (HEAL) National Research Network which receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council Special Initiative in Human Health and Environmental Change (grant no. 2008937), and the Clean Energy for Healthy Environments and Lives (CE4HEAL) project which receives funding from the Commonwealth of Australia Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade International Climate Change Engagement Program. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Hot house” sent at: 23/03/2023 10:33. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 22, 2023

Dangerous ticks are increasingly coming in contact with people - 360 Conner S. Philson, William Ota, Lyndsey Gray, Lindsey Pedroncelli Published on April 7, 2022 Blood-feeding arthropods, like mosquitoes, insects and ticks are increasingly sharing their environments with humans due to the climate, with chronic results. Every organism on earth is experiencing climate change’s consequences. But for those that rely on having close proximity to humans to spread diseases, there has perhaps never been a better time to be alive. To fend them off humans will need to improve global data sharing. The COVID-19 pandemic brought front and centre the consequences zoonotic diseases can have for our global society — loss of life, long term health complications, supply chain disruptions, school disruptions, and a loss of societal connectivity. Zoonotic disease, or rather, diseases transmitted from animals to humans, is responsible for nearly 60 percent of emerging infectious diseases globally. Within the United States, the zoonotic diseases from blood-feeding arthropods, like mosquitoes and other insects, pose the most serious threat to public health. Ticks in particular are now increasingly overlapping with humans and other wild animals due to climate redistribution, with 95 percent of zoonotic vector-borne diseases reported in the US being tick-related. Ten new tick-borne diseases that pose a risk to humans have been identified since 1984 alone. They are technically challenging to diagnose, especially in resource-strapped areas, and can cause severe, chronic health problems that require expensive long-term care if left undetected. Climate change and urban expansion are increasing zoonotic disease risk in human populations. Animals are shifting where they live to find food and suitable habitats in a phenomenon known as climate redistribution. As a result, we are now increasingly sharing space with new animal neighbours. Similarly, animals are also interacting with each other in ways that are not native to their ecosystems. This creates even more opportunities for zoonotic diseases to find new pathways into human populations. SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 disease, likely evolved in bats before being transferred to humans. Ebola, another zoonotic disease outbreak in the last decade, first evolved in an unknown animal, though likely bats or primates, before infecting humans. Our individual and societal risk of tick-borne zoonotic diseases are only increasing as humans continue to use land in new ways, such as in urban and rural development and outdoor recreation. This narrows the barrier between urban and wild spaces and places ticks and humans in greater contact. As temperatures warm across the US, tick habitats have also expanded northward and southward into cooler climates. Altered seasonal weather patterns have allowed them to be more active throughout the entire year, instead of primarily during the warmer summer months. Climate change has also altered the timing and land use of migratory mammalian species like deer, foxes, and elk. With ticks residing in new habitats and becoming increasingly active, they can use these species as food and transportation to continue their expansion and potentially introduce diseases into new areas along the way. Ultimately, this dynamic exchange between tick and animal distributions and the availability of more suitable tick habitats increases the risk and prevalence of tick-borne diseases in humans, livestock, and wildlife. For example, from 2016 to 2017 there was a 46 percent increase in Spotted Fever Rickettsiosis cases across the US and a 250-300 percent increase in Lyme disease prevalence in Northeastern and North Central states. There are three core options to combat tick-borne diseases: Enhancing international monitoring and communication via intergovernmental agencies such as the World Health Organization and United Nations; increasing and integrating tick surveillance into pre-existing local wildlife agencies; and promoting community resiliency against tick-borne diseases with public health education campaigns. While there are diverse pros and cons to each of these policy options, one stands out to have a global effect. While it is unlikely to completely mitigate the risks of tick-borne zoonotic disease, the improvement of international monitoring and response efforts to manage this risk can be improved. The most effective, feasible, and likely of these strategies that can have an immediate impact is by tapping into existing programs offered by various international organisations including the UN’s Environment Program. Like other fields of scientific progress, increasing the amount and availability of data in this area will increase the efficacy of existing programs and provide new opportunities for collaboration. This requires increased buy-in from governmental and non-governmental organisations alike, both financially and scientifically. Public health officials’ involvement is vital before and during outbreaks. Wildlife and agricultural managers, community leaders, and public health officials also play an important role in managing and responding to zoonotic disease risks across animal species, not just in ticks. Without wildlife and agricultural officials working and monitoring the tick presence in, and health of, animal populations, outbreaks could go undetected. They can also help provide education to the public on how to avoid tick-borne diseases, It’s important to recognise the nuance and elevated risk climate change and our land use behaviour creates. Ticks aren’t the only piece in this puzzle. Animals are shifting their habitats, interacting with unfamiliar animals and humans in new ways. All of these factors combine to create new potential for zoonotic disease transmissions. A global problem that will require a global response. This article is based on Philson et al. 2021: https://doi.org/10.38126/JSPG190109 Conner S. Philson is a Ph.D. Candidate in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UCLA and a Graduate Fellow at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory. William M. Ota is a Ph.D. Candidate in Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology at the University of California Riverside . Dr. Lyndsey Gray, PhD MPSH is an infectious disease epidemiologist, microbiologist, and global health expert currently working as the Science Diplomacy Chair at the National Science Policy Network. Lindsey Pedroncelli is a Ph.D. Candidate in Microbiology and Plant Pathology at the University of California Riverside. The authors declare no conflict of interest. This article has been republished for World Zoonoses Day. It first appeared in our Changing climate, changing diseases package. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 7, 2022

Data interactives: fertility by the numbers - 360 Dean Marchiori Published on November 6, 2023 See how global and Australian fertility rates have changed, what fertility cycles look like and access to Assisted Reproductive Technology clinics in Australia. People are having fewer children, and they’re having them later in life. Data from the United Nations Population Division over the last 70 years show drastic changes in how many children women have and when they have them. The figures show that most countries have undertaken a similar journey, though at different times: the average birth rate first falls (downward motion), and then the average childbearing age grows older (rightward motion). In Australia, major cities tend to have the lowest fertility rates, while remote area tend to have the highest. Generally fertility rates have declined over the last decade, although remote parts of Victoria saw an increase in 2022. Assisted Reproductive Therapy (ART) is still challenging to access for many Australians. Part of that is sheer distance: with less than 100 clinics nationally, over half a million Australians live more than 240km from one and would likely have to spend the night somewhere in order to visit. Some clinics have additional locations for consulting and monitoring services, but these clinics represent those places where therapies can actually be administered. Data from the Australia and New Zealand Assisted Reproduction Database shows that in 2021, more than 20,000 babies were born following over 100,000 initiated Assisted Reproductive Technology cycles. The following chart shows the progression of cycles through clinical pregnancy to liveborn babies. Some cycles that are frozen are used in later years, and some cycles that have been frozen in previous years contribute to the embryo transfers shown here. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “The fertility industry” sent at: 02/11/2023 06:00. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 6, 2023

Data literacy is our best weapon against fake satellite images - 360 Bo Zhao Published on May 2, 2022 A new algorithm can detect faked satellite images with a high degree of accuracy, but the best safeguard is an informed public. Maps have always told white lies. To paraphrase the words of Mark Monmonier in his classic book How to Lie with Maps, representing a curving Earth on a flat plane necessarily involves some distortion. Fake satellite images are different: the apparent authority of a satellite photograph can make us forget that they have the same vulnerabilities as any other piece of data. We know fake satellite images exist. The question is whether we can detect them – and how reliably. A new machine-learning algorithm can spot a particular kind of faked satellite imagery with 94 percent accuracy, but data literacy is the best way to sort reliable images from unreliable ones. Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) are frequently used to create convincing deep-fake media. Sometimes the results are less than convincing, as with the recent fake videos of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky. Using Cycle-GANs, researchers created fake maps of Tacoma, a city in the US state of Washington. The fake maps included some features of Seattle, Washington, and the Chinese city of Beijing. GANs consist of a generator network and a discriminator network, which work in tandem through rounds of tuning until they have produced a convincing fake according to the characteristics of the data they are aiming to simulate. As the GANs working to produce a convincing fake map of Tacoma went through the tuning process, the map grew sharper: shadowed areas gave way to simulated roads, detail increased, and areas intended to show land and water acquired more natural-looking colour. To the naked eye, the fake map of Tacoma looked authentic. The machine-learning algorithm sorted through a deep-fake detection dataset consisting of genuine satellite images of Tacoma as well as the faked images. With a success rate of 94 percent, the algorithm picked out the fakes – they were slightly less colourful and had sharper edges than the genuine images. There is further work to do to develop the algorithm. It must of course be tested on datasets of other cities. It is effective with CycleGAN images but may not be as effective with other GAN models. And it is currently limited to a binary result – totally accurate or totally fake – and it cannot detect when only part of a map has been faked. Beyond algorithms, though, there is data literacy. Any satellite image has its limits as a data source. Images are produced from high to low, so unless a particular satellite has geothermal capabilities, such as a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) that can take images through cloud, it cannot show that there are people below an opaque structure. For example, a satellite image of the destroyed bridge in the Ukrainian city of Irpin would not be able to convey that there were people sheltering beneath it. Michael Goodchild wrote about ‘citizen sensors’ in a 2007 article, and this idea has particular relevance to images of conflict zones. Journalists, volunteers and NGO staff can provide detail about what is happening on the ground. A satellite image is a single data point, but a holistic understanding of a geographical situation needs a variety of data sources. These should come not only from the perspective of a satellite, which in geographic information science is referred to as the “god’s eye”, but also from the perspective of people’s eyes – images from smartphones, cameras or drones. Our perception of the conflict in Ukraine can be informed by short videos on TikTok and photographs on Twitter. With a range of data sources, we can build a more complete picture. High-resolution satellite imagery with superb data quality is available – but it usually comes at a cost. US satellite-image distributor Maxar provided high-resolution imagery to the Ukrainian government for free, but most high-resolution satellite images for public consumption are very expensive. Maxar’s daily updated image from its WorldView-3 satellite was priced at US$22.50 per square kilometre. To make the best use of their resources, most media platforms purchased high-impact images likely to draw audiences: images of destroyed buildings and bridges, and city blocks reduced to rubble. Few satellite images of humanitarian corridors appeared online. Satellite imagery is still in high demand in order to better allocate humanitarian aid to people forced to flee. More and more NGOs have become aware of the crucial role of satellite imagery in humanitarian work during conflicts. Free satellite images from https://www.ukraineobserver.earth were a vital resource in supporting the emergency response to the Ukraine conflict. It is important that consumers of satellite images – both journalists and the public – maintain a critical perspective and look at a range of data sources to assess whether these images are reliable. A fact-checking platform that allows the public to validate satellite imagery would be a great help too. Methods of distorting satellite images will only grow more sophisticated. Ways to keep pace with the fakery can be found, but there is no substitute for a vigilant, data-literate public. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Dr Bo Zhao is an associate professor of geography at the University of Washington. His research focuses on geographical misinformation and the social implications of geospatial technologies, especially as they relate to the interests of vulnerable populations. Dr Zhao has declared no conflicts of interest in relation to this article.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 2, 2022

Deadly high costs of US police overmilitarisation - 360 Federico Masera Published on October 3, 2022 Equipping police units with military equipment can help fight crime but there are spillover effects that cannot be ignored. Almost 70 percent of the United States population lives in a local law enforcement jurisdiction that is equipped with military-grade weapons. At least 200 operations are deployed by the police each day with these items. The increased use of military equipment by law enforcement agencies is not confined to the US. As terrorist threats escalated, many European countries deployed military equipment to protect potential terrorist targets. In the developing world, the police have been heavily militarised for many years, and in some cases, the army is directly used to fight crime. The main reason for the militarisation of the US police is the LESO/1033 Program. As the US started withdrawing from the Afghan and Iraqi wars, vast quantities of military equipment, no longer needed by the army, returned to the US. Under Program 1033, police departments across the US could receive these items. The value of the military items distributed by Program 1033 increased dramatically reaching a peak of US$600 million in 2014. In America, police militarisation became a topic of debate following the use of this military equipment by police during Ferguson’s infamous riots. Then-president Barack Obama signed an executive order in 2015 restricting the use of military equipment by the police. But the killings in July 2016 of four officers in Dallas and three in Baton Rouge, brought scrutiny to police militarisation again. In August 2017, then-president Donald Trump issued an executive order reversing the Obama-era restrictions, stating that the US faced the “threat of rising crime”. On one side of this argument are US police departments, sheriff’s offices and pro-police movements that defend police militarisation as a needed tool for effective and safe law enforcement. On the other side of the debate are civil liberties and activist groups who see police militarisation as a violation of constitutional rights and fear that it will increase police brutality. Research shows that equipping police with military equipment can combat crime. Taking the United States as an example, data shows that in regions with militarised police, street-level crime and violent crimes have gone down. But there is a flip side. Part of this crime reduction effect is through the displacement of criminal activity to neighbouring areas. And it is these displacement effects that have important implications for optimising the militarisation of each police department. When US police departments decide on their preferred level of militarisation, they are not required to take into account the level of militarisation in neighbouring areas. Because of this, US police departments become overmilitarised. Any policy wishing to deal successfully with the overmilitarisation of the police will have to take into account geographical spillovers in crime. Recent research has focused on the effects of militarisation beyond crime. Results coming from this research are much less optimistic about the viability of police militarisation. First, militarisation increases killings by the police and reduces police safety. Militarisation also has a fragmenting effect on society, especially along race lines and increases the likelihood of protests. Militarisation by increasing the number of aggressive and dangerous operations by police can also create a cascade reaction from criminals making them more hostile and violent. Policymakers need to take into account these violent consequences for the safety of both communities and law enforcement agents. Most importantly, the effects that militarisation can have on police killings are very worrying. Even if the militarisation of the police was intended only to be used for emergencies such as hostage or active shooter scenarios, in most cases, it ends up being used in the ‘war on drugs’, in searching people’s homes for illicit substances. Militarised US police units are also more often deployed in communities with a large share of black citizens. Beyond the direct and tragic cost of lives lost, many other collateral costs stem from killings by the police. For example, policing as an institution may lose citizens’ trust, and these traumatic events can generate large societal costs, including years of lost schooling and income. Because of all these, militarisation must be used parsimoniously and only in situations where its benefits outweigh the many costs. Federico Masera is senior lecturer in economics at the University of New South Wales, Sydney. He declares no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 3, 2022

Dealing a knockout blow to dengue - 360 Riris Andono Ahmad Published on April 24, 2024 Deadly diseases carried by mosquitoes are spreading due to weather brought about by climate change. A bacteria-based solution could be key to fighting back. Dengue fever continues to kill people across the world and climate change is making it worse. The World Health Organization reported more than five million dengue cases and more than 5,000 deaths in more than 80 countries in 2023, which was the warmest year since records began. Nearly 80 percent of cases, about 4.1 million, were in the Americas. There were more than 1.6 million cases in Brazil. Astonishingly, it’s already passed that mark in just three months this year. Brazil’s Ministry of Health reported more than 2.9 million probable infections and 1,116 deaths as of April 8. That staggering figure means the fight against mosquito-borne diseases is hotting up. But there are weapons being used in this war to protect our health. In Indonesia, the government is conducting a program involving the use of mosquitoes with Wolbachia to control the spread of dengue in five cities. This new frontline in the fight against mosquito-borne disease is Denpasar, gateway to the holiday island of Bali. Trials are also underway in Semarang, Bandung, West Jakarta, Bontang and Kupang. Wolbachia technology stands out as a promising biological intervention for controlling dengue. It is an intracellular bacterium commonly found in more than 60 percent of insect species worldwide, meaning it lives inside the cells of another organism. When introduced into the disease-transmitting Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, Wolbachia blocks the dengue virus replication within the mosquito body and significantly impedes the mosquitoes’ capacity to transmit the dengue virus. Researchers from Monash University injected Wolbachia to the larvae using a micro needle. A 2011 study showed  a big reduction in dengue viral load in Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes compared to those in the wild. This biocontrol method leverages the bacterium’s ability to spread through mosquito populations as the infected mosquitoes pass the bacteria to their offspring, effectively reducing these insects’ ability to transmit viruses, otherwise known as the “vector competence”. The effectiveness of Wolbachia technology has already been demonstrated in a large, city-wide scale randomised field trial in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The study found a 77 percent reduction in dengue infection and an 86 percent decline in hospitalisation among confirmed dengue cases in the target area.  The finding was comparable with the commercially available Sanofi Pasteur and Takeda dengue vaccine. Wolbachia technology does not require individual administration, works without ongoing human intervention and can be self-sustaining once set up. Its embrace looms as a cost-effective, long-term way to reduce dengue transmission. It’s going to be needed, as a warming climate, coupled with phenomena such as the El Niño,  increases the risks of vector-borne diseases such as dengue and malaria. El Niño is a weather phenomenon in which sea surface temperatures in the central Pacific rise, causing more rain. It has led to floods in the Horn of Africa and the United States. El Niño has also made Southeast Asia, Australia and southern Africa drier and warmer and worsened drought in the northern areas of South America. The phenomenon increases the risk of diseases, particularly those spread by mosquitoes, like malaria and dengue. Malaria especially is sensitive to changes in the weather. In places where malaria is not constant, people don’t have strong immunity and are more vulnerable to severe outbreaks if the weather allows the disease to spread. In Venezuela and Colombia, malaria cases can increase by more than a third after dry periods linked to El Niño. The 2023 El Niño was no exception. According to the World Meteorological Organization, 2023 was the warmest year on record, with a new monthly temperature record set each month from June. Climate change is worsening the issue: Warmer weather increases humidity and precipitation, meaning more breeding places and a broader geographical distribution of mosquito habitats. Temperature is also pivotal in the mosquito’s life cycle and virus transmission capacity. Warmer climates also boost mosquitoes’ metabolism and shorten their viral incubation period, making them more efficient carriers of diseases. The expansion of urban areas and inadequate water management create ample breeding sites for these vectors, amplifying the risk of dengue outbreaks. Studies have found that as temperatures rise, disease transmission does, too, but in a way that’s not straightforward or predictable. Vector control remains the most widely adopted strategy to suppress dengue transmission. Strategies to reduce breeding sites through domestic waste and water container management, using larvicide or larvivorous fish and insecticide, can control dengue. But their impact may be blunted by chemical methods, which may lead to mosquito resistance and reduce control efficacy and biological considerations, such as seasonality and also the consistency of intervention activities. This is where trials of other methods, such as Wolbachia, could prove the difference between continuing control strategies that dwindle in effectiveness over time and innovative approaches that adapt to evolving challenges in dengue control program. Riris Andono Ahmad is the Director of the Center for Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Public Health and Nursing (FKKMK), Gadjah Mada University. He is also the senior researcher in the health sector, and he has served as a temporary consultant to WHO in the development module of the Research Practice Course on Health. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 24, 2024

Death penalty abolitionists hit their hardest converts to date - 360 Madoka Futamura Published on September 5, 2022 Capital punishment has fewer practitioners than ever before, but the momentum of the abolitionist movement may be halted by some committed to the death penalty. Capital punishment itself is dying, but its demise is slow. In assessing 2021, Amnesty International declared “more than two-thirds of the countries in the world have now abolished the death penalty in law or practice” — that’s 108 countries that have dropped the death penalty outright, eight which maintain it for extraordinary circumstances, and 28 that are abolitionist in practice (having “not executed anyone during the last 10 years or more and are believed to have a policy or established practice of not carrying out executions”). That leaves 55 countries where the death penalty is still in use for ordinary crimes, but even the number of convicted criminals executed annually is in decline. Of the countries remaining, there are are a dozen or so who seem particularly fixed on the death penalty — 18 countries executed people in 2021 and, among them, 11 have been persistently doing so since 2017: China, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, South Sudan, Vietnam, Yemen, and the US. Excluding the thousand-plus killed by the “world’s leading executioner” China, whose death penalty data is classified as a state secret, 80 percent of the 579 known executions last year were conducted in Iran, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. These countries pose a stern roadblock for the abolitionist trend, and threaten to snuff out hopes of a global end to the death penalty happening any time soon. However, taking lessons from countries that have done away withthe death penalty, there are some key indicators showing how a country can effectively move past capital punishment without total and catastrophic upheaval. Democracy and democratisation are said to be major political factors driving the abolition of the death penalty. Indeed, the global abolitionist trend has progressed hand in hand with the waves of democratisation in countries in Latin America in the 1980s and in the former Soviet bloc in the 1990s, during which a number of countries abolished the death penalty. For a government in transition, the abolition of the death penalty serves as a symbolic departure from the former authoritarian regime, which grossly abused human rights and used the death penalty for political repression or persecution. It is also expected to enhance its legitimacy domestically and internationally. The fact is, of the above-listed 11 countries persistently conducting executions, at least eight countries are regarded as authoritarian regimes. However, the relationship between the death penalty and democracy is not fully clearcut, as we can see from the cases of the democratic United States and Japan — the former executed 11 people and the latter three people in 2021. Political turmoil seems to have more direct impact on states’ resort to the death penalty. Of the 11 countries raised above, Somalia and Yemen have each been locked in civil war, and Iraq and South Sudan have been gripped by political unrest and violence between communities. These countries, except for Iraq, have seen a noticeable increase in recorded executions in 2021. Syria also reportedly executed at least 24 people in 2021. In Syria, Somalia, and Yemen, death sentences were often imposed for alleged acts of terrorism or treason. The death penalty has been widely used by governments to repress protesters and minorities. Iran, which has already executed more than 250 people since January 2022, has been using death sentences disproportionately against ethnic minorities as a tool of political repression. In Myanmar, use of the death penalty has spiked following the military coup in February 2021, becoming “a tool for the military in the ongoing and widespread persecution, intimidating and harassment of and violence on protesters and journalists”. At least 86 people were sentenced to death in Myanmar in 2021, a huge jump from the yearly average of less than 10 in years prior. Last month the military executed four democratic activists for the first time since 1988. If countries aren’t yet prepared to do away with the death penalty, it may be more palatable to reserve its use for exceptional circumstances. Strictly speaking, international law does not directly outlaw the death penalty but restricts its use to “the most serious crimes” and in ways that would not violate international law and standards. The most serious crimes include the very limited cases allowed under the United Nations’ Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ratified by 80 countries), such as retaining the death penalty in time of war (if they make such reservation at time of ratification). This allowed the UK, for instance, to maintain capital punishment for treason until 1998. Although this is viable under international law, the concept of an “enemy of the state” is easily and arbitrarily defined by governments, often in order to judicially abuse the death penalty. A Russian proxy court in eastern Ukraine sentenced two Britons and a Moroccan to death in June 2022 over charges of being mercenaries. The UK government and Ukraine’s foreign ministry called the sentences an “egregious breach” of the Geneva Conventions, which set out legal humanitarian standards for times of war. Russia introduced a moratorium on executions in 1996 and is regarded as abolitionist in practice, but in issuing death sentences — and possibly doing so again if they try Ukrainian prisoners of war in Mariupol — an abolitionist country may slide back into practicing capital punishment. But abolitionism is about more than ending executions. 2021 saw historically low recorded executions, but also at least 2052 new death sentences were imposed in 56 countries — a 39 percent increase from the year prior. The gap between executions and death sentences means there is a huge number of inmates sitting on death row, waiting for executions. By the end of 2021, there were at least 28,670 people worldwide believed to be under a death sentence — and that’s without adequate data from China, Egypt, Iran, North Korea and Saudi Arabia. And of those tens of thousands, a vast majority live in concerning conditions. In Japan, for instance, those on death row are given notification of their execution only hours in advance. It means they may spend years in solitary confinement with the threat of imminent death looming over their heads without respite. Death penalty policies do not exist in a vacuum. They reflect how governments conceive of criminal punishment, which is closely related to their attitude to human rights, governance, order and justice. Governments that are experiencing  volatility, instability or unrest tend to find it more challenging to exercise control over those areas, and under such situations, are more prone to putting the death penalty in practice for arbitrary or political purposes. As the abolitionist movement tries to win over the remaining third of capital punishment countries, advocates may benefit from a diverse and multi-faceted consideration of how and why countries exercise this most extreme form of punishment. Madoka Futamura is Professor at the Department of Sociology, Hosei University. She specialises in International Peace and Security and International Criminal Justice. Prof Futamura disclosed no conflicts of interest in relation to this article. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on September 5, 2022

Debt cancellation: no quick fix to climate funding crunch - 360 Melanie Pill, Priyatma Singh Published on November 7, 2022 A cruelty of climate change is that the countries most immediately suffering its consequences are low-emissions states that least contributed to it. These countries — Small Island Developing states, coastal regions like Bangladesh or archipelegos such as Indonesia — are developing economies, whose progress continues to be blasted backwards by floods, cyclones, rising seas and droughts. At the 27th conference of the parties to the United Nations climate change negotiations (COP27), taking place next week in Egypt, there will be renewed urgency to support vulnerable countries. The Paris Agreement forged in 2015 recognises the need to “avert, minimise and address the adverse consequences of climate change”. But while “averting” and “minimising” seem covered by mitigation and adaptation action, developing countries argue that the “addressing” part is missing and not defined. Worse, additional text in the decisions in 2015 exclude any type of finance or compensation for loss and damage. However, developing nations have been fighting fiercely for a loss and damage fund with push back from developed nations. The latest discussion of a dedicated financial mechanism to address loss and damage was again postponed at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021, amid heightened economic uncertainty, despite the growing climate change-related destruction around the globe, particularly in developing economies. Whether 2022 is going to be the breakthrough year for loss and damage seems unlikely — with the war raging in Ukraine, galloping inflation and more extreme weather events in developed economies, the capacity and willingness of rich nations to make money available is dwindling. This year, an alternative option to fund loss and damage has emerged: debt cancellation. Developed economies could write off a developing economy’s debts, unburdening them of repayments and interest, allowing them to redirect the money towards supporting their own loss and damage costs. The idea and its practice is not new. Debt relief, partial or full, can be provided to eligible developing countries through the International Monetary Fund’s Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative. Amongst other criteria, it requires a “Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper” and the amount of debt cancellation then needs to be re-invested into initiatives that benefit the most vulnerable and alleviate poverty. Similarly, the World Bank set up a debt suspension initiative during the pandemic, which allowed developing economies struggling in the COVID-19 pandemic to re-invest into social, health, or economic spending. Supporting the countries reeling from the impacts of climate change seems like a win for everyone — developed economies wouldn’t need to find new funding and countries in need would have more agency once relieved of their debt obligations. The reality is more complicated, dogged by challenges of feasibility, capacity, transparency and equity. A valid question is how much a country’s debt write-off can be attributed to loss and damage and how to ensure the funds are spent on addressing loss and damage. Until now, what “addressing” means is not defined or agreed on. A country’s debt rests with many creditors, ranging from multilateral funds to other countries. Each would have to be engaged and negotiated with to excuse the outstanding debt making difficult calls on which country receives debt relief first, and on what basis. Any agreement to cancel debt would likely require the excusing parties be assured that the money will reach the most vulnerable communities on the ground and not be swallowed up by corruption, internal bureaucracies, or administrative processes. It’s still no guarantee that debt cancellation would provide developing economies with the resources and capacity needed to withstand climate change. Several small developing island countries, such as Fiji and Vanuatu, are in the process of strengthening their internal processes to manage their climate finance. Significant challenges, such as cyclones and floods, continue to derail their budget and fiscal position. It’s difficult to forecast how the split of freed-up money would help all aspects of loss and damage So-called non-economic losses, such as culture, displacement, health or territory could pose a particular problem as money cannot replace them. That there are challenges does not mean debt cancellation is unworkable. It just means the complicated, increasingly urgent path to financing loss and damage will not be solved simply. Nuanced proposals that can deliver a solution to the loss and damage question are out there. On a national scale, trust funds, for example, that manage the money spent on initiatives to address loss and damage have formed in various forms, including one in Bangladesh. Another option is debt for climate swaps, a variation on debt for nature swaps, where debt cancellation and the reinvestment into nature-based projects is negotiated with bilateral and multilateral donors. This was successfully done in the Seychelles. A comprehensive mechanism that could potentially manage debt for climate swaps in developing countries  has been explored in a discussion paper by economist Travis Mitchell, however, only for mitigation and adaptation. As an alternative to climate swaps, cancelled debt could count towards the finance pledge by developed countries of US$100 billion annually. With any solution, in the absence of a universally agreed definition, it still requires elaboration on what it means to “address” loss and damage and a simple call for debt cancellation without a strategy for re-investment is not as straightforward as it sounds. Debt cancellation could only solve part of the puzzle but should not dominate discussions on finding a comprehensive and overarching solution to loss and damage finance. Prioritising debt cancellation as a simple form of compensation could hinder negotiations and agreement on mitigation pledges and increased adaptation efforts that avoid more loss and damage in the future. Debt cancellation mechanisms may bring relief to developing nations that are struggling with the impacts of climate change, in addition to external shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic. However, rushing into such an ambitious policy could be ill-fated without a rigorous feasibility study and careful planning. Priyatma Singh is a lecturer at the University of Fiji and a PhD candidate at  Linköping University. She is  part of an international project that focuses on potential goal conflicts between the Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement and the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. This project is in collaboration with Stockholm Environment Institute, Sweden. Dr Melanie Pill is a research fellow at the Institute for Climate, Energy and Disaster Solutions at the Australian National University investigating principles for successful quality adaptation and spending related to the work of the Champions Group on Adaptation Finance and the Global Goal on Adaptation. Her area of expertise and previous research  is on financing  loss and damage from climate change impacts under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The authors declare no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “COP 27” sent at: 31/10/2022 09:48. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 7, 2022

Debunking deep sea mining myths - 360 Eleonore Lebre Published on July 5, 2023 While the hype around deep sea mining is real, there may be unintended consequences that will come with it. An often overlooked element of our global energy transition is that all low-carbon energy technologies need a range of minerals and metals that can only be sourced through mining. Some of these — cobalt, copper, manganese and nickel — are found in large quantities deep in international waters in the Pacific Ocean. Commercial deep sea mining is likely to start there soon as the International Seabed Authority — the governing body under the UN Convention Law of the Sea — will finalise deep sea mining regulations in July. We debunk some deep sea mining myths to better anticipate what is coming next. A recent study found a full transition to electric vehicles by 2050 could increase the demand for lithium by 75 times, nickel by 54 times, cobalt by 27 times and manganese by 28 times. However, the availability of these resources on land does not seem to be an issue as several studies found the demands do not exceed geological reserves. And doomsday predictions of insufficient resources to meet the minerals needed for our energy transition have so far been debunked. If availability is not an issue, access could be the real issue. Mining and mineral processing are concentrated in a few countries and accessing large quantities of minerals to meet net-zero targets on time will be challenging. Although it seems decision makers are progressing to mitigate this supply risk. Manufacturers are minimising their exposure to risk by finding substitutes to some of the most critical minerals. Cobalt is being replaced in new generations of batteries. This year, Tesla announced it will be moving away from rare earth elements. Governments are also acting to minimise risk. The US and UK governments and the EU are making strategic moves to on-shore production, or “ally-shore” and diversify supply. Overall, while there is a risk of supply disruption, it appears both governments and manufacturers are making strong moves to mitigate it. Advocates for deep sea mining claim it can contribute to energy security by diversifying supply and providing much needed metals at a lower cost. Polymetallic nodules which are set to be mined in the deep sea only contain high concentrations of manganese, nickel, cobalt and copper, supplying only four of more than 30 minerals identified as critical or strategic. Manganese is the most abundant metal in the deep sea. But manganese is also an abundant resource on land. Advocates have also claimed deep sea mining would reduce reliance on countries like China that currently have too strong an influence on supply, or a near monopoly in some cases. This ignores the fact China is already a leader in deep sea mining exploration, meaning a shift to deep sea mining would not necessarily decrease Chinese influence on supply. Deep sea mining has been claimed to be less harmful than conventional mining, with human rights abuse in cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo and deforestation from nickel mining in Indonesia cited as two examples of how exploitative the mining industry can be. But much of the risks from deep sea mining are still unknown, unlike conventional land-based mining, which has benefited from decades of research into its social and environmental impacts and how they can be mitigated. There is another issue that has been overlooked so far: the negative effects deep sea mining would have on those who rely on the terrestrial mining sector. Experts interviewed by the World Economic Forum predict deep sea mining could result in lower revenues from land-based mines as they become less commercially viable — particularly cobalt, copper, manganese and nickel operations. So far we know these effects are highly uncertain and unpredictable. But if supply from the deep sea were to lower commodity prices, this would directly translate into lower mining revenues and benefit sharing. There are many developing countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Brazil and the Philippines where mining contributes heavily to economic development by creating jobs, business development, increasing tax revenues and better infrastructure. In times of economic downturns, the industry will likely seek to maintain profit levels and minimise financial risk. This can translate into mine abandonment and periods of care and maintenance. Abandoned mines compromise site rehabilitation, transferring environmental legacies to the state and leaving local communities in limbo. During care and maintenance periods, social and environmental programs are also frequently cut. A healthy and financially stable mining industry can generate value and mitigate negative impacts of its activities. The mining sector needs to prepare for the indirect effects a rise in deep sea mining may have on terrestrial operations. To minimise the risks, it can assess its exposure by assessing the vulnerability of its cobalt, manganese, copper, and nickel assets. Industry and government should also consider the vulnerability of the communities in which these assets are located. Investing in innovation will help them to stay competitive. This includes social and environmental innovation — which is often overlooked. Miners could invest in recycling, to profit from primary and secondary supply of critical minerals. There are strong opportunities to source cobalt from mining waste instead of the deep sea. Importantly, the industry will need to make careful decisions about where to invest in new mining projects. Understanding the land and communities earmarked for projects is crucial for improved environmental and social outcomes. Eleonore Lebre is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining, Sustainable Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland. She is a 2022 recipient of the Discovery Early-Career Researcher Award from the Australian Research Council. The research was funded by the Australian Research Council. Correction: A previous version of this story stated that European countries have so far refused to go into the deep sea mining space. This has been corrected. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “MINING THE DEEP” sent at: 03/07/2023 07:32. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on July 5, 2023

Decades of activism have failed to stem gender violence - 360 Grace Jennings-Edquist Published on November 29, 2023 Decades since the Global 16 Days Campaign began, violence against women remains rife — and a significant barrier to achieving true gender equality. For 16 days each year since 1991, gender equality activists have marked a global campaign aimed at tackling gender-based violence. But more than three decades since activists founded the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign, violence against women and girls remains a widespread global issue — and a significant barrier to achieving true gender equality. As global conflicts including the Israel-Hamas war dominate headlines, conflict-related sexual violence remains widespread across the globe. Domestic and intimate partner violence also remains rife, despite being outlawed in at least 155 countries. In the past week in South Australia alone, four women were killed, allegedly by men — bringing the number of women who have died violently in Australia to at least 53 this year, according to researchers from Destroy The Joint’s Counting Dead Women project. Just a few days ago in India, a man attempted to murder a 16-year-old girl with a machete. Those devastating reports come just weeks after the alleged torture and murder of a 30-year-old woman who refused a Delhi man’s wedding proposal. It’s clear that despite some wins in recent years, including the #MeToo movement, violence against women and girls persists across the world — ranging from sex trafficking and marital rape to child marriage and child sexual abuse. Almost one in three women worldwide experience physical or sexual violence, mostly by an intimate partner, and this figure does not include sexual harassment. Laws have failed to rein in the problem and impunity for these crimes remains common. Barriers including stigma, under-resourced judiciaries and socio-cultural attitudes prevent existing laws on crimes — including rape and acid attacks — from being consistently enforced. And although the United Nations strongly condemns the proliferation of conflict-related sexual violence, enforcing international law to bring perpetrators to justice remains a challenge. This year, additional economic and environmental concerns compound these difficulties. As many nations contend with inflation and rising commodity prices, the cost of living crisis represents an additional barrier to women seeking to leave abusive relationships. The Australian Bureau of Statistics announced this week that financial stress was associated with experiencing partner violence and abuse for women. Its survey, released on 22 November, found 16 per cent, or 1.6 million women, experienced economic abuse compared to 7.8 per cent of men. Climate change exacerbates the risk of violence against women (who make up the vast majority of those displaced by climate change) and also contributes to the feminisation of poverty. Without income or resources, women are more susceptible to sexual violence and abuse as a result of the current climate and economic crises. The good news is that violence against women is preventable — and national governments are increasingly recognising that gender-based violence is a public health crisis that carries significant economic costs. Increasingly, innovations in sectors including law, tech and healthcare are helping tackle gendered violence and inequalities — leaving room for cautious optimism despite slow progress in some areas. Editors Note: In the story “Gender violence” sent at: 29/11/2023 09:09. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 29, 2023

Decolonising museums is not as easy as you'd think - 360 Hemanth Kadambi Published on May 20, 2024 Museums in former colonial powers face challenges in calls for decolonising their collections, but the issue acquires a different hue in India. When India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, announced the building of the “largest museum in the world” in Delhi, the objective was to celebrate bharatiya sabhyata (Indian civilisation) and its 5,000-year existence. This grand enterprise will be called, ‘Yugey Yugeen Bharat’, or, ‘Bharat, the epochal, the eternal’. India already has a National Museum in the capital city, to showcase Indian civilisation’s heritage and glory. It boasts collections and displays of unique Indian objects and artefacts from the last 5,000 years. However, Mr Modi’s vision for the country is driven by a new assessment of India’s civilisation and, consequently, what is represented by the existing National Museum in Delhi is deemed insufficient in showcasing the “new” ancient India, that is Bharat. As we mark International Museum Day on May 18, this “new assessment” remains a bone of contention among scholars and the public. The current political dispensation views its tussle for supremacy as inherently a struggle for the cultural supremacy of Bharat, which, in its view, has been inadequately represented or misrepresented to Indians and the world. No longer are the National Museum’s exhibits adequately representative of ancient Bharat’s singular achievements (e.g. pioneer in the sciences, technology and applications, or STEM fields). The Prime Minister’s proposed new museum is meant to be a symbol and architectural representation of an Indian, or more appropriately, Bharatiya museum, rather than what the National Museum is seen to be: a continuation of a colonial legacy in architecture and representation. It is no surprise that this view of Indian civilisation portrays religions and religious communities, not birthed in the Indian subcontinent, as foreigners or invaders. Mr Modi’s announcement of this new museum, therefore, has brought into sharp focus what is at stake. Scholarship has been interrogating the site of the museum as quintessentially a colonial space. The museum was imagined by colonisers, and former colonising nations, as the space containing the knowledge of the world – the world they ruled. This perspective, for example, is used to justify to this day, the British Museum’s claims over the stewardship of the Parthenon Marbles or the non-repatriation of the Koh-i-noor diamond by the British Government. Their appeal to a “cosmopolitan” impulse for this stewardship is deeply rooted in the old colonial imaginary of “we tell better stories because we have the objects with us, we research them or allow the best scholars to research them”, and (this is the kicker) “which were acquired ‘legally’.” Increasingly, the scholarly call to decolonise museum spaces has taken root. Movements like ‘bring down the statues’ against racist colonial administrators in Africa, Asia, and the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement for racial justice in North America, have conditioned the public who go into museums to look for more sensitive portrayals of histories. A vast scholarly literature on decolonisation has accumulated over the last two decades. The field of art history and its close ally, museum studies, is developing vibrant approaches, in large part, thanks to critical interventions by scholars to understanding authorised heritage discourse within critical heritage studies. Historian Prasenjit Duara remains an early and influential contributor on decolonisation. He stated that, despite a large part of the 20th century seeing political sovereignty transferred from European colonial powers to Asian and African peoples in the name of nationalism, and a lot being written about these transfers, hardly anyone had noted how indigenous peoples characterised their pasts and futures. As Duara says in the introduction to his edited volume Decolonisation, “…decolonisation refers to the process whereby colonial powers transferred institutional and legal control over their territories and dependencies to indigenously based, formally sovereign, nation states. Decolonisation represented, not only the transference of legal sovereignty, but a movement for moral justice and political solidarity against imperialism.  It thus refers both to the anti-imperialist political movement and to an emancipatory ideology which sought to or claimed to liberate the nation and humanity itself.” Some museums in the former colonial countries echo Duara’s take on colonisation by explicitly calling for decolonising their exhibits and collections to transfer this ‘sovereignty’ to postcolonial states in Asia, Latin America and Africa. This includes repatriation of stolen antiquities, illegally obtained antiquities, and recognition of indigenous ancestral communities and their ‘silences’ within museum collections. However, museums are not equipped to deal with confrontations by the public regarding uncomfortable pasts. They face difficult choices such as whether to showcase all histories – glorious and inglorious, ugly and celebratory – in their spaces, and whether only the current dominant national perspective, such as the Hindu nationalist “new assessment” of India’s past, must be showcased. This “new assessment” counts as a decolonial narrative if it only means rolling back British colonial influences, though it may exclude other “Indian” narratives. Decolonising the museum space is not a straightforward enterprise but is fraught with myriad considerations of representation, identity, historical knowledge and layered sensibilities that have accrued over time within communities and institutions. It is worth remembering that Yugey Yugeen Bharat is hardly going to resolve fractious debates within recently developed understandings in India’s conversations of its history. Hemanth Kadambi is an archaeologist and Associate Professor in the Department of History and Archaeology, Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence, Delhi-NCR Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 20, 2024

Deep impact: ocean seabed mining - 360 Pradeep A. Singh Published on February 3, 2022 Deep seabed mining risks irreversible damage, monopolisation and exploitation. By Pradeep A. Singh, University of Bremen The world’s ever-growing appetite for metals has pushed the mining sector to search for new potential sources, putting the extraction of deep-sea minerals on the horizon. A race is now on between those that regulate deep sea mining and those hoping to extract its riches. Deep seabed mining is generally at depths greater than 200 metres, and possibly beyond 5,000 metres, an area that despite incremental improvements in scientific understanding over the last few decades, remains poorly understood. Scientists do know that commercial-scale deep seabed mining can cause substantial, long lasting and potentially irreversible (on human timescales) impacts on the marine environment and its food web.The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS), a widely ratified multilateral treaty, covers the various maritime zones and the corresponding rights and obligations of states — including ensuring the protection and preservation of the marine environment. Beyond the limits of seabed areas within national jurisdictions (200 nautical miles from the coastline) lies the international seabed, otherwise known as the Area, where a unique and dedicated legal regime created under UNCLOS exists. EMBED START Image {id: "editor_4"} EMBED END Image {id: "editor_4"} The Area and its mineral resources are legally designated as the common heritage of humankind. Access is via an international organisation created under UNCLOS known as the International Seabed Authority (ISA). The ISA administers the mineral resources of the Area — both rules related to exploration and ensuring the marine environment is protected from such activity.Over the last two decades, the ISA has adopted regulations for the exploration of three mineral deposits – polymetallic nodules, polymetallic sulphides and cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts, which contains high-grade metals such as copper, nickel, iron, and zinc  – and has already awarded 31 exploration contracts (as of 1 January 2022). The majority of these contracts are for the exploration of polymetallic nodules in the nodule-rich region of the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the Pacific Ocean. But no exploitation contracts have so far been awarded because the ISA is yet to adopt exploitation regulations. It has been negotiating the draft text since 2019. The ISA is under pressure to finalise exploitation regulations after the Republic of Nauru triggered a two-year deadline provision in June 2021. If this deadline is not met, any pending exploitation applications will still need to be considered despite the absence of regulations. The pandemic has affected the ability to have in-person negotiations and many crucial matters still need to be resolved over a short time period. The ISA’s transition from exploration to exploitation deserves close scrutiny as its implications could be far-reaching – once exploitation activities are allowed to commence, it could be difficult to reel things back. The current models of payment for commercial mining incentivises mining operators by imposing low rates that fail to take into account the natural capital value of the deep ocean and provide fair compensation to humankind for losses incurred. The ISA and its member states must agree on an appropriate mechanism for the equitable sharing of benefits derived from deep seabed mining in the Area before allowing exploitation to commence. While ISA member states may directly apply to the ISA for mining contracts, they can also choose to sponsor state-owned enterprises or nationally-based private entities, or foreign companies that are under the effective control of the state(s). In recent years, developing countries, particularly small island states, have increasingly sponsored locally registered companies that are wholly owned or controlled by foreign companies to conduct exploration activities. These sponsored entities essentially operate from developed countries but have been granted access to reserved areas, or sites with commercial value that have been set aside exclusively for developing countries under UNCLOS, and do not appear to be under the effective control of the sponsoring state. One example is The Metals Company (formerly DeepGreen), a foreign company that obtained exploration rights over three separate contract areas that are all located within reserved areas.It did this through wholly-owned subsidiaries and other arrangements with locally-based companies, under the sponsorship of Nauru, Tonga and Kiribati respectively, without being named in any of the ISA contracts. Left unchecked, such sponsorship practices could pave the way for exploitation monopolies. Some sponsoring states may also lack the capacity to supervise exploitation works, may impose lesser environmental conditions, or simply form a relationship of convenience as opposed to a partnership. And by agreeing to sponsor an entity, sponsoring states expose themselves to potential responsibility under international law and could stand to be liable for environmental damage caused by the sponsored entity. In future, the ISA should foster greater involvement of developing countries in its work by enhancing training and capacity building efforts, as well as facilitating transfers of technology from developed countries to developing countries. The ISA should also expedite the operationalisation of its own entrepreneurial organ, the Enterprise, which was established under UNCLOS to be the vessel through which all states, including and especially developing ones, can participate in seabed exploration and exploitation. Some say it’s necessary to mine the seabed in order to secure the metals required for clean energy to tackle climate change. Premised on the projection of metal supplies and demands over the next few decades, this remains a subject of intense debate. Those pushing this argument are private entities currently engaged in exploration activities, and of late, the ISA Secretariat. In any case, the picture that is being painted appears to be incomplete. There is some truth in positing that the clean energy transition requires more metals and that acquiring them from terrestrial sources may require current mining operations to go deeper and further, thereby causing more environmental harm. But the problems with land-based mining are known and can be managed through better techniques and stricter regulation. Mining in a liquid environment that is remote and largely out of sight is a lot more challenging and difficult to manage. Enabling deep seabed mining to commence could in turn undermine global efforts to meet the sustainability agenda. Mining the seabed may contribute metals that are used to advance sustainable development, but that does not make the activity itself sustainable — the end does not necessarily justify the means. Deep seabed mining is being considered at a time when the ocean is already facing unprecedented levels of threat. In 2018, ISA Secretary-General Michael Lodge said “mineral exploitation cannot be permitted to proceed unless the [ISA] is satisfied that rigorous environmental safeguards are in place”. Decisions taken by the ISA today will not only concern the present generation but the rights and interests of future generations. With the clock ticking and many possible pathways ahead, all eyes are now on ISA member states. Pradeep A. Singh is a doctoral researcher at the University of Bremen, Germany and independent legal consultant. He has written extensively on topics related to public international law, the law of the sea, environmental law, climate policy, ocean governance and deep seabed mining. As an observer delegate, Pradeep attends and participates in the work of the ISA. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Final Frontiers” sent at: 03/02/2022 16:37. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 3, 2022

‘Deep journalism’ driven by AI can aid better government - 360 Rashid Mehmood Published on October 3, 2022 A machine learning tool to analyse complex sets of information has been shown to find policy areas overlooked by governments. Deep learning, big data and other new technologies are set to transform the way governments determine what is in the best interest of their citizens, supercharging the information they need to act intelligently and making policies and actions more transparent, preventing corruption and failure. Deep journalism is a data-driven approach for discovering different perspectives on a topic of interest. The approach was the basis for DeepJournal, a new tool that uses machine and deep-learning-based natural language processing technologies to analyse assigned documents, grouping the data into clusters. The tool then identifies relationships between clusters, including similarities, differences, and hierarchies. By highlighting gaps between public-facing issues and those of other stakeholders, the technology can be used to develop policies and actions for a given sector, and even for a complete economy or society. Researchers at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah tested the DeepJournal tool in a study examining different academic, industrial, public, governance, and political perspectives on transportation. Transportation is a challenging sector for governments because they must consider so many factors when developing successful policies, systems and operations. Some of these include: the safety of people and goods, rising costs, the growth of megacities, long commutes for work, parking issues, and damage to health and the environment, and the need to be connected. Insights provided by Deep Journalism could be used to better connect policy and action, by improving the information available to all stakeholders in the transportation sector, including the government, industry, academia, journalism, and the general public. The tool uses different sources of data to gather or discover different perspectives. Data for the transport case-study came from a newspaper (The Guardian: 14,381 articles between 1825 and 2022), a transportation technology magazine (Traffic Technology International: 5,193 articles between 2015 and 2022), and academic literature on transportation (from Web of Science: 21,446 articles between 2000 and 2022). These data sources provide three different views of transportation: first, a view from the public and governed by political and other institutions; a second view from the transportation industry; and a third view from academics and researchers. The cluster analysis reveals that while the views are not mutually exclusive and are somewhat affected by each other, they represent different perspectives with considerable differences. The results were confirmed by cross-checking the assignment of articles and documents to certain clusters, by comparing parameters, keywords, and metrics across the three perspectives of transportation and by checking against sources other than the three datasets. The findings showed that many important problems such as transportation operations and public satisfaction seem to be ignored by industry and academia, or if they do focus on them, the solutions don’t achieve measurable results from policymakers and industrialists. The findings also shows that while academia produces much broader and deeper knowledge on transport, many important issues such as pollution are not considered much at all. Using Twitter and other data sources, the King Abdulaziz University researchers have used similar techniques to analyse different sectors and topics including education and learning during COVID-19, healthcare services for cancer, government measures during COVID-19, and families and homes. We live in a complex world characterised by complex people, complex times, and complex technologies. Our complex activities have complex consequences on our social, environmental and economic environments. There is clear evidence that governments are failing to address issues such as education, healthcare, public safety, and so on. The recent COVID-19 pandemic is a major example of global governance failure, both in terms of preventing such pandemics and managing the outbreak. People elect governments, so government failure can also be viewed as a public failure, and highlights the need to improve policy and governance collaboratively. Deep journalism techniques can make impartial, cross-sectional, and multi-perspective information available to everyone, can bring rigour to journalism by making it easy to generate information using deep learning, and can make tools and information available so anyone can uncover information about social, environmental and economic sustainability. Rashid Mehmood is a professor of big data systems at King Abdulaziz University and leads the Data-Driven Machines and Societies Lab. Rashid is thankful to his team and collaborators for producing all the amazing research including Deep Journalism covered here. The research was undertaken with financial assistance from Deanship of Scientific Research (DSR), King Abdulaziz University (KAU), Jeddah,  Saudi Arabia. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 3, 2022

Deep ocean carbon drawdown not an easy climate fix - 360 Phil Williamson Published on January 31, 2022 The deep ocean can be used for carbon dioxide removal from our atmosphere. Here are the opportunities, risks and constraints. By Phil Williamson, University of East Anglia The ocean and climate are inextricably linked. More than 90 percent of the extra heat from global warming has gone into the deep blue sea, with associated climate-driven changes reducing the productivity of fisheries and threatening more than 600 million people through sea-level rise. Yet the ocean offers opportunities: it could also be a source of solutions rather than just a victim of climate change. One possibility is and storing it in the deep. Doing so on a large scale would help deliver the net zero goal of the Paris Climate Change AgreementBut considerations beyond just the financial commitments of research and development, costed at US$2.5 billion, will need to be taken into account. Either biology or chemistry could be used to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to store it in the ocean. The most straightforward approach is a ‘nature-based solution’, restoring the natural functions and processes already provided by our environment. Protecting marine ecosystems by ending overfishing and other conservation actions can reinstate the role of top predators in marine food webs, particularly those of the deep ocean — found in depths beyond 200 metres. The resulting increase in the abundance of larger organisms, such as fish and whales would transfer organic carbon from surface waters to deeper layers through faeces and deadfall, slowing the return of that carbon to the atmosphere. The need to end overfishing through improved ocean protection is internationally recognised by UN Sustainable Development Goal 14, and associated targets of the Convention for Biological Diversity (CBD) and the World Parks Congress. The main problem in using this approach for climate mitigation is that the additional carbon removed from the atmosphere on a long-term basis is likely to be relatively small. The removal also cannot be easily attributable to any single country. Whilst ocean ecosystem restoration is undoubtedly worthwhile for the many non-climatic benefits it can provide, signatories of the Paris Climate Change Agreement are required to communicate their emission reduction strategies and quantify their national contributions. In theory, much greater CO2 drawdown is possible if the growth of marine phytoplankton (microscopic floating algae) can be increased by ocean fertilisation, for parts of the ocean where dissolved nutrients in seawater are in short supply. Directly adding relatively small amounts of biologically-available iron, or larger amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus, would stimulate phytoplankton blooms, converting inorganic carbon dioxide to plant biomass. Pumping up nutrient- rich water from the deep using underwater pipes, referred to as artificial upwelling, could also be used to achieve the same effect. These ideas were first suggested in the early 1990s, and have been investigated by patch-scale field experiments and modelling studies, however, many key issues remain unresolved. These include: whether fisheries might benefit or suffer if ocean productivity is increased in this way; whether there might be other damaging side effects; for example, reducing productivity elsewhere, potentially many thousands of kilometres away (linked by ocean circulation patterns) and the uncertain over the next 50-100 years. Concerns that there might be damaging side effects resulted in a non-binding moratorium on ocean fertilisation in 2008, followed by more detailed regulation of marine geoengineering — defined as “ .” Marine geoengineering is now limited to strictly-controlled research under the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter, referred to as the London Convention and London Protocol (LC/LP). There are also further restrictions in the Southern Ocean, where iron additions would potentially have greatest climatic effectiveness under various agreements. The large-scale cultivation of seaweed (macroalgae) is another biological option for ocean-based climate mitigation. Seaweed photosynthesis would remove carbon dioxide from seawater, followed by managed long-term storage of carbon fixed in its biomass. This approach would be most efficiently carried out in shallow waters, scaling-up the cultivation and harvesting procedures of existing widely used for food production in China, South Korea and Japan. Cultivation in deeper water has also been proposed, but requires a  very large area (of or more than 40 percent of global shelf seas) for climatically-significant carbon removal. Deliberate sinking of the harvested seaweed to the deep ocean seafloor would then provide carbon storage. Large scale open-ocean seaweed cultivation and its sinking could have substantive climate mitigation potential, according to a modelling study, currently under review. Since the seaweed would be physically moved to the seafloor (for example, by baling-up and adding ballast), there would also be much greater management control and less uncertainty than nutrient-based ocean fertilisation. Yet there would also be adverse environmental impacts and climatically-important feedback effects, both in the water column, as a result of seaweed cultivation, and on the seafloor, as a result of storage. In the upper ocean, shading and nutrient competition would decrease the natural productivity of phytoplankton (reducing their own CO2 removal), and increase the abundance of marine calcifiers, such as molluscs and other seaweed grazers (releasing CO2). At the seafloor, the seaweed would directly smother other organisms living there; its decomposition would also reduce oxygen levels over larger areas, affecting many more deep-sea organisms. Although the LC/LP regulation does not cover seaweed cultivation per se, it would fall under ocean disposal by deliberately counteracting anthropogenic climate change. Chemistry-only methods for ocean climate mitigation focus on ‘ocean alkalinity enhancement’, primarily by adding large amounts of finely-ground silicate or calcium compoundsto the open ocean or coastal waters, to convert CO2 dissolved in seawater to bicarbonate and carbonate ions. This process could, in theory, be very effective in removing carbon from the atmosphere. However, the extra amount entering the ocean would be hard to measure reliably with naturally variable water chemistry and air-sea exchanges of CO2. In addition, “the costs, logistics, and environmental footprints of mining, industrial transformation, pulverising, and transporting minerals require careful consideration”, as noted by the United States’ National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM). Adding alkaline compounds to the ocean could be beneficial for marine communities, by counteracting ocean acidification as a result of the extra CO2 in the atmosphere and ocean, added by human activities. But adding alkalinity would also have other effects, depending on the specific elemental compositions of the minerals used. For example, high silica would cause significant changes to phytoplankton species composition and productivity, with the strongest effects closest to where alkalinity increases are made. The governance of ocean alkalinity enhancement is also likely to be problematic, constrained by LC/LP regulation and strongly opposed by NGOs that reject climate interventions considered to interfere with nature. Whilst mineral dissolution in the ocean is undoubtedly a natural process, there is a much wider debate on where the boundary between natural solutions to climate change (generally regarded as acceptable) and technological solutions (widely rejected) should lie. From a purely scientific perspective, the distinction is arbitrary. The ocean does have immense potential for delivering renewable energy. Yet, the deep ocean seems likely to provide, at best, only a very limited solution to climate change through carbon removal.  Whilst some approaches can be considered because of the wide range of benefits they are expected to provide — most remain at the conceptual stage, being too risky, uncertain or contentious to include in current policy actions. Phil Williamson is an Honorary Reader from the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia, UK. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on January 31, 2022

Deep sea decisions can consider Indigenous knowledge - 360 Mpume Mthombeni, Dylan McGarry, Elisa Morgera Published on July 5, 2023 Indigenous cultural relationships to the seabed have already been taken into account in three successful court proceedings in South Africa. Pacific island nations worried about the impacts of deep sea mining could consider new alliances with communities across the world where Indigenous knowledge is being used to protect the seabed. In South Africa, many Indigenous cultures revere the seabed as the realm where ancestors dwell. Research across the social and marine sciences, arts and Indigenous knowledge in South Africa has revealed that Zulu traditional ancestral beliefs on the soul’s journey has parallels with the scientific understanding of the role of the ocean in the global water cycle. This research, and the artwork that surfaced it, have led to unprecedented judicial developments in South Africa about the urgent need to protect the seabed, including through meaningful participatory processes for decision-making that protect cultural rights. These developments are important also for the deep seabed outside the jurisdiction of any nation and hence under the mandate of the International Seabed Authority. They support growing calls for the integration of Indigenous knowledge and enhanced public participation in its proceedings. Indlela Yokuphila: The Soul’s Journey is a five-minute animated film that uncovers the parallels between Zulu spirituality and science’s understanding of the ocean’s role in the global water cycle. It presents the soul’s journey after death, from transforming into a young ancestor travelling through underground streams and river systems, all the way to the deep sea where ancient wisdoms reside. The ancestor dwells on the seabed for a long time, until their soul ascends to the surface, is carried by a cloud and rained down in a village, where their next mother drinks the rainwater and holds inside the ocean of her belly the ancestor that will grow to be born again. This understanding responds to a key research finding at different levels of ocean governance. The largest oversight in ocean governance is including spiritual and cultural heritages in decision-making and marine spatial planning, which leads to unsustainable and exclusionary decisions that may violate human rights. Indlela Yokuphila was instrumental in three successful court proceedings in South Africa in 2022-2023, brought by Indigenous fisher leaders and ocean defenders against oil and gas companies and the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy for permitting seismic surveys for offshore oil exploration. These judgments marked the first time an animation has been used as evidence in a South African court, serving as a proxy for intangible cultural heritage related to the ocean. Judge Bloem, in Part A of the case, related to respect for cultural and spiritual relationships with the ocean, said: “I accept that the customary practices and spiritual relationship that the applicant communities have with the sea may be foreign to some and therefore difficult to comprehend. “How ancestors can reside in the sea and how they can be disturbed may be asked. It is not the duty of this court to seek answers to those questions. We must accept that those practices and beliefs exist … “In terms of the Constitution, those practices and beliefs must be respected and where conduct offends those practices and beliefs and impacts negatively on the environment, the court has a duty to step in and protect those who are offended and the environment.” This judicial recognition of the sacred nature of this relationship as human right to culture led the court to heighten the protection of the participatory rights of these communities in decision-making processes on proposed uses of the seabed which negatively affect marine life and the livelihoods of fishing communities. These judicial decisions can be interpreted as a recognition of the crucial role of Indigenous and other coastal communities as environmental human rights defenders that support everyone’s human right to a healthy environment. There is no evidence that Indigenous cultural attachments to the seabed do not extend to the Area — the portion of the deep seabed under the Seabed Authority’s aegis. Environmental concerns related to the Area should be understood in the light of ecological connectivity: due to oceanographic processes and the movement of migratory species, coastal areas can also be affected by decisions on activities in the Area. What Indlela Yokuphila indicates for the Authority is that there is available, relevant Indigenous knowledge on the protection of the marine environment in the Area. This Indigenous knowledge parallels relevant scientific knowledge on the role of the ocean in the global water cycle, which needs to be considered in biodiversity conservation and sustainable use in areas beyond national jurisdiction according to the recent agreement on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction, as well as activities that fall outside the purview of the agreement like deep sea mining. It also provides evidence of relevant cultural heritage and underlying cultural rights that could be taken into account through participation in international decision-making that could have an impact on these rights, including heightened protection for environmental human rights defenders. Cultural heritage is be an important consideration in the decisions adopted internationally, so they can genuinely contribute to sustainable development, according to international human rights standards. Accordingly, member states of the Authority can take precautionary measures to prevent possible impacts from deep sea mining that may result in the reduced availability, accessibility or acceptability of marine spaces and marine resources (in the Area or in other marine areas ecologically connected to the Area). These marine spaces and resources are essential for Indigenous peoples’ culture on which their identity, wellbeing and development depend. Mpume Mthombeni is a co-director of Empatheatre and a research associate at the Environmental Learning Research Centre at Rhodes University, South Africa. She is an award-winning performer and theatre-maker who hails from Umlazi, Durban. Her work with Empatheatre focuses on merging research and performance and she considers the theatre-maker’s role in contemporary South Africa to be that of healer and shaman. Dr Dylan McGarry is a senior researcher at the Environmental Learning Research Centre at Rhodes University, South Africa, a member of the One Ocean Hub and co-founder of Empatheatre. They are a filmmaker, theatre practitioner, artist and educational sociologist who works in the areas of social-ecological justice, transformative social learning, activism, Empatheatre and earth jurisprudence. Elisa Morgera is a professor of global environmental law at the University of Strathclyde, UK, and the Director of the One Ocean Hub. She specialises in international, European and comparative environmental law, with a particular focus on the interaction between biodiversity law and human rights (particularly those of Indigenous peoples and local communities), equity and sustainability in natural resource development, oceans governance, and corporate accountability. This article draws from research undertaken by the authors under the One Ocean Hub, which is a collaborative research programme for sustainable development funded by UK Research and Innovation through the Global Challenges Research Fund. The research is based on a chapter written in McGarry, D (2023). ‘When ancestors are included in ocean decision and meaning-making.’ Chapter 2 in T Shefer, V Bozalek and N Romano (editors) Hydrofeminist Thinking with Oceans: Political and pedagogical possibilities. Routledge, in press. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on July 5, 2023

Deepfakes: can the AI be harnessed for something good? - 360 Published on April 3, 2024 While audiences and users need to be educated on the negative implications of deepfakes, the technology can also have positive impacts. There are pitfalls with AI but the technology has the potential for good, says Katrien Jacobs, adjunct associate professor in cultural studies at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. “The case is that a lot of young people specifically are using these apps to make these deepfakes. They like to use existing videos of people’s faces and other videos of people’s bodies and they put them together. And so it’s like a deep learning technology in which a new kind of person is created. “There are different apps available for young people to try it out and obviously, they’re having fun making this kind of sexualized deepfakes. So this is one reason that it’s just become a popular digital trend right now. “So all these things are going on and even though the governments all over the world and also the platforms are really trying to crack down on that and keep it at bay, it is still going on and still sort of multiplying these services and also the people who are making the deepfakes themselves. “People need to be educated about deepfakes and also about the potential negative impact or potential harm. Because I also think that if, for instance, especially maybe if young people are doing that as a kind of play or maybe even to pester people, they may not be aware of you know, what happens to victims of this. “So they need to be trained to think differently about hate speech and online abuse and to become more aware of their actions actually. “This fake news and misinformation that is being produced and almost all of it is made non-consensually. So to turn this around, a new kind of practice would have to be developed.And I hope that this could still be done and that in, you know, that universities and so on and also that the platforms and so could also educate people about that, about the potential positive uses of the technology actually. “There are, of course, a lot of positive, hilarious and also artistic uses of deepfakes. “So what needs to change exactly is that they would have to be made with consent. That means people would have to agree that their videos are being used so that would be a consensual deepfake. That would be a new adoption of the technology. And of course, people are doing it that way. “For instance, there is a famous deepfake designer in Belgium. His name is Chris Ume and he’s made all kinds of satirical deepfakes, for instance about Donald Trump that made him really famous. “Positive application that I wanted to mention was for instance, in gaming, people want to change their identity when they play games, video games. And in that case, sometimes they want to change their voice timbre, they want to change gender for instance. “So that is already a positive application for transsexual gamers that they use deepfake technology to change their voice. And so, you know, as a matter of fact, in terms of gender culture and queer culture, this is also something that could have very positive applications that way. “I think every citizen and every media user today has to become more aware of that and become more of their own fact checker and, you know, trying to get the news from different kinds of sources as well. “So it’s an opportunity for people to seek out quality media themselves or also to make consensual quality media. I think that is the opportunity here.” Katrien Jacobs is adjunct associate professor in cultural studies at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She is also an associate researcher in the Department of Languages and Cultures at the University of Ghent. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 3, 2024

Defence of democracy begins at home, not in Moscow - 360 David Blunt Published on March 19, 2024 As Vladimir Putin wins another term in the Kremlin, his use of sham elections to legitimise his control poisons democracy’s value globally. For just the eighth time in Russian history, a presidential election has been voted on. The political parties trotted out their candidates; there was a campaign of sorts; and to the shock of absolutely no one, Vladimir Putin was re-elected as President. Putin is one of just three men who have held the position since the first democratic election in 1991. Putin, who replaced Boris Yeltsin in 2000, has effectively ruled the country for 24 years, only broken by a four-year job swap with the closely allied Dmitry Medvedev as Prime Minister. The look doesn’t bode well for the multi party democracy that some dreamed Russia could have become post-communism. Russia, however, is not unique. Across the globe elections will be held in 2024 in many states with less than perfect democratic credentials, from North Korea and Syria to Belarus and Iran. It would be a fair question to ask, for regimes controlled by a single party or leader, what is the point? But it’s simple. These states that range from being ‘mixed regimes’ to neo-Stalinist continue with this charade because they crave legitimacy. Democratic consent remains the most powerful source of legitimacy for any state. These ‘managed’ elections give force to the moth-eaten adage that ‘hypocrisy is the tribute vice pays virtue’. But before we get on our high horse for a bout of liberal democratic dressage, we should reflect on the state of democracy at home. We are living through a period of democratic decline. Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2024 report notes that we are in the 18th year of aggregate decline of freedom. This has been driven by the increased manipulation of elections. The tactics range from the crude stuffing of ballot boxes, the creation of biased rules and leveraged media coverage to benefit incumbents, to sophisticated disinformation campaigns. This year might be the breakout year for AI-driven disinformation. Ahead of the presidential elections in the United States there have already been AI-generated images ranging from President Joe Biden wearing what appears to be a woman’s swimsuit, presumably to fuel the current moral panic about gender identity, to Donald Trump being arrested, for obvious reasons. Indeed, the upcoming American presidential election is emblematic of the crisis of democracy. Trump faces criminal charges for election interference, refused to abide by the norm of the peaceful transition of power, and is running a campaign diffuse with incoherent rhetoric, incomplete sentences, febrile conspiracy theories, and promises for revenge against his rivals. On the other you have Biden: frail, aged, out of touch, with every appearance of being yesterday’s man unable to cope with the challenges of the present. He has won deserved praise for his State of the Union address, but when ‘not appearing to have dementia’ is the standard for success, we might ask whether the standards for the most powerful political office on the planet have somewhat declined. This election is a contest between authoritarian populism and the neo-liberal consensus which has been on life-support since the financial crisis. Neither is good for democracy. How we got here is simple: Hubris. In the closing decades of the old century it seemed like democracy would thrive because there was no alternative, while at the same time neo-liberal ideology began to aggressively shrink the state. There was a wilful ignorance that democracy does not exist in a vacuum. The loss of secure jobs with globalisation, the growth of intergenerational disparities in opportunity, the increased concentration of wealth in the hands of the few, the emergence of new forms of disinformation, and many other factors have eroded and continue to erode the civic basis necessary for democracy to function. It parallels the logic that failed in Afghanistan and Iraq, where America and its allies tried to parachute a liberal democracy on a society ravaged by war, sectarianism, and inter-ethnic enmity. It shows the same naïve assumption that liberal democracy does not need anything but itself to thrive, that it will produce the conditions of its own success. The failure to recognise this has led to the disastrous failure of adventures abroad and the slow rot of democracy at home. This has led states like China to position itself as a superior model of democracy. In 2021 the government published a white paper called China:  Democracy that Works, which sharply contrasted Xi Jinping’s ‘whole-process people’s democracy’ with the chaotic state of Western democracy. We may regard this paper with a degree of cynicism, but it shows how vulnerable the liberal democratic model has become when it can be so open to be dunked upon. My research on democracy is informed by the republican or neo-Roman tradition of political thought (think Cicero and Harrington, not Nixon and Trump). The central value in this tradition, as expressed by Philip Pettit, is freedom from arbitrary interference. Democracy is one of the best means of securing this condition, but it is not the only one. Republicans have stressed the importance of civic education. This is more than mindless pledges to flags or brute nationalism but the cultivation of solidarity between citizens, respect for differences, and the duty to put the common good ahead of private gain. The woeful decline of civic education has been undeniably bad for democracy, as has the diminution of the humanities and social sciences where students learn to be analytical and critical thinkers. Civic education must also deal with the new threats to democracy. The plague of disinformation on the internet has shown that digital literacy is a political problem. If people cannot tell fact from fiction and are willing to enter closed cult-like epistemic communities, such as the Q-Anon conspiracy, then they will not be functional democratic citizens. We must also recognise that democracy does not work when inequality runs rampant. As Jean Jacques Rousseau wrote in The Social Contract with “respect to riches, no citizen shall ever be wealthy enough to buy another, and poor enough to be forced to sell himself”. Poverty makes one vulnerable to arbitrary power and prone to manipulation by powerful forces. Our metrics for measuring prosperity often do not capture this. The stock market may hit an all-time high, but that only really matters if it translates into higher standards of living and secure employment. We need to re conceptualise progressive taxation and redistributive measures not as ‘handouts’ but as an essential part of democratic citizenship The point here is that democracy needs renewal. If this doesn’t happen then before long our elections will become no better than the electoral fig leaves that cover today’s despotisms. Dr. Gwilym David Blunt is a Lecturer in International Relations at the University of Sydney. He is a Honorary Senior Research Fellow of the Centre for International Policy Studies, a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, and a Fellow of the Ethics Centre. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 19, 2024

Deflating the myths of inflation - 360 Published on March 23, 2023 Factors that influence inflation and cost of living are varied but identifying genuine ones can help policymakers prioritise key solutions. In a survey at the recent World Economic Forum meet, most respondents ranked a cost-of-living crisis as the most severe global risk over the next two years with inflationary pressures disproportionately hitting those who can least afford it. While inflation and cost-of-living increases are often used interchangeably, they are different though closely related. While inflation is often blamed for all price increases, this is not always the case. For example, supply chain issues and labour shortages, not inflation, help to increase prices due to the limited availability of many goods and services. Also, higher wages don’t result in higher inflation. The former is a symptom of the latter rather than a cause. The prices of food items were on the rise even before the pandemic and the Ukraine war only exacerbated this. Although global supply chains have adapted somewhat, food price increases have outpaced general inflation with the FAO Price Index hitting its highest level in March 2022. Managing inflation will be key to protecting societies from cost-of-living pressures. But what are the common myths surrounding inflation that policymakers must first tackle towards effective solutions? Have these myths skewed existing programmes and if so what remedial measures would work best? Could past myths turn out to be present-day realities? 360info examines the fallacies and facts surrounding inflation and how policies can work better. Japan’s inflation rate has jumped to a fresh 41-year high as businesses pass on higher costs to their customers. Core consumer prices for last month rose by four percent from a year earlier, double the Bank of Japan’s target level. Inflation in Argentina came in at 102.5 percent in the 12 months to February, exceeding the symbolic triple-digit mark and reaching a new 32-year high. Latin America’s third-largest economy saw inflation grow 13.1 percent since the beginning of the year. Headline inflation is falling in many countries but core inflation rates have been revised upwards, says the International Monetary Fund in urging central banks to continue their efforts. China’s annual consumer inflation slowed to the lowest rate in a year in February as consumers remain cautious despite the abandonment of strong pandemic controls late in 2022. Quote attributable Juliana French & Sharon Koh Geok May, Monash University Malaysia: “Stressed consumers on a spending spree are overlooked as a possible inflation cause. Psychological or emotional factors constitute a large part of consumers’ buying behaviour.” Quote attributable to Northumbria University researchers: “A Universal Basic Income is no more or less inflationary than anything else that raises incomes. Its impact would depend on whether the economy is at full employment, whether taxes are raised to pay for the scheme and various other factors.” Quote attributable to Andrei Kwok, Monash University Malaysia “Except for COVID-19 as an anomaly, while there is a correlation between supply chain disruption and inflation, the former is not the primary contributor. The impact of supply chain disruption on core consumer prices is, in fact, not significant.” Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Cost of living” sent at: 20/03/2023 11:04. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 23, 2023

Defunding the disinformation money machine - 360 Daniel J. Rogers Published on February 14, 2022 Disinformation is a profitable business, and one of the most effective ways to slow its spread is to take away the advertising money unwittingly funding it. By Daniel J. Rogers, New York University Disinformation is peddled for a variety of motives. The Russian government employs disinformation as part of their expansionist geopolitical aims. The Chinese Communist Party uses it to further entrench their political authority and grow their global influence. Professional influence operators do so as guns for hire on behalf of powerful industries, ranging from oil to tobacco companies. Trolls on 4chan often do it in service of pure nihilism. But by far the most common and compelling motivation to spread online disinformation is profit. It has led the world to a veritable disinformation crisis. The biggest global companies are those who provide the machinery to capture and monetise audience attention at scale. Today’s internet is powered by businesses that capture and profit from “clicks and eyeballs”. Who provides the money for this machine? Sometimes, audiences are monetised through merchandise sales or solicitation of direct donations. Most often, the cash comes from advertising. Advertisers subsidise the web to the tune of over US$400 billion a year in digital ad spend. They pay into a complex ecosystem dominated by two outsized ad tech platforms — Google and Facebook (which each take a sizable commission) — and their money ultimately makes its way to content creators and publishers on the open web. How much those publishers and content creators make is controlled mainly by the quantity and spending power of the audience they capture. And so our modern information ecosystem has become a race for eyeballs: a race won by the most salacious, infuriating, divisive, and most importantly, engaging content. On the moneymaking side of this transaction, everyone wins. The publishers who capture an audience’s attention make money, as do the platforms that take a commission on every ad that gets placed. Nearly a quarter billion US dollars a year is estimated to go into subsidising online disinformation. Those on the other side of this transaction lose out. Advertisers that pay money into this system end up with their brands appearing alongside unsuitable content, harming their reputation and costing them money. It impacts what people choose to buy: about 51 percent of the 1500 millennials and Gen Xers surveyed in 2020 were less likely to purchase from a company with an “unsafe” brand placement and were three times less likely to recommend that brand to others. The Global Disinformation Index (GDI) is a non-for-profit seeking to balance out that equation. Advertisers were missing data on where on the web disinformation was occurring. With that information they could avoid those platforms in their automated ad campaigns, safeguarding their brand and redirecting funds away from disinformation peddlers. A transparent, independent, neutral index of so-called “disinformation risk” on the open web was needed. The aim presented a technical challenge: traffic on the internet is approximately distributed according to a power law, meaning a small number of high-profile websites receive a sizable fraction of the traffic. But the distribution also has a “long tail”. This means there are a large number of websites that — when taken together — also capture a large amount of traffic, even if each individual one doesn’t on its own. For that reason, it was imperative that the disinformation risk ratings were built up using a hybrid of both human-powered assessments (in order to capture high-profile media with the requisite levels of nuance and fidelity) and large-scale automation (to maintain parity with the large number of “long tail” sites). The human-powered portion of the methodology seeks to assess the journalistic integrity, and thus the disinformation risk, of publishers across over 20 different media markets to date. This methodology comports with the Journalism Trust Initiative, an international standards effort put forth by Reporters Without Borders. GDI assesses content and operational policies, looking for conflicts of interest, prior evidence of disinformation risk, and lapses in journalistic standards as part of its assessments. Meanwhile, GDI’s automated systems crawl hundreds of thousands of sites, assessing millions of pieces of new content each week, identifying ones that peddle the various adversarial narratives du jour. When a particular site meets a minimum threshold, it gets flagged for additional human review. Ultimately, all of these processes feed into data sets that GDI then provides to advertisers and digital ad platforms to prevent them from inadvertently buying or selling ads on sites trafficking in disinformation. This not only keeps advertisers’ brands safe, but also helps to funnel ad revenue away from disinformation and toward higher quality news. The GDI was founded on three principles: transparency, independence, and neutrality. It is a global organisation that works in partnership with NGOs, governments, and commercial organisations around the world. It operates in more than 10 different languages and over 20 countries, and yet is only part of a larger ecosystem of organisations working in media literacy education, tech reform policy, counter-messaging, and platform trust and safety that are all contributing to the conversation, and to the ultimate goal of disrupting the scourge of online disinformation. By some estimates, GDI has already substantially cut ad revenue to disinformation purveyors by half through partnerships with over a dozen major ad platforms. But there is still a long way to go to protect democracy and cut the funding to disinformation. Dr. Daniel J. Rogers is Adjunct Assistant Professor at New York University’s Center for Global Affairs, and Co-Founder and Executive Director at the Global Disinformation Index. Dr. Rogers declared no conflicts of interest in relation to this article. The Global Disinformation Index is funded by a range of governmental, philanthropic and commercial sources. All current funders are displayed on their website under the About section. This article was first published on February 14, 2022.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 14, 2022

Delhi's dilemma: a growing economy and growing unemployment - 360 Rajat Kathuria Published on April 29, 2024 India is on its way to becoming the third-largest economy in the world, yet unemployment among young people with graduate degrees is at an all-time high. India’s glass is half-full – and half-empty. The good news is India is the fastest-growing major economy in the world, on course to overtake Germany and Japan in the next five years in aggregate GDP. It will become the third-largest global economy after the US and China. However, there is a concern that the benefits of fast GDP growth are being undermined by low job growth and an accompanying pro-rich bias. Unemployment among young people with graduate degrees is at an all-time high of 29 percent, and overall youth unemployment is hovering around 10 percent. This has prompted some young Indians to travel  to war zones in search of employment and higher income opportunities. Rapid economic growth in the past two decades has contributed to an unprecedented fall in poverty. The poverty headcount ratio, which indicates the proportion of the population living below the poverty line, fell from 37 percent in 2004-05 to 22 percent in 2011-12. This pulled 140 million people out of poverty. Recent estimates by India’s Knowledge Commission or NITI Aayog show that multidimensional poverty in India declined from 29.17 per cent in 2013-14 to 11.28 per cent in 2022-23, with about 250 million people moving out of deprivation. At the same time, the share of the national income going to the top 10 percent of the population has almost doubled in the four decades between 1982 and 2022, to about 60 percent. The bottom 50 percent of people had 15 per cent of the national income in 2022. The top 1 percent’s share was estimated to be 22.6 percent. The wealth distribution is even more skewed. Several factors, including the lack of quality broad-based education and all-purpose skills, are responsible for these disparities. An underlying feature of India’s unique structural transformation is also often cited as a reason. The stage of industrialisation in which a country experiences employment-intensive growth driven by manufacturing has been bypassed here in favour of services-led growth. The services-led economic growth since at least 1991 has had the side-effect of increasing inequality. National Sample Survey Organisation data shows that 45.5 percent of the workforce is employed in agriculture, 12.4 percent in construction, and only 11.6 percent in manufacturing, with the rest in services. India’s inability to pull more of its workforce away from agriculture towards more productive and better-paying employment remains a pressing challenge. While the services sector has contributed to growth, its share in employment (approximately 29 percent) is a little more than half of its share in GDP. The shortcoming of India’s sectoral composition of growth has, therefore, been that it has generated relatively fewer opportunities for productive employment for India’s poor. With more than seven percent real GDP growth in the last three financial years, India is now the fifth-largest economy in the world. Growth projections remain optimistic. In April, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) raised India’s growth projection for the fiscal year 2024-25 (FY25) by 30 basis points to 6.8 percent on the back of strong domestic demand, rising public infrastructure spending, and a growing working-age population. The World Bank forecasts 6.6 percent growth. While there is no doubt that growth is necessary for the fight against poverty, it is hardly sufficient. The same is true for productive job creation, which has been high on the political agenda since at least the early 2000s. The ambition of “Targeting Ten Million Employment Opportunities Per Year” in 2002, or close to one million jobs per month, has now doubled to 20 million jobs yearly. Rural youth unwilling to work in the place of their birth are increasingly seeking non-farm employment elsewhere. This includes foreign countries. In May 2023, India signed an agreement with Israel to send workers for 42,000 jobs in construction and nursing. The government also started a scheme called Agnipath in 2022 to recruit soldiers, sailors and air force personnel. Marking a departure from past recruitment policy, the Agnipath recruits have a four-year tenure with no gratuity or pension benefits for three-quarters of each batch who will be discharged after the period. The scheme’s announcement was met with protests in different parts of the country. The slow transition away from agriculture and into the non-farm sectors is a bleak characteristic of the Indian labour market. The share of manufacturing employment, despite firm policies, has been stagnant, at around 12 percent. Construction and services have absorbed excess labour but on the whole, most people are self-employed or in casual jobs. Nearly 90 percent of jobs are informal. The share of wages in the net value added by industries has declined while the share of profits has climbed, reflecting a capital-intensive production process, exactly the opposite of what a labour-abundant country like India needs. India thus needs to boost manufacturing growth to absorb more workers and realise the principal intent underlying the “Make in India” initiative. That would also reverse the “jobless” growth stigma which has typified the otherwise flattering Indian growth story. Rajat Kathuria is a Professor of Economics and Dean, School of Social Sciences and Humanities, Shiv Nadar University. This article has been republished as part of a series on the 2024 Indian elections. It was originally published on April 25. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Migrant workers” sent at: 25/04/2024 05:00. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 29, 2024

Delivery drivers dicing with death - 360 Evan Iacobucci, Noreen McDonald Published on December 6, 2022 The rumble of delivery trucks rattling through dense urban streets is a familiar sound, but behind the convenience of ecommerce lies risk to road users. The COVID-19 pandemic saw consumers everywhere shift to shopping online, with food and goods arriving on their doorstep at the click of a mouse or tap of a screen. But behind the scenes of this convenience is a mind-bogglingly large fleet of delivery vehicles, the rapid expansion of which is affecting traffic congestion, pollution, and safety as vans compete with other road users for road capacity—and crucially—space at the kerb. Even before the pandemic, a quiet revolution in purchasing habits was already underway. Between 2014 and 2019, parcel delivery volume in the United States grew by around a billion packages per year. But 2020 saw this figure grow by a whopping five billion packages, accelerating ecommerce adoption by over five years — a trend which experts project will continue to grow. The impacts of this explosion are being felt deeply in the ‘last mile’ of goods delivery: the phase of the supply chain in which goods are transported to their final destination, like a customer’s home. Dense urban areas are particularly feeling the squeeze, since space is at a premium and there is no room to expand, leading shipping carriers to pay millions of dollars in parking fines each year as a part of the cost of doing business. Delivery drivers often draw ire for blocking traffic, but research shows they try to avoid doing so when possible. The research, which analysed 622 Reddit comments by delivery drivers (mostly delivering for Amazon), shows a cohort who worry daily about their safety and livelihood. As one driver said: “99 [percent] of the drivers I know will only block traffic if there is absolutely no other option.” Instead, drivers described trying to stick to tight delivery schedules while navigating limited parking, traffic, and other factors (like accessing apartment buildings) eat up valuable time. Drivers devised strategies to address these challenges, most commonly discussed being the use of unauthorised spaces, even as they do not relish the practice. To be clear, this does not mean drivers parked illegally most of the time, but rather they were concerned they sometimes had to. One driver told of how “many times [they] are forced to park illegally … which obviously is not right and feels horrible”. The most discussed types of unauthorised parking included parking on the wrong side of the street, blocking the road, using a no parking zone, and parking on a footpath or kerb. In turn, the main reasons for these behaviours were there was nowhere else to park, it would take too long to find an authorised space, and parking legally would require drivers to engage in unsafe behaviour, like crossing through traffic on a busy street. And while parking fines paid by large shipping companies are the stuff of legend, the drivers sampled most frequently said law enforcement left them alone, understanding their options were extremely limited. A key implication of these driver experiences is the increasing squeeze on day-to-day operations in the last mile consistently sets up potentially unsafe situations, the hazards of which are compounded by the need to hurry. “When you are parked on a busy road do you ever think this could be the day a driver rear ends the van and kills me?” one driver asked in a post. Another replied: “I’m standing in the back of the van hearing cars and trucks whip past and praying I don’t rag doll like an unsecured box.” On crossing the road, another driver said, “I’ve almost been hit twice trying to cross a busy road. I would rather be fired or ticketed [than] die holding an Amazon package.” These insights about driver concern added to investigative journalism suggesting the increasing influx of rapidly moving freight into the last mile of the transportation system is causing casualties among other road users. Though implementation presents a major challenge, a litany of innovative solutions are available as cities look to respond to the continued growth of ecommerce and “last mile” urban freight. Freight demand management solutions like microhubs, where freight can be brought to a central neighbourhood location before being delivered by modes like a cargo bicycle, and pick-up points/lockers, where packages can be left to later be collected by recipients, can drastically reduce the amount of driving required for a vehicle to deliver packages, reducing congestion and safety hazards. Kerb management systems, like commercial vehicle loading zones,  reservation systems, and loading zone pricing help to ensure available space at the kerb for deliveries. Most promising, however, is the opportunity for cities to implement safety initiatives, rethinking the design and use of their streets. US city streets are designed to accommodate large vehicles and dedicate most of their kerb space to personal vehicle parking, leaving vulnerable road users (bicyclists and pedestrians) and freight delivery personnel to vie for what is left. Forward-thinking urban planners, however, are focusing on street designs that reprioritise street uses to reduce conflicts between freight, vulnerable road users, and motorists, while redesigned freight and service vehicles can more harmoniously navigate these spaces. Evan Iacobucci is a postdoctoral research associate in the Department of City and Regional Planning at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His work focuses on transportation behaviour, specifically how people perceive and interact with the world around them, and how their attitudes and perceptions relate to their support for transport policy. Current projects focus on urban freight, car-free travel, and the impacts of COVID-19 on the future of transportation. Their research was undertaken with funding from the Southeastern Transportation Research, Innovation, Development and Education Center (STRIDE). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on December 6, 2022

Democracy loses as Putin wins again - 360 Lachlan Guselli Published on March 19, 2024 There was no doubt Vladimir Putin would win Russia’s election, but the amount of people showing up gave this sham vote its veneer of legitimacy. Vladimir Putin has won yet another term as Russian President. His win, with around 88 percent of the vote, means he is set to be in charge of the cross-continental super power until at least 2030, meaning he is likely to overtake Josef Stalin as the country’s longest-serving ruler. Putin’s vice-like grip over Russia’s political landscape and media leaves no room for fair elections to flourish, yet the Russian isn’t the only leader thumbing his nose at democracy and the finer points of multi-party systems. Across the globe, increasingly, autocratic leaders are leveraging the legitimacy of general elections and political opposition as a way to keep protesters off the street and things like corruption and poor policy out of the spotlight. While many see this as an issue for nations familiar with one party rule, the slow creep of dictatorial tendencies is being seen by some as a way around the hard work of living in a society that wants lots of different things as opposed to what politicians see as good for them. While Moscow may fail to convince many that Vladimir Putin is anything but a tsar-like figure, can US republicans claim to be anymore devoted to multi-party politics with the party getting behind a candidate who vows to be a dictator “for a day”  if he is reelected in November.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 19, 2024

Designing an office worth going back to - 360 Iva Durakovic, Christhina Candido, Samin Marzban Published on February 28, 2024 Building the workplaces of the future means rethinking how office space is used and what flexibility means. The key to the office of the future will be flexibility – not just flexibility about where people work, but in how to address the challenges facing workers and employers alike, taking into account physical workspace, the diversity of people’s needs and the power of technology. For many people, COVID-19’s reordering of work routines has lingered, even after daily life mostly seems to have returned to something like before. But in the process, it has exposed some of the vulnerabilities and strengths – and possibilities – in how people relate to their workplace, especially office environments. It has also led to an ongoing tension. Employers demand a full return of workers to the office. Employees expect flexible working arrangements such as working from home and offices that actually enable them to work better. At the same time, technology is changing the nature of work altogether. AI and other technologies should ideally liberate us to prioritise high-value tasks. As a result, the office environment will still be needed for interpersonal learning and time – but on different terms than in the past. Recent Australian research in workplace design and environmental psychology points to some ways to rethink how office space is used and what flexibility can mean. At the core of these findings is the idea of people’s attachment to place and ‘placemaking’. This concept goes directly to our sense of productivity and effectiveness – that is, how much the workplace allows us to work better. Australian property development firm Mirvac created an experimental work floor within its Sydney headquarters in 2022 to test what kinds of physical space and technology were most effective in supporting seamless hybrid work. Designers created various workspaces using furniture, adaptable power sources, Wi-Fi and mobile technologies to facilitate different tasks in each area. Teams were given a single instruction: choose a space and use it within a set timeframe. The specifics of how, why and when they used the space were left up to them. Our study of the pilot underscored the importance of responsive and dynamic environments to boost the productivity of high-performance teams. Being able to reconfigure office elements allowed users to form new work habits and patterns. This flexibility – combined with clearly defined space functions and strong leadership empowering employees’ working styles – maximised the way technology could support team connectivity and collaboration. Many workers are finding themselves re-evaluating the time and cost of a commute to the office. That calculation involves some fundamental questions: How much learning, mentorship and growth do I gain from the personal interactions made possible in the office? How connected, aligned, supported, secure and safe – and proud – do I feel in this environment? Our home offices or other working environments, crafted by necessity during the height of the pandemic, are often more fit for individual and highly focused work than what a typical office can offer. Employers need to consider how to respond to this shift in expectations. Before forcing workers back full-time into the same old open-plan environments, they should be evaluating whether these spaces are fit for purpose in terms of the tasks, health and well-being of the occupants they support. Prioritising user experience, fine-tuning work spaces to support user needs and designing for health and well-being will deliver higher levels of satisfaction, perceived productivity and creativity. The physical workplace is tied to people’s deeper psyche as a place of safety, belonging and ritual. We all operate to some degree by the mechanisms of what environmental psychologists term ‘place attachment’ (the emotional bonds we form with physical and symbolic places over time) and ‘place identity’, an aspect of the self relating to our preferences, values, feelings and goals – essentially, the inherent connection between people and place. Connection to place is part of our ‘brain wiring’ for completing tasks – how we navigate routines and make transitions between different types of thinking. The office is a place to form professional networks and communities. Our ability to read non-verbal cues, to overhear and sense the ‘vibe’ of our teams, organisations and management reassures us. It underpins the authenticity of our interactions, fostering deeper levels of trust and cultural bonds through shared experience. Those bonds help us understand we are a part of a community. Research tracking Australian worker’s work-from-home experiences throughout the Australian Covid lockdowns of 2020 revealed how ingrained the physical office environment was to knowledge workers’ sense of professionalism and effectiveness. For managers, being disconnected from the office environment cut to the core of their ability to do their job – managing people – and affected their sense of professional identity. For employees, particularly among younger generations, the pandemic confirmed what is often being leveraged today to bring workers back into the office: the connectedness, camaraderie and psychological safety that come with our feeling of belonging to our workplaces. One of the biggest drivers in the push back to the office has been lack of leadership trust, which is always a barrier to new ways of working. Managers want to keep a tight rein on employees. But overly controlling and distrustful management directly correlates to higher reporting of psychosocial hazards, including poor physical work environment, lack of organisational justice and weaker workplace relationships – none of which supports positive performance. An individual’s sense of trust from coworkers holds the key to almost everything – it affects a person’s connection and cohesion with the team, affirms their value to their team and promotes greater autonomy and ownership of work. People feel more creative, energised and able to work on collaborative tasks and idea generation when they are physically together. Emotional intelligence might be the next frontier for AI and other digital systems, but there is no replacement for the human response triggered by real face-to-face encounters. The experiences of adapting to new work routines and technologies during the pandemic have fundamentally re-routed our neural pathways. People have adjusted their work styles to match the optimum tools and spaces to different tasks – video-conferencing is great for information transfer, but in-person is better for creative sparks, while the home office is ideal for long stretches of deeply focused work. As much as in-person work may promote connection, knowledge-sharing and creativity, other individual work activities have been shown to be more effective when done elsewhere. Remote working is a skill we can improve over time. Our research suggests that focusing on guidance within clear functional parameters empowers teams to make the most of their work spaces and working styles – rather than imposing standardised experiences. Positive experiences naturally emerge within an optimised framework of tools and support. Choices about where, how and when we work have also opened increasing opportunities for neurodiverse workers and workers with disability or other competing responsibilities, enabling them to manage their needs autonomously for optimal work output. An Australian-based study of the impact of working from home found direct long-term benefits for workers living with disability. From an employee perspective, flexibility means autonomy, choice and better integration of work with life. For employers, there’s no single correct solution, but putting trust in your teams, supporting their work styles with the right tools and the right spaces, and providing structural support for their relationships to flourish are going to be what keeps them coming back. Iva Durakovic is an interior architect and lecturer at UNSW Faculty of Arts, Design and Architecture with over 10 years of industry experience delivering high-profile, award-winning workplaces. Her research investigates behavioural impacts of workplace design, its physical and experiential performance. She sits on IWBI’s Movement Concept Advisory, Green Building Council of Australia Fit-outs expert reference panel, and leads workplace projects at the Sustainable and Healthy Environments (SHE) Lab at the University of Melbourne. Christhina Candido is an associate professor at the University of Melbourne Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, where she directs the SHE (Sustainable and Healthy Environments) Lab. Her research bridges the gap between design and performance from an end-user perspective. She is an IWBI Global Research Advisor and WELL Faculty member. Samin Marzban is a lecturer with the School of Civil, Mining, Environmental and Architectural Engineering at the University of Wollongong, Australia. Her research focuses on Indoor Environmental Quality, Post-Occupancy Evaluation, performance-based design, optimization, and energy efficiency. As a member of the SHE Lab, she led award-winning papers focus on Australian workplaces. This research was funded by the Australian Government through the Australian Research Council’s Discovery Projects funding scheme (project DP190100705) and the Alastair Swayn Strategic Research Grant. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Future of work” sent at: 26/02/2024 12:31. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 28, 2024

Designing infectious disease warnings that work - 360 Claudia Fernandez De Cordoba Farini, UCL Warning Research Centre, Ilan Kelman Published on March 28, 2022 Most infectious disease warning systems have been set up to fail as they focus on science, not people. COVID-19 was not the first pandemic where people asked whether we were warned properly, whether governments acted on the warnings and what could have been done differently. SARS swept the world in 2002–04, yet we were ill-equipped to respond when COVID-19, the second coronavirus pandemic within a generation, appeared just 15 years later. A study by University College London (UCL) has found most infectious-disease warnings are set up to fail. Their design and implementation could be substantially improved. Out of 38 infectious-disease warning systems identified in the UCL study, 33 monitored health threats only after they had reached animal or human populations. The systems focused heavily on technical abilities to monitor, forecast and detect the presence of a health threat. These abilities are vital, but better detection does not necessarily mean better responses. Both SARS and COVID-19 were detected early. But several governments attempted to cover up bad news and avoid swift action, in a bid to limit economic and social impacts. It was the same with other outbreaks, including the H1N1 flu pandemic in 2009, Ebola in West Africa in 2013 and Zika in 2015. The mantra that surveillance and early detection succeeded was repeated in all cases, but action based on warnings was still delayed. Anticipatory warnings can instead identify a new infectious disease and tackle the risks before it spreads to the community. But creating anticipatory warnings requires extensive monitoring and a closer look at all social contributors to infectious diseases. These include ecosystem destruction, livestock production that intensifies human-animal interactions, illegal wildlife trade and transport, and overall hygiene. One example of good practice is the European Environment and Epidemiology Network directly examining the environmental factors that increase the risk of international outbreaks. Warning systems are fundamentally a social process and require social-sciences analysis to ensure success. Social sciences explain the intersections between health threats, political incentives and economic motivations. They help to evaluate which methods are more effective for communicating risk and uncertainty, especially to different populations. They also determine culturally appropriate actions, incentives and accountability processes. A key target for infectious-disease warnings is to identify the most promising ways scientists and other professionals can collaborate and send out the right messages. Doing so requires the detection of potential threats, assessments of the risks, effective government communication strategies and good decision-making processes. The majority of formal infectious-disease warnings operate from the top down and are managed by international and global organisations. They are often placed within other political or economic institutions and so experience the limitations associated with large organisations: bureaucracy, lack of transparency and inability to accept accountability. For example, the second-largest Ebola outbreak occurred in the Democratic Republic of Congo from 2018 to 2020. One analysis found international responses were hampered by the failure to declare the situation a Public Health Emergency of International Concern under international law. This failure arose from overly bureaucratic procedures, poor transparency in the decision-making process and a lack of accountability among decision makers. Increasing collaboration and data sharing, especially among national governments, can support science diplomacy for public health emergencies. And improving bottom-up approaches, such as community-based warning systems, can bring together prevention, anticipation and responses across various decision-making scales and processes. Public health and environmental health are not integrated enough to efficiently provide infectious-disease warnings. Most warning systems are managed by human- or animal-health specialists, shaping how the issue is framed from the beginning. The range of responses remains confined to a single perspective. Even interdisciplinary efforts such as One Health and EcoHealth are sometimes interpreted or applied in such a way that they largely rely on human-centred perspectives and values. The risks of highlighting human interests in infectious-disease warnings were seen in Egypt during the H1N1 pandemic. Political and religious narratives stigmatised pigs and supported a huge cull, even though pigs were used by a religious minority to sort through much of Cairo’s waste. The focus on managing H1N1 failed to account for the urban waste problem and associated health threat that resulted from killing the pigs. Warnings need to include a multitude of sectors, priorities and values. While the links between public health, community health, animal health and ecosystem health are strengthening, these sectors can remain isolated from the prevention of and responses to disease outbreaks. The answer to identifying the threat well before a pandemic manifests is to ensure infectious-disease warnings address the complete picture. Claudia Fernandez de Cordoba Farini is an affiliate of the UCL Warning Research Centre. She is also scientific advisor and researcher for the Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs in the UK Government and an associate in the Health and Life Sciences Team at Global Counsel. She declares no conflict of interest. Ilan Kelman is Professor of Disasters and Health at University College London, England, and a Professor II at the University of Agder, Kristiansand, Norway. His overall research interest is linking disasters and health, including the integration of climate change into disaster research and health research. Kelman receives funding from research councils in the UK and Norway, as well as from the Wellcome Trust and internal UCL funding. He is also Professor II at the University of Agder in Norway and co-directs the non-profit organisation Risk RED (Risk Reduction Education for Disasters). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 28, 2022

Despotic regimes a new global competitor to be reckoned with - 360 John Keane Published on December 11, 2021 Apologists for autocracies are upbeat, as powerful democracies worldwide are warped and weighed down. The new despotisms should wake up democrats everywhere. By John Keane, University of Sydney Three decades ago, democracy seemed blessed. People power mattered. Public resistance to arbitrary rule changed the world. Military dictatorships collapsed. Apartheid was toppled. The Soviet empire imploded. There were velvet revolutions, followed by tulip, rose and orange revolutions. Now things are different. In Belarus, Bolivia, Myanmar, Hong Kong and elsewhere, citizens are arrested, imprisoned, beaten and executed. Elsewhere, democrats are on the back foot, worried that big-league democracies such as India, the United States, Britain, South Africa and Brazil are sliding towards a precipice, dragged down by worsening social inequality, citizen disaffection and the rot of unresponsive governing institutions. That’s not all. The gloom is compounded by increasing awareness that power-sharing, monitory democracies are now facing a new global competitor: despotic regimes, such as Turkey, Russia, the UAE, Iran and China, whose top-down political architecture and cunning efforts to win the loyalty of their subjects is unlike anything known to the earlier modern world. Public apologists of these regimes are upbeat. They are busily denouncing US President Joe Biden’s 2021 ‘Summit for Democracy’ as a self-contradictory American attempt to carve up the world in its favour. Chinese critics are especially scathing in their attacks on American-style “liberal democracy”. A white paper recently published by China’s State Council Information Office trumpets the material successes of the country’s “whole-process people’s democracy“. Scholar Su Changhe says that a key priority is to “pull apart the language of Western democracy” and expose its “social divisions, ethnic antagonisms, political strife, endless political instability and weak and feeble governments”. China’s best-known science-fiction writer, Liu Cixin, puts things more sharply. “If China were to transform into a democracy, it would be hell on earth,” he says, a provocation that reappears in a scene towards the end of his best-seller trilogy Remembrance of Earth’s Past. It describes the disasters produced by the invasion of planet Earth by an alien species that quarantines most of our planet’s population onto the Australian continent. “The society of resettled populations transformed in profound ways,” he writes. “People realised that, on this crowded, hungry continent, democracy was more terrifying than despotism. Everyone yearned for order and a strong government.” Heavy-duty government sanctioned by “the people” is exactly what’s offered by the rulers of a new crop of despotisms that are proving to be a practical alternative to power-sharing polities. These rulers are encouraged by their subjects’ feelings that Western democracy is falling apart. Hence their temptation to confront these democracies, to challenge them on a global scale, just as dictatorships, monarchies and totalitarian regimes did a century ago when encircling parliamentary democracies. These new despotisms mustn’t be confused with 20th-century fascism or totalitarianism, or with old fashioned tyrannies or military dictatorships. And they aren’t ‘autocracies’, if by that word it means a type of government in which a single ruler violently lords over the realm. Despotism is rather a new type of strong state, a form of ‘phantom democracy’ led by rulers skilled at manipulating and meddling with people’s lives, marshalling their support, and winning their conformity. Despotisms craft top-to-bottom relations of dependency oiled by wealth, money, law, elections and by talk of defending “the people” and “the nation” (the phrases are often interchangeable in local languages) against “domestic subversives” and “foreign enemies”. Despotisms are top-down pyramids of manipulative power. They are also highly unequal forms of state capitalism, but it’s a mistake to suppose they are based simply on repression and raw force. Despotisms in practice strive to learn the arts of nimble governance. They do more than repeat the mantra of “popular sovereignty”: their leaders harness public opinion polling agencies, think tanks, election campaigns, happiness forums, policy feedback groups, online hearings and other early warning detectors. The rulers of the new despotisms are deception and seduction perfectionists. They do all they can to camouflage the violence they wield against those who refuse to conform. Using a combination of slick means, including calibrated coercion masked by balaclavas, they manage to win the loyalty of sections of the middle classes, skilled and unskilled workers, and the poor. Despotisms are hard governments in soft velvet form. They work tirelessly to lure their subjects into subjection. Voluntary servitude is their thing. And they hunt in packs. The new despotisms, led by a globally resurgent China and a belligerent Russia, are skilled at navigating multilateral institutions to win business partners and do military deals well beyond the borders of the states they rule. While Erdoğan, Putin, Lukashenko and other new despots claim to practice their own forms of ‘democracy’ grounded in the authority of ‘the people’, they have no love of the free elections and public watchdog institutions of monitory democracy. They can be ruthless and vengeful, yet they’re not blindly reckless. They often pay meticulous attention to details, cleverly interfere with people’s lives, stand over them, and sometimes bully them into submission. The public support the rulers enjoy is thus surprising, especially when it’s considered that despotisms are dominated by bigshot poligarchs, rich government and business tycoons who concentrate staggering amounts of wealth in their own hands, and within the family dynasties they control and protect. Democracies such as Britain, Spain, South Africa and the most powerful of them all, the United States, are similarly warped and weighed down by massive inequalities of wealth and life chances. During the coming year we’re likely to hear much extravagant talk of an epochal battle between “autocracy” and “democracy”. The rhetoric is quixotic. It camouflages messier realities. Think of the way a new kind of “surveillance capitalism” run by giant state-backed data harvesting corporations is colonising, manipulating, and reshaping the personal lives of many millions of people for the sake of profit and power. Or how populists and elected populist governments in countries such as India and the United States, said to be the world’s largest and oldest democracies, are potentially agents of despotism. Nourished by citizen disaffection and big business donations, populists, in the name of “the people”, spread disinformation, attack independent courts, discredit expertise and ‘presstitutes’ (Narendra Modi’s word for investigative journalism), and boost executive rule. During elections, populists promise redemption for all. In practice, helped by dark money, lobbying, patronage, and tighter links between government, loyal journalists and the corporate world, they work to destroy democracy in favour of top-down rule by the few of the many. In these and other ways, democracies serve as incubators of despotism. When it’s also considered that democracies and despotisms are entangled and jointly cooperate in such fields as transport infrastructure projects, banking, and arms deals, it should be clear that the principles and practices of constitutional, power-sharing democracies, as we have known them since the 1940s, are today threatened not just by outside political rivals. The experience of Hungary, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkey – to name just the best-known recent cases – show that a transition from some kind of power-sharing democracy to despotism can happen rapidly, in not much longer than a decade. These cases serve as warnings that the spirit and substance of monitory democracy can be snuffed out through the back door, by stealth, bit-by-bit, using methods that bear a strong resemblance to those found in China, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and elsewhere. These new despotisms should wake up democrats everywhere. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. John Keane is Professor of Politics at the University of Sydney and the WZB (Berlin). He is renowned globally for his creative thinking about politics and democracy and is the author of many distinguished books including The Life and Death of Democracy (2009), Democracy and Media Decadence (2013), When Trees Fall, Monkeys Scatter (2017) and The New Despotism ( 2020). He was nominated for the 2021 Balzan Prize and the Holberg Prize for outstanding global contributions to the human sciences. His latest book, The Shortest History of Democracy is published in early 2022. Editors Note: In the story “Year of the Pivot” sent at: 11/12/2021 18:20. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on December 11, 2021

Developing economies risk exclusion as 'age of AI' dawns - 360 Merih Angin, Jack Loveridge Published on May 16, 2022 Artificial intelligence is set to be a multi-trillion dollar industry by 2030, but developing economies risk falling behind unless changes are made. It’s estimated artificial intelligence (AI) will add as much as US$15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030. If current trends continue, much of this new wealth will be owned and controlled by corporations and individuals based in China and the United States, as well as by the national governments that represent them. But technological superiority by great powers undermines the positive potential of AI for the majority of the world’s population, particularly in developing economies. The US and China account for more than 94 percent of funding for AI startups over the past five years, and half of the world’s hyperscale data centres. The two countries possess roughly 90 percent of the market capitalisation of the world’s 70 largest digital platforms, controlling a large proportion of cross-border data flows. Along with their allies, the nations that own and control AI platforms and the data that powers them stand to dominate the global economy for decades to come. Experts in the field are also mostly from developed economies. They enjoy a disproportionate representation in the industry bodies that develop the standards and technical protocols that shape the international regulations for AI, often at the expense of the differing needs of developing economies. Over 160 sets of AI ethics and governance frameworks have so far been developed by policymakers, think tanks, and activists. Still, there are no platforms to coordinate these initiatives, or measures to ensure national governments align AI regulations and norms across international boundaries. The growing divide has implications for developing economies marginalised by the emerging AI sector. Establishing a global database to track and monitor emerging AI legislation and regulations will capture and compare approaches and debates, particularly from developing economies. The OECD’s Artificial Intelligence Policy Observatoryis a promising start but it can be built upon. A recently released report from a working group convened by the Paris Peace Forum says an open, international dialogue on equitable AI governance could help set up global regulations. These would consider human rights and equal opportunities relevant to the needs of developing economies. And address rapidly-increasing socioeconomic inequality, meeting the challenges of sustainable development while achieving robust economic growth, and dismantling the enduring structures of colonialism. This dialogue aspires toward a set of universal AI principles developed by a transparent, informed, and widely-recognised international process. They could serve as a reference point for policies and legislation across national contexts and eventually translate into enforceable standards. For example, it would be sensible for governments in developing economies to ensure corporate accountability when they procure AI-based services. Compulsory social impact assessment risk analysis for any AI services offered by foreign corporations is one solution. Such approaches, including mandatory source code disclosures, can motivate compliance with domestic laws and protect rights while discouraging market abuses. When source code is accessible to the public — and particularly to vigilant developers — platform owners are less likely to support designs that permit or profit from illegal activities. Governments of developing economies can remedy the widening imbalance between data providers and data collectors by creating incentives for foreign tech companies to invest in domestic research and development facilities to amplify local AI capabilities. It is also important to deter ‘brain drain’, where top experts leave their homes to pursue international opportunities, by promoting incentives such as funds for innovation and R&D to retain and further develop domestic talent. In an emerging AI economy, an exodus may prove particularly detrimental in exacerbating the financial imbalance between developed and developing economies. The benefits of AI are plenty, but mitigating the potential harm is crucial. An international dialogue, focused on results, can create an equitable distribution of AI technologies. Merih Angin is an Assistant Professor of International Relations & the Director of MA-Computational Social Sciences Lab at Koç University. She works in the areas of international development, computational social sciences and artificial intelligence governance. Dr. Angin co-chaired the ‘Initiate: Digital Rights in Society Algorithmic Governance’ working group, convened by the Paris Peace Forum. Jack Loveridge is a Research Associate at Koç University’s Center for Globalization, Peace, and Democratic Governance (GLODEM). He is also a co-founder of Initiate: Digital Rights in Society and Senior Policy Adviser to the Paris Peace Forum on algorithmic governance issues. Dr. Loveridge co-chaired the ‘Initiate: Digital Rights in Society Algorithmic Governance’ working group, convened by the Paris Peace Forum. The Working Group was supported by a grant from Luminate. The authors declare no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 16, 2022

Did space give Earth the spark of life? OSIRIS-REx might tell us - 360 Janaína Nunes Ávila Published on September 22, 2023 NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission will allow scientists to put asteroid Bennu under the microscope and perhaps answer questions about the origins of life on Earth. On 24 September 2023, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will return a capsule to Earth containing samples from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu that could reveal tantalising clues to how life emerged on our planet and offer a window into the early Solar System. It is the first US mission to collect a sample from an asteroid, but the third overall. Given lessons from the previous missions and the makeup of Bennu itself, it could be the most enlightening mission yet. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Hayabusa and Hayabusa2 missions returned samples from asteroids Itokawa and Ryugu in 2010 and 2020 respectively. The estimated 250g sample from Bennu on OSIRIS-REx could include material from the early times of our Solar System, perhaps even earlier. And with humanity still inspired by the question of how life began on our planet, it could also show signs of the very building blocks of life. Bennu is a time capsule from the early Solar System. It’s a carbon-rich asteroid likely formed from debris ejected from a larger parent asteroid in a cataclysmic collision. Though Bennu was probably formed about a billion years ago, the debris that makes it up is believed to date back to the first 10 million years of the Solar System. It’s estimated that the Solar System formed about 4.57 billion years ago. Some of the microscopic grains in Bennu could be even older than that. From OSIRIS-REx observations, scientists have learnt that Bennu’s surface contains widespread water-bearing minerals as well as organic materials — essential ingredients for life on Earth. Scientists have long theorised that extraterrestrial material could have contributed some of the building blocks of life. Several studies have shown that some of the most primitive meteorites contain water-rich minerals and organic matter as well as abiotically synthesised amino acids that are fundamental in cellular metabolism — life doesn’t happen without them. But as meteorites are exposed to Earth’s atmosphere and environment, there are concerns that their composition could change through terrestrial contamination. To solve that problem, sample return missions allow laboratory measurements of pristine, uncontaminated, extraterrestrial samples. Measurements carried out on samples from Ryugu have shown the presence of amino acids, uracil, which is one of the four constituents of RNA, and niacin, an essential nutrient for metabolism in living organisms. Most importantly, the findings show a relationship between the abundance of amino acids and signs of change through reactions with water — a process known as aqueous alteration. It suggests the importance of liquid water in the formation of essential ingredients for life. Bennu shares many properties with Ryugu, with both being classified as carbonaceous — or carbon-rich — asteroids. Bennu is rich in water-bearing minerals and carbon-bearing organic molecules. This composition — as well as its pristine conditions and age — give researchers hope the samples will answer fundamental questions. They hope to learn about the origin of primordial organic molecules, the role of water and other volatile elements in the formation and evolution of life’s building blocks, and the contribution of asteroids like Bennu to the prebiotic chemistry of the early Earth. Laboratory analysis of samples from Bennu should also provide a glimpse of the first ten million years of the Solar System — a time that saw processing and accretion of dust and gas into planet-sized bodies. Most of the knowledge about planet formation in the Solar System has until now been drawn from astronomical observations and the study of primitive meteorites. The Bennu sample can offer more concrete evidence because the asteroid preserves dust and volatile compounds from a turbulent period of planet formation. Some of the microscopic grains in Bennu could be even older than the Solar System. Known as stardust or presolar grains, these grains formed from cooling gas ejected from dying stars and material thrown out by supernova explosions before the formation of the Solar System. Presolar grains were incorporated into the molecular cloud from which our Sun, planets, moons, asteroids, comets, and meteorites formed but survived intact only in the most pristine solar system materials. They are found as trace components in primitive meteorites and recently were also detected in fragments from Ryugu. Bennu has a higher level of aqueous alteration than Ryugu, so it’s likely that some of the presolar grains were destroyed and only the more resistant grains would be preserved. The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft launched on its journey to asteroid Bennu on 8 September 2016. It arrived at Bennu on 3 December 2018. For nearly two years, OSIRIS-REx orbited Bennu, performing a detailed survey of the asteroid, mapping its surface, size, and shape, and studying its rotational properties as well as its composition. On 20 October 2020, with a manoeuvre known as ‘Touch-And-Go’, OSIRIS-REx carried out its primary science objective, touching down on Bennu for about six seconds and collecting material from its surface. Now, almost three years after that manoeuvre, OSIRIS-REx is close to releasing to Earth its sample capsule containing material collected from Bennu. The end of this sample return mission on 24 September 2023 will mark the start of research that will keep scientists busy for decades. Dr Janaína Nunes Ávila is an isotope geochemist and cosmochemist. She is a research fellow in the School of the Environment at the University of Queensland. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on September 22, 2023

Disaster proofing healthcare key to flood resilience - 360 Sotiris Vardoulakis, Veronica Matthews, Ross Bailie Published on October 10, 2022 Building back smarter from floods is about more than infrastructure. As Australia is finding out, improvements to healthcare are key to the solution. In the aftermath of the devastating floods that hit eastern Australia in early 2022, affected residents were left with serious questions about the country’s resilience to intensifying extreme weather events and the institutions tasked with mopping up afterwards. Floods in Australia are expected to happen more often, for longer, and with more intensity, owing to climate change. It is a matter of when, not if, the next destructive flood hits — and lives depend on strengthening the long-term resilience of health and social services across the country. The 2022 floods across areas of New South Wales and south-east Queensland brought death, housing and infrastructure damage, and disruptions to healthcare and other important services. Flooding can kill through drowning, injuries, poisonings and infections. But the visible, immediate effects that make the headlines are only a fraction of the overall health burden of floods. People affected by floods can experience long-lasting mental health conditions, such as depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. The problem is even more pronounced for vulnerable groups with existing health inequalities, such as people with disabilities, First Nations people, and socio-economically disadvantaged communities. In the view of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPC), which flagged it as a key risk in their 2022 report, Australia’s institutions are presently unable to properly manage climate challenges. Time is of the essence to improving resilience to flooding, particularly in the health sector. The IPCC report offered a good starting point: emphasising the value of tapping into a diverse knowledge base — scientific, local and Indigenous — to help communities adapt to climate change. Building flood resilience involves questions of engineering: rebuilding infrastructure in smarter ways and strengthening flood defences. But comprehensive flood protection demands a willingness to adopt fundamental changes: a reorganisation of community, health and the economy. In Australia, that means major investment in disaster management, and meaningful engagement with rural health services and First Nations communities. This all-in response isn’t just prompted by floods. The converging hazards of climate change (and disasters that result), rising obesity, and the COVID-19 pandemic are ripping open the cracks that are exposed by socio-economic inequalities, an ageing population, and unchecked urban sprawl. To rein in this trend, the government will have to ramp up their focus in many areas: planning land use through the lens of climate and flood resilience, lifting housing conditions, providing high-value health care, strengthening public health surveillance and emergency warning systems, and fostering a circular economy that will enable the transition towards net zero. Specifically, the health sector could use the moment of reconfiguration to zero in on chronic disease prevention, structural and operational resilience improvements, and reducing clinical waste, transport, water and energy. None of these transformations are simple, but the window is still open to start the work. The health sector has the opportunity to be part of the solution to flood devastation across all phases of disaster management, from prevention to preparedness to response and recovery. Flood preparedness and recovery plans should be developed in partnership with health and emergency services, disability organisations and community groups, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, to ensure that scientific knowledge is combined with local knowledge gained from practical experience and built from the ground up. Sotiris Vardoulakis is inaugural Professor of Global Environmental Health and Director of the NHMRC Healthy Environments And Lives (HEAL) National Research Network at the Australian National University. Veronica Matthews is a Senior Research Fellow at the University Centre for Rural Health, School of Health Sciences at the University of Sydney in Lismore, NSW. Ross Bailie is Professor of Rural Health with Sydney Medical School. He is based in the Northern Rivers and has responsibility for strategic development across the University of Sydney rural clinical schools. He was Director of the University Centre for Rural Health in Lismore between September 2016 and April 2022. The authors acknowledge the Healthy Environments And Lives (HEAL) National Research Network, which receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council Special Initiative in Human Health and Environmental Change (grant no. 2008937). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 10, 2022

Disillusioned young and fossil fuel reps: how COP27 nearly foundered - 360 Sali Bache, Susie Ho, Diane Kraal Published on November 23, 2022 As delegates depart the COP27 climate change conference in Egypt, it’s worth remembering that the ancient Egyptian civilisation lasted 3,000 years. The modern industrial society has taken just 150 years to begin destroying our way of life. Ancient Egyptians were closely aware of their physical surroundings, especially other living creatures in their land. Given that the target of 1.5 degrees is slipping from reach, their lessons are ever more salient. At this point, incremental change is not enough. The youth activist voice was strong again this year, despite the notable absence of leaders such as Greta Thunberg, but it sounded disenchanted. By the second week, some youth delegates were openly questioning the value of COPs. They called out countries and corporations for greenwashing. Youth were also vocal about the big issue of COP27, loss and damage finance — how much developed nations are willing to pay to developing nations, acknowledging that wealthy nations have reaped economic benefits from their own unsustainable development. As COP raced towards its late conclusion, a breakthrough occurred, with the EU spearheading a loss and damage fund. It became clear that a majority of countries want to quit fossil fuels, even if they are torn as to who pays the bill. There was a feeling on the ground that discussions should have further integrated the voices of those most impacted by climate change, such as First Nations peoples, women, and youth. Perhaps this occurred because the voices of minority groups and grassroots civil society were somewhat muted this year, with their attendees largely relegated to an approved protest space. Some younger delegates described the COP as feeling “dystopian” and “jarring”, also citing the largest number of fossil fuel lobbyists in attendance to date, a lack of food and water in the venue in the first week, price gouging at hotels, looming human rights issues, and the limited integration of voices from the global south despite the setting in Africa. Still, there was progress made on the Action for Climate Empowerment agenda from the Paris Agreement, which speaks to education, youth and public literacy. This could lead to better integration of the youth voice in national targets. Moreover, youth were not deterred speaking their minds plainly and urgently. They inspired and they mobilised. They found a global community that will no doubt sustain them in their work ahead. As youth delegate Isabelle Zhu-Maguire said, “Climate action is an exhausting space to be in and can be very isolating. So I hope activists are able to find each other at COP and create a community of love and support.” Energy, as expected, was a major focus at COP27. The ‘no to fossil fuels’ was the largest lobby group, followed closely by indigenous peoples’ rights. Their voices, however, were relegated to fringe pavilions and the courtyards. It was the proponents of blue hydrogen (a fuel produced using natural gas energy) and green hydrogen (a fuel produced using renewable energy) who occupied the prime pavilions with, it would seem, government support. For instance, Scotland’s biggest electricity retailer, SSE, provides gas-fired electricity and will switch to blue hydrogen, promising carbon capture and storage technology to address carbon dioxide emissions. Carbon capture and storage has not yet worked anywhere in the world. The person presenting for SSE had to be reminded that the goal was not a ‘low carbon economy’ but net zero. In the Australian pavilion, Fortescue Future Industries (FFI) spruiked for 10 minutes how green hydrogen will power their heavy transport assets for iron ore mining.  Nigeria too is moving toward a blue hydrogen plan. “Gas is a transition energy source” was the mantra according to the presentation from German tech company Siemens in the Nigeria pavilion. Solar and wind energy seemed to be second-choice renewables at the COP.  Perhaps in the quest for ‘jobs and growth’, governments favour infrastructure-heavy renewables, such as hydrogen, not only for domestic use — but for export via underwater transmission. Off the back of COP27, one state in Australia is proposing a Hydrogen and Renewable Energy Act to regulate large-scale hydrogen and renewable energy projects in their state. Most hydrogen facilities will need to desalinate seawater first, and then choose an energy source to split out the hydrogen from water. Questions remain as to how initiatives such as hydrogen will meaningfully reduce carbon dioxide emissions. The last few days of COP27 and the extended negotiations reflected prioritisation of these same issues. The resultant agreement paled in comparison to what was hoped for in the early stages of the meeting. An earlier draft text paid considerable attention to emerging issues such as the ocean and made progress on some key concepts. Discussions included a “phase out” of fossil fuels compared with last year’s text on a “phase down”. But in the end, phase down remained. Calls for sustained emissions reductions across “all sectors” ended up confined to “applicable sectors”: energy. The need to reach global peak emissions by 2025 was repeatedly highlighted throughout the meeting, however was not included in the final document. This was a missed opportunity for a true immediate ambition to be agreed by the global community — something that would have appropriately reflected the urgency of the climate crisis. Perhaps most concerning was the ongoing challenge to the 1.5 degree goal and questions of the science surrounding this. Indeed the issue of 1.5 was an ongoing theme not only in negotiations but also in the pavilions, where the first serious waning of confidence in both the feasibility and likelihood of reaching this target was seen. This was strongly countered by support for clarity and urgency in conveying the science. Failure to reach an agreement was a very real contemplation at Sharm el-Sheikh. This would have been the first time since COP6 in 2000 that parties did not issue a decision. It was a possibility that some countries were advocating for from the beginning, and that others only began raising when it appeared that there was a very real likelihood that the 2022 text would be a step backwards, not forward, from that agreed in last year’s climate conference. In the end agreement was reached. By next year, negotiators may perhaps have found a way to overcome the excessive fragmentation witnessed across governments, sectors and UN agencies to embrace the messaging repeated throughout civil society: that incremental change is not enough to reach 1.5 and that a just, equitable transformation of the system is needed now. Sali Bache is strategic advisor in international policy and ocean at Climateworks Centre within the Monash Sustainable Development Institute. Diane Kraal is an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow, Monash Business School. Susie Ho is the director of the Monash Innovation Guarantee in the Office of the Deputy Vice Chancellor Education. The authors declare no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 23, 2022

Disney's century of manufactured magic - 360 Rebecca Rowe Published on October 18, 2023 The company has survived by balancing its wholesome, family-oriented image with hard-nosed business strategies. The Walt Disney Company’s hundred-year journey from upstart cartoon studio to global media powerhouse reveals important insights into its capacity to shape culture, maintain relevance and navigate an ever-evolving entertainment landscape. As the company embarks on its second century, it’s crucial for consumers to see the conglomerate for what it truly is, beyond the enchantment it offers, and to consider its implications for society and the entertainment industry. From its origins in innovative animated filmmaking, it evolved broadly into children’s entertainment and survived the passing of founder Walt Disney, while showing remarkable resilience as television and later digital streaming revolutionised entertainment. Disney’s longevity and global influence can be attributed to a simple but effective strategy: a commitment to cultivating lifelong consumers. Walt Disney’s vision of capturing “the child in all of us, whether we be six or sixty” remains central to the company’s philosophy, transcending sentimentality to become a fundamental business principle. Walt Disney once described his work not as art, but as “show business, the business of building entertainment”. True to its founder’s word, the company has become perhaps one of the most effective businesses on the planet, and it has done so while generating an abundance of goodwill and public trust. The quest to capture “everyone” has long been at the heart of Disney’s response to cultural changes. For most of its history, Disney has made content that it feels is relatively neutral, occupying a safe cultural space between conservative and progressive. But as it nears 100, Disney’s tactics have begun to shift, as witnessed in its approach to the US culture wars. Disney has long been seen, for better or worse, as a purveyor of magic and innocence, a reputation intentionally built since its early days. Walt Disney consistently emphasised the importance of offering family entertainment and was uneasy about the notion of children attending films without parental supervision. Consequently, Disney’s content fosters a sense of intergenerational connection. Thanks to this marketing strategy and the company’s enduring connection to childhood and nostalgia, Disney consistently scores the highest brand intimacy of any company in any industry. Targeting each new generation across lifespans – from womb to tomb – the company ensures that its magical image permeates every age. Especially in the US and the UK, Disney’s reach is nearly inescapable. Consumers can’t even go to a grocery store without finding Disney characters on products such as bananas and cheese. There are also areas in which Disney operates with little consumer awareness. Through its ownership of more than 200 companies (including Marvel Entertainment, 21st Century Fox and ESPN), many of which carry no overt Disney branding, Disney subtly weaves its influence into the daily lives of millions. These diverse holdings further enable Disney to engage with consumers across lifespans. As soon as a baby is born, it can be put into clothes sold by Disney. Toddlers can watch shows aimed at the youngest viewers (Doc McStuffins, Bluey, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Spidey and His Amazing Friends) and play with a seemingly endless array of Disney toys. Children of all ages, of course, are encouraged to watch Disney’s and Pixar’s animated films. For tweens, there is Disney Channel programming (High School Musical, Descendants, The Owl House) and Hyperion Books (publisher of the worldwide phenomenon that is the Percy Jackson series). Through franchises such as the Marvel superheroes and Star Wars, Disney follows its audience as they grow up. Adults (especially Disney adults) can enjoy all of this content and are also catered to in Disney Parks (which have more adult visitors than children), Disney’s Broadway productions, movies from Touchstone Pictures and educational material from National Geographic and the History Channel. Disney content is also designed for passing down from one generation to the next. This strategy of transgenerational media encourages parents to share their media experiences with their children. Perhaps the most visible way Disney encourages the connection between generations is with its theme parks, beginning with the opening of Disneyland in 1955 in California. Some have likened family visits to the parks to religious pilgrimages or rites of passage. Generations of adults have brought their children to the parks, and those children have grown into adults who in turn bring their children, and the cycle continues. But cultural change has once again forced Disney to adapt in order to survive. The company’s confrontation with the state of Florida in 2022 revealed a significant shift: although Disney is one of the largest employers of LGBTQ people in Florida, when Republicans in the state legislature first proposed the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” Bill – which would directly affect Disney cast members and their families by banning any reference to sexual orientation or gender identity in lower school grades – Disney not only did nothing, but it was quickly revealed the company had financially supported one of the main backers of the bill. Following criticism of its silence, Disney very publicly spoke out against the Bill, taking a divisive political stance for perhaps the first time in its history. The move, aimed at safeguarding its reputation, underscores the intricate balancing act Disney performs: maintaining an image as a wholesome, family-oriented media creator while adapting as a competitive, ever-evolving business. The moral of the story, if one can be found, is that Disney has weaponised its association with childhood to build one of the largest conglomerates in the world. Sometimes it uses that power for good, such as in its defence of LGBTQ people and communities in Florida. Other times it uses its power to directly attack anyone who tries to use Disney’s intellectual property – or does nothing (as it first tried to do in Florida). If, as Spider-Man’s Uncle Ben tells us, with great power comes great responsibility, Disney has the capability to do so much with the goodwill it has garnered and the business acumen it has generated. It spent a hundred years developing one of the best marketing strategies in the world; maybe it will spend the next hundred using it to make the world a better place. Rebecca Rowe is an assistant professor of children’s literature at Texas A&M University-Commerce and editor of the International Journal of Disney Studies. Her research focuses on the concepts of childhood and adulthood, especially the relationship between children’s media and adult fans. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 18, 2023

Diving into the abyss for new medicines - 360 Marcel Jaspars Published on January 31, 2022 The potential for new pharmaceutical lies in the ocean, but its biodiversity is unprotected and under threat. By Marcel Jaspars, University of Aberdeen The deep ocean can be a source of new medicines for human diseases, but its biodiversity is unprotected and under threat. An upcoming United Nations conference is hoping to address this, but the process has been years in the making. Life in the deep ocean is different. Compared to terrestrial organisms, deep sea organisms must cope with high pressure, no light, low oxygen, low temperatures and little food, yet somehow an abundance of species continue to thrive. They have evolved to invade every possible deep sea habitat from cold seeps to coral mounds and thermal vents, chemically battling each other for limited resources. Bacteria and fungi have fought each other for resources using chemical warfare over billions of years and humans have benefited from this process by using the chemicals they produce as drugs against diseases. For example, the strain used to industrially produce penicillin, an antibiotic used to treat bacterial infections, can be traced back to a mouldy cantaloupe found in the state of Illinois in the United States. Sea sponges can produce a range of compounds of unparalleled chemical diversity. In the early 1980s, a Japanese deep water sponge was found to contain an anticancer compound called Halichondrin B, and 25 years after it was initially discovered, Japanese pharmaceutical company Eisai brought Halaven from seabed to bedside. Looking at the ocean for cures seemed a logical move, but the technology needed to catch up. The development of scuba diving equipment after WWII allowed reef organisms to be collected to see if they contained new chemical compounds that could treat diseases. Since then, more than 15 different treatments from marine invertebrates are clinically available. However, several issues have stood in the way of more scientific research being conducted in the ocean, including the difficulty in accessing truly deep oceans, or the abyss, at a depth of more than 6,000 metres. After disaster struck the US submersible Nereus in 2014, there have been no global alternatives to enable collection of materials from these depths. The high expense of running research vessels to the deep-sea locations has also been a major barrier. Deep sea environments have created ideal conditions for unique microorganisms to evolve, but learning how to grow them in a lab was another challenge. In contrast to land-based microorganisms, marine ones needed salt, low levels of nutrients and long times to grow. There are also very few facilities worldwide that can simulate the high pressures of the deep ocean. Nevertheless, some chemical compounds from marine microbes are making their way through clinical trials. Marizomib was derived from the first ‘card-carrying’ marine microorganism, as it needs salt to grow. It was obtained from a shallow sediment (1 metre deep) in the Bahamas and is being tested in patients against various types of cancer. The final difficulty in deep sea research is the lack of clarity in legal ownership of any materials obtained from the deep sea. Legally, the ocean is divided into two parts: areas within national jurisdiction falling mainly within a state’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) or 200 nautical miles from shore, and Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (ABNJ) covering more than 40 percent of the earth’s surface. These areas are regulated by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) — a global treaty that covers shipping to piracy and fisheries, but not the protection of marine biodiversity. There are different regulations for water and the seabed in ABNJ. Water is covered under ‘Freedom of the high seas’, where anything derived outside of national EEZ’s, such as commercial fishing, are legally obtainable. Whereas the seabed is under ‘Common heritage of mankind’, where any gains collectively belong to humanity. These contradictory laws have created legal uncertainties for patents and the commercialisation possibilities of discoveries. To rectify the omission of marine biodiversity from international regulations, the UN began developing an “international legally binding instrument” under the UNCLOS seven years ago, referred to as the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) treaty. The aim is to protect ocean biodiversity, with plans to extend marine protected areas to cover 30 percent of the ocean by 2030. Considerations on who can gain access to the deep sea, the origins of any commercialised products when obtained in ABNJ, and how economic benefits should be shared are still hotly debated. The agreement is also critical to restoring ocean health and addressing gaps in capacity and technology, particularly for developing countries. The fourth UN BBNJ Intergovernmental Conference is scheduled to take place in New York in March 2022. It’s hoped the text can be finalised and ratified at the UN General Assembly before the end of the Ocean Decade in 2030. A healthy ocean is critical to mitigate the impact of climate change, to maintain the biodiversity on which we all depend on for food, for its potential to give us life-saving medicines and for the benefit of all humankind. The importance of this treaty to the health of the ocean and our planet should not be underestimated. Marcel Jaspars is a professor at the Marine Biodiscovery Centre, Department of Chemistry in the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, UK. He is the founder of, and a consultant to a company, GyreOx Ltd that uses marine derived enzymes to develop potential pharmaceuticals. Marcel Jaspars is the founder of, and a consultant to a company, GyreOx Ltd that uses marine derived enzymes to develop potential pharmaceuticals. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: By Marcel Jaspars in Scotland

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on January 31, 2022

DNA could ensure strawberry fields forever - 360 Leong Chee Onn Published on February 28, 2023 Advances in the field are revolutionary but require safeguards to curb misuse. The thought of growing rice in the ocean sounds like something out of science fiction but with new advances in DNA research and gene sequencing, it’s close to becoming a reality. Likewise cultivating strawberries which could potentially be grown in tropical areas such as Malaysia. Strawberries are traditionally grown in temperate climates and exported across the world to Southeast Asia, which means the fruit is expensive. But new DNA technology allows them to be grown in tropical countries. As the world marks the 70th anniversary of Crick and Watson’s mapping the structure of the DNA molecule, genome sequencing has the potential to revolutionise crop breeding and plant biotechnology, improving yields, and reducing food waste DNA sequencing can help identify genetic markers that make crops more resistant to disease and pests, improving crop productivity, and reducing the need for harmful pesticides and fertilisers. In Malaysia, where agriculture is a significant source of employment and food security, the availability of DNA sequencing could lead to more sustainable agricultural practices and increased food production. Recent advancements in DNA sequencing technologies have made it increasingly cheap and accessible, with significant implications for our societies, particularly in developing countries such as Malaysia. The implications of widely available DNA sequencing for our societies are both positive and negative and must be carefully considered in the context of the socio-cultural, economic, and political factors that influence access, use, and regulation of this technology. One of the most significant positive implications of widely available DNA sequencing is its potential to revolutionise healthcare. Genetic testing and personalised medicine based on DNA sequencing can help identify individuals who are at risk of developing certain diseases and it can help develop targeted prevention and treatment strategies. In Malaysia, where genetic diseases such as thalassemia and cystic fibrosis are prevalent, the widespread availability of DNA sequencing could improve healthcare outcomes for affected individuals and their families. Additionally, DNA sequencing can help researchers develop new drugs and treatments for diseases, leading to improved health outcomes and reduced healthcare costs. DNA sequencing also provides valuable insights into human evolution and history, which can help us understand and appreciate our shared heritage. The genetic diversity of Malaysia is unique, with significant contributions from multiple ethnic and cultural groups. Studying the genomes of different populations can help us trace the migration patterns of our ancestors and better understand the history of our country and its people. However, there are also negative implications of widely available DNA sequencing that must be considered. One significant concern is the potential for genetic discrimination, where individuals may be unfairly discriminated against based on their genetic information. Employers or insurance companies may use this information to make hiring or coverage decisions, leading to a situation where individuals with certain genetic predispositions are unfairly disadvantaged. To mitigate this risk, policies are called for to protect individuals’ privacy and prevent genetic discrimination. Another concern is the potential misuse of genetic information. If individuals’ genetic information falls into the wrong hands, it could be used for nefarious purposes such as blackmail or identity theft. This could lead to a situation where individuals are afraid to share their genetic information, even if it could be used to improve their health or well-being. Regulations and safeguards must be put in place to protect the privacy and security of genetic data. Additionally, the widespread availability of DNA sequencing could exacerbate existing social inequalities. If certain populations do not have access to this technology, they may be left behind in terms of healthcare and agricultural advancements. This could lead to a situation where some individuals are unfairly disadvantaged due to factors outside of their control. Work will be required to ensure DNA sequencing technology is accessible to all populations, regardless of socioeconomic status or geographic location. Finally, as DNA sequencing technology becomes more widely available, it is crucial to establish regulations that protect individuals’ privacy and prevent the misuse of genetic data. One important aspect of regulation is data sovereignty, which refers to the right of individuals to control their own genetic data and decide how it is used. Data sovereignty is especially important in developing countries like Malaysia, where there may be concerns about data ownership and control. There is still some way to go to ensure equitable access and use of DNA sequencing technology in Malaysia. To reap benefits, policymakers could expand access to genetic testing and personalised medicine in rural and underprivileged areas where healthcare resources may be limited. Leong Chee Onn is Associate Professor at the School of Pharmacy, International Medical University, Malaysia and CEO of AGTC Genomics. He declares no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 28, 2023

DNA data offers benefits many of us will never realise - 360 Beth Tarini Published on February 28, 2023 Collecting DNA data is not much help without the key to understanding what it all means. And that key is centralised health records. It’s been 70 years since Watson and Crick revealed the double-helix structure of the DNA molecule. Now, instead of wondering at its structure, we chatter about DNA sequencing. We talk about how soon we will each have our own genomic data stored on our home computer. Or a time when a parent will be handed their newborn in one hand and their baby’s genomic code in the other. Or when our phones will beep to alert us that there is a new study showing that a portion of our sequence (or our child’s) has been linked to this or that disease. What we should be talking about is what will hold us back from realising these next steps. Our increasing technological ability, and reduced cost to sequence genomes, will play a part in making this happen in the next decade or two. But ability and cost are not the key to this future. Instead, comprehensive, centralised health records of populations will be the difference between realising this future, or not. Without health records we will not be able to know what the health implications of these sequences are. Science can read the DNA code, or ‘sequence’ DNA, faster and cheaper and create more raw data than ever before. But how do we interpret it? It’s like having a book in a foreign language without a dictionary. The dictionary in this analogy is the complete health record. In the US each person’s dictionary has pages scattered across the country locked in different computer systems — some of which we know about, and others long forgotten (that trip to a community hospital one rainy Sunday night when your child wouldn’t stop coughing during that year you lived in Seattle, perhaps). Information will not make it into a computer in the first place if people can’t afford a visit to the doctor. It is ironic that the US – a country that is among the world leaders in medical technology — will be among the least likely to move from sequence to meaning in this future. The fragmented and bloated state of an individual’s health information in the US stands in stark contrast to its ability to create technical and life-saving advances – some of the COVID-19 vaccines being among the most recent. In addition to producing the sequence quickly and affordably, we need to match the raw genomic data to the clinical data – all the mundane details about a person and their life – their height, weight over time, their illnesses big and small, their habits (smoking, drinking, exercise). Researchers must disentangle the effects that these attributes and habits have on each other and the genetic code. For example, we know that lack of exercise is not good, but it is worse in the context of being overweight. High blood pressure increases your risk of stroke but having high blood pressure and diabetes increases that risk even more. Without a dictionary to interpret, you can know what DNA code is there, but you won’t know what it means. Part of this problem is that we don’t know what we don’t know. And most of what we do know focuses on a specific portion of the genome – those genes that provide the instructions for making proteins, one of the building blocks of the body. Everyone has roughly 20,000 of these protein-coding genes. But they only make up 2 percent of the whole genome. The other 98 percent is an assortment of genes and other long stretches of DNA, much of which we don’t know what it does. Plenty of examples show that we don’t have to understand the entire genome to understand the function of some genes and learn how to use that knowledge to improve the health of individuals and the population. For example, cystic fibrosis is a relatively rare condition where defects in one gene are largely responsible for the disease. Children inherit the genes from parents who show no sign of the disease. Each parent has a defective gene, and in the luck of the genetic draw, a child may inherit both defective genes – and develop the condition. Understanding what the cystic fibrosis sequence means is easier when you have obvious genetic changes paired with specific clinical symptoms. It also helps that most individuals with cystic fibrosis are cared for at centres that are part of a nationwide network funded by the CF Foundation, making joining the dots between DNA sequence and symptoms easier. In some common conditions – like type 2 diabetes – the complexity of deciphering what is going on in the genome increases astronomically. There are hundreds of genes (that we know of) that have a role in type 2 diabetes. Unlike individuals with cystic fibrosis, the tens of millions of Americans with type 2 diabetes don’t receive their care at diabetes centres that coordinate this care and share data. These individuals receive care at hospitals and doctor’s offices scattered across the country. Trying to centralise that information is like trying to assemble the dictionary page-by-page for each person. The US could centralise health information on its population. It chooses not to for a variety of reasons, but largely because it is a society that prizes privacy above all else – including sharing data in ways that might help Americans live better, healthier lives. This value system hinders the ability to realise much of the value of the genomic technology that the nation has created. Deciphering genomic interactions and effects takes patience, time, and a lot of centralised health data. Instead of leading the way, the US will be a follower. It will cede leadership to those countries that haven’t let privacy concerns stand in the way of assembling their individual DNA ‘dictionaries’. Beth Tarini, MD, MS, MBA, is an Associate Professor at The George Washington University. She conducts research on optimising the delivery of genetic services. She is also a practising general pediatrician. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 28, 2023

Does AUKUS undermine Australia’s position in the Pacific? - 360 Stuart Rollo Published on November 8, 2023 As Pacific leaders meet in the Cook Islands, is Australia’s double game with AUKUS harming its local relationships? The Pacific Islands Forum has convened in the Cook Islands for its 52nd annual meeting. This year’s Forum organises around the theme ‘Our Voices, Our Choices’, recognising the diversity of perspectives across the Pacific community, and seeking to centre Pacific Island sovereignty in making the decisions that shape sustainability, security, and prosperity across the region. The theme foregrounds a clear tension in the region. While discussions around climate policy and sustainable resource management will be of the utmost importance for many locals, they are considered matters of secondary importance by major regional powers, like the United States and Australia, who will be focused on shoring up their own geopolitical standing in the region in the face of growing Chinese influence. The AUKUS agreement, and particularly Australia’s commitment to purchase and operate a fleet of nuclear submarines in the region, is likely to test the extent to which the smaller Forum members can define and enforce Pacific Islander voices and choices in a region that has already suffered some of the worst effects of the nuclear arms industry as a result of weapons testing. The Pacific Islands have long played an important role in the geopolitical manoeuvrings of great powers as strategically located ports and coaling stations for naval forces and merchant vessels operating in the Asia-Pacific region, as fortified strongpoints in maritime security perimeters, and as zones of natural resource extraction. America’s first Pacific Island territory was claimed under the Guano Islands Act of 1856, introduced to encourage the exploitation of nitrates used for military production and agriculture. Today the resources of greatest value to foreign powers lie in the region’s fisheries, timber, energy resources, and minerals. The vast majority of the region’s mineral exports currently come from Papua New Guinean mines, but new technologies opening up abundant seabed mineral deposits of the Pacific for extraction has spurred a wave of prospecting and speculation in recent years. The Pacific Islands are also slated to play a major logistical role as hubs on the Air Silk Road, the component of China’s Belt and Road Initiative that connects Asia with Central and South America. China’s economic engagement with the region has grown rapidly over the past two decades. Today China ranks among the Pacific Islands’ top trading partners, biggest investors, and largest donors of foreign aid. Its growing economic heft has produced anxiety in Australia, the United States, and to a lesser extent New Zealand, which have positioned themselves as ‘senior partners’ to the Pacific Islands community for many years.  Indeed, Former US President Dwight Eisenhower famously described the South Pacific as an ‘American lake’ in the years following World War Two. The complex attitudes of Pacific Islanders and their leadership to growing Chinese involvement in the region are rarely represented in Australian or American media, rather it is discussed almost exclusively in terms of a menacing geopolitical threat. Discussion of the spectre of a growing China threat went into overdrive in March 2022, with the announcement of a new security agreement between the Solomon Islands and China, which prompted expressions of concern at the highest levels in the United States and Australia. Australian media was awash with opining upon China’s ‘militarisation’ of the region, with little acknowledgment of Australia’s own continuous cooperation with the United States to vastly increase its own, already preeminent, military footprint in the Pacific. China has expanded its provision of policing training and equipment at the invitation of the Solomon Islands government since the agreement was signed, but nothing further has developed in the way of military expansion. China’s failure to secure a broader economic and security cooperation agreement with 10 Pacific Island nations later in 2022 seems to have somewhat assuaged Australian and American fears of a ‘red tide’ spreading across the Pacific for the moment. While the greatly anticipated Chinese military expansion in the region has as yet failed to materialise, the United States and Australia have set a cracking pace of their own. The AUKUS agreement is the example par excellence here. Set up to bolster the wide array of American, British, and Australian defence and intelligence capabilities across the Indo-Pacific region, the most prominent component of the newly minted military pact will see Australia massively expand its naval capabilities by joining the small club of nations operating a fleet of nuclear submarines. There have been a number of prominent criticisms of AUKUS levelled by Pacific Island leaders. One particularly pointed joint statement released by the Pacific Elder’s Voice,  made up of former leaders of Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau, said: “AUKUS signals greater militarisation by joining Australia to the networks of the US military bases in the northern Pacific and it is triggering an arms race, by bringing war much closer to home. “Not only does this go against the spirit of the Blue Pacific narrative, agreed to by all Forum member countries last year, it also demonstrates a complete lack of recognition of the climate change security threat that has been embodied in the Boe Declaration (on regional security) and other declarations by Pacific leaders.” Australia was a founding signatory of The Treaty of Rarotonga, which established a nuclear-free zone across much of the South Pacific, including Australia, and has been in effect since 1986. Pacific leaders, including Mark Brown, Prime Minister of the Cook Islands and current Chair of the Pacific Islands Forum, have expressed concern over the implications that the submarine deal holds for nuclear non-proliferation and upholding the conditions of the Rarotonga Treaty. Brown has foregrounded that the issue of nuclear submarines will be a major part of the agenda at this Forum meeting, stating: “The name Pacific means peace, so to have this increase of naval nuclear vessels coming through the region is in direct contrast with that.” Leaders in New Zealand, Australia’s closest ally and partner, have also expressed reservations over the AUKUS agreement. The degree to which the march of regional militarisation being undertaken by Australia and the United States will damage their own relations with this geopolitically critical region remains to be seen, but the total lack of consultation or consideration of Pacific Island nations in formulating regional security policy makes the criticisms of China as the region’s unilateral military destabiliser ring remarkably hollow. Stuart Rollo is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Centre for International Security Studies at the University of Sydney. His book Terminus: Westward Expansion, China, and the End of American Empire was published in October 2023. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 8, 2023

Does sportswashing even work? - 360 Michael Skey Published on August 9, 2023 While the media paints sportswashing as evil, more research is needed to evaluate whether it is really changing attitudes on the ground. The cancellation of the 2026 Commonwealth Games by authorities in Australia has led people to question the relevance of a competition based on relations between a fading imperial power and its former dominions. Interestingly, one term that has not been applied to this event is ‘sportswashing’. This is a curious oversight given that sportswashing has become a recent feature of media reporting around high-profile sporting events, teams and players. It refers to the ways in which a country invests in sports in order to promote its reputation on a global stage and deflect attention away from less favourable perceptions of its actions and institutions. Normally, it is only non-Western states that are accused of sportswashing, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Qatar and China are obvious examples. But if the term is to mean anything it not only has to be clearly defined but also applied in a consistent manner. So, when trying to assess the rise of sportswashing, perhaps the first question to ask is why countries are prepared to spend so much money and effort to build an association with sports. Sport matters because it plays a significant role in the lives of large numbers of people and can be used to target the attention of particular groups — national, class-based, gender and age. In a fragmented media landscape, it is also one of the few remaining forms of ‘content’ that can bring together large audiences. This makes it as attractive to media companies and sponsors as it does to governments and states. Therefore, one of the key contributions of sportswashing is that it specifically draws attention to the ways in which an association with sports is used to try and burnish a country’s reputation. Indeed, the role of various media organisations and platforms in these wider debates, whether as advocates or critics, is worthy of further attention. This is particularly the case in relation to sports fans who can have a key role to play in supporting an owner or organiser that they believe is likely to offer their athletes, team or sport greater success. Although the term sportswashing was only introduced seven years ago, the metaphor of washing has a much longer history and has been applied to a range of different situations. The metaphor of washing was first used to highlight deception, cover-up and distraction, with whitewashing being used to refer to the covering up of corruption and criminal activities. Next comes greenwashing, which points to forms of communication designed to generate positive beliefs about an organisation’s environmental record. The growing visibility of greenwashing has encouraged others to adapt the washing metaphor and apply it to new areas of socio-economic and political life. Most recently, pink and vegan washing have been used to critique corporations and governments that emphasise their support of LGTBQ and animal rights issues, respectively, in order to brand themselves as tolerant and progressive. Over time, the use of the ‘washing’ metaphor has shifted in two notable ways, moving from a primary concern with the activities of corporates to also focus on government organisations and shifting from attempts at outright concealment to building associations with high-profile or well-regarded events, activities or people. Although sportswashing has become a feature of mainstream media reporting, we require better ways of evaluating its impact to say whether it works. Some of the current debates assume that the hosting of an event or purchase of a sports club naturally leads to favourable reviews or attitudes, whether among fans of a given club or the sport in general. Research around the hosting of mega-events has shown a good deal of resistance from a range of sources. Therefore, we need to investigate who supports and who resists, through what means and channels and to what ends. It would also be good to know more about the kinds of reputational capital (e.g. brand identity, goodwill, trust etc.) that are generated by such associations with sporting events, organisations and personalities and to what extent they persist over time. Whether it can clearly add to our understanding of these processes, beyond a few news headlines, requires longer-term studies to assess public attitudes over time. But in helping to focus attention on the ways in which sport is used to deflect and distract from the sometimes heinous activities of governments and other stakeholders around the world (both Western and non-Western), it has already served a useful purpose. Michael Skey is Senior Lecturer and Doctoral Programme Lead, Communication and Media Studies, Loughborough University, United Kingdom. He declares no conflict of interest. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on August 9, 2023