SUSTAINABILITY

Photo: The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. Credit: Olof von Gawinski, Flickr.

Africa's Largest Hydro Dam Held Hostage as Horn of Africa Countries Wage 'Water War'

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – Three neighbouring countries locked in a bitter dispute over rights to the precious waters of the Nile River may provide a preview of water wars around the world as global temperatures rise and droughts leave populations with insufficient water to drink or for farms.

The three countries – Ethiopia, Egypt, Sudan – are all claiming rights to Africa’s most fabled river but Ethiopia has already laid claim to the water at the source and has begun siphoning it into a $4.5 billion hydroelectric dam to the dismay of Egypt which relies on the Nile for 90 percent of its water.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 20 July 2020

A Slaughterhouse for Workers

It’s Not Romanians Spreading The Virus, It’s Capitalism

Viewpoint by Vladimir Bogoeski *

BERLIN (IDN) – While the world heaps praise on Germany’s successful response to the Covid-19 pandemic, recent events have thrown a dark shadow on the shiny image. Although its political leadership, unlike that of France and the US, did not frame the pandemic discourse around a war analogy, the ‘collateral damage’ yielded by the German variety of capitalism during the pandemic is hard to overlook.

: Europe Editor; THE WORLD; EU & Europe; 19 July 2020

Photo: UN Secretary-General António Guterres delivers the annual Nelson Mandela Lecture. Credit: UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe

UN Chief Makes a Passionate Plea for Discarding Fallacies and Falsehoods

The Rich and Poor are Not Sailing in the Same Boat

By Jaya Ramachandran

NEW YORK (IDN) – UN Secretary-General António Guterres has in a surprise dramatic move, castigated a series of "fallacies and falsehoods" perpetrated particularly on the deprived of the world. The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed all lies such as the lie that free markets can deliver healthcare for all; the fiction that unpaid care work is not work; the delusion that we live in a post-racist world; the myth that we are all in the same boat".

: Jaya Ramachandran; UN INSIDER; 19 July 2020

UN Gathering To Call for Robust and Urgent Actions to Advance Gender Equality

By Caroline Mwanga

NEW YORK (IDN) – Twenty-five years after its adoption the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, member states and observers, civil society organizations, gender equality leaders, CEOs, and heads of academia will gather virtually on July 21 in a multi-stakeholder hearing. The purpose is to bolster priority actions at the global and national level that will address the challenges that threaten the bold vision of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.

: Caroline Mwanga; SUSTAINABILITY; Gender Equality; 18 July 2020

China-India Conflict a Potential Threat to Five-Nation BRICS

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW (IDN) – Tension between China and India threatens to paralyse BRICS – the association of five major emerging national economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. While struggling to manage the devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and India have locked horns over issues in their "bilateral relations", ranging from border security to trade conflicts and information war.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; SUSTAINABILITY; Global Partnerships; 17 July 2020

Human Nature Is a Central Theme of Philosophy

Viewpoint by John Scales Avery*

COPENHAGEN (IDN) – What is human nature? Are we humans good or evil? To what extent is the character of a person produced by heredity, and to what extent by environment? Is competition more central to our existence than cooperation, or is it the other way around? How can a happy, peaceful and stable society be created? Are humans essentially the same as other animals, or are we fundamentally different? Should humans dominate and control nature, or should we be the custodians of nature?

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 17 July 2020

Photo: Trump with children. Source: rawstory.com

Trump’s 'Plan' Is to Make the Virus and Its Casualties Disappear

Viewpoint by Sonali Kolhatkar

This article was produced by Economy for All, a project of the Independent Media Institute. Sonali Kolhatkar is the founder, host and executive producer of “Rising Up With Sonali,” a television and radio show that airs on Free Speech TV and Pacifica stations.

America’s rightward march culminating in Trump's presidency has brought us to this moment where we are dying from a virus that other nations have managed to control.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 17 July 2020

The Pandemic of Racism in America

Viewpoint by Dr Alon Ben-Meir

The writer is a professor of international relations at the Center for Global Affairs at New York University (NYU). He teaches courses on international negotiation and Middle Eastern studies.

NEW YORK (IDN) – The rage, desperation, and determination which continue to bring tens of thousands of Americans to the streets in protest against racism and injustice hopefully will be just the beginning.

: UN Bureau; THE WORLD; USA and Canada; 16 July 2020

Photo: Interfaith efforts between Chilkur Balaji Temple in Hyderabad and the Helping Hand Foundation help achieve shared community health goals. Credit: WNV/Helping Hand Foundation

Long Before COVID-19, Muslim Communities in India Built Solidarity Through Mutual Aid

Viewpoint by Z. Fareen Parvez*

This article was originally published on Waging Nonviolence and is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

AMHERST, Massachusetts (IDN) – For generations, Muslims in India have drawn on mutual aid networks for solidarity and support amid government neglect and social discrimination. Now, as India faces a humanitarian disaster during the devastating COVID-19 pandemic, these networks are more important than ever.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 16 July 2020

Photo: In Argentina, UNDP has developed a social media campaign promoting inclusive finance. #PlataSinBanco ("money without bank") explains current alternatives to withdraw money from a local ATM, even without a debit card or bank account. Credit: UNDP Argentina

Poverty and Inequality Get Worse in Latin America as COVID-19 Infections Surge

By Santo D. Banerjee

NEW YORK (IDN) —Latin America is scrambling to contain surging COVID-19 infections while confronting near-certain recession and related impacts. But polices that prioritize poor and vulnerable people can help mitigate the region’s already extreme poverty and inequality, says a new study by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).