By Amy E. Pope, Director General, International Organization for Migration*
Port Sudan, 29 October (IOM)* – Good morning, I am glad to be able to speak with you this morning live from Port Sudan.
I arrived here yesterday on a four-day visit, into a deteriorating security situation with alarming reports of new atrocities.
IOM Director General interacts with some of those who have been displaced by the ongoing conflict in Sudan. Photo: IOM/Philippa Lowe
I have heard distressing detail from our teams on the ground of the conditions faced by ordinary Sudanese people whose lives have been thrown into turmoil by this conflict.
28 October 2024 — Greenhouse gas levels surged to a new record in 2023, committing the planet to rising temperatures for many years to come, according to a report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
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Carbon dioxide (CO2) is accumulating in the atmosphere faster than any time experienced during human existence, rising by more than 10% in just two decades.
Fifty of the world’s richest billionaires on average produce more carbon through their investments, private jets and yachts in just over an hour and a half than the average person does in their entire lifetime, a new Oxfam report on 28 October 2024 reveals.
The first-of-its-kind study, “Carbon Inequality Kills,”tracks the emissions from private jets, yachts and polluting investments and details how the super-rich are fueling inequality, hunger and death across the world.
The report comes ahead of COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, amidst growing fears that climate breakdown is accelerating, driven largely by the emissions of the richest people.
Some parts of the world are burning. Some parts are drowning and people everywhere are struggling to cope and in many cases to survive – particularly and always the poorest and most vulnerable: Inger Andersen
(UN News)* — Annual greenhouse gas emissions are at an all-time high, and urgent action must be taken to prevent catastrophic spikes in temperature and avoid the worst impact of climate change, according to a new report released on Thursday [] by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).
(UNEP)* 24 October 2024 — Lead may be present in everything from cookware and cosmetics to paint and plumbing. Yet there is no safe level of exposure to the heavy metal, which causes more than 1.5 million deaths annually and can trigger developmental disorders in children.
Lead particles contaminate the air, water and soil, reducing crop productivity and harming biodiversity. Lead also disproportionately harms those in low- and middle-income countries.
(UN News)* — The proportion of women killed in armed conflicts doubled last year compared to 2022, accounting for 40 per cent of all deaths in war, while UN-verified cases of conflict-related sexual violence increased by 50 per cent.
— Recently I learned a new word – “permacrisis” – a frightening concept of the endless loop of problems the world faces today, like being on a rollercoaster that never stops.
URBANA, Illinois, US, Oct 21 2024 (IPS)* – Hurricanes Helene and Milton resulted in record-setting rain, flooding, and flash flooding events across several states, including Florida and North Carolina, leaving devastating impacts on people, communities, and infrastructure that will require many years of rebuilding and recovery.
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Eventually, flooding waters recede, leaving behind a path of destruction and a fundamentally different habitat for non-human beings including plants and soil dwelling macro and microorganisms. Credit: Shutterstock.
(UN News)* — UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged delegations from some 190 countries to “make peace with nature” and shore up a plan to stop habitat loss, save endangered species, and preserve our planet’s precious ecosystems as the latest UN biodiversity summit got under way in Cali, Colombia on Sunday [] night.
Environment Ministry of Colombia | A young man displays a button with the official COP16 image at a carnival march in Ibagué, Tolima.
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The UN chief’s call came in a video message to the opening ceremony of the gathering, which officially begins on Monday 21 October in one of the most biodiverse countries on earth.
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Over the next two weeks, government experts, environmental activists and indigenous groups will tackle pressing global challenges in biodiversity protection.
17 Oct 2024 – Each new week brings new calamities for people in the countries neighboring Israel, as its leaders try to bomb their way to the promised land ofan ever-expanding Greater Israel.
Photo credit: Muhammad Mahdi Karim, Wikimedia Commons
In Gaza, Israel appears to be launching its “Generals’ Plan” to drive the most devastated and traumatized 2.2 million people in the world into the southern half of their open-air prison.
The first-of-its-kind study, “Carbon Inequality Kills,” tracks the emissions from private jets, yachts and polluting investments and details how the super-rich are fueling inequality, hunger and death across the world.
HUMAN WRONGS WATCH 