5 October 2021 (Wall Street International)* — Human evolution, as in all species on Earth, is driven by stress – as all are challenged by continually changing conditions and environments.
Like all species, we humans become habituated to our current situations and cultural norms. Our reactions to change range from outright denial to reluctant acceptance and attempts at adaptation.
A chilling account of how corruption has become institutionalised at the heart of America’s war machine – with consequences for us all
Andrew Cockburn’s book offers a guide to understanding the irrationalities of the US war machine | Al Drago/Pool via CNP/AdMedia/Newscom/Alamy Live News
(openDemocracy)* — Why is Joe Biden claiming that America’s ‘forever wars’, have ended? He withdrew 2,500 troops from Afghanistan and allowed the Taliban to take over the country, but the US continues to send drones to kill alleged terrorists in Afghanistan and in large parts of Africa and the Middle East.
(UN News)* — An estimated 3.2 million Afghan children under five, are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition by the end of the year, UN agencies on 5 October 2021 warned, adding that without immediate treatment, at least a million are at risk of dying.
Acute food insecurity is affecting 14 million people in Afghanistan who are without reliable access to water, food and basic health and nutrition services, following years of conflict and the economic crisis, which has been exacerbated following the Taliban takeover in August.
The alarm was sounded following a two-day visit to the city of Herat by Hervé Ludovic De Lys, UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Representative in Afghanistan and Mary-Ellen McGroarty, World Food Programme’s (WFP) Afghanistan Representative and Country Director.
SAN FRANCISCO, USA, Oct 6 2021 (IPS)* – It’s bad enough that mainstream news outlets routinely call the Pentagon budget a “defense” budget. But the fact that progressives in Congress and even many antiwar activists also do the same is an indication of how deeply the mindsets of the nation’s warfare state are embedded in the political culture of the United States.
(UN News)* — Between 2009 and 2018, the continuous rise in sea temperature cost the world 14 per cent of its coral reefs – that’s more than the size of Australia’s reefs combined – a UN-backed report revealed on 5 October 2021.
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UNDP | Reef fish and corals in the waters of the Seychelles archipelago.
In the Sixth Status of Corals of the World: 2020 Report, experts from the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, funded by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), collected data from more than 300 scientists from 73 countries, over a span of 40 years, including two million individual observations.
(UN News)* — Improved water management, monitoring and forecasting are needed in the face of a looming global water crisis, the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and partners said in a report published on Tuesday 5 October 2021.
The warning comes as floods, droughts and other water-related hazards increase due to climate change, while the number of people experiencing “water stress” continues to rise amid population growth and dwindling availability.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Oct 5 2021 (IPS)* – As finance ministers and central bank governors gather next week for the IMF-World Bank annual meetings in the US capital, the first shots of a new putsch against multilateralism have been fired. The target: Kristalina Georgieva, Fund Managing Director (MD) since 2019.
Jomo Kwame Sundaram
Georgieva’s sins
She has tried to enhance multilateral coherence by aligning the Fund with the United Nations, as envisaged by then US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
Like predecessor Christine Lagarde, the former Bank environmental economist is committed to the Sustainable Development Goals and addressing global warming.
How eco-labelling can drive consumer decision-making
Unsplash/Viki Mohmad / 04 Oct 2021
5 October 2021 (UNEP)* — Each year, 17 per cent of total global food available at retail may be wasted, including 11 per cent at the household level, says the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP’s) Food Waste Index Report 2021.
(UN News)* — The world currently faces unprecedented catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity, according to UN agencies, and around $6.6 billion is needed urgently, to support 41 million in danger of sliding into famine.
WFP/Simon Pierre Diouf | Thousands of displaced women in Nigeria suffering from hunger and food insecurity rely on the UN to survive.
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To ramp up support, the United Nations on 4 October 2021 convened a high-level event, calling for international action, before it is too late.
(UN News)* — COVID-19 has taken a toll on the mental health of children and young people, and impacts could be felt for many years to come, UN children’s agency, UNICEF, on 5 October 2021 warned.
Even before the crisis, children and youth were already carrying the burden of mental health conditions and without significant investment in addressing them, according to the latest edition of its flagship report, the State of the World’s Children.
HUMAN WRONGS WATCH 