A marathon a day through Australia’s Simpson Desert. This 6-day desert race will be David’s ninth, and the sixth leg of his quest to complete one on all seven continents. For this project, Barnard aims to raise funds for the Hippo Roller, promote its work, and contribute to increased public understanding of water-related issues around the world. David Barnard has been … [Read more...]
Mandela Day clean-up of polluted local rivers
The Moretele and Hennops rivers are the most polluted and harmful rivers in the city. The two rivers were selected for a clean-up by the Department of Water and Sanitation for the 67 Minutes for Mandela Day campaign last week. Participants headed out to the two facilities as part of the Clear Rivers Campaign. It followed multiple calls from the public to restore the two … [Read more...]
Cities for our Future regional shortlists announced
A community-funded affordable housing scheme for Cape Town has been named on a shortlist of five entries for Africa in a global competition run by RICS (the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) to find solutions to problems facing the world’s cities. (Delft)LINK, entered by Jonathan Wilson and Anees Arnold, students from South Africa who are currently studying in the … [Read more...]
Deforestation is affecting global water cycles and causing drought
A growing body of evidence indicates that the continuing destruction of tropical forests is disrupting the movement of water in the atmosphere, causing major shifts in precipitation that could lead to drought in key agricultural areas in China, India, and the U.S. Midwest. Every tree in the forest is a fountain, sucking water out of the ground through its roots and releasing … [Read more...]
The socioeconomic benefits of a low carbon economy
These days the news is filled with reports and questions around energy. How is the kind of energy we use affecting the climate? How do we use energy sources sustainably? The questions now also include: how do we ensure that changes have a minimal impact on the economy, in particular jobs and the lives of the poor? The latter question is central to South Africa’s 2011 … [Read more...]
Nine activists defending the Earth from violent assault
Individually, they are stories of courage and tragedy. Together, they tell a tale of a natural world under ever more violent assault. The portraits in this series are of nine people who are risking their lives to defend the land and environment in some of the planet’s most remote or conflict-riven regions. From the Coral Triangle and the Sierra Madre to the Amazon and the … [Read more...]
U.N. pact offers hope to world’s climate migrants
Be it by flood, drought or hurricane, communities at risk of climate displacement have won vital protection after their plight was for the first time recognised in a global pact on migration, campaigners say. The United Nations agreed last Friday to draw up the migration compact to cope with the millions of migrants moving from country to country. Now campaigners want … [Read more...]
Monsanto ‘bullied scientists’ and hid weedkiller cancer risk, lawyer tells court
Monsanto has long worked to “bully scientists” and suppress evidence of the cancer risks of its popular weedkiller, a lawyer argued on Monday in a landmark lawsuit against the global chemical corporation. “Monsanto has specifically gone out of its way to bully … and to fight independent researchers,” said the attorney Brent Wisner, who presented internal Monsanto emails that … [Read more...]
1.1 billion at risk from lack of cooling
Over 1.1 billion people are said to face immediate risks from lack of access to cooling. A report published today by the UN-backed Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) is claimed to be the first ever report to quantify the growing risks and assess the opportunities of the global cooling challenge. Chilling Prospects: Providing Sustainable Cooling for All shows there are … [Read more...]
New partnership aims to improve nutrition for SA children
Stunting or impaired growth remains prevalent amongst the poorest South African children. This can result in increased episodes of illness, poor cognitive function and poor educational attainment. Woolworths has announced a new partnership with UNICEF South Africa to help increase South African children’s access to good nutrition. In line with its aim to support … [Read more...]
Be part of SA’s national food drive this #MandelaDay
The goal: Collect 250 tonnes of food over three days to provide over a million meals. This is the task ahead for the second consecutive Mandela Day Food Drive, and South Africans encouraged to unite together to reach this goal. “The reality in our country today is that millions continue to go to bed hungry every day,” says Suzanne Ackerman-Berman, director of transformation … [Read more...]
Public participation needed for effective environmental governance
“I think we understand why we are all here,” said Janet Munakamwe, Action 24 workshop facilitator, as she held a copy of the Constitution of South Africa in the air. “The key is in the preamble of the Constitution – the first three words are ‘We, the people’,” replied Bongani Dlamini, from Youth@SAIIA. These were the opening remarks of the Action 24 workshop in Gauteng, one … [Read more...]
Children may be eating cereal laced with toxic weed killer
The probable carcinogen glyphosate has been detected in popular cereals, but the EPA is ready to approve its use for 15 more years. Quaker Oats “Life” and “Squares” cereals. Gerber and Beechnut baby oatmeal. Cheerios. Store brand “O” cereals from Target, Safeway, Walmart, Trader Joe’s and Kroger. All those products were contaminated with glyphosate (often sold as Roundup) in … [Read more...]
