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2021 was a critical year for climate. 2022 will be even bigger - 360 Emma Shortis Published on December 13, 2021 Even if the promises made at COP26 were implemented, it won’t be enough to stop catastrophic warming. 2022 is a chance to take climate action a step further. By Emma Shortis, RMIT University 2021 was a critical year for climate policy and diplomacy. Some of the world’s biggest emitters announced new, ambitious climate targets: the European Union, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Canada, India and the United States built on commitments already made by China and Japan. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) flagged a ‘code red for humanity’, focussing hope for genuine, concerted action on the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) held in Glasgow in November. Despite all that invested hope, COP26 is not likely to solve the ‘wicked problem’ of climate change. Glasgow produced important outcomes, such as an agreement to curb methane emissions, but leaders didn’t do the job they had set themselves in Paris in 2015: they didn’t ensure that global warming would be limited to ‘well below’ 1.5 degrees. They did make more promises to cooperate. In the dying days of the summit, the world’s biggest emitters — the US and China — made the surprise declaration that they would work together to try and achieve that 1.5 degree goal, through regular meetings of a new joint working group. That agreement is an important step, but more so for diplomacy than for the climate. Some analysts suggest climate could still become yet another arena of tension in an already rocky relationship, as the US and China compete over ‘green’ markets and technology. Questions remain, too, over US President Joe Biden’s commitment to renewed global leadership on climate. At COP26, American negotiators may have talked big about climate action, but behind closed doors, some claim their long tradition of recalcitrance and the pursuit of calculated self-interest continued. When it comes to the role of the US, the future looks much the same. The administration’s continued willingness to support the extraction and burning of fossil fuels makes it extremely unlikely that American ‘leadership’ will come to the rescue of the climate. The far-reaching influence of the US makes concerted global action on climate much less likely. In turn, that means the global geopolitics of climate and energy transition will not be straightforward. If the transition is not carefully planned and managed, it is likely to be extremely disruptive. Current attempts to manage that transition look familiar: they are overwhelmingly dominated by Western commitment to current global economic and power structures. The complex, technocratic maze of pledges, schemes and mechanisms represent, as some political ecologists have recently argued, “the corporate-friendly, market-based regime that has dominated climate politics for decades”. It means that 2022 is shaping up to be an even more important year for climate than the last. Next year, all eyes will be on Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, for COP27. Every nation is tasked with bringing more ambitious 2030 emissions reductions targets. They will do so in the shadow of not one, but three new IPCC reports. The signs so far are that COP27, just like COP26, will further expose the power imbalance in climate diplomacy, and continue to sideline and ignore Indigenous voices. Changes will be incremental. Pace will be glacial. Despite the frustrations, the COP meetings are, at least for now, the only global mechanism that we have to act on climate, and they are achieving something — even if that is only creating space for action rather than compelling it. Hope isn’t, and can’t, be lost. 2022 is a milestone year in the history of climate politics. It will mark 50 years since the first ever global conference on the environment: the 1972 UN Conference on the Human Environment, held in Stockholm, Sweden. It will have been 30 years since the Rio Summit, which adopted the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, and 25 years since the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol, the first legally binding emissions reduction agreement. Critical hope, not naïve hope, is to be found in the efforts being built upon in 2022. In the European Union, they are using the considerable economic and diplomatic influence of the 27 member states to reshape trading relationships and supply chains. Voices from other regional and civil society organisations, especially in the Pacific and Caribbean, are becoming louder and more insistent. In Australia, states and regional authorities are leading the way, picking up slack where the federal government has failed. South Africa’s world-leading transition away from reliance on coal-fired power is already underway, and may well become a model for the rest of the world. Globally, finance is shifting as the monetary incentives for investing in clean energy transition increase. Although that approach comes with significant risk, too: if fattening the wallets of climate billionaires becomes the focus, it may be harder to ensure the transition is done right. The commitment of climate activists will only increase, as will global scrutiny of the gap between climate pledges and actual policy. The narrative battle around the “energy crisis” will heat up, because more will be at stake. Looking towards 2030, the end of this most critical decade, it will become increasingly obvious that COP meetings are part of a much bigger architecture; of action at the local and regional levels, continued efforts to centre First Nations voices, and the overarching transformational agenda of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. We can find hope not in feel-good stories of individuals taking their own isolated actions. Not in ‘technology not taxes’ or in billionaire investors. But in communities, big and small, acting together in pursuit of a liveable planet for all. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Dr Emma Shortis is a Research Fellow at the European Union Centre of Excellence in the Social and Global Studies Centre at RMIT University. She declared no conflicts of interest. Emma Shortis’ research draws on a project funded by a Jean Monnet Award from the European Union’s Erasmus Plus program.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on December 13, 2021

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Seven ways to stop a species wipeout - 360 Charis Palmer, Chris Bartlett Published on December 16, 2022 Biodiversity is at a crucial point and pressure is growing on the international community to commit to new goals to protect it. There is mounting evidence the world is experiencing its largest loss of life since the dinosaurs. One million plant and animal species are now threatened with extinction. “We’ve already degraded 75 per cent of the Earth’s surface and more than 60 per cent of the marine environment,” the UN’s biodiversity chief Elizabeth Maruma Mrema told the BBC. Corey Bradshaw, Matthew Flinders professor of global ecology at Flinders University, says if the current rate of extinction continues we could lose most species by 2200. The implication for human health and wellbeing is dire, but not inevitable. Preserving biodiversity is crucial to keeping global warming to 1.5 degrees, say the architects of the Paris climate agreement. A healthy planet also ensures resilient economies. More than half of global GDP – equal to US$41.7 trillion – is reliant on healthy ecosystems. Researchers and scientists have explored what’s already working to protect biodiversity. Evidence in these seven areas shows there are simple measures that work, and others that will require global collaboration. Expanding agricultural land is pushing biodiversity past a safe limit, says Quentin Read, data scientist and ecologist at North Carolina State University. “Some species may already be ‘walking dead’, doomed to extinction because they no longer have a habitat large enough to avoid a population crash.” An important part of the solution is helping consumers better understand how their diets and food waste behaviours influence global biodiversity. “Animal products need large amounts of land to grow feed and pasture livestock. “A smart plant-based diet is a major way to reduce land demand and biodiversity impact relative to a diet high in meat and dairy.” But even for those unwilling or unable to change their diet, Read says reducing pre-consumer and consumer food waste by 50 percent has almost as much positive impact on reducing land demand in high-biodiversity areas. Cities can be hostile places for plants and animals, say Sarah Bekessy, sustainability and urban planning teacher at RMIT University and Georgia Garrard, senior lecturer in sustainability at the University of Melbourne. But with “policy rethink and clever designs, cities could be safe havens for species to thrive and recover”. “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.” Worldwide, domestic cats are responsible for over a quarter of modern mammal, bird and reptile extinctions, says Sarah Legge, ecologist and invasive species expert at the Australian National University. The urgency has forced scientists to innovate. “Fenced enclosures, cat eradications from islands, new poison delivery systems, smart fire and grazing management are just some of the tools keeping native species from extinction. “Reducing the impacts of pet cats is much simpler than controlling feral cats – just keep them contained, as almost a third of cat owners already do.” Investing in people to carry out conservation would have far reaching benefits, says Euan Ritchie, professor in wildlife ecology and conservation at Deakin University. Ritchie says it would cost around A$1.7 billion a year to bring all the species on Australia’s threatened list back to health. Australia currently spends around A$120 million a year on targeted threatened species conservation and recovery. “Australian governments and society seemingly don’t see the environment as a priority investment. The question we must confront is why?” 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, says Philip McGowan, professor of conservation science and policy at Newcastle University. “The strategies to save species are available and … effective. What remains lacking is the widespread support for and adoption of these and emerging approaches. “Extinction is not inevitable.” Learning from previous and current management by local and Indigenous people and fostering shared fire management are invaluable steps in promoting fires that benefit people and biodiversity, say wildfire researchers. Research in New Zealand, for example, has identified low-flammable vegetable crops, pastures and traditional Māori food and medicine species, such as the kawakawa tree, that could moderate fire while enhancing biodiversity. Most of the damage to the Earth’s life-support system has happened over the last century, says Corey Bradshaw. “The global human population has tripled since 1950, and there are now approximately one million species threatened with imminent extinction due to massive population declines. To reverse that we could abolish the goal of perpetual economic growth, and force companies to restore the environment using established mechanisms such as carbon pricing. “We could limit undue corporate influence on political decision-making, and end corporate lobbying of politicians. Educating and empowering women, including providing greater self-determination in family planning, would help stem environmental destruction.” 360info is a newswire with a difference: we source content from the research community offering solutions to the world’s biggest problems. To request access to our news feed so you can republish our articles visit newshub.360info.org This article has been republished for World Wildlife Day 2023. It was first published on December 16, 2022. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Biodiversity” sent at: 09/12/2022 09:50. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on December 16, 2022

A bad wrap? Using packaging well to reduce food waste - 360 Tammara Soma Published on June 15, 2022 Vast amounts of food are sent to landfill. But the jury’s out on whether packaging is friend or foe in the fight against the problem. Sown, watered, raised, harvested – and dumped. Food wasted in the agricultural powerhouse of Indonesia over the last two decades could have fed up to 125 million people. In recognition of the growing worldwide problem, the agricultural chief scientists from the G20 nations will meet at a food loss and waste prevention workshop in Bali in July 2022. Solving the problem means going beyond agriculture and understanding the role of food packaging. There are many controversies around the environmental impact of packaging, and while no packaging at all is sometimes best, packaging can still play a role in solving the food-waste puzzle. From 2000 to 2019, as much as 184 kilograms of food per person per year was wasted, accounting for 7.29 percent of Indonesia’s greenhouse-gas emissions. Wasted food costs Indonesia up to 551 trillion rupiah (US$38 billion) each year. Some studies show packaging may extend shelf life and reduce loss and waste by protecting food during transportation from farm to retail. In Indonesia, poor-quality packaging has been identified as a driver of food loss. Unhusked rice, for example, spoils and spills when it is not packaged properly. But single-use packaging has been blamed for interfering with household food-waste management: plastic waste contaminates rubbish and hinders composting initiatives. Packaging needs to be removed from wasted food if the food is to be disposed of properly — removing it to extract the food waste at an industrial scale can be expensive and energy intensive. An audit in Australia found 32 percent of plastic food packaging in the rubbish stream contained food. Other studies have found 20 to 25 percent of household food waste is directly or indirectly related to packaging issues. Packaging designs can make it difficult to use all the contents, and best-before dates can confuse consumers. If food is past its best-before date, it is often still safe to eat, but consumers may think it must be thrown away. The date just refers to whether the food is at its best in terms of taste or texture. Packaging can also be a source of food waste when it prompts food recalls. In the United States, 36,000 cases of thin-sliced cheese were recalled in 2015 because the plastic film covering the cheese was a choking hazard. In 2017 the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled yoghurt because there were plastics in the product. Zero-packaging grocery stores are emerging around the world, especially in Europe and North America. They encourage reusable packaging in sizes that allow consumers to buy only what they need, and they demonstrate the role that more durable reusable packaging could play in  supporting a short food supply chain. This model could be applied in both traditional and modern markets in Indonesia. A 2022 study by leading UK sustainability charity WRAP found that selling just five products (apples, bananas, broccoli, cucumber and potatoes) without packaging would save more than 10,300 tonnes of plastic and 100,000 tonnes of food from being wasted annually. Consumers often waste packaged foods because it forces them to buy more than what they need. The role of packaging in food waste reduction and prevention  is an important topic for research and is still up for debate, but what is non-debatable are the negative environmental, social and economic impacts of food waste. Single-use food packaging is a potential source of pollution, particularly because there are infrastructural gaps in waste management in Indonesia, so a systematic approach to understanding the pros and cons of packaging is needed. Dr Tammara Soma (ORCID 0000-0002-4273-1165) is an Assistant Professor in the School of Resource and Environmental Management at Simon Fraser University, Canada. Her research in Indonesia was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Doctoral Scholarship, the Dr David Chu Asia Pacific Scholarship and the International Development Research Council. During her fieldwork in Indonesia she was affiliated with the Bogor Agricultural University (Institut Pertanian Bogor). The author has 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 June 15, 2022

A bricks and mortar approach to fighting modern slavery - 360 Tracey Dodd, James Guthrie, John Dumay Published on November 21, 2022 The nature of the construction industry makes it very vulnerable to modern slavery. Addressing the problem will take more than just legislation. Issues seen with the construction of stadiums in Qatar for the FIFA Men’s World Cup has highlighted the industry’s vulnerability to modern slavery. But it’s not just Qatar. Countries all over the world — including Australia — are grappling with systemic exploitation in the supply chain. Due to a reliance on low-skilled labour and raw materials (such as bricks) that are produced in countries notorious for human rights violations, 18 percent of all reported modern slavery cases occur in the building industry. Modern slavery breaches the human right of freedom and is a fundamental risk for organisations worldwide. Almost 50 million people worldwide are in modern slavery, including 27.6 million in forced labour conditions. It is a highly profitable crime and the risk to building companies is in their supply chains. The transparency and traceability of these chains become opaque as the number of tiers increases, making it difficult for many organisations to identify where violations are taking place. To reduce that risk, several G20 nations have introduced legislation. Australia passed the Modern Slavery Act 2018, which requires large businesses (with turnover above AUD$100 million) to assess and report the risk of modern slavery. Given opposition from large companies to the legislation, it’s unsurprising reporting from organisations has been uneven, with many not even meeting minimum disclosure expectations. The government is currently reviewing the legislation and may impose tighter controls on organisations operating in Australia. However, even before regulation, all organisations should consider whether modern slavery risks apply to them. Because large and small organisations are exposed. Research by a team from Macquarie University and the University of Adelaide examined a small non-government organisation in Australia’s social housing sector to show how exposure to modern slavery risks can be reduced. Social housing includes organisations that construct and rent accommodation to people who would otherwise be excluded from the private housing market due to their income or social status, such as people with disabilities. As a not-for-profit NGO, this organisation would be appalled if it were unwittingly supporting modern slavery. But it operates in a competitive building and construction market where the practice is rampant. The organisation worked with suppliers to develop audits to identify and reduce modern slavery risks. But audits are not a silver bullet. The organisation’s culture needed to change from audit compliance to one of compassion. Employees and contractors were trained to understand what modern slavery is and how to identify subtle signs that it might be in the supply chain, such as employees being escorted to work by others (a van dropping multiple employees to the worksite), guards on site that appear to monitor employees, employees reporting limited access to external communication (no mobile phones), and employees showing reluctance to ask for first aid if injured. It also encouraged and empowered staff to report the signs to management so they could act to remediate the risk. Through this case and ongoing research, it has become clear that greater action and cooperation is needed to eliminate modern slavery.  Australia’s legislation focuses on organisations to reduce modern slavey risks in the supply chain but to have a better chance of success that onus should be shared across all pillars of the community. Tracey Dodd  is a Senior Lecturer in the Adelaide Business School, University of Adelaide, and Honorary Senior Research Fellow, University of Exeter. Her research interests intersect responsible management and environmental, social, and governance (ESG). She actively engages with industry regarding strategies to manage ESG risks, including modern slavery. James Guthrie AM is an Emeritus Professor in the Department of Accounting and Corporate Governance, Macquarie University. James has held positions at various Australian and Italian universities, in a career in accounting education that spans more than 35 years. He is editor of the highly regarded interdisciplinary accounting journal, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability. John Dumay is a Professor of Accounting and Finance at Macquarie University Business School in Sydney, Australia, who researches modern slavery, sustainability, intellectual capital, and corporate disclosure. He is an Associate Editor of Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Meditari Accountancy Research, and a Deputy Editor of Accounting & Finance. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 21, 2022

A cat in the house saves the birds in the bush - 360 Sarah Legge Published on March 7, 2022 Cats are skillful hunters. In Australia, public campaigning and local government regulation are helping to keep wildlife and domestic cats safer. In suburban Australia, a cat sits in a window, gazing indolently through the glass at fairy-wrens and thornbills popping about in the shrubs. Domesticated in the temples of Egypt around 4,000 years ago, cats were so popular that people transported them around the globe, including Australia. However, these beloved pets also rank as one of the most potent hunters, able to wipe out entire species when arriving in lands whose native inhabitants are unfamiliar with feline hunters. Worldwide, domestic cats are responsible for over a quarter of modern mammal, bird and reptile extinctions. Australia is now leading the world in finding ways to reduce their impact. When cats arrived in Australia with European settlers, they soon left their domestic roles and spread across the continent. Within a human lifetime (around 70 years), they had occupied rainforests, deserts and every habitat in between, eventually covering the entire mainland and larger islands. In that wave, more than 20 mammal species unique to Australia were driven to extinction mainly due to hungry cats. These included creatures such as lesser bilbies, pig-footed bandicoots, rabbit-rats, and hopping mice. Today, the pressure continues unabated: feral cats kill nearly two billion Australian mammals, birds, reptiles and frogs every year; many native species continue to dwindle, and some are close to extinction, thanks partly or wholly to cat predation. The urgency of addressing cat impacts in Australia has forced local scientists to innovate. Mainland fenced exclosures, cat eradications from islands, new poison delivery systems, smart fire and grazing management are just some of the tools keeping native species from extinction. It’s not just feral cats that menace Australian wildlife; that indolent cat in the window is looking at the fairy-wrens and thornbills with murder in its heart. Even though pet cats are fed by their owners, they will still hunt when outside. Pet cats hunt at a lower rate than feral cats, but since they live at high densities, the overall predation toll per square kilometre is actually higher in towns than it is in the bush, and there are documented examples of situations where just one or two cats have wiped out local populations of mammals, birds or reptiles. Just as Australia leads the world in the management of feral cats, it is also a global leader in the management of pet cats. Surveys consistently show the Australian public is more aware of cat impacts, and more supportive of managing pet cats, than the public in other countries. Almost a third of Australian pet cats are already kept contained 24/7 indoors or in a secure outdoor area, by their aware owners. Not only is cat containment the simplest and most effective way of stopping cats from killing wildlife, contained cats live much longer than roaming cats, because they aren’t exposed to hurtling cars, mauling dogs, and various diseases. The regulation and management of pet cats, and feral cats that live in towns, falls to local governments. A recent survey asked local governments across Australia what actions they had in place to manage cats, and what they needed to do that job better. The survey showed that local governments view the management of feral and pet cats as interlinked. For example, around half of local governments cap the number of pet cats allowed per household, and require pet cats to be desexed (unless the owner has a breeder licence). Local governments felt these measures were important not just for limiting the numbers of pet cats, but also to prevent pet cats from joining the feral cat population. Most local governments viewed feral cats as a serious problem, and have programs in place to reduce their numbers, usually through trapping. Often, these trapping programs are not regular and intensive enough to make a dint in the feral cat population, but there are exceptions. For example, Brisbane City Council has established an intensive trapping program that is successfully reducing feral cat numbers, after residents complained about the impacts of feral cats on ground-nesting birds including bush stone-curlews, and small mammals such as brown bandicoots. More Australian governments are setting regulations to curb cat presence and movements: almost a third of local governments impose night-time cat curfews, 24/7 cat containment, or even prohibit cats from some suburbs. Some local governments have all three types of regulations. For example, Tweed Shire has cat curfews, cat containment, and cat prohibition zones in different parts of the shire, and has set up monitoring programs in adjacent bushland areas to see if the regulations are successfully reducing the incidence of roaming cats. Tweed Shire Council has coupled these regulations with a “Love Cats, Love Wildlife” program to promote responsible pet cat ownership. In another example, the Australian Capital Territory currently has 17 suburbs where 24/7 cat containment is required, and the government plans to extend compulsory containment over the whole territory in coming years. Cat containment and prohibition regulations are most common in metropolitan areas, and also on populated islands with high wildlife values, because island communities are increasingly supporting initiatives to reduce the impacts of cats on their wildlife. On Christmas Island, in the Indian Ocean, all pet cats are desexed and ‘new’ cats cannot be imported to the island. Over time, the pet cat population will dwindle to zero, and at the same time feral cats are being eradicated from the island. On Kangaroo Island and Bruny Island, pet cats must be contained 24/7, and programs to reduce feral cat populations are underway. The progression to being cat-free is complete on Rottnest Island, where feral cats were eradicated 20 years ago and pet cats are prohibited. The quokkas that make Rottnest Island famous are thriving, making nature-based tourism a viable living for many island people. The support of the Australian public and local governments for better cat management is unusual. Promoting responsible pet cat management, and reducing feral cat populations, is a more vexed issue in most other countries. But even in Australia there is still a long way to go. Local governments in the survey had a range of suggestions for improvements to legislation, policy and practice that would help contain cats better. Pet cat management measures vary across local, state and federal governments, resulting in a patchwork of regulations that are confusing and hard to enforce. Whatever the regulations in place, a recurring theme was how important it was for cat owners to take responsibility for their cats. Cats may be lovely pets, but the Australian public increasingly agrees there’s no place for them in the bush. Reducing the impacts of pet cats is much simpler than controlling feral cats – just keep them contained, as almost a third of cat owners already do. The indolent cat on the window sill will live longer and healthier, and so will the fairy-wrens in the garden. Sarah Legge is an ecologist and invasive species expert at the Fenner School of Environment and Society, The Australian National University and the Centre for Biodiversity Conservation Science, University of Queensland. This article is based on work Sarah carried out with several colleagues, including Tida Nou, Jaana Dielenberg, Georgia Garrard and John Woinarski. The reserach on cat impacts and cat management by local governments was funded by the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program’s through the Threatened Species Recovery Hub. 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

A changing climate is changing the Micronesian way of life - 360 Lauren Hodgson, Nina Lansbury, Gabriela Fernando Published on July 11, 2022 As Pacific Islanders struggle to survive in the face of climate change, they will need to adapt their traditional ways of fishing to the new reality. For Micronesian people, seafarers down the ages, the Pacific Ocean is their playground, their livelihood and their source of sustenance. They contributed almost nothing to the climate crisis, but their island way of life means they have been among the first to suffer its devastating effects. At the Pacific Islands Forum, beginning July 12, Micronesian governments will be looking to climate solutions to support their communities. The sea provides up to 90 percent of Micronesians’ dietary protein and represents a crucial source of essential micronutrients, so a conversation about sustainable climate adaptations for fishing will be vitally important. The sea’s bounty is deteriorating at an unprecedented rate. Some 70 percent of reef fish species are expected to be locally extinct by the end of the century. The average size of fish is also projected to decrease by 20 percent by 2050, and many fishers are already beginning to notice changes. Researchers quoted one fisher from Poland village, Kiribatias saying, “In the past, we catch Koinawa [surgeonfish] that were larger, now they are much smaller. In the past, we could only cook two fish in the frying pan. Now we can fit almost six in the pan”. The shrinking size of fish is widening the gap between the amount of fish required for good nutrition (35 kilograms per person per year) and what fishing expeditions are likely to bring back, with health implications such as undernutrition and impaired growth for households who rely on reef fish for food. “We depend heavily on fish, so really not sure what we would do if fish resources declined. The supply from the store is so expensive,” said a fisher from London village, Kiribati Fishers may need to switch from reef fish to ocean species such as tuna. Tuna numbers are projected to increase around several of the Micronesian islands. Diversifying fish catch may also help preserve traditional fishing practices and enable subsistence fishing communities to maintain their healthy high levels of fish consumption. Tuna contains high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, which have been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease and promote brain health. Tuna also contains high amounts of micronutrients, which are particularly important for expectant mothers for foetal and child development. Governments may assist in the switch to more ocean-going fish by increasing the number of fish-aggregating devices – large buoys anchored roughly 1 kilometre from shore that attract fish. Because the buoys are moored close to shore, subsistence fishers may be able to reach tuna using traditional paddling canoes, and not motorised boats. But the buoys’ allure to fish can be very powerful; they will require careful implementation to prevent overfishing of juvenile fish and causing harm to sensitive marine habitats. At the community level, revival of traditional preservation methods, such as salting, drying, and smoking, can extend the shelf life of marine resources. Community-led initiatives are particularly important given that traditional fishing often follows a gender divide, with men fishing and canoeing, and women preserving and gathering from rock pools during low tide. Programmes targeted at women could encourage stockpiling for when the weather is unsuitable for fishing. For example, octopus harvested at low tide may be dried and stored for several months. As catch surpluses tend to be shared among the community, this strategy may also support vulnerable community members who do not engage in subsistence fishing or are unable to stockpile food. Micronesian fishing communities have used preservation methods for thousands of years, so it is important that traditional practices are revived and encouraged through a community-led approach. As climate change bites, the frequency and intensity of extreme weather is likely to restrict the number of fishing days. The Cash+ programme from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization provides no-strings cash injections at a household level. It can provide fishers with financial relief to purchase essential food items until they can get back to sea or funds for boats for when they can. It is important to provide nutritional education at the same time, given an unhealthy shift in Micronesian diets in recent years to spam, mutton flaps, turkey tails and other processed foods. These strategies – at the government, community and household level – may help fishing communities adapt to the negative effects of climate change. The climate crisis is happening now and it will extend into the foreseeable future. But strategies that limit global emissions to 1.5°C remain the priority. Preventing the climate from changing extends benefits beyond Micronesia to other regions vulnerable to climate variability. For example, the residents of low-income countries and island states on the eastern side of Africa, such as Comoros and Madagascar, are also suffering deteriorating health in response to climate change and degrading oceans. Some 30 to 60 million people in these countries rely on fishing for their food. Adaptation strategies in the Pacific might benefit low-income coastal communities worldwide. Lauren Hodgson is a Master of Public Health student at the University of Queensland. She has a particular interest in the relationship between ocean conservation and human health. The authors declare no conflict of interest. This article has been republished for World Fisheries Day. It was first published on July 8, 2022. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on July 11, 2022

A city's hope, despair and anger on big screen - 360 Kaustubh Mani Sengupta Published on January 12, 2023 Leading Indian filmmakers Satyajit Ray and Mrinal Sen directed their trilogies on Calcutta during the early 1970s (Ray: Pratidwandi, Seemabaddha, Jana Aranya; Sen: Interview, Calcutta 71, Padatik). Distinct in their treatment and ideological standpoints, the films are acute and astute observation of the city in turmoil. Poverty, political unrest, corruption, violence, moral dilemma, and often hopeless anger of the youth are depicted with sensitivity. In terms of cinematic technique, Ray — though distinct from his earlier approach — seemed to be an observer from the outside. Sen instead plunged headlong into the action, speaking directly to the audience, with the use of newspaper headlines, still images, newsreels, episodic story-telling and disjointed narratives. The city life, though present intermittently in the early works of these masters, became much more prominent during the late 1960s and ’70s. Calcutta changed rapidly after 1947. The city started to burst at its seams with the rapid population increase with the influx of refugees from eastern Bengal (East Pakistan, now Bangladesh). The early years after independence were marked by severe cholera outbreaks. The public health system virtually collapsed. Sealdah Railway Station, where refugees took shelter in the absence of alternatives, was described in Amritabazar Patrika as ‘a veritable hell on earth’ (April 21, 1950). Newspaper reports invoked images of the 1943 famine. The city also became the theatre of a keen political contest, with the Congress Party in power and the left parties in opposition. The Communists initiated a distinct form of politics of agitation that shaped the urban political milieu of the state. Within the next two decades, radical politics would erupt and Calcutta was the battleground. Indian cinema also gained global recognition around this time. Bengali films played a pioneering role in this with the release of Satyajit Ray’s Pather Panchali (1955). The famous trio of film directors — Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak and Mrinal Sen — would change the contours of Bengali (and Indian) cinema. Realism became a hallmark of these films. Intense debates and discussions in film society circles as well as newspapers and popular magazines marked the emergence of serious engagement with cinema as an art form in the postcolonial milieu. Sen was particularly attentive to worldwide currents of left politics and his films put Calcutta centrally within that global context. As film historian Rochona Majumdar said: “All three films [Sen’s trilogy] have shots featuring important landmarks of Calcutta — Calcutta University, High Court, Dalhousie Square, All India Radio, the Victoria Memorial, the racecourse — as well as documentary and still footage of local and global events. Shots of popular Hindi and Bengali film posters, newspaper headlines, statues of imperial and nationalist leaders, processions and picketing, police firings on political protesters, images of Mao Zedong, Ho Chi Minh, the Vietcong and African soldiers are also common to all three films. They situate postcolonial Calcutta against a background of global protest movements in other parts of Afro-Asia and Latin America.” Along with that, Sen was also commenting on the structural inequities of Indian society, on poverty, exploitation, and hunger that plagued India from the colonial times and was still prevailing two decades after independence. Before the trilogy, Sen had directed Akash Kusum (Up in the Clouds) in 1965. The film can be read as a precursor to the city films in some particular aspects. Akash Kusum tells the story of a lower middle-class ambitious young man who pretends to be successful and rich when he meets a beautiful young girl—“a day dreaming youth’s bungling attempts to cross the wealth barrier into a world of ease and sophistication”, as the reviewer in The Statesman noted at the time. The mood of the film is mostly light. The denouement, however, comes with the shattering of his veil. In the pages of the Statesman, the film caused fierce debates regarding the idea of ‘topicality’ of the subject among Ashish Barman (the film’s co-writer), Satyajit Ray, Sen and other readers, with Ray sarcastically commenting that, “May I point out that the topicality of the theme in question stretches well back into antiquity, when it found expression in that touching fable about the poor deluded crow with a fatal weakness for status symbols?” For Ray, any contemporary attitude reflected in the film was restricted to the surface only, “in its modish narrative devices and in some lively details of city life.” Interview follows the central character, Ranjit, throughout the city when he tries to get hold of a western suit for an interview for a job with a business firm. Innovative in filmic technique, the narrative, like Akash Kusum, again starts on a lighter note and portrays middle-class youth aspiring to break free of class barriers. But towards the end of the film, the tone shifts, and we see Ranjit, having failed to acquire the desired suit, bursting out in anger, breaking the glass window of a shop and tearing the clothes off a mannequin. This sequence was accompanied by images of political protests of students and workers as well as those of Vietnamese peasants and adivasis (tribals). The narrative, then, does not only remain about acquiring the suit. It becomes the metaphor for the imperial legacy still shaping the society in erstwhile colonies. From the naïve optimism and self-delusion of Akash Kusum to the initial hope of Ranjit in Interview, Sen finally moves to the revolutionary street protests of Calcutta and other parts of the world. The shift in the political mood of the city found an expression in his middle-class protagonist. Sen’s next film, Calcutta 71, angrier in tone, would bring to life the lower echelons of the society much more centrally. The last one in the trilogy, Padatik, takes a self-introspective tone where the protagonist, a political fugitive, starts questioning the methods and programme of the party. But in Akash Kusum and Interview we find the vestiges of the colonial mind where the middle-class pursues the dream of secure jobs and a bourgeois life. As historian Sumit Sarkar has analysed, a salaried job—chakri—was central to the identity of the colonial middle-class in Bengal. The drudgery of the time-bound routine life of a clerk in a government office or some foreign mercantile firm was despised by them and yet, it was a sought-after occupation. The job situation in Calcutta worsened after independence. For the middle-class aspirants, the search for a salaried job became a nightmare. The interview sequences in Ray’s Pratidwandi memorably captured the agony of these youth. In repeated interviews, Sen has mentioned that he wanted to portray the persistence of class exploitation, poverty, hunger, and social inequalities in India from the colonial period to his times. Perhaps Calcutta 71, with its episodic depictions of the 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, and the immediate context of the late 1960s, presents a neat visual understanding of Sen’s reading of Indian history. In Akash Kusum and Interview, however, we find a nuanced reading of middle-class hopes and aspirations in the early decades of postcolonial India—expectations and dreams which would soon turn into bitter realisations and violent actions. teaches at the Department of History, Bankura University, India. He studied history at Presidency College, Kolkata and the Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. His research focuses on urban history of South Asia with particular focus on Calcutta/Kolkata, early colonial state in India, and film and cinema studies. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on January 12, 2023

A creative identity crisis in the making - 360 Oliver Bown Published on April 3, 2024 Generative AI doesn’t like to credit its sources. For artists, that’s a problem. In a few short years, generative AI techniques have suddenly exploded into a revolutionary new type of creative tool. Using mere text descriptions, it’s now possible to conjure creative works into existence, as if by magic. People have rightly been quick to compare this revolution to the invention of photography, the phonograph, synthesisers or the internet. Like earlier creative technologies, AI is disrupting existing creative practices. But more than just competing with traditional creative methods, leading generative AI tools also exploit the creative labour and talent of previous creative work used to train them. Thus, a fierce debate is underway about how rights relating to the material employed to train generative AI tools should be treated. One camp, including the emerging AI giants OpenAI and StabilityAI, argues that it is “fair use” to scrape the world’s creative archive to train generative AI models. Are these AI models not, after all, just like people, learning about art and aesthetics from history and the world around them? Others with a stake in the issue tend to be artists and other copyright holders. Even if they might appreciate this view philosophically (and many do not), they still understand their existing intellectual property rights to include the right to refuse the use of their creative work as AI training data. In their view, companies need their permission. At heart, this division is confounded by the nature of generative AI: generated outputs do not directly reference training data inputs, but digest and regurgitate them. There is no given means of attributing individual sources. Even for creative industries accustomed to disruption, the situation is a genuine crisis – in part because it unsettles an established socioeconomic consensus, albeit one that is far from perfect. Creative attribution is itself a social construct. The existing means we have at our disposal to discern and honour the value of individual creative works are the products of collisions and compromise between technology, law and creative practice. Musical artists know that the economics of a single track break down into distinct intellectual property components, beginning with songwriting. Long before the advent of audio recording, a song, encoded on paper as sheet music, enjoyed copyright protection. Well over a century later, performances and audio recordings are now, in turn, robust copyrightable entities. For example, if you were to listen on Spotify to Sinead O’Connor’s version of Nothing Compares 2 U, a song written by Prince, then 15 percent of some fraction of a cent goes in the direction of Prince’s estate or representatives for the songwriting part, the rest in the direction of O’Connor’s estate, or her label, performers, and so on, for the rendering of that song as recorded sound. This 15 percent of a track’s value lying in the ‘song’ is a social construct, the outcome of negotiations between recording companies, publishers, streaming services and artists. When generative AI creates outputs, there is no clear line of attribution back to specific training sources. The alternative is to pay a fixed fee for the data. AI machine learning works by using enormous amounts of training data. If an AI company were to pay a fixed fee for the use of that data, then any individual artist’s remuneration would be a miniscule slice of a very big pie. Would you accept a fraction of $1 for your music composition or oil painting to be used in a product that might then churn out endless imitations of your creative style without credit? This is why many have now turned their attention to solving the problem of solving AI attribution, analysing datasets or generative networks to discern the relative weights of influence of traditional IP concepts such as songwriting, recording and performing – just as techniques of AI generation lay claim to being able to discern and extract ‘style’ and ‘content’ from creative materials. So imagine someone used AI to generate a piece of guitar music, and the resulting piece of music sounded a little like Eddie Van Halen (whether intended or not). Putting a figure on that association, say it scored 10 percent in its ‘Van-Halen-ness’, with the remainder going to 10,000 other potential micro-influences (a bit of Beatles, a smidge of John Lee Hooker). It is entirely conceivable, technically, to do something like this. And with the huge focus currently on generative AI and the means of training that AI, there are a lot of people looking at it. As well as potential pathways for remuneration, AI generation that afforded attribution would offer the basic respect of recognition – about which not just professionals but also amateur artists care deeply. If handled appropriately, such attribution techniques could provide new insights into our own individual and cultural understanding of creativity as a social phenomenon – but only if those measures and techniques can be properly unpacked and debated. At worst, artists would be forced to simply accept a dominant attribution engine, much as we accept the automated decisions of recommender engines – the algorithm-driven mystery machines that ‘suggest’ what we want to watch and listen to on any number of digital platforms. There’s a danger that the forward momentum behind generative AI, combined with this expectation of achievable attribution, forces an ill-considered and inequitable outcome. Such attribution of indirect influences opens a very serious can of worms, where what is perceived as an influence, and measured as such by an opaque process, becomes taken as authoritative. In any such process, the emphasis should be the idea that the musical and artistic styles of the world are more a part of our cultural commons than anyone’s private possessions. And while artists may simply want to opt out of AI and ignore it, there’s a plausible scenario in which ‘big AI’ becomes a fragmented world where the only cultural data used is what has already been accumulated by large corporations, presenting new issues of access and inclusion. It is impossible to tell whether automated attribution will become a significant part of our future. But it is essential that where it is used, it should not only be challenged itself through informed open debate, but also have the potential to drive forward concepts of copyright for the public good. Oliver Bown is Associate Professor at the School of Art & Design, UNSW Sydney. He is author of Beyond the Creative Species: Making Machines that Make Art & Music (MIT Press, 2021), now available as a free ePub from the MIT Press website. His research was funded by an ERC Advanced Grant: “Music and Artificial Intelligence: Building Critical Interdisciplinary Studies”. Oliver Bown’s research is supported by a European Research Council Advanced Grant and an Australian Research Council Discovery Project grant. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “AI and the arts” sent at: 28/03/2024 09:14. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 3, 2024

A crucial G20 leaders' summit in Delhi - 360 Bharat Bhushan Published on September 8, 2023 India is hosting its inaugural G20 leaders’ summit at a time when the world’s economy is facing many challenges. The G20 leaders’ summit in Indian capital New Delhi across 9-10 September comes as the global economy faces major challenges. The world is barely emerging from the shock of the COVID-19 pandemic and a prolonged Russia-Ukraine conflict has decreased the global food supply, resulting in a steep price increase. Inflation is rising. The G20 summit provides world leaders an opportunity to develop a consensus on addressing these challenges. The G20 consists of 19 countries and the European Union — the 20 largest economies in the world, which account for approximately 90 percent of global GDP and 80 percent of global trade. Since forming in 1999, the G20 has positioned itself as the premier forum of global economic cooperation. The presidency of G20 is rotational, with 2022 president Indonesia hosting the leaders’ summit in Bali. The host country has very little manoeuvrability to modify the core agenda of the G20, which focuses on discussing key issues of the global economy and ensuring international financial stability. India is hosting the G20 Summit for the first time. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is projecting this as a major diplomatic achievement by his government. Playing the host provides India an opportunity to showcase its economic potential to the world and position itself as a major player. Domestically, it is expected to show Indian voters the global adulation for Modi’s leadership, as he prepares to seek a third term in six months’ time. In New Delhi, world leaders are expected to discuss issues of green development, climate finance, resilient and inclusive economic growth, progress on Sustainable Development Goals, technological transformation and digital public infrastructure, reforming multilateral institutions for the 21st century and women-led development. The New Delhi summit may also see the inclusion of the African Union as a full member of the G20. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping are skipping the summit, sending their representatives instead. This may have to do with the apparently irreconcilable differences within the G20 on the Russia-Ukraine war. 360info goes to the experts to examine the effectiveness of G20 in key areas of the global economy. Editors Note: In the story “G20 primer” sent at: 07/09/2023 09:33. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on September 8, 2023

A cure for cancer? Making sense of RNA vaccines - 360 Samrat Choudhury Published on May 22, 2024 New vaccines for cancer and flu are among a host of promising RNA therapeutics currently in human clinical trials. Potential cures for certain types of cancer. A universal vaccine against the myriad strains of influenza. New drugs to treat cystic fibrosis. Such is the promise of RNA-based therapeutics. Since a key technical challenge was overcome with the advent of lipid nanoparticles to more precisely deliver the treatments, and research interest revived during the COVID-19 pandemic thanks to the success of mRNA COVID vaccines, the field is now rapidly growing. In terms of messenger RNA treatments alone, as of late 2023 there were more than 80 mRNA therapeutics in human trials, with at least five new clinically approved mRNA drugs coming to market and many more in the registration process. 360info asked scientists in Australia, India and Malaysia to help us, and readers everywhere, make sense of this new technology and what we should expect from it. Editors Note: In the story “RNA therapeutics” sent at: 20/05/2024 07:51. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 22, 2024

A deep dive into the reality of radioactive water - 360 David Krofcheck Published on April 14, 2023 Japan faced three options with disposing of radioactive wastewater. All were problematic. When people go for a swim in an ocean they are literally bathing in a sea of natural radiation. The predominant component of the radiation comes from potassium-40 which is a natural part of the earth’s environment. Tritium, a heavy cousin of hydrogen, and carbon-14 are also sources produced when high-energy protons from space smash into oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the air. This atmospheric source of ocean radioactivity has worked on Earth for almost three billion years. Along with uranium radioactive decay products, humans live within this natural radioactive background. From August 24, the Japanese government plans to release into the Pacific Ocean 1.3 million tonnes of water which was used to cool the damaged reactor cores from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident in March 2011. Between 2011-2013, approximately 300,000 tonnes of untreated wastewater had already flowed into the ocean off Fukushima. These first two years were the most dangerous time because long-lived heavy nuclei, like cesium-137, strontium-90 and shorter-lived iodine-131, from nuclear fission in the reactors ended up in the ocean. Since 2013 the stored water has accumulated from seawater flushed through and from groundwater which leaked into the three damaged reactor cores. The big challenge is how to manage 1.3 million tonnes of unsafe radioactively-tainted water. One of three options was to filter out the nuclear fission nuclei, then dump the filtered water into the ocean to dilute any remaining amount of tritium or carbon-14.  Japan has chosen this complex way from all the fraught options. Disposing of untreated wastewater into the ocean would release nuclear fission products in an uncontrolled manner. The danger of indiscriminately releasing nuclear fission products into the ocean is that the products can find their way into the food chain. Once in the food chain the nuclear fission heavy nuclei like cesium-137, strontium-90 and iodine-131 tend to concentrate in human muscle, bones, and thyroid. Cancers can be the result. This is why Japan planned to remove as much of these radioactive nuclei as possible from the Fukushima water before its release. Some cesium-137 and strontium-90  nuclei already exist on the ocean floor due to nuclear weapons tests in the 1950s and 60s. A good guide for having confidence in the safe release of radiation is to reduce human radiation exposure by making it “As Low As Reasonably Achievable” or ALARA. Filtering out the nuclear fission nuclei from the stored wastewater may be the best that can be done.The ALARA approach to reduce nuclear fission nuclei released resulted in a 2013 effort to develop and employ an advanced liquid processing system, or ALPS. A series of filters was designed to remove 62 fission nuclei leaving both tritium and carbon-14 in the water.  It only partially worked. The Tokyo Electric Power company (TEPCO) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) agree that about 70 percent of the stored Fukushima water may still carry some of the original nuclear fission nuclei. Potentially, this water could be run through more cycles of the ALPS before extra dilution and later release into the ocean. The other 30 percent of treated water could also be diluted with seawater by factors of several hundred to one thousand and then released into the ocean. Any remaining tritium from the Fukushima reactor may find its way into the food chain as organically bound tritium via build-up in underwater plants and organisms. Organically bound tritium will still keep its 12.4-year half-life, but these nuclei stay in the human body for roughly 10 days before half of their number is excreted. The 10 days is known as the biological half-life of tritium. The process for excreting carbon-14 has a biological half-life of about 40 days, which is negligible compared to its 5,730-year radioactive decay half-life. These short biological half-lives contrast sharply with the decades-long residence time of cesium-137 and strontium-90 inside the human body. The second option for managing the Fukushima water was to hold it on site in an ever-increasing number of tanks. If the water is properly filtered to leave only tritium and carbon-14, then the natural decay of tritium can be used to reduce overall radioactivity.  Since the radioactive half-life of tritium is 12.4 years, holding the water in tanks for seven half-lives, about 85 years, would reduce the tritium content to less than 1 percent of its current value. This option leaves the carbon-14 which would still roughly have the same radioactivity due to its 5,730-year half-life. However, storing a tremendous volume of water for an entire human lifespan has never been tried. Even more water and storage tanks would need to be added to the ever-accumulating total as decommissioning the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor cores proceeds. This was problematic. A third option was to evaporate the water on land near Fukushima. A 1979 nuclear accident at Three Mile Island Nuclear Station in the United States resulted in a similar radioactive water storage problem. About 9,300 tonnes of tritiated water, about 140 times less than that currently held in the Fukushima storage tanks, was electrically evaporated over two years. The tritium was released into the atmosphere, resulting in a radiation dose to people in the surrounding area of about one-hundredth of the natural background radiation. Japan and TEPCO would need to deal with even larger amounts of water and tritium emitted into the atmosphere if the 30-year timeline for the reactor core clean-up is followed. Again, this option was too problematic. It is crucial to distinguish natural background radiation from that of nuclear fission nuclei when seeking to understand the choice made by Japan and supported by the IAEA. Nobody wants to add additional radiation to the oceans, if only because of sympathy with local Fukushima fishers. But with proper ALPS filtering, people who go out to swim in the ocean should still have radiation exposure as the least of their concerns. Dr David Krofcheck is a Senior Lecturer in Physics at the University of Auckland. He declares no conflict of interest. This article has been republished ahead of Japan’s plan to release nuclear wastewater from August 24, 2023. It originally appeared on April 14, 2023. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “Fukushima water” sent at: 12/07/2023 13:02. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 14, 2023

A job in a warzone or unemployment at home - 360 Manjari Singh Published on April 29, 2024 Indian diplomatic missions need to closely monitor the security situation and assess the threat perceptions to its communities. Nation-making is a tough business. Israel should know. In response to growing labour demand in Israel and to deepen their political relationship, India and Israel signed an agreement in May 2023 for 42,000 Indians to head to the Jewish state to work in construction and nursing. The move was widely reported by Indian and international media as one that didn’t account for the safety and security of its workers. And that was before October 7. The ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict that exploded in October resulted in Israel banning more than 90,000 Palestinians workers — who formed the backbone of Israel’s construction industry — to be replaced by workers from India, Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan. India signed a deal a month after the outbreak of hostilities to allow the emigration of Indian workers to an active conflict zone. Against the backdrop of an ongoing war, with tens of thousands of civilian deaths, there are well-founded fears that India’s agreement with Israel may come at a heavy price. As Israel finds itself in the middle of another crisis after Iran’s missile attack, an increasingly urgent question for India to consider is the safety of its migrant workers. The agreement seems to be a case of putting the cart before the horse: a knee-jerk response to maintain bilateral relations and an opportunity to ameliorate India’s ongoing unemployment crisis. Government schemes such as Atmanirbhar Bharat Rojgar Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Protsahan Yojana, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan and other schemes to address the unemployability in the country have generated only meagre wages. The statistics are worrying: the India Employment Report 2024 revealed that the number of educated unemployed youth had nearly doubled to 65.7 percent in 2022 from 35.2 percent in 2000. The report also noted an increase in self-employment and widespread livelihood insecurity, marked by a skills deficit which reduced chances of employability. More than 10 percent of Indians between 15 and 29 years were unemployed during 2022-23. In contrast, lucrative job opportunities, skill development and payment packages offered abroad, including the conflict-prone Middle East nations and the oil-rich states of the Gulf, compels workers to migrate. This makes it all the more imperative to institute safeguards to secure the welfare and well-being of workers going to conflict zones. The agreement between the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), India and Israel’s Population and Immigration Authority (PIBA) was signed in November. A few weeks later, PIBA had conducted a meeting with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to streamline the process of recruitment. The NSDC worked with the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana to initiate recruitment processes, especially in the construction industry. Among India’s various agreements is listed the protocol agreements between India’s MSDE and Israel regarding mobility frameworks between the two countries to facilitate worker movement under the NSDC, but these remain unspecified by the latter. The question of accountability for the safety of Indian migrant workers remains one of passing the buck. India has already issued a no-travel advisory to Israel and Iran as both nations are in an active military standoff. Indian expatriates play a formidable role in the country’s global supply chain aspirations which is driven by demand, demography, and drive. Labour migration has been one of the significant features of the last few decades. Workers who move to countries requiring emigration clearance due to their unconducive labour laws are required to register themselves under the Indian government’s e-Migrate portal, instituted since 2015 by the Ministry of External Affairs, which offers insurance under the Pravasi Bharatiya Bhim Yojana and other protections. Indian labour unions have raised concerns over the India-Israel agreement as a violation of India’s emigration rules that may endanger worker safety and be a potential threat to life in any active conflict or conflict-prone region such as Israel. According to India’s Emigration Act of 1983, no Indian can migrate for work unless they obtain Emigration Check Required (ECR) status from the Indian authorities. However, as the number of conflicts reduced over the years after the signing of peace treaties between some Arab states and Israel, to avoid inconvenience for the migrants, the GoI exempted certain countries from ECR list by October 1, 2007, including Israel. Israel’s membership to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) protocol is more binding and protective of foreign worker’s rights, their safety and security. Israel is already bound by OECD’s Employment Protection Act regarding labour rights and provides them protection, social security and health insurance. Around 14,000 Indian nurses and caregivers employed in Israel have not returned to India or requested government agencies for assistance despite the active conflict since October 2023. This was confirmed by the Kerala government agency responsible for expat affairs. Most nurses in the caregiving sector are hired from Kerala. Workers continue to face issues such as inadequate social safety nets and are vulnerable to employer exploitation, escalation of violence and lack of legal protection. Some of these aspects were exposed when Qatar was preparing to host the FIFA World Cup 2022. Workers’ rights were severely violated and the emirate was criticised the world over. Around 8.5-9 million Indian expatriates are working in the Gulf countries, of which the majority are employed as support staff and caregivers in hospitality industries, oil refineries, construction and service sectors such as drivers. The roles of Indian migrants have been diversified in the wake of the Gulf economies choosing to move beyond their oil dependence. This has been made possible with India’s strategic partnership with some of the regional powers in the Gulf. By the same standards, owing to India bolstering its relations with Israel to strategic partnership level in July 2017, the decision to send labour to that country stems from the need to increase New Delhi’s engagement with Tel Aviv. Domestic workers, for instance, in most of the Gulf Arab countries are not included under the foreign labour laws and thus are vulnerable to exploitation by employers. Likewise, in the event of exacerbation of conflict, evacuation of huge worker populations becomes a daunting task for the government. It is time that the government invests in proper streamlined evacuation policies and must continuously monitor the situations in these countries. There have been many instances when India’s evacuation drive has been successful yet done hastily and the government has been caught off-guard such as during the Kuwait Crisis of 1990s, Lebanon in 2006, Syria and Libya in 2011, South Sudan in 2013, the Yemen and Iraq crisis of 2015, and Congo crisis of 2006 and 2017. Despite many efforts, Indian diplomatic missions need to closely monitor the security situation and assess the threat perceptions to its communities. India already uses its diplomatic channels, consular assistance, logistical planning, coordinates with international agencies and countries, and communicates with its citizens. This was seen most recently during the Afghanistan and Ukraine crisis. However, given the scale of work-related outmigration, more effective and dedicated means need to be employed to safeguard the workers in such regions. Coordinated usage of technology and digital means under the aegis of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship to monitor its workers can be a step forward in this regard. Dr. Manjari Singh is Assistant Professor at Amity Institute of International Studies, Amity University, Noida. Her interests include contemporary Middle East, India-Middle East relations, India-Gulf relations, India’s national security and sustainable development. She is author of India and the Gulf: A Security Perspective (New Delhi: KW Publishers) and co-authored Persian Gulf 2018: India’s Relations with the Region (Singapore: Palgrave Macmillan). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on April 29, 2024

A new wave of research in the Southern Ocean - 360 Helen Phillips Published on January 24, 2024 To understand climate change and the Antarctic, scientists need to spend weeks at sea studying the depths. This is what it looks like. At the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies in Hobart, there is a saying that to protect Antarctica and the Southern Ocean is to protect our future on this planet. This may sound like an overstatement, but in reality we are in the critical decade to cut carbon emissions to avoid tipping points in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean and bring us back to a safe climate. The Southern Ocean controls the uptake of human-generated heat and carbon into the ocean and helps keep Earth habitable. It also influences global ocean circulation and climate, and contributes to melting of the Antarctic ice sheet – the greatest uncertainty in projecting future sea level rise. The waters of the Southern Ocean have a significant effect on the ice at Antarctica’s fringes. However, despite its importance, the Southern Ocean is one of the most under-observed regions on the planet. Ocean observations in such an extreme environment require collaboration between nations and disciplines and, of course, time at sea. This was exactly the approach we took to putting together the FOCUS voyage, led by CSIRO and the Australian Antarctic Program Partnership. As a physical oceanographer I have spent my career observing and interpreting the Southern Ocean, to help answer urgent questions about its role in the climate system. In November 2023, I co-led a 34-strong interdisciplinary team on a five week voyage aboard CSIRO research vessel RV Investigator to build on this work. The ship set sail from Hobart, travelling more than 850 nautical miles south to the pulsing heart of the Southern Ocean – the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. This current circles Antarctica and is like a big dam holding back the heat from the north and helping the waters around the icy continent stay cold. It is leaky in a few places, and has always been leaky, but we have observed more heat seeping through in recent times. Changing winds are expected to accelerate this heat transport, melting sea ice and ice shelves that hold Antarctic glaciers back from contributing to further sea level rise. Our aim was to zoom in on one likely culprit of this increased leaking – an eddy hotspot about half way between Tasmania and Antarctica – and build our understanding of the small-scale processes that control heat transport across the Southern Ocean. Armed with a state-of-the-art toolkit, we were able to observe the ocean in high definition above and below the waves. NASA and CNES’ recently-launched SWOT satellite measured the height of the ocean’s surface in fine detail from space, while the science team onboard the Investigator measured the properties of the water in the current all the way down to the seafloor. Our conductivity, temperature and depth sensor — the workhorse of the expedition — provided beautiful vertical profiles of the ocean in fine detail, while the box-shaped Triaxus provided rapid sampling closer to the ocean’s surface. EMBED START Image {id: "editor_6"} EMBED END Image {id: "editor_6"} We also deployed a suite of autonomous instruments, some contributed by international collaborators, like gliders, floats and drifters, which move around the ocean at various depths and report back through mobile phone networks. These autonomous instruments will continue to collect data at sea for many months to come. There is a real rhythm to science at sea. You turn up at a ridiculous time of the day – for me that was 2am – and greet the team looking bright and cheery, ready to start work. In my role as co-chief scientist, my primary focus is ensuring the voyage achieves its scientific objectives. However, as I’ve learned over many years, it doesn’t matter how well planned the voyage is, an effective voyage relies on adaptability and collaboration. Conditions are constantly changing, equipment fails, and you have to work within the constraints of the ship. This means it’s not always possible to follow the original voyage plan. Instead, it’s about finding a way to compromise, and work towards objectives with a slightly different approach within the bounds of safety and wellbeing. The other key part of my role is providing encouragement and support for the team to work like a well-oiled machine. We all like to be recognised for doing our job well and that is particularly true when the conditions are rough and cold. One of the things I love most about voyages is the opportunity to work with the next generation of scientists, equipping them with the skills needed to be seagoing oceanographers, to gather data that is vital for understanding our oceans and the broader climate system. The team on FOCUS were an amazing bunch of enthusiastic, kind and generous people who did everything that was asked of them and made the voyage a success. Ultimately, tackling the world’s greatest challenges like climate change takes many careers, and fostering an environment where new careers can flourish is vital. Conducting science at sea builds an appreciation of every little piece of observational data we have access to. If there’s a gap in the data, something has likely gone horribly wrong – a piece of equipment has broken or the weather has turned sour. This appreciation built throughout the FOCUS voyage. One of my PhD students James Wyatt put it into perspective: “Out in the Southern Ocean, it’s rough, it’s cold, and it’s a long way from civilisation. It really makes me value the measurements we have access to.” Even if these emerging scientists never end up coming to sea again, it is important for them to understand what’s involved in gathering the data used in their research. While the at-sea part of the FOCUS voyage has finished, the Antarctic region remains in a state of unprecedented change. Our team of students and researchers in Australia, France and the US are working on the data collected from the voyage and from the satellite. Our results will underpin improved projections of Antarctic melt and sea level rise by delivering new knowledge of the influence of small-scale currents on heat movement across the Southern Ocean. We have a window of opportunity to use our data to help inform government and community plans to adapt to our rapidly changing world and to track the response of the ocean to reductions in carbon emissions and the return to a safer climate. The faster each one of us reduces our emissions, or carbon footprint, the more likely we are to keep Earth habitable. The research of the FOCUS voyage is supported by a grant of sea time on RV Investigator from the CSIRO Marine National Facility which is supported by the Australian Government’s National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS). is a Physical Oceanographer at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania. Her work contributes to the Australian Antarctic Program Partnership, the Australian Centre for Excellence in Antarctic Science and the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program Climate Systems Hub. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on January 24, 2024

A new way to fight sexual violence in conflict zones - 360 Zhi Ming Sim Published on November 29, 2023 The UN has tried tackling conflict-related sexual violence for more than two decades, but its “add-women-and-stir” approach doesn’t go far enough. Gaza, Ukraine, Myanmar, Syria, Yemen,  South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo: The world is witnessing the highest number of active conflicts since World War Two. Where there is conflict, there is often sexual violence — which can include rape, sexual slavery, forced pregnancy, forced abortion, and forced marriage. More than two decades after the UN Security Council passed the landmark Women, Security, and Peace Resolution 1325 — which explicitly calls for women and girls to be protected in conflict situations and affirms the significance of women’s participation in peacebuilding — conflict-related sexual violence remains rife. The UN reported 2455 verified cases across 20 conflicts in 2022 alone. The real number is likely to be much higher: the vast majority of cases are never reported, partly because of the sensitivities and stigmas surrounding sexual violence. Women and girls made up 94 percent of cases in 2022. Rape has been reported in the Russian-Ukraine war, as well as the Democratic Republic of Congo, which had 701 verified cases, the  most reported by the UN. In one nine-day period in November 2022, 66 women were raped  at Kisu by M23 militias to warn and punish civilians supporting rival armed groups. Rape also happens in detention settings. Survivors of the civil war in Myanmar have testified that rapes as torture were common tactics deployed on activists in state custody. In Syria, sexual violence has been perpetrated against detained women, men, girls and boys, the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic found. Alarmingly, children made up one-third (32 percent) of all verified cases. In Sudan, RSF militias  have targeted girls and women leaving places of refuge for school, work, or seeking medical help. In Iraq, among the Yazidi survivors who returned from ISIS captivity and forced marriage, hundreds remain in displacement sites grappling with significant mental health challenges. Some have children born of rape. In Gaza, Human Rights Watch and the  United Nations have flagged that women and girls are especially vulnerable to sexual violence. As  Human Rights Watch has explained, the Israel government’s blockade of medical supplies, clean water,and electricity to Gaza will likely leave any such survivors of sexual violence untreated — at risk of spreading sexually transmitted diseases, infections, and severely unhygienic conditions. Conflict-related sexual violence is not always committed by national armies directly: As my research has explored, state-sponsored militias also commit these acts, alongside non-state entities such as armed rebel groups, and guerrillas. While conflict-related sexual violence has been promoted as policy and strategy in extreme cases of ethnic cleansing and genocide, it is much more common for that sexual violence to occur due to “commander’s tolerance”, where acts are neither prohibited nor an explicit policy. Critical feminist perspectives suggest practical measures to address sexual violence in conflict. Some argue the “add-women-and-stir” framework of Women, Peace and Security resolutions has failed to address the fundamental structures of masculine militarism at the crux of pervading sexual violence in conflict. Contrary to the UN-popularised  “weapon of war” narrative, sexual violence rarely unfolds under explicit military directives. Instead, armed groups, national governments, and institutions – characterised by toughness, aggression and domination – underpin implicit tolerance for sexual violence and its proliferation in conflict. This means unless there are purposeful steps to disrupt and change gender and social relations, sexual violence in conflict will persist. So too, will relations of domination that sustain conditions for conflict such as exaggerated ideals of manhood that have often justified military action, and allowed military personnel to dehumanise women and minority communities. Resolving conflict-related sexual violence, therefore, should involve moving beyond merely centering gender within international security dialogues, but to rethink and address meanings of security that often necessitate the use of violence. This will be no small feat. The traditional view of security has been state-based and state-centric, defining security on the basis of national defence, border protection and military strength. But as Cynthia Cockburn has argued, this definition of security is “ill-designed to recognise civilian insecurities, and in particular women’s physical, sexual, and reproductive vulnerabilities in war”. New definitions of “security”, as Arun Kundnani writes, should focus on “the building of institutions  that foster social and ecological relationships needed to live dignified  lives”. This means a progressive defunding of military and intelligence  institutions, as well as border infrastructures and the construction of  alternative institutions that  ensure women’s safety. Policymakers could focus on anti-war  collectives built around  solidarity rather than threats, and  reparations rather than militarised retribution and  vengeance. For this to become reality, grassroot voices and communities need to be centered in policy-making. Survivors of conflict-related sexual violence  could not only be consulted, but become decision-makers in domestic and international processes, as they work towards more comprehensive state accountability and social justice for a more humane world. This would require a paradigm shift in the way the international community treats conflict-related sexual violence – and the ways it values militarism and defines security. Zhi Ming Sim is a PhD Candidate in Political Science at York University. Their research examines the political ecologies of clean sustainability projects in Southeast Asia. They also write broadly on conflict-related sexual violence and anti-imperialist movements across Asia. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 29, 2023

A night-time ban in Atlanta showed just how much e-scooters prevent traffic jams - 360 Omar Isaac Asensio Published on February 16, 2023 Shared e-scooters look set to stay in urban centres, with research showing they help alleviate traffic congestion. They are the latest urban sensation. Shared e-scooters and e-bikes have sprung up in cities around the world. While some have embraced them as a transport option, others have railed against them on safety grounds. But a study from Atlanta, USA published in Nature Energy suggests e-scooters and e-bikes may help reduce traffic congestion, especially after major events. Shared micromobility rides such as e-scooters and e-bikes are expected to become a US$300 billion market globally by 2030. The availability of these zippy little transports is expected to displace some trips made in traditional cars or motorbikes and contribute to the electrification of the global transport fleet. Particularly for ‘last mile’ trips, micromobility rides may fundamentally change urban transport. When the US city of Atlanta decided to ban e-scooters and e-bikes between 9pm and 4am, it delivered a perfect natural experiment to understand the effects of micromobility on traffic congestion. The ban was enforced with mobile geofencing and remote shutdown, resulting in near perfect compliance. Using data from Uber Movement, researchers could compare travel time before and after 9pm and before and after the ban. During the ban, travel-time in the city centre increased by 0.241 minutes per mile. This translates to an estimated increase in evening commute times of 2.3 to 4.2 minutes per trip or between 373,000 and 679,000 additional hours combined for Atlanta commuters per year. For transport to and from metro train stations, the ban increased travel by 0.255 minutes per mile, a 10.5 percent average increase in travel time. The researchers showed that because traffic got worse following the policy intervention when micromobility options were suddenly not available, users were largely substituting their scooters for private vehicles. Where the researchers found the greatest effect was at one of Atlanta’s big soccer stadiums. The timing of the ban coincided with the Major League Soccer season. Travel time increased 0.886 minutes per mile on match days. A suburban resident who lives 20 kilometres away from the city, had an increase in travel time of 11.9 minutes returning home from the soccer game, a substantial 36.5 percent increase in travel time. The ban snarled traffic most severely in the first days after it was implemented. Within the first five days of the ban, congestion reached a crawl of 0.80 minutes per mile. However, after about a week, commuters seemed to adapt in their travel planning and the congestion effect stabilised to an average of 0.25 minutes per mile after five weeks. Although a two to five-minute delay in travel time does not seem huge, if extrapolated out to the whole of the USA, an e-scooter ban could mean lost productivity amounting to US$536 million in congestion-related costs. It’s a figure that may feed into debates about the economic cost of scooter-related injuries and the effects of micromobility regulation. The Atlanta case study shows that cities’ decisions on shared micromobility, such as e-scooters and e-bikes, have unintended consequences. The Atlanta ban led to a rise in traffic congestion as many riders switched back to cars. Meanwhile micromobility has the potential to displace cars and reduce emissions, making investments in the necessary physical and digital infrastructure justifiable. Cities like Milan, Brussels, Seattle, and Montreal, as well as smaller cities, are already seeing the benefits of such micromobility investment. It’s likely e-scooters are here to stay in many urban centres, with their ease of use and overall reduction in congestion and emissions arguing in their favour. is a professor in the School of Public Policy at the Georgia Institute of Technology. His research focuses on electrification and micromobility strategies. He directs the Data Science & Policy Lab, where he collaborates with the private sector and city governments on data innovation in policy analysis and research evaluation. He is a recipient of the US National Science Foundation CAREER award and is a member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine New Voices 2021 cohort. Funding for this research was supported by grants from the U.S. National Science Foundation Award 1945332 and Award 2125390 Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 16, 2023

A one-sided election risks Bangladesh's future - 360 Ali Riaz Published on January 4, 2024 With the distinction between the state, government and party obliterated, Bangladesh is heading towards a personalised autocracy. The January 7 Bangladesh general election is set to deliver a victory to Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League party. It might also turn out to be a watershed moment in the country’s history. Despite some similarities with the past two elections of 2014 and 2018, the post-election scenario in 2024 is likely to be different. Formidable challenges, both domestic and international, will stare Hasina in the face in her fourth consecutive term in office, with serious implications for the country’s economic, political and diplomatic trajectories. The road to the 2024 election is littered with intrigue, machination, crackdown on the opposition, mass arrests, violence and misuse of the state apparatus Even the judiciary has been mobilised to keep the main opposition political party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, out of the contest. And yet the election is packaged as participatory. The question is whether the voters will show up to cast their ballot. When the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) boycotted the election in 2014 there was low voter turnout, which undermined the Awami League’s (AL) claim of gaining a popular mandate. The election of more than half of the parliament members unopposed in 2014 made that claim untenable. To avoid a repeat of 2014, this time around the AL has filed ‘dummy’ candidates — allowing its own party members to contest as ‘independents’ against the official candidates — hoping that these candidates will bring their supporters to the polling booth. However, the Hasina government is not banking on dummy candidates alone. It has also targeted the most vulnerable segments of society with the threat of losing welfare benefits if they don’t cast their vote. This is quite a sizeable number: 12.8 million Bangladeshis are recipients of social benefits and an additional 19.7 million receive stipends to support enrolment of primary and secondary school children. In many places, recipients’ beneficiary ID cards have been confiscated  by the local AL leaders with the promise that they will be returned after the cardholder casts their vote. Whether these tactics will bear fruit remains to be seen. Unlike the previous elections, however,  voter turnout will not tell the whole story. Sheikh Hasina and her party are already under a moral cloud of being non-participatory. The legitimacy of Hasina’s impending victory is further undermined by several other factors such as the setting up of three ‘King’s’ Parties, the timing of the crackdown against the opposition, the failed attempt to split the BNP, the use of state machinery to cajole and coerce individuals and organisations to join the election and continued violence involving the ruling party’s supported candidates and independents. In the past  year, experts have raised questions about the constitutionality of the 15th Amendment to the Bangladesh Constitution, which repealed the caretaker  government provision. Given the multitude of factors that undermine  the legitimacy of Hasina’s forthcoming victory, the 2024 election will further exacerbate the political crisis in the country. The catchphrase of US elections since 1992 — ‘it’s the economy, stupid’ — applies to Bangladesh as well. The AL’s claim of delivering economic development at the expense of democracy has started coming apart at the seams. Bangladesh’s economy continues to spiral towards a crisis. Foreign exchange reserves have shrunk to less than USD$20bn and are dwindling and external debt has reached almost USD$100bn with a debt servicing payment figure that will hit USD$3.56bn in the current fiscal year. The banking sector is in disarray with non-performing loans constituting 10.11 percent of the total. The liquidity crisis has led to the risk of halting of bank transactions on several occasions. Inflation is over 9 percent according to official figures, while market price suggests a far higher rate. And the Bangladeshi currency (Taka) has depreciated about 28 percent over the past year. In the past months the remittance flow, as well as export earnings (including from the readymade garments sector), have been declining. These problems have led to three rating companies — S&P, Moody’s and Fitch — downgrading Bangladesh’s sovereign credit rating. Crony capitalism, rampant corruption and a high rate of capital flight have also contributed to the economic crisis and benefited a small coterie close to the regime. These members of the civil services, police and law enforcement agencies, military and business elites, are key to the continuation of the regime. As the economic crisis exacerbates, those milking the system of spoils will demand even more concessions for their support. The new government will neither have the political will nor the public mandate to deliver them. The downturn in the economy is already causing serious hardships to the middle and lower-middle classes, while the poor are barely surviving. The dry tinder only needs a spark to unleash popular unrest. There will also be a geopolitical fallout of the one-sided polls. Bangladesh’s election has  drawn international attention as the United States and the European Union have repeatedly called for a free, fair and inclusive election, while Russia, China and India have stood by Sheikh Hasina. Russia and China have accused the US of interfering in Bangladesh’s internal affairs. Hasina has claimed that the US intends to depose her. Although the US has maintained silence since the crackdown on the opposition began and the election schedule was announced, speculation is rife that it may impose punitive measures after the election. If the US and the Western nations, Bangladesh’s major trade partners and sources of investments, opt for a punitive policy, the economic crisis will deepen further. This crisis could drive the new government more towards China which has the deep pockets to help the government with the goal of having more influence. Recent overtures from China send a clear signal in this regard. A combination of these factors points to a dramatic shift in Bangladesh’s foreign policy orientation. An immediate and key issue after the election will be how the government intends to deal with the opposition, particularly the BNP. Recent statements by AL leaders suggest the option of banning the BNP. This could result in further violence and chaos. The opposition is more likely to feel an existential threat as the space for dissent and political activism may well disappear. Bangladesh’s post-election political scene may then soon become akin to Cambodia under Hun Sen and China under the Communist Party where only parties with cooperative relations with the incumbent can exist. The country is heading into uncharted territory as the distinction between the state, government, and party is obliterated. The general election could well put a seal on a personalised autocracy. Ali Riaz is a Distinguished Professor of political science at Illinois State University, a Nonresident Senior Fellow of the Atlantic Council and the President of the American Institute of Bangladesh Studies (AIBS). His recent publication is titled Pathways of autocratization: The tumultuous journey of Bangladeshi politics (Routledge, 2024). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: Prof. Ali Riaz, Illinois State University, USA

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on January 4, 2024

A place to breathe in jam-packed Jakarta - 360 Eka Permanasari Published on May 30, 2022 Jakarta’s high-rise settlements are the most crowded places in Southeast Asia. New community centres provide vital outdoor space for a hemmed-in population. Older Jakartans would remember the 1963 Lilis Suryani song ‘Gang Kelinci’ (Rabbit Alley): people are multiplying in the city like rabbits, she sings. Jakarta has always been crowded, but now hundreds of child-friendly community centres are giving people a healthy, outdoor place to go and providing vital support for their physical and mental well-being. A megacity, Jakarta faces traffic congestion, housing, waste collection, water supply, and drainage and flooding problems. The metropolitan area, home to   30 million people, has large pockets of informal settlements and extremely high population density. Tambora district (Kecamatan) in West Jakarta is the most densely populated area in Southeast Asia. In 2021 it squeezed 50,627 people into every square kilometre. The area is filled with high-rise settlements where public space is non-existent. In the tiny dwellings the same areas are used for various activities from cooking to sleeping. Most residents need to take turns to sleep and sometimes have to sleep with their legs crossed due to the very limited space. Keeping apart from others to help manage COVID-19 is impossible here. Tambora residents simply do not have the luxury of staying indoors for 24 hours a day in their two-storey, 6-by-12-metre houses shared with 23 other people. Venus Alley in Tambora never sees daylight: it is dark and overcrowded, and the people who live here have limited access to clean water and fresh air. These living conditions, meeting none of the nine foundations of a healthy building, have profound effects on people’s mental health. EMBED START Image {id: "editor_14"} EMBED END Image {id: "editor_14"} The 9 Foundations of a Healthy Building. Source: Harvard T.H. Chan School for Public Health: forhealth.org Poor ventilation leads to low air quality, which reduces well-being. It also means a house is unlikely to be at a comfortable temperature. This leads to sick building syndrome, which is linked to low mood. Lack of natural light causes sleep problems and symptoms of depression. To combat these problems, the Jakarta government has established a series of public Child-Friendly Community Centres (RPTRAs). The centres support Jakartans’ mental health by providing open space and an alternative place to go. This alternative is especially important for residents of crowded high-rise communities such as Tambora. There are 289 centres across the city, most located in very crowded areas. They have become places for different age groups to gather and pursue healthy activities. Some centres have communal gardens, providing the many benefits of urban agriculture. Local people can grow their own vegetables and enjoy beautiful views and healthier surroundings. The centres green the city and empower the community to improve their physical and mental health. In Tambora, the 2.692 square-metre RPTRA Krendang centre has futsal and basketball fields, a community centre, a communal garden and a children’s playground. People use the space for urban farming, community gatherings and sport. The centre has become a retreat for fostering mental health. During the worst of the pandemic, this public area was the only breathable space away from the crowded houses. Studies tend to show a link between green-space exposure, physical activity and improved mental well-being in women. Access to green space has also been found to improve mental well-being in men. A city is not sustainable unless its residents are resilient and healthy. Jakarta faces many challenges in making all its buildings healthy places to live, but in the meantime easier access to open space is helping to improve community mental health. Eka Permanasari is an adjunct Associate Professor at Monash Art, Design and Architecture, Monash University Australia. She has led international research such as Cross-cultural Community-based Strategies for Sustainable Urban Streams in Des moines and Jakarta, as well as the impact of the new Indonesian capital to the communities and surrounding cities. Apart from being a researcher she also led several strategic national projects for the Jakarta government, such as the Giant Sea Wall Jakarta coastal development, six community-centre pilot projects (RPTRA), as well as the revitalization of public housings in Kemayoran and Klender. Dr Permanasari declared that she has no conflict of interest and is not receiving specific funding in any form. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 30, 2022

A potential debt trap in Nepal - 360 Ramesh Paudel Published on February 27, 2023 If the government of Nepal is not too careful with debt diplomacy, it might face a similar fate to Sri Lanka and Pakistan. The deadly plane crash in Pokhara which killed all 72 people on board put the spotlight on the nearby international airport. The airport was built with assistance from China through the Belt and Road Initiative and has been controversial due to confusion over its financing. It is alleged that through the Initiative, China’s debt diplomacy could be converted into ‘debt trap diplomacy, which involves sponsoring significant infrastructure projects in developing countries with unsustainable loans and then exploiting the debt to exert influence over those governments. Aside from the Pokhara International Airport, Nepal has just completed the construction of two major projects Gautam Buddha International Airport at Bhairahawa and Chobhar Dry Port in the capital, Kathmandu. None of these expensive projects have been operating effectively. If a project’s business strategy is ineffective or established without rigorous preparation, it conveys a very negative message to the international community and future generations. This is why extreme caution is required when funding such projects with borrowed money. The quality of governance is another issue to be seriously considered while racking up debt. The risk here is that a country’s national debt could become too high when Nepal needs heavy investment in quality infrastructure. When that happens, spending without proper calculation of income or direct contribution to the national output can be disastrous. As a result, increased interest payments can divert funds from other much-needed government projects, or there is a less private investment because of high-interest rates. Budgets are tightened and confidence in the economy weakens. For the fiscal year 2022–2023, Nepal’s government is only permitted to raise a maximum of 256 billion Nepalese Rupees (about  USD$ 2 billion) in internal loans. The decision to limit external borrowing comes at a time when several countries, including Sri Lanka, were facing debt distress. Despite Nepal’s debt level, which has doubled to 2 trillion Nepalese Rupees (from USD$7 billion to USD$15 billion) in 2018-19, it still has room to increase foreign debt acceptance by around 12 per cent. This has tripled in almost six years. Nepali officials have also become more cautious in accepting loans from China, requesting grants instead of loans for projects under the Belt and Road Initiative. Governments often face uncontrolled government debt due to factors such as recessions, high military spending, social spending and a fall in tax revenue. There are various ways to deal with this, usually by reducing government spending which means cutting programs or raising taxes. Nepal’s main source of revenue is import duties which means it’s forced to take on debt to finance development.  The risk, as research suggests, is that debt spent with poor governance can further inhibit economic growth. On top of this, high debt can lead to inflation as the government may be tempted to print more money to pay off its debts, decreasing the value of its currency. This can hurt exports and decrease the standard of living for citizens, who are now facing higher prices for goods and services. In extreme cases, the country may even face a debt crisis and require a bailout from the international community, further eroding its economic and political independence. The government’s capacity to respond to upcoming economic shocks, such as a national and international recession or natural disaster like the 2015 Gorkha earthquake is also hampered by a high national debt level because it may lack the resources to finance a stimulus package or necessary investments to maintain daily lives of the people. Rational and responsible spending and borrowing strategies are essential while the national economy is still recovering from two global shocks — the COVID pandemic and the Ukraine-Russia war. If the quality of governance and political instability remain the same, any additional debt burden should be avoided, or proper spending capacity and the quality of governance improved. Otherwise, Nepal could fall off a debt cliff. Dr Ramesh Paudel is an Associate Professor of Economics at the Central Department of Economics, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal. Ramesh’s interest in research includes but does not limit to macroeconomic variables’ impact on the economy, issues of landlocked economies, structural transformation, foreign direct investment, human development issues and other aspects of development economics. Additional reporting and contribution by Subin K.C. Subin is a postgraduate student at the Central Department of Economics, Tribhuvan University. An earlier version of this article had the term ‘debt trap diplomacy’ in the abstract. This has been altered to ‘debt diplomacy’. Editors Note: In the story “Governments in the red” sent at: 27/02/2023 14:11. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 27, 2023

A potential digital lifesaver for diabetes patients - 360 Srinivasan Ramachandran, Anandhi Ramachandran Published on January 17, 2024 India is especially well-placed to take up digital therapeutics in the prevention and treatment of diabetes. Digital technologies and data-driven provision of care are enabling a transformation in many kinds of medical treatment. How nations choose to take advantage of these innovations will influence the future of medicine and public health. Diabetes is a growing chronic condition in developed economies, as well as in low- and middle-income countries. Two decades from now, one in eight adults could be living with diabetes. Given the high prevalence of diabetes in India  — making it the “diabetes capital” of the world — and the widespread uptake of digital technologies in healthcare, the country is especially well-placed to take up digital therapeutics in diabetes prevention and treatment. Many studies on diabetes have found that self-management is critical for improving outcomes. The skyrocketing costs of diabetes care has also pushed preventive care to the fore. Digital therapeutics can provide new possibilities for people with diabetes to manage the condition on their own, and better identify warning signs in individuals at risk of diabetes. The ability to self-manage health is rooted in self-efficacy — a person’s belief in their ability to control their behaviour and achieve specific goals. The advantages of high self-efficacy in medical treatment are many, including behaviour changes, reducing depression and perceived pain, isolation and loss of cognitive abilities — including remembering, reasoning and learning — along with increased healthcare participation. Digital therapeutics is a new branch of health that uses digital tools and data to offer effective health treatments. The goal is to deliver medical interventions directly to patients for treating, managing and preventing various disorders, usually chronic illnesses requiring constant, long-term management. The distinguishing element in digital therapeutics is the use of evidence-based intervention and clinical evaluation. Artificial intelligence, machine learning, artificial reality and virtual reality technologies are increasingly contributing to the provision of more personalised care. Type 2 diabetes accounts for about 90 percent of cases worldwide. Within any given population, management of diabetes includes lifestyle changes and therapies, as well as consideration of multiple factors. These include genetics, physical stature, cultural practices, historical trajectories of the population and evolutionary history, combined with general risk factors common to any population — urbanisation, high body mass index, ageing, reduced physical activity, and excessive alcohol and tobacco use. Within India’s population, additional population-specific risk factors are mapped, such as low birthweight, short physical stature and low lean mass. These factors are believed to have accumulated over many years as adaptations to growing population density, vegetarian diets, monsoon-related famines, and reduced agricultural security during the colonial period. The onset of diabetes, if not managed, can bring about many other complications — nerve damage, kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, tuberculosis and cancer. It can be deadly. Fortunately, several treatment options are available. Several investigations, including those using ‘omic’ technologies providing complex molecular analysis from many populations, have revealed that type 2 diabetes involves multiple genetic factors. The conditions for onset of diabetes-associated complications may arise in the diabetes stage itself, given that there are several genes common among the associated conditions, including nephropathy, neuropathy, retinopathy, cardiovascular disease and atherosclerosis. At the same time, several genes have been identified that can protect against the development of diabetic complications, but it might take a long time before new therapies are developed from omics data. Reducing obesity and unhealthy lifestyles through a diet considering poverty, undernutrition and food insecurity while targeting sedentary and unhealthy lifestyles is a recommended approach to diabetes control. Digital therapeutics can help target obesity and eating-related disorders. Several digital platforms are available for diabetes management, and several companies are developing digital therapeutics for various disorders. The AI-powered Whole Body Digital Twin technology, which provides precision nutrition, claims a marked remission rate of type 2 diabetes, compared to standard diabetic care. A digital diabetes management program with real-time blood glucose monitoring offered financial savings in medical expenses during a one-year study. Some participants reported a one percent reduction in HbA1c — the blood glucose levels that are indicative of diabetes — and improved self-efficacy with the use of the Bluestar Web application. The US Food and Drug Administration has also approved some prescriptions requiring digital therapeutics. Several digital therapeutics are in clinical trials, and some have been published with positive outcomes. Implementing digital therapeutics through reliance on the internet and associated technologies in an Indian context requires facing the digital divide that occurs along various fault lines: between the young and the old, the wealthy and the disadvantaged, and rural and urban populations. The adoption of digital therapeutics will also be influenced by local regulations and insurance reimbursements. Diabetes care would benefit from the lessons learned from several facets of investigations about populations and consider digital therapeutics to overcome the challenges facing implementation of healthcare. An open and transparent deliberation on the ethics of digital therapeutics requires attention from experts. National health programmes could consider diabetes prevention and treatment by including digital therapeutics as one of the top items in their agenda. Disclaimer: The authors are not medical doctors. People who wish to learn more about the therapeutic options discussed in this article should consult a medical professional. Dr. S. Ramachandran is an Emeritus Professor at Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies, Faridabad, Haryana. His interests include data analytics, software development, computer text mining, machine learning and experimental molecular biology. Dr. A Ramachandran is a Professor at the International Institute of Health Management Research (IIHMR), New Delhi. Her interests include healthcare technology implementation (telemedicine & mobile apps), healthcare data science, healthcare technology evaluation, and utilising the knowledge and experience gained to build digital health skill among healthcare professionals and students. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on January 17, 2024

A revolutionary new weapon in the battle against influenza - 360 Vinod RMT Balasubramaniam Published on May 22, 2024 Clinical trials of an mRNA vaccine have begun and researchers expect broadly positive outcomes in the battle against the widespread illness. Influenza kills up to 650,000 people around the world each year. Ninety-nine percent of deaths in children under five years of age in developing countries are due to influenza-related infections, according to the World Health Organization. The current crop of influenza vaccines has limitations in effectively combating the billion cases of seasonal influenza each year as they provide immunity against only one specific existing strain or mutation. The propensity of flu viruses to mutate into new strains means vaccines must be continuously monitored and reformulated each year. But a universal influenza vaccine, using mRNA technology — which was used with success during the COVID pandemic —  has the potential to provide broader and longer-lasting immunity against diverse influenza strains. The technology allows for rapid development and deployment and offers versatility in targeting multiple regions of the influenza virus. New or mutated influenza variants are always a threat, particularly those originating from animal sources. Pandemics such as the Spanish flu of 1918, which killed 50 million people, and recent outbreaks of the avian influenza (“bird flu”) viruses underscore the persistent threat posed by influenza. It also underscores the urgent need for a universal influenza vaccine capable of safeguarding against all subtypes of the virus. In recent years, lipid nanoparticle (LNP)-encapsulated nucleoside-modified mRNA (‘mRNA-LNP’) vaccines have emerged as a potent tool in combating influenza and other infectious diseases. These vaccines use mRNA created in a laboratory to teach our cells how to make a protein — or even just a piece of a protein — that triggers an immune response inside our bodies. The limited efficacy of current vaccines can be attributed to their focus on only generating strain-specific antibodies against the influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA). This is a protein within the virus which causes infection. To broaden protective immunity, novel vaccine strategies aim to elicit responses against more proteins (fragments of a virus). One promising avenue involves triggering T-cell responses. T-cells are a type of white blood cell and are part of the body’s immune system. T-cell-mediated immunity not only eliminates infected cells but also correlates with improved outcomes in individuals affected by influenza. Animal studies have demonstrated the protective role of T-cells against various influenza virus strains. These vaccines, exemplified by the successful development and global deployment of mRNA-LNP-based COVID-19 vaccines, elicit robust T-cell and antibody responses.  These vaccines also offer the advantage of rapid production and adaptation to target emerging viral variants. While several mRNA-LNP influenza vaccines are in development, most prioritise stimulating antibody responses and under-exploit the potential of T-cell immunity. The development of a universal influenza mRNA vaccine requires careful consideration of several pivotal factors to optimise its effectiveness and suitability. Initially, the vaccine should target regions within the influenza virus responsible for viral replication but are less susceptible to mutation. By concentrating on these regions, the vaccine can elicit broad and enduring immune responses, offering protection against an array of virus strains. Encapsulating nucleoside-modified mRNA within lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) has emerged as a promising strategy to bolster vaccine effectiveness. These LNPs shield the mRNA from degradation and facilitate its delivery to target cells, where it can be translated into viral proteins, triggering immune responses in the human body. Additionally, optimising the mRNA sequence can boost protein reaction, ensuring robust and persistent immune responses post-vaccination. Another crucial aspect of designing a universal influenza mRNA vaccine is incorporating adjuvants or ‘agents’ to amplify vaccine efficacy. An adjuvant is an ingredient used in some vaccines that helps create a stronger immune response in people. Integrating adjuvants into the vaccine formulation improves vaccine efficacy, especially in individuals with compromised immune systems. The design of a universal influenza mRNA vaccine should thus prioritise triggering T-cell responses, enhancing mRNA delivery and expression, incorporating adjuvants to boost efficacy and addressing practical considerations for global distribution. By tackling these critical aspects, a universal influenza mRNA vaccine holds the potential to revolutionise influenza prevention and control efforts, offering comprehensive and enduring protection against seasonal and pandemic influenza strains. As shown by COVID-19, mRNA vaccines have demonstrated safety and efficacy in clinical trials for various infectious diseases. This instils confidence in the feasibility of developing a universal influenza mRNA vaccine that is safe and effective. Ongoing advancements in mRNA technology, such as improved delivery systems and stabilisation methods, further enhance the prospects of creating a universal influenza vaccine that ticks all the boxes. The US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has started enrolling volunteers at Duke University in North Carolina to test its experimental mRNA-LNP vaccine against seasonal influenza, one of several universal influenza vaccine candidates now in the pipeline. Another clinical trial has begun at the US National Institutes of Health’s Clinical Centre in Maryland. The mRNA vaccine technology offers several advantages, including rapid development, scalability, and precise design. Two categories of mRNA vaccines exist, conventional and self-amplifying and both are being explored for their potential to confer broad protection against influenza viruses. Despite their promise, challenges remain in effectively delivering mRNA molecules into a vaccine due to their inherent instability. Overcoming these challenges is essential for the successful development of universal mRNA vaccines for influenza. This aside, the advancements in mRNA vaccine technology have paved the way for innovative approaches to crystallising universal influenza vaccination, offering hope for broad protection against this ever-changing virus. Dr Vinod Balasubramaniam is Associate Professor (Molecular Virology) at the Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University Malaysia. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on May 22, 2024

A rose by any other name would be as endangered - 360 Giovanni Strona Published on March 7, 2022 Without good data and good science, it is not clear how many species we are losing to extinction. Young scientists dream of discovering and naming a new animal or plant species. Imagining themselves, Indiana Jones-like, sketching a colourful bird in a leather notebook in the heart of the jungle. But most often, the process is about being the first person to look at, let’s say, a tiny parasitic flatworm through a microscope lens. The discovery comes of long hours taking measurements from hundreds of specimens, and scrolling through thousands of photocopied pages of almost-forgotten literature to double-check if someone, at a small university, maybe in Russia, had been looking at the same worm half a century earlier. A vital scientic task, describing and cataloguing new species is technical, challenging and yet poorly rewarded. Most of the undescribed species are invertebrates – such as insects and parasites. But even a discovery of a new mammal species does not end up in a top ranked scientific journal, let alone the front page of the news. Records of new species end up in highly specialised journals. Precisely because of their specialisation, such journals have very low scores in the competitive world of scientific publishing. Scientists are constantly evaluated on the basis of such scores, so even an excellent taxonomist has much slimmer chances of being promoted or of landing a grant than a mediocre scientist working across disciplines. Some taxonomists have even put the right to name new species for sale on Ebay to finance their research and give it more attention. Now, taxonomists’ work is about to get a lot easier – for all the wrong reasons. Animals are going extinct faster than taxonomists can describe them. A conservative estimate is that there are around nine million species on Earth. Our current knowledge is likely less than 20 percent of that. It is estimated taxonomists catalogue about 8,000 new species each year. However, knowing that a species exists is not the same as having a clear picture of whether the species is endangered. For the majority of known species, we have no information on their conservation status. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature keeps a record of how endangered species are, known as the ‘Red List’. But the IUCN has only assessed the conservation status of less than 150,000 species – that’s less than 5 percent of known species. Around 40,000 of those are threatened. EMBED START Image {id: "editor_5"} EMBED END Image {id: "editor_5"} Some claim that we are in the midst of the 6th mass extinction, exactly as it happened to dinosaurs some 65 million years ago. Looking at the number of extinctions ever documented in the present day fauna — a non impressive 900 species — the situation does not seem so dramatic. But let us take a few steps back. If we focus on extinction rate instead of on number of documented extinctions, a totally different picture emerges. Scientists do not agree on what fraction of global diversity we are losing every year. But even looking at the most conservative estimates is not encouraging, showing that up to 0.01 percent of species might go extinct every year, or more than one species an hour. Other estimates are much gloomier than this, with yearly extinction rate going up to almost 0.8 percent. Advances in molecular and artificial intelligence techniques can detect the presence of species by scanning soil or water samples for tell-tale DNA fragments, or by analysing sound recordings. These new technologies offer unprecedented opportunity to map diversity at the global scale and accelerate taxonomic efforts. They will also help refine current estimates of species numbers, getting closer to the true value. However, such techniques cannot be considered a replacement for formal species descriptions. DNA sequences retrieved from environmental samples need to be compared with available reference datasets, which are still far from covering the known diversity of life. Finding a DNA sequence which has no match in genetic databases does not necessarily equal the discovery of a new species. And, a DNA sequence without any specimen doesn’t count towards filling the gaps of undescribed species. Putting all these factors together suggests the time when all life on Earth will be described might come somewhere in the middle of next century. But this catalogue will be a critically impoverished 30 percent of the present-day diversity. A mass extinction is considered to have occurred when three-quarters of species have gone extinct. This is predicted to occur just a few decades later. The possibility that a conspicuous portion of global diversity will be snuffed out before ever being recorded is real. But while taxonomists may clarify which species we are losing in the mass extinction that is already underway, the fact remains it will occur regardless of whether the species extinguished had a name. Thanks to some of the new tools for species detection, scientists have an increasing availability of data on global patterns of species diversity and rarity, which they can combine with climatic and ecological models to both predict future trajectories of species loss and inform conservation planning. In the foreseeable future, the new molecular techniques will be able to assess changes in abundances of known species. Natural communities are extremely complex, and gaining a better understanding of such complexity is key to tackle at least some of the many challenges our planet is currently facing. Umberto Eco finishes his novel The Name of the Rose with the Latin sentence “Stat rosa pristina nomine, nomina nuda tenemus”. A rose exists, regardless of the name we give it. Taxonomists’ work is essential and deserves a renewed recognition from the scientific community. But, perhaps, we don’t need the identity of all the parts of the intricate architecture underlying ecological systems. Species exist, regardless of how we name them. It is a vital scientific task to name them, but taxonomic gaps need not not hinder conservation efforts and do not necessarily limit our ability to understand how the natural world works. Giovanni Strona is associate professor of the organismal and Evolutionary biology research programme at the University of Helsinki. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. Editors Note: In the story “World Wildlife Day” sent at: 24/02/2022 16:05. This is a corrected repeat.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 7, 2022

A spoonful of sugar can stop the (fake) medicine going down - 360 William H. Grover Published on July 27, 2022 The key ingredient in detecting a counterfeit medicine could be in your kitchen. Pantries everywhere could hold the key to identifying fake medicines. If you’ve ever taken the time to look closely at a chocolate freckle (or nonpareil candy) you will have noticed no two are alike. That same randomness is now being applied to help identify fake medicines. Adding multi-coloured candy sprinkles at random during the manufacturing process could create distinct patterns and help fight fraudulent products. Unlike Mary Poppins’ spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down, this spoonful of sugar could prevent people from taking medicines that might harm them. Fake or substandard medicines often seem to be the genuine article, but they may not have the right active ingredients, or they could contain potentially harmful additives. The problem costs about US$200 million every year, and affects around one in every 10 medical products in developing economies, according to the World Health Organization. A recent study at the University of California shows candy sprinkles (also known as hundreds and thousands, or nonpareils) can be effective drug identifiers, as they create unique patterns when randomly affixed to a pill or capsule during the production process. These patterns are easy to make but difficult and time-consuming to duplicate, which makes them useful for proving the authenticity of a medication. EMBED START Image {id: "editor_2"} EMBED END Image {id: "editor_2"} These on-pill patterns — dubbed “CandyCodes”— would be a permanent part of the drug from manufacturing all the way to the consumer. The CandyCode pattern on each pill would be photographed before leaving the manufacturer and the photos stored in a searchable database of known-good pills. A consumer could then simply photograph their pill with their camera phone and upload the image to the manufacturer’s website, which would search for a matching CandyCode in the database. No match would mean the drug had not been produced by that manufacturer and the quality is not guaranteed. The study showed that a drug manufacturer could produce at least 100,000,000,000,000,000 (100 quadrillion) CandyCoded pills — about 40 million for every person on earth — and still be able to uniquely identify each CandyCode and confirm the authenticity of each pill. The experiment to test the effectiveness of CandyCodes used edible adhesive to attach candy sprinkles to acetaminophen/paracetamol caplets. Commercially produced chocolate freckles were also used as convenient substitutes for large-scale manufactured CandyCoded medicines, as they are inexpensive, already mass produced and roughly the same size as pills and capsules. The study also included computer simulations of much larger numbers of CandyCodes. It found computer algorithms can be used to convert a photo of a CandyCode into binary data for more efficient storage and searching in a database. Unlike traditional barcodes, which have regularly spaced lines or grids of pixels that help with decoding the information they contain, CandyCode sprinkles are placed at random on each pill and have no well-defined structure. The algorithms developed in the study take advantage of the tendency of sprinkles to pack together into hexagons on the surface of a pill.  And by converting the order of the colours of the sprinkles in each hexagon into binary data, the algorithms can store each CandyCode in a conventional database. Unlike existing anti-counterfeiting techniques, CandyCodes require minimal modifications of the existing manufacturing process and no specialised equipment to read their patterns. Since many manufacturers already take photographs of their products for quality-control purposes, obtaining CandyCodes from these existing photographs should also require minimal extra effort. Other researchers have proposed various medicine identifiers, but many have shortcomings that stop them being widely used. For example, a suggestion to mark a drug capsule’s surface with encoded ID requires a specialised reader. Another technique requires printing a unique QR code on each pill, but reading the code requires a microscope. Printing IDs on film-based formulations of a product, and using fluorescent ink or mouldings for on-pill QR codes that could be read by smartphones, have also been suggested, but these all require significant changes to the manufacturing process. But more work needs to be done before CandyCodes can be widely rolled out on pharmaceuticals. For example, to avoid adding sugar (and calories) to a medication, CandyCodes may need to be developed that use edible colored particles that do not contain sugar. Also, since different regions have different regulations on food colourants, the colours used in CandyCodes must be approved for food and drug use in all relevant markets. EMBED START Image {id: "editor_10"} EMBED END Image {id: "editor_10"} CandyCodes will also need to maintain their integrity once shipped from the manufacturers. Sprinkles that are not firmly attached could fall off during shipping and distribution, creating problems if the pills’ appearance no longer matches the images on file. The study tested this by tumbling a bottle containing CandyCoded medications nonstop for one week (after which the CandyCodes were still decodable), but testing under additional conditions is needed. The principle behind CandyCodes could be used to authenticate more than just pharmaceuticals. In 2019 alone, the US Customs and Border Protection Agency confiscated over US$1.5 billion worth of counterfeit cosmetics, perfumes, wine, spirits, apparel, accessories and other high-value goods. Legitimate manufacturers of these goods could protect their genuine products by applying a drop of glue to a bottlecap or tag and then dusting the glue with multicoloured particles or glitter, forming a unique CandyCode-like identifier on the product. William H. Grover is an Associate Professor in the Department of Bioengineering at the University of California, Riverside. The original research described in this article was supported by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (OPP1191214). 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 July 27, 2022

A staged election could result in political instability - 360 Bharat Bhushan Published on January 4, 2024 Democracy is in peril in Bangladesh with elections widely perceived as flawed. Combined with economic woes and social unrest, the country is on the brink. The Bangladesh general election on January 7 is widely expected to be neither inclusive nor competitive. The main Opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), is boycotting the elections along with another 14 of the nation’s 44 registered political parties. Political observers believe the electoral field has been deliberately curtailed to ensure a fourth consecutive term for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina who leads the ruling Awami League (AL). The BNP and other Opposition parties have demanded a return to the practice of holding elections under a caretaker government. Bangladesh witnessed robust and representative elections between 1991 and 2008 – with the exception of the elections of February 1996 when the BNP was in power and the then-opposition Awami League boycotted the elections demanding they be held by a neutral caretaker government. Now the shoe is on the other foot. The caretaker government system for holding elections came about because the one-sided election in February 1996 led to the BNP winning 300 out of 300 seats, resulting in widespread political turmoil. Parliament then passed the 13th amendment to the Constitution to allow a neutral caretaker government to assume power and oversee fresh elections on June 12 1996. That led to the AL coming to power. However, the AL, which has been in power since 2008, after a Supreme Court judgement holding the system illegal, decided to do away with the caretaker government system in 2011. Coincidentally, the two general elections held under the aegis of the AL government – in 2014 and 2018 – were widely considered to be less than fair. In 2014 more than half the constituencies were won by the AL uncontested and in 2018, there were allegations of ballot-stuffing on the eve of polling. The 2024 election is also turning out to be one-sided. There have been allegations that the state’s security machinery is working in cahoots with the activists of the ruling party to attack Opposition political gatherings. A recent report by Human Rights Watch found evidence that “security forces are responsible for using excessive force, mass arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, torture, and extra-judicial killings in a spate of recent election related violence’’. BNP leaders claim that more than 20,000 party supporters have been arrested on “fictitious and concocted” charges. Those detained are half that number and the police cases against them go as far back as 2001, the government has countered. The big issue before the ruling dispensation is to ensure that the election appears as inclusive, competitive and participatory. As attempts to split the main Opposition party, the BNP, have failed, three new “King’s parties” have been set up – the Trinamool (Grassroots) Bangladesh Nationalist Party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Movement and the Bangladesh Supreme Party. Their participation will give the appearance of an inclusive and competitive election. Of the 2,712 candidates, 747 are “independents”.  A large number of them are “rebel” candidates from the AL who were denied party nomination. They have now been co-opted with official endorsement as “independents” by the AL. The attempt once again is to package the election as inclusive and competitive. Independent candidates endorsed by the AL are expected to corral their supporters and increase polling percentage. In addition, beneficiaries of the government’s welfare schemes are being told that unless they vote on the polling day, financial payments to them would cease. A higher polling percentage will showcase the elections as participatory. Bangladesh has also become a battleground for geopolitical competition between the US and China. The United States seems worried by the growing Chinese strategic influence in Bangladesh under the Hasina government. The US is apprehensive that this general election too may be stolen like the previous ones by the ruling regime. It has threatened visa sanctions against those (and their immediate family) who prevent a free and fair election. However, it has not escalated the sanctions, perhaps fearing that excessive arm-twisting could push Dhaka further towards Beijing. India, despite being a strategic partner of the US and an integral part of its Asia-Pacific strategy, appears to have thrown its weight behind long-term ally Sheikh Hasina. So has its arch-rival China, which has massive infrastructure investments in Bangladesh, and Russia. India is not unhappy being in the same camp as China perhaps because it thinks that being friendly with both China and India, Russia will provide the necessary balance between the two. The consequences of an election that is not acceptable to the political class could throw Bangladesh into political turmoil. Unrest may also be fuelled by a deteriorating economy with the public suffering because of escalating cost of living, fuelled largely by the rising cost of food and energy. While Bangladesh’s foreign debt has doubled since 2016, forex reserves have dropped from USD$48billion in August 2021 to less than half at about USD$20bn now. The government received an IMF bailout package of USD$4.7bn in January 2023, of which the two tranches have already been disbursed. As the IMF’s proposed structural reforms tend to impose strict austerity measures, along with a weakening currency, Sheikh Hasina’s almost certain fourth consecutive term in office may face considerable public anger. Some political observers have speculated that if Hasina is unable to control political unrest and fails to co-opt the army elite, conditions may be created for a military intervention.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on January 4, 2024

A united front in fight against the 'silent pandemic' - 360 Gerald Bloom Published on November 14, 2022 Antimicrobial resistance is one of the biggest public health challenges of our time, and we’re at a crossroads on how to combat it. It’s called the “silent pandemic” and kills more people than HIV/AIDS and malaria combined. Antimicrobial resistance is a serious threat to human health. Already it has had a hand in the deaths of millions, and the numbers could get worse. How countries take on this threat has wide-ranging repercussions. It will require a new kind of health diplomacy in which nations negotiate rules for cooperation and agree on their responsibilities and entitlements. In 2019, antimicrobial resistance was directly linked to the death of 1.2 million people and associated with another 5 million. That same year, HIV/AIDS killed around 860,000 people and malaria 640,000. The overuse of antibiotics means they have become less effective against serious infections. Drugs no longer work because the bacteria causing infections — such as pneumonia — have become resistant to treatment. There has been relatively little investment in the development of new antibiotics, partly because the use of any new products need to be limited to delay the development of resistance. This means companies cannot generate revenue. Many people in low- and middle-income countries still do not have access to antibiotic treatment for common infections. They often rely on local drug sellers who may supply sub-standard products. The same countries face an increasing problem with resistant organisms. According to a study published in UK medical journal The Lancet, antimicrobial resistance affects the poorest the hardest. Sub-Saharan African nations have the highest fatality rate, at 27.3 deaths per 100,000 people. Infections of the respiratory tract, bloodstream and stomach that were once treatable are now killing hundreds of thousands. The World Health Organization has identified some strategies to address the problem. It calls for measures to reduce the burden of infections through good hygiene, especially in health facilities, and by vaccinating people against some common infections. It also calls on governments to support research and development of new antibiotics. But successful implementation needs sufficient funds and participation by all governments. For example, the Global Antimicrobial Resistance and Use Surveillance System collates data on resistant bacteria around the world. Low- and middle-income countries should contribute to the system, since they are important sources of new resistant organisms. In exchange, they need to receive support in reducing avoidable deaths from common infections by strengthening preventive measures and ensuring everyone has access to treatment, including antibiotics. The effectiveness of the response to COVID-19 highlighted a new approach to mobilising science and technology to address urgent health problems. It involved early warning of the emergence of a new organism, rapid development of vaccines and the production and distribution of medicines. The rapid response was possible because of previous investments in cutting-edge research and collaborations between university scientists and private companies. This meant that rapid progress could be made when additional funds were provided during the crisis. There is a need for similar investments in understanding bacterial infections. Some progress is being made. The UK is piloting a new approach to encourage the development of new antibiotics by making a fixed annual payment to companies that bring new products to the market. The US is considering passing the Pasteur Act, which would take a similar approach. But we are yet to see other countries following suit. There are also no agreed rules for the use of new antibiotics and ways to preserve their efficacy. Incentives to increase the demand need to be complemented by measures that will encourage research. Biotechnology can be a strategic sector for governments. Building the capacity for rapid development and production of drug treatments and vaccines at scale can strengthen national security and contribute to economic growth. There are signs that some governments are funding new kinds of partnerships between academic laboratories and private companies to build expertise in biotechnology. For example, the US and China are committing substantial amounts of money to pursue leadership in this area. The UK has also identified this sector as strategically important. But there are dangers —  competition between countries may also impede cooperation. And any failure to cooperate could lead to duplication of efforts and hamper scientific progress. Worse, it could lead to rival nations withholding important information about resistant bacteria or novel treatments to gain a commercial or geopolitical advantage. To avoid this potentially dangerous outcome, it will be important to agree on basic rules about sharing information and enabling international cooperation between scientists. Low- and middle-income countries also need to have access to new antibiotics. One innovative approach to this challenge is an agreement between a Japanese pharmaceutical company, Shionogi, the Global Antibiotic Research and Development Partnership and the Clinton Health Action Initiative. The agreement will allow local production and distribution of cefiderocol — used for treatment-resistant serious bacterial infections — in 135 low- and middle-income countries. This is a small step towards a more global approach to the development, production and use of new antibiotics. We are now approaching a crossroads on how to meet the challenges of future pandemics. Forthcoming meetings of the G7 and G20 will provide a test of whether countries can agree on how to enact real change and back this up with commitments of sufficient funds. There is hope for global cooperation. But a lack of trust and cooperation could substantially impair the ability to address these public health challenges. Dr Gerald Bloom is a research fellow at the Institute of Development Studies, at the University of Sussex, UK. His recent work includes studies of strategies for reducing overuse of antibiotics in rural India and for strengthening antibiotic discovery in the UK and China. The research was undertaken with financial assistance from the Medical Research Council of the United Kingdom. The author declares no conflict of interest. This article has been republished ahead of the G20 Leaders’ Summit starting on October 9, 2023. It was first published on November 14, 2022. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on November 14, 2022

A VR game to improve ADHD diagnosis for kids - 360 Thjin Wiguna Published on October 18, 2023 Diagnosing ADHD in children is difficult and often has to rely on subjective interviews. Virtual reality and artificial intelligence could help fix that. Diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can be life-altering for a child. There are factors that make such a diagnosis challenging for doctors. The creeping influence of subjective interviews makes it a lot harder for doctors to get the diagnosis right. Parents feel responsible to their child, which can trigger a bias that affects interview responses and ultimately the diagnosis itself. Now virtual reality (VR) and machine-learning technology linked to artificial intelligence (AI) offer a way past the obstacles to accurate diagnosis. A clinical diagnosis of ADHD in children and adolescents happens through observation, a series of interviews with the child and carers and — in some cases — brain-related psychiatric testing. Interactions with the child alone are sometimes difficult to interpret because so much hinges on how a child adapts to the unfamiliar setting of interviews and observation. The input of the child’s primary carers is often influential. The involvement of carers adds a subjective element to the process, especially when they can’t describe their child’s behaviour accurately, either because they can’t comprehend it or because they haven’t spent enough time around them. Some solutions to add objectivity to the diagnosis timeline are still developing: brain-imaging studies suggest some correlation between ADHD and tissue abnormalities, but biological marker testing is not yet sensitive enough to help. As the process is refined, more people are being diagnosed with ADHD. ADHD affects between 5 to 7.2 percent of children and 2.5 to 6.7 percent of adults globally. In the United States, it’s believed to be higher in children — around 8.7 percent. Up to 90 percent of children with ADHD might continue to experience symptoms into adulthood, even as some no longer fully meet the ADHD criteria. Adults can be diagnosed with ADHD without any previous diagnosis in childhood. Trends indicate that ADHD is being diagnosed more often. This might in part be because the medical definition of ADHD was broadened in 2013, allowing for people to be diagnosed with both autism spectrum disorder and ADHD, rather than one or the other. It is important to have an ADHD diagnostic tool that is highly sensitive and specific to ADHD clinical symptoms to justify the diagnosis and to create a non-threatening environment for children. Several studies have shown that virtual reality can be used as a diagnostic tool for ADHD. Virtual reality can create a safe digital environment that resembles the child’s daily living situation, allowing the collection of better behavioural data than ordinary brain-related psychiatric testing. Machine learning could be used to supercharge the power of virtual reality as an ADHD diagnostic tool. Machine learning, an application of artificial intelligence, enables a computer system to learn and improve its experience without explicit human programming, refining and improving the accuracy of its diagnoses. In the best case, machine learning produces an intelligent model that collects complex clinical data like ADHD behaviours or symptoms. It can then produce a model algorithm from the data  to make more accurate predictions about whether a patient has ADHD. In 2020, Universitas Indonesia and Dr Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital in Jakarta established an ADHD virtual reality diagnostic tool that uses machine learning to support the diagnosis procedure. The embrace of VR was informed by several studies. In the Indonesian study, patients using the machine learning-supported diagnostic tool were placed in a virtual classroom. The classroom is one of the most challenging environments for children with ADHD, which can affect a student’s ability to focus, pay attention, listen, or put effort into schoolwork. It can also make a student fidgety, restless, talk too much or otherwise disruptive. Children with ADHD might also have learning disabilities that cause them to have problems in school. A virtual classroom can help: it creates a sensation and perception of being present. Replicating a real-life environment might trigger interactions from the child as if they were actually in the classroom. They need to sit still and listen to the teacher’s explanation. Meanwhile, there is also a lot of distraction — like sounds or lights — that happens during the teaching process. These experiences are important in ADHD virtual reality diagnostics. The more a child reacts as they would in an actual classroom, the more likely a doctor might be able to give an accurate diagnosis. This diagnostic tool is basically a virtual reality game that assesses whether a child’s behaviour  is consistent with an ADHD diagnosis or not. During the procedure, participants use a virtual reality headset with hand controllers to complete tasks. Children can grab, release, throw, and place objects using their virtual hands. The virtual classroom is a simplified environment, designed to help the child stay on track with the activity and follow instructions. As they play the game, children are instructed while objects and noises appear to serve as distractions. This arrangement helps detect problems with selective attention, self-organisation, attention spans and impulse control usually encountered in children with ADHD. The tasks were designed to objectively spot symptoms of ADHD in children — inattention, hyperactivity and impulsive symptoms. It’s too early to say whether the marriage of virtual reality and machine learning solves ADHD diagnosis in children, but there are early promising signs. Finding creative, compassionate ways to harness emerging technologies promises to unlock new avenues to provide better care. Tjhin Wiguna is a professor at the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Division Department of Psychiatry Faculty of Medicine Universitas Indonesia – Dr Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital. This research was funded by a Hibah Q1Q2 grant from Universitas Indonesia Research Funding 2019. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on October 18, 2023

A way for new parents to get better sleep - 360 Meagan Crowther, Bei Bei Published on February 12, 2024 Interventions are available to help parents-to-be and new parents struggling with insomnia. Ask the parents of newborns what they crave more than anything and they will usually answer: “A good night’s sleep.” Yet despite the changes in sleep during pregnancy and parenthood being well known, sleep health is not a part of routine perinatal care in Australia. Research into what interventions are most effective in helping new parents get some quality shut-eye is hoping to change this. During pregnancy many people experience frequent waking at night and may find it difficult to fall asleep. These difficulties may be caused by changes in hormones, physical discomfort, or worries and stress. After birth, sleep can be impacted by waking during the night to care for the baby and daytime sleepiness and fatigue are common. Sleep disturbances and sleep deprivation due to night-time caregiving are common during the first few months after the baby’s arrival. But for some new parents these changes in sleep can bring about insomnia symptoms, which can first start in pregnancy and then continue for a long time after birth. Insomnia is different from the sleep disturbances and deprivation commonly experienced by new parents. Sleep disruptions refer to often external factors that lead to waking, like hearing your baby cry. Frequent sleep disruptions lead to sleep deprivation. While sleep disruptions and sleep deprivation are common in the perinatal period, many people can sleep well when the opportunity allows. For those experiencing insomnia, however, sleep does not come so easily — they often struggle to go to sleep or fall back to sleep even when they have the opportunity such as when their baby is sleeping. This is a sign that new parents may need outside support and treatment, particularly as insomnia is a distressing condition. About 43 percent of people will experience insomnia at least once between late pregnancy and two years after birth. Both sleep deprivation and insomnia during pregnancy and after birth are associated with symptoms of depression, anxiety and may make it more difficult for parents to cope with the demands of parenthood. Although some degree of disrupted sleep is experienced by most new parents, it is always helpful to speak to a health practitioner if new parents find sleepiness, fatigue, and worries about sleep affect their daytime activities. And the good news is while treating insomnia in new parents has been previously overlooked, there are treatments available which can support parents to get better sleep. Cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia is a drug-free treatment which supports those experiencing insomnia to overcome the challenges for their sleep. It works by changing what we do around sleep and how we think about sleep, and is more effective in treating insomnia long-term compared to medication. Cognitive behavioural therapy can start during pregnancy where it’s been shown to be associated with lower symptoms of insomnia, sleep disturbance and sleep-related impairment. Another randomised controlled trial has found that therapist-assisted cognitive behavioural therapy was safe, feasible and effective at reducing postpartum insomnia symptoms in the year following a baby’s birth. It also found that light dark therapy — where research participants were asked to wear light glasses that provided blue-enriched light for 20 minutes each morning and seek out bright light in the morning and avoid it before bedtime — was also effective at reducing insomnia symptoms and sleep disturbances in the postpartum period. Cognitive behavioural therapy has also been shown to lead to better sleep outcomes overall, including reduced insomnia symptoms and improved sleep quality, two years postpartum and to be of most benefit to those with elevated insomnia symptoms at the outset of the trial. Now researchers are looking at whether it would be possible and useful to implement a sleep health program based on cognitive behavioural therapy in routine perinatal care. By understanding how to best implement this treatment for insomnia in perinatal care researchers are laying the groundwork to better support new parents to sleep and feel better. is a research fellow at the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health at Monash University. Dr Crowther is the research lead on Sleep Health in Perinatal Care (SHINE) Project. Dr Crowther’s research work focuses on improving sleep to support health and mental health in special populations such as parents, shift workers and emergency services personnel. is an associate professor in psychology at the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health at Monash University. Associate Professor Bei’s research and clinical work focuses on the individual differences in sleep-wake behaviours, the relationship between sleep and mental health, and making evidence-based psychological interventions for better sleep more widely available to the community. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on February 12, 2024

Aborted revolutions cut across class lines - 360 Ajay Gudavarthy Published on January 24, 2022 The latest iteration of global protest transcends lines of class and race, but hasn’t always translated to concrete policy change. By Ajay Gudavarthy, Jawaharlal Nehru University The face of protest continues to evolve. The early 20th century was the ‘Age of Revolution’, producing a prototype for radical societal transformation aimed at large-scale change. The latter part of the century saw single-issue ‘New Social Movements’ grow, such as feminism and anti-racism. Since the turn of the millennium, contemporary protests have moved to a new era — global movements that transcend lines of class and race. The 2011 Occupy Wall Street (OWS) demonstrations in the United States, the 2011 Arab Spring in Egypt, the 2013 Brazilian Spring in Brazil and the 2012 anti-corruption movement in India are among the most visible turning points in this trend. Despite fizzling out well short of their revolutionary ambitions, these movements have helped define the changing nature of public protests. Alliances were forged that brought together class divides, shifting the focus of protests away from class and identity politics and towards alliances between people of different classes, castes, and races. OWS protesters included white middle-class professionals, Black Lives Matter activists, students who were unable to pay their college loans, the homeless, and the unemployed. Protests in Brazil brought together those from the favelas (slums), students and youth from lower-middle classes, as well as the members of the social elite and the white upper-middle classes. The urban poor, including auto-rickshaw taxi drivers and those employed in the unorganised sector were joined by film stars, intellectuals and business leaders in the India against Corruption (IAC) protest in New Delhi. Narratives around corruption, representation and nationalism allowed different sections of society to connect with the protests and come together, despite their social and economic differences. But despite their significance, the protests resulted in little tangible change in policy or conditions. OWS failed to change the behaviour of financial institutions, the Brazilian Spring never arrived, regimes changed broadly for the worse after the Arab Spring, and anti-corruption protests in Delhi did not see India’s officialdom turn over a new leaf. The protests were high on symbolism and symbolic communication. The slogans of OWS — “demand the impossible” and “We are the 99 percent” — were catchy, but the group presented no concrete demands. It remained a movement against corporations, with no platform to address student debt, homelessness or corporate misbehaviour. The protesters themselves have offered reasons why this was the case. Some felt the “consensus model” of decision-making made it difficult to formulate a concrete agenda. Many others felt OWS was not meant to achieve policy change, but create a dialogue and bring back ‘associational life’, a founding principle of American democracy. Some felt that OWS achieved something much larger than policy-oriented demands: it changed the ‘imagination’ of society, persuading people to ask questions about self-representation. OWS was imagined as a protest in symbolic communication, creating identification between social groups that knew little about each other. For instance, an organiser in Brooklyn who was an early career college lecturer, argued OWS was structured around categories of ‘shame’ and ‘dignity’, which created an equivalence between students suffering the shame of their debt with the indignity of the homeless and the unemployed. Black Lives Matter activists who participated in OWS said the movement helped a younger generation of white Americans witness black activism for the first time, developing their understanding of issues such as racial profiling. The Brazilian Spring began as a “free fare movement”, demanding lower public transport fares, but grew into a larger campaign for anti-corruption, welfare, public education and affirmative action. Later, the MTST movement (Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Teto, or Homeless Workers Movement) for housing joined the free fare protesters. Eventually, the protest split between the lower echelons demanding action on welfare, while social elites focused on corruption and a narrative of nationalism, demanding the impeachment of the President Dilma Roussef. Many, mostly students who benefitted from former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s affirmative action policies, felt it was foolish to spend taxpayers funds on the 2014 FIFA World Cup while people suffered with basic needs, which had sparked the protests. Most students who felt this way articulated their ideas along ideological lines, but agreed there was a need to think afresh about the organisational forms of the protest. In the end, Brazil too saw no policy-related change from the protests. This was mostly attributed to the fact that the protests could not hold people from different segments of society together. IAC began in Delhi, demanding new anti-corruption legislation and a statutory body referred to as the Lok Pal or Ombudsman. Corruption and democratic representation were the key framing narratives of the protest. It began with the issue of the “coal scam” (discretionary allocation of coal deposits to public and private companies by the government) and then moved onto calls for electoral reform. In particular, the bribing of voters with cash and liquor during campaigns. It invoked ideas of direct democracy, and the “right to recall” elected representatives if they under-performed. Nationalism was a framing narrative, invoking national symbols. While none of the demands led to any concrete outcome, IAC did facilitate the formation of a new political party in Delhi called the Aam Admi Party (meaning the Common Man’s Party), which went on to win the legislative elections in Delhi. The Aam Admi Party formulated social democratic policies that included Mohalla (neighbourhood) clinics, supply of free electricity and water in slums and the introduction of new infrastructure in government-run public schools. Following all three movements, each country elected a pro-corporate, right-wing government — Donald Trump in the US, Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil and Narendra Modi in India. Each leader elected in the wake of the protests pursued neoliberalism much more aggressively than the preceding regimes. How global protest movements next evolve may play a role in determining what happens afterwards. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™. is an Associate Professor at the Centre for Political Studies, at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India. His recent publications include India after Modi (2018) and edited Secular Sectarianism (2019). He is currently Associate Member, Institute for Humanities, Simon Fraser University, Canada. This article is based on the fieldwork by the writer as part of an international project titled `Democracy and Post-Civil Society in Global Politics. The project was funded by the Indian Council for Social Science Research, New Delhi. Sajjan Singh in India and Ulisses Terto in Brazil assisted in field interviews.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on January 24, 2022

Absent Putin and Ukraine war cast long shadow over G20 - 360 Tom Chodor Published on September 8, 2023 The leaders of Russia and China are skipping the G20 summit, but their absence — and rifts over the Ukraine war — will have a big influence on the proceedings. Russian President Vladimir Putin won’t be at the G20 Leaders’ Summit, but he and the Russia-Ukraine war are likely to have a bigger effect on outcomes than even the lack of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Days before world leaders prepared to gather in New Delhi for the summit on 9-10 September, news emerged that China’s leader had decided not to attend. Xi’s absence will undoubtedly stifle progress on the many issues plaguing the global economy. However, it’s Putin and the war in Ukraine that is likely to dominate proceedings and hamper progress on urgent matters before the G20. With Russia a member, this is not surprising. But the G20’s make-up — consisting of Western states and leading nations from the Global South — has made it even more difficult for the organisation to function effectively. The G20 is much more than just an annual two-day Leaders’ Summit. Most of its work happens in the background, through networks of technocrats and policymakers, who can find ways to resolve problems, even when relations between their leaders deteriorate. Beside the issue of an ongoing conflict, the ‘in’ tray is full this year. Global inflation remains high, and growth is slowing and below historical trends. China is experiencing its own economic challenges of slowing growth, deflation and a housing market crisis, which could have significant knock-on effects for the rest of the world. Many economies are struggling with debt. Nearly half of the world’s developing countries need urgent financial assistance as the financial consequences of the pandemic have finally caught up with them. All this is before considering long-term issues like climate change or sustainable development. Progress on both fronts is falling further behind schedule. But this is exactly why the G20 was created. It brings together the world’s 20 largest economies, which account for 85 percent of global GDP, 75 percent of global trade and two-thirds of the world’s population. To the extent that the world has a government, the G20 is it. On the issue of Russia and Ukraine, there are three distinct factions within the G20. There is Russia, which has rejected the validity of discussing the war at the G20, arguing that as an economic body it has no business considering security matters. Increasingly, as the war has dragged on, this has been China’s position, too, as it draws closer to Russia. Then there are the Western states, which initially pushed for the G20 to expel Russia — something for which there is no provision — and, failing that, have insisted that it condemns Russia and the invasion in the strongest terms. Finally, there is the majority of the membership from the Global South, which has tried to stay neutral in the conflict. They are more concerned about the war’s consequences, including its effect on food and energy prices, which particularly affect developing economies. With such divisions, the G20 has struggled to reach consensus. None of the ministerial-level meetings hosted by this year’s chair India have ended with the usual communique that summarises the consensus of the group on the topics discussed. Instead, India has issued ‘chair’s summary and outcome’ documents that merely summarise discussions and note the disagreements. Ahead of the New Delhi summit, diplomats are again scrambling to devise a form of wording for the final communique that would be accepted by all parties, facing the possibility of failing to do so for the first time in G20 history. Despite these disagreements, the G20 has managed to make progress on some issues. G20 meetings have been one of the main forums through which reform of the Multilateral Development Banks has been discussed. The proposals include reforming the internal policies of the World Bank and other development banks to allow them to borrow more capital and lend it at concessional rates — especially for climate projects — as well as increases of funding from leading states. The US recently promised to increase its contributions by USD$50 billion, calling on its allies to do likewise to increase the total to $200 billion. Campaigners have called for the reforms to go further, but they still offer the prospect of a significant increase to development bank funds. The focus on climate financing also reflects the growing importance of the issue in developing economies. While reforms won’t be finalised at the summit, the G20 has proved itself a useful forum to maintain and progress negotiations. Another G20 initiative has been the Common Framework for Debt Treatments, agreed in 2020, which is the first multilateral mechanism for forgiving and restructuring the sovereign debt of low-income countries. The Common Framework is notable for involving both the traditional lenders from the Paris Club and new ones like China. It has already allowed Zambia to restructure USD$6.3 billion of its debt, a large part of which is owed to China. While the framework has shortcomings — for one, it doesn’t include private creditors — it does at least represent a lifeline to many developing economies on the verge of defaulting on their debts. The framework’s continuation illustrates that the G20 functions, even in the face of very public disagreements. This persistence can be explained by more than just the technocrats working and cooperating behind the scenes. Over the past two years, the G20 has been chaired by developing economies: Indonesia and India. Because of their neutrality, these countries have greater credibility when they try to manage the stand-off between the West and Russia, so the G20 can function in some way. With the next two hosts, South Africa and Brazil, sharing a similar inclination, the G20 might continue to function, even if the thornier global problems prove beyond its capacity to address. In an era of fragmenting global governance, that might be the best that can be achieved. Tom Chodor is a Senior Lecturer in Politics and International Relations at the School of Social Sciences, Monash University. His research focuses on the global governance of the global political economy, and the role of private actors in contributing to and contesting global policy agendas. His forthcoming book, with Shahar Hameiri, is The Locked-Up Country: Learning the Lessons from Australia’s Covid-19 Response (University of Queensland Press, 2023). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on September 8, 2023

Abused, abandoned, neglected: the plight of India’s older women - 360 Deblina Dey Published on March 8, 2024 Restoring dignity in women’s labour can give older women the care and respect they deserve in late life. Amrit Kaur was in her 80s when she arrived in Delhi from Punjab with her son to visit a relative. Her son abandoned her at the railway station. After a few months, she was moved to a homeless shelter by police. The staff at the shelter said initially she was in shock and incoherent. When interviewed by this researcher, not once did she blame her son for anything. She just repeated: “I was destined to be here.” In another case, a man confessed to throwing his 64-year-old mother off the terrace of their home as she was ill and a burden. His mother later died. Such abandonment and disregard for older women is all too common in a country like India where filial piety is upheld as a virtue. Age compounds the hardships of many older women in a society marked by gender inequality. Older women face additional challenges of financial insecurity, destitution and health challenges related to ageing. In a neoliberal society, people are valued for their economic contribution. A similar logic operates in many Indian families. If an older family member is not earning an income, they are deemed to be dependents and a ‘burden’. Patriarchal cultural norms relegate women to domestic duties. Many women remain unemployed throughout their lives, and a majority do not own assets. This creates economic hardships in late life. According to a 2015 study, older women have a diminished status in the family because they do not earn even though they contribute to their children’s families by being caregivers for grandchildren. However, care work in the family remains highly devalued. Along with this, the ‘feminisation of ageing‘ as evidenced by the increased life expectancy of women (compared to men) implies that older women will continue to be dependent on others for prolonged periods. Being dependent on kin can exacerbate vulnerabilities. My research shows that older women could be easy targets of coercion and manipulation. In the case of propertied older women, many experience abuse after transferring property to their adult children. However, many women in the country do not own property despite there being laws which grant property rights to women. Such women are sometimes driven to destitution, and many are abandoned by family members. Older women can claim maintenance from family members under existing legal provisions in India. Section 19 of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956 allows a widow (who does not remarry) to claim maintenance from the legal heirs of the deceased who share the property of the deceased. Widows can also claim maintenance under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure from their children, unconditionally. The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, or MW Act, was formulated especially for senior citizens’ welfare. Section 4 obligates sons, daughters, grandchildren who are not minors and any legal heir of her property to provide maintenance. This law defines maintenance as food, clothing, shelter and medical treatment. Legal safeguards against abandonment, usurpation of property and abuse exist in the MW Act and the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005. The existing laws, however, do not particularly address the discrimination faced by some older women such as childless, unmarried or trans women. The Protection of Rights of Widows and Single Women and Abolishment of Widowhood Practices Bill was introduced in 2022 but nothing came of it. Destigmatising widowhood and singlehood and restoring dignity to those belonging to sexual minorities is crucial for empowering older women. While laws undoubtedly safeguard the rights of older women, it is impractical to conjure a law for every situation of harm done to older women; rather there is a need to proactively implement existing laws. As political theorist Wendy Brown argues, ‘…rights…serve as a mitigation — but not a resolution — of subordinating powers.’ Patriarchal ideas that prevent women from pursuing a life of one’s own choice must be questioned. Many women remain engaged in care work throughout their lives. A woman at a charitable care home in Kolkata said ‘she found herself’ after relocating to the care home after her spouse’s death. She was relieved of the care work and now she was ‘free.’ Care work must be accorded due importance in the political discourse. Restoring dignity in women’s labour and building a supportive environment for women to perform their caring duties often determines their wellbeing in late life. Many women combat loneliness. More recreation facilities in the neighbourhood can be made available. Age-appropriate occupations can be considered for women to enhance financial security. Ensuring safety, access to helplines and counselling support, access to inexpensive medical care, palliative care, dementia care, affordable permanent housing, and financial security through pension schemes are areas where attention needs to be given. A common concern of many older women living in cities, as per my research, has been sourcing essentials and recruiting reliable care workers for themselves. Crimes against older women in cities such as murder, robbery and assault are often reported especially in metropolitan cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata. Some of the older women interviewed mentioned how they would prefer shifting to institutional care rather than relying on paid domestic workers and ayahs. This also highlights the need to have more care homes in the country. The state, community, as well as regulated market intervention in the above domains, is key to providing a conducive environment for older women. ‘Older women’ is not a homogenous category. Therefore, identifying unique needs based on their context is also crucial to meet the goals of the UN Decade of Healthy Ageing (2021-2030). Dr. Deblina Dey is Associate Professor of Sociology & Assistant Director of the Centre for Law & Humanities at the Law School, O.P. Jindal Global University. She is pursuing her postdoctoral research on care interventions for older people in urban India. Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 8, 2024

Access to water is a crisis for the powerless - 360 Prakash Kashwan Published on March 21, 2024 Fair access to water is an issue for millions of people in India. Who controls access and how this is governed needs fixing. Almost 100 years ago around 3,000 Dalits, or “untouchables”, dared to drink from a public water tank in Mahad, Maharashtra, that was forbidden to them. The Mahad Satyagraha — referred to as India’s first civil rights movement — was led by noted lawyer, social reformer, and Dalit leader B.R. Ambedkar who then took on the upper-caste people of the area who claimed the tank was private property. The ensuing legal battle lasted a decade. Dr Ambedkar won the case. The fight for access to water resources, however, continues today across India. The right to safe drinking water is recognised as a fundamental human right. In India, it is customary to greet a guest or passerby with a glass of water, though the way water is offered depends on your caste. More importantly, though, how water is allocated and distributed comes down to a question of policy and governance, where it tends to follow the contours of socially-determined inequalities. A 2018 NITI Aayog report states that India ranks 120 of 122 countries in the Global Water Quality Index. India has the largest reported groundwater usage in the world. Social inequities in India and other parts of South Asia directly impact access to water, how it is allocated, distributed and consumed. Climate change, along with oppressive and discriminatory social practices, makes a bad situation worse. Marginalised groups are disproportionately affected by lack of attention to the social dimensions of water policy, its use and allocation that often perpetuate practices of untouchability and gender-based discrimination. Who owns land and resources becomes critical to who can access water. This question is determined along lines of caste, class and gender inequalities. Community movements working towards equitable access to water have been stymied by a lack of support by gram panchayats (village-level governance institutions) or by private investments which benefit wealthier farming communities with bigger landholdings. North Gujarat, a semi-arid region in western India that relies on groundwater use, faces water scarcity due to the proliferation of tubewells. Groundwater access becomes the preserve of the upper castes through the building of tubewells on private land, a form of access based on casteist social structures that limit land ownership among the lower castes. This socio-economic status determines access to water and who uses more of the groundwater commons. Tubewells have resulted in the drying out of shallow wells, giving rise to “water lords” who dominate consumption of water. This, in turn, forces poor farmers to rely further on them for water supply in an already exploitative relationship. Alongside caste, gender also becomes a determinant of communities’ relationships with water. Women are the face of water poverty in India. The responsibility of meeting families’ water needs in rural India falls squarely on them, exacerbated by dropping water levels and the perils of a changing climate. Women are responsible for collecting, storing, and managing the water needs of households for cooking, bathing, washing, leaving them with little time to participate in the labour force. It also prevents young girls from pursuing education. A 2019 study found that villages affected by water scarcity in Gujarat’s Bhuj district — a Muslim-dominated area – received less than five litres of water per person per day, falling significantly short of the UN-mandated minimum water requirement of 20 litres of water per person per day. Erratic rainfall and negligence of the state Water Supply and Sewerage Board both produced this failure. This water is often saline and unfit to drink. Where state supply of water is erratic, lower-caste villagers are forced to depend on tubewells owned by upper-castes or walk great distances to access public water supply. About 71 per cent of Dalit settlements in villages have no access to public water supplies. Discriminatory water practices in Gujarat’s villages disproportionately affect lower-caste women, subjecting them to extreme precarity and vulnerability to sexual abuse by upper-caste men. This becomes more alarming because groundwater levels in South Asia are heavily impacted by salinity in coastal areas. Gujarat has the longest coastline in India and water from wells is already undrinkable like some villages in Jafrabad district where women are forced to walk miles to access safe drinking water. Climate change inflicts disproportionate burdens on marginalised groups. Discriminatory practices in access to water continue through concerns of caste pollution — a belief among the upper castes that their ‘purity’ will be defiled if they come into contact with lower-caste people. Efforts to decentralise water governance in Gujarat continue to meet resistance from upper-caste people for whom equity of access disrupts their monopoly over irrigation and agricultural uses. Maintaining control of water access gives upper castes an advantage over lower-caste people. Such injustices remain marginal considerations for intervention by NGOs and state governments. The problem of access to public resources based on social difference thus needs to be addressed urgently by policy-makers. Governments have failed to acknowledge social discrimination in the provision of basic amenities to marginalised communities which will grow increasingly vulnerable as climate change intensifies long-standing social disparities in wealth and resource use. Improving public accountability in governance requires an understanding of the effects of the numerous disadvantages faced by marginalised communities. With India’s summer approaching and water stress becoming a reality, poor and marginalised women bear the brunt of heat stress in the collection of water, a fact unrecognised by policymakers and insufficiently addressed in India’s Heat Action Plans. Water scarcity and water insecurity are created through socio-economic and political inequalities. Socially just climate adaptation for water management can go hand-in-hand with an acknowledgement of the social power vested in local elites. Generating institutional change from both above and below requires addressing the various barriers that prevent achieving human rights for the most vulnerable communities. It also demands political mobilisation towards overcoming social barriers in the same vein as the Mahad Satyagraha of 1927. Giving everyone a say in decision-making and removing unequal administrative measures that prevent fair access to water — such as making tubewells a public good with parameters of equal access — can be pursued. Legal provisions towards supporting water equality need to be made enforceable. Otherwise the idea of water justice remains a mere tokenism. Prakash Kashwan is Associate Professor of Environmental Studies and Chair, Environmental Justice Concentration, MPP, at the Heller School for Social Policy & Management at Brandeis University. He is the author of Democracy in the Woods: Environmental Conservation and Social Justice in India, Tanzania, and Mexico (Oxford University Press, 2017) and the Editor of Climate Justice in India (Cambridge University Press, 2022). Originally published under Creative Commons by 360info™.

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2024-05-27T18:22:32.821463

Published on March 21, 2024