| |  | |  Rio+20 participants leave thinking not just big, but differently The lack of meaningful commitments at the Rio+20 summit by governments means that developing nations, grass-roots organizations and corporations must take the lead in making development more sustainable, observers say. "We saw in the myriad Rio+20-related announcements ... that they were taking action themselves -- irrespective of any United Nations document," said Frances Beinecke, head of the Natural Resources Defense Council, and Trip Van Noppen, head of Earthjustice. "We can do this ourselves." The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (6/23), The Christian Science Monitor (6/22), AlertNet (6/23), The New York Times (tiered subscription model)/IHT Rendezvous blog (6/24)     
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|  | "Protests in Sudan entered their seventh day today, after being sparked on June 17 by female students at the University of Khartoum. The protests spread to other universities, and then from students to wider communities." UN Dispatch | |
- Showdown is possible over UN role in Internet
The United Nations International Telecommunication Union works on a consensus basis, which is why some governments, including the U.S., are wary of measures that could affect Internet governance or permit online censorship. The agency is hosting a summit this year, and negotiations are under way. MSNBC/The Associated Press (6/22) - EU aid to foreign nations is down 1.5%
For the first time since 2002, levels of development assistance from the European Union fell. Cuts in the 2010-11 fiscal year were announced by more than half the members, chief among them Spain and Greece. Less funding is likely to harm poorer economies in Africa, according to the anti-poverty group ONE. BBC (6/24), AlertNet/Reuters (6/25) - Solar-powered lanterns inflate hopes in Haiti
Lightweight, hand-held and inflatable solar lanterns that produce the same amount of light as a 60-watt bulb are being advocated for Haiti as an inexpensive means to boost renewable energy and to enable students to study into the evenings. Other benefits would include reducing health-damaging smoke from fires and lamps, and improving safety for women. AlertNet (6/22) - Reproductive rights' omission is a "step back"
The Vatican and leaders of developing countries were successful in eliminating references to reproductive rights from the final statement of the Rio+20 summit, but U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the U.S. would "continue to work to ensure that those rights are respected in international agreements." Gro Harlem Brundtland of Norway said the omission represented "a step backwards from previous agreements" on women's empowerment and gender equality. The Christian Science Monitor (6/22), The Guardian (London) (6/22) - Can climate change be stopped by profiting from it?
 Richard Branson, the British billionaire behind the nonprofit Carbon War Room, says that new technologies can not only help stop climate change but create profit opportunities. "We think that one way to look at climate protection is to regard it as a business model, because our only option to stop climate change is for industry to make money from it," he said. Der Spiegel (Germany) (English online version) (6/21) - DR Congo mission is the new face of peacekeeping
Peacekeepers with the United Nations mission in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo are in the middle of the conflict between the government and the outlaw army general Bosco Ntaganda. The mission there, the UN's largest, reflects a more robust mandate that has some observers asking whether the world body has gone too far. The Wall Street Journal (6/23), Reuters (6/23) Top five news stories selected by UN Wire readers in the past week. - Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.
- Actress and humanitarian Serinda Swan joins the fight against malaria
As the newest champion in the fight against malaria, actress and humanitarian Serinda Swan recently joined a delegation from the United Nations Foundation's Nothing But Nets campaign to visit Kakuma Refugee Camp to distribute insecticide-treated bed nets to refugees. The trip was tied to Nothing But Nets' nationwide appeal to send 100,000 bed nets to refugees fleeing violence in South Sudan. The delegation also visited a school, a hospital, a vocational training center, and a computer learning center. Read more. |
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