Hundreds protest Amazon expansion in France

Hundreds rallied in several French towns in protests against Amazon called by anti-capitalist and environmental groups, including at one site where the US e-commerce giant plans a massive warehouse

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© Sylvain THOMAS Some protesters planted shrubs in the waste ground at the Fournes site

© Sylvain THOMAS Several hundred joined the protest at the site of the planned warehouse at Fournes

Amazon plans to set up a 38,000-square-metre (400,000-square-feet) facility in the small southern town of Fournes near the Pont du Gard, a Roman aqueduct bridge that is a World Heritage site.

  

© RAYMOND ROIG Demonstrators also gathered in the southern city of Perpignan

A crowd police said numbered around 800 and which organisers estimated at 1,400 rallied at the site, planting shrubs in front of huge banners reading "Stop Amazon" and "Not here or anywhere".

They formed a human chain to show the size of the project, while multicoloured balloons floated 18 metres (60 feet) up to indicate the height of the planned five-storey facility.

"It's two years that the citizens of Fournes and its surroundings have fought against the installation of a giant Amazon warehouse," said Raphael Pradeau, spokesman for French citizens' activist group Attac.

"At the start they were a bit alone against everyone, but they have succeeded in halting the project thanks to legal recourse."

"We want to show that these are not small isolated fights and that we can mobilise hundreds of people who are ready to return to stop the work", said Pradeau.

- 'Precarious jobs' -

Sarah Latour, 38, came with her two sons aged eight and six, and the family planted a shrub in waste ground, where vines had once grown.

"These plants, these shrubs that we are planting today are a symbol of life that contrasts with the concreting that Amazon practises," she said.

"I came with my children because I don't want this destructive model for them."

About 200 people also rallied outside an Amazon facility in Carquefou, a suburb of the western city of Nantes, organisers said.

"We condemn Amazon for destroying more jobs than they create, and that these are insecure jobs," said Sophie Jallier, a spokeswoman for the organisers in Carquefou.

In the eastern town of Ensisheim, about 100 people gathered to protest a plan to build a giant warehouse on a 15-hectare site of former agricultural land.

Bannners read "Amazon, Fiscal Vampire" and "No mega warehouse."

"Today, we condemn an economic system that is at the end of its rope and which is using the planet," said Isabelle Schaeffer, a member of an environmental group in the Sud Alsace region.

Other protests were held in Augny, in the eastern Moselle region, and in Perpignan in the south.

Amazon practices "unfair competition with regard to businesses that pay their taxes in France", Eric Barbier of the environmental group Alteratiba said in Perpignan.

In addition, "most workers are on precarious contracts, hired during peak periods such as Black Friday or Christmas and are then thrown out".

il/mdm/wdb/har

Vaccine rollout faces challenges in France's poorest region


SAINT-DENIS, France — Samia Dridi, who was born, raised and works as a nurse in Saint-Denis, fears for her impoverished town, recalling how the coronavirus cut an especially deadly path through the diverse area north of Paris, a burial place for French kings entombed in a majestic basilica

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© Provided by The Canadian Press

Dridi and her sister accompanied their frail 92-year-old Algerian-born mother to a vaccination centre for the first of two shots to protect against COVID-19 days after it opened last week for people over the age of 75.

While red tape, consent requirements and supply issues have slowed France's vaccination rollout nationwide, the Seine-Saint-Denis region faces special challenges in warding off the virus, and getting people vaccinated when their turn comes.

It is the poorest region in mainland France and had the highest rise in mortality in the country last spring, largely due to COVID-19. Up to 75 per cent of the population are immigrants or have immigrant roots, and its residents speak some 130 different languages. Health care is below par, with two to three times fewer hospital beds than other regions and a higher rate of chronic illnesses. Many are essential workers in supermarkets, public sanitation and health care.

The coronavirus was initially widely seen as the great equalizer, infecting rich and poor. But studies have since shown that some people are more vulnerable than others, notably the elderly, those with other long-term illnesses and the poor, often living on the edges of mainstream society, like immigrants who don’t speak French.

Dridi, 56, a nurse for more than three decades, feels relieved there is currently “no significant evolution” of the virus in her town. But she doesn’t forget what happened when the pandemic first hit.

“We had entire families with COVID,” she said. Many have multiple generations living together in small apartments, something experts say is an aggravating factor common in the region.

Despite those grim memories, local officials grapple with special challenges getting out word about vaccines to a population where many don't speak French, lack access to regular medical care and, like in much of France, distrust the vaccine's safety.

Next month, a bus will travel through the region, notably visiting street markets, to provide vaccination information. In addition, about 40 “vaccination ambassadors” who speak several languages are to be trained to reach out, starting in March, about vaccinations as well as “fake news” surrounding them.

A case in point is Youssef Zaoui, 32, an Algerian living in Saint-Denis.



“I heard the vaccination is very dangerous, more than the virus,” said Zaoui, sitting in the shadow of the basilica. His proof that he need not worry about the virus: the butcher down the road and the man selling cigarettes nearby. They were there at the beginning of March “and they’re still here. ... Me, I’m still here,” he said.

Is there a chance the vaccine could turn the tide on the inequality reflected in death statistics for the region?

“Before the vaccine becomes a great equalizer, everyone must be vaccinated,” said Patrick Simon, who co-authored a study last June on the vulnerability of minorities in Seine-Saint-Denis to COVID-19. But he said the challenges for marginalized communities to access health care continues, “so these inequalities will also be reproduced for the vaccine.”

While the French health care system is meant to provide accessible medical treatment for all, the bureaucratic demands and co-payments often scare away new immigrants or the very poor. Government health guidance doesn't always reach those outside the system.

As a nurse at a municipal health centre, Dridi sees up front the poverty that translates into vulnerability to the coronavirus.

“I’m giving an injection, a shot, putting on a bandage ... and some say, ‘I live in a car, I’m in the street,’” she said.

That misery was not apparent at the vaccination centre where Dridi's mother got her shot — among 17 opened across the region last week and where Saint-Denis' more fortunate, who live in private homes, were seen on a recent visit. Some made their way into the centre on canes or held by an arm. One couple showed up on a scooter. All were eager to be vaccinated.

They were among the lucky ones. Appointments were cut back after allotments of doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine were diminished, like elsewhere in France and Europe.

“I’m lucky to get vaccinated today,” said one woman, who then broke down in tears. She was infected with COVID-19 during treatment at a private clinic in April and lost her mother in October to the virus after she contracted it in a hospital where she was treated after a fall.

The woman, who declined to give her name, told Dridi and her sister to take care of their mother because “she is your treasure.”

For Dridi, seeing people die of COVID-19 can be a game changer.

“Some people say no (to getting vaccinated) because they have no contact with death,” said Dridi. But death, “that’s what makes you react.”

By Elaine Ganley, The Associated Press

END BLASPHEMY LAWS

Nigeria sentences teenage boy to 10 years in prison for blasphemy, prompting outrage

Child rights agency UNICEF has condemned the sentencing of a teenager to 10 years in prison for blasphemy in northern Nigeria.

© CNN CNN's Stephanie Busari speaks with Omar Farouq, the Nigerian teen who was freed after his 10-year prison sentence for blasphemy was overturned. Farouq was convicted in a Sharia court in Kano State in northwest Nigeria after he was accused of using foul language toward Allah in an argument with a friend.

Omar Farouq was convicted in a Sharia court in Kano State in northwest Nigeria after he was accused of using foul language toward Allah in an argument with a friend.

He was sentenced on August 10 by the same court that recently sentenced a studio assistant Yahaya Sharif-Aminu to death for blaspheming Prophet Mohammed, according to lawyers.

Farouq's punishment is in violation of the African Charter of the Rights and Welfare of a Child and the Nigerian constitution, said his counsel Kola Alapinni, who told CNN they filed an appeal on his behalf on September 7.

© AFP/AFP/AFP via Getty Images A team of Islamic sharia enforcers called Hisbah on patrol in the northern Nigerian city of Kano.

Farouq was tried as an adult because he has attained puberty and has full responsibility under Islamic law.

Alapinni told CNN he or other lawyers working on the case have not been granted access to Farouq by authorities in Kano State.

He said he found out about Farouq's case by chance when working on the case of Sharif-Aminu, who was sentenced to death for blasphemy at the Kano Upper Sharia Court.

"We found out they were convicted on the same day, by the same judge, in the same court, for blasphemy and we found out no one was talking about Omar, so we had to move quickly to file an appeal for him," he said.

"Blasphemy is not recognized by Nigerian law. It is inconsistent with the constitution of Nigeria."

The lawyer said Farouq's mother had fled to a neighboring town after mobs descended on their home following his arrest.

"Everyone here is scared to speak and living under fear of reprisal attacks," he said.

UNICEF Wednesday issued a statement "expressing deep concern" about the sentencing.

"The sentencing of this child -- 13-year-old Omar Farouq -- to 10 years in prison with menial labour is wrong," said Peter Hawkins, UNICEF representative in Nigeria. "It also negates all core underlying principles of child rights and child justice that Nigeria -- and by implication, Kano State -- has signed on to."

Kano State, like most predominantly Muslim states in Nigeria, practices Sharia law alongside secular law.

CNN contacted a spokesman for the Kano State governor for comment but had not heard back before publication.

UNICEF has called on the Nigerian government and the Kano State government to urgently review the case and reverse the sentence, the organization said in a statement.

"This case further underlines the urgent need to accelerate the enactment of the Kano State Child Protection Bill so as to ensure that all children under 18, including Omar Farouq are protected -- and that all children in Kano are treated in accordance with child rights standards," Hawkins said.

Indian farmers begin hunger strike amid fury against Modi

NEW DELHI — Indian farmers taking part in more than two months of protest against new agriculture laws began a daylong hunger strike Saturday, as they sought to reaffirm the peaceful nature of their movement following recent violent clashes with police.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Farmer leaders said the hunger strike was timed to coincide with the death anniversary of Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi, who was famed for his nonviolent resistance to colonial rule. Nevertheless, the protesters said they remained furious at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government.

“The way the government is spreading planned lies and violence is condemnable," said a statement from the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, or United Farmers’ Front, a coalition of farmers’ unions.

Tens of thousands of farmers have been camped on the edge of New Delhi since November, seeking the repeal of laws passed in September that they say will favour large agribusiness and corporations, devastate the earnings of many farmers and leave those with small plots behind.

Modi and his allies say the laws are necessary to modernize Indian agriculture. Multiple rounds of talks between the two sides have been unsuccessful.

The protests had largely been peaceful but violence erupted on Tuesday, India’s Republic Day, when tens of thousands of farmers riding tractors and marching on foot knocked out police barricades and stormed New Delhi's 17th century Red Fort in a brief but shocking takeover.

The clashes left one protester dead and nearly 400 police officers injured. Officials did not say how many farmers were injured, but many were seen bloodied after police in riot gear hit them with batons and fired tear gas.

Tensions have remained high since, with sporadic clashes between protesters, police and unidentified groups shouting anti-farmer slogans. On Friday, a group of around 200 people barged into one protest site despite heavy security, threw stones at farmers and damaged their tents.

The group demanded that farmers vacate the area and said they had “insulted” the national flag during their tractor parade on Republic Day. The farmers alleged that the vandals were largely made up of members of a Hindu nationalist group that has close ties with Modi’s party.

On Saturday authorities blocked mobile internet services at three protest sites, a favoured tactic of the Modi government to thwart protests. India’s Home Ministry said internet services would remain suspended until Sunday to “maintain public safety.”

Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait said the government was “in delusion if it feels our movement will be weakened” by suspending the internet.

“The more they try to crush the voice of the farmers, the greater this movement will become,” Tikait tweeted.

The protests pose the biggest challenge to Modi since he took office in 2014 in part because farmers are the most influential voting bloc in the country and a key part of the economy. In a rare show of unity, 16 opposition parties boycotted a parliamentary address by the ceremonial president Ram Nath Kovind, who is from Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party.

Both sides appeared to be growing more entrenched.

Rather than try to lower the temperature after Tuesday's clashes, the government has filed cases against journalists, activists and opposition politicians, accusing them of sedition and inciting violence.

The farmers, meanwhile, have seen their ranks swell by thousands more new protesters since a video of Tikait breaking down in tears while talking to reporters was shared widely on social media on Thursday.

“Our movement has gained strength after the Republic Day rally. We have decided that we won’t go back," said Sukhdev Singh, another farmer leader who was taking part in Saturday's hunger strike. “If we are to die, we will die here.”

___ Associated Press video journalist Shonal Ganguly contributed to this report.

Sheikh Saaliq, The Associated Press

Canadian Sikhs worry for families in India as farm protests turn violent

For several days, Karan Singh has been frantically checking the latest news from India where his father and other farmers have been demanding the government repeal new agriculture laws that open more space for private investors.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

The 25-year-old from Sudbury, Ont., says concern for his father — who farms cotton, wheat and sugar cane in India's northern Punjab state — started in September. That's when Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced three bills that farmers say will reshape agriculture in the region, and Singh's father and friends joined protests.

One of the bills allows farmers to forge deals with companies to produce a certain amount and to sell their crops directly to private buyers instead of to the Indian government at a regulated price.

Modi's government argues the new laws will bring growth. But smaller farmers like Singh's dad fear that the removal of state protections that they already consider insufficient will leave them at the mercy of greedy corporations.

Singh says his stress peaked two days ago when Modi's government shut down internet in parts of New Delhi where protesters were gathering. Singh lost touch with his father and friends for about two hours as they made their way to India's capital.

"It was really critical hours," Singh said about the wait while protesters on horses and tractors stormed India’s historic Red Fort. They broke through police barricades into the nearly 400-year-old landmark after weeks of peaceful sit-ins and rallies — a deeply symbolic act that revealed their determination in challenging Modi’s government.

"I didn't know where he was. I was worried and praying that hopefully those that I know will not be there in harm," Singh said.

"Then there was a news that there was a death of one of the farmers in the protest and I was sad and couldn't focus on work."

It turned out his father was a few kilometres away and was safe. He has since returned to his farm, away from the protests, Singh said.

Canadian Sikhs with family in India say they are worried about the brewing tension in the country during a global pandemic.

"Sikhs are a significant part of our communities and a lot of our volunteers have family in India. We have volunteers in India as well, who are working with the farmers," Jindi Singh, national director of the World Sikh Organization of Canada, said from his home in Victoria.

"What we've seen is that the police presence has increased exponentially, so there is increased concern about safety."

Since the protests began, videos have emerged of police hitting farmers with water cannons, releasing tear gas and beating them with batons. Negotiations between farmers and the Indian government have been in a deadlock.

In late November, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke in support of Punjabi farmers and said his government had reached out to Indian authorities to highlight concerns.

Canadians must do more to pressure the federal government to continue doing that, said Jindi Singh.

"On a Friday night, if you're having butter chicken and basmati rice, if this morning you got up and you had a turmeric latte, if on the weekend you're going to cook and you're going to use Indian spices ... all of those items have come from an Indian farmer."

Sikhs across Canada have been holding weekly protests in solidarity with the farmers.

"The thing is, we physically are here in Canada, but emotionally we are still in those struggles because, as a son of a farmer, you can feel the pain," Jindi Singh said.

"Agriculture is not a job that we do. Agriculture is also our culture. It's a part of who we are."

— With files from The Associated Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 29, 2021

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This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship

COVID face mask painted on giant English chalk figure

LONDON (Reuters) - British police are searching for the vandal or vandals who painted a COVID-19 face mask on the figure of a mysterious giant carved into a hillside in southern England.

© Reuters/JEREMY CHRISTEY Long Man of Wilmington with "mask" added in South Downs

The Long Man of Wilmington, a 235-foot high chalk outline holding a white stick in each hand, is protected by law as an ancient monument. Its exact origins are disputed but many archaeologists date it to the Anglo-Saxon or medieval periods.

"Whilst this damage may have been perpetrated for humour or some other reason, the actions that have been taken are unacceptable," said Tom Carter, a sergeant with Sussex Police.

"The Long Man of Wilmington is protected by law as a Scheduled Ancient Monument for its historical significance."

A Reuters photographer who visited the site on Saturday afternoon said the mask had been removed.

(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill; Editing by David Holmes)

Spartan Bioscience says Health Canada approves rapid COVID-19 test

© Supplied by Spartan Bioscience The Ottawa-based company says Health Canada 

has approved the sale of the Spartan COVID-19 System, a rapid, on-site molecular diagnostic test.

Ottawa-based Spartan Bioscience has received Health Canada approval for its made-in-Canada rapid COVID-19 test, authorizing the sale of the device.

"The Spartan COVID-19 System offers the speed and ease of use of a rapid test, while using the technology of lab-based COVID-19 testing solutions," a news release from the company states.

The test offers hope because it is one of only a handful of approved quick-result tests that uses the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing method — widely considered the gold standard for accurate COVID-19 diagnostics — at the point-of-care, without the need to send anything to a lab.

The Spartan test isn't the first point-of-care PCR test to be approved in Canada, but it is the first to be made by a Canadian company with plans to sell solely to the Canadian market.

Health Canada originally provided regulatory approval for the company's device in April 2020 — with the federal government ordering 40,000 tests monthly. At the time, the portable test was being called a "game changer" by health officials because it could deliver on-location results within 60 minutes.

The federal agency restricted the device to research use in May, however, after finding problems with the test that made it unreliable. Approval was granted on Friday after the company conducted clinical trials based on a new device design, Health Canada spokesperson Natalie Mohamed told CBC News in an email.

"The Spartan Bioscience test is a point-of-care molecular test," Mohamed wrote. "This new device meets Health Canada's requirements for safety and effectiveness."
New swab, upgrades to chemistry kit

Dr. James Spiegelman, a co-founder of the company who also practises internal medicine at Humber River Regional Hospital in Toronto, said the problems stemmed from the efficacy of the swabs used to collect tissue samples, not the machine itself.

Spartan originally used a proprietary cheek swab that it developed for other DNA diagnostics, he said, but it became clear that the swab wasn't collecting enough genetic material to produce consistent, reliable results.

The company now uses standard nasopharyngeal swabs to collect tissue from the nose.

"We found that that provides the best sample for increased sensitivity of the test," Spiegelman said.

Spiegelman said the company also made improvements to the sample processing kit so that it no longer needs to be shipped and stored at frozen temperatures but can be stored at room temperature.

With the Spartan test, a trained health-care professional swabs the nose of the person being tested, places the swab into a processing kit that generates a chain reaction and then puts that kit into the cube-shaped device, which takes about 50 minutes to analyze and produce results.

Spiegelman said the test could be used to provide quick and accurate COVID-19 diagnostics everywhere from hospitals and workplaces to pharmacies and remote communities.

"I think [Spartan's rapid test] will really help alleviate and give us a tool in our toolbox to reduce the spread of COVID-19," he said.

Rapid tests already in use across Canada

Rapid diagnostic tests are already in use in many settings across Canada to test for COVID-19, including in homeless shelters, long-term care homes and remote communities. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last Tuesday that the federal government had distributed more than 14 million to the provinces and territories.

"Hopefully we see these integrated into work environments, especially work environments where we know they're at greater risk for outbreaks," said infectious disease specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch, who is also a member of the Ontario COVID-19 vaccine task force.

"I think you could think about certainly integrating them into certain schools or certain school settings, rural, remote, underserviced locations. There's a lot of places where rapid tests would be extremely helpful."

Spartan Bioscience CEO Roger Eacock said the company currently has the manufacturing capacity to produce 60,000 tests per week, but it plans to ramp that up to 200,000 per week in the future.

Eacock said the company already has deals with the federal government and several provinces, as well as some airlines and resource companies, and that shipments are expected to begin in the coming week.

"Everything that we produce here today, we are going to be shipping internally within Canada to all of our Canadian accounts," he said. "So we're a dedicated supply chain to the Canadian market."

A professor from RUDN University developed new liquid crystals

RUDN UNIVERSITY

Research News

 

IMAGE: A PROFESSOR FROM RUDN UNIVERSITY TOGETHER WITH HIS INDIAN COLLEAGUES SYNTHESIZED AND STUDIED NEW DIBENZOPHENAZINE-BASED LIQUID CRYSTALS THAT COULD POTENTIALLY BE USED IN OPTOELECTRONICS AND SOLAR PANELS. view more 

CREDIT: RUDN UNIVERSITY

A professor from RUDN University together with his Indian colleagues synthesized and studied new dibenzophenazine-based liquid crystals that could potentially be used in optoelectronics and solar panels. The results of the study were published in the Journal of Molecular Liquids.

Liquid crystals are an intermediate phase between a liquid and a solid body. They are ordered like regular chrystals but at the same time have a flow like liquids. It is this duality that allows them to be used in organic LEDs and LCDs. Unlike other liquid crystals, discotic ones (DLC) are capable of self-assembly into ordered structures. This makes them a promising material for industrial electronics, namely, for the production of displays. A professor from RUDN University together with his Indian colleagues synthesized and described new dibenzophenazine-based DLCs.

"Discotic liquid crystals are interesting because of their ability to form self-assembled ordered columnar structures. In such structures, an electric charge can move along the column, which makes them useful for optoelectronic devices such as organic LEDs, organic field-effect transistors (OFET), photoelectric solar elements, and sensors," said Prof. Viktor Belyaev, a Ph.D. in Technical Sciences from the Department of Mechanics and Mechatronics at RUDN University.

DLCs consist of disc-shaped molecules aligned in columns. In the center of each disc, there is an aromatic ring (a cyclical organic fragment) surrounded by chains of other organic fragments. Due to this aromatic center, a DLC can transfer a charge along the axis of a column. Prof. Belyaev developed discotic liquid crystals with an aromatic compound called dibenzophenazine in the center. As for the chains that surrounded it, the team tried three different types of fragments. The molecular structure of the new DLCs was studied using spectral, X-ray diffraction, and elementary analysis. Then, the team tested the three groups of DLCs in a set of experiments.

The experiments showed that alkoxy thiol chains increased the polarity of the molecules in liquid crystals thus improving the internal structure of the columns and making them more even. All new DLCs were able to withstand temperatures up to 330?. However, the crystals that consisted of smaller molecules (i.e. the ones with their aromatic center surrounded by alkyl thiols) lost their intermediary status and transitioned from the liquid crystal to the liquid form at lower temperatures (55.1 ?) that the crystals from the other two groups. This is due to the size of the molecules in the columns: the bigger they are, the more stable is the liquid crystal state.

"The new discotic liquid crystals could play an important role in organic optoelectronic devices and solar panels," added Prof. Viktor Belyaev from RUDN University.

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Experts call for more pragmatic approach to higher education teaching

Millions of students around the world could benefit if their educators adopted a more flexible and practical approach, say Swansea University experts

SWANSEA UNIVERSITY

Research News

 

IMAGE: A UNIVERSITY LECTURE BUT COULD THE STANDARD OF TEACHING BE IMPROVED IF A DIFFERENT APPROACH WAS TAKEN BY EDUCATORS? view more 

CREDIT: SWANSEA UNIVERSITY

Millions of students around the world could benefit if their educators adopted a more flexible and practical approach, say Swansea University experts.

After analysing the techniques current being used in higher education, the researchers are calling for a pragmatic and evidence-based approach instead.

Professor Phil Newton, director of learning and teaching at of Swansea University Medical School, said: "Higher education is how we train those who carry out important professional roles in our society. There are now more than 200 million students in HE worldwide and this number is likely to double again over the next decade.

"Given the size, impact, importance and cost of HE, it would be reasonable to assume that policies and practices employed are the best available, based upon rigorous evidence. However, this does not appear to be the case."

In a new paper, Professor Newton, Dr Ana Da Silva and Sam Berry argue that the findings of higher education research are not being used to develop and benefit educational practice.

They say belief in ineffective methods such as Learning Styles persist, teaching quality and teacher performance are measured using subjective and potentially biased feedback while university educators have limited access to professional development.

Instead, the academics are proposing a pragmatic model of evidence-based higher education which they say could deliver results that are more obviously useful, focusing on practical teaching skills.

Prof Newton added: "The model is intended for educators and policymakers, to help them make the best use of existing education research evidence when making contextual decisions about local practice.

"It can also be used by learners to make decisions about how, when, why and what to study, and for the teaching of study skills to learners."

The model and how it can be applied in education settings is detailed in their research which has been published in the journal Frontiers in Education.

However, they say any decisions made using the model would need to be reviewed regularly, as the evidence base updates and the context shifts.

The need for this flexibility - and the benefits of adopting a pragmatic approach - have been highlighted by the pandemic which has led the global HE sectors to embrace online learning.

Prof Newton said: "There is an abundant evidence-base regarding learning online and at a distance, but much of this was developed to optimize learning under planned circumstances where students could choose to learn online, or in a structured blended way, very different to the situation we find ourselves in now.

"A pragmatic application of the existing evidence to the new context can help us with this rapid change and help us plan for what might become a 'new normal'."

Among the paper's recommendations, the researchers are calling for:

• Faculty development programmes and credentials for HE educators to be practical and skills based;
• Establishing pragmatic practical evidence summaries for use across international HE, allowing adjustment for context;
• More syntheses of existing primary research that answer useful questions such as what works, for whom, in what circumstances, and why? How much does it cost, what is it compared to, how practical is it to implement?
• Increased funding for research into the effectiveness of learning and teaching approaches in HE.

Prof Newton added "There is an abundance of academic literature on higher education, stretching back decades. We owe it to all involved in education to ensure that this can best inform innovation and improvement, in a way that allows for professional judgement and a consideration of context.

"This could be achieved by adopting principles of pragmatic, evidence-based higher education."

CAPTION

A decision-making model for the application of research evidence to improving educational practice. The most useful research evidence is combined with practitioner judgement about how and why to apply it in a specific context, with specific questions for each aspect. At the intersection of these three factors is Pragmatic Evidence-Based Education (EBE).

CREDIT

Prof Phil Newton

Food export restrictions by a few countries could skyrocket global food crop prices

Global shocks such as COVID-19 call for improved political decisions and accountability to secure food for everyone

AALTO UNIVERSITY

Research News

 

Recent events such as the Covid-19 pandemic, locust infestations, drought and labour shortages have disrupted food supply chains, endangering food security in the process. A recent study published in Nature Food shows that trade restrictions and stockpiling of supplies by a few key countries could create global food price spikes and severe local food shortages during times of threat.

'We quantified the potential effects of these co-occurring global and local shocks globally with their impacts on food security,' explains Aalto University Associate Professor Matti Kummu. The results of this research have critical implications on how we should prepare for future events like Covid-19, he says.

The researchers modelled future scenarios to investigate the impact of export restrictions and local production shocks of rice, wheat, and maize would have on their supply and price. These three crops form the backbone of global trade in staple crops and are essential for food security across the globe.

The results show that restriction by only three key exporters of each crop would increase the price of wheat by 70%, while maize and rice would rise by 40% and 60%. When combining this with potential local shocks that occurred last year, the prices would nearly double.

Kummu explains: 'This is the result of an increasingly interconnected world, in which the majority of countries are dependent on imported food and, so, vulnerable to this kind of shock.'

'We saw that trade restrictions by only a few key actors can create large short-term price spikes in the world market export price of grains, which can lead to food insecurity in import-dependent countries,' explains Postdoctoral Researcher Theresa Falkendal, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.

By suddenly losing more than one-third of their annual grain supply, many low-income and lower-middle-income countries in Africa and Asia would not be able to cover this grain supply deficit with their domestic reserves, and would need alternative grain sources to survive.

'It's important to realise that food security depends on both local and remote conditions, and imprudent policy decisions in the rich part of the world can plunge people into real hardship in poorer parts of the world,' states Falkendal.

But shock scenarios such as those modelled by the researchers and the risks they bring may become commonplace thanks in part to global warming.

The Covid-19 pandemic's effect on global agricultural supply chains, as well as locusts destroying crops and livelihoods in the Horn of Africa and South Asia, have had a devastating effect on food security.

'To help prevent such devastation in the future, we need proactive strategies, like reducing food waste, changing the diet towards more plant-based protein sources, and increasing the yields sustainably particularly in the most vulnerable countries,' says Kummu.

'While sustainable design of agricultural systems is important, it must go hand-in-hand with efforts to improve political decisions and accountability,' says Michael J. Puma, research scientist and fellow at Center for Climate Systems Research, Earth Institute, Columbia University.

These solutions would ease a lot of pressure on resources that are needed for food production and help improve the self-sufficiency of low-income and middle-income countries.

Thus, timely and coordinated international responses are needed to minimise threats to food security especially to low-income and middle-income countries which lack the resources and purchasing power of larger nations, to ensure affordable staple grains for the world's poorest citizens, and to avert a humanitarian crisis.

'It's essential that humanitarian institutions strengthen their efforts to support democratic accountability around the world, which will ultimately help us to avoid severe food insecurity and famine,' concludes Puma.

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