Palestinian Authority Muzzles Call for Reform, Elections

Shuts Down Activist Meeting in West Bank

Omar Shakir
Israel and Palestine Director, Middle East and North Africa Division

Demonstrators carry pictures of activist Nizar Banat during a protest in the West Bank city of Ramallah on the same day he was beaten to death in Palestinian Authority custody, Thursday, June 24, 2021. © 2021 AP Photo/Nasser Nasser

Israeli and Palestinian authorities restrict the rights of Palestinians to free assembly, expression, and association. But only one governing body tried to shut down a recent conference aimed at reforming and reinvigorating the Palestinian national movement, including calling for elections: the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank.

On November 5, Palestinian activists held a conference called “14 Million: Palestinian Popular Conference,” which Palestinians from across Palestine, Israel, and the diaspora joined in different cities and connected via Zoom.

One of the activists involved in organizing the Popular Conference, who requested anonymity, told Human Rights Watch that organizers brought together Palestinians across geographic lines around one core demand: democratization of the Palestinian political system.

But the PA, which manages affairs in parts of the West Bank, refused to allow the meeting to be held in the West Bank.

Activists there had planned a gathering in Ramallah to participate in the Popular Conference at the offices of the political movement, the Popular Alliance for Change. But the Palestinian Authority raided Popular Alliance’s office, detained and questioned two activists at a police station for several hours, and confiscated the phone of a third activist, according to the Palestinian rights group Lawyers for Justice.

On November 8, Popular Alliance sought to hold a press conference decrying Palestinian Authority repression, but PA security forces shut it down, an intervention that journalists captured on video. Two days later, PA forces blocked Popular Alliance activists from entering their own office, saying, according to the activists, that they had orders to shut it.

These restrictions reflect the Palestinian Authority’s systematic efforts to muzzle dissent, including by arbitrarily arresting critics and opponents, as Human Rights Watch has documented. The United Nations Committee Against Torture in July 2022 raised concern about arbitrary arrests, intimidation, and harassment by Palestinians officials of “journalists, bloggers, political opponents and government critics,” among other abuses.

Impunity remains the norm for these abuses. In the summer of 2021, PA forces beat to death prominent activist and critic Nizar Banat while he was in custody, and then violently dispersed people demanding justice for his death – including rounding up scores of peaceful protesters. No one has been held to account.

The Palestinian Authority last held presidential elections in 2005 and legislative elections in 2006. Leaders who have been in power for more than 16 years without elections should at the very least listen to criticism, not muzzle it.

Call for smoking cessation for World AIDS Day

By Dr. Tim Sandle
Published December 1, 2022

An awareness event organised on the eve of the 'World AIDS Day' at Khalpara area in Siliguri on November 30, 2021 - Copyright AFP Jung Yeon-je

For World AIDS Day (December 1st each year), the Forum of International Respiratory Societies (FIRS) has called on the health care community to increase lung cancer screening for people with HIV who are current or former heavy smokers and may be at high risk for developing the disease.

The message is that as HIV- infected individuals have high smoking rates, smoking cessation should also be encouraged.

Smoking, Lung Cancer and HIV Rates

According to American Thoracic Society President Gregory Downey, in a quote provided to Digital Journal: “As antiretrovirals have prolonged the lives of people with HIV and made it more like a chronic disease, lung cancer has emerged as a leading cause of death in smokers infected with HIV.”

Downey adds: “Lung cancer is a major and preventable cause of death. Screening done by chest CT scans, as well as stepped up smoking cessation efforts, may slow this trend.”

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among those with HIV/AIDS worldwide, and HIV-positive patients who smoke die at a significantly younger age than those who do not. Studies show that lung cancer occurs more often among people living with HIV than among the general population.

Some geographic regions are harder hit by both HIV and lung cancer. Sub-Saharan Africa is home to approximately half of the world’s HIV-positive population—20 million in all. These individuals have three times the incidence of lung cancer of people without HIV.

In addition, several sub-Saharan regions have seen increases in the incidence of lung cancer in recent years. However, the need stands in great contrast to the limited resources and access to care in these regions. It is, therefore, critical that governments and health systems prioritize greater access and ongoing awareness campaigns in order to see improvements in lung cancer care.

The 38 million globally living with HIV – © AFP

People living with HIV have a higher risk of lung cancer than the general population. However, many people with this malignancy do not have symptoms at early stages. Lung cancer is the leading cause of death from cancer, worldwide, accounting for 1.8 million deaths in 2020.

Screening for Lung Cancer

Lung cancer screening, which may be done for smokers or former smokers who are at especially high risk, uses low-dose CT scans of the chest. Research has shown that these scans can save lives, detecting abnormalities that may be cancer, before symptoms start. Some research suggests that young (under age 55) people with HIV who are current or former heavy smokers may benefit from screening at an earlier age.

While studies have shown that screening with low-dose CT for current or former heavy smokers who are over 55 has saved lives, screening may not be for everyone in this age group. It’s best to speak with one’s primary care provider or pulmonologist to determine if lung cancer screening is appropriate.

The Importance of Smoking Cessation In general, HIV infected individuals lose more years of their lives from smoking than they do from HIV. A large Danish study found that HIV infected participants lost a median of 12 years of life from smoking, while the median years lost to HIV in non-smokers was 5.1. This study illustrates the potential impact of smoking cessation.

Disasters cost $268 billion in 2022: Swiss Re


By AFP
Published December 1, 2022

Ian, a category four hurricane, caused more than 150 deaths, almost all in Florida, where it made landfall on September 28 - Copyright AFP/File Frederic J. BROWN

Robin MILLARD

Natural and man-made catastrophes have caused $268 billion of economic losses so far in 2022, chiefly driven by Hurricane Ian and other extreme weather disasters, reinsurance giant Swiss Re estimated Thursday.

Insured losses covered $122 billion — less than half — of the total economic losses to date this year, said the Zurich-based group, which acts as an insurer for insurers.

“Hurricane Ian and other extreme weather events such as the winter storms in Europe, flooding in Australia and South Africa as well as hailstorms in France and in the United States resulted in an estimated $115 billion of natural catastrophe insured losses this year to date,” Swiss Re said in a statement.

There were $7 billion of insured losses from man-made disasters.

It is the second consecutive year in which total insured losses from natural catastrophes topped $100 billion, with the figure hitting $121 billion last year.

“Urban development, wealth accumulation in disaster-prone areas, inflation and climate change are key factors at play, turning extreme weather into ever rising natural catastrophe losses,” explained Martin Bertogg, Swiss Re’s head of catastrophe perils.

“When Hurricane Andrew struck 30 years ago, a $20 billion loss event had never occurred before; now there have been seven such hurricanes in just the past six years.”

Hurricane Ian is by far the largest loss-causing event in 2022, with an estimated insured loss of $50-65 billion, said Swiss Re.

It estimated that Hurricane Ian caused the second-costliest insured loss ever, after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

– Neighbourhoods flattened –

Ian, a category four hurricane, caused more than 150 deaths, almost all in Florida, where it made landfall on September 28.

One of the most powerful storms ever to hit the United States, it flattened whole neighbourhoods and knocked out power for millions of people. Storm surges and immense downpours left even inland neighbourhoods submerged.

“This highlights the threat potential of a single hurricane hitting a densely populated coastline,” Swiss Re said.

The reinsurer added that so-called secondary natural disasters such as floods and hailstorms — as opposed to major disasters such as earthquakes and hurricanes — caused more than $50 billion of insured losses.

The storms in Europe in February prompted estimated insured losses of over $3.7 billion, putting winter storms back on the insurance industry’s agenda, Swiss Re said.

France experienced the most severe hailstorms ever observed in the European spring and summer, with insured market losses reaching an estimated five billion euros ($5.3 billion), said Swiss Re.

And in Australia in February and March, torrential summer rains led to widespread flooding that, at an estimated $4 billion, became the country’s costliest-ever natural catastrophe.

– ‘Vast’ protection gap –

Swiss Re highlighted how the insurance and reinsurance industry covered roughly only 45 percent of the economic losses so far this year.

“The protection gap remains vast,” said Thierry Leger, the group’s chief underwriting officer.

Of the estimated $268 billion total economic losses for property damage so far this year, $260 billion are from natural catastrophes and $8 billion from man-made disasters, such as industrial accidents.

The $268 billion figure is down 12 percent from $303 billion last year, but above the $219 billion average over the previous 10 years.

At $115 billion, total insured losses from natural catastrophes were down five percent from the $121 billion in 2021, but well above the previous 10-year average of $81 billion.

Mauna Loa and beyond: Reading volcanic activity by recorded seismic waves

By Dr. Tim Sandle
Published November 30, 2022

Mauna Loa erupts for the first time since 1984 on Hawaii Island,

on November 28, 2022 - 

Copyright BELTA/AFP/File Ramil NASIBULIN

A Northwestern University seismologist – Suzan van der Lee – has been ‘looking inside the Earth’, focusing on the Mauna Loa eruption and what science can learn in terms of predicting future volcanic activity. Mauna Loa is one of five volcanoes that form the Island of Hawaii in the U.S. state of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean.

Currently, Mauna Loa (the world’s largest active volcano) is erupting for the first time since 1984, as the BBC has reported. The report indicates that lava is flowing down the side of the volcano at a temperature of 1,000 degrees Celsius. This brings with it the additional risks of ashfall, and destructive earthquakes.

While ash is an issue, it is the quantity of lava that is of greatest interest to the researchers. Van der Lee says: “Each volcano is unique. The Hawaiian volcanoes are not known for the amount of ash that they erupt. It’s mostly the lava, which is gently flowing. It’s not a very violently erupting volcano. Even though there was originally a warning for ash — which can affect lungs, crops and water supply — It seems most of the danger for people living on the rim of the Hawaii island at the lower elevations was the potential for lava flow.”

One reason why researchers know about the distinctive features of Mauna Loa is based on advances with tracking systems. Technology has enabled improved predictions and communication about Mauna Loa’s eruption.

Van der Lee explains in a statement sent to Digital Journal: “Since a journey inside the Earth is not physically possible, we use data and technology, for example, recorded seismic waves to see what’s happening inside the Earth. It’s as amazing that we can look inside the Earth as it is we can look inside a human body with an MRI.” Through the technology it is possible to create tomographic images (images using seismic waves to virtually section the Earth’s interior).

A key means of monitoring is by using seismometers, installed round the island to pick up increasing activity. This reveals considerable details since as magma accelerates its way to the surface, it needs to break solid rock. That creates seismic waves that are recorded and tremors.

According to Van der Lee: “That’s a very important observational tool. Other ways are geodetic instruments, like tilt meters of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), that constantly measure the shape of volcanoes. If that shape is expanding left, right or up, that could be an indication that something is going on underneath and trying to make room for magma coming to the surface. Other instruments measure gases that routinely escape through fissures and cracks and vents and so on.”

These approaches have been used elsewhere in the world. For example, assessing a volcanic island in Tonga which has erupted in a very unusual and uncharacteristic way. Van der Lee’s research on observed seismic waves helps researchers to better understand volcanoes and draw insights about the structure of the Earth’s interior.

Dr. Tim Sandle is Digital Journal's Editor-at-Large for science news. Tim specializes in science, technology, environmental, and health journalism. He is additionally a practising microbiologist; and an author. He is also interested in history, politics and current affairs.

Brazilian Amazon deforestation falls, but up 60% under Bolsonaro


By AFP
Published November 30, 2022

Humans have spent the past half-century tearing down and burning whole swathes of the Amazon — © POOL/AFP Matt McClain

Joshua Howat Berger

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon destroyed an area bigger than Qatar in the 12 months through July, according to official figures released Wednesday, which showed a decline from the year before — but a sharp increase overall under outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro.

In the latest grim news on the world’s biggest rainforest, satellite monitoring showed 11,568 square kilometers (4,466 square miles) of forest cover was destroyed in the Brazilian Amazon from August 2021 to July 2022, according to national space agency INPE’s annual deforestation tracking program, PRODES.

The figure was a decrease of 11.3 percent from the year before, when INPE detected 13,038 square kilometers of deforestation — a 15-year high.

But it closed out four years of what environmentalists call disastrous management of the Amazon under the far-right Bolsonaro, whose successor, veteran leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, has vowed to work toward zero deforestation when he takes office on January 1.

Under agribusiness ally Bolsonaro, average annual deforestation rose by 59.5 percent from the previous four years, and by 75.5 percent from the previous decade, according to INPE figures.

“The Bolsonaro government was a forest-destroying machine… The only good news is that it’s about to end,” said Marcio Astrini, executive secretary of the Climate Observatory, a coalition of environmental groups.

“Jair Bolsonaro will hand his successor a filthy legacy of surging deforestation and an Amazon in flames,” he said in a statement, urging Lula — who previously led Brazil from 2003 to 2010 — to show “zero tolerance” for environmental crimes.

Bolsonaro’s office and the environment ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Experts say the vast majority of the clear-cutting and fires erasing the Amazon are to create new farmland — especially for cattle ranches in Brazil, the world’s top beef exporter.

The deforestation figures show the Amazon is being pushed toward a “tipping point,” warned Mariana Napolitano, science director at the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Brazil office.

“Significantly reducing deforestation… is imperative for humankind in the face of the twin climate and nature crises the world is facing,” she said in a statement.

– All eyes on Lula –

Environmentalists said the figures had been ready since November 3, and accused the government of stalling their release to avoid embarrassment at the United Nations’ COP27 climate conference in Egypt.

Bolsonaro, who has faced international outcry over the Amazon, did not attend the conference.

Lula did, fresh off defeating Bolsonaro in a runoff election.

The 77-year-old president-elect received a rock star’s welcome from climate campaigners hoping Brazil will now do a far better job protecting its 60-percent share of the Amazon, whose billions of carbon-absorbing trees are a key buffer against global warming.

“Brazil is back,” Lula told the conference, vowing to fight to end illegal deforestation and revive the internationally backed, $1.3-billion Amazon Fund to protect the rainforest — suspended under Bolsonaro.

Annual deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon fell by 75 percent during Lula’s first presidency, an accomplishment many experts attribute to respected former environment minister Marina Silva — now tipped to return to the job.

But Lula also faced criticism during his previous two terms from environmentalists — including Silva — over some policies, such as the controversial decision to push ahead with the massive Belo Monte hydroelectric dam in the Amazon.

The latest figures came the same day as a new study that found 90 percent of all land deforested in Brazil has been converted to pasture.

The Amazon is the region with the most pasture land, found the study from satellite tracking institute MapBiomas.

It found the amount of pasture in the Amazon grew 40 percent in the past two decades, as Brazil emerged as the world’s top beef powerhouse.

Archeologists find ancient Peruvian fresco, lost for a century


By AFP
Published November 30, 2022

The pre-Hispanic fresco "Huaca pintada", in northern Peru, had not been seen in a century. 

- Copyright Airbus DS 2022/AFP/File Handout

Luis Jaime CISNEROS

Archeologists have rediscovered a pre-Hispanic fresco depicting mythological scenes in northern Peru that they had only seen in black and white photographs that were more than a century old.

“It’s an exceptional discovery, first of all, because it is rare to unearth wall paintings of such quality in pre-Columbian archeology,” said Sam Ghavami, the Swiss archeologist who led excavations that uncovered the mural in October.

Ghavami spent four years looking for the rock painting, which he believes could be around 1,000 years old, with a team of Peruvian students.

“The composition of this painting is unique in the history of mural art in pre-Hispanic Peru,” added the archaeologist, who trained at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland.

The fresco forms part of the Huaca Pintada temple, which belonged to the Moche civilization that flourished between the 1st and 8th centuries, and venerated the Moon, the rain, iguanas, and spiders.

The uncovered mural is about 30 meters (98 feet) long, and its images in blue, brown, red, white, and mustard yellow paint remain exceptionally well preserved.

In one section, a procession of warriors can be seen heading toward a birdlike deity.

The painted images “appear to be inspired by the idea of a sacred hierarchy built around a cult of ancestors and their intimate links with the forces of nature,” said Ghavami.

He told AFP that deciphering the mural’s message would form part of his research, but he believes it “could be interpreted as a metaphorical image of the political and religious order of the region’s ancient inhabitants.”

The discovery is also unusual in that it shows a mixture of styles and elements of two pre-Incan cultures: the Moche and the Lambayeque, who lived on Peru’s north coast between 900 and 1350 AD.

– Forgotten by scientists –

The mural’s existence was only known via black and white photos taken in 1916 by the German ethnologist Hans Heinrich Bruning, who lived in Peru for many years.

However, treasure hunters destroyed a wall as they tried to loot the site, and “it was forgotten by the scientific community,” said Ghavami.

On top of that, no one even knew about the photos Bruning had taken until they were found in 1978.

“Since then, archeologists have known about Huaca Pintada, but no one came to excavate the site because they thought they would find nothing there.”

As the years went on, thick foliage took over. The fresco piqued Ghavami’s interest as he worked on his doctoral thesis on cultural transitions such as that between the Moche and Lambayeque civilizations.

However, first he had a long battle to obtain permission from the family that owns the land where the mural was found.

“It took me two years for them to let me dig and I had to try different ways to resolve the situation with the support of a shaman who works with the spirit of the shrine,” said Ghavami.

Read more: https://www.digitaljournal.com/tech-science/archeologists-find-ancient-peruvian-fresco-lost-for-a-century-2/article#ixzz7mFa5rSIi

Ex-governor tries; ‘outsider’ upset with Nigeria, presidential bid


By AFP
Published November 28, 2022


Labour Party's Presidential candidate Peter Obi (C) is appealing to many young Nigerians with his outsider message - Copyright AFP Hector RETAMAL

Quadri Taiwo

Horns blaring from the crowd, Nigerian candidate Peter Obi makes his pitch, repeating a mantra that he offers youth a chance for change in February’s election.

For 35-year-old footwear seller Joseph Nwankwo it was what wants to hear.

“I never voted for any party. They believed our vote never counted. This time round we believe our vote will,” said Nwankwo at the rally in southwest Ibadan city. “We are the youth. If we don’t do it, who will do it for us?”

Backed by the Labour Party, Obi is emerging as a rare third challenger to the two mainstream parties who have governed Africa’s most populous country since the end of military rule in 1999.

Next February’s election is set to be a tight race to replace President Muhammadu Buhari, who steps down with Nigeria facing huge security challenges and an economy hobbled by fallout from the pandemic and Ukraine’s war.

A former southeast Anambra state governor and one-time PDP vice presidential candidate, Obi has gained momentum with a vibrant social media following and what supporters see as a fresher voice over the other old guard rivals.

Ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and main opposition Peoples Democratic Party chieftains dismiss Obi as a Twitter phenomenon devoid of a national party network to challenge their deep pockets.

Obi, 61, may face many obstacles in his run to Aso Rock presidential villa, but his message is resonating especially among younger, urban Nigerians who call themselves “Obi-dients”.

Whether he can win remains unclear — some local polls have him ahead. But analysts say Obi’s challenge is already complicating the political outlook for the PDP and APC.

APC is fielding Bola Tinubu, an 70-year-old former Lagos state governor known as the “Godfather of Lagos” for his political clout.

Against him, the PDP has Atiku Abubakar, 76, a wealthy businessman on his sixth bid for the presidency. He was vice president in 1999.

“All of the political and economic and social conditions have made him a palatable alternative,” SBM Intelligence analyst Ikesemit Effiong said of Obi.

“It is beginning to dent the image of the traditional political parties.”

– Political geography –

Wearing glasses and often dressed in a simple black traditional suit, Obi has run a grass-roots campaign where he touts his experience as governor and his outsider status.

A wealthy trader, Obi says he is about turning Nigeria around — increasing production rather than consumption, governing responsibly and taking on insecurity.

“The government we intend to form, will be the beginning of a new Nigeria,” he told a crowd of thousands in Ibadan. “We will secure a united Nigeria.”

But with little structure nationwide and no governors, rivals say the Labour party and Obi will struggle. In 2019, the Labour Party candidate won 0.02 percent of the vote. The party elected one lawmaker.

“People say the Obidients, of course they will,” said Edo State governor Godwin Obaseki, who is campaigning for PDP. “But they will run out of steam.”

Nigerian elections are often about geography calculations. To win the presidency, a candidate must get a majority of the votes and also 25 percent of the votes in two thirds of its 36 states.

Almost equally split between predominantly Muslim north and the mostly Christian south, Nigeria is a patchwork of ethnic groups, including the largest Yoruba, Hausa and Igbo.

In an unwritten agreement to promote informal power sharing, the presidency has rotated alternatively between candidates from the north and south.

But 2023 is complex. After two terms under Buhari, a northern Muslim, many expected a southerner. But PDP went with Abubakar, a northerner. APC chose southerner Tinubu, but an all Muslim president and vice president team.

– New dimension –

Obi, an Igbo from the southeast, will likely do well in traditional PDP strongholds in that region, but may also dent APC’s vote in Tinubu’s Lagos stronghold, analysts said.

With the PDP already damaged by a deep split with Rivers State governor over its candidate, APC may benefit more from incumbency and Obi taking away PDP’s votes, risk analysts Eurasia Group said.

But opponents question Obi’s support in the north, where large voting blocks have delivered the presidency in the last two elections.

“Have you seen social media promoting Peter Obi in the north?” Zamfara State governor Bello Matawalle and APC leader told TVS news. “During the election they will understand they have the wrong calculation.”

Voter turnout is often low in Nigeria, and some observers ask whether Obi’s presence could disrupt APC and PDP support enough to force a second-round runoff for the first time ever.

“Clearly he is going to be a major factor in determining the outcome of the election,” said Chidi Anselm Odinkalu, a professor at Tufts University’s Fletcher School.

Lagos taxi driver Abrahim Babatunde Lawal agrees. He voted twice for Buhari and APC since 2015. Next year he is giving Obi a chance.

“He’s a new dimension, someone who is different from the old politicians,” Lawal said. “I won’

China touting 'ambitious, pragmatic' biodiversity pact from COP15 conference set for Montreal

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will attend COP15 — starting on Dec. 5 — despite China's plan not to invite heads of state

Reuters
Publishing date:Nov 28, 2022 • 

Polars bears hunt for beluga whales on the shores of Hudson Bay. The COP15 conference on protecting biodiversity begins in Montreal on Dec. 5. 

PHOTO BY OLIVIER MORIN /AFP via Getty Images


SHANGHAI — China will lead talks to secure an “ambitious and pragmatic” new global pact to preserve biodiversity at a U.N. meeting that begins next week in Montreal, but implementing the deal remains the biggest challenge, Chinese officials said on Monday.

Representatives of nearly 200 countries will gather starting on Dec. 5 and running to Dec. 17 to secure a “post-2020 framework” to protect habitats and ecosystems and ensure the sustainable and equitable use of biological resources.

Zhou Guomei, head of the international department of the environment ministry, told reporters that negotiations so far had not been “plain sailing” but focused on an ambitious deal that was “also pragmatic, balanced, feasible and achievable.”

Originally set to be held in China’s southwestern city of Kunming, the meeting, known as COP15, was relocated this year because of tough zero-COVID curbs. China will continue to serve as president.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will attend COP15, despite China’s plan not to invite heads of state — a decision criticized by green groups. Chinese President Xi Jinping is not expected to go.

COP15 is the 15th conference of parties to the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The pact was signed at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 and later ratified by about 195 countries, excluding the United States. Resulting negotiations and conventions are designed to safeguard plant and animal species, and ensure natural resources are used in sustainable ways.

Because the United States never ratified the original CBD treaty, it does not play a formal role in negotiations, although it will send a delegation to COP15 and recently appointed Monica Medina as special envoy for biodiversity and water resources.

In addition, President Joe Biden has pledged to protect at least 30 per cent of U.S. land and coastal waters by 2030, as part of the broader international campaign for 30×30. The campaign forms a central piece of the nature pact to conserve at least 30 per cent of the planet’s land and oceans by 2030, hence 30×30.

In last year’s first phase of talks, more than 100 nations signed the Kunming Declaration for urgent action to include biodiversity protection in all sectors of the global economy. But they were unable to reach consensus on issues such as funding conservation in poorer countries. Canada is among the signatories.

Zhou said there were still differences on a number of issues, and success would depend on an implementation mechanism for resources and financial support to be mobilized.

A previous biodiversity pact signed in Aichi, Japan, in 2010, set 20 targets to try to slow biodiversity loss by 2020. None of those targets was met in full.

Countries need to “fully consider” the attainability of any new targets, said Cui Shuhong, head of the ministry’s natural ecology department.

“We should learn fully from the experience and lessons during the implementation of the Aichi targets, not only to boost the ambition and confidence in global biodiversity conservation, but also to be down-to-earth and realistic,” he added.

More than 2,000 wild species face a high risk of being wiped out in Canada, report warns

Story by Peter Zimonjic • Yesterday CBC

A newly released report on the status of wild species in Canada has cataloged more species than any previous report — over 50,000 — and warns that more than 2,000 of them face a high risk of being wiped out in the wild.

The Wild Species 2020 report, compiled by researchers working for the federal, provincial and territorial governments, says it has delivered "the most complete understanding we have ever had on the status and distribution of wild species in Canada."

"A crucial step in preventing species loss is to identify which species exist, where they are found, and their status. That's why this national assessment, conducted every five years, is so essential," said Terry Duguid, parliamentary secretary to Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault, in a media statement.

"You can't do that without a solid baseline of knowledge. Knowledge is power."

The report — the fifth in a series published every five years since 2000 — includes data on the status of 50,534 of Canada's 80,000 known species, up from the 29,848 species covered in the 2015 report. The first report in 2000 covered just 1,670 species.

The authors of the report say they were able to record information on 63 per cent of Canada's wild species through the collaboration of hundreds of scientists working across the country for five years.

Of the species contained in the report, 47,314 are indigenous to Canada, while 3,220 are "exotic" species introduced through human activity.

"Among the 3,220 exotic species identified, the taxonomic groups with the highest number of exotic species were the vascular plants, beetles, true bugs, and moths and butterflies," the report says.

The report's authors said that more work can be done to determine the impact these exotic species are having on ecosystems across the country.

At-risk species

The report covers about 63 per cent of wild species in Canada — about 75 per cent of plants, 77 per cent of fungi and 29 per cent of microscopic wild species.

The three provinces with the most wild species are Ontario at 25,776, British Columbia at 24,540 and Quebec at 21,933.

Related video: Thousands of wild species are at risk of extinction: report
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20 per cent of species in Canada at risk of extinction: report


The report identified 2,253 species facing the highest risk of elimination in Canada. They include beetles, moths, butterflies and species such as macrofungi and lichens.

The report says that of those 2,253 species, 105 are only found in Canada — meaning that their survival as a species is in peril.

"The number of species that may be at risk identified in the Wild Species reports has continuously increased largely due to the increased number of species included," the report said.

The report says that about one in five wild species in Canada face some risk of extirpation — of elimination in the wild in this country.

The report said 873 species are critically imperiled — are at high risk of being eliminated in the wild — another 1,245 fall under the slightly less severe category of imperiled, while 2,765 species are considered vulnerable, at moderate risk of being wiped out in the wild.


The North Pacific right whale, like this one pictured in the Bering Sea in 2017, is one of 24 mammals facing the highest risk of extinction in Canadian waters.© The Associated Press

The authors of the report said 9,562 species can be considered apparently secure, or at a fairly low risk of extirpation, while 10,038 species are considered secure or at a very low risk of extirpation.

The report said that of the species that were ranked to determine their status, 80 per cent were considered secure and 20 per cent faced some risk of being eliminated in the wild.

The report said that another 26,000 species were unrankable due to insufficient data.

On the verge of being wiped out

The report said that of the 223 wild mammal species known to exist in Canada, 24 are considered to be at risk of being wiped out in the wild. Those include the Vancouver Island marmot and the Ogilvie Mountain collared lemming, both of which are endemic to Canada.

Other mammals at risk include the common grey fox, the northern elephant seal, the North Pacific and North Atlantic right whales, the Sei whale and the blue whale.

Of the 696 known species of birds in Canada, 50 are at risk of being wiped out in the wild. They include the whooping crane, the spotted owl, the snowy egret and the sage thrasher.

Of 5,324 species of vascular plants, about 598 are at risk of being wiped out, including the false daisy, the compass plant, the juniper sedge and the California sword fern.

Canada is hosting the UN conference on biodiversity — called COP15 — next week in Montreal. NDP environment critic Laurel Collins said Guilbeault should use the conference as an opportunity to address the "biodiversity crisis."

"New Democrats are urging for a real climate plan that prioritizes ending biodiversity loss and stops all fossil fuel subsidies – while protecting workers and Indigenous communities," Collins said in a media statement.

Montreal Biodiversity COP15 

December 2022

BY ROBERT HUNZIKE

NOVEMBER 28, 2022

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Image by Markus Spiske.

What is it about a bunch of high-ranking people getting together at a Conference of the Parties (COP) at some major metropolitan center with plenty of 4-star and 5-star hotels in order to figure out how to save the planet, but it never works!

For example, the tenth (10^th) meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity was held in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan from October 18-29, 2010. More than 13,000 delegates from around the world. The Aichi targets were designed to help, or in the best of cases, save or revive biodiversity.

Zoom forward twelve years to November 11^th 2022: A news release by Climate Change News announces the upcoming COP15 biodiversity conference scheduled for Montreal December 7-19, 2022: “In the past decade, countries agreed to a ten-year plan called the Aichi targets, aimed at halting biodiversity loss. A UN summary report shows countries failed to meet a single one of those targets.” (Source: UN Nature Pact Nears Its ‘Copenhagen or Paris’ Moment, Climate Change News Nov. 11, 2022)

Thirteen thousand (13,000) delegates specially selected by countries of the world to save biodiversity agreed to save nature. Utter failure ensued.

There’s something happening in the world that’s very strange maybe a curse or something “in the air” that hexes these get-togethers. The truth is: Get-togethers by thousands of well-intentioned people to save the planet time and again fail, not just a little bit, but total utter failure. For example, for more than 30 years climate conferences, COPs, e.g., Paris ’15, have miserably failed. Greenhouse gas emissions set new records by the year, which is going backwards, downhill into a deep climate change abyss. Eventually, the abyss will be so deep, if not already, that it’s impossible to climb back out.

More to the point, at some point in time, likely once biodiversity loss turns horrendous, much worse, maybe when humans start killing 200,000,000 million sharks for fin soup per year rather than the current 100,000,000 or as for climate change/global warming, when the Doomsday Glacier, Thwaites, the world’s widest glacier in West Antarctica crashes, leads to Miami Beach flooding, maybe that’s when the various Conference of the Parties, COPs, will turn dead serious and take drastic measures, which, by then, will be too late but maybe, hopefully, only hopefully, take some the edge off these ongoing disasters, even though the marine ecosystem crashes because of loss of its top predator, and desperately the Army Corp of Engineers scrambles to try to save Miami.

Montreal COP15 December 2022

Climate Change News’ intro to COP15 clearly states: “After a two-year delay and a change of location, the UN biodiversity summit aims to halt nature loss by 2030 and restore ecosystems. It could either be a success like the signing of the Paris Agreement or a dramatic failure like the 2009 climate summit in Copenhagen,” Ibid.

Hmm, well the “signing of Paris” was a success; it’s the follow through, emission reduction targets, that miserably failed.

At COP15 more than 100 nations are expected to meet to agree to “protect 30% of all land and ocean ecosystems by 2030.” So far, the “big-forested countries” China, Brazil, and Indonesia have not accepted invitations to attend.

According to Brian O’Donnell of the advocacy group Campaign for Nature, following two years of online negotiations: “What started as a very good framework has ended up almost all in square brackets… indicating a lack of consensus,” Ibid.

Of concern, even though the original meeting was to be held in China, which is still designated as “presidency of the talks,” China has not officially invited world leaders to the talks, which commence shortly. That very important task has fallen to Elizabeth Maruma Mreman, urging world leaders to attend rather than going to the World Cup. Tough choice to make!

Unfortunately, cynicism, anger, and fatigue are the byproducts of reporting on the various international Conference of the Parties (COPs) to save Planet A. Across the board, the failures of COPs add tons of credibility to the film Don’t Look Up (Netflix, December 2021) winner of the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Don’t Look Up is an apocalyptic political satire about two astronomers played by Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence that spot an incoming asteroid and try to warn a largely numbed body politic, as party leaders urge their dumbed-down adherents not to look up, a campaign motto. Meanwhile, one of the president’s top funders, who was appointed to head NASA, has no background in astronomy, and stupidly assures, not to worry. The film not only points to the dangers of ignoring science but also targets how badly America has been dumbed down into submissive easy prey for bellicose politicians that care less about social welfare.

The Montreal COP15 most assuredly will be held, speakers will drone on about the necessity of saving Planet A’s basic life-supporting ecosystems, agreements will be touted, hands joined, thumbs up, but when 2030 arrives, well, who knows how bad it’ll be?

Robert Hunziker lives in Los Angeles and can be reached at rlhunziker@gmail.com.

COP15: Will the biodiversity conference meet nature positive ambitions?

NOVEMBER 29, 2022

Next month Montreal in Canada will host the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15). Despite attracting less headlines than its climate change COP-counterparts, COP15 has particular significance as the parties seek to settle a post-2020 global biodiversity framework. This framework will guide the next decade of action on biodiversity.

The lead up to COP15 has been defined by a coordinated campaign for the parties to adopt strong biodiversity targets in the new framework. Recognising the power of ‘net zero’ as a climate change concept, the biodiversity movement is seeking to create a rallying call around ‘nature positive’, reflecting concepts outlined in the Global Goal for Nature:to halt and reverse net nature loss from a baseline of 2020;

by 2030 increase the health, abundance, diversity and resilience of species, populations and ecosystems; and

by 2050, nature has recovered so that ecosystems and nature-based solutions can continue to support future generations.

While many nations have indicated support for protection of biodiversity and nature positive actions, the level of support for specific commitment and action at COP15 is yet to be tested.

SnapshotCOP15 aims to create a strong international framework on biodiversity for the next decade.

There are several campaigns calling for commitment to becoming ‘nature positive’ and protecting 30% of the world’s land and oceans by 2030.

Discourse on nature positive and biodiversity considerations generally acknowledges the interaction of climate change with other environmental concerns, as well as the relevance of human rights to environmental matters.

How did we get here?

The Convention on Biological Diversity (the Convention) emerged from the 1992 Rio Earth Summit and came into force in December 1993. The Convention has three central objectives:the conservation of biological diversity;
the sustainable use of the components of biological diversity; and
the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of genetic resources.

At the 10th COP meeting in Nagoya, Japan, the parties adopted the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity for 2011-2020 (the 2011 Strategic Plan). The overarching aim of the 2011 Strategic Plan was that by ‘2050, biodiversity is valued, conserved, restored and wisely used, maintaining ecosystem services, sustaining a healthy planet and delivering benefits essential for all people’.

Core to the 2011 Strategic Plan were the Aichi Biodiversity Targets. These were 20 individual targets to be achieved by 2020 and covered five strategic goals:addressing the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by mainstreaming biodiversity across government and society;

reducing the direct pressures on biodiversity and promoting sustainable use;
improving the status of biodiversity by safeguarding ecosystems, species and genetic diversity;

enhancing the benefits to all from biodiversity and ecosystem services; and
enhancing implementation through participatory planning, knowledge management and capacity building.

COP15 was originally scheduled to take place in the Chinese city of Kunming in October 2020 and aimed to adopt a fresh strategic plan for the new decade. The Covid-19 pandemic delayed COP15 and in 2021 China hosted an online preliminary conference which adopted the non-binding Kunming Declaration. The first commitment of the declaration is to:

Ensure the development, adoption and implementation of an effective post-2020 global biodiversity framework, that includes provision of the necessary means of implementation, in line with the Convention, and appropriate mechanisms for monitoring, reporting and review, to reverse the current loss of biodiversity and ensure that biodiversity is put on a path to recovery by 2030 at the latest, towards the full realization of the 2050 Vision of “Living in Harmony with Nature”

There are also several state and NGO-led campaigns that are building support for a strong post-2020 biodiversity framework. These largely focus on goals relating to nature positive and specific commitments about conserving land and oceans. These include:The 2030 Nature Compact which was adopted at the June 2021 G7 meeting in Cornwall. This compact records the intention of the parties to ‘halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030’ and to ensure that the world ‘not only become[s] net zero, but also nature positive’.

The Leaders Pledge for Nature was first signed by political leaders at the September 2020 UN Summit on Biodiversity. The pledge calls for biodiversity loss to be halted and reversed with immediate effect. Currently 94 Heads of State and Government, including Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, have endorsed the pledge which explicitly notes the interdependency of the biodiversity and climate change crises.

The Non-State Actors Call to Action has been signed by over 340 organisations and seeks the inclusion of a ‘nature positive mission’ in the post-2020 framework that would ‘reverse biodiversity loss and improve the state of nature by 2030, against a 2020 baseline’.
The Campaign for Nature calls for world leaders to adopt a ‘30×30’ target at COP15. This would require the protection of 30% of the planet’s land and oceans by 2030.

What do we expect?

There is significant momentum towards a strong post-2020 biodiversity framework. The draft text of the framework (the Draft Framework) has been published and still includes many alternatives to be debated by the parties. It remains unclear whether the parties will be able to cement the strongest nature positive and conservation targets in the final text. Whatever the outcome at COP15 there are already clear trends emerging.

The Australian Government is taking action even before the post-2020 framework is agreed. Last month the Government published its 2022-2023 Threatened Species Action Plan which aims to prevent any new extinctions in Australia. It specifically commits to conserve more than 30% of Australia’s land mass and oceans by 2030.

We expect that whatever form the post-2020 Biodiversity Convention framework takes, it will increase pressure on business to act on biodiversity protection and better monitor and report on progress. The Draft Framework includes target 15 which, among the various alternatives, seeks to require business to assess, monitor, and disclose regular evaluations and accept responsibility for dependencies and impacts on biodiversity and human rights (including on the rights of mother earth). It also calls for business to reduce negative impacts on nature by half, increase positive impacts, and ensure legal responsibility, including redress for damage. We expect that these requirements, even if they are not incorporated into the international framework, will become best practice expectations for firms as the focus on nature increases.

Governance tools are increasingly seeking to assist companies to consistently and efficiently address climate and broader environmental risks and impacts. For example, the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures established in 2015 has now been joined by the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures. This new taskforce was set up in 2020 and recognises that US $44 trillion of economic value generation is moderately or highly dependent on nature. The TNFD reporting framework builds from the TCFD concepts and framework and is expected to be finalised in September 2023.

We will monitor the outcomes at COP15 and provide a further update in due course.

By Heidi Asten, Melanie Debenham, Kathryn Pacey, Peter Briggs, 

with Harrison Jones 

AUSTRALIAN LAW FIRM