Message of Monique Barbut, Executive Secretary, UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION TO COMBAT DESERTIFICATION on the occasion of World Day to Combat Desertification, 17 JUNE 2017
Burkina Faso: 20 000 trees are planted to create living hedges. Credit: UNCCD
BONN, Germany, Jun 14 2017 (IPS) - We all have dreams. For most of us, those dreams are often quite simple. They are common to individuals and communities all around the world. People just want a place to settle down and to plan for a future where their families don’t just survive but thrive. For far too many people in far too many places, such simple dreams are disappearing into thin air.
This is particularly the case in rural areas where populations are suffering from the effects of land degradation. Population growth means demand for food and for water is set to double by 2050 but crop yields are projected to fall precipitously on drought affected, degraded land.
Over the next few decades, worldwide, close to 135 million people are at risk of being permanently displaced by desertification and land degradation
More than 1.3 billion people, mostly in the rural areas of developing countries, are in this situation. No matter how hard they work, their land no longer provides them either sustenance or economic opportunity. They are missing out on the opportunity to benefit from increasing global demand and wider sustained economic growth. In fact, the economic losses they suffer and growing inequalities they perceive means many people feel they are being left behind.
They look for a route out. Migration is well trodden path. People have always migrated, on a temporary basis, to survive when times are tough. The ambitious often chose to move for a better job and a brighter future.
One in every five youth, aged 15-24 years, for example is willing to migrate to another country. Youth in poorer countries are even more willing to migrate for a chance to lift themselves out of poverty. It is becoming clear though that the element of hope and choice in migration is increasingly missing. Once, migration was temporary or ambitious. Now, it is often permanent and distressed.
Over the next few decades, worldwide, close to 135 million people are at risk of being permanently displaced by desertification and land degradation. If they don’t migrate, the young and unemployed are also at more risk of falling victim to extremist groups that exploit and recruit the disillusioned and vulnerable.
Monique Barbut. Photo courtesy of UNCCD.
So this year, the Convention is calling for a focus on making the land and life in rural communities viable for young people. As the global population edges towards at least 9 billion, in Africa alone 200 million of the 300 million young people entering the job market over the next 15 years will be living in rural areas.
Let’s give young, rural populations better choices and options. We need policies that enable young people to own and rehabilitate degraded land. There are nearly 500 million hectares of once fertile agricultural land that have been abandoned. Let us give young people the chance to bring that natural capital back to life and into production.
If we secure access to new technologies and to the knowledge they need, they can build resilience to extreme weather-elements like drought. With the right means at their disposal, they can feed a hungry planet and develop new green sectors of the economy. They can develop markets for rural products and revitalize communities.
With the right type of investments in land, rural infrastructure and skills development, the future can be bright. We have to send a clear message that if it is well managed, the land can provide not just enough to get by but a place where individuals and communities can build a future.
LONDON (AP) — The Latest on the London high-rise fire (all times local): 3:40 p.m. London police say 58 people who were in Grenfell Tower are still missing and assumed to be dead. Police Commander Stuart Cundy said Saturday that this number, which was based on reports from the public, may rise. He says it will take weeks or longer to recover and identify all the dead in the public housing block that was devastated by a fire early Wednesday.
(1 of 15) Urban Search and Rescue officers from London Fire Brigade inside the Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building on Wednesday morning, Saturday, June 17, 2017. Public fury over the London high-rise fire is mounting as exhausted London firefighters continue their grim search Saturday for victims of the inferno that killed at least 30 people. (David Mirzoeff/PA via AP)
He said there may have been people in the tower that police are not aware of, which would add to the death toll. He says the search for remains had been paused because of safety concerns but has resumed. Emergency workers have reached the top of the 24-story tower.
Cundy promised an exhausting investigation into the tragedy. He says "my heart goes out to those affected."
2:20 p.m.
London's fire department says that the reason for the subway closure near the high-rise fire disaster is because of a "short-term risk of some debris falling onto the tracks."
Earlier, a sign at a Tube station said that the service suspension was because of the "safety" of nearby Grenfell Tower, suggesting structural concerns. A new sign was put up, removing that detail.
A fire department spokesman said crews are working to secure the debris so that two subway lines could be reopened as soon as possible.
At least 30 people were killed in Wednesday's inferno, which left Grenfell Tower a charred hulk.
1:30 p.m.
Service on two London Underground lines has been partially suspended because of concerns about the safety of the high-rise in the fire that killed at least 30 people.
The 24-story Grenfell Tower in the north Kensington neighborhood in west London is near several major transport hubs. The building was gutted in a blaze early Wednesday morning that has also left dozens missing and hundreds of others homeless.
Major roads near the stricken building were open Saturday. Police have established a security cordon around the building to protect public safety and allow searchers easy access to the wrecked building.
1:20 p.m.
British Prime Minister Theresa May will meet with survivors of the London high-rise fire at her Downing Street office.
The announcement by a spokesman comes a day after May was heckled during a visit to the west London neighborhood where Wednesday's inferno took place. At least 30 people have been killed, hundreds of others have been left homeless and dozens of others are missing. There has been growing public anger at the government's initial response to the disaster's aftermath and reports that external paneling put up during a recent renovation contributed to the flames' rapid spread.
May is chairing a government task force on the fire and a spokesman says that she will meet afterward with "a group of residents, victims, volunteers and community leaders" at No. 10 Downing Street.
12:45 p.m.
A soccer player says that he will donate 50 pounds (more than $60) for each minute he plays at a European youth tournament to the victims of London's high-rise inferno.
Hector Bellerin, who is in Spain's team at UEFA's European Under-21 Championship, made the announcement on Twitter , saying "please support in any way." Spain faces Macedonia on Saturday night in the tournament, which is being played in Poland. If Bellerin plays a full 90 minutes, not including added time, he would donate 4,500 pounds (about $5,750) per match. Bellerin, a defender, also plays for London club Arsenal.
At least 30 people were killed in the fire at Grenfell Tower in the west London neighborhood of north Kensington. Hundreds of others have been left homeless and dozens are missing.
10:50 a.m.
Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip have observed a minute of silence to honor the victims of the London high-rise fire.
The queen and Philip stood silently before the start of the annual Trooping the Color procession that marks the queen's official birthday.
She said earlier that the national mood is somber but that Britain is resolute in the face of adversity.
The queen's official birthday is marked in June when the weather is often nicer than in April, the actual month of her birth. She is 91.
At least 30 people have died in Wednesday's fire and dozens are missing.
10:20 a.m.
British health authorities say they are still treating 19 patients, 10 of whom remain in critical condition after the London high-rise fire.
NHS England says the injured are being treated in four London hospitals. At least 30 people were killed in Wednesday's inferno at the Grenfell Tower, while dozens of others are missing.
The fire at the 24-story building has led to community anger and protests over the British government's response. The public is also demanding answers about how the blaze spread so quickly amid reports that the recently-renovated building's exterior paneling fueled the flames.
7:50 a.m.
More than 3 million pounds ($3.8 million) has been raised for victims of the London high-rise fire that has killed at least 30 people and left dozens homeless.
Londoners and others have also donated huge amounts of food, water and clothing, and shelter, to survivors.
Three appeals on the JustGiving site have helped to raise the 3 million pounds, and London's Evening Standard newspaper has launched a separate appeal that has raised at least 1.5 million pounds ($1.9 million) by Saturday morning. The British government has announced a 5 million-pound ($6.3 million) emergency fund for the victims.
The inferno Wednesday morning at the 24-story Grenfell Tower has led to community anger and protests over the government's response.
7:20 a.m.
London firefighters are continuing the grim search after a high-rise fire that killed at least 30 people as public anger about the blaze continues to grow.
Many are demanding answers for how the blaze spread so quickly. Britain's Press Association says around 70 people are missing.
Queen Elizabeth II marked her official birthday Saturday by saying Britain remains "resolute in the face of adversity" after the horrendous fire and recent extremist attacks in London and Manchester.
The 91-year-old monarch said it is "difficult to escape a very somber mood" on what is normally a day of celebration.
The government has promised a full public inquiry.
Scuffles broke out near the Kensington and Chelsea town hall offices Friday as demonstrators chanting "We want justice!" surged toward the doors.
NEW YORK (AP) — A catastrophic blaze at a London apartment tower has brought new scrutiny to a long-accepted, counterintuitive rule for people in tall buildings: If the blaze breaks out elsewhere in the structure, don't automatically run for the stairs. Stay put and wait for instructions.
(1 of 3) Smoke rises from a 24-story high-rise apartment building on fire in London. Fire safety experts say despite that outcome, "stay put" is still the best advice if fire breaks out in a different part of a high rise building. The recommend sheltering in place as long as the building has proper fire suppression protections, like a sprinkler system, fireproof doors and flame-resistant construction materials.( AP Photo/Matt Dunham, File)
That's what residents of London's 24-story Grenfell Tower had been told to do, but the strategy failed early Wednesday when flames that began on a lower floor spread shockingly fast and quickly engulfed the entire building. Many residents were trapped, forcing some on higher floors to jump to their deaths rather than face the flames or throw their children to bystanders below. So far, at least 30 people have been reported dead and about 70 people were missing.
Despite that outcome, fire experts say "stay put" is still the best advice — as long as the building has proper fire-suppression protections, such as multiple stairwells, sprinkler systems, fireproof doors and flame-resistant construction materials, some of which were lacking in the London blaze.
"It is human nature for most of us — if we know there's a fire, start moving and get out," said Robert Solomon of the National Fire Protection Association, a U.S.-based organization that studies fire safety globally. "But we try to make sure people know there are features and redundancies in buildings that you can count on, and you can stay put."
Most major cities with many high-rise buildings have detailed building codes and fire safety rules requiring several layers of protections in tall buildings. The rules vary from place to place, as does advice about when to evacuate, but fire experts say the "shelter-in-place" directive is usually applied to buildings of 15 stories or more.
Floors directly above and below the reported fire are usually evacuated, but others are to stay and use damp towels to block cracks beneath the door unless told otherwise, and call 911 if they have questions.
That's partly to avoid repeated, unnecessary evacuations that cause people eventually to ignore such orders when they really matter. And it also avoids panicked and unsafe evacuations down a long stairwell choked with smoke, which can be just as deadly as the licking flames.
Several such high-rise evacuations over the years have resulted in needless deaths. In 2014, a man who fled his apartment on the 38th floor of a New York City apartment building died when he encountered a plume of suffocating smoke in a stairwell as he tried to descend to the street. His apartment remained entirely untouched by the flames.
What makes the London fire maddening for fire experts who believe in the "stay put" rule is that the Grenfell may have lacked many of the safety redundancies necessary to make it work. For example, the Grenfell building had only one stairwell. A lawmaker says it didn't have working sprinklers. And Britain's Guardian newspaper reported that cladding used on the high-rise structure was made of the cheaper, more flammable material of two types offered by the manufacturer.
"The bottom line: Sprinklers, fire doors and multiple stairwells work," said Chicago Fire Department Battalion Chief Michael Conroy. "It becomes difficult to shelter-in-place when you have no engineered fire protection systems within a building."
New York City Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro, whose department is among the most practiced in the world at fighting fires in tall buildings, says he believes in the stay-put policy but "what happened in London, in which a fire went from the fourth floor to the 21st floor in what we understand was in 17 minutes, is unprecedented."
The sister of a man still missing in the London blaze told reporters that when she phoned him on the 21st floor as the fire spread, he said he hadn't evacuated with his wife and three children because fire officials told him to "stay inside, stay in one room together and put towels under the door." Hana Wahabi said she begged her brother, Abdulaziz Wahabi, to leave but he told her "there was too much smoke."
One question now is whether people will heed that guidance with the Grenfell disaster fresh in their minds. "There is no way I am waiting to die in a building. I am getting out to safety," said Jennifer Lopez, who works in a high-rise building a short walk from the World Trade Center in New York City.
Any move away from the shelter in place tactic would put lives at risk, said Simon Lay, a fire safety expert and fellow at the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. "Statistics tell us that defend in place remains the best policy and is based on sound principles as it enables firefighters to work unhindered and protects against the apathy that can develop from exposure to false alarms," he said.
Jonathan Lum, an advertising executive who lives on the 57th floor of a glittering Manhattan tower designed by Frank Gehry, said if a fire breaks out there, he will heed the wisdom of the fire department and stay in his apartment, but partly because he lives in a building constructed in the past decade.
"If I were in a different, less modern building with less obvious fire safety, I'm not sure how I would feel, honestly," he said.
ROME (AP) — Italian voters have rejected the populist 5-Star Movement in mayoral elections, favoring established center-left and center-right tickets, but its leader vowed Monday to press on until national power is achieved.
(1 of 1) Five-Star Movement's leader Beppe Grillo casts his ballot for Italy's mayoral elections in Genoa, Italy, Sunday, June 11, 2017. Italy’s populist 5-Star Movement was seeking to expand power in mayoral elections being held Sunday in some 1,000 towns and small cities across the country. (Luca Zennaro/ANSA via AP)
With a majority of ballots counted from elections a day earlier in some 1,000 small cities and towns, the 5-Star Movement had imploded in all big races, including in Genoa, home of its leader and founder, comic Beppe Grillo.
Voters thrashed the anti-euro movement, which bills itself as anti-establishment since supporters' online selections generally determine their slate of candidates. Only a year ago, the 5-Stars captured Rome's high-profile city hall, fueling the populists' ambitions to govern all of Italy when national elections are held.
That credential might not have helped this time around. Rome Mayor Virginia Raggi's administration got off to a rocky start, dogged by transportation strikes, garbage pileups and scandals swirling around some of her appointees or aides.
Investors cheered the results from Sunday's races, bidding up Italian bonds in a sign of greater confidence in the country's financial future despite enduring economic sluggishness. As the price rose on the benchmark 10-year bond, its yield — which moves in the opposite direction and is a gauge of investor caution about a country's public finances — fell 0.08 percentage points to 2.01 percent.
Grillo shrugged off the dismal results, which saw 5-Star candidates fail to win any runoff berths in the most significant races. In a post on his blog, Grillo insisted the Movement's candidate would fare better in the election next month in Sicily for governor. And he set his sights on running a winning candidate when a parliamentary election, which will determine who becomes the nation's premier, are held — in spring 2018 or sooner.
"The aim is to govern" Italy, Grillo said. "Successes and failures belong to our history. What's important is to never quit." The 5-Stars are Parliament's largest opposition force. The Democrats, the main partner in Premier Paolo Gentiloni's coalition government, are the biggest party in the legislature.
In all but one of the top cities up for grabs, candidates from center-right and center-left alliances earned berths in June 25 runoffs, since no one clinched more than 50 percent of the votes. "Italy (for a day) is bipolar," quipped Corriere della Sera, in an analysis of how the alliances, more or less variations of political groupings that have ruled the country for the last two decades, had most of the successes in Sunday's races.
In the past, local election trends didn't always correlate to parties' fortunes in national elections. Democratic Party leader Matteo Renzi tried to forge a deal with the 5-Stars to reform the law governing Parliament's election, but the agreement unraveled, leaving it unclear if Italians might elect their lawmakers before the spring 2018 due date, as the former premier had been hoping.
The only major city to elect a mayor outright Sunday was Palermo, where 40 percent is the threshold to win in the first round. Anti-Mafia maverick Leoluca Orlando won a fifth term, on a center-left ticket which encouraged support from civic groups.
Carlo Piovano contributed to this report from London.
MOSCOW (AP) — Thousands of people took part in anti-corruption protests across Russia on Monday in a new show of defiance by an opposition that the Kremlin had once written off as ineffectual and marginalized.
(1 of 22) A young demonstrator is apprehended by riot police during a demonstration in downtown Moscow, Russia, Monday, June 12, 2017. Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, aiming to repeat the nationwide protests that rattled the Kremlin three months ago, has called for a last-minute location change for a Moscow demonstration that could provoke confrontations with police.
Hundreds were arrested, including opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who was seized outside his Moscow residence while on his way to an unsanctioned rally in the city center. Arrests continued in the capital throughout the afternoon, although there were no immediate figures on how many were detained.
In St. Petersburg, an Associated Press reporter counted about 500 people forced into police buses. Demonstrations of several hundred to more than 2,000 were reported in cities across the sprawling country, from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in the far northeast to Russia's European heartland.
The demonstrators appeared to skew predominantly younger — those who were born or grew up during Vladimir Putin's 17 years of leading Russia. Similar crowds turned out on March 26, rattling officials who had perceived the younger generation as largely apolitical.
Although it was not immediately clear if Monday's protests were larger in aggregate than the March demonstrations, the rallies underlined the deep dismay with the government. Putin is expected to seek another term in 2018, and Navalny has already announced his intentions to run.
With opposition sentiment strong or even growing, authorities appear to be casting about for a strategy to undermine the opposition without provoking higher animosity. Moscow officials had agreed to allow Navalny's rally, but late Sunday, he called for a different location, saying official interference had prevented contractors from erecting a stage at the agreed-upon venue.
"This is not our decision. This is the Kremlin's decision," he declared. Instead, he urged demonstrators to gather on Tverskaya Street, a main Moscow avenue that was closed to traffic for a celebration of the national Russia Day holiday that included people dressed up in various costumes from the country's history.
At one point, some demonstrators climbed atop a tent that was part of the festivities as men dressed like Russian medieval warriors looked on. Navalny, who faces a possible 15-day jail sentence on charges of disobeying police, rose to prominence for detailed open-source investigations into government corruption. That was a key issue for protesters Monday, particularly his report on vast wealth allegedly acquired by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.
"We are against the corruption that is costing the future of our young people," said Moscow protester Maria Badyrova. Alexei Borsenko, a Vladivostok demonstrator who eluded a police attempt to detain him, cited Iceland's prime minister stepping down in the fallout from the "Panama Papers" scandal, while "our prime minister is caught on such big corruption cases and he doesn't go anywhere."
"This is very strange," Borsenko added. "It's a dead end for the country's development." But the popular anger has spread beyond Medvedev, with many of Monday's demonstrators chanting: "Putin is a thief."
Navalny was jailed for 15 days after the March protests. In April, he suffered damage to an eye after an attacker doused his face with a green antiseptic liquid.
