Good News Agency – Year XI, n° 188
Weekly – Year XI, number 188 –
17th June 2011
Managing Editor: Sergio Tripi, Ph. D.
Good News Agency carries positive
and constructive news from all over the world relating to voluntary work, the
work of the United Nations, non governmental organizations and institutions
engaged in improving the quality of life – news that doesn’t “burn out” in the
space of a day. It is
distributed free of charge through Internet to 10,000
media and editorial journalists in 54 countries and to 3,000 NGOs and 1,600
high schools, colleges and universities. It is an all-volunteer
service of Associazione Culturale
dei Triangoli e della Buona
Volontà Mondiale, an
educational charity associated with the United
Nations Department of Public Information. The Association has been recognized by UNESCO as “an actor of the global movement for a culture of peace” and it is a
member of the World Association of Non Governmental Organizations.
International
legislation – Human rights – Economy
and development
– Solidarity
Peace and
security – Health – Energy and Safety – Environment and
wildlife
Religion and spirituality – Culture and education
11 June – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has
commended
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=38696&Cr=Colombia&Cr1=
Ban
welcomes decision to reinstate Honduras into Organization of American States
2
June – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the
reinstatement of Honduras into the Organization of American States (OAS), which
had expelled the Central American nation two years ago after a military coup
d’état ousted former president Manuel Zelaya. The
Truth and Reconciliation Commission, headed by former Guatemalan vice president
Eduardo Stein, was set up by Honduran President Porfirio
Lobo after his election in November 2009 to investigate events leading up to
the coup that took place in June of that year.
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=38583&Cr=Honduras&Cr1=
World Refugee Day - June 20
A
day to reflect on the scope of the refugee problem (there are some 19 million
refugees under the care of the UN High Commission for Refugees); the immense
personal, family and community suffering experienced by refugees; and the
opportunities which the refugee crisis presents all peoples to act on their
sense of interdependence and compassion.
www.unhcr.org/pages/4bf4f2616.html
10 June - The ILO’s most
recent global estimate is that 115 million children are involved in hazardous
work. This is work that by its nature or the circumstances
in which it is carried out, is likely to harm children’s health, safety or
morals. Children working in many different industries and occupations can be
exposed to such risks and the problem is global, affecting industrialised
as well as developing countries. Hazardous work is among the worst forms of
child labour which the international community has
targeted for elimination by 2016.
The
need for urgent action in order to reach this target was both the theme of The
Hague Global Child Labour Conference in 2010 which
adopted a Roadmap for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, and has been endorsed in the ILO’s
Global Action Plan. The 2011 World Day Against Child Labour provides a global spotlight on hazardous child labour, and call for urgent action to tackle the problem.
http://www.unric.org/en/latest-un-buzz/26709-world-day-against-child-labour-2011
UN
resumes repatriation of Liberian refugees from
27
May – The United Nations refugee agency said today it has resumed the
repatriation of Liberian refugees who had been stranded in
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=38526&Cr=ivoire&Cr1=
Missing
Children
May
25 is International Missing Children's Day and on Wednesday evening
This
was followed Thursday by a conference aimed at raising awareness about the European
hotline for missing children - 116000 - which is operational in 15 EU countries
and should be introduced in the others this year.
UN Agency launches new initiative to boost
crops and protect environment
The agency notes that there is
no option but to further intensify crop production in order to feed a world
population projected to reach 9.2 billion by 2050. To eradicate hunger and meet
demand by 2050, food production needs to increase by 70 per cent in the world
and 100 per cent in developing countries, it adds.
“The key to meeting the
challenge lies in sustainable crop production
intensification, or Save and Grow,” FAO stated, referring to the new approach
that is outlined in a book by the same name and published by FAO’s Plant Production and Protection Division. The Save
and Grow model “applies external inputs at the right time and in the right
amount – no more and no less than plants need,” says the agency.
The new approach draws partly
on conservation agriculture techniques which do away with or minimize ploughing and tilling, thus preserving soil structure and
health. The new approach, the agency
also points out, will require significant support to farmers so they can learn
the new practices and technologies, while governments will also need to
strengthen national plant-breeding programmes and
overall domestic and foreign investments to the agriculture sector need to be
increased.
http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/80096/icode/
Urban
horticulture in DRC reaps $400 mln for small growers
City
malnutrition drops as more affordable fruit and vegetables available
This compares to 148 000 in
2005/2006, an increase of 122 percent over a short period of five years. Less
than 10 percent of the vegetables produced by the project are consumed by
beneficiaries. The remainder, constituting more than 250 000 tons of produce,
is sold in urban markets and supermarkets, for up to $4 a kilo for the major
vegetables produced: tomatoes, sweet peppers and onions. .
As well as food, the programme
has also helped provide employment and income for 16 000 small-scale market
gardeners, all linked in to the programme and to 60 000 people more that form
the links in the horticulture chain from field to table.
The FAO project in the DRC is
a flagship model of how to help cities grow their own nutrients and micro-nutrients
to keep pace with growing demand.
http://www.fao.org/news/newsroom-home/en/
Mattel
announces sustainable procurement policy
Mattel's sustainability
strategy is focused on helping the company minimize its footprint throughout
the value chain and across the organization, and emphasizes the importance of
personal commitment in business as well as everyday actions.
First, by "designing
it" with the end in mind, Mattel is focused on exploring opportunities for
sustainability in the design of products and packaging; "making it"
with eco-efficiencies that allow the company to identify opportunities to
reduce environmental impacts through the manufacturing and distribution of its
products; and by "living it" with personal commitment through
employee-inspired grassroots initiatives.
http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/32431-Mattel-Announces-Sustainable-Procurement-Policy
Paraguayan
farmers receive crucial post-harvest technologies
USAID
program strengthens rural livelihood, promotes community stability
June 2 – Farming in
For example, the governor of
http://www.acdivoca.org/site/ID/news-Paraguay-Farmers-Post-Harvest-Technologies
New
Weekly
ICT initiative provides local news on food security, natural disaster
preparedness
June 1 – Knowledge is power
and in
ACDI/VOCA uses information
communication technologies (ICTs) like radio in its
development programs to improve results for beneficiaries. The radio show
efficiently informs large numbers of Southeast Department listeners about the
latest local development activities and provokes their interest in
participating. In addition, it reinforces lessons from area trainings.
The Ministry of the
Environment and ACDI/VOCA host the program, which is broadcast from Jacmel’s Radio Hosanna: 102.3 FM Stereo. ACDI/VOCA staff
share updates about development initiatives from around the department either
in person at the station or by telephone from their respective communes.
http://www.acdivoca.org/site/ID/news-Haiti-ICT-Radio-Rural-Show
Caritas
aid for 100,000 people in
10 June – Caritas members in
Caritas members will work
together in partnership with the local Catholic Church under a joint programme
of $7.6 million (€5.7 million) running up till July 2012. The work will focus
on repair and rehabilitation of water, sanitation, health and education facilities
and the provision of shelter, food and other aid assistance.
Caritas will work with those
returning to their homes, the internally displaced and other vulnerable people.
All the work will have strong community ownership with projects being handed
over to the local population to maintain and run in the future.
http://www.caritas.org/newsroom/press_releases/PressRelease10_06_11.html
Organization's 12th annual
IMPACT Day highlights long-term commitment to pro bono service
New York, June 10 - Today, against the backdrop of its 12th annual
national day of volunteer service known as IMPACT Day, Deloitte is celebrating
the fulfilment of its three-year, $50 million pledge to Billion+ Change, a
federal initiative to encourage American businesses to champion pro bono work by
complementing their philanthropy with the contribution of in-kind services.
Nearly three-quarters of the organization’s personnel, which numbers more than
50,000 in total, are setting aside their work to volunteer at more than 800
events nationwide.
As part of IMPACT Day and to commemorate its pro bono accomplishment,
Deloitte is hosting pro bono forums in several major markets across the
country, including Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, New York, Philadelphia, San
Francisco and Washington, D.C. Hundreds of civic leaders, nonprofit
executives and corporate philanthropists will be on hand at Deloitte’s offices
to discuss how the business community can help address social issues through
the contribution of skills based and professional talent.
Since 2008, Deloitte has expanded its approach to community involvement
by offering its business knowledge to help nonprofits address strategic,
operational and financial issues that may limit their ability to achieve their
social missions.
June 10,
Currently ADRA Japan has
provided more than 750 meals over the period of a week to staff members and
registered volunteers of Yamamoto city's Department of Social Services (DSS),
and will continue to coordinate with the DSS for future appeals of aid. The agency also continues their food and
emergency non-food distribution to various retirement centers
in the Miyagi prefecture. In addition, ADRA Japan is procuring household
materials and furniture for delivery and installation to more than 140 shelter
homes in Yamamoto city.
In light of the aftermath from
the damaged nuclear reactors, many high school students are now left with no
other option but to travel further distances to schools in neighboring
towns, as their schools have been temporarily shutdown. In coordination with
the Education Committee of Fukushima, ADRA will be providing 400 bicycles for
high school students to help ease the longer commute. http://www.adra.org/site/News2?news_iv_ctrl=1141&page=NewsArticle&id=11377
USAID
looks to private partnerships
June 7 – Last week, USAID announced
a new corporate volunteerism program, the
USAID will partner with IBM
and CDC Development Solutions to establish the virtual center,
which should be self-sustaining at the end of the two-year pilot period. The center will liaise between corporate members and local
governments who are willing to work with corporate volunteers.
In an article in The Nonprofit Quarterly, InterAction's
president & CEO, Sam Worthington, said, "The new face of
Another hope is that
formalizing the process in one place, instead of each corporation undergoing
the same trial-and-error in planning their programs, will help to replicate
successes more easily.
http://www.interaction.org/article/usaid-looks-private-partnerships
Geneva/Abidjan, 31 May – The
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Red Cross Society of
Côte
Roads in the Bangolo area, in the former "confidence zone"
dividing the northern and southern parts of the country, are often almost
impassable. "This area is somewhat forgotten, as access is difficult and
local people are rather wary of international organizations," said Mr Castella. "But the need for humanitarian aid is
considerable."
Over 220 tonnes of rice, 45
tonnes of beans, 22,000 litres of oil, 2,300 kilograms of salt and 3,000 kits
containing such essential items as tarpaulins, sleeping mats, soap, kitchen
utensils and buckets will be distributed over the next fortnight. In addition
to this emergency aid, the Red Cross is also providing around 100 tonnes of
rice seed, 50 tonnes of maize seed and 6,000 hoes to help enhance food
security.
http://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/news-release/2011/cote-d-ivoire-news-2011-05-31.htm
Security
Council extends mandate of UN peacekeeping force in
In a resolution adopted
unanimously, the Council urged the Greek Cypriot and the Turkish Cypriot leaders
to “intensify the momentum of negotiations, engage in the process in a
constructive and open manner, and work on reaching convergences on the
remaining core issues in preparation for their meeting with the
Secretary-General in July 2011.”
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2011/sc10279.doc.htm
Benghazi/Geneva, 8 June – The
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in a joint operation with the
Mines Advisory Group, today started destroying hundreds of unexploded devices
in the eastern Libyan city of Ajdabiya. ICRC
specialists began clearance activities in the city in early May, removing
unexploded ordnance from houses, schools and other structures to safe areas and
marking objects that could not be moved.
"This is the first time
we have destroyed such devices in
In addition to the clearance
activities, the ICRC is conducting a campaign together with volunteers of the
Libyan Red Crescent to raise awareness among displaced people – especially
children – that unexploded munitions put their lives at risk.
http://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/news-release/2011/libya-news-2011-06-08.htm
On
Peacekeepers’ Day, UN honours those serving and
fallen heroes
27
May – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the United
Nations family today paid tribute to the more than 120,000 military, police and
civilian personnel serving in peacekeeping missions across the world and honoured those who have lost their lives in the cause of
peace. Almost 60,000 UN personnel are today actively engaged with national
counterparts to help rebuild, renovate and strengthen the foundations on which
criminal justice systems are built, according to Dmitry
Titov, the Assistant Secretary-General for the Office
of Rule of Law and Security Institutions.
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=38523&Cr=peacekeep&Cr1=
Time
to ramp up the fight against polio
By Dan Nixon
Rotary International News, 14
June - The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) has made significant
progress since the launch of its new strategic plan and the bivalent oral polio
vaccine last year. In
In addition to the gains made
by
Among those countries is
The report also referred to an
estimated US$665 million funding gap through 2012 as the “single greatest
threat to the GPEI’s success.” To help address the
gap, the Gates Foundation has awarded two grants totaling
$355 million to Rotary in support of its work. Rotary has responded with
Rotary's US$200 Million Challenge, which will be completed on 30 June 2012; to
date, Rotarians have raised $173.2 million. (...)
http://www.rotary.org/en/MediaAndNews/News/Pages/110614_news_gates.aspx
Lauding
immunization pledges, UNICEF says they will save millions of lives
Despite significant progress
in reducing childhood mortality, nearly two million children still die each
year from vaccine-preventable diseases, UNICEF said.
Launched in 2000, the GAVI
Alliance is a global health partnership of private and public sectors comprised
of, among others, developing world and donor governments, private sector
philanthropists such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the financial
community, developed and developing country vaccine manufacturers, research and
technical institutes, civil society organizations and multilateral
organizations including the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF and the
World Bank.
http://www.unicef.org/immunization/index_58888.html
Advances
made while running aggressive polio eradication activities.
1 June –
The results of the National
Immunization Coverage Survey (NICS), conducted in October 2010, indicate that
52% of Nigerian children aged 12-23 months are reported to be fully immunized,
compared with just 18% in 2006. In 2003, when the first baseline study was
undertaken, the corresponding figure stood at just 13%.
The study results clearly
demonstrate how routine immunization services can be improved in a
polio-endemic country even during frequent supplementary immunization rounds.
In
http://www.polioeradication.org/tabid/408/iid/117/Default.aspx
UNICEF
makes vaccine prices public in move likely to have major impact on developing
country market
(top)
June 13 - As part of the Obama Administration's efforts to improve commercial
building efficiency 20% by 2020, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced a partnership with The Appraisal
Foundation that will help expand access to energy efficiency and building
performance information for commercial buildings and help American businesses
to reduce energy waste. Under the new partnership, the Department of Energy and
The Appraisal Foundation will work to ensure that appraisers nationwide have
the information, practical guidelines, and professional resources they need to
evaluate energy performance when conducting commercial building appraisals.
This will help enable investors, building owners and operators, and others to
accurately assess the value of energy efficiency as part of the building's
overall appraisal.
http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/news/progress_alerts.cfm/pa_id=548
Dow
Jones marks completion of major solar power system
A publisher of news and
business information around the globe, Dow Jones maintains a 200-acre campus on
U.S. Route 1 in
Dow Jones & Company is a
global provider of news and business information and a developer of technology
to deliver content to consumers and organizations across multiple platforms.
(…)
http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/32426-Dow-Jones-Marks-Completion-of-Major-Solar-Power-System
By David Appleyard,
Chief Editor, Renewable Energy World International
The development of a commerical large-scale CPV project is helping to establish
the performance credentials of a technology that offers significant
opportunities at the power plant scale.
7 June, London, UK -- With a
150 MW project planned in San Diego and a 25-year PPA in place, CPV has at last
entered the commercial arena. Standing in the
May 25 – Bank of America today
announced a $55 million program to encourage energy efficiency in older
buildings by providing low-cost loans and grants to community development
financial institutions (CDFIs). The Charlotte,
N.C.-based bank will select up to 12 CDFIs that
specialize in financing energy efficiency improvements and have the most
effective solutions for funding.
The $55 million includes $50
million in low-cost, long-term loans to CDFIs with
innovative energy efficient retrofit programs that finance the upfront
investment costs for building owners to make energy efficient improvements. The
energy cost savings realized over time will create cash flow to repay the loan.
An additional $5 million in grants will also be awarded to help with staffing,
training, reserves, and marketing needs associated with the implementation of
the programs.
Once CDFIs
have made loans to property owners, Bank of America will work with them to
collect pre- and post-retrofit data in order to measure program outcomes,
including impacts on energy and water usage and associated financial savings. EnergyScoreCards, a subsidiary of Bright Power, Inc., will
be the third party consultant for data collection and analysis.
World
Environment Day - June 5
2011
theme: Forests: Nature at Your Service
Observed since 1972, World
Environment Day is "considered by many to be the most important event on
the environmental calendar". UNEP reports that the Day "inspires
action by governments, individuals, non-governmental organisations, community
and youth groups, business, industry and the media to improve their
environment, including clean-up campaigns, tree planting, street rallies, exhibitions,
green concerts, essays, painting and photographic competitions, recycling
efforts and much more".
Internet-based applications,
particularly the emergence of social networks, user-generated content, and
micro-blogging have enabled nearly every Internet user
to be a potential broadcaster with the ability to rapidly create, modify, and
share digital content and knowledge with millions of other users both locally
and globally.
This year's Day is linked with
the International Year of Forests.
May
31 - June 3
Heads of State and senior
officials from more than 35 countries covering the world's major rainforest
regions will meet in
The Amazon Basin of South
America, the
www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=38099&Cr=forest&Cr1
Treasure
Island: New species discoveries in
Scientists in
The significance of the flora
and fauna of
Download report: http://assets.panda.org/downloads/madagascarspeciesreport_en.pdf
http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/species/species_pictures/madagascar_treasure_island/
World Invocation Day - June 15
On
World Invocation Day groups and individuals around the planet unite in prayer
and meditation to invoke energies of Light, Love and Spiritual Will, using the
Great Invocation. World Invocation Day has been observed annually since 1952.
The
intention to express human unity is growing daily within the hearts of people
everywhere. In the birthing of a just, interdependent global society we need,
above all, more light, love and spiritual will. On June 15 people of all faiths
and spiritual backgrounds will invoke these higher energies by using a world
prayer, The Great Invocation.
An
extended (6:11) video entitled, “The Great Invocation in the Six Languages of
the United Nations” was recently created and posted on YouTube—in
observance of World Invocation Day, http://www.youtube.com/user/AquarianAgeCommunity
World Week for Peace in
The World Council of Churches sponsors this annual week of prayer,
education and advocacy to seek justice for Palestinians so that both Israelis
and Palestinians can finally live in peace.
During the most recent World Week for Peace in
1. Praying with churches living under occupation, using a special prayer
from
2. Educating about actions that make for peace,
and about facts on the ground that do not create peace, especially settlements
in occupied territory.
3. Advocating with political leaders using ecumenical policies that
promote peace with justice.
Vocational
training teams give kids an edge
By Dan Nixon
Rotary International News, 2
June – Vocational training teams from
“Both areas face similar
hardships of poverty, disintegrating families, poor health, and low parental
and childhood literacy,” says Barbara Welles-Nystrom,
associate professor of early childhood education at Fairfield University in
Connecticut, who led the U.S. team’s visit to South Africa in January. The
South African team traveled to the
The teams of early childhood
educators, both sponsored by Future Vision pilot districts, learned firsthand
about the challenges of teaching young children in rural villages near
Rustenburg and in urban
The
http://www.rotary.org/en/MediaAndNews/News/Pages/110602_news_vtt.aspx
Bulgari’s
campaign for Save the Children selected as one of top cause marketing campaigns
of 2010
For its 125th anniversary in
2009, Bulgari launched a cause marketing program to
support Save the Children’s Rewrite the Future initiative, an effort to improve
the quality of education for the neediest children worldwide, especially those
in conflict-affected countries. In its
first year, Bulgari raised over $9 million to support
education programs and teacher trainings in 10 conflict-affected areas around
the world.
Building on the success of the
125th anniversary jewelry, a new silver and ceramic
ring was designed to celebrate the continued partnership with Save the
Children. The ring debuted in October 2010 and supports Bulgari’s
commitment for 2010-2011 of an additional $7.4 million to support classroom
education, art education and therapy (Healing and Education through Arts or
HEART), teacher training, and other related programs in 12 countries, including
the United States.
EDC
launches new youth program in
The PAJE-Nièta
program will provide 12,000 rural out-of-school youth, ages 14–25, in four
regions—Sikasso, Kayes, Koulikoro, and Timbuktu—with improved basic education, work
readiness and technical training, social and leadership development, as well as
assistance with livelihood activities. A key focus is agricultural enterprise
development, with training in agriculture and animal husbandry, to help youth
create successful agro-enterprises to respond to the
The five-year program has a
unique implementation strategy: it will be delivered through a volunteer corps
made up of Malian youth who have received a formal education and earned a
diploma from secondary school, trade school, or university. Two hundred
educated youth will commit two years to the project as participants. Their goal
will be to prepare other young people for jobs or self-employment across
www.edc.org/newsroom/press_releases/edc_begins_youth_entrepreneurship_program_mali
EI
welcomes the opening of new schools in rural parts of
The school is one of six
prototype Transitional School Structures, built to varying designs that are
being set up in
* * * * * * *
(top)
Next issue: 8 July 2011.
Good News Agency is
published in English on one Friday and in Italian and in Portuguese the
next. Past issues are available at www.goodnewsagency.org .
Managing Editor: Sergio Tripi, Ph.D.
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Media and NGOs coverage: Maurizio Palazzoni.
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