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☆ How Joe Biden can help save the planet at COP27
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Hugo Dixon | Andre Cabette Fabio | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

States such as Pakistan will also complain that they are already suffering the consequences of climate change despite having done very little to cause it. PULL IT TOGETHERAmerica and other rich countries have a series of policies which could accelerate the just transition across the Global South. Developing and emerging economies, excluding China, need $1 trillion a year in investment, according to a new report from the Rockefeller Foundation. And they need help adapting to the ravages of climate change. If America and other rich countries negotiate a whole-economy transformation with India, they will kill two birds with one stone.

Progress since has been patchy, with only a few countries instituting more aggressive policies on deforestation and financing. Among the new sources of financing, Germany said it would double its financing for forests to 2 billion euros ($1.97 billion) through 2025. PRIVATE CASH PILES UPPrivate companies announced $3.6 billion in extra money. Other initiatives towards meeting the 2030 forest pledge also announced incremental progress at the opening of COP27. In September, the initiative announced standards that companies should follow to trace commodities and disclose links to deforestation.

☆ Analysis: Brazil's Lula hopes to unite rainforest nations, tap funding at COP27
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-06 | by ( Michael Taylor | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

read moreIn the run-up to the COP27 U.N. climate summit, taking place in Egypt from Nov. 6-18, green groups urged Brazil and other forest nations to team up to increase their bargaining power during talks with potential donors over rainforest protection. Brazil was the climate-change success story of the early 2000s when its government - led then by Lula - slashed deforestation rates in the Amazon, she said. But enforcing forest protection laws in remote areas is a problem for all three, conservationists said, while Bolsonaro's allies form the largest bloc in Brazil's Congress, which could hinder Lula's policy push. Other forest nations - like Colombia - could also take part in talks and join any new alliance at COP27 to create a "more robust and effective" coalition, he added. "Done right, collaboration and exchange of experience between rainforest countries can help in tackling deforestation," Jaeger said.

The pledge was praised widely at last year's COP26 climate summit, particularly as Brazil, Indonesia and Congo all signed on. To fulfill the pledge, the world would need to ensure 10% less area is deforested on average each year from 2021 to 2030. Most countries under the pledge have yet to detail plans for passing stronger forest protections or implementing them. BRAZILThe biggest rainforest country also leads the world in deforestation, as the Amazon falls rapidly to illegal logging, agriculture and land speculation. Deforestation driven by land-clearing for palm oil plantations continued to slow in the first seven months of the year - even as palm oil prices soared.

☆ Civilians attack U.N. peacekeeping convoy in eastern Congo
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Civilians attacked a United Nations peacekeeping convoy in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on Tuesday evening, injuring two people, the U.N. mission said on Wednesday. The convoy was attacked when it stopped at an army checkpoint near an internally displaced persons site in Kanyarutshinya, 8 kilometres (5 miles) from the city of Goma. A crowd assembled and threw stones at the convoy, setting fire to at least one truck, the U.N. mission, MONUSCO, said on Twitter. REUTERS/Arlette Bashizi 1 2 3Frustration has grown in the region this year with the U.N. mission, which civilians accuse of failing to protect them from worsening militia violence. Earlier on Tuesday, the U.N. announced a "strategic and tactical" withdrawal of 450 peacekeepers from Rumangabo, located further north, near Virunga Park.

☆ Kenya deploys troops to Congo to help end decades of bloodshed
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Edwin Waita | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Thomas MukoyaNAIROBI, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Kenya's President William Ruto on Wednesday officially deployed troops to eastern Democratic Republic of Congo to join an East African regional force aiming to end decades of bloodshed. The seven countries of the East African Community (EAC), which Congo joined this year, agreed in April to set up a joint force to fight militia groups in Congo's east. Despite billions of dollars spent on one of the United Nation's largest peacekeeping forces, more than 120 armed groups continue to operate across large swathes of east Congo, including the M23 rebels, which Congo has repeatedly accused Rwanda of supporting. Uganda has already sent troops into Congo as part of separate deployment to chase down an Islamic State-linked armed militants, one of the warring groups in eastern Congo. "We have been working very hard to mobilise the international community to support the east African force," Kenya's defence minister Aden Duale said at the event.

The former Michigan police officer who fatally shot Patrick Lyoya during a traffic stop in Grand Rapids in April will stand trial for the killing, a judge ruled Monday. Judge Nicholas Ayoub said enough evidence was presented in a preliminary hearing to require a jury to decide whether Christopher Schurr was justified in shooting Lyoya. These are questions of fact that the jury must decide based on the totality of the circumstances as presented by the evidence at trial,” Ayoub said in court order. The officer ended up restraining Lyoya with his knee to his back and ultimately shot him as he was facedown on the ground. Patrick Lyoya, 26, was shot and killed on April 4, after what police said was a traffic stop.

In the West, only about 10 people have died of monkeypox this year, figures from the U.S. CDC show. No monkeypox vaccines are publicly available in Africa. But those failures are being repeated a year on with monkeypox, the health workers consulted by Reuters said. Congo health minister Jean-Jacques Mbungani told Reuters Congo was in talks with the WHO to buy vaccines, but no formal request had been made. A WHO spokeswoman said that in the absence of available vaccines, countries should instead focus on surveillance and contact tracing.

☆ Overcrowded stadium crush kills 11 people in Congolese capital
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KINSHASA, Oct 30 (Reuters) - Eleven people were killed on Saturday, including two police officers, in a crush at an overcrowded stadium concert in Kinshasa headlined by Congolese singer Fally Ipupa, the interior minister said. Police have recorded "11 deaths including 10 as a result of suffocation and the crush, and 7 hospitalisations," said Minister Daniel Aselo Okito in a statement. The eventual number of attendees inside the stadium vastly exceeded the number state and private security personnel present could control. In 2020, French police evacuated the Gare de Lyon railway station in Paris after people started fires nearby in unrest ahead of a planned Ipupa concert. Reporting by Paul Lorgerie, Justin Makangara and Stanis Bujakera Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Nick MacfieOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Congo expels Rwanda ambassador as M23 rebels capture strategic town
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The rebel group, which Congo authorities accuse Rwanda of backing but Rwanda denies, seized the town of Kiwanja in eastern Congo on Saturday, effectively cutting North Kivu's capital Goma off from the upper half of the province. The army has conducted strategic retreats from populated areas to move fighting away from towns and protect civilians. Neither General Sylvain Ekenge, the army's national spokesman, nor Colonel Ndjike Kaiko, the army's spokesman for North Kivu, immediately responded to calls and messages requesting comment. Unrest in North Kivu has broken months of relative calm in eastern Congo after the resumption of clashes between the army and the M23 militants. read moreWhen it formed in 2012, M23 was the newest in a series of ethnic Tutsi-led insurgencies to rise up against Congolese forces.

☆ Climate Change Is Real. Markets, Not Governments, Offer the Cure. - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Bret Stephens | Mr. Stephens Is An Opinion Columnist. Mr. Winter Is A Staff Photographer On Assignment In Opinion. | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +32 min

worse-case, highest-carbon-emission scenario.” (The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is the U.N. body that assesses climate change.) How do we weigh the risks of underreacting to climate change against the risks of overreacting to it? While he’s not an expert on climate change, he has spent decades thinking deeply about every manner of risk. That’s particularly true if climate change is akin to cancer — manageable or curable in its earlier stages, disastrous in its later ones. Maybe, I realized, in assessing my newfound concerns about climate change, my long-held beliefs might provide a solution — look to the market.

☆ Fact Check-Hoax about serial killer posing as taxi driver in New York City resurfaces
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A fabricated report that is several years old about a New York City taxi driver who is a serial killer has recirculated on social media. An example can be seen (here) with the text: “*** Warning *** This is a man with Taxi number (2465RB) in NY Who drives around taking People to kill. A Google search on the story or on the license plate number produces no credible results to support the claims about a New York City serial killer taxi driver (bit.ly/3Sl6ZBE), (bit.ly/3ShD25K). The story has been debunked by fact checkers Snopes (here) in 2018 and PolitiFact (here) in 2022. There is no evidence of a serial killer posing as a taxi driver in New York City.

Although Lula's 2003-2010 presidency effectively reduced destruction of the rainforest, he embraced traditional industrial development with little regard for emissions. In the United States, the progressive Green New Deal languished in Congress, while President Joe Biden adapted some of the ideas for his climate agenda. Marcio Astrini, the head of environmental lobby group Climate Observatory, said Lula's proposals were a promising blueprint, but added: "Whether it will happen in practice is another matter." By contrast, Bolsonaro's campaign has said little about his environmental proposals for a second term. [1/3] Macaws sit on a tree at the Amazon rainforest in Manaus, Amazonas State, Brazil October 26, 2022.

☆ Medical Company Seeks $50 Million From Glencore Over Congolese Bribe
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Dylan Tokar | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +2 min

A company founded by a South African husband and wife to provide medical care for Congolese miners asked a federal judge in Manhattan for $50 million in restitution for the harm it said it suffered from a bribery scheme involving Glencore PLC. Glencore, an Anglo-Swiss commodities company, in May agreed to pay about $1.2 billion to resolve long-running investigations by U.S., U.K. and Brazilian authorities into bribery and market-manipulation misconduct. Newsletter Sign-up WSJ | Risk and Compliance Journal Our Morning Risk Report features insights and news on governance, risk and compliance. After a dispute over the appointment of a manager to oversee those contracts, Kamoto terminated the agreements, according to Crusader Health. The bribe, which was described in settlement documents between Glencore and the U.S. government, ultimately forced Crusader Health to shut down, the company said.

☆ Uganda steps up Ebola response as virus infects 109, kills 30
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A woman and her child arrive for ebola related investigation at the health facility at the Bwera general hospital near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo in Bwera, Uganda, June 14, 2019. Fifteen of the confirmed cases were among health workers, of whom six had died, she told a news conference. The virus circulating in Uganda is the Sudan strain of Ebola, for which there is no proven vaccine, unlike the more common Zaire strain seen during recent outbreaks in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo. "The main objective is to evaluate their efficacy to protect primary contacts of Ebola patients within 29 days of contact," Aceng said. Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Estelle ShirbonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Mexico to discuss lithium, auto industry with U.S. climate envoy Kerry
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry attends a meeting ahead of COP27 climate summit in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo October 3, 2022. REUTERS/Justin MakangaraMEXICO CITY, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Mexico will speak with U.S. climate envoy John Kerry about lithium, batteries and the automotive industry when Kerry visits the northwestern state of Sonora on Friday, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Monday. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe Sonora Plan also aims to develop the electric car industry in the agricultural state. While Mexico nationalized lithium reserves earlier this year, experts say it could take years for the newly created state firm to start production. Lithium batteries are not currently produced by any Latin American country at a commercial scale.

☆ Uganda says 9 more Ebola cases confirmed in Kampala, urges vigilance
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/James Akena/File PhotoOct 24 (Reuters) - Uganda has reported nine more Ebola cases in the capital Kampala, bringing the total number of known infections to 14 in the last two days, the health minister said on Monday. The outbreak began in September in a rural part of central Uganda. Report yourself if you have had contact or know of a person who has had contact," Aceng said in her tweet. Ebola spreads through contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person. There have been more than 90 confirmed and probable cases in Uganda since the start of the outbreak, including at least 44 deaths, according to statements by the health ministry and the World Health Organization.

Dozens of measles cases have cropped up in Gambia this year, a spike over previous years. The measles campaign was rescheduled for 2021, but in July of that year polio was detected in a water sample. Over the years, the success of the measles vaccine has numbed many to these risks, health experts say. At the time, 86% of children had at least the first dose of the measles vaccine worldwide, according to WHO estimates. FUNDS REJECTEDThe U.S. CDC has identified 12 African countries as having no clear plans or secured resources for their next measles vaccination drive.

☆ Congolese NGOs decry mining in main refuge of 'Africa's unicorn'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Erikas Mwisi Kambale | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Industrial activities are supposed to be banned in the 13,000 square kilometers of the reserve in northeast Democratic Republic of Congo. Aerial photo evidence shows mining has persisted, the civil society groups said at a joint news conference to mark the international day of the okapi. The NGOs blamed a Chinese company called Kimia Mining, which has previously been accused of flouting a ban on river-dredging in Ituri province and other mining regulations, according to a 2016 report by a UN Group of Experts. There was no available contact information to reach Kimia Mining for comment. Congo is currently at loggerheads with conservationists and scientists over its plan to open other parts of its rainforest and peatlands to oil and gas drilling.

☆ United Nations condemns Russia's move to annex parts of Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Michelle Nichols | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Monitors at the United Nations General Assembly hall display a vote on a resolution condemning the annexation of parts of Ukraine by Russia, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., October 12, 2022. Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who said the result showed Russia could not intimidate the world. The General Assembly vote followed a veto by Russia last month of a similar resolution in the 15-member Security Council. 'DOUBLE STANDARDS'The moves at the United Nations mirror what happened in 2014 after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea. The General Assembly then adopted a resolution declaring the referendum invalid with 100 votes in favor, 11 against and 58 formal abstentions.

☆ The electric vehicle boom depends on mining. Rivian's new chief sustainability officer is tasked with making it responsible.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Demand for metals like lithium and cobalt could jump sixfold alongside the electric vehicle boom. Rivian hired Anisa Kamadoli Costa to lead its climate strategy, including responsible mining. But that doesn't mean electric vehicle makers don't have their own set of climate and social challenges. "Traceability is the best means to transparency and to understanding one's social and environmental impact," Costa said during an Insider event moderated by Catherine Boudreau, senior sustainability reporter. Costa helped craft such a standard during her two decades as Tiffany & Co.'s chief sustainability officer.

☆ 3 chimpanzees are being held for ransom after being stolen from a sanctuary in Congo, as experts fear more widespread animal kidnapping
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Three baby chimpanzees are being held for ransom, said founders of a primate rescue sanctuary in Africa. That's about 3,000 to 5,000 chimps killed every year in the DRC alone, per France Info. But this is the first time that a primate has been held for ransom, and they have received death threats. An endangered pangolin was also held for ransom earlier this year in another area of the country. The two incidents have experts worried that the tactic may become widespread among criminals in the DRC, per the Times.

☆ Uganda says Ebola caseload rises to 16 as outbreak grows
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Ugandan health workers speak to members of the community before carrying out the first vaccination exercise against the ebola virus in Kirembo village, near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo in Kasese district, Uganda June 16, 2019. The outbreak had also now spread to three districts, all in central Uganda. The east African country last week announced the outbreak of Ebola, a haemorrhagic fever whose symptoms include intense body weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat, vomiting, diarrhoea and rashes among others. read moreRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe current outbreak, attributed to the Ebola Sudan strain, appears to have started in a small village in Mubende district around the beginning of September, authorities have said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Elias Biryabarema Editing by Alistair BellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Air traffic controllers suspend strike in West and Central Africa
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-24 | by ( Ngouda Dione | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

DAKAR, Sept 24 (Reuters) - A 48-hour strike by air traffic controllers in West and Central Africa has been suspended, their union said on Saturday. The strike, which started on Friday, has disrupted flights across the region and left hundreds of passengers stranded at airports on Saturday. The Union of Air Traffic Controllers' Unions (USYCAA), which called the wildcat strike, said in a statement it decided to suspend its strike notice for 10 days immediately so as to allow for negotiations. The union said more than 700 air traffic controllers joined the strike to demand better working and pay conditions. The controllers work under the Agency for Aerial Navigation Safety in Africa and Madagascar (ASECNA) an 18-member state agency that manages air traffic over an area covering 16 million square km of airspace.

CNN —An animal sanctuary in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is facing demands for ransom money, after kidnappers abducted three of its baby chimpanzees. “This is the first time in the world that baby apes were kidnapped for ransom,” Franck Chantereau, founder of the sanctuary where the kidnap took place, told CNN on Friday. But they didn’t come so the kidnappers took these three babies hostage and demanded a large amount of ransom from us,” Chantereau said. “Obviously, it’s impossible for us to pay the ransom,” Chantereau said. But Chantereau said the kidnapping won’t shake his determination to save baby chimps from the clutches of smugglers.

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