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☆ Climate Action 15: 2024's Leading Innovators for a Sustainable Future
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-11 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +40 min

Editor's note: Business Insider's reporters and editors nominated leaders based on insights from past Climate Action honorees, expert sources, and reader submissions. Courtesy of Jayson RicamaraSaudi Arabia, with its hot desert climate and little fresh water, is one of the most difficult farming environments. AdvertisementIyris in October also launched a sustainable-farming pilot in Saudi Arabia with chemical and plastic manufacturers as well as companies including Red Sea Global, a luxury tourism developer. A UN climate panel estimated that harnessing wave energy could supply 20% more electricity than the world produced in 2022. The US is trying to shore up its own mining and manufacturing base to curb China's power, including in battery recycling.

Persons: Derya Baran, Iyris Derya Baran, Jayson Ricamara, Baran, SecondSky, who's, Inna Braverman, Braverman, David Leb, Charles Callaway, Environmental Justice Charles Callaway ., Callaway, Clara, Gretchen Cara Daily, Stanford University Gretchen Cara Daily, Daily, NatCap, Juan Carlos Navarro, Panama Juan Carlos Navarro, Panama Navarro, José Raúl, Haiti —, Navarro, del, Reinhold Gallmetzer, Reinhold, Gallmetzer, Brazil's JBS, packer, Diane Gilpin, Smart Green Shipping Diane Gilpin, Gilpin, Drax, Roberta Tuurraq Glenn, Borade, Savok Glenn, Glenn, Cynthia Houniuhi, Houniuhi, it's, Arvind Kumar, Prasad, Rice, Kumar, Ari Matusiak, Gazur, Matusiak, —, Duncan McIntyre, McIntyre, Altenex, Ozane, Biden, It's, Delta, Liz Ricketts, Charlie Engman Ricketts, Ricketts, Ricketts didn't, Chao Yan, Princeton NuEnergy Chao Yan, Yan Organizations: Iyris, United Arab, King Abdullah University of Science, Technology, Red, Eco, UN, Eco Wave Power, Shell, Environmental Justice, Proctor Academy For Callaway, Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Green Institute, Callaway, Natural, Stanford University, Stanford, Facility, Ministry, Environment, Panama's, UNESCO, US State Department, National Association for, Nature, Center, for, Carrefour, Nestlé, Smart Green Shipping, Scottish Enterprise, International Windship Association, Maritime Organization, Union, Alaska Arctic Observatory, National Weather Service, AAOKH, University of Alaska, Pacific Islands, University of, International Court of Justice, United Nations, Prasad Seeds, Labor, Prasad, International Rice Research Institute, Rewiring, Reduction, Communities, Highland Electric, Schools, Highland, Beverly Public Schools, Fortune, Edison International, Louisiana, US Department of Energy, Ozane, White, LNG, Vessel Project, Biden, Department of Energy, Kantamanto, London . Brands, McKinsey, Princeton, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Princeton University, Princeton NuEnergy, Energy, Laboratory, EV Locations: Jayson Ricamara Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Spain, Ukraine, Cherkassy, Israel, Gibraltar, Port of Los Angeles, Porto, Portugal, West Harlem, New York City, Clara Hale, Costa Rica, Belize, China, NatCap, Stanford, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Haiti, Panama City, Brazil, Peru, Brazilian, , Norway's, Barrow, Furness, Alaska, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Utqiaġvik, Fanalei, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Vanuatu, Tonga, Asia, Saharan Africa, India, Philippines, Nepal, Bangladesh, Africa, Hyderabad, South, Southeastern Asia, Subhanpur, Rewiring America, Massachusetts —, Sulphur , Louisiana, Calcasieu, Vessel Project Louisiana, Accra, Ghana, New York, London, Kantamanto, Taiyuan, China's Shanxi, Argonne, South Carolina

☆ As Australia puts more focus on climate change, New Zealand is accused of pulling back
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-10 | by ( Mahalia Dobson | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Two major countries’ approach to climate change has turned upside down Down Under. Critics argue that both countries are falling short as they head to this year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP29, which starts Monday in Azerbaijan. “Standing shoulder to shoulder with Pacific Island nations seems not to mean doing anything Pacific Island leaders have asked,” Hemming said. Albanese’s office and the office of his minister for climate change and energy, Chris Bowen, did not respond to requests for comment. Australia came in for special criticism last month at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in the Pacific Island nation of Samoa.

Persons: ”, Anthony Albanese, Christopher Luxon, Jacinda Ardern, Luxon, “, Antonio Guterres, Manaui Faulalo, “ We’re, Ralph Sims, ” Sarah Clement, Albanese, Penny Wong, Polly Hemming, ” Hemming, Chris Bowen, Wong Organizations: United Nations, Labor, Conservative, Radio, Getty, Organization for Economic Cooperation, Development, Massey University, Change, Australian National University, Australia Institute, Commonwealth Locations: Australia, New Zealand, South Pacific, Asia, Pacific, Palau, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Anthony Albanese . New Zealand, Samoa’s, AFP, Azerbaijan, Samoa, Vanuatu, Fiji, Canada, Britain

☆ Lonely Planet’s top places to go in 2025
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-23 | by ( Maureen O'Hare | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Grab your passport and your sunscreen, Lonely Planet has just revealed its 30 must-visit destinations for 2025 as well as a brand-new rundown of top 10 travel trends. Cameroon, Lithuania and Fiji got nods as country destinations and Chiriqui in Panama and Valais in Switzerland were classed as regions with rizz. For cities, “number one on the list this year is Toulouse, France,” Nitya Chambers, Lonely Planet’s SVP, content and executive editor, tells CNN. Train-hopping is the top travel trend identified by Lonely Planet in this 15th edition of its best-selling “Best in Travel” book. Christopher Horsley/Getty ImagesLocal flavors and outdoor adventureThe northern Thai city of Chiang Mai weaves into Lonely Planet’s local flavors travel trend.

Persons: ” Nitya Chambers, It’s, Chambers, ”, Christopher Horsley, Chiang Mai, “, rawness, it’s, –, Justin Foulkes, Bulgaria Chiang Mai Organizations: CNN, Lonely Planet’s, Lonely, Getty, Sustainable Development, ”, Regions, Cities, Brazil Palma de Mallorca, Cameroon Lithuania Fiji Laos Kazakhstan Paraguay Trinidad & Tobago Vanuatu Slovakia Armenia Regions Low, Coastal Locations: Bansko, Bulgaria, Osaka, Japan, Edmonton, Canada, Cameroon, Lithuania, Fiji, Chiriqui, Panama, Valais, Switzerland, Toulouse, France, Puducherry, Pondicherry, Chennai, Vanuatu, Ambrym, Christopher, Thai, Pacific Islands, England, East Anglia, Turkey, Giresun, Coastal Georgia, Cities Toulouse, France Pondicherry, India Bansko, Thailand Genoa, Italy Pittsburgh, USA Osaka, Japan Curitiba, Brazil, Spain Edmonton, Cameroon Lithuania Fiji Laos Kazakhstan Paraguay Trinidad & Tobago Vanuatu Slovakia, Nepal Chiriqui, Panama Launceston, Valley, Australia Valais, Turkiye Bavaria, Germany, Anglia, Hood, Columbia, Oregon

☆ It looks like Google cofounder Sergey Brin is selling his superyacht
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-02 | by ( Madeline Berg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Billionaire Google cofounder Sergey Brin has put his superyacht Dragonfly up for sale. Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. AdvertisementIt looks like Sergey Brin, the billionaire Google cofounder, is reducing his Fly Fleet. Based on promotional photos and videos, it looks like she's also equipped with paddleboards, Jet Skis, eFoils, and wakeboards. AdvertisementSince stepping down from Alphabet in 2019, Brin has seemed to enjoy his high-flying life.

Persons: Sergey Brin, Brin, —, Y.CO, she's, Espen Øino, Shahid Khan, Paul Allen, Pam Organizations: Monaco, Service, Bloomberg, Jet, she's Locations: Bay, Antibes, Vanuatu, South Pacific, He's

☆ Inside the Petrostate Hosting This Year’s Global Climate Negotiations
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-02 | by ( Max Bearak | Nanna Heitmann | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It’s an unlikely place for such talk: It is out of the way, under authoritarian rule and, crucially, hyper-dependent on fossil fuels. Azerbaijan is hosting the annual climate summit, called COP29, only by dint of a quirky United Nations selection process that left it as the last option on the table. It’s a nearly vertical learning curve for officials who acknowledge their inexperience in global climate politics. They also acknowledge that they are under pressure from some people in their own country, who fear the global energy transition away from fossil fuels. Mr. Babayev himself spent most of his career rising through the middle ranks of the state oil company.

Persons: Mukhtar Babayev, ”, Mr, Babayev Organizations: United Locations: Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran, United Nations, Saudi Arabia, Vanuatu, It’s, Europe

☆ I’ve been to 100 countries. I didn't expect to want to return to these 5
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Todd Miller | Marylou Costa | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Here are the spots I thought would be "one and done" but that are on my list of return trips. A village in Rwanda, a country with a population of nearly 14 million people. Aerial view of Sveti Stefan, a fortified island village with 15th century stone buildings on the Adriatic coast of Montenegro. I am eager to return to the White Continent again to experience the planet's coldest, windiest, driest, and perhaps most serene place. VanuatuVanuatu is one of the least visited countries in the world, not because it isn't welcoming or rewarding, but because of its remoteness.

Persons: I'm, Edwin Remsberg, Wadi Al Disah, Todd Miller, Todd Miller Wadi, Disah, it's, Sveti, Feng Wei, Andrew Peacock, George Island, doesn't, Yasur Organizations: Bank, Getty, Rwanda, Saudi, UNESCO, Vanuatu Vanuatu, Air Vanuatu Locations: Turkey, Nepal, South Africa, Indonesia, Rwanda, Burundi, Lake Kivu, Africa's, Saudi Arabia, Kingdom, Saudi, Wadi Al, Jordan's Wadi, Petra, Saudia Arabia, Montenegro, Croatia, wallow, Kotor, Sveti Stefan, Stari, Serbian, Albania, Antarctica, George, Vanuatu

Villagers watch the sunset over a small lagoon near the village of Tangintebu on South Tarawa in the central Pacific island nation of Kiribati May 25, 2013. CHINESE INTEREST AS WESTERN BANKS EXIT"The proposed World Bank project is a creative way of addressing the challenge of de-risking and small scale in Pacific Island countries," said Lalita Moorty, the World Bank's East Asia and Pacific director for prosperity. Without access to overseas banks, Pacific countries would struggle to receive remittances - a key component of their economies - welcome holidaymakers or trade with the wider world. "It can create instability for the financial system," said Denton Rarawa, senior economics adviser at the Pacific Islands Forum. "What we're saying is that if you're not going to address concerns and issues we have, Pacific countries will start looking elsewhere for support."

Persons: David Gray, Solomon, Lalita Moorty, Denton Rarawa, Mark Brown, Janet Yellen, Ariff Ali, Lewis Jackson, Lucy Craymer, Ziyi Tang, William Mallard Organizations: REUTERS, Villagers, WELLINGTON, Bank, U.S, Pacific Islands, World Bank, Pacific, ANZ Bank, Westpac, Bendigo Bank, Bank of China, Reuters, Cook, U.S . Treasury, Federal Reserve, Reserve Bank of Fiji, Thomson Locations: Tangintebu, South, Pacific, Kiribati, SYDNEY, Australia, China, Washington, Nauru, Solomon Islands, Taiwan, Beijing, U.S, East Asia, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Tonga, Samoa, Brisbane, Pacific Islands, Sydney, Wellington

☆ Rich people can buy their way into Hong Kong residency, and the majority of applicants come from 2 tiny countries
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-11 | by ( Lian Kit Wee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewHong Kong's latest sales pitch involves a cash-for-residency program targeted at wealthy investors — and most of them come from just two countries. It builds on prior investment-for-residency programs offered in the last two decades, which aim to capture foreign capital and talent to boost Hong Kong's economy. Permanent residency instead marks a stepping stone to Hong Kong's residency scheme, which prohibits mainland Chinese residents. The posts, which have been viewed over 600,000 times, highlight that the passports qualify for Hong Kong's residency program. The West African nation's citizens currently make up the highest proportion of applicants for Hong Kong's New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme — 139 out of 333 applicants, per government data.

Persons: —, Hayyam Garipoglu, multimillionaire Andrew Spira, Kong's Organizations: Service, Hong, Investors, Business, Reuters, Guardian, Africyrpt, European Union, Vanuatu, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Hong Kong's New Capital, Henley, Partners, Bloomberg Locations: Hong Kong, Vanuatu, Guinea, Bissau, Hong, Pacific, bitcoin, Turkey, Australia, West

☆ New Caledonia: French President Emmanuel Macron heads to violence-hit Pacific territory
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Edward Szekeres | Alex Stambaugh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —French President Emmanuel Macron is on his way to New Caledonia, a government official has said, after a week of deadly unrest in the Pacific archipelago. Macron was leaving Paris on Tuesday night and will “set up a mission” in the French territory, government spokesperson Prisca Thevenot told a press conference, without giving further details. He will be accompanied by Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu, and Overseas Minister Marie Guévenoux, Darmanin told the National Assembly. Darmanin also told the French legislature the number of police and gendarmes in New Caledonia would soon reach 3,000. Lying in the South Pacific with Australia, Fiji and Vanuatu for neighbors, New Caledonia is a semiautonomous French territory — one of a dozen scattered throughout the Pacific, Caribbean and Indian Ocean.

Persons: Emmanuel Macron, Prisca Thevenot, Gérald Darmanin, Sébastien Lecornu, Marie Guévenoux, Darmanin, Paris –, Macron’s, Thevenot, Gabriel Attal Organizations: CNN, Paris, Interior, Defense, Overseas, National Assembly, France’s National Assembly, ”, New Locations: New Caledonia, Caledonia, Australia, New Zealand, France, South Pacific, Fiji, Vanuatu, , New Caledonia, Pacific, Caribbean, Indian, Colonial France, White

☆ New Caledonia: Why this French island in the Pacific is roiled by violence over a vote held 10,000 miles away
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Angus Watson | Helen Regan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

France’s military has mobilized and flown in “four additional squadrons to restore order,” according to French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin. Macron will chair a defense and national security council on Wednesday, focusing on the violence, the presidential palace said. Others were equipped with larger rifles, firing bullets,” the French High commissioner to New Caledonia Louis Le Franc said. Theo Rouby/AFP/Getty ImagesFrench gendarme officers guard the entrance of the Vallee-du-Tir district, in Noumea, New Caledonia on May 14, 2024. FLNKS issued its own statement Wednesday both condemning the vote at the National Assembly and calling for an end to the violence.

Persons: Paris –, Gerald Darmanin, Emmanuel Macron, Macron, Charles Wea, Louis Mapou, New Caledonia Louis Le Franc, Franc, RNZ, Theo Rouby, unfreeze, Gabriel Attal, “, ” Attal, FLNKS, “ FLNKS Organizations: CNN, New, New Caledonian, New Caledonia Louis, Radio New, Getty, Colonial, Noumea Accord, National Assembly, French, Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Locations: New Caledonia, Noumea, South Pacific, Australia, Fiji, Vanuatu, , New Caledonia, Pacific, Caribbean, Indian, France, Paris, China, United States, Radio New Zealand, Noumea , New Caledonia, AFP, Tir, White, Covid, Kanak

☆ World's first-ever global emissions tax takes a step closer to reality
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-22 | by ( Sam Meredith | In Samuelmeredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Countries at the meeting of the United Nations' International Maritime Organization in London signed a deal for shipping emissions to reach net zero "by or around" 2050. Ucg | Universal Images Group | Getty ImagesTwo weeks of talks at the United Nations shipping agency concluded in London on Friday, with a clear majority of countries emerging in favor of introducing the world's first-ever global emissions levy. The UN is on the edge of adopting the world's first-ever global emissions price, but the policy will only be as successful as countries make it to be. "The UN is on the edge of adopting the world's first-ever global emissions price, but the policy will only be as successful as countries make it to be," said Sandra Chiri, shipping emissions international outreach manager at the Ocean Conservancy, a U.S.-based advocacy group. Other proposals include a push to combine a price on shipping emissions with an international emissions standard for maritime fuel.

Persons: Sandra Chiri, Chiri, Gregor Fischer Organizations: United Nations, International Maritime Organization, Ucg, Getty, UN, Ocean, Ocean Conservancy, EU, Marshall Locations: London, Caribbean, U.S, Pacific, Africa, Canada, decarbonize, Fiji, Marshall Islands, Vanuatu, Barbados, Jamaica, Grenada, Belize

☆ A 79-year-old woman who's visited every country in the world says she had to juggle 2 to 3 jobs to finance her trips
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Yu told BI she spent 50 years traveling to every country in the world. Yu said she worked two jobs at a hospital and was a part-time travel agent to afford her trips. And in November, Yu visited Serbia, completing her five-decade-long mission of visiting every country in the world. And although it took Yu a long time to complete visiting every UN member state, she said the journey was well worth it. While Yu spent half a century traveling to every UN member state, several people have accomplished the same feat before turning 30 in recent years.

Persons: Luisa Yu, Yu, —, she's, Louis Organizations: United Nations, Service, Greyhound, UN Locations: Dubai, Angola, Vanuatu, Serbia, Philippines, St, Miami, Somaliland, South Sudan, lounged, South, Kiribati, Connecticut

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States will resume a long-suspended Peace Corps program in the North Pacific island of Palau as the Biden administration continues moves to counter growing Chinese influence in the region. “Volunteers will live and work side-by-side with community partners to improve childhood literacy and math and science skills, along with teaching English as a foreign language,” Peace Corps director Carol Spahn said in a statement. Palau’s president, Surangel Whipps, said the return of the Peace Corps reflects the strong relationship between his nation and the United States. Peace Corps officials said they hope that with congressional funding the Palau reopening will be the first of several new programs it will restart in the Pacific. The Peace Corps, a creation of the John F. Kennedy administration, currently has Pacific island programs in Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu.

Persons: Biden, Carol Spahn, Surangel Whipps, “, ” Whipps, John F, Kennedy, Didi Tang Organizations: WASHINGTON, Peace Corps, “ Volunteers, Peace, Corps, Pacific, Marshall, Associated Press Locations: United States, North, Palau, Taiwan, Federated States, Micronesia, China, Marshall Islands, Beijing, U.S, Pacific, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu

☆ Are the COP climate summits working? These countries are going to the courts, instead
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Ella Nilsen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

“It is a recipe for permanent climate chaos and suffering.”Yet the UN climate summit, known as COP, is tedious. Even fierce climate advocates who agree COP should be more ambitious still believe the summit is a powerful and worthwhile endeavor. “There is a lot of questioning whether this process will deliver or not,” Ani Dasgupta, president and CEO of international climate nonprofit World Resources Institute, told CNN. In this June 2017 photo, President Donald Trump after announcing his intention to abandon the Paris Agreement in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, DC. Doug Mills/The New York Times/ReduxStill, former and current US negotiators say climate diplomacy has helped keep the world’s temperature from reaching truly alarming highs.

Persons: António Guterres, ” Guterres, Paris, Payam Akhavan, ” Akhavan, ” Ani Dasgupta, ’ COP’s, ”, Sue Biniaz, John Kerry, Frances F, Denny, Biniaz, ” Biniaz, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Doug Mills, Jonathan Pershing, William, Flora Hewlett, Pershing, ” Pershing, “, Todd Stern, Jens Astrup, Stern, “ It’s, ” Stern, it’s, It’s, Margaretha Wewerinke, Singh, Mitzi Jonelle Tan, Peter Dejong, Hailey Campbell, ’ ”, Campbell Organizations: CNN, United Nations, Law, United, Resources Institute, Yale University, The New York Times, “, ”, White, New York Times, Kerry, Bella Center, Getty, US, Republicans, International Court of Justice Locations: Paris, Small, States, Vanuatu, Tuvalu, Antigua, Barbuda, Dubai, COP28, United States, New Haven , Connecticut, Rose, Washington , DC, Copenhagen, AFP, Europe, Mississippi, Philippines, Sharm el, Sheikh, Egypt, Hawaii, Honolulu

Here are some of the main players and negotiating blocs involved in the COP28 conference starting Nov. 30 in Dubai. In climate negotiations, Beijing argues that wealthy developed countries like the United States, the biggest historical CO2 emitter, should move first and fastest in climate policy and finance. Despite having the world's second largest economy after the United States, China considers itself as a developing nation in the climate talks. But U.S. delegates will face pressure for climate finance after Washington pledged no new climate cash to the United Nations this year. AFRICAN GROUP OF NEGOTIATORSAfrican countries will be pushing at COP28 for climate finance and financial mechanisms to speed up green energy projects.

Persons: Rula, Kate Abnett, Katy Daigle, Josie Kao Organizations: Abu Dhabi Sustainability, REUTERS, UNITED, Washington, United Nations, EU, GROUP, Marshall, European Union, Thomson Locations: UAE, Abu Dhabi, Dubai . CHINA China, China, Beijing, United States, U.S, Union, United, United Kingdom, London, Brazil, South Africa, India, Saudi Arabia, CHINA, Kenya, Ethiopia, Senegal, Mozambique, Vanuatu, Costa Rica

☆ Australia to form rapid cyber assist teams for Pacific Islands
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A man holds a laptop computer as cyber code is projected on him in this illustration picture taken on May 13, 2017. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSYDNEY, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Australia said on Wednesday it would spend A$26.2 million ($17 million) to establish "rapid assistance" teams to respond to cyber crises in the Pacific region, and another A$16.7 million to identify cyber vulnerabilities in the Pacific Islands. The cyber security boost comes after Australia and the United States committed last month to funding two new undersea cables to be rolled out by Google in the Pacific Islands to increase connectivity for eight remote island countries. Minister for the Pacific Pat Conroy said the rapid response teams would "build long-term resilience in the Pacific" and provide critical support. A second undersea cable would connect the United States to Australia via French Polynesia.

Persons: Kacper, Pacific Pat Conroy, Kirsty Needham, Stephen Coates Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Google, Pacific, Thomson Locations: Australia, Pacific, United States, Fiji, French Polynesia

☆ Magnitude 7 earthquake strikes Vanuatu region - USGS
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Nov 22 (Reuters) - A magnitude 7 earthquake struck the Vanuatu region in the South Pacific on Wednesday, the U.S. Geological Survey said. The quake was at a depth of 10 km (6.21 miles) below the Earth's surface, USGS said. Reporting by Utkarsh Shetti in BengaluruOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Utkarsh Organizations: South Pacific, U.S . Geological Survey, Thomson Locations: Vanuatu, South, U.S, Bengaluru

☆ Magnitude 6.3 earthquake strikes Vanuatu islands region - GFZ
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Oct 29 (Reuters) - An earthquake of magnitude 6.3 struck the Vanuatu islands region on Sunday, the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) said. The quake was at a depth of 94 km (58 miles), GFZ said. Reporting by Maria Ponnezhath in BengaluruOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: GFZ, Maria Ponnezhath Organizations: German Research Center, Geosciences, Thomson Locations: Vanuatu, Bengaluru

☆ Exclusive: Google to run internet cables to Pacific islands in Australia-US deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Trevor Hunnicutt | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.O) will run undersea cables powering internet access to at least eight far-flung Pacific Ocean nations under a joint U.S.-Australian deal set to be announced on Wednesday, according to a U.S. official. The deal will expand an existing commercial project by Google in the region to the nations of Micronesia, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. Set to be announced during an official White House visit by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, the previously unreported deal involves contributions from both governments. Google is currently working on a fiber-optic cable that links Taiwan, the self-ruled island claimed by China, with the Philippines and the United States. As part of the Pacific islands project, the United States will work with the countries on cybersecurity resilience, helping them back up key information to global cloud networks, according to the official.

Persons: Gonzalo Fuentes, White, Anthony Albanese, Joe Biden, Trevor Hunnicutt, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Google, Viva Technology, Porte de, REUTERS, Rights, U.S, Australian, Thomson Locations: Porte, Paris, France, U.S, Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Timor, Leste, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Canberra, Washington, China, United States, Taiwan, Philippines

Ahead of a White House welcome for the leaders, Biden announced U.S. diplomatic recognition of two more Pacific islands nations, the Cook Islands and Niue. The White House said this year it would focus on priorities including climate change, economic growth, sustainable development, public health and countering illegal fishing. In Baltimore on Sunday, Pacific island leaders visited a Coast Guard cutter in the harbor and were briefed on combating illegal fishing by the Commandant of the Coast Guard, an official said. The White House in 2022 said the U.S. would invest more than $810 million in expanded programs to aid the Pacific islands. She added that Pacific island countries "welcome the U.S. re-engagement with the region, but don't want geopolitical tussles to result in an escalation of militarization."

Persons: Joe Biden, Walter E, Elizabeth Frantz, Biden, Manasseh Sogavare, Washington, Sogavare, Meg Keen, Sato Kilman, Kilman, Ishmael Kalsakau, David Brunnstrom, Trevor Hunnicutt, Kirsty Needham, Don Durfee, Grant McCool Organizations: Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Washington Convention Center, REUTERS, Rights, Pacific, NFL, White, U.S ., Niue, Sunday, Coast Guard, Sunday's National Football League, Baltimore Ravens, Indianapolis Colts, Solomon, Biden, Australia's Lowy Institute, USAID, Vanuatu, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Washington, Cook Islands, Niue, The U.S, Papua New Guinea, U.S, Asia, Cook, Baltimore, Pacific, China, Beijing, Congress, Australia, Vanuatu, Fiji, Kiribati, Hawaii, Palau, Micronesia, Marshall, Sydney

Pacific islands leaders gathered Monday for the start of a two-day Washington summit. As part of the summit, the U.S. is formally establishing diplomatic relations with two South Pacific nations, the Cook Islands and Niue. Biden announced Monday that later this year he would deploy a U.S. Coast Guard vessel to the region to collaborate and train with Pacific islands nations. The administration pledged the U.S. would add $810 million in new aid for Pacific islands nations over the next decade, including $130 million on efforts to stymie the impacts of climate change. The leaders will also meet on Monday with Biden's special envoy on climate, John Kerry, for talks focused on climate change.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, ” Biden, “, Antony Blinken, Niue Premier Dalton Tagelagi, Mark Brown, Brown, ” Brown, John Kerry, Linda Thomas, Greenfield, Kerry, Samantha Power, Janet Yellen, Anthony Albanese Organizations: WASHINGTON, Monday, Pacific Islands Forum, South Pacific, Niue Premier, Cook Islands, U.S ., U.S, Corporation, NFL, U.S . Coast Guard, White House, State Department, U.S . Agency for International Development, USAID, Marshall, Federated, Australian Locations: Washington, United States, U.S, Cook Islands, Niue, Cook, Australia, Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Nauru, New Caledonia , New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic, Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Baltimore, Pacific, Federated States, The U.S

☆ Biden Hosts Pacific Islands, With a Rising China in Mind
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Michael Crowley | More About Michael Crowley | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

But Mr. Biden also announced that he was working with Congress to invest $40 million in infrastructure spending for the islands, and he said that the United States would establish diplomatic relations for the first time with the Cook Islands and Niue. But they are two of many recent moves the Biden administration has made to strengthen America’s presence in a region east and northeast of Australia. Over the past year, the United States has opened embassies in the Solomon Islands and Tonga, and plans to open one early next year in Vanuatu. When Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken landed in Fiji in February 2022, it was the first visit there by an American secretary of state in 36 years. Those steps are in no small part chess moves in response to growing Chinese influence in the region, which became particularly vivid last year when the Solomon Islands surprised U.S. officials by signing a sweeping security pact with Beijing.

Persons: Biden, Antony J, Blinken, Solomon Locations: United States, Cook Islands, Niue, Australia, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, Fiji, American, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, Beijing

China, the world's biggest fossil fuel consumer, is among those signalling that it intends to keep using them for decades. By inserting "unabated" before fossil fuels, the pledge targeted only fuels burned without emissions-capturing technology. "We cannot use it to green-light fossil fuel expansion," the countries said in a joint statement. We can't say we want to avoid 1.5 C ... and not say anything about phasing out fossil fuels," Cox said. The Alliance of Small Island States, whose members face climate-fuelled storms and land loss to rising seas, wants a fossil fuel phase-out and an end to the $7 trillion governments spend annually on subsidising fossil fuels.

Persons: Eduardo Munoz, General Antonio Guterres, Sultan Al Jaber, John Kerry, Teresa Ribera, Eamon Ryan, Ryan, Peter Cox, Cox, Fatih Birol, Valerie Volcovici, Kate Abnett, Katy Daigle, Emelia Organizations: U.S, REUTERS, United Nations General Assembly, United Arab Emirates, United, European Union, Reuters, Ireland's, American Petroleum Institute, University of Exeter, International Energy Agency, Rockefeller Foundation, Organization of, Petroleum, Small, States, United Nations, D.C, Thomson Locations: New York, New York City , New York, U.S, Dubai, China, United States, Saudi Arabia, Russia, France, Kenya, Chile, Colombia, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Japan, Union, Washington, Brussels

During the three-day meeting, the U.S. will announce diplomatic recognition for two Pacific islands, promise new money for infrastructure, including to improve Internet connectivity via undersea cables, and honor regional leaders at an NFL game. SOME SKIP SUMMITSolomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, who has deepened his country's ties with China, will skip the summit. The White House in 2022 said the U.S. would invest more than $810 million in expanded programs to aid the Pacific islands. She added that Pacific island countries "welcome the U.S. re-engagement with the region, but don't want geopolitical tussles to result in an escalation of militarization. "Vanuatu Prime Minister Sato Kilman will also not attend the summit, his office told Reuters.

Persons: Manasseh Sogavare, James Marape, David Kabua, Fiame Naomi Mata'afa, Joe Biden, Biden, Washington, Sogavare, Meg Keen, Sato Kilman, Kilman, Ishmael Kalsakau, David Brunnstrom, Trevor Hunnicutt, Kirsty Needham, Don Durfee, David Gregorio Our Organizations: Solomon Islands, Guinea's, Samoa's, U.S ., NFL, White, Coast Guard, Baltimore Ravens, Indianapolis Colts, Solomon, Biden, Pacific, Australia's Lowy Institute, USAID, Vanuatu, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Solomon, Papua, Marshall, U.S, WASHINGTON, Washington, Papua New Guinea, Asia, United States, Cook, Niue, Baltimore, Pacific, China, Beijing, Congress, Australia, The U.S, Vanuatu, Fiji, Kiribati, Hawaii, Palau, Micronesia, Sydney

☆ US 'disappointed' Solomon Islands leader Sogavare to miss White House summit
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare addresses the 78th Session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York City, U.S., September 22, 2023. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSYDNEY/WASHINGTON, Sept 24 (Reuters) - The U.S. is disappointed Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare will not attend a Pacific Islands summit with U.S. President Joe Biden next week, the White House said on Saturday. "We are disappointed that PM Sogavare of the Solomons does not plan to attend," a Biden Administration official said. The Australian broadcaster ABC reported Solomon Islands Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele will attend the summit instead. The Solomon Islands Prime Ministers Office did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Persons: Manasseh Sogavare, Eduardo Munoz, Solomon, Joe Biden, Biden, Jeremiah Manele, Sogavare, Xi Jinping, Sato Kilman, Trevor Hunnicutt, Kirsty Needham, Josie Kao Organizations: Islands, General Assembly, REUTERS, Rights SYDNEY, Solomon Islands, Pacific, White, Biden Administration, ABC, Solomon, Solomon Islands Prime Ministers, United Nations General Assembly, Initiative, Global Security Initiative, Vanuatu, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, WASHINGTON, China, Washington, Australian, Solomon Islands, New York, Beijing, Solomon, Sydney

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