Hot spots
HOTPOTS
Lancet's latest report:
Climate change will kill far more people than COVID-19!
More than 90 experts jointly warned
Call it "a decisive event for human health."
Image source: Infographic
According to the surging news, on the afternoon of October 21, UK time, the top medical journal "The Lancet" released the 2021 "Countdown: Tracking The Progress of Health and Climate Change" report. More than 90 experts from academic institutions and the United Nations around the world have warned that climate change will be a "decisive event for human health", with food shortages, extreme weather disasters and infectious disease outbreaks dwarfing the death toll from COVID-19. Actively controlling greenhouse gas emissions from human activities could avoid the unnecessary deaths of millions of people.
"The recent extreme weather disasters are grim warnings, and with each day we delay our response to climate change, the situation gets even worse," said Marina Romanello, the report's lead author.
The impact of climate change on human health has so far received little attention. In a special report released by the WHO last week, climate change was called "the greatest health threat facing humanity" and warned that its effects could be more catastrophic and long-lasting than the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cai Wenjia, a Chinese scholar who participated in the report and an associate professor in the Department of Earth System Science at Tsinghua University, said that there are few threats for humans like climate change, and the "multiplier effect" of the various chains of its impact (referring to the degree of chain reaction caused by the increase or decrease of a certain variable in economic activity) will last for decades or even hundreds of years, and there is no way to prevent and control it quickly. Even if we achieve the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, the final death toll will still far exceed that of COVID-19.
The Lancet report points out that this year's continued extreme heat weather in many parts of the world has once again sounded the alarm bell. Older adults and infants under 1 year of age are the most vulnerable to extreme heat weather. In 2019, about 350,000 people died from heat-related diseases.
Rising temperatures, combined with the destruction of habitats for plants and animals worldwide, give a variety of infectious diseases an opportunity to evolve and expand. The report notes that fungal diseases that cannot be treated with vaccines or antibiotics may be on the rise.
Global warming has increased the average temperature of the fungal environment in which they live, which scientists believe will help them become more suitable for invading human internal organs or respiratory tract.
At the same time, mosquitoes carrying the virus are migrating to temperate zones and high altitudes, their life cycles are accelerating, and their biting behavior is intensifying. If carbon emissions are not reduced, nearly 90 percent of the world's population will be at risk of malaria and dengue by the end of the century.
On the other hand, the greatest dangers of climate change are not always associated with the most obvious extreme weather, and some other shifts in the earth and air that are relatively slow and subtle also pose a threat.
The deadliest hazard comes from burning fossil fuels, which produce tiny, lung-stimulating particles known as PM2.5 particles. An estimated figure released in February shows that PM2.5 pollution kills more than 10 million people a year, a figure that even the more conservative study in the Lancet report suggests could be closer to 1 million.
The report compares COVID-19 with the health crisis caused by climate change, arguing that both expose and exacerbate inequalities, and warns that post-pandemic economic recovery at the expense of intensive carbon emissions is a foolish way to put short-term economic benefits ahead of humanity's long-term well-being.
A Report released by the United Nations on Oct. 20 found that many governments around the world are still planning to increase the use of fossil fuels. The Lancet report said that since the outbreak, G20 countries have invested more new money in fossil fuels than clean energy. Trends in renewable energy production and adaptation initiatives have improved only slightly. The world's largest carbon emitters, including the United States, continue to subsidize fossil fuels at tens of billions of dollars a year, on par with what they spend on public health.
In the case of the United States, despite President Biden's pledge to cut carbon emissions by more than half by 2030, at the same time, the United States plans to increase oil and gas production by 9 times by 2030.
The Lancet report shows that only half of the more than 190 countries that will be attending the climate conference in the UK have developed national climate and health strategies. Despite substantial evidence that unfettered carbon emissions have an impact on human health, only 0.3% of global funding for climate change adaptation goes to health systems.
The report comes in less than two weeks as world leaders usher in the most important UN climate conference since the 2015 Paris climate conference. The outcome of the international climate negotiations will either "lock humanity into an increasingly extreme and unpredictable environment" or "lead to a future of improved health, reduced inequalities and economically and environmentally sustainable development," the report said.
In 2015, countries around the world jointly adopted the Paris Climate Agreement, which promised to limit global warming temperatures below 2°C. However, the data shows that 2015 to 2020 became the hottest 6 years on record, and the global average temperature increased by 1.2 °C.
Newsletter
NEWS
Flash reports
62 countries jointly addressed the Third Committee of the General Assembly
Support China in taking a human rights development path that suits its national conditions
Image source: Xinhua News Agency
On behalf of 62 countries, Cuba made a joint statement at the third committee of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly on the 21st when deliberating on human rights issues, supporting China in taking the path of human rights development in line with national conditions and opposing interference in China's internal affairs through human rights issues.
"Meaningless"!
Russia has refused to engage in security dialogue with NATO
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zakharova said on the 21st that nato claimed to be ready to engage in dialogue with Russia on security issues after expelling Russian permanent diplomats in NATO, which was "meaningless" in this move.
fail! South Korea's first fully autonomous launch vehicle
The satellite could not be sent into a predetermined orbit
South Korea's first fully autonomously developed carrier rocket "World" was launched at 17:00 local time on the 21st at the Roroo Space Center in Gyeongju County, South Jeolla Province, but the model satellite carried by the rocket failed to successfully enter the intended orbit.
Russian nuclear submarines successfully test-fired the "Bulava" ballistic missile
The Russian Ministry of Defense released a message on the 21st that the "North Wind God-A" class strategic nuclear submarine "Grand Duke Oleg", which is conducting a national test in the White Sea, conducted an underwater launch test of the "Bulava" ballistic missile at the Kura range on the Kamchatka Peninsula, and the missile successfully hit the intended target.
The election campaign is getting more and more intense!
Abe's street canvassing played the crisis card
The election of the House of Representatives of Japan will be voted on the 31st, and the parties in the government and the opposition are engaged in a fierce election battle. This rare "short-term election campaign" is considered to be a "life-and-death battle" for Kishida Fumio, who will become Japan's "shortest-lived" prime minister if the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the Komeito Party fail to hold on. Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also took to the streets to solicit votes for the ruling party and played the crisis card.
The robot painter was detained in Egypt for 10 days
Image source: Russian News Agency
British robot painter Ai-da was detained at an Egyptian airport for 10 days and released on the 20th when she went to Egypt to participate in the contemporary art exhibition "Forever Is Now" at the Pyramids of Giza. The Egyptian government reportedly suspected her involvement in a spying program. Ai-da maker and spokesman Edin Miller said the British ambassador "worked all night" to free the robot painter.
Ida was suspicious because of the modem and camera built into her eyes for painting observation. Egyptian customs are also worried that she can have a dialogue.
Count the world
DATA
1.5 billion doses
Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on the 21st that as of October 17, China had provided more than 1.5 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to more than 100 countries and international organizations. As vaccine production capacity increases, China will continue to do its best to provide more safe and effective vaccines to the world, especially to developing countries.
1.7 million visitors
According to US media reports, US law enforcement arrested about 1.7 million illegal immigrants at the U.S. and Mexican borders in fiscal 2021, a new record set in fiscal year 2000, highlighting the pressure and embarrassment faced by President Joseph Biden's administration in the fight against illegal immigration.
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COMMENTS
The fishing dispute escalated and France threatened to sanction Britain
As the fisheries dispute between the United Kingdom and France escalates, the French government will let out a statement on the 20th that the French side may announce sanctions on British energy and trade "before this weekend". Britain and the British possession of Jersey refused to issue fishing licences to dozens of French fishing boats last month, and the French government reacted strongly, condemning the British initiative as "unacceptable".
Under the UK's "Brexit" agreement, from January 1 this year, fishermen from EU countries will be able to obtain fishing permits to enter British waters to fish. But in the months that followed, Applications submitted by French fishing vessels to the British were frequently rejected, often with only a few dozen of the hundreds of vessels approved.
small
appraise
The aftermath of Brexit, or more than that.
A Mirage 2000 fighter jet of the Indian Air Force crashed
Indian media quoted a statement from the Indian Air Force on the 21st as saying that on the morning of the same day, a Mirage 2000 fighter of the Indian Air Force had a technical failure while training in the central region, and the pilot parachuted to escape. The site of the accident is about 500 kilometers north of Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh. Photos and videos released by the media showed the wreckage of the plane scattered on the ground and the part of the tail buried in the ground.
India has had several military plane crashes in recent years. After buying a fighter, I also have to practice my skills.
Source: Workers Daily client Workers Daily reporter Dong Pei Liang Fan
This issue is edited by Zhao Xiaozhan zhao chen