According to a group of doctors and researchers, air pollution in Australia’s most populous city and parts of the eastern state of New South Wales has reached levels up to 11 times the “hazardous” level. They also stated that the wildfires were fuelled by climate change, which is worsening many extreme weather events.
A third of the world’s poorest countries are facing high levels of obesity and malnutrition, as stated in a recent report published by the medical journal The Lancet. Sub-Saharan African and Asian countries are the most affected. The report estimates that nearly 2.3 billion children and adults on the planet are overweight and that more than 150 million children are suffering from stunted growth.
The European Union is committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2050. The agreement was reached after the EU leaders met in Brussels. The so-called Green New Deal aims to reduce Europe’s net CO2 emissions to zero by mid-century. Poland is opposed to this plan as it depends on coal for much of its energy production.
Running has real benefits, especially for people over the age of 60 and people with chronic diseases. According to a study involving more than one million people in South Korea, older people should exercise more to prevent heart disease and strokes. Researchers found that people who exercised less as they got older had a 27 percent increased risk of heart and blood vessel problems, whereas those who increased physical exercise had an 11 percent lower risk.
This was revealed by an executive of Marfrig Global Foods, who explains how the price of the Arroba, a 15 kg unit of weight that is commonly used as a benchmark for cattle prices in Brazil, has reached 225 reais (about 53 US dollars). This price increase appears to be partly due to strong demand from China and other Asian countries, which are facing a swine fever outbreak.
The Hand-in-Hand initiative seeks to match donors and recipients in a targeted way to assist the most vulnerable people in developing countries to achieve the sustainable development goals. FAO and the Arab League are working together on several regional challenges, such as water scarcity and drought management.