GERMANY - DAAD says collaboration for sustainability is priority [University World News, June 2021]

Title:

GERMANY - DAAD says collaboration for sustainability is priority 

 

Author:

Michael Gardner  

 

Published:

University World News, 29 June 2021 

https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20210629114434259

 

From the article:

With German federal elections coming up in September, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) has presented a discussion paper outlining its chief activities in the coming years. The paper highlights the significance of international academic collaboration in tackling global challenges and achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

 

World Economic Situation and Prospects as of mid-2021 [United Nations, 11 May 2021 - Press Release: العربية, English, Français, русский] - COVID-19 pandemic pushed estimated 114.4 million people into extreme poverty

Title:

World Economic Situation and Prospects as of mid-2021 

 

Published:

United Nations (Press Release), 11 May 2021    

https://www.un.org/development/desa/dpad/publication/world-economic-situation-and-prospects-as-of-mid-2021/

 

This press release is also available in PDF format: العربية, English, Français, русский

 

From the press release:

Economic recovery under threat amid surging COVID cases and lagging vaccination in poorer countries Widening inequality casts a shadow over projected 5.4% global growth in 2021.

 

The full report:

https://www.un.org/development/desa/dpad/wp-content/uploads/sites/45/publication/WESP2021_UPDATE.pdf

 

From the full report's Summary:

"Robust growth in the United States and China has improved prospects for a global recovery, but this will unlikely be sufficient to lift the rest of the world's economies. The economic outlook for the countries in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean remains fragile and uncertain."

Taking Stock of United Nations and African Union Constitutionalism [Scholarly Article - African Journal of International and Comparative Law, February 2021]

Title:

Taking Stock of United Nations and African Union Constitutionalism

 

Authors:

W.D. Lubbe* & Otto Spijkers**

*Senior Lecturer, North-West University, Faculty of Law (South Africa). 

**Professor of International Law at the China Institute of Boundary and Ocean Studies (CIBOS) as well as the Research Institute of Environmental Law (RIEL), and Founding Staff Member of the International Water Law Academy (IWLA) of Wuhan University (China).

 

Published:

African Journal of International and Comparative Law, Volume 29, Issue 1, pp. 62-81, February 2021

https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/abs/10.3366/ajicl.2021.0350

 

Abstract:

Both the United Nations (UN) and the African Union (AU) present themselves as a constitutional order, in the sense that they both set out to define the common values of their community – the global and African communites respectively – and to establish supranational institutions to promote and protect these values within their community. Because the two legal orders have a similar ambition, we believe it is interesting to analyse how the two can learn from and complement each other in the way they further define and specify that ambition, and in the way they attempt to concretise and implement it. We thus seek to establish the extent to which global constitutionalism and African regional constitutionalism can strengthen each other in the promotion of key constitutional values. In so doing the article will, inter alia, look at challenges and contestations faced by the UN and AU in their efforts to promote one such constitutional value which they have in common: the value of human dignity.

Is It Possible To Turn Plastic Waste Into Affordable Housing?

Title: 

Is It Possible To Turn Plastic Waste Into Affordable Housing?

Author:

Lilly Cao

Published:

ArchDaily, 26 October 2020

https://www.archdaily.com/950213/is-it-possible-to-turn-plastic-waste-into-affordable-housing

From the article:

As concerns over pollution and global warming escalate, other humanitarian issues, notably homelessness, remain equally pressing. According to the United Nations Human Settlements Program, 1.6 billion people around the world live in inadequate housing, and available data suggests that over 100 million people have no housing at all. In Sub-Saharan Africa alone, the immediate need for low-cost housing is 160 million units and is expected to increase to 350 million by 2050. Moreover, COVID-19 has only exacerbated this issue of homelessness and the houseless have been especially vulnerable to contracting the disease. Thus, on World Habitat Day earlier this month, UN-Habitat launched a partnership with the Norwegian startup Othalo to combat both issues—plastic pollution and homeless—at once.

EUROPE - European ministers adopt declaration on research freedom & Bonn Declaration on Freedom of Scientific Research, 20 September 2020

Title:

European ministers adopt declaration on research freedom

 

Author:

Brendan O'Malley

 

Published:

University World News, 23 October 2020

https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20201023155951914

 

From the article:

Ministers from the European Research Area have adopted a declaration asserting the “relevance of the freedom of scientific research for the progress of our societies”.  

 

The declaration, which was adopted at the Ministerial Conference on the European Research Area on 20 October, says: “The freedom of scientific research is a universal right and public good.”

Also see:

Bonn Declaration on Freedom of Scientific Research

Adopted at the Ministerial Conference on the European Research Area on 20 October 2020 in Bonn

https://www.bmbf.de/files/10_2_2_Bonn_Declaration_en_final.pdf

 

From the Declaration on The relevance of freedom of scientific research for the progress of our societies:

The freedom of scientific research is a universal right and public good. It is a core principle of the European Union and as such anchored in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU. It is also protected by the United nations' International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights ratified by more than 170 states. It has constitutional or legal status in most EU Member States. The freedom of scientific research applies to all types of research organizations and scholarships and to all academic disciplines. Freedom of thought and intellectual creativity require also freedom and security of individuals. Freedom of scientific research stands for openness, exchange, excellence, internationalism, diversity, equality, integrity, curiosity, responsibility and reflexivity. It is therefore a pillar of any democracy.

 

Research and the freedom to conduct research are indispensable prerequisites for our social, cultural, political and economic resilience and progress. Scientific research benefits the people and society through the advancement of knowledge. Freedom of scientific research is a necessary condition for researchers to produce, share and transfer knowledge as public good for the well-being of society. Our hopes and our ambitions to achieve a better future also depend on the freedom of scientific research.

   

UNDESA World Social Report 2020 published by United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), 2020

Title:

UNDESA World Social Report 2020

 

Published:

United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), 2020

https://www.un.org/development/desa/dspd/world-social-report/2020-2.html

 

From the description:

 The World Social Report 2020 examines the impact of four such megatrends on inequality: technological innovation, climate change, urbanization and international migration. Technological change can be an engine of economic growth, offering new possibilities in health care, education, communication and productivity. But it can also exacerbate wage inequality and displace workers. The accelerating winds of climate change are being unleashed around the world, but the poorest countries and groups are suffering most, especially those trying to eke out a living in rural areas. Urbanization offers unmatched opportunities, yet cities find abject poverty and opulent wealth in close proximity, making gaping and increasing levels of inequality all the more glaring. International migration allows millions of people to seek new opportunities and can help reduce global disparities, but only if it occurs under orderly and safe conditions.

International Literacy Day (8 September 2020) - Literacy teaching and learning in the COVID-19 crisis and beyond

International Day:
International Literacy Day

Date:
8 September 2020

Theme:
Literacy teaching and learning in the COVID-19 crisis and beyond

From the description:
International Literacy Day 2020 focuses on “Literacy teaching and learning in the COVID-19 crisis and beyond,” especially on the role of educators and changing pedagogies. The theme highlights literacy learning in a lifelong learning perspective, and therefore, mainly focuses on youth and adults.

For more information:
United Nations, 2020
https://www.un.org/en/observances/literacy-day

France 24, 20 May 2020 - UN chief warns Covid-19 could cause poverty, hunger for millions in Africa

Title:
UN chief warns Covid-19 could cause poverty, hunger for millions in Africa

Published:
France 24, 20 May 2020
https://www.france24.com/en/20200520-un-chief-warns-covid-19-could-cause-poverty-hunger-for-millions-in-africa

From the article:
"UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that millions of people could be pushed into extreme poverty in Africa due to the coronavirus pandemic and called for “global solidarity” with the continent."

UN News - Iraq: Education access still a challenge in former ISIL-controlled areas & UN Report - The Right to Education in Iraq: Part One - The legacy of ISIL territorial control on access to education

Title:
Iraq: Education access still a challenge in former ISIL-controlled areas

Published:
UN News, 17 February 2020

From the article:
"More than two years after the defeat of ISIL in Iraq, some children in areas formerly controlled by the terrorist group still cannot access school or get the necessary documentation required for enrollment, a UN report published on Monday finds."

To read more:
https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/02/1057561

To read the UN Report - The Right to Education in Iraq: Part One - The legacy of ISIL territorial control on access to education:
https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Countries/IQ/2020-02IraqRightEducationreport.pdf