SUSTAINABILITY - The African Mirror

Jun

15

2021

EXPERT VIEWS-G7 climate commitments judged too weak to bag COP26 success

SUSTAINABILITY

MEGAN ROWLING LEADERS of G7 wealthy nations have said that 2021 should be a "turning point for our planet", faced with an "existential threat" from the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. In a joint communique at the end of a summit in Britain, they agreed to support "a green revolution that creates jobs, cuts emissions and seeks to limit the rise in global temperatures to 1.5 degrees" above pre-industrial times. They said they would cut their climate-heating emissions to net-zero by 2050, halve their collective emissions by 2030 from 2010 levels, and boost climate finance for developing…

Jun

13

2021

By The African Mirror

Ghana plants 5 million trees in a single day to combat deforestation

SUSTAINABILITY

GHANA aimed to plant at least 5 million trees in a single day to help regrow the country's lost forests and curb the impacts of climate change, the president said. The expansion of farming, and to a lesser degree mining and logging, has led to high levels of deforestation in Ghana, environmentalists say. Forest cover in the West African gold miner has dwindled to less than a fifth of what it was in the 1990s, according to Forestry Commission figures. At Jubilee House, the seat of Ghana's presidency, President Nana Akufo-Addo planted a seedling of lignum vitae, one of the…

May

01

2021

By The African Mirror

Why renewable energy won’t end energy poverty in Zimbabwe

SUSTAINABILITY

ZIMBABWE is one of the African countries that hopes renewable energy technologies will help to address their energy problems. About 42% of Zimbabwe’s households are connected to the electricity grid. ELLEN FUNGISAI CHIPANGO, Postdoctoral research fellow, University of Johannesburg The country has huge and diverse renewable energy potential. Its sustainable energy portfolio could include solar, hydro, biomass and, to a limited extent, wind and geothermal. Zimbabwe put forward a National Renewable Energy Policy in 2019. The policy aims to have 16.5% of the total generation capacity (excluding large hydro) from renewable sources by 2025. This increases to 26.5% by 2030.…

Apr

25

2021

By The African Mirror

Youth demand action on nature, following IUCN’s first-ever Global Youth Summit

SUSTAINABILITY

ALISON KENTISH FOLLOWING almost two weeks of talks on issues such as climate change, innovation, marine conservation and social justice, thousands of young people from across the globe concluded the first-ever International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) One Nature One Future Global Youth Summit with a list of demands for action on nature. Under three umbrella themes of diversity, accessibility and intersectionality, they are calling on countries and corporations to invest the required resources to redress environmental racism and climate injustice, create green jobs, engage communities for biodiversity protection, safeguard the ocean, realise gender equality for climate change mitigation…

Jun

05

2021

By The African Mirror

Young climate activists need a seat at the decision-making table – on and offline

SUSTAINABILITY

NKOSILATHI NYATHI WHEN I stood in the registration queue at COP25, the 25th UN climate talks in Madrid in 2019, I was really inspired to see people not only from diverse cultures in their native cultural dress, but also so many young people. At 16 years old, I was able to meet with decision-makers face-to-face and tell them exactly what my generation wanted. Participating at the summit gave me hope and confidence that my message was aired on an international stage that promised tangible action. And I wasn’t the only one. More than 26,700 people registered to attend COP25, from…

May

30

2021

By The African Mirror

Why full dams don’t mean water security: a look at South Africa

SUSTAINABILITY

AFTER good summer rains, the dams that supply water to Johannesburg and much of South Africa’s economic heartland are full. This, then, is the time to start worrying about water supplies. MIKE MULLER, Visiting Adjunct Professor, School of Governance, University of the Witwatersrand It may sound odd but it’s a lesson learnt from cities across the world over the past two decades. Whether it was Sydney and Melbourne in Australia, Chennai in India, Barcelona in Spain or São Paulo in Brazil, we have seen that, too often, water crises occur because societies don’t take action until it’s already too late.…

Jun

04

2021

By The African Mirror

For Dutch firm, buyers’ fee in Europe gets e-waste recycled in Africa

SUSTAINABILITY

ANGELA UKOMADU and ANTHONY DEUTSCH AFTER years of struggling to make a living selling recyclable parts from electronic waste recovered in Africa, Dutchman Joost de Kluijver realised he needed a new business model if his firm was going to survive. So in 2016, Closing the Loop began tagging a fee onto new device purchases by its clients, which include major bank ABN Amro and the Dutch government. By adding roughly 5 euros ($6) per phone and 15 euros ($18) per laptop, Closing the Loop now funds electronic waste collections in a string of African countries including Nigeria, Ghana and Cameroon,…

May

29

2021

By The African Mirror

South African albino elephant beats odds to thrive among herd

SUSTAINABILITY

KIRTHANA PILLAY FOR Khanyisa life was difficult from the start. Born as an albino, at four months old she got caught in a poaching snare in South Africa's Kruger National Park that cut through her mouth. Trapped for four days, dehydrated and unable to eat because of her wounds, she was rescued and taken to a sanctuary in Mpumalanga, north east of Johannesburg. She was later transferred to Hoedspruit Elephant Rehabilitation and Development (HERD), where she now lives with a herd of elephants led by patriarchal bull, Jabulani. Adine Roode, HERD founder, said snaring is on the rise due to…

May

28

2021

By The African Mirror

Nature funding must triple by 2030 to protect land, wildlife and climate

SUSTAINABILITY

MICHAEL TAYLOR GLOBAL annual spending to protect and restore nature needs to triple this decade to about $350 billion by 2030 and rise to $536 billion by 2050, a U.N. report has said, urging a shift in mindset among financiers, businesses and governments. The inaugural State of Finance for Nature report looked at how to tackle the planet's climate, biodiversity and land degradation crises, estimating about $8 trillion in investment is needed by mid-century to safeguard natural systems. Report co-author Ivo Mulder, who heads the climate finance unit at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), said financial flows should work…

May

26

2021

By The African Mirror

Pope launches green initiative, decrying “predatory attitude” toward planet

SUSTAINABILITY

PHILIP PULLELLA POPE Francis launched an initiative on Tuesday to make Catholic institutions ranging from families to universities to businesses environmentally sustainable in seven years, saying a "predatory attitude" toward the planet must end. The Laudato Si Action Platform takes its name from the pope's landmark 2015 encyclical on the need to protect the environment, reduce wasteful lifestyles, stem global warming and protect the poor from the effects of climate change. At a news conference announcing the initiative, Cardinal Peter Turkson, head of the Vatican's development office, said the pope has been invited to attend the United Nations' Climate Change…