#CleanAir4Health and #BreatheLife Upcoming Events....

Potent Pollutants - Mitigating the Power of Methane, Black Carbon and Refrigerants (HFCs) 31 July, 2018 Online Methane, black carbon, and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are powerful short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) present in the food and agricultural supply chains. This webinar will introduce and map out the impacts of SLCP emissions and how they are generated in these sectors from actions including open burning, dairy production, fuel, waste, and refrigeration. More information Latin American & Caribbean Climate Week 20 - 23 August, 2018 Montevideo, Uruguay Advancing regional climate action is the objective of this first Latin American & Carribbean Climate Week 2018 (LACC2018), intended to be an annual event. This year's event is meant to support implementation of countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement and climate action to deliver on the UN Sustainable Development Goals. More information The Pathway to the Paris Targets Matters (Climate and Clean Air Coalition side event at Latin America & Caribbean Climate Week) 23 August, 2018 Montevideo, Uruguay The Paris Climate Agreement under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) explicitly links the world’s long-term climate and near-term sustainability agendas. In the context of sustainable development, the path the world takes to meet the long-term temperature targets is as important as achieving the target itself, particularly for those that are already suffering from the impacts of climate change and poor air quality. The session will describe the Multiple Benefits Pathway Approach that is being developed by partners of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), and its application by a number of countries in the Latin American and Caribbean region. More information Combatting Climate Change by Reducing Emissions of Short-Lived Climate Pollutants: Perspectives on Science, Law and Policy 28 August, 2018 Helsinki, Finland An international seminar by the ClimaSlow research project to discuss the science and policy related to emissions of short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) in developing countries. It will focus on black carbon and methane in particular, with an emphasis on the science of SLCP mitigation in Asia and Latin America. On the policy side, the seminar’s goals include discussing challenges and opportunities related to the strengthening of the regulation and governance of SLCPs. More information

source: breathelife2030.org

Clean Air Headlines. Click to read more....

Clean Air Headlines Cheap, portable sensors are democratizing air-quality data To Fight Pollution, Delhi To Get 1,000 E-Buses The filter creating bubbles of clean air in London UK schools banning school run to protect pupils from air pollution London launches Walking Action Plan to become world's most walkable city Bikes Out, Trees In: Hanoi Tackles Air Pollution Woes Nairobi is planning car-free days—they could bring many benefits Iowa State study: Air pollution negatively associated with U.S. national park visitation San Francisco residents were sure nearby industry was harming their health. They were right. Why Car-Free Days are Popular in Indonesia

Join the conversation: Use the #CleanAir4Health and #BreatheLife hashtags to add your voice to the BreatheLife and clean air journey.

source:  breathelife2030.org

Air pollution linked to higher breast cancer risk in women

A Canadian study that tracked 90,000 women over two decades found that pre-menopausal women who live in areas with high air pollution were 30 per cent more likely to develop breast cancer before menopause.

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Join the conversation: Use the #CleanAir4Health and #BreatheLife hashtags to add your voice to the BreatheLife and clean air journey.

source:  breathelife2030.org

Asian residents exposed to much higher ultra-fine particles and soot than Europeans or North Americans

A review by the Global Centre for Clean Air Research at the University of Surrey has found that pedestrians in Asian cities were exposed to PM2.5 concentrations 1.6 to 1.2 times higher than those in cities in Europe or the United States, and those in cars and buses to concentrations two to three times higher. Pedestrians in Asian cities were also exposed to twice as much ultra-fine particulate pollution as those in Europe or the U.S., while concentrations in cars were in Asia were up to about nine times as high as those in Europe or the U.S. In terms of black carbon (or soot), Asian pedestrians were exposed to about 7 times the black carbon concentrations than were their European or North American counterparts.

Read More Join the conversation: Use the #CleanAir4Health and #BreatheLife hashtags to add your voice to the BreatheLife and clean air journey. source:  breathelife2030.org

CLEAN AIR FOR HEALTH: "Air pollution contributes significantly to diabetes globally...

"Exposure to air pollution, even at levels within those considered "safe" by a number of measures, is linked to an increased risk of developing diabetes, according to new research by the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Veterans Affairs (VA) St. Louis Health Care System. Controlling for false associations, the researchers estimated that air pollution contributed to 3.2 million new diabetes cases globally in 2016-- about 14 per cent of all new such cases that year. An estimated 8.2 million years of healthy life were lost that year due to pollution-linked diabetes, or about 14 per cent from diabetes overall. " source: BREATH LIFE Join the conversation: Use the #CleanAir4Health and #BreatheLife hashtags to add your voice to the BreatheLife and clean air journey.

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Wellness Pilipinas International: UN chief welcomes new law giving extra autonomy to...

UN chief welcomes new law giving extra autonomy to Muslims in Southern Philippines

27 July 2018

 

Peace and Security

The UN Secretary-General on Friday welcomed a new law which grants extra autonomy to Muslim communities living in the Southern Philippines, describing it as a “landmark achievement on the road to lasting peace”.

Philippine President, Rodrigo Duterte, signed the new legislation, formally known as the Organic Law for Bangsamoro in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, on Thursday, raising hopes that years of separatist violence involving central Government troops and militants from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, can be brought to an end.

“The Secretary-General congratulates negotiators for the Government of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the Bicameral Conference Committee, the Bangsamoro Transition Commission and civil society groups for their efforts,” said the UN chief, in a statement issued by his Spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric.

According to news reports, the long-anticipated new autonomy came four years after the Government signed a peace deal with the separatist group, which dropped its bid for full independence, seeking instead a new deal over self-rule.

The Front began its uprising in 1978, marking a period of violent confrontation which left around 120,000 dead. The new expanded autonomous region in the south, will be led initially by a transitional authority, before being run by a new parliamentary body, say reports.

The statement from the UN chief said that the UN “will continue to support the Philippines in the implementation of the law, and to help build the capacity of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority as an effective conduit for peace, democratic governance, and human rights”.Wellness Pilipinas International: UN chief welcomes new law giving extra autonomy to...: 27 July 2018 Peace and Security The  UN Secretary-General  on Friday welcomed a new law which grants extra autonomy to Musl...

#fCAT: Dress the world in wood, UN says in its ‘Forests for #Fashion’ initiative

The fashion industry is valued upward of 2.5 trillion dollars, and employs some 75 million people globally – so it makes good sense to shift textile production from fossil fuel-based synthetic fibers to renewable, biodegradable textiles, made from wood, according to a new United Nations initiative that aims to make forests literally more fashionable.

The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE)-FAO’s (Food and Agriculture Organization) “Forests for Fashion” initiative, links forest-based materials from sustainably managed forests, with the world of fashion.

“Sustainability of a society is both an individual and a collective responsibility,” said UN Development Programme (UNDP) Goodwill Ambassador Michelle Yeoh, at UN headquarters on Monday.

“The fashion industry is responsible for producing 20 per cent of global waste water and 10 per cent of the global carbon emissions – more than the emissions of all international flights and maritime shipping combined,” said the star of the movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

In addition, the textiles industry has recently been identified as a major polluter, with estimates of around half a million tonnes of plastic microfibers ending up in the world’s oceans as polyester, nylon or acrylic are washed each year.

“Fashion is often a synonym of dangerous working conditions, unsafe processes and hazardous substances used in production,” she continued, citing the cruel abuses of modern slavery and child labour.

Although the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are an ambitious blueprint for governments, Ms. Yeoh stressed that everyone must make a conscious choice to change habits and plan for the future.

“Today we count around 3.2 billion people in the global middle class,” she said. “By 2030, this number will rise to about 5.4 billion with the major part of the growth occurring in Asia. The 2.2 billion people entering the global middle class will aspire to a similar lifestyle as we know it today – which includes a similar consumption pattern with respect to clothing.”

UN News/Matt Wells

View of designs using textiles produced from wood-based fibers at the UN agencies backed exhibit

A fashion revolution

Calling fashion “a major development challenge,” Ms. Yeoh sees clothing as “an essential element for the transition towards sustainable societies.”

While acknowledging the need for governments’ involvement in shifting the fashion industry to in the right direction, she put the main onus on individuals to start the fashion “revolution”.

“Many of us would also think that forests are best left untouched, however is often by adding value to their products that we can best protect them, and in many cases restoration efforts can be coupled with productive forests,” she attested.

Moreover, forests can create productive ecosystems, to support local and rural communities. According to the UNDP envoy, ‘forest fibers are already a reality and textile businesses are growing or buying large forest extensions.”

“New fibers are highly sustainable, their carbon and ecological footprints are low, and there are different fast-growing species suitable for different places and climates,” she indicated.

“Let’s face it,” concluded Ms. Yeoh, “changing the production and consumption patterns of the fashion industry will have a domino effect on many aspects of development and provide a visible and meaningful contribution to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda.”