Despite current financial woes, a UN summit called to rev up the war on global poverty raised a total of roughly 16 billion dollars, UN chief Ban Ki-moon said. “We have full commitment from many countries in pledges to help the world’s poor.”
On the malaria front, participants committed around three billions dollars for a program to save more than 4.2 million lives between 2008 and 2015. (Thanks to Bill F. for the news tip)
Lunches for over 200 million hungry schoolchildren in the developing world will be delivered, thanks to a commitment of $80 million by leading restaurant company YUM! Brands.
The pledge to the UN World Food Program was made during the annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in New York, which coincides with the UN high-level event on the Millennium Development Goals– the eight targets for slashing poverty, hunger, illiteracy and other socio-economic ills by 2015.
Josette Sheeran, the chief of YUM! Brands, the parent firm of TACO Bell, Pizza Hut and Kentucky Fried Chicken, said, “This incredible expression of generosity shows what can be done when the private sector joins with a major humanitarian agency to help meet the needs of some of the world’s most vulnerable children.”
Tiny remote spy planes used during wartime have now been modified to transport medical samples to and from remote areas. Watch this from New Scientist
Automakers in the US led by General Motors and Toyota are racing to bring rechargeable electric cars to the mass market in response to increasing customer and regulatory demands for improved fuel economy and low emissions, reported Reuters. “On Tuesday, Chrysler unveiled three electric car prototypes and said it would bring one to market by 2010.” Reuters provides in this article a neat rundown on electric vehicle progress at each of the six major automakers in the U.S.
Beatles star, Sir Sir Paul McCartney makes a surprise visit to the West Bank and lights a candle for peace “for all the people in the world, but especially for Israel and Palestine.” McCartney will play his first ever concert in Israel today, on the occasion of the Jewish state’s 60th birthday.
(Below the video, read the story about preparations for the concert)
Thanks to Bill F. for the news tip!
Colombia’s citizens have shed their fear and have more confidence in the State, thanks to the consolidation of democracy and security following years of fear imposed by terrorists, the South American nation’s President said yesterday at the UN General Assembly.
Over two-thirds of the 60,000 terrorists who had “ravaged the country at the start of the new administration” have turned their back on criminal activity and are taking part in a reintegration program, said Colombia’s president Álvaro Uribe Vélez.
The U.S. Senate’s passed a bill that would extend $18 billion in tax credits for renewable energy for eight years. The measure, which is expected to be approved by the House of Representatives and President Bush, gives businesses a 30 percent tax credit to offset the development costs of solar and other clean energy projects. (Environmental News Network)
Georgia Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox proved she is smarter than a 5th grader by winning $1 million for her school system on the third season debut of “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” on Fox Friday night. The good news is the decided to donate her winnings to three schools for blind and deaf students. (Read the blog and story at USA Today)
The Nations of the world can gather this week with pride on the occasion of the 63rd session of the General Assembly of the UN in New York City, having together achieved great progress this summer in bringing peace, stability, fun, and health to millions of the least fortunate people around the world.
Take a look at this impressive handful of beneficial programs launched and conducted this year by the UN to help women create jobs, aid hurricane victims, fight malaria, preserve ancient Egyptian history, broker peace deals and spread laughter, as well as school lessons), to child refugees (thanks to Clowns Without Borders).
Vigils around the state of Georgia were cancelled and replaced by celebrations as the US Supreme Court granted a last-minute stay of execution to Troy Davis, an inmate on death row in Georgia who was due to be put to death tonight. Seven out of nine witnesses who gave evidence at Davis’ original murder trial had recanted or changed their testimony — the backbone of the prosecution’s case. which could produce no murder weapon, fingerprints or DNA. (More at Yahoo News)
Solar power, properly harnessed, could solve the world’s energy problems. In the race to produce energy from the sun’s rays, Europe’s first commercial solar-thermal-electricity plant is at the forefront of a growing movement for green power. In Seville, in the south of Spain, 624 moving mirrors reflect sunbeams onto a 115-meter-high white tower that uses the concentrated heat to boil water, making steam that spins an electric turbine 97 times a second. (A Bloomberg Exclusive)
Thanks to Sun Star for the tip!
A simple and affordable test for cervical cancer, designed for countries that don’t have the money for expensive labs, could strike a massive blow against the disease called the “silent killer” of women, doctors said on Sunday. In rural China the test was 90% effective.
Tyler Perry, the writer-director-actor of popular films aimed at black audiences, volunteered at a homeless shelter and food pantry, unloading and packaging food he donated to feed more than 1,000 Atlanta area families. (Read the full story at USA Today)
The moringa’s leaves and seedpods deliver extraordinary nutrition: Ounce for ounce, a Red Cross official said, moringa leaves contain more beta carotene than carrots, more calcium than milk, more iron than spinach, more Vitamin C than oranges, and more potassium than bananas. Its protein content is comparable to that of milk and eggs, and its leaves are still available for harvest at the end of the dry season, when other food may be scarce. (Read the full story in the Christian Science Monitor)
Two years ago California passed a landmark law requiring a 25 percent cut in industrial greenhouse gases by 2020, and some critics said the move would hurt the economy. Now, two studies released this week by the California Air Resources Board, claim that implementing the emission-cutting measures under the pioneering law would actually benefit California’s economy as well as the public health. (Full story at Christian Science Monitor)
What are the benefits of sub-prime mortgages on the culture of bribery south of the border? Give the Mexican police force access to home mortgages to help fight widespread corruption in its ranks. So goes the thinking of a new pilot program designed to “keep them out of the pockets of organized crime”. Officers and prison guards in Michoacan state can now benefit from special deals to finance new home ownership. (Associated Press via Yahoo News)
What are the benefits of sub-prime mortgages on the culture of bribery south of the border? Give the Mexican police force access to home mortgages to help fight widespread corruption in its ranks. So goes the thinking of a new pilot program designed to “keep them out of the pockets of organized crime”. Officers and prison guards in Michoacan state can now benefit from special deals to finance new home ownership. (Associated Press via Yahoo News)
The Good News Network was featured in a recent episode of a TV show that aired in 14 markets last weekend. The show is called American Crossroads. They focused the entire 60 minutes this week on GOOD news, and it began with a nice long profile of me, the TV crew having come to my home a few weeks back. Watch the excellent the show on this link!
Chicago became another in a long list of U.S. cities taking the lead in the fight against climate change.
On Thursday, Chicago mayor Richard M. Daley unveiled a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 25 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 — and continue to cut even faster beyond that.
“I believe that when you do such things as planting trees and creating open space, when you invest resources to remove pollution from the air and encourage the construction of buildings that are smart for the environment, then you enhance quality of life for all the residents of the city.”
But, this is about more than cleaning up our environment, the Mayor said. “At the same time, when we make these improvements we’re greening our economy for the future and creating the jobs of tomorrow,” Daley said.
Australian scientists have discovered hundreds of new types of coral and marine species during an expedition off the Great Barrier reef. Three expeditions to the barrier reefs over four years have discovered 300 soft corals of which 130 are new species, the discoveries will help scientists understand more about global warming and overfishing.
