Ontario cancels tree planting

On April 19, all remaining members of the L2FH Rotation 2 left the Bentiu base and returned to the capital of Juba, from which they will fly back home.

At 6:45a.m, having completed handover procedures, the members of the L2FH Rotation 2 bid farewell to their peers of the L2FH Rotation 3 and joined a flag-raising ceremony at the Bentiu base.

The last flag-raising ceremony was held simply but solemnly, showing the solidarity and high determination of the hospital’s staff while performing their duties, especially amid the complicated development of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The working results of the L2FH Rotation 2 have been highly appreciated by the UN, contributing to affirming the desire and love for peace of the Vietnamese people, and further promoting the beautiful image of Uncle Ho’s soldiers to international friends and people of the host country.

Before leaving Bentiu, members of the L2FH Rotation 2 and 3 planted trees together at the hospital compound as a message to continue the noble UN peacekeeping mission.

As scheduled, on April 22, the remaining staff of the L2FH Rotation 2 will return to Vietnam by aircraft C17 of the Royal Australian Air Force.

Translated by Minh Anh

Deputy Director General of the General Department of Geology and Minerals Lai Hong Thanh

Baden-Wuerttemberg’s interior minister and chairman of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Thomas Strobel (L) talks with climate activists ahead of the start of the coalition talks with the green party in Stuttgart, southern Germany, on April 8, 2021 after regional elections in Baden-Wuerttemberg.(THOMAS KIENZLE / AFP)

In 2019, millions of people, led by student and youth organisations, flooded the world’s streets to demand that governments act to stave off the worst effects of global warming.

But then came Covid-19, bringing the global movement to a screeching halt, with lockdowns and travel restrictions forcing mass events to be cancelled and activism to shift online.

“The pandemic hit right at the moment when we were peaking in terms of mobilisation,” said Nicolas Haeringer, from the environmental group 350.org.

Youth activists quickly adapted to online activism, and the pandemic may even have helped groups based in richer countries to devise better ways to include activists from developing nations.

The School Strike for Climate movement “was deeply rooted in European youth,” said Haeringer.

“The pandemic has been used to rebalance things and build real leadership in global south nations.”

While the internet is ideal for laying plans, it is clear that the impetus has waned from movements unable to protest in real life.

“It has been hard for movements,” said Clare Farrell, a co-founder of the civil disobedience Extinction Rebellion movement.

“We build relationships through face-to-face work often so we are really looking forward to getting back out to do actions in public space, to meet new people and build the movements again.”

– Shifting tactics –

Dana Fisher, professor of sociology at the University of Maryland, said that climate activists have spent the last year also campaigning for similar causes in solidarity with other movements.

This includes participating in activism against systemic racism and in helping people of colour gain better access to Covid-19 vaccines.

In the US, “the movement is definitely not stopping, but the tactic of the climate strike is not a dominant form of activism right now and it may never return,” said Fisher.

But many youth strikers are undeterred by the turbulent last 12 months.

“We’re keeping in touch, it’s great and I believe that there will be another youth mobilisation,” said Michel Villarreal, a Bolivian student activist.

There are a number of high-profile events in 2021 that activists could use as launch pads for wider activities.

The first is next week with US President Joe Biden’s virtual climate summit.

In September, the global congress of the International Union for Conservation of Nature is set to take place in the French port city of Marseille, Covid permitting.

Then comes the COP15 on biodiversity in Kunming, China, in October, followed hot on its heels by the COP26 UN climate talks in the Scottish city of Glasgow.

Groups are already planning a global day of action to “reclaim the initiative”, probably at the start of Autumn, said Haeringer.

“It’s imperative that we get citizens energised this year to make sure that the powers that be see how widespread support for rapid action really is,” added Farrell.

But it remains to be seen how inclusive any climate activity can be.

The global vaccine rollout has been deeply uneven, with stockpiling in richer nations, while poorer countries struggle to get their hands on doses.

“Will the youth movement descend on the streets, express their will for things to change and demand more political courage to implement strong climate policies?” said Amy Dahan, a science historian specialising in climate change at France’s CNRS research network.

“It’s hard to say.”

Swedish activist Greta Thunberg has led calls to ensure that the vaccine rollout is sufficiently equitable to ensure that COP26 has equal representation from all nations.

“It’s important to think hard about the experience of the pandemic and all that it’s shown us from the social inequalities it’s exposed,” said Farrell.

Hanoi (VNA) – Foreign direct investment (FDI) poured into Vietnam during the first quarter of 2021 increased compared to the same period last year despite complex developments of COVID-19, which was a relatively positive result but is not sustainable, an insider has said.

In Q1, the country attracted 10.13 billion USD in FDI, up 18.5 percent year-on-year. Of the figure, 4.1 billion USD was disbursed, rising 6.5 percent.

Nguyen Van Toan, Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises, told the Cong Thuong (Industry & Trade) newspaper that foreign investment is yet to be sustainable since growth was concentrated in March, with nearly 5 billion USD registered.

He highlighted a liquefied natural gas-fuelled power plant worth 3.1 billion USD invested by Singapore in the Mekong Delta province of Long An. This major project was granted an investment registration certificate on March 19, providing a strong boost to FDI inflows in March and Q1 as a whole.

In addition, most investment during the period still came from traditional partners like Singapore, the Republic of Korea, Japan, and China, while that from the US and Europe remained modest. Given this, there weren’t any breakthroughs in FDI flows during the first three months, he went on.

Considerable improvements have been recorded in FDI disbursement, Toan noted, with disbursed capital increasing each year, from 12.5 billion USD in 2014 to 20.3 billion USD in 2019 and then 19.98 billion USD in 2020 despite the pandemic.

However, he also pointed out that total registered FDI in Vietnam has to date reached 388.8 billion USD, but only 234.36 billion USD or 60.2 percent has been disbursed. Disbursed capital in Q1 accounted for just 40 percent of registered investment.

It is disbursed capital, not registered capital, that shows FDI is flowing into the economy, according to Toan.

To narrow the gap between registered and disbursed capital, he suggested, the Government, ministries, sectors, and localities should adopt more effective and stronger solutions in the time ahead./.

VNA

Hanoi People’s Committee is seeking the citizens’ opions to finalize the Regulations on activities in the walking space around Hoan Kiem Lake and the surrounding areas. There are a number of new points in the draft regulations, and the most noticeable one is that it recommends dressing politely and refraining from using indecent language in pedestrian streets around Hoan Kiem Lake. This is not the first time that such recommendations have been made, but this reminder is considered still necessary rather than redundant.

More than 3 years ago, a Code of Conduct at public places, which also emphasizes communication standards, was issued by Hanoi People’s Committee. In the draft Regulations on activities in the walking space around Hoan Kiem Lake and the surrounding areas, organizations and individuals are also required to take part in practicing a civilized lifestyle, etiquette at public places, cultured behaviors and polite dressing, while avoiding behaviors and words which are vulgar, uncultured, or incompatible with the fine customs, etc.

Finalizing the Regulations governing activities in the walking space: an urgent action

After the pilot period, the weekend walking space around Hoan Kiem Lake has been officially institutionalized, attracting tens of thousands of visitors on average every weekend, but slang or swear words can still be heard here occasionally, particularly from youngsters. Some individuals dressing in “lack of fabric” clothing, although only a minority, still become an eyesore for the people around. The saddest thing is that for many years, on New Year’s Eve, “Sword Lake” pedestrian streets have witnessed people jostling, breaking branches, picking flowers, trampling on the plants decorated to celebrate the New Year. The surrounding roads have been full of rubbish like plastic bags and cups, which leaves a arduous all-night task for the sanitation workers.

The Regulations on activities in the walking space around Hoan Kiem Lake and surrounding areas are taken as a reminder that people need to have a civilized and polite manner, whether in the family or on walking streets. In Hanoi – the Capital of a thousand years of civilization, it is especially important to behave more carefully in public cultural spaces.

Promoting cultured behaviors is an urgent and long-term task, starting with the education and awareness of each person. In order to create a healthy public cultural space, it is necessary to build a cultural foundation with strong values, ethical standards and legal systems that are actively and strictly enforced.