Oh, Canada’s become a home for record fracking
By Nicholas Kuznetz in ProPublica.Early last year, deep in the forests of northern British Columbia, workers for Apache Corp. performed what the company proclaimed was the biggest hydraulic fracturing operation ever. The project used 259 million gallons of water and 50,000 tons of sand to frack 16 gas wells side by side. It...
Armenian and Greek clergy clash at Christmas
Armenian and Greek priests have once again clashed, but this time at the Church of Nativity in Bethlehem, much to the astonishment and amusement of social media users worldwide. Apparently stemming from a dispute over which priests would clean which part of the church, such brawls are nothing new. In November 2008, for...
US Congress moves toward tougher stand on pipeline safety--but is it enough?
By Lena Groeger in ProPublica A bill to strengthen pipeline safety regulations passed the House and Senate last week and now awaits President Obama’s signature. But while many applaud Congress’s move toward more oversight, others question whether the impending law goes far enough to prevent oil and natural gas pipeline...
Responses to the death of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il
North Korean dictator, Kim Jong-il, died on December 17, 2011, from a heart attack. North Korean state television has shown North Koreans mourning and sobbing hard at the news. There are looming concerns that the death of Kim Jong-il could destabilize the Korean peninsula; the country's military has reportedly conducted...
RUSSIA: "Why are Russians protesting now?"
On Saturday December 10, 2011, the world watched the biggest protests Russia has seen since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. It has been almost exactly 20 years since Christmas Day in 1991 when power passed from Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev to Russian President Boris Yeltsin. It is believed that Yeltsin did not...
Turn it up!
For Syrians it’s an exhilarating experience simply to express honest political opinions out loud in a public place. For decades anti-regime gripes have been expressed in private, in whispers. Many were frightened to speak even in the home, lest the children repeat what they’d heard at school.But now people are screaming and...
Canadian youth delegates crash global polluters conference at COP17
On the day that Canada’s Environment Minister arrives in Durban, members of the Canadian Youth Delegation dressed in their BituMensWear “negotiator uniforms” and joined with organizers from around the globe at a protest at World Business Day during COP17 in Durban. Organized by the World Business Council for Sustainable...
KENYA: Food security concern as farmers change crops to coffee production
ELDORET, 23 November 2011 (IRIN) - The switch by many farmers in Kenya's Rift Valley province from staple cereals to more profitable coffee is likely to increase the country's dependence on grain imports and possibly affect food security, agricultural experts have warned."It is unsafe to use our land for crops with the hopes...
Canadian youth delegation releases policy requests delivered to Canadian government
As youth from across Canada prepare to depart for Durban, South Africa to participate in the next round of United Nations Climate Negotiations they have released a list of five policy changes submitted to the Canadian Delegation. "These requests represent five things that Canada could do immediately to stop being part of the...
Zimbabwe: Thousands of girls forced out of school
Poverty, abuse and cultural practices are preventing a third of Zimbabwean girls from attending primary school and 67 percent from attending secondary school, denying them a basic education, according to a recent study which found alarming dropout rates for girls. Sexual harassment and abuse by even school teachers and parents,...
