Accurate and timely communication is key to stopping transmission of Ebola
Global coverage of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa began with courageous foreign health care workers being flown home by their governments to save their lives, and rapidly moved onto the sheer panic amongst the local populations experiencing the outbreak: riots, health care workers and government officials abandoning their posts. Somewhere imbetween mention was made, usually by the foreign health care workers, of their local colleagues left behind who struggled on without resources and personal protection. We examine the need for timely accurate communication of health information to frightened communities to stop transmission and the death toll.
The Cost of Pakistan’s Floods
IPCC Highlights Urgent Need for Greater Political Will Over Climate Change Readiness The last 2 weeks have seen the worst floods in Kashmir for almost 50 years. In Pakistan alone, more than 250 people have died and hundreds of thousands have been displaced. The waters currently extend well into the country’s most populous province, Punjab…
World Water Monitoring Day 2014
World Water Monitoring Day (WWMD) is observed each year on September 18. It was initially chosen to coincide with the anniversary of the US Clean Water Act on October 18, but was changed to encourage participation in regions of the world where temperatures reach freezing point at that time of the year. WWMD was established…
Indigenous peoples and tourism
Using social media as the primary means of communication, Planeta.com and partners have designated the week from 4 August 2014 as Indigenous Peoples Week: an "annual celebration of social web storytelling about indigenous peoples and tourism around the world." Indigenous peoples are widely used by national tourism boards in marketing, and many tours sell…
Alcohol and sport: “drinking culture” affects youth health
Witnessing "beer towers" at the recent test match between England and Sri Lanka [Lords cricket ground} and thus the drinking culture amongst young sports fans, prompted my investigation of the health facts behind binge drinking and the misuse of alcohol by youing adults. Binge drinking is linked to increased injuries & accidents, violence, and now research evidence is accumulating for long-term effects : detrimental brain changes, and increased risk of depression and diabetes.
Working out how to work out: do we understand physical activity levels?
The World Health Organization and many national governments issue guidelines as to how much exercise we should all do to stay healthy. Current exercise recommendations from the WHO for 18- to 64-year-olds include "at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity throughout the week or at least 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity…
Animal machines: 50 years on
A symposium organized by CABI and the Royal Veterinary College to mark the 50th anniversary of Animal Machines, by Ruth Harrison, reviewed how far we have come in understanding and improving animal welfare since the publication of the book, which marked the start of the movement for welfare of animals in intensive production. “Would Ruth…
CABI Switzerland Scientists take home WSSA Award
Selected for their contribution to the Outstanding Paper in Invasive Plant Science and Management 2014, two CABI scientists took home this prestigious award at the Weed Science Society of America Annual Meeting in Vancouver. The event was held jointly with the Canadian Weed Science Society (CWSS) between 3-6 February 2014. Dr Hariet Hinz (left) and…
“Land Belongs to the Future, Let’s Climate Proof It” – World Day to Combat Desertification 2014
June 17 has been designated by the United Nations as World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought (WDCD). The slogan of this year’s WDCD is ‘Land Belongs to the Future, Let’s Climate Proof It’, which aims to ‘highlight the benefits of mainstreaming sustainable land management policies and practices into our collective response to climate change’. The…
Why recreational soccer is good for you – whatever your age
The FIFA World Cup starts in Brazil this week, and for the next month the elite of the world's soccer players will be on display. For most of us watching, any dream of playing on the big stage will have long since vanished (if indeed it ever existed). But a series of papers from the…