News headlines in 2020, page 46

CARACAS, Aug 06 (IPS) - Every era brings its own buzzwords or catchphrases along with it. The term du jour is ‘pandemic', namely ‘coronavirus' and ‘COVID-19'; but alongside these words, speculation and forecasts over the post-pandemic world are flourishing. There is a proliferation of pieces and commentary on what our daily lives or the economy will be like once the epidemic is under control, that is, how we will live in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Aug 05 (IPS) - By 2050, 70% of the world's population is expected to live in towns and cities. Urban living brings many benefits, but city dwellers worldwide are seeing a rapid increase in noncommunicable health problems, such as asthma and inflammatory bowel disease.

Aug 05 (IPS) - To fully realise the mental health crisis that India faces in relation to COVID-19, one has to begin with recognising the very serious situation that existed even before the pandemic.

DHAKA, Aug 05 (IPS) - With nearly 5.5 million people people across Bangladesh affected by severe flooding -- the worst in two decades -- humanitarian experts are concerned that millions of people, already badly impacted by COVID-19, will be pushed further into poverty.

NEW YORK, Aug 04 (IPS) - The United Nations came into existence at a time of great despair, when the penholders of its founding document dared to imagine a better world, one that would be defined by peace and equality. Visionary world leaders chose hope over cynicism, empathy over indifference and partnership over distrust when they came together in San Francisco on 26 June 1945 to sign the Charter of the United Nations. They embarked upon a new, rules-based world order, with an Organization of unrivalled legitimacy at its core.

MIAMI, Aug 04 (IPS) - Long ago, I was reviewing the offer of readings on the Internet, as a break from the search for academic sources for one of those articles with which to comply with professional rules, impress colleagues and students, and continue climbing steps in the university.

BANGKOK, Thailand, Aug 04 (IPS) - After decades of impressive growth, for the first time, Southeast Asia is experiencing a drop in measured human development. The economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic will likely take months to reveal itself and years to put right. Yet, a legacy of mobilizing under constraints is leading Southeast Asia's pandemic response.

AMSTERDAM, Aug 04 (IPS) - The Sustainable Development goals on energy speak clear: universal access energy and clean cooking by 2030 (SDG7). But the current efforts are still lagging several steps behind the specific needs of the communities and are not enough to achieve energy access for all, especially clean cooking solutions.

I have never been interested in religion or spirituality before, but I found myself tuning in to all sorts of on-line religion and spirituality related forums "in search of something."

These are the words of a 30-something single young, middle class man (born into a Protestant-Catholic family background) in a European country. The latter is known more for turning several churches into museums or shopping centers, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. When people are afraid, lonely and alone - they tend to seek "something" beyond science.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Aug 04 (IPS) - The 2020 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the Worldissued by the Food and Agriculture Organization and its United Nations partners in mid-July, reports that chronic hunger continued to increase to 690 million worldwide in 2019, 60 million more than in 2014.