climate change
Russia has repeatedly proposed cooperation on cybersecurity to the US, but has not received a positive response, according to Putin. "We hear these endless and groundless accusations of some kind of interference, talking about cybersecurity. [...] Putin told the Arctic forum he sees positive changes in cooperation between Russia and the United States on Syria
Under Xi Jinping China has made no secret that it aspires to bigger roles on the global stage, including taking on leadership in global governance and multilateral cooperation. Xi’s recent speech at Davos World Economic Forum, though a little ironic, came as a timely boost for international trade and economic cooperation. In the case of climate change, should China become the next champion, this is not only because it seeks international status, but there is also concrete convergence of domestic interests and international commitments.
From March 28 to 30, Australia’s global ambassadors will be gathering in Canberra to discuss a range of topics on foreign affairs and trade. At the top of the agenda is the forthcoming Foreign Policy White Paper — the first in 14 years. The white paper will set Australia’s priorities for global engagement moving forward, including the aid program. Australia’s NGOs have had their say through an initial call for public submission.
The lights are being switched off around the world at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday evening, to mark the 10th annual Earth Hour, and to draw attention to climate change. The initiative began in Australia in 2007 as a grass roots gesture by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Australia against man-made carbon dioxide emissions linked to a warming planet. In 2017, it will involve the switching off of electric lights for an hour in 7,000 cities across 172 countries, at 8:30 p.m.
While the administration of US President Donald Trump is distancing itself from global climate action, European Union foreign affairs ministers adopted on March 6 conclusions on EU climate and energy diplomacy as part of the implementation of the EU Global Strategy. The objective is to strengthen synergies and links between the relevant elements of EU climate diplomacy and energy diplomacy and to establish priorities for 2017, the European Council said.
U.S. representative Raúl Grijalva said climate change is the greatest danger facing the world right now in his closing speech at the Science Diplomacy and Policy with Focus on the Americas conference in Tucson. Applause erupted from the conference attendees, speakers, panelists and organizers in the audience. [...] The conference aimed to provide a “state of the art” vision for the future in science diplomacy and policy.
What can cities do to create their own foreign policy? The first article laid out four steps a foreign ministry might take to help cities engage on global challenges: supporting city-based networks, helping to deploy civic technology, working with counterpart ministries abroad to encourage vertical policy integration, and convening the global community to build momentum behind significant and widespread municipal challenges
Climate change and population growth are creating increasing pressure on food and water — and to solve the need, innovative solutions will be required. The issue of water scarcity in the near future is an issue Australia’s aid program is attempting to solve today. [...] Scientists, engineers, academics, entrepreneurs and other creative minds are encouraged to compete as a team or individual.