Bin Laden blames US for climate change, calls for action
Even Osama bin Laden, it appears, may be dissatisfied by the lack of progress at climate change negotiations in Copenhagen. In an audiotape broadcast by Al-Jazeera television Friday, the elusive Al Qaeda leader blamed the United States and other wealthy na
Davos talk turns to Haiti
Lesley-Anne Knight, Secretary General, Caritas Internationalis writes from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The theme of this year's World Economic Forum annual meeting at Davos is "Rethink, Redesign and Rebuild". When the theme was chosen m
Haiti earthquake: views from the aid world
By Maria Caspani LONDON (AlertNet) - Two weeks after a powerful earthquake killed as many as 200,000 Haitians, hopes of pulling more people alive from under the rubble are fading rapidly and the international relief effort is focused on getting help to hun
Majority decision making could save climate talks - analyst
If the U.N. climate negotiations seem to increasingly resemble the perpetually mired World Trade Organization talks, there's good reason: There's a lot of money at stake. A new climate deal could set the ground rules for the "largest distribution of resour
Haiti is not the end: Next big quake may be in Sumatra, expert says
The earthquake that rocked Padang, western Sumatra, in September last year, killing more than 1000 people, was not the "great earthquake" that earth scientists are waiting for. In fact, it may have made the next massive earthquake more likely, according to
Is rivalry among relief and media groups hampering aid flow to Haiti?
LONDON (AlertNet) - Many experts have berated a lack of coordination between numerous providers of aid in Haiti since a massive earthquake struck two weeks ago. Most of the reasons for this - such as severe damage to Haiti's government and aid agencies, it
Haiti and beyond: preparing for the next disaster
One part of the tragedy in Haiti is how unprepared the country was to deal with the earthquake on 12 January. Yet the risk is well established. And Haiti is equally vulnerable to the equally visible risk of hurricanes. Haiti is not alone in this lack of re
Cell phones and radios help save lives after Haiti earthquake
Thomson Reuters Foundation runs an Emergency Information Service in quake-hit Port-au-Prince
Efforts to curb climate change may need a rethink in wake of U.S. vote
It's hard to imagine an upset in one U.S. Senate race could derail plans for a new international climate change treaty. But that may be the case. The U.S. Democratic party's loss of a long-held Senate seat in Massachusetts this week, to Republican Scott Br
HAVE YOUR SAY: How could Haiti aid efforts be coordinated better?
LONDON (AlertNet) - Fuel shortages, impassable roads and ruptured communications in earthquake-stricken Haiti are slowing the distribution of vital aid to survivors - but is poor coordination of aid work compounding these problems? The answer depends on wh