In today’s edition of Squirrel News, we take a look at the mass vaccination of children in Africa against malaria, the official new targets for corporate diversity set in the UK, and a reforestation project in Burundi that is bringing together men from formerly warring factions.
More than one million African children inocculated with first malaria vaccine
The World Health Organization declared that more than a million children in Kenya, Malawi and Ghana have received at least one dose of the first anti-malaria vaccine.
Source:
France 24
Target of 40% women on corporate boards set in UK
The British financial watchdog announced diversity targets for listed companies’ top leaders. 40% of board members should be women, and at least one executive should be a person of color. Firms will have to submit yearly reports showing their compliance.
Source:
Reuters
In Burundi, one-time combatants who razed forests now raise seedlings
In 2018, Burundi launched a vast national reforestation program to boost the country’s dwindling forest cover, which will run until 2025. Now, the formerly warring factions work together on the project that has been hailed as a fantastic initiative, especially as the planted trees are varied.
Source:
Mongabay
All-female gem mine in Zimbabwe gives abuse survivors a new future
The mine employs women who had experiences with abuse, such as being stuck in abusive relationships due to depending financially on their husbands. The workers say the jobs have enabled them to support themselves and their children independently.
Source:
Thomson Reuters Foundation
Non-invasive sound waves cure cancer in rats, new research shows
Scientists in Michigan, US, developed a new treatment, which uses focused ultrasound and is wholy non-invasive. The technology was extremely effective in the treatment of rats suffering from liver cancer and is now being trialed in humans.
Source:
Science Alert
How to connect with people with radically opposing views: Be curious
When faced with people whose perspective was radically different than hers, journalist Mónica Guzmán decided to listen. Instead of trying to prove people wrong, she sought to understand them by showing curiosity about their experiences.
Source:
Christian Science Monitor
Young climate activists breaking through the language barrier around the world
If you’re confused about climate change, this young climate NGO might be helpful, as they use people’s own languages to deliver the facts.
Source:
Good Good Good
Legal rights of nature and wild rice might be key to stopping a pipeline
Rights of Nature is an innovative legal movement led by Frank Bibeau, a lawyer from an Indigenous nation in the US. Bibeau’s main argument centers on the fact that the new pipeline would go through wild rice areas that were legally protected in a 1837 treaty.
Source:
Grist
Clean geothermal energy accessible through abandoned oil wells
The Earth’s core is hot, making it an infinite source of geothermal energy. High costs of drilling deep into the soil have made it less popular than other renewables, but now abandoned, emptied-out oil wells have turned out to be a surprising source of untapped power.
Source:
Vox Recode
History on the walls: Graffiti brings Manaus’s Indigenous roots to light
Artists in the Brazilian state with the largest Indigenous population are painting murals honoring native peoples’ culture. Community leaders hope the movement increases the visibility of their people’s urban plight, like poverty and stigma that discourage many from maintaining their culture and identity.