This year marks the 100th anniversary of the International Women's Day.
According to Women Watch, the day was commemorated for the first time on 19 March 1911 in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland, following its establishment during the Socialist International meeting the prior year. More than one million women and men attended rallies on that first commemoration.
During International Women's Year in 1975, the United Nations Organization began celebrating 8 March as International Women's Day. Two years later, in December 1977, the U.N General Assembly adopted a resolution proclaiming a United Nations Day for Women's Rights and International Peace to be observed on any day of the year by Member States, in accordance with their historical and national traditions
According to Wikipedia, in different countries the focus of the celebrations ranges from general celebration of respect, appreciation and love towards women to a celebration for women's economic, political and social achievements.
In many countries, the day lost its political flavour, and became simply an occasion for men to express their love for women in a way somewhat similar to a mixture of Mother's Day and St Valentine's Day. In other regions, however, the original political and human rights theme designated by the United Nations runs strong, and political and social awareness of the struggles of women worldwide are brought out and examined in a hopeful manner.
According to the site International Women's Day 2011, the United Nations Organization has declared the theme for this year's is : Equal access to education, training and science and technology: Pathway to decent work for women.
In this connection I wish every women in the world a happy International Women's Day.
Showing posts with label United Nations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label United Nations. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Thursday, December 9, 2010
International Anti-Corruption Day
On 31 October 2003, the United Nation General Assembly adopted the Convention against Corruption which became effective in December 2005.
Credit: UNDOC
In order to raise awareness of Corruption and of the role of the Convention in combating and preventing it, the U.N General Assembly has declared that 9 December as the International Anti-Corruption Day.
I hope that the government, the parliament, the judicial bodies and the Corruption fighters in Indonesia would increase their efforts to eradicate Corruption in Indonesia.
Source : United Nations website.
In order to raise awareness of Corruption and of the role of the Convention in combating and preventing it, the U.N General Assembly has declared that 9 December as the International Anti-Corruption Day.
I hope that the government, the parliament, the judicial bodies and the Corruption fighters in Indonesia would increase their efforts to eradicate Corruption in Indonesia.
Source : United Nations website.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Carbon Credits for Palm Oil growers
Environment organizations like WALHI and Greenpeace have accused that Palm Oil growers are responsible for destroying forests therefore destroying the habitat of Orangutan.
Is spite of these accusations, the Ministry of Forestry is planning to include Palm Oil growers among those eligible to get Carbon Credit i.e. a United Nations backed scheme aimed at preserving forest.
Please find below a related report by Reuters.
Such a move could potentially create a new line of revenue for the palm oil industry and listed firms like Wilmar (WLIL.SI) and PT Astra Agro Lestari (AALI.JK), but is likely to anger green groups who accuse planters of deforestation.
Indonesia was the first country to develop a national framework for a U.N-backed forest preservation scheme called reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD).
The scheme would allow forested developing countries like Indonesia to be paid potentially billions of dollars from rich nations not to chop down their trees. [ID:nJAK495718]
Countries began developing domestic legal frameworks for REDD in anticipation of a global agreement on the scheme at climate talks held in Copenhagen last year, which will be continued in Mexico in December.
"If there is agreement on REDD, we could put palm oil plantations to be eligible for that," said Wandojo Siswanto, a special adviser to the forestry minister and one of Indonesia's lead negotiators at global climate talks.
Siswanto said the forestry ministry was working with the national planning agency, Bappenas, on the feasibility of including palm oil in Indonesia's national strategy on REDD.
"I think it would be good if we just say that palm oil plantations could also mitigate climate change through carbon sequestration through the nature of the trees," he said, adding that both existing plantations and future plantations developed on degraded land could be eligible.
Monoculture forests trap climate warming greenhouse gases but not nearly as much as natural heterogeneous forests.
Moray McLeish, of the Washington-based environment think tank World Resources Institute, said clear definitions of what constituted a forest were needed.
"If a plantation is regarded as a forest, then you can cut down a virgin forest and replace it with a plantation and on paper you have no change," he said.
"On the ground you have massive carbon emissions, massive loss of biodiversity, loss of ecosystem system services and loss of livelihoods for local people.
OBSTACLES
The UN has yet to formulate its definition of forest for the purposes of REDD but has already developed a set of safeguards to prevent planters from clearing natural forest and then being rewarded with carbon credits.
Tim Boyle, the Bangkok-based regional coordinator for the U.N. REDD programme, warned that the global climate talks on a successor to the Kyoto Protocol may end up adopting a definition of forest that specifically excluded palm oil from REDD.
"It would be strange if it was assumed that palm oil was going to be counted as forest. That would seem risky to me," he said.
(Editing by Neil Chatterjee and Jonathan Thatcher)
Is spite of these accusations, the Ministry of Forestry is planning to include Palm Oil growers among those eligible to get Carbon Credit i.e. a United Nations backed scheme aimed at preserving forest.
Please find below a related report by Reuters.
Indonesia may let palm oil growers collect CO2 credits
By Sunanda Creagh
JAKARTA Aug 9 (Reuters) - Indonesia may propose palm oil plantations be eligible to earn carbon credits under a U.N.-backed scheme aimed at preserving forests, a forestry ministry official said on Monday.Such a move could potentially create a new line of revenue for the palm oil industry and listed firms like Wilmar (WLIL.SI) and PT Astra Agro Lestari (AALI.JK), but is likely to anger green groups who accuse planters of deforestation.
Indonesia was the first country to develop a national framework for a U.N-backed forest preservation scheme called reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD).
The scheme would allow forested developing countries like Indonesia to be paid potentially billions of dollars from rich nations not to chop down their trees. [ID:nJAK495718]
Countries began developing domestic legal frameworks for REDD in anticipation of a global agreement on the scheme at climate talks held in Copenhagen last year, which will be continued in Mexico in December.
"If there is agreement on REDD, we could put palm oil plantations to be eligible for that," said Wandojo Siswanto, a special adviser to the forestry minister and one of Indonesia's lead negotiators at global climate talks.
Siswanto said the forestry ministry was working with the national planning agency, Bappenas, on the feasibility of including palm oil in Indonesia's national strategy on REDD.
"I think it would be good if we just say that palm oil plantations could also mitigate climate change through carbon sequestration through the nature of the trees," he said, adding that both existing plantations and future plantations developed on degraded land could be eligible.
Monoculture forests trap climate warming greenhouse gases but not nearly as much as natural heterogeneous forests.
Moray McLeish, of the Washington-based environment think tank World Resources Institute, said clear definitions of what constituted a forest were needed.
"If a plantation is regarded as a forest, then you can cut down a virgin forest and replace it with a plantation and on paper you have no change," he said.
"On the ground you have massive carbon emissions, massive loss of biodiversity, loss of ecosystem system services and loss of livelihoods for local people.
OBSTACLES
The UN has yet to formulate its definition of forest for the purposes of REDD but has already developed a set of safeguards to prevent planters from clearing natural forest and then being rewarded with carbon credits.
Tim Boyle, the Bangkok-based regional coordinator for the U.N. REDD programme, warned that the global climate talks on a successor to the Kyoto Protocol may end up adopting a definition of forest that specifically excluded palm oil from REDD.
"It would be strange if it was assumed that palm oil was going to be counted as forest. That would seem risky to me," he said.
(Editing by Neil Chatterjee and Jonathan Thatcher)
Friday, February 26, 2010
Environment Award for Indonesia
The news media have been reporting about destruction of nature in Indonesia, such as Destruction of Ocean Coral and Mangrove Forests and Deforestation.
For this reason, I am very glad when I read the news in Tempointeraktif about Indonesia receiving an Environmental Award from the United Nations.
I hope that this award will strengthen the government's will to implement the Environmental Protection and Management Law.
Award for Indonesia Sea Promotion
Thursday, 25 February, 2010 | 19:38 WIB
TEMPO Interactive, Nusa Dua:Indonesia received the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Award at the opening of Global Environment Forum yesterday.
Indonesia is considered to be successful in promoting sea management and the life source potentials in the sea.
The award was provided by UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner and received directly by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
“This award will push us to be even better in managing the sea,” said the President.
Indonesia is considered to be successful in promoting sea management and the life source potentials in the sea.
The award was provided by UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner and received directly by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
“This award will push us to be even better in managing the sea,” said the President.
ROFIQI HASAN
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