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Time of India
24-07-2025
- General
- Time of India
Fijian village of Nagigi adapts to rising seas and declining fish stocks with community-led solutions
Climate change threatens livelihoods in Nagigi village Live Events Women lead aquaculture and mangrove replanting efforts Community takes collective action for resource management (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Nagigi village, located on Savusavu Bay in Vanua Levu, Fiji's second-largest island, is facing direct impacts from climate change. With a population of 630, Nagigi relies heavily on marine resources for food security and income. Residents have observed significant environmental shifts in recent years, including rising sea levels and fish scarcity.'Tides are pushing inland. Once abundant, fish are now harder to find. Sandy beaches and coconut trees have been washed away,' one villager read: Award-winning reggae artist Fiji, known for Hawaiian and Polynesian hits, dies at 55 In discussions held in 2021 and 2023, villagers reported increased coastal erosion, saline intrusion into plantations, and extreme weather events such as Tropical Cyclone Winston in 2016, which destroyed homes and forced some residents to relocate inland.'Sometimes the sea is coming further onto the land, so there's a lot of sea intrusion into the plantations,' one resident explained. While some were able to move to customary mataqali land, others lacked access or preferred to remain near the coast.'Leave us here. I think if I don't smell or hear the ocean for one day I would be devastated,' a villager address declining fish stocks and adapt to climate pressures, the women of the nearby Bia-I-Cake settlement, with a population of 60, have spearheaded community-led initiatives. The Bia-I-Cake Women's Cooperative launched a small-scale aquaculture project, farming tilapia and carp to reduce food insecurity and diversify local by grants from the United Nations Development Programme and Women's Fund Fiji, the cooperative has built fish ponds, reared fish, and sold them through local markets and online platforms. The group also established a greenhouse to cultivate new crops and began mangrove replanting to mitigate coastal erosion.'These efforts show women have the capacity to build a sustainable, secure and thriving community,' one woman initiatives reflect both a response to environmental challenges and an application of traditional stewardship practices tied to the Fijian concept of, a holistic view of the interconnectedness of land, sea, people, and residents have taken additional steps to preserve marine resources. The village has temporarily closed customary fishing areas to allow fish populations to recover and is considering the declaration of a locally-managed marine area, or. These measures respond to climate impacts, overfishing, and reef generations, villagers have practiced resource protection, but these actions are now being formalized in the face of environmental threats. However, adaptation efforts remain uneven. Not all residents can afford relocation or reconstruction, and some lack access to customary read: UN's top court says failing to protect planet from climate change could violate international law The Nagigi case illustrates the significance of local adaptation strategies. The community has demonstrated an ability to assess risks, implement responses, and recover from climate-related damages using available social and ecological assets.'Small communities are not just passive sites of loss. They are collectives of strength, agency and ingenuity,' researchers noted. As climate adaptation efforts expand across the Pacific, support for community-led responses will be essential.
USA Today
16-05-2025
- Health
- USA Today
Maker of Halo Top, Blue Bunny recalls over 17,000 tubs of ice cream: See affected products
Maker of Halo Top, Blue Bunny recalls over 17,000 tubs of ice cream: See affected products Show Caption Hide Caption Tips to help manage food recalls and prevent foodborne illnesses About 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 people die each year from preventable foodborne illnesses. Payton, USA TODAY Over 17,000 tubs of ice cream products that include several popular brands like Blue Bunny have been voluntarily recalled due to the possible presence of plastic, the Food and Drug Administration announced. The recall was initially initiated on April 25, and it affects Wells Enterprises-manufactured ice cream products to 103 facilities in the U.S. Wells Enterprises, based in Le Mars, Iowa, owns popular brands including Blue Bunny, Halo Top, Bomb Pop and Blue Ribbon Classics. The FDA classified the recall, which affects 3-gallon ice cream products from the manufacturer, as Class II, meaning the use of or exposure to the product "may cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequences." The tubs of ice cream include varying flavors, with the largest being more than 5,280 tubs of Vanilla Frozen Yogurt. "Foreign material (plastic) may be present in ice cream product," the recall says. Which Wells Enterprises ice cream products were recalled? All affected ice cream products contain an expiration date ranging between March and October 2026. The recalled items include: What are the potential dangers of consuming plastics? According to the United Nations Development Programme, the consumption of microplastics has been linked to serious health issues, such as endocrine disruption, weight gain, insulin resistance, decreased reproductive health and cancer. Although the potential dangers of consuming microplastics is apparent, World Health Organization analysis on current research related to microplastics identified that there is currently limited evidence to indicate that microplastics are causing significant adverse health impacts on humans. Jonathan Limehouse covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at JLimehouse@
South China Morning Post
07-03-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Arab states' Gaza recovery plan fails to sway Trump as US insists on ‘Riviera' vision
A new pan-Arab plan for the reconstruction of Gaza has failed to persuade President Donald Trump to drop his controversial proposal for the US to occupy the strip and redevelop it into a luxury Mediterranean resort after forcibly evicting the embattled Palestinian population. Advertisement Based on World Bank and United Nations Development Programme assessments, which have estimated the cost of Gaza's reconstruction at US$53 billion, the plan unveiled on Tuesday and approved by the 22-member League of Arab States at a summit in Egypt envisions a three-phase, five-year recovery process without any population displacement. 'After Trump's proposal, Arab states felt impelled to come up with an alternative,' said Barbara Slavin, a distinguished Middle East fellow of the Stimson Centre think tank in Washington. Clemens Chay, a research fellow of the National University of Singapore's Middle East Institute, said the Arab plan for Gaza 'represents a projection of solidarity' by Arab leaders in a bid to counter Trump's 'Middle East Riviera' proposal. The Egyptian-authored proposal underscored the broad consensus in the Arab world that Trump's vision 'does not sit well not just with ruling elites, but also with their public', Chay said. Advertisement In its response, the White House thanked 'our Arab partners in the region' for their 'input' but said Trump 'stands by his vision to rebuild Gaza free from Hamas'. Trump's proposal has been widely criticised by various leaders and security analysts as a formula for ethnic cleansing.
