India-Pakistan conflict over water reflects a region increasingly vulnerable to climate change: Water from the Chandra Taal lake in Himachal Pradesh, India, ultimately flows into Pakistan and the Indus river. ImagesofIndia / shutterstock In an unprecedented move, India recently suspended the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan, citing cross-border terrorism. This was one of a …
Lebanon: the killing of Hassan Nasrallah leaves Hezbollah leaderless and vulnerable: The assassination of Hezbollah chief, Hassan Nasrallah, in an Israeli airstrike on September 28 is a decisive blow – not only to Hezbollah, but also to Iran, which has lost its greatest ally in the Middle East. In recent days, the conflict between Israel …
How we’re using ‘chaos engineering’ to make cloud computing less vulnerable to cyber attacks: Armadillo Photograp Cloud computing has emerged as a crucial element in today’s technology, serving as the backbone for global connectivity. It empowers businesses, governments, and individuals to employ and construct cloud-based services and forms the foundation for a huge range of …
Mexican government failing to provide decent jobs for vulnerable youth – leaving the door open to cartel recruitment: Mexico’s “war on drugs” began in 2006, when the newly elected president, Felipe Calderón, ordered thousands of troops onto the streets in an attempt to combat drug violence. The results have been disastrous. The government’s military operations …
How government payments to the vulnerable can multiply to create economic growth for everyone: Many governments gave out payments during COVID to support citizens. Azure Alpine Artistry/Shutterstock The economic fallout of COVID-19 left people around the world facing a significant threat to their livelihood. As governments scrambled to mitigate the pandemic’s impact on their populations, …
The most vulnerable shoulder rising energy costs because their homes aren’t efficient enough – here’s why that’s so hard to tackle: Maren Winter/Shutterstock In September 2023, the UK prime minister, Rishi Sunak, announced that landlords will no longer be required to improve the energy efficiency of their rental properties. The announcement marked a departure from decades …
Creative minds are vulnerable to mental illness – but magicians escape the curse: 1STudio.az/Shutterstock Can you think of a comedian, actor, poet or writer who suffered from mental illness? Maybe the actor Robin Williams or comedian Stephen Fry came to your mind. Perhaps it was the writer Virginia Woolf. All three have had well-documented struggles …
New treaty to protect the world’s oceans may hurt vulnerable African fisheries: Following two decades of fierce negotiations, over 60 countries recently signed a UN Ocean Treaty to conserve biodiversity on the high seas. The “high seas” are all ocean areas which aren’t under a specific country’s direct ownership or regulation. They make up two-thirds …
‘You have to be everybody’s best friend’: how dreams and desires leave TV and film crew vulnerable to workplace exploitation: guruXOX/Shutterstock A recent investigation by UK media outlets has uncovered a number of sexual assault allegations against Russell Brand, a comedian and TV presenter. Brand has denied the accusations, however this is a timely reminder …
Polycystic ovary syndrome: losing weight can help but many sufferers are vulnerable to bad advice on social media: There are millions of #pcosdiet posts on social media. Krakenimages.com/ Shutterstock Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), a hormonal condition which affects how the ovaries work, is thought to affect 20% of women worldwide. Yet despite how common the …
Universities and their students are vulnerable to money laundering – new research: Students are at risk of being exploited by financial and organised criminals. Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock Money laundering jeopardises the security of UK citizens and the integrity of its economy. Money launderers often target financial institutions, but they are also increasingly targeting lesser regulated …
Accra’s most vulnerable residents were failed during COVID – the government didn’t understand their realities: Residents of Accra were given financial aid during the pandemic Wikimedia Commons/Flickr Containment measures, such as the lockdowns introduced to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus, had devastating consequences for vulnerable urban populations globally. In response, public, private, and …
Infanticide: vulnerable mothers who kill their babies can be granted leniency – so why is this historic law being rejected in favour of harsher punishment?: Paris Mayo gave birth to her son Stanley alone – at home, in silence, while her parents and brother were upstairs. Mayo claimed not to have known she was pregnant, …
How austerity made the UK more vulnerable to COVID: SB Arts Media/Shutterstock The concept of austerity featured prominently in the first round of hearings of the UK’s COVID inquiry, which has recently come to a close. Notably, former chancellor George Osborne claimed that austerity had a “positive” effect on the UK’s ability to withstand the …
Car thieves are using increasingly sophisticated methods, and most new vehicles are vulnerable: shutterstock Car theft is on the rise, according to AA Insurance Services. Worryingly, thieves are increasingly using high-tech tools to target weaknesses in the same sensors and computerised systems that were designed to help make our journeys safer and more comfortable. In …
Rising seas could flood nests of vulnerable sea turtles – new research: A nesting green sea turtle in the Chagos Archipelago. Nicole Esteban, Author provided Sea-level rises caused by global warming could flood sea turtle nesting beaches in Australia, several Caribbean islands, Costa Rica and the US. Our findings suggest that flooding could deprive five …
The Badoo ritual gang created fear in Lagos: here’s what made victims vulnerable: The Head of a Celestial Church of Christ parish stands in front of the church where worshippers were killed and valuables stolen by the Badoo gang in 2017. Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images Violent cult gangs are well known in Nigeria. …
COVID booster vaccines: how a third dose may help vulnerable people ‘level up’ their immunity: Supamotion/Shutterstock COVID vaccines call our immune systems to action, generating antibodies which fight against any contact we have with the virus. Antibodies help to reduce the effects of an infection or even prevent it altogether. Scientists have estimated that vaccination …