By: Priya Migneault Conservation International just released their impact report for 2019 and it covers all of their top conservation efforts worldwide. The report brings home the concept that conservation in todays day and age in an absolute necessity and it also shows how far we have come in the past few years. This 20 page report was sent to donors of the organization to show them the impact their dollars is making around the globe. The first few pages drive home the significant importance that Costal Mangrove Forests have to their ecosystems and to marine life as a whole. Mangroves are crucial to our planet because they can store up to 10 times more carbon than trees in terrestrial forests. They are one of the top plants for carbon sequestration and combating climate change to date. However, since the 1940's humans have destroyed over half of the mangrove forests world wide. When mangroves are chopped down, typically for firewood or to expand fish farming, the carbon they have been storing for centuries enters our atmosphere. This year Conservation International has directly prevent the clearing of 9,600 hectares of mangrove trees and are actively restoring 1,800 hectares. They are working with the Colombian government to replicate this process of restoration at 10 different significant sites for the mangrove population. For the first time in history the seven Amazonian countries were called together by Colombian President Iván Duque to work together to protect the Amazon river basin. This was during the recent fires in the world's largest tropical rainforest. All seven countries, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, and Suriname, came together in an agreement to collaborate on reforestation initiatives, developing educational tools for communities and schools, and to increase the role indigenous communities play in sustainable development. Moving farther into the report Conservation International covers the topic of ocean health and the major strides they are making in ocean conservation across the globe.
Conservation International believes that in order for ecosystems to thrive the surrounding communities have to be on board, which is why they spent time this past spring in Western Africa educating the public about ocean sustainability and policies. They also are working to end human rights abuses in the fishing industry by recruiting major seafood businesses and non-profits to increase transparency about their sourcing. Two projects Conservation International has been working on in the past year have been about showing the world that conservation and economic growth are inseparable. One example of this has been shown from their work in West Papua, where the province has declared it's self a Conservation Province. This is the first Conservation Province in the world. They are putting sustainable development and environmental protection at the forefront of their province's economic growth. Conservation International did many other amazing things over the course of 2019 and to learn about them all please visit their website here. Conservation International has been on the front lines of environmental protection and conservation since starting in 1987. Their mission is "Building upon a strong foundation of science, partnership and field demonstration, Conservation International empowers societies to responsibly and sustainably care for nature, our global biodiversity, (and) for the well-being of humanity."
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By: Priya Migneault Many of us have been asked by our places of work and government officials to self distance ourselves, but what exactly does that mean? Are we supposed to stay inside at all times or are we allowed to leave? Great news you don’t need to stay inside at all times! However, that doesn’t mean you can go partying or socializing with others on your time off. In order to properly self distance yourself you are not supposed to attend any unnecessary gatherings or events and cancel all events that have over 50 people. It is recommended that you try to work or study from home during this time and only associate with small groups of friends, roommates, and family members for the time being. Self distancing is being implemented for those who may have been exposed to COVID-19 unknowingly, which is almost everyone. As of right now in many places of the world the idea of self distancing is being enforced indefinitely or until the local governing body declares the opposite.
The difference between self distancing, quarantine, and self isolation is that quarantine is for those who have been directly exposed to the virus and self isolation is for those who think they have the virus or have tested positive. When under quarantine you are supposed to remain completely isolated for a minimum of 14 days or until symptoms develop in which case call your local health centre (DO NOT GO TO A CLINIC OR HOSPITAL). If you are quarantined, only leave your house in the case of an emergency. Self isolation is for those who are displaying symptoms of COVID-19 or have tested positive, but don’t require urgent medical care. During self isolation you should remain in your home for at least seven days from the onset of symptoms and not associate with anyone face-to-face. For both quarantine and self isolation you should not have face-to-face conversations with anyone and remain at least six feet from other people including family and roommates. If you live with someone stay in a separate room alone and make sure you have adequate supplies to last you two weeks. If you have any questions regarding self distancing, quarantine, or self isolation feel free to leave them in the comments. Make sure you take care of yourselves during this time and wash your hands! By: Priya Migneault With all that’s happening in the world it sometimes can be hard to not think that the world is ending right before our eyes, but how is our generation coping with our questionable future? The answer memes. Generation Z is constantly bombarded with the state of the world via the internet and it gets hard for us to move forward with hope when we do not know how certain our futures are. The way we have seen teens in these past few months react to the world and it’s apocalyptic looking issues is through memes and humor. They seem to cope with the world by poking fun at it and by using humor to push through the stress and worry. We saw this reaction happen during the rising tensions between Iraq and the USA with memes surfacing about conscription and WW3. When Australia was covered in devastating wildfires, and now with the global COVID-19 pandemic. So, why do teens react by creating memes when they’re stressed? Do they really find these issues concerning if they’re reacting with humor? To answer these questions I interviewed teens in the Calgary area starting with 16 year old Kennedy Brooks, “Yes I am concerned about different issues in the world. Right now, my biggest worry is not knowing what’s actually going on and how scared I actually should be.” Kennedy says that she does use memes as a way to cope with these worries and thinks other teens do as well because “we don’t have legitimate control over most of these things, especially when they scare us, (and) we try to express or distract ourselves in whatever way we can. Sometimes it’s the best thing we can do for ourselves.” These views were echoed by 15 year old Emma Gainor, who says that she is concerned about major issues in the world, especially the ones that affect her or those she cares for. Right now, with COVID-19 she is concerned about whether or not she will receive her credits from this semester of high school and that she has to create a new routine in her lifestyle to replace school. Emma finds memes helpful “because I find that they relate to how I am feeling and I am reassured to know that someone somewhere is feeling the same way I am.” “I think teenagers use memes to cope with stress because they don’t know how to react to these heavy topics and talking about them in a funny way helps the issues to be talked about without it being weird or uncomfortable,” she says. Adam S.T. who is 15 years old from Calgary says that he is concerned about different issues in the world "specifically the way governments are dealing with current events such as COVID-19. Government officials are not relying on other countries experiences with the virus."
Right now he is currently most concerned about how public schools in Calgary are going to fair with the recent shutdowns. "They do not seem to have made prior preparations for continuing students education online," he says, "even though this turn of events was not sudden or unheard of." Adam thinks memes are a relaxed and relatable way to communicate about current global issues with teenagers, but he does not think that they should be the only way for teens to cope with stress. "Memes are a way to cope with stress and connect to others, but (they) should not be the only outlet for stress," he says. Memes are pieces of digital content such as photos, videos, or lines of text that are varied slightly and shared widely via the internet. Individuals in Generation Z are born between the years 1995 and 2010, and are often characterized with a love for technology and being very opened minded and accepting. |
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December 2022
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