Every year, I write about International Women’s Day as I believe that women do not have the voice they should have in this world and so this is my small effort in spreading the word about women’s voices and the need to be heard and to hear. And so when I realised that I had never written about men’s day, I knew that this year, there had to be a blog post about this day.
International Men’s Day is celebrated annually in November to recognise and celebrate the cultural, political, and socioeconomic achievements of men. It is an occasion to celebrate boys’ and men’s lives, achievements and contributions, in particular for their contributions to the nation, union, society, community, family, marriage, and childcare. The broader and ultimate aim of the event is to promote basic awareness towards men’s issues. The objectives of celebrating an International Men’s Day are set out in All The Six Pillars of International Men’s Day. The day celebrates worldwide the positive value men bring to the world, their families and communities and highlights positive role models and raise awareness of men’s well-being.
Calls for an International Men’s Day have been going on since at least the 1960s. Since this time there have been persistent international calls for the creation of an IMD, calls in the form of rhetorical questions about gender equality. The proposed objectives of International Men’s Day included a focus on men’s and boys’ health, improving gender relations, promoting gender equality, and highlighting positive male role models. Early pioneers of IMD reminded us that the day is not intended to compete against International Woman’s Day, but to highlight men’s experiences.
There were various attempts to start an International Men’s Day that received little response. An event was conceptualised on 7 February 1992 by Thomas Oaster, with International Men’s Day conceived one year earlier on 8 February 1991. The project was re-initialised in 1999 on November in Trinidad and Tobago by Dr Jerome Teelucksingh in 1999 that the International Men’s Day began to get international traction. The new event received overwhelming support in the Caribbean and soon took root on the international scene. Jerome Teelucksingh chose November 19 to honour his father’s birthday and also to celebrate how on that date in 1989 Trinidad and Tobago’s football team had united the country with their endeavours to qualify for the World Cup. Unlike International Women’s Day, observed on March 8, International Men’s Day is not officially recognised by the United Nations, which observes World Toilet Day on November 19. The theme for the 2022 International Men’s Day is Helping Men and Boys.
Although International Men’s and Women’s Day are considered to be gender-focused events, they are not ideological mirror images because they highlight issues that are considered unique to men or women. The history of IMD primarily concerns celebrating issues that are considered unique to the experiences of men and boys, along with an emphasis on positive role models, which is especially deemed necessary in a social context which is often fascinated with images of males behaving badly. In highlighting positive male role models IMD attempts to show that males of all ages respond much more energetically to positive role models than they do to negative stereotyping.
The objectives of International Men’s Day are set as six pillars which include:
To promote positive male role models – not just movie stars and sportsmen but everyday, working-class men who are living decent, honest lives.
To celebrate men’s positive contributions to society, community, family, marriage, child care, and the environment.
To focus on men’s health and well-being: social, emotional, physical, and spiritual.
To highlight discrimination against men in areas of social services, social attitudes and expectations, and law.
To improve gender relations and promote gender equality.
To create a safer, better world, where people can be safe and grow to reach their full potential.
Like many others, I also wondered why we needed a day to celebrate men when they are celebrated and feted the whole year. For many, celebrating the notion of man which has dominated the socio-economic-political narrative for hundreds of years, leaves a sour taste. International Women’s Day or IWD, which has been marked since 1911, is a global day to celebrate women’s emancipation and draw attention to the barriers still faced by women all over the world. However, International Men’s Day is not intended to compete with International Women’s Day and there are some major objectives behind having a day dedicated to men’s issues.
Many men are still trapped by stereotype threat, conforming to society’s idea of what a man should be. It’s part of the reason that according to the World Health Organization, WHO, suicide is the top cause of death among men under the age of 45, boys are struggling academically and prisons are full of men. Men die 6 years younger than women on average, single fathers who want to be more involved in their children’s lives face a range of barriers and men are less likely to go and see a medical practitioner as compared to women.
Arguably it’s harder for men to be vulnerable because that is acting outside their prescribed gender role. If International Women’s Day is to celebrate women’s success in the face of sexism, IMD can celebrate men challenging stereotype threat. Men have parenting rights, do suffer domestic abuse and do have unmet mental health needs. They are just as lonely, just as vulnerable, but far less likely to admit it and seek help. IMD aims to open the conversation, break down toxic forms of masculinity and remind us all that men don’t have to be imprisoned by stereotypes.
International Men’s Day celebrates positive male role models and raises awareness of men’s issues which are often overlooked including mental health, toxic masculinity and the prevalence of male suicide. International Men’s Day coincides with Movember, when men grow their facial hair to promote conversations about men’s mental health, suicide prevention, prostate cancer and testicular cancer.
To all the men reading this post, Happy Men’s Day and to all the women reading this, please celebrate the men in your life tomorrow.
Also known as Diabetes Mellitus, diabetes, as it is popularly known, is a group of metabolic disorders characterised by a high blood sugar level or hyperglycemia over a prolonged period. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased appetite. If left untreated, diabetes can cause many health complications, including diabetic ketoacidosis, hyperosmolar hyperglycemic state, or death. Serious long-term complications include cardiovascular disease, stroke, chronic kidney disease, foot ulcers, damage to the nerves, damage to the eyes, and cognitive impairment. Diabetes occurs when either the pancreas is not producing enough insulin or the cells of the body are not responding properly to the insulin produced. There are three main types of diabetes mellitus. Type 1 diabetes results from the failure of the pancreas to produce enough insulin due to the loss of beta cells and was previously referred to as insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus or juvenile diabetes and usually appears during childhood or adolescence, but can also develop in adults. Type 2 diabetes begins with insulin resistance, a condition in which cells fail to respond to insulin properly. As the disease progresses, a lack of insulin may also develop which was previously referred to as non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus or adult-onset diabetes. Though more common in older adults, a significant increase in the prevalence of obesity among children has led to more cases of type 2 diabetes in younger people. Gestational diabetes is the third main form and occurs when pregnant women without a previous history of diabetes develop high blood sugar levels and blood sugar usually returns to normal soon after delivery. However, women who had gestational diabetes during pregnancy have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life.
The seventh leading cause of death globally, in 2021, approximately 537 million adults between the ages of 20 and 79 are living with diabetes with the total number of people living with the disease projected to rise to 643 million by 2030 and 783 million by 2045. 3 in 4 adults with diabetes live in low-and middle-income countries and almost 1 in 2 or 240 million adults living with diabetes are undiagnosed. The disease has caused 6.7 million deaths and at least US 966 billion dollars in health expenditure which is 9% of total spending on adults. More than 1.2 million children and adolescents between the ages of 0 and 19 are living with type 1 diabetes with 1 in 6 live births or 21 million affected by diabetes during pregnancy. 541 million adults are at increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
I have been a diabetic for about eight years now and so like to use this day to highlight this silent disease. Held annually on 14 November, the birthday of Sir Frederick Banting, who co-discovered insulin along with Charles Best in 1922, World Diabetes Day’s main focus is the global awareness campaign focusing on diabetes mellitus. World Diabetes Day was launched in 1991 by the International Diabetes Federation, IDF and the World Health Organization, WHO in response to the rapid rise of diabetes around the world. By 2016, World Diabetes Day was being commemorated by over 230 IDF member associations in more than 160 countries and territories. It became an official United Nations Day in 2006. The campaign is represented by a blue circle logo that is the global symbol for diabetes awareness. It signifies the unity of the global diabetes community in response to the diabetes epidemic.
Every year, the World Diabetes Day campaign focuses on a dedicated theme that runs for one or more years. The theme for World Diabetes Day for the years 2021 to 2023 is Access to Diabetes Care. Millions of people with diabetes around the world do not have access to diabetes care. People with diabetes require ongoing care and support to manage their condition and avoid complications. Medicine, technologies, support and care have to be made available to every diabetic that requires them. Governments have to increase investments in diabetes care and prevention. The rising number of people affected by diabetes is putting added strain on healthcare systems because it is the healthcare professionals who must know how to detect and diagnose the condition early and provide the best possible care. And simultaneously, people living with diabetes need access to ongoing education to understand their condition and carry out the daily self-care essential to staying healthy and avoiding complications.
2022 is also the centenary of the discovery of insulin. In May 1921, the experiments that would culminate in the synthesis of commercially available insulin first began in Toronto, Canada. Frederick Banting and Charles Best experimented on several diabetes-induced dogs with limited success. A breakthrough came when one of the dogs, named Marjorie by the Toronto team, survived for 70 days with injections of the pancreatic extract, or Isletin as the team were calling it. On January 23, 1922, the first successful injection of insulin was administered to a person living with diabetes.
More people must know the importance of this condition and how they can recognise the signs and symptoms. This knowledge will allow individuals and entire families alike to support each other in their efforts to live healthier, diabetes-free lives. While some risk factors for developing diabetes cannot be changed, making healthy lifestyle choices can dramatically reduce a person’s chances of developing it. The key ways one can reduce the risk of developing diabetes include exercising 30 minutes or more, at least five days a week because exercise helps in losing weight, naturally lowers and maintains blood sugar levels, and boosts the body’s sensitivity to insulin, allowing the body to properly manage its blood sugar levels. It is also important to maintain a healthy weight because in many cases, being overweight or obese is the number one trigger that sets off the development of diabetes. One should also eat a healthy diet which includes plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds, as opposed to sugary drinks and snacks.
A couple of months back, there was a video from TED Talks in my inbox which intrigued me. This video, about plastic waste, made me want to read more about this very pervasive issue that will overwhelm us if we do not do something now.
Something that we touch and use hundreds or thousands of times in a day in myriad ways, plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as the main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded, or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptability, plus a wide range of other properties, such as being lightweight, durable, flexible, and inexpensive to produce, has led to its widespread use. Most modern plastics are derived from fossil fuel-based chemicals like natural gas or petroleum; however, recent industrial methods use variants made from renewable materials, such as corn or cotton derivatives.
It is estimated that 9.2 billion tonnes of plastic have been made between 1950 and 2017 and more than half of this has been produced since 2004. In 2020, 400 million tonnes of plastic were produced. If global trends in plastic demand continue, it is estimated that by 2050, the annual global plastic production will reach over 1,100 million tonnes. Plastic’s carbon footprint has doubled in less than 30 years, now accounting for nearly 5% of total annual greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for nearly 5% of total annual greenhouse gas emissions. If plastics were a country, titwould be the fifth largest emitter in the world.
Plastic is virtually irreplaceable because it is cheap, strong, lightweight, and resistant to corrosion. Plastic is incredibly useful in modern life, but its widespread use may impair human sustainability. The production and disposal of plastic generate greenhouse gases and hazardous waste. Plastic and the chemicals it emits are building up on land and in oceans, lakes, rivers, ice, and air, and the resulting damage to human and ecological health is currently poorly understood. Most plastic is not recyclable and the vast majority does not biodegrade. Further, plastic products often break down into very small fragments called microplastics that can pollute ecosystems and are harmful to organisms.
While the excessive use of plastic packaging is concerning, some form of packaging is often necessary to maintain the hygiene or freshness of food, or maintain the integrity of a product during freight. Small or travel-size toiletries and personal hygiene products are sometimes seen as wasteful but are vital in providing affordable sanitation options for some of our most vulnerable communities, such as the homeless or low-income families. With an estimated 70% of the world’s population living on less than US$10 a day, toiletries in single-serve sachets provide an affordable sanitation option in developing markets. Plastics are also the cleanest, most efficient way to keep medical supplies sterile.
Replacing plastic with other materials is neither simple nor straightforward, mainly due to the challenge of finding an alternative that combines all the most desirable plastic properties. Biodegradable alternatives—such as special plastics, paper, or cardboard—may well have a higher greenhouse footprint because of the amount of water or natural resources consumed in their production. A study conducted last year by the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore found that reusable plastic bags are more eco-friendly than paper and cotton alternatives, but only in cities and countries with a well-structured waste management system that prevents leakage.
Why is plastic pollution a problem? Plastic is everywhere, from bags and single-use bottles and packages to car parts, pipes, and siding and so plastic waste is ubiquitous. It has been found, for example, in Arctic sea ice, beer, farm soil, trout and other wild freshwater fish, shrimp and other shellfish, songbirds and seabirds, human placentas, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, midoceanic atolls, sea caves, the air and rain, and national parks and wilderness areas. While the impact of plastic pollution on sea life is well documented, scientists are just beginning to measure plastic’s effects on humans and human fertility, land ecosystems, crops and other plants.
Plastic pollution is most visible in developing Asian and African nations, where garbage collection systems are often inefficient or nonexistent. But the developed world, especially in countries with low recycling rates, also has trouble properly collecting discarded plastics. Plastic trash has become so ubiquitous it has prompted efforts to write a global treaty negotiated by the United Nations.
Researchers estimate that nearly 7,000 million tons of virgin plastic have been manufactured around the world as of 2015. Of that, 9% may have been recycled, 12% has been incinerated, and the rest is in landfills, still in use, or in our environment. Globally, about one-fourth of plastic waste is never collected. In less wealthy countries, waste plastic is sometimes burned in the open, releasing toxic chemicals into the air.
Half of all plastics ever manufactured have been made in the last 15 years. Production increased exponentially, from 2.3 million tons in 1950 to 448 million tons by 2015. Production is expected to double by 2050. Every year, about 8 million tons of plastic waste escapes into the oceans from coastal nations. That’s the equivalent of setting five garbage bags full of trash on every foot of coastline around the world. Plastics often contain additives making them stronger, more flexible, and durable. But many of these additives can extend the life of products if they become litter, with some estimates ranging to at least 400 years to break down. Most of the plastic trash in the oceans, Earth’s last sink, flows from land. Trash is also carried to sea by major rivers, which act as conveyor belts, picking up more and more trash as they move downstream. Once at sea, much of the plastic trash remains in coastal waters. But once caught up in ocean currents, it can be transported around the world. On Henderson Island, an uninhabited atoll in the Pitcairn Group isolated halfway between Chile and New Zealand, scientists found plastic items from Russia, the United States, Europe, South America, Japan, and China. They were carried to the South Pacific by the South Pacific gyre, a circular ocean current. Once at sea, sunlight, wind, and wave action break down plastic waste into small particles, often less than one-fifth of an inch across. These so-called microplastics are spread throughout the water column and have been found in every corner of the globe, from Mount Everest, the highest peak, to the Mariana Trench, the deepest trough.
Microplastics are breaking down further into smaller and smaller pieces. Plastic microfibers, meanwhile, have been found in municipal drinking water systems and drifting through the air. While plastic is durable, this also means plastic waste can be trapped in our environment for centuries, if not managed well. While plastics deteriorate into fragments easily through wear and tear, their polymer chains only break down into other smaller components at very high temperatures, such as during some chemical recycling processes. However, today only 15% of plastic waste is recycled.
Millions of animals are killed by plastics every year, from birds to fish to other marine organisms. Nearly 700 species, including endangered ones, are known to have been affected by plastics. Nearly every species of seabird eats plastics. Most of the deaths to animals are caused by entanglement or starvation. Seals, whales, turtles, and other animals are strangled by abandoned fishing gear or discarded six-pack rings. Microplastics have been found in more than 100 aquatic species, including fish, shrimp, and mussels destined for our dinner plates. In many cases, these tiny bits pass through the digestive system and are expelled without consequence. But plastics have also been found to have blocked digestive tracts or pierced organs, causing death. Stomachs so packed with plastics reduce the urge to eat, causing starvation. Plastics have been consumed by land-based animals, including elephants, hyenas, zebras, tigers, camels, cattle, and other large mammals, in some cases causing death. Tests have also confirmed liver and cell damage and disruptions to reproductive systems, prompting some species, such as oysters, to produce fewer eggs. New research shows that larval fish are eating nanofibers in the first days of life, raising new questions about the effects of plastics on fish populations. Once in the ocean, it is difficult—if not impossible—to retrieve plastic waste. Mechanical systems can be effective at picking up large pieces of plastic, such as foam cups and food containers, from inland waters. But once plastics break down into microplastics and drift throughout the water column in the open ocean, they are virtually impossible to recover.
The world still largely operates on the linear economy model, sometimes known as the take-make-discard model, where raw materials are used to manufacture products, only to be disposed of at the end of their short lifetimes.
Transitioning to a more sustainable model is not rocket science if one can remember the 3 Rs: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle—in that specific order of priority. Reducing our overall consumption is about respecting our natural resources, only using what we need, and refusing unnecessary excess. Reuse is key to increasing the lifespan of the things we use which includes repairing or upcycling our items to give them a new lease on life. And finally recycling the waste we eventually generate is key to closing the loop in a circular economic model.
Many consumer plastic products are imprinted with triangular recyclable symbols. But only two kinds of plastic commonly end up recycled: The first is PET or polyethylene terephthalate, and the other is HDPE or high-density polyethylene, and within those, usually only bottles, tubs, and jugs and not salad containers, berry boxes, or clamshell packages. Together, these account for a small fraction of all plastic waste. Recyclable plastics are typically downcycled rather than fully recycled. This means that they are washed, ground into a powder, melted, and then extruded into pellets ready for reheating and remoulding and turned into products of lesser value that often cannot be recycled again. This process is known as mechanical recycling. When plastic waste is turned into a more valuable product, such as clothing or shoes, that is called upcycling. Recycling results in a product of equivalent value that can be recycled multiple times. However, the number of times plastic can be effectively recycled is currently limited. Other hard-to-recycle plastics such as LDPE, polyethylene film, or contaminated plastics like unwashed food containers can sometimes be recycled by using chemical recycling. This is a process where the polymer structure of the plastic is changed and converted into a feedstock that can replace virgin materials used in the production of plastics.
Southeast Asia has emerged as a hot spot for plastic pollution because of rapid urbanization and a rising middle class, whose consumption of plastic products and packaging is growing due to their convenience and versatility. But local waste management infrastructure has not kept pace, resulting in large quantities of mismanaged waste. COVID-19 has exacerbated the situation due to increased consumption of masks, sanitiser bottles, and online delivery packaging.
In Thailand, the Philippines, and Malaysia, more than 75% of the material value of recyclable plastic is lost, – the equivalent of $6 billion a year when single-use plastic is discarded rather than recovered and recycled, according to a series of landmark studies by the World Bank Group. With only 18 to 28% of recyclable plastic recovered and recycled in these countries, most plastic packaging waste is not only left to pollute the environment, littering beaches and roadsides but its value to these economies is also lost.
The world is beginning to accept that it is time to tackle the plastic waste problem. Currently, more than 30% of the world does not have access to proper collection and disposal of waste. There is no silver bullet solution. It’s not about swapping from one single-use lifestyle to another, but instead about changing our behaviour to balance convenience and sustainability, and asking industry and governments to work together to drive the best environmental solutions.
Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products, particularly in diet, and is an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows this diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. Distinctions may be made between several categories of veganism. Dietary vegans, also known as strict vegetarians, refrain from consuming meat, eggs, dairy products, and any other animal-derived substances. An ethical vegan is someone who not only follows a plant-based diet but extends the philosophy into other areas of their lives, opposes the use of animals for any purpose, and tries to avoid any cruelty and exploitation of all animals including humans. Another term is environmental veganism, which refers to the avoidance of animal products on the premise that the industrial farming of animals is environmentally damaging and unsustainable.
Well-planned vegan diets are regarded as appropriate for all stages of life, including infancy and pregnancy. There is inconsistent evidence for vegan diets provide a protective effect against metabolic syndrome; with some evidence suggesting that a vegan diet can help with weight loss, especially in the short term. Vegan diets tend to be higher in dietary fibre, magnesium, folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin E, iron, and phytochemicals, and lower in dietary energy, saturated fat, cholesterol, omega-3 fatty acid, vitamin D, calcium, zinc, and vitamin B12. A poorly-planned vegan diet may lead to nutritional deficiencies that nullify any beneficial effects and may cause serious health issues, some of which can only be prevented with fortified foods or dietary supplements. Vitamin B12 supplementation is important because its deficiency can cause blood disorders and potentially irreversible neurological damage; this danger is also one of the most common in poorly-planned non-vegan diets. The word vegan was coined by Donald Watson and his then-future wife Dorothy Morgan in 1944. Interest in veganism increased significantly in the 2010s.
World Vegan Day, or International Vegan Day, is celebrated in continuity with Vegetarian Awareness Month which takes place the entire month of October, which begins with World Vegetarian Day on October 1 and includes other commemorative dates involving food security, reverence for life in all species, faith-based vegetarianism and animal advocacy, and more. World Vegan Day follows Vegetarian Awareness Month in October and initiates World Vegan Month which takes place all of November.
World Vegan Day is an annual event celebrated by vegans around the world every 1 November. The event was established in 1994 by Louise Wallis, then Chair of The Vegan Society in the United Kingdom, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the organisation and the coining of the terms vegan and veganism. Wallis decided on 01 November because while the Vegan Society was established in November, the exact date was unknown, so she decided on 01 November because it falls exactly between October 31, which is Halloween, and the Mexican Day of the Dead, which falls on November 2. Since November 1, 1994, World Vegan Day has thus provided a welcome occasion for vegans in all parts of the world to celebrate and further promote veganism with all its positive aspects.
If you are vegan, share your thoughts, and your vegan journey which is a great way to encourage more people to be vegan or treat vegan food. You can showcase the benefits and hardships of being vegan and also share delicious vegan recipes or food with others. If you are not a vegan, you can still celebrate World Vegan Day by finding out why some people choose to be vegan is a great way to start. You could also try vegan or vegetarian food options and I can assure you that they are delicious!
Savings is something all of us do, or hope to do. Saving money takes discipline and some sacrifices. Saving is one of the most basic, and most repeated bits of financial advice out there. Saving provides financial security, gives you the freedom to know that when you need money, it is available and lets you take calculated risks. Also, depositors who save money can help in the economic growth of the country.
Today and in some countries, yesterday World Savings Day was celebrated. Every year on October 31st, the World Savings and Retail Banking Institute (WSBI) and its members across the world celebrate World Savings Day. World Savings Day was established on October 31, 1934, during the 1st International Savings Bank Congress or the World Society of Savings Banks in Milan, Italy. The Italian Professor Filippo Ravizza declared this day as International Saving Day on the last day of the congress and in the resolutions of the Thrift Congress, it was decided that World Thrift Day should be a day devoted to the promotion of savings all over the world. As people were not sure about saving after the First World War, the idea was to make people aware of the significance of saving money. In their efforts to promote thrift, the savings banks also worked with the support of the schools, and the clergy, as well as cultural, sports, professional, and women’s associations. As people were not sure about saving after the First World War, the idea was to make people aware of the significance of saving money.
Representatives of 29 countries wanted to bring to mind the thought of saving to the worldwide public and its relevance to the economy and the individual. World Savings Day is usually held on October 30 except in countries where this day is a public holiday since the idea is for the banks to be open so that people can transfer their savings into their accounts.
After World War II, World Thrift Day continued and reached the peak of its popularity in the years between 1955 and 1970. It practically became a veritable tradition in certain countries. In Austria, for instance, the official mascot of saving, the Sparefroh or the Happy Saver, reached a higher degree of brand awareness than the republic’s President and even a street was named after the mascot. In the 1970s, the Sparefroh Journal, an educational magazine for younger people, reached a circulation of 400,000 copies. In Germany World Savings Day is held on the last business day before October 31 since this is a public holiday in some states. In India, October 31 is the day the former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated and so the day is celebrated on October 30.
For more than 90 years, this day has aimed to promote saving money and to raise awareness of the important role that savings and retail banking play within the general financial system. World Savings Day also highlights the ethical characteristics that banking institutions need to have to be responsible partners in communities, and serve households, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and local authorities. Today the focus of the banks that organise World Savings Day is on developing countries, where many people are unbanked. Savings banks play an important role in enhancing savings in these countries with campaigns and initiatives such as working with non-governmental organisations to double the number of savings accounts held by the poor.
To commemorate this day, go and save some money. Either drop by your bank or make an online transfer to your savings account.
