World Population Day

Posted on July 14, 2021 by memoriesandsuch

On Sunday the world celebrated the World Population Day. This day, which is observed annually on July 11 to raise awareness of global population issues. Established in 1989, the event was inspired by the public interest in Five Billion Day on July 11, 1987, the approximate date on which the world’s population reached five billion people. The World Population Day aims to increase people’s awareness on various population issues such as the importance of family planning, gender equality, poverty, maternal health and human rights. The suggestion of the day came from Dr. K. C. Zachariah, a senior demographer at the World Bank.

While press interest and general awareness in the global population surges only at the increments of whole billions of people, the world population increases annually by 100 million approximately every 14 months. The world population today is close to 7.9 billion and we add about 220,000 people to our world every single day! So on World Population Day, advocates from around the world call on leaders, policymakers, grassroots organisers, institutions and others to help make reproductive health and rights a reality for all.

Source

It took hundreds of thousands of years for the world population to grow to 1 billion, then in just another 200 years or so, it grew sevenfold. In 2011, the global population reached the 7 billion mark, and today, it stands at about 7.8 billion, and it’s expected to grow to around 8.5 billion in 2030, 9.7 billion in 2050, and 10.9 billion in 2100. This dramatic growth has been driven largely by increasing numbers of people surviving to reproductive age, and has been accompanied by major changes in fertility rates, increasing urbanization and accelerating migration. These trends will have far-reaching implications for generations to come. In addition, the world is seeing high levels of urbanization and accelerating migration. 2007 was the first year in which more people lived in urban areas than in rural areas, and by 2050 about 66 per cent of the world population will be living in cities.

So why is population an important topic? The human race has an enormous impact on this planet. We control and modify the Earth more than any other species. How do we meet the needs of human beings and also preserve Earth’s finite resources, biodiversity, and natural beauty? This is the fundamental question of our time, and the challenge is becoming more critical as we continue to add more people. The world is vastly overpopulated and research conducted by the Global Footprint Network suggests that about 2 to 3 billion people is the number the planet can sustainably support, if everyone consumes the same amount of resources as the average European, which is about 60% the amount of the average American. U.N. experts predict that, unless we change course, world population will continue increasing until after 2100, with a most likely prediction of 10.9 billion people by the year 2100.

Worldwide, the average number of children per family has come down over the last 50 years, from more than 5 per woman to around 2.3, but the current average is still above replacement level, which would be 2.1 children per woman, and the number of women having children is about twice what it was in 1960. There is also huge demographic momentum since over 2/5 of the world’s population is 24 years or younger, either having children now, or poised to have them in the next 10 to 15 years and any changes we make today may not have a visible effect until a generation has passed.

Finally, people are living longer all over the world and will continue to do so, with a resultant slowdown in death rates. Thus, there’s a big imbalance in the birth to death ratio: currently more than 2 births for every 1 death worldwide.

These megatrends have far-reaching implications. They affect economic development, employment, income distribution, poverty and social protections. They also affect efforts to ensure universal access to health care, education, housing, sanitation, water, food and energy. To more sustainably address the needs of individuals, policymakers must understand how many people are living on the planet, where they are, how old they are, and how many people will come after them.

The theme for 2021 is focussed on COVID-19 and its impact specifically on safeguarding the health and rights of women and girls. The COVID-19 crisis has taken a staggering toll on people, communities and economies everywhere. But not everyone is affected equally. Women, who account for the largest share of front-line health workers, for example, are disproportionately exposed to the coronavirus. Supply chains around the world are being disrupted, impacting the availability of contraceptives and heightening the risk of unintended pregnancy. As countries are on lockdown and health systems struggle to cope, sexual and reproductive health services are being sidelined and gender-based violence is on the rise. Recent UNFPA research highlighted that if the lockdown continues for 6 months with major disruptions to health services, then 47 million women in low- and middle-income countries may not be able to access modern contraceptives resulting in 7 million unintended pregnancies. 31 million additional cases of gender-based violence can also be expected. The disruption of UNFPA’s programmes on the ground could result in 2 million cases of female genital mutilation and 13 million child marriages between 2020 and 2030 that could have been averted. Moreover, women disproportionately work in insecure labour markets and are harder hit by the economic impacts of COVID-19. Nearly 60 percent of women worldwide work in the informal economy, at greater risk of falling into poverty. Women’s unpaid care work has increased as a result of school closures and the increased needs of older people. The pandemic is hitting marginalised communities particularly hard, deepening inequalities and threatening to set us back in efforts to leave no one behind. Country responses to COVID-19 everywhere is critical and will determine how fast the world recovers.

So in honour of this day, spread the word anout the dangers of overpopulation and it’s impact on our world. This world, which we will leave to our children and grandchildren should be one that can sustain them and their desendents.

International Day of Yoga

Posted on June 21, 2021 by memoriesandsuch

Celebrated on 21 June annually since 2015, the International Day of Yoga was first proposed by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014. The date of the day, 21 June was suggested as it is the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere and shares a special significance in many parts of the world. From the perspective of yoga, the summer solstice marks the transition to Dakshinayana, when the sun travels towards the south on the celestial sphere. The second full moon after summer solstice is known as Guru Poornima. Lord Shiva, the first yogi or Adi Yogi, is said to have begun imparting the knowledge of yoga to the rest of mankind on this day, and became the first guru.

Yoga is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and is one of the six orthodox philosophical schools of Hinduism. In the western world, yoga often denotes denotes a modern form of hatha yoga with yoga as exercise, consisting largely of the postures or asanas. The practice of yoga has been thought to date back to pre-vedic Indian traditions, possibly in the Indus valley civilization around 3000 BC and the practice is mentioned in the Rigveda and referenced in the Upanishads, though it most likely developed as a systematic study around the 5th and 6th centuries BC. Hatha yoga texts began to emerge sometime between the 9th and 11th centuries with origins in tantra. Yoga in Indian traditions is more than physical exercise, it has a meditative and spiritual core. Derived from Sanskrit, the root word for Yoga is yug which means to attach, join, harness or yoke and refers to uniting with someone or joining. The ancient Indian sage Patanjali is thought to be the Father of Modern Yoga because he is the person who codified all the aspects of Yoga into a certain format and introduced Yoga Sutras.

The International Day of Yoga aims to raise awareness worldwide of the many benefits of practicing yoga. It is important for individuals and populations to be able to make healthier choices and follow lifestyle patterns that foster good health. In this regard, it is important to reduce physical inactivity, which is among the top ten leading causes of death worldwide, and a key risk factor for non-communicable diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer and diabetes. Other than other physical activies one can do, yoga is is an activity which is more than just a physical activity. In the words of one of its most famous practitioners, the late B. K. S. Iyengar, “Yoga cultivates the ways of maintaining a balanced attitude in day-to-day life and endows skill in the performance of one’s actions.”

Yoga offers physical and mental health benefits for people of all ages and if one is going through an illness, recovering from surgery or living with a chronic condition, yoga can become an integral part of their treatment and potentially hasten healing. The benefits of yoga improves strength, balance and flexibility, helps with back pain relief, ease arthritis symptoms, benefits the heart health, relaxes the practitioner and help them sleep better, improve energy levels, better the mood and manage stress and promotes better self-care by providing a balance between the body, mind and soul.

So how can one celebrate this day? Create awareness about the benefits of yoga and take part in in a yoga class, preferably online or in a small group. You can also watch yoga videos on and correct your postures and share with family and friends the importance of yoga.

World No Tobacco Day

Posted on May 31, 2021 by memoriesandsuch

Today is World No Tobacco Day. This yearly celebration informs the public on the dangers of using tobacco, the business practices of tobacco companies, what the World Health Organization or WHO is doing to fight against the use of tobacco, and what people around the world can do to claim their right to health and healthy living and to protect future generations. This day was created in 1987 to draw global attention to the tobacco epidemic and the preventable death and disease it causes. The day is further intended to draw attention to the widespread prevalence of tobacco use and to negative health effects, which currently lead to more than 8 million deaths each year worldwide, including the 1.2 million that are the result of non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke.

The theme for 2021 is a year-long global campaign initiated by the WHO for the World No Tobacco Day 2021 with the theme of Commit to Quit. This campaign aims to support 100 million people worldwide in their attempt to give up tobacco through various initiatives and digital solutions and will help create healthier environments that are conducive to quitting tobacco by advocating for strong tobacco cessation policies, by promoting increased access to cessation services, by raising awareness of tobacco industry tactics and by empowering tobacco users to make successful attempts to quit through quit & win initiatives.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to millions of tobacco users wanting to quit. However, quitting tobacco is challenging, especially with the added social and economic stresses brought about by the pandemic. Worldwide, around 780 million people say they want to quit, but only 30% of them have access to the tools that can help them to overcome both physical and mental addictions to tobacco. And in today’s COVID world, smokers have a greater risk of developing a severe case and dying from COVID-19. Tobacco affects your looks almost immediately and threatens the health of not just the smoker, but their family and friends. Smoking or using e-cigarettes around children compromises their health and safety and tobacco and its allied products are expensive, money that can be used for other important things. For both men and women, smoking reduces fertility and purchasing tobacco, one is financially supporting an industry that exploits farmers and children and pedals sickness and death. In terms of overall health, smokers are more likely to lose their vision and hearing and tobacco harms almost every organ of the body

Quitting tobacco has major and immediate health benefits. There are immediate and long-term health benefits to quitting tobacco. After just 20 minutes of quitting smoking, the heart rate drops. Within 12 hours, the carbon monoxide level in the blood drops to normal. Within 2–12 weeks, the circulation improves and lung function increases. Within 1–9 months, coughing and shortness of breath decrease. Within 5–15 years, the stroke risk is reduced to that of a non-smoker. Within 10 years, the lung cancer death rate is about half that of a smoker. Within 15 years, the risk of heart disease is that of a non-smoker. Quitting smoking decreases the excess risk of many diseases related to second-hand smoke in children, such as respiratory diseases like asthma and ear infections. Quitting smoking also reduces the chances of impotence, having difficulty getting pregnant, having premature births, babies with low birth weights and miscarriage.

So please, if you are a smoker, or you know someone who smokes or uses tobacco products, then seriously think of quitting or helping them quit. There are many resources available, with the WHO having a Quitting Toolkit, which also has digital support.

International Tea Day

Posted on May 21, 2021 by memoriesandsuch

Did you know there’s a day dedicated to a beverage much loved across the world which is drunk in many different forms?

The International Tea Day aims to raise awareness of the long history and the deep cultural and economic significance of tea around the world. The goal of the day is to promote and foster collective actions to implement activities in favour of the sustainable production and consumption of tea and raise awareness of its importance in fighting hunger and poverty. In many tea growing countries like India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Vietnam, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Kenya, Malawi, Malaysia, Uganda and Tanzania, the day has been celebrated as December 22 since 2005, but the May 21 date was decided by the United Nations. The first International Tea Day was celebrated in New Delhi in 2005 and later in Sri Lanka in 2006 and 2008 before the UN resolution adopting the day in 2019 when the Indian government proposed to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation to expand International Tea Day across the world which then was decided to be commemorated on 21 May. So why this date? It’s because the tea production season begins in May in most of the tea producing countries.

Tea is a beverage made from the Camellia sinesis plant and after water, the world’s most consumed drink. It is believed that tea originated in northeast India, north Myanmar and southwest China, but the exact place where the plant first grew is not known. Tea has been with us for a long time with evidence that tea was consumed in China 5,000 years ago. It was popularised as a recreational drink during the Chinese Tang dynasty, and tea drinking spread to other East Asian countries. Portuguese priests and merchants introduced it to Europe during the 16th century and during the 17th century, drinking tea became fashionable among the English, who started to plant tea on a large scale in India. There are many different types of tea; some, like Chinese greens and Darjeeling, have a cooling, slightly bitter, and astringent flavour, while others have vastly different profiles that include sweet, nutty, floral, or grassy notes. Tea has a stimulating effect in humans primarily due to its caffeine content.

The tea industry is a main source of income and export revenues for some of the poorest countries and, as a labour-intensive sector, provides jobs, especially in remote and economically disadvantaged areas. Thus, tea plays a significant role in rural development, poverty reduction and food security in developing countries, being one of the most important cash crops.

Tea production is highly sensitive to changes in growing conditions. Tea can only be produced in narrowly defined agro-ecological conditions and, hence, in a very limited number of countries, many of which will be heavily impacted by climate change. Changes in temperature and rainfall patterns, with more floods and droughts, are already affecting yields, tea product quality and prices, lowering incomes and threatening rural livelihoods. These climate changes are expected to intensify, calling for urgent adaptation measures. In parallel, there is a growing recognition of the need to contribute to climate change mitigation, by reducing carbon emissions from tea production and processing. Therefore, tea-producing countries should integrate climate change challenges, both on the adaptation and mitigation front, into their national tea development strategies.

Tea has cultural significance in many societies and consumption of tea can bring health benefits and wellness due to the beverage’s anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and weight loss effects. Numerous studies have shown that a variety of teas may boost your immune system, fight off inflammation, and even ward off cancer and heart disease. White tea, the least processed variety is most effective tea in fighting various forms of cancer thanks to its high level of antioxidants.

Herbal teas, sometimes called tisanes, are very similar to white teas, but they contain a blend of herbs, spices, fruits or other plants in addition to tea leaves. Herbal teas don’t contain caffeine, which is why they’re known for their calming properties. Herbal teas like chamomile helps to reduce menstrual pain and muscle spasms, improves sleep and relaxation, and reduces stress, rooibos improves blood pressure and circulation, boosts good cholesterol while lowering bad cholesterol, keeps hair strong and skin healthy, and provides relief from allergies, peppermint contains menthol which can soothe an upset stomach and serve as a cure for constipation, irritable bowel syndrome and motion sickness as well as help with tension headaches and migraines. Ginger helps to fight against morning sickness, can be used to treat chronic indigestion and helps to relieve joint pain caused by osteoarthritis while hibiscus lowers blood pressure and fat levels, improves overall liver health, can starve off cravings for unhealthy sweets, and may prevent the formation of kidney stones.

Green tea is exceptionally high in flavonoids that can help boost heart health by lowering bad cholesterol and reducing blood clotting and studies show this tea can also help lower blood pressure, triglycerides and total cholesterol. Matcha, a form of green tea which is a very fine, high-quality green tea powder made from the entire leaves of tea bushes grown in the shade contains even more antioxidants that regular green tea with some suggesting that one cup of matcha is the equivalent to 10 cups of regular green tea. Black tea is caffeinated unlike the other varieties, but contains flavonoids that combat inflammation and support healthy immune function. Oolong tea is a traditional Chinese tea made from the same plant used to make green and black teas which is partially oxidised which is responsible for it’s colour and characteristic taste. Oolong tea is notable for containing l-theanine, an amino acid that reduces anxiety and increases alertness and attention and scientists have found that l-theanine can help prevent cognitive diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases. It is also high in polyphenols, which are linked to lowering inflammation, preventing the growth of cancers and decreasing type 2 diabetes risk.

For many people across cultures, tea is not just a beverage, but a lifestyle. There’s a tea for every occasion and there’s no occasion for a cup of tea. So grab a cup of tea and enjoy the International Day of Tea.

World Bee Day

Posted on May 19, 2021 by memoriesandsuch

In order to be able to feed the world’s growing population, we need ever more food, which must be diverse, balanced and of good quality to ensure the progress and well-being of humankind.

Honey bees are amazing insects that have a lot of impact on humans. They are hardworking creatures that underpin the sustenance of life in this planet earth. However, people have increasingly predisposed them to unfavorable environments, leading to massive deaths. Bees are renowned for their role in providing high-quality food like honey, royal jelly and pollen and other products used in healthcare and other sectors like beeswax, propolis and honey bee venom. The greatest contribution of bees and other pollinators is the pollination of nearly three quarters of the plants that produce 90% of the world’s food. A third of the world’s food production depends on bees, i.e. every third spoonful of food depends on pollination. In addition to being one of the major pollinators, thus ensuring food and food security, sustainable agriculture and biodiversity, bees significantly contribute to the mitigation of climate change and environmental conservation. In the long-term, the protection of bees and the beekeeping sector can help reduce poverty and hunger, as well as preserve a healthy environment and biodiversity. Scientific studies have proven that bees have become increasingly endangered and it is only through joint efforts that we can ensure the protection of bees and their habitats.

If all of the world’s bees died off, there would be major rippling effects throughout ecosystems. A number of plants, such as many of the bee orchids, are pollinated exclusively by specific bees, and they would die off without human intervention. This would alter the composition of their habitats and affect the food webs they are part of and would likely trigger additional extinctions or declines of dependent organisms. Other plants may utilize a variety of pollinators, but many are most successfully pollinated by bees. Without bees, they would set fewer seeds and would have lower reproductive success. This too would alter ecosystems. Beyond plants, many animals, such as the beautiful bee-eater birds, would lose their prey in the event of a die-off, and this would also impact natural systems and food webs.

Celebrated every year on 20 May since 2017, the World Bee Day was proposed by Slovenia, which is the birth anniversary of Anton Janša, a Slovenian beekeeper and the pioneer of modern beekeeping, who was born on this day in 1734. Also in May, the northern hemisphere sees bees and nature develop profusely, while the southern hemisphere enters autumn, when hive products are harvested and the season of honey and honey-based products begins.

This day has become increasingly important in recent times. Bees have become increasingly endangered of late. The 2015 IUCN report, which contains the first comprehensive assessment of the European bee species, states that nearly 10% of bees are facing extinction, and around 5% of them are probably endangered, while no data is available for nearly 57% of species. The number of pollinators is in decline around the world, while the need for pollination is on the rise, especially in developing countries. In some parts, this situation has become known as the pollinator crisis. According to researchers, the main reasons for the mortality of bees include diseases specific to bees, the mass use of products intended to protect plants in modern farming and their potential impact on pollinators, especially plant protection products whose harmful effect on bees has been documented, new pests which spread faster due to globalisation, urbanisation, which is shrinking the agricultural space, climate change and the global trade in low-quality honey, which impacts the beekeeping economy. A study published in the journal Lancet predicts that smaller consumption of fruit and vegetables due to climate change which also affects pollinators, will cause twice as many deaths by 2050 than hunger and malnutrition.

We need to act now. Present species extinction rates are 100 to 1,000 times higher than normal due to human impact. Close to 35 percent of invertebrate pollinators, particularly bees and butterflies, and about 17 percent of vertebrate pollinators, such as bats, face extinction globally. If this trend continues, nutritious crops, such as fruits, nuts and many vegetable crops will be substituted increasingly by staple crops like rice, corn and potatoes, eventually resulting in an imbalanced diet. Intensive farming practices, land-use change, mono-cropping, pesticides and higher temperatures associated with climate change all pose problems for bee populations and, by extension, the quality of food we grow.

So what can we as individuals do? We can plant a diverse set of native plants, which flower at different times of the year, buy raw honey from local farmers, buy products from sustainable agricultural practices, avoid pesticides, fungicides or herbicides in gardens, protect wild bee colonies when possible, sponsor a hive, make a bee water fountain by leaving a water bowl outside, help sustain forest ecosystems and raise awareness by sharing information within our communities and networks. Remember, the decline of bees affects us all!

Memories and Such

Memories of a very ordinary life

Tag Archives: UN Days