As foreign ministers from the G20 group of industrialised nations met on Wednesday to discuss sustainability and justice issues, the UN chief urged global financial institutions to “cooperate and collaborate for the good of humanity.”

With global sea level rising faster than at any time over the last 3,000 years, UN Member States met on Wednesday to examine how best to address this existential threat.

In a world where peace is “never automatic”, leadership is essential on the part of the UN Security Council which must find better ways to unite in the face of gridlock, the UN chief said on Wednesday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the UN General Assembly on Wednesday that Russia cannot defeat his people on the battlefield, so it is looking for other ways to break the Ukrainian spirit, deplorably by targeting its vital energy infrastructure as winter approaches.

The serious escalation in hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel has forced “tens of thousands” of people to flee their homes in Lebanon, including Syrian refugees, leaving border routes to Syria choked with vehicles trying to get through, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said on Wednesday.

With war raging in Sudan and no end in sight to the catastrophic hunger crisis it has created, UN agencies and Member States meeting at the General Assembly in New York on Wednesday prepared to issue a renewed call for urgent action to protect the country’s people.

MVOMERO, Tanzania, Sep 24 (IPS) - In the scorching sun of Mikese village in Tanzania's eastern Mvomero district, 31-year-old Maria Naeku tirelessly tends to her small vegetable patch. Each time she pulls a weed, the red soil stains her hands as she guides the trickle of water from a maze of pipes through an elevated bed to nurture her plants. In a drought-stricken area, Naeku's small garden is a lifeline for her family, giving them food and income.

UNITED NATIONS, Sep 24 (IPS) - Women in Afghanistan have continued to advocate for their rights and have called on the international community to not only stand in solidarity but to take decisive action to prevent the erosion of their rights and presence in public space.

UNITED NATIONS, Sep 24 (IPS) - Somalia is currently in the midst of a dire humanitarian crisis that threatens to destabilize the nation's security. This crisis is a result of the Somali Civil War, which began in 1991. Altercations between clan-based operations have caused a host of issues over the years, including over 596 civilian casualties, according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM). Tensions have greatly intensified in 2024, with levels of internal displacement and food insecurity increasing rapidly.

WASHINGTON DC, Sep 24 (IPS) - What do crypto assets and artificial intelligence have in common? Both are power hungry.

Because of the electricity used by high-powered equipment to "mine" crypto assets, one Bitcoin transaction requires roughly the same amount of electricity as the average person in Ghana or Pakistan consumes in three years. ChatGPT queries require 10 times more electricity than a Google search, due to the electricity consumed by AI data centers.