News stories by Stephen Leahy, page 5

, May 16 (IPS) - Many eyes are turning north to the Arctic, some in horror at the rapid decline of a key component of our life support system, others in eager anticipation at the untapped resources beneath the vanishing snow and ice.

UXBRIDGE, Canada, May 09 (IPS) - Toxic waste sites in 31 countries are damaging the brains of nearly 800,000 children and impairing the health of millions of people in the developing world, two new studies have found.

UXBRIDGE, Canada, May 07 (IPS) - Another week of international climate negotiations ended in Bonn, Germany last Friday, but there was little mid-level bureaucrats could do when world leaders remain in thrall to the fossil fuel industry, say environmentalists.

UXBRIDGE, Canada, Apr 30 (IPS) - One, two or more of the 102 newly launched out-of-the box ideas to improve global health could be world-changing breakthroughs.

UXBRIDGE, Canada, Apr 28 (IPS) - Nearly 70 percent of known reserves of oil, gas and coal must remain in the ground to avoid dangerous climate change. So why did the energy industry spend 674 billion dollars in 2012 looking for more?

UXBRIDGE, Canada, Apr 24 (IPS) - Everyone loves penguins, but few will know today is World Penguin Day. Fewer still are those who know penguins are threatened with extinction by climate change and giant fishing trawlers from Europe and Asia stalking the oceans around Antarctica.

UXBRIDGE, Canada, Apr 15 (IPS) - "Be a climate-protection hero, not a climate victim" is the message energy experts from around the world are bringing to San Francisco Tuesday.

UXBRIDGE, Canada, Mar 28 (IPS) - Canada is pulling out of the United Nations convention that fights droughts in Africa next year, making it the only country in the world not participating in the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).

UXBRIDGE, Canada, Mar 22 (IPS) - How much water does it take to turn on a light? It took 10,000 litres to make your jeans. Another three big bathtubs of water was needed for your two-eggs-toast-coffee breakfast this morning.

UXBRIDGE, Canada, Mar 19 (IPS) - As usual, midtown Manhattan is packed with whisper-quiet cars and trams while thousands walk the streets listening to the birds of spring sing amongst the gleaming, grime-free skyscrapers in the crystal-clear morning air.