Niamey, Niger (AFP) May 5, 2024
Several gold mines in northern Niger managed by a Chinese company were ordered to temporarily close after dozens of animals died from drinking wastewater, local authorities told AFP on Sunday.
Herders around the town of Tabelot had pointed to Sahara SARL's mines as the only explanation for their animals' deaths, saying the region was not suffering from drought or any epidemics.
"We count
Vienna (AFP) May 6, 2024
She cut her teeth with Greta Thunberg's Fridays For Future school protests and blocked diggers at construction sites near a national park. Now Austrian climate activist Lena Schilling has her sights set on Brussels.
The 23-year-old hopes to be elected to the European Parliament in June as one of the first wave of young activists breaking through into the political mainstream.
Schilling s
Quito (AFP) May 6, 2024
Ecuador said Sunday that electricity rationing in place since mid-April due to a crippling drought is to be suspended, thanks to rains returning and neighbor Colombia resuming energy exports.
Ninety-two percent of the country's electricity comes from hydroelectric plants.
Starting Monday, after heavy rains over the weekend, there would be no more cuts, at least temporarily, Energy Minis
Gifhorn, Germany (AFP) May 6, 2024
Emrullah Karaca has made brakes for the past 20 years, but he is now learning to assemble heat pumps instead, as the Continental factory where he works in northern Germany is slated to close.
Production of the car component at the town of Gifhorn will end in 2027 and move to Croatia, the Czech Republic and Wales to keep the costs "competitive", according to Continental, which will cut about
Brussels, Belgium (AFP) May 5, 2024
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said Monday she will press for "fair" competition with China in talks with its President Xi Jinping, who is in Paris on a state visit.
"We have to act to make sure that competition is fair and not distorted," she said in remarks issued hours before a face-to-face Paris meeting between her, Xi and French President Emmanuel Macron.
She added that, previously
Paris (AFP) May 5, 2024
Market-based approaches to forest conservation like carbon offsets and deforestation-free certification schemes have largely failed to protect trees or alleviate poverty, according to a major scientific review published on Monday.
The global study - the most comprehensive of its kind to date - found that trade and finance-driven initiatives had made "limited" progress halting deforestation
Paris (AFP) May 6, 2024
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Monday that the EU would not shrink back from taking tough measures to protect its economy and security, amid tense trade relations with China.
"China that plays fair is good for all of us," she said following talks in Paris with Chinese President Xi Jinping and French President Emmanuel Macron.
"Europe will not waver from makin
Paris (AFP) May 6, 2024
A change at the top of European institutions could herald a change in the 2035 target to phase out sales of internal combustion engine cars even though the automotive industry is already well down the road towards transitioning to electric vehicles.
Following lengthy negotiations, EU member states reached a historic agreement in 2022: from January 1, 2035 the only new cars that can be sold i
Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 07, 2024
Capella Space Corp., a US-based provider of satellite data solutions, has launched its AI-driven Vessel Classification service for high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery. This service is integrated with Capella's secure tasking web application and API, allowing users to simultaneously place Tasking requests and order Vessel Classification. The service also includes access to hist
Berlin, Germany (SPX) May 07, 2024
Recent research by the University of Sharjah and the Warburg Institute delves into the contributions of the 11th century scientist, al-H?asan Ibn al-Haytham, better known by his Latinized name Alhazen, highlighting his critical role in advancing optical sciences. His seminal work, the Book of Optics or Kitab al-Manazir, originally written in Arabic, laid foundational principles that have influen
Paris (AFP) May 6, 2024
As millions of voters prepare for next month's European Parliament elections, AFP explores some of the deep transformations the 27-member bloc has made in the field of technology.
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Singapore (AFP) May 6, 2024
Singapore Airlines said on Monday it will buy 1,000 tonnes of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from Neste, the first purchase of the low-carbon jet fuel from the Finnish firm's refinery in the city-state.
The leading Asian carrier signed an agreement with Neste to purchase the SAF to blend with conventional fuel for use by the airline and its budget arm Scoot, according to a joint statement i
Rome (AFP) May 6, 2024
Italy's rightwing government on Monday banned the installation of ground-based solar panels on agricultural land, just days after Rome committed to triple installed renewable energy capacity by 2030.
"We put an end to the wild installation of ground-mounted photovoltaic panels," Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida said at a press conference following the cabinet meeting.
The ban
