Category: Life & Style

Billionaire Yvon Chouinard, the founder of outdoor fashion retailer Patagonia announced he has donated his company to a charitable trust. Under the new ownership order, any profit not reinvested in operating the company would go to combating climate change.

This will amount to approximately $100 billion every year, Yvon Chouinard said.

Yvon Chouinard’s Patagonia was founded in 1973 and it sells hiking and other outdoor clothing in more than 10 countries.  According to a BBC report, the company’s estimated revenue was $1.5 billion in 2022, while the net worth of Yvon Chouinard is said to be $1, 2 billion.

 A letter, written by Yvon Chouinard, titled “Earth is now our only shareholder,” was posted on the company’s website on Wednesday explaining his decision to give away his company.

“Despite its immensity, the Earth’s resources are not infinite, and it’s clear we’ve exceeded its limits. Instead of extracting value from nature and transforming it into wealth, we are using the wealth Patagonia creates to protect the source,” Yvon Chouinard said.

“Truth be told, there were no good options available. So, we created our own,” he added.

In 2021, Hut Group’s Matthew Moulding, which owns a wide variety of online beauty and nutrition brands, donated £100 million to a charitable foundation.

President William Ruto pledged to phase out fossil fuels for electricity by 2030 and said climate change would be a key element of the government’s plan.

On Tuesday, at Nairobi’s Moi International Sports Complex, President Ruto said, “Our country suffers the consequences of climate emergency.” “It is imperative that we reduce global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, help those in need, and end fossil fuel addiction,” he concluded, echoing the call by the Secretary-General of the United Nations to reduce the world’s reliance on fossil fuels.

President Ruto pledged to implement a full and just transition to electricity that is exclusively generated by solar, wind, and geothermal energy by 2030 that will benefit all communities, based on revised climate change commitments submitted to the United Nations, known as nationally determined contributions.

Mr Ruto said, “Kenya is on its way to embracing clean energy as part of its transition to job creation, economic development, and sustainable industrialization.”

According to Evans Mukolwe, Kenya’s former meteorological department head, the move, although welcome, might have a too short deadline given the current devastating drought in Africa. According to him, the President’s new goal may not be achieved without deliberate efforts to increase geothermal and solar power.

The CEO of Romco Metal, which recycles scrap aluminium in Nigeria and Ghana, said the company plans to increase production five-fold to 100,000 tonnes per year. Green hydrogen is being created for its furnaces as part of a project to power them.

Its expansion plans include raising $50 million in debt and equity to help drive growth. Romco is based in the UK. To meet the growing demand for aluminium, Romco’s CEO and founder Raymond Onovwigun says the company will open seven new plants in Africa over the next five years. Copper recycling has been started by the firm recently.

A combined 18,000 tonnes of aluminium ingots are produced per year by Romco’s recycling plants in Nigeria’s commercial capital Lagoa and Ghana.

Onovwigun said, “We are looking at using solar, and we are currently working with a UK university taking the solar and creating green hydrogen for heat generation to power our furnaces. This is a medium to long term plan”.

Despite its immaturity and relative cost, green hydrogen can be produced by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen with renewable energy sources such as solar and wind.

On Thursday, Queen Elizabeth II died after her longest reign as monarch. After she died, Charles, the former Prince of Wales and heir-in-waiting, immediately took the throne.

Charles has spent the better part of his life preparing for the throne. The time has finally come, at the age of 73. Saturday, the Accession Council will proclaim Charles III the new monarch.

In history, Charles is the oldest British monarch to assume the throne. When his mother, Elizabeth, was 26 years old, she was crowned Queen. His coronation will make him the head of state of the UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea.

Having been raised by a domineering father, Charles has grown into an often awkward, but self-confident man. He has written and delivered speeches on topics close to his heart, including climate change, green energy, and alternative medicine, unlike his mother, who refused to speak publicly about her opinions.

Ed Owens, a historian, said: “He is now in the autumn of his life, having to consider carefully how he projects himself as a public figure.” Unlike his mother, he isn’t as popular. According to him, Charles needs to generate the same kind of public support Elizabeth had, along with a sense of endearment.

A grand ceremony was held on Thursday to inaugurate the newly christened Kartavya Path between Rashtrapati Bhavan and India Gate, formerly known as Rajpath. Under the Central Vista redevelopment plan, this is the first project to be completed.

As part of the redevelopment of the Kartavya Path, the scenic landscape, lawns, and walkways will be beautified, green spaces will be added, canals will be refurbished, new amenity blocks will be constructed, and signage and vending kiosks will be improved.

In addition, he unveiled a 28-ft-tall statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at India Gate, paying floral tribute to the legendary freedom fighter. Several Union ministers attended the event with the PM.

As part of the revamp of central vista in Delhi, the PM integrated with the workers. At the next republic day parade, Modi will invite all of the Shramjeevis (workers) who worked on the Central Vista redevelopment project. Besides walking along the gallery, the PM looked at the nine-decade evolution of Central Vista Avenue on the India Gate premises.

A revamp of Central Vista is part of the Modi government’s ambitious redevelopment project worth 13,450 crores, which includes a triangular Parliament building, a central secretariat, a new residence and office for the prime minister, as well as a vice president’s enclave.

The National drug regulator has approved the country’s first intra-nasal Covid vaccine for emergency use in adults, the Government said on Tuesday.

The new vaccine, called Incovacc, is manufactured by Bharat Biotech, the company that also manufactured Covaxin. The vaccine can be administered only to the unimmunized and thus those who have already received the first and second doses of other vaccines will not be eligible to get iNCOVACC.

iNCOVACC will be administered through the nose, which might cause an immune response in the mucosal membrane. It has been designed to protect against infection and also reduce virus transmission.

The vaccine uses an altered chimpanzee adenovirus, which cannot reproduce in the body, to carry the Covid spike protein to produce immunity.

The new vaccine was developed by Bharat Biotech in partnership with Washington University-St Louis.

The vector that carries the spike protein was developed and evaluated in pre-clinical studies by the US University. Bharat Biotech is taking care of product development and manufacturing. The vaccine development was, to some extent, funded by the Department of Biotechnology’s Covid Suraksha program.

The vaccine remains stable at 2-8°C, which makes it easy to store and distribute. It will be manufactured at several places in the country, including Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Telangana.

As part of an earlier announcement this year, the Republic of Singapore is considering setting 2050 as the year Singapore’s planet-warming emissions will be net zero. Singapore is also considering raising its 2030 climate target to support the longer-term goal, the National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS) said on Monday.

It is currently projected that the country will emit 65 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, which is a significant increase from the current target of 45 million tonnes. A government feedback portal called Reach is available for citizens to provide their views on the 2050 timeline as well as the possibility of an updated 2030 target.

On Monday, the public consultation exercise began and ends on Sept 26. A new update on Singapore’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions offers a more detailed timeline for the country’s goal.

In order to achieve this, greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced to as close to zero as possible, such as by switching fossil fuels for renewables. Forests and mangroves must be restored to reclaim any remaining emissions from the atmosphere.

Singapore will aim to achieve net zero emissions in the mid-20th century, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong said during this year’s Budget. As part of Singapore’s climate goals, the carbon tax rate will also be increased from $5 to $50 to $80 per tonne of emissions by 2030.

India’s Minister of State of the Ministry of Science and Technology & Earth Sciences announced India’s first locally made quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine (qHPV), Cervavac, for the prevention of cervical cancer.

Cervavac is developed by the Serum Institute of India (SII), the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), and the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) along with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Adar Poonawalla, chief executive of SII, stated that SII will make 200 million doses of the qHPV vaccine in two years, and will first give it out in India, and then to the rest of the world. 

A report in Business Today said that once the vaccines are developed, they will be available to both genders at a price range of 200 to 400 rupees ($2.50-$5). The vaccine will be given in two or three doses, depending upon the recipient.

Until now, Indian users were using the HPV vaccine developed by foreign manufacturers, costing 2,000 to 3,500 rupees per dose.

The two vaccine variants available in India are Gardasil from Merck & Co and Cervarix from GSK.

Cervical cancer is the second most frequent cancer in India among women between 15 and 44 years of age.

In response to Russia’s decision to halt gas deliveries to Europe, Sweden will provide emergency liquidity support to electricity producers.

Magdalena Andersson said on Saturday that the government would provide electricity producers with funding worth hundreds of billions of Kroner. As a result of soaring gas and power prices and increasing volatility, the amount of collateral they must post with exchanges has risen dramatically.

The EU energy ministers will also discuss measures to ease tight liquidity conditions for energy companies at an emergency meeting on Friday, according to two officials briefed on the meeting.

In the worst-case scenario, Andersson warned that rising collateral demands for electricity producers could ripple through the main Nasdaq Clearing market in Stockholm and spark a financial crisis. As a result of Russia’s decision to stop supplying gas through the Nordstream 1 pipeline on Friday, her remarks were prompted. The announcement came after the weekend’s close of the energy markets.

At an emergency press conference on Saturday, Andersson said, “Yesterday’s announcement not only risks leading to a ‘war winter’ but also threatens our financial stability.” In support of the statement, Finnish finance minister Annika Saarikko tweeted, “The concern is shared. Similar preparations are already well under way in Finland.”   

The government of Germany has announced a $65bn plan to help people and businesses combat rising prices, as many European countries bring in emergency measures to get ready for a long winter amid a disturbing Russian gas supply to Europe following the Ukrainian invasion.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Sunday announced an action list in the wake of expectations that energy costs would reach sky-high in the coming months. Energy prices have shot high as Europe has been trying not to procure Russian energy after Moscow invaded Ukraine in February.

Two days ago, Moscow put the lid on the main pipeline supplying gas to Europe indefinitely, compelling countries like Germany to take shelter in alternative energy supplies elsewhere.

Scholz said his government had been planning for a complete stop in gas supply in December, but he vowed that his country would outlast the energy through winter.

“Russia is no longer a reliable energy partner,” Scholz told a news conference in Berlin.

The German leader said the monetary bundle is aimed at protecting customers and businesses from rising inflation with steps including benefit hikes and a public transport subsidy.

Income tax-paying workers will get a one-off energy price allowance of $300, while families will receive a one-time bonus of $100 per child, and $200 for low incomes families.