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Showing posts with the label Environment

Eldoret hosted First ever Largest Marathon in Africa

  Uasin Gishu County successfully hosted the largest ever Marathon in Africa.  The event was sponsored by Standard Media Group, Paramount Bank, Kenya Pipeline, Kenya Seed Company, Kenya Dairy Board, New KCC, Coca Cola Company and Jambo Jet. The marathon advocating for climate action was held on Sunday at Eldoret is third edition of its kind. The event was held a day after World Environment Day and had been preceded by tree planting exercise.  According to the event organizers, over 100,000 tree seedlings was planted prior to the race. The main mission is to conserve Kaptagat, Kapseret forests and to safeguard Cherangani water towers.  Winners of Eldoret City Marathon, Third Edition Victor Kipchirchir won the 42km Eldoret City Marathon within 2.08.56 while Mercy Kipchumba led the women category in a span 2.28.10. It was the first time that Mercy was participating in the contest. She upset bigger names to win the race.  Leonard Lang’at was the second in men’s category and covered the r

Why Kenya offers a Unique Experience to Tourists in Africa

Kenya is among the luckiest countries in the South of Sub-saharan Africa, North of River Limpopo. The East African country is well known as a first-class tourist destination in Africa and the whole world. Kenya’s wildlife is renowned and there is more that comes in handy to the incredibly marvelous tourist sites. The vast Savannah and a variety of wildlife enhance a balanced terrestrial eco-system.  The historic culture of tribes such as Maasai, Turkana and Giriama among others has been the center focus of tourist enthusiasts for long.  There are many eye-catching spots in Kenya. Lake Nakuru is famed as the natural habitat for pink flamingos. The incredible Rift Valley landscape offers visitors a unique and amazing experience.  Tourists flock Kenya’s Coast to relax and feel the welcoming nature of the Indian Ocean breeze. Mombasa City is the perfect place to relax during winter. The City of Kisumu has a variety of sea food and close to the second largest fresh water lake i

How Smart Glasses Could Help to Combat Climate Change

Climate change has been a major global concern due to its adverse effects on the ecosystems. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg explained how advanced smart glasses could be used to ‘teleport’ and reduce physical traveling to attend meetings and conferences. Zuckerberg stated on Monday that in-person meetings will be substituted by headset-based digital devices.  “Obviously, there are going to keep on being cars and planes and all that. But the more that we can teleport around, not only are we personally eliminating commutes and stuff that’s kind of a drag for us personally, but I think that’s better for society and for the planet overall, too,” Zuckerberg stated. Most giant tech the likes of Google, Microsoft and Apple are adopting augmented reality technology that overlays computer-generated graphics on the images of the real world, which forms the basis of the next mega computer interface after touch screen and smartphone. Facebook is on the verge of launching its own smart gl

Global Freshwater Fish on the Verge of Extinction, Study Reveals

Fresh water fish population is under threat of extinction. Study has indicated that the global population of migratory freshwater fish has plunged by 76 percent since 1970. Populations of larger fish species had declined by “catastrophic” 94%. The reduction of freshwater fish species is as a result overfishing, destructive fishing practices, invasive species, pollution, disruption of river ecologies and climate change . Irrigation and construction of dams was listed as a disruptive habitat that interfered with the existence of freshwater fish. A report that was published by 16 global conservation organizations, dubbed The World’s Forgotten Fishes indicated that 16 freshwater fish species were declared extinct in 2020. World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), which was part of the investigative team, revealed that only 15% of UK Rivers had decent ecological status. WWF further revealed that the leading damage was caused by sewage outflows and farm pollution. In UK waters, the burbo

Humanity at Risk, UNEP warns as it Demands more action on Climate

UNEP has warned the world over the negative impact of climate change and urged nations to take action to mitigate its effects.  The UN agency wants more action on climate as it noted that millions of people, animals and plants are at risk . In the launch of the event dubbed: “Making Peace with Nature Report”, UNEP published a scientific blueprint to tackle biodiversity, climate and pollution emergencies. As various parts of the world are struck by the impact of climate change, there’s an imperative desire to take great care of the environment. The report advocates the need for sustainable use of natural resources such land, air and water to avoid what has been termed in the report as “interlinked environmental crises.” Pollution, climate disruption and loss of biodiversity are great threats to living things, including humans. UNEP is pressing the world to transform its relationship with nature in order to tackle the interlinked environmental crises. The global body warned

Why World Tycoons Should Emulate Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, in the Battle against Climate Change

The silent biggest global pandemic is global warming. Global problem deserves global attention; and that is why world moguls and leaders should use their influence to initiate change that can positively impact the world. Microsoft founder Bill Gates has consistently advocated for environment conservation and has been a key personality in the battle against climate change . Gates keen focus has been to increasing access to clean electricity in remote parts of the world. As a key defender of the environment, he is quoted by the Guardian saying that: “The idea of adding new electricity capacity- you can’t just go build coal plants.” The Guardian reported that Gates likes using private jets because he can get affordable fuel for flight. He revealed that he has already footed the bill of carbon footprint to a group dubbed Climeworks , a firm that captures up direct air in Iceland. Gates pointed out that the future of vehicles travels lie with electric cars; but excluded the el

How Biden is undoing Trump’s Legacy of Environmental Obliteration

US President Joe Biden is seeking to reverse his predecessor’s policies on environment. As soon as he entered the White House, Biden led America back to the Paris Accord. Former president Donald trump had led US out of the agreement and went ahead to mock and castigate the fight against climate change. Just like many countries across the globe, United States of America has in the recent past been worst hit by erratic storms, gigantic wildfires and sweltering heat waves. Trump had dismantled policies aimed at cutting carbon emissions and opened a leeway for the development of fossil fuels. Biden regards climate change as the “existential threat of our time.” The US president is keen to protect the endangered species and their natural habitat, strengthening regulations on carbon emissions, protecting the land that was opened up to drilling, regulating the toxic substances, protecting waterways and drinking water and enforcing environmental regulations. Biden’s attempt to batt

Himalayan Glacier Calamity: Indian Government Blamed for not Heeding Experts advice

Analysts are running against time to unravel what really triggered India glacier tragedy. Questions are popping up on how to avert incidents of a similar nature. Preliminary reports indicate that the devastating glacial tragedy that occurred on Sunday was prompted by global warming . However, the exact cause of the initial glacial breakaway still remains unclear. According to Aljazeera, experts that were tasked by India’s Supreme Court to assess the impact of receding glaciers on dams had issued a warning to the government of India in 2014. Ravi Chopra, one of the contracted experts, saw a replication of what they had earlier warned the Indian government when the flood and wreckage banged downstream from the Himalayan glacier . The devastating glacial flood claimed at least 31 people while around 165 people are still unaccounted.  Chopra and his team warned that warming temperatures impacted from climate change was causing the melting of the Himalayan glaciers and advised

Fossil Fuels: The ‘Invisible Killer’ out to Wipe Humanity from Planet Earth

The major world ‘invisible killer’ has been revealed by researchers. Pollution resulting from the burning of fossil fuels like coal, diesel, kerosene and oil was responsible for the deaths of around 8.7 million globally in 2018.  Countries that overly use fossil fuels as the source of energy for domestic purposes and to power vehicles recorded the highest fatalities. The study revealed that about 10 percent deaths in Europe and the US was caused as a result of air pollution. According to the study, death rates in Africa and South America were relatively lower, while a third of the deaths in Eastern Asia were resultant effects of pollution. Those individuals who conducted the research were astounded by the death toll which was higher than what they had estimated. The report that was published in the Journal Environmental Research (JER), indicate that the mortality rate of pollution surpassed the combined sum of those people who die globally as a result of malaria and smoki

Global Warming Pushing White Sharks into New Habitat, Study Reveals

Climate change continues to wreak havoc in most parts of the world, as marine life struggle to survive the impact of global warming. White sharks are migrating into new waters thus endangering the existence of other water creatures, study has indicated. The global heat reached a record high in 2020 resulting to the migration of white sharks. According to the Guardian, white sharks moved a record distance of about 600 Km towards the North off the California Coast. Documented reports showed that the migration of white sharks led to the killing of sea otters. The sharks have been escaping the waters that became warmer as a result of global heating. The sharks then moved towards the Polar Regions, thus upsetting ecosystems inhabited by fish . Kyle Van Houtan of The Monterey Bay Aquarium in California stated that: “The shifting species is not the problem – climate change is the problem. The sharks are telling us that the ocean is changing and it’s now time for us to do somet

How Tesla’s $1.5b Landmark Bitcoin Investment would hurt its Environmental Reputation

Tesla co-founder Elon Musk faces criticism from analysts and climate advocates over his $1.5 billion investment in Bitcoin . Tesla’s interest to make the world cleaner would be ‘stained’ by Bitcoin’s current environmental imprint.  Tesla’s crypto investment saw the company rise as one of the largest corporate holders of Bitcoin. From the clean energy perspective, Bitcoin mining is perceived as a ‘dirty business.’  Clients could, in the foreseeable future, purchase electric cars from Tesla using Bitcoin. Activists argue that Bitcoin mining consumes a lot of energy and would result to more carbon emissions to the atmosphere. Money managers, investors and analysts argue that Musk’s Bitcoin venture is ‘risky.’ Wall Street observers lambasted the company’s huge investment in Bitcoin. However, Bitcoin investors welcomed Tesla’s decision that sent their holding value rise by 18 percent within a day. Furthermore, analysts argue that Tesla’s plan for crypto-for-car payment might

Elon Musk Pledges $100m Grant for Gigation Scale Carbon Removal Contest

Telsa co-founder Elon Musk pledges $100 million fund for innovations that would help remove carbon dioxide from the air or ocean. The world tycoon is seeking to finance teams with the ability to make substantial impact in the fight against climate change and rebalance world’s carbon cycle. While making the announcement, Musk said: “This is not a theoretical competition; we want teams that will build real systems that can make a measurable impact and scale to a gigation level.” The teams should be able to develop a solution that can eradicate “carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere or oceans and lock it away enduringly in an ecologically gentle way,” stated the X Prize Foundation . The announcement came in the wake of Tesla’s revelation about $1.5 billion investment in bitcoin. The fund will benefit 15 teams to be selected from the “Carbon Capture Competition.” $50 million award will go to the grand prize winner, $20 million will be for the second best team and the thir

Nile Perch Fish Life Threatened in the Second World Largest Freshwater Lake

Lake Victoria fishermen have raised alarm over the unexplained deaths of fish in the second largest freshwater lake in the world. Residents around the lake risk losing their livelihoods as a result of the death of Nile perch, locally referred as mbuta. Lake Victoria traverses three East African countries namely Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. The Lake is documented as Africa’s largest lake by size and the second largest freshwater lake in the world, after Lake Superior in North America .  The cause of the death is not yet known as residents call for government intervention. According to the Daily Nation report, the situation is more worrying on the Ugandan side and some parts of Nyanza in Kenya . The death fish were found on January floating in water at Kigungu and Gerenge, in Entebbe, Uganda. A similar case was reported in Mwanza, Tanzania where natives described the fish swimming at the surface as “drunk.” In Kenya, the places that reported fish deaths are beaches in Mbita a