Development Banks to Address Palm Oil Abuses in DR Congo

Expand “I don’t have gloves; when we pick up the fruit bunches it hurts us,” said a palm fruit harvester that has worked for the company for over a decade. “Sometimes the fruit bunches fall on people or animals’ excrement.” Boteka, November 17, 2018. © 2018 Luciana Téllez/Human Rights Watch. Four European development banks have announced they will require a major palm oil company in the Democratic Republic of Congo to take steps to redress human rights abuses recently reported by Human Rights Watch. The 95-page report, A Dirty Investment, concluded that Feronia, which is financed by the four…

Read complete article

~	Venus is losing water faster than previously thought – here’s what that could mean for the early planet’s habitability

~	Paraguay: Well-being of millions depend on urgently needed improvements to public health system

~	What are nanoplastics? An engineer explains concerns about particles too small to see

~	‘Hidden mother’ photos don’t erase moms − rather, they reveal the labor and love that support the child

~	I analyzed 3,356 signs to see how language use is changing in three Latino neighborhoods in Philly

~	How does the brain think?

~	The number of religious ‘nones’ has soared, but not the number of atheists – and as social scientists, we wanted to know why

~	Paying caregivers more could boost Nebraska’s economy − new research

~	Unlicensed teachers now dominate new teacher hires in rural Texas schools

~	Neediest areas are being shortchanged on government funds − even with programs designed to benefit poor communities