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Reports of counterfeit or substandard medical gloves being sold on the market are not new -- in fact, there were more than a few cases reported last year alone. However, the most recent incident that was picked up by international media -- in which tens of millions of fake, low-quality medical gloves were flagged in the United States -- will not only embarrass the country, but severely harm Thailand's budding glove exports.
Want children to learn? Encourage them to ask questions. Better still, help them to get the answers. This should be a norm in schools. Sadly, fostering a questioning mind is an exception rather than the rule in the Thai education system.
It was already known that the first and only Norse settlement in North America was at L'Anse aux Meadows, at the northern tip of Newfoundland. The specialists even assumed that it happened in the early 11th century, because the Viking sagas more or less said so. But the traditional carbon-14 dates were all over the place.
The combined effects of Covid-19 and climate change have revealed profound vulnerabilities in Southeast Asia. The pandemic turned hospitals into mortuaries at the same time as natural disasters transformed coastal communities into washed-out mud flats. To improve regional resilience and promote sustainable growth, the post-Covid recovery must focus not only on decarbonisation, but also on the protection of nature.
It was already known that the first and only Norse settlement in North America was at L'Anse aux Meadows, at the northern tip of Newfoundland. The specialists even assumed that it happened in the early 11th century, because the Viking sagas more or less said so. But the traditional carbon-14 dates were all over the place.
Want children to learn? Encourage them to ask questions. Better still, help them to get the answers. This should be a norm in schools. Sadly, fostering a questioning mind is an exception rather than the rule in the Thai education system.
Reports of counterfeit or substandard medical gloves being sold on the market are not new -- in fact, there were more than a few cases reported last year alone. However, the most recent incident that was picked up by international media -- in which tens of millions of fake, low-quality medical gloves were flagged in the United States -- will not only embarrass the country, but severely harm Thailand's budding glove exports.
Evidence of the devastation that awaits us if we fail to address climate change continues to mount. Recent catastrophic flooding in Asia and Western Europe, record-shattering temperatures in North America, and raging wildfires in southern Europe -- all of which mirror disasters that developing countries have faced in recent years -- remind us that no country is safe. The future of each one depends on the actions of all.
After eight months of being played by Myanmar's junta, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) has finally put its foot down. The decision to bar junta leader, Senior Gen Min Aung Hlaing from attending this week's Asean Summit was as welcome as it was surprising. It must not only be a permanent decision by the regional bloc, but the start of a new, assertive approach that necessarily leads to direct engagement with the National Unity Government (NUG).
Last week, the Mekong River Commission (MRC) released two reports which once again highlighted the existential threats to the Mekong River.
In Bandar Seri Begawan, whether Asean leaders decide to upgrade China and Australia's dialogue status to comprehensive strategic partnership (CSP) this week or defer it to a later date will be a weather vane of the bloc's future engagement and management with the great powers, especially over the ripple effects of the US-China rivalry and potential military build-up.
It sure is exciting that Thailand-born K-pop megastar Lisa of Blackpink, or Lalisa Manobal, has agreed to perform for a New Year countdown event in Phuket.
The evidence from the world's scientists shows clearly that immediate action is needed on climate change -- something that affects our daily realities, everywhere. In Paris, five years ago, the international community finally agreed to embark upon an ambitious journey: to limit global warming to well below 2°C and pursue efforts to reach 1.5°C. While such levels of warming might seem manageable, the difference could be existential. For the human body the difference between 40 and 42°C is the difference between life and death. Containing the temperature increase means limiting climate disruption and reducing the chance of natural disasters.
