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Microsoft announces plan to make the Xbox carbon neutral
Microsoft has joined other major tech companies such as Amazon, Google and Sony in laying out some new commitments to mitigate climate change. One of the more eye-catching measures it detailed was a pilot project to make 825,000 Xbox consoles carbon neutral. It says those'll be the first carbon-neutral consoles.
UN says US fears over Huawei’s 5G are politically motivated
The secretary general of the UN's internet and telecoms agency has suggested US concerns about 5G networks built using Huawei equipment have more to do with politics and trade, rather than legitimate worries over security. "There is no proof so far," Houlin Zhao, head of the International Telecommunication Union, said regarding claims about Huawei's security. He noted it's in telecoms' best interests to make sure their infrastructure is secure as they might otherwise feel the wrath of authorities.
Governments reach deal to implement Paris climate change agreement
Politicians signed the Paris climate agreement back in 2015, but they've finally laid the groundwork for acting on that agreement. Governments have developed guidelines, known as the Katowice Climate Package, that will determine how they implement emissions reductions starting in 2020. It establishes how nations will set targets, measure technological progress, verify effectiveness and otherwise translate the agreement's goals into reality.
'Pokémon Go' creator Niantic to develop GPS-based tourism games
It was at the helm of GPS/AR/Maps-based "exergaming" in 2013 with Ingress, saw phenomenal success with Pokémon Go, and will launch a location-based Harry Potter mobile game next year. Now, Niantic is making the natural move into tourism-focused games. In partnership with the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), as part of its Travel.Enjoy.Respect program, the games company will create new experiences that encourage players to explore and discover the hidden histories of both their own neighborhoods and further afield.
The US is not prepared to shape global internet policy
This is a critical moment in global internet policy. The world is awake to the power of connected online systems, and the United Nations agrees that access to the internet is a human right, tied irrevocably to the tenets of free thought and expression. The European Union has just implemented strict data-protection policies under the GDPR, influencing businesses around the world in the process. Russia has been caught hacking into critical US systems, including utility companies, nuclear facilities and routers, and using social media to undermine the 2016 presidential election. Just this week, Facebook announced it had discovered another, similar influence campaign aimed at continually disrupting American democracy. As leaders around the world turn their attention to cybersecurity, the US lacks the resources and reputation to properly lead the conversation. That's the message out of Tuesday's Senate hearing, The Internet and Digital Communications: Examining the Impact of Global Internet Governance.
Google works with the UN to monitor environmental changes
Google is partnering with the United Nations to help measure the impact of human activity on ecosystems around the world. The project, which launches today, will provide real-time data to organizations and countries looking to plan and direct actions in response to quickly changing environmental conditions. The goal is that, with free access to this valuable data, more countries will pursue sustainable development.
China is inviting international scientists to its future space station
With China's Tiangong-1 space station plummet Earthward to a fiery demise back in April, the country has looked forward to its next space outpost. The East Asian nation hopes to have it in orbit by the end of 2022, and is planning to open it up to the world: UN member states can now apply to visit the China Space Station, as it will be called, to perform experiments.
Treaty ending use of planet-warming HFCs takes effect in 2019
The treaty phasing out the use of Earth-warming hydrofluorocarbons now has an official start date. Sweden has become the 20th country to ratify the Kigali Amendment, invoking a clause that has the measure taking effect on January 1st, 2019. From then on, wealthier countries (less fortunate nations have until 2024 or 2028) must cut back on use of the greenhouse gas in everything from air conditioning to refrigerators. Ideally, this pushes companies to use and develop eco-friendly coolants.
The UN wants all drones registered in a global database
The United Nations' aviation agency, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), plans to support a single worldwide drone registry. This singular ledger would be easier for law enforcement to sift through than each country's individual UAV ledger.
Microsoft and the UN to provide digital IDs for undocumented people
It's difficult to live without identification. In many cases, you're shut out of banking, health care, voting rights and other basics. Microsoft and partners might just give those many undocumented people (1.1 billion of them, in fact) a shot at the identity they need, though. It's working with Accenture and Avanade on a United Nations-backed digital ID effort that would offer legal recognition to those who'd otherwise be lost to recordkeepers. The prototype uses blockchain technology to give people a trustworthy ID that can follow them anywhere, but still respects privacy and security.
Microsoft partners with the UN to track human rights abuses
In what's described as a "landmark" partnership, Microsoft and the United Nations are teaming up to help help predict and fight human rights abuses, among other potential projects. Microsoft is providing a $5 million grant to the UN Human Rights Office, which will support the development of new technology tools for the intergovernmental organization. That includes "Rights View," a dashboard tool that lets the UN use big data and cloud computing to track potential human rights issues globally in real time.
E-waste levels are surging in Asia
If you thought our throwaway gadget culture was already having a nasty effect on the environment, watch out... it's getting considerably worse. A United Nations University study has revealed that the volume of e-waste in East and Southeast Asia surged 63 percent between 2010 and 2015, reaching 12.3 million tonnes. Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and mainland China were unsurprisingly the largest local generators. But why the rapid spike?
'1979 Revolution' lands on Android
1979 Revolution: Black Friday is a powerful adventure game about a photojournalist, Reza, who gets tangled up in the movement to overthrow the Shah of Iran around 1979. And now, the complete game is on Android. 1979 Revolution hit Google Play today for Android devices, following its launch on PC, Mac and iOS earlier this year.
Canada-led effort would require more locally-made digital media
If the Canadian government has its way, you could see a lot more locally-produced material from your favorite online media services -- at least, outside of the US. It's leading a campaign that would create a global consensus on domestically-made digital content, giving governments the justification for laws that require funding and promotion for homegrown media. Services like iTunes and Netflix would have to back movies and music created in your corner of the world, rather than supporting them when it's convenient.
Video games are more important than ever
When Bob Dylan won the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature, it shocked the humanitarian world. What's more, Dylan himself hasn't behaved like a traditional Nobel winner: He hasn't commented on the honor and has yet to give an acceptance speech. At least one member of the Nobel panel has called Dylan's silence "rude and arrogant," and the public has been reminded that if he doesn't give a lecture within six months, he won't receive the $900,000 prize money. It's a new kind of strange in-fighting scandal for the Nobel community. However, it's not surprising. Selecting Dylan as a Nobel laureate may be contentious, but it's mostly a sign of growth for intellectual society -- at least in Literature, no one is off-limits, not even mumbling masters of wordplay and songwriting. Growing pains are expected as the world of mainstream politics, activism and academia is suddenly forced to consider the potential of new industries and vice versa. Songwriting might just be the beginning. With the growing accessibility of high-end living-room consoles and virtual reality headsets, it's easy to imagine a video game on a list of Nobel nominees in the near future. Nowhere was that more apparent than at IndieCade 2016, an annual festival celebrating independent video games held in Los Angeles, California.
The United Nations is turning VR into a tool for social change
Virtual reality is lauded as an empathy generator. The ability to transport viewers to a setting that would otherwise be inaccessible, or even unfathomable, lends a sense of poignancy to the medium. Over the last two years, journalistic stories and charitable causes have been translated into VR films to raise awareness. In particular, the United Nations Virtual Reality initiative has been using the medium as an advocacy tool for vulnerable communities across the world. And now with the recent launch of a mobile app that introduces a "take action" button for the viewers to engage with the social issues, UNVR is looking to convert compassion into action. The app, led by Gabo Arora, the UN creative director who spearheads the organization's VR productions, will host experiences like Clouds Over Sidra, which places viewers alongside a 12-year-old girl in a Syrian refugee camp; Waves of Grace, which brings them into the world of an Ebola survivor in Liberia; and My Mother's Wing, which takes them to a home in Gaza, where a mother lost her two young sons in the bombing of the UNRWA school.
Sierra Nevada is taking the United Nations to space in 2021
Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser might not have won NASA's space taxi contract, but at least it's taking the United Nations to orbit. The spacecraft, which resembles NASA's old Space Shuttles, will launch the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs' first actual mission in 2021, 59 years after the division was established. It's meant to give developing nations without a space program the chance to send experiments and other payloads outside our planet, though any UN member can apply for a spot on the vehicle. UNOOSA will even offer technical assistance to countries that have no experience developing microgravity payloads.
UN rights council condemns the disruption of internet access
The United Nations Human Rights Council has had enough of state-sponsored attempts to restrict internet access and punish people who use the internet as a space for free expression. The council on Friday passed a resolution that reaffirms and expands its previous stances upholding internet rights across the globe, noting, "The same rights that people have offline must also be protected online, in particular freedom of expression." Today's resolution is non-binding, but it can be used as support in future cases of online human-rights violations.
Final climate change deal keeps emissions in check, if it sticks
After weeks of work, the United Nations is on the cusp of reaching a deal to prevent climate change... hopefully. A just-published final draft agreement sets some clear targets that include a hefty amount of cooperation. The deal would limit the global temperature increase to "well below" 2 Celsius above pre-industrial levels, and reach a balance in greenhouse gas emissions (that is, as many offsets as there are emitters) by the second half of this century. There would be a progress review every five years, and developing countries would get a helping hand to the tune of $100 billion per year as of 2020.
Draft climate change deal lowers greenhouse gases by 2050
Earth just took a tentative step toward a new, comprehensive plan for improving the environment. Representatives from 195 countries have approved a draft UN climate change agreement that will ask all participants to lower their carbon dioxide emissions. There are still many, many details left to resolve ahead of a final deal (ideally signed next week), but the ultimate goal is to have countries reduce their greenhouse gas levels by 2050, and to eliminate emissions completely between 2060 and 2080.
