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FILE PHOTO: People take part in a climate change strike in Toronto, Ontario, Canada September 27, 2019.
Climate change court is now in session
The Ontario Court of Appeal is hearing a case brought by seven youth climate activists and backed by the environmental charity Ecojustice against the province’s Conservative government. The challengers want a more aggressive and “science-based” climate plan from Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative government.
The plaintiffs argue that the province is violating their Charter rights to equality, life, liberty, and security of the person. A judge dismissed the case last spring but noted that the province’s plan was not exactly rigorously rooted in scientific evidence. Now the plaintiffs are seeking an appeal, and this is just one of dozens of similar climate-related cases in Canada.
The lawsuits are similar to a landmark case in Montana in which youths successfully sued the Treasure State over their constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment under state law. As a state-based case, the ruling does not apply nationally – plus, the state is appealing. Still, it was the first of its kind in the US, setting a precedent and opening the door to future cases that could have further-reaching effects. In December, the US District Court in Oregon agreed to hear Juliana v. United States, another climate-policy court challenge similar to the Ontario and Montana challenges. The difference? These plaintiffs argue that federal laws are violating constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property.
Could the future of climate policy be shaped by the judicial branch? There are now over 1,800 climate litigation cases in the US, and if the Ontario appeal is successful – which could require Ontario to set more ambitious emissions reduction targets – more will surely be filed in Canada too.
Hard Numbers: China's fake fishing fleet, forever Obiang, Iran's deadly protests, IMF lending spree
280: China is paying commercial trawlers more than they can make by catching fish to stay anchored for at least 280 days a year in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. This is just one of the many ways China is using civilian ships to augment its naval power and help enforce its maritime claims in the region.
6: Africa's longest-serving head of state, strongman President Teodoro Obiang of Equatorial Guinea, will "run" for a sixth term in office next year. Obiang has called the shots in the oil-rich West African nation since he deposed his uncle in 1979, and is expected to eventually hand off to his playboy son, VP Teodorín Obiang.
41: At least 41 people have been killed in one week of widespread protests across Iran after a woman was beaten to death for failing to wear a headscarf as the mullahs have decreed. President Ebrahim Raisi is threatening a crackdown, while the US is pushing to keep Iranians online.
140 billion: As of Aug. 31, the IMF has issued loans worth a record $140 billion this year. Countries deep in the red like Sri Lanka and Zambia are now negotiating bailouts, and Ghana, Egypt, and Tunisia are likely to follow as interest rate hikes to fight inflation and a strong US dollar make it more expensive to pay off debt.A newspaper with a cover picture of Mahsa Amini, a woman who died after being arrested by the Islamic republic's "morality police" is seen in Tehran.
Hard Numbers: Iranians protest Amini death, Ukrainian troops leave… DRC, tumult in Haiti, French spiderman
67: Iranian internet connectivity was curbed to 67% of ordinary levels to limit coordination via social media as protests broke out at the funeral of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian woman reportedly beaten to death in Tehran by the Islamic Republic’s morality police for failing to comply with the regime’s strict head covering requirements. Protesters shouted “death to the dictator” and some tore off their headscarves at the funeral held in the western province of Kurdistan.
250: Around 250 Ukrainian troops with the UN’s peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are returning home to fight the war against Russia. This is one of the UN’s largest and most expensive peacekeeping missions and has been criticized for failing to root out insurgencies by armed groups vying for power – and access to minerals – in the crisis-ridden country.
100,000: Rioters calling for the resignation of Haiti's interim PM Ariel Henry looted businesses, and the UN Food Programme said that some stormed a warehouse stealing food aid that could feed 100,000 school kids through the end of the year. Thousands of Haitians have taken to the streets to protest the government’s decision to slash fuel price subsidies amid sky-high inflation and economic collapse.
48: A French solo climber – dubbed the French Spiderman – has scaled a 48 story building clad in tight red apparel to mark his 60th birthday. Alain Robert, an avid climber who climbed the building without ropes in one hour, said “I want to send people the message that being 60 is nothing. You can still do sport, be active, and do fabulous things.” Cheers to you, Alain.
Models of oil barrels seen in front of a "stop" sign and the EU and Russia flag colors.
Hard Numbers: EU bans (most) Russian oil, Israel-UAE trade deal, crowdfunded drone for Ukraine, Pokemon zero-COVID protest
2/3: After weeks of tense negotiations, EU leaders agreed late Monday to an embargo on two-thirds of the oil the bloc now imports from Russia. But there's a catch: holdout Hungary will likely get an indefinite exemption in order to drop its veto.
96: On Tuesday, Israel and the UAE will sign a landmark free trade agreement, Israel's first with an Arab country. The agreement will eliminate 96% of tariffs between the two countries, which normalized ties less than two years ago under the Abraham Accords.
5 million: Lithuanians chipped in 5 million euros ($5.4 million) in an online crowdfunding drive to buy a Bayraktar TB2 military drone for Ukraine. The Turkish-made UAVs are making a difference on the battlefield for the Ukrainians because they enable high-precision airstrikes.
200: A Pokemon character who always has a headache has become one of China's most in-demand toys because people are using it to vent about the government's zero-COVID policy. Plastic figures of Psyduck, given away in KFC children's meals, are being resold for $200 after going viral on social media.
This comes to you from the Signal newsletter team of GZERO Media. Subscribe for your free daily Signal today.
Cross country skiing at the 2022 Beijing Olympics
Hard Numbers: Real snow disrupts Winter Games, French airstrikes in the Sahel, “blasphemy” lynching in Pakistan, Canadian cops arrest protesters
222 million: Several ski and slalom events had to be pushed back at the Beijing Olympics Sunday due to heavy snow and poor visibility. Ironically, China has been criticized for using 222 million liters of water to create artificial snow conditions for the Games.
40: In coordination with local forces, the French military conducted airstrikes in Burkina Faso Saturday, killing 40 militants believed to be linked to local terror cells. The French, who have been operating in a counterterrorism capacity in the jihadist-plagued Sahel region, said the targets were responsible for recent attacks in neighboring Benin, which killed a French national.
80: More than 80 people have been arrested in Pakistan’s Punjab province for lynching a man who allegedly burned pages of the Quran. Pakistan’s British-era blasphemy law triggers a potential death sentence for anyone who insults Islam, but critics say that the law is often used by vigilantes to target minorities and settle personal scores.
1.6: Canadian police started arresting protesters Sunday in Windsor, Canada, in an attempt to unblock the 1.6 mile Ambassador Bridge that runs from there to Detroit, Michigan, and accommodates more than a quarter of all trade between the US and Canada. This comes as weeks-long protests against vaccine mandates and other measures that have crippled Ottawa, the capital, continue to grow.Chilean demonstrators take part in a rally against migrants and delinquency in Iquique, Chile, on January 30, 2022.
Hard Numbers: Chileans protest Venezuelan migrants, US rent on the rise, Myanmar coup anniversary, Benefits of Brexit
4,000: More than 4,000 Chileans demonstrated Monday in the northern city of Iquique against migration from Venezuela in response to a video of Venezuelan criminals attacking Chilean police at a checkpoint. Chile, one of South America’s wealthiest states, has seen a recent influx of migrants fleeing Venezuela’s deteriorating economy.
40: Pandemic-related economic disruption upped rent by as much as 40 percent in some US cities last year, forcing thousands to find alternative living arrangements. Many local rent freezes and eviction moratoriums have expired, leaving lower earners vulnerable to homelessness and subsequent health risks.
1,500: Around 1,500 people have been killed since Myanmar’s military staged a coup one year ago. Against the backdrop of sustained popular resistance, political stalemate persists, and the generals continue to quash all dissent.
100: The UK government has released a new 100-page Benefits of Brexit report, outlining “how the EU is taking advantage of the UK leaving the EU.” This comes as London is preparing new legislation that will override some EU laws that remain in place.FILE PHOTO of a F-35C Lightning II, assigned to the Argonauts of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 147, launches off the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) on Jan. 14, 2022.
Hard Numbers: South China Sea jet search, US economy surges, Cuban protesters charged, Africa gets vaxxed
100 million: The US Navy is scrambling to find a $100 million F-35 stealth fighter jet that crashed and sank soon after taking off on Monday from an aircraft carrier in the South China Sea. One expert described the Cold War-ish race to locate the remains — stocked with classified equipment — before the Chinese do as "basically The Hunt For Red October meets The Abyss."
5.7: The US economy grew 5.7 percent in 2021 compared to the previous year, the biggest annual expansion in almost four decades. While this is very good news for the Biden administration, GDP growth is expected to slow down in 2022 due to high inflation, supply chain issues, and looming interest rate hikes.
790: The Cuban government has charged 790 people with sedition and other crimes for taking part last summer in the biggest anti-government protests since the early 1990s. So far, 172 have been tried and convicted.
70:Africa is on track to vaccinate 70 percent of its 1.3 billion population against COVID by the end of the year, according to the African CDC. (So far 11 percent have been vaxxed). This might be possible in part because of declining vaccine hesitancy in populous countries like Nigeria.
Justice for Adama Traoré: Police brutality in France
The George Floyd protests in the United States have inspired countries around the world to take a closer look at their own problems with police brutality and racism. In France, thousands have recently taken to the streets to demand justice for Adama Traoré, a Frenchman of African origin who died in police custody in 2016. But how similar are the French and American experiences with policing and racial injustice?
To learn more, GZERO's Alex Kliment sat down with Mathieu Zagrodzki, a lecturer on policing and sociology at the University of Versailles. France has far fewer police killings than the US, Zagrodzki says, but he also points out a peculiarity of the French system that makes it impossible for the government know how extensive racial discrimination by the police might actually be.