COVID-19 in the International Year of Plant Health

<p>Pests, in their broad sense, have played an important part in the history of humankind. We could say that humans, crops and pests have walked together through life. Codices, glyphs, paintings and countless ancient documents, including the Bible and the Koran, bear witness to this. Humanity has been attacked by its own diseases, but also by those that limit them from obtaining food and deteriorate the environment. COVID-19, which is now troubling us and was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization in March of 2020, became a part of the list of experiences we have suffered in the past, with pests or epidemics that caused millions of deaths by diseases or famines. It is paradoxical that this health contingency occurs when the United Nations General Assembly, on December 20th, 2018, in its resolution A/RES/73/252 decides to declare 2020 the International Year of Plant Health in order to “highlight the importance of plant health to improve food security, protect the environment and biodiversity and boost economic development” according to the pronouncement by the FAO. For the first time, in an era with great technological and scientific breakthroughs, humanity was aware of its vulnerability against the inevitable evolution of life forms in the face of dilemmas global impact caused by human beings. Thus, the pest or parasite makes its own declaration of existential preeminence through SARS-CoV-2 to remind us that the health of humans or plants is the essence of life and its continuity. But perhaps absolute health is not enough. It is necessary to find a balance in a world overwhelmed by giving so much in return for almost nothing to everyone living on it. If the sensor of our anthropocentric intervention of the world is climate change, then biological chaos is a masterpiece. The reemergence of pests and diseases considered eradicated, or those of zoonotic origin that had never accompanied our existence is a surreal dystopia that we will never be able to deny again.</p>

Health Diplomacy as an Instrument of Indonesian Foreign Policy

Indonesia’s foreign policy is dynamic, especially in the COVID-19 Pandemic Era. When Indonesia experienced an increase in COVID-19 cases, it identified it as a foreign policy issue requiring attention. It focused on promoting national health resilience in health care as one way to protect the Indonesian state during the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this paper is to explain and analyze Indonesia’s health diplomacy as an instrument of Indonesia’s foreign policy in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic. It argues that, so far, the results of Indonesia’s health-focused approach are good and in line with Indonesia’s national interests. Indonesia’s active role and involvement in international forums has a diplomatic purpose but has also helped other countries. This indicates that the health diplomacy carried out by Indonesia has had a major impact on regional and global stability. In addition, Indonesia’s health diplomacy has resulted in it receiving assistance in the form of medical devices and vaccines provided by other countries for handling COVID-19 in Indonesia. Indonesia was also the driving force in the initiation in the 75th United Nations General Assembly of measures giving voice to the availability of medical devices and vaccine equality for all countries in the world.

History of partnership between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (1992-2014)

Countries and peoples of the world have expressed concern about the geopolitical situation in Asia since the end XX century and the tense situation there. Nuclear weapons have appeared in several countries of the continent. Territorial disputes in a number of countries have escalated into armed conflict. There were other disputes, which were difficult to resolve. At the same time, the collapse of the Soviet Union, which was considered a military and economic power on the continent had a certain impact on stability in the region complicating the political situation further here. Independent states were formed in the post-Soviet region. The issue of border security of the states was on the agenda. At that time, the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan N.A. Nazarbayev speaking from the rostrum of the 47th session of the United Nations General Assembly on October 5, 1992, initiated the establishment of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia. In accordance with modern requirements, this proposal was supported and a council was established. Several states were accepted as members. Today, the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia continues its work on a regular basis. The activity of this political structure has gained international significance. In the main section authors will talk about its formation and function

Biological Prospecting in Antarctica – A Solution-Based Approach to Regulating the Collection and Use of Antarctic Marine Biodiversity by Taking the BBNJ Process into Account

Areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ) are covering nearly two-thirds of the world’s oceans and are rich in biological diversity. These also include the Polar Regions, where marine organisms adapted to extreme environments and led to increased scientific interest and activities, including bioprospecting activities. As a result, marine biodiversity is increasingly threatened. Thus, the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) was established to ensure the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity but left ABNJ and bioprospecting activities widely unregulated. In Antarctica, for instance, bioprospecting has raised concerns, and the matter has been discussed since 2002. As a result, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 69/292 concluded the establishment of a new international legally binding instrument (ILBI) on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity for ABNJ. However, the inclusion of the Antarctic Treaty Area remains unclear. In light of the current BBNJ negotiations, the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM) only acknowledges the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) as the appropriate framework to regulate these activities in Antarctica. Further, it seems to aim for regulation under the ATS, if at all. Therefore, this paper discusses a solution-based approach for possible regulation of the collection and use of Antarctic marine biodiversity. The negotiations and achievements of the current BBNJ process will be taken into account, as they might provide support for the regulation of these issues in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean.

Normative Political Theory and Global Migration Governance

Based on the main contributions of normative political theory on global justice and migration ethics, this article assesses the global Compacts on refugees and migration, approved by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2018. The set of conclusions indicates that the Compacts constitute an important advance in global moral and political projects and commitments. However, the application of their predicted terms can bring about problems, distortions, and impasses in the sharing of responsibilities.

The Arms Trade Treaty

On 2 April 2013, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Arms Trade Treaty and on 24 December 2014, it entered into force. This marked the end of a long road towards achieving the first global treaty regulating the international trade in conventional arms and preventing their illicit trade and diversion. <br><br>This book offers readers a concise and workable insight into each of the Articles of this important legal instrument, as well as its negotiation and scope of application. It brings together renowned state practitioners, legal academics and non-governmental expert analysts with different perspectives and backgrounds, many of whom were directly involved in the negotiation of the Treaty itself. <br><br><i>The Arms Trade Treaty</i> will provide a comprehensive commentary to guide academics, officials, diplomats and others in the implementation of the Treaty. <br><br>This book was previously published by Larcier. By popular demand, it has been republished and is now available in eBook format.

Reducing Prejudice Through Promoting Cross-Group Friendships

Around the globe, individuals are affected by exclusion, discrimination, and prejudice targeting individuals from racial, ethnic, and immigrant backgrounds as well as crimes based on gender, nationality, and culture (United Nations General Assembly, 2016). Unfortunately, children are often the targeted victims (Costello & Dillard, 2019). What is not widely understood is that the intergroup biases underlying systemic racism start long before adulthood with children displaying notable signs of intergroup bias, sometimes before entering grade school. Intergroup bias refers to the tendency to evaluate members of one’s own group more favorably than someone not identified with one’s group and is typically associated with prejudicial attitudes. Children are both the victims and the perpetrators of bias. In this review, we provide evidence of how biases emerge in childhood, along with an analysis of the significant role of intergroup friendships on enhancing children’s well-being and reducing prejudice in childhood. The review focuses predominantly on the context of race, with the inclusion of several other categories, such as nationality and religion. Fostering positive cross-group friendships in childhood helps to address the negative long-term consequences of racism, discrimination, and prejudice that emerges in childhood and continues through to adulthood.

Scientific Competence in Developing Countries: Determinants and Relationship to the Environment

In 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Agenda 2030 to guarantee sustainable, peaceful, prosperous, and just life, establishing 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). According to this declaration, pursuing the path of sustainable development requires a profound transformation in how we think and act. People must have scientific competences—not only knowledge of science, but also skills, values, and attitudes toward science that enable them to contribute to the goals proposed. This overall approach, known as Education for Sustainable Development (EDS), is crucial to achieving the SDGs. Scientific competences not only depend on what students learn in their countries’ formal education systems but also on other factors in the environment in which the students live. This study aims to identify the factors that determine scientific competence in students in developing countries, paying special attention to the social and cultural capital and the environmental conditions in the environment in which they live. To achieve this goal, we used data provided by PISA-D in the participating countries—Cambodia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Paraguay, and Senegal—and multilevel linear modelling. The results enable us to conclude that achieving scientific competence also depends on the social and cultural capital of the student’s family and on the cultural and social capital of the schools. The higher the score in these forms of capital, the greater the achievement in sciences.

Common Heritage of Mankind and the Deep Seabed Area Beyond National Jurisdiction: Past, Current, and Future Prospects

The common heritage of mankind (CHM) is of a relatively recent origin. This study examines Arvid Pardo's speech to the United Nations General Assembly in 1967, in which he urged that body to designate the seabed beyond national control as CHM. The commentary next looks at Part XI of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 82, as amended by the 1994 Agreement, which incorporates the CHM as a core principle governing mineral mining in the deep bottom area beyond national jurisdiction. Finally, it discusses CHM's future prospects in relation to the draft International Seabed Authority (ISA) Exploitation Regulations, the Enterprise, an ISA organ that has yet to be operationalized, and ongoing discussions about an international legally binding instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity under the UNCLOS. The purpose of this study is to highlight the complexity surrounding the CHM, which is a key principle governing deep seabed activities.