Ahmad, a Syrian man from Idlib who burns wood to make charcoal for a living, touches a pile of charcoal near the banks of Nahr Ibrahim river, in Mount Moussa nature reserve July 13, 2015. Ahmad, who has four children, lives with his family in a tent by the river banks within the nature reserve. Ahmad makes between $1 and $3 for every kilogram of charcoal he sells. Picture taken July 13, 2015. REUTERS/Alia Haju
New Tool for Managing the Fuel Needs of Displaced Populations
A FAO-UNHCR handbook offers a new tool for helping displaced people access fuel for cooking food while reducing environmental damage and conflicts with local communities. Fuel for cooking food is a critical resource for displaced people as well as the communities that host them, crucial to their food security and nutrition.
An Upgraded 3,000-Year-Old Pea Could Ease India's Inflation Problem
Sharma, an Indian research team, has been testing a new variety of pigeon pea, a 3,000-year-old indigenous crop used to make dal, a staple of the diet in India. By adding a gene to the seed’s DNA, they hope to make it pest-proof, boost output by 30% and help reduce dependence on imports in a country that’s both the world’s biggest producer and consumer of dry legumes, also known as pulses.
5 Reasons to Farm in Low-Earth Orbit
Low-Earth orbit (LEO) would hardly appear to be the best place to take up farming. But both NASA and the burgeoning commercial space industry are already planning for a time there will be Earth-orbiting greenhouses. Such structures will provide a horn of plenty for growing numbers of LEO residents and astronauts venturing beyond Earth’s orbit to the Moon, Mars, or even the Main Asteroid Belt.
Bill Gates: To Boost Africa, Invest in Its Youth
Political instability, widespread disease, and other issues mar Africa and inhibit its progress. But billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates thinks there’s hope, and that the continent has a key asset that could boost growth: its youth. Young people can provide innovative solutions to the region’s problems—more than older people—“because they are not locked in by the limits of the past,” Gates said.