How much does your lifestyle contribute to the planet’s depletion? Are you aware of the impacts of your activities — and what can you do to reduce your footprint on the Earth? Try our quiz and find out. The Mail & Guardian offers 10 tips on how to move from callous consumer to eco warrior.
Authorities went house to house in a search for victims in burned-out towns on Monday as firefighters in Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma battled grass fires across the drought-stricken region. Since Tuesday, fires have charred thousands of hectares and destroyed more than 250 structures in the three states.
Seven yachts competing in the gruelling around-the-world Volvo Ocean Race set sail from Cape Town on Monday in light winds for the second and most dangerous leg of the global dash. A shot from the starter’s cannon at 1pm local time signalled the start of the 6 100-nautical-mile leg.
Rescue workers searched into the early hours of Tuesday for at least 20 people feared trapped in the wreckage of an ice rink in Bavaria after the building’s roof collapsed following heavy snowfall. Eleven people were confirmed dead, according to television news reports. At least four children were among the victims of the collapse.
Two mountain fires, fanned by a strong south-westerly wind, burned out of control in the Boland on Monday night, the South African Broadcasting Corporation reported. One of the fires was raging in Du Toit’s Kloof at Donkerhoek and the second above Dewdale on the Hottentots Holland flank.
Australia hit back with three wickets but South Africa’s run grind continued on the second day of the third cricket Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Tuesday. Century-maker Ashwell Prince (119) and wicketkeeper Mark Boucher (5) fell to contentious umpiring decisions in the middle session.
South Africans are quite optimistic about 2006, a Gallup International Voice of the People survey shows. While almost half (48%) of the 52Â 000 world citizens who were interviewed in the global survey felt that 2006 would be a better year than 2005, about 60% of South Africans believed it would be better.
How is a small country to compete in a global marketplace where size is rewarded? Case in point is the tiny Southern African country of Swaziland, nestled between geographic giants South Africa and Mozambique. Its neighbouring countries also have booming economies, while Swaziland is mired in its 10th year of declining economic growth.
The hours may be too long to be legal, and the stress is like no other job in politics, but being Britain’s Prime Minister has its rewards, Tony Blair is telling visitors to his official website. In a show of candor for the public that re-elected his Labour Party to a third straight term last year, Downing Street has put together a ”day in the life of Tony” film.
The year 2005 will go down in history as another difficult 12 months for the tiny, famine-stricken Southern African nation of Malawi. More than 4,7-million Malawians, out of a population of 12-million, are experiencing food shortages, according to official statistics. Malawi does not have enough food stocks to last until the next harvest in April 2006, aid agencies warn.