Recent street protests in Kazakhstan appear to have erupted in response to a doubling of the price of liquefied natural gas, which is the fuel used by cars; But the protests quickly escalated into violence, with repression squads taking action, and the authoritarian regime in Kazakhstan suppressing and curbing popular protests with maximum use of force and violence. The Kazakh government even appealed to the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) for assistance. Kazakh government security forces helped crack down on protesters.
Qasim Jomart Tokayev; the Kazakh president has repeatedly spoken in various speeches and televised speeches about the involvement of foreign forces in organizing and leading the protests in Kazakhstan, declaring that the protesters are “terrorists”, that they have been trained abroad, have access to weapons and intend to overthrow the coup.
Mr Tokayev specifically mentioned Afghanistan and the Middle East, and claimed that fighters from those countries had arrived in Kazakhstan to organize anti-government uprisings.
Following him, Imam Ali Rahman; the Tajik president also called for a security belt around Afghanistan at an extraordinary virtual summit of CSTO leaders, claiming that dozens of terrorist training camps had been set up in northeastern Afghanistan to destabilize Central Asia, with thousands of extremists. And Islamists are learning vocational training.
In addition, Vladimir Putin; The Russian president also announced at the same meeting that he would not allow the formation of a “revolution” in Central Asian countries.
However, despite repeated insistence by Kazakh and other Central Asian and Russian leaders on foreign involvement in the recent deadly unrest in Kazakhstan, which is said to have killed tens of people, injured hundreds and arrested thousands more, despite ongoing protests. The protests have subsided, the protesters have returned to their homes, and large numbers of them have been detained by security forces, and it is unclear what is going on in Kazakhstan’s prisons and detention centers; But there are clear indications that the insurgency was motivated by various internal factors, including possible external factors, settlements, rivalries, a covert power struggle between rival political factions, and even the possibility that the protests were engineered by the current Kazakh government and security apparatus. In order to ruthlessly eliminate opposition currents and consolidate authoritarianism and strengthen political unanimity in Kazakh society, there must also be behind these protests and the resulting violence.
A number of senior security officials, members of military and intelligence agencies, various government officials and political activists critical of the government have been arrested following recent violent protests that have killed dozens of people, who may face serious charges, including acting against them. National security and connection with foreign agents, espionage, betrayal and attempted coup and overthrow are accused and face heavy punishments.
On this account, it is predicted that in the wake of the recent deadly violence and protests, authoritarian states not only in Kazakhstan; Rather, they seek the pretext throughout Central Asia to suppress opposition and criticism, to restrict the fundamental freedoms of the people, to systematically violate human rights, to recklessly pursue authoritarian, dictatorial and anti-libertarian policies, and to curb any movement for democratic reform. Order, the prospect of freedom and democracy in this region looks bleakly dusty.
In addition, recent protests in Kazakhstan have allowed powers such as Russia more than ever to expand and deepen their hegemonic dominance over the strategic region, forcing Central Asian governments to pursue policies politically and security-wise, and Moscow guidelines slow; what would eventually lead to the resurgence of the disintegrated Soviet Union would make Vladimir Putin’s dream come true.
About the author:
Muhammad Mahdi Hossein Ali Noori is the owner and Director General of Ufuq International News Agency one of the top media outlets in Afghanistan.
Wednesday, 12 January 2022, Arab Republic of Egypt: President Abdel Fatteh Al Sisi has declared his readiness to follow up the requested UN Security Council intervention on Nile dispute on the Sudanese crisis. The Egyptian president, and top regional leader Abdel Fatteh Al Sisi made the remarks during an press conference with international media in the framework of the 4th World Youth Forum in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. He called for dialogue to resolve the crisis in Sudan.
Regarding the Nile dispute, Al Sisi said that the Nile must be a source of cooperation and development for regional countries, however that the Nile is of an unquestionable importance for Egypt and that he is ready to follow up on the UN Security Council intervention to solve the dispute.
Ethiopia unilaterally began in 2011 the construction of the over $5 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Hydroelectric Dam, creating a diplomatic crisis with Egypt, which had enjoyed thousands of years of hegemony on the Nile. Also creating a risks of water supply for Egypt and Sudan. Field Marshal Al Sisi declared that Egypt is now poor in water, and that the Nile river is an unquestionable source of water for his country.
The dispute for Nile basin fresh water has been increasing after Ethiopia started building the GERD. The project has generated the most unmanageable challenge amongst the three Nile countries: Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia. The situation evolves towards a more disestablishing interstate freshwater dispute in the Middle East and wider North Africa.
Ethiopia completed the dam during trilateral talks drawn-out since 2011 without compliance with international norms vis-à-vis Egypt and Sudan, and eventually rejected binding commitments towards her neighbours in February 2020. Late June Ethiopia declared its intent to fill the dam’s reservoir without an agreement in place. This action pushed Egypt and Sudan to formally request UN Security Council (UNSC) intervention.
President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi
Though Ethiopia contributes 85% of the Nile’s waters, a 1959 agreement between Sudan and Egypt gave 55.5 billion cubic meters (bcm) to Egypt and 18.5 bcm annually to Sudan and nothing to Ethiopia.
The crisis in Sudan, which emerged from international isolation and sanctions in December 2020, has stalled cooperation with the neighbours who have other common problems to manage. President Al Sisi seeks to reinvigorate the trilateral dialogue, and find a common ground with Ethiopia.
Wednesday, 12 January 2022, Arab Republic of Egypt: Field Marshal President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi spoke to a group of journalists during a press conference at Sharm El-Sheikh during the World Youth Forum, and responded to questions concerning the future of the youth in Egypt, the water dispute with Sudan and Ethiopia, the human rights violation allegations, the economic situation, the delimitation of water agreements in the East Mediterranean and much more.
The Egyptian president stated that Egypt is committed to international conventions, but his first concern as he explained, is regarding the one million of youth people entering every year on the working market in his country. He said that his country urgently need jobs for them in order to offer a good future to his youth, and he asked his detractors to help Egypt and invest in Egypt instead to criticize his government, that will certainly help Egyptians he said.
President Al Sisi emplaced rich countries who leave in healthy economic situation to offer support, installing industries which generate real wealth for Egyptians instead of criticize Egypt constantly on human rights issues. He said that he is the one who is the most concerned for his own people and do not understand how people from abroad with a much more favorable economic situation insist in criticize Egypt from their comfortable view. He invited them to participate in Egypt wealth creation, and provide the country with new opportunities and investment.
Youth women attending the WYF in Sharm El-Sheik.
Thousands of youth of numerous nationalities and backgrounds attended the international youth platform of the World Youth Forum launched in Egypt for the first time in 2017 to open the dialogue on a wide range of global issues. The forum provided the opportunity for attendees to exchange their views and express their ideas, allowing world youth and policy-makers to express their views and aspirations about peace, development and creativity, promote open dialogue between different cultures and civilizations and send a message of peace, unity, harmony and progress to the world.
On this WYF edition topics ranged from confronting terrorism, extremism and natural disasters, water and food security, empowering woman, youth and people with disabilities, arts and culture, and opportunities and challenges related to communications and information technology, such as artificial intelligence and electronic games. Ramifications of Covid-19, inclusive development, social safety, net programmes and human rights were likewise on the forum’s agenda.
World Youth Forum, Sharm El-Sheik
Since the first WYF launched in Egypt, over 15,000 participants from 163 countries attended, including 500 speakers in over 100 sessions, workshops and roundtables. Thus the WYF certainly contributed to developing policies that reflect the hopes and aspirations of youth for a world capable of responding to their needs and challenges. The forum was recognized as an international platform for youth empowerment at the United Nations Economic and Social Council in its 59th session, as well as at the Union for the Mediterranean.
After a two-years hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic, President Al Sisi decided to go ahead and celebrated its “Back Together” WYF’s fourth edition in the exclusive resort area of Sharm El-Sheik under his auspices to continue supporting youth via this effective dialogue platform. President Al Sisi was an active participant in various events and attended several sessions as speaker. He seized the opportunity to address the groups and transmitted confidence and positive feedback to the thousands of participants in every opportunity.
The Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s fourth coalition government took office on Monday 10th January 2022, 300 days after March 2021 general elections. The new government is made up of VVD, D66, CDA and Christen Unie and consists of 20 Minister and 9 State secretaries.
The swearing-in before HM the King last Monday marks the official start of the new government.
The swearing in ceremony was followed by an encounter with Pierre Gramegna, who had served as Finance Minister since 2013.
Backes (born on 22 December 1970 in Kobe, Japan) is a trained diplomat with previous experience in the function as diplomatic adviser for erstwhile prime minister Jean-Claude Juncker, and for incumbent Prime Minister Xavier Bettel until 2016, when she became the head of the delegation of the European Commission in Luxembourg.
Yuriko Backes has moreover served as Deputy Director at the Directorate for International Economic Relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Luxembourg, as Deputy Head of Mission at the Luxembourgian Embassy in Japan, and as a diplomat at Luxembourg’s Permanent Representations to the EU (Brussels) and the United Nations (New York City).
On January 7, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev addressed Kazakhstani citizens on the situation in the country and spoke of the measures taken by the government. The main message of the statement is that Kazakhstan is interested in preserving the democratic developments and positive changes that have been achieved throughout the years of independence.
Respect for human rights, social stability and security are at stake. Protecting them is our biggest mission now.
Therefore, the government is taking decisive actions against terrorists and radical groups with all available lawful measures, including, where necessary, the deployment of Kazakhstan’s army and the national guard.
Kazakhstan will continue to ensure safety and protection of the foreign diplomatic missions as well as personnel and properties of foreign companies and investors.
The anti-terrorist operation continues in Kazakhstan. The police, the national guard and the army are carrying out large-scale and well-coordinated efforts to restore law and order in accordance with the Constitution.
However, terrorists continue to cause damage to public and private property, and use weapons against citizens. We have had to deal with armed and trained bandits, both local and foreign. Almost 20 thousand bandits attacked Almaty.
Their actions showed a clear plan of attacks on military, administrative and social facilities in almost all areas, coordination of actions, high combat readiness and brutal cruelty. The President has given orders to law enforcement agencies and the army to, where necessary, open fire without warning to eliminate armed terrorist bandits.
Peacekeeping troops comprising of multinational forces of CSTO member states were deployed and will remain for the short period of time until the stabilization of the situation in Kazakhstan.
Democracy does not mean permissiveness nor, moreover, incitement, including in the blogosphere, to illegal actions. In his speech on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of Independence, President Tokayev said that law and order are the main guarantee of our country’s wellbeing. As the tragedy of Almaty and other cities of Kazakhstan has shown, it is precisely “non-compliance with laws, permissiveness, and anarchy that lead to human rights violations”, the President highlighted.
In Almaty, administrative buildings, but also the personal property of local residents, were damaged by terrorist bandits. Not to mention the health and lives of hundreds of civilians and military personnel.
The law on peaceful assemblies of citizens was adopted at the suggestion of President Tokayev in May 2020. This law is a big step forward in promoting democracy in our country, because it provides for the notification of meetings and gatherings, including in the central districts of all cities of the country.
The President promised to the citizens that bandits and terrorists will be held to the strictest criminal responsibility.
The President thanked the people of Kazakhstan who showed civic responsibility and those who defended peace and public order in the country
The Government will need to make specific decisions. In this regard the Head of State noted that on January 11, the Mazhilis of the Parliament will announce specific decisions, including those of a socio-economic nature aimed at preventing such tragedies in the future.
“All the demands expressed in peaceful terms were heard. As a result of the dialogue, a compromise was reached, and solutions to acute socio-economic problems have been formed”, the President highlighted.
Statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Mūhtar Tıleuberdı
On January 5, 2022, by decrees of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, a state of emergency was introduced across the entire territory of the country.
Initially, the demonstrations began in the Mangystau region, whose residents demanded reduction in the retail prices for liquefied gas. In response to this, on behalf of the Head of State, the Government promptly took measures to reduce the prices and introduced a moratorium on price increases for socially significant food products, fuel, and utilities.
All those detained in the first days of the protest were released. However, demonstrations in other major cities escalated into riots and attacks on government buildings.
Moreover, the events in the city of Almaty – attacks on the administrative offices and military sites, the capture of the airport, and taking hostage of foreign passenger and cargo airplanes – witness to the high level of preparedness and coordination of the perpetrators. The analysis shows that Kazakhstan is facing armed aggression from terrorist groups trained outside of the country.
In light of the sharp aggravation of the situation, President Tokayev assumed the role of Chairman of the Security Council of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and requested the member states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) to provide military assistance in the conduct of the counter-terrorist operation.
The state of emergency includes a set of measures aimed at maintaining public safety and the rule of law. Law enforcement agencies and the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan are authorized to stop any illegal actions. At the same time, the state will continue to ensure the rights and interests of all representatives of our multi-ethnic and multi-confessional people, as well as the safety of foreign citizens in the country, including representatives of the diplomatic corps and journalists. Foreign investments and businesses of foreign companies will be protected.
The Republic of Kazakhstan is committed to complying with international obligations in the field of human rights and the continuation of the course of reforms within the framework of the “Listening State” concept, implemented by President Tokayev.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan is in constant contact with international partners on all current issues of bilateral and multilateral cooperation.
By H.E. Dr. Gordan Grlić Radman, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia.
In January 2021, Croatia celebrates the 30th anniversary of its international diplomatic recognition. The recognition came at the time of dire need and turned the tides in Croatia’s struggle to defend itself against the military campaign spearheaded by Serbia’s Slobodan Milošević that aimed also to subdue Slovenia and, later, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
While facing incredible challenges that threatened the very existence of the state, Croatian diplomatic service, had to be built from ground up and facilitate an international response to stop the unfolding tragedy. After achieving peace, Croatian diplomacy stayed on track and focused on building alliances with like-minded countries. Today, Croatia is a member of NATO and of the European Union, pivoting to extend the European area of peace, stability and prosperity to its neighbourhood.
The experience of carrying on regardless of how difficult the challenge resulted in a very swift and agile diplomatic service, capable of adapting and acting with determination in the harshest of circumstances, which proved exceptionally valuable during Croatia’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic engulfed the world.
First steps – Legacy of a bold generation
Within the circumstances that came after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Communist regimes in Europe, and while facing a war for its very survival and independence, Croatian diplomacy showed relentless dedication to achieving peace and stability as the path that has no alternative.
Primary goal of, at that time, nascent Croatian diplomatic service was securing international recognition. Although Iceland and the Vatican were the first to recognise Croatia, it was the recognition of all 12 members of the then European Community on 15 January 1992 that started the tide. This act of political and moral courage was soon followed by others, each of them proving anew the pointlessness of war and laying the building blocks of the peace to come.
Croatian military successes in liberating its territory, supported by the remarkable diplomatic efforts, brought the horrors of war to an end. They also made possible the signing of the Dayton peace agreement, with which the war in the neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina ended in 1995. The last remaining part of Croatia was liberated in 1998 by diplomatic means alone, which to this day represents a case study in peaceful conflict resolution.
Teaming up with NATO and the EU
After peace was restored, Croatian foreign policy focused on building a lasting alliance with like-minded countries, more specifically by becoming a NATO and European Union member. This was not just a diplomatic but a country-wide effort through which Croatia looked to anchor itself in the civilizational project based on the common values of peace, democracy, rule of law, and human rights.
The road to NATO and EU membership also required a rethink on how our diplomatic service operates, as it needed to be larger and ready for the more prolific role it would take with the membership. It took Croatia nine years to become a NATO member, and during those years, Croatian defence forces made significant contributions to international peace missions and operations, of which we are exceptionally proud.
Remarkable diplomatic work needed to be invested into achieving our next strategic goal. Eight years ago, Croatia joined the European Union, and in January 2020 we were the youngest member state to preside over the Council of the European Union. Our presidency coincided with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted all forms of “normal” life. Adequate response to the pandemic, especially at its beginning when the uncertainties were greatest, necessitated thinking out of the box. In these circumstances, our diplomatic service, its adaptability and resourcefulness, came forward and we managed not only to overcome the logistic obstacles for continued communication and coordination under our Presidency by transforming into the EU’s first “digital presidency”, but also to reshape and restructure our own priorities.
The safety of European citizens and the pandemic response became our focus. At the same time, we did not want to lose from sight our pre-pandemic priorities of European perspective of our neighbouring countries. Croatia is unwavering in its belief in the European future and the EU perspective for our neighbours and we are very proud to have facilitated removing the deadlock from the accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia during our Presidency.
Looking ahead
The pandemic has certainly been a dominant disruptive force in our lives, but other stressors, like global economic instability, increasing uncertainty, regional divisions and environmental catastrophes alert us to be more aware, to give greater attention to the role of multilateralism and cooperation.
Stress in the global economy, together with the sense of a growing socio-political frustration in the world, including the threats of armed conflicts, demand us to be attentive and to engage in dialogue on innovative ways to strengthen our multilateral connections and ensure a much needed predictability of a level playing field.
Croatia, as a tourist-oriented and ecologically well-preserved country, is especially mindful of the fragility of our environment. Extreme climate conditions and other effects of the global warming are a persistent reminder of the urgency, not only of the need for a green transition, but of the importance of improving the way our societies and economies engage with the environment. Certainly, diplomacy will take on a greater role in this field as well.
Croatian diplomacy, through its lessons from the past, the tremendous work it has done in building alliances and securing regional stability, testifies that perseverance, belief in one’s abilities and joint work based on trust are the foundation to achieving even the most difficult goals. Let’s make it so.
This article looks at the population growth with time and how this has impacted on man’s endeavours. The population numbers grew slowly but steadily from many centuries before the 1960s, when it took a sudden acceleration from 3 billion over the next 50 years to today’s level of over 8+ billion. The reason is twofold; people living longer, due to advances in medical science, as well as having more children. It is expected to rise further to approximately 10.5 billion by mid-century and slowly decline thereafter to be about 9 billion by the turn of the century.
An interesting example in population growth comes from Indonesia where the population doubled in the 30 years from 100 million in 1970 to 200 million in 2000, and the average age of the population was dramatically raised from 40 to 70 years. Along with sensible government handling of the basics, food, water and education, looking after the physical and mental well-being of the people, the economy not surprisingly grew in parallel. The World Bank congratulated the country on the way the economy was being handled in 1989.
The notable increase in population along with the change in the age mix, i. e. the ratio of those elderly to those younger has changed, and ratio will vary in location and in ethnicity. Against this trend, however, it is notable that the indigenous population of highly developed countries, such as Japan, have been in decline for some time. In addition, these factors will be affected by the relative wealth or poverty of individuals and nations, and on which continent they are situated and by which climate they are affected.
The Years Ahead
Today the younger generation, except those in poverty, are the drivers of new inventions, building on what has gone before wherever and whoever they are. They are stimulated and see the opportunities. These youngsters, from a very young age, accept, as a matter of fact, miniature computers which have the power to process in a fraction of the time, what a new mainframe of 60 years ago could do, taking up a large room. At the age of 3, youngsters can today play simple computer games. Computerisation was just appearing at university courses in the early 1960s. I know because I was there! And today, we can reach for the stars, literally.
But at the other end of the scale, we still have very large numbers in poverty, approximately I billion, for a variety of reasons – fighting, war, corruption, changing climate, lack of opportunity, incompetent government, and so on – and this is a blight on us all. We have the knowledge and tools to provide the opportunity for people to be lifted out of poverty and most people in poverty respond well given the chance and encouragement. What we now call Sustainable (Humanitarian) Development should take place.
A dedicated example of this has been undertaken for 22 years for 17,000 people in northeast Bali, Indonesia living in a number of villages. At the start, among the villagers there was 85% illiteracy, the infant mortality was well over standard levels and life expectancy was well below the national average. There was too much dependence on cassava, which led to goitres; the diet was well below international norms.
The first thing that had to be done was to address the health problems, for which there needed to be greatly improved road access and easier access to clean water. The initial funding was largely by David Booth MBE, the founder, and the project is and has been entirely privately financed. The location was considered too remote to prioritise by government. It was acknowledged that education was paramount and the first school was started in 2000 with not much more than a floor and the first children given paper and pencils. The eagerness on their faces was a joy to behold. For adults they did not need much persuasion to make simple concrete roads and erect big rainwater tanks to store water. The communities were all involved in preparing the soil for agricultural beds and growing vegetables; the edges of the beds stabilised in difficult mountainous terrain by fast-growing deep-rooted vetiver grass.
After some 13 years of steady development work, the project had 4 schools with classrooms, desks and support appurtenances, libraries, teachers, key simple road links had been built, water was either on tap or no more than an hour away, people were healthier and the first stages of a basic sanitation system was underway. This for an expenditure of US$ 450,000 – private sector. The first school leavers after 20 years had graduated from the local university[2].
This is a single simple example, although involves many interrelated, sometimes complex, disciplines with understanding and we need to duplicate, with dedicated people, something similar but only about thousands of times! It is time to raise the profile of Sustainable Development to a higher level as the UN has recognised.
One can see that there are many and complex issues to raise in answer to the question as to why things develop the way they do. It is thought that the increased inequality is the main reason for the issue but it is a fact that poorer people tend to have more children and thus the divide increases, until the total population numbers level out. We are gradually approaching that position but we need to plan that we have a quite different distribution of population and some of the locations are different from those of 60 years ago. This also affects the expanding urbanisation issue which looks very different than it did 30 years ago in terms of how structures should be built to take account of new or adaptable available energy sources and insulation, for example.
Pollution
Another factor of concern is pollution which will increase to an unsustainable level unless it is tackled vigorously from now on. This is of growing concern or should be. We have not taken adequate care of waste which has been augmenting at an alarming rate as population increased.
An example is taken from England (not the other parts of UK which are not so densely populated) which is a sophisticated developed country. There has come to light that many, if not all, of the main rivers are heavily polluted by overflow from sewage plants, which suggests that these have no longer have adequate capacity and need to be reviewed or upgraded, or totally new plants built. In addition, there is a dangerous level of agricultural pesticides in stormwater run-off, which is more difficult to tackle and, thirdly, there is an unacceptable level of plastics. Altogether, this has gradually been emerging; an all-embracing environment report is eagerly awaited There has to be an all-round master plan that cleans up groundwater, as the situation cannot continue or we risk poisoning ourselves and, heaven forbid, another pandemic. Where possible, more attention has to be paid to recyclable or reusable water before discharging, which is perfectly possible in the case of sewage works.
The other big pollutant that has been gathering attention is non-biodegradable plastics in the sea, probably because they are increasingly washed up on beaches across the world, sometimes travelling thousands of miles from the source. Occasionally, members of concerned communities act as beachcombers to clean up nearby beaches and they have to be applauded for their awareness. But the problem of plastic waste in the sea has to be measured in the billions of tonnes to take in the oceans which cover 70% of the world’s surface and the millions of sea-going journeys and the waste from these, often due to lack of care, that has occurred over the past many decades. Some scientists have been studying sea creatures and are coming up with alarming damaging facts which cannot be ignored. For instance, plastics which are ingested and get into the food chain.
A principal health hazard concerns the quality of air we breathe, particularly in big city environments because of fossil fuel vehicles. This is particularly bad in several parts of Asia with many cities of the Indian sub-continent and China being badly affected. Delhi is often quoted, because of polluting vehicles, but also it is badly affected being downstream from the prevailing wind which carries the smoke from land-clearing and burning of undergrowth, crop stubble, in preparation of the following year’s harvest. Indonesia has a similar problem in mid-year when the ground is prepared by burning the residue from last year’s palm oil crop and the smoke is carried on the prevailing anti-monsoon wind to Singapore and Malaysia
All these and other polluting issues are as important as those to do with climate change. What’s more there are solutions to hand to deal with all of them; in some cases, e.g. clean air, the climate is also being tackled. It is important that this is addressed right away.
Urbanisation in the years ahead
In 2011, Jakarta hosted the World Delta Summit, in which I was quite involved. It was realised that by mid – century 70% of the then population would be urban, some 6 billion people. In comparison, at the time of the Summit the world urban population was less than 3 billion. It meant that about 3 billion people would have to be accommodated in many places, usually at lower levels, which could be subject to sea level rise with climate change, wherever this takes place, which is one of the factors which concerns civil /environmental engineers.
This is a major topic beyond the scope of this article, which could, however, be said for most of the topics covered. Architects and planners are going to have to think about climate and how (renewable) energy can be used more efficiently for buildings more than they had to in the past, depending on region. A study[3] of the main materials used in construction – concrete steel, timber – indicated that timber was the only material that could be affected by a changing climate in any significant way. Since it is being looked at increasingly for construction the temperature has to be factored into design, The next 30 + years should see an increasing amount of building whatever the material used and techniques and systems that provide quick and economic answers will be favoured. There is a backlog of buildings to be erected across the world.
Final comments
The above has highlighted a number of issues that are viewed as very important today and in the years ahead, partly as a result of significantly increased population in a short time span. In most of the cases we have the knowledge and tools now to deal with them and, for the others; it is a question of studying them with knowledge, which can increasingly be brought to the fore by the younger generations.
It does not mean that they should not watch out for the world’s climate. They should, but that still contains many scientific factors that are as yet unknown, albeit that allows other complex lines of study. After all it is their future, but don’t forget our fellow human beings looking for a way out of poverty.
This article has been published by IFIMES
About the author:
Dr J Scott Younger
President Commissioner of Glendale Partners
and member of IFIMES Advisory Board
Dr J Scott Younger, OBE, is a professional civil engineer; he spent 42 years in the Far East undertaking assignments in 10 countries for WB, ADB, UNDP. He published many papers; he was a columnist for Forbes Indonesia and Globe Asia. He served on British & European Chamber boards and was a Vice Chair of Int’l Business Chamber for 17 years. His expertise is infrastructure and sustainable development and he takes an interest in international affairs. He is an International Chancellor of the President University, Indonesia. He is a member of IFIMES Advisory Board. Lived and worked in Thailand from 1978 to 1983 and visited Burma, Bangladesh and Nepal for projects.
