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Which College Will Divest Next?
Signs and protestors proclaiming “Injustice is not an investment,” “Climate change is not a game,” and “We’re still here”... The heated adrenaline is almost palpable if you step onto college campuses today. The kids are asking for divestment. According to Fossil Free, universities have divested around $14 trillion to date. Divesting means that they will actively sell shares in companies that spark environmental or social concerns. In the words of 350.org, this implies “a fast and just transition to 100% renewable energy for all,” “no new fossil fuel projects anywhere,” and “not a penny more...
The Deadliest Disease
Tinged red blood in colour Running and fleeting in a chase from One To Another. Weak yet sudden Causing choking tears Cracking coughs And stinging foreheads. Women cry as they lunge for the last tissues While others step back as soon as they Spot those Narrow Small eyes. Chinese Chinese. They whisper. And that girl spotted with those Narrow Small Eyes clenches her hand As the eyes of the crowd stalk Her like prey. Strangling Wrenching Shoving Hurting Our hostile friends Our abandoned sisters And I cry. Because Didn't you know? The worst disease of them all Is never the disease itself. It is...
The Lesson in Listening
How to Keep Doing Good When You Feel Bad
According to the Corporation for National and Community Service, more than 77 million adults volunteered through some organization. They spent more than 6.9 billion hours volunteering, which equates to an economic value of around $167 billion. It seems like some people were just built to volunteer and give themselves to help others. For others, it can be a challenge. Regardless of what side of the coin you fall on, you need to take steps to protect yourself emotionally so that the stress of volunteering to help others does not rob you of joy. Burnout should be prevented at all costs. The...
The Human Struggle for Acceptance
Humanity in times of coronavirus?
Today more than ever we live in uncertain times: countries closing their borders, empty schools and universities, overwhelmed hospitals, people locked in their homes for weeks and the global economy suffering a major blow. We have seen how people left supermarkets empty; buying food, masks, and disinfectants compulsively. We have seen acts of racism and discrimination against certain collectives fearing that they may be infected with coronavirus. We have seen politicians fighting and blaming each other, trying to take advantage of the situation instead of fighting for the common good. We have...
A war with one victim
My journey in life has many turns of secrets, hidden stations, doors some opened and some not, lessons some understood and some are leaving for the time to teach us a harsh lesson. Also, relationships that make you at the top of happiness and surrounded by love, but you discover that you were surrounded by illusion… This is where you stay on the front line. From these battles of life, you will enter a spiral of conflict, a struggle between good and evil, between love and hatred, between relationships and friendship, between being you or pretending, between accepting the other and the...
Colours and Emotions
Colours are one of the best ways to represent ones emotions. By colours I am also referring to the act of drawing or painting using colours. Emotions refer to a person’s state of mind, or simply how the person is feeling at any point in time. For example anger is best represented by the colour red. But this example is a very simple presentation of the link between colours and emotions. Are emotions always so simple? Some emotions are way too complex to be described in words. Sometimes you may feel a mixture of feelings like anger and sadness when you have not been able to perform well in a...
What advice would I give myself if I were a school student today?
If I were a school student today I would advise myself to worry less. In my school days I used to worry too much over various matters and now, based on my practical experience, I have realised that everything will not always go according to my plan but if I work hard with full sincerity then I will be able to achieve all my goals. I would also advise myself to participate in more extracurricular activities. In school I was always trying to do better in my studies and neglected my extracurricular activities a bit. Now I think that I should have given activities like painting and swimming more...
What does good parenting really mean? Part one
Every child has his/her own personality. They have their own abilities and interests and have a right to choose which activities they would like to participate in, we can't decide that on behalf of them. Our role is only to provide them with the required information and opportunities to discover the different paths and the appropriate supervision for them to make their own informed decisions, with no force of any type. Our children are more than their academic achievements and school grades. We should help them to evolve in each aspect of their personality, not only their academic performance...
Schools and coronavirus : from a student's point of view!
"On January 31, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex M. Azar II declared a public health emergency (PHE) for the United States to aid the nation’s healthcare community in responding to COVID-19". From a personal view, 2020 is one of the biggest but certainly the most important year of my life - for justification the reasons are as follows: - I take my GCSE's, learn to drive, chose A levels and some more fun and exciting topics, but has the current pandemic potentially put a stop on these events or delayed them? Well, with the use of statistics and government information I would like to...
War is not just a bad dream, it is real.
I open my eyes. The alarm rings again. I hate its noise and Mondays are so bad, the week starts and so does the school. What I like though, it’s the morning vibe in my house whether is Monday or Thursday or Sunday. My grandma is getting old and loosing her hearing so she turns the volume up at maximum every morning for breakfast time, because “mornings are for Fairuz”- my grandma loves her. I like her music too, it has some kind of magic which makes me dreaming with eyes open and I like her especially because it means the food is ready for breakfast and all of us will be around the table...
COVID-19 Fear and Stigma
Coronavirus are an extensive family of viruses, some of wich can cause various human diseases, ranging from common cold to SARS ( Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome). On February 11, 2020 the World Health Organization announced the official name: Coronavirus Disease 2019. Abbreviated COVID-19 "Co" corresponds to "Corona", "Vi" to virus, "D" to "Disease" and "19" year in which it was discovered. It is an infectious disease caused by the new strain of Coronavirus that has not been previously identified in humans: Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It is not Wuhan Virus, Asian Virus or Chinese Virus. It...
Try to Remember
2017: The Year of Questions
Covid-19 and the global economy
With rise to the COVID-19 cases in Africa that took place mainly in March 2020, specifically that of South Africa, which currently has the highest cases in Africa and not to forget where already, the economy is at its possible worst. What will the outcome be? How will we solve this? Surely this pandemic is affecting all nations of the world, but many were already worried that if it were to "arrive" in Africa it would be at its worst because African countries do not have the right healthcare facilities and infrastructure to tackle this. When the economy is already bad, what more to the future...
Is wind energy a viable alternative to fossil fuels?
‘Scotland’s on track to meet 100% renewable energy demand by 2020.’ This bold statement first hit the headlines in June 2019. In the first half of 2019 Scotland’s wind turbines generated enough clean, fossil-free electricity to power almost every household in Scotland—twice over! Since then, even more renewable energy projects have been proposed and constructed. Currently under construction is the Beatrice offshore wind farm which power around 450,000 homes. In addition to this Seagreen wind-farm which, when finished, will generate enough electricity to supply one million homes, 40% of all...
Young reporters have a message for you: stay home and fight fake news around coronavirus!
It's Time to Act for our Forests: celebrating biodiversity
Forests play a highly significant role on earth. For centuries, they are generating, preserving, and regulating many forms of life. Even for our daily activities, we are highly dependent upon forests and forest products. Whether it may be food, wood, medicine, paper, herbs, oil extracts or recreational activities, it has become an indistinguishable part of our life. It is a home for indigenous communities and several species of animals, plants, and insects. They are also important to combat challenges like, water scarcity, soil erosion and climate change. It is true that even after so many...