Japan detected the first case of highly pathogenic H5-type bird flu this season at a poultry farm in the south of the country, public broadcaster NHK reported Saturday. The local government in Saga prefecture will cull about 40,000 birds on the farm, NHK said, citing agriculture ministry officials it did not name. Ministry officials were … continue reading -> “Japan Detects Season’s First Bird Flu Case, Will Cull 40,000 Birds, Report Says”

On the eve of international climate talks, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited globally important Antarctica, where ice that’s been frozen for millions of years is melting because of human-caused climate change, to send the message that “we absolutely need to act immediately.”  “What happens in Antarctica doesn’t stay in Antarctica,” Guterres said. In addition to … continue reading -> “UN Chief Speaks From Antarctica Ahead of Global Climate Summit “

The World Health Organization said it has confirmed sexual transmission of mpox in the Democratic Republic of Congo for the first time as the country experiences its biggest outbreak, a worrying development that African scientists warn could make it more difficult to stop the disease. In a statement issued late Thursday, the U.N. health agency … continue reading -> “WHO Confirms First Sexual Spread of Mpox in Congo Amid Record Outbreak”

South Africa, Colombia and other countries that lost out in the global race for coronavirus vaccines are taking a more combative approach toward drugmakers and pushing back on policies that deny cheap treatment to millions of people with tuberculosis and HIV. Experts see it as a shift in how such countries deal with pharmaceutical behemoths … continue reading -> “South Africa, Colombia Fighting Drugmakers Over Access to TB, HIV Drugs”

Chinese officials say they did not detect any “unusual or novel diseases” in the country, the World Health Organization said Thursday, following an official request by the U.N. health agency for information about a potentially worrying spike in respiratory illnesses and clusters of pneumonia in children.  WHO cited unspecified media reports and a global infectious-disease … continue reading -> “WHO Asks China for More Information About Illnesses, Pneumonia Clusters “

Authorities in several West African countries are trying to manage their huge diphtheria outbreaks, including in Nigeria where a top health official said Thursday that millions are being vaccinated to cover wide gaps in immunity against the disease. At least 573 people out of the 11,640 diagnosed with the disease in Nigeria have died since … continue reading -> “West Africa Responds to Huge Diphtheria Outbreaks by Targeting Unvaccinated Populations”

A 14-year-old Ethiopian-born American in the U.S. state of Virginia has won the 3M Young Scientist Challenge, an annual science competition for U.S. students in grades five through eight. VOA’s Eden Geremew recently spoke with the winner in Fairfax County, Virginia, in this report narrated by Salem Solomon. Camera: Karina Choudhury …

For most of her life, Claudia Stearns dreaded Thanksgiving. As a person who struggled with obesity since childhood, Stearns hated the annual turmoil of obsessing about what she ate — and the guilt of overindulging on a holiday built around food.  Now, after losing nearly 100 pounds using medications including Wegovy, a powerful new anti-obesity … continue reading -> “New Obesity Medications Change How Users View Holiday Meals”

Millions of Indians celebrated Diwali on Sunday with a new Guinness World Record number of bright earthen oil lamps as concerns about air pollution soared in the South Asian country. Across the country, dazzling multicolored lights decked homes and streets as devotees celebrated the annual Hindu festival of light symbolizing the victory of light over … continue reading -> “Indians Set World Record Celebrating Diwali as Worries About Air Pollution Rise”

The human species has topped 8 billion, with longer lifespans offsetting fewer births, but world population growth continues a long-term trend of slowing down, the U.S. Census Bureau said Thursday. The bureau estimates the global population exceeded the threshold Sept. 26, a precise date the agency said to take with a grain of salt. The … continue reading -> “World’s Population Has Passed 8 Billion, US Census Says”

Residents of a fishing town in southwestern Iceland left their homes Saturday after increasing concern about a potential volcanic eruption caused civil defense authorities to declare a state of emergency in the region. Police decided to evacuate Grindavik after recent seismic activity in the area moved south toward the town and monitoring indicated that a … continue reading -> “Iceland Evacuates Town, Raises Aviation Alert Amid Fears of Volcanic Eruption”

Hundreds of environmental activists marched in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, Saturday demanding drastic curbs on plastic production, ahead of a meeting to negotiate a global plastics treaty. Representatives of more than 170 nations will meet in Nairobi Monday to negotiate what concrete measures should be included in a binding worldwide treaty to end plastic pollution. … continue reading -> “Hundreds Of Activists Demand Action on Plastics in Kenya”

The proportion of U.S. kindergartners exempted from school vaccination requirements has hit its highest level ever, 3%, U.S. health officials said Thursday. More parents are questioning routine childhood vaccinations that they used to automatically accept, an effect of the political schism that emerged during the pandemic around COVID-19 vaccines, experts say. Even though more kids … continue reading -> “US Childhood Vaccination Exemptions at Highest Level Ever”

Global cases of tuberculosis continued to rise last year, as disruption to health services caused by the COVID-19 pandemic set back efforts to fight the disease, according to the latest annual report from the World Health Organization. Henry Ridgwell reports. …

Iceland declared a state of emergency on Friday after a series of powerful earthquakes rocked the country’s southwestern Reykjanes peninsula in what could be a precursor to a volcanic eruption.  “The National police chief … declares a state of emergency for civil defense due to the intense earthquake (activity) at Sundhnjukagigar, north of Grindavik,” the … continue reading -> “Quakes Rock Southwestern Iceland as Volcanic Eruption Looms”

Global cases of tuberculosis — also known as TB — continued to rise last year as disruption to health services caused by the COVID-19 pandemic set back efforts to fight the disease, according to the latest report from the World Health Organization. Tuberculosis, an infectious disease that usually attacks the lungs, is both preventable and … continue reading -> “Tuberculosis Remains One of World’s Deadliest Diseases, But Hope for Vaccine Rises”

The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric administration — NOAA — reports the U.S. has seen 25 separate weather or climate “disasters” — events causing damage or losses exceeding $1 billion — so far this year, the highest number since the agency began tracking such events 43 years ago.   In a report issued this week, … continue reading -> “US Hit by 25 Reported Billion-Dollar Climate Disasters in 2023”

U.S. climate envoy John Kerry said talks this week with his Chinese counterpart resulted in “some agreement” on climate issues that leave him optimistic about the U.N. climate summit scheduled for later this month in Dubai.  Speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore, Kerry said Friday that he met for four days this … continue reading -> “Kerry: US and China Have ‘Some Agreement’ on Climate Issues”

Warmer ocean temperatures are hurting coral reefs off the U.S. state of Florida. For VOA, Genia Dulot took a look at what’s happening underwater. …

Rain in New Delhi and its suburbs brought relief Friday morning to the Indian capital, where authorities were mulling seeding clouds to improve the toxic air gripping the city. New Delhi, which was the most polluted in the world until Thursday, saw its air quality index (AQI) improve to 127 early Friday – a welcome … continue reading -> “Indian Capital Gets Breather as Rain Brings Respite from Smog”

Surgeons have performed the world’s first transplant of an entire human eye, an extraordinary addition to a face transplant — although it’s far too soon to know if the man will ever see through his new left eye.  An accident with high-voltage power lines destroyed most of Aaron James’ face and one eye. His right … continue reading -> “Man Receives First Eye Transplant in Step Toward One Day Restoring Sight”

Recent heavy rain and flooding killed 15 people in Kenya and displaced thousands of others, the Kenya Red Cross Society says. The heavy rainfall also killed livestock and destroyed businesses and farmland, said Peter Murgor, a disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation manager with the Kenya Red Cross Society. “Schools [are] being affected … … continue reading -> “Recent Floods in Kenya Kill 15, Displace Thousands”

Crying in a hospital bed with a nebulizer mask on his tiny face, 1-month-old Ayansh Tiwari has a thick, hacking cough. His doctors blame the acrid air that blights New Delhi every year. The spartan emergency room of the government-run Chacha Nehru Bal Chikitsalaya hospital in the Indian capital is crowded with children struggling to … continue reading -> “‘Like Breathing Poison’: Delhi Children Hardest Hit by Smog”

Transsexual people can be godparents at Roman Catholic baptisms, witnesses at religious weddings and receive baptism themselves, the Vatican’s doctrinal office said on Wednesday, responding to questions from a bishop.  The department, known as the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith, was vague, however, in response to a question about whether a same-sex couple … continue reading -> “Transsexual People Can Be Baptized Catholic, Serve as Godparents, Vatican Says”

A new study by the World Health Organization and International Labour Organization finds nearly 1 in 3 deaths from non-melanoma skin cancer are caused by working in the sun. “We know that around the world, 1.6 billion workers are exposed to solar ultraviolet radiation globally. Depending on where you live, you will have more or … continue reading -> “Workers Exposed to Sunlight at High Risk of Deadly Skin Cancer”