What We’re Reading 10/11/09

Nov 10th, 2009 6:19 PM UTC
By Robyn Mitchell

Financial Times: Global hunger forces itself to the top of political agenda
The Financial Times reports that the food crisis of the past few years has elevated the issue to the highest level of government. The move to involve the “whole of the government” signals how food security has become a global political preoccupation as the number of chronically hungry people tops one billion and agricultural commodity prices soar. According to Secretary of State Clinton, “Food security is not just about food. But it is all about security – economic security, environmental security, even national security.”

Reuters: Conditions in place for new food crisis, FAO warns
The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned that poor nations battered by record food prices last year need international help to raise agricultural output given conditions are still ripe for another food crisis. In an interview ahead of a global summit on food security in Rome next week, FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf said more aid was needed to curb the rising number of hungry people in the world, which topped 1 billion for the first time this year. Diouf told Reuters on Monday that “There is a lack of priority in fighting hunger and poverty at the highest political level, not only in developed countries but in developing countries.”

Politico – Veterans join front lines of climate fight
Politico reports that veterans groups have unexpectedly become a key weapon for environmentalists in their bid to win over swing votes on California Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer’s climate change bill. With groups such as VoteVets.org making the argument that climate change has huge ramifications for the military, “scores of retired admirals and generals are lending their stars to the boards of energy security organizations in ways that could expand the political base for new climate change policies.”

Reuters: WTO’s Lamy says U.S. slowing Doha talks: report
The World Trade Organization’s Director General, Pascal Lamy, said that after a year spent putting in place the new U.S. administration, next year’s U.S. mid-term elections could prove a further problem in finalizing the Doha talks. He further emphasized that the time does not seem adequate for completing the WTO round given time required for international talks on disarmament and climate change. Remarked Lamy, “International trade, that up to now has avoided a wave of protectionism that could have come with the economic cycle, has not succeeded in detaching itself from the American political cycle.”

Los Angeles Times: Until women are healthy, societies will suffer
The L.A. Times blogs about a new report from the World Health Organization, which lays out the hurdles women face in getting the healthcare they need at various stages of life. In a statement about the report, the WHO director-general emphasized that “The obstacles that stand in the way of better health for women are not primarily technical or medical in nature. They are social and political, and the two go together. We will not see significant progress as long as women are regarded as second-class citizens in so many parts of the world.”

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