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      Climate activists stage a demonstration in front of the E.U. Council building to highlight the threat of the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) to the planet as they wear huge model heads of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, French President Emmanuel Macron, and then-German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Brussels, Belgium on July 6, 2021.

      The World Needs Just Green Trade, Not 'Free Trade'

      Corporations are using trade and investment treaties to handcuff global and national efforts to save the planet.

      John Feffer
      Mar 19, 2023

      The global economy hit a new milestone in 2022 by surpassing $100 trillion. This expansion, which has experienced only the occasional setback such as the 2020 Covid shutdowns, has been accelerated by trade. The world trade volume experienced 4,300% growth from 1950 to 2021, an average 4% increase every year. This linked growth of the global economy and international trade took off in the 1980s as governments embraced the project of globalization, which prioritized the reduction of barriers to trade such as tariffs.

      The mechanism by which globalization spread throughout the world, the key strand of its DNA, has been the "free trade" treaty.

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      trade justice
      Culled minks are seen on November 14, 2020 in Jyllinge, Denmark.

      Spread of Bird Flu to Mammals Could Put Humans in Danger, Scientists Warn

      "This is an infection that has epidemic and pandemic potential," said one doctor. "I don't know if people recognize how big a deal this is."

      Kenny Stancil
      Feb 03, 2023

      As a deadly strain of avian influenza continues to decimate bird populations around the world and spread among other animals, some scientists are warning that mammal-to-mammal transmission has emerged as a real possibility with potentially catastrophic consequences for humans.

      Over the past year, officials in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada have detected cases of the highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu in a variety of species, including bears, foxes, otters, raccoons, and skunks. Last month, a cat suffered serious neurological symptoms from a late 2022 infection, according to French officials who said that the virus showed genetic characteristics consistent with adaptation to mammals.

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      The Global Food System Enables Russia to Use Food as a Weapon

      Russia's leverage is due to the structure of global trade networks that are dominated by corporations and wealthy states.

      Anthony Pahnke
      Nov 05, 2022

      Russia's back and forth with Ukraine wheat exports--first accepting a deal to allow their shipment, then threatening to block them, and apparently agreeing to allow them to be released again - is yet one more illustration of the use of food as a weapon.

      These networks allow powerful actors to act unchecked, as they also stymie the ability of local populations to provide and care for themselves.

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