Tác giả: Đào Thu Hằng

I'm from Hanoi, Viet Nam. I'm an author of Dot Chuoi Non (dotchuoinon.com/author/hangbelu/), a blog on Positive thinking, founded by Dr. Tran Dinh Hoanh, an attorney in Washington DC. I'm a co-founder of Conversations on Vietnam Development - cvdvn.net, a virtual think tank. I am a co-founder of two companies in Viet Nam working on children education services. I advise companies on STEAM education, English language education for children and students in Vietnam. I'm studying the Buddha's teaching and the teaching of Jesus. I practice mindful living including meditation. I hold a PhD on Sustainable Energy Systems from University of Lisbon and Aalto University. I graduated from Hanoi University of Technology on Environmental Engineering. I obtained a Master degree of the same major from Stanford University and Nanyang Technological University. My English-language blog at: hangbelu.wordpress/. I play table tennis as a hobby.

Professionalism and Ethics in the Public Service: Issues and Practices in Selected Regions

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

Executive Summary

Scandals involving public officials have captured world attention these days. Precipitated by shady privatization deals, the diversion of aid, wide- spread public sector patronage, crony capitalism, and campaign financing abuses, people are debating outright corruption and unprofessional behaviour in government. Are public officials held to higher standards of performance and conduct than others? If so, why? With the advent of the modern state, government officials have been and are seen as stewards of public resources and guardians of a special trust that citizens have placed in them. In return for this confidence, they are expected to put public interest above self- interest.
The public service, made up of those employees of the state who are covered by national and sub- national civil service laws, plays an indispensable role in the sustainable development and good governance of a nation. It is an integral part of democracy because it serves as the neutral administrative structure which carries out the decisions of elected representatives of the people. It not only serves as the backbone of the state in implementing a strategy for economic growth of a nation but also runs the programmes that function as the safety net for the most vulnerable segments of a society. Given these crucial roles, a country expects its public service to demonstrate high standards of professionalism and ethics. Tiếp tục đọc “Professionalism and Ethics in the Public Service: Issues and Practices in Selected Regions” →

Sustainable Consumption and Production: a Handbook for Policymakers

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has published a new guidebook entitled, ‘Sustainable Consumption and Production: A Handbook for Policy Makers’, containing data on both the impact of unsustainable consumption and production, and the efficiency gains to be made by mainstreaming Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) patterns.

Follow the link to download the guidebook as a PDF

More information

Extreme Weather and Food Shocks

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

09 September 2015

Rob BaileyRob Bailey Research Director, Energy, Environment and Resources
Tim Benton Professor of Population Ecology, University of Leeds
Taking smart and practical steps to ease the impact of the changing climate on food supplies is vital to ride out the droughts and storms that will impact food prices.
The US midwest was hit by its worst drought in over 50 years in 2012. Photo via Getty Images.The US midwest was hit by its worst drought in over 50 years in 2012. Photo via Getty Images.

chathamhouse – Recent events highlight concerns about the risks to global food security posed by changing patterns of extreme weather affecting the world’s ‘breadbasket’ regions such as the American midwest, South America’s southern cone, the Black Sea and the Yangtze River valley. In 2012, the worst drought to hit the US midwest in half a century sent international maize and soybean prices to record levels. In 2011, wheat prices nearly doubled after an unprecedented heat wave devastated the Russian harvest. The global food price crisis of 2007-08 had its roots in a run of poor harvests in previous years.

Tiếp tục đọc “Extreme Weather and Food Shocks” →

The BRICs Hit the Wall: Emerging economies are a long way from eclipsing the West.

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

GUY SORMAN

Summer 2015

Getty Images

City-journal – At the beginning of the new millennium, it became fashionable to proclaim the West’s economic decline and the rise of a new global leadership. In 2001, Goldman Sachs analyst Jim O’Neill captured the trend by coining the soon-to-be-famous acronym BRIC, referring to the leading economically emerging nations—Brazil, Russia, India, and China—that would constitute that new leadership. Eventually, South Africa was added to the group, making them the BRICS, but many people still think first of the original four, and refer to them as the BRICs. Tiếp tục đọc “The BRICs Hit the Wall: Emerging economies are a long way from eclipsing the West.” →

World must avert devastating flood of climate refugees

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

kosovo-refugees-UNphotoservice

A senior British politician says we face a humanitarian crisis on an immense scale if millions of people have to flee the impacts of global warming.

By Alex Kirby

Global-net – LONDON, 8 September, 2015 – The former leader of one of the UK’s main political parties says the world will undergo more resource wars and huge movements of desperate people unless it tackles climate change effectively.

Lord Ashdown, who was leader of Britain’s Liberal Democrats for 11 years, describes the present flight of refugees from Syria and other conflict areas as a “rehearsal” for the vast humanitarian disaster he believes will soon unfold. Tiếp tục đọc “World must avert devastating flood of climate refugees” →

Germany claims success for elite universities drive

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

Report praises US$5-billion scheme for making leading universities more competitive — but some smaller institutions have done just as well.

04 September 2015 Article tools

Heike Zappe/ Humboldt University

Humboldt University in Berlin, one of the ‘elite’ institutions favoured by Germany’s Excellence Initiative.

Nature – For a decade, Germany’s government has tried to explode the myth that all the country’s universities are equal. In 2006, it launched an 11-year, €4.6-billion (US$5-billion) programme that aimed to make the best German universities more competitive with the likes of Oxford, Cambridge and Harvard. The campaign, called the Excellence Initiative, led to 14 institutions gaining the common — although unofficial — label of ‘elite’. Tiếp tục đọc “Germany claims success for elite universities drive” →

Eat in style – Know the origin: A joint mission to better Vietnam’s environment and consumers’ health

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

WWF – August 14th – 24th 2015, seafood certified as responsibly farmed in Vietnam will be officially available for the domestic market at many eateries. The certification denotes the seafood has met strict standards that ensure food safety and minimize environmental impact. This is part of Sustainable Seafood Week 2015, organized by WWF-Vietnam, to introduce the world’s newest trend in stylish dining: sustainability.

In support of responsible production and products, which have gained worldwide popularity and become a significant indicator of a modern, healthy and positive lifestyle, the Sustainable Seafood Week with the message “Eat in style – Know the origin”, is urging Vietnamese consumers to join the international call for products from responsible sources.

Participating restaurants in Sustainable Seafood Week 2015, serving responsibly produced seafood (certified by ASC eco-label)

During the 10 days, besides introducing Vietnam’s responsibly farmed seafood to the domestic market, the program will engage consumers in an array of exciting activities to raise awareness about sustainable seafood, through a display of informative artworks, a theme-inspired flash mob and exciting mini-games at Crescent Mall, District 7, Ho Chi Minh city. Consumers can visit www.cabenvung.vn to find the full list of restaurants participating in the program, and also pledge their support online to the demand for sustainable seafood in Vietnam. Tiếp tục đọc “Eat in style – Know the origin: A joint mission to better Vietnam’s environment and consumers’ health” →

Sustainable Fishing in Vietnam

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

WWF– Tram Chim National Park is one of the most important remaining expanses of wetlands in Vietnam. While most fishing in the park is forbidden, some locals exercise traditional rights to fish for food and a living. WWF works in Tram Chim to restore natural water flows, fisheries and wildlife.

New centre promotes clean technology for Asia-Pacific

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

wind island asia

Eco-business: Building renewable sources of energy such as wind and solar is among the projects governments can implement to reduce carbon emissions. Image: Shutterstock

SciDev Net Tuesday 8 September 2015
The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) opened (1 September) its first Asia-Pacific regional hub to promote clean technology.The UNFCCC Regional Collaboration Centre (RCC), formed in partnership with the non-profit Institute for Global Environmental Strategies in Japan, will help developing countries in the region to identify and develop clean development mechanism (CDM) projects to help limit damage from climate change. Tiếp tục đọc “New centre promotes clean technology for Asia-Pacific” →

Innovation: The Uber of solar power?

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này
R. Kress | Sep 04, 2015

EnergyBiz – The peer-to-peer sharing economy is finding its way into every industry. From Uber to Airbnb, companies are doing all they can to take advantage of crowdsourcing to create a large-scale, paying consumer base. Now, solar start-up Yeloha thinks it has found a way to apply this new, social way of doing business to clean energy.

Solar energy, of course, is becoming an increasingly viable way of powering the home. Over the last decade alone, the cost of installing solar power has dropped by more than 73% according to the Solar Energy Industries Association. Residential solar costs alone have plummeted by 45% in just the last five years and there is currently enough solar electricity generated in the U.S. to run more than 4 million homes. So why are fewer than 1% of American households running on solar energy?

Yeloha Co-founder and CEO Amit Rosner says the problem is simple: access. Tiếp tục đọc “Innovation: The Uber of solar power?” →

Nông nghiệp – “đất màu” cho khởi nghiệp

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

Nông nghiệp – “đất màu” cho khởi nghiệp

Thế giới đang tiến đến giai đoạn yêu cầu phải sản xuất nông sản nhiều hơn với nguồn tài nguyên ít hơn. Điều đó đặt ra nhiều thách thức nhưng cũng mang lại vô vàn cơ hội khởi nghiệp trong nông nghiệp.

Doanhnhansaigon – Tại phiên thảo luận trong khuôn khổ Diễn đàn kết nối các doanh nghiệp ĐBSCL (Mekong Connect CEO Forum) được tổ chức chiều 4/9 ở TP. Cần Thơ, các diễn giả cho rằng cơ hội khởi nghiệp kinh doanh trong lĩnh vực nông nghiệp tại thời điểm này là “vô vàn”.

Ông Huỳnh Quang Vinh – Phó tổng giám đốc Công ty CP Rau quả thực phẩm An Giang chia sẻ, ĐBSCL luôn là một vùng trũng của cả nước xét trên mọi khía cạnh từ thu hút vốn đầu tư, phát triển hạ thành cơ sở cũng như phát triển nông nghiệp. Câu chuyện nông nghiệp hiện tồn tại vô số vấn đề, đó là thách thức nhưng cũng chính là cơ hội cho các bạn trẻ khởi nghiệp, ông Vinh nói. Tiếp tục đọc “Nông nghiệp – “đất màu” cho khởi nghiệp” →

Better estimates of worldwide mercury pollution

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

New findings show Asia produces twice as much mercury emissions as previously thought
August 12, 2015
Jennifer Chu, MIT News

MIT – Once mercury is emitted into the atmosphere from the smokestacks of power plants, the pollutant has a complicated trajectory; even after it settles onto land and sinks into oceans, mercury can be re-emitted back into the atmosphere repeatedly. This so-called “grasshopper effect” keeps the highly toxic substance circulating as “legacy emissions” that, combined with new smokestack emissions, can extend the environmental effects of mercury for decades.

Now an international team led by MIT researchers has conducted a new analysis that provides more accurate estimates of sources of mercury emissions around the world. The analysis pairs measured air concentrations of mercury with a global simulation to calculate the fraction of mercury that is either re-emitted or that originates from power plants and other anthropogenic activities. The result of this work, researchers say, could improve estimates of mercury pollution, and help refine pollution-control strategies around the world.

The new analysis shows that Asia now releases a surprisingly large amount of anthropogenic mercury. While its increased burning of coal was known to exacerbate mercury emissions and air pollution, the MIT team estimates that Asia produces more than double the mercury emissions previously estimated. Tiếp tục đọc “Better estimates of worldwide mercury pollution” →

A dispassionate look at the Sustainable Development Goals

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ 1 bình luận

This post is written by Jan Vandemoortele, PhD, formerly with the UN, co-architect of the MDGs and a critical friend of the SDGs

Post2015– Almost two years in the making, the sustainable development goals (SDGs) were agreed in early August. By late September, they will be formally adopted by member states at a UN summit in New York. Before the usual hype is set in motion that call the agreement ‘ground breaking’, ‘momentous’ and ‘historic’, this is a good time to have a dispassionate look at the SDGs.

Grouped under 17 goals, the SDGs comprise 169 targets, although this is a misnomer. According to the dictionary, a target is a precise result to be achieved by a specific date. It requires that the aim is clear, that the level of achievement is specific, and that the deadline is well-defined.

On that count, most of the SDGs fail the test. Indeed, the majority of them do not contain a numerical outcome but use language such as ‘substantially reduce/increase, support and strengthen, progressively improve, upgrade, promote, achieve higher levels of, take urgent action to, ensure’. In addition, many fail to set a specific deadline. When they do, it is mostly for the year 2030 although, bizarrely, the years 2020 and 2025 apply for some targets. As such, they are not fit to be called ‘targets’. Tiếp tục đọc “A dispassionate look at the Sustainable Development Goals” →

WWF: UN climate negotiators need to roll up their sleeves to deliver a new global climate deal in Paris

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này
Posted on 04 September 2015

WWF – (Bonn, Germany, 4 September, 2015) – Plans by governments to conclude a new global climate deal in December are under pressure as discussions in Bonn moved along at a snail’s pace, leaving critical issues still to be resolved.

There are just five negotiating days left before Heads of State and Government arrive in Paris to open COP21, the final meeting of the UN climate talks this year. The Paris agreement needs to limit harmful greenhouse gas emissions to keep global temperatures below 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Clearly, there is quite a bit of work still to do to get the fair, ambitious and transformational climate deal the world needs.

Tasneem Essop, WWF’s Head of Delegation to the UN climate negotiations says, “There is consensus that we really, really need to get cracking. Negotiators will have to come to the next session ready to roll up their sleeves and tackle the key issues. Tiếp tục đọc “WWF: UN climate negotiators need to roll up their sleeves to deliver a new global climate deal in Paris” →

International Principles of Professional Ethics in Journalism

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

Preamble

International and regional organizations of professional journalists, representing altogether 400,000 working journalists in all parts of the world, have held since 1978 consultative meetings under the auspices of UNESCO. [1]

The second consultative meeting (Mexico City, 1980) expressed its support for the UNESCO Declaration on Fundamental Principles concerning the Contribution of the Mass Media to strengthening Peace and International Understanding, to the Promotion of Human Rights and to Countering Racialism, Apartheid, and Incitement to War. Moreover, the meeting adopted the “Mexico Declaration” with a set of principles which represent common grounds of existing national and regional codes of journalistic ethics as well as relevant provisions contained in various international instruments of a legal nature. Tiếp tục đọc “International Principles of Professional Ethics in Journalism” →