Three Myths About Renewable Energy and the Grid, Debunked

Wind turbines and solar panels in Bavaria, Germany.
Wind turbines and solar panels in Bavaria, Germany. FRANK BIENEWALD / LIGHTROCKET VIA GETTY IMAGES

Yale Envrronment360

Renewable energy skeptics argue that because of their variability, wind and solar cannot be the foundation of a dependable electricity grid. But the expansion of renewables and new methods of energy management and storage can lead to a grid that is reliable and clean.

BY AMORY B. LOVINS AND M. V. RAMANA • DECEMBER 9, 2023

As wind and solar power have become dramatically cheaper, and their share of electricity generation grows, skeptics of these technologies are propagating several myths about renewable energy and the electrical grid. The myths boil down to this: Relying on renewable sources of energy will make the electricity supply undependable.

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Behind the Scenes, in the Forefront: Vietnamese Women in War and Peace

asiannetworkexchange.org

Lady Borton (The Gioi (World) Publishers)  Issue Volume 25 • Issue 1 • 2018 • Volume 25

This essay explores contributions to Vietnamese history by Việt Nam’s first historical generals (who were women) as well as by women from the Vietnamese Communist Party’s early years through the French-American War (1945–1954) and the American War (1954‒1975). It discusses how women used Confucian subservience, gender-determined dress, and traditional roles to supply local soldiers, gather intelligence, and resist the French and American armies. I provide information, documents, and photographs gathered by completing annotated book translations and by engaging in conversations and interviews conducted in Vietnamese over the course of nearly fifty years, including accounts from both famous and ordinary Vietnamese women. Their stories are unique yet representative of the experiences of many wartime participants.

Vietnamese Women in War and Peace

When we think about the French-American War (1945‒1954) and the American War in Việt Nam (which Americans often call the Vietnam War, 1954‒1975), we should address a seldom-spoken truth: Since the Vietnamese fought a people’s war (toàn dân—all the people), demographics suggest that half of those fighting against the American-allied front were women. The story of these women begins in the first century C.E. with another seldom-spoken truth: The first Vietnamese historical (as opposed to legendary) personages were women.

Rooted in Ancient Matriarchy

From time immemorial, Việt Nam was a matriarchy with a well-established religion of mother goddesses, whom many Vietnamese still worship today (See Illus. #1Hữu Ngọc 2016, 2017, 76–79). Matriarchy spawned Việt Nam’s first historical generals, the Trưng sisters— Trưng Trắc and Trưng Nhị (both ?–43 C.E.)—from an outlying district of modern-day Hà Nội. The Hán Chinese had occupied Việt Nam since 111 B.C.E. In 40 C.E., the sisters led a rebellion to avenge the death of Trưng Trắc’s husband, whom the Vietnamese annals say Chinese pro-consul Su Ting had assassinated. The sisters, their mother, and their women generals (whose names are known, affirming the sisters’ presence as historical characters) liberated Việt Nam from the Chinese. Before doing so, Trưng Trắc began Việt Nam’s tradition of generals writing poetry to galvanize their troops. Her “Oath at Hát River” in six-eight rhythm—a six-word line followed by an eight-word line—emphasizes the legendary Vietnamese Hùng Dynasty, which began in about 2870 B.C.E.:First pledge: Wash away the enemy Second pledge: Rebuild the Hùng Family’s ancient karma Third: Avenge injustices against my husband Fourth pledge: Execute this oath beginning to end (Borton 2007, 1).

Illus. #1

Illus. #1

A Vietnamese mother goddess in a drawing collected by the French soldier Henri Oger, who published more than 4,000 drawings of traditional Vietnamese life depicted by Vietnamese artists. Scholar Olivier Tessier of École française d’Extrême-Orient (ÉFEO) oversaw the Oger Collection’s centennial publication in 2009. Source: Olivier Tessier, ÉFEO.

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Vietnam’s big bet on LNG may not ease its power crisis

Reuters.com

By Francesco GuarascioEmily Chow and Khanh Vu July 17, 2023

Illustration shows a model of LNG tanker

Model of LNG tanker is seen in this illustration taken May 19, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

  • Electricity-hungry Vietnam looks to become LNG importer
  • First plant fuelled from imported gas unlikely pre-2026
  • Investors, Hanoi at odds over volumes, price of power sales
  • Bold plans exposed to volatile LNG prices as demand grows

HANOI, July 17 (Reuters) – Vietnam received its first shipment of liquefied natural gas this month, a milestone for the energy-hungry country, but various hurdles mean it could take years for imported gas to ease the country’s long-running power shortages.

Disagreement over pricing, plant construction delays and lack of supply contracts are dogging the Southeast Asian manufacturing hub’s adoption of LNG, hampering its ambitions to make imported gas a major fuel, industry insiders say.

Vietnam’s urgent need to boost electricity supply, laid bare by recent rolling blackouts, has raised concerns among foreign investors about whether Vietnam can remain a reliable option to diversify manufacturing away from China.

Half the businesses in a June poll by the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam said the power crisis had hurt investment plans. Some were considering alternatives or pausing spending on factories.

Reuters Graphics

Reuters Graphics

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Deep-sea mining for minerals: What is the issue?

IUCN.org

What is the issue?
Why is this important?
What can be done?
More information

  • Deep-sea mining is the process of retrieving mineral deposits from the deep seabed – the ocean below 200m.
  • Depleting terrestrial deposits and rising demand for metals mean deep-sea mining may begin soon, even thoughresearch suggests that it could destroy habitats and wipe out species.
  • Deep-sea mining should be halted until the criteria specified by IUCN are met, including the introduction of assessments, effective regulation and mitigation strategies.
  • Comprehensive studies are neededto improve our understanding of deep-sea ecosystems and the vital services they provide to people, such as food and carbon sequestration.

What is the issue?

Deep-sea mining is the process of extracting and often excavating mineral deposits from the deep seabed. The deep seabed is the seabed at ocean depths greater than 200m, and covers about two-thirds of the total seafloor. Research suggests deep-sea mining could severely harm marine biodiversity and ecosystems, but we still lack the knowledge and means to implement protections.

Despite this, there is growing interest in the mineral deposits of the seabed. This is said to be due to depleting terrestrial deposits of metals such as copper, nickel, aluminium, manganese, zinc, lithium and cobalt. Demand for these metals is also increasing to produce technologies like smartphones, wind turbines, solar panels and batteries.

featured image

ISA, 2021

By May 2022, the International Seabed Authority (ISA), which regulates activities in the seabed beyond national jurisdiction (‘the Area’), had issued 31 contracts to explore deep-sea mineral deposits. More than 1.5 million km2 of international seabed, roughly the size of Mongolia, has been set aside for mineral exploration.

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The Latest on Southeast Asia (July 20, 2023)

CSIS

Indonesia, this year’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) chair, held a flurry of ministerial meetings earlier this month. From July 11-12, it hosted the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Jakarta. Timor Leste, which became an ASEAN observer state last year, sent a delegation for the first time. Chief among the ministers’ conversation topics was the ongoing civil war in Myanmar; moreover, ministers shared their continued concerns regarding aggressive Chinese behavior in the South China Sea. On July 13, ASEAN foreign ministers, joined by their counterparts from Japan, China, and South Korea, met for the 24th ASEAN Plus Three Foreign Ministers’ meeting. Lastly, Indonesia hosted the ASEAN Regional Forum on July 14, setting the stage for ASEAN partners such as the United States, Russia, and China, to meet on the sidelines.

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Solar panels on water canals seem like a no-brainer. So why aren’t they widespread?

This artist’s rendering provided by Solar AquaGrid, shows a wide-span solar canal canopy being piloted in California’s Central Valley. Solar AquaGrid is preparing to break ground in the fall of 2023 on the first solar-covered-canal project in the United States. Solar panels are installed over canals in sunny, water-scarce regions where they make electricity and reduce evaporation. (Solar AquaGrid via AP)

1 of 4 | 

This artist’s rendering provided by Solar AquaGrid, shows a wide-span solar canal canopy being piloted in California’s Central Valley. Solar AquaGrid is preparing to break ground in the fall of 2023 on the first solar-covered-canal project in the United States. Solar panels are installed over canals in sunny, water-scarce regions where they make electricity and reduce evaporation. (Solar AquaGrid via AP)

FILE - Indian laborers work amid installed solar panels atop the Narmada canal at Chandrasan village, outside Ahmadabad, India, Feb. 16, 2012. The project brings water to hundreds of thousands of villages in the dry, arid regions of western India’s Gujarat state. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki, File)

FILE – Indian laborers work amid installed solar panels atop the Narmada canal at Chandrasan village, outside Ahmadabad, India, Feb. 16, 2012. The project brings water to hundreds of thousands of villages in the dry, arid regions of western India’s Gujarat state. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki, File)

FILE - A worker washes his hands as installed solar panels are visible atop the Narmada canal at Chandrasan village, outside of Ahmadabad, India, Feb. 16, 2012. The project brings water to hundreds of thousands of villages in the dry, arid regions of western India’s Gujarat state. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki, File)

FILE – A worker washes his hands as installed solar panels are visible atop the Narmada canal at Chandrasan village, outside of Ahmadabad, India, Feb. 16, 2012. The project brings water to hundreds of thousands of villages in the dry, arid regions of western India’s Gujarat state. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki, File)

BY BRITTANY PETERSON AND SIBI ARASUPublished 11:27 PM GMT+7, July 20, 2023

DENVER (AP) — Back in 2015, California’s dry earth was crunching under a fourth year of drought. Then-Governor Jerry Brown ordered an unprecedented 25% reduction in home water use. Farmers, who use the most water, volunteered too to avoid deeper, mandatory cuts.

Brown also set a goal for the state to get half its energy from renewable sources, with climate change bearing down.

Yet when Jordan Harris and Robin Raj went knocking on doors with an idea that addresses both water loss and climate pollution — installing solar panels over irrigation canals — they couldn’t get anyone to commit.

Tiếp tục đọc “Solar panels on water canals seem like a no-brainer. So why aren’t they widespread?”

A Review on Renewable Energy Transition under China’s Carbon Neutrality Target

mdpi.com

by Fuquan Zhao 1,2, Fanlong Bai 1,2, Xinglong Liu 1,2 and Zongwei Liu 1,2,*

1 State Key Laboratory of Automobile Safety and Energy, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China 2Tsinghua Automobile Strategy Research Institute, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China

*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Sustainability 202214(22), 15006; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142215006 Received: 7 October 2022 / Revised: 5 November 2022 / Accepted: 7 November 2022 / Published: 13 November 2022 (This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy and Sustainable Economy Transition)

Abstract

To achieve their carbon peak and carbon neutrality target, China’s energy transition is seen as the most important instrument. Despite the rapid growth of renewable energy in China, there are still many challenges. Based on the review of the contemporary literature, this paper seeks to present an updated depiction of renewable energy in the Chinese context. The potential, status quo, and related policy of China’s renewable energy are thoroughly investigated. The challenges facing renewable energy development under the carbon neutrality target are analyzed, including enormous transition urgency and pressure, technology, and policy issues. Then, coping strategies are proposed to guide the direction of renewable energy development. Technology paths and policy recommendations are presented. This paper contributes to technology developing and policymaking by providing a comprehensive, thorough, and reliable review of renewable energy development in China.

Keywords: 

renewableenergy transitionpolicy incentivetechnology pathpower system

1. Introduction

In recent years, climate change and energy issues have become the prominent global challenge and a major concern of China. In 2020, president Xi Jinping pledged to achieve carbon peak by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060 (referred to as the dual carbon target). China’s energy sector, which heavily relies on fossil energy, especially coal, is the largest contributor to China’s carbon emissions [1]. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), China’s energy consumption accounts for nearly 90% of China’s total CO2 emissions in 2020 [2]. The carbon neutrality target poses a huge challenge to China’s energy system, causing energy transition to be the key to the overall decarbonization of China’s economy and society.

Despite aggressive energy transition goals, China still faces many challenges in the energy sector. In terms of energy supply, fossil fuel still dominates with the problem of overcapacity to be addressed [1,3,4]. The supply and consumption of renewable energy resources in China are also highly mismatched, the center of renewable energy is in the northwest, and the electricity consumption center is in the east. In terms of energy consumption, the load profile of energy is becoming increasingly complex and the regional energy distribution is becoming more diversified, which demands a higher power system flexibility [5]. Moreover, China’s economy is still growing at a considerable rate and renewable energy cannot independently meet the energy requirement of the economy’s growth. Effective incentives for promoting renewable energy consumption are yet to be formulated [6].

In facing the above difficulties during the energy transition, renewable energy is recognized as the most important instrument and has attracted more and more attention. China has rich reserves of renewable energy. In recent years, the development of renewable energy has been impressively rapid. At present, renewable energy has accounted for nearly 30% of China’s electricity generation [7,8]. China has shown a great commitment to renewable energy. The target of renewable energy generation was set to taking up more than 50% of China’s total installed power generation by the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan [9]. It is estimated that by 2060, China will invest about RMB 122 trillion to build a new power system with clean energy as the main body [10].

There are many studies on the renewable energy transition in China. They can be classified into two groups. The first group of studies focus on quantitative analysis of the development of renewable energy. For example, Zhang et al. adopted the China TIMES model to analyze the required renewable energy supply and electrification rate in achieving carbon peak. The results showed that if emissions peak in 2025, the carbon neutrality goal demands a 45–62% electrification rate and 47–78% renewable energy in primary energy supply in 2050 [11]. Another study predicted that by 2050, renewable energy would account for 60% of the total energy consumption and 90% of the total power generation and the electrification rate would be close to 60% [12]. Liu et al. studied the latest hourly wind and solar data from 2007–2014 and provided the optimal wind/solar ratio for hybrid wind-solar energy systems [13]. Wen et al. presented an approach for the quantitative analysis of energy transition. They explained whether China’s cumulative carbon emissions can match the emission allowances under the global 2 °C target and provided directions for the low-carbon transition.

Tiếp tục đọc “A Review on Renewable Energy Transition under China’s Carbon Neutrality Target”

Why 2023 will be a watershed year for climate litigation

theguardian.com

Isabella Kaminski Wed 4 Jan 2023 13.08 GMT

An Amazon Indigenous protester stages a demonstration calling for climate justice at Cop27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

An Amazon Indigenous protester stages a demonstration

  • Judgments across public and private sector expected to throw light on worst perpetrators and force action

Over the past 12 months, courts from Indonesia to Australia have made groundbreaking rulings that blocked polluting power plants and denounced the human rights violations of the climate crisis. But 2023 could be even more important, with hearings and judgments across the world poised to throw light on the worst perpetrators, give victims a voice and force recalcitrant governments and companies into action.

Although the bulk of climate lawsuits have been filed in the US, most have been thrown out of court or bogged down in procedural arguments. This year will, however, finally see a case go to trial when a group of children and young people between the ages of five and 21 square off against the state of Montana.

Over two weeks in June, they will argue that the US state is failing to protect their constitutional rights, including the right to a healthy and clean environment, by supporting an energy system driven by fossil fuels. They will also say climate breakdown is degrading vital resources such as rivers, lakes, fish and wildlife which are held in trust for the public.

“Never before has a climate change trial of this magnitude happened,” says Andrea Rodgers, senior litigation attorney with Our Children’s Trust, which is behind the case. “The court will be deciding the constitutionality of an energy policy that promotes fossil fuels, as well as a state law that allows agencies to ignore the impacts of climate change in their decision-making.”

She said the trial would be watched around the world and “is set to influence the trajectory of climate change litigation going forward”.

Other cases against US states could also be given permission to go to trial.

In Canada, a ruling is expected this year in the country’s first climate lawsuit to have had its day in court. Seven young people, fronted by now-15-year-old Sophia Mathur, made history last autumn when they challenged the Ontario government’s rollback of its 2030 greenhouse gas emissions reduction target.

And in Mexico, young people have led several important court cases challenging the slow pace of the country’s clean energy system. The supreme court is due to decide whether they are allowed to seek justice in at least one case.

Tiếp tục đọc “Why 2023 will be a watershed year for climate litigation”

Gray Zone Tactics Playbook: Rafting

Rafting is the tactic of tying ships at anchor together to establish a semi-persistent floating outpost that is hard to uproot.

Gaute Friis | JULY 16, 2023

Gray Zone Tactics Playbook: Rafting
Rows of PAFMM trawlers rafting near Whitsun Reef, March 25, 2021 (Source: Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, Maxar Technologies)

Gaute Friis

Team Member

“Rafting” refers to the gray zone tactic of tying ships together at anchor to establish semi-persistent floating outposts that are difficult disperse due to their collective mass. 

The ships are generally the component of China’s People’s Armed Forces Maritime Militia (PAFMM) known as Spratly Backbone Fishing Vessels (SBFV). According to the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative’s detailed report on the PAFMM, these SBFVs receive generous government subsidies to remain at sea for most of the year, specifically to assert Beijing’s expansive maritime claims.

Tiếp tục đọc “Gray Zone Tactics Playbook: Rafting”

Gray Zone Tactics Playbook: Bow-Crossing

This tactic describes maneuvering one’s ship dangerously across the bow of another, often forcing the other ship to take evasive action to avoid a collision.

Gaute Friis | JULY 18, 2023 Sealight 333

Gray Zone Tactics Playbook: Bow-Crossing
PLAN Destroyer Lanzhou, at right, is seen here sailing within 40 meters of the USS Decatur, to the left (Source: USN)

Gaute Friis

Team Member

Bow-crossing describes a harassment tactic in which a ship abruptly maneuvers to cross dangerously across the bow of another in violation of the 1972 International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREG) and the 2014 Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES). 

This maneuver is intended to force the other ship to take evasive action to avoid a collision. It may be used to disrupt freedom of navigation operations (FONOPS) or other assertions of international law or national sovereignty.

recent example was documented in June 2023, when a Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) vessel crossed dangerously in front of U.S. Navy destroyer USS Chung-Hoon during a joint Taiwan Strait passage with the Canadian frigate HMCS Montreal, forcing the U.S. ship to reduce speed to avoid a collision:

China’s ships use bow-crossing to protest the activities of other countries’ ships in waters over which it claims sovereignty or jurisdiction, and to send the message that Beijing is willing to escalate tensions in defense of its claims.

In nautical terms, it involves a closest point of approach (CPA) of less than 2 lengths of the ship being intercepted. They are usually referred to by the U.S. Navy as “unsafe and unprofessional maneuvers”.

Other examples: 

On September 30, 2018, the PLAN Type 052C Luyang II-class destroyer Lanzhou intercepted the U.S. Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Decatur, which was conducting a FONOP with 12 nautical miles of Chinese-occupied artificial islands in the South China Sea. The picture at the top of this post shows how close the two ships came to colliding.

On June 21, 2014, CCG vessel Haijian 2168 approached Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) ship CSB 4032 at high speed. The VCG ship had to change directions repeatedly to avoid a collision as the distance between the two ships came within 30 meters. 

On December 5, 2013, a Chinese warship cut across the bow of the missile cruiser U.S.S. Cowpens at a distance of less than 200 yards in international waters.

In March 2009, five Chinese ships (a combination of PLAN, CCG and militia) harassed the U.S. surveillance ship USNS Impeccable in international waters in the South China Sea, forcing the American ship to make an emergency maneuver to avoid a collision.

See the rest of the playbook here.

Editor’s note: This post was originally published on 7 July under the title “Unsafe Maneuvers”, but was retracted when we decided to divide it into two separate categories. Apologies for any confusion.

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Gaute Friis

Gaute is a Defense Innovation Scholar at Stanford’s Gordian Knot Center for National Sec

Gray Zone Tactics Playbook: Blocking

Blocking is the act of physically impeding the passage of a ship to its destination—a form of maritime area denial.

Gaute Friis | JULY 19, 2023 Seakight 333https://www.sealight.live/posts/gray-zone-tactics-playbook-bow-crossing

Gray Zone Tactics Playbook: Blocking
CCG 5201 blocks the path of BRP Malapascua, forcing it to abort its planned patrol of the Second Thomas Shoal after a 30 minute stand-off, April 26, 2023 (Source: BBC)

Gaute Friis

Team Member

Blocking is a form of bow-crossing meant to physically impede the passage of another ship to its destination. Blocking is typically used by Chinese ships to hinder other countries from resupplying or reinforcing their outposts in the South China Sea.

Distinct from other forms of bow-crossing, blocking is used for area denial rather than operations disruption and will often result in more protracted stand-offs. China uses this tactic to assert its claims of jurisdiction as well as to prevent certain activities–most notably the reinforcement of other claimants’ existing Spratly Island outposts.

One such blocking maneuver occurred on April 26th, 2023, when China Coast Guard (CCG) ship 5201 blocked the path of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) patrol vessel BRP Malapascua. This forced the much smaller PCG ship to abort its planned route to the entrance of Second Thomas (Ayungin) Shoal during a resupply mission to the Philippines’ outpost aboard BRP Sierra Madre

China routinely prevents the entry of Philippine ships into the interior of Second Thomas Shoal as a cornerstone of its strategy to prevent the rusting outpost from being repaired or replaced until it breaks up or otherwise becomes uninhabitable. For nearly a decade it has allowed only small wooden boats carrying food and replacement troops to pass through its blockade.

1634762.jpg
Resupply boat brings food and replacement troops to the Philippine Navy’s outpost aboard BRP Sierra Madre, Second Thomas Shoal, 21 June 2022. Credit: Inquirer/ Marianne Bermudez

Other examples: 

On September 19, 2019, also near Second Thomas Shoal, a CCG ship blocked Philippine civilian vessels while they were conducting a resupply mission to the BRP Sierra Madre.

On November 13, 2015, about 13 nautical miles from Subi Reef, CCG cutters 35115 and 2305 blocked the path of a Vietnamese replenishment ship heading towards the Vietnamese outpost on Southwest Cay, forcing the ship to find a different route to its destination. PLA Navy Type 072A landing ship 995 later blocked the ship’s path again, this time brandishing small arms and firing a warning shot.

See the rest of the playbook here.

Định vị du lịch làng nghề

baotintuc.vn

Hiện nay, ở một số địa phương, du lịch làng nghề vẫn chưa được khai thác tương xứng tiềm năng, còn “bỏ qua” khá nhiều điểm nhấn thu hút du khách. Thực tế này đòi hỏi cần có những giải pháp phối hợp đồng bộ hơn giữa các ngành, hiệp hội, doanh nghiệp và cả những người thợ làng nghề để phát triển sản phẩm du lịch gắn với làng nghề đạt hiệu quả cao, vừa bảo tồn nghề truyền thống, vừa định vị thêm các điểm đến du lịch hấp dẫn.

Làng nghề cùng các sản phẩm được hình thành từ hoạt động lao động sản xuất của người dân làng nghề, những giá trị hữu hình và vô hình kết tinh trong sản phẩm chính là chất liệu, tài nguyên hình thành nên nhiều sản phẩm du lịch, góp phần tạo dựng, phát triển thương hiệu du lịch của từng địa phương.  

Theo thống kê của Hiệp hội Làng nghề Việt Nam, hiện cả nước có khoảng 5.400 làng nghề, trong đó trên 2.000 làng nghề truyền thống, thuộc nhiều nhóm ngành nghề khác nhau, hiện diện ở khắp các địa phương.

Làng lồng đèn truyền thống Phú Bình (TP Hồ Chí Minh) nhộn nhịp mùa Trung thu.

Các tỉnh, thành phố Nam Bộ, gồm khu vực Đông Nam Bộ và Đồng bằng sông Cửu Long là nơi có hệ thống làng nghề phong phú, đa dạng. Trải qua nhiều thăng trầm, nhiều làng nghề vẫn được duy trì, phát triển, phản ánh đặc trưng văn hóa làng nghề Việt Nam nói chung, đồng thời thể hiện nét riêng của từng địa phương. Nhiều chuyên gia nhận định, hầu hết các làng nghề tồn tại đến nay có từ lâu đời, gắn liền với lịch sử, dựa trên các yếu tố cơ bản là vùng nguyên liệu và giao thông, đặc biệt là đường thủy. Vì vậy, làng nghề không chỉ phản ánh mối quan hệ giữa “nghề” với “nghiệp” mà còn chứa đựng những yếu tố tinh thần đậm nét, phản ánh qua các tập tục, tín ngưỡng, lễ hội liên quan đến nghề sản xuất truyền thống.

Đề cập về làng nghề ở Đông Nam Bộ, Tiến sĩ Trần Minh Đức, Trường Đại học Thủ Dầu Một cho biết, Đông Nam Bộ gồm Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh và các tỉnh Đồng Nai, Bình Dương, Bình Phước, Tây Ninh, Bà Rịa – Vũng Tàu đang duy trì được hệ thống các làng nghề phong phú và đa dạng. Có thể kể đến Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh với các làng nghề: mành trúc Tân Thông Hội, chằm nón Tằm Lanh, bánh tráng Phú Hòa Đông, đan bồ An Nhơn Tây, chiếu Nam Đa Phước, dệt Bảy Hiền, lồng đèn Phú Bình…

Nghề trồng mai tại Phước Định (huyện Long Hồ, tỉnh Vĩnh Long) đã trở thành nghề mang lại thu nhập chính cho người dân.

Tiếp tục đọc “Định vị du lịch làng nghề”

Critical Minerals in World War 2

Arizona.edu

How Minerals Made Civilization, the UA Lowell Institute for Mineral Resources’ YouTube video series on the role of mineral resources in history, is launching a trilogy about how mineral resources influenced the war.  Part 1, posted today, covers mineral resources during the interwar buildup: how mineral resources figured in national (and transnational) politics in the 1930s, how resource-poor nations sought to build up their supplies, and how the struggle for resources eventually culminated in the outbreak of the war. From the video, here are a few fun facts you may not have known:

  •  Coins for combat: During the early to mid-1930s, both Germany and Japan reissued old silver coinages in nickel so they would have a nickel supply for gun steels when the war broke out.
  •  Coal, meet hydrogen: Coal-to-oil conversion was invented too late to change the outcome of World War 1, but it was about to play a major role in supplying Germany in the next war.
  •  Why we use molybdenum in steels: The Nazi-Soviet Pact of 1939 redirected Soviet manganese exports from the USA to Germany, so American metallurgists developed improved molybdenum-alloy steels as a substitute using molybdenum from Arizona and Colorado.

Tiếp tục đọc “Critical Minerals in World War 2”