September 25, 2009

Earth needs ‘users guide’ to protect it from people

  • by

* Expert claims human activities pushing world into danger zone

OSLO: A new users’ guide is needed to help protect the Earth from dangerous changes such as global warming and extinctions of animals and plants caused by humans, scientists said on Thursday.

A group of 28 experts suggested nine key areas, such as freshwater use, chemical pollutants or changes in land use, where governments could define limits to ensure a “safe operating space for humanity”. “Today we are clearly driving development in the world blindfolded,” Johan Rockstrom, leader of the study and director of the Stockholm Resilience Centre at Stockholm University, said. “We are not considering the risks that there are deep holes we can drive into,” he said. The call, for setting “planetary boundaries”, was published in Thursday’s edition of the journal Nature. Read More »Earth needs ‘users guide’ to protect it from people

Pakistan rupee to gradually gain in 2009, reserves to reach $15.5 billion

  • by

KARACHI: Pakistani rupee is likely to gain gradually against the US dollar during the rest of the year, says a foreign exchange analyst of a leading foreign bank.

Priyanka Chakravarty, an India based FX strategist at Standard Chartered Bank, says the IMF’s decision to allocate an additional $3.2bn to Pakistan, and the ensuing sovereign credit rating upgrade by Standard and Poor’s, bode well for the currency. She says the rupee is not likely to lose value despite pressure from a deteriorating trade deficit due to rising commodity prices. Read More »Pakistan rupee to gradually gain in 2009, reserves to reach $15.5 billion

ISLAMABAD: British Council opens Chevening Scholarship for applications

Associated Press of Pakistan, 24th September 2009

The British Council has opened British Chevening Scholarship for enabling future leaders, decision-makers and opinion formers from around the world to become familiar with the UK to gain new skills, or update current professional skills. The last date for submission of forms is Sunday, October 4th 2009. The Chevening programme currently provides around 2,300 new scholarships each year for postgraduate studies or research at UK institutions of higher education.Read More »ISLAMABAD: British Council opens Chevening Scholarship for applications