Posted on January 12, 2020 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Tennis star Roger Federer has responded to climate change critics – including campaigner Greta Thunberg – by saying he takes the issue very seriously.
Activists oppose Federer’s sponsorship deal with Credit Suisse over its links to the fossil fuel industry.
Some appeared in court this week after refusing to pay a fine for playing tennis inside Credit Suisse offices in 2018 to highlight Federer’s deal.
Federer did not address the deal directly in his statement.
The activists – most of them students – appeared in court in Renens, Lausanne, on 7 January to appeal against the fine. Some supporters gathered outside holding banners which read: “Credit Suisse is destroying the planet. Roger, do you support them?”
Greta Thunberg – the Swedish teenager who has become the public face of worldwide protests against government policies on climate change – joined the criticism against Federer and Credit Suisse when she retweeted a post from activists 350.org Europe.
The post said loans by Credit Suisse to companies investing in fossil fuels were incompatible with action on climate change and urged Federer to “wake up”.
In his response, the 20-time Grand Slam champion who is in Melbourne for the Australian Open, said: “I take the impacts and threat of climate change very seriously, particularly as my family and I arrive in Australia amidst devastation from the bushfires.”
Federer said he had “a great deal of respect and admiration for the youth climate movement” and was “grateful to young climate activists for pushing us all to examine our behaviours and act on innovative solutions”.
“We owe it to them and ourselves to listen. I appreciate reminders of my responsibility as a private individual, as an athlete and as an entrepreneur, and I’m committed to using this privileged position to dialogue on important issues with my sponsors.”
For its part, Credit Suisse has said it is “seeking to align its loan portfolios with the objectives of the Paris Agreement [to combat climate change] and has recently announced in the context of its global climate strategy that it will no longer invest in new coal-fired power plants”.
Federer is taking part in a fundraising event next Wednesday in aid of relief efforts to address the Australian bushfires which have killed at least 28 people and destroyed thousands of homes since September.
Filed under: GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional | Leave a comment »
Posted on January 12, 2020 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
WAV Comment – I (Mark) have been involved a bit in the past regarding Biosecurity issues on transporters carrying livestock. For proper biosecurity – ie to prevent the spread of disease and infection between animals carried at the same time and also at different times, vehicles by law are to be cleaned out (normally with a pressure spray) and fully disinfected before they take on a new consignment.
As this check was undertaken in the West of England, I would guess that maybe Calves have been involved in the shipments. I cannot prove this; just a gut feeling from experience. Cattle get Bovine TB; and this is a typical way that BTB can be spread from one consignment to another.
As we have long argued, this is happening – 70% of all livestock vehicles stopped were non-compliant with required regulations – and that is more than worrying; especially when many cattle farmers are blaming the Badgers for spreading BTB amongst herds.
Maybe the farmers need to look at their own practices a bit more closely before they start blaming others.
Regards Mark.
‘Filthy’ animal trailer full of poo and muck on M5 seized by police
It was described to be ‘three-inches deep in animal dung’
A disgusting trailer full of poo was seized as part of a joint-traffic operation on the M5.
Devon and Cornwall Police, Trading Standards and the DVSA carried out a multi-agency operation targeting farm vehicles travelling to and from the cattle market in Devon yesterday (Saturday, January 11).
Police said the vehicle was an example of “worst practice, poor potential animal welfare” and had red diesel, which resulted in the vehicle being seized.
Devon Live reports how the back of the trailer was said to have a “filthy animal compartment, three-inches deep in animal dung”.
Police say the vehicle also had defective breaks on the trailer and was “found to be using what is believed to be red diesel” and HMRC are investigating.
Alliance RP Specials tweeted: “Working alongside Trading Standards, (we) stopped this vehicle for routine inspection.
“What you see is possibly worst practice, poor potential animal welfare, poor trailer maintenance and red diesel.
“Thankfully no animals on board. Vehicle seized trailer prohibited. Operation Trailer.”
Rural Affairs Devon added: “This is the second time we’ve deployed Operation Trailer, nine vehicles where issued with prohibitions due to defects, two vehicles were seized for HMRC offences, and 70 per cent of all livestock vehicles stopped were non-compliant with required regulations.
“Please make sure to check your trailer.”
The operation saw nine vehicles issued with prohibition notices, four overweight vehicles/trailers, one tyre offence, one MOT expiry, two livestock trailers unroadworthy.
It also saw a non-compliant horse passport, horses transported with documentation, livestock transported without documentation, trailers not cleaned and disinfected and a trailer leaking slurry onto highway.
Filed under: GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional | Leave a comment »
Posted on January 11, 2020 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Posted on January 11, 2020 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Lewis Hamilton says he will donate more than £380,000 to support the fire service and animal welfare charities affected by fires in Australia.
The Formula 1 world champion pledged US $500,000 and says he “can’t help but grieve for the defenceless animals thought to have died” in the fires.
The bushfires have burnt more than 6.3 million hectares across the country and 27 people have died.
Alongside a video of a koala being rescued, the 35-year-old Mercedes driver wrote: “It saddens me deeply to know that over 1 billion animals in Australia died a painful death, no way out, not their fault.
“My love of animals is no secret and I can’t help but grieve for the defenceless animals thought to have died so far, pushing certain species closer to extinction.
“I’m lucky enough to visit Australia often and I know first-hand how beautiful the country is. Keep fighting Australia. I’ve spent some time speaking to people in Australia who are working at the heart of this and I’m filled with admiration for everything they are doing.
“I implore you to join me in thinking about the impact we are having on our planet. Let’s work together to make small changes, and encourage our family and friends to do the same, so we can help shift the direction we’re going in.”
Hamilton’s donation – which is in US dollars and converts to roughly £383,000 – will go to WIRES Wildlife Rescue, WWF Australia and the Rural Fire Service.
Filed under: GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional | Leave a comment »
Posted on January 11, 2020 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Image Credit: Adobe Stock/Galina Barskaya
In a moving display, a herd of 17 Asian elephants visited a deceased herd member’s burial site, in Andhra Pradesh, India, to mourn their lost family member. This heartfelt moment exemplifies the strong social and familial bonds that elephants frequently form.
A day earlier, the herd wandered into a field. One member came into contact with a live cable wire, which tragically electrocuted him to death. Nearby elephant trackers diverted the herd away from the site and buried the poor elephant where he died.
When the surviving herd members returned a day later, they repeatedly circled the burial mound, stampeding the mud and making sorrowful trumpeting noises. After paying their respects, all 17 elephants retreated into the forest.
The emotional event deeply touched onlookers.
“The sentiments of the elephants had moved not only the forest personnel, but also the farmers, who despite suffering crop damage have not made a complaint of it,” Forest Range Officer K. Madhan Mohan Reddy told The Hindu. “We are just bowled over by their gesture.”
Forest officials predicted the herd’s return to the site and took precautions to prevent another tragedy.
“As per our request, the power was disconnected through all low-lying cables across the fields in the vicinity of the mound,” Reddy explained. “The power officials are now increasing the height of the power lines or shifting the locations of the poles.”
Elephants are well-known for grieving their herd members’ deaths for extended periods of time. These rituals and behaviors remind us of their ability to feel complex emotions, a capacity often mistakenly thought of as uniquely human. Elephants clearly experience sadness, love, compassion and distress.
Various other animals, including orcas, humpback whales, lemurs, and chimpanzees, also mourn their dead. Grieving symbolizes the close relationships animals form between family members and helps them achieve closure after losing a loved one. As the recently-observed Asian elephants’ funerary ritual shows, mourning is not a process unique to the human experience.
Filed under: GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional | Leave a comment »
Posted on January 11, 2020 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Image Credit: Jordi Casamitjana/Facebook
After a two-day employment tribunal in the U.K., a judge officially ruled on January 3 that ethical veganism is a philosophical belief, akin to religion, and should be protected by the law.
Vegan zoologist Jordi Casamitjana brought the landmark case to adjudication. He accused the League Against Cruel Sports of firing him after he revealed to colleagues that the company’s pension fund invests in businesses participating in animal testing.
Casamitjana decided to take action and ascertain whether ethical veganism can be classified as a protected “non-religious philosophical belief” and, therefore, be defended by the Equality Act 2010.
In his ruling, Judge Robin Postle pronounced that ethical veganism does meet the criteria required to qualify as a philosophical belief under the act.
“I am satisfied overwhelmingly that ethical veganism does constitute a philosophical belief,” he said, “and it is now a new protected characteristic.”
Casamitjana thinks this exciting new development will help ethical vegans feel comfortable in their beliefs.
“I’m extremely happy with the outcome of this hearing and for the words of the judge who clearly understood what ethical veganism is,” commented Casamitjana after hearing the ruling. “I am not alone. Many people have supported me because they or their friends have experienced discrimination for being ethical vegans. Hopefully, from my dismissal something positive will come by ensuring other ethical vegans are better protected in the future.”
“Better protection means more vegans will be able to be open about their beliefs,” he added. “This can only be a good thing for the billions of animals still exploited by humans, an environment under duress, and stressed public health.”
In February, the tribunal will rule on whether the League Against Cruel Sports wrongly dismissed Casamitjana, discriminating against him due to his philosophy of ethical veganism.
Filed under: GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional | Leave a comment »
Posted on January 11, 2020 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
See all at:
Who is the USA Eco Villain of 2019 ? – Cast Your Vote here now before January 15th.
Below are some powerful images by environmental activist Robin Wood however, shows the effects of man’s effect on the natural world in a exceptionally powerful way.
Who wins the Rubber Eco Dodo Award ? – Is It :
David Bernhardt: For suppressing data showing pesticides harm at least 1,400 protected species, Trump’s interior secretary was under inspector-general investigation just four days after he got the job. A longtime lobbyist for polluters, he’s worked for decades to weaken the Endangered Species Act. As our interior secretary, he’s the ultimate fox guarding the henhouse. Bernhardt has launched an all-out attack on protections for America’s wildlife.
Donald Trump, Jr.: Donald the Younger’s never met an endangered species he doesn’t love to cuddle — once it’s dead. A trophy hunter of African elephants, leopards and Cape buffalo, he likes to have his picture taken with their bodies (once, holding an elephant’s severed tail). Recently, in Mongolia, he killed a threatened argali sheep — a species whose population had dropped 50% between 1985 and 2009.
Andrew Wheeler: Former coal lobbyist, now-Environmental Protection Agency chief, Wheeler apparently likes clean air and water about as much as David Bernhardt likes wildlife. A seasoned Beltway insider, he’s rescinded Obama’s Clean Power Plan, brutally overruled scientists, and gutted auto fuel-efficiency standards. He’s also slashed Clean Water Act protections, freeing up industry to destroy wetlands and dump toxic waste into streams across the United States.
Stephen Miller: This far-right advisor to the president is like the long-lost brain Trump never had. Sadly, that brain is racist. Miller has guided American immigration policy into the realm of outright inhumanity. His whispers in Trump’s ear are likely behind a ban on immigrants from Muslim countries, a shameful practice of removing children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border, and construction of a destructive border wall across precious wilderness.
Vote Now Before 15th January.
Filed under: GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional | Leave a comment »
Serbian Animals Voice (SAV) 