BusinessMirror March 05, 2023

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Philippine Eagle Foundation firms up relocation plan for breeding pairs of critically endangered PHL Eagle, other raptors

ON THE VERGE OF EXTINCTION

By Jonathan L. Mayuga

W

Together with the Davao City local government unit, the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF) is stepping up its efforts to relocate its breeding pairs of the iconic bird and other birds of prey to a bigger, better location to be called Philippine Eagle Conservation Breeding Sanctuary (PECBS), a 13-hectare forest in Barangay Eden, Davao City.

A memorandum of agreement was signed between the Davao City government led by Mayor Sebastian Duterte and the PEF, led by its Executive Director Dennis Salvador, for the purpose of relocating PEF’s breeding facility and breeding eagles to “safer grounds,” while allowing PEF to retain and continue the operation of the 35-year-old PEC facility, which is also considered a tourist attraction in Davao City.

Eagle’s

‘paradise’

UNDER the agreement, the PEF can put up its breeding facility in the area where it will be safe from naturally occurring threats like pesticide or fertilizer poisoning caused by agrochemical agriculture or worse, avian influenza virus from contaminated poultry, game fowls or native chickens being raised by communities.

The humidity in the area is also better than the current location of the breeding facility because the humidity is ideal for the natural breeding of raptors. Large cages for the breeding pairs of eagles will be prioritized for construction to

ITH the serious threat of zoonotic diseases, including the dreaded avian influenza virus or bird flu virus wiping out the Philippine Eagle and other raptors currently housed at the Philippine Eagle Center (PEC) in Barangay Malagos, Davao City, protectors of the country’s national bird are not taking any chances.“Even with our heightened biosecurity measures, including a partial perimeter fence that can help control animal and pollutant intrusions into the facility, the Philippine Eagle Center remains vulnerable to human population increases and the environmental changes it can bring.”—PEF Director for Research and Conservation Jayson

start their relocation.

In his message read by Davao City First District Councilor Temujin “Tek” Ocampo, Duterte expressed his support and lauded the PEF for its commitment to protecting and conserving the critically endangered Philippine Eagle.

The Philippine Eagle Foundation has always been at the forefront of the protection of the Philippine Eagles as well as in the education of the public on its importance. However, it can’t be denied that there are still threats against the existence of our national bird, including deforestation, illegal hunting and, recently, the avian flu outbreaks in Mindanao. Amid these threats, know that the City Government of Davao rec-

A HUGE billboard of the Philippine Eagle stands at the entrance to the Philippine Eagle Center in Barangay Malagos, Davao City. The changing landscapes such as the diminishing forest around it, the increasing pressure of agro-chemical agriculture that makes use of pesticides, insecticides and fertilizers that are fatal to the eagles, plus the risks of zoonotic disease such as the avian influenza virus that can wipe out the entire eagle population at the Philippine Eagle Center (PEC) due to poultry and game fowl farms near the PEC compelled the Philippine Eagle Foundation to step up plans to relocate the breeding Philippine Eagles and other birds of prey to a bigger and better location in Barangay Eden, a 105-hectare forested area set aside for ecotourism purposes, also in Davao City.

ognizes and commends the Philippine Eagle Foundation as it remains unfazed and stays committed to its mission,” said Duterte.

According to Duterte, the PECBS is a tangible expression of the PEF’s strong commitment in helping the Philippine Eagle thrive.

In line with this year’s World Wildlife Day’s theme, ‘Partnerships for Wildlife Conservation,’ let us all

continue to work harmoniously in amplifying the advocacy of ensuring the survival of the Philippine Eagle and the biodiversity it represents,” Duterte added.

Moving on DURING a media tour that coincided with the soft launch of the facility, Jayson Ibañez, Director of Research and Conservation at the

PEF, said substantial landscape changes have happened since the rescue and breeding facility relocated to Malagos in 1987. He said the facility was once surrounded by lush woodland. Today, however, remnant forests were mostly cleared.

“ We are very fortunate and very grateful to the local government of Davao City for allowing us to use this portion of the Eden Nature Park,” he added.

A 105-hectare forested land, the zonal classification of the land is ecotourism, unlike in Barangay Malagos, which is classified as agricultural, which means private landowners cannot be prevented from doing agriculture and even poultry that pose serious threats to the eagles housed at the Philippine Eagle Center.

Zoonotic diseases from the surrounding domestic fauna in the area, Ibañez pointed out, are seriously threatening the entire captive-breeding program of the PEF in Barangay Malagos.

Threat from other fowls RECENT threat mapping conducted by the PEF revealed there are poultry and game farms around the PEC. “These data exclude small, backyard farms of chicken and fighting cocks, and feral native chickens raised close to the center,” he said.

According to Ibañez, the recent death of Philippine Eagle “Pag-asa” due to trichomoniasis, a bird disease caused by a protozoan that is common in species of periurban doves or pigeons, is alarming enough to consider the serious threat of zoonotic diseases hitting PEC, sooner, if not later.

“ These are all ‘clear and present’ threats that have the potential to wipe out the entire breeding stock if we don’t do anything to spare our Philippine Eagles from such risks. Even with our heightened biosecurity measures, including a partial perimeter fence that can help control animal and pollutant intrusions into the facility, the Philippine Eagle Center remains vulnerable to human population increases and the environmental changes it can bring,” he said.

Ibañez

rest of its neighboring lands are private properties used either as farms or for settlements. This loss of protective woodland buffers has exposed our captive eagle population to anthropogenic threats,” said Ibañez.

The environmental disaster lurking inside your chocolate bar

By Paul Tullis Bloomberg News

L abels from groups like the Rainforest Alliance pledge the cocoa inside “was produced by farmers, foresters, and/or companies working together to create a world where people and nature thrive in harmony.”

Fair Trade Certified says items bearing its label are made using methods that support social, economic and environmental sustainability. Many chocolate brands have their own sustainability logos: Mondelez’s “Cocoa Life” represents the chocolate was “made the right way—protecting the planet and respecting the human rights of people in our value chain.” Nestlé’s “Cocoa Plan” echoes that sentiment.

Guarantee of estimable provenance

TODAY, around one-third of cocoa products carry some guarantee of estimable provenance. But that leaves a lot of room for what sup -

pliers and human-rights advocates contend is a broader reality—that a lot of cocoa production is far from sustainable.

Marked by child labor, deforestation and allegations of greenwashing, the industry has arrived at a critical juncture. As demand for cocoa climbs, the African nations where most of it is grown are seeking more compensation for impoverished farmers.

The $13-billion cocoa market has been expanding at a steady clip for decades. Asian consumers led by China and India are projected to soon overtake Western Europe in terms of cocoa consumption, according to Singapore-based food ingredients maker Olam Group.

But at the beginning of the supply chain, all is not well. More than two-thirds of the global supply comes from West Africa, and the prices paid to farmers are often rock bottom. Just 6 percent of the price of a chocolate bar ends

up in their hands, according to the Fairtrade Foundation.

Some 90 percent of farmers in Ivory Coast and 70 percent in Ghana fall below the International Labor Organization’s poverty threshold of $2.14 per day.

L ast year, Ivory Coast and Ghana increased the price they pay to farmers for their crop at the start of the main harvest by 9 percent and 21 percent respectively, but the price hikes failed to offset surging inflation.

The winner and the loser

“THE system has always been designed to give consumers the cheapest possible product and make sure that the large global multinationals are making sufficient profit,” said Antonie Fountain, managing director of Voice Network, an organization of NGOs and labor unions focused on cocoa sustainability. “But it’s driving extreme poverty at the beginning of the supply chain.” The World Cocoa Foundation, a global industry lobby, didn’t respond to requests for comment.

Th is dissonance between cocoa industry claims of sustainability and the economic crises faced by many farmers has had a grave knock-on effect for the environment.

Cocoa grows in the warm, humid conditions endemic to regions once covered by tropical rainforests. Growers desperate to make enough money to survive have sought to expand their acreage, with disastrous consequences. In Ivory Coast, the world’s top cocoa producer, about 80 percent of rainforests have been destroyed— much of it to grow cocoa.

“ In desperation, the farmer just goes and grows more cocoa,” said Miguel Orellana, whose company Cacao Criollo Arriba makes chocolate sold in Germany with beans grown in Ecuador. “And the way to do that is destroy more rainforest and plant more cocoa trees.”

“ Farmers in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire are only paid about 80 percent of the cost of production,” said Obed Owusu-Addai, a campaigner for EcoCare Ghana, explaining the financial straits of cocoa growers. The two nations tried to impose a “living income differential” fee of $400 per metric ton, but some buyers responded by lowering a separate payment made to produc-

ers in the two countries, the “origin” premium. Eight out of 10 of those Owusu-Addai’s organization polled said they would prefer to get out of cocoa altogether, he said.

Michael Odijie is a research fellow at University College London who has studied Ivory Coast smallholder farms, from which most of the nation’s cocoa originates. He said the way out of the vicious cycle—both for farmers and the environment—is to pay them a living wage.

Raising income means they can employ more labor to replant instead of moving into the forest,” Odijie said. His study found the labor cost of destroying forests for cocoa planting is two workers; replanting on land already being cultivated, as becomes necessary when trees age and productivity diminishes, requires eight workers.

What big companies say

SOME consumer giants said they are trying to help farmers boost tree yields by providing both fertilizer and agricultural training. They have developed programs to teach efficient pruning methods or encourage the planting of other crops alongside cocoa. Growing bananas or mangoes, for example, helps keep forests intact and increase cocoa crops, since cocoa grows best in the shade of other trees.

Nestlé helps pay for trained laborers to assist West African farmers with better growth practices, said Darrell High, who leads the company’s cocoa sustainability strategy. But Odijie said programs such as these, which are also aimed in part at diversifying farmer income, miss a larger point. “The problem is that to qualify, you have to keep on producing cocoa,” he said.

K en Giller is a professor in the department of plant sciences at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. He supports company initiatives to improve cocoa yield in a sustainable fashion— though with caveats. “ They often really show great benefits, but it’s impossible for companies to do that for every farmer” because of the expense, he said. So these programs tend to be aimed at larger farms, while smallholders who need the benefits most miss out. Giller also noted that “boosting productivity makes

it more attractive to grow cocoa— and therefore more attractive to clear rainforest.”

High contends such perverse incentives can be addressed by aligning payments to households, rather than to the amount of cocoa a household produces. Nestlé’s programs are reaching small farmers, he said, “but the frustration has been a lack of adoption of key practices like pruning.”

Mere branding?

SMALLER companies and entrepreneurs who boast direct control of supply chains criticize major players for overstating the effectiveness of sustainability campaigns, given the human and environmental calamities bedeviling the industry. Orellana of Cacao Criollo Arriba is one of them. “If you read the companies’ websites about cocoa,” he said, “you would be ready to give them donations for the work that they are doing.”

Short of controlling the entire supply chain, another strategy is to shorten it. Beyond Good, a company based in New York City, buys direct from farmers in Madagascar and manufactures its chocolate there. While the roughly 12,000 metric tons of cocoa produced annually by Madagascar is negligible in a global market of 5.5 million metric tons, it nevertheless means significant income for farmers there.

Tim McCollum, Beyond Good’s founder and chief executive, contends he’s seeing results in terms of environmental sustainability. “Most of the deforestation in Madagascar is due to human poverty, and the only place I’ve seen forest being regenerated outside of NGO replanting projects is in our supply chain,” he said. The country experienced a 25-percent decrease in tree cover between 2001 and 2021.

O wusu-Addai said he hopes the European Union and US government will step in to help. But he fears an EU initiative requiring buyers of six commodities (including cocoa) to insulate their supply chains against deforestation will further burden smallholders. “There need to be regulations that will compel these chocolate companies to pay fair prices for cocoa farmers,” Owusu-Addai said.

Th at might lead to a new label affixed to chocolate bars: Now 20 percent more expensive.

AVISIT to the chocolate aisle of any grocery store can yield a bewildering array of certification logos, each seeking to assure buyers that the cocoa used to make it was produced according to some measure of sustainability.

IN Ivory Coast, the world’s top cocoa producer, large swaths of rainforest have been destroyed to grow more cocoa. BLOOMBERG

Russia boosts Pacific oil cargoes as war in Ukraine reshapes flows

By Julian Lee

The country’s shipments rose marginally to 3.63 million barrels a day from its ports in the seven days through Friday, a level that has been surpassed just four times since the start of 2022. The lessvolatile four-week average also gained, before a 500,000-barrela-day production cut that’s due to come into effect from Wednesday in response to Western embargoes and price caps on Russian oil cargoes.

But the steady flow masks some big swings in regional shipments.

Exports from the Black Sea fell sharply, with storms closing the port of Novorossiysk for much of the week. Flows from the Arctic terminal at Murmansk were also down, but the drops were more than offset by what are likely to be record volumes leaving the country’s Pacific terminals. A record 10 tankers were loaded at the Pacific port of Kozmino last week, with flows there boosted by the use of drag-reducing agents on the ESPO pipeline and the resumption of crude deliveries by rail. Crude shipments from the country’s eastern ports are being sold at prices almost 40 percent higher than cargoes exported through the Baltic, according to a group of researchers.

The volume of crude on vessels heading to China and India — plus smaller flows to Türkiye and the quantities on ships that haven’t yet shown a final destination— rose in the four-week period, to an average 3.27 million barrels a day, the highest amount observed since Bloomberg began tracking the shipments at the start of 2022.

As the ultimate destinations of cargoes loading in late January become apparent, flows to China have risen to new post-invasion highs. Historical patterns suggest that most of the cargoes currently identified as “Unknown Asia” or “Other Unknown” will end up in India.

Inflows to the Kremlin’s war chest from crude-export duties have plunged since the start of the year. While an easing of crude prices have both played parts in that drop, the biggest effect has come from a change in the formula used to calculate duty rates. A multi-year move by Russia away from taxing oil exports will limit the impact of any tightening of the price cap on exports, such as that called for by former US Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers.

Ship-to-ship transfers of cargoes in the Mediterranean continue apace. This has been most visible off the Spanish north African city of Ceuta and off the Greek coast near Kalamata. At least 30 cargoes have been transferred between ships in those two locations since the start of the year. Twelve more Aframax tankers that loaded in the Baltic since late January look likely to transfer their loads to other vessels in the Mediterranean, based on their destination signals.

Crude flows by destination:

ON a four-week average basis, overall seaborne exports edged up by 39,000 barrels a day to 3.38 million barrels a day.

All figures exclude cargoes identified as Kazakhstan’s KEB -

CO grade. Those are shipments made by KazTransoil JSC that transit Russia for export through the Baltic ports of Ust-Luga and Novorossiysk.

The Kazakh barrels are blended with crude of Russian origin to create a uniform export grade. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Kazakhstan has rebranded its cargoes to distinguish them from those shipped by Russian companies. Transit crude is specifically exempted from European Union sanctions.

Asia

FOUR -week average shipments to Russia’s Asian customers, plus those on vessels showing no final destination edged higher in the period to February 24, rising to 3.11 million barrels a day, their highest since Bloomberg began tracking the flows at the start of 2022.

While the volume heading to India appears to have slumped, history shows that most of the cargoes on ships without an initial destination eventually end up there.

The equivalent of 463,000 barrels a day was on vessels showing destinations as either Port Said or Suez in Egypt, or which have already been or are expected to be transferred from one ship to another off the South Korean port of Yeosu. Those voyages typically end at ports in India and show up

in the chart below as “Unknown Asia” until a final destination becomes apparent. The “Other Unknown” volumes, running at 739,000 barrels a day in the four weeks to Feb. 24, are those on tankers showing a destination of Gibraltar, Malta or no destination at all. Most of those cargoes go on to transit the Suez Canal, but some could end up in Türkiye. An increasing number are being transferred from one vessel to another in the Mediterranean for onward journeys to Asia.

Europe

RUSSIA’S seaborne crude exports to European countries fell back to 104,000 barrels a day in the 28 days to February 24, with Bulgaria the sole European destination. These figures do not include shipments to Türkiye. A market that consumed more than 1.5 million barrels a day of short-haul crude, coming from export terminals in the Baltic, Black Sea and Arctic has been lost almost completely, to be replaced by long-haul destinations in Asia that are much more costly and time-consuming to serve. No Russian crude was shipped to northern European countries in the four weeks to February 24. Exports to Mediterranean countries fell for a third week to average 162,000 barrels a day in the four weeks to February 24.

Türkiye was the only destination for Russian seaborne crude into the Mediterranean, but flows there are just a fraction of the highs they reached in September and October. Despite not being a part of European sanctions on Russian crude exports, Türkiye has not remained a significant lifeline for Moscow since the EU import ban came into effect on December 5.

Flows to Bulgaria, now Russia’s only Black Sea market for crude, gave up the previous week’s increase, falling to 104,000 barrels a day. Despite Bulgaria securing a partial exemption from the EU’s import ban, which allows it to continue importing Russian crude by sea, Lukoil PJSC could begin using non-Russian crude in its refinery at Burgas as soon as March.

Flows by export location

AGGREGATE flows of Russian crude edged higher to 3.63 million barrels a day in the week to February 24. A slump in flows from the Black Sea and Arctic terminals was more than offset by a surge in shipments from the Pacific. Figures exclude volumes from Ust-Luga and Novorossiysk identified as Kazakhstan’s KEBCO grade.

Export revenue

INFLOWS to the Kremlin’s war chest from its crude-export duty were virtually changed at $44 million in the seven days to February 24. But four-week average income fell by $3 million to $43.4 million.

President Vladimir Putin signed into law amendments to the way Russia’s oil price is assessed for tax purposes. From April, rates of mineral extraction tax and profit-based tax on oil companies will be calculated using a decreasing discount to prevailing Brent prices, rather than assessments of Urals crude. Export duty, which will be phased out at the end of 2023, will not be affected by the change.

February’s duty rate is set at $1.75 a barrel. That’s down by 23 f rom January and the lowest perbarrel rate since June 2020, during

the depths of the pandemic. The drop is the result of a decline in Urals prices over the measurement period, which ran from mid-December to mid-January. Russia’s benchmark grade averaged $46.82 a barrel according to ministry figures, a discount of almost $35 a barrel to Brent over the same period.

The duty rate for March has been set at $1.94 a barrel, the first increase since December, and is based on a Urals price of $50.51 a barrel during the assessment period that ran from January 15 to February 14.

Origin-to-location flows

A TOTAL of 34 tankers loaded 25.4 million barrels of Russian crude in the week to Feb. 24, vessel-tracking data and port agent reports show. That’s up by 250,000 barrels, or 1 percent, from the previous week and the highest volume in five weeks. Destinations are based on where vessels signal they are heading at the time of writing, and some will almost certainly change as voyages progress. All figures exclude cargoes identified as Kazakhstan’s KEBCO grade.

The total volume on ships loading Russian crude from Baltic terminals was unchanged at 1.67 million barrels a day.

Shipments from Novorossiysk in the Black Sea fell back from the previous week’s high, with just two ships taking on Russian cargoes.  Arctic shipments also slipped from the previous week’s high.

Flows from the Pacific surged to their highest since at least the start of 2022, when Bloomberg began tracking the flows in detail.

A record 14 tankers loaded at the region’s three export terminals in the week to February 24.

The volumes heading to unknown destinations are mostly Sokol cargoes that have recently been transferred to other vessels at Yeosu, or are currently being shuttled to an area off the South Korean port from the loading terminal at De Kastri. With assistance from Sherry Su/Bloomberg

‘A TIME BOMB’: INDIA’S SINKING HOLY TOWN FACES GRIM FUTURE

By Krutika Pathi & Shonal Ganguly

The Associated Press

JOSHIMATH, India—Inside a shrine overlooking snow-capped mountains, Hindu priests heaped spoonfuls of puffed rice and ghee into a crackling fire. They closed their eyes and chanted, hoping their prayers would somehow turn back time and save their holy—and sinking—town.

For months, the roughly 20,000 residents in Joshimath, burrowed in the Himalayas and revered by Hindu and Sikh pilgrims, have watched the earth slowly swallow their community. They pleaded for help that never arrived, and in January their desperate plight made it into the international spotlight.

But by then, Joshimath was already a disaster zone. Multistoried hotels slumped to one side; cracked roads gaped open. More than 860 homes were uninhabitable, splayed by deep fissures. And instead of saviors they got bulldozers that razed swaths of the town.

The holy town was built on piles of debris left behind by landslides and earthquakes. Scientists have warned for decades that Joshimath could not withstand the level of

heavy construction that has recently been taking place.

“Cracks are widening every day and people are in fear.... It’s a time bomb,” said Atul Sati, an activist with the Save Joshimath Committee.

Joshimath’s future is at risk, experts and activists say, due in part to a push backed by the prime minister’s political party to grow religious tourism in Uttarakhand, the holy town’s home state. On top of climate change, extensive new construction to accommodate more tourists and accelerate hydropower projects in the region is exacerbating subsidence—the sinking of land.

Joshimath is said to have special spiritual powers and believed to be where Hindu guru Adi Shankaracharya found enlightenment in the 8th century before going on to establish four monasteries across India, including one in Joshimath.

Visitors pass through the town on their way to the famous Sikh shrine, Hemkund Sahib, and the Hindu temple, Badrinath.

“It must be protected,” said Brahmachari Mukundanand, a local priest who called Joshimath the “brain of North India” and explained that “our body can still function if some limbs are cut off. But if anything happens

to our brain, we can’t function.... Its survival is extremely important.”

The town’s loose topsoil and soft rocks can only support so much and that limit, according to environmentalist Vimlendu Jha, may have already been breached.

“In the short term, you might think it’s development. But in the long term, it is actually devastation,” he said.

At least 240 families have been forced to relocate without knowing if they would be able to return.

Prabha Sati, who fled Joshimath last month when her home began to crack and tilt, came back to grab her belongings before state officials demolished her home.

“Now I will have to leave everything behind. Every small piece of it will be destroyed,” she said, blinking back tears.

Authorities, ignoring expert warnings, have continued to develop costly projects in the region, including a slew of hydropower stations and a lengthy highway. The latter is aimed at further boosting religious tourism, a key plank of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party.

Uttarakhand, dotted with several holy shrines, would see a surge in tourists in the next decade thanks to improved infrastructure, Modi

said in 2021. Nearly 500,000 passed through Joshimath in 2019, state data shows.

A big draw is the Char Dham pilgrimage where pilgrims traverse challenging terrain and harsh weather to reach four, high-altitude temples. In 2022, 200 out of the 250,000 pilgrims died while making the journey. Authorities said the rise in visitors was straining existing infrastructure.

Already underway, the Char Dham infrastructure project, aims to make the journey more accessible via a long and wide all-weather highway and railway line that would crisscross through the mountains.

Some experts fear the project will exacerbate the fragile situation in the Himalayas where several towns are built atop debris.

To create such wide roads, engineers would need to smash boulders, cut trees and strip shrubbery, which would weaken slopes and make them “more susceptible to natural disasters,” said veteran environmentalist Ravi Chopra.

While construction for the project near Joshimath was paused last month, locals feared it was too late. A long crack running across one of the front walls in the famed Adi Shankaracharya monastery had deepened worryingly in recent weeks, said Vishnu Priyanand, one of the priests.

“Let places of worship remain as places of worship. Don’t make them tourist spots,” he pleaded.

It’s not just the highways.

In late January, hundreds of residents protested against the National Thermal Power Corporation’s Tapovan hydropower station located near Joshimath.

“Our town is on the verge of destruction because of this project,” said Atul Sati, the Save Joshimath Committee member.

Locals say construction blasts for a 12-kilometer (7-mile) tunnel for the station are causing homes to crumble. Work has been suspended but NTPC officials deny any link to Joshimath’s subsidence. Various government agencies were conducting surveys to determine what caused the damage, said Himanshu Khurana, the officer in charge of Chamoli district where Joshimath is located.

The crisis has reignited questions over whether India’s quest for more hydropower in the mountains to cut its reliance on coal can be achieved sustainably. Uttarakhand has around 100 hydropower projects in varying stages.

The heavy construction required for hydropower could do irreparable damage in a region already vulnerable to climate change,

experts warn.

It could also displace entire villages, as residents of a one near Joshimath found out. Haat, along the Alaknanda River, was once a sacred hamlet where the guru Adi Shankaracharya is said to have established another temple in the 8th Century.

Today, it is a dumping site for waste and a storage pit for construction materials after the village was acquired in 2009 by an energy enterprise to build a hydropower project.

The Laxmi Narayan temple is the only part of the village still standing. All of its residents were relocated, said Rajendra Hatwal, once the village chief who now lives in another town.

Hatwal and a few others still check in on the temple. A caretaker, who refused to leave, lives in a makeshift room next to it. He sweeps the grounds, cleans the idols and prepares tea for the odd guest who comes through. They feared its days were numbered.

“ We are fighting to protect the temple. We want to preserve our ancient culture to pass on to a new generation,” said Hatwal. “They have not only destroyed a village—they have finished a 1,200 year old culture.” AP photojournalist Rajesh Kumar Singh contributed to this report

AYEAR on from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Moscow’s seaborne crude exports held close to the highest levels seen since its troops crossed the border, with record volumes leaving its Pacific ports.

In heart of Haiti’s gang war, a hospital stands its ground

By Megan Janetsky & Fernanda Pesce The Associated Press

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti—

And no one bats an eye.

Gunfire is part of daily life here in Cité Soleil—the most densely populated part of the Haitian capital and the heart of Port-auPrince’s gang wars.

As gangs tighten their grip on Haiti, many medical facilities in the Caribbean nation’s most violent areas have closed, leaving Fontaine as one of the last hospitals and social institutions in one of the world’s most lawless places.

“We’ve been left all alone,” said Loubents Jean Baptiste, the hospital’s medical director.

Fontaine can mean the difference between life and death for hundreds of thousands of people just trying to survive, and it offers a small oasis of calm in a city that has descended into chaos.

The danger in the streets complicates everything: When gangsters with bullet wounds show up at the gates, doctors ask them to check their automatic weapons at the door. Doctors cannot return safely to homes in areas controlled by rival gangs and must live in hospital dormitories. Patients who are too scared to seek basic care due to the violence arrive in increasingly dire condition.

Access to health care has never been easy in Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. But late last year it suffered a onetwo punch.

One of Haiti’s most powerful gang federations, G9, blockaded Port-au-Prince’s most important fuel terminal, essentially paralyzing the country for two months.

At the same time, a cholera outbreak made worse by gangimposed mobility restrictions brought the Haitian health care system to its knees.

The UN high commissioner for human rights, Volker Türk, said this month that violence between G9 and a rival gang has turned Cité Soleil into “a living nightmare.”

Reminders of the desperation are never far away. An armored truck driven by hospital leaders passes by hundreds of mud pies baking in the harsh sun to fill the stomachs of people who can’t

Casinos and consulting? Pandemic spurs American tribes to diversify

By Susan Haigh The Associated Press

MASHANTUCKET, Conn.—When the Covid-19 pandemic shuttered Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut for three months in 2020, its owners, the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, had to reckon with decades of relying heavily on gambling as the tribe’s main source of revenue.

“The fact that the casino revenues went from millions to zero overnight just fully reiterated the need for diverse revenue streams,” said Tribal Chairman Rodney Butler.

The 1,000-member tribe has since expanded its efforts to get into the federal government contracting business, making it one of several tribal nations to look beyond the casino business more seriously after the coronavirus crisis. Tribal leaders and tribal business experts say the global pandemic has been the latest and clearest sign that tribal governments with casinos can’t depend solely on slot machines and poker rooms to support future generations.

afford food. Black spray-painted “G9” tags dot nearby buildings, a warning of who’s in charge.

In a February report, the UN documented 263 murders between July and December in just the small area surrounding the hospital, noting that violence has “severely hampered” access to health services.

That was the case for 34-yearold Millen Siltant, a street vendor who sits in a hospital hallway waiting for a checkup, her hands nervously clutching medical paperwork over her pregnant belly.

Nearby, hospital staff play with nearly 20 babies and toddlers—orphans whose parents were killed in the gang wars.

Normally, Siltant would travel an hour across the city by colorful buses known as tap-taps for her prenatal checkups at Fontaine. There she would join other pregnant women waiting for exams and mothers cradling malnourished children in line for weigh-ins.

All the clinics in the area where she lives have closed, she said. For two months last year she couldn’t leave the house because gangs holding the city hostage made travel through the dusty, winding streets nearly impossible.

“Some days, there’s no transportation because there’s no fuel,” she said. “Sometimes there’s a shooting on the street and you spend hours unable to go outside... Now I’m worried because the doctor says I need to get a C-section.”

Health care providers told the Associated Press that the crisis has caused more bullet and burn wounds. It has also fueled an uptick in less predictable conditions such as hypertension, diabetes and sexually transmitted infections, largely because of slashed access to primary care.

Pregnant women are disproportionately affected. Gynecologist

Phalande Joseph sees the repercussions every day when she leaves her hospital dormitory and pulls on her light blue scrubs.

The young Haitian doctor snaps on a pair of white surgical gloves and makes an incision into a pregnant patient’s belly with a

steady hand that only comes with practice.

She works swiftly, conversing with medical staff in her native Creole, when a burst of wailing erupts from a baby girl nurses swaddle in pink blankets.

Operations like these have grown more common, Joseph explains in between C-sections, because the very conditions that have intensified amid the turmoil can turn a pregnancy from high risk to deadly.

This year, 10,000 pregnant women in Haiti could face fatal obstetric complications due to the crisis, according to UN data.

Those risks are only compounded by the fact that many of Joseph’s patients are sexual violence survivors or widows whose husbands were killed by gangs. Permeating the struggle is an air of fear.

“If they start having contractions at 3 a.m., they are terribly scared of coming here because it is too early, and they are scared something might happen to them because of the gangs,” Joseph said. “Many times when they arrive, the baby is already suffering, and it is too late so we need to do C-section.”

That became most evident to Joseph last October when four men came rushing to a hospital carrying a woman giving birth stretched out on top of a door. Because of gang lockdowns, the woman couldn’t find any transportation to the hospital after her water broke.

“These four men were not even her family. They found her delivering on the street...When I heard she lost the baby, it shook me,” she said. “The situation in my country is so bad, and there is not much we can do about it.”

Started as a one-room clinic to provide basic medical services to a community with no other resources, Fontaine Hospital Center was opened in 1991 by Jose Ulysse.

Ulysse and his family have worked to expand the hospital year after year. They fight to keep their doors open, Ulysse said.

Even when firefights arrive at the doors of Fontaine, the hospital reopens few hours later. If it were to close for longer, administrators worry that it could lose momentum and would be hard to reopen.

Today, it’s the only facility to perform C-sections and other high-level surgeries in Cité Soleil.

Because most of the people in the area live in extreme poverty, the hospital charges little to nothing to patients even as it struggles to purchase advanced medical equipment with funds from UNICEF and other international aid providers. Between 2021 and 2022, the facility saw a 70 percent jump in the number of patients.

The hospital possesses a certain level of protection because it accepts all patients.

“We don’t pick sides. If the two groups face off, and they arrive at the hospital like any other person, we treat them,” Jean Baptiste said.

Even the gangs understand the importance of medical care, he added. Yet the walls still feel like they’re closing in.

Rising carjackings of medical vehicles have made it impossible for Fontaine to invest in an ambulance. When ambulance operators are called from areas like Cité Soleil, they offer a simple response: “Sorry, we can’t go there.”

Fontaine’s mobile clinic can now travel little more than a few blocks outside the facility’s walls.

Doctors worry, but they keep working, just as they’ve always done.

“You say, well, I have to work. So let God protect me,” Jean Baptiste said. “As this situation gets worse, we go out and decide to face the risks…We have to keep pushing forward.”

In Egypt, government and poor struggle with troubled economy

By Samy Magdy

The Associated Press

CAIRO—A group of women stands in front of a vegetable vendor at a street market in one of Cairo’s oldest neighborhoods, yelling in frustration.

“Every day there are new prices,” one said.

“When will this war end?” another shouted, cradling a baby in her arms.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, now in its second year, has pushed up food and energy prices worldwide, adding another layer to Egypt’s economic crisis. Soaring inflation, a severely weakened currency and other problems have followed decades of government mismanagement and broader disruptions, starting with the turmoil from the 2011 Arab Spring popular uprising, then years of militant attacks, followed by the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

The crisis has pushed many Egyptians out of the middle class, while the country’s poor—about one-third of the population— are cutting back on life’s essentials. Many are asking how long they can survive like this.

Hany Hassan has found himself struggling to feed his four school-age children. His pay from his job as a bartender at a coffeehouse is buying less and less.

“This past year was the hardest in my life,” said Hassan, 43, who earns roughly $110 a month working 12-hour shifts seven days a week. “I am scared that one day I won’t be able to feed the kids.”

Annual inflation reached 26.5 percent in January, the highest in five years, with food prices in urban areas soaring 48 percent, according to official figures.

Many essentials including rice, cooking oil, bread and most recently, eggs, have all doubled in cost in Cairo’s supermarkets. The

prices of 1 kilogram (about two pounds) of chicken or other meat have almost doubled from a year ago, hitting 300 Egyptian pounds (roughly $10) for meat and nearly 90 Egyptian pounds (roughly $3), for chicken.

The surge has made those proteins a prohibitive luxury for all but the wealthiest.

The war in Ukraine, which rattled the global economy, hit Egypt where it is financially vulnerable. The most populous Arab country and world’s biggest importer of wheat needs to buy a majority of its food from other countries to help feed its population of more than 104 million.

“It is, therefore, important to view Egypt’s inflation problem within the context of its broader external position issues,” said Callee Davis, an economist at Oxford Economics Africa.

Egypt’s import bill first ballooned because of higher global prices for commodities like fuel and wheat that are

In Michigan, the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians, or Gun Lake Tribe, recently announced a 25-year plan to develop hundreds of acres near its casino into a corridor with housing, retail, manufacturing and a new 15-story hotel. A non-gambling entity owned by the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, also in Michigan, is now selling “NativeWahl” burger franchises to other tribes after forming a 2021 partnership with Wahlburgers, the national burger chain created by the celebrity brothers Paul, Mark and Donnie Wahlberg.

Some tribes, with and without casinos, have gotten involved in a wide range of non-gambling businesses, such as trucking, construction, consulting, health care, real estate, cannabis and marketing over the past decade or longer while others have been branching out more recently.

“While enterprise diversification can come with costs, its necessity became clear during the early phases of the pandemic, when tribally owned casinos were shut down to mitigate Covid-19 transmission and gaming-dependent tribes were left with little incoming revenue,” according to a new report from the Center for Indian Country Development at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.

The report found that many tribes are increasingly doing business with the federal government, especially the US Department of Defense.

The Mashantucket Pequots’ non-gambling entity, Command Holdings, last year made its largest acquisition to date: WWC Global, a Florida-based management consulting firm that predominantly works with federal agencies, including the defense and state departments. WWC announced in December that it had been awarded a $37.5 million contract supporting the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

WWC Global CEO Jon Panamaroff applauded the Mashantucket Pequots’ casino and hospitality business but noted that it can be subject to the “ups and downs of the market,” making it important to branch out economically. A member of the Sun’aq Tribe of Kodiak, Alaska, he credited the Mashantucket Pequots’ tribal leaders with doubling down on diversification efforts during the pandemic instead of “shying away and trying to hunker down.”

Butler said the tribe hopes non-gambling revenues, including from a planned family resort with a 91,000-square-foot (8,450-square-meter) water park that’s expected to open in 2025, will eventually comprise 50 percent to 80 percent of the Mashantucket Pequots’ portfolio, providing “stability and certainty” when another challenging event undoubtedly will happen.

“You think about the financial crisis in ‘08 and now Covid. And so, something’s going to happen again,” Butler said. “We’ve learned from past mistakes, and we want to be ready for it in the future.”

Even before the pandemic hit, some tribal casinos were already facing competitive pressures from the advent of other gambling options, including legalized online wagering on sports and casino games in some states. At the same time, traditional patrons of brick-and-mortar casinos are getting older.

“Tribal economies are at an inflection point because gaming markets are maturing across the US,” said Dawson Her Many Horses, head of Native American banking for Wells Fargo and an enrolled member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe of South Dakota. “As casino revenues flatten, tribes will be looking for new business opportunities in other industries.”

Terri Fitzpatrick, a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians in Michigan and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s chief real estate and global attraction officer, has noted “tremendous growth” in non-gambling-related tribal businesses over the last decade in Michigan. Most tribes within the state now engage in some form of economic development other than casinos.

The pandemic, Fitzpatrick said, really highlighted the importance of such a strategy, given the financial impact of Covid-19 on tribal schools, health care centers, assistance for older adults, day care programs and other services.

“It wasn’t about a loss of revenue,” she said. “It was a loss of, ‘What we can do for our community and in our community.’”

The Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi in Michigan saw its successful casino shut down in the early months of the pandemic. But the financial blow was blunted in part by the tribe’s non-gambling businesses, including a firm that’s involved in drone development for the federal government and was deemed “essential.”

purchased in dollars, and this led to foreign currency shortages, Davis said. That forced the Central Bank of Egypt to pass policies to preserve the country’s foreign reserves, including restrictions on imports, which drove inflation even higher, Davis said.

The war also has slowed Egypt’s economic growth. In February, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development revised its forecasts for Egypt’s growth this year to 4.3 percent, down from its previous projection of 5 percent.

For many, hardships started in 2016 when President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi’s government embarked on a reform program intended to reverse longstanding distortions in Egypt’s economy in return for loans from the International Monetary Fund. The program introduced new taxes and included substantial cuts in state subsidies on basic goods—a policy that dated back decades.

The tribe’s economic development entity, Waséyabek Development Company LLC, now has mapped out a plan to generate at least one-third of the revenue needed to support the tribe from activities other than gambling by 2040, its president and CEO, Deidra Mitchell, said.

That doesn’t mean tribes are giving up on gambling. Some are even expanding it. The gambling and hospitality entity owned by the Mohegan Tribe in eastern Connecticut announced this month it is partnering with a New York developer to try and secure a New York City gambling license and build a proposed entertainment district in Manhattan’s East Side. Meanwhile, the Chickasaw Nation in Oklahoma is part of another consortium that wants to build a casino and entertainment complex on New York’s Coney Island.

The National Indian Gaming Association reported in August that $39 billion in gross gambling revenue was generated in fiscal year 2021, the most in tribal gambling history. That figure, which accounts for 243 tribes across 29 states, increased 40 percent over the previous year.

Patrick Davison, vice president of Native American gaming and finance at PNC Bank, said he’s been working with tribal officials who still want to build casinos but also want to avoid overbuilding. He said the pandemic was “a real eye-opener for tribes” as officials consider their tribes’ futures in the gambling business.

“There’s a lot more thought being put into it,” he said.

When machine gun fire erupts outside the barbed-wire fences surrounding Fontaine Hospital Center, the noise washes over a cafeteria full of tired, scrub-clad medical staff.

A HEALTH worker weighs a child at the Fontaine Hospital Center where the baby got multiple vaccinations during the visit in the Cité Soleil area of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on January 23, 2023. As gangs tighten their grip on Haiti, many medical facilities in the Caribbean nation’s most violent areas have closed, leaving Fontaine as one of the last hospitals and social institutions in one of the world’s most lawless places. AP/ODELYN JOSEPH

UP research: Gene links breast cancer  to stress, changes in light-dark cycles

SCIENCE Secretary Renato U. Solidum Jr. (center, foreground) lead the tour of the facility at the National Institutes of Health at UP Manila that will be used for the researches on addiction and depression. With him are Undersecretary for R&D Leah J. Buendia and UP Manila Chancellor Dr. Carmencita Padilla (both are partly hidden at right foreground). DOST PHOTO

DOST funds UP NIH studies on addiction, depression treatment

TREATMENTS for and management of addiction and depression may soon be available to Filipinos’ situation as a result of studies to be held at the National Institutes of Health, University of the Philippines (UP Manila-NIH) Manila.

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) provided funds for two behavioral studies for the treatment of addiction and depression to be made at the newly renovated animal laboratory at the UP Manila-NIH.

The facility was presented to DOST after a ribbon-cutting ceremony on January 27.

Science Secretary Renato U. Solidum Jr., Undersecretary for R&D Leah J. Buendia and UP Manila Chancellor Dr. Carmencita Padilla led the brief ceremony and quick tour inside the facility. It will house the project, “Cessation of Toluene [Rugby] Addiction in Adolescents: Using a Rodent Model,” to test novel pharmacological and behavioral treatments for overcoming toluene craving.

“Research and development [R&D] provides an avenue for our country to develop better policies and programs to address pressing issues like drug addiction,” said Science Secretary Renato U. Solidum Jr.

“With the data that will be gathered from these projects, we can

develop treatment and support the health and well-being of Filipinos, “ Solidum added.

The project aims to assess the effects of toluene on rats’ withdrawal and craving, anxiety and social interaction.

It could also gauge the effectiveness of three treatments—two pharmacological and one behavioral—in reducing the behavioral and neurological effects of toluene withdrawal.

The newly reconstructed facility will also host the project titled, “Assessment Pharmacokinetic and Pharmacodynamic Interactions of Selected Psychobiotic and Antidepressant Drugs in Depression-like Rat Model.”

It will provide documented data in preventing adverse drug events and achieving therapeutic success when psychobiotics are coadministered with antidepressant drugs, sertraline, and fluoxetine in depression-like rat models.

The project also includes measurement of behavioral responses, biochemical levels and drug concentrations.

These two projects are under the program entitled, “Novel Approaches to Treatment of Addiction and Depression using Animal Models,” which is monitored by DOST-Philippine Council for Health Research and Development. S&T Media Services

Molecular biologist Dr. Pia Bagamasbad and her student, Weand Ybañez, at the UPD-National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (NIMBB) discovered a gene called Krüppel-like factor 9 (KLF9) that suppresses tumor growth and links the effects of stress, regulation of the light-dark cycle, and breast cancer, UPD-CS said.

In their study, the researchers found that KLF9 is suppressed in breast tumors compared to normal breast tissue, and that KLF9 is affected by  stress hormones and changes in a person’s exposure to light and dark.

Normal body function involves

a regular 24-hour pattern of biological activity, called the “circadian cycle,” which is mainly controlled by the 12-hour lightdark cycle that, in turn, regulates several bodily functions, such as sleeping and waking, digestion and the action of various hormones at different times of the day, the researchers explained.

In normal breast tissue, the researchers found that KLF9 exhibits a cyclical pattern as part of a healthy circadian cycle.

However, this regular pattern is lost in highly-aggressive breast cancer.

Since KLF9 suppresses the growth and spread of breast can -

cer cells, these research findings show a direct link between stress hormones and changes in the circadian cycle—such as lack of sleep—on breast cancer risk and development.

The NIMBB research team underscored the  value of maintaining a regular circadian cycle in their study, warning of the negative effects of disruptions in the regularity of the circadian cycle, the news release said.

“Circadian disruption is an emerging driver of breast cancer, with epidemiological studies linking shift work and chronic jet lag

to increased breast cancer risk,” Bagamasbad and Ybañez noted in their research paper, which was published last February 23 in the journal, Cancer Cell International.

“These findings have potential far-reaching implications not just on our understanding of how cancer develops and spreads and how it can be effectively managed, but more importantly emphasize the need for policies and interventions that can safeguard the overall health and wellness of women working in industries  involving disruption in the regular circadian cycle,” Bagamasbad said.

TRADITIONAL FILIPINO MEDICINE AND THE QUEST TO CURE THE INCURABLE UP researchers discover cancer, Alzheimer’s cure

Senate

mourns

death of Natl Scientist Dr. Angel Alcala

THE Senate on March 1 adopted a resolution expressing its profound sympathy and condolences on the death of National Scientist and former Department of Environment and Natural Resources secretary Angel Alcala.

The first chairman of the Commission on Higher Education, Alcala, a pioneer of marine biodiversity and marine conservation in the Philippines, died at the Silliman University Medical Center in Dumaguete City last February 1. He was 93.

With all senators as co-authors, Senate Resolution 46, authored by Sen. Imee Marcos, was adopted, recognizing Alcala’s research on ecology and diversity of Philippine amphibians and reptiles, marine biodiversity and marine protected areas (MPAs).

He was named a National Scientist through Proclamation 782 signed by former President Benigno Aquino III for his work.

“Dr. Alcala shall be greatly missed by the nation he served so faithfully and so well as he is already by the people closest and dearest to him. The world lost an important scholar, a brilliant scientist and educator, a public servant and a staunch environmental advocate and leader,” the resolution said.

“But the Philippines, through him, has gained environmental wisdom and activism, through the life of our very own national scientist, Dr. Angel Alcala,”the resolution added.

Marcos said Alcala passionately pursued his advocacy of protecting the Philippine marine ecosystem, starting the first MPA on Sumilon Island in Southern Cebu in 1974, and Apo Island in Southern Negros in 1982.

“These MPAs continued to this day to protect our marine ecosystems and diversity, and to promote sustainable fishing in all these areas,” she said.

“His extensive research on Philippine amphibians and reptiles since the mid 1950s led to the discovery of 50 additional species out of the 400 known species in the country,” Marcos added.

T his gave international conservationists a reliable basis for establishing conservation programs on Philippine vertebrate biodiversity. Other subjects of his research were

taxonomy and ecology of Philippine amphibians and reptiles supported by grants from the US National Science Foundation in Stanford University and the California Academy of Sciences, of which he is an Honorary Fellow, the resolution stated.

“In 2017, D r. Alcala was named an Asean Biodiversity Hero, making him the first Filipino to be awarded such accolade, in recognition of his pioneering advocacy in the establishment of MPAs in the Philippines as well as his contributions to biodiversity conservation and in helping communities make their natural resources sustainable,” the Senate resolution added. For his passionate work toward protecting the Philippine marine ecosystem, Alcala received many other recognitions, including the Guggenheim Fellowship for Natural Sciences in the category for Organismal Biology and Ecology in 1963, the Ramon Magsaysay Award for pioneering scientific leadership in 1992, the Field Museum Founders’ Council Award of Merit for his contributions to environmental biology in 1994, and membership to the Fulbright Philippines Hall of Fame in 2018.

TRADITIONAL Filipino medicine has endured centuries of colonization. Now, modern science is able to shed a different light on the ancient and oftentimes misunderstood practices, showing that there are always new things to learn from the old ways.

The Philippines has over 1,500 known medicinal plants, with at least 120 that have been validated for safety and efficacy using modern scientific standards.

However, despite the potential value of this pharmaceutical cornucopia, the country still has a long way to go before traditional medicines are openly accepted in a modern setting.

“There are plants that are being used historically but whose potential have been overlooked until now because of our biases, the way we favor or privilege particular forms of healing over others,” explains Felipe Jocano Jr., an assistant professor at the University of the Philippines-Diliman Department of Anthropology.

Spotlight on indigenous knowledge

WE should be looking at our own indigenous knowledge, giving it the value it deserves, seeking ways to build on it to make it fit into what our present [healthcare] systems [need], while giving due respect to the practitioners and perhaps giving them also the respect and the recognition that they deserve,” Jocano expounds.

In 2013 alone, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that around 60 percent of the world’s population relies on traditional medicine, with 80 percent of the population in the Philippines and other developing countries depending almost entirely on traditional medical practices—on plants, in particular—for primary health care.

“Teaching people how to appreciate indigenous medicine is more than just teaching them, ‘Okay, ito maganda ang indigenous medicine, ‘wag niyo pagtawanan.’ Mababaw lang ito. [This

is okay, indigenous medicine is good, don’t laugh at it. It’s just shallow/easy.] You have to address people’s worldviews about other people as well. Not only that, but finding ways to make use of this knowledge to help our people,” Jocano explains.

Filipino scientists may be on the right track toward utilizing traditional medicinal plants used to treat diseases. At the University of the Philippines DilimanCollege of Science (UPD-CS), researchers have discovered the potential of some medicinal plants as possible cures for cancer and neurodegenerative diseases.

Putak as a potential cancer cure CANCER is the leading cause of illness and death worldwide. Recent statistics show 19.3 million new cases and 10 million cancerrelated deaths in 2020 alone, accounting for nearly one in every six deaths worldwide.

In the Philippines, 189 of every 100,000 Filipinos are affected by cancer, and four Filipinos die of cancer every hour, equivalent to 96 cancer patients every day.

UPD-CS Institute of Biology Science Research Specialist Regina Joyce Ferrer and her team discovered the potential of the Codiaeum luzonicum Merr. plant—known as putak in Filipino—in killing drug-resistant cancer cells without affecting healthy cells.

Putak is commonly used by indigenous Filipino communities to treat stomach aches and binat [relapse].

Ferrer was inspired by the country’s native biodiversity to research putak and its effect on cancer cells.

“The Philippines is very biodiverse, we have many endemic and native species. For example, putak is endemic in the Philippines. No one else in the world, except us Filipinos, will be likely to fully explore the bioactivity and the potentials of this plant,” she said partly in Filipino.

Ferrer noted the plant’s capability under laboratory conditions

to kill cancer cells, even normally drug-resistant ones, while leaving healthy cells alone.

“The usual approach is there is a drug that inhibits drug resistance, then a simultaneous chemotherapeutic drug that can kill the cancer cells. But this plant [putak] can do both at the same time,” Ferrer explained partly in Filipino, adding that cancer cells’ ability to develop drug resistance is one of the major hurdles to treating all kinds of cancers.

Philippine plants and neurodegenerative disease

NEURODEGENERATIVE diseases, such as Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), are becoming top public health concerns around the globe.

In 2021 alone, the WHO listed 55 million cases of dementia worldwide, with AD comprising up to 70 percent of those cases.

Scientists say that countries, such as the Philippines, need to implement premediated disease management to avoid the consequences of emerging dementia cases.

A group of scientists from the UPD-CS Institute of Chemistry led by Dr. Evangeline Amor identified 10 plants from Northern Samar that could potentially be used as a treatment for AD and other neurodegenerative diseases.

They are the leaves from the sinta (Andrographis paniculata (Burm. f.) Nees), atis (Annona squamosa Linn.), langka (Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam.), dollarweed (Hydrocotyle umbellata Linn.), and sampa-sampalukan (Phyllanthus niruri Linn.); stems from luya-luyahan (Curcuma zedoaria Rosc.) and dapdap (Erythrina variegata var orientalis Linn.); and bark from dapdap, balibago (Hibiscus tiliaceus Linn.), and santol (Sandoricum koetjape Merr).

Indigenous communities often use these plants to treat ailments—such as fever; skin diseases, such as boils and wounds; abscesses, dysentery, abdominal pain, cough, kidney stones, hepatic disorders and ringworms.

Of the 10 plants studied, luya-

luyahan and dapdap showed the most medicinal potential, as extracts from their bark and stems were particularly effective at inhibiting an enzyme that breaks down acetylcholine (ACh), a brain chemical that plays a major role in memory, learning, attention, and involuntary muscle movement.

“The next step in the study is to establish the safety of the extracts and confirm their activity in a secondary or orthogonal assay,” Amor says. “After which, the non-toxic active extracts can then proceed to a drug-track wherein the active constituents are isolated and identified or an herbal-track, wherein an herbal preparation or drug may be formulated.”

Combining traditional and modern medicine MOREOVER , Jocano calls for more public awareness, appreciation and protection of endemic and native plants.

“We should also be on guard about practices, such as what has been called ‘biomining,’ in which corporations practically exploit or systematically harvest a particular territory of their plants, paying only a pittance to the indigenous peoples there, but depriving them of their resources.”

Exploring Philippine plants used in traditional medicine can help advance modern medicine. Treatments for various types of diseases may be just within people’s reach. But as always, we should take responsible advantage of the Philippines’ rich biodiversity.

“It has to be clear, it has to be ethical, and it has to be protective and promote and advance the indigenous peoples themselves. We have to work alongside the indigenous peoples and traditional healers to address what they feel they need,” reminded Jocano. Traditional and modern medicine are not separate entities; combining both practices might even be the answer to treating some of the world’s most notoriously incurable diseases.

NIMBB researchers have just discovered a gene called Krüppel-like factor 9 that links the effects of stress, regulation of the light-dark cycle, and breast cancer. WEAND YBAÑEZ

NEW research from the University of the Philippines Diliman-College of Science has found a conclusive link between stress, altered light-dark cycles—such as in the cases of night shift workers and frequent international travelers— and breast cancer, said a UPD-CS news release.

DR . Angel Alcala when he was awarded among the 10 Asean Biodiversity Heroes in 2017. CROPPED FROM ACB’S GROUP PHOTO

Palawan bishop supports antimining protest

BROOKE’S POINT, Palawan—The voices of antimining protesters in Brooke’s Point, a town on the nearly southern tip of Palawan province, should be heard and not sidelined, a Catholic bishop said.

Bishop Socrates Mesiona of Puerto Princesa said the church is in solidarity with the ongoing protest to protect what’s left of the environment.

“We are appealing to listen to the voice and respect the concerns of our fellowmen,” Mesiona said.

The call was made through a pastoral statement that was read at a barricade against a large-scale nickel mining operation in Ipilan village on February 28.

The statement started with a quote from Psalm 34, which

reads: “The Lord hears the cry of the poor.”

A barricade has been set up outside the headquarters of Ipilan Nickel Corp. as residents, mostly farmers and Indigenous peoples (IPs), assert that INC is operating without a mayor’s permit.

The protest also came more than a month after a massive flooding due to heavy rains struck several of the town’s villages.

The bishop said the antimining protests are “just” action to express their principles for what they think is good for their community.

“We recognize the basis of what they are fighting for. They are the ones who know the most and are directly affected by what is happening to their environment,” Mesiona said.

New book gives pope’s responses to issues he’s often asked about

ANEW Spanish-language book whose English title, The Shepherd: Francis’ Challenges, Reasons, and Reflections on His Pontificate, written by Argentine journalist Sergio Rubín and Italian Francesca Ambrogetti contains Pope Francis’s answers to questions he is frequently asked.

The book reviews the almost 10 years of the pope’s pontificate based on conversations that Rubín, a journalist from the Grupo Clarín media group and Ambrogetti, a member of the ANSA agency, had with the pontiff.

The two co-authored The Jesuit, the first biographical book on Jorge Bergoglio, the future Pope Francis, published prior to his election to the papacy.

The new book includes answers the Holy Father has given on the situation in Argentina as well as comments that tie him to Peronism (support for the party or policies of Juan Perón, a former president of Argentina) and criticize him for alleged closeness to politicians, trade unionists and the so-called piqueteros (picketers).

These questions, Rubín said, put the pontiff “at the center of the controversies and as a target of criticism.”

In the book, Pope Francis also addresses corruption at the Vatican, abuses committed by members of the Church, the Covid-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, accusations of promoting “poorism,” his position on capitalism, and a possible visit to his homeland.

Is Pope Francis a Peronist?

IN a special chapter on Argentina, Pope Francis confronts the label of “Peronist,” with which he is sometimes identified.

“I was never affiliated with the Peronist party, I was not even a party member or supporter of Peronism. Affirming that is a lie,” he says.

However, he acknowledges that the presence in the 1970s of a Peronist group at the Jesuit-run Salvador University, which backed the future pope’s position on social justice, “led to saying that I am a Peronist.”

Then, the pontiff notes that sympathizing with Peronism is not something that can be criticized in itself. “What’s wrong with that?” he asks.

Some who link Francis with Peronism point to his having met several officials and figures of that political persuasion.

“I received and I receive everyone. But sometimes there are some who seek to obtain political gain, not always with good intentions,” he explains.

Capitalism, poverty, and the role of the state

ANOTHER accusation against the Holy Father that is repeated in Argentina is that he promotes “poorism”—that is, policies that are based on giving subsidies or grants to those most in need instead of seeking to eradicate poverty.

In this regard, Pope Francis comments: “Nowhere in the Bible is there a commandment to produce poverty. Yes, the poor in spirit are blessed, those who are not attached to wealth,” he clarifies.

“But it is by no means wrong to produce wealth for the good of all. I would say more: to produce it is an act of justice,” he maintains.

Francis does not condemn capitalism, nor is he against the market, but he is “in favor of what John Paul II described as the social economy of the market,” which involves three segments: “state, capital and labor.”

He also delves into the granting of “social plans,” a policy that has been in place for decades in Argentina for the most needy families.

On this point, the Holy Father says that “financial aid from the State to the unemployed must be temporary so as not to affect the culture of work,” and he values employment as a source of dignity, because “living off charity is one thing and another is to earn your living with one’s own effort.”

At the same time, he warns about “the violations of the worker’s dignity and his rights” by certain employers, and also by those unions that get off track because their leaders “are forgetting those they represent.”

Will Francis travel to Argentina?

ASKED about his long-delayed visit to his native country, Pope Francis assures that “the intention of traveling to Argentina is still there; it’s unfair to say don’t want to go.”

In this context, the Holy Father recalls that he was “close to doing it in November 2017” with the intention of also visiting Uruguay and Chile. However, the trip did not take place because there were elections in Chile. Catholic

“It is only appropriate to respect their rights and listen to their grievances,” he added.

Residents resorted to organizing a barricade since the mining firm continued to operate

despite an order by town Mayor Cesareo Benedito Jr. to stop its operations.

Vice Mayor Jean Feliciano of Brooke’s Point said, “the people themselves are organizing the action to fight for their welfare.”

“We are thankful to the residents of Brooke’s Point who are willing to make sacrifices to protect our natural resources, livelihoods and our future,” she said.

Environment group Alyansa Tigil Mina said that INC has also been operating without a certificate of precondition from the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, and other necessary requirements.

As the barricade continued, Mesiona also appealed for calm and for a “truthful” discussion on the issue for the sake of the

common good “and not for the benefits of a few.”

Caritas Philippines, the Church’s social justice arm, also expressed their support to the call to stop mining in Palawan.

“We believe it is important to listen to the voice of the community regarding its negative impact on the environment and the lifestyle of the local people,” said its president, Bishop Colin Bagaforo of Kidapawan.

“We also call on the provincial government to declare Palawan as a no-mining zone to protect the natural resources of the so-called ‘last frontier’ of the Philippines. This is especially important now that we are facing the climate emergency that is intensifying the calamities in our country,” Bagaforo said. CBCP News

Asteroid named after pope in Gregorian calendar reform

ROME—Pope Gregory XIII, the 16th century pontiff responsible for what is today known as the Gregorian calendar, now has another celestial claim to fame.

A working group of the International Astronomical Union has named an asteroid after him, the Vatican Observatory said recently.

The “560974 Ugoboncompagni”—Gregory’s birth name was Ugo Boncompagni—was announced along with 72 other named asteroids in the February 27 update of the union’s Working Group for Small Bodies Nomenclature.

Also included in the new group are three Jesuits affiliated with the Vatican Observatory, bringing to more than 30 the number of Jesuit-named asteroids, the Observatory said in a statement.

Gregory, who lived from 1502-

1585, along with an Italian astronomer and a Jesuit mathematician corrected the Julian calendar and introduced a new method of calculating leap years that resulted in what is now known as

the Gregorian calendar.

The Vatican Observatory traces its 1582 origins to Gregory’s pontificate and the Gregorian calendar reform.

Located at the papal summer

residence in Castel Gandolfo in the hills south of Rome, the Observatory today houses a dozen priests and brothers who study the universe. It is headed by Jesuit Brother Guy Consolmagno.

According to a statement from the Observatory, the process to name an asteroid—a relatively small space body in orbit round the sun— involves a provisional designation based on its date of discovery, followed by a permanent number.

“At this point its discoverer is invited to suggest a name for it,” the Observatory said, adding that pet names and commercial names are prohibited.

Some 100 years must pass before naming an asteroid after an individual or certain events.

The nomenclature working group, made up of 15 astronomers, then judges the proposed names. AP

WHY THE PRONOUNS USED FOR GOD MATTER

THE Church of England is considering what language and pronouns should be used to refer to God.

The church’s General Synod has, however, clarified that it will not abolish or substantially revise any of the currently authorized liturgies.

Nonetheless, this news made headlines and brought up questions of how religions refer to God. Is God male? What pronouns should be used to refer to God?

As a Catholic feminist theologian who runs a women’s center at a Catholic university, understand the impact of the pronouns Christians use for God.

Historically, Christian tradition has recognized many pronouns for God, including “he/him,” “she/her” and “they/them.”

This is partly because God does not have a gender. Despite the diverse images used for God in Scripture and Christian tradition, male language and images predominate in contemporary Christian worship.

Many images for God

WHEN we speak about God, we do so knowing that what we say is incomplete. All images for God reveal something about God. No image of God is literal or reveals everything about God.

For example, while Christians can refer to God as a king, they must also remember that God is not literally a king. Calling God a king expresses that God is powerful.

However, it is not expressing factual accuracy about God’s gender or implying that God is human.

Referring to God with many titles, descriptions and images invites many of us to recognize the mystery of God. God is like all of these things but also more than all of these things.

Thomas Aquinas, an influential 13thcentury Catholic theologian, asserted that individuals can talk about God in ways that are true but always inadequate.

Aquinas explained that our language about God affirms something about God, yet God is always beyond that which we can express. We express truths about God in human terms and constructs, but since God is mystery, God is always beyond these categories.

Scripture is filled with multiple images of God. In some of these images, God is depicted as a father or male. Jesus teaching his disciples to pray the “Our Father” prayer is perhaps the most well-known example of a male title for God.

In other parts of Scripture, God is female. The prophet Isaiah compares God to a nursing mother in the Book of Isaiah. A mother hen gathering her chicks is an analogy for God in the Gospel of Matthew.

The Book of Wisdom, a book in the Catholic Bible, depicts wisdom personified as a woman. Wisdom 10:18-19 states: “She took them across the Red Sea and brought them through deep waters. Their enemies she overwhelmed.”

This account presents God as female, leading Moses and the Israelites out of Egypt

and into the Promised Land.

Depicting God as female in Scripture speaks to God’s tenderness as well as strength and power.

For example, the prophet Hosea compares God with a bear robbed of her cubs, promising to “attack and rip open” those who break the covenant.

Elsewhere in Scripture, God has no gender. God appears to Moses in the burning bush in Exodus 3, defying all gender categories.

The Book of 1 Kings presents a gentle image of a gender-neutral God. God asked the prophet Elijah to go to a mountain. While there, Elijah experienced a strong wind, an earthquake and fire, but God was not present in those.

Instead, God was present in a gentle whisper. The creation stories of Genesis refer to God in the plural. These examples emphasize that God has no gender and is beyond any human categories.

Social impact of male pronouns

PRONOUNS , like “He/Him” in the Christian

tradition, can limit one’s understanding of God. It can also make many individuals think that God is male.

It is not wrong to refer to God with male pronouns, but it can have negative social and theological consequences to refer to God with only male pronouns.

Feminist theologian Mary Daly famously stated, “If God is male, then the male is God.”

In other words, referring to God only as the male gender has a significant social impact that can exalt one gender at the expense of others.

Referring to God only as male can also limit one’s theological imagination: Using many pronouns for God emphasizes that God is mystery, beyond all human categories.

The Church of England is not only responding to modern questions about gender, but also continuing a long tradition within Christianity of referring to God as male, female and beyond gender constructs.

BROOKE’S Point residents on February 28 continue to hold a barricade to protest allegedly illegal mining operations in the area. CBCP NEWS

THE sun sets behind the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica, in Rome, on February 20. AP/ANDREW MEDICHINI

Annie Selak, Georgetown University/The Conversation (CC) via AP

GOD’S Creation of Adam” (1508 to 1512), a fresco by Michelangelo (1475 to 1564), Sistine Chapel, Vatican WIKIPEDIA COMMONS

Quirino province aims to lead in PHL’s net zero emission

QUIRINO province is aiming to become the country’s first leader in net zero emissions in just a few years, thanks to a newly-forged partnership with local resilience advocacy Climate Smart Philippines, under the stewardship of internationally-acclaimed science diplomat Glenn Banaguas.

The bid aims to see Quirino achieving net zero emissions by 2050.

Banaguas will share Climate Smart Philippines’s knowledge and experience with the people and local government of Quirino.

By establishing mutually-reinforcing community-to-community learning networks and partnerships, the leadership of the province has expressed optimism about avoiding the worst impacts of climate change by committing to achieving net zero emissions within the next three decades.

“We are deeply honored to have Mr. Banaguas’s expertise and guidance as we set ourselves on the path to this ambitious but worthy goal,” said Quirino Gov. Dakila Cua, who is also the president of the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (Ulap).

“Building on the ac tions in Quirino’s strengthened climate change plan, this provides a roadmap to how Quirino will meet the enhanced Paris and Glasgow Agreement

WORLD WILDLIFE DAY

Partnerships crucial for conserving wildlife

By Jonathan L. Mayuga

targets to reduce emission before 2040,” he mentioned.

“We are confident that we can steer our beloved province onto a path of leadership and greatness. We will replicate the success of our commitment with the other provinces in the country,” Cua added. A Fellow of the UK-based Royal Society for the Arts, Banaguas is one of Asia’s leading experts in environment, climate change and disaster risk.

He is the chairman of the Asean Science Diplomats and the US-Asean Fellows for Science and Technology, and the Climate Diplomat of the EU-Asia Expert Panel for Climate Diplomacy and Environmental Security.

He was also Lee Kuan Yew Senior Fellow in Public Service and an Executive Fellow of the Geneva Centre for Security Policy in Switzerland. He is also a United Nations Sasakawa and The Outstanding Filipino Laureate, as well as an Asia Leaders for Sustainability awardee.

“I am thankful for the trust and faith that Governor Cua and the people of Quirino have put in me,” Banaguas said.

The size of my gratitude is exceeded only by my determination to see this beloved province rise up to its full climate-smart potential.”

Short films on climate, native trees, daily life top 6th Indie-Siyensya

MOMENTS of excitement and anticipation filled the halls of the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) recently as the sixth IndieSiyensya Filmmaking Competition, organized by the Department of Science and TechnologyScience Education Institute marked its first physical awarding ceremony after almost three years and two seasons of virtual runs, said DOST-SEI in a news release.

“K5: Ka tutubong Kaho y K ontra Krisis sa Klima,” directed by Celine Murillo bagged the best film award in the open category.

T he mini-documentary film discusses how planting native trees, while limited, is an important nature-based solution for mitigating the climate crisis.

S econd best film in the open category went to “Climacts”by DOST-SEI scholar and De La Salle University student Kyle Carlo Lasala.

“Climacts,” a documentary, highlights the root cause and drastic effects of climate change. It features the existing and developing actions with emphasis on systemic change.

Meanwhile, “Marka ng Pawikan,” directed by Humphrey Mark Gian Francesco Torcuator, a captivating film which shows how climate change directly affects pawikan’s brooding and survival, causing detrimental effects to their species, received the third best film award for the open category.

For the Youth category, “Tanaw Juan,” directed by Yashmen A. Gerez of Quezon Science High Schoo, won the Best Film Award.

The movie was praised for its powerful storytelling, compelling character, and its ability to raise awareness on the impacts of climate change in everyday life.

It follows the story of Juan, who goes through his normal daily routine and casually explains scientific concepts and phenomena surrounding climate change with various encounters throughout his errand journey.

T he team’s concept of climate change expression and communication is delivered through an interactive, engaging and fun way, transitioning into a motivational mood for a call to action as the film’s ending statement.

The power duo of sisters Frances Sophia and Felizia Shayn of De La Salle University and Marcelo H. del Pilar won the second best film for their entry “Marvels of Science: Climate Change.” Their explainer tackled climate change’s impacts to life, environment and the entire world.

The film, “Sirak,” by Charles Joshua Uy of Philippine Science High School-Eastern Visayas Campus snatched the third-best film award for the youth category.

“Sirak,” a Waray word which means “sunny,” communicates climate change through the greatest common denominator, which is heat felt by humans.

THE United Nations General Assembly proclaimed March 3 as the UN World Wildlife Day to celebrate and raise awareness of the world’s wild animals and plants.

Incidentally, it was also the day the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wildlife Fauna and Flora (Cites) was signed in 1973.

Thus, this year’s World Wildlife Day also marked the 50th year of Cites, which theme year is “Partnerships for Wildlife Conservation” in recognition of the work it does and the collaborative work for conservation that is going on globally.

Philippine biodiversity at a glance

ACCORDING to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Biodiversity Management Bureau (DENR-BMB), the Philippines is considered a megadiverse country in the world.

An island archipelago composed of 7,640 islands and islets, the country has a very high degree of land and animal species endemism, covering at least 25 genera of plants and 50 percent of terrestrial wildlife.

The country is host to more than 52,177 described species, of which more than half are found nowhere else in the world.

Also bagging trophies and cash grants were crowd favorites “Climacts” and “Tanaw Juan” for winning the Viewers’ Choice Award for the Open and Youth category, DOST-SEI said.

The two films garnered the most number of votes gathered during the physical voting held at Cinematheque Centres on January 21 and 22 and online voting held from January 28 to February 6.

All t op three films for each category received a clapperback-designed 3D trophy, a certificate and cash grants.

The best films were given P100,000, while the second and third best films received P50,000 and P30,000, respectively.

The finalists won consolation prizes of P5,000 each, while the Viewers’ Choice Awardees claimed a cash grant of P20,000, a certificate and a trophy.

S cience Secretary Renato U. Solidum Jr., emphasized the importance of science communication in national development, anchored in research that is impactful, useful and relevant to society, DOST-SEI said.

“ Through the Indie-Siyensya Science Filmmaking Competition, we hope to highlight the important role of science for national development, encourage our students to pursue meaningful STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] careers, and contribute to forwarding important causes and moving people into positive action,” Solidum said.

DOST-SEI Director Josette T. Biyo thanked all the filmmakers for making this year’s IndieSiyensya run a special one as it gathered 267 film entries, a record high since the competition was launched.

She also thanked DOST-SEI’s partner, the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), for being instrumental in popularizing the science films through film screenings in Cinematheque Centres and online viewing platform JuanFlix.

We give thanks to our young Filipino filmmakers, who were brave enough to participate and take the challenge to be part of Indie-Siyensya’s movement to use films to communicate science and forward social and scientific advocacy,” Biyo said.

Indie -Siyensya, which aims to promote science communication and provide a platform for young filmmakers to highlight their work, featured thought-provoking films that tackle encompassing topics on climate change, from its threatening impacts to helping mitigate its effects and offering solutions all related to the theme “Communicating Climate Change Action,” DOST-SEI said.

The next season for the Indie-Siyensya Film Festival is expected to return in the second quarter of the year.

“On a per unit area basis, the Philippines probably harbors more diversity of life than any other country on the planet,” the Philippine Clearing House Mechanism website said.

From 1997 to 2016, around 120 species of wildlife fauna and 170 species of wildlife flora have been discovered and the number is still increasing with studies conducted by the academe, researchers and biodiversityrelated funded projects.

Besides its diverse species, the Philippines has 228 Key Biodiversity Areas, which are home to 855 globally important species of plants, mulloscs, elasmobranchs, fishes, amphibians and reptiles.

‘Megadiversity’

ACCORDING to the World Atlas, there are 17 megadiverse countries in the world. They are Venezuela, the United States, South Africa, the Philippines, Peru, Papua New Guinea, Mexico, Malaysia, Madagascar, Indonesia, India, Ecuador, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Colombia, China, Brazil and Australia

“Megadiversity refers to the countries with a high total number of species, including a significant percentage of endemic species,” the World Atlas says.

There are two-fold criteria for megadiverse classification. One, having at least 5,000 endemic plants, and two, having a marine ecosystem

within the borders.

According to Conservation International, an environmental nonprofit, 70 percent of the world’s flora and fauna exist in only 17 countries, which comprise just under 10 percent of the surface of the earth.

Partnership through access and benefit sharing

IN the Philippines, the DENR, in taking the lead in the country’s World Wildlife Day celebration, puts a spotlight on the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of genetic resources, otherwise known as Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS).

This year’s Cites’s theme of “Partnerships for Wildlife Conservation” stresses the importance of collaboration and partnerships in the conservation of wildlife and their habitats, said a DENR-BMB news release for the celebration of World Wildlife Day.

“WWD 2023 is an opportunity to raise awareness about ABS and the importance of its implementation for the conservation of wildlife and their habitats. It is an opportunity to recognize the critical role of partnerships and collaborations in the conservation of biodiversity, its sustainable use, and the protection of associated traditional knowledge,” the DENR-BMB said.

Biodiversity is life

GLORIA ESTENZO-RAMOS , vice president of Oceana Philippines, an international ocean conservation advocacy nongovernment organization, said: “Critical partnerships for conservation are vital to arrest the alarming decline in our ocean’s endangered species and wildlife.”

Oceana Philippines has been partnering with various national and local governments for the protection and conservation of Tañon Strait located between Negros and Cebu islands in the Visayas, including the Fisheries Management Areas in various parts of the country.

“May today’s [March 3] celebration of World Wildlife Day serves as

a constant reminder of the urgent need to stop illegal fishing, overexploitation of fisheries and marine resources, pollution and destructive so-called development projects, such as dump-and-fill/reclamation activities in our coasts that irreversibly destroy habitats and wildlife,” she pointed out.

According to Ramos, an environmental lawyer, there must be open, transparent and participatory processes put in place by the government in all its programs to ensure that the voices of civil society, academe, business, youth and citizenry are heard and considered.

“Together, we must embed sciencebased solutions in the mindsets and translate words into actions, otherwise, it may be too late,” she urged.

Grace Diamante, executive director of the Mindoro Biodiversity Conservation Foundation Inc., which has been partnering with various stakeholders for the protection and conservation of biodiversity on Mindoro Island, said that regardless of the passion, partaking in action for protection and conservation lessens the threats to the environment, leading to the conservation of Philippine wildlife.

Asean youth as partner IN her World Wildlife Day press statement issued on February 27, Dr. Theresa Mundita S. Lim, executive director of the Asean Centre for Biodiversity, said that based on fossil records and current data, scientists have determined that the world is already losing a substantial number of species within a short geological period, suggesting that we may be on the verge of a sixth mass extinction.

“Unlike the prehistoric extinctions, the dire situation we are in now, as far as species diversity is concerned, is highly avoidable,” she said.

According to Lim, the choices the humanity have made throughout history, have something to do with this current predicament.

“Now, with the wisdom of hindsight and the benefit of modern

research and science and technology, we have a better appreciation of how having a harmonious coexistence with nature and other species is vital to our survival and our way of life,” Lim said.

Work together

AS a region as biodiverse as Asean, “with over 25 percent of the world’s known plant and animal species, we really need to work together to significantly reduce the risk of extinction of these species, as they are essential to the health of ecosystems from which we derive all of our needs to survive,” Lim said.

The Asean region’s high species diversity and high mean country endemic proportions emphasize the region’s significance for conservation.  New species members under major taxa continue to be discovered in the remaining intact natural ecosystems in the region, she added.

“In fact, in 2020, a global report revealed that over 200 new species were discovered in the Greater Mekong region alone. Just last year, two new hedgehog species were discovered in Mindanao, the southern part of the Philippines,” she said. However, the conservation of this myriad of species remains a challenge since “we are still faced with enormous threats, such as poaching, illegal wildlife trade and habitat loss,” Lim lamented.

Asean Youth Biodiversity Programme

LIM said no single generation should have a monopoly on the benefits we derive from our wildlife resources. Thus, the Asean considers the youth as vital partners in meeting our biodiversity goals.

The ACB institutionalized the Asean Youth Biodiversity Programme (AYBP), which engages the youth in the region to more actively participate in biodiversity action.

Under AYBP, is very notable subprograms, such as the Young Asean Storytellers, where 20 talented and skilled young leaders created powerful stories of conservation from 11 Asean Heritage Parks.

There is also the Young Biodiversity Leaders cohort, which provides in-depth capacity building and mentorship for youth leaders in biodiversity, and increases youth participation in biodiversity governance while strengthening youthled conservation efforts, she said.

Finally, she said addressing illegal wildlife trade, as this year’s theme connotes, requires strong partnerships.

“For ACB, we highlight our partnership with the youth sector in protecting our wildlife resources in their natural habitat, and preventing wildlife trafficking at source,” Lim pointed out.

MANILA WATER PLANTED 1.4M TREES SINCE 2006

MANILA Water has planted and nurtured a total of 1,462,945 trees in different parts of the Philippines as of December 2022.

In total, it has reforested 2,739.27 hectares of land across the country.

Since the launch of East Zone concessionaire Manila Water’s watershed management program in 2006, it has partnered with the public and private sectors, including the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), various local government units, Indigenous peoples residing in watershed communities, and other stakeholders for the implementation of the program.

As a water and wastewater service provider,

the company recognizes the need for water security for the current and future generations.

At the same time, it cares for the environment, where water comes from. It anchors on nature-based, sustainable solutions and environmental stewardship of key watersheds that it depends on, such as watershed protection and rehabilitation.

In the East Zone, the Manila Water’s watershed protection efforts focus on the Ipo Watershed, La Mesa Watershed, Upper Marikina Watershed and General Nakar Watershed.

It has also been supporting the MWSS’ Annual Million Trees Challenge since its launch in 2017. Through its business units in the Non-East Zone, Manila Water has also pursued its water-

shed management and protection programs outside its service area.

They include the Nabaoy Watershed in Malay, Aklan, through Boracay Water; Villa Maria, Porac, Pampanga, through Clark Water; watershed and forest areas Laguna through Laguna Water; Pan-As Hayiban Watershed in Calbayog, Samar, through Calbayog Water; and Luyang Watershed in Carmen, Cebu, through Cebu Water.

Among the tree species planted are narra, mahogany, yakal, kamagong, ipil, sandalwood, maguilomboy, agohoy and fruit-bearing trees that can also provide source of food and livelihood to the residents of watershed areas, such as langka, rambutan, guyabano, santol, cacao and coffee trees.

In Laguna, fishpole bamboos were also planted.

Manila Water’s intensified watershed management program is also part of the company’s response to calls for action, aligning to the United Nations’ Sustainability Development Goals, under SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), SDG 13 (Climate Action), SDG 14 (Life below Water) and SDG 15 (Life on Land).

We also move to protect life on land through watershed protection and management programs. The company’s watershed management can help improve biodiversity and contribute to carbon sequestration that can mitigate the effects of climate change.” said Manila Water President and CEO Jocot De Dios.

QUIRINO province Gov. Dakila Cua (left) and Science

Diplomat Glenn Banaguas. ASEAN SCIENCE DIPLOMAT PHOTO

A8 SundAy, MArch 5, 2023 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

BEWARE OF DOGS!

NOWHERE in the complex labyrinth of rules, bylaws and interpretations that govern the global antidoping system did anyone see this warning: Beware of Dog Medicine. It’s an understandable omission, but one that led to a threemonth sleuthing expedition that eventually exonerated a five-time Olympian of doping, while adding what some feel is an unnecessary asterisk next to her spotless record as a clean athlete.

Katerina Nash, a mountain biker and cross-country skier who represented the Czech Republic in two Winter and three Summer Olympics, avoided a fouryear doping sanction after minute traces of a banned substance showed up in her system.

Authorities determined the substance got there through her skin during the messy struggles she faced in forcing medicine drops down the throat of her ailing dog, a Vizsla named Rubi.

D espite not receiving a sanction, Nash’s encounter with anti-doping authorities still went on the books Thursday, a byproduct of long-enshrined rules that call for any doping violation—even an inadvertent ‘“adverse analytical

Study shows US tennis sees rise in Hispanic, Black, Asian players

NEW YORK—A rise in tennis participation around the United States over the past three years has been boosted by increases among Hispanic, Black and Asian players, the US Tennis Association (USTA) said Thursday.

C iting information from the Physical Activity Council Study on Sports and Physical Activity administered by Sports Marketing Surveys USA and the Tennis Industry Association Participation and Engagement Study, the USTA pointed to participation jumps since 2020 of 90 percent among Hispanic players, 46 percent among Black players and 37 percent among Asian players.

The 23.6 million people who played tennis in 2022 represents an increase of 33 percent since the start of 2020, the USTA said.

One of the goals of the USTA is to make tennis ‘look like America’ and to do that we need to help make tennis available to people from all walks of life, in all communities,”

USTA Chairman of the Board and President Brian Hainline said in the group’s news release.

A n exhibition tennis match that originally was supposed to pit Rafael Nadal against Carlos Alcaraz and was scheduled Sunday in Las Vegas, meanwhile, has been canceled and ticket purchases can be refunded.

O rganizers announced

Wednesday that the event is being scrapped because Alcaraz hurt his right hamstring. He pulled out of this week’s tournament in Acapulco, Mexico, because of the injury.

A s it is, Nadal already had been dropped from the exhibition and replaced because of a hip flexor problem that has sidelined him since the Australian Open in January.

Nadal announced Tuesday that he would be missing the upcoming Masters 1000 tournaments at Indian Wells and Miami.

Nadal, who is 36, owns a men’srecord 22 Grand Slam titles. Alcaraz, 19, claimed his first major trophy at the US Open last September.

The two Spaniards finished 1-2 in the Association of Tennis Professionals rankings last season. AP

BASEBALL’S NEW RULES TO SPEED UP GAMES RECEIVE MIXED REACTIONS

WEST PALM BEACH, Florida—It took two hours and 19 minutes for the Miami Marlins to beat the Houston Astros, 4-3, in a spring training game Monday—a game so fast that Ryan Murphy, a lifelong Houston fan, found himself lingering in the ballpark for a while afterward.

“I’m a baseball fan,” said Murphy, wearing 2022 Astros World Series gear, “so if I stay here for four hours, for two hours, it doesn’t matter to me.”

Faced with criticism of dwindling cultural relevance and a laggardly product compared to other major sports, Major League Baseball (MLB) introduced a set of new rules this year to speed up games and attract younger fans.

The bases are bigger to improve player safety and may also encourage more aggressive baserunning.

Pitchers can only disengage from the pitching rubber twice per plate appearance. And there’s a new pitch clock that gives players 30 seconds to resume play between batters. Between pitches, pitchers have 15 seconds with nobody on and 20 seconds if there is a baserunner.

L ess than a week into the spring training exhibition schedule, MLB seems to be getting what it wants, shaving about 20 minutes off the average length of games compared to last spring.

rollout.

“ The game feels more exciting,” Washington Nationals left-hander Patrick Corbin said. “Even some of the high-scoring games are under three hours.”

Fans seeing the new-look sport for the first time this week have had mixed reviews. Some, like Murphy, are indifferent to the changes.

It’s irrelevant to us as fans, honestly,” said Murphy, who traveled from Utah to West Palm Beach for Houston’s exhibition season. “Players might think something different of it, but for us it’s all the same.

How would I know the bases are bigger, honestly? I mean, we see a pitch clock out here, and we know it’s there, but it doesn’t matter to me.”

Some fans like the idea of being in and out of a game in under three hours, which is about how long an average nine-inning baseball game lasted in 2022.

Others feel a nostalgic pull to how the sport has always been.

I’m not a big fan of the pitch count,” said Mark Mezzatesta, who traveled to Florida from Queens in New York. “I feel like that’s rushing the game. I feel it was fine the way it was. Pitchers do take a while. And batters do take a while, too. Fifteen seconds with nobody on base and 20 seconds with somebody on base is too short.”

Barbara Schiffman of Roseland, New Jersey, said she’s OK with some of the rules but “they should never let

finding” such as this one—to be announced publicly.

“It’s devastating to think that, like, not washing my hands could ruin my entire career, being an athlete for 30 years,” the 45-year-old Nash told The Associated Press. “But there’s no regrets. I would not have cared for my dog in any different way. But in the end, I was touching this medicine every day for about three straight weeks.”

Nash lives in California and was tested by authorities from the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA).

The results that showed up several days later at USADA offices raised eyebrows—a trace amount (0.07 billionths of a gram per milliliter) of a substance called capromorelin had shown up in Nash’s urine.

Though the amount was minuscule, it was enough to trigger an adverse finding. And though capromorelin isn’t specifically mentioned on the banned list, it still falls in the category of “other” prohibited substances that are related to human-growth hormone.

Much as they had in a previous instance where an over-the-counter sunscreen was determined to have caused positive tests, members of the USADA science team went to work.

F irst, they discovered that capromorelin was present in a medicine called Entyce, which is given to boost the appetite of sick dogs. Then, USADA’s lead scientist, Dr. Matt Fedoruk, and others went about applying the medicine to their own skin. Within days, they were testing positive. It was the latest example of the pros and cons of anti-doping’s use of increasingly sensitive instruments that can detect minuscule traces of drugs.

The challenge with anti-doping is that the sensitivity has gotten so good, that now we’ve got this overlap between what’s doping and what’s exposure in the environment that you may be subjected to as an athlete,” Fedoruk said.

P rime examples of issues that can arise from sensitive tests are the handful of cases have been dropped in recent years involving athletes

who tested positive after kissing or having sex with partners who had banned substances in their systems.

Other cases have involved trace amounts of banned substances athletes ingest when they eat tainted meats. In some instances, the antidoping code has adjusted to set lower thresholds for positive tests.

N ash’s attorney, Paul Greene, says the rulebook hasn’t changed fast enough.

Something needs to be done in a holistic way to address these cases,” Greene said. “Giving discretion in announcing it publicly would be a good place to move, and that’s an easy fix. You could still have a nofault finding, but it would not have to be announced.”

N ash was temporarily suspended from both her sport and her spot as president of the athletes commission for the international cycling federation while the case was pending. She said she’s well aware that some people out there will see the word “doping” next to her name and make assumptions that aren’t true.

It’s so ironic because I have taken this seriously,” said Nash, whose first Olympics was in 1996. “I don’t take supplements. I have, for the most part, just stuck with what [a single nutrition-bar company] produces because that’s been successful and I know where it’s made. And here I am, just being punished for taking care of my dog.” S adly, the medicine did not save Rubi. About a month after Nash made the gut-wrenching decision to put the dog down, she got her first call from USADA about the test. In a way, she feels fortunate that USADA was willing to devote resources to figuring out where the capromorelin in her system came from—an investment that will allow Nash to continue competing in mostly local events if she chooses.

Still, she concedes, it’s hard to call this a total victory.

For 15 years, she says has filled out every form detailing her whereabouts, shown up for every test and never had a bad result.

Still, the rules called for her name to be published in the news release that USADA put out Thursday. The headline of the release: “WADA rules must change,” it says in reference to the World Anti-Doping Agency, which did not allow for an exception after presented the details of the case.

It’s a brutal system,” Nash said. “And it’s quite an advanced system, and it’s there for a reason. But it shouldn’t stop us from making that system better for the future.” AP

Disgraced former president of Haiti soccer defies FIFA

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti—

Haiti’s former soccer federation president whose lifetime ban from the sport over sexual abuse allegations was overturned last month announced recently that he is reclaiming his position.

Yves Jean-Bart’s defiant announcement could lead to a standoff with FIFA, which already has appointed an emergency management committee to lead the Haitian Football Association through November.

a game end on either the pitch clock or the batter clock.”

She was referring to a recent game between Atlanta and Boston that ended in a tie after Braves prospect Cal Conley was assessed an automatic strike for a pitch clock violation.

Conley originally thought he’d won the game with a two-out, basesloaded walk but instead was given an at-bat-ending strike after the umpire said he wasn’t set in the box as the clock wound under 8 seconds.

When you get to that point in the game,” Schiffman said, “you’ve got to let the game play out without the clock. That would be my only concern.” AP

Jean-Bart’s virtual news conference was held a week after Haiti’s female soccer team beat Chile, 2-1, in a historic match and qualified for the FIFA Women’s World Cup finals for the first time, sparking jubilant celebration across the country.

Jean-Bart has denied allegations by the FIFA ethics committee, which issued a lifetime ban after finding him guilty in 2020 of sexually abusing female players as young as 14, keeping mistresses and preying upon girls from impoverished neighborhoods.

T he Switzerland-based Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned the ban two weeks ago, ruling there were inconsistencies and inaccuracies in statements of

alleged victims. The court also said that information provided by groups such as Human Rights Watch and world players union FIFPRO were not “sufficiently evidentiary.”

Jean-Bart, who was joined by several attorneys during the videoconference, also said he would file a lawsuit over alleged defamation against a freelance journalist who first reported the accusations against him in the British newspaper The Guardian. He is going on the offensive. Let it be known,” his attorney Stanley Gaston said.

G aston added that Jean-Bart is fighting cancer and that it’s not clear when he would return to Haiti, noting that all business would be conducted virtually.

A nother attorney, Claude Ramoni, stressed that Jean-Bart is no longer suspended, and that it’s his right to continue serving as president of Haiti’s soccer federation. He was elected as president for four years, and his term has not ended,” Ramoni said, adding that FIFA should recognize him as such.

“They have to accept it.”

F IFA officials did not immediately return a message for comment. It is unclear whether FIFA has to let Jean-Bart resume leading the Haitian federation.

The emergency panel appointed by FIFA to lead Haiti’s football association is led by a veteran soccer official from Cuba, and is set to represent Haiti on March 16 in Rwanda when FIFA’s 211 member federations have their annual meeting.

F IFA could deny Jean-Bart a credential to such events it organizes, including the Women’s World Cup that starts in July. The month-long tournament is being co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, which typically require Haitian citizens to apply for a visa to enter. It also wasn’t clear if FIFA planned to appeal the court’s decision to uphold Jean-Bart’s appeal. AP

FIVE-TIME Olympian Katerina Nash who dropped dog’s medicines on skin avoids doping ban. AP

HOME plate umpire Jim Wolf waits as the pitch clock counts down during the first inning of a spring training game between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers in Phoenix. AP

YVES JEAN-BART’S defiant announcement could lead to a standoff with FIFA, which already has appointed an emergency management committee to lead the Haitian Football Association through November. AP

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mEET Ica FrIaS

Rising star has come a long way from food parks to streaming platforms

By Patrick V. Miguel

Ev Erybody has to start somewhere, and for Ica Frias, her debut single started with a heartbreak. She admitted that her single “Ayoko Na” was personal, narrating an experience with someone who is not ready to commit to a relationship with her.

“

Pinapa-feel niya sa’yo na gusto ka rin niya kaso hindi siya committed sayo,” Ica narrated. “So I decided to let go.”

Indeed she let go of the person whom she said left her hanging most of the time. As a result, she let out her emotions through music, and there came the birth of her debut single “Ayoko Na .”

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That was exactly a year ago as Ica shared she started writing the song March last year. It only took her a week to finish it, so she had her friend listen to it and they both re-tweaked it based on how they wanted it to sound like. Manilabased label Off The Record (OTR) liked it and started doing the final recording.

As an artist relatively new to the music landscape, Ica Frias opts to break into the genre of pop. This is just the beginning for her, as she said, “You can expect more of me, more songs from me, more heart breaking songs, more sad songs from me.”

rising artist so sobrang sarap sa feeling na malaman na maraming nakaka-appreciate, marami ‘yung tao na nagugustuhan ‘yung song na ginawa ko,” she said.

Ica has been into music, particularly singing, at the age of 5. She also sang at their church, all throughout college where she also discovered more places to sing. She shared that she sang at

food parks in her college days, alongside her friend Kiara.

“Kumakanta lang kami kasi ‘yon lang ‘yung gusto naming gawin kahit hindi ganoon kalaki ‘yung bayad, gusto lang talaga naming gawin yung kumanta and mag-perfrom ,” she recalled.

From singing acoustic covers, Ica eventually discovered she could compose her own songs. She never stopped composing and singing, until eventually getting a break with “Ayoko Na .”

Reflecting on how far she has come from singing at food parks and now being streamed on music-streaming platforms and getting invited to sing at events, Ica said, “Sobrang hindi pa rin ako makapaniwala, sobrang dami ko pang experience ngayon parang one month pa lang ‘yung after ng release ng song ko so parang hindi pa rin ako makapaniwala na maraming nakikinig sa songs ko.”

Kaye VillagomezLosorata

Annie S. Alejo

Bernard P. Testa Nonie Reyes

In an interview with Soundstrip, Ica revealed she is set to release a new single on March 10. She shared, “‘Yung song na irerelease ko is called ‘Sabihin Mo.’ It’s another sad song and sana abangan niyo ‘yon.”

Ica hints at more upcoming releases in the future, saying, “I am preparing more para sa inyo.”

“

Maraming maraming salamat sa lahat ng mga nakikinig sa aking songs, sa lahat ng sumusubaybay sa mga kaganapan ko ngayon ,” the 24 year old artist expresses her gratitude.

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She also expressed excitement over the amount of streams of “Ayoko Na” on Spotify. As of writing, it has around 67,000 streams.

“Marami rin akong kasabay na

T. Anthony C. Cabangon

ICA FRIAS

SoundSampler by Tony M. Maghirang

ESCAPE TO ALCARAZ

The Pub Forties are back with a new EP

last recording session was in early November 2022, then we handed the tracks to Not Vinzons of Sonic State fame for the mixing.”

Aries Espinosa shared. “A big part of what makes The Pub Forties unique is its members’ eclectic tastes in music, and it shows in the variety of sounds and topics the EP dishes out. Also, we’ve made sure that we cover all our linguistic bases, so you’ll hear not just one, or two, but three languages being sung—English, Tagalog, and Visayan (and yes, add in a bit of a Latino accent in “Titos Y Amigos”).

The Pub Forties are a four-piece OPM band purveying the sounds of the classic rock era for the post rock generation. The group is composed of Aries espinosa on lead vocals, Yugel Losorata on bass and keyboards, Vince Borromeo on guitars and James Casas on drums.

That line-up has just released a new 6-track EP titled “Escape To Alcaraz” that resounds precisely with the classic hooks, rhythm and melodies of an earlier era. But don’t let your alt-rock addled head fool you. The guitar-driven original songs of the Pub Forties are no less bracing than your synth-based contemporary dance hit of the day.

Just try on for your snotty taste the clear tones and vocals on “Kay Sarap”, the funky strut of “Cutting Shards” and the sorta head-scratching Tex Mex of “The New Amigos.” They might clue you in on the good stuff classic songs are made of.

So we ask the band, where is the rather nondescript EP title coming from?

Aries Espinosa told Soundstrip, “The band used to

jam and rehearse, pre-pandemic days, at Vince Borromeo’s previous office which was located along Alcaraz Street in Quezon City. When we were brainstorming for a name for this EP, we recalled those times when we were making and breaking music in Vince’s office-“lost in our own world” you could say and away from the “harsh and humdrum realities” of our day jobs. So when it was time to christen a title for this EP, we remembered the 1979 Hollywood thriller “Escape from Alcatraz” (our ages are thus betrayed), and we unanimously agreed that, after a little word tweaking, “Escape to Alcaraz” would be the title.

Yugel Losorata added, “Far from being a stifling, inescapable prison like the

infamous Alcatraz island, our Alcaraz was a musical haven we longed to escape to every chance we got. Whereas “Escape from Alcatraz” was about a desperate attempt to break out of confinement, our “Escape to Alcaraz” was a joyful “breaking in” to the freedom of our musical passions.”

It can be assumed that four dudes would have different passions in just about every aspect of their individual lives. And the way their musical roads met and converged in the Pub Forties is a timeless anecdote in itself, and then some.

Yugel Losorata related, “We started jamming and crafting new songs in summer of 2022 at our guitarist’s (Vince Borromeo) new law office space in Quezon City. We hadn’t jam since March of 2020 obviously because of the pandemic.

“Early last year we came up with an EP of demos and outtakes called ‘Documentaries’ because we couldn’t gather as a group. Our latest six-song EP is sort of a statement that we somehow survived as a band and got back in the studio to record new originals. Our

“Finally, we’re proud to say that this EP is a very good representation of the songwriting talents of the band members, with Yugel, Aries, Vince and James having a hand in the composing and writing processes of each of the six songs. “Escape to Alcaraz” is a true reflection of all of the band members’ creativity and musical influences.”

Some minutiae on the new EP:

■ EP cover was taken by Dave Martinez, Tacloban City-based lensman and Supertyphoon Yolanda survivor.

■ Session musicians - Christian Zoleta (lead guitar); Mark Zoleta - keyboards (recording engineer)

■ All members of the band contribute backing vocals for the rich background harmonies, a mainstay of the golden age of classic rock.

The Pub Forties (L-R) Bassist Yugel Losorata, lead vocalist Aries e spinosa, drummer James Casas and guitarist Vince Borromeo.

Olive oil in coffee? New Starbucks line a curiosity in Italy

By colleen Barr y The Associated Press

The coffee-olive oil concoction—echoing a keto-inspired trend of adding butter to coffee, only with a sugary twist—has provoked both amusement and curiosity among Italians.

Gambero Rosso, an Italian food and wine magazine, called the mixing of olive oil with coffee “a curious combination” but said it was reserving judgment, having not yet sampled the drinks. It did praise featuring the staple of Italian kitchens as a main ingredient, not just a condiment. The magazine also noted the health benefits of consuming extra virgin olive oil, which some Italians do habitually straight from the bottle.

“Did we need coffee with extra virgin olive oil and syrups? Maybe yes, maybe no,” wrote the magazine’s Michela Becchi. But the chance to promote Italian excellence is a valuable one, she added.

‘Daring innovation’

Italy’s olive oil producers’ association, a ssI t Ol , welcomed “the daring innovation,” saying the line of drinks could ”re-

launch the image of olive oil, especially among young people. The association has been promoting adding olive oil to cocktails.

Martina lu nardi, a student of cultural mediation, was sticking to her standard cappuccino on a recent st arbucks visit but said she wasn’t offended by the olive oil combos and might even try one someday.

“a nyway, I know where to get a regular cup of coffee,” lu nardi said.

s c hultz came up with the notion of adding olive oil to coffee after visiting an olive oil producer in sicily and teased the idea as a game changer in his last earnings call. He worked with an in-house coffee drink developer to come up with recipes, the international coffee chain said. s c hultz presided over the launch of “Oleato”—meaning “oiled” in Italian— last week on the eve of Milan Fashion Week, with a l i zzo performance for an invitation-only crowd at the company’s

Milan Roastery. The beverages will be rolled out in s outhern California this spring and in Japan, the Middle East and Britain later this year.

A 7 out of 10

tHE l a st ampa newspaper in tu rin tastetested four of the beverages, giving them marks of 6.5 to 7.5 on a scale of 10. It noted that the only warm beverage on the menu, a version of caffe latte, “has a strong taste that leaves a pleasant taste in the mouth. Grade: 7.”

“The [positive] sensation is that Oleato could be something to drink all year, but most of all that it could be truly tasty in the summer, l a st ampa said because most are served with ice.”

tourists who throng the Milan Roastery are enticed to give the drinks a try by placards around the store and a special menu insert advertising the five-drink assortment, which ranges from 5.50 euros to 14 euros ($5.85 to $14.85) for a

martini version with vodka.

“It’s good,” said Benedicte Hagen, a Norwegian who recently moved to Milan to pursue a modeling career. “I’m not a big coffee fan, that’s why I like to try drinks like this.”

s he was sipping the Oleato Golden Foam Cold Brew, which includes vanilla bean syrup, and said she couldn’t really taste the oil. st ill, she acknowledged asking the barista to add a shot of chocolate to make the drink even sweeter and would have added caramel if it had been available.

“It’s not so random,” Hagen decided.

Kaya Cupial’s Oleato Iced Cortado, meanwhile, was in a pretty V-shaped glass and garnished with an orange peel. It’s made with oat milk infused with olive oil, demerara syrup and a dash of orange bitters.

“It’s like normal coffee, but with orange. It’s not strong,” noted the 26-yearold from Warsaw, Poland, who was traveling with a group of friends. They also ordered the Golden Foam Cold Brew along with a pair of ordinary cappuccinos.

It is not the first time Italy has inspired s c hultz. He acknowledges his debt to the Milan coffee bar, which he discovered during a trip to Italy in 1983, as his inspiration for building the now-global coffee chain.

s c hultz waited until 2018 to bring st arbucks to Italy, aware that he was treading sacred coffee ground. Italians typically take their coffee standing at a bar, chatting with friends or the barista for a few minutes, before continuing their day. It is not something to be nursed.

si nce then, st arbucks has opened some 20 stores in northern and central Italy. The Milan Roastery is often packed, while other locations in the city have shifted in the wake of the pandemic.

Just because your coffee is bitter doesn’t mean it’s ‘stronger’

Ou R choices of coffee brewing method can be cultural, social or practical. But how much do they really impact what’s in your cup?

Which is the strongest brew?

It depends. If we focus on caffeine concentration on a milligram per milliliter (mg/ml) basis, espresso methods are typically the most concentrated, able to deliver up to 4.2 mg/ml. This is about three times higher than other methods like Moka pot (a type of boiling percolator) and cold brewing at about 1.25 mg/ ml. Drip and plunger methods (including French and a ero-press) are about half that again.

But while espresso gives you the most concentrated product, this is delivered in a smaller volume (just 18–30ml), compared to much larger volumes for most other methods.

Interestingly, most methods are actually pretty similar. Espresso methods vary but give an average of 10.5 milligrams per gram (mg/g), compared to 9.7–10.2mg/g for most other methods. The only outlier is the French press, with just 6.9mg/g of caffeine.

‘Strength’ is more than just caffeine

Ca FFEINE content only explains a small part of the strength of coffee. Thousands

of compounds are extracted, contributing to aroma, flavor and function. Each has their own pattern of extraction, and they can interact with each other to inhibit or enhance effects.

The oils responsible for the crema— the rich brown “foam” on top of the brew—are also extracted more easily with high temperatures, pressures, and fine grinds (another potential win for espresso and Moka). These methods also give higher levels of dissolved solids, meaning a less watery consistency—but, again, this all depends on how the final product is served and diluted.

There are also differences in how sensitive we are to the stimulant effects of

caffeine. so what we are looking for in a cup, and getting from it, is dependent on our own unique biology.

The bottom line

EaCH brewing method has its own features and inputs. This gives each one a unique profile of flavor, texture, appearance and bioactive compounds. While the complexity is real and interesting, ultimately, how to brew is a personal choice.

Different information and situations will drive different choices in different people and on different days. a f ter all, not every food and drink choice needs to be optimized. The Conversation

MIL aN (aP)—Putting olive oil in coffee is hardly a tradition in Italy, but that didn’t stop Starbucks interim cEO howard Schultz from launching a series of beverages that do just that in Milan, the city that inspired his coffee house empire.

Cover photo by Nelson Ribeiro/pexels.com

Kaya Cupial, right, tests her Oleato iced Cortado coffee at the Starbucks coffee shop in Milan, italy last week. AP