Month: September 2025

TOKYO – As the relentless march of climate change intensifies natural disasters across the globe, Japan, a nation long accustomed to the forces of nature, is emerging as a powerful model for building resilience. A unique blend of historical wisdom and cutting-edge technology is redefining disaster preparedness, offering critical lessons for a world increasingly at risk. The World Economic Forum's ”Global Risks Report 2025” ranks extreme weather as the most severe long-term risk and the second-highest short-term risk worldwide. This stark assessment underscores the urgency of effective strategies, and Japan’s approach known as bosai, a concept encompassing traditional disaster prevention and mitigation stands out. A Legacy of Observation, A Future of Innovation Japan’s deep-rooted ...

KABUL – Two earthquakes, with magnitudes of 6.0 and 4.5, struck eastern Afghanistan near the Pakistan border late Sunday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The first quake, measuring magnitude 6.0, hit at 11:47 pm local time with its epicenter near Jalalabad in the Nangarhar province at a shallow depth of 8 kilometers. Fifteen people were injured and hospitalized, as confirmed by Naqibullah Rahimi, a spokesperson for the Nangarhar Public Health Department. A second, weaker earthquake of magnitude 4.5 followed 20 minutes later. This seismic activity comes nearly a year after a magnitude 6.3 earthquake in October 2023 caused extensive casualties in the region, highlighting the area's vulnerability to seismic events.  

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – In a significant leap for volcanology and risk management, a team of researchers from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) in Italy has successfully created a highly-detailed 3D model of the internal structure of an active volcano. Using a novel combination of advanced seismic networks and artificial intelligence, the team was able to "x-ray" the Vulcano volcano in northern Sicily, providing an unprecedented look into its depths. The groundbreaking research, published in Nature Communications, offers a new way to understand the complex processes that unfold miles beneath the surface, a critical challenge for scientists monitoring the world's over 1,500 active volcanoes. A Picture of Unprecedented Detail...

NEW DELHI – The Union Environment Ministry has introduced a significant overhaul of its Green Credit Programme (GCP) to ensure more rigorous and verifiable environmental outcomes. Under new rules, green credits for tree plantation will now be awarded only after a minimum of five years, contingent on the trees' survival and the successful development of a 40 percent minimum canopy density. The move marks a key shift from the initial, less stringent methodology and aims to tie the incentives directly to the tangible success of afforestation efforts. The revised rules, which came into effect on August 29, replace the previous benchmark of awarding credits based on a minimum density of 1,100 trees per hectare within two years. Non-Tradable Credits with an Exception The tweaked norms a...