As the COP28 climate change summit progresses in Dubai, one can only hope that negotiators from various parts of the world have taken note of a report released at the beginning of the conference warning the world about the rapid rise in desertification caused by human activities.

As the global climate change summit COP28 gets underway in Dubai today, the mood is perhaps more positive than on the eve of many previous gatherings.

After a seemingly unending wave of bad news about global efforts to tackle climate change, finally some good news has come — and that too from one of the least-expected but most-needed quarters.

India abstained from a recent vote at the UN General Assembly on a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. In doing so, the country indirectly aligned itself with a number of Western nations that voted against the motion.

Few may have noticed, but last Sunday was International Day of Rural Women, while the following two days were also related to rural women and their lives: World Food Day and International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.

Global leaders are next week expected to participate in a special summit called by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to take stock of the world’s progress, or rather lack of it, toward meeting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.