NEWS

ENVIRONMENT

COP15

The Copenhagen Accord could be said to be barely worth the paper it’s written on. It was clear that the conference was not going well, almost from the beginning, but it was also clear that some sort of agreement had to be reached before the conference ended and so we got the Copenhagen Accord.

The conference was the 15^th Meeting of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the 5^th Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol.  It was to be an important conference with a framework for climate change mitigation after 2012 to be agreed there. This could be said to have happened, but more realistically what happened was a fudge and not a very good one at that.

The Accord was recognised, but not agreed upon on 19^th December. Even this was not passed unanimously. At the moment it’s unclear how many of the 192 nations who attended the conference will adopt the Accord, but it is clear that it contains not clear emission limitation targets, no target for limiting global temperature and no target year for peaking emissions. It is also very clear that this was produced as a sop to what the conference was supposed to deliver and is a huge disappointment to anyone who was expecting a positive outcome to this eagerly anticipated conference.

What else can be said about it? The Accord that was produced was not the result of a democratic debate between all nations represented. It was a rush job, put together by just 26 nations in the final days of the conference which somewhat defeated the object of the meeting. The Accord is not legally binding, hence the contention that it’s barely worth the paper it’s written on.

So what will happen next? COP16 will be held in Mexico and the Accord asks countries to submit emission targets by the end of January 2010, so that these can be discussed there and also in the mid-year meeting in Berlin. But what will this do? Clearly the idea is that a legally binding treaty will be agreed at the end of 2010, but given the inability to do that at COP15, when all attending countries knew what was expected of them, why should 2010 be any different? Many governments have expressed disappointment in the process. Non-governmental organisations have gone further than disappointment; a lot of anger has been generated by the politicians’ in ability to see beyond narrow self-interest.

Who is to blame? Depending on who you chose to listen to, it’s either the US, China, developed countries in general, or a select band of developing nations who are seeking to carve out the sort of economic future already enjoyed my major industrial powers. There is probably some truth in all the accusations. The US has not stepped up to the plate. Great things were expected of the new President, but while his handling of this issue may not be as bad as his predecessor’s, it’s hardly inspiring. China was obstructive. One might argue that they have every right to be and every right to seek out the same sort of industrial infrastructure as established industrial powers, but one could also argue that they are pursuing a path of stubborn and disastrous madness. Neither the US nor China were prepared to bend sufficiently. Other nations did not have the power to force their hand, or were left out of proceedings anyway and left to accept the damp squib Accord.

It is easy to place blame here or there, but no one comes out of the process looking good, least of all the UN. It may well be that the Meeting of the Parties has become a dead end in our international attempts to control the damage we are doing to our planet, or maybe, just maybe, COP16 will bring new hope. It doesn’t look very likely at the moment. We may be able to predict the outcome of COP16 with more accuracy when the emission targets are submitted, but at the moment it seems that a legally binding treaty at the end of 2010 seems a very unlikely prospect.

Careena Bruen © 2010

HEALTH

WINTER HEALTH TIPS

This winter has been particularly harsh. I live in the South of the country and so far we’ve had more snow and ice earlier in the season than I’ve seen in my fifteen years of living here. It’s always important to take care of yourself at this time of year, and because of the harsh conditions, this year it’s more important than ever. So where do you start?

First and foremost is nutrition. Vitamin C can be a great help in warding off colds and flu, but not in supplement form. To ensure that you’re as protected as possible make sure that you’re eating lots of vitamin C rich food, especially citrus fruits and green leafy vegetables. A big glass of juice with your breakfast will not only help to keep you healthy, it will give you an energy boost that will help get you from the warm cosy cocoon of your home to the bleak outdoors and on to your workplace. Leafy green vegetables can be eaten as an accompaniment to your main meals, or utilised in any number of soups, just the thing to warm the body through at the moment.

Getting out and about is also important, the proviso being that if out and about means ice and snow, be very, very careful. Another problem with winter months is the injuries we can sustain in the icy weather. The arrival of snow and ice in the weeks leading up to Christmas meant that many NHS hospitals were inundated with accident and emergency patients and much in the way of regular work had to be postponed in order to accommodate this flood of injuries.  Sunlight – even weak hardly perceptible sunlight – is essential for the creation of vitamin D, which helps keep our bones and teeth healthy, but even the healthiest bones can fracture if we fall hard enough on the ice. Get out if and when you can, but be careful out there! When there is nothing to do but stay indoors, make it as cosy and comfortable as you can. Keep warm, light some scented candles, curl up with a loved one, a pet or even a cushion. Read a good book, watch an old film, put on some gentle music. Make the experience as pleasant as possible and it will help stave off the cabin fever that we can all feel when the weather conspires against us and we’re stuck indoors for days on end.

It’s probably a little late in the day for this particular tip, but … try not to overeat. It’s difficult. The short days and long hours of darkness can cause an increase in appetite and there is nothing like rich comfort food for making us feel better about the lack of sunlight. But the pounds that go on quickly will come off slowly and will also make us a little less healthy than we’d like. Going back to the previous tips about vitamin C, try to make some delicious soups, lower in fat and overall calories, full of goodness and every bit as comforting as a big slab of chocolate cake. Well maybe not, but delicious and healthy all the same!

Winter is not all bad. The darker colder nights make it easier for many of us to sleep long and sound. Revel in this and remember that a well rested body is far less likely to succumb to colds and flu than a tired one.  Get odd jobs done around the house, have a declutter, think of yourself as a hibernating bear creating a cosy winter retreat for yourself. Not only will it give you something productive to do, but when the spring comes, you’ll have had your “spring clean” and have far more time for getting out and enjoying the earth coming back to life again.

The most important thing is to look after yourself. If you have underlying health issues ensure you get a winter flu jab – and with the current swine flu worries, make sure you get one of those as well – if you’re feeling unwell, don’t go to work, fight the infection at home and give your body a chance to recover. Make sure your medicine cabinet is stocked with the types of drugs you may need at this time of year, and when in doubt call your doctor and nip anything nasty in the bud.

Careena Bruen ©2010

 

 

FASHION

OUT WITH THE OLD AND … IN WITH THE OLD

The end of the noughties saw fashionistas in the know reclaiming the eighties and often, sadly embracing, all that was so very wrong with that decade. There were honourable exceptions. The Hervé Legér bandage dress, resurrected from the mid-eighties and closely related to the earlier BodyMap collections and their proto body con styles. While the average woman was always going to have problems with a full on bandage dress, its influence did seep into other areas of fashion and if worn carefully it could disguise a multitude of sins. Better yet, as seen in the spring summer NYC collections, the classic Hervé Legér dress doesn’t look so good on a starved to within an inch of her life model. Curves – albeit curves far more subtle than most of us have been blessed with – allow this style to be seen in all its glory.

But this really was an honourable exception. As someone who lived through the eighties, I was pretty horrified to see some of the acid colours making a comeback – they bleached the life out of all but the most robust complexions then and they were doing it again – some truly hideous knitwear and the oh so hilarious ironic nods to the early eighties Sloane (non) style. All decades must make a comeback, but there are times when you wish quite fervently that twenty years wasn’t considered long enough to render a decade “vintage” and that fashion designers weren’t quite so cruel. With the last hurrah of the noughties, I hoped we’d see the last of this sort of anti-style and in a way my wish was granted, but be careful what you wish for. The beginning of this decade sees us going back to the nineties. Be still my beating heart.

So far, so very little in the way of detail is forthcoming, but Chloé showed the “double denim” look in the S/S 2010 show (denim jeans teamed with a denim shirt) which is not a good sign. Neon is still out there as well, so prepare for another summer of wondering if the headache you can’t shift has been caused by stress, environmental pressure or, far more likely, the migraine inducing outfit you’re wearing.

It’s not all bad news. Lanvin are continuing to drape, drape, drape. This is a style that just about anyone can adapt to suit their body type. It looks effortlessly stylish and it is all about the achievement of elegance through comfort and simplicity. Embrace this beacon of hope. The S/S 2010 collections were so heart-stoppingly dull, that without further intervention, it looks like the first spring/summer of this brave new decade will be a season to consign to the fashion dustbin, at least for the next decade or so. In twenty years time the new masters of the fashion world will be ironically raiding it and taking its worst crimes as “inspiration” for their new collections. Warn your infant daughters now! Their future is bright, but only because it’s going to be stuffed full of boak-inducing neon.

Careena Bruen © 2010

 

 

 

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