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periscope june 2021 summary

Written by: Emma Shuen Lee (21-O1), He Jizhao (21-U5), Katelyn Joshy (21-U1), Lim Rakshita Murugan (21-E1), Zi Loong, Zexel (21-E2), Zuo Yuning (21-A1)

Designed by: Lay Kai En, Ashley (21-O1)

Welcome back to another edition of our monthly summary of the happenings around the world! From the COVID-19 lab leak theory to floating solar farms in Singapore, we have various interesting news summaries in store for you! Read on to find out more!

Global

COVID-19 Lab Leak Theory 

With the pandemic becoming our new normal, it has led many to question how COVID-19 even came about. Recently, there’s been much debate on whether the current origins of the virus are accurate and some speculate that COVID-19 may have emerged from a laboratory in China, with former White House strategist Stephen K. Bannon questioning whether there was a link between the virus and “bioweapons research” in China.

Initially, the leak theory was a claim by President Donald Trump, when senior officials of the Trump administration concluded in early 2020 that Covid-19 originated from a Chinese lab, although officials investigating the pandemic’s origins did not have conclusive evidence to support this hypothesis. Thus, it was slammed by society until the Biden administration intensified efforts to determine the origins of Covid-19 and gave new life to the theory that COVID-19 may have leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Here are some findings that make the theory plausible:

  1. Several researchers of the Wuhan Institute of Virology had fallen ill with Covid-like symptoms before the first publicly known case. 

  1. The director of America’s largest biomedical research facility suggested the "unusual features" of the virus may indicate it is "engineered”.

  1. Email exchanges between Dr. Anthony Fauci and the executive at EcoHealth Alliance surfaced, where EcoHealth thanked Fauci for publicly stating that scientific evidence supports a natural origin for COVID-19 and not a lab release.

Fauci is America’s top infectious disease expert and the main naysayer of the theory. EcoHealth Alliance is a non-profit organisation that funds the Wuhan Institute of Virology’s research.

In conclusion, nothing conclusive has truly backed the theory, thus it remains a speculation. 

G7 Summit 

The Group of Seven (G7) summit ended more than a week ago, and many issues were on the table. Firstly, leaders promised 870 million vaccine doses for the developing world over the next year, adding to the 250 million and 100 million already pledged by the US and the UK respectively. “We welcome the generous announcements about donations of vaccines and thank leaders,” said Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, Director General of the WHO, “but we need more, and we need them faster".

Secondly, the G7 leaders agreed to phase out domestic coal power plants and not to invest in new ones in the developing world. They also committed $2.8 billion to developing countries to help them switch to cleaner fuels and reduce their reliance on fossil fuels. However, climate activists claimed that more could have been done.

Thirdly, US President Joe Biden tried to relieve the tension that has spilled over from the actions of the previous administration. French President Emmanuel Macron remarked that "it’s great to have a U.S. president who’s part of the club and very willing to cooperate”. President Biden also asserted that the G7 was in a "contest with autocratic governments" as he addressed human rights issues.

Last but not least, the leaders agreed to discourage multinational companies from using tax havens to evade corporate taxes and plan to impose a minimum 15% corporate tax rate to achieve that aim. They also promised to mandate their companies and financial institutions to disclose their degree of exposure to climate change risks.

Regional

China’s relaxation of the two-child policy

On 31 May, the Chinese government announced that there would be a further relaxation of birth-control regulations which allow parents to have three children instead of two. According to Xinhua news agency, this policy will be bolstered by “supportive measures, which will be conducive to improving (the) country's population structure, fulfilling the country's strategy of actively coping with an ageing population and maintaining the advantage, endowment of human resources".

This measure was implemented in response to the declining birth rates in China. China’s fertility rate stands at 1.3, one of the lowest in the world. Its data census reports that the number of newborn babies has plummeted from 18 million in 2016 to 12 million last year, which also happens to be the lowest number of births recorded in the country since the 1960s. 

However, whether this is an effective policy in countering the rapidly ageing population remains a question. Many are asking how a three-child policy translates to more children when the two-child version in 2016 did little to change the demographic trend. Citizens have even expressed their disdain for the policy, citing how out of touch the policy is. The skyrocketing costs of longer working hours in China deter young people from having children, especially with more women pursuing careers and delaying marriage and motherhood. Furthermore, years of indoctrination have cultivated the mindset that a family’s resources are best devoted to one child, preventing even more from expanding their families. 

China’s wandering elephant herd

Recently, a herd of wild Asian elephants in southeast China has caught worldwide attention for their long northward journey more than 500 kilometers away from their traditional home in Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture. The herd left Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve on 15th March 2020 for their journey. Even though no one has been hurt by the wandering elephant herd, it is reported that the elephants have already done more than a million’s worth of damage to crops, alongside some residential buildings during their search for food. Local authorities have been trying to steer the elephants away from populated areas to prevent any further clashes. Till now, the destination of and reasons for their unusual journey remain unknown. 

Meanwhile, many experts are calling for better planning and protection of elephant habitats within China’s national parks, such as elephant ecological corridors to connect habitats such that elephants can travel within them without encountering humans.

However, netizens on social media are captivated by this herd of elephants. Many express their affection towards these giant creatures after seeing videos of elephants splashing in puddles, playing in the mud and taking an adorable group nap.

Local

Racism in Singapore 

“Has Singapore run out of Chinese boys?” was what a taxi driver asked Miss Jacqueline in Mandarin, assuming that her husband, Mr Abraham (an Indian) would be unable to understand the conversation. Indeed, Mr Abraham was not well-versed in the Mandarin language, but could figure out the flow of the conversation. He expressed that he was proud of his wife’s response, which was that it did not matter to her about race since she truly loved him.

Another incident that sparked concern included Mr Dave Prakash, a netizen who had been spending a lovely time with his partner, came across another fellow citizen who accused him of “preying on Chinese girl”. He explained to him that he was racist for dating a Chinese woman, and that a Chinese woman should not date an Indian man.

It is on such rare occasions that Singapore’s underlying racism surfaces to remind us all that simply buttressing on sugar coated words would do little to approach the issue. Covert racism has always been a problem Singapore has grappled with. Sure, our situation is far better than other countries, where we do not physically harm someone based on their race—but should that be a reason for us to not account for the existence of these problems? Simply pushing away the bitter discussions under the rag only makes matters worse. It is what we have been doing for decades now, and precisely why we hear of racism till today. The recent, appalling incidents should serve as a pivotal moment for us to reconsider our efforts to eradicate racism. 

Floating solar farms

Singapore recently built one of the world’s largest floating solar farms and it is capable of potentially offsetting more than 32 kilo tonnes of carbon dioxide per year.

The surface of Tengah Reservoir has around 122 000 solar panels installed on its surface and will start powering PUB’s water treatment. This will help turn our reservoir water into potable water. Furthermore, the floating solar photovoltaic farm will cover 45 ha, about 45 football fields.

Why is Singapore building a solar farm? You see, Singapore is land-scarce. There is insufficient space to build other forms of renewable energy such as wind turbines. Building solar panels on roofs and land is also unfeasible as there is simply not enough space. Therefore, solar farms are the most viable option for generating renewable energy in  SIngapore.

Such a plan will help Singapore meet its sustainability goals by providing a blueprint for the design of future floating solar farms. Currently, more than 95% of Singapore’s energy mix comes from natural gas, the cleanest form of fossil fuel. Other sources, such as oil and coal, round up the mix.

The Tengah solar farm is said to contribute to approximately 4% of Singapore’s 1.5 GWp target. If the 2030 goal is reached, this solar energy could power about 350000 households. This is in line with Singapore’s target to halve its 2030 peak emissions by 2050, and achieve net zero emissions “as soon as viable” in the second half of the century.

Conclusion

We have now come to the end of this month’s summary. See you in July! 

Bibliography:

G7 Summit

  1. BBC. (2021, June 13). G7 summit: Leaders pledge climate action but disappoint activists. BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-57461670. 

  2. Holton , K., & Milliken, D. (2021, June 5). Tech giants and tax havens targeted by historic G7 deal. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/business/g7-nations-near-historic-deal-taxing-multinationals-2021-06-05/. 

  3. Martuscelli, C. (2021, June 13). G7 leaders pledge 870 million vaccines to developing world. POLITICO. https://www.politico.eu/article/g7-leaders-coronavirus-vaccines-developing-countries/. 

  4. Milliken, D., & John, M. (2021, June 5). G7 backs making climate risk disclosure mandatory. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/g7-backs-making-climate-risk-disclosure-mandatory-2021-06-05/. 

  5. Piper, E., & Schomberg, W. (2021, June 12). More needed: G7 nations agree to boost climate finance. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/business/sustainable-business/g7-leaders-commit-increasing-climate-finance-contributions-2021-06-12/. 

  6. Reuters. (2021, June 13). Factbox: China, climate and vaccines - what the G7 agreed this weekend. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/china-climate-vaccines-what-g7-agreed-this-weekend-2021-06-13/. 

  7. Sopel, J. (2021, June 14). G7 summit: Biden says America is back at the table. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-57462047. 

  8. The White House. (2021, June 13). Carbis Bay G7 Summit Communique. whitehouse.gov. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/06/13/carbis-bay-g7-summit-communique/. 

  9. World Health Organisation. (2021, June 13). G7 announces pledges of 870 million COVID-19 vaccine doses, of which at least half to be delivered by the end of 2021. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/news/item/13-06-2021-g7-announces-pledges-of-870-million-covid-19-vaccine-doses-of-which-at-least-half-to-be-delivered-by-the-end-of-2021. 

China’s wandering elephant herd:

  1. China’s Wandering Elephant Herd is Global Social Media Hit. Voice of America. (2021). Retrieved 16 June 2021, from https://www.voanews.com/east-asia-pacific/chinas-wandering-elephant-herd-global-social-media-hit. 

  2. Hua, S. (2021). A Herd of Wild Elephants Wandering Across China Captivates Millions. WSJ. Retrieved 16 June 2021, from https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-herd-of-wild-elephants-wandering-across-china-captivates-millions-11623167516. 

  3. Julia Hollingsworth and Zixu Wang, C. (2021). Millions of people in China can't stop watching a pack of roving elephants. CNN. Retrieved 16 June 2021, from https://edition.cnn.com/2021/06/09/china/elephants-china-yunnan-intl-hnk/index.html. 

  4. This elephant herd is wandering through China, causing chaos and capturing hearts  | CBC Radio. CBC. (2021). Retrieved 16 June 2021, from https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/as-it-happens-the-tuesday-edition-1.6057710/this-elephant-herd-is-wandering-through-china-causing-chaos-and-capturing-hearts-1.6059317.

  5. Timeline: Trail of migrating elephants in SW China. News.cgtn.com. (2021). Retrieved 16 June 2021, from https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-06-07/-Timeline-Trail-of-migrating-elephants-in-SW-China-10TEJE6h00E/index.html.

China’s relaxation of the two-child policy

  1. BBC. (2021, May 31). China allows three children in major policy shift. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-57303592. 

  2. The Economist Newspaper. (n.d.). China rapidly shifts from a two-child to a three-child policy. The Economist. https://www.economist.com/china/2021/06/03/china-rapidly-shifts-from-a-two-child-to-a-three-child-policy. 

COVID-19 Lab Leak Theory

  1. The Indian Express. (2021, June 10) Explained: Where did the Covid-19 virus come from? Nirupama Subramanian.  

  1. Politico. (2021, June 15) Top Trump officials pushed the Covid-19 lab-leak theory. Investigators had doubts. ERIN BANCO and DANIEL LIPPMAN. 

  1. Financial Times. (MAY 31 2021) How Biden came round to the Wuhan lab-leak theory. Demetri Sevastopulo.

  1. The Washington Post. (2021, May 27). The Wuhan lab-leak theory is getting more attention. That’s because key evidence is still missing. Adam Taylor.

  1. CNN. (2021, June 4). Dr. Anthony Fauci says publicly released email about lab leak is being misconstrued. Jacqueline Howard. 

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