THE PLATFORM

  THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE BEES TO THE ECOSYSTEM By Raphael Banda- Media Trainer Most of us normally complain when we are stung by the bees and feel good when the bee is found dead. However, there is need for the change of mindset and focus our energies towards protecting these insects as they contribute greatly to our livelihood. The extinction of the bees makes sad reading as they make 78% of the food that you and I eat every day. But how much efforts do we make to protect bees from further extinction? Journalists whether from Private and public media have a huge role to generate more content around preservation of cardinal insects such as bees. Some of the major dangers to the life of the bee are human activities such as large changes in land use and industrialized agriculture practices what involves the use of some herb and pesticides. The detrimental use of pesticides has contributed to destroying habitant for bees and reducing their available food sources. Rising t...

  Forests are critical to the fighting global warming and curbing disasters in Zambia and elsewhere. By Raphael Banda  ( bandaraphael55@gmail.com or +260979208286). The more than 400 woodlands that the nation is endowed with should be protected more by journalists and other well-meaning citizens. More trees need to be planted, and assisted-natural tree regeneration needs to be stepped up, as a result of the nation's current drought crises and impending food crisis. After the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) produces the contingency plan, the government and like-minded organisations like the United Nations World Food Programme and African Risk Capacity should continue to train journalists to cover pre-, during, and post-disaster events in the nation. The public will be informed by journalists with accurate and trustworthy information, such as information about premiums that a nation must raise to be eligible for an insurance payout in the event of a geologica...

Pictures taken today (March 1 st 2024) by Kwenje Fm journalist White Luhanga showing a bridge on Lundazi-Chama road washed away due to heavy rains.   By Raphael Banda   Climate Change causes threat to food security in the Southern half of Zamba .     To avert such hash effects of climate change in Zambia and elsewhere, planting of bamboo can provide a significant contribution to combatting climate change in rural areas. Bamboo h elps avoid fossil fuel use and reduce deforestation, by offering an alternative, highly renewable source of biomass energy. More also, they offer a sustainable source of bioenergy for the many people who rely on solid biomass for cooking, such as charcoal   but bamboo can be converted into a source of heating and electricity. In and around the tropics, bamboo is essential to a large number of agricultural and natural environments. Bamboo is essential for the restoration of damaged areas because it can grow on difficult soi...

  By Raphael Banda   B iodiversity governance   This piece of writing will start with a question. Do we have enough laws that protect biodiversity, if yes are they being implemented to pervert biodiversity loss? We may be aware that biodiversity governance concerns all laws, rules, policies, and processes that govern the management, conservation, and use of biodiversity, including mechanisms for benefit-sharing, protecting rights, safeguarding against harm, and ensuring accountability. This includes how decisions are made, power is shared, and rights and responsibilities are being enforced, these include both traditional and statutory laws. Over the years, balancing competing interests has been one of the challenges    of biodiversity governance. There is need for systems to regulate our interactions with nature on both domestic and international scene. This issue draws local and international attention because species don’t respect jurisdictional ...

By Raphael Banda (Journalism Trainer/Journalist bandaraphael55@gmail)   Journalists and other stakeholders need to increase climate change awareness to preserve food security and biodiversity loss globally.   In the recent past most parts of the world have witnessed high temperatures, prolonged dry spells and flashfloods, with Zambia not being exception. This is threatening national food security, causing immense damage to infrastructure and impacting economic activities.   A week ago , the European Union (EU) Climate Change Service disclosed that for the first time, global warming has exceeded 1.5C across an entire year. The situation calls for increased public sensitization, awareness and doubling of efforts to cut down greenhouse gas emissions to slow down the unfolding climate crisis. It is also crucial that African countries highly impacted by climate change begin to access the loss and damage fund to address their peculiar areas of concern. ...

 By Raphael Banda (Journalism Trainer/journalist) Most parts of the country have recorded the dry spell which has drastically affected mots crops that are currently wilting. Farmers have expressed worry that this will lead to the poor crop yields in this year's harvest season. With Mealie Meal the product of maize grain being the country's staple food, this situation pauses a danger to the country's food security at both household and national levels. current situation in some crop fields-Siavonga Zambia The Ministry of Green Economy and Environment released this information through the Metrological Department. AGROMETEOROLOGICAL BULLETIN HIGHLIGHTS      TIME ISSUED: 8:45 CAT   DATE ISSUED: 10TH FEBRUARY, 2024 ANALYSIS PERIOD: 21ST TO 31ST JANUARY, 2024 ⮚ Zambia records normal to below average rainfall;  ⮚ A dry spell observed between 21st and 31st January, 2024; ⮚ Soil moisture insufficient (10% to 50%) in most parts of Zambia; ⮚ ...

  The Loss of Biodiversity has continued to be a matter of public concern by many environmentally focused institutions in Zambia and across the globe. Climate Change is the number one threat to biodiversity according to the studies conducted by scientists.  Difforestation and agriculture expansion have been seen as the leading causes of difforestation in Zambia and strides are being made to fight them methodically. Thus, the training of journlsists in Biodiversty like the one orgainzed by Earth Journalism Network and Internews Netwrok Zambia recently, provides an opportunity for media practioners to have the necessary knowledge meant to prevent further biodiversty  loss. A team of Journalists and CSOs on a media tour to Rufunsa district during the training organised by Earth Journalism Network and Internews Network Zambia? (January 24th-26th 2024). Links to the stories produced during the Biodiversity Training 1.https://youtu.be/NAWfd5J2vK0 ZNBC 2.https://youtu.be/dzoQGo3...