- Tham gia
- 28/9/2018
- Bài viết
- 1.262
1. BASIC LISTENING
TRADE IN TIGER & RHINO PARTS
Chinese officials say the country will permit trading of products made from endangered tigers and rhinos in “special” cases.
The decision ended a ban that had been in effect since 1993. No reason was given for lifting the ban.
A government statement issued on Monday did not note any change to existing law. Instead, the statement said the government would “control” the trade.
The new rules permit the sale of rhino horns and tiger bones from farmed animals. The animal parts may be sold only if the products are for medical research or treatment. Tiger bone and rhino horn are used in traditional Chinese medicine. There is a lack of evidence, however, that they are effective in treating disease.
The statement said the central government “urged governments at all levels to improve publicity activities for protecting rhinos and tigers to help the public actively boycott any illegal purchases.”
Wildlife conservation groups have condemned the decision. The U.S.-based World Wildlife Fund said the move would lead to “devastating” results around the world. It said illegal hunters would be able to hide behind the legalized trade.
Margaret Kinnaird is with the World Wildlife Fund. She said in a statement, “With wild tiger and rhino populations at such low levels and facing numerous threats, legalized trade in their parts is simply too great a gamble for China to take.”
She added that the decision appeared to go against, in her words, “the leadership China has shown recently in tackling the illegal wildlife trade.”
China banned the sale of ivory from elephant tusks earlier this year, a move that conservationists praised. Britain’s Environmental Investigation Agency said the move hurts “international efforts for tiger and rhino conservation.”
The group added that China has destroyed its “reputation as a growing leader in conservation.”
Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said China’s position on protecting endangered animals is unchanged. He said the changes are aimed at making earlier rules clearer and increasing enforcement.
There are fewer than 4,000 wild tigers left in the world, according to 2016 reports. Studies estimate the population of wild rhinos to be less than 30,000.
I’m Ashley Thompson.
2. ADVANCED LISTENING
WORLD HUNGER DAY
Today, some 815 million people suffer chronically from hunger. And although this is significantly fewer people than the numbers we saw a decade ago, hunger still kills more people than AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria combined.
On May 28th, we observe World Hunger Day. It is an effort to focus attention on the fact that despite a sufficient availability of food nearly everywhere, globally, some 21,000 people die every day from hunger or malnutrition.
JOHN F. KENNEDY - (Speech on June 04, 1963)
“Today we have gathered to rededicate ourselves to the objectives of that Congress, the objective that all nations, all people, all inhabitants of this planet have all the food that they need, all the food that they deserve as human beings. We are here to renew a worldwide commitment to banish hunger and outlaw it.”
“At the launching of the first World Food Congress, President Franklin Roosevelt declared that freedom from want and freedom from fear go hand in hand, and that is true today.”
“During the past 20 years there have been revolutionary changes affecting these matters in farm technology, in trade patterns, in economic development, in world trade. Today the average farmer in the United States can produce three times as much as he did in 1945. New trading blocs have been formed, blocs which can be used to strengthen the world or to divide it. This Nation and others have provided economic and technical assistance to less wealthy nations struggling to develop viable economies.”
“And population increases have become a matter of serious concern, not because world food production will be insufficient to keep pace with the two percent rate of increase, but because, as you know, the population growth rate is too often the highest where hunger is the most prevalent.”
“The same central problem that troubled President Roosevelt when he called together the first World Congress in '43 is unfortunately still with us today. Half of humanity is still undernourished or hungry. In 70 developing nations, with over 2 billion peoples, malnutrition is widespread and persistent.”
People do not go hungry because the world does not produce enough food for everyone. According to the world Hunger Education Service, over the past three decades, significant growth in food production, along with improved access to food, helped reduce the percentage of chronically undernourished people in developing countries from 34 percent to 15 percent. The principal problem is that many people in the world still do not have resources to purchase or grow enough food.
BAN KI-MOON – The United Nations Secretary-General
"Today's problem will only grow larger tomorrow unless we act now today. I call on you to take bold and urgent steps to address the root causes of this global food crisis. We want the firm commitment to moving ahead."
"Only by acting together, in partnership can we overcome this crisis today and for tomorrow. Hundred of millions of the world's people expect no less. Nothing is more degrading than hunger, especially when it is man made. It breeds anger, social disintegration, ill health and economic decline. In the name of the development goals we all set at the millennium, the right to food, and our common humanity, I urge all of you to act together now."
Indeed, hunger is a consequence of poverty, and also one of its causes. Hunger exists because many countries lack social safety nets; because in many countries women, although they do most of the farming, do not have as much access as men to training, credit or land.
Conflict, governance systems that do not encourage investment in agriculture, poor management of land and natural resources, lack of educational opportunity, displacement of small farmers by natural disasters, and financial and economic crises that eliminate jobs at the lowest levels, all contribute toward creating conditions that push the poorest into hunger.
SUSAN E. RICE - National Security Advisor
Throughout human history, the world has struggled with hunger and famine. For as long as mankind has cultivated crops, we’ve contended (tranh đấu) with drought and blight (bệnh tàn rụi / thảm họa). But, in the past few decades, we’ve gained the tools to write a different future for humanity. At the World Food Congress in 1963, President Kennedy stated the cause very clearly: “As members of the human race, we have the means, we have the capacity to eliminate hunger from the face of the earth in our lifetime. We need only the will.”
Since then, we’ve turned our will to reshaping our planet. The scientific achievements of the Green Revolution averted mass famines and saved more than a billion people from starvation. By adopting new seeds and agricultural techniques, countries that once relied on aid can now feed themselves. It’s a compelling reminder of just how much we can accomplish with focus, ingenuity (tài khéo léo), and the will to get things done. So many of you here today have been instrumental in this progress, and I want to thank all of you for your extraordinary contributions.
They know, and you know, that ending food insecurity is profoundly in the interests of the United States. It’s an outrage when children starve or when hard-working families can’t afford to fill their most basic nutritional needs. We’ve seen what can happen when a spike in food prices plunges tens of millions of people into poverty—riots break out; conflicts for scarce resources cost lives; economies falter; instability increases. On the other hand, investing in agriculture is one of the surest ways to reduce poverty, expand economic activity, and grow the middle class. And that’s why President Obama has made food security a top priority in our global development efforts.
When the President spoke here two years ago, he stated his conviction (niềm tin vững chắc) that the United States has “a moral obligation to lead the fight against hunger and malnutrition.” That means it’s not enough to simply keep responding to crises after they happen. We need to break the cycle of hunger by empowering more people to feed themselves.
And that’s why President Obama put food security high on the world’s agenda.
Over the past decade, a global push to reduce hunger and extreme poverty has marked some significant successes, thanks in part to the efforts of numerous international and transnational institutions, foundations, NGOs and governments, including the United States.
But on world Hunger Day, let us not forget that with over 815,000 people still living in daily food insecurity, we still have a long way to go before we can safely say that no child goes to bed hungry most nights, that no parent skimps on their own dinner so the children can eat.
Composed & Edited by Lê Quốc An
TRADE IN TIGER & RHINO PARTS
Chinese officials say the country will permit trading of products made from endangered tigers and rhinos in “special” cases.
The decision ended a ban that had been in effect since 1993. No reason was given for lifting the ban.
A government statement issued on Monday did not note any change to existing law. Instead, the statement said the government would “control” the trade.
The new rules permit the sale of rhino horns and tiger bones from farmed animals. The animal parts may be sold only if the products are for medical research or treatment. Tiger bone and rhino horn are used in traditional Chinese medicine. There is a lack of evidence, however, that they are effective in treating disease.
The statement said the central government “urged governments at all levels to improve publicity activities for protecting rhinos and tigers to help the public actively boycott any illegal purchases.”
Wildlife conservation groups have condemned the decision. The U.S.-based World Wildlife Fund said the move would lead to “devastating” results around the world. It said illegal hunters would be able to hide behind the legalized trade.
Margaret Kinnaird is with the World Wildlife Fund. She said in a statement, “With wild tiger and rhino populations at such low levels and facing numerous threats, legalized trade in their parts is simply too great a gamble for China to take.”
She added that the decision appeared to go against, in her words, “the leadership China has shown recently in tackling the illegal wildlife trade.”
China banned the sale of ivory from elephant tusks earlier this year, a move that conservationists praised. Britain’s Environmental Investigation Agency said the move hurts “international efforts for tiger and rhino conservation.”
The group added that China has destroyed its “reputation as a growing leader in conservation.”
Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said China’s position on protecting endangered animals is unchanged. He said the changes are aimed at making earlier rules clearer and increasing enforcement.
There are fewer than 4,000 wild tigers left in the world, according to 2016 reports. Studies estimate the population of wild rhinos to be less than 30,000.
I’m Ashley Thompson.
2. ADVANCED LISTENING
WORLD HUNGER DAY
Today, some 815 million people suffer chronically from hunger. And although this is significantly fewer people than the numbers we saw a decade ago, hunger still kills more people than AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria combined.
On May 28th, we observe World Hunger Day. It is an effort to focus attention on the fact that despite a sufficient availability of food nearly everywhere, globally, some 21,000 people die every day from hunger or malnutrition.
JOHN F. KENNEDY - (Speech on June 04, 1963)
“Today we have gathered to rededicate ourselves to the objectives of that Congress, the objective that all nations, all people, all inhabitants of this planet have all the food that they need, all the food that they deserve as human beings. We are here to renew a worldwide commitment to banish hunger and outlaw it.”
“At the launching of the first World Food Congress, President Franklin Roosevelt declared that freedom from want and freedom from fear go hand in hand, and that is true today.”
“During the past 20 years there have been revolutionary changes affecting these matters in farm technology, in trade patterns, in economic development, in world trade. Today the average farmer in the United States can produce three times as much as he did in 1945. New trading blocs have been formed, blocs which can be used to strengthen the world or to divide it. This Nation and others have provided economic and technical assistance to less wealthy nations struggling to develop viable economies.”
“And population increases have become a matter of serious concern, not because world food production will be insufficient to keep pace with the two percent rate of increase, but because, as you know, the population growth rate is too often the highest where hunger is the most prevalent.”
“The same central problem that troubled President Roosevelt when he called together the first World Congress in '43 is unfortunately still with us today. Half of humanity is still undernourished or hungry. In 70 developing nations, with over 2 billion peoples, malnutrition is widespread and persistent.”
People do not go hungry because the world does not produce enough food for everyone. According to the world Hunger Education Service, over the past three decades, significant growth in food production, along with improved access to food, helped reduce the percentage of chronically undernourished people in developing countries from 34 percent to 15 percent. The principal problem is that many people in the world still do not have resources to purchase or grow enough food.
BAN KI-MOON – The United Nations Secretary-General
"Today's problem will only grow larger tomorrow unless we act now today. I call on you to take bold and urgent steps to address the root causes of this global food crisis. We want the firm commitment to moving ahead."
"Only by acting together, in partnership can we overcome this crisis today and for tomorrow. Hundred of millions of the world's people expect no less. Nothing is more degrading than hunger, especially when it is man made. It breeds anger, social disintegration, ill health and economic decline. In the name of the development goals we all set at the millennium, the right to food, and our common humanity, I urge all of you to act together now."
Indeed, hunger is a consequence of poverty, and also one of its causes. Hunger exists because many countries lack social safety nets; because in many countries women, although they do most of the farming, do not have as much access as men to training, credit or land.
Conflict, governance systems that do not encourage investment in agriculture, poor management of land and natural resources, lack of educational opportunity, displacement of small farmers by natural disasters, and financial and economic crises that eliminate jobs at the lowest levels, all contribute toward creating conditions that push the poorest into hunger.
SUSAN E. RICE - National Security Advisor
Throughout human history, the world has struggled with hunger and famine. For as long as mankind has cultivated crops, we’ve contended (tranh đấu) with drought and blight (bệnh tàn rụi / thảm họa). But, in the past few decades, we’ve gained the tools to write a different future for humanity. At the World Food Congress in 1963, President Kennedy stated the cause very clearly: “As members of the human race, we have the means, we have the capacity to eliminate hunger from the face of the earth in our lifetime. We need only the will.”
Since then, we’ve turned our will to reshaping our planet. The scientific achievements of the Green Revolution averted mass famines and saved more than a billion people from starvation. By adopting new seeds and agricultural techniques, countries that once relied on aid can now feed themselves. It’s a compelling reminder of just how much we can accomplish with focus, ingenuity (tài khéo léo), and the will to get things done. So many of you here today have been instrumental in this progress, and I want to thank all of you for your extraordinary contributions.
They know, and you know, that ending food insecurity is profoundly in the interests of the United States. It’s an outrage when children starve or when hard-working families can’t afford to fill their most basic nutritional needs. We’ve seen what can happen when a spike in food prices plunges tens of millions of people into poverty—riots break out; conflicts for scarce resources cost lives; economies falter; instability increases. On the other hand, investing in agriculture is one of the surest ways to reduce poverty, expand economic activity, and grow the middle class. And that’s why President Obama has made food security a top priority in our global development efforts.
When the President spoke here two years ago, he stated his conviction (niềm tin vững chắc) that the United States has “a moral obligation to lead the fight against hunger and malnutrition.” That means it’s not enough to simply keep responding to crises after they happen. We need to break the cycle of hunger by empowering more people to feed themselves.
And that’s why President Obama put food security high on the world’s agenda.
Over the past decade, a global push to reduce hunger and extreme poverty has marked some significant successes, thanks in part to the efforts of numerous international and transnational institutions, foundations, NGOs and governments, including the United States.
But on world Hunger Day, let us not forget that with over 815,000 people still living in daily food insecurity, we still have a long way to go before we can safely say that no child goes to bed hungry most nights, that no parent skimps on their own dinner so the children can eat.
Composed & Edited by Lê Quốc An
