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The 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology was awarded for the research that led to the development of mRNA vaccines for COVID19. mRNA stands for messenger Ribonucleic Acid, a form of nucleic acid that carries genetic information. These vaccines attempt to activate the immune system to produce antibodies that help counter an infection from a live virus. mRNA offers important safety advantages. While most vaccines use weakened or dead bacteria or viruses to evoke a response from the immune system. mRNA vaccines only introduce a piece of the genetic material that corresponds to viral proteins. Therefore the mRNA vaccine does not expose people to the virus itself. Such vaccines are fully synthetic and do not require a host for growth, for example eggs or bacteria. They can be produced faster, cheaper and in more standardized fashion, which improves responsiveness to outbreaks. mRNA vaccines are different in some key ways. A piece of DNA must be converted into RNA, for a cell to be able to m...

 Extraction of mineral resources from the oceans below a depth of 200 metres is what’s called Deep Sea Mining. The seabed is not yet thoroughly explored, and depletion terrestrial deposits has lead to an increased demand to look into the depths of the ocean. The International Seabed Authority (ISA) has recently declared that it is going to start taking permit applications from various companies that wish to mine the ocean floor. While this practice certainly has economic benefits, it can be just as harmful for the marine ecosystem. These are the methods of conducting Deep Sea Mining : • Extracting metals from poly metallic nodules on abyssal plains. • Stripping cobalt crusts off of seamounts. • Extracting poly metallic sulphides from hydrothermal vents. As of now, countries are free to carry out exploitation within their borders. Earlier this year, in June, Norway proposed opening it’s borders for Deep Sea Mining. France has banned it in their waters, while Germany has cal...

The Government Of India recently announced a long term map for internationalization of the Indian Rupee (INR). This will make it easier for Indian businesses to trade or invest abroad, and enhance the INR's liquidity, while facilitating financial stability. The daily average share of the Indian Rupee in the global foreign exchange market hovers at around 1.6%. At the same time, India's share in global goods trade is 2%. The Indian government has enabled external commercial borrowings in INR. Indian banks are being pushed to open Indian Rupee Vostro Accounts for banks from Russia, UAE, Sri Lanka and Mauritius. India is already trading with 18 different countries in INR. Of course, there are several challenges that need to be overcome. Demonetisation adversely impacted confidence in the INR. The fact that India doesn’t provide full capital account convertibility also doesn’t help. Exchange rate volatility cannot be ignored either. India can draw some lesson from China’s...

 In the last few years, there has been a rise in warnings against the use of Artificial Intelligence by technology leaders, researchers and experts. Recently, the World Trade Organisation called for caution in using AI for public healthcare. The possibility of machines surpassing human beings is certainly a threat, the likelihood of which needs more discourse and deliberation. In developing countries especially, this threat can propagate inequity and exclusion for minorities and other marginalised groups. A report by the United Nations Development Programme highlighted that algorithmic bias has a great impact on financial services, healthcare, retail and gig workers industries. This report stated that AI generated credit scoring exhibited a tendency to assign a lower score to women, in comparison to men. Significant biases have been identified even in healthcare diagnostics. In India, a rapidly developing country, both commercial and government players are shifting from Big D...

 The Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Report provides one of the most expansive and scientific reviews on the impact of climate change. It discusses different shared socio economic pathways for the future with varying levels of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. The likelihood of the average warming exceeding 2°C around mid century is very high. The average global temperature is already 1.09°C higher than pre-industrial levels. CO2 concentration in the atmosphere is currently 410 ppm, compared to 285 ppm in 1850. Sea level rise basically means an increase in the levels of the world’s oceans due to effects of global warming. One of the major causes of this is burning fossil fuels, and the fact that the majority of the heat produced is absorbed by oceans. As water gets warmer, it expands. This, along with the melting of glaciers and ice sheets, leads to sea level rise. Nearly 700 million people around the world live along the coast and there continue...

 Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an invisible pandemic, and it appears it’s here to stay. Rapidly rising AMR rates need an accelerated, multi sectoral, national as well as a global response. Public health response all over the world has been threatened due to rising misuse and over use of antibiotics. Microbial resistance to antibiotics has made it a lot more difficult to treat infections such as pneumonia, tuberculosis, septicaemia and several food borne diseases. AMR also imposes a huge health cost on the patients in the form of long hospitalization, health complications and delayed recovery. Those undergoing complex surgery or chemotherapy are at much greater risk. In 2019 AMR was responsible for 4.95 million human deaths. It adds to the burden of communicable diseases and strains a country’s healthcare system. An Indian Council of Medical Research study in 2022 showed that resistance levels increase 5% to 10% every year for broad spectrum antimicrobials. Ciprofloxacin i...

 Policymakers have been using financial inclusion as a key tool for reducing poverty and inequality, and to spur economic growth. Global Findex Database 2021 of the World Bank estimates that about 24% of adults globally do not have access to formal financial accounts. Micro, Small and Medium enterprises are also experiencing increasing financial disparity. In developing countries 21% of micro enterprises are constrained either due to rejection of loan applications or incompatible terms. Globally Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) contribute about 35% in developing economies and about 50% in developed economies. Closing the funding gap is essential for boosting economic growth and creating productive jobs. Women entrepreneurs at times face obstacles such as restrictive social norms, mobility constraints, lack of identification, lack of financial literacy etc, in obtaining basic banking services. This is reflected in the gender gap in bank account ownership. This divide...

 Deepfakes are the digital media (videos, audio and images) manipulated using Artificial Intelligence. Deepfakes are a new tool to spread computational propaganda and disinformation at scale and with speed. From deepfakes the potential damage to individuals, organizations and societies is vast. Advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning have enabled computer systems to create synthetic videos, aka deepfakes. A deepfake video can show a person saying or doing something they never said or did. This makes it possible to fabricate media by swapping faces, lip syncing and puppeteering things mostly without the consent of the person being impersonated. This can not only torment a person psychologically, but can also endanger their security, reputation and even cost them their career. Deepfakes can be used to depict a person indulging in antisocial behaviour such as hate speech, instigating violence etc. Thereby opening a whole new avenue for identity theft. They can be...

Nature based solutions can be defined as a collection of actions and policies that harness the power of nature to protect and restore ecosystems. It involves conserving and better managing ecosystems to remove carbon dioxide and the environment. One of the best known nature – based solutions for climate change is planting forests, but there are many more such solutions including, but not limited to, mangroves, peatlands, wetlands, coral reefs. We are faced with a dual crisis. Today over a million plant and animal species are facing extinction – more than ever before in human history. At the same time the climate emergency threatens to expose millions of people to extreme heat waves and leave a billion people affected by sea level rise over the next few decades. In such a scenario, nature based solutions are required to protect and enhance biodiversity. Such solutions can transform our energy, land, urban and industrial systems. Regenerative farming is one such solution, a...

 The Presidency of the Conference of Parties (COP) 28 of the UNFCCC has called for an agreement on global target of tripling renewable energy capacity from current levels by 2030. This figure appeared in the G20 declaration as well. In 2021, in total electricity generation, the contribution of renewable energy sources (RES) was only 28%. More than half of the RE generation was from hydropower, while solar energy contributed 13%, and wind 23%. Tripling RE capacity by 2030 implies a target of about 9000 GW, which is more than the total installed energy capacity from all sources in 2021. This is adding about 6000 GW of RE capacity between 2022 and 2030. Electricity demand across countries is highly differentiated, and the rates of growth vary for countries at different stages of development. Electricity demand is growing far more rapidly in developing countries. Electricity consumption in China and India between 2010 and 2019 grew annually at 6.6% and 6.3% annually, respectively. On t...

  Ecocide is the unchecked industrialization that can cause irreversible damage to the environment and ecosystem. The international community has urged the United Nations International Criminal Court (ICC) to recognize ecocide as an international crime. At present the Rome Statute of the ICC deals with four atrocities. They are genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and crimes of aggression. The provision regarding war crimes is the only one that can hold a perpetrator responsible for environmental damage, albeit if it is intentional during wartime. Ecocide is a crime in 11 countries, and 27 other nations are mulling laws around criminalizing environmental damage that has been caused wilfully. The European Parliament voted unanimously to enshrine ecocide in law. Most national definitions penalise “mass destruction of flora and fauna” or “deliberate actions capable of causing an ecological disaster”. Indiscriminate burning of fossil fuels polluting land and water ...

According to World Health Organisation Constitution, “enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being”. Meaning, no one should have to take out a mortgage in order to deal with a health calamity. Cancer treatment is one area where the cost of treatment is daunting for the majority of the population, particularly in low and middle income countries. They often have to pay for treatment through borrowings, sale of assets or the kindness of complete strangers. A report by the WHO highlighted that the cost of a course of standard treatment for early stage breast cancer would be equivalent of up to 10 years of average annual wages in India. The cost associated with other medical and other supportive care makes it even more unaffordable. Catastrophic cost can have an impact on survival rates, in turn jeopardising the right to live with dignity. For example the five-year survival rate for breast cancer in South Africa is 45%. In cont...