Forests face the brunt of changes in the weather

An increased likelihood of prolonged drought, extreme storms and flooding will pose a serious challenge for Europe’s forests.

With climate change comes unpredictable weather, and an increased likelihood of prolonged drought, extreme storms and flooding. That will pose a serious challenge for Europe’s forests. The risk of fire, which is already high in the Mediterranean region, will be greater; storms will be a problem in central Europe; and extreme rainfall will increase the risk of flooding in central and northern Europe.

Joanne Fitzgerald, a researcher at the European Forest Institute, says that the increased risk of forest fires is a good example of a changing climate. “The most serious threat in the Mediterranean zone is long dry spells. Climate models project that these will occur more often and last longer. Those spells will increase by over 15 days in southern Spain by the end of the century.”

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At a United Nations climate summit in New York in September, national governments pledged to protect forests. One of the most important initiatives was launched by the United Kingdom, Norway and the United States. They pledged a combined €219 million (with the largest contribution coming from Norway) to protect forests from being turned into farmland, which is a major cause of deforestation.

The plan is managed by the BioCarbon Fund, a World Bank-led public-private sector initiative that focuses on land use. According to the World Bank, the new initiative will protect forests and secure supply chains. It could also stimulate renewed interest in the REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation) scheme, which was launched in September 2008 to help developing countries achieve sustainable forest management.

Last month, the UK government announced financial support worth €175m for programmes aiming at encouraging businesses to combat deforestation in developing countries.

Justine Greening, the UK’s international development secretary, said that this money is needed as “climate change has the potential to halt or undo the progress we have made in the last two decades”.

Hannah Mowat, forests and climate campaigner at FERN, an NGO that monitors the EU’s work on forests, is sceptical if that amount of money will have a real impact, but is positive about the initiative. “The funds that the EU, and especially the UK, has spent on trying to improve forest governance via the EU’s forest law enforcement, governance and trade action plan, which tries to bring an element of good governance into the forest sector, is money that is leaving a legacy.”

Although there is no EU-wide forests policy, forests are mentioned in the Europe 2020 strategy, which states that forests should be managed sustainably and that action to combat deforestation at a global level should be strengthened. The European Commission last year called on the European Parliament and leaders of the member states to approve a policy framework that further co-ordinates forest-related policies in the member states.

Uncertainty over foreign-policy chief delays start of EU summit

EU leaders are supposed to strike agreements on three senior appointments tonight amid growing opposition against Federica Mogherini as the next foreign-policy chief.

The leaders of the 28 member states of the European Union will meet in Brussels later today (16 July) to appoint a successor to the UK’s Catherine Ashton as the EU’s foreign-policy chief.

The frontrunner is Federica Mogherini, Italy’s centre-left foreign minister, although opposition to her appointment has gathered strength in the past few days.

The uncertainty has forced Herman Van Rompuy, the president of the European Council, to postpone the start of the summit by two hours, to 8pm, to make time for additional bilateral consultations.

“There is no agreement on names yet,” said a diplomat involved in the preparations. Van Rompuy “continues to work the phones pretty hard”, the diplomat said.

Various names for alternatives to Mogherini have been floated in a frenzy of briefings and counter-briefings by member states’ diplomats over the past few days. Mogherini is controversial, especially with some of the EU’s newer member states, because of her conciliatory approach to Russia.

But there is no obvious candidate who would meet the various demands of nationality, political outlook and gender. Matteo Renzi, Italy’s prime minister, has emerged as a leader of Europe’s centre-left following a landslide victory for his Partito Democratico in elections to the European Parliament in May. Renzi has made it clear that he wants a woman as Ashton’s successor, and he has a strong claim on getting a top job for an Italian candidate.

Kristalina Georgieva, the current European commissioner for humanitarian aid, has been floated as a compromise candidate. But as a centre-right Bulgarian, she is unlikely to be supported by Bulgaria’s centre-left government, which seems to be inclined to nominate Kristian Vigenin, the foreign minister, as its candidate for European commissioner.

There is no sense among the EU leaders that Bulgaria needs to be rewarded or appeased – unlike Italy.

The current expectation is that Helle Thorning-Schmidt, Denmark’s centre-left prime minister, will be appointed president of the European Council. But that plan could be disrupted if there is a quarrel over the foreign-policy chief.

The leaders are expected to appoint the next high representative for foreign affairs and security policy together with successors to Van Rompuy, a Belgian conservative, and Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the Dutch centre-left finance minister who chairs meetings of the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers.

“All the leaders want a full package [of appointments] tonight,” the diplomat said. There had been speculation that given the difficulty of balancing the various demands, the European Council tonight might appoint the foreign-policy chief only. This appointment is required for Jean-Claude Juncker to form the next European Commission.

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Juncker himself was confirmed by the European Parliament yesterday (15 July) and will attend tonight’s summit because he has a say in the appointment of the high representative, who also serves as a vice-president of the European Commission.

Following the traditional exchange of views with Martin Schulz, the president of the Parliament, at 8pm, the leaders will also discuss the situation in Ukraine and hold a discussion with Juncker over his policy programme. They will then proceed to negotiating the appointments. A diplomat predicted that the negotiations would be “difficult”.

Manchester City’s owners are reportedly in ‘advanced discussions’ to take over Ligue 2 side Nancy.

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L’Equipe (via Sport Witness) claims a significant increase in TV rights in French football has increased interest in the country’s football clubs, with Nancy among a few sides approached by investors.

The report claims Manchester City’s owners would leave new Nancy president Jacques Rousselot in charge of the club for two years.

Those in charge of City’s club planning had been ‘studying’ the possibility of buying Nancy for months, according to the claims, but City’s recent problems associated with FFP are also said to be a factor.

City Football Group want to increase their standing in European football following their recent UEFA ban from European competition, with the owners apparently believing buying further football clubs to be the answer.

Nancy currently sit 14th in Ligue 2, closer to relegation than promotion to the top flight.

 

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Billy Gilmour has revealed how Harry Maguire grabbed him by the throat and “was saying you’re a wee guy” during Chelsea’s Carabao Cup meeting with Manchester United.

The Chelsea teen excelled as they beat Liverpool 2-0 on Tuesday night to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.

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But the 5ft 6in Gilmour admits he learned a valuable footballing lesson when he came up against with 6ft 4in England Maguire at Stamford Bridge.

“He was pushing me off, gripping me by the throat. Basically he was saying I’m a wee [small] guy,” recalled Gilmour, reports the Daily Mail.

“That’s something I have to deal with. But I won’t let that happen again. That was a lesson.

 

 

“He is going to try to bully young ones and that’s where I need to learn how to be stronger.

“I’ve been working on that and I can only get stronger. But that was a learning curve when he gripped me in the box.”

 

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Sergio Aguero joked that Pep Guardiola is “crazy” after the Spaniard berated him on the touchline despite scoring the winner at City beat Sheffield Wednesday in the fifth round of the FA Cup.

Aguero said Guardiola wanted him to run in behind Sheffield Wednesday’s centre-backs before his was substituted.

“He said when Riyad or Bernardo receive the ball just to move in behind the centre backs,” he said. “He’s focused on that. It’s fine, he’s fine. Always he’s a good manager and crazy!”

 

 

Guardiola saw the funny side when told what Aguero had said about him.

“I substituted him for Raz to make movements into the space,” he said. “I like to be crazy and a good manager!”

Guardiola also said Kevin De Bruyne missed out with a back problem which makes him a doubt for Sunday’s Manchester derby.

“Kevin had a problem, he was not fit,” he said. “The last game, in the last minutes he fell down in a bad position and had a problem in his back.

“Hopefully it’s not much, but I don’t know right now.”

 

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Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho condemned Eric Dier following his altercation with a supporter in the stands after Spurs’ FA Cup exit to Norwich, but understands why he did it.

In the aftermath of the penalty shootout defeat to the Canaries, Dier climbed into the lower tier of the West Stand and confronted a fan, who is alleged to have been arguing with his brother.

Footage has gone viral on social media and England international Dier is set to come under investigation from the Football Association.

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Mourinho said: “I think Eric Dier did something that we professionals cannot do but in these circumstances every one of us would do.

“Because when somebody insults you, and your family is there, and you get involved with the person that is insulting you, in this case a younger brother, I think Eric did what we professionals cannot do.

“But I repeat, probably everyone of us would do. I repeat, we professionals we cannot do, but I repeat I am with the player and I understand the player.

“This person insulted Eric, his family was there. The young brother was not happy with the situation and then Eric, I repeat (he) did what we professionals cannot do, but did something that probably we would do.”

The incident happened in the area behind the dugouts, which is a corporate section, and Mourinho has criticised it for not housing “real Tottenham fans”.

“The people that are in these privileged positions by the tunnel,” he added.

“Of course some are Tottenham fans but I think a lot of corporate, a lot of invitation, a lot of people with special status and probably it’s the place of the stadium where I sometimes have doubts over if they are the real Tottenham fans because these are the ones who support the boys until the last.”

It was an unsavoury end to a disappointing night as Spurs’ season was plunged into more despair.

Even before this, Tottenham had jumped the shark of Spursiness.

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Il y a tout juste 20 ans sortait Nevermind, le deuxième album du groupe Nirvana. Une véritable bombe dans le paysage musical mondial qui n’a quasiment pas connu d’équivalent depuis. Polydor célèbre l’anniversaire en grande pompe.

Il y a 20 ans jour pour jour, le 24 septembre, sortait Nevermind de Nirvana et son tube Smells like teen spirit retentissait sur toutes les FM. Quelques jours plus tard? l’album trustait les premières places des charts mondiaux, propulsant le groupe Nirvana au Panthéon des artistes musicaux de légende.

Nevermind était, et reste encore, une véritable boule d’énergie avec ses riffs de guitare imparables, ses coups de batterie lourds et endiablés et surtout la voix, les cris même de son leader Kurt Cobain. Smells like teen spirit est devenu le tube interplanétaire que l’on sait, véritable hymne générationnel, mais Nevermind comporte d’autres bombes, Come as you are notamment, mais aussi In Bloom, Breed ou Lithium.

La plupart des critiques musicaux de référence ne s’y sont pas trompés à l’époque en intégrant l’album de Nirvana dans le classement des meilleurs albums de tous les temps, aux côtés d’un Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band des Beatles, Highway 61 revisited de Bob Dylan, London Calling de The Clash ou encore l’album de Led Zeppelin comprenant Stairway to heaven.
Nevermind et Nirvana ont été à l’origine d’un véritable courant, le grunge, qui a touché la musique, mais aussi la mode vestimentaire, et sont définitivement rentrés dans la légende du rock avec le suicide de Kurt Cobain le 5 avril 1994 à l’âge de 27 ans.

Pour célébrer ce 20e anniversaire, Polydor, la maison de disque, a gâté les fans en ressortant l’album dans trois versions différentes. Une première avec le CD en version remasterisée, une Deluxe Edition avec des bonus comme des titres live, des faces B, des démos, des enregistrements de répétitions et deux sessions inédites données à la BBC. La troisième, la plus belle, baptisée Super Deluxe réservera aux fans le contenu de la Deluxe Edtion avec un live donné au Paramount Theatre de Seattle, pour la fête d’Halloween 91, et un livret de 90 pages. Le coffret comprendra surtout les Devonshire mixes, une version de Nevermind mixée et produite par Butch Vig, jugée plus conforme aux exigences de Kurt Cobain qui trouvait l’album commercialisé trop lisse.

Quelle que soit la version, le meilleur moyen de fêter les 20 ans de Nevermind est encore de le réécouter, le son poussé à fond. Tant pis si cela empêche de dormir les voisins, on est en week-end.

Jean-Christian Hay
Samedi 24 septembre 2011

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Scarlett Johansson a accordé un entretien à a chaîne CNN jeudi et en a profité pour revenir sur l’affaire des photos la montrant nue qui ont fait le tour du net ces derniers jours. L’actrice réclame le droit à la vie privée.

Plus qu’un simple piratage, l’apparition sur Internet des photos de Scarlett Johansson nue a mis les internautes en émoi, créant même une mode, le Scarlett Johanssoning. Jeudi, l’actrice a accordé à CNN un entretien au cours duquel le journaliste l’a questionnée sur sa vie privée. Elle en a profité pour taper du poing sur la table.

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«Qui ne veut pas protéger sa vie privée? Ce n’est pas parce qu’on est sous les feux de la rampe, parce qu’on est acteur ou qu’on fait des films ou quoi que ce soit qu’on n’a pas le droit à la vie privée». Depuis Lost in translation de Sofia Coppola, la blonde pulpeuse est devenue une véritable star hollywoodienne, enchaînant les succès, Iron Man 2, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Match Point , The Island, Le Prestige…, mais devenant surtout la cible des paparazzi qui guettent la moindre de ses sorties ou décortiquent sa vie amoureuse (Ryan Reynolds, Sean Penn…). Les deux fameuses photos nues ont même été piratées depuis son téléphone portable avec lequel elle se serait elle-même immortalisée, dans le plus simple appareil…

Mam’zelle Scarlett a appris à vivre avec cette situation mais elle la déplore: «Si on en arrive à se sentir en état de siège, c’est injuste, ce n’est pas bien». Elle reconnaît: «Je dois m’ajuster. Dans certains cas, on se donne beaucoup, sauf qu’on doit ensuite faire preuve de fermeté pour reprendre son jardin secret». Pas facile de trouver la limite.

En revanche, l’actrice n’a pas été interrogée sur le Scarlett Johanssoning, véritable phénomène qui a vu les internautes parodier les clichés de la divine Scarlett nue. On aurait aimé savoir si cela la faisait rire au moins…

Jean-Christian Hay
Vendredi 30 septembre 2011
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Pour la deuxième année consécutive, la star de Twilight, a eu les faveurs des lectrices de l’édition anglaise du magazine Glamour. Robert devance Taylor Lautner et Johnny Depp.

Le nouveau sex-symbol d’Hollywood n’en finit pas de vampiriser les femmes. Selon les lectrices de l’édition britannique du magazine Glamour, Rob est considéré comme étant le plus bel homme au monde.

En parlant de ce sondage, l’éditeur Jo Elvin a déclaré: «Plus de 40 000 lectrices du Glamour ont voté pour la liste la plus chaudement disputée de l’année, a expliqué l’éditeur Jo Elvin. Et alors que l’homme de la saga Twilight continue de dominer notre liste des hommes les plus sexy, les lectrices de Glamour ont démontré qu’elles ont des goûts éclectiques, allant de George Clooney, 50 ans, à Justin Bieber.» Un classement que Robert, attendu à Paris le dimanche 23 octobre pour la promotion du dernier volet de Twilight, n’a pour l’heure pas commenté.

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Même si, une interview accordée au Sun il y a six mois, donne un bon aperçu de son ressenti: «Je ne trouve pas du tout que je suis sexy, avait précisé le boyfriend de Kristen Stewart. Je ne me sens pas intéressé par toutes ces conversations autour de moi et de mon sex-appeal. C’est drôle, parce que même les filles qui me trouvent sexy, si tu leur parles pendant cinq minutes, l’illusion s’en va… Mais les gens vivent dans cette illusion, avec une image de moi qui n’est pas la réalité. Peu importe ce que tu fais ou ce que tu dis, ils vont créer ces fantasmes et s’y tenir». Sang pour sang lucide Rob!

A.M

Lundi 3 octobre 2011
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Pour l’anniversaire de Stacy Keibler, George n’a pas fait les choses à moitié. L’acteur a invité sa belle dans une destination paradisiaque.

Pour célébrer les 32 ans de sa nouvelle compagne, George Clooney a mis le paquet. Le quinquagénaire le plus courtisé d’Hollywood, accompagné de ses amis, a emmené sa belle catcheuse à Cabo San Lucas, au Mexique, pour des vacances de rêve dans un somptueux complexe hôtelier.

Stacy est déjà sous le charme. «A la chasse aux derniers jours d’été», a-t-elle écrit sur Twitter en légende d’une photo intitulée «paradis». «George est très affectueux avec Stacy, a raconté une source au magazine People. Il lui donne beaucoup d’attention et la complimente sans cesse. Ils ne savent pas vraiment où tout cela va les mener et ils s’en fichent. Ils apprécient le moment présent et Stacy savoure chaque instant sans penser au lendemain.» Un mois après avoir officialisé leur relation au festival de Toronto, George et Stacy, semblent donc décidés à profiter de leur idylle naissante. George l’incasable semble avoir rapidement tourné la page Elisabetta Canalis avec qui il s’était aussi montré sous son meilleur jour au début de leur relation avant de progressivement changer de comportement. Stacy la catcheuse tiendra-t-elle le coup?

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