2008, international year

2008/01/12 Galarraga Aiestaran, Ana - Elhuyar Zientzia

• Teknologia
• Biologia
• Osasuna
• Ekologia
• Ingurumena
• Giza zientziak

The truth is that the International Year of Planet Earth began in 2007 and ends in 2009, but since 2008, it is the International Year of Planet Earth. In 2004, the UN decided to make this declaration after the terrible disaster of a tsunami in the Indian Ocean, believing that if the environment is not respected they will occur more and more.

Therefore, during this three-year period, and especially this year, the UN has launched a series of initiatives to investigate the planet, protect and protect the environment and promote sustainable development.

In addition, the UN is also responsible for the health and well-being of people and has decided to address in 2008 a topic that has a direct impact on health: hygiene. At present, 41% of the world's population has no bathrooms or access to basic hygienic needs. As a result, many people often suffer from diarrhea and other diseases that cause thousands of deaths a day, especially children.

To address the problem, the UN wants to expand the possibility of good hygiene around the world, achieving one of the goals that the UN itself set for the millennium: Reduce by half by 2015 the proportion of people without hygienic services.

Potato is a staple food in many parts of the world.

2008 is also the International Year of Potato. It is not the first time that an international year is given to a food, since 2004 was rice. Undoubtedly, rice is one of the basic foods in the world, and it seems that potato is also gaining more and more importance in feeding a large part of the population. In fact, it is very rich in nutrition and grows easily even in scarce lands. That is why Peru proposed that an international potato year be celebrated in 2005, and the UN decided to name it. Therefore, if you seem to be eating too much potato, at least you have that relief.

Finally, 2008 has been declared by the UN as the International Year of Languages. For example, you have to see what the Basque language is going to look like, but you can't deny that this year's themes have obtained the approval of many. This is one of the criteria of the UN to choose the theme of the year: the support of most nations. Another thing is what objectives are proposed and what is done to achieve them.

It is true that a year is very little time to meet such ambitious goals. Perhaps for this reason, the UN has now bent on extending the deadlines. Thus, last year was the International Year of Dolphin, which has lasted until 2008. The International Polar Year also covers more than a year: It began in 2007 and will continue until March 2009.

In addition to the United Nations Organization

On the other hand, in addition to the UN, other agencies designate international years. For example, 2008 has been declared by the Directorate of Education and Culture of the European Union the International Year of Intercultural Dialogue. Nice, right? It is clear that usually the topics are not excuses.

The Basque Government has also chosen this year an interesting theme, which is the Year of Innovation. In October of last year, the Basque Government presented the Science, Technology and Innovation Plan 2010, in which it presented the Manifesto for Innovation. In addition to the words, he contributed a quantity of money, which will allocate 40 million euros in the coming months to promote research infrastructures and strengthen Ikerbasque and Innobasque, among others.

Apart from these types of entities, other associations and groups also make their appointments. Many are related to nature and the environment, such as the Ark of Amphibians, which has declared 2008 as the International Year of Frogs.

The organization warns that half a thousand species of frog are in danger of extinction in the world. They have worked on concrete projects to protect frogs and have begun raising funds to carry them out. According to them, the intention is quite ambitious, but although they only manage to save one of those five hundred species, the year will be a success.

For its part, the international organization in favor of coral reefs has announced that 2008 will be the second International Year of Reefs. Although they know that their appointment is not official, they hope that their claim will reach everyone. They invite governments, institutions, groups and individuals of any level to participate, and among all aim to take effective steps to protect coral reefs. To achieve this, the first thing they want is to expand the information, so that people understand the importance of coral reefs in the ecosystem, and this year will do it especially.

There are other denominations like the Year of the Spacecraft, sponsored by the space flight company Virgin Galactik, or the Year of the Gaztea Feta in Greece. Do you think of any other?

Published in Gara