President Karis at the UN Security Council: Climate Change Poses New Security Challenges

"We must prevent the inevitable effects of climate change from destabilizing countries and entire regions, with the risk of new or escalating existing armed conflicts,"

 

President Alar Karis said on December 9 at a high-level meeting of the UN Security Council on peace and security in the context of climate change.

 

President Alar Karis is in New York from December 7th to 10th.

 

Estonia's two-year term on the Security Council ends at the close of this year.

 

Celia Kuningas-Saagpakk, President Karis' foreign adviser, said: "Estonia's two years on the UNSC are drawing to an end.

 

This time has given Estonia and our diplomats invaluable opportunities to increase the country's visibility and its direct experience in global diplomacy."

 

 

Ministry of Culture Recognizes Exemplary Representatives of Integration

On December 3, the Ministry of Culture and the Integration Foundation recognized exemplary representatives in the field of integration for the years 2020 and 2021.

 

Awards in the field were granted to the Estonian Institute, Tiina Pärtel, creator of the "Found In Estonia" podcast (foundinestonia.ee) which shares expat stories with Estonian society, the Estonian women's épée team and the Sofiit-klubi.

 

 

New Zealand to Ban Smoking for Next Generation

New Zealand has announced it will outlaw smoking for the next generation, so that those who are aged 14 and under today will never be legally able to buy tobacco.

 

New legislation means the legal smoking age will increase every year, to create a smoke-free generation of New Zealanders, associate health minister Dr Ayesha Verrall said on December 8.

 

The government announced the rising age alongside other measures to make smoking unaffordable and inaccessible, to try to reach its goal of making the country entirely smoke-free within the next four years, the Guardian reported.