Category: Health & Fitness

Traditional medicine is an applied science that helps to maintain and restore health by prevention and treatment of illness in human beings. Nevertheless, nutrition and fitness emerged as supporting health processes in human beings through strengthening basic processes and the immune systems in human beings.

Terrorist – Looking For A Way to Belong and Not Finding It

No one is born to be “terrorist” and there are reasons why “terrorism” is becoming a global threat hidering security, stability and safety on different levels and scales. There are many basic and fundamental questions: what is “terrorism” and how people become terrorists.
Anders Behring Breivik, Norway, who murdered 77 people in the 2011 is a key case, that gives some clues on the phenomena, but in one of the most socially stable and peaceful societies on Earth. Anders Behring Breivik hated most humans, but women and Muslims above all. Seierstad, an extraordinary researcher, writes calmly and draws few conclusions. One of Us, which is as much about the victims as the killer, is a book “about belonging, a book about community,” she says, “about looking for a way to belong and not finding it.” “Our answer,” Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg told Norwegians after the attack, “is more democracy, more openness and more humanity. But never naivety.” It seems that Breivik was, above all, a product of social isolation. He was a typical extremist, or more correctly “gradually turned to a permanent outsider”: friendless, unemployed, unmarried, living life online. Like every mass killer, he selected his victims. There are plenty of Breiviks around us but this one was handed luck. But who is Anders Breivik, what turned him to be a “terrorist” and what was the micro-social condition around him.

Read the story written by a high quality global journalist, Åsne Seierstad – author of the bestselling “The Bookseller of Kabul” (2002), a book on the nature of Afghan family life.
One of the most serious social defects and mental disorder is extreme and continual social isolation. It is, indeed, the very root of modern global threats “terrorism” that can turn people, rich and poor, or groups of people, to time-bombs. It is the cause of many instabilities in the MENA region and Africa, see the effects and details here: https://jl10ll.wordpress.com/2011/06/06/the-effects-of-extreme-and-continual-social-isolation/

Egypt is heading Towards A New future – The New Cairo

Among the new plans for the socio-economic developments of Egypt a new capital “New Cairo” is planned to be established in region of the Red Sea so the pressure on the existing capital can be mitigated. Interesting enough the Red Sea region and Sinai, including the Suez Canal are becoming among the major changes and reforms in “Egypt the Future”. https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=941998875850439

To know more visit also, http://m.bbc.com/news/business-31874886

 

Challenges of Post-2015 MDG – Children in Morocco and Africa

Would 2015 be a chance to change history? UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Youth Forum organized by the UN’s Economic and Social Council that “[You are] “the first generation with the potential to end poverty and the last generation to avoid worst effects of climate change”. It was his message to fully engage young people in the post-2015 MDG (http://www.un.org/en/ecosoc/youth2015/).

However, what is the situation of children and young people in Africa today. The Children’s situation in Morocco gives some idea about what we may expect in this part of the world. Morocco has made vast improvements in the past decade. The child and infant mortality rates were greatly reduced, the net primary school enrolment rates have been increasing rapidly. However, net secondary school rates are still extremely low: 37% for boys and 32% for girls. 

A large number of children are vulnerable and  there are still many harmful traditional practices. The children are especially affected by the custom of early marriage. Although reforms (2004) have raised the minimum age of marriage for women from 15 to 18, judges are still authorize marriages before that age, including girls as young as 13. The child early marriages is increasing, between 2009 and 2010 were in total of 33,253. Though forced child labour is prohibited, it remains a critical challenge as it concerns 9% of children aged 5 to 14 years. Girls as young as 6 or 7 years old from rural communities are recruited to work as child maids in cities, and often experience conditions of forced labour. Boys experience forced labour as apprentices in the artisan and construction industries and in mechanic shops. In education teachers and parents still believe children should fear them to work and behave better, so “violence is often socially-accepted and approved”. In addition, children are vulnerable by armed conflict and natural disasters. Morocco, for example, suffered 32 events during the period 1980-2010, affecting on average 17,000 persons per year. 

http://resourcecentre.savethechildren.se/start/countries/morocco

Clean and Crime Free Environment – How, Where and When?

Clean and crime free environment to all living creatures on our earth is a mission humanity. This mission is not only limited to science and politics. Active contributions of all of us, our awareness of existing realities and our continuous support for scientific and political efforts are IMPERATIVE for achieving sustainable socio-economic developments worldwide. We are sharing one planet for living and our lives are dependent on sharing clean air, water and food. To have clean and crime free environment, not only for us but also for the future generations, we need to have all the necessary instruments, actions and efforts for conservation and protection of our common natural resources on earth.

http://missioncleanenvironment.com.au

Global Warming – Saving Planet Earth Requires Saving Much of the Fossil Fuel

Amazing conclusions from continuous and comprehensive global research that are based on all developments in science as a whole “big science”. They involve, also, integrated global observations on several scales and enormous human thinking and intelligence of the whole past century. It is how climate change shaped and formed global creativity (http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2014/nov/05/climate-change-theatre-2071-katie-mitchell-duncan-macmillan) to bring politics and science for a better future. A future we want to create and for generations to come. Climate change is not just about science – it’s about creating the future (http://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/nov/22/-sp-climate-change-special-report).

Saving is essential not only in economic terms but is also for the very sake of lasting survival, not only our survival but the protection and preservation of life on the planet. It took us so much time to arrive to the conclusion that “production and consumption” of natural resources, in particular fossil fuel, at the existing rapid speed is not more than destruction and annihilation of our life. It is a hard conclusion and inconvenient reality that much of the fossil fuel of the planet must stay buried and not to be burned. For the coming decades, until 2050 and beyond, the emission of carbon dioxide has to be cut down to zero which essentially mean much of the fossil fuel on the planet has not to be burned.

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jan/07/much-worlds-fossil-fuel-reserve-must-stay-buried-prevent-climate-change-study-says

 

Climate change creativity

 

Air Quality – The Southern Hemi-sphere has the World Cleanest Air

The accelerating urbanization in the world is bringing an increasing degradation in air quality (http://www.scgh.com/green-news/the-cleanest-and-the-most-polluted-cities/). While this is not reflected in life expectancy (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_life_expectancy) yet, it is definitely causing emerging new health threats to the world population, as 70% will be living in cities by 2050. The life expectancy of humans on the Earth is likely to gradually decrease because of such threats and can very well show up in future statistics of the coming decades. What regards consumption of natural resources there are no definite answer on What is Enough? or How enough is enough? (http://www.mnn.com/leaderboard/stories/meet-the-woman-who-elevated-conservation-photography-to-a-whole-new-level). Facts on the role of urbanization on air quality, i.e. sources/types of pollution, are given in a document by United Nations Environment Program (http://www.unep.org/urban_environment/PDFs/handbook.pdf).

What is interesting and many of us may not know is that the world cleanest air is indeed mostly available in the Southern Hemi-sphere because of three reasons: (1) most of the land in the Northern Hemi-sphere is very much populated; (2) major parts of emission of atmospheric pollution is produced in the Northern Hemi-sphere; and (3) the atmospheric mixing of air between the northern and southern hemi-spheres is quite limited. The cleanest areas in the Northern Hemi-sphere are either above the troposphere, i.e. at elevated altitudes, or far away from emission areas, i.e. quite near in the Arctic region and/or quite near to the Arctic.

 http://www.travelandleisure.com/slideshows/the-worlds-cleanest-air

 

Africa – Would Minerals and Other Wealth Erase Poverty?

The Millennium Development Goals promised to reduce poverty by half by 2015. Why are Africa and India so far behind in reaching this target? Follow the Big Debate about “Why Poverty?” with panel of top world politicians, ministers, writers and policy-makers from UK, Nigeria, India and South Africa as well as participants from business leaders, academics, activists and students: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JD7nB8tRc4&app=desktop.

Mining is one of the big industries in Africa that is supposed to contribute in erasing its poverty. However, though the enormous mineral resources in Africa, the question still remains “Does Mining Benefit Africa?”. Follow the Big Debate on this topic with focus on where the income and wealth of Africa’s minerals ends up? Is the benefit is still for the investors and not for the population? Would Africa be able to develop education, health, sanitation and transport infrastructures from such wealth? Are the taxation systems correct, accountable and transparent? Whether or not Africa is heading to an overall privatization, how would public services be developed? All in all would poverty is still remain when all the mineral resources in Africa are consumed?  Many facts and information are uncovered from top politicians, government and finance bodies, mining industries, World Bank, policy-makers and activists from Africa as well as representatives from international companies and others bodies of relevance to the topic.

Would we still hear the same story, again and again, a worker in the mining industry after 22 years of loyalty in a company reporting billions in profit still has no electricity, no sanitation and continue to live in poverty!

Beach Quality – Top 15 Clearest Waters in the World

Clear, clean waters and healthy air in fresh, quite and relaxing environment are among essential features of high quality tourism. Many more extra enjoyable wishes of exotic, healthy, fresh and delicious food make your relaxing holidays unforgettable memory in your life.

Escape commercialized tourist and spend days in healthiest and purest marine life, “blue river” that it’s clean enough to drink, entire river water from the glaciers and snowfields, making it of the purest quality. Relax on “white beaches” that truly lives up to their names, as pure as being remote, walk along powdery white sand and swim in crystal clear waters with ideal conditions for kite-boarding. Experience beauty that cannot be captured even in the most cinematographic movies with amazing marine life and a huge amount of amazing, deep ocean fish.

http://www.therichest.com/expensive-lifestyle/location/15-clearest-waters-in-the-world-to-swim-in-before-you-die/

2011 and Beyod – Feeding Over 20 000 000 000 Chicken Per Year for Human Consumption

Food is a daily concern not only for us but also to grow up whatever we need to eat as well! How much do we know about food production, in particular animal and meat production? How much water and energy are needed for such production, also what are the impacts of such production on our environment and health? An interesting issue is the production of chicken and eggs, by being by far most popular food items in the market. Here is a good example of high-quality production and preparation of eggs for the market and consumers (https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=10203243637959486&id=1465162541).

The ever-increasing world population is requiring more and more chicken and eggs but how can humans cope with the increasing pressures on chicken? Yet the world has not yet reached peak chicken (http://m.motherjones.com/environment/2013/08/peak-chicken). What about “organic or eco” production; what are the diverse culture and ethics in chicken production and processing? With increasing pressures on water-energy resources how would we sustain farming and production in terms of feeding? Could insects feed animals of tomorrow’s meat industry? If so, what are the challenges posed from convoluted legislation and possible health risks? Indeed, The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization released a report (pdf) last year promoting the introduction of insects into both our diets and animal feed. Scientists and researchers, also claim that “other protein sources for livestock and aquaculture are urgently needed” which in real life terms can be understandable. However, some scientists and researchers even suggest that insects are ideal in this context as they can be “sustainably reared” on vegetable and domestic waste as well as byproducts from slaughterhouses. But startups recognize that for consumers, the thought of directly eating insects is often hard to stomach.

http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2014/dec/08/insects-feed-animals-meat-industry-startup-food

Zero-Carbon Tecnologies – From Divergence to Convergence of Eco-nomy and Eco-logy

The industrial revolution (http://sv.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industriella_revolutionen), the advance of science and technology during past centuries (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/20th_century) , and the associated accelerating “production-consumption” because of population pressures are taking us to new global tectonic shifts. The scream of nature and life on earth is forcing a new world order to bring about zero-carbon technologies for major cleanup of the atmosphere from all un-necessary emissions of carbon dioxide. Indeed, we should shape these shifts to a much more wider and inclusive cleanup from all toxic pollution and waste that are causing enormous and accelerating degradation of the atmosphere, the hydrosphere and the land. http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=10

For many decades and even centuries there have been an accelerating divergence of the socio-economic twin “eco-nomy and eco-logy” with enormous feedback impacts on the functioning and metabolism of all life processes and qualities on earth. The convergence of the gap between eco-nomy and eco-logy is IMPERATIVE for achieving sustainable socio-economic developments around the world. Just some few examples from two most big economies in world the USA (http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=10) and the emerging China (http://www.mining.com/china-the-worlds-biggest-energy-consumer-and-producer-72513/).

http://blogs.worldbank.org/climatechange/

We can dream to get a world which we can enjoy together in combinations of natural colors with positive impacts from worlds greatest music.

Globalization of Science and Technology – Accessibility and Affordability in New Cultural and Climate Context.

Living conditions on earth are highly dependent on climate and weather conditions that are primarily controlled by natural conditions on the earth and its position in the solar system. This is except the negative man-made impacts on the environment and climate that started with the expansion of world population and after the industrial revolution with observable effects on life during the past century.

So far, the major achievements of humans on earth have been dramatic. In addition to ancient civilizations, the past centuries have witnessed major global transformations that are brought about by enormous scientific and technical advances and innovation. Such developments and the associated fast urbanization, after the first and second world wars, have caused gradual marginalization, or even isolation, of some or even major populations in many regions around the world which is indeed the essence of increasing poverty, at least in relative terms. With the initial stages of the digital revolution such gaps have also increased though in the long run they would rather shrink because of increasing access to knowledge and the associated benefits from the “transfer-of-knowledge” and “exchange-of-knowledge”.

With the increasing globalization there are growing needs not only to understand and to know the life under “normal” conditions, i.e. less natural extremes in weather, but also to know more about how “normal” is “normal” under climate conditions that are drifting from the natural functioning of the earth’s system. In particular we need to widen our knowledge on the more extremes in harsh environments (http://www.therichest.com/rich-list/here-are-5-of-the-harshest-environments-on-earth/). Such understanding on the global level allows promoting and extending the applicability of science and technology. However, climate and weather conditions set severe limitations on the applications that can be based on scientific and technical advances and innovations. Remote cities (http://www.buzzfeed.com/adamdavis/the-most-remote-and-extreme-cities-around-the-world) and places at the end of the earth (Palmerston: The island at the end of the earth http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-25430383) are few examples. Also, the living conditions of rural populations in particular “uncontacted people” or the so-called “isolated peoples or lost tribes”, i.e. who live, or have lived, either by choice or by circumstance, without significant contact with the more globalized world (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncontacted_peoples). The increasing mobility and movement of people is bringing with it new needs for globalization of “cultures and traditions” rather than, and not only limited to or forced by, globalization of science and technology. Coupling science and technology to cultures and traditions is among difficult challenges in many places around the world.

In spite of the fact that our planet is undergoing a population explosion there are regions with declining populations because of increasing isolation. In the website below we will take you to places, e.g. the isolated areas of Arctic, Antarctic, canyons, deserts, Saharas, ……,  where it would be even hard to find a companion. It can even be much harder to survive in these places with the “affordable” technologies we have in populated urbanized regions. With this insight you will probably have a new appreciation for the people in your life, or you may probably prefer to stay where you are and do much better to preserve and protect your environment. Anyway enjoy these 25 most remote places in the world:

http://list25.com/the-25-most-remote-places-in-the-world/

 

Ebola – Key Questions and Answers on How To Protect Yourself

Information from “CDC” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, USA regarding Ebola Virus Disease and protection of people. Check Key “Questions and Answers on Ebola” concerning: Personal protection against Ebola?; Has the “patient zero” been identified?; How do I know if I have seasonal influenza or Ebola? If I  am experiencing some flu-like symptoms (e.g. fever, headache, muscle aches).

What is “CDC” doing in the U.S. about the outbreak in West Africa?; Travelers: What is being done to prevent ill travelers in West Africa from getting on a plane? In West Africa, during travel and in the United States; What do I do if I’m returning to the U.S. from an area where the outbreak is occurring?; What do I do if I am traveling to an area where the outbreak is occurring? Should people traveling to Africa be worried about the outbreak? In the United States: Are there any other cases of people in the U.S. getting Ebola?; Is there a danger of Ebola spreading in the U.S.?; Why don’t we restrict travel to the United States?

Check with the local authorities in your counry if similar questions and answers can be applicable, e.g. elsewhere around the world.

http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/outbreaks/2014-west-africa/qa.html?mobile=nocontent

Lost Battle Against Bacteria – From Darwin Evolution to Industrial Revolution and Collapse of Anti-biotic.

As humans, in many ways we are special. We are developing with everything working together in complex and fully functioning machine. However, this is not the fully story of evolution on earth. Bacteria are the truly special organisms, evolving very quickly, able to elegantly escape and evade the best of modern medicine. Thus evolution is not only about explaining where humans may have originated but it also a process occurring around us now that we should understand unless we are willing to lose the game to our sleeker, sexier competitors.

http://darwin200.christs.cam.ac.uk/pages/index.php?page_id=g1

Indeed, the era of antibiotics is coming to an end, what once appeared to be miracle medicines have been beaten into ineffectiveness by the bacteria that humans designed to knock out. Once, scientists hailed the end of infectious diseases but the old ones are coming and even more new ones are on the way.

Peak antibiotics – Aug 14

At least 30 new diseases have emerged in the past two decades, for many of which there is no treatment, cure or vaccine, or the possibility of effective prevention or control. In addition, the uncontrolled and inappropriate use of antibiotics has resulted in increased antimicrobial resistance and is seriously threatening drug control strategies against such common diseases as tuberculosis, malaria, cholera, dysentery and pneumonia. Many more that is spreading to new geographical areas, because of changing habits, lifestyle, behavior (including injecting and non-injecting drug use) and cultural or social values. Travel, including tourism, global mobility, pressures on water resources, climate change, intensive land-use, agriculture, farming and animal production, also play a role. The practices of modern medicine also contribute. New animal diseases pose potential food-borne risks to human health that are sometimes difficult to evaluate or predict. All of which have developed anti-microbial resistance. The most dramatic example of a new disease is AIDS, deadly haemorrhagic fevers and Ebola. Epidemics of food-borne and water-borne diseases due to new organisms such as cryptosporidium or new strains of bacteria do exist. New strains such as those of cholera and influenza do not follow the usual pattern of being more common in younger people. They affect all age groups, since older people have not acquired immunity to them from previous infection. These are trends taking place in many places around the world.

Despite the emergence of new diseases, there is still a lack of national and international political will and resources to develop and support the systems that are necessary to detect them and stop their spread. The next few years are certain to be critical for the future of antimicrobial drugs. Antimicrobial resistance will increase if present trends continue.

http://www.twnside.org.sg/title/dise-cn.htm

In addition to the eco-systemic impact of industrial agriculture and global circuits of capital, our highly mobile society and the consequent climate disruption from fossil-fueled globalization have worked to propel the spread of invasive species, diseases, and pathogens:

http://collapseofindustrialcivilization.com/tag/peak-antibiotics/

Technology and Innovation for Rural Sustainability

Appropriate and sustainable rural technologies are very rare as most of the global attention, driven by economical interests, is focused on urbanization. Such technologies are very poorly needed because of several reasons. They are, also, imperative for promoting successful long-term and large-scale sustainable urbanization. This is, even, essential in agricultural regions where rural communities are major parts of the national socio-economic structure, which is the case in many developing countries in particular Africa. This is at least necessary in the transition periods prior to large-scale and long-term transformation to urbanized societies where gradual, appropriate and sustainable integration of rural regions is necessary.

Urbanization has caused an accelerating drain of un-favored groups to mega and large cities (http://www.academia.edu/847075/Mexico_City._The_marginal_communities_social_and_ethnic_segregation_of_the_native_population). The random and rapid expansion of urbanized regions has promoted an ever accelerating pile-up of slum-communities in many regions around the world (http://www.schooljotter.com/showpage.php?id=158173) which indeed is not sustainable both from the economic and environmental perspective.

Some parts of the problem are associated with the negative impacts from global education, research and technology driven-policies around the world by being supported by national and international institutes and organizations including the United Nations and World Bank. Management of research, education and development programs fails to involve people from the developing countries to contribute in solving problems and difficulties in their native countries or at least to find partners from the developed countries willing to participate in solving the enormous problems and difficulties in this respect.

Fortunately, the global community started to recognize such problems and to take steps and  efforts, though limited in extent, for achieving successful socio-economic development that is very much related to reducing poverty and the associated impacts of environment and climatic threats. An innovative example “Ecological System Designs for the Indigenous Community of Maruata, Michoacan, Mexico” is given here where researchers from the developing countries are demonstrating how to bring about successful ecological designs for living better, cheaper and ecologically sustainable.

file:///Users/farid/Desktop/Indigenous%20Community%20of%20Maruata,%20Mexico%20(Design%20Example).webarchive

How Amazing is Amazing? – The Most Amazing Lakes In The World

10. Dead Sea (Bordered with Jordan, Israel and Palestine), its water is 9.6 times saltier than the ocean. No macroscopic living things can thrive in it and the high salinity makes life impossible to form with the exception of a very few bacteria and fungi. Because of the high salt concentration, the buoyancy of the water is so strong that a person cannot swim underwater and will push the body to float. The sea is also believed to have therapeutic powers to cure certain skin diseases.

9. Lake Berryessa Glory Hole, California. It is very important not only a tourist attraction but more so, it generates hydroelectricity. What makes it amazing is the bell-mouth spillway “Glory Hole” which is the largest of its kind with a diameter of 72 feet, a vertical drop of 200 feet and shrinks down to 28 feet. Once the water level reaches the maximum level, the spillway becomes submerged and it swallows excess water at unbelievable rate of 48,800 cubic feet per second.

8. Crater Lake, Oregon. It is formed during the collapse of Mount Mazama 7,700 years ago, 2,148 feet deep. It is considered the deepest in the United States and 7th or 9th deepest lake in the world. There are no rivers or any other bodies of water connected to the lake. Because of this, the water in the lake is considered one of the purest because of the absence of pollutants. The water is very clear and it has a visibility of up to 43.3 meters.

7. Lake Baikal, Siberia. Lake Baikal is a rift lake formed through continental crust being pulled apart. It is the deepest lake in the world with a depth of 1,642 meters (5,387 ft). Underneath the lake floor there is 7 kilometer of sediments placing the rift floor some 8-11 kilometers below the surface. Americans and Russian scientists studied the sediments with detailed climactic records dating as far back as 250,000 years. One of the most ancient lakes, its age is 25-30 million years.

6. Abraham Lake, Alberta, Canada. It is man-made lake in Alberta Canada. It is really beautiful during summer but what make it amazing is the frozen bubbles found underneath the lake during the winter season. These frozen bubbles are actually methane gas that is produced when bacteria at the bottom of the lake decomposes organic matter like animals, plants, and trees that died and sank to the bottom.

5. Taal Lake, Batangas, Philippines. It is a freshwater lake; it cradles the world’s smallest active decade volcano, the Taal volcano. The lake fills the Taal caldera which is a remnant and the spot where historical eruptions occurred dating back to 100,000 to 500,000 years ago. Within the Main crater lake is also a small island known as the Vulcan point. At 40 meters, Vulcan point is the world’s largest island within a lake (Main crater lake) on an island (Volcano Island) within a lake (Taal Lake) within an island (Luzon Island). It is confusing but that what makes it amazing…

4. Five Flower Lake, China. The Five-flower lake is one of the most popular and most beautiful lake among the lakes found in the Jiuzhaigou National Park in China. It is renowned worldwide and thousands of tourists visit it everyday. It lies at the end of the Peacock River at a height of 2,472 meters above sea level and has a depth of 5 meters only. This shallow lake reflects multiple colors and definitely a great sight to feast your eyes with. The bottom of the lake is littered with ancient trunks of trees crisscrossed everywhere.

3. Spotted Lake in British Columbia, Canada. The most notable feature of the lake is the multi-colored spots that are very visible and prominent even when viewed from the highway. The lake contains the world’s highest concentration of different minerals most notably, magnesium sulfate, calcium and sodium sulfates. The lake evaporates and during summer only the minerals remain and they form natural walkways in between and around the spots. It is also therapeutic and known to cure diseases. Fences preventing direct access protect the lake.

2.Lake Hillier (Pink lake) in Western Australia. It is famous for its pink color. It is really amazing in that it’s color is not derived from beta-carotene released by an algae when light penetrates the water; which is actually the case for Lake Retba in Africa and the Pink lake in Western Australia. These two lakes derive its color from the red pigment being produced by Dunaliella Salina and Halobacteria that use sunlight to create more energy. Unlike these two, the pink water of Lake Hillier is permanent even if water is taken from the lake and transferred to a different container.

1. Plitvice Lake in Croatia. It is inside the Plitvice National Park in Croatia, the largest national park in the country and the oldest in southeast Europe. It is considered the most beautiful lake worldwide because of it’s spectacular display of colors at different times of the day, at different angles of light and at different seasons. It was inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage in 1979 among the First Sites worldwide. Every year, more than 1.2 million tourists from all over the world visit it. It is most famous for its 16 lakes arranged in cascades.

http://purpleshadow13.hubpages.com/hub/10-Most-Amazing-Lakes-in-the-World

Best Beaches, Water Quality and Wellbeing – Information, Pictures and Criteria.

Water quality is central for wellbeing of humans or at least for protection of health and preservation of quality of all forms of life. Water resources are not only an economic and industrial resource and the uses of water don’t stop for indoor household activities. Indeed, the urbanization of water as forced by economic, industrial and indoor household activities is forcing an ever-accelerating promotion of “production and consumption”. On global long-term perspective, this is posing an ever increasing degradation of the quality of natural water resources with severe negative impacts on the quality of life not only what regards inland freshwater water bodies but, also, all maritime coastal and offshore waters. Conservation and protection of the global water resources is a global long-term investment for many generations to come.

“Sustain-earth.com” will continue the describe the dimensions and threats of the ongoing urbanization of water resources where demonstrations will be given to the existing unlimited needs for taking in consideration the role of water for the wellbeing of humans in terms of health and recreation as well as conservation and protection of all forms of life on the planet.

Access and affordability of good water quality for recreation is among growing needs where the pressures and competition on water resources are enormous. Best Beaches in the world are very expessive and not easily accessible. Compact information and pictures of the world’s best beaches are given here in terms of criteria, weather, water, sand, facilities, access, visitor numbers, ….. etc : http://www.bugbog.com/beaches/best_beaches.html

We give few examples on efforts made for raising public awareness on the existing needs. The US “Guide to Finding a Clean Beach”: How to find out if a beach is tested for pollution and what authorities do if they find it; finding help online and at the local or state health departments; avoiding polluted beaches; ……. etc: “http://www.nrdc.org/water/oceans/ttw/guide.asp”. According to CNN 10% of water samples collected from U.S. beaches failed to meet the government benchmark for swimmer safety. It’s an icky thought, especially considering the popularity of several of the failing beaches included in the Natural Resources Defense Council’s “Testing the Waters”: http://edition.cnn.com/2014/06/25/travel/beaches-water-quality-report/

For the UK, find out how clean the water is on beaches, in other bathing in England and Wales, and if there is a problem with pollution: https://www.gov.uk/quality-of-local-bathing-water. For Canada, Toronto has some of the best beaches in the world, this is verified by the Blue Flag Program. This internationally recognized program awards “blue flags” is directed to communities committed to maintaining high standards for water quality: http://app.toronto.ca/tpha/beaches.html