Posts in category: Radio & Tech News

Our planet is changing. So is our journalism. This weekly newsletter is part of a CBC News initiative entitled “Our Changing Planet” to show and explain the effects of climate change. Keep up with the latest news on our Climate and Environment page.

Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox every Thursday.

This week:

• What microplastics are doing to seabirds could tell us about their effect on humans
• Protesting against private jets
• How to keep your pet safe from wildfire smoke

What microplastics are doing to seabirds could tell us about their effect on humans

Some researchers estimate that humans ingest tens of thousands of microplastic particles every year by breathing in indoor air and drinking out of plastic containers. (That works out to around five grams every week, about the same weight as a handful of thumbtacks.)

These plastic fragments are showing up in digestive systems, blood, breast milk, possibly even the brain.

So what are all those tiny plastic bits actually doing to our health? Scientists still aren’t sure, although a new study on seabirds, led by a team of international scientists, raises some questions about potential ripple effects on the gut that could apply to humans, too.

The researchers found evidence that microplastics may have altered the gut microbiomes of two wild bird species — the northern fulmar, found in Canada’s North, and the Cory’s shearwater, found around Portugal. 

The plastic fragments were linked to an increased presence of infectious pathogens and antibiotic-resistant microbes, plus a lower presence of beneficial bacteria found in the intestines that can help protect against infections.

The complex relationship between a microbiome and its host is “essential to host nutrition, physiology, immune function, development and even behaviour, and many diseases have been associated with altered gut microbiomes,” the team wrote in their paper, published recently in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution.

The researchers didn’t directly measure the birds’ health, but lead author Gloria Fackelmann, from the University of Trento in Italy, said their study is a “first step” toward answering questions around the health impacts of ingesting microplastics in the real world.

“The implications are far-reaching: for one, humans are also exposed to micro- (and nano-) plastics, raising the question of how humans and their (gut) health might be affected by plastic ingestion,” her study team wrote.

What makes the study unique is that “we chose two wildlife species because we wanted to get a better picture of how microplastics may be interacting with the microbiomes in wild animals,” said Fackelmann. “The seabirds here, they ingested these microplastics as part of their daily lives.” 

Dr. Andrew Morris, a professor of medicine at the University of Toronto and the medical director of the Sinai Health-University Health Network Antimicrobial Stewardship Program, stressed that the study wasn’t definitive, with much more research needed to understand the links between microplastics and microbiomes. 

The birds being studied were also likely being exposed to chemicals and other factors that could also impact their microbiome, he said.

Still, the scientists’ discovery of antibiotic-resistant microbes within the birds’ digestive systems is a concerning development, he said, and just one example of how the growing problem of drug resistance could have dire consequences on global health. 

The ongoing adaptation and evolution of harmful bacteria could leave humanity with fewer options to treat serious infections, making antimicrobial resistance a “huge threat” to health care, Morris added. 

Fackelmann said the next research steps include studying the mechanisms behind how microplastics are capable of causing changes in the gut microbiome, and what that means for overall health — for birds and humans alike.

— Lauren Pelley

Reader feedback

Peter Currier:

“Adam Beauchemin’s piece on the impending demand crunch for EV battery minerals is a good niche view of the type and number of vehicles that should get the lion’s share of them. He gives a nod to recycling used batteries, but I would have liked to have seen mention of the huge eco-degradation that mining, shipping and disposing of EV mineral waste involves.”

Brian Gifford:

“I hope part of your conversation about EVs and batteries includes the crazy shift in demand for larger personal vehicles which will require larger batteries. Recent reports say 80 per cent of new vehicles sold are now SUVs and trucks. Advertising only accelerates this trend. GM is ending manufacture of one of the most affordable successful EVs, the Bolt, to focus solely on SUVs and trucks. Policy needs to change this with advertising restrictions and higher incentives for smaller cars.”

Write us at whatonearth@cbc.ca.

***Do you have a compelling personal story about climate change that can bring understanding or help others? We want to hear from you. Here’s more info on how to pitch to us. Specifically, we want to hear how you’ve been directly impacted by the changing climate and how that experience has affected the way you approach life now. Here are some examples.***

Old issues of What on Earth? are right here. 

CBC News has a dedicated climate page, which can be found here.

Also, check out our radio show and podcast. This week, we’re looking at gardens as climate solutions — from Indigenous traditions of clam gardening to advice for helping pollinators in your own backyard. What On Earth airs on Sundays at 11 a.m. ET, 11:30 a.m. in Newfoundland and Labrador. Subscribe on your favourite podcast app or hear it on demand at CBC Listen.

Watch the CBC video series Planet Wonder featuring our colleague Johanna Wagstaffe here. 

The Big Picture: Protesting private jets

When it comes to cutting carbon emissions, air travel is a notoriously stubborn problem. Full electrification is still many years away and just this week, the CEO of Boeing admitted the sheer cost of producing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) — another highly touted solution — is a huge deterrent to getting off fossil fuels.

Decarbonizing aviation remains an ongoing challenge, but climate protesters drew attention this week to a more specific issue: private jets. On Tuesday, demonstrators hit the tarmac at Geneva Airport and blocked access to a private jet exhibition. Carrying signs with slogans like “#BanPrivateJets” and “WARNING: Private jets drown our hope,” the protesters got the attention of the media and forced the airport to suspend all flights for about an hour. 

Private jets are among the most carbon-intensive modes of transport. Given its limited capacity, a private plane can generate 14 times as many emissions per passenger as a commercial plane and 50 times as much as a train, according to the European advocacy group Transport & Environment.

Hot and bothered: Provocative ideas from around the web

How to keep your pet safe from wildfire smoke

Many pet owners are watching the smoky skies over Western Canada and wondering just how worried they should be about their furry companions. 

Dogs in particular need outdoor exercise, and many cats live outdoors. 

With climate change promising to make such events more common, what can you do to protect furry family members? 

The main line of defence against poor air quality is staying indoors as much as possible, according to Daniel Joffe, vice-president of medical operations at VCA Canada, a network of animal hospitals.

“​​Dogs, just like people, can have lower-airway disease, asthma-like disease, that can be triggered by the smoke and potentially, in the worst-case scenario, could end up with a very severe or fatal outcome,” Joffe said. 

Joffe said brachycephalic dogs — dogs with pushed-in noses like bulldogs or pugs — are particularly at risk for respiratory tract disease. And it’s a double whammy for them. Wildfires generally happen during warm weather months, when such dogs already struggle with hotter temperatures.

Other breeds are also vulnerable, especially those that like strenuous activity. Beth Barrett, a veterinarian who runs a clinic just outside Calgary, also warned that overweight dogs are more susceptible to many health problems, including those caused by smoky air.

Joffe recommends looking at the Air Quality Health Index for your area — and taking the same steps you would take for protecting humans. In Calgary last week, for example, the index reached 10+, the highest level. With such poor air, Joffe recommends letting a dog out for no more than five to 10 minutes at a time.

At an index below seven, Joffe suggested dogs could be out a little longer — 15 to 20 minutes.

“My rule of thumb is that if the smoke is starting to bother you, it’s bothering your pet. And we should take them inside.”

If you’re looking at your high-energy husky and wondering how you could keep them indoors all day, you’re not alone. 

Barrett, who also operates an indoor dog sport facility, says indoor areas like hers can provide off-leash spaces for dogs to burn off energy and get training — away from the smoke outside.

“We’ve sure noticed that more people are using the indoor facility right now, just because they’re trying to avoid being outside when the air is so poor,” said Barrett.

For those who can’t get to a doggy daycare or sports facility, Barrett suggests an underrated activity for the home: training exercises. Obedience or scent-training will stimulate a dog mentally and keep them from getting bored.

“It’s amazing how tired they get after a training session,” Barrett said.

As for cats, Joffe has a clear message — if they’re outdoor cats, this would be a good time to bring them inside.

Cody Shearer, owner of Calgary dog-walking business Pooched YYC, said he’s been taking steps to keep the animals he cares for safe from the smoke. He monitors the air quality index in Calgary — when it’s above an eight, he cancels walks for the day. 

Scrapping walks means less income — Shearer said he loses roughly 40 per cent of his usual revenue on days when it’s especially smoky. But keeping the pets safe remains his top priority. 

“Cancelling the walks is more important than the money for us,” he said.

Like Barrett suggests, Shearer finds ways to keep his animals occupied even when the air quality is poor. He runs basic training activities with his dogs to “exercise their brain instead of their bodies.” 

Pet owners can hide treats around their house, set up small agility courses and work on new tricks with their pets to keep them entertained while indoors.

Masks don’t really seem to be an option for dogs. That’s because their face shapes make it hard for a mask to stay on. More importantly, dogs don’t really know how to breathe properly through the masks.

“So it could actually make things worse,” Joffe said.

— Inayat Singh

Stay in touch!

Are there issues you’d like us to cover? Questions you want answered? Do you just want to share a kind word? We’d love to hear from you. Email us at whatonearth@cbc.ca.

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Editor: Andre Mayer | Logo design: Sködt McNalty

Ford Motor Co. has gone back on its plan to phase AM radio out of its vehicles.

Ford CEO Jim Farley made the announcement Tuesday via Twitter, after company officials said last month that AM would be dropped from new non-commercial vehicles.

“After speaking with policy leaders about the importance of AM broadcast radio as a part of the emergency alert system, we’ve decided to include it on all 2024 (Ford and Lincoln) vehicles,” Farley wrote.

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Owners of any electric Ford vehicles not currently equipped with AM reception would receive a free software update to enable it, he added.

The announcement from Canada’s biggest automaker by total sales comes after farmers on both sides of the border expressed concern over the possible loss of AM.

With many rural areas too remote for FM broadcasts, and satellite radio and internet technology not yet universally adopted, AM remains one of the only accessible in-vehicle media for Canadian farmers.

One of the major concerns was the future of emergency broadcasts — for which AM radio remains the only option in many rural areas of Canada.

Farley said Tuesday that Ford will “continue to innovate to deliver even better in-vehicle entertainment and emergency notification options in the future.”

Michigan-based Ford’s decision also comes as a bipartisan group of U.S. congresspeople brings forward a bill that would regulate U.S. automakers to maintain AM broadcast radio in their new vehicles at no additional charge.

That bill’s sponsor, Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts, said in a statement Tuesday that Ford’s reversal “reflects an overdue realization about the importance of AM radio, but too many automakers are still going the wrong direction.”

Markey noted he had previously written to 20 of the world’s leading automakers, of whom eight responded they will not include AM radio in new vehicles.

Companies such as Tesla, Mazda and Volkswagen have removed AM receivers from their electric vehicle (EV) lines, citing electromagnetic interference the EV drivetrain can create with the AM signal.

Representatives from Kubota, John Deere and Stellantis — the parent company of brands such as Chrysler, Jeep and Ram — all previously said in emailed statements to Glacier FarmMedia they do not plan to phase out AM from their vehicles.

— Jonah Grignon reports for Glacier FarmMedia from Ottawa; includes files from Glacier FarmMedia Network staff.

Sara Wheeler has gone where few women – and even men – have dared to go. One of Britain’s foremost travel writers, she’s documented her adventures in 11 bestselling books.

Covering seven continents, she’s brought a fresh perspective to what has historically been a male-dominated genre. 

Whether riding a sled in Lapland with her infant son strapped to her chest, or spending a freezing night in Robert Scott’s hut at the South Pole, Wheeler has established herself as “the queen of intrepid travel.” Her books include accounts of her journeys as well as biographies, such as Terra Incognita: Travels in Antarctica, The Magnetic North: Notes from the Arctic Circle, and Mud and Stars: Travels in Russia with Pushkin, Tolstoy, and Other Geniuses of the Golden Age.

Wheeler’s latest title, Glowing Still: A Woman’s Life on the Road, is her most personal to date, reflecting on her own experience and the changing world of travel.

Sara Wheeler spoke to Eleanor Wachtel from Edinburgh.

From the other side

“The working title for the book in my mind was Nubility to Invisibility. Nubility being when I was out there in my 20s and invisibility being out there in my 60s, as I am now.

“I was surprised at how much I’d forgotten, and I was surprised at how much I’d left out of the published accounts. And I asked myself, ‘Why did you leave this out?’

Of course, as an old writer now all I want is people not to take me seriously. But perhaps that arc is just the arc of age.– Sara Wheeler

“A story would occur and I would take it a bit further, wondering on the meaning of it and what could be extrapolated from it, whether it meant this or that — the more profound things. I think I didn’t have the confidence to carry on with things then.

“The other things I left out much more frequently were the funny stories which had arisen largely as a result of my own stupidities. And that was easier for me to see why I’d left it out. It’s because I was so keen starting out as a writer for people to take me seriously, and I thought that would prevent them taking me seriously. Of course, as an old writer now all I want is people not to take me seriously. But perhaps that arc is just the arc of age.”

The changing world of travel

“Things have really changed when it comes to travel. One — the big one — is hydrocarbons. It’s terrible to go anywhere unless you’re going on a bike or walking because you’re poisoning the planet. We all know that it’s morally wrong. Secondly, coronavirus — that’s not going to go away anytime soon. These mutating viruses and sitting in a metal tube for hours on end, it’s just about the worst thing one could possibly do. And the third thing is, of course, voice appropriation.The idea is, and it’s a good idea and I endorse it wholly and embrace it, that you can’t just go around telling other people’s stories because those stories belong to them.

The idea is, and it’s a good idea and I endorse it wholly and embrace it, that you can’t just go around telling other people’s stories because those stories belong to them.– Sara Wheeler

“There’s a fourth point also, of course, when it comes to travel writing, which is that we’ve been everywhere, so there’s no new places to discover, which there was even when I started out, there were places people didn’t know about. So I thought of it as really as the Four Horsemen of the apocalypse. And I tried in Glowing Still, to trace the trajectory of those things throughout the course of my careers, as I’d come to to understand them.”

Fighting for space

“As the only woman, I dealt with a lot of humiliations early on [in Antarctica] and looking back, I wonder how I dealt with it, but I think that’s perhaps the fortitude of youth. Also, of course, one had no choices. I certainly couldn’t leave, couldn’t go anywhere. That was out of the question. I certainly couldn’t ring anybody. There was no phone, and I certainly couldn’t send any emails because there was no internet. I just had to escape into my private world, which is often through reading and by engaging with the landscape.

I just had to escape into my private world, which is often through reading and by engaging with the landscape.– Sara Wheeler

“I think that actually I turned it to my advantage. I was aware that I had to do that, not to let them win. And of course, in any group of 25 people, there’s going to be some decent ones. And there were three or four, notably ones that were a bit older, a bit more mature and weren’t taking the lead from the others.

“And whilst they couldn’t speak up for me, they were able to befriend me. And I think it’s kind of given me an insight in all the decades that have passed since then into what it’s like for women in the world.”

Looking to the stars

“How are we supposed to live? The best writers all know that there aren’t any answers, there are only questions. Someone like Dostoevsky, the answer changed for him, as his thinking progressed and you get all sorts of different messages from Dostoevsky’s novels, including a lot that he didn’t want you to get — about doubt for example. 

How are we supposed to live? The best writers all know that there aren’t any answers, there are only questions.– Sara Wheeler

“The title of my book on Russia, which I called Mud and Stars comes from an Ivan Turgenev quote, “We sit in the mud, my friend, and reach for the stars.” Like all the best people, Turgenev knew human beings are tragically and irrevocably flawed and are never going to hope to do anything more than look at the stars. The stars being the eternal truths that are twinkling away out of our grasp. But we can at least look at them. I think that’s what great writers do, is that they enable you to look at the stars.

Reimagining the genre

“I think moving forward there’ll be other motifs that young women follow and I think that they will probably do much more travel under their own steam — bikes and on foot, ferries across the English Channel to make a start and get onto the continent and from there you can get pretty much anywhere. So I think there will be a great cutting down on hydrocarbons and I think there will be an incorporation of the natural world in a way that we might look back and say, ‘Well, it had some artifice back in the day because we thought that the natural world would go on forever.’

I think there’ll be an attenuated awareness of just what’s at stake for young people, and I think that it’s important for us to encourage young women setting out on their own paths to see the positives of that and to grasp the fact that their stewardship of the natural world, of the planet, is more informed than ours was.– Sara Wheeler

“To those young women setting out now, it’s very, very real that we are imperilling the planet and it might not be there for their grandchildren. So I think that they have fresh eyes and a great opportunity to respond to the landscape.

“I think there’ll be an attenuated awareness of just what’s at stake for young people, and I think that it’s important for us to encourage young women setting out on their own paths to see the positives of that and to grasp the fact that their stewardship of the natural world, of the planet, is more informed than ours was. 

Sara Wheeler’s comments have been edited for length and clarity.

Sara Wheeler has gone where few women – and even men – have dared to go. One of Britain’s foremost travel writers, she’s documented her adventures in 11 bestselling books.

Covering seven continents, she’s brought a fresh perspective to what has historically been a male-dominated genre. 

Whether riding a sled in Lapland with her infant son strapped to her chest, or spending a freezing night in Robert Scott’s hut at the South Pole, Wheeler has established herself as “the queen of intrepid travel.” Her books include accounts of her journeys as well as biographies, such as Terra Incognita: Travels in Antarctica, The Magnetic North: Notes from the Arctic Circle, and Mud and Stars: Travels in Russia with Pushkin, Tolstoy, and Other Geniuses of the Golden Age.

Wheeler’s latest title, Glowing Still: A Woman’s Life on the Road, is her most personal to date, reflecting on her own experience and the changing world of travel.

Sara Wheeler spoke to Eleanor Wachtel from Edinburgh.

From the other side

“The working title for the book in my mind was Nubility to Invisibility. Nubility being when I was out there in my 20s and invisibility being out there in my 60s, as I am now.

“I was surprised at how much I’d forgotten, and I was surprised at how much I’d left out of the published accounts. And I asked myself, ‘Why did you leave this out?’

Of course, as an old writer now all I want is people not to take me seriously. But perhaps that arc is just the arc of age.– Sara Wheeler

“A story would occur and I would take it a bit further, wondering on the meaning of it and what could be extrapolated from it, whether it meant this or that — the more profound things. I think I didn’t have the confidence to carry on with things then.

“The other things I left out much more frequently were the funny stories which had arisen largely as a result of my own stupidities. And that was easier for me to see why I’d left it out. It’s because I was so keen starting out as a writer for people to take me seriously, and I thought that would prevent them taking me seriously. Of course, as an old writer now all I want is people not to take me seriously. But perhaps that arc is just the arc of age.”

The changing world of travel

“Things have really changed when it comes to travel. One — the big one — is hydrocarbons. It’s terrible to go anywhere unless you’re going on a bike or walking because you’re poisoning the planet. We all know that it’s morally wrong. Secondly, coronavirus — that’s not going to go away anytime soon. These mutating viruses and sitting in a metal tube for hours on end, it’s just about the worst thing one could possibly do. And the third thing is, of course, voice appropriation.The idea is, and it’s a good idea and I endorse it wholly and embrace it, that you can’t just go around telling other people’s stories because those stories belong to them.

The idea is, and it’s a good idea and I endorse it wholly and embrace it, that you can’t just go around telling other people’s stories because those stories belong to them.– Sara Wheeler

“There’s a fourth point also, of course, when it comes to travel writing, which is that we’ve been everywhere, so there’s no new places to discover, which there was even when I started out, there were places people didn’t know about. So I thought of it as really as the Four Horsemen of the apocalypse. And I tried in Glowing Still, to trace the trajectory of those things throughout the course of my careers, as I’d come to to understand them.”

Fighting for space

“As the only woman, I dealt with a lot of humiliations early on [in Antarctica] and looking back, I wonder how I dealt with it, but I think that’s perhaps the fortitude of youth. Also, of course, one had no choices. I certainly couldn’t leave, couldn’t go anywhere. That was out of the question. I certainly couldn’t ring anybody. There was no phone, and I certainly couldn’t send any emails because there was no internet. I just had to escape into my private world, which is often through reading and by engaging with the landscape.

I just had to escape into my private world, which is often through reading and by engaging with the landscape.– Sara Wheeler

“I think that actually I turned it to my advantage. I was aware that I had to do that, not to let them win. And of course, in any group of 25 people, there’s going to be some decent ones. And there were three or four, notably ones that were a bit older, a bit more mature and weren’t taking the lead from the others.

“And whilst they couldn’t speak up for me, they were able to befriend me. And I think it’s kind of given me an insight in all the decades that have passed since then into what it’s like for women in the world.”

Looking to the stars

“How are we supposed to live? The best writers all know that there aren’t any answers, there are only questions. Someone like Dostoevsky, the answer changed for him, as his thinking progressed and you get all sorts of different messages from Dostoevsky’s novels, including a lot that he didn’t want you to get — about doubt for example. 

How are we supposed to live? The best writers all know that there aren’t any answers, there are only questions.– Sara Wheeler

“The title of my book on Russia, which I called Mud and Stars comes from an Ivan Turgenev quote, “We sit in the mud, my friend, and reach for the stars.” Like all the best people, Turgenev knew human beings are tragically and irrevocably flawed and are never going to hope to do anything more than look at the stars. The stars being the eternal truths that are twinkling away out of our grasp. But we can at least look at them. I think that’s what great writers do, is that they enable you to look at the stars.

Reimagining the genre

“I think moving forward there’ll be other motifs that young women follow and I think that they will probably do much more travel under their own steam — bikes and on foot, ferries across the English Channel to make a start and get onto the continent and from there you can get pretty much anywhere. So I think there will be a great cutting down on hydrocarbons and I think there will be an incorporation of the natural world in a way that we might look back and say, ‘Well, it had some artifice back in the day because we thought that the natural world would go on forever.’

I think there’ll be an attenuated awareness of just what’s at stake for young people, and I think that it’s important for us to encourage young women setting out on their own paths to see the positives of that and to grasp the fact that their stewardship of the natural world, of the planet, is more informed than ours was.– Sara Wheeler

“To those young women setting out now, it’s very, very real that we are imperilling the planet and it might not be there for their grandchildren. So I think that they have fresh eyes and a great opportunity to respond to the landscape.

“I think there’ll be an attenuated awareness of just what’s at stake for young people, and I think that it’s important for us to encourage young women setting out on their own paths to see the positives of that and to grasp the fact that their stewardship of the natural world, of the planet, is more informed than ours was. 

Sara Wheeler’s comments have been edited for length and clarity.

Communications regulator Icasa has officially made a large tranche of additional 6E spectrum available to South African users, with immediate effect.

By publishing its amended radio frequency spectrum regulations 2023 [annexure B], Icasa has confirmed that lower-band 6E – that is, spectrum in the 5.925-6.425GHz band range – can now be used for wireless communication, with one catch: that use of this bandwidth is currently limited for low-power transmission only.

The release of this new spectrum is the first step in the much-anticipated release of additional spectrum for both indoor and outdoor use.

Although the current regulations only permit the use of lower-band 6E spectrum for indoor use, that’s still going to open up a big window of opportunity for wireless internet service providers (Wisps) to maximise the potential of their broadband internet services.

Using any number of already-certified 6E devices — routers, handsets and even home entertainment appliances like TVs and other smart devices — users will enjoy a supercharged internet experience, with much higher throughput and speeds, and much lower interference.

Advantages of 6E spectrum

> Reduced WiFi congestion
> Wider channels, with 80MHz and 160MHz bandwidth
>Wireless speeds of over 1Gbit/s
> Extremely low (<1ms) latency
> No overlapping channels
> Next-gen experience for advanced tech like AR and VR
> Device availability: handsets, routers and other smart devices from Samsung, Apple, Motorola and Asus, among others, already certified for 6E

Until now, you’d need to be on a wired Cat6 cable network to get 1Gbit/s-plus internet and LAN speeds in your home or business, but with 6E devices these speeds will soon be available wirelessly. Moreover, since very few currently use the 6GHz band, there’s going to be much less channel interference, unlike the already-congested 2.4GHz and 5.8GHz bands.

The next step is to enable the use of 6E bandwidth over standard power (outdoor) transmission devices, so that Wisps can increase the speed and bandwidth of their broadcast services.

AFC databases

Enabling 6E outdoors will require the creation of automatic frequency coordination (AFC) databases, which are used to automatically prevent interference between long-range broadcast equipment for new and existing users, which in the 6E band are primarily satellite services at this time.

The US, Canada and Brazil have started commercial AFC trials in the 6E band. Now that South Africa has caught up with the rest of the world in opening up lower-band 6E spectrum, hopefully the country can also move rapidly to allow for outdoor 6E use and, beyond that, look at opening up upper-band 6E spectrum as well.

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According to tradition, St. Thaddeus and St. Bartholomew evangelized the region of Armenia in the first century. In the year 301, it became the first nation to declare itself Christian. Through centuries of warfare and oppression, its Christian identity has endured as part of Armenian culture, despite repeated attempts by neighbors to stamp it out. 

In 1915, the Turkish Ottoman Empire killed an estimated 1.2 million people during what has become known as the Armenian Genocide. Under the pretext that they were insufficiently loyal to the empire, Ottoman authorities shot entire villages, forcibly converted families to Islam, and marched hundreds of thousands of women and children into the Syrian desert to die. The brutal campaign of extermination led to a significant diaspora of Armenians to other countries.  

Even after Armenia emerged from Soviet dominance and declared itself an independent republic at the end of the 20th century, peace has remained elusive. Armenia has faced decades of conflict over the contested Nagorno-Karabakh region, where some 100,000 Armenian Christians now live but which Muslim-majority Azerbaijan sees as its territory. In 2020, as the world was preoccupied with the global pandemic, Azerbaijan waged war against Armenia. Seven thousand lives were taken, and the region has remained in the shadow of a fragile ceasefire since.  

Today, most Armenians exist in a state of uncertainty. Given their control over the region, it may be that Azerbaijan is poised to commit a second Armenian genocide. According to University Network for Human Rights researcher Thomas Becker, 

Over the past decade, Azerbaijani officials have invoked language used in the Rwandan genocide and the Holocaust, referring to Armenians as a “cancer tumor” and a “disease” to be “treated.” More recently, the country’s authoritarian leader Ilham Aliyev has threatened to “drive [Armenians] away like dogs.” 

The situation seems dire with Russia, Armenia’s ostensible security guarantor, bogged down in its own war against Ukraine, and with Iran, Armenia’s southern neighbor eager to fill the security vacuum. However, an unexpected recent development is that a significant number of Armenia’s diaspora population has been returning to their homeland. After a hundred years of exile and living in places like Russia, France, and the United States, an estimated 50,000 Armenians repatriated prior to 2020, with thousands more joining them every year since.  

For some, the motivation to return is economic. For others, it’s about standing with fellow Armenians in the face of war. However, for many, the calling is about their faith. As the dean of Armenian Apostolic seminary put it, “We as a nation are called to witness to Jesus Christ in a very difficult region. … Our very existence is a testimony of Christianity.” 

Lara Setrakian, an Armenian American journalist, moved back with her family at the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak. In a recent podcast, she put it this way,  

I am doing what I’m called to do … and it is to be a helper like Mr. Rogers would say. It is a catastrophe. There are crises. But I want to be among the helpers. … We’re not interested in not being Christian … For Christians … this country is one big test of faith. And people I see are rising to the occasion. And they are finding strength, and they … have not ever given up. … They haven’t given up the cross; they haven’t given up their language, their love, their dance. They embody the resilience that we’re all looking for.  

Another repatriated Armenian mused, “In America, I had a good life: a big house, a good car. But when I say, ‘good life,’ I mean something else.”
As so many in the West reel from a crisis of meaning, Armenian Christians have found joy in the face of severe hardship. In that way, we have much to learn from our Armenian brothers and sisters, even as we ask God to bless them, to strengthen their faith, and to bring peace to the nation they are rebuilding. 

This Breakpoint was co-authored by Kasey Leander. For more resources to live like a Christian in this cultural moment, go to breakpoint.org.

Image credit: ©Getty Images / Scaliger

The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of Christian Headlines.

BreakPoint is a program of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. BreakPoint commentaries offer incisive content people can’t find anywhere else; content that cuts through the fog of relativism and the news cycle with truth and compassion. Founded by Chuck Colson (1931 – 2012) in 1991 as a daily radio broadcast, BreakPoint provides a Christian perspective on today’s news and trends. Today, you can get it in written and a variety of audio formats: on the web, the radio, or your favorite podcast app on the go.

John Stonestreet is President of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview, and radio host of BreakPoint, a daily national radio program providing thought-provoking commentaries on current events and life issues from a biblical worldview. John holds degrees from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (IL) and Bryan College (TN), and is the co-author of Making Sense of Your World: A Biblical Worldview.

Communications regulator Icasa has officially made a large tranche of additional 6E spectrum available to South African users, with immediate effect.

By publishing its amended radio frequency spectrum regulations 2023 [annexure B], Icasa has confirmed that lower-band 6E – that is, spectrum in the 5.925-6.425GHz band range – can now be used for wireless communication, with one catch: that use of this bandwidth is currently limited for low-power transmission only.

The release of this new spectrum is the first step in the much-anticipated release of additional spectrum for both indoor and outdoor use.

Although the current regulations only permit the use of lower-band 6E spectrum for indoor use, that’s still going to open up a big window of opportunity for wireless internet service providers (Wisps) to maximise the potential of their broadband internet services.

Using any number of already-certified 6E devices — routers, handsets and even home entertainment appliances like TVs and other smart devices — users will enjoy a supercharged internet experience, with much higher throughput and speeds, and much lower interference.

Advantages of 6E spectrum

> Reduced WiFi congestion
> Wider channels, with 80MHz and 160MHz bandwidth
>Wireless speeds of over 1Gbit/s
> Extremely low (<1ms) latency
> No overlapping channels
> Next-gen experience for advanced tech like AR and VR
> Device availability: handsets, routers and other smart devices from Samsung, Apple, Motorola and Asus, among others, already certified for 6E

Until now, you’d need to be on a wired Cat6 cable network to get 1Gbit/s-plus internet and LAN speeds in your home or business, but with 6E devices these speeds will soon be available wirelessly. Moreover, since very few currently use the 6GHz band, there’s going to be much less channel interference, unlike the already-congested 2.4GHz and 5.8GHz bands.

The next step is to enable the use of 6E bandwidth over standard power (outdoor) transmission devices, so that Wisps can increase the speed and bandwidth of their broadcast services.

AFC databases

Enabling 6E outdoors will require the creation of automatic frequency coordination (AFC) databases, which are used to automatically prevent interference between long-range broadcast equipment for new and existing users, which in the 6E band are primarily satellite services at this time.

The US, Canada and Brazil have started commercial AFC trials in the 6E band. Now that South Africa has caught up with the rest of the world in opening up lower-band 6E spectrum, hopefully the country can also move rapidly to allow for outdoor 6E use and, beyond that, look at opening up upper-band 6E spectrum as well.

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On Tuesday, as the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike ended its third week, picketing writers and supporters rallied across the street from NBC headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, known as “30 Rock,” in midtown Manhattan. The rally attracted more than 1,000 people, the largest event of the strike in New York so far, including WGA members, as well as supporters from the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), the Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) and others.

A host of celebrities (Steve Earle, Wanda Sykes, Susan Sarandon and more), various union officials and figures associated with both the entertainment industry and the Democratic Party (Al Franken, Cynthia Nixon, Kal Penn) were on hand. Franken, Nixon and New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, who campaigned to be the Democrats’ New York gubernatorial candidate in 2022, but lost, addressed the rally.

The union officials and Democrats offered demagogic denunciations of corporate greed and promised “support” and “solidarity.” The promises are worth less than nothing. The Democratic Party led by the Biden administration is an anti-working class party of war and Wall Street, which banned a strike by railroad workers last year. If the writers or any other section of workers got in the way of American capitalism’s “national interests,” they would receive the same brutal treatment.

The writers are battling against some of the largest multi-national corporations on the planet, grouped together into the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), including Amazon, Walt Disney, NBCUniversal and Warner Bros. Discovery. These giants, which rake in tens or even hundreds of billions of dollars a year, are seeking to squeeze even more profit from the writers, already suffering from tenuous employment and unpredictable incomes, by turning them in effect into “gig” workers and threatening to replace them to an ever greater extent with artificial intelligence (AI).

WSWS reporters spoke with writers and supporters at the rally about the wider context of the strike and the need to unite all workers in a common struggle against the increasingly difficult situation they face.

Quentin, a television comedy writer, told a WSWS reporter, “I am in favor of the pan-union thing, uniting with more workers. Everyone is in the same boat with how things are going. There needs to be more solidarity for all workers. Looking back in history, business has gained so much control since the Reagan Revolution.”