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As many of the world’s richest countries race ahead with programmes to vaccinate their populations against COVID-19, the first doses remain a long way off for much of the developing world.
As the Liberian public health expert Mosoka Fallah tells us in the latest episode of The Conversation Weekly podcast: “Africa right now does not have any substantive way to acquire the vaccines.”
Making the different types of coronavirus vaccines is a complicated and delicate process. But there’s still a lot of potential global manufacturing capacity that’s not currently being used to do so. We delve into some of the reasons why – and hear about an ongoing battle to secure a waiver on international patent laws that could allow a big scaling up of vaccine production. Listen to The Conversation Weekly wherever you get your podcasts.
Meanwhile, in the 30th anniversary year of the Gulf War, new research on the mysterious chronic illness suffered by many troops involved in the conflict has ruled out one of the key suggested causes – exposure to depleted uranium. And we hear why it’s wrong to think of some species as “alien”: instead we should accept that eco-fusion is the new normal.
P.S. A note about viewing our articles on Facebook. Facebook this week started to block Australians from sharing and accessing news content, the result of an ongoing dispute over proposed legislation in Australia to have tech companies pay news publishers for journalism linked to from social media and search engines. The blocked content includes articles produced by The Conversation Australia. The result in the UK is that you will not be able to share articles from The Conversation UK on Facebook either, as The Conversation was founded in Australia and all our national editions run off a common web site. We are seeking ways to address this situation and urge you to continue reading our work on our website and sharing through email or other social media in the meantime.
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Gemma Ware
Editor, The Conversation Weekly
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Access to coronavirus vaccine depends on where in the world you live.
Alamy Stock Photo
Gemma Ware, The Conversation; Daniel Merino, The Conversation
Plus new research on why China is closing down coal-fired power stations. Listen to episode 3 of The Conversation Weekly.
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Oil well fires burning outside of Kuwait.
Everett Collection/ Shutterstock
Randall Parrish, University of Portsmouth; Robert Haley, UT Southwestern Medical Center
Also known as Gulf War Syndrome, symptoms of the condition include chronic pain, fatigue, and memory problems.
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Parakeets – in the UK.
Sandra Standbridge / shutterstock
Ian D. Rotherham, Sheffield Hallam University
Let's embrace the possibilities of hybrid ecosystems.
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Health + Medicine
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Anne Moore, University College Cork
While some of the authorised COVID-19 vaccines are grown, others are built.
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Rob Reddick, The Conversation
The UK has given around 25% of its population a first dose, but across the world fewer than 3% of people have received a vaccine.
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John Blundell, University of Leeds
Semaglutide works by controlling appetite.
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André Neto-Bradley, University of Cambridge; Rishika Rangarajan, Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS)
What is the best way to help families sustain transition to clean cooking methods? Research in Bangalore, India offers some answers.
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Mosoka Fallah, University of Liberia
Countries in the West Africa region are in a very different position to seven years ago. They now have the experience of the past as well as new tools to tackle Ebola.
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Science + Technology
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Diana Bossio, Swinburne University of Technology
Facebook pulling the plug on Australian news will cause short-term disruption, but readers and media will recover.
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Simon Goodwin, University of Sheffield
There's a good reason why so many scientists disagree with claims that Earth has been visited by aliens.
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Gianluca Sarri, Queen's University Belfast
The compact accelerators are 100 times smaller than traditional ones, and could easily fit inside hospitals and laboratories.
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Environment + Energy
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Chris Fogwill, Keele University; Alan Hogg, University of Waikato; Chris Turney, UNSW; Zoë Thomas, UNSW
Scientists have uncovered evidence of a global paleopocalyspe.
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Hollie Booth, University of Oxford
The pandemic has brought humanity’s strained relationship with nature into sharp focus.
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Arts + Culture
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Nick Higgins, University of the West of Scotland
The documentary resulted in the creation of an active translation network.
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Vicky Armstrong, University of Dundee
Taking part in creative activities with little ones can help bolster their communication, build their sense of self and even improve their health and wellbeing.
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Business + Economy
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Michael Ball, University of Reading
A stamp duty holiday announced to avoid a housing market crash is not all it was cracked up to be.
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Politics + Society
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James Sweeney, Lancaster University
'Show trials' by dictatorships have repeatedly been shown to have no basis in law.
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