Monthly focus

Over the horizon

01 February 2016

Researchers are mapping out Europe's place in the global trade structure. Image credit: Getty

What are the latest techniques being developed to stop counterfeit drugs at the border? Why do countries still prefer bi- and multilateral agreements over global deals, and how does trade play into financial crises? This February, Horizon uncovers what’s setting the course for global trade.

Developing countries such as Bangladesh can protect themselves from shocks by exporting textiles and other products. Image credit: ‘NASSA Group AJ Super Garments LTD. RMG production line’ by Musamir Azad is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-SA 3.0

social sciences | open to the world

22 February 2016

Trade openness can reduce volatility in developing countries, researchers believe

Trade openness can protect developing countries against economic shocks, researchers believe.

Researchers are working to put trackers on the surface of pills that can be detected through blister packs. Image credit: Flickr/ Konstantin Lazorkin

health | open to the world

15 February 2016

‘Fingerprinting’ to stop flow of dark web drugs

From invisible online markets, past border controls and straight to the consumer, fake pharmaceuticals are on the rise, but now a mix of anti-counterfeiting technology is helping halt the wave of fake drugs and their often lethal consequences.

The textile industry drove the industrial revolution in Britain. Image credit: Public domain/ James Howe Carse

social sciences | open to the world

05 February 2016

Asian trade may have launched Europe’s industrial age

Bygone Asian cotton and porcelain trade routes could have spurred the consumption of luxury goods in Europe, researchers believe, while scientific cooperation with modern Asia is still leading to new technological advances.

There have been more regional trade pacts in recent years but global deals are still important, according to researchers. Source: Pixabay/ WikimediaImages

social sciences | open to the world

01 February 2016

Globalisation means worldwide trade pacts needed

Much of the focus in trade talks around the world at present is on regional deals, rather than global agreements. But researchers say the goal of multilateral pacts will remain in the medium and longer term, given the pressures of globalisation.

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The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet. Image credit - Pxhere, licensed under CC0

On thin ice

When it comes to climate change, it is often said that what happens in the Arctic does not stay in the Arctic. This month, with the COP24 UN climate change conference taking place in Katowice, Poland, Horizon looks north to the region of the world that is feeling the effects of global warming most acutely. We speak to Marianne Kroglund from the Arctic Council about whether it is too late to save the fragile ecosystems there and examine how studies of ice melt show that the world may still have a fighting chance of limiting sea level rise. We find out how the Arctic environment could be protected in the face of increased maritime traffic and look at the effect of melting permafrost – soil, sediment or rock that’s been frozen for at least two years – on the environment and local communities.

Many carbon capture, storage and utilisation technologies are still in their early stages of development. Image credit - veeterzy/ Unsplash

Capturing carbon

In its landmark report in October, the UN's International Panel on Climate Change said that every package of measures we choose to limit global temperature rises to 1.5°C must include a way of removing carbon dioxide emissions from the air and reusing or storing them. This month, Horizon looks at what's being done to advance these carbon capture, storage and utilisation technologies. We talk to one expert who is trying to trap emissions from the cement industry before they are released, and find out how International Space Station technology is inspiring the capture of ambient carbon dioxide. We also investigate how captured CO2 can be reused, and examine just how safe it is to store the gas underground.

Better tracking of forest data will make the climate change reporting process easier for countries who want compensation for protecting their carbon stock. Image credit - lubasi, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Drones and satellite imaging to make forest protection pay

Every year 7 million hectares of forest are cut down, chipping away at the 485 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) stored in trees around the world, but low-cost drones and new satellite imaging could soon protect these carbon stocks and help developing countries get paid for protecting their trees.

Muostakh Island is part of the East Siberian Arctic Shelf which is the most vulnerable part of the Arctic coastline when it comes to permafrost thaw. Image credit - Prof. Igor Semiletov.

Arctic permafrost might contain ‘sleeping giant’ of world’s carbon emissions

As temperatures rise in the Arctic, permafrost, or frozen ground, is thawing. As it does, greenhouse gases trapped within it are being released into the atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide and methane, leading to previously underestimated problems with ocean acidification and potential mercury poisoning.

Over the horizon

Republish this content

Trade openness can reduce volatility in developing countries, researchers believe

‘Fingerprinting’ to stop flow of dark web drugs

Asian trade may have launched Europe’s industrial age