1) Title: Global businesses must lead the way on climate actionSource: http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/may/19/global-businesses-must-lead-the-way-on-climate-actionMajor business leaders will gather in Paris this week for theBusiness and Climate Summit. It comes six months before the Paris climate conference,COP21, the aim of which is well known: to reach a universal agreement limiting the rise in global average temperature to 2C above pre-industrial levels.Until recently, action against climate change was trapped in a sort of vicious circle: many businesses were waiting for political decisions before taking action, while governments, for their part, were waiting for a mobilisation of the private sector.Now the situation is changing. Firstly, most governments are committing themselves.To date, nearly 40 countries including the 28 member states of the European Union, the US, Mexico, Gabon, etc have submitted theirnational contributions that is, their commitments in terms of reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and adaptation to climate change. We are counting on all countries to join this collective effort and submit their contributions before the deadline of 30 October.Secondly, many businesses now include climate action in their long-term strategy and their daily activities. General Motors,Google, Amazon,Applehave signed major agreements on renewable energy use. A few weeks ago, 43 business leaders from companies in over 150 countries,declared their responsibility to support sustainable development.Ikea, Toshiba Corporation, AkzoNobel, Enel, Hindustan Construction Company, ING Group, Marks & Spencer, Suez Environnement and other large and medium-sized enterprises have undertaken to reduce their environmental impact by setting goals to lower their emissions and their energy consumption. They have also committed to promoting innovative technologies and incorporating climate risks into their decision-making processes.These positive developments can be explained by a general increase in awareness and by business interests.One thing is gradually becoming clear: investing in green growth, which is the growth of the future, can be a source of profit and employment. Areport by the Carbon Disclosure Projectshows that businesses which actively take into account the issue of climate enjoy 18% higher returns on investment than those that do not.For a long time, climate action was seen as a cost rather than an opportunity, whereas today, the debate centres on the cost of taking no action. According to some estimates, inaction to combat climate change could cost $28tn (18tn) globally by 2050.As we head towards COP21, we expect business leaders from around the world to call for ambitious policies and to join this collective effort themselves by taking concrete steps, for example by setting themselves a target of 100% renewable energy use, or progressive emission reduction targets.The efforts made by businesses along with those made by cities, regions and civil society are obviously no replacement for the crucial measures that must be taken by states, whose action is decisive, but they will strengthen these measures. The central and fair idea is that governments should not be the only ones combating climate change.TheParisclimate agreement that we are working actively towards will not provide an immediate solution to the problem of climate change, but it can and should provide a way forward.Today, we are convinced that a large number of public and private stakeholders are ready to commit, in specific ways, to building a more sustainable world. The time for climate action has therefore come, and businesses need to play their full part.

2) Title: Peabody Energy exploited Ebola crisis for corporate gain, say health expertsSource: The Guardian

Public health experts involved in the response to theEbolacrisis have condemned what they described as a ludicrous, insulting and opportunistic attempt to exploit the disease for corporate gain by the worlds largest privately-held coal company.As part of a PR offensive to rebrand coal as a 21st-century fuel that can help solve global poverty, it has emerged that at the height of Ebolas impact in Africa, PeabodyEnergypromoted its product as an answer to Africas devastating public health crisis.Greg Boyce, the chief executive of Peabody, a US-based multinational with mining interests around the world, included a slide on Ebola and energy in a presentation to a coal industry conference in September last year. The slide suggested that more energy would have spurred the distribution of a hypothetical Ebola vaccine citing as supporting evidence a University of Pennsylvania infectious disease expert.The World Health Organisation believes nearly 27,000 people contracted Ebola in an outbreak of the virus in WestAfricalast year, and more than 11,000 died although the international agency believes that is probably an underestimate.Public health experts who were involved in fighting the spread of Ebola were outraged at Peabodys suggestion that expanding energy access with coal generation could have hindered the spread of Ebola and helped with the distribution of a vaccine especially as there is no approved vaccine against the disease.Meanwhile, the medical expert cited by Peabody to support its claims told the Guardian he had never heard of the company and that it had got his name wrong.There is no apparent merit or evidence to support such a thesis, said Irwin Redlener, director of Columbia Universitys National Centre for Disaster Preparedness, and an advisor to the White House on the US response to Ebola. Peabody has very specific and explicit corporate goals. I think this is a pretty far fetched leap from a global crisis to try to justify the existence of a company that is interested in producing and selling coal.Redlener added: I think its an opportunistic attempt and somewhat desperate to relate corporate self-interest to a massive public health crisis.Skip Burkle, a senior fellow of the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative at the universitys school of public health, said Peabodys claims were absolutely ludicrous. We are talking about public health infrastructure, he said. Energy is just one piece of it. There are so many other factors that have to come together.He went on: The coal industry is going down but there are other answers to this and it is not to dump it in Africa. It is just an insult to the population.Peabody denied it was using the Ebola crisis for its own gain. Mr Boyce was simply noting that a lack of electricity dramatically impaired the ability to fight Ebola in key nations that have little energy access and where hospitals rely on generators for power, Vic Svec, the companys senior vice-president for global investor and corporate relations told the Guardian.The doctor whose comments were used to justify Peabodys claims was relatively sanguine. I know nothing about the coal industry, Harvey Rubin, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Pennsylvania said.He did say he intended to contact the company to correct his name which was wrong on the power point.Boyce had claimed in the power point that electricity shortages had hampered the fight against Ebola.Lack of electricity impairs ability to fight crises like Ebola, the headline to Boyces powerpoint said.It went on to quote Rubin misidentified as Harry not Harvey - on the importance to public vaccination efforts of a reliable electricity supply.Lets say someone does develop an Ebola vaccine. Distributing a vaccine would require continuous chain refrigeration, Rubin said.But he told the Guardian he was agnostic on the issue of power sources. He said there were already sufficient supplies of electricity in Africa for effective distribution of vaccines by using existing cell phone towers. We can piggyback on those towers, he said.The Ebola claims surfaced amid growing pressure on Peabody Energy from the downturn in coal and a global anti-apartheid stylefossil fuel divestment campaign.Over the last two years, over 200 institutions and major investors have committed to selling off their stocks of oil, coal and gas, on the grounds that much of the worlds reserves of fossil fuels must stay in the ground to avoid dangerous climate change. Some institutions such as Stanford University have committed only to dumping coal, while hanging on to oil and gas holdings.The Guardian supports the fossil fuel divestment movement, and through itsKeep it in the Ground campaignhas called on two of the worlds biggest charities, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Wellcome Trust to divest from fossil fuels. The Gates Foundationss Asset Trust has a $1.6m holding in Peabody according to the most recently available information. The Wellcome Trust does not appear to have a direct investment in the company.Peabody views the fossil fuel divestment campaign as misguided and symbolic. But in the past it has suggested that divestment could have an impact on the business. The impact of such efforts [fossil fuel divestment campaigns] may adversely affect the demand for and price of securities issued by us, and impact our access to the capital and financial markets,wrotePeabody in its 2014 annual filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.Svec though, denied that the campaign represented a threat to the companys bottom line. Fossil fuels comprise more than 80% of all energy use globally, and these fuels will continue to be with us for centuries.But the fossil fuel divestment movement has intensified Peabodys campaign to rebrand coal. It is the dirtiest of fossil fuels which contributes heavily to climate change and causes large numbers of deathsbecause of pollution produced when burning it.But in apower point presentation, prepared for the managers of the worlds richest sovereign wealth fund, the Norwegian government pension fund in June last year, Peabody executives argued that coal was positioned to be the fastest-growing fuel of the 21st century.At the time, the fund had 64m NOK (5.5m) in Peabody, down from 1.2bn NOK in 2010.In the meeting, Peabody argued that 21st-century coal was positioned to be the main driver of digital expansion, and of urbanisation of developing countries. It also said access to coal was the cure for global poverty.The effort did not work. As of 31 December, the Norwegian government pension fund haddumped all shares of Peabody and other US coal companies, according to Urgewald, a German NGO which monitors the fossil fuel divestment campaign.So they were obviously not convinced by Peabodys presentation, said Heffa Schuecking, a campaigner for Urgewald.

3) Title Japan's economy grows faster than expectedSource: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-32791729Japan's economy grew faster than expected between January and March, boosting hopes that the economy is recovering from last year's recession.The economy expanded 0.6% in the period compared to the previous quarter, marking its second consecutive quarter of growth.The result was far better than the 0.4% analysts had expected.On an annualised basis, the economy grew 2.4% in the period against forecasts of 1.5%.Analysts said the first quarter growth rate was "very positive"."The recovery seems to be well on track," Tony Nash, chief economist at Complete Intelligence, told the BBC."This must bring a smile to Prime Minister Abe's face and is a vindication that his economic policies are moving things in the right direction."The country cameout of recessionin the fourth quarter of last year.HeadwindsJapan relies on domestic consumption for about 60% of its economy, but it has been recovering from a sales tax hike which has dampened spending.Private consumption and capital spending were both up 0.4% in the quarter, but capital spending was expected to rise by 0.8%.Capital Economics analyst Marcel Thieliant said in a note that the acceleration in economic growth for the period "was mostly due to a jump in inventories"."And a range of indicators point to a slowdown in the second quarter."Industrial production in March was 4% below its January peak, and the drop in the manufacturing PMI (Purchasing Manager's Index) to a multi-month low in April suggests that conditions are unlikely to improve quickly," he added.Other headwindsJapan's economy has been facing include wages, which have remained stagnant for several years, together with a weaker yen, which makes imported goods more expensive for consumers on the home front.On the upside however, the weaker yen does give a boost to the country's big exporters, like Toyota, because it makes their goods cheaper to buy overseas. It also helps their bottom line when they repatriate money made from overseas operations.

Why Japan's inventories matter- By Martin Schulz, Fujitsu Research InstituteCorporate decisions about their inventory levels have been the main driver of growth, or disappointment, for the year. It is an important indicator for growth during a recovery because companies will only increase inventories when they expect increasing demand.Inventories have become more important than usual in Japan because the sales tax hike disrupted demand patterns so much, and because Japanese companies are coming out of a long phase - almost 20 years - of cutting costs and downsizing in Japan's ageing economy.In such an environment, corporate optimism does not lead to more investment immediately; companies will first boost their existing capacities until they become insufficient - that is, until inventories first build up and then get sold.The first step is what we are seeing. The next step is selling production through exports and to consumers, producing higher incomes on the way. If that works - we would finally see a sustainable recovery, driven by the private - not government - sector.Further easing?The Bank of Japan's current easing programme is designed to stimulate the country's economy by encouraging more lending, which in turn should see increased consumer spending.It also hopes to drive greater investment activity and boost inflation.The latest growth figures meant the chances of further near-term easing had diminished, said Mr Thieliant, but "with price pressures likely to remain subdued, more stimulus will be needed before too long, with the October meeting now the most likely venue."

DICTIONARY: gather= a colecta, a strangeverb1. to assemble or cause to assemble1. to collect or be collected gradually; muster1. (transitive)to learn from information given; conclude or assume1. (transitive)to pick or harvest (flowers, fruit, etc)1. (transitive;followed bytoorinto)to clasp or embrace the mother gathered the child into her arms1. (transitive)to bring close (to) or wrap (around) she gathered her shawl about her shoulders1. to increase or cause to increase gradually, as in force, speed, intensity, etc1. to contract (the brow) or (of the brow) to become contracted into wrinkles; knit1. (transitive)to assemble (sections of a book) in the correct sequence for binding1. (transitive)to collect by making a selection1. (transitive)to prepare or make ready to gather one's wits1. to draw (material) into a series of small tucks or folds by passing a thread through it and then pulling it tight1. (intransitive)(of a boil or other sore) to come to a head; form pus

trapped= a prinde;verbWord forms:traps,trapping,trapped1. (transitive)to catch, take, or pen in or as if in a trap; entrap1. (transitive)to ensnare by trickery; trick1. (transitive)to provide (a pipe) with a trap1. to set traps in (a place), esp for animals

renewable= adj, regenerabilverb(mainly transitive)1. to take up again1. (also intransitive)to begin (an activity) again; recommence to renew an attempt1. to restate or reaffirm (a promise, etc)1. (also intransitive)to make (a lease, licence, or contract) valid or effective for a further period1. to extend the period of loan of (a library book)1. to regain or recover (vigour, strength, activity, etc)1. to restore to a new or fresh condition1. to replace (an old or worn-out part or piece)1. to replenish (a supply, etc) awareness= constinentizaresubstantivknowledge or perception of a situation or fact.we need to raise public awareness of the issuesinonime:consciousness,recognition,realization,understanding,grasp,appreciation,knowledge,insight,familiarity,light-bulb moment,cognizance head= capnoun1. the upper or front part of the body in vertebrates, including man, that contains and protects the brain, eyes, mouth, and nose and ears when presentrelated adjectivecephalic1. the corresponding part of an invertebrate animal1. something resembling a head in form or function, such as the top of a tool

targets= obiective;noun1. 0. an object or area at which an archer or marksman aims, usually a round flat surface marked with concentric rings0. (as modifier) target practice1. 1. any point or area aimed at; the object of an attack or a takeover bid1. (as modifier) target area,target company1. a fixed goal or objective the target for the appeal is 100001. a person or thing at which an action or remark is directed or the object of a person's feelings a target for the teacher's sarcasm1. a joint of lamb consisting of the breast and neck1. (surveying)a marker on which sights are taken, such as the sliding marker on a levelling staff1. (formerly) a small round shield

Strengthen= a consolida;verb1. to make or become stronger

stakeholders= parti interesate/implicatenoun1. a person or group owning a significant percentage of a company's shares1. a person or group not owning shares in an enterprise but affected by or having an interest in its operations, such as the employees, customers, local community, etc

ludicrous= ridicoladjective1. absurd or incongruous to the point of provoking ridicule or laughter

rebrand=a schimba imagineaverb1. (transitive)to change or update the image of (an organization or product)

Coal= carbunenoun1. 0. a combustible compact black or dark-brown carbonaceous rock formed from compaction of layers of partially decomposed vegetation: a fuel and a source of coke, coal gas, and coal tarSee alsoanthracite,bituminous coal,lignite,peat10. (as modifier) coal cellar,coal merchant,coal mine,coal dust1. one or more lumps of coal

mining= mineritnoun1. the act, process, or industry of extracting coal, ores, etc, from the earth1. (military)the process of laying mines

Spurred= a stimulaverbWord forms:spurs,spurring,spurred1. (transitive)to goad or urge with or as if with spurs1. (intransitive)to go or ride quickly; press on1. (transitive)to injure or strike with a spur1. (transitive)to provide with a spur or spurs

Fetched= a aduceverb(mainly transitive)1. to go after and bring back; get to fetch help1. to cause to come; bring or draw forth the noise fetched him from the cellar1. (also intransitive)to cost or sell for (a certain price) the table fetched six hundred pounds1. to utter (a sigh, groan, etc)1. (informal)to deal (a blow, slap, etc)1. (also intransitive)(nautical)to arrive at or proceed by sailing1. (informal)to attract to be fetched by an idea1. (used esp as a command to dogs) to retrieve (shot game, an object thrown, etc)1. (rare)to draw in (a breath, gasp, etc), esp with difficulty

chain = lantnoun1. a flexible length of metal links, used for confining, connecting, pulling, etc, or in jewellery

refrigeration= racire agnostic= agnosticnoun1. a person who holds that knowledge of a Supreme Being, ultimate cause, etc, is impossibleCompareatheist,theist1. a person who claims, with respect to any particular question, that the answer cannot be known with certaintyadjective1. of or relating to agnostics

piggyback= a cara in spateverb(transitive)1. to give (a person) a piggyback on one's back and shoulders2.to transport (one vehicle) on another

anti-apartheid adjective1. opposed to apartheid the anti-apartheid movement

fossil fuel = combustibil fosilnouna natural fuel such as coal or gas, formed in the geological past from the remains of living organisms.

*misguided= gresitadjective1. foolish or unreasonable, esp in action or behaviour

boosting= a stimulaverb(transitive)1. to encourage, assist, or improve to boost morale1. to lift by giving a push from below or behind1. to increase or raise to boost the voltage in an electrical circuit1. to cause to rise; increase to boost sales1. to advertise on a big scale1. to increase the induction pressure of (an internal-combustion engine) above that of the ambient pressure; supercharge

forecasts= previziuni;noun1. a statement of probable future weather conditions calculated from meteorological data1. a prophecy or prediction1. the practice or power of forecasting

tax hike= majorare de impozit slowdown= a incetini;noun1. the usual US and Canadian word forgo-slow1. any slackening of pace

peak= varfnoun1. a pointed end, edge, or projection the peak of a roof1. the pointed summit of a mountain1. a mountain with a pointed summit1. the point of greatest development, strength, etc the peak of his career1. 4. a sharp increase in a physical quantity followed by a sharp decrease a voltage peak4. the maximum value of this quantity0. (as modifier) peak voltage

Drop= picaturanoun1. a small quantity of liquid that forms or falls in a spherical or pear-shaped mass; globule1. a very small quantity of liquid1. a very small quantity of anything1. something resembling a drop in shape or size, such as a decorative pendant or small sweet1. the act or an instance of falling; descent1. a decrease in amount or value; slump a drop in prices1. the vertical distance that anything may fall1. a steep or sheer incline or slope

yen= mondea JaponieinounWord forms:pluralyen1. the standard monetary unit of Japan, (notionally) divided into 100 sen

disrupted = a distrugeverb1. (transitive)to throw into turmoil or disorder1. (transitive)to interrupt the progress of (a movement, meeting, etc)1. to break or split (something) apart

patterns= modelenoun1. an arrangement of repeated or corresponding parts, decorative motifs, etc although the notes seemed random, a careful listener could detect a pattern1. a decorative design a paisley pattern1. a style various patterns of cutlery1. a plan or diagram used as a guide in making something a paper pattern for a dress1. a standard way of moving, acting, etc traffic patterns1. a model worthy of imitation a pattern of kindness1. a representative sample1. a wooden or metal shape or model used in a foundry to make a mould1. 8. the arrangement of marks made in a target by bullets8. a diagram displaying such an arrangement

downsizing= reducerenoun1. a reduction of the number of people that a company employs a trend towards downsizing in the personal-computer market1. a reduction in size

boost= impuls;noun1. encouragement, improvement, or help a boost to morale1. an upward thrust or push he gave him a boost over the wall1. an increase or rise a boost in salary1. a publicity campaign; promotion1. the amount by which the induction pressure of a supercharged internal-combustion engine exceeds that of the ambient pressure

subdued= delicat;adjective1. cowed, passive, or shy1. gentle or quiet a subdued whisper1. (of colours, etc) not harsh or bright subdued lighting

Venue= loc de intalnire

noun1. (law)0. the place in which a cause of action arises0. the place fixed for the trial of a cause0. the locality from which the jurors must be summoned to try a particular cause1. a meeting place1. any place where an organized gathering, such as a rock concert or public meeting, is held1. (mainly US)a position in an argument