Philippine National ID to cut red tape

Duterte: National ID to cut red tape, fight crime

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Alexis Romero (The Philippine Star) - August 7, 2018 - 12:00am

No privacy breach, government assures public

MANILA, Philippines — Every Filipino must now secure a unique, permanent national identification number.

President Duterte rolled out yesterday the Philippine Identification System Act, allaying concerns that it would violate privacy and suppress civil liberties.

Duterte said the national ID would cut red tape and reduce corruption, improve the delivery of basic services, and serve as a tool for keeping the public safe.

He noted that several administrations have tried but failed to implement the law because of the apprehensions by some groups about privacy and data security.

“Let me be very clear about this: the information that will be included in the Phil-ID (Philippine identification system) will not be any different from the information already in the possession of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) or the former NSO (National Statistics Office), GSIS (Government Service Insurance System), PhilHealth, Pag-IBIG Fund, Comelec (Commission on Elections) and other agencies that gather personal data,” Duterte said as he signed the Philippine Identification System Act at Malacañang.

“There is therefore no basis at all for the apprehensions about the Phil-ID, unless of course that fear is based on anything that borders on illegal,” he added.

Duterte said the PSA would work closely with the National Privacy Commission, Department of Information and Communications Technology and the multi-agency PhilSystem Policy and Coordination Council to address all privacy and security concerns.

“If at all, the Phil-ID will even aid in our drive against the social menaces of poverty, corruption and criminal issues, as well as terrorism and violent extremism,” the President said.

The law would also promote good governance, enhance governmental transactions and create a more conducive environment for trade and commerce, he added.

The Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) Act will establish a single and streamlined identification system in the country. Once implemented, users will have just one ID for all government transactions.

“As we all know, the President is averse to bureaucratic red tape. Through PhilSys, we hope to improve efficiency and transparency of public services and promote ease of doing business,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque said in a statement.

“For the ordinary Juan de la Cruz, the signing of this Act means that he will no longer have to present multiple identification cards simply to prove his identity. This streamlining of information makes it likewise harder to commit identity theft or fraud,” he added.

Better service

Laguna Rep. Sol Aragones said the law would promote seamless delivery of services, improve the efficiency, transparency and target delivery of public and social services, enhance administrative governance, reduce corruption and curtail bureaucratic red tape.

“This is a historical milestone, a landmark legislation and a life-changing measure all rolled into one. We will never ever be asked again to present multiple government-issued IDs for any transaction,” Aragones said.

“We will no longer need to present multiple IDs to transact with government and private establishments that require individuals to present two or more government-issued IDs,” she added.

“Promote greater convenience to the public, avert fraudulent transactions and misrepresentations, strengthen financial inclusions, promote ease of doing business,” Aragones, chair of the House committee on population and family relations, said.

The Phil-ID could be used for transactions with GSIS, SSS, PhilHealth, HDMF and other government agencies, passports and driver’s license, tax-related transactions, registration and voting identification purposes.

“Admission to any government hospital, health center or similar institution, application for admission in schools, colleges, learning institutions and universities, whether public or private, application and transaction for employment purposes,” Aragones enumerated.

Proponents of the national ID in the Senate assured the people that the law will protect citizens’ right to privacy while making transactions with the government and private entities easier.

Sen. Panfilo Lacson said Republic Act 11055, which harmonizes and integrates the redundant government ID cards into a single system, would also help deter criminality.

“At long last, we now have a law that breaks the formidable barriers between government and the downtrodden and the poor due to the lack of identification,” he said.

Lacson is the principal sponsor of the measure, aside from being a perennial author since his first term as senator in 2001.

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon, also an author of the law, thanked Duterte for signing it.

Drilon reiterated the law would not affect data privacy as the pertinent provisions of the Data Privacy Act will still apply.

Sen. Sonny Angara, another author of the law, said the ID system will not only cut down bureaucratic red tape but also empower many Filipinos formerly without appropriate identification cards to access the formal financial system and open bank accounts.

Under the bill, a foundational ID system dubbed PhilSys will be in place. It will have three components: the PhilSys Number (PSN), Phil-ID and PhilSys Registry.

Phil-ID is a non-transferable card with the PSN and basic information.

The PSA is mandated to act as the PhilSys Registry. It protects the individual’s right to privacy, and may release information only under the following conditions:

• when the registered person has given his or her consent, specific to the purpose prior to the processing;

• when the compelling interest of public health or safety so requires, provided the risk of significant harm to the public is established and the owner of the information is notified within 72 hours of the fact of such disclosure;

• upon order of any competent court, and

• when a registered person requests from the PSA access to his or her registered information and record history, subject to the guidelines and regulations to be issued by the PSA.

Philippine National Police chief Director General Oscar Albayalde welcomed the enactment of the national ID system that assures access by citizens to a wide-range of government services and privileges.

“This much-awaited measure has become a necessity for any developing country to keep pace with global trends of technology in governance. An efficient national ID system offers benefits to practical applications in census, taxation, election registration, banking, travel documentation, social security, social welfare and other transactions with government agencies,” Albayalde said in a statement. – With Delon Porcalla, Paolo Romero, Cecille Suerte Felipe

The burning Mother Earth

My today's column

A heat wave is ravaging countries around the world. Although many celebrate sunny days, wildfires, wasted crops and health problems are some of the many disastrous consequences hot weather can have. Are we facing now the global heat wave that's been killing us?

This write-up seems to become the continuation of my previous column from last week in this publication. But it looks like much more dangerous:

Portugal breaks temperature records as European heat wave sizzles on! That's how one of hundreds headlines goes while browsing the latest news. Eight locations in Portugal have hit their highest-ever temperatures amid a heat wave across Europe. Two people are reported to have died in neighboring Spain of heat-related causes.

Portugal's weather agency said Friday that eight places in the center, south and east of the country experienced record-breaking local temperatures the previous day, as the Iberian peninsula bears the brunt of a heat wave across the European continent.

Two people in neighboring Spain are reported to have died amid the heat, with climate scientists saying such periods of scorching temperatures in Europe have been made twice as likely by the effects of global warming caused by human activity. The temperature reached 45.2 Celsius (113 Fahrenheit) (!) near Abrantes, a town 159 km (99 miles) northeast of Lisbon.

Many other European countries are also suffering unusually extended periods of very hot weather. The current heat wave in the Netherlands is the longest-ever recorded, while Sweden has experienced its hottest July in more than 250 years, accompanied by wildfires across the country.

Germany - my home country - has also been hit by hot weather, with fires breaking out in the national park of Saxon Switzerland in the eastern state of Saxony on last Thursday evening. The drought is so bad in northern Germany that a kindergarten burned down in the far north after firefighters couldn't get enough water. No one has been killed or injured.  

   

Most of us enjoy sunny days and complain on rainy ones — yet behind the clear skies lies a less pleasant reality. Since June 2018, numerous regions around the world have been facing infernal temperatures, which have caused wildfires, ruined crops and killed hundreds of people.

The hottest year ever recorded was 2016, due to a combination of global warming and a strong El Niño episode. Despite 2018 experiencing the opposite climate event, La Niña — which tends to cool temperatures — June has ranked as one of the hottest months on record. 

A heat wave describes a period of at least five days with a temperature of 5 degrees Celsius (9 degrees Fahrenheit) above the average. Extremely hot individual days can be a one-off, which doesn't always have a link to heat waves or global warming. However, a trend is clear: As a result of climate change, we can expect more extreme and frequent heat waves. That's the opinion of Clare Nullis, media officer World Meteorological Organization.

 For a south European person, 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) is nothing special. But that definitely is hot for people in the United Kingdom and Ireland, where the normal temperature in June doesn't exceed 20 degrees. On June 28, Glasgow reached its hottest June day ever, with 31.9 degrees Celsius, and the Irish town of Shannon its highest temperature ever recorded at 32 degrees. 

Germans have enjoyed — or suffered — temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius for most of May and June. In the country of Georgia, July 4 made history with 40.5 degrees Celsius. 

North America has not escaped the suffocating wave either. Denver and Los Angeles were among several cities in the United States that tied or broke heat records.

Montreal, in Canada, recorded the highest temperature in 147 years of record-keeping on July 2. The heat wave there killed more than 70 people.

Thermometers in Japan, Russia and Algeria, among other places, were also on fire. On July 5, the Ouargla weather station in Algeria’s Sahara Desert reported the highest reliable temperature ever recorded in Africa: 51.3 degrees Celsius.

This increases the risk of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. Substances like pollen, which can cause asthma, are also higher in extreme heat, the WHO said. Unusually high temperatures at night disturb restful sleep, preventing the body from recovering from daytime heat. 

Vulnerable groups such as young children and the elderly suffer the most, stated Simone Sandholz, associate academic officer at the United Nations University's Institute for Environment and Human Security. Most victims of extreme heat live in densely populated urban areas, where ventilation is scarce, she added.

Hot weather coupled with humidity is also a perfect setting for insects to thrive. In England, helpline calls for insect bites almost doubled in early July. And if you've ever felt it was so hot your brain doesn't work, science says you could be right. Hot weather can make your thinking more than 10 percent slower, a new study shows.

Farmers and crops are further victims of heat waves and droughts. In the UK, growers of peas and lettuce have struggled to meet demand due to low yields and crop failure this growing season; wheat, broccoli and cauliflower are also on the list of crops affected by the weather. In Germany, farmers have resigned themselves to a much lower grain harvest due to the heat and dryness.

While writing this piece, I am sitting in my cool office. But every specialist will tell you: access to air conditioning and cooling systems, though vital in a warmer world, can be part of a vicious cycle. Increasing use of cooling devices, currently powered largely by fossil fuels, would further contribute to climate change — and therefore rising temperatures.

The Mansion Hotel and Restaurant: Deutsches Buffet/German Buffet Menu

The Mansion Hotel and Restaurant

Deutsches Büffet - am Sonntag, den 12. August um 16 Uhr

“Iss so viel Du kannst” – 300 Pesos

Salate

Deutscher Gurkensalat – Geschnittene Gurken mit Zwiebeln,

Sauerrahm und Dill.

Karottensalat – Geriebene Karotten mit Ananas, Rosinen und Mayonaise.

Hauptgerichte

Rouladen – Zart geschmortes Flankensteak mit Dijon-Senf,

Zwiebeln, Speck und Rotwein.

Jägerschnitzel – Zartes Schweinekotelett (ohne Knochen), paniert und mit Pilzsoße.  

Bratwurst – Die klassische (deutsche) Bratwurst.

Beilagen

Deutscher Kartoffelsalat – Gekochte Kartoffeln mit Speck, Sellerie,  Zwiebeln, Käse, Frühlingszwiebeln und Essig.

Käspätzle – Hausgemachte Spätzle mit Emmenthaler Käse und

mit angerösteten Zwiebeln.  

Biere

Oettinger – 125 P  Diebels - 150 P  Paulaner – 200 P

The Mansion Hotel and Restaurant

German Buffet Menu

Sunday, August 12 at 4 PM

All You Can Eat – 300 Pesos

Salads

German Cucumber Salad – Sliced cucumbers with onions, sour cream, and dill.

Carrot Salad – Shredded carrots with pineapple, raisons, and mayonnaise.

Entrees

Rouladen – Tenderized flank steak braised with Dijon mustard, onions, bacon, and red wine.

Jagerhnitzle – Tenderized, boneless pork chops, breaded and fried with mushroom gravy.

Bratwurst – The classic German sausage.

Sides

Hot German Potato Salad – Boiled potatoes with bacon, celery, onions, cheese, green onions, and vinegar.

Kasespatzle – Homemade spatzle with baked with caramelized onions and Emmentaler cheese.

Beers

Oettinger – 125 P  Diebels - 150 P  Paulaner – 200 P

See you all there!

Wir sehen uns dann!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Klaus, from everybody at Classic FM!

From all of the team here at Classic FM (and Pavarotti), we wanted to wish you a very happy birthday.

Digital Insecurity

Mindanao Daily Mirror

The cyber attack on Germany's government network several months ago, tells us nothing new about espionage but a lot about risk in the digital age. And that calls for some rethinking, said already German columnist Matthias von Hein.

What is still safe in the digital age? What can even be kept safe? Those questions are a cause for public concern after it was revealed that hackers had successfully breached Germany's well-protected government network — copying, stealing and spying for more than a year. The only thing that is clear at this point is that the digital cat-and-mouse game is heading into the next round. 

Just an hour ago, next news are on my desk. Two of Germany's largest public broadcasters, ZDF (Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen, the 2nd National TV broadcaster and  the WDR (the Westdeutscher Rundfunk - West German Radio), have been attacked by a Russian hacking group, according to reports. It remains unclear what the group's intention was or whether any sensitive data was stolen.

A Russian hacking group known as "Sandworm" targeted them.

Security officials told German weekly Der Spiegel that hackers had managed to compromise the broadcasters' networks already in June. Although the cyber attack was detected relatively quickly, it remains unknown what the group was after or whether any sensitive data was compromised.

ZDF confirmed the attack on Friday, adding that only 10 computers on its network were affected. WDR decline to comment for "security reasons."

Sandworm is a hacking group believed to be run by Russia's military intelligence service, GRU. According to US federal investigators, the group is suspected of also being behind the attack on the US Democrats' computer servers during the 2016 presidential election.

The group first appeared in 2013 and, according to German intelligence, has targeted NATO servers, several western telecom companies and Ukrainian energy suppliers.

Earlier this year, the German government admitted that its computer network had been compromised via a piece of malware. The Russian hacking group APT28 is believed to have been behind the attack.

Germany's intelligence service (BND) had warned two weeks ago of the potential cyber threats facing several key bodies, including the country's public broadcasters and media companies.

The BND also said that the Spiez Laboratory in Switzerland, which specializes in chemical weapons research, was also among Sandworm's targets. Its Swiss lab had been tasked with analyzing the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok that was used to poison former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal in Salisbury.

A spokesperson for Spiez Laboratory said officials had encountered one phishing attack, sent via a document used in a workshop. However, the institute itself had not been affected.

Once again, the prime suspect in the attack is a hacker group with links to Russia’s GRU intelligence agency. Thus far, however, German authorities have found no solid evidence leading to the perpetrators. But the fact that hackers exhibited no interest in economic gain after infiltrating a government network would seem to point away from ordinary cybercriminals. 

This was clearly a case of espionage. And that – as long as one is not dealing with corporate espionage – is something conducted at the behest of the state. And it is most certainly the case when such attacks are carried out with a great deal of sophistication and staffing resources over a long period of time. 

Digital insecurity - an important topic for each and everyone nowadays.

EU and UN hail Rody's Bangsamoro Law

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By Helen Flores, Pia Lee-Brago (The Philippine Star) 

MANILA, Philippines — The European Union and the United Nations hailed President Duterte’s enactment of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) which, according to the EU, represents an opportunity for the Filipino people to embrace peace and stability after decades of conflict, and which the UN called a “landmark achievement on the road to lasting peace in southern Philippines.”

European Commission for Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations spokesperson Maja Kocijancic on Friday said the signing of the BOL comes after 21 years of formal talks after the first ceasefire agreement between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

“It underlines both parties’ commitment to peace and their ability to tackle a variety of complex matters through a comprehensive and inclusive law,” she said.

The regional group also hailed those involved in the negotiation and adoption of the law who have undertaken important work to bring stability and well-being to the people of Mindanao.

Kocijancic said the EU remains a staunch supporter of the Mindanao Peace Process and is prepared to support the implementation of the BOL in the future, in view of long-lasting peace, development and prosperity in Mindanao and for the Filipinos.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres yesterday congratulated negotiators of the Philippine government and the MILF, the Bicameral Conference Committee, the Bangsamoro Transition Commission and civil society groups for their efforts.

“The United Nations will continue to support the Philippines in the implementation of the law and to help build the capacity of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority as an effective conduit for peace, democratic governance and human rights,” the UN said in a statement.

‘Important step’

Japan also welcomed the enactment of the BOL for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono said “the enactment of this law is an important step toward the establishment of the new (Bangsamoro) autonomous government in Mindanao.”

“Japan sincerely commends the efforts of the government of the Philippines, the MILF and all others concerned,” Kono said.

Japan strongly hopes that the transition process toward the inauguration of the Bangsamoro will be steadily implemented, including ratification of the organic law and establishment of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority.

Japan has been supporting the peace process for many years under the conviction that peace in Mindanao will contribute to regional peace and stability, as declared in the Japan-Philippines Joint Statement on Bilateral Cooperation for the Next Five Years announced in October 2017.

Kono said Japan would enhance its support for the development of Mindanao in a wide range of fields, in accordance with progress in the peace process.

The House of Representatives approved the proposed BOL, which the administration and its authors said is the key to promoting lasting peace in Mindanao.

The BOL will create a new Muslim regional entity and replace the current Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Are LED lights making us ill?

My column in Mindanao Daily and BusinessWeek Mindanao

HAVE MY SAY


OVER the last decade, much of Europe and the US have changed the way they illuminate city and town streets. Not only there, also in the Philippines. And while checking my monthly electric bill, I followed many councils and local governments having replaced high-energy sodium bulbs (the warmer, yellow ones) with energy-saving LED bulbs (with a blue light emitting diode, which can feel harsh in comparison).

As well as street lights, most of us are exposed to blue light through smartphones, computers, TVs, and in the home.

Only an hour ago, I came across a short BBC-article written by Lucy Jones saying that earlier this year, the World Journal of Biological Psychiatry published a paper by a group of prominent psychiatrists that warned of the potential effects of LED lighting on mental illness.

It raised concerns about the influence of blue light on sleep, other circadian-mediated symptoms, use of digital healthcare apps and devices, and the higher sensitivity of teenagers to blue light. Indeed, using my tablet while already in bed during nighttime gave me some problems in getting to sleep.Or does my brain making a fool on me?

“My concern about LED lighting followed from a larger, earlier concern about the relationship between light exposure and the occurrence of manic and mixed symptoms in bipolar disorder,” said John Gottlieb, Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago and an author of the paper.

“I had already clearly seen that supplemental light exposure - in the form of bright light therapy - was extremely helpful to patients with depression. What I was slower to realize was that excess and poorly-timed light exposure could have adverse effects on manic states and the sleep-wake cycle,” he said.

And here we are: the paper has implications for the treatment of mental illness. If a person is prescribed a self-monitoring app, and instructed to use their smartphone to document mood changes, for example, and they do this before bed, it could have an adverse effect on their sleep, circadian rhythms and health.

“Because they are ubiquitous, smartphones represent the larger public health hazard,” said Gottlieb. “Streetlights, though, are not benign and together with the entire set of nocturnal lighting for entertainment, traffic, reading, etc contribute to the phenomena of light pollution, which we are becoming increasingly sensitised to.”

As BBC-Lucy Jones explained in her article: studies of the impact of blue light on healthy adults show it inhibits Melatonin secretion which disrupts sleep and can affect quality of life, physical and mental health and susceptibility to illness. Previous studies of sleep disorders in children and adolescents show a clear and consistent relationship between sleep disorders and frequency of digital device usage.

Currently, the British National Sleep Foundation guidelines suggest not using technology 30 minutes before bed and removing technology for the bedroom. I’ll try to follow the advise. However, there are currently no specific guidelines for people with an underlying mental illness or sensitivity to circadian disruption. We should give it a try, though I remember several decades ago, when we got the advise banning all electric alarm-clocks, radios and TV from our bedrooms.

As LED technology has rapidly spread across the globe, the focus has been on the visual element and the energy-saving element. Now, scientists, health professionals and the LED industry are working to minimize the blue light in LEDs and create customizable lights that won’t harm those suffering from psychiatric disorders.

More rain as 'Inday" to leave Philippines by Saturday

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(The Philippine Star) - July 20, 2018 - 

MANILA, Philippines — The southwest monsoon, or habagat, will continue to bring rain over the western section of Luzon — including Metro Manila — as Tropical Storm Inday moves northwest, PAGASA said.

In its morning press briefing, the weather bureau said that Inday was 995 km east northeast of Basco, Batanes early Friday morning and is forecast to move northwest at 15 kph. It has maximum sustained winds of 85 kph near the center and gustiness of 105 kph.

The storm is not expected to make landfall and is forecast to be outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility by Saturday morning.

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PAGASA said the storm will continue to enhance the southwest monsoon over most of Luzon.

PAGASA WEATHER FORECASTPAGASA WEATHER UPDATES

As It Happens

LATEST UPDATE: July 20, 2018 - 11:31am

The low pressure area monitored east of northern Cagayan has developed into a tropical depression Wednesday morning, state weather bureau PAGASA says.

The tropical depression has been named Inday. This is the ninth tropical cyclone in 2018.

It packs maximum sustained winds of 55 kilometers per hour and gustiness of up to 65 kilometers per hour. “Inday” comes a day after Tropical Storm Henry left the country.

No tropical cyclone warning signal has been raised over any part of the country.

July 20, 2018 - 11:31am

State weather bureau PAGASA says that “Inday” has intensified into a severe tropical storm Friday morning.

It packs maximum sustained winds of 90 kilometers per hour near the center and gustiness of up to 115 kilometers per hour.

Moving northwestward, “Inday” is expected to exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility between tonight and tomorrow morning.

July 20, 2018 - 9:46am

Bad weather has led to some flights being cancelled while others have had to be diverted, the Manila International Airport Authority says.

In an advisory, it says the following flights scheduled to land at NAIA Terminal 3 had to be diverted to Clark International Airport:

• Cebu Pacific 5J 752 Saigon-Manila (ATA 0704H)
• Cebu Pacific 5J 679 Shanghai Pudong-Manila (ATA 0750H)

The following flights scheduled to take off from NAIA Terminal 4 have been cancelled:

• Air Asia Z2 438/439 Manila-Puerto Princesa-Manila
• Air Asia Z2 773/774 Manila-Cebu-Manila

July 20, 2018 - 7:55am

"Inday", last seen 995 km east northeast of Basco, Batanes early Friday morning, is forecast to move northwest at 15 kph. It has maximum sustained winds of 85 kph near the center and gustiness of 105 kph.

The storm is not expected to make landfall but will continue to enhance the southwest monsoon over most of Luz

American Chamber celebrates Philippine American Friendship Day

The year climate change hit

HAVE MY SAY

By KLAUS DÖRING

IT has been the year 2017. The devastating effects of climate change are becoming apparent — and the world has begun taking action. But, sad to say, the frequency of extreme weather events has shown, and - we are starting to run out of time.

I remember my Facebook-friend in Spain emailing me last year about the sweltering heat with 48 Celsius degrees in Seville.

Unprecedented heat waves swept across the globe in 2017, leading to droughts, wildfires and even deaths. Australia started the year with temperatures near 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit), the “Lucifer” heat wave brought the mercury above 40 degrees Celsius throughout Southern Europe in July and August and scorching heat hit India’s most vulnerable people. Get ready for next summer... .

“Crazy” weather has been a hot topic for elevator conversations this year — and yes, extremes are starting to become the new normal - also this year 2018. No continent was spared in 2017 when it came to extreme weather. From droughts to hurricanes, from smog to forest fires, these events killed thousands of people — and have been directly linked to climate change. Yes, extreme weather on the rise in Europe - a headline making me as German national speechless.

Southern Europe, Canada and the United States were among the areas worst hit by devastating wildfires. Both in California and Portugal, 2017 has been the deadliest year on record for wildfires. Even icy Greenland wasn’t spared. Climate change, along with the dangerous combination of a lack of sustainable forest management and careless — or malicious — human activity, has been to blame. About Greenland later in this write-up.

Major storms were also responsible for the year’s most catastrophic events. Hurricane Harvey in the US, Irma and Maria in the Caribbean and Katia in the Gulf of Mexico left destruction in their wake. While hurricanes aren’t unusual in tropical regions, the frequency and intensity of these most recent storms — fueled by warming oceans — were out of the ordinary. But they may be a sign of things to come, if the world doesn’t take action to limit climate change.

At the same time, at this worry me a lot as resident in the Philippines, global sea levels reached a new high in 2017, with the polar ice caps melting at an accelerating pace. Warmer ocean temperatures contributed to the breakaway of a 1 trillion ton iceberg from the Larsen C ice shelf in Antarctica in July, at 5,800 square kilometers (2,200 square miles) one of the largest icebergs ever recorded.

Flooding caused the death of hundreds of people in the Philippines, Greece, Germany and Vietnam, to name just a few countries. Meanwhile, drought is increasing the pressure on regions of Africa and Asia, such as Somalia, South Sudan and Pakistan, where armed conflicts are already making daily life a struggle for survival.

Often forgotten, the struggles of the world’s oceans also increased this year. Despite several initiatives protecting the Great Barrier Reef, coral bleaching has continued at an alarming rate. Ocean acidification, meanwhile, is on track to make the seas uninhabitable for many aquatic creatures, endangering entire ocean ecosystems.

Governments across the globe are taking action to address current and upcoming climate threats, and leaders like French President Emmanuel Macron, who took office in May 2017 and pledged to fund climate research, have been a source of hope for many. But I won’t go so far calling Emmanuel Macron, Europe’s climate hero!

But 2017 will also, unfortunately, be remembered for the US withdrawal from the 2015 Paris climate accord, along with President Donald Trump’s other moves away from the fight against climate change. It’s not his only try to shock the whole world as we could experienced during his London-visit just yesterday and the day before.

Flooding caused the death of hundreds of people in the Philippines, Greece, Germany and Vietnam, to name just a few countries. Meanwhile, drought is increasing the pressure on regions of Africa and Asia, such as Somalia, South Sudan and Pakistan, where armed conflicts are already making daily life a struggle for survival.

And, the Great Barrier Reef coral bleaching even worse than expected.

Climate change will bring some surprising effects: Bumpy plane rides, greater mood swings and more volcanic eruptions are just a few of the things we can expect over the decades to come. And yes, even more lightning.

We’re already familiar with some of the more evident effects of global warming such as melting glaciers and more extreme weather events. But few people are aware of some of the other, less obvious - and completely surprising - impacts of our changing climate, which could have a serious impact on the way we live.

I experienced it during my last trips. Airplane turbulence will get worse. Unfortunately, we can expect air travel to become even more stressful - thanks to the effects of climate change.

A recent study by researchers at the University of Reading in the United Kingdom looks into the relationship between clean-air turbulence and anthropogenic climate change. Using the popular flight corridor between Europe and the United States as an example, they examined various strengths of turbulence and how each will change in the future if carbon dioxide levels were to double.

The results showed that severe turbulence is likely to dramatically increase by up to 149 percent as a result of stronger wind shears within the Earth’s jet streams. These are narrow, fast-flowing, meandering westerly currents found near the tropopause, which are frequently used by commercial airlines as a means of saving time and fuel.

Icebergs will clog up shipping lanes. While icebergs are common in these waters, their number and timing is unusual. Experts say climate change could be to blame. The icebergs begin their journey after breaking off a glacier in Greenland, which is influenced largely by winter weather, especially storms accompanied by strong winds. Rising temperatures also lead to the melting of ice sheets, causing more chunks of ice to break off and float into the open ocean.

Lightning will strike more frequently. Heat energy acts as a form of fuel for storm clouds. So as global temperatures continue to rise, we can also expect more active thunderstorms. Although there are a number of downsides to this phenomenon - including a probable increase in wildfires - lightning actually produces a powerful chemical reaction that can be beneficial for Earth’s atmosphere. Lightning creates a special form of a greenhouse gas called nitrogen oxide, which indirectly regulates other potentially harmful greenhouse gases, like ozone and methane.

In places like Iceland, volcanoes and glaciers have coexisted for thousands of years. However, as glaciers melt due to rising temperatures, the pressure on the Earth’s mantel decreases, which in turn increases magma amounts while reducing stress on a volcano’s magma chambers. This leads to higher volcanic activity, along with the travel chaos that often follows.

There is a historic precedent to this prediction: 12,000 years ago, Iceland was covered by a glacier as thick as 2 kilometers. When that glacier abruptly melted due to a warming trend, a huge surge in volcanic activity followed.

Even our mood isn’t immune from climate change. Researchers in social psychology have long highlighted the link between warmer climates and higher levels of impulsive behavior and even violence. This has been shown in regions closer to the equator - if global temperatures continue to rise as expected, we could also begin to see behavioral changes in areas further north.

In addition to having to contend with warmer weather, there is also evidence that climate change will further fuel global conflict by adding stress on natural resources like food and water. We can expect our oceans to gradually become murkier as the effects of climate change become more apparent over time.

While climate change is often associated with higher temperatures and drought, it is also expected to increase annual rainfall in some areas of the world. This will create faster-flowing rivers, which in turn churns up more silt and debris before this water meets the ocean.

This phenomenon has already been observed along the coast of Norway, where the ocean water has become increasingly darker due to an increase in precipitation and melting snow. Talking about our health: Allergies will worsen. As if getting angrier wasn’t enough: If you’re one of the many people who suffer from springtime allergies in Euope, you should probably start stockpiling your medication. Warmer temperatures also mean longer and earlier blooming seasons for allergy-triggering plants like dandelions and ragweed. Pollen counts are likely to double over the next three decades in the United States - and “sneezing season” will also kick off in the future as soon as the first week of April.

Believe it or not, deserts are actually teeming with life - also in the form of bacterial colonies. These colonies grow so large, in fact, that they form strong layers known as “biocrusts” that prevent soil erosion.

But different kinds of bacteria thrive in different temperature ranges. So as the climate continues to change quickly, these bacteria could find it difficult to adapt. If the desert soil could become more prone to erosion, it would not be fertile enough to support plants and feed animals.

Ants play a more important role in the planet’s ecosystem than you may realize. In spite of their status as a pest, ants helps plants by controlling other insects, circulating vital nutrients and turning over the soil, among other things.

But ants appear to be ill-equipped to handle the rising tempertatures caused by climate change. A study carried out at Harvard Forest in Massachusetts revealed a susceptibility of ants to even slight temperature increases, with the most important seed-dispersing species essentially shutting down and retreating to their underground nests until conditions improved. Think about it, if ants are around you....

Latest news on my desk: Authorities warned shore-side residents of Innaarsuit Island in Greenland they were at risk of being flooded, after a 100-meter (300 feet) high iceberg was spotted drifting off the coast on last Thursday (July 12, 2018!). The police are on high alert and have moved a search-and-rescue helicopter closer to the remote village, which has about 170 inhabitants.

Climate change and its results. Meanwhile, all of us become victims of it.