Islands

It seemed difficult for the Galapagos Islands to be more threatened. And then a watchmaking pump arrived: Airbnb

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This summer, and while Spain declared war to the sector, the holiday rental He reached levels that until recently they would have seemed more typical of a dystopia. In fact, the platforms began to do business to the Pool rental for hours. Meanwhile, in places like New York, who closed the tap to Airbnb in 2023, they had discovered that two years later Hotels are happy. With this scenario, the Galapagos Islands have encountered the problem at home. The arrival of Airbnb. I told the weekend The New York Times. In the Galapagos Islands, one of the most delicate natural environments on the planet, the rise of Airbnb after the pandemic has transformed the tourist panorama. Alicia Ayalaknown as “the queen of Airbnb”, Symbolize This turn: rent apartments at affordable prices that attract backpackers and middle -class families, in contrast to elitist tourism that dominated for decades. Figures? Today there is More than 1,300 accommodations of this type compared to about 300 regulated hotels, which has generated an explosion of low -budget visitors who spend less and, according to critics, contribute to environmental deterioration and the banalization of a declared place World Heritage. Impact and tensions. Criticisms focus on the inability of short rentals to meet the Strict environmental standards that do govern for hotels, forced to pay permits, provide conservation funds and manage waste in a territory without drinking water or sustainable energy. The proliferation of uninformed visitors multiplies harmful behaviors: garbage on beaches, protected fauna or consumption of threatened species. In fact, researchers They warn that uncontrolled tourism threatens to convert the islands into a “Venice of Nature”, where the immediate economy of the preservation of unique ecosystems. Mass tourism and local economy. The archipelago went from receiving 6,000 annual visitors in the seventies to a forecast of 300,000 in 2025driven by commercial flights, social networks and the appearance of cheap excursions replacing the traditional luxury cruises. What is happening is A stage that It is repeated in The entire planet. This massification has left family hotels with empty rooms, while competing against Airbnbs that operate with lower costs and low supervision. At the same time, the tourism sector holds 80% Of the 30,000 inhabitants, so the dilemma between immediate income and sustainability becomes more acute in an isolated environment that depends on expensive imports and limited services. The legal (and political) battle. Although the Ecuadorian Constitution and the special legislation of the Galapagos They recognize rights of nature and limit hotel development, the absence of specific regulation for Airbnb generates a void that the hosts have taken advantage of. The Ministry of Tourism He has declared illegal Many of these accommodations and has ordered closures, but lacks effective control mechanisms, while platforms such as Airbnb claim to comply with current regulations and ask for clear rules. UNESCO He has urged Ecuador to stop growth and regulate digital tourism, although the attempts of hoteliers to achieve changes have been left unworthy. Threats and uncertain future. To tensions for tourism problems are added of illegal fishing, drug trafficking And, more recently, the fusion of the Ministry of Environment with that of Energy and Mines, played by experts such as a turn towards The exploitation of resources above conservation. In this context, the dispute between regulated hotels and hosts of Airbnb reflects a deeper conflict: to what extent Ecuador is willing to sacrifice Ecological integrity of the galapagos to sustain their economy. Among the pressure of tourism growth, the lack of effective regulation and the political signals that prioritize extraction on preservation, the future of the archipelago as a natural sanctuary remains, more than ever, in question. Image | Diego Delso In Xataka | In 2023 New York closed the tap to Airbnb to protect his home. Two years later, only hotels are happy In Xataka | Airbnb has just eliminated 65,000 tourist floors. The problem is that consumption has found another 55,000

The Canary Islands will tend an underwater cable to Morocco. If Morocco decides to extend it, Spain will have a problem

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An underwater cable of 49 million euros will connect the Canary Islands with Africa, but it will stop just where the legal problem begins: the border of the Western Sahara. What is happening. The Ring of the East islands will first join Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Fuerteventura with the latest generation fiber. Then it will jump to the African continent, to Tarfaya, the last Moroccan city before the West Sahara. The Canarian government It has been clear: “The cable goes to Tarfaya, it has nothing to do with Western Sahara.” But Morocco has other plans. His government wants to extend that connection to what he calls his “South Provinces”, the euphemism with which he refers to the Saharawi territory since 1975, when Spain abandoned it. Why is it important. Submarine cables are Internet highways. 99% of data traffic between continents travels through them. This project promises to make the Canary Islands a digital node between Europe and Africa. But there is a huge legal problem. The EU Court of Justice considers any economic activity in the Western Sahara without consent of the Polisario Front, recognized by the UN as representative of the Saharawi people. And the Polisario He has already warned: If the cable reaches Saharawi territory, they will go to court. The context. Since Pedro Sánchez supported the Moroccan Autonomy Plan for Sahara in 2022Spain tries to maintain the balance between its economic interests with Morocco and its international legal obligations. This cable puts that test balance. If the infrastructure that Spain finances with European funds ends up facilitating Moroccan expansion in Sahara, could splash Spain with legal problems in European courts. The money trail. The construction has already begun with these numbers: 49 million total budget. 20 million provided by the European Investment Bank. Additional 7.5 million for connection with Tarfaya. In February, Canalink technicians – the Canarian public company that leads the project— Tarfaya visited to study the land and design the submarine layout. The cable will be manufactured in 2025 and will be deployed in 2026. The precedent. It is not the first time that Canary Islands connect with Morocco. Since 2011 There is a cable with Asilahin the north of the country. But that did not generate any controversy because it is far from the territory in dispute. This is different. It reaches the same border of the Sahara. And even if technically stops there, it creates the perfect basis for Morocco to complete what European companies cannot do directly by legal restrictions. The threat. The Polisario Front has a history of victories in European courts. He has lying fishing agreements and agriculture between the EU and Morocco for including resources from the Sahara without its consent. “We will carry out any action to guarantee the rights of the Saharawi people,” He said Abdulah Arabi, representative of the Polisario in Spain. A data cable would be your next goal if you cross the border. And now what. The project will continue because Canary Islands need this connection. The ESSI Spain will be able to maintain the legal fiction that its responsibility ends in Tarfaya. If Morocco extends the cable to the Sahara using the base infrastructure financed with European money, Spain could be found in the midst of another conflict between its economic interests and its obligations with the territory that it abandoned 50 years ago. And this time it will not be for fishing or phosphates, but for the control of the data between two continents. In Xataka | The Google Maps of submarine cables: an imposing interactive map that allows us to know the skeleton of the modern world Outstanding image | TelefónicaGoogle Maps

The Canary Islands gave 24 tons of sand from La Palma volcano to Madrid. Now Madrid doesn’t know what to do with them

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Madrid has 24 tons of volcanic sand of the palm with which he does not know very well what to do. It sounds strange, but that is the peculiar outcome with which the consular and capital governments have been found after an initiative designed to value the Canarian cultural heritage in the Peninsula. The idea worked, but has ended up leaving that peculiar inheritance: bags and more bags of dark ash that accumulate dust (and controversy) without a clear destination. We explain ourselves. Presuming culture. May 17 was a day to frame in the history of Canarian culture. Or at least in one of its most popular disciplines: The Canarian fighta sport that hurts its roots in the first settlers of the islands. His practice is very popular in the archipelago, but not so much out. Hence, on May 17, as part of the Month of the Canary Islandsthe Government promoted A milestone In the discipline: the first day of official Canarian struggle in Madrid. FIGHTERS AND MUCH (MUCH) ARENA. For the appointment, fighters of the Saladar de Jandía and the Candelaria de Mircatwo key teams of the discipline that were measured in the twentieth day of the DISA Tournament of the Canary Islands. And something else: tons of volcanic sand transported from the palm to cover the pitch. The idea was to give even more epic to the appointment carrying a piece of the Canary Islands (literally) to Madrid and deploying it in the middle of Callao, where the Canarian fighters were measured. A 24 tons “ring”. The idea worked. The photos Shared by the Canarian government (with volcanic sand covering callus) they are fascinating and also show that the appointment attracted a good handful of curious. To host them, even a portable stand with capacity for 200 spectators. The event was also attended by President Fernando Clavijo along with regional positions and representatives of the institutional, sports and social life of the archipelago. In case that was not enough, the Executive took care of the last detail. Any type of volcanic sand was not transported to Madrid. No. The authorities chose ashes from the island of La Palma that were generated during the Tajogaite eruption In 2021. “The youngest of the islands, chosen as a symbol of identity, roots and renewal,” the Canarian government insisted in its community. In total some mobilized some 24 tonsaccording to the institution itself. And what happened to that sand? The fight was held on May 17, Jandía’s Salader won the Candelaria de Mirca in a fierce encounter (12-10), but … and then? What happened to tons of volcanic sand? That is the question that was asked recently eldiario.es, which after consulting with the Madrid City Council reached an amazing conclusion: the bags seemed to have vanished. “Without a trace of the 24 tons”, He titled The newspaper. The news was even more striking because, as confirmed by the regional government, the agreement contemplated that, after the May fight, the 24,000 kilos of ash were ceded to the Madrid City Council so that it could cover with it the fields of beach volleyball. From the Consistory they assured however not to have proof of that initiative. I wasn’t dead … It was not the last chapter of the curious soap opera of the traveling volcanic sand. On Saturday Eldiario.es published again Another revelation About the 24 tons of Tajogaite: the material was not lost by Madrid, but stored in work bags in a Torrelodones industrial ship. The reason? Although the initial idea was to allocate the sand to Madrid Volleyball courts, the authorities of the capital came to the conclusion that it was not a good idea to give it that use. His grains may serve for a Canarian fighting fight, but in the opinion of Madrid technicians they tend to heat up easily, which led the authorities to rule it out for the courts. And what will it be used for? It doesn’t seem to be very clear. At least according to the information handled by eldiario.es, which ensures that the Department of the Environment is looking for an adequate destination for the Canarian gift. The bags are also waiting for the Consistory Ultime for a collaboration agreement to accept the material, which, a priori, will have environmental use. In the authorization of the Cabildo it is noted that the material “lacks commercial value”, although as He put value The Canarian government does have a symbolic value. Images | The Government of the Canary Islands (X) and Canary Islands In Xataka | The Canary Islands have seven islands, but only one has escaped from the hordes of tourists: its secret is literally on earth

That year a concord took off from the Canary Islands and what happened has not happened again

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After more than 50 years of silence imposed by the sonic stamps, the United States has decided open again the heavens on the supersonic flight on the mainland. The Executive order Signed by Trump revokes the 1973 regulations that prohibited these operations on American soil, then motivated by citizen complaints to the deafening roller generated by the planes to overcome the sound barrier, an acoustic impact of up to 110 decibels. That same year, a concord arrived on the island of Gran Canaria for Make history. Concorde in the Canary Islands. On June 30, 1973, Spain was part of one of the scientific experiments more unusual and ambitious never undertaken to study the sun: a supersonic flight of the concord that pursued the Shadow of a solar eclipse total about Africa. The geographical location of the Canary Islands, perfectly aligned with The eclipse trajectoryallowed the country to be integrated into an international operation led by scientists from the United States, France and the United Kingdom, with the logistics collaboration of the Spanish Air Force. That day, the prototype of the Concorde, even without entering into commercial service, took off from Gran Canaria after landing on June 27 with the island covered by Calima. Its objective was not to transport passengers, but to become a flying observatory capable of staying inside the lunar umbra for a record time. Supersonic laboratory. The mission, developed and coordinated from Toulouse, transformed the Concorde 001 in A scientific platform unprecedented. To do this, the aircraft fuselage was modified drilling its roof and installing quartz crystals that allow the cameras to capture without distortions the infrared emissions of the sun from an altitude of More than 17,000 meters. Although the British initially opposed the aircraft, Air France accepted their temporary conversion enthusiastically In Air Laboratory. Inside the plane there were hardly any seats: scientists had to be held as they could during the maneuvers, in a small space and adapted to the minimum indispensable for the observations. The rudimentary preparation (including cleaning the windows manually before the flight) contrasted with The magnitude of the challenge scientist they faced: record from the air phenomena impossible to see from the earth’s surface due to atmospheric distortion. From Gran Canaria to eclipse. Thus, that June 30, 1973, the team of scientists aboard the prototype of the Concorde made one of the most spectacular exploits in the history of observational astronomy: they followed the shadow of a total solar eclipse on Africa during 74 uninterrupted minutesthanks to the ability of the plane to fly more than double the speed of sound. Don LiebenbergAmerican physicist and organizer of the experiment, was one of the seven investigators on board that since that altitude of 17,000 meters they observed the curvature of the Earth and captured Images of the solar crownthe critical region of the Sun whose emissions can affect from satellites to electrical networks on Earth. The path of the entire eclipse The problem. Equipped with infrared cameras installed on carries carved on the roof of the plane, the concorde 001 took off from the island and crossed the sahara behind the lunar umbra, achieving prolonged observations Never before. The problem? That although scientific results, such as First oscillation indication Five minutes at the intensity of the crown, they were technically impressive, its impact was limited: much of the material remains without digitizing and no significant conclusion was published. Concord 001 on display A feat that exceeded the results. As we said, despite the spectacular images and the technical audacity of the mission, the scientific legacy of the Concorde flight It was discreet. Most of the data, stored in hundreds of 35 mm film rolls, It was never digitized Due to lack of resources, and the analyzes were never formally completed. The flight, however, left an indelible mark on the collective memory of astronomers and fans of space exploration. Liebenberg himself, today attached professor at Clemsson, He recalled in National Geographic The moment when the concord penetrated the shadow of the moon A Mach 2.2 and darkness wrapped the sky in broad daylight. Despite the low immediate scientific profitability, the experiment served as a model for future missions and demonstrated the potential of supersonic flights in solar investigations, a field that still It is still active half a century later. Historical milestone Although the concord would return to Visit Spain In 1977 (already in commercial service and under sponsorship of El Corte Inglés), its 1973 scale in the Canary Islands was much more transcendent. Not only represented the first operational use of the plane for an international scientific mission, but consolidated Spain as relevant actor in solar research and in European aerospace logistics. That flight, often forgotten by the general public, symbolizes an era of bold experimentation, where the borders between aviation, astronomy and geopolitics are They blur at the speed of sound. Broking the myth. If you want also, that was a feat of international collaboration, technical innovation and scientific audacity that opened a door that today Cross again With new tools. For Liebenberg, the eclipse of 1973 was not only an experiment, but A sensory experience Unforgettable: absolute darkness to Mach 2, the vision of the curved horizon, the emotion shared by a handful of researchers determined to run after the shadow of the moon. Half a century later, the concord with perforated roof and clean windows remains as a testimony that, during more than a fleeting moment, science reached the eclipse and Spain was there To see it. Image | Spaceaero2 In Xataka | The Bombardier Global 8000 is preparing to enter service: it will be the fastest civil plane in the world from the concorde In Xataka | 20 years ago the concordal took off for the last time: this was the favorite plane of entrepreneurs and celebrities

If you have not reserved your vacation in the Canary Islands, it is possible that it costs the same to go to the Caribbean

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At the beginning of the year, apparently “good” news had a second reading for the millions of tourists who use the plane. Since January 1, airlines operating in the European Union are obliged to incorporate 2% sustainable fuel (SAF) on its flights, as part of the Fit for 55 plan To reduce emissions. In Spain, this will translate into an extra cost of 235 million euros In 2025. And yes, that came with a small print: the extra cost was going to be noticed in the tickets. Thus, in Spain a “homelands” vacation was going to get cheaper than cross the puddle. It turns out that. Between the Caribbean and the Canary Islands. I told it THE WEEKEND THE COUNTRY. The unstoppable boom of international tourism in Spain is raising vacation prices within the country to levels that touch the absurd. How much? For example, today, spending a week in all inclusive in Gran Canaria, Menorca or Mojácar costs practically the same as flying to the Caribbean. According to An analysis of the Destinia agency, destinations such as Menorca (2,726 euros per couple) or mojácar (2,694) have reached prices that They hardly differ Of the 2,883 euros that costs to travel to Punta Cana or the 3,094 of Riviera Maya, although the latter involve crossing half a planet. The great paradox. As we said, this paradox occurs in a context in which the price of the air ticket has not stopped uploading the new European regulations that impose on airlines the use of that 2% sustainable fuelwhich further more expensive long -distance journeys. However, the overdexanda in enclaves like Balearics, Canary Islands wave Almeria Costa He has triggered hotel rates in Spain to historical maximums, with an average price of 160 euros per night and annual increases 13%. The price of success. In 2024, Spain reached its absolute record with 94 million tourists foreigners, and everything indicates that in 2025 the 100 million will be exceeded. This flood has generated an unprecedented pressure on the tourism market, with an international demand that grew 23% In the first quarter, while the reserves of national travelers They fell 17%. The result, and here is the response to the paradox, is an excessive hotel inflation fed by appetite of foreign touriststhat not only seem to have absorbed the available offer, but are willing to pay more for it. Meanwhile, the Spaniards face a summer with prohibitive prices in their own country, which has led many to delay reserve decisions, shorten stays or even value international destinations as Türkiye (2,496 euros in Anatolia), which, despite the obligatory scales, is significantly cheaper. When the local is expensive. In his report the country had a case that was especially illustrative: Mojácar. We talk about a road accessible destination, without flights or scales, where a week for two people can cost just 189 euros less What tip Cana. This disparity reveals that the true engine of the increes is not in transport, but In hotelsthat take advantage of the high demand for impose prices unprecedented. Far from adjusting to an economic context marked by the uncertainty and containment of spending, the national hotel sector seems to have found in international tourism a way to maintain its margins, even at the expense of losing the local client. Intoxicated of success. In short, it could be said that this summer the Spanish tourist points, much to his own success. The national tourist model, based for decades in the Sol and Beach binomial, now faces a Increasing contradiction: His success as a global destination threatens to expel his own citizens of the holiday market. An evil that reproduces in As many nations. Saturation, pressure on prices and mismatch between offer and purchasing power are leading to the most desired national destinations are less accessible than His exotic counterparts. Thus, in the middle of the mass tourism, there is the great paradox that flying at 8,000 kilometers can leave so expensive (or even cheaper) to enjoy the sea from home. Image | Pxhere In Xataka | A fact summarizes well what is happening with tourism in Spain: foreigners upload, nationals are stagnant In Xataka | Mass tourism has the days counted in Spain thanks to a phenomenon outside its control: extreme heat

Mexico had its own Alcatraz 130 km from the country. Fortified islands housed the most dangerous murderers of the nation

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In December we rescue A true story which possibly served Michael Bay for his film ‘La Roca’, set in Alcatraz prison. Actually, it wasn’t so impregnablebut the jail (now converted into a tourist visiting space) has become notic again because Trump considers The idea of ​​recovering it as “home” for the most dangerous criminals in the United States. The truth is that, before Alcatraz, Mexico already had such a prison. From prison to sanctuary. For more than a century, The Marias Islands They represented the confinement, exile and hardness of the Mexican Penitentiary System. A story that changed from the definitive closure of its prison in 2019, when the remote archipelago in the Pacific began a surprising and unexpected transformation towards ecotourism and environmental conservation. Located about 130 kilometers from the coast of Nayarit, the four islands, and in particular Mary Motherthey went from being the last Insular Criminal Colony from America to become a Biosphere Reserve managed by the Mexican Navy. In 2022 the visits organized for tourists began under strong security measures and with limited routes, where visitors can travel both the wild nature and the historical traces of a prison past plagued with dark stories. Penitentiary facilities still visible (such as cells, surveillance towers and a maximum security module) are now combined with hotels, trails, lush vegetation and endemic species that have survived thanks to isolation for millions of years. Violence, punishment and resistance. Founded as Prison in 1905the Marías Islands housed many of the more dangerous criminals of the country, together with political dissidents, poor peasants and religious leaders during different historical stages. There were also opponents of the Government of Álvaro Obregón, Catholics in the time of the Cristero Warand figures Like the writer José Revueltassymbol of intellectual dissent. The prison regime varied over time, since semi -liberated modalities in which some inmates lived with their families, even closed structures such as Maximum security section Open in 2011 after the militarization of the criminal system during the war against the narco. In these facilities, described as replicas of American prisons, prisoners lived with extreme punishments, such as the existence of a metal cabin that functioned as a solar heat torture chamber. In fact, The BBC counted that rumors of undercover executions and clandestine burials are still persists in the other islands of the archipelago, occasionally frequented by illegal and drug traffickers. Overpopulation During the last decades of operation as prison, serious overpopulation episodes were experienced, particularly notorious in the 2000s. The angels Times counted and testimonies collected by Mexican media Like the universal and Processat some times they came to live More than 8,000 inmates In precarious conditions, in facilities originally designed to house much less. An especially shocking example was reported by a former inmate who, in 2022, recalled that 500 women They shared only five bathroomssituation that described how to live in a “chicken coop.” Although as we said, in the beginning the prison had a relatively open regime (even allowed some inmates to live with their families), the hardening of the penitentiary policy after the War against drug trafficking In 2006 and the opening of the maximum security module aggravated overcrowding. Complaints of insufficient rations and lack of medical care derived even in A riot in 2013after which the module closed. The combination of structural deterioration, lack of resources and social pressure ended up leading to definitive closure of the prison in 2019. Biodiversity Then came the “second life” of the islands. Despite its gloomy legacy, the natural wealth of the archipelago has survived and even flourished. Since 2010, when the prison still worked, UNESCO recognized the Marias Islands as a biosphere reserve for its unique ecosystem, composed of dry forests, mangroves, coral reef, coasts and endemic fauna such as the Loro Tres MaríasMapaches and rabbits that do not exist anywhere else on the planet. Many of these species suffered during the penitentiary period (they say Some inmates hunted snakes to make belts or trafficked parrots with the help of relatives). Today, the National Commission of Protected Natural Areas (Conanp) works with the Navy to protect this biodiversity, although the challenges are maintained, especially For illegal fishing. Despite the restrictions imposed since 2000 and reinforced in 2021, scientists such as Marino Octavio Aburto-Opeza Biologist warned that Companies still operate that offer recreational fishing or with harpoon without effective control, which puts at risk the fragile ecological balance of the area. Tourism (responsible). Today, visits to María Madre have become a strange mixture of biotourism and historical memory. Tourists, mostly Mexicans, are attracted to both the wild and The history of suffering inscribed in cells, corridors, murals and cemeteries. It explained the BBC With examples, such as the tomb of “El Sapo”, an alleged state murderer Macheted killed For their cell partners, or the esculos of octopus made by inmates who decorate still closed rooms, episodes that generate an environment between the surreal and moving. In short, although the current approach gives priority to contact with nature and environmental education, the main attraction for many remains the same as in Alcatraz: the possibility of walking for what was once a penitentiary hell. Thus, in the experience of the visit two stories live together: that of an infamous prison that functioned as a tool for social control and repression for more than a century, and that of a resilient ecosystem that now seems to offer a promise of redemption through responsible tourism and collective memory. Image | Vallee, Rawpixel In Xataka | The incredible story of the men who escaped from the Alcatraz prison with spoons, false hair and a homemade boat In Xataka | The Japanese who built a replica of his cell in his garden because his sentence seemed little: he did not get out of there again

In full world cocoa crisis, in the Canary Islands they have had an idea: cultivate them themselves

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Last week, Ghana expelled all foreign companies that operated in the gold market. The situation had become unsustainable. Not only are they “disastrous economic, health and environmental consequences“Of artisanal mining (which has skyrocketed in recent years), nor the battered accounts of the Ghanaian state; but the boom of gold exploitation was eroding other national industries. The clearest example is that of cocoa. What about cocoa? Only in the last year, Ghana (the second country that produces the most cocoa) lost 20% of its total production. And that happened in a global context in which bad harvests, pests and climate change fired cocoa prices at historical levels: the ton surpassed The $ 10,000 in the New York Stock Exchange. The problem is that for Ghanaian farmers, gold was more profitable in the short term. The arrival of Chinese operators changed the rules of the game a few years ago and the consequences began to be seen now: cocoa was not the ‘golden chicken’ for the African country industry; but it was much more sustainable than the Galamsey: stir tons and tons of land Almost handmade, illegal, dangerous and little regulated form To sell the gold they find. It is also an “infectious disease” and Ivory Coast (the world’s main cocoa producer) already begins to suffer The same problem. Where some see a problem, others see an opportunity. And for “another” I mean Canarian farmers. Because, like They said in the province“It has subtropical climatic conditions that make it a different region to the rest of the continent.” And that has consequences, above all, for agriculture. Therefore, it is not surprising that the Canarian Institute for Agricultural Research (ICIA) I have been two years “Analyzing the possibilities of culture growth (cocoa) in farm -pea farms.” Nor is it that its results are positive. The new jewel of Canarian agriculture? I wouldn’t say so much. As in the case of Café Granada, the Canarian cocoa It does not consider right now as a large crop. It would be about looking for a “boutique” product, something that allows “diversifying” Canarian agriculture and fleeing from the “bananodependence”. But it is not so easy. Because it is not only about convincing enough producers to achieve considerable productive stability; but of being able to develop the entire industrial chain: things like the fermentation of the grain and its drying. And many problems arise: because raising that industry is almost impossible (profitability is very low) and selling cocoa without further ado leaves you in a very bad strategic place. You have to think very well how to take the steps so that this does not become academic hobby. Since the end of 2023, cocoa has gone from quoting at $ 2,581 per ton at 10,371. It is something extremely sweet and, therefore, little by little that we are wrong a deadly trap for the Canarian field. Image | Majestic Lukas | Kyle Hinkson In Xataka | We go to the most expensive chocolate in history: how the cocoa crisis will shoot its price

Vietnam has tired of China’s artificial islands, so he has decided to start building his own

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China has been pulling tons of sand for more than a decade. And not only is he doing it for Build airports: They are dozens of artificial islands for expand its military power. It is about China’s strategy to claim the maritime territories that they consider their own and that are also doing in the Yellow Sea coast in front of South Korea. The problem is that one of its neighbors has been tired. Vietnam has also begun to lift artificial islands in the same territory with a clear objective: to prevent China from conquering the area. AND The tension is servedclear. Spratly Islands. It may seem more reef, but that of Spratly Islands It is tremendously important at the geopolitical level. It is a reef that is located between four countries whose relations, in some cases, are a hotbed: China, Vietnam, the Philippines and Taiwan, and they are also a set of rich islands in resources natural as fishing banks (suitable for a China to which His folders fall short), oil and natural gas. It is estimated that there are 105,000 million barrels of oil and many other millions of gas drums. There is tension, therefore, to control those resources, but also because it is a relevant point at the strategic level. They are located on one of the most busy maritime routes and are key to both international trade as for world movement. Controlling that archipelago implies having an essential influence globally. Claims. And the situation is a chicken coop. The archipelago is composed of a hundred islands and there are countries that carry decades claiming his sovereignty over it. On the one hand, China says that the fishermen of the Ming dynasty of the fifteenth century have already established themselves there, so the islands belong to them. In addition, in 1947 they made a map that showed how they all belonged to them, starting to occupy some of them in 1988. Malaysia se put In the fight in 1979, claiming part of the archipelago, the same case as Brunéi. Philippines is another player on this board, occupying some islands and occupying some of them with soldiers, but the most persistent are Taiwan and Vietnam. Both demand the entire territory as their own. Taiwan, with the same foundation as China, and Vietnam, stating that the islands were part of the kingdom of Annam – predecessor of the country – during the nineteenth century. Both China and Vietnam recovered archaeological remains to demonstrate that the islands belonged to them in the past and had to remain their property today. But since they did not convince each other, they decided to go to action. Mischief is an example. It is in Chinese power and has names in different languages ​​depending on which country you ask. For China is měijì jiāo. For Vietnam is đá Vành KhĂn. And for the Philippines is Bahura Ng Panganiban. Everyone considers that it is yours Background. Thus, and at some point in 2013, China began to move. Taking advantage of the rocky parts of the reef close to the surface and using Dredging ships to lift the bottom of the sea, they began to build islands and extend some existing ones. In just five years, they created seven artificial islands, the transformation of atolls into comparative satellite images being evident. Militarizing the archipelago. In this whole story, the military presence of the countries involved in the conflict has been key, starring even armed incidents between them. And one of China’s clear objectives is the militarization of this space with a double objective. On the one hand, the most obvious: if you create an island and the militarizas, you make sure that if someone wants it, you also have to arrive with armed troops, being able to trigger a greater conflict. Subi is one of the islands in which China has placed an airport. So it was before and after 2016 On the other, establishing and reinforcing the military presence in an area that, as we say, is key. It is something we have seen recently, with the discovery of A radar anti -furtive ships on one of the islands. And it is a radar, yes, but also a powerful message in an area where the United States also has the eye: if the US and its allies cannot operate poachers in the South China Sea, they may not be able to deal with the forces of the popular liberation army. Discovery Great Reef is held by Vietnam and down to the right we see some changes. Philippines, Taiwan and China say it’s them But well, it is not just a radar: there is also a missile launch platform, and in several of the islands occupied, created or expanded by China we can see presence of military infrastructure such as bases or airports. In this TWSJ video we can see perfectly the evolution of the islands: Vietnam is planted. In 2021, Vietnam got tired of the situation and, being together with Taiwan the country that has the most interest in the archipelago, also began to lift islands in the Spratly. Mainly, for military and port presence that reinforce maritime logistics, but putting the direct in recent months. Since June 2024, Vietnam has “grown” 641 new hectares and measurements Totals of expansion 1,343 hectares compared to 1,882 of China. And the expansion is being rapid: in 2021, Vietnam only had four advanced ports with port. Now, it has tripled that number with cases such as Barque Canada Reef in which only the atolon was intuited and now has even a landing floor. Before and after in the reef Barque Canada Complaints from each other. The objective of one and others is to operate more time and in greater numbers on those islands before a relief arrives, being able to carry out maneuvers and patrols during the area throughout the year, but curiously, although Vietnam had already shouted in the sky before with China’s movements, it is … Read more

The Canary Islands have seven islands, but only one has escaped from the hordes of tourists. His secret is on earth, literally

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The Canarian archipelago is officially seven islands: Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, La Gomera, La Palma and El Hierro. In addition, we have four islets and a series of Roques (next to a centenary dispute for tiny lands, although that It is another story). The curious thing about the islands is that almost all, to a greater or lesser extent, have ended under the influence of mass tourism. With the exception of one, whose nature gave an “advantage” over the rest: iron. Shine without looking for it. Ironthe smallest, western, less visited and better preserved from all the Canary Islands, has begun to attract the attention of a time to this part, although surely, despite many stores. First was the Netflix series Iron in 2019 the one that put it on the audiovisual map. Later, during the pandemic, he once again occupied headlines in half the world. The reasons: to be one of the first territories of Spain in get out of confinement In June 2020, and for having registered alone A COVID-19 case during the health crisis. Thus came the international recommendations that placed it between the Best destinations in Europe In 2021, but the island continues as is, it has barely changed its leisurely way of life, or its resistance to the transformations that did shape the rest of the archipelago in recent decades. His secret is a paradox: What does not have He does it more strong to the hordes. The island of “No”. The peculiarity of the island resides in what it has decided Do not have: Without chain hotels, without tourist complexes, without elevators or buildings of more than two floors, the island also does not have extensive beaches, although it possesses A network of puddles (natural pools) of an incomparable beauty. Here its geography is key, since reaching it outside the archipelago already implies at least two journeys (by plane, via Tenerife or Gran Canaria, or in Ferry, via Tenerife), since there are no direct international flights or maritime connections from the peninsula or abroad. With just 11,000 inhabitants And a surface that is equivalent to half of Ibiza, the traffic is very small and the sensation remains to be in a territory where modernity has barely touched essential things. And yet, since 2018, iron almost completely self-abused with renewable energies, thanks to its hydro-eolic power plant Gorona del Vientoconsolidating itself as a world reference in sustainability. Indomitable nature. While the major islands of the Canarian archipelago face a growing social resistance to the Mass tourismIron has deliberately adopted a radically different model. Instead of joining the urbanization spiral, direct flights and mass tourism, the island has opted for a strategy of leisurely growthintegral sustainability and an intimate bond with nature. Arising from the ocean 1.2 million years ago For violent underwater eruptions, the island displays an abrupt and wild geography where impressive cliffs, volcanic boilers and dense laurisilva forests coexist with undulating meadows, centenary pine forests and abrupt black rock costs that make it a paradise for hiking, contemplation and, ultimately, an unstable instance. To get an idea, in 2023 Just 20,300 visitors They arrived on the island (in contrast to the more than 6.5 million that Tenerife receivedFor example). Sabinar Tourism to last. There is more, of course. As we said before, since 1997, iron develops an ambitious Sustainable Development Plan which has oriented its tourist model towards a way of traveling with limited impact, focused on the valuation of the natural environment and local culture. They have been created Seven Visitors and Museums CentersInfrastructure has been improved without breaking the landscape balance (the first asphalted road came in 1962 and even today there is only one traffic light), and activities that privilege contact with the environment have been encouraged. In this regard, Davinia Suárez Armas, insular director of Tourism and Transportation, summed up the BBC The spirit of the island: grow without deteriorating the quality of life of residents or compromising their natural resources. In fact, it is possible to travel in less than an hour from the warm coast of the South to the Capital of Valverdecrossing microclimates ranging from arid plains to humid fog forests, where more than a hundred endemic species thrive, including criticism El Hierro giant lizardwhich motivated the entire island to be declared Biosphere Reserve in 2000 and Geoparque in 2014 for Unesco. Resistance symbols. Among closed curves, volcanic landscapes and pastures whipped by the wind, it appears The pasturewhere the most famous trees of the enclave grow: the Sabinares twisted for centuries of Alisios winds, turned into living symbols of the Herreña resistance. In that sense, self -sufficiency has been part of the island DNA since the arrival of The bimbachesBerber people settled around 120. Without rivers or natural lakes, they learned to collect water from the fog, especially from legendary tree Garoéwhose location is traveled today through the Water route. Plus: this 16 -kilometer circular path San Andrés connectsthe tallest town on the island, with deposits, aljibes and remains of primitive hydraulic technologies, all witnesses of a history marked by water scarcity and migratory waves, especially towards Venezuela. The Virgin Downfour -year party dedicated to the Virgen de los Reyes (who, according to tradition, ended the Great drought from 1741), keeps that spiritual legacy that mixes need and faith alive. Self -sufficiency. In 2014, the island opened Gorona del Vientothe pioneer central that combines wind and hydraulic energy thanks to its privileged geography. The system pumps desalted water from a coastal deposit to a volcanic boiler at 700 meters of altitude when there is a surplus of wind, and releases that flow in times without wind to generate electricity with hydraulic turbines. In August 2015, he first managed to supply the entire island for four hours. In 2024, he beat a global record: 24 consecutive days operating exclusively with clean energy, which avoided the emission of 13,708 tons of CO₂ and the consumption of more than 4,500 tons of diesel. Yet, Climate change … Read more

The plan to empty in six days its islands closest to Taiwan

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Two news in recent months have ended up becoming a revealing announcement. The first occurred at the end of January, when many of the Sakishima Islands (the closest to Taiwan) began a series of a series of any weekend Evacuation drills. Shortly after, Japan made a historical decision: deploy long -range missiles In some of these islands. How much? Enough to get to China. Now, in the face of doubts to a war conflict, it has officialized a plan. Evacuate mission. Japan has presented for the first time A formal plan To evacuate more than 100,000 civilians, including residents and tourists, of the remote islands near Taiwan, specifically Sakishima archipelagolocated at the southwest end of the country. The plan occurs in a context of growing military tension In the Taiwan Strait, where the threat of a possible Chinese invasion has generated concern in Tokyo and the international community. To be exact, the measure includes the evacuation of Approximately 110,000 residents and 10,000 tourists through the mobilization of ships and airplanes to eight prefectures of Western and Southwestern Japan, with the goal of completing the operation in a Maximum period of six days. The evacuees would be initially transferred to the island of Kyushu and from there distributed to different destinations that are already being prepared with temporary accommodations. Military and drill preparations. As we said at the beginning, the drills have been carried out In the last datesbut without great explanations about the main reason. Now, and as part of the reinforcement of security and logistics preparation, the Japanese government has announced that as of April next year it will carry out Evacuation exercises In the Sakishima Islands, which are part of the Okinawa Prefecture, a key region that houses almost 50,000 American soldiers and that has historically been considered strategic for the defense of Japan. In addition, and as we count a few days ago, the installation of units of Surface-Aire missiles on the island of Yonagunilocated only 100 km from Taiwan, and the construction of provisional underground shelters, equipped with food and supplies for at least two weeks. These measures seek to improve defense capacity in the event of an eventual attack and ensure the protection of local populations. Increasing tensions. Although the evacuation plan does not explicitly mention Taiwan, it is evident that the growing possibility that the self -governor island (claimed by China as part of its territory) becomes the epicenter of a military conflict has been the trigger for the initiative. China ha Increased military pressure About Taiwan in recent years and has not ruled out the use of force to Force “reunification”. The precedent of the Russian invasion to Ukraine and the hardening positions Geopolitics, especially after Donald Trump’s return to the presidency of the United States, has increased the fear that the Taiwan Strait becomes the next great focus of conflict in Asia. United States and the weakness of the alliance. Possibly, the key reason that has led to Japan to missile implantation long range and to formalize an evacuation plan is uncertainty with the United States. In fact, the evacuation plan has been widely Extended in Taiwanwhere it has generated worrying interpretations about the reliability of regional alliances. Many Taiwanese and local analysts see the Japanese initiative as a sign that Tokyo does not trust In which Washington, under the policy of “America First” of Trump, maintains your commitment to defense against a conflict in the Strait. To this we must add the Recent statements from Trumpquestioning the reciprocity of the United States-Japan Security Treaty and highlighting that Tokyo It is not obliged To defend the United States in case of aggression, which has accentuated these concerns. A culture broth that has led to the perception that Japan is preparing “discreetly” to ensure its withdrawal of vulnerable areas without depending on US intervention. Reinforce regional defense. As we also said, Japan, in addition to the evacuation and militarization of the Sakishima Islands, has intensified its defensive strategy through the planned deployment of long -range missiles In Kyushu, expanding its ability to respond to threats from the Asian continent. Simultaneously, the Senkaku Islandsdisputed with China and administered by Japan, continue to be a friction point that could further complicate security in the region. The Japanese government has made it clear that all these measures are part of a comprehensive strategy Based on the forecast of “imminent armed attacks”, as Yoshimasa Hayashi, chief secretary of the Cabinet said. Vulnerability in the islands. The population of the most exposed islands shares government concern. In this regard, The Guardian told That Gen Nakatani, Minister of Defense, recently recognized the “strong sense of crisis” that is perceived among the inhabitants of these islands, who have historically witnessed the territorial disputes and military maneuvers in the region. The proximity of Yonaguni and other islands of the archipelago to the Strait of Taiwan, as well as the growing presence of China in the surrounding waters, make the feeling of threat constant. Therefore, the combination of planned evacuationstrengthening shelters, Armament deployment And cooperation with Washington, despite tensions, has a fairly clear objective: reinforce Japan’s resilience to a possible military escalation. Image | US Pacific Fleet In Xataka | Japan has made a historical decision in the face of the uncertainty of the US: to display missiles that reach North Korea and China In Xataka | The Japan islands closest to Taiwan have begun to evacuate the area. They have been preparing for the worst for two years

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