New York becomes 6th US state to green light human composting law

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New York has become the sixth state in the United States to legalize natural organic reduction, popularly known as human composting, as a method of burial.

Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul signed the legislation on Saturday. Washington was the first state to legalize human composting in 2019, followed by Colorado and Oregon in 2021 and Vermont and California in 2022.

“I am committed to having my body composted and my family knows that,” Howard Fischer, a 63-year-old investor living north of New York City, told The Associated Press. “Whatever my family chooses to do with the compost after it’s done is up to them.”

The alternative, green method of burial aligns with Fischer’s philosophical view on life: to live in an environmentally conscious way.

SUSPECT IN NYC POLICE STABBING MAY HAVE ISLAMIC EXTREMIST TIES

The process involves the body of the deceased being placed into a reusable vessel, along with plant material such as wood chips, alfalfa and straw. The organic mix creates the perfect habitat for naturally occurring microbes to do their work, quickly and efficiently breaking down the body in about a month’s time.

The end result is a cubic yard stack of nutrient-dense soil amendment, the equivalent of about 36 bags of soil, that can be used to plant trees or enrich conservation land, forests or gardens.

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For urban areas such as New York City where land is limited, it can be seen as a pretty attractive burial alternative.

Even though human composting is now legal in The Empire State, not everyone is on board with the idea.

“A process that is perfectly appropriate for returning vegetable trimmings to the earth is not necessarily appropriate for human bodies,” Dennis Poust, executive director of the New York State Catholic Conference, said in a statement. “Human bodies are not household waste, and we do not believe that the process meets the standard of reverent treatment of our earthly remains.”

“Cremation uses fossil fuels and burial uses a lot of land and has a carbon footprint,” Katrina Spade, the founder of Recompose, a full-service green funeral home in Seattle that offers human composting, said. “For a lot of folks being turned into soil that can be turned to grow into a garden or tree is pretty impactful.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

 

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‘To Hell with It’: A GOP Congressman Reflects on His One Term in Trump’s Party

I spoke with Meijer as he ducked in and out of the House chamber to vote on a series of rule changes. Meijer and I spoke about whether he could ever again support Trump, the wayward direction of the Republican Party and whether he could envision a return to Washington.

The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Adam Wren: How do you feel as your time in Congress comes to an end?

Peter Meijer: Obviously bittersweet. There’s a lot of work that we were able to get done; but a lot more that we had hoped to be able to do. Being a freshman in the minority, you’re kind of fighting and running uphill. You’re trying to convince the majority to bring something to the floor.

A lot of other folks gauge their metrics by just bill introductions. Our goal was, if we’re going to be working on something, it should be toward the end of having it signed into law at the end of the day, rather than doing something only for messaging. I’m proud that the prior record for the number of bills signed into law by a freshman in the minority was at two, and now we’re at least four — I would argue five.

Wren: As a veteran who served in the U.S. Army Reserves in Iraq, and as an NGO operative in Afghanistan, one of your key goals was to reform the War Powers Act. How would you evaluate your progress on that?

Meijer: I think we substantively advanced the issue in the National Security Performance and Accountability Act of 2021 that we introduced in the spring of last year. It was the most bipartisan, most thoroughly fleshed-out approach, including bicameral conversations and conversations with the White House. Obviously, we weren’t able to get that signed into law. But that’s also the type of long-term reform where you have to have an understanding and an expectation it will be probably chunked out with an idea of giving folks more comfortable, very substantive change.

Wren: What do you think your biggest accomplishment was in Congress?

Meijer: Being part of the team that passed the Veterans Burn Pits Exposure Recognition Act of 2021. Folks who are suffering the consequences of that exposure can be diagnosed and treated and have better outcomes.

Wren: You said your departure from Washington and Congress is “bittersweet.” I take that to mean there is part of you that is happy to be leaving here.

Meijer: Definitely not on the policy side. I think one of the challenges on the politics side is you just have to spend a lot of time reacting in some areas where there may be valid concerns, but where the factual basis of those concerns is lacking.

Wren: Such as?

Meijer: There was this big hubbub about these amendments to the World Health Organization’s pandemic preparedness. Everyone is worried that “our sovereignty is going to be stripped away; don’t do anything.” And half the time, you don’t really have any authority over that. But our sovereignty is not going to be infringed on by the World Health Organization.

Wren: You’re talking about a one-world government kind of conspiracy?

Meijer: There were initially amendments that were proposed by the Trump administration because of China’s lack of transparency. And then that led to a delay in the international response. It reminded me of the time my mom thought she saw a UFO in California; it took her 30 seconds: “I saw a UFO.” But it took me 45 minutes to figure out that it was a B-2 stealth bomber. It ends up not being the most productive exercise.

Wren: As the scion of the Meijer supermarket franchise, you could be next in line to take it over. Has there been recent talk about a succession plan?

Meijer: I obviously have a deep love and a vested interest in the long-term success of our family business. But I think in the short term, my focus is much more policy.

Wren: You’re worth more than $50 million. What’s the biggest splurge you’ve made?

Meijer: I don’t know if my Chevy Colorado counts. I also have a boat that I bought for $5,000 on Craigslist.

Wren: Will you go back to Michigan?

Meijer: Oh, yeah. Michigan is home. I don’t have a visceral hatred of Washington that some do. It’s a place like any other. But it’s not home.

Wren: How would you describe the state of the Michigan Republican Party today, post-midterms?

Meijer: Highly uncertain. The midterm elections were a bloodbath in the state. We lost control of the state house and the state senate for the first time in 40 years. We don’t have any prominent statewide elected offices at all. All the Democratic incumbents swept, obviously. West Michigan will have its first Democratic representation in Congress since Watergate. It’s a pretty bleak outcome. In a moment that should force a lot of introspection, I’ve seen a lot of folks who are responsible for the debacle only rising in stature.

Wren: Who? Republican gubernatorial nominee Tudor Dixon?

Meijer: I think Tudor did the best with what she had. She was in a very unenviable position. And I think it was really unfair that the state party threw her under the bus. She was the only statewide candidate who was actually elected in a primary.

At the end of the day, there’s been such an echo chamber on the right. It doesn’t help [Michigan held] very late primaries. So everybody was just being forced to walk the tightrope, increasingly away from where the persuadable voters they needed were [ideologically]. And then incumbents don’t have that disadvantage.

Wren: Do you have a 2024 Republican presidential candidate in mind who you’d like to win?

Meijer: My strong bias is for a Republican nominee who could win.

Wren: Would you support Donald Trump if he were the nominee in 2024 after voting to impeach him last year?

Meijer: I have no idea how I would do that.

Wren: No idea?

Meijer: Yeah. I want someone to demonstrate a track record of being able to win. Hillary Clinton was probably the worst Democratic nominee of my lifetime. If he was outlining a positive agenda and speaking of the things that were started and hoping to be completed, if his message was about pointing the country in a better direction, it would be very different than what we have right now, which is just like the pettiest of petty grievances. I think he had a very negative impact on both candidate selection in terms of endorsements, but also just the amount of quality candidates in competitive seats. I think there’s a constructive role that he could be playing, and I have yet to see him make an effort, so to hell with it.

Wren: To hell with what?

Meijer: With the idea of running at this moment [against other Trumpist candidates]. What is required from a purity test standpoint — folks know they need his endorsement, and then what they end up doing to get that endorsement ends up being disqualifying.

Wren: This dynamic played out with your Republican primary opponent, John Gibbs, the far-right conspiracy theorist who criticized women’s right to vote and propagated the idea that Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta participated in satanic rituals. Yet you went to a unity rally with him. That surprised me.

Meijer: I was surprised at the media reaction to that. In my mind, not going to something like that is a sore loser move. The least I can do is wish him congratulations and best of luck. It’s funny there were a lot of kind of anti-Trump and Never Trump folks who trashed me for that. I was like, “Oh, do you want me to act the same way [Trump] did? Do you want me to deny that I lost? Do you want me to be a sore loser? Come on.”

Wren: You were upset about the Democrats interfering in your primary by boosting your challenger.

Meijer: I don’t know that I’d say upset. The hypocrisy was so transcendent, just the cynicism. I think my rule of thumb is Republicans should probably not pick the person the Democrats want to be the candidate. If the Democratic incumbent is popping a bottle of champagne when they realize who their opponent is going to be, we probably didn’t make the right choice.

Wren: Would you run for the seat again in 2024?

Meijer: I’m not going to foreclose any possibility.

Wren: You took an unauthorized trip to Afghanistan with Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton, a fellow veteran, to Kabul in August of last year during the chaotic withdrawal of troops. It was widely criticized. The White House, the Pentagon and Speaker Nancy Pelosi said your presence there diverted from the withdrawal mission. Do you have any regrets?

Meijer: If I have a regret, it’s that we probably could have been there for a week and nobody would have known. The only reason why they were aware is because I thought the right thing to do was to just kind of announce ourselves, don’t ask for any support to take up any resources, contrary to a lot of the White House trying to tar and feather us out of their own sense of embarrassment.

I just think back to talking to some of the folks who were on the ground, they were like, “It’s awesome you came.” They just felt like they were working in this crucible.

Wren: Your office, by virtue of your NGO and veteran experience, became a command center in helping to get people out. How many did you help evacuate?

Meijer: We’ve gone back and forth on whether or how we can quantify that. It was very much a team effort. Our office handled thousands of cases. And we’re still working on casework for those who are back here.

Wren: Do you ever wonder if all the events of your life might have been leading up to that specific moment?

Meijer: It is hard to imagine how I could have been better positioned to try to make the maximum impact. This is why I’m continuing to stay engaged on Afghanistan. It’s rare for somebody who worked in Afghanistan to be in Congress. It’s even more rare for somebody who worked and lived by themselves in downtown Kandahar City — I just have a unique perspective and personal network.

Wren: Where do you think the Trump fixation in the Republican Party is headed?

Meijer: I think in a lot of the media there’s such a Trump fixation. He tapped into something that predated him and that will remain after him. In some places, he delivered, but the positive-to-negative ratio started to shift pretty dramatically, giving into some of the most unchecked impulses. We don’t really have the moderating effect of the water cooler in American life, right, where you’re like, ‘I think this thing is important out there.’ I don’t think there’s a race of lizard people who are controlling our lives.

My frustration is [conspiracy theories] lead folks on the right to go down these rabbit holes and chase their own tails. Meanwhile, some of the really serious, severe things that are critical for us to get ready for the future of the country: competing with China, dealing with our deficit, dealing with entitlement reforms. These are not easy things that we can like, manage in bite-sized chunks.

So much of the energy is ultimately expended down avenues that are just hamster wheels. I think that gives Democrats a tangible advantage. We saw that electorally, when they can at least pretend to be speaking to issues and not seem crazy, even if they are unwilling to change their policy outcomes that are not making those issues better. At least rhetorically, they seem to be coming from a more reality-grounded place.

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Modest Mouse drummer, co-founder Jeremiah Green, dead at 45

Latest & Breaking News on Fox News 

Jeremiah Green, drummer and co-founder of rock band Modest Mouse, has died at 45.

In a statement released to their Instagram late Saturday, the band wrote in part, “Today we lost our dear friend Jeremiah. He laid down to rest and simply faded out.”

On Tuesday, the rocker’s brother Adam Green told Fox News Digital, “He is doing great considering the circumstances … He played a lot of shows with the cancer, but the doctor gave him the green light to play all the way up to the last West Coast date. His goal is to be back on tour this spring in South America. He has about 4 weeks of Chemo and Radiation left.”

His mother, Carol Namatame, also confirmed the loss, writing on Facebook that her son “lost his courageous battle with cancer on December 31.”

MODEST MOUSE DRUMMER, JEREMIAH GREEN, DIAGNOSED WITH STAGE 4 CANCER

Also to their Instagram, Modest Mouse wrote, “I’d like to say a bunch of pretty words right now, but it just isn’t the time. These will come later, and from many people. Please appreciate all the love you give, get, have given, and will get. Above all, Jeremiah was about love. We love you.”

The Grammy-nominated band was formed in Washington back in 1992 by co-founders Green, Isaac Brock, and Eric Judy.

The band is currently slated to perform at Lollapalooza Argentina 2023 festival in March.

An original statement from Brock shared directly to the band’s Instagram four days ago was optimistic about Green’s recovery. He wrote of Green’s treatment, “It seems to be going smoothly and making a positive difference. Jeremiah, as am I, are believers in the power of positive energy, so if you would be so kind as to send “good vibes”( to quote Jeremiah) in the direction of Jeremiah and his family, that’d be great.”

His mother echoed the sentiments, writing on Facebook, “He’s [sic] so strong and so brave and hanging in there!”

It was Seattle-based DJ Marco Collins who confirmed the severity of Green’s cancer on his own social media.

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Unfortunately, the 45-year-old died as a “husband, father, son and brother,” as described by his mother.

“He went peacefully in his sleep. Jeremiah was a light to so many. At this time the family is requesting privacy. More information will be forthcoming including a Celebration of Life for friends and fans in the coming months. Jeremiah’s loved ones would like to thank everyone for their continued well wishes and support,” Namatame added.

 

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Georgia Bulldogs defeat Ohio State Buckeyes to advance to the College Football Playoff Championship



CNN
 — 

The Georgia Bulldogs have advanced to the College Football Playoff Championship after defeating the Ohio State Buckeyes 42-41 in the second semifinal College Football Playoff game Saturday.

Trailing by six points late in the 4th quarter, defending national champion Georgia mounted a 72-yard drive capped by quarterback Stetson Bennett’s third touchdown pass of the game to take the lead with 54 seconds remaining.

Ohio State used that time to drive the ball into field goal range, setting up a 50-yard attempt for kicker Noah Ruggles. But Ruggles hooked the kick left, and the Bulldogs escaped with the 1-point win.

Georgia is the first team to come back from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit in College Football Playoff history, according to the NCAA.

Earlier Saturday, No. 3 Texas Christian University’s Horned Frogs came into the first semifinal game as underdogs and pulled off a major upset, delivering a thrilling 51-45 win against No. 2 Michigan Wolverines.

The Horned Frogs, who began the season outside the Top 25, defeated the previously unbeaten Michigan Wolverines 51-45 in the highest scoring Fiesta Bowl ever. The Big Ten champions entered the game favored by more than a touchdown, but TCU never trailed in the game en route to a shot at the national championship.

Heisman runner-up Max Duggan threw for 225 yards and four total touchdowns, while running back Emari Demarcado added 150 yards on the ground at the Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Arizona.

The Bulldogs will face the Horned Frogs Monday, January 9, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, for the Championship game.

TCU will be seeking its first national championship since 1938 and the first for a Big 12 team since 2005, while Georgia will be aiming to be the first back-to-back national champion since Alabama in 2011 and 2012 and the first repeat champion in the College Football Playoff era.

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Anita Pointer of The Pointer Sisters dies at age 74



CNN
 — 

Anita Pointer, one of the founding members of the R&B group The Pointer Sisters, has died at age 74, according to her publicist Roger Neal.

Pointer passed away Saturday at her home in Los Angeles where she was surrounded by her family, Neal said in a statement to CNN. The cause of death was cancer, he said.

“While we are deeply saddened by the loss of Anita, we are comforted in knowing she is now with her daughter, Jada and her sisters June & Bonnie and at peace,” Pointer’s family said in a statement. “Heaven is a more loving beautiful place with Anita there.”

“She was the one that kept all of us close and together for so long. Her love of our family will live on in each of us,” the statement said, while also asking that the family’s privacy be respected “during this period of grief and loss.”

The four Pointer Sisters began singing together more than 50 years ago in their hometown church in Oakland, California, where their father ministered. Bonnie Pointer and her youngest sister, June, made their professional singing debut as a duo in 1969. They later recruited older sisters Anita and Ruth to join them, before releasing their first album together in 1973.

The group won their first Grammy Award for their crossover hit, “Fairytale,” in 1974. They are also known for hits like “Slow Hand,” “Neutron Dance,” and “Jump.”

The group won three total Grammy Awards and had 13 US Top 20 hits between 1973 and 1985.

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Europe's big question: What a diminished Russia will do next



CNN
 — 

Russia’s war in Ukraine has proven almost every assumption wrong, with Europe now wondering what left is safe to assume.

Its invasion in February managed to startle in every way. To those who thought Moscow was sane enough to not attempt such a massive and foolhardy undertaking. To those who felt the Russian military would waltz across a land of 40 million people and switch to clean-up operations within 10 days. And to those who felt they had the technical and intelligence prowess to do more than just randomly bombard civilian areas with ageing artillery; that the Kremlin’s military had evolved from the 90s levelling of Grozny in Chechnya.

And finally, to those who felt nuclear saber-rattling was an oxymoron in 2022 – that you could not casually threaten people with nukes as the destruction they brought was complete, for everyone on the planet.

Still, as 2022 closes, Europe is left dealing with a set of known unknowns, unimaginable as recently as in January. To recap: a military once considered the world’s third most formidable has invaded its smaller neighbor, which a year ago excelled mostly in IT and agriculture.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky delivers a speech in front of the Assembly of the European Parliament on March 1, 2022 in Brussels, Belgium.

Russia spent billions of dollars apparently modernizing its military, but it turns out that it was, to a large extent, a sham. It has discovered its supply chains don’t function a few dozen miles from its own borders; that its assessment of Ukraine as desperate to be freed from its own “Nazism” is the distorted product of nodding yes-men, feeding a president – Vladimir Putin – what he wanted to hear in the isolation of the pandemic.

Russia has also met a West that, far from being divided and reticent, was instead happy to send some of its munitions to its eastern border. Western officials might also be surprised that Russia’s red lines appear to shift constantly, as Moscow realizes how limited its non-nuclear options are. None of this was supposed to happen. So, what does Europe do and prepare for, now that it has?

Key is just how unexpectedly unified the West has been. Despite being split over Iraq, fractured over Syria, and partially unwilling to spend the 2% of GDP on security the United States long demanded of NATO members, Europe and the US have been speaking from the same script on Ukraine. At times, Washington may have seemed warier, and there have been autocratic outliers like Hungary. But the shift is towards unity, not disparity. That’s quite a surprise.

Local resident Valentina Demura, 70, stands next to the building where her destroyed apartment is located in the southern port city of Mariupol.

The body of a serviceman is coated in snow next to a destroyed Russian military multiple rocket launcher vehicle on the outskirts of Kharkiv, Ukraine, Friday, February 25, 2022.

Declarations that Russia has already lost the war remain premature. There are variables which could still lead to a stalemate in its favor, or even a reversal of fortune. NATO could lose patience or nerve over weapons shipments, and seek economic expediency over long-term security, pushing for a peace unfavorable to Kyiv. But that does, at this moment, seem unlikely.

Russia is digging in on the eastern side of the Dnipro River in southern Ukraine, and has the advantage that the Donetsk and Luhansk frontlines in Ukraine’s east are nearer its border. Yet its challenges are immense: poorly trained, forcibly conscripted personnel make up 77,000 of its frontline troops – and that’s according to the glossy assessment voiced by Putin. It is struggling for munitions, and seeing regular open, internal criticism of its winter supply chain.

Ukraine is on home territory, with morale still high, and Western weapons still arriving. Since the collapse of Moscow’s patchwork of forces around the northeastern city of Kharkiv in September – where their supply lines were cut by a smarter Ukrainian force – the dynamic has all been against Moscow.

The prospect of a Russian defeat is in the broader picture: that it did not win quickly against an inferior adversary. Mouthpieces on state TV talked about the need to “take the gloves off” after Kharkiv, as if they would not be exposing a fist that had already withered. Revealed almost as a paper-tiger, the Russian military will struggle for decades to regain even a semblance of peer status with NATO. That is perhaps the wider damage for the Kremlin: the years of effort spent rebuilding Moscow’s reputation as a smart, asymmetrical foe with conventional forces to back it up have evaporated in about six months of mismanagement.

Russian soldiers are seen on a tank in Volnovakha district in the pro-Russian separatists-controlled Donetsk, in Ukraine on March 26, 2022.

The question of nuclear force lingers still, chiefly because Putin likes regularly to invoke it. But even here Russia’s menace has been diminished. Firstly, NATO has been sending unequivocal signals of the conventional devastation its forces would mete out were any form of nuclear device used. Secondly, Russia’s fairweather allies, India and China, have quickly assessed its losing streak and publicly admonished Moscow’s nuclear rhetoric. (Their private messaging has likely been fiercer.)

And finally, Moscow is left with a question nobody ever wants to learn the answer to: if its supply chains for diesel fuel for tanks 40 miles from its border do not function, then how can they be sure The Button will work, if Putin reaches madly to press it? There is no greater danger for a nuclear power than to reveal its strategic missiles and retaliatory capability do not function.

Despite this palpable Russian decline, Europe is not welcoming in an era of greater security. Calls for greater defense spending are louder, and heeded, even if they come at a time when Russia, for decades the defining issue of European security, is revealing itself to be less threatening.

Europe is realizing it cannot depend on the United States – and its wild swings between political poles – solely for its security.

The TotalEnergies Leuna oil refinery, which is owned by French energy company Total, stands on April 12, 2022 near Spergau, Germany.

Meanwhile thousands of innocent Ukrainians have died in Putin’s egotistical and misguided bid to revive a Tsarist empire. More broadly, authoritarianism has been exposed as a disastrous system with which to wage wars of choice.

Yet some good has come from this debacle. Europe knows it must get off its dependence on Russian gas immediately, and hydrocarbons in general in the longer term, as economic dependence on the fossil fuels of dictators cannot bring longer-term stability.

So, how does the West deal with a Russia that has experienced this colossal loss of face in Ukraine and is slowly withering economically because of sanctions? Is a weak Russia something to fear, or just weak? This is the known unknown the West must wrestle with. But it is no longer such a terrifying question.

For over 70 years, the Russians and West held the world in the grip of mutually assured destruction. It was a peace based on fear. But fear of Moscow should be ebbing slowly, and with that comes the risk of miscalculation. It also raises a less chilling prospect: that Russia – like many autocracies before it – may be fading, undermined by its own clumsy dependence on fear domestically.

Europe’s challenge now is to deal with Russia in a state of chaotic denial, while hoping it evolves into a state of managed decline. One abiding comfort may be that, after underestimating Moscow’s potential for malice, the risk for Europe would be to overstate its potential as a threat.

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[World] New York approves composting of human bodies

BBC News world-us_and_canada 

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption,

US composting firms such as Recompose – in Seattle – say the process is an environmentally friendly option after death

New York has become the latest US state to allow so-called human composting.

A person can now have their body turned into soil after their death – which is seen as an environmentally friendly alternative to a burial or cremation.

Also known as “natural organic reduction”, the practice sees a body decompose over several weeks after being shut in a container.

In 2019, Washington was the first US state to legalise it. Colorado, Oregon, Vermont and California followed suit.

New York is therefore the sixth American jurisdiction to allow human composting, following Saturday’s stamp of approval from Kathy Hochul, the state’s Democratic governor.

The process happens in special above-ground facilities.

A body is put in a closed vessel along with selected materials such as woodchips, alfalfa and straw grass, and gradually breaks down under the action of microbes.

After a period of around a month – and a heating process to kill off any contagion – loved ones are given the resulting soil. This can be used in planting flowers, vegetables or trees.

Emissions of carbon dioxide are a major contributor to climate change, because they act to trap the Earth’s heat in a phenomenon known as the greenhouse effect.

Traditional burials involving a coffin also consume wood, land and other natural resources.

Proponents of human composting say it is not only a more environmental option, but also a more practical one in cities where land for cemeteries is limited.

New York’s approval of the process was “a huge step for accessible green death care nationwide”, one Washington-based provider, Return Home, told the New York Post.

But, for some, there are ethical questions about what happens to the soil which results from the composting.

Catholic bishops in New York state reportedly opposed the legislation, arguing that human bodies should not be treated like “household waste”.

Concerns have also been raised about the cost of composting. But the firm Recompose – whose facility in Seattle is one of the world’s first – says its $7,000 (£5,786) fee is “comparable” with rival options.

The median sum in the US for a funeral with a burial was $7,848 in 2021, or $6,971 for a funeral with a cremation, according to the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA).

Human composting is already legal throughout Sweden. And natural burials – in which a body is buried without a coffin or with a biodegradable coffin – are permitted in the UK.

 

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Where to travel in 2023: The best destinations to visit

(CNN) — New year equals new outlook. Apply this formula liberally to travel planning in 2023.

After nearly three years of travel disruptions and complications, many countries have dropped most of their pandemic restrictions. People are traveling internationally in large numbers, and there’s plenty of pent-up demand to spread around the world.

International tourism was expected to reach 65% of pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2022, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization, with some areas recently reaching levels closer to 80% or 90% of their 2019 arrivals. And experts are cautiously optimistic about a continued travel rebound.

Many travelers are charging full steam ahead into the new year — with good reason.

Here are 23 destination ideas from CNN Travel to get you started:

Poland

From the main square in Krakow, pictured, to forests, lakes and mountains, Poland invites exploration.

From the main square in Krakow, pictured, to forests, lakes and mountains, Poland invites exploration.

Sergii Figurnyi/Adobe Stock

We could list new openings in Poland — such as Hotel Verte, the new Autograph Collection property in Warsaw, which threw open its gilded doors (it’s in a humongous Baroque palace) in August. But the reason you should visit Poland in 2023 isn’t for the chance to stay in a place fit for royalty. It’s to show solidarity with a country which has, in turn, shown solidarity to the people of Ukraine.
Sharing a 300-plus-mile border with a country under attack has meant that Poland has taken in more Ukrainian refugees than anywhere else. Add to that plummeting tourist numbers (though they’re on the rise again), and you have a tricky situation.

So whether you fancy that Warsaw palace, a city break to the likes of Krakow, Gdansk, Wrocław or Poznań — all hundreds of miles from the Ukrainian border — or to get away from it all in the forests, lakes and mountains of the countryside — now’s your chance to do some good by taking a vacation. — Julia Buckley

Western Australia

A full solar eclipse will be visible in April in Exmouth, Western Australia. The landscape is worth a long look, too.

A full solar eclipse will be visible in April in Exmouth, Western Australia. The landscape is worth a long look, too.

Sellwell/Moment RF/Getty Images

On April 20, 2023, a total solar eclipse will be visible over the northwestern edge of Australia.

But the state of Western Australia offers much more than some 60 seconds of wonder.

Spanning one-third of the entire continent of Australia, it stretches from the lively, growing state capital of Perth across deserts including the Great Victoria and Great Sandy to the wine country of Margaret River, the dramatic clifftops of the Kimberley and the quokka-covered Rottnest Island. — Lilit Marcus

Liverpool, England

Mersey paradise: Liverpool.

Mersey paradise: Liverpool.

alpegor/Adobe Stock

England’s port city of Liverpool, best known around the world as the birthplace of The Beatles, is adding another chapter to its musical legacy.

In May, it will be the host city of Eurovision 2023, the spangly extravaganza of song that brings an influx of thousands of flag-waving fans from across the continent. It’s an opportunity for the city to bounce back after the ignominy of being stripped of its UNESCO World Heritage status in 2021.
In June, the city will celebrate 25 years of the Liverpool Biennial contemporary visual arts festival, as more than 30 international artists and collectives take over spaces in the city until September.
England is also marking the Year of the Coast in 2023, with food festivals and beach cleans taking place along the country’s shores. Just a half hour from Liverpool city center by train, Crosby Beach is the permanent home of sculptor Antony Gormley’s “Another Place,” where 100 cast-iron figures stand facing out to sea. — Maureen O’Hare

Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston, a city of undeniable refined, historic beauty, is also looking more closely at its troubled past.

Charleston, a city of undeniable refined, historic beauty, is also looking more closely at its troubled past.

Sean Pavone/Adobe Stock

Charleston parades its past like no other US city, but it often glossed over the history of its Black residents. It’s been taking steps to fix that.

Enter the International African American Museum, which promises to make an opening announcement “soon” for 2023 after pushing back its January date. The museum will be set on the shoreline of the Cooper River in the spot where many Africans first set foot in North America. It will explore the lives of slaves and their descendants.
Visitors in late May and early June can enjoy the world-renowned Spoleto Festival featuring opera, theater, dance, musical acts and artist talks. And foodies should mark March 1-5 on the calendar for the Charleston Wine and Food Festival and sample Lowcountry favorites.
Can’t make the festival? You’ll still be well-fed. For fancier Southern fare, try Magnolias. Opened in 1990, it helped spur the city’s culinary renaissance. For something informal, try Bertha’s Kitchen in North Charleston, where red rice with sausage, fried chicken and lima beans rule. The eatery even caught attention of “Roadfood” author Michael Stern. — Forrest Brown

Vilnius, Lithuania

Self-effacing Vilnius admitted in an ad campaign this year that nobody really knows where it is. If their brilliant video didn’t make you want to book a trip there immediately, perhaps this will: the capital of Lithuania celebrates its 700th anniversary on January 25, 2023.

To mark the milestone, there’s a yearlong program, including music festivals and exhibitions. But use the anniversary as a push to visit rather than following a program religiously.

The entire city center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site — putting it up there with its fellow V-cities, Venice and Vienna. Vilnius makes it on the list thanks to its Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque buildings, all sitting on a medieval street plan, but it’s best known for its Baroque architecture.

Don’t miss the frothy bell tower of St. John’s church (you can climb it for sweeping city views) or the church of St. Casimir, topped by a giant crown. Got an eye for social media? This is Europe’s only capital city that allows hot air balloons to cruise over the city skyline. — JB

Fiji

Scenes like this await visitors to Fiji.

Scenes like this await visitors to Fiji.

Martin Valigursky/Adobe Stock

Brilliant blue waters, expansive coral reefs and hundreds of peaceful islands: Fiji is not a hard sell. But why go there in 2023? For one, the country only reopened post-Covid at the end of 2021, meaning that visitor numbers to the South Pacific paradise have yet to fully rebound.
While the country is spoiled for underwater beauty, take an opportunity to explore its above-ground treasures, too. The country’s lone UNESCO World Heritage site is the town of Levuka, a former capital and an important port, which is studded with British colonial-era buildings amid coconut and mango trees.

To learn about the local Indigenous communities, travelers can take part in a kava welcoming ceremony — named for the traditional drink at its center — or enjoy a lovo, a meal cooked by hot coals in an underground pit covered with banana leaves.

Fiji Airways now has direct flights from Los Angeles and San Francisco, making it relatively easy to get to the islands. As the Fijians say, bula! — LM

Manaus, Brazil

As the fate of the Amazon rainforest hangs in the balance, two eco-lodges around Manaus — the capital of Brazil’s Amazonas state, and gateway to the river — have used their pandemic pause to get even more environmentally friendly.

Juma Amazon Lodge, about 50 miles south of the city, is now fully powered by a new $400,000 solar plant, whose 268 double panels swagger nearly 40 feet into the air above the canopy (meaning no trees had to be cut). They’ve also built a biogas system to increase the efficiency of organic waste treatment, reducing annual carbon emissions by eight tons.
Meanwhile, Anavilhanas Jungle Lodge, northwest of Manaus on the Rio Negro river, opened an off-grid “advanced base” during the pandemic that’s 30 miles from the main lodge and accessible only via river.

Guests can take long jungle hikes through territory home to jaguars, pumas and giant armadillos in what’s one of the Amazon region’s most remote hotel facilities, then spend the afternoon in a hammock or by the pool. For 2023, the lodge is planning overnight stays in a creekside tent for small groups.

Don’t miss Manaus itself — eating behemoth Amazonian fish outside the pink 1896 opera house is a bucket list experience. — JB

Thessaloniki, Greece

Enticing flavors, history and proximity to beaches and mountains are just a few factors working in this Greek city's favor.

Enticing flavors, history and proximity to beaches and mountains are just a few factors working in this Greek city’s favor.

Panos Karapanagiotis/iStockphoto/Getty Images

There’s been no shortage of reasons to visit Greece’s second city in recent times, with a UNESCO-endorsed local food scene that recently celebrated the refurb and reopening of its century-old Modiano food market.

Throw in a popular waterfront and proximity to beautiful beaches and inland mountains, Thessaloniki is surely a contender for one of Europe’s best city-break destinations.

What could make it even better? How about a gleaming new metro system? All being well, November 2023 should see the opening of the main line of an infrastructure megaproject that will eventually connect the city’s downtown to its international airport. Driverless trains will whisk passengers through tunnels whose excavation has added to Thessaloniki’s already rich catalog of archeological discoveries, many of which will be on display in specially created museum stations. — Barry Neild

Rwanda

January 2023 sees the official opening of Rwanda’s most exciting hotel yet: Sextantio Rwanda, a collection of traditionally crafted huts on an island on Lake Kivu, one of Africa’s largest lakes.

It’s the first project outside Italy for Daniele Kihlgren, whose part-hotel, part-living history projects keep local tradition alive. A nonprofit delivering money straight to local communities, Sextantio will see guests fishing on the 1,000-square-mile lake, paddling in dug-out canoes, trying local banana beer and wildlife-spotting — and not just the chickens, cows, pigs and goats that roam around the property.

Of course, you’ll want to see gorillas. Adjoining Volcanoes National Park, the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund opened the 4,500-square meter Ellen DeGeneres Campus in 2022. Its visitor center includes exhibits, virtual reality gorilla “encounters” and nature trails.

Over in Akagera National Park, white rhinos — transferred from South Africa in 2021 to aid conservation — are already calving. It’s easier to get there, too. A new route from London joins Brussels, Dubai, Guangzhou and Mumbai as the only direct flights to Kigali from outside the African continent. — JB

Gothenburg, Sweden

Voted the world’s most sustainable destination in the world for six years running, Sweden’s second-biggest city is finally emerging from the shadow of Stockholm.

Once a major trading and shipping town, Gothenburg is now considered to be one of the greenest destinations in Europe, with 274 square meters (2,950 square feet) of green space per citizen, while 95% of its hotels are certified as eco-friendly.

Although Gothenburg officially turned 400 in 2021, the celebrations were put on ice because of the global pandemic. But they’re finally taking place in 2023, so it’s a great time to visit.

Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustav, who celebrates 50 years on the throne this year, will be in town on June 4, Gothenburg’s official birthday, and the city’s major anniversary festival is being held in the Frihamnen port district from June 2 to 5, with concerts and art events among the activities on offer.

The festivities will continue throughout the summer until the September 3 kick off of Göteborgsvarvet Marathon, a new 26-mile race following on from the city’s popular half marathon, which takes place on May 13. — Tamara Hardingham-Gill

Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates

The Dhayah Fort in Ras al-Khaimah is one of the few remaining hill forts in the United Arab Emirates.

The Dhayah Fort in Ras al-Khaimah is one of the few remaining hill forts in the United Arab Emirates.

creativefamily/Adobe Stock

When travelers think of the United Arab Emirates, the dazzling skyline of Dubai is usually what springs to mind.

But the UAE has a lot to offer nature lovers too — particularly the northernmost emirate Ras al-Khaimah, which is aiming to become the Middle East’s most sustainable destination by 2025 thanks to a new “Balanced Tourism” strategy.

Just 45 minutes from Dubai, it’s often called the “adventure Emirate,” and for good reason. Offering beaches, deserts and mountains, outdoor attractions abound, such as sand boarding, trekking, wakeboarding, skydiving, scuba diving and even the world’s longest zipline.

But it’s not all about the adrenaline rush. Ras Al Khaimah is where you’ll find the highest restaurant in the United Arab Emirates, 1484 by Puro, which sits in the emirate’s Jebel Jais Mountains. Culture seekers can head for the historic Dhayah Fort, which dates back to the Late Bronze Age (1600-1300 BC).
Where to stay? Luxury hospitality brand Anantara is opening a fabulous new resort there in 2023 that will offer 174 guestrooms, suites and overwater villas along with specialty restaurants and a spa. — Karla Cripps

Laos

Three-tiered Kuang Si Falls is just south of UNESCO-listed Luang Prabang.

Three-tiered Kuang Si Falls is just south of UNESCO-listed Luang Prabang.

Sasipa Muennuch/Moment RF/Getty Images

Sharing borders with Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, China and Myanmar, landlocked Laos has long been a must-hit spot for time-rich travelers making their way through the Southeast Asia circuit.

But now, thanks to the 2021 opening of a semi-high-speed railway, it’s easier than ever to get around the country at a quicker pace, shaving hours off journeys that previously took full days to travel.

You’re still going to have to make some hard choices — there’s a lot to see in Laos.

Towering karst peaks await visitors to adventure-haven Vang Vieng, while UNESCO-listed Luang Prabang is filled with French-colonial heritage, Buddhist ritual and natural beauty. (Luxury seekers will want to check into the Rosewood Luang Prabang, with its stylish hilltop tents)
The mysterious Plain of Jars, a megalithic archaeological site, can be found in the Xiangkhoang Plateau. For a once-in-a-lifetime experience that makes a difference, head for Bokeo Province and join one of the Gibbon Experience’s overnight treks. Guests of this tourism-based conservation project spend the night in the world’s tallest treehouses — only accessible by zipline — among wild, black-crested gibbons. — KC

Gruyères, Switzerland

Rolling hills, medieval buildings — and the officially crowned world’s best cheese. Welcome to Gruyères, Switzerland.
Everywhere you look in this tiny, hilltop town, there’s a different picture-perfect view — from the medieval market square to the turreted 13th-century castle. A doable day trip from Geneva, summer promises hiking opportunities aplenty, while winter allows for venturing to the nearby Moléson-sur-Gruyères ski resort.
To taste Gruyères’ namesake fromage, stop off at the wood-lined Chalet de Gruyères. And to learn how cheesemakers perfect this creamy goodness, head to La Maison du Gruyère factory. For further foodie delights, there’s the Maison Cailler chocolate factory — from the outside it looks like something from a Wes Anderson movie, inside it offers a glimpse into the secrets of Swiss chocolate making.
Gruyères is also home to the surreal HR Giger Museum, celebrating the work of the acclaimed Swiss artist behind the eponymous alien in the 1979 movie “Alien.” A drink at the museum’s bar, designed by Giger in an eerie skeletal aesthetic, offers an antidote to Gruyères’ fairytale vibe. — Francesca Street

Minneapolis, Minnesota

A modern Indigenous restaurant in Minneapolis has earned one of the culinary world’s highest honors, and it’s not alone in shining light on Native communities in the area.

At Owamni, a James Beard Award winner for best new restaurant, Indigenous ingredients — trout, bison, sweet potatoes and more — make up “decolonized” menus where ingredients such as wheat flour and beef are absent. The restaurant is a partnership between chef Sean Sherman, Oglala Lakota and Dana Thompson, who is a lineal descendant of the Wahpeton-Sisseton and Mdewakanton Dakota tribes.
One of the pair’s community-owned initiatives, Indigenous Food Lab, is planning to open a market in February in Minneapolis’ Midtown Global Market, a former Sears building housing businesses that represent more than 22 cultures.
The open-air Four Sisters Farmers Market (Thursdays June through October) also focuses on Indigenous products. And at the Minnesota History Center in neighboring St. Paul, the exhibit “Our Home: Native Minnesota” looks at thousands of years of Native history in the state. — Marnie Hunter

Bogotá, Colombia

While Colomia's busy capital can be congested, it's also home to the historic neighborhood of La Candelaria.

While Colomia’s busy capital can be congested, it’s also home to the historic neighborhood of La Candelaria.

Toniflap/Adobe Stock

Caribbean coast destinations such as the Rosario archipelago or the UNESCO heritage list city of Cartagena are rightly top of most Colombia travel wish lists, but also deserving a look-in is the country’s somewhat unsung capital of Bogotá.

Yes, it’s a messy, traffic-snarled urban sprawl, but it’s also a high-altitude crucible of culture and cuisine. There are tours that chart the city’s transformation from graffiti wild west to incredible street art gallery.

Equally colorful are the restaurants that make the most of Colombia’s diverse natural larder of flora on menus that range from delicious peasant dishes to mind-blowing Michelin-level gastronomy. And then there’s the coffee!
The congestion (except on regular cycle-only days) thins quickly on its outskirts, allowing day trips to see historic and modern treasures. Itineraries include Lake Guatavita, where conquistadors once plundered sunken gold offerings left by indigenous Muisca people, or the majestic subterranean Zipaquirá salt cathedral. — BN

Mustang Valley, Nepal

Famed for its mountain treks through ancient trails that once facilitated trade between the Himalayas and India, Nepal’s stunning Mustang Valley sits on the doorstep of Tibet.

Expect to hear a lot more about this remote destination in the coming months thanks to the arrival of the soon-to-open Shinta Mani Mustang. Part of the Bensley Collection, this all-inclusive resort perched above the small town of Jomsom in the Lower Mustang will offer luxury seekers 29 suites inspired by traditional Tibetan homes.

In addition to trekking, Mustang visitors can explore ancient villages and Buddhist monasteries. Also not to be missed, the man-made Mustang Caves sit above the Gandaki River and are filled with 2,000-year-old Buddhist sculptures and paintings.

Getting to the Mustang Valley is part of the adventure. Travelers will need to take a 25-minute flight from capital Kathmandu to Pokhara then hop on another plane for the 20-minute journey to Jomsom. The views alone might make this option more pleasing to some than the alternative — a 12-hour drive from Kathmandu. — KC

Tanzania

From the spectacular wildlife to the beautiful national parks and beaches, Tanzania is absolutely bursting with visual splendor.

The East African country holds a seemingly endless list of incredible sights, with Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest mountain, UNESCO world heritage site Serengeti National Park, and the Zanzibar Archipelago, among its many highlights.

This year, flag carrier Air Tanzania will launch new routes to West and Central Africa, along with the UK, in a bid to transform the country’s largest airport in Dar es Salaam into a transport and logistics hub, while construction on the country’s first toll expressway is also scheduled to begin.

Meanwhile, the Delta Hotels by Marriott brand is making its Africa debut with the opening of its Dar es Salaam Oyster Bay property later this year. –– THG

Cairo, Egypt

Cairo is pulsing with life and a rich blend of cultures.

Cairo is pulsing with life and a rich blend of cultures.

Izzet Keribar/Stone RF/Getty Images

GEM will be the largest museum dedicated to a single civilization, costing around $1 billion and holding the entire King Tut collection. See video here of a CNN insider visit.
If you arrive in Cairo before it opens, the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square can still scratch your antiquity itch.

While the Pyramids of Giza are the city’s tour-de-force, there’s still more to see. Start with Islamic Cairo. This area has one of the largest collections of historic Islamic architecture in the world. While there, visit the Al-Azhar mosque, which dates back to 970.

The city also has a rich Christian tradition. Coptic Cairo, part of Old Cairo, has a concentration of Christian sites that pre-date the arrival of Islam.

If you need a respite from Cairo’s cacophony, Al Azhar Park has a nice expanse of greenery and a design inspired by historic Islamic gardens. And the affluent neighborhood of Zamalek, which sits on an island in the Nile River, serves up restaurants, antique stores and swanky hotels. — FB

Naoshima, Japan

Yayoi Kusama has the distinction of being the best-selling living female artist on the planet. In particular, she has become a global icon for her sculptures of giant polka-dotted pumpkins, one of which was reinstalled at the pier of Naoshima, one of Japan’s “art islands,” in 2022 after being swept into the sea the year before.

However, Naoshima is so much more than its famous yellow gourd or its works by Kusama.

There are five small, walkable “art islands” in the Seto Inland Sea, which is located between the main islands of Honshu, Kyushu and Shikoku in southeastern Japan. The largest collection of things to see — not to mention the only hotel — is on Naoshima. Together, the five champion modern and contemporary art, with emphasis on Japanese artists.

Don’t come here expecting calligraphy and other classical forms. Instead, be awed by Tadao Ando’s massive stone monoliths, a tiny gallery where patrons can listen to nothing but the beats of human hearts, a makeshift thunderstorm created inside a wooden house and an exhibit where jumping in and taking a bath is intended to be part of the artistic experience. — LM

Belize

With direct flights to Belize City from about a dozen North American airports, this Central American country is a low-hassle hop for many travelers during the November to April high season.

Most visitors head directly to Belize’s Caribbean coastline. The country’s largest island, Ambergris Caye, sits next to Belize Barrier Reef — the world’s second largest coral reef system. Margaritaville Beach Resort is set to open on the island in early 2023, and “eco-luxury” resort Alaia Belize opened in 2021.

Farther south, the Great Blue Hole — a massive underwater sinkhole — is an aquatic magnet for both scuba divers and aerial photographers.

But Belize offers way more than its enticing islands.

Lush rainforests, cave networks, winding rivers and rich Mayan archaeological sites invite exploration in a country that’s had an evolving sustainable tourism master plan since 2012. Ruins of the Mayan city of Altun Ha are just about an hour north of Belize City. Or farther west, Lamanai is one of Belize’s largest and most fascinating Mayan sites. — MH

Oaxaca, Mexico

Mexico is arguably as rich in culinary heritage as it is in Mesoamerican archaeological treasures, and Eva Longoria explores many distinctive flavors in her series “Searching for Mexico,” airing on CNN in 2023.

The state of Oaxaca, which Longoria visits, has an especially deep well of culinary traditions. Plus, Oaxaca produces most of the world’s mezcal.

Tlayudas, known as Oaxacan pizzas, are a street food staple. A large corn tortilla is typically layered with lard, beans, traditional Oaxacan cheese, pork and other toppings such as avocado and tomato. The state is also renowned for its seven mole sauces, with recipes that may call for dozens of ingredients from chiles and sesame seeds to chocolate and dried fruit.

In the city of Oaxaca, Mercado Benito Juárez is one of many markets across the state selling items such as dried chiles, fresh produce, handicrafts and crunchy grasshoppers. To sample the state’s increasingly popular beverage, the town of Santiago Matatlán is the place for mezcal distillery tours and tastings. — MH

Ottawa, Canada

In the winter, the frozen Rideau Canal in Ottawa becomes the world's largest skaing rink.

In the winter, the frozen Rideau Canal in Ottawa becomes the world’s largest skaing rink.

vlad_g/Adobe Stock

It doesn’t have Montreal’s French flair or Toronto’s international oomph, so the Canadian capital can get overlooked. That would be a mistake. Graceful and understated, Ottawa has its own draws.

Music lovers should take note of two Ottawa Jazz Festivals. There’s a winter edition February 2-3. If you can’t handle the cold, there’s a summer edition June 23-30.
If you love hockey, watch the Ottawa Senators do their NHL thing at the Canadian Tire Centre in the western suburbs. If that ticket is too pricey, check out the Ottawa 67’s, a more affordable option of junior men’s hockey games at downtown’s TD Place Arena.
The Rideau Canal turns into the world’s largest skating rink from sometime in January to late February or early March, depending on ice thickness. It’s free and accessible 24/7. When it’s warmer, it’s a great spot for people and boat watching.
A don’t-miss is Parliament Hill, home to Canada’s federal government and the visually striking Parliament buildings on a promontory overlooking the Ottawa River. — FB

Uganda

Treks through the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest are among Uganda's highlights.

Treks through the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest are among Uganda’s highlights.

Shakked Schwartz/Moment RF/Getty Images

There’s considerable change brewing in Uganda’s travel offerings at the moment with the East African country looking beyond the traditional staples of safari and wildlife spotting to appeal to both regional and international visitors.

Keen to revitalize post-Covid tourism in all corners of the country, not just the big-ticket businesses offering wealthy visitors a glimpse of the Big Five beasts or mountain gorillas, it’s turned to marketing its other attributes.

And why not? From the expansive shores of Lake Victoria to the snowy Rwenzori Mountains, Uganda is a beautiful wilderness playground, with opportunities for adventure including treks through the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest or up to the craters of the Virunga volcano chain or whitewater rafting along the Victoria Nile.

There’s also an emphasis on connecting visitors with Ugandan communities — promising tastes of Ugandan food, music and culture. Last year saw the launch of the Uganda Cycling Trail, a 1,600-kilometer mainly unpaved 22-stage route designed to appeal to all levels of cyclist from hardcore solo bikepackers to fully-guided easy riders. — BN

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New year, new content: What to watch on Fox Nation this January

Latest & Breaking News on Fox News 

2023 is here, and Fox Nation is heading off the new year by taking viewers on a star-studded journey across the entertainment world and through all four seasons.

With a lineup chock-full of fun and unique content, Fox Nation is showcasing some major personalities, with special installments of Nancy Grace’s “Trapped,” that looks into the conservatorship of Britney Spears, a deep dive into the controversial royal couple Harry and Meghan, and a new TMZ presentation on “Red Rocker” Sammy Hagar’s rock and roll “paradise” in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

Fox Nation is also kicking off an exclusive series that breaks into the rich and beautiful nature of our planet, unearthing the mystifying wonders of the world.

LIBS OF TIKTOK FACE REVEAL COMING TUESDAY: TUCKER CARLSON

Trapped: A Nancy Grace Investigation

Fox Nation host Nancy Grace digs into the dark a twisted side of pop legend Britney Spears’ conservatorship that captivated the nation and championed the movement to #FreeBritney. Grace exposes how a world-renowned pop star became a victim of control and how conservatorships and guardianships sow the seeds of exploitation and abuse and how Spears’ case is simply one of many.

OPINION: PRINCE HARRY AND MEGHAN MARKLE RISK BECOMING MOST HATED ROYAL COUPLE

Who is Meghan & Harry?

Royalty or royal pain? Fox Nation’s special on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle explores the couple that has captivated tabloids and sparked controversy in the media for their criticism of and break away from the British royal family. Explore the early lives, traumatic experiences and love that shaped the couple and led to their eventual move to America.

TMZ Presents: Sammy Hagar

The “Red Rocker” Sammy Hagar is turning 75, and he’s inviting Fox Nation viewers into his personal paradise nestled in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico for an inside scoop into his special birthday bash. This TMZ exclusive goes behind the former Van Halen vocalist’s life of fame and fortune and delves into the unbelievable trust story that launched his successful rock and roll career. 

SAMMY HAGAR TELLS ALL IN NEW MEMOIR

A Year on Planet Earth

Filmed across 60 locations for more than 3 years, Fox Nation’s “A Year on Planet Earth” breaks down the natural beauty of the four seasons and takes viewers on an exhibition into the wild wonders of the world. With the help of scientists, conservationists and community members, the series takes a look at the lives of special animals, including penguins, elephants, pandas and more, uncovering their unique, adorable and quirky behaviors and making every effort to ensure their protection. 

Follow the show through the four beautiful seasons to see what wonders planet earth has in store.

MisEducation of America, Season Two

“Fox & Friends Weekend” host Pete Hegseth’s “MisEducation of America” is returning for its second season to uncover the rhetoric of liberal educators in K-12 classrooms across the U.S. After unearthing the insidious nature behind a goal to transform America’s culture – starting with its youth. This season expands upon the deep digs into critical race theory and focuses on the raging and controversial war between parents and school systems that took school boards and districts by storm last year. 

CLICK HERE TO GET FOX NATION

Re-join Hegseth as he investigates the intricacies of sex education in public schools, notwithstanding the transgender youth movement and other controversies, including declining academic standards and the left-leaning teacher’s unions stoking the fires.

Fox Nation programs are viewable on-demand and from your mobile device app, but only for Fox Nation subscribers. Go to Fox Nation to start a free trial and watch the extensive library from your favorite Fox Nation personalities. 

 

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Migrants crossing the southern border show signs of ‘worsening trauma,’ including sexual assault: report

Latest & Breaking News on Fox News 

Ever since he began volunteering two months ago for weekend shifts at a clinic in one of the largest shelters in the border city of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, Dr. Brian Elmore has treated about 100 migrants for respiratory viruses and a handful of more serious emergencies, the Associated Press reported.

But what worries him most is something else.

Many migrants are traumatized after their long journeys north.

TEXAS RANCHERS PLEAD FOR HELP FROM GOV. ABBOTT AFTER THIRD ATTEMPTED BREAK-IN AMID MIGRANT CRISIS

The “worsening trauma” experienced by the migrants, the AP reported, often involves witnessing murders and suffering from kidnappings and sexual assault.

“Most of our patients have symptoms of PTSD — I want to initiate a screening for every patient,” Elmore, an emergency medicine doctor at Clinica Hope, told the AP.

The Catholic nonprofit Hope Border Institute opened the clinic this past fall with the help of Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas, which borders Juarez, said the AP. 

“The Hope Border Institute (HOPE) brings the perspective of Catholic social teaching to bear on the realities unique to our U.S.-Mexico border region,” the group’s website says. 

“Through a robust program of research and policy work, leadership development and action, we work to build justice and deepen solidarity across the borderlands.”

Professionals including doctors, social workers, clergy and law enforcement say growing numbers of migrants are suffering violence that amounts to torture — and are arriving at the U.S.-Mexican border in desperate need of trauma-informed medical and mental health treatment, the AP reported.

AIR FORCE VETERAN AND HIS WIFE FACED PTSD HEAD-ON WITH THE HELP OF ALL SECURE FOUNDATION

But resources for this specialized care are scarce.

And the network of shelters is so overwhelmed by new arrivals and migrants that only the most severe cases can be handled, according to the AP’s reporting.

One specific example, as a case manager described: “A pregnant 13-year-old … fled gang rapes, and so [she] needs help with child care and middle school.”

DR. MARC SIEGEL: MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS IS ‘MUCH WORSE’ DUE TO THE PANDEMIC

Zury Reyes Borrero, a case manager in Arizona with the Center for Victims of Torture, visited the young girl when she gave birth — and described the circumstances.

“We get people at their most vulnerable. Some don’t even realize they’re in the U.S.,” the case manager told the AP.

In the past six months, Reyes Borrero and a colleague have helped about 100 migrants at Catholic Community Services’ Casa Alitas, a shelter in Tucson, Arizona, she said.

Each visit with a migrant can take hours.

Caseworkers try to build a rapport with the individuals — and focus on empowering them, Reyes Borrero told the AP.

This group of people “might not have any memory that’s safe,” said Sarah Howell, who runs a clinical practice and a nonprofit treating migrant survivors of torture in Houston, Texas.

When she visits patients in their new Texas communities, said Howell, they routinely introduce relatives or neighbors who also need help with severe trauma; yet they reportedly lack the stability and safety necessary for healing.

Most migrants need “first-aid mental health” as well as long-term care that’s even harder to arrange once they disperse from border-area shelters to communities across the country, noted another professional.

Left untreated, such trauma can escalate to where it necessitates psychiatric care instead of therapy and self-help, Dylan Corbett, Hope Border Institute’s executive director, told the AP.

Service providers and migrants alike are saying the most dangerous spot on journeys filled with peril at every step is “la selva” — the Darien Gap jungle separating Colombia from Panama, crossed by increasing numbers of Venezuelans, Cubans and Haitians who first moved to South America and are now seeking safer lives in the United States, the AP reported.

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Natural perils like deadly snakes and rivers only add to the risks of an area rife with bandits preying on migrants, the same source noted.

Meanwhile, over four million migrants have flocked to the southern border since Vice President Kamala Harris was assigned the task of addressing the “root cause” of the crisis nearly two years ago, Fox News Digital reported this weekend.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection tracked 233,000 border encounters in November.

That’s a 35% increase from when Harris was assigned her role on mass migration there in March 2021. 

These encounters are expected to increase after the expiration of Title 42, a pandemic-era policy under President Donald Trump that allows border agents to turn away migrants at the border.

The White House in December could not define exactly what Harris does in her role to address the mass migration.

“I don’t have anything to lay out specifically on what that work looks like,” press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at a press briefing when asked about the role of the vice president.

The vice president’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

The Associated Press, as well as Fox News Digital’s Patrick Hauf, contributed reporting.

 

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