Passionate about living green, the Green Heart Movement is determined to have everyone wearing a green felt heart during COP17.

More than 30 000 people from 193 countries are to arrive in Durban for the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) meeting, which the city will be hosting from 28 November to 9 December. The world is currently buzzing with workshops, meetings, and symposia in preparation for the event, which is expected to be as big as COP15 in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2009. The participants will include governments, NGOs, business, academia and media.

The Urdu and Persian word Qurbani (sacrificial slaughter) is derived from the Arabic word Qurban. Lexically, it means that which brings you closer to the Creator. The word includes all acts of charity fulfilled as a means of seeking Allah’s pleasure.

The people of KwaZulu-Natal are invited to vote for their top KZN Newsmaker of the Year 2011. The KZN Newsmaker of the Year was launched in the province on Friday, 28 October and seeks to identify any KZN-linked individuals or events that made the headlines and most shaped the news between June 2010 and June 2011.

In Hinduism, festivals are religious expressions. The Hindu month of Karttika (October – November), heralds the arrival of the popular festival namely Diwali or is that Divali maybe it is Deepavali. These names are all accepted variations of dipavali, a Sanskrit (Hindu sacred language) word, meaning a row of lights. This festival is a celebration of light.

Act now for climate justice... plant a tree

Tuesday, 18 October marked the countdown of 40 days to COP17. A group of interfaith members celebrated by planting two golden shower trees at the World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY) offices in Durban.