Inside the movement to make ‘ecocide’ a crime, Biden’s kitchen sink strategy and Kim Kardashian joins a new club

Good morning, NBC News readers.

This morning we look at the Movement to Make “Ecocide” an International Crime, the jumbled CDC news at a critical moment in the pandemic, and a bittersweet reunion.

Here’s what we’re looking at this Wednesday morning.

The “ecocide” movement is pushing for a new international crime: environmental degradation

Chelsea Steel / NBC News; Getty Images

A small but growing number of world leaders, including Pope Francis and French President Emmanuel Macron, have begun citing a crime that they say poses a threat to humanity but is beyond the reach of international criminal law : Ecocide, or widespread destruction of the environment.

They have accepted a campaign by environmental activists and legal scholars to try a crime in the International Criminal Court and serve as a “moral line” for the planet.

The monumental move ahead of a long road to global debate would mean that political leaders and corporate executives could be charged and imprisoned for “ecocidal” acts.

“We use criminal law to draw moral boundaries,” said Jojo Mehta, who launched the “Stop Ecocide” campaign in 2017. “We say something is not accepted, your murder is not acceptable. The red line actually makes a huge difference, and it will make a difference to the people who are funding what is going on.”

The top stories from Wednesday

Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times via Getty

Experts say the CDC’s messaging issue is a public health liability – especially now

Recent missteps by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and their director, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, have been criticized as “chaos” that tarnished public health news at a particularly important point in the pandemic. A key message that experts out there want: The second Covid-19 shot is non-negotiable. You will need to get your second vaccine shot to be fully protected. By Denise Chow | Continue reading

Analysis: Biden’s job bill for kitchen sinks has many companions

The president’s decision to bring a wide variety of issues together in his single “infrastructure” proposal of more than $ 2 trillion – from roads, bridges, and broadband to tax increases and care for the elderly – is not uncommon. This is how Washington makes laws, writes Jonathan Allen, senior national policy reporter for NBC News, in a news analysis. Biden’s Policy Push received a surprising confirmation on Tuesday: Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

Florida lawmakers are reversing cuts and changes in college scholarships after the student-parent game

The plan to eviscerate the popular performance-based program would have left out students who wanted to study history, art, or English. Students felt compelled to choose between scholarship money and their academic interests. By Ben Kesslen | Continue reading

OPINION: Shame no longer has a place in American politics. Matt Gaetz proves it.

Gaetz is the youngest in a line of Republicans who have remained unrepentant in the face of filthy allegations and have held onto power. Democrats like New York Governor Andrew Cuomo are likely to take note of this and may decide to make the same political bet. By David Mark | Continue reading

The Milk Tea Alliance is brewing democracy among young activists across Asia

From Myanmar to Hong Kong, young people are clashing with increasingly authoritarian regimes and fighting online for a unified and popular regional drink. By Janis Mackey Frayer and Adela Suliman | Continue reading

BETTER: I don’t want to go back to my pre-pandemic life. What now?

Columnist Caroline Moss gives advice to a reader on how to hold onto the silent joys of the year of the pandemic, even as we return to some of our old ways. By Caroline Moss | Continue reading

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A sweet thing

KUSA

Slowly but surely, the relatives separated by the pandemic are being reunited.

Karl Waitschies and his wife Donna enjoy 55 years of love and marriage. But they were separated for the last year when the coronavirus pandemic restricted visitors to the nursing home where Donna, who suffers from Alzheimer’s, lives.

They were finally reunited and hugged for the first time since the pandemic started last week.

Not many words were exchanged, but Donna held her husband’s hand most of the time, a non-verbal indication that the 55-year-old bond between the two is pervasive.

Read the story and watch a video here.

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Thank you, Petra

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