“Baby elephant” is word of the year

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“Baby elephant” is the Austrian word of the year 2020, and by a large margin the symbol for the minimum distance to avoid SARS-CoV-2 infection. The second place was already taken by “Corona” itself. The expert jury, headed by Rudolf Muhr from the “Gesellschaft für Österreichisches Deutsch” (GSÖD – Society for Austrian German language), justified the choice, which was made in cooperation with the APA – Austria Press Agency. In third place was the ambiguous “verblümeln”, according to the jury an “ironic play on words with the name of the…

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UNO warns of massive poverty caused by pandemic

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According to the United Nations, the long-term consequences of the pandemic could bring the number of people living in extreme poverty to more than one billion by 2030. However, this development could still be averted, according to a study published today by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The paper outlines three possible future scenarios: In the worst case, more than 200 million additional people would suffer from extreme poverty by 2030 – and thus more than one billion worldwide. In the “basic scenario”, the figure would be 44 million…

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Spain tightens restrictions for Christmas

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In Spain, coronavirus restrictions will be tightened for the Christmas holidays: between 23 December and 6 January, the country’s 47 million citizens will only be allowed to leave their respective home regions in exceptional cases. This was decided today by the central government and the 17 autonomous communities of the country, as Health Minister Salvador Illa announced after the video conference in Madrid in the evening. According to the agreement, however, people in Spain will be allowed to cross regional borders during the cordoning off for meetings with close family…

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Germany extends partial lockdown until 10 January

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The partial lockdown in Germany with closed restaurants, museums, theaters and leisure facilities will be extended until January 10. This was decided by the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the Minister Presidents of the federal states during their consultations today, as the CDU politician subsequently announced. “In principle, the situation will remain as it is now,” Merkel said. The round will meet again on January 4 to discuss how to proceed – originally the current conditions were limited until December 20. Measured in terms of population, Germany has significantly lower…

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Trade and Retail: Opening hours extended on 8, 12 and 19 December

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Trade union and chamber of commerce agreed on a special collective agreement.The social partners have agreed on an extension of opening hours in the retail sector on 8, 12 and 19 December in order to unbundle the flow of customers somewhat after the relaxation of the Corona lockdown. On the Feast of the Immaculate Conception (December 8), retailers can exceptionally open between 09.00 and 19.00 hours. Previously, opening hours on December 8 were limited to 10.00 to 18.00 hours. On the two remaining shopping Saturdays before Christmas, December 12 and…

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WHO recommendation: Wear a protective mask at home

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According to the latest recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO), under certain circumstances one should also wear a mouth and nose protector at home. Especially if you receive visits from outsiders and the ventilation does not work well or its effect cannot be properly assessed. In recommendations updated on Wednesday, it is stated that this is necessary “regardless of whether a distance of at least one meter can be maintained”. As far as the storage of protective masks is concerned, the masks should not be worn on the arm…

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More waste is produced in the lockdown

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The Lockdown is responsible for the fact that in several provinces in Austria at present substantially more garbage is produced. Because of the on-line trade there is a third more cardboard boxes. The lockdown also means that more bulky waste is being disposed. This causes additional costs. In Lienz in East Tyrol there are 60 garbage collection posts which overflow these days again and again. It is because of the bulky cardboard waste that causes a 30 percent increase in waste. According to Gerlinde Küberl, chairwoman of the Lienz environmental…

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Putin announces vaccination of one million people

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Russia plans to start the first mass vaccinations against the corona virus at the end of next week. For this purpose, two million doses of the Russian vaccine Sputnik V should be used, Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin said today at an online conference according to the state agency TASS. “This gives us the opportunity to start with large-scale vaccinations. That is enough for one million people, because two vaccinations are necessary in each case. Sputnik V had been released in mid-August as the world’s first vaccine for broad application in…

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Christmas market cancelled

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The Vienna Christmas Market is cancelled this year. The other Christmas markets in Vienna also have to dismantle their stands. This is the result of the corona measures announced by the federal government on Wednesday. On approximately 20 larger Christmas markets in Vienna must be dismantled now, among them also the famous Christkindlmarkt at the city hall place. “Of course we are incredibly sad, because we still have a small spark of hope. On the other hand, we fully understand that due to this pandemic, extreme measures have to be…

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