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Embed on your websiteClose×Copy the code below to embed the WBUR audio player on your site<iframe width="100%" height="124" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" src="https://player.wbur.org/hereandnow/2022/08/30/ants-pesticides-crops-farming"></iframe> EmailTwo European red wood ants are pictured in a forest near Birkenwerder (Patrick Pleul/AFP via Getty Images)You might want to leave those pesty little ants in your garden alone New research says the tiny creatures are more effective than pesticides in helping farmers grow bountiful crops The study examined 17 different crops including mangoes and discovered ants will hunt the pests attacking the food For Adam Hart entomologist and professor of science communication at the University of Gloucestershire “I spend quite a lot of time persuading people that there's more to [ants] than meets the eye,” Hart says “Although they may be a bit annoying at times they actually have an amazing kind of use throughout the environment.” Ants eat a number of insects found on plants such as scale insects research showed they prefer to encourage the sap-sucking insects Ants look after aphids and eat the honeydew they produce after feasting on plant sap There are at least 14,000 known species of ant can spread rapidly and change an area’s ecology And not every agricultural system will benefit from ants it could be feasible for farmers to use ants rather than pesticides Hart calls for more integrated solutions for pest management and for researchers to learn more about how ants can lend a helping hand “If we can come up with these integrated methods where we can take advantage of natural systems we can take advantage of the fact that ants can be really Samantha Raphelson produced and edited this interview for broadcast with Gabe Bullard. Jeannette Muhammad adapted it for the web. Peter O'Dowd Senior Editor, Here & NowPeter O’Dowd has a hand in most parts of Here & Now — producing and overseeing segments, reporting stories and occasionally filling in as host. He came to Boston from KJZZ in Phoenix. Samantha Raphelson Associate Producer, Here & NowSamantha Raphelson is an associate producer for Here & Now, based at NPR in Washington, D.C. Jeannette Muhammad Freelance Associate Producer Here & NowJeannette Muhammad was a freelance assistant producer for Here & Now Posted by | Mar 1, 2024 | 4 Sunday evenings in Berlin’s institutional district are normally tranquil masses headed towards the capital’s Republic Square with a slightly less challenging temperature but more rain the crowd oscillated between 150,000 and 300,000 Berliners had made a prominent appeal for the protection of democratic principles They had established their opposition to the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) after the revelation of its members participating in a secret meeting to plan mass deportation of people based on their origins And the mobilization was not just in Berlin The success of the “Zusammen Gegen Rechts” (Together Against The Right) movement lay in local implementation beyond the metropolis with large turnouts in the marketplaces as well as town hall plazas of smaller cities and towns one anthem was the anti-inaction manifesto Deine Schuld from the punk-rock group Die Ärtze: “It’s not your fault that the world is the way it is It would only be your fault if it stayed that way” a resident accompanied by his young family They embraced activism by opposing the visit of AfD representative Stephan Brandner to a meeting of his party’s local branch and the 100,000s in Berlin were staking out their space against a far-right political organisation which gained 10% of votes in the last general election and had polled around 20% in recent surveys If their challenge arose from deep concern there is now hope of bringing this AfD expansion to an inflection point AfD positioned itself as the replacement for established parties Its initial presentation — by lawyers and other activists — was an anti-Europe project “The beginners of the AfD wanted to be an alternative to the government of the time whatever that meant….But there was enormous right-wing pressure within the party,” explains Claudia one of those demonstrating on February 3 in Berlin the AfD made hostility to immigration its priority The radicalization opened way to successes: the party rose from 0 to 87 seats in the Bundestag by 2017 and bolstered its rise in 2023 by winning first municipal and local council votes the investigative outlet Correctiv published the explosive story The report unveiled a secret meeting in a hotel in Potsdam on November 25 The gathering established a plan for the mass deportation of millions of non-nationals and Germans considered “non-assimilated” out of Germany the long-form article underlined the echoes of German history suggested the allocation of territory in North Africa to receive forcibly displaced populations — a reminder of the Nazi plan in 1940 to move all Jews to Madagascar The meeting was convened a few kilometers from Wannsee where Nazi officials approved the “final solution” to kill millions in death camps The Correctiv article “scared a lot of people” The disturbing déjà-vu had rung the Nie Wieder (Never Again) moral alarm at the pillars of Brandenburg Gate and a few meters away at the massive Republic Square’s demonstration there were organizations for refugee help and initiatives to assist non-nationals with difficulties in their integration One of their representatives recalls facing increasingly anxious questions about deportation Holger expresses an “unspoken fear” which is now being voiced defined by Die Ärtze’s anthem ringing through the crowd “We also don’t go out enough,” admit the duo The emergence of the Zusammen Gegen Rechts movement is the backlash of a silent majority in Germany frustrated with seeing the AfD flourish on their TV screens But it’s about the younger generation in general,” says Claudia in Berlin “We are the Brandmauer (firewall)” is the recurrent motto linked to the contest against the far right’s conspiracy theories “I’m not an image manipulation and a lot of people were there,” reads Claudia’s cardboard sign Far-right activists and high-ranked politicians such as Björn Höcke had cast doubt on footage of one of the movement’s landmark demonstrations – a gathering of 180,000 in Hamburg Many debunked those deceitful far-right’s allegations of inconsistencies in pictures “We are not fake news,” says Claudia bluntly the demonstrators are animating the risk of the present through the refrain of the past The loudest chant in Birkenwerder and Berlin is “Nazis Raus (Nazis Out)” the AfD’s Stephan Brandner may have been struggling to be heard growing louder when a car brought a guest to the door of the administrative building’s door was the message to the far-right party’s officials from the southern Brandenburg region They had gathered for a “citizen dialogue” an expression questioned by demonstrators who said the phrase had lost its meaning One of those protesters was Torsten Lindner the president of Mit Courage (With Courage) promoting democratic values and fighting racism in several of Brandenburg’s communities bordering northern Berlin Mit Courage regularly opposes AfD policies through discussions the Correctiv’s report had “not brought anything new to light” about the underlying racism and danger of AfD and its leaders But it had “shaken many people up again” — a popular reaction channeled by the democratic association that evening Stephan Zimniok has been Birkenwerder’s mayor since 2015 he was returned to office with 70% of the vote As Brandner and his fellows trampled the town council’s hallways Zimniok stood among the protestors both as a local representative and as a citizen defying AfD: “I talk to the people and explain why they [AfD representatives] are allowed to be there They are still an authorized party in Germany But that legal responsibility does not mean indulgence of a party claiming 10% of voters in the Bundestag elections in 2021 “We just have to take to the streets We have to show them that we don’t want them Claudia and Silvia express their gratitude to people like those in Birkenwerder thinking “nothing happens to me” People are conscious of who flock to the streets shouting “Nazis raus” This can have consequences: in encounters while shopping “You risk more when you take part in demonstrations in Thuringia or Saxony,” they note But how can “Nazis Raus” be set in motion with respect to AfD a Christian Democrat member of the Bundestag is trying to convince the needed 5% of his colleagues to begin the process of banning AfD More than 800,000 citizens have signed petitions for a possible interdiction But many protesters believe a ban would boost AfD rather than solving the problem of far-right populism Holger and Gisela fear that the interdiction would nurture anger meaning that “people will then vote even more” for the extremists “I believe that the AfD likes to feel like a victim in its Opfermäntelchen [a ‘victimhood coat’],” cloaking its extremist image Mit Courage’s Lindner does not rule out the ban but says “It will take years to decide whether that will go through in court.” An alternative is to concentrate on individual politicians AfD’s leader in its strongpoint of Thüringen — an “official fascist” putting Hitler’s on a photo of Höcke Almost 1.700.000 people have signed a petition asking the Federal Government to start proceedings in the Constitutional Court under Article 18 of the German Constitution to remove Höcke’s eligibility and capacity to exercise a public mandate “Björn Höcke is a truly dangerous enemy of the liberal democracy,” the petition asserts The stakes are high: with AfD garnering up to 30% in polls about voting intentions the politician wanting to do a “180-degree reversal on the [Holocaust] politics of remembrance” could gain the premiership of Thüringen in the next elections I think,…is that people finally start to become active again….We have to understand that democracy is everyday work; that you have to be very active every day… I hope that many people have now understood that you have to disagree the turnout in the Zusammen Gegen Rechts rallies is bringing a glimmer of that prospect “There is perhaps a little hope because there have been so many people on the streets against the AfD since last week.” Claudia and Silvia echo in Berlin “There is always hope when a lot of people come together and speak out.” Lindner smiles as he watches the rally he organized with his colleagues I have rarely seen so many people in Birkenwerder.” After he finishes discussions with the last of the demonstrators Zimniok comes back home “very proud”: “Today the fear has become a little less.” The hope is also developing as the polls give signs of AfD setbacks the party had a high-water mark of about 23% in surveys of voting intentions for the next Bundestag elections in autumn 2025 When the figure was announced at the Berlin protest “This has to continue,” as Germany enters an intense year of voting “Nur Kamele brauchen Höcker (Only camels need bumps)” a play on words evoking the AfD’s Höcke The duo underline both a specific target and a wider message: a healthy society does not need those politicians singling out and threatening “others” in a country that knows all too well the consequences of politically-structured hate and a public passivity allowing it to thrive Paul Mazet is an independent journalist based in Berlin working on the different dynamics transcending the European continent and investigating local stories with global echoes Thank you for your comment and this further information – here is a new story to question Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Subscribe to our email list to receive a weekly selection of stories published by EA WorldView during the previous week Designed by Elegant Themes | Powered by WordPress performer/director Gilad Philip Ben-David was compelled to return and transform the much-maligned Central Bus Station into a stage 2013Get email notification for articles from Ben Shalev FollowFeb 5 usually bustling Tel Aviv central bus station empty and still when all the many entrances are locked and the labyrinthine hulk that combines busy bus terminals and a low-end shopping center resembles a grimy ghost town.