• Godric@lemmy.world
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    18 hours ago

    "Nauru has used its position as a member of the United Nations to gain financial support from both Taiwan (officially the Republic of China or ROC) and China (officially the People’s Republic of China or PRC) by changing its recognition from one to the other under the One-China policy.

    On 21 July 2002, Nauru signed an agreement to establish diplomatic relations with the PRC, accepting US$130 million from the PRC for this action (US$211 million in 2023. In response, the ROC severed diplomatic relations with Nauru two days later. Nauru later re-established links with the ROC on 14 May 2005,[95] and diplomatic ties with the PRC were officially severed on 31 May 2005. On 15 Jan 2024, Nauru severed ties with the ROC and re-established diplomatic ties with the PRC."

  • Asetru@feddit.org
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    1 day ago

    Approximately 90% of the land area of Nauru is covered with phosphate deposits, with the majority strip-mined and non-arable. This has led to Nauruan reliance on processed food, high in both sugar and fat, imported from large Oceanian countries such as Australia and New Zealand.[4][2]

    Ninety percent??? Ninety!?!?

    • stoly@lemmy.world
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      23 hours ago

      Basically at some point in the 70s they sold their rights to Australia, who came in and destroyed the island. They were, for a bit, the wealthiest people in the world per capita but the money ran out fairly quickly.

    • lime!@feddit.nu
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      24 hours ago

      i’m guessing “phosphate deposits” is a very roundabout way to say “guano”.

      • TranscendentalEmpire@lemmy.today
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        23 hours ago

        More than likely it’s buildups of marine life deposits considering it’s an island. Phosphates are usually mined from naturally occurring porous stones that phosphorus has diffused through over a long period of time.

        Guano has some phosphates in it, but is usually sought after for its high nitrogen content, and is typically located near coastal areas or caves as opposed to remote islands.

  • roofuskit@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    Samoa is not far behind. It’s because of overly processed diets on islands. Mostly as a result of western nations coming in and having a presence on islands and starting the processed food imports. The most affordable food on these islands comes out of a can because it is shelf stable and easier to transport. Fresh food is very expensive.

    • MirthfulAlembic@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      The Nauru article linked also points out that the large amount of mining has done away with most of what little arable land there was, making traditional garden culture impractical at scale. So, they sort of have to be dependent on foreign food imports, largely the kind you mention.

    • dogslayeggs@lemmy.world
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      23 hours ago

      Yep, all the fresh fish that they can catch for free is too valuable for them to eat for themselves. Surrounded by free food that they can’t afford to eat.

      • BakerBagel@midwest.social
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        20 hours ago

        What you fail to understand is that capitalism is the most efficient way to distribute resources. This is simply the will of the market

    • neukenindekeuken@sh.itjust.works
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      16 hours ago

      A lot fewer people. This would be like a small town in rural US of 12k people being 90%+ obese.

      I don’t have that data at my fingertips, but I suspect that if we don’t have a place like that exactly, it’d be pretty close.

      Now just turn that into a country.

  • Skeezix@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    They are so fat. The fattest people on the planet. The picture on their dollar bill is a cheeseburger. The national bird is a roast turkey. They play the national anthem on Whistle Pops. The national holiday is hot fudge Sunday and it’s celebrated every week. Their shirts are 100% cotton candy. The national sport is all you can eat contest and citizens are encouraged to practice every day. The national animal is the chocolate moose. When a bride gets married the dowry is a big bowl of macaroni and cheese.