Month: October 2015

Native Americans Concerned With ‘Rainbow Warriors’ Gathering In The Black Hills

RED POWER MEDIA

Rainbow Family members arrive in the Routt National Forest north of Steamboat Springs, Colo., in 2006, when the event drew about 20,000 people. Officials say the group may come to the Black Hills this summer. Rainbow Family members arrive in the Routt National Forest north of Steamboat Springs, Colo., in 2006, when the event drew about 20,000 people. Officials say the group may come to the Black Hills this summer.

By Black Powder | Red Power Media, Updated 06/14/15

A group called the Rainbow Family of Light, are pondering having their annual Rainbow Gathering in South Dakota’s Black Hills from July 1 -7.

An estimated 8,000 to 20,000 members who show up for the “peace and love” gathering to pray for world peace would be camping in the Black Hills National Forest.

The Rainbow Family Gatherings are strongly associated with the counterculture and the hippie subculture.

The group was founded in 1970s and professes to have no leaders or hierarchy, and appears to draw its name from a fake Native American prophecy claiming that a band of ‘Rainbow Warriors’ will ‘make the earth green again’. 

The…

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Right to Water

Without water, life is impossible. Such a basic fact should imply that all human beings have, if they have any rights at all, a fundamental right to water.

And yet, it was not until 2010 that the international community fully and explicitly recognized the right to water.

That year, the UN General Assembly declared that “the right to safe and clean drinking water and sanitation as a human right that is essential for the full enjoyment of life and all human rights,” and called upon states and international organizations to work together to “provide safe, clean, accessible and affordable drinking water and sanitation for all.” Such belated attention highlights the growing awareness of a “global water crisis” that threatens the lives and dignity of billions of people around the world. Although the natural sufficiency of water is a real problem for some parts of the world, the scarcity that drives this crisis is, as the 2006 UN Human Development Report notes, “rooted in power, poverty and inequality, not in physical availability.” As such, addressing the crisis will require the mobilization not only of economic resources and scientific expertise, but of public participation and political courage at all levels of society.

http://unescochair.uconn.edu/2015/10/12/right-to-water-conference/

 

Study: Climate Change Limits Agricultural Productivity

caribbeanclimate

Climate Change Issues are hurting agricultural productivity in Barbados and other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.

That’s the conclusion of a new study conducted by three researchers and just released by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

Michee Arnold Lachaud (University of Connecticut), Boris E. Bravo-Ureta (University of Connecticut and University of Talca, Chile), and the IDB’s Carlos E. Ludena investigated the impact climatic conditions had on productivity and output in agriculture.

They said the study’s main finding “is that climatic variability has negative impacts on production and productivity”.

“These adverse impacts are significant and vary across countries, sub-regions and regions.

On the basis of information from the fifth assessment report from the [Inter-Governmental Panel On Climate Change], climatic variability will reduce productivity across [Latin America, and the Caribbean] in the scenarios considered.

“Specifically, our forecast revealed that between 2013 and 2040 climatic effects can be expected to decrease productivity …

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Grenada joins regional call at UN for action on climate change

caribbeanclimate

Foreign Minister Clarice Modeste-Curwen of Grenada addresses the general debate of the General Assembly’s seventieth session. UN Photo/Cia Pak

A framework for climate change “cannot wait,” Grenada’s Foreign Minister said recently, joining other leaders from Latin America and the Caribbean calling for urgent action in the United Nations General Assembly.

“The impacts of climate change are already being felt the world over,” said Clarice Modeste-Curwen, warning that without a successful legally binding agreement in Paris, “we will see climate change continue unabated.”

She went on to note that the Assembly has already recognized the “unique vulnerabilities” of small island developing States (SIDS) regarding climate change, and urged the Security Council to “continue to give greater consideration to [their] special circumstances…in relation to both traditional and non-traditional security concerns.”

Addressing the need for a climate change framework, she calleed for an “immediate consensus” on the issue, particularly with regard to financing.

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Gallery

Effects Of Climate Change Seen Across Jamaica

caribbeanclimate

As a child, Joan Buchanan always anticipated the summer holidays, when she would accompany her parents to the farm to reap a range of crops which would be flourishing after the May/June rains.

She still recalls the joy of going from tree to tree, sampling and reaping seasonal fruits and ground provisions such as mango, Otaheite apple, plantain, cassava, and callaloo, among others.

Now 59 years old, Joan has picked up where her parents left off and now uses the trade to provide for her family. However, the trees have become frugal in their offerings and the bountiful summer harvest she could anticipate is a thing of the past. This year was no normal summer. In fact, the season hasn’t been normal for the past two years.

In an interview with The Gleaner, the resident of Seaforth, St Thomas, lamented the devastating effects a prolonged drought has been having…

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Sustainable Development and Caribbean States – A CaPRI Perspective

caribbeanclimate

Chris Tufton

Recently, at the University of the West Indies, the Caribbean Policy Research Institute (CaPRI) launched its latest research piece critiquing the performance of Caribbean states on reaching targets set by the United Nations’ (UN) sponsored Millennium Development Goals (MDG) initiative launched back in the year 2000, aimed at ending poverty and improving the health and welfare of the poorest people over a 15-year period.

This global initiative was intended to encourage developing countries around the world, under eight general headings to; eradicate extreme poverty; achieve universal primary education; promote gender equality and empower women; reduce child mortality; improve maternal health; combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; ensure environmental sustainability; and engage in a global partnership for development. This UN initiative was considered the facilitator of developmental progress aimed at developing countries.

UN goals ignored

Fifteen years on, and now at the end of the MDG programme, CaPRI’s assessment of this…

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Climate change causing biggest coral destruction in the Caribbean

caribbeanclimate

Keppelbleaching-310x206

The Caribbean is currently experiencing the biggest mass coral destruction ever recorded. This according to the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which confirmed that the bleaching of reefs in the Caribbean, Atlantic and Pacific may affect over 38 percent of the world’s reefs, and kill over 12,000 square kilometer of them.

Reefs are the breeding ground for tropical fisheries and this reality endangers the livelihoods of 500 million people who rely on the seas and oceans, which also provide shelter from the waves for tropical islands and bring tourist revenues.

Scientists warn that coral reefs that are already under threat from human activities are unlikely to survive increase in temperatures by the end of this century.

The current worldwide bleaching is predicted to be the worst on record as the warming Pacific current, known as El Nino, increases in strength. Water temperatures are being further increased by…

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New IPCC Chair Elected

7 October 2015: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has elected Hoesung Lee, Republic of Korea, as its new Chair. Lee was elected by 78 votes to 56 in a run-off with Jean-Pascal van Ypersele of Belgium.

Hoesung Lee

Speaking after the vote, Lee said he was “honored and grateful” to have been elected. He underscored the need for more information regarding existing options for preventing and adapting to climate change.

Lee further noted that the next phase of the IPCC's work will see an increased understanding of regional impacts, especially in developing countries, and an improvement in the manner in which the IPCC's findings are communicated to the public.

Various UN officials congratulated Lee on his election, including UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres, UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner and WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud.

The election took place in Dubrovnik, Croatia, on 6 October, where the IPCC is holding its 42nd session (IPCC 42). Six candidates had been nominated for the position: Ogunlade Davidson, Sierra Leone; Chris Field, US; Hoesung Lee, Republic of Korea; Nebojsa Nakicenovic, Austria and Montenegro; Thomas Stocker, Switzerland; and Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, Belgium.

Elections for other IPCC Bureau positions also took place during the course of IPCC 42. On 7 October, Thelma Krug, Brazil, Ko Barrett, US, and Youba Sokona, Mali, were elected IPCC Vice-Chairs.

Lee is a professor of the economics of climate change, energy and sustainable development at Korea University's Graduate School of Energy and Environment in the Republic of Korea, and is currently one of the IPCC's three vice-chairs. The election of the new IPCC Bureau, which will have 34 members including the Chair, paves the way for work to begin on the IPCC's Sixth Assessment Report, expected to be completed in 5-7 years.

The IPCC was established by the WMO and UNEP in 1988 to provide a clear scientific assessment of the current state of knowledge in climate change and its potential environmental and socioeconomic impacts, and to identify possible responses. [IPCC Press Release] [UNEP Press Release] [WMO Press Release] [UN Press Release] [Statement of the UN Secretary-General] [UNFCCC Press Release][IISD RS coverage of IPCC 42]

 

Roy Sesana’s Speech Is One of The Most Powerful I have Ever Read: This Is What Leadership Looks Like

By Roy Sesana / survivalinternational.org

Roy Sesana gave this speech when he accepted the Right Livelihood Award in Stockholm in 2005. We read this years ago and wanted to share it with you, because it's one of those rare speeches that we have wanted to read again and again over the years. It is profound and important beyond words.

Roy Sesana

Above all, it is so inspiring to us. This is what true leadership looks like. In its entirety it is wisdom that transcends time and culture, and perhaps that's why we think everyone will find something beautiful in this. – Films For Action

“My name is Roy Sesana; I am a Gana Bushman from the Kalahari in what is now called Botswana. In my language, my name is 'Tobee' and our land is 'T//amm'. We have been there longer than any people has been anywhere.

When I was young, I went to work in a mine. I put off my skins and wore clothes. But I went home after a while. Does that make me less Bushman? I don't think so.I am a leader. When I was a boy we did not need leaders and we lived well. Now we need them because our land is being stolen and we must struggle to survive. It doesn't mean I tell people what to do, it's the other way around: they tell me what I have to do to help them.

I cannot read. You wanted me to write this speech, so my friends helped, but I cannot read words – I'm sorry! But I do know how to read the land and the animals. All our children could. If they didn't, they would have all died long ago. I know many who can read words and many, like me, who can only read the land. Both are important. We are not backward or less intelligent: we live in exactly the same up-to-date year as you. I was going to say we all live under the same stars, but no, they're different, and there are many more in the Kalahari. The sun and moon are the same.

I grew up a hunter. All our boys and men were hunters. Hunting is going and talking to the animals. You don't steal. You go and ask. You set a trap or go with bow or spear. It can take days. You track the antelope. He knows you are there, he knows he has to give you his strength. But he runs and you have to run. As you run, you become like him. It can last hours and exhaust you both. You talk to him and look into his eyes. And then he knows he must give you his strength so your children can live. When I first hunted, I was not allowed to eat. Pieces of the steenbok were burnt with some roots and spread on my body. This is how I learned. It's not the same way you learn, but it works well.

The farmer says he is more advanced than the backward hunter, but I don't believe him. His herds give no more food than ours. The antelope are not our slaves, they do not wear bells on their necks and they can run faster than the lazy cow or the herder. We run through life together. When I wear the antelope horns, it helps me talk to my ancestors and they help me. The ancestors are so important: we would not be alive without them. Everyone knows this in their heart, but some have forgotten. Would any of us be here without our ancestors? I don't think so.

I was trained as a healer. You have to read the plants and the sand. You have to dig the roots and become fit. You put some of the root back for tomorrow, so one day your grandchildren can find it and eat. You learn what the land tells you. When the old die, we bury them and they become ancestors. When there is sickness, we dance and we talk to them; they speak through my blood. I touch the sick person and can find the illness and heal it.

We are the ancestors of our grandchildren's children. We look after them, just as our ancestors look after us. We aren't here for ourselves. We are here for each other and for the children of our grandchildren.

Why am I here? Because my people love their land, and without it we are dying. Many years ago, the president of Botswana said we could live on our ancestral land forever. We never needed anyone to tell us that. Of course we can live where God created us! But the next president said we must move and began forcing us away.

They said we had to go because of diamonds. Then they said we were killing too many animals: but that's not true. They say many things which aren't true. They said we had to move so the government could develop us. The president says unless we change we will perish like the dodo. I didn't know what a dodo was. But I found out: it was a bird which was wiped out by settlers. The president was right. They are killing us by forcing us off our land. We have been tortured and shot at. They arrested me and beat me.

Thank you for the Right Livelihood Award. It is global recognition of our struggle and will raise our voice throughout the world. When I heard I had won I had just been let out of prison. They say I am a criminal, as I stand here today.

I say what kind of development is it when the people live shorter lives than before? They catch HIV/AIDS. Our children are beaten in school and won't go there. Some become prostitutes. They are not allowed to hunt. They fight because they are bored and get drunk. They are starting to commit suicide. We never saw that before. It hurts to say this. Is this 'development'?

We are not primitive. We live differently to you, but we do not live exactly like our grandparents did, nor do you. Were your ancestors 'primitive'? I don't think so. We respect our ancestors. We love our children. This is the same for all people.

We now have to stop the government stealing our land: without it we will die.

If anyone has read a lot of books and thinks I am primitive because I have not read even one, then he should throw away those books and get one which says we are all brothers and sisters under God and we too have a right to live.

That is all. Thank you.”

Roy Sesana – First People of the Kalahari, Botswana

http://www.filmsforaction.org/articles/roy-sesana-right-livelihood-speech/

 

The International Summit on Indigenous Environmental Philosophy

The International Summit on Indigenous Environmental Philosophy

THE PURPOSE OF THE SUMMIT

APRIL 26 – MAY 1, 2010

Indigenous communities are perhaps the most impacted by Climate Change and the least responsible for causing it. Indigenous elders and environmental specialists have also been the first to warn of changes and offer viable suggestions for response strategies yet their critical messages have usually gone unheeded by dominant societies. The International Summit on Indigenous Environmental Philosophy provided a forum for Indigenous thinkers from around the world to gather in a retreat setting to discuss how Indigenous Environmental Philosophy is distinct from Western Environmental Philosophy. Following much discussion and compromise, the following consensus statement was unanimously approved:

Redstone Statement, 1 May 2010

“Leave Us A Future!”

We are Indigenous environmental philosophers who have come from the four corners of the earth to Redstone, Oklahoma, to discuss the future of the planet.

Indigenous environmental philosophy respects a mutually supportive network of interconnected physical and spiritual entities that is sustainably maintained, and which connects the ancestral past with the distant future. The vision of our Indigenous peoples is to reach spiritual and material well-being through conscious action. Mother Earth is a living, dynamic being with inherent value, and her principles must be actively embodied in order to remain in harmony and balance.

Today, we are at a tipping point at which humanity is in danger of being removed from the cycles of Mother Earth. We bring this urgent message in response to Indigenous women, youth and children from around the world who have consistently asked us to leave them a more balanced planet.

We come as individuals from cultures whose authority originates from our unique relationships with nature and the environment. Our ways of living, and very existence, are threatened by the resistance of nation-states to include our institutions as part of the solutions that can save our planet. Consequently, we issue this call to the world.

Environmental, social, economic, and political conflicts over natural resources and access rights, climate change concerns, and other significant issues threatening international and local communities did not suddenly erupt on the global landscape. Rather, they are an outcome of the historical process that today affects every area of creation. Spiritual, cultural, social, economic, and political structures and values lost their connections to the communities and now focus exclusively on the individual. The world shifted from the circle of community to the ascendancy of the individual, resulting in a dangerous environmental imbalance with significant spiritual and health consequences. Balance must be restored in order to heal the earth, and it must include the participation of all ages, races, genders and cultures.

Effective mechanisms necessary for restoring balance include implementing the following:

1. Recognition of the interdependence of all things;

2. Indigenous self-determination;

3. Indigenous land, air, water, territory, and natural resource management;

4. Protection and preservation of Indigenous traditional knowledge, lifeways and languages, cultures, sacred sites, and folklores/oral traditions;

5. Indigenous authority over all actions impacting Indigenous communities;

6. Respect for, and protection of, traditional agricultures and genetic resources;

7. Seed sovereignty and food security;

8. Rights of movement, rights of access, rights of participation and communication in the exchange of environmental knowledge and culture.

We must assure the well-being of both humanity and nature. This requires a unification of diverse people who are open to ideas; people who are wise, clear, and profoundly human; and people who can transcend the self-imposed limits of their minds, reaching deep into their conscience and spirit for solutions.

All governments, communities, leaders, individuals, industries, and corporations must immediately act together to restore the balance that is essential for continued existence.

We call for a review of existing commercial practices and an end to any further non-sustainable exploitation and degradation of natural resources- for all generations to come. We also call for a portion of profits to be invested in the development of renewable energy resources.

We as Indigenous environmental philosophers breathe life into this statement and commit to implementing the provisions contained in it. More