Environmental issues

Mother orca who carried her dead calf at center of hearings over Trans Mountain pipeline
Originally published November 29, 2018 at 3:46 pm Updated November 29, 2018 at 8:51 pm

Entering the hearing room with drums and a paddle song, Washington tribes began their testimony before Canada’s National Energy Board in Victoria, B. C., on Wednesday. (courtesy of National Energy Board)

https://www.seattletime ... axF7-sgQ6-Xw

More than half of the world's population now lives in cities. Yet with the global economy already in gross ecological overshoot, and a world population heading for more than 11 billion, this way of living is neither fair nor sustainable.

To live within our environmental means, the richest nations will need to embrace a planned process of economic "degrowth". This is not an unplanned recession, but a deliberate downscaling of economic activity and the closely correlated consumption of fossil energy. We don't argue this is likely, only that it is necessary.

Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2 ... key.html#jCp

And work more with our hands instead of machines to save power?

Kono,

I don't know if I would phrase it like that.
We need to produce not consume if that makes sense.
Things that are just spit out of factories by machines lack soul.
Each piece is like the next.
We need to value things more and waste less.
If made by yourself or someone you know you will value the item more.
Maybe if we lived a life that valued things more we would need/consume less of them.
When we use up the resources or fail to live within the carrying capacity of the environment we end up like Easter Island.

I see what you mean. Yes.

Indigenous Languages and Knowledge (IYIL 2019)

Mama Matilde of Ecuador’s Waranka ethnic group is a seer, a cleanser of souls, a dancer, a clown, and a healer, just as her ancestors have been for centuries. She is pictured here with photographer Karen Miranda Rivadeneira (link is external)(United States-Ecuador).

“When you drink water, think of the source” (Chinese proverb)

Most indigenous languages are in danger, even though they are the main conveyors of knowledge that provide original solutions to contemporary challenges. “The major influence on the sorry state of their languages is the fact that indigenous peoples are threatened themselves, ” says Minnie Degawan (Igorot, Philippines) in her introductory article. “In the Philippines, the government has launched the use of mother tongues in schools, but no resources are available in terms of teachers and learning materials to allow for indigenous children to be taught in their mother tongues, ” she explains.

It is a similar situation on Easter Island, where Rapa Nui is “being swallowed up at a dizzying speed by Spanish, with significant negative consequences on the community’s values, ” according to the educator María Virginia Haoa (Rapa Nui, Chile), who sees education as a means of guaranteeing the survival of her language.

This survival also depends on the media, say Avexnim Cojti (Kʼicheʼ, Guatemala) and Agnes Portalewska (Poland), two experts from Cultural Survival, who tell us why indigenous media is very often forced to operate illegally, in spite of favourable national legislation.

In Africa, it is precisely national legislation that is lacking, while at the regional level countries formally commit themselves to defending the rights of indigenous peoples, according to indigenous women’s rights activist Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim (Mbororo, Chad).

In Canada, First Nations are the most vulnerable of the marginalized, says filmmaker Manon Barbeau, who is the driving force behind more than a thousand documentaries made by members of indigenous communities. Her project aims to restore their self-confidence and make them more visible on the international scene. Siku, another project developed by the Inuit of Canada, demonstrates the ability of these peoples to combine the oldest knowledge with the most modern technologies.

The designation of 2019 as the International Year of Indigenous Languages (IY2019 (link is external)) gives us the opportunity to review issues related to indigenous languages and knowledge in other latitudes as well: among Fijians in the Pacific, the Dong in China, the Sámi in Swedish Lapland, the Bahima in Uganda, the Maori in New Zealand and the Mixtec in Mexico.

https://en.unesco.org/c ... 4lD5PggN3MvI

The sixth mass extinction, explained

The populations of the world's wild animals have fallen by more than 50 percent and humanity is to blame. Here's everything you need to know:

What's gone wrong?
As the human population has swelled to 7.5 billion, our species' massive footprint on planet Earth has had a devastating impact on mammals, birds, reptiles, insects, and marine life. We've driven thousands of species to the edge of extinction through habitat loss, overhunting and overfishing, the introduction of invasive species into new ecosystems, toxic pollution, and climate change. In the past 40 years, the number of wild animals has plunged 50 percent, a 2014 study found. And the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) estimates that populations of vertebrates — higher animals with spinal columns — have fallen by an average of 60 percent since 1970. The past 20 years have brought a 90 percent plunge in the number of monarch butterflies in America, a loss of 900 million, and an 87 percent loss of rusty-patched bumblebees. Only 3 percent of the original populations of the heavily fished Pacific bluefin tuna remain in the sea. "We are sleepwalking toward the edge of a cliff," said Mike Barrett, executive director at WWF.

https://theweek.com/art ... on-explained

Paris (AFP) - Up to one million species face extinction due to human influence, according to a draft UN report obtained by AFP that painstakingly catalogues how humanity has undermined the natural resources upon which its very survival depends.

The accelerating loss of clean air, drinkable water, CO2-absorbing forests, pollinating insects, protein-rich fish and storm-blocking mangroves -- to name but a few of the dwindling services rendered by Nature -- poses no less of a threat than climate change, says the report, set to be unveiled May 6.

Indeed, biodiversity loss and global warming are closely linked, according to the 44-page Summary for Policy Makers, which distills a 1,800-page UN assessment of scientific literature on the state of Nature.

https://news.yahoo.com/ ... 1407174.html

UN biodiversity conference to lay groundwork for Nature rescue plan

Paris (AFP) - Diplomats from 130 nations gathered in Paris on Monday to validate a grim UN assessment of the state of Nature and lay the groundwork for a rescue plan for life on Earth.

The destruction of Nature threatens humanity "at least as much as human-induced climate change," UN biodiversity chief Robert Watson said as the five-day meeting began.

"We have a closing window of opportunity to act and narrowing options."

A 44-page draft "Summary for Policy Makers" obtained by AFP catalogues the 1001 ways in which our species has plundered the planet and damaged its capacity to renew the resources upon which we depend, starting with breathable air, drinkable water and productive soil.

The impact of humanity's expanding footprint and appetites has been devastating.

Up to a million species face extinction, many within decades, according to the report, and three-quarters of Earth's land surface has been "severely altered".

A third of ocean fish stocks are in decline, and the rest, barring a few, are harvested at the very edge of sustainability.

A dramatic die-off of pollinating insects, especially bees, threatens essential crops valued at half-a-trillion dollars annually.

https://news.yahoo.com/ ... 0810208.html

Researchers discover the source of new chlorofluorocarbon emissions

Since 2013, annual emissions of a banned chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) have increased by around 7,000 tonnes from eastern China, according to new research published in Nature today [Wednesday 22 May 2019] by an international team of scientists from the UK, South Korea, Japan, USA, Australia and Switzerland.

Last year, it was reported that emissions of one of the most important ozone depleting substances, CFC-11, had increased. This chemical was used primarily as a foaming agent for building insulation, refrigerators and other consumer products. The surprise finding indicated that someone, somewhere was likely producing and emitting thousands of tonnes of CFC-11, despite a global phase-out since 2010 under the Montreal Protocol.

https://phys.org/news/2019-05-source-cfc-emissions.html

Human destruction of the living world is causing a “frightening” number of plant extinctions, according to scientists who have completed the first global analysis of the issue.

They found 571 species had definitely been wiped out since 1750 but with knowledge of many plant species still very limited the true number is likely to be much higher. The researchers said the plant extinction rate was 500 times greater now than before the industrial revolution, and this was also likely to be an underestimate.

“Plants underpin all life on Earth, ” said Dr Eimear Nic Lughadha, at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, who was part of the team. “They provide the oxygen we breathe and the food we eat, as well as making up the backbone of the world’s ecosystems – so plant extinction is bad news for all species. ”

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Read more
The number of plants that have disappeared from the wild is more than twice the number of extinct birds, mammals and amphibians combined. The new figure is also four times the number of extinct plants recorded in the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s red list.

“It is way more than we knew and way more than should have gone extinct, ” said Dr Maria Vorontsova, also at Kew. “It is frightening not just because of the 571 number but because I think that is a gross underestimate. ”

https://www.theguardian ... lobal-survey

Mike,

I cross posted all four articles to my FaceBook page, and two of them to a Pagan Political Discussion forum, where mostlikely theywill be laughed off by some of the alt-Right there.

Christopher

Hi Mike, Christopher...

and I have started a New Thread -

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES - THE POLLUTERS

https://forum.paganfederation.org/viewtopic.php?t=6826

Please add reports etc there

Thanks,
Bright Blessings
Morgana

Some positive news for a change:

THIS DUTCH CITY HAS TRANSFORMED ITS BUS 🚌 STOPS INTO BEE 🐝 STOPS 🌼

FROM BUS STOPS TO BEE STOPS

In the Dutch city Utrecht 316 bus stops now have a green roof. They do not only look great, they also help capture fine dust,
storage of rainwater and provide cooling in the summertime.

It is one of many measures aimed at a.o. improving Utrecht's air quality. Did you know that after smoking,
an unhealthy environment (including bad air quality) is the second cause of diseases in the Netherlands?

More biodiversity The green roofs of Utrecht's bus stops have also become bee stops and contribute to the city’s biodiversity,
supporting insects like honey bees and bumblebees Source: BrightVibes

Watch the VIDEO at the bottom of this article.
https://brightvibes.com ... wtbx-9YCcOh8

Another lucrative action in the Netherlands:

https://www.adformatie. ... -i-amsterdam

See: https://www.youtube.com ... =HPvi1oe-v5E

Greenpeace heeft onlangs enorme letters op de oude I amsterdam-locatie op het Amsterdamse Museumplein geplaatst. De actie heeft als doel aandacht te vragen voor het Amazone-regenwoud dat dreigt te verdwijnen. Vandaar ook dat de organisatie de I am-letters in een iets andere vorm naar het Museumplein heeft teruggebracht: de letters vormen namelijk I amazonia.

Greenpeace heeft samen met het Belgische Duval Guillame de letters laten ontwikkelen. Het bureau probeerde met deze letters in te haken op de publieke verontwaardiging, vooral onder bezoekende toeristen, die ontstond nadat de I amsterdam-letters werden weggehaald. In de campagnevideo is de boodschap te zien dat je iets pas mist als het daadwerkelijk is verdwenen. Dit was namelijk het geval bij de I amsterdam-slogan, volgens Greenpeace en dreigt dit ook te gebeuren bij het Amazone-regenwoud.

‘De oorspronkelijke I amsterdam-installatie trok de aandacht van miljoenen mensen over de hele wereld’, vertelt Sigrid Deters, campagnevoerder voor bos- en biodiversiteit bij Greenpeace Nederland. ‘Door het terug te brengen in gewijzigde vorm als I amazonia, roept Greenpeace niet alleen op tot de dringende bescherming van het grootste resterende regenwoud in de wereld, maar stuurt het ook een sterke solidariteitsboodschap uit voor de inheemse bevolking en traditionele gemeenschappen die de Amazone beschermen tegen ontbossing. ’

Koenraad Lefever, creatief directeur bij Duval Guillaume: ‘Verdere ontbossing van het Amazonewoud zal niet enkel een litteken vormen voor Brazilië, het zal ook de impact van een globale klimaatafbraak verhogen. Met deze actie willen we ervoor zorgen dat alle ogen opnieuw worden gericht op dit urgente probleem. ’

Credits:
Verantwoordelijk bij klant: Christine Gebeneter, Sigrid Deters
Bureau: Duval Guillaume
Creative director: Koenraad Lefever
Creative team: Karel De Mulder, Arnaud Bailly
Accountteam: Jessica Danese, Steven Boen, Axelle Gontier, Anaïs Lavie
Strategic director: Jorian Vanvossel
PR-manager: Noemie Mwanzuzi
RTV-producers: Daan Feytongs, Saartje Gooris
Sound engineer: Jeroen Goossens
Postproductie: Bart Callaerts
Eventproducer: Christ Lannoy
Productie: Soulvizion
Regisseur: Bram Rekers
Producer: Erik van der Zwan
Editor: Jesse Vulink
Sound: Merijn Kramp
Fotograaf: Olivier Truyman