This is it: a menagerie of ideas, dreams, possibilities ..
I am assessing how realizable, reachable, probable, and functional they are
Or I’ll do what I do best: act on impulse.
After all, life’s best adventures often arise from mistakes and spontaneities..
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once an idea bubbles up in your mind you can’t ignore it..
like a mosquito bite, you scratch and it swells ..and you have to do something about it!
Right now we are all participating in a ‘global movement for generational change’, and with simultaneous People’s Summit and Rio+Social, we are all part of a global conversation, underlining the importance of awareness and action.
Since last week #RioPlus20 and #FutureWeWant are trending worldwide on Twitter, there is a lot of interest and a lot of voices. #RioPlusSocial is addressing this social media boom. Tune in to my twitter roll for updates on various issues at the summit.
In sum, as the world stands tackling the prevalent environmental challenges and facing the threat to our resources and survival, it is crucial that the policy makers attend to the problem from all standpoints and with the same extremity.
The three pillars of sustainable development are often addressed separately, and according to the following priority: economic, social, environmental – but for the sustainable development agenda to work, they have to be confronted under the same accord, simultaneously.
Key areas that require urgent attention include access to water, ensuring food security and sustainable agriculture rest on the awareness and knowledge of global policies. Improving international coordination on the path of sustainable development will organically help build a green economy.
The recent failures of Copenhagen, Cancun and Durban summits to reach consensus on policies and mechanisms regarding climate change, economic outlook, and social progress are poor precedents.
This time, the meeting is intended not only to show political commitment and representation on the number of issues, but to encourage progress and implement an agenda of actions.
For example, a dozen or so big international companies have pledged to join the UN Global Compact in committing to improve water-management practices. Their mass production and product innovation and supply practices are putting a strain on natural resources around the world. They acknowledged that their operations cause problems for the supply chain due to the local water uses and the unavailability of freshwater in some regions, and they agreed to introduce new solutions to ensure a positive impact on communities. Among them are Royal Dutch Shell, Bayer AG, Levi Strauss, Coca-Cola, Dow Chemical Co., and Nestle SA, all water companies that – directly or indirectly - rely on water.
The Rio+ 20 outcome document, the Zero Draft, is expected to deliver a new framework that will emphasize the rationing of natural resources, their equal and needs-based distribution in order to improve health, welfare and justice to all the world citizens. It should aspire to bridge the time between now and 2015, the target for Millennium Development Goals, after which the international agenda must turn to a formulated set of sustainable development goals as the future framework.
The general objective is to work towards one coordinated progress for the post-2015 agenda and see more country-based, country-driven, country-owned goals, which will also be a bit more nuanced than they are today.
I read Jonathan Safran Foer’s ‘Eating Animals’ wide-eyed.. then re-read it and extracted some of the most shocking bits. I believe everyone should know (and think about) these.
You can read and digest them, or you can choose to keep your eyes shut for the rest of your life and still bite into that fillet.
Click HERE for the main facts
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and some other notes:
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You know all those amazing beaches that you’ve always dreamt of visiting? Well, you may have a chance, but it’s very doubtful that the next generation will, if the current trends continue.
The average 2 degrees Centigrade of predicted warming, that we probably won’t feel, still means a lot: the slight change will cause thermal expansion, causing the swelling of the water, and resulting in the rise in sea levels. Then, the same increase in temperature will lead to glacier and ice land masses to melt.
The rise in ocean levels is a threat to the natural and physical features, but also poses a risk of the overflow of waterways and flooding of coastal infrastructure and the populations which live along the coasts.
How many world metropolises can you think of that are situated on the coast? New York, Los Angeles, Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Lima, Tokyo, Jakarta, Shanghai, Manila, Mumbai, Karachi, Lagos – 10 of them in the top 20.
Their combined population is about 2.5 billion.
This year, the 20th anniversary of World Oceans Day, is intended to change our perspective and what the Big Blue provides for us, as well as change our ways in taking care of water resources.
Preserving the cultural identity of indigenous peoples through the production of traditional crafts is an important form of self-expression and their customs. Fair trade generates more favourable trading conditions for artists and native communities by promoting sustainable activities.
Consumer responsibility is a new concept that incorporates the ethical dimension of human consumption. It represents the other side of fair trade because fair trade will not function without the presence of conscious consumers who are willing and able to recognize the true value of the products they are consuming.
Fair-trade practice is rooted in market-based principles which help establish a fair consumer price, a reasonable taxation rate, and an equitable share of profits for the artists and the production chain at the source.
It helps artists gain self esteem by teaching them the skills necessary to become wage earners, and thus contribute to the economic development of their communities, and gain respect as artists and artisans.
The network encourages artists and shoppers alike to acknowledge a moral commitment to fair trade and ethical shopping and reflect on pre-colonial systems that were historically honoured in trade between indigenous tribes and visitors.
I came upon Arte y Esperanza, which translates as “Art and hope”, a fair trade company that promotes and retails arts, crafts and clothing in support of Argentina’s indigenous artists and communities.
Each individual artisan or small communal groups can choose to create different types of handiwork or crafts that will best express their aboriginal heritage. Oftentimes they are produced locally, and then delivered to bigger cities where they are retailed.
Even so, the production is often on a very small-scale, typically in agreement with the point of sale, such as small souvenir shops, and specialty boutiques.
The partnerships can also help support the recognition of indigenous people, cultivate solidarity between them and the public, and generate stronger sponsorship for the fulfillment of indigenous rights that contributes to the greater multiethnic and multicultural society.
