Old Post, New Movie Explain Why Tar Sands and Keystone Are Big Problems

In April 2009 I posted a video of Eriel Tchekwie Deranger who was in Anchorage for the Indigenous People's Global Summit on Climate Change.  She spoke eloquently about the huge environmental damage caused by the tar sands oil development in her homeland in Alberta.  This has gotten a lot more attention lately - especially when the Republicans forced President Obama to make a decision on the Keystone Pipeline in Canada by making it a condition of passing the year end jobs bill and then Obama called their bluff and put it off for a year.


Maz wrote a comment today on that post saying he'd just finished the mixing of a new movie that highlights Eriel and her message.  Below is the trailer for the documentary "Elemental."  There are three stories told - one is Eriel's.




Elemental - Trailer from Goproject Films on Vimeo.


In the past I might have said "coincidentally" here.  But I think there is so much happening on the environmental front that it isn't coincidence.  This could happen every day.  I got this far with this post last night and was leaving it for today.  And then I got this email about impending legislation which sneaks an approval of the Keystone Pipeline into a transportation bill.  Here's a letter about it and the Citizens Climate Lobby is urging people to contact their Senators.

The Senate could vote as early as tomorrow on a plan to greenlight construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline.

Despite President Obama's rejection of the Keystone XL Pipeline a few weeks ago, Republicans in Congress are once again engaging in hostage-taking. Senator John Hoeven (R-ND) is trying to attach a measure to the transportation bill that would force approval of Keystone XL.

Tragically, some moderate Democrats appear to be playing along - so this bill could have enough votes to pass.

No evaluation process. No National Interest Determination. No new route identified through Nebraska.

To demonstrate a massive, urgent, grassroots backlash, our friends at 350 have organized a 24-hour petition drive to the Senate. Nearly three dozen groups are emailing their members right now, and 350's Bill McKibben will announce the effort tonight on the Colbert Report.

Help us get 500,000 signatures in 24 hours against Keystone XL. Click here to automatically sign this petition to the Senate.

Republicans and some Democrats in Congress are so owned by Big Oil, that they are willing to bypass the pipeline review process designed to protect Americans from its very real danger.

Our grassroots pressure forced President Obama to reject the pipeline when Republicans tried to force a decision in 60 days. He said it wasn't enough time for the thorough evaluation process we need.

Republicans are claiming that incomplete process was enough. But just last week the State Department Inspector General released a report finding a lack of technical and scientific expertise at the State Department to evaluate the impacts of the pipeline.¹ So clearly, this pipeline hasn't been adequately evaluated.

We need to show the Senate the huge opposition to Keystone XL. Click here to automatically sign this petition to the Senate.

Our Congress should be in the business of acting in America's interest. Instead, their business appears to be Big Oil's business.

Please help make a big statement today to remind our Senators who they really work for, and show huge opposition to this ill-conceived, disastrous pipeline. And please share it widely so we make as large an impact as possible over the next 24 hours, and Bill McKibben has a large number of signatures to announce tonight on the Colbert Report.

Not convinced?  At least look at Eriel's original video posted two years ago to hear how the Tar Sands are affecting her people.   It should make people think about this project and what sorts of environmental oversight is needed. 

What Do The Shawshank Redemption, A Cemetery in Texas, and Anchorage Have In Common?

Image from All Posters

Brent Scarpo

Brent was the casting director of The Shawshank Redemption (and other movies like That Thing You Do, Air Force One, and Matilda).  Then he decided he wanted to make his own films and work on eradicating hate.




"Journey To A Hate Free Millennium" was, he told me by phone Sunday,  inspired partly by the Shawshank experience, encapsulated in the motto on the Shawshank Redemption poster -

Fear can hold you prisoner, 

Hope can set you free

"To A Hate Free Millennium" looks at three hate crimes in the US:  Columbine High School, Matthew Shepard, and James Byrd.  That's where the cemetery in Texas comes in. 

Picture emailed to me by Brent Scarpo

He told me that when he was there, the caretaker pulled him aside by a line of holes in the lawn and said,

"Here's what you really need to see."

"These holes?"

"Yeah.  These were the post holes of the fence separating the white and black sections of the cemetery.  The dead were still segregated until a couple of days ago.  They didn't want the national media focusing on that when they came here for the memorial."

Brent has taken this so seriously, he dropped out of his successful Hollywood career so that he could concentrate on doing his part to help free people from hate and fear.  He's coming to Anchorage in two weeks.

After speaking to him on the phone yesterday, I can tell you, this guy can talk and he can excite you about the possibilities of making the world better.  While there are seriously depressing topics in his film, his message is how to get past it, how to set yourself and your community free. 

The video below showcases some reactions of teachers, counselors, and students at a school Brent visited.  The video is blurred, but the message is clear.  Watch it!



Disclosure: I'm on the steering committee of Healing Racism in Anchorage, the tiny non-profit that is bringing Brent here, with help from community partners.  But regular readers know, I hope, that I wouldn't post stuff I don't really believe.  And I believe Brent's presentations are going to be special.    You can see more at the Healing Racism Website and Facebook page.  If you're interested in the Tuesday evening workshop - it's limited to 30 folks - you can email me or email Healing Racism in Anchorage for more information or to register.

Sen Coghill Helping Reporter Chris Eshleman on Trauma Bill

[The video is taking forever to load, so I'm going to post this and add the video when it's done, probably within the hour.  Consider this a preview.  The video is ... well I describe it below.]

I've got a whole slew of posts to do, but I was too busy being there to get anything up until now, but there's more on the Iran divestment bill (HB 241) which did NOT pass out of committee today on a 3-3 vote, 4H'ers in town learning about the legislature, the Alaska Farm Bureau's lunch for legislators, Rep. Harris' mandatory winter tire bill (HB 322) and Rep. Doogan's ban on cell phones while driving, plus Hooper Bay student in town for the week shadowing different folks each day.  Not sure how many of these I'll get up, but here's an interesting bit of tape. 

Fairbanks News-Miner reporter Chris Eshleman invited me into the empty Ramona Barnes Conference room as he went in with Senator John Coghill who was explaining to him the intricacies of Senate Bill (SB) 168.  So this video is essentially a behind the scenes recording of a news reporter working on his story with a Senator who wants to get his story out.  





Basically the bill is to set up a fund which will help hospital with their
I'd note that after I turned off the video, Sen. Coghill told us that a big motivation for him on this is the fact that his two year old grandson died of a head trauma in part because it took four hours to get the appropriate doctor to the emergency room in Anchorage.  He assured us that this is not out of bitterness or anger, he understands that they did all they possibly could, but he doesn't want it to happen to others. 




Update Friday:  Here's the article Chris wrote from these sessions.  It begins this way:  

Alaska bill to aid trauma care moves ahead

by Chris Eshleman / ceshleman@newsminer.com 

 

JUNEAU — A House committee Tuesday advanced plans to create a public account to aid trauma care and, supporters hope, steer major emergency rooms toward better funding for trauma services. . . (click on link above for the rest.)

Boyd McFail Lobbying Against Mandatory Car Daytime Headlights

I keep being amazed by the number and variety of people walking the halls of the Capitol to make their case to legislators. Alaskans complain that Juneau is far away and isolated and people can't get to see their legislators. It may be hard to get here, but once people get here, I imagine any other state Capitol buildings being more accessible than Alaska's. And people manage to get here.  It's crawling with people from all over the state. And you can walk into a legislator's office and if you can't see the legislator right then, they'll probably offer you another time or a staffer who will take down your story. I've never been in another state's legislative building during a session so I don't know how accessible they are, but here the building is wide open for any and everyone to walk into the building and into most anyone's office. Among the many people in the halls today were a group from Bristol Bay, the Alaska Humanities Forum (I'll try to get a post up on them) dentists, people advocating for public transit, and who knows what all else.

Here's a video Boyd McFail explaining why he's against mandatory daytime headlights on Alaska highways just before talking to Rep. Max Gruenberg.

What Does a Climate Change Worker Do? John Streicker

At the Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit) last week, one of the people I spoke with was John Streicker from the Yukon. He said his job was in climate change, so I asked him what that meant. And he gave me a well thought out reply.


He listed five things climate change workers do:

1. Monitoring
2. Creating Scenarios - Projecting Changes
3. Public Education
4. Mitigation
5. Responding To The Changes We're Feeling Now

In the video he gives a little more explanation of each.

IPS - Eriel Tchekwie Deranger, Canada

I've still got a couple more interviews and other video from the Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit). I also have more observations after four days at the summit. This video was done Friday. Eriel was one of the youth representatives and had just been interviewed by an AP reporter and was upset because she felt the AP reporter had gotten her to say more than she should have. I'll have more to write about that topic - I saw that same AP reporter again soon after at the press conference, which I reported on here. She's identified in the rough transcripts as Mary. In any case, I mention that because Eriel was a little distracted when we did this quick video. But I think the content is important for Alaskans and others to hear.









[UPDATE Feb 12, 2012: Note today's comment from Maz - He's just finished mixing "Elemental" a movie that will get Eriel's message wider attention.]

Indigenous People's Global Summit - Felipe Iniquez, Mexico

It's late Saturday night already and I have a lot of video and pictures and thoughts about the Summit. Yesterday (Friday) afternoon I went with three of the African delegates on a short Anchorage tour. Their biggest interest was to go to the mountains and see the snow. We picked up my friend Jeremy on the way and went to Glen Alps and walked to Powerline Pass. I'm sorry I don't have any pictures - all my memory cards were full - but they had a great time playing in the snow for the first time. We even had some big fluffy snow flakes come down while they were up there.

On the way up the hill, Jeremy got a call that his Friday night live host couldn't do the show. Jeremy's been pestering me - and I've been pushing him - to do more live shows with interesting people. So I proposed that we had three delegates to the Summit from Africa who would make a great show. We ate dinner when we got back to Jeremy's and he played with wires, the mic, and his computer until he said, "OK, you're on in three minutes." And we talked about the Summit and their issues back home for the next hour plus. Jeremy's wife came home in the middle and I went to explain what was going on and she said, "I know, I've been listening in the car." Add my wife and I know there were at least two people listening to KWMD while we were on. I don't normally see myself as a radio type, but I was really into the topic and mostly what I had to do was ask the three guests questions.

Today I went with five others who had an extra day before heading back from Anchorage. We went to Hope and back with lots of stops on the way. And despite the strong winds along Turnagain Arm, they seemed to all have a good time.

Here's one video from the Summit - of Felipe de Jesus Iniguez Perez of Jalisco, Mexico.





Here's a link to all the Indigenous Peoples Summit posts.

Indigenous People's Global Summit - Friday 4 Press Conference

I've got to check some names but I'll post this now and fix the details later.

The signing hasn't happened yet. There are still disagreements to be worked out. The Youth group has language they want in and like all groups with committed people, they have to work through the differences between what they really want to say and what they think is politically most effective. I got in a couple of more video interviews and I'm spending free time - what there is of it - to delete old video from my Mac.


What's dividing the group?

Patricia Cochran: Like the UN we are a diverse group. We worked until 5am. Five of the seven regions have signed the declaration. We're working out the language for the last two groups.

Andrea Carmen: Still some concern for language added, strengthening. It's a timing issue. We had a time set for signing, but we didn't get it finished in that time. Not a matter of rejecting the declaration, but just need the process of consensus to work out. I fully expect to sign off by the end of the day.

Vicky Tauli-Corpuz: It is not easy to come up with a declaration to sign after 20 years in just four days. We are a diverse people, we still have to understand concerns of people not in our own region. Generally, if you look at the areas where there are full agreement, we all agree we must do something significant to mitigate climate change happening now. And we have a responsibility to do this. Indigenous people are also caught up in the modern world and are not carbon neutral and we too have to figure out how to move from fossil fuel to renewable energy, small scale energy systems. How do you address the socio-economic implications of moving to there. It's really a natural process you have to go through.


Mary ?, AP. I want to ask specifically. I heard one of the two regions not to sign on is the ARctic.

Patricia C.: I am the Arctic Rep and I signed up.

Mary: What is the sticking point and who is holding up

Kimo Carvalho: Pacific, we respect our elders and the steering committee, and we could not move on with out the permission of our elders. We want to represent our voices well in this document. I want to emphasize we are not here to cut off from any document coming from this summit, and we will work with everyone to get it done.

Mary: What's the problem?

Kimo C: Still under discussion. Sorry, I can't share more now. We will be signing it tonight.

Mary: Speaking as part of the youth group?

Kimo C: Youth Group will also meet and add language they want and bring it to the steering committee meeting and articulate their.

Mary: The moratorium on fossil fuels, you signed on, am I confused here?

Patricia: I've signed on for the Arctic. There are issues. We're talking about a two and a half page document. The whole report will be made available to the world - energy, sustainability, traditional values, all will be there. Good, bad, and ugly. What we hope with the declaration was to find consensus points we could all agree on. We're still working on that. The rest will all come out in its entire form.

Mary: When you say Arctic concerns satisfied. It does not include moritorium on fossil fuels?

Patricia: At the end of the day, all that will be clarified.

Kimo C: I hope you can be respectful as the press, to let us follow through on this process. There are only two small points out of the whole document that everyone has agreed to. I hope you won't put the emphasis on the sticking points, and recognize this is democratic.

Reporter: How realistic is it to call for a moratorium on new gas development.

Patricia: Our document will cover that. It's not just an Alaskan issue. We are trying to find a point of view we can all share. Not easy. Trying to get to consensus.

Vicky: On realistic? STrategically, important to call for moritorium. Big oil, oil disappearing. The call is for phasing out oil. Of course not realistic at this point because there are many socio-economic implications. We have countries totlly dependent on oil. They will ask: "Can you imagine the consequences for us?" They have to work out how to shape their economy so they won't starve. We are not the ones deciding how these resources are extracted. In principle we should all agree to that, but we have to be realistic

James Miller, CBC: Interested in process, you talk about hashing it out this afternoon. What happens if you can't come to common language agreement?

Patricia: We aready have five regions that have signed on. No one disagrees with the conference report and all agree that is far more important than the declaration itself.

Miller: Will the declaration go if you don't have unanimity?

Patricia: It will. Along with the full conferenc report. We want people at the UN to know that we considered all the problems and all the solutions we may or may not have. Perhaps the President has some words.

President UN: I think this has been a very successful gathering. Ive been at many gatherings and these are processes that take some time. The final declartion will be strengthened by presenting the whole report, for people in Copenhagen will have access to the richness of the time spent here. This sort of thing happens always. I'm happy and proud to have been here and this task.

Cletus Springer: When I reflect on where this process was and where it is now, I'm in awe at what has been achieved. This is the first major gathering of indigenous people on climate change. This is the first time they have examined the issue. The point of the declaration is only significant, where the language tends to be so specific, the negotiation becomes intense. You almost had to be working on the declaration. The process of getting the feedback... We did the best we could...amazing to get five regions to agree. One or two issues that separated us will

John Strieker, Canada: ABout UN declaration on indigenous people. How important and your work on climate change, and what it might mean that Canada, US, and New Zealand have failed to sign on.

Vicky: The UN declaration will be the main framework we will push for. I have been present at almost all declarations after it has been adopted. Canada, US, and NZ have not signed that this declaration should be the guidelines. That is our main demand, but not easy to get. Australia has just signed. Still have to work on the other three.
Hope our sisters and brothers from these countries will be able to support or not object. I'm hoping the new US administration might change. NZ might consider following the example of Australia. That leaves Canada.

John: Hoping through Copenhagen Declaration it will put pressure on the holdout countries.

Andrea: Important to recognize that the resolution tells all members to uphold and respect the rights of indigenous people. We all agree strongly on that. I know the press likes to focus on the disagreements.


Mary: Can we talk on what you do agree on:

Andrea: 1. IP are facing a crisis in our communities. Each and everyone of our regions is profoundly affected. Our food, homes eaten by oceans. Extreme impact on IP because we are so close and dependent on our natural environment for life.

2. IP have very significant contributions because of our close relations to the natural world and our knowledge.

3. We have not been included fully and we are calling UN and CCC to take our traditional knowledge seriously. We must make contributions to advance the work of international bodies because our life is at stake.

Vicky:
4. Call for full participation of IP. Very specific suggestions to get UN to recognize the IP forum on climate change as an official advisory body. Hire someone to help support and enhance the work of IP. Call on UN to organize technical briefings to countries on knowledge of IP. There should be an IP member to various UN boards making decisions on how to distribute money. We are contributing to mitigation and have to adapt.

Kenya: It was clear at meeting that one of the challenges as IP is security of land and natural resources, prior to implementing any program, stop any forced eviction of people from their land and territories. Article ?? requires prior consent before relocating IP from their land. Particularly in countries like Africa where governments do not understand our customs. Issue of mobility is also a critical issue. Mobility is a tradition system.

John: Because it can't happen in a day like this process. Indication you're being received.

Patricia: This is just the beginning. We are putting together our own roadmap. We are looking to UN and many others for IP to present their views. Next opportunity in two weeks in NY to review where we are and take steps forward. We have in our plans to address those hold out nations. We intend to follow through to ensure that information from IP goes to administration. Also now realizing and recognizing our own abilities to look at our opportunities we have to address solutions before us. Strength in numbers, strenght in dialogue, shared what's happening in these communities. We have relatives we can call on when looking to solve problems.

Cletus: You who have seen the conflicts in the global warming process have seen how nations have had problems agreeing. The negotiating system in UN is very rigid and fixed. You can only speak in certain bounds or forums in the UN. Structural limitiations on IP to speak. We will have to work around this. Sustaining momentum is also important. People asking Patricia when the next forum.

Patricia: We'll put it out on the website. If not completed this afternoon, we'll put up what we have.

Mary: Before six or seven? Deadlines...

Patricia: Full report not ready for several months. We're doing a video, a book, and the report.

Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit)

Indigenous People's Global Summit - Friday 3 Signing

The Steering Committe is at the front and the President of the UN General Assembly is with them as well and they are asking him to take the Declaration to the UN General Assembly.

UN General Assembly President (these are disconnected snippets as best as I could keep up, this is not in anyway even a partial sense of what he actually said):

Your work plays an important role in changing the mindset of the world on Global Warming and you make it clear that indigenous people must play a prominent role in discussions on climate change.

Scientists have pointed out that we may be at a poiont where the damage of climate change is irreversible. The question is how to slow this decline, or in the best of scenarios, how to reverse it and return the plan it to good health. We are also at a turning point in our awareness of how human have impacted mother earth. Indigenous people are now being listened to as never before. Still, humans continue to squander our tremendous abundance. The unfolding global economic crisis must not only be seen as economic failings, but that we must change our lifestyle and we must put love and justice at the very center of human undertakings. I've come here to demonstrate that the UN stands in support of indigenous peoples. We are putting people and good treatment of the earth at the center of our attention.

The UN has just declared April 22 Mother Earth Day. President Morales of Bolivia has been a champion of protecting the earth. We have called a summit of world leaders in June to address global climate change. We must address these issues now.

(Again, though this is written continuously, it is fragments of what he said.)

Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit)

Indigenous People's Global Summit - Friday 2

It's 11:30, they've just reopened the doors to where the delegates have been discussing final language for the Declaration. There was a lot of people hanging around outside so it was a chance to talk to people. And today I remembered why I have been riding my bike down here the last three days. I had to run over to the credit union to get more quarters for the parking meter. The Denali Credit Union has a branch across the street in City Hall. But their policy is they won't even give change to someone who is not a member! I couldn't believe it. They said they have to run everything through an account, even change. Fortunately I ran into someone in the City Hall lobby I knew and when I told her what happened she took me back into the Credit Union and got the change through her account. Then I went down the street and put quarters into the meter and was back in plenty of time.

The Youth Delegation is announcing that they are meeting next door and that they aren't compromising. Not sure what that means. Patricia Cochran is calling all the steering committee members to come forward for the signing.

Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit)

This is that part of the meeting where people are quietly reading and talking in small groups. The media have been allowed back into the hall, but not much is officially happening.

Indigenous People's Global Summit - Friday 1

I just got here at 9:30am. I'm not quite sure what is happening. An Indonesian woman was speaking when I got in. Now and elder from Bangladesh is speaking. Fortunately there is a time lag for the translation so I can get something down.

I would like to thank the organizers for inviting me to be here. I feel honored to be selected as an elder from Asia and to speak. I do not feel knowledgable to speak for the delagates here.

Climate change is a cruel reality of present. I have been seeing climate change. Before I couldn't imagine it and thought the changes I was seeing were related to the hydro electric dam. But now I understand it is global warming.

When I was 14 years old, there was deep forest, wetland. In the past we didn't have to buy anything. Now we produce for profit and have to work in other jobs. We see changes in norms and culture. Due to the hydro electric dam, there are more people moving to the cities. [This is really rough, it was hard to understand every word.]

Indigenous people are not able to keep their land taken by the settlers. Some believe if they change to Christianity they can keep their land. The flora and fauna have changed. People are oppressed and marginalized.

Our planting is destroyed, indigenous people have had to flee to India. Trees were all cut by non-indigenous people. The government doesn't want to bring back the indigenous people. In any disaster, natural or human, the indigenous people are most vulnerable. The countries are developing and changes are affecting indigenous people most.

In conclusion, I would like to say, human needs are part of nature. Destroying nature is destroying human beings. Changes are destroying human kind through floods, etc. We know how to live with mother earth. Modern culture is destroying mother nature. For our survival we have no other option but unity. The UN must include indigenous people in all its programs. Maybe this summit will become a milestone for us in order for us to survive.

In our indigenous crisis we have norms on how to live with nature. We cannot violate the rules. If we cut trees we have to sacrifice life, slaughter pigs etc. or lose our life...Lets all stand up - Here in this beautiful land of Alaska we must promise to all protect Mother Nature.

We just had a Mongolian woman sing a beautiful opening prayer.

They've asked non-delegates to leave the room so that they can have final discussions of the Declaration. The declaration is the key reason people are here. To have a statement giving voice to the needs and concerns of indigenous peoples when the Copenhagen meeting on climate change takes place. Here's a picture of some Russian delegates discussing the declaration in the lobby just now.













Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit)

Indigenous People's Global Summit - Thursday - Private Sector

Patricia Cochran, the coordinator of the whole summit went over the schedule. There will be an extra hour for people to work on the Declaration. Dinner tonight, then program at 7:30 with performances from all over the world, a night to have some fun. It's five pm already, so I don't think the program will start at 7:30.

Mead Treadwell - Talking about work his company has done with Native Corporations in Alaska and the importance of indigenous people in a variety of areas. I just have to commend the indigenous community for taking leadership in this area. You have high moral ground.

Mary Jean (MJ) Longley ? - Went from science to education because of the high dropout rate around the country. Bringing youth into science fields. Climate change is not in our education system or how it is impacting indigenous people.

Ian Dutton, CEO of the Alaska Sealife Center, before that with Nature Conservancy. The challenge we all face: climate change. I've worked with mining companies, banks, in Australia, Mongolia. Surprising how similar their conversations are to the ones here.
Changes are synergistic. Now 1 million camels walking around Australian desert. Effecting the ecology of Australia.
Asian Tsunami - we've already diminished the resiliance of the land to recover

Reality 2: Geographic Impacts

Emerging Business Foci - what can we do
Risks Opportunities


Barnaby Briggs, from Shell - humbled to be here, but there's no time. We believe in the importance of indigenous people. Energy demand will double by 2050, but the problems of climate change are now. (I didn't get the first part about indigenous people on video, but I got the rest. I'll try to get this up, but the video is building up on the computer.)

Pat Spears, Council on Utility Policy, Tribes in the Northern Plains, Serve of President of Intertribal Council
Development of wind energy, a huge resource. Pat's been talking a while about wind energy, the Missouri River being dammed and the loss of rain and snow over the years. I'm running out of energy myself here, so I'm not doing a good job of tracking him.

Q: How are we sure that wind power won't affect climate?
Q: Interdisciplinary knowledge and indigenous people.

Answer: Spears: If I understand right, you think wind power might affect climate somehow. I haven't seen evidence of that yet. There is a lot of wind projects in US. We think climate is affecting the wind. We get more winds from the south now. It used to be north winds. Winds becoming stronger, more violent, frequent. But no rain. Wind turbines shut down at 55 miles per hour. We don't do anything without prayer. It's been good, we got permission.


Answer 2: Dutton - I (Steve) just can't concentrate enough to figure what Dutton is saying or even what the question was.
Treadwell: Have seen several examples of Alaska Native traditional knowledge adding to what scientists know.

I thought this panel would be more about how to work with business on this issue. It was more about telling the panelists' experiences.

Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit)

Indigenous People's Global Summit - Thursday - Hassab Yousif, Sudan

Hassab is studying at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and was delighted to learn this Summit was being held in Anchorage. He's studying the way Alaska Natives dealt with and were affected by oil and gas development in Alaska so that he can help the people of Sudan to be better prepared for what is happening there. He briefly sums this up in the video.






Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit)

Indigenous People's Global Summit - Thursday - Donor Sector

Again, this is written on the fly for immediate posting. Spelling and names are not necessarily all they should be. It's bits and pieces, not a holistic view. I'll add some photos and videos later if I can.

Ken Wilson, Christensen Fund - Amount of money to indigenous peoples increased from $10 - $40 million from 2005 and 2007. About 80,000 foundations in the US and they give about $80 billion so this is a very tiny fraction. We look a little differently, because we want to see how much actually goes to indigenous people, not to organizations that operate in their name.
Environmnet - 80% plus - is the area that they coordinate with. Recognition of the leadership that indigenous people have in global warming. Fairly well balanced in Asia, Africa, and South America, less in Arctic.
Constraints - foundations are creatures of Western Society. Have difficulty being holistic. Divide the world up. Created why powerful wealthy people. Top down outlook. Staffs had very little experience with lives of indigenous peoples. Have difficulty creating mechanisms that are flexible.
We have lost large proportions of our investments. McArthur foundation not here because of travel restrictions. Two have joined the Obama administration - EPA - head of international affairs.

James Stauch, Gordon Foundation Canada - Connecting Northern peoples with the public policy process at all levels. Most grants go directly to first nations governments, inuit organizations. Culturally relevant policies, emerging generation of leaders, research that is community policy related. Storytelling is important. It moves people more than facts. Supporting non-state actors.
As the ice melts in the Arctic - bizarre consequences of nation states jockeying about their role in the open sea. Canada, for instance, is talking about sovereignty. Need to talk about who is really using the land.
We shouldn't be doing nuclear, biofuels, wind, all of these things have negative consequences on Indigenous people. Listing polar bears as endangered species affects programs already in place. We should be talking about who is creating the carbon.
If going to support only one thing - support youth working with elders.

Claire Greensfelder, The Lia Fund
Small foundation - founder left $5 million in her estate, mostly in real estate, and our job is to give away the money : arts, access to holistic health and healing, climate solutions. 50% of funding toward climate solutions - about $2.5 million. Interdisciplinary projects.
Concerns: social and economic justice , diversity, equity, non-violence

Hope that my talk here will inspire others to copy the Lia foundation in their organizations - founding small foundations.

Ann Henshaw, Oak Foundation, family foundation centered in Switzerland. Oak believes that indigenous people around the world have a unique understanding of climate change and has important things to tell the conference in Copenhagen.

David Secord, Wilburforce Foundation, Pacific Northwest, Our board has come to understand how to do our core mission
As place based funder, landscapes do not just have animals, also have people, it's obvious, but it's new
Lots of conversations on climate change - realizing how climate change impacts our interests
More and more recognition that creative and novel partnerships are essential to have outcome producing strategies.


Christensen Fund, 1957 Palo Alto,California, 2003 new mission around biocultural diversity, $50,000,000 in grants through 5 regional and 2 global programs.
Five regions with high cultural and biodiversity: Greater Southwest, Central Asia,

Kai Lee, Conservation and Science Program, Packard Foundation
$100 million in grants every year. Worked closely with indigenous people over the years.

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OK, I'll try to get some pictures and video up later. This panel is just closing down, there's no time for questions from the audience.

Indigenous People's Global Summit - Thursday - Neza Henry, Uganda

Neza's people were forcibly removed from their land that had been designated a national park. In the video recorded this morning, he briefly tells the story of his people.



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Indigenous People's Global Summit - Thursday - Panel Foundations and Donor Community

I'm finally getting into synch here and figuring out how to report this with both my fingers at the computer and the still and video pictures. I'll try to get a little of what people say up right away. This snippets do NOT represent all they say, just parts I could capture. I'll try to add pictures and possibly video later.

Kristen Walker Painemilla, Indigenous and Traditional Peoples, Program, Conservation International
Deborah Williams, President of Alaska Conservation Solutions
Jenny Springer, World Wildlife Foundation
Doug McGuire, Mountain Partnership

They were asked to talk about their organizations' goals, their work with indigenous peoples, and their recommendations for the declaration.


Kristen spoke about the goals of Conservation International and their interest is doing more with and for indigenous peoples.

Debora Williams, working on climate change for the last decade and working with indigenous people has been a great pleasure. Climate change is the biggest problem facing us today. Climate change represents a fundamental human rights violation for most indigenous peoples.

Jenny Springer,

• Indigenous Peoples are disproportionately affected by climate change
• Indigenous Peoples have critical roles to play in climate change solutions - traditional knowledge, practices, institutions
• Actions to address climate change can have negative impacts on indigenous peoples - need to prevent these

Doug McGuire,

Mountains are home for some of the poorest people in the world. Of the 1 Billion hungry people in the world, one-third live in mountains, though they represent only 12% of the world's population. All our water comes from mountains.


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Indigenous People's Global Summit - Thursday - Q&A

Questions to the previous panelists.

1. In French: Many indigenous people especially people of the forest do not know that they are represented. Please help get the information out.

2. In Spanish: We need to understand and acknowledge indigenous peoples organizations and I would like to denounce that you have not provided the answers to the questions I've requested:

Please ask your question:

Are the policies about the forests legally binding?

Answers - Terrance

Charles: Who was being denounced? Not clear. I asked you many times to visit our discussions. Sincere apologies, if I've overlooked something I apologize. I wasn't aware of the problem. Question about Sudan with regard to China, China is a country we are dealing with. I appreciate youre alerting us if we do work with China.

About getting message to national governance about needs of indigenous people. In collaboration with World Bank, working with the bank. There was a joint mission with DRC (?) where we were able to bring local community voices right into the discussion between the government and local people. We think we can play such a role.

Joseph: Thank all the speakers. Comments.
1. Human rights - frustrations there. UN tendency to develop any problem, the UN declaration needed to have indigenous people at the beginning, not just at implementation. In Africa, but indigenous people not on board. Failure of UN. Need to find way to address it.
2. Serious conflict in Africa, due to resources. Implementation will be done on indigenous people's territories. What matters putting in place to insure local people will be direct beneficiaries? Indigenous people are the poorest of the poor. Minorities in most countries. We don't want to become victims of these programs.
3. Thank the UN Gen Assembly President. Yesterday shocking when agency said could not adopt. All most adopt. Appreciate person from Greenland.
4. When we talk about capacity building - UN, World Bank, and others need to be taught about indigenous people - they have no idea how we are coping.

Humble request - never hide behind governments. Never tell us you are a government institution. Bring government to the table and bring indigenous people to the table.

Nina (Indonesia): Many of seek long term change for the better in our countries. How do you support better change in policy and behavior in ten years.

Tanzania - Want to underscore the importance of including indigenous people at the grassroot level, at the beginning. I participated in Philippines, but when I went back home there was nothing.


Response: Greenland - we have contacted the government of Denmark that indigenous people need to be included. But I cannot guarantee. We need everyone's support.
Vicky- ask Danish government to ask Patricia to present. We will have an indigenous people's day.
Jackie - During the course of the meeting hard to find space, so we have offered them space in downtown Copenhagen and invite you to organize meetings there. We would be very happy to have you there. In a practical and political way, I will - Europe will play a critical role and in mu role as head of an agency I will make sure your concerns will be brought to their attention at the meetings. They would be horrified if they thought their solutions were causing more problems on the ground.
Charles: Thanks to reps from Tanzania about not being involved. Two leaders like yourselves not being involved is a huge oversight and I will check on why. I take your point that the UN needs capacity building. Point about not hiding behind governments - understood and need your help on the policy board. Ask for your engagement with the indigenous peoples guidelines.
Indonesia's questions - others can talk about various programs, but also possibility if governments engage in REDD pilot, that there will be benefits for local people.
REDD = Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries

OK, my fingers are dying here, but this should give a sense of the questions and responses.

Talking about translations into many languages now for projects. Not sure who is talking or what organizations he's talking about.

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Indigenous People's Global Summit - Thursday David Chinquehuanca

The Bolivian foreign minister's speech was in Spanish, so I got some earphones to hear the English and typed as fast as I could. I'll fix the typos later. This is a fast and somewhat loose transcription of what I heard. I'm assuming this was President Evos Morales' speech, being given by his foreign ministers, since Morales was unable to come today.


.....We're in unbalance and we have to get back to equilibrium. Unbalance will have fatal conseuqences for planet earth. It's the Western world that is in crisis, the model of West that looks to living better is in crisis. Made it so some people better than others. It allows some to be better than others. Some regions better than others. Some people better than others. Generated unbalance among people, among regions, among countries. But also this development model of the West has also created disequlibrium between man and nature. Mother earth has wound threatening life today.

So important that humanity and international organizations become aware so we have international day of Mother Earth. Not just humans, but everything. All of creation we live on the skirts of our mother. All living off the milk of our Mother which is water. The plants live off the milk of Mother earth - water - all creations of Mother Earth, we are all brothers and sisters. Not just brotherhood among humans, looking for life in harmony with ourselves, we want a harmonic life with our enivornment, because all nurtured by mild of Mother Earth are brothers and sisters - not just humans, animals and plants.

Indian cultures cannot easily attack a tree. Not capable of doing so because all life brothers and sisters. We have been living based on the laws of man, taught at Unitiversity, but do not take everyting into account. Unbalanced. Leave out Mother Earth. Just based on mankind. Not living under law of nature. Not taking into account the Natural University. Contribution of indigenous people could be important there, people who have maintained their balance.

Edge of precipice, we have this summit on climate change, thanks to the implementation of methods and policies that have taken us to where we are now. Two roads. One to capitalism. Most important thing is money, profit, life doesn't matter Two is socialism where mankind is most important. For us indigenous people most important thing is not just mankind, we have that common with socialism, but we also believe the most important thing is life.

Wehn talking about climate change, were talking about life at risk. As Father Iscoto said, not just risk for humans, but climate change threatens life. And for us as indigenous people the most important thing is life. Life of rivers, life of mountains. We had snow in La Paz. Now it is disappearing. Someone said we will have to paint snow ont he top of our mountains. Life of plants, animals, birds, fish is disappearing.

We need to find avenues of discussion to create proposals, have to listen to everyone, not exclusive, inclusive. I thought I'd be here with the indigenous people of Alaska and hear what they think about these issues. We have to know that life is at risk.

We in Bolivia have taken certain actions. First the Bolivian people decided to elect an indigenous president. Second, the recovery of natural resources is important, water, for all people, not just a few. I was in Trinidad and people were alarmed. In Mexico they are rationing water. Working to start to talk about rights of mother earth. First human rights, continue to advance beyond individual rights to collective rights, indigenous people's rights. Bolivia was the first country to implement the declarion on indigenous peoples rights. Today we continue to work at UN, but the rights of everything. Of plants of fish, rivers, animals, and surely on the rights of mother earth. In some countries, Ecuador for example, the constitution considers Mother Nature as a right holder. We are advancing and I hope at the UN will be working on these. UN had to include rights of indigenous people. In a few years we can have a declaration on the rights of mother earth.

Need to work on actions - not privatize water, because water is life. We have to defend life, we have to be pro-life.

Thank you for the invitation. Not a lot of time. Have to listen ttaro one another. Have to start to read the wrinkles of our grandparents. The codes that have existed for more than 500 years. Implementation of indigenous universities that bring in these principles, the codicles of that ancient knowledge, we call that our cosmo knowledge. Indigenous peoples can make a contribution to the saving of planet earth so we can recover life.

Thank you very much.

Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit)

Indigenous People's Global Summit - Wednesday Father Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann Speaking

[Picture of UN General Assembly President Father d'Iscoto with Bolivian Foreign Minister before the speech.]
Father d'Escoto Brockman is now speaking. He's reading a speech, so he sounds much less compelling than most of the other speakers. He began by announcing that the UN yesterday recognized the day as Mother Earth Day.

He has also noted the irony that indigenous peoples who have contributed the least - the lightest ecological footprint - have been impacted the most and have called out the first warnings years ago.

A summit of leaders from all 192 member states will meet 1-3 June to discuss the impact of climate change. Many others have met on this, UN is the appropriate forum where the needs and interests of all countries to be taken account. The 21st Century, inclusiveness is critical. The third world cannot continue to subsidize the first world. Those who are subsidized characterize themselves benefactors and the victims are like beggars. Time to call a spade a spade. Always with love, but love must not be interpreted as cover up.


In addition to reform, I hope this meeting will discuss global economy as it emerges from economic crisis. It's time for a change in how we think about mother earth. We need and most peoople want healthy societies not driven by consumerism and hyper emphasis on wealth. Need reorientation of society in direction of solidarity, our guiding star.



Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit)

Indigenous People's Global Summit - No Evos Morales in Anchorage

The President of Bolivia Evos Morales WILL NOT speak in Anchorage today. Critical issues in Bolivia prevented his coming here and the foreign minister of Bolivia
David Choquehuanca will speak in his place.


Wikipedia says about him:

David Choquehuanca Céspedes (born May 7, 1961) has served as the Foreign Minister of Bolivia since 23 January 2006.[1] Choquehuanca, who is an Aymara Indian, is an Aymara activist. He has worked with international agencies and has been an advisor to President Evo Morales, a fellow Aymara, since before Morales's election to the Presidency.

Indigenous Peoples Global Summit on Climate Change (click link for all the posts on the summit)