. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article by Winnie Byanyima, executive director of Oxfam, reprinted by Transcend

President Donald Trump has proved again how beholden our politics are to the interests of the super-rich elite. The conniving, rich oilmen that were so desperate to prevent and frustrate the Paris Agreement  found cheerleaders in Mr Trump and his party. They choose to protect their profits from a flailing fossil fuel industry over human lives and a clean, inclusive future for us all.

The Eiffel tower is illuminated in green with the words ‘Paris Agreement is Done’, to celebrate the Paris UN COP21 Climate Change agreement in November 2016. [Jacky Naegelen/Reuters]

The Paris climate agreement threw people of the world a lifeline, and the United States played a vital role in getting us there, not least by working closely with China to clear the decks to a global deal. The world agreed on what needed to be done. One hundred ninety-five nations pledged to keep warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius and to achieve net zero emissions by mid-century.

Now, we remember how frayed that lifeline is, mostly for people in the global South. The emission cuts pledged still put the world on track for three degrees of warming. If you’re living in a low-island state? That’s too high for the prospect of a future. For the 13 million people in the Horn of Africa going hungry today, the Agreement is already too late. Climate change has worsened their suffering. They pay for a crisis they did not cause.

At times like this, I remember my uncle, a farmer in rural Uganda. It would take him 180 years to register the same emissions as the average American would in a year (pdf)! Why must he and his family suffer because of the excesses of others?

What’s most painful is that the Paris Agreement was already compromised with concessions to the US. Despite being the world’s largest historic emitter, the US put forward only a fifth of their fair share to cut emissions.

READ MORE: Paris climate agreement – What you need to know

Contrast this to what developing countries have put forward: 125 percent of their fair share. This is where the good news starts. With every move, the pendulum of climate leadership swings further and more decisively towards the global South.

The spirit of Paris charges on, even without the US government, and with it the palpable hope of a better world.

Recent forecasts show that China and India are on track to beat their emissions reduction targets. At the most recent global climate talks last November, 48 developing countries vulnerable to the impacts of climate change committed to 100 percent renewable energy by 2050.

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Despite the vested interests of companies and governments, Can we make progress toward sustainable development?

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That’s not all. A transformation is taking hold in global energy markets. The cost of wind and solar has dropped by up to 80 percent in the last six years and unsubsidized solar is beginning to out-compete coal and natural gas on a larger scale.

In the US, the solar industry is growing, creating “jobs, jobs, jobs” over 15 times faster than the economy norm. At home in Africa, I’m energised by the growth of off-grid solar at such a pace that it could soon outstrip the rate at which people are being connected to the grid. These solutions are connecting people to power and giving them control over their energy resources.

Far from putting America first, President Trump’s move puts the US last in the race to build a more sustainable economy.

OPINION: In defence of science – Making facts great again

Developing nations are joined by mayors of cities around the world, and businesses that finally stepped up in Paris to challenge vested interests in the fossil fuel industry. More companies than ever before are racing to commit to renewable power, 100 percent. Businesses, investors, mayors and academics, together representing $6.2 trillion of the US economy recently signed a pact to continue fighting climate change. They know that pulling out of Paris puts American workers at an economic disadvantage.

I trust that people in the US will not let their government get away with this. People fighting climate change around the world are in solidarity with our friends in the US as they organise nationwide marches and rally to block coal plants and pipelines from being built.

The climate movement is re-energised. The move to a zero-carbon future is unstoppable. Despite the injustice of Mr Trump’s decision, our only response must be to redouble efforts everywhere else and strengthen the lifeline that Paris offered.

Nor can our world rely any longer on this outdated global governance which privileges richest nations at the expense of developing nations. Southern governments have taken on more responsibility for our world: this should be reflected in their power and position in the institutions of global governance.

The oilmen who fuelled this crisis are still there – doing their dirty business as usual – because the system perpetuates their wealth and power. The richest one percent today own more than the 99 percent combined; eight men own as much as the bottom 3.6 billion. Political institutions march to the tune of powerful corporations and the super-rich. Tackling the extreme gap between rich and poor and tackling climate change is part of the same struggle.

The spirit of Paris charges on, even without the US government, and with it the palpable hope of a better world.

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article from World Environment Day

‘Connecting People to Nature’, the theme for World Environment Day 2017, implores us to get outdoors and into nature, to appreciate its beauty and its importance, and to take forward the call to protect the Earth that we share.

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World Environment Day is the biggest annual event for positive environmental action and takes place every 5 June. This year’s host country Canada got to choose the theme and will be at the centre of celebrations around the planet.

World Environment Day is a day for everyone, everywhere. Since it began in 1972, global citizens have organized many thousands of events, from neighbourhood clean-ups, to action against wildlife crime, to replanting forests.

This year’s theme invites you to think about how we are part of nature and how intimately we depend on it. It challenges us to find fun and exciting ways to experience and cherish this vital relationship.

The value of nature

In recent decades, scientific advances as well as growing environmental problems such as global warming are helping us to understand the countless ways in which natural systems support our own prosperity and well-being.

For example, the world’s oceans, forests and soils act as vast stores for greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane; farmers and fisher-folk harness nature on land and under water to provide us with food; scientists develop medicines using genetic material drawn from the millions of species that make up Earth’s astounding biological diversity.

Billions of rural people around the world spend every working day ‘connected to nature’ and appreciate full well their dependence on natural water supplies and how nature provides their livelihoods in the form of fertile soil. They are among the first to suffer when ecosystems are threatened, whether by pollution, climate change or over-exploitation.

Nature’s gifts are often hard to value in monetary terms. Like clean air, they are often taken for granted, at least until they become scarce. However, economists are developing ways to measure the multi-trillion-dollar worth of many so-called ‘ecosystem services’, from insects pollinating fruit trees in the orchards of California to the leisure, health and spiritual benefits of a hike up a Himalayan valley.

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Despite the vested interests of companies and governments, Can we make progress toward sustainable development?

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Hit the park

This year’s World Environment Day is an ideal occasion to go out and enjoy your country’s national parks and other wilderness areas. Park authorities in some countries may follow Canada’s example and waive or reduce park entry fees on June 5 or for a longer period.

Once you are there, why not set yourself a challenge (seek out a rare mammal, identify five butterflies, reach the remotest corner of the park). Record what you see, and send us a photo of yourself and/or your discoveries so we can post it on our digital channels and encourage others to go exploring too.

You could join the growing number of citizen scientists. More and more smartphone apps help you log your sightings and connect with others who can identify the species. The records feed into conservation strategies and map the effects of climate change on biodiversity.

Nature up close

Connecting to nature can involve all the physical senses: why not take off your shoes and get your feet (and hands) dirty; don’t just look at the beautiful lake, jump in! Take a hike at night and rely on your ears and nose to experience nature.

You can also connect with nature in the city, where major parks can be a green lung and a hub of biodiversity. Why not do your bit to green the urban environment, by greening your street or a derelict site, or planting a window box? You could put a spade in the soil or lift a paving slab and see what creatures live beneath.

Wherever you are, you could vow to pick up 10 (or 100) pieces of trash, or take inspiration from the citizens of Mumbai, India, and organize a mass beach clean-up.

Your activity doesn’t have to take place on 5 June itself. UN Environment, for instance, will soon begin testing your knowledge and raising your appreciation of a healthy environment with competitions and online quizzes and provide a whole menu of ideas to help you celebrate the day.

In the age of asphalt and smartphones and among the distractions of modern life, connections with nature can be fleeting. But with your help, World Environment Day can make clearer than ever that we need harmony between humanity and nature so that both are able to thrive.

Check this space in the coming weeks for details of this year’s campaign, and please sign up  to receive all of our updates in the run-up to World Environment Day 2017.

(Thank you to Janet Hudgins, the CPNN reporter for this article)
 

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

A survey by CPNN

On the website, http://earthday.org, we find the following quotation: “Earth Day Network’s mission is to diversify, educate and activate the environmental movement worldwide. Growing out of the first Earth Day, Earth Day Network is the world’s largest recruiter to the environmental movement, working with more than 50,000 partners in nearly 195 countries to build environmental democracy. More than 1 billion people now participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the largest civic observance in the world.”

Certainly this is a good cause, and one that is central to the culture of peace, since, as defined by the United Nations, sustainable development is one of the eight program areas of the culture of peace. But are the numbers correct? Where can we find a list of the “50,000 partners in nearly 195 countries”? And how can we verify the participation of “more than 1 billion people”?

We find 102 partners listed on one of the website’s pages. A few of them are networks, such as Sister Cities International or the National Wildlife Federation, but most of these partners are small organizations (for example, the Woods Hole Research Center) or government agencies, for example, the Maryland Transportation Authority or the California State Parks. None, as far as I can tell are organizations with large memberships.

Looking at the list of Earthday partners, we find many countries represented, although the vast majority are limited to the United States. If one counts the partners of Sister Cities International , there are already 145 since they have “2,000 partnerships in 145 countries around the globe.” There are a eight with names in non-English scripts, mostly Arabic or Chinese. And there are at least 13 partners from other countries including Vietnam, Australia, Guatemala, Guyana, India, (Agastya), Bahamas, Kosovo (Eco Viciana and Shoqata), Tanzania (Friends of Usambara), Italy (Dietro le fo’), UK (University of Leeds), UK and Canada (International Fund for Animal Welfare), Peru (Ecoan), and Malaysia (Rakan Segari).

We search in vain on the website of earthday.org for a listing of earthday observations around the world, although their claim of 1 billion participants is quoted by wikipedia and a other websites such as the The Guardian (UK).

With this in mind, we decided at CPNN to search the internet using google to find examples of the celebration of Earthday. What we found were celebrations mostly in North America, in all 50 states of the USA and most of the Canadian provinces. To a lesser extent, the “Dia de la tierra” or “Dia de la madre tierra” was celebrated in Latin America and the Caribbean. Articles about celebrations in the rest of the world were spotty, with a few in Europe and Asia and very few in Africa.

The largest number of celebrations in the rest of the world were the satellite marches for science, in solidarity with the march in Washington. On the website of Science Magazine, we find descriptions of the satellite marches in Seoul, Tokyo, London, Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Tromsø and Svalbard in Norway, Bonn and Berlin in Germany, Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra in Australia, Aukland in New Zealand. According to Africa News, there were satellite marches in Nigeria’s capital Abuja, Ghana’s capital Accra, Kampala in Uganda, Blantyre in Malawi and Cape Town as well as Durban in South Africa among other cities. In the Philippines, there was a satellite march in Quezon City.

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What has happened this year (2017) for Earth Day?

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Ironically, given that the new administration in Washington is considered to be against ecological initiatives – for which the March for Science is a protest – the foreign embassies of the United States are one of the biggest sponsors of Earth Day events in the rest of the world. Hence, for example the article about Earth Day cleanup in Vietnam quotes the US ambassador and begins, “More than 1,000 volunteers from the US Embassy, associations, organisations and universities, joined hands to pick up garbage in Thong Nhat Park in Hanoi Saturday morning to mark Earth Day here.” In Fiji, “the Embassy of the United States hosted a clean-up campaign with Bank South Pacific (BSP) at the My Suva Picnic Park.” In China, “Earth Day Network is also partnering with the US Embassy in Beijing to host the Earth Day Expo at Beijing American Center.” In India, “As part of the Earth Day activities, the US embassy, in cooperation with programme partner Clean Air Asia, organised a two-day campaign “Better Air, Better Earth” to promote air quality awareness.”

Some other Earth Day sponsors were also surprising. In Malaysia, the Earth Day celebration was sponsored by the World Wildlife Federation based in the United States and the Soka Gakkai sect based in Japan. In Pakistan, the Earth Day celebration was sponsored by the Defence Housing Authority, an upscale real estate and property development organisation administered by the Pakistan Army which develops housing for current and retired military personnel. In Kenya, the earth day activities were sponsored by Chandaria Industries, makers of tissue and hyigiene products, and by Youth for Earth, an Australian-based NGO. According to the website tnf.org, “Tanzanians around the country celebrated Earth Day. Check out some of the great activities that took place: A Picnic, tree planting; and more.” But when we click on the links for the picnic, the tree planting and more, we get the US Nature Conservancy, US earthday and Jane Goodall’s website Roots and Shoots in the United States.

In Europe there were several Earth Day events that were local in nature. In Spain, The Provincial Delegation of Almería celebrated the ‘International Day of Mother Earth’ of 150 species of almucine in the environment of Laujar de Andarax, involving schoolchildren of the municipality. In France, the website Jour de la Terre, reported that there were at least 60 local events in that country. In Norway, there were events organized by the Center for Ecology-Based Economy. In the village of village of Ninotsminda in (Georgia) school №2, 9-10 held a lesson in the open air and celebrated “Earth Day” by cleaning the school grounds from the accumulated garbage. In Moscow, there were several events, including a festival in the “Pokrovskoe-Streshnevo” park. Also in Russia, there was a school celebrations in Rostov on the Don and Ryazan.

We found two Earth Day events in Asia that were local in nature. In Indonesia, SINTALARAS, an outdoor club from Makassar State University, rallied-up together to clean a large amount of wastes at Mount Bulusaraung in commemorating Earth Day. And in Kuo Tao, an island resort in Thailand, “As well as an island wide land clean-up in the morning, an island wide underwater clean-up in the afternoon and an evening of fairground-style games, food & drinks and a raffle with huge prizes, the local government will be launching their Shark & Turtle Sanctuary Project for Shark Bay/Rocky Bay and a Giant Clam Project in Sai Nuan.”

We found one Earth Day event in Africa that was local in nature. In Ghana, “The Ghana Youth Climate Coalition in partnership with Ghana Youth Environment movement and zoom lion- Ghana embarked on a cleanup exercise and sanitation education.”

Is the Earth Day initiative gaining in scope? According to the Earth Day Network website, it has grown from 200 million people in 141 countries in 1990 to 1 billion people in 195 countries this year. But judging from the survey results above, we have to be skeptical of these numbers. It’s a good initiative, and we’d like to see it grow, but wishful thinking is not enough!

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

A news article from The Global Alliance for Tax Justice (abbreviated)

[The Global Alliance for Tax Justice is a growing movement of civil society organisations and activists, including trade unions, united in campaigning for greater transparency, democratic oversight and redistribution of wealth in national and global tax systems.]

The Government of Ecuador, current leader of the G77, continues to champion the establishment of a UN Global Tax Body to end tax havens. On Thursday 6 April, Ecuador, together with the Government of South Africa, and working with the Global Alliance for Tax Justice, hosted a UN side event in New York: “Towards an international tax agenda based on rights and equality for tax justice: For a UN global tax body and the achievement of Agenda 2030.” This forum was held in connection with the UN meetings this week of the 14th session of the Committee of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax Matters (Committee) and the ECOSOC special meeting on international cooperation in tax matters.

Also on Thursday, new legislation introduced in the United States by Democratic Representatives takes aim at the biggest offshore tax avoidance loopholes. See this statement on the introduction of this legislation during the Global Week of Action to #EndTaxHavens by Clark Gascoigne, deputy director of the FACT Coalition, the North American regional network member of the Global Alliance for Tax Justice.

At the European Union PANA (Panama Papers) hearings in Brussels, Tax Justice Network-Africa’s Alvin Mosioma presented on the “Impact of the schemes revealed by the Panama Papers on Developing Countries”, along with TJN-A’s Nuhu Ribadu who “made a passionate case for the world to rise against illicit financial flow and tax evasion. They’re crimes against humanity.” The hearing was live here.

And in Rwanda, ActionAid staff shared their messages to #EndTaxHavens!

MORE CAMPAIGN NEWS THIS WEEK:

Check out this great new video by Attac France about creative actions in Paris last Saturday, 1 April.

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Opposing tax havens and corruption: part of the culture of peace?

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Here are some photos from the Presidential Candidates round-table debate in France organized by Plateforme Paradis Fiscaux et Judiciaires on Monday 3 April, marking the one year anniversary of the publication of the Panama Papers.

Plateforme Paradis Fiscaux et Judiciaires members also organized a Tax Lobby Tour in the La Défense, Paris business district. See more photos and videos here.

Also on Monday, Oxfam Intermón presented Spain’s four major political parties with a petition calling for a Law against tax evasion and avoidance, “Ley contra la Evasión y Elusión Fiscal”, signed by 183.235 people already!

On Tuesday 4 April in Canada, ATTAC-Québec and partners organized a fabulous comedy cabaret “Front commun comique contre les paradis fiscaux.”

ATTAC-Québec and network members are celebrating the publication this week of the report of the Quebec Committee on Public Finance on the use of tax havens. “The recommendations in this report are an excellent first step. They can significantly reduce tax avoidance and evasion if applied. This report addresses the key issues related to tax havens, such as the creation of screen companies, double tax treaties and transfer pricing,” said Claude Vaillancourt, President of ATTAC-Quebec. Several of the recommendations in the submission filed by ATTAC-Québec were accepted by the Commission, in particular those concerning the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. The report recommends that it reduce “gradually its investments in companies that make abusive tax avoidance or evasion” and that it requires companies in which it invests significantly to stop resorting to tax havens. The report also recommends that the Government of Quebec no longer grant contracts or subsidies to firms and firms found guilty of facilitating or avoiding tax evasion or avoidance.

In London, Christian Aid, Tax Justice Network and Methodist Tax Justice Network members held a protest “In Praise of Whistleblowers” in front of the PwC Head Office on Wednesday 5 April. See this report about the event by David Haslam, Chair, Methodist Tax Justice Network.

In Spain, Oxfam Intermón published a video about a stunt including a fake travel agency, offering free trips to tax havens, paid for by the Spanish people!

Luxembourg: Antoine Deltour has announced he will appeal #Luxleaks #whistleblowers verdict to Luxembourg supreme court. We support you Antoine! (See CPNN article). . .