Global Justice Ecology Project’s E-Newsletter Fall 2007
North American Stop GE Trees Strategy Retreat: In August GJEP hosted a national strategy retreat with members of the STOP Genetically Engineered Trees Campaign. Scientists and experts from the U.S. and Canada met to plan campaign strategies to ban the development and commercialization of genetically engineered trees. Members from the STOP GE Trees Campaign analyzed the latest information on the dangers of genetically engineered trees including contamination of native tree species, the ecological and social impacts of GE trees and the potential introduction of a fungal pathogen associated with some trees.
Because GE poplars and GE eucalyptus are being promoted as sources for supposedly “green” agrofuels (biofuels), we also discussed increasing our involvement with the international movement against agrofuels. This collaboration is crucial since agrofuels are being used as the main reason why we “need” genetically engineered trees.
If you would like to support this important work, please go to: https://globaljusticeecology.org/support.php
Global Forest Coalition Media Coordination: GJEP Co-Director Orin Langelle recently became the media coordinator for Global Forest Coalition. He and GJEP Communications/ Office Assistant Phiona Hamilton-Gordon will work closely with the GFC Communications Coordinator in The Netherlands, the Campaigns Coordinator in England, and the Managing Coordinator in Paraguay.
Stop GE Trees Strategic Plans Drafted: GJEP Co-Director Anne Petermann and Phiona drafted both a detailed media plan and a detailed strategic plan for the STOP GE Trees Campaign that derived from discussions at the North American Stop GE Trees Strategy Retreat in August. The media and strategic plans were presented to the steering committee and plans are in motion for further action.
International Media Contacts List Made Through Green Media Toolshed: With the help of media data base service Green Media Toolshed, Orin and Phiona have started to compile an international media contacts list that will be very useful during the CBD’s United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change meetings in Bali, Indonesia.
Agrofuels Report: GJEP’s Agrofuels Specialist Rachel Smolker has been working hard on a yet-to-be titled agrofuels report on the impacts of agrofuels on forests and forest dependent peoples that is to be released during the UNFCCC meetings in Bali. More information provided further down in, UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Corporate Globalization vs. Global Justice: Part II The Struggle Continues: GJEP completed a new photo exhibit by Orin featuring a selection of his photographs from 2004-present, including scenes from Chile, Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, the Democratic and Republican National Conventions of 2004, G8 protests in Germany, the World Social Forum in Nairobi and many others. The show was hung the second of October and the opening event was held on October 13th with featured guest speaker Simone Lovera from Global Forest Coalition. The show was dedicated to GJEP Board member in memoriam Will Miller and Grace Paley was also remembered with a reading of one of her poems. Close to 100 people attended the opening and the photographs received rave reviews.
GJEP Staff Go To Montreal: Orin, Anne, Rachel and Phiona traveled to Montreal, Quebec for meetings related to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. They met with indigenous peoples and organizations from around the world who were in town for the UN meetings to further their campaigns against agrofuels and GE trees.
Fundraising One Phone Call At A Time: Anne, Phiona and GJEP Community Organizing Intern Hallie Boas, Board Members Chris Meehan and Kelly Stoddard, and volunteers Cynthia Hendel and Eric Milano raised close to $1,000 during a phone bank held on October 10th. The evening was filled with good company and laughter as everybody made calls to raise awareness about the unsustainable and destructive attributes of agrofuels while raising money for GJEP to attend the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bali, Indonesia.
Thank you to everyone who helped make the event a success!
It’s Not Just Iraq–It’s the American Empire: On October 11th GJEP kicked off it’s 4th annual Hinesburg Monthly Community Potluck Series with guest speakers Benjamin Dangl and April Howard. The event was packed and featured a lively discussion about U.S. intervention in Latin American affairs and about the rise of the left in Latin America.
Ben Dangl writes on Latin American issues for publications such as Z Magazine, The Nation, and The Progressive. He edits TowardFreedom.com, a progressive perspective on world events, and UpsideDownWorld.org, an online magazine covering Latin American activism and politics. Dangl won a 2007 Project Censored Award for his coverage of U.S. military operations in Paraguay. He is author of, “The Price of Fire – Resource Wars and Social Movements in Bolivia.”
April Howard covers Latin American issues for In These Times, The Nation, The Utne Reader, Counterpunch and Third World Resurgence. She is an editor at Upsidedownworld.org.
Upcoming Meetings and Events:
World Bank Meeting: Orin will join Global Forest Coalition’s Simone Lovera for meetings with activists and organizations in Washington, DC around the fall meetings of the World Bank. They will discuss the involvement of the World Bank in promoting false solutions to climate change such as agrofuels, carbon trading and carbon offset forestry plantations (including GE trees).
Anti-Plantations Meeting: In early November Orin will be attending an important international meeting in South Africa on the impacts of large-scale tree plantations, organized by our partners at the World Rainforest Movement. Look for his report from this meeting in the next e-newsletter!
Hinesburg Monthly Community Potluck Series: On November 15th, Rachel Smolker will present on the dangers of large-scale industrial monoculture use for agrofuels. Orin will also give a brief report back from his trip to South Africa (above).
Larry Lohmann: GJEP is co-organizing a North American tour of the Durban Group for Climate Justice featuring author and activist Larry Lohmann. GJEP was a co-founder of the Durban Group, which develops analysis and research to oppose false solutions to global warming.
UN Framework Convention on Climate Change: We will be working with Global Forest Coalition to produce a major joint report on the impacts of biofuels (agrofuels) on forests and forest-dependent peoples. This major report, written by GJEP Agrofuels Specialist Rachel Smolker, will be produced in time for the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (Bali, Indonesia in December 2007). The report will focus on the impacts of large-scale production of agrofuels on forests and forest-dependent peoples, as agrofuels have become a major new threat to forests. The report will also debunk the notion that large-scale production of biofuels can help mitigate climate change. Anne and Orin will attend this UN meeting and are preparing a major PR campaign with our partners to release the findings of the report.
GJEP Solstice Celebration: Please join us as we welcome back the sun at our annual Solstice celebration (December 21st). It will be held at the home of GJEP’s Rachel Smolker in Hinesburg, VT. Anne and Orin will give a brief report back from the UNFCCC meetings in Bali. For more information on this, please email: mailto:in**@gj******.local" data-original-string="nfrZzgwUBkEeBd2p9Jy3ADt1+qFjHIizJza0tqJ4gaI=" title="This contact has been encoded by Anti-Spam by CleanTalk. Click to decode. To finish the decoding make sure that JavaScript is enabled in your browser.
To support our important work, please go to: https://globaljusticeecology.org/support.php
GJEP staff: Anne Petermann & Orin Langelle (Co-directors), Phiona Hamilton-Gordon (Communications/ Office Assistant), Dr. Rachel Smolder (Research Biologist) and Hallie Boas (Intern).
Top right: Global Forest Coalition Managing Coordinator Simone Lovera speaks at the reception for the exhibit of GJEP Co-Director Orin Langelle’s photos titled Corporate Globalization vs Global Justice Part II The Struggle Continues at the Plainfield Community Center on October 13. Photo:Petermann/ GJEP
