The Global Warming 8 — GW8
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ITDGPractical Action is a member of the Stop Climate Chaos coalition |
Programme
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Introduction and welcome
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Speakers from Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania and Zambia
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Commentary from Bob Watson, former Chairman of the IPCC
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Speakers from China, Columbia, Honduras, India and Nepal
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Commentary from Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
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Closing comments
Venue
Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh www.dynamicearth.co.uk
July 5th, 9.30 am to 12 noon
Organisers
This event is organised by the Working Group on Climate Change and Development. This Group includes: ActionAid, the Catholic Institute for International Relations, Christian Aid, Columban Faith and Justice, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, Institute of Development Studies, the International Institute for Environment and Development, ITDGPractical Action, the new economics foundation, Operation Noah, Oxfam, People and Planet, RSPB, Tearfund, TERI Europe, Water Aid, World Vision and WWF.
Presentations
The following is a summary of presentations to the GW8, July 5th 2005, at The Dynamic Earth. Opinions below are those of the speakers and do not represent ITDGPractical Action policy.
Tatiana Roa, Columbia, General Director of CENSAT AGUA VIVA - FOE Columbia.
Ms Roa spoke about oil exploration; 80% of the oil extracted in her country is exported to US and Europe. Most of the sites are on land belonging to black and indigenous communities, and there is a huge environmental and social impact, just to satisfy the demand from northern countries. This huge oil consumption is leading to a loss of local culture, and also a huge environmental impact and farmers are unable to farm. FOE Columbia are working towards building a sustainable society, with sustainable energy, under democratic control, through supporting the local economies. FOE is helping indigenous communities to fight against oil exploration in their lands. To arrest climate change, we need to stop this kind of oil exploration that leads to energy for the north, just 20% of the earth's population, and nothing for the southern 80%.
The Very Reverend Donald Mtetemela, senior church leader in Tanzania, Bishop of Ruaha Diocese.
The Diocese has an extensive programme of rural development and poverty alleviation, and he is working closely with communities who are suffering the effects of climate change and trying to help them adapt. Climate change is a people issue. Drought in Tanzania used to happen every 10 years; now it is happening every 4-5 years. We have to live with it. To be without rain is like being without oxygen. Climate change affects rural communities worst, because their livelihood is based on rain-fed agriculture. Drought leads to food shortage, which in turn leads to migration to urban areas. Women have to walk miles for water; dams are drying up, and then there is no power, because we depend on hydropower. There are more deaths among children under 5 years, and school attendance is falling, because of hunger. Diseases like trachoma are increasing because people have no water to wash their eyes and themselves. GDP is falling, as people spend their time looking for food instead of working.
Relief food doesn't help in the long term. Tearfund is helping to raise awareness on drought resistant crops and food storage. There is a need to integrate climate change into development plans. Rich countries must seriously reduce emissions. Even if debt is cancelled and aid is doubled at G8, and there is more and better aid, all this won't Make Poverty History if the is no work on climate change.
Samrat Sengupta, senior policy officer for climate change and energy, WWF India
Glaciers are melting at the rate of 23 m /year; sea level is rising at rate of over 3mm per year, affecting the Sunderbans (Ganges delta). The ecosystem is becoming increasingly vulnerable. Thus, climate change in this region is affecting one sixth of the world's population (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh). The retreat of glaciers leads to glacial lakes; in monsoon rains, these can flood suddenly, affecting areas downstream. The decrease in dry season flows affects agriculture and hydropower.
The Sunderbans are very bio-diverse, a world Heritage Site. 4m people live there, dependant on natural resources. As a result of sea level rise, islands are being submerged, land is being eroded, there is salination of drinking water, and an increased likelihood of upstream regions flooding, towards Kolkota. There is salination of land, affecting agricultural productivity, and leading to environmental refugees; there are more insect attacks on crops, plankton are affected, and more disease.
People are trying to respond, by adapting the farming season, diversifying the crops they grow, by rainwater harvesting, and building mud barrages to protect against saline water inflows. They are trying to replant mangroves, and build alternative livelihoods. Some of these, like prawn farming or charcoal burning, are not sustainable. WWF is developing the capacity of affected people to speak up and change policy.
Nnimmo Bassey, Nigeria, architect and human rights activist working with FOE Nigeria, and on the International Steering Committee of Oilwatch International. He showed a video clip of horrific gas flaring, adjacent to fields where families were farming. Why is gas flared? Why is this gas not harnessed? Every year, $2.3bn worth is flared in Nigeria alone, because it is cheaper than harnessing the energy for local use. This is a human issue, not just about the emission of green house gases; there are toxic elements, like benzene and hydrogen sulphide, and the flaring is right within communities, not just in stacks.
It is a human rights issue, all Africans have the right to a safe environment. Nigeria is the cheapest place for crude oil for Shell - only because the real costs are not factored in. There are many abuses - in Ngoniland, and the death of Ken Saro-Wiwa. Shell was banned from Ngoniland as a result of local protest, and the land has recovered, but this ban is likely to be lifted.
He had four proposals on adaptation, to counter the control on gas and oil corporations around the world, that are now controlling governments.
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G8 to control arms(??)
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Africans to take their destiny into their own hands
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Africa should not be a dumping ground for waste, and for GMOs or other harmful technologies
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There needs to be solidarity around the world for action.
In the discussion that followed, the question on how to empower people on climate change was raised, and the point made that it is those in the north who need to wake up and be empowered to act. People in the north need to learn from the Latin Americans who have had to take to the streets to fight on many issues.
Rebecca Musyoka, Kenya Small Scale Farmers Forum
Background:
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Population of Kenya is around 32 million
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80 % of the population are small scale farmers mainly in subsistence farming
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75% of the land is arid or semi arid
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Firewood and agricultural waste is the main energy source for the majority of the people
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There is very low level of access to electricity in the country especially in the rural areas, and this is holding people in poverty
Energy and climate change:
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Most of the people depend on energy from trees and crop waste
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We have noticed longer droughts and more flash flooding and these affect the energy supply.
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During the excessive wet seasons collection and preparation of firewood and obtaining kerosene from suppliers is a major problem
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Due to drought and the lack of other food, termites are attacking trees, reducing even more the amount of wood available for collection
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Frequent droughts affect the rate of tree planting on our farms, which also reduces the fuelwood supply
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Another problem is that during excessive droughts there are frequent fires in forests and even on farms
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Recently, there have been more frequent outbreaks of unusual insect pests targeting crops and some tree species affecting food production and energy crops.
Energy supply is women's work:
Women have to spend many hours per week walking to fetch fuelwood and carrying heavy loads. This often means that girls have to help too, and are unable to go to school.
What can be done?
With financial support we could do the following:
This funding should come direct to the local level (through district councils or farmers' associations)
Renewable energy for rural areas:
Renewable schemes, like micro hydro schemes, are good interventions, in areas of Kenya with sufficient rainfall. Wind and solar power are other options. In semi-arid areas, we will havae to wait for these to become available and affordable.
Rev. Jose Andres Tamayo Cortez, a Catholic priest from Honduras, director of the Environmental Movement of Olancho, dedicated to stopping logging.
The amount of carbon emissions from Honduras in 1995 was 5.4million tonnes - and this is not an industrialised country. This has been due to logging. Our forests could play a part in climate change mitigation, but sadly, 64% have been cleared in the last 30 years. Most of this is illegally logged and the timber goes largely to G8 countries. Areas of mild climate are now desert and springs have dried up. So entire communities have had to migrate. Tropical storms are more frequent and more intense. The temperature has risen 1.8 - 2 degrees C in the last 50 years, and there have been more forest fires as a result. 25% of GHGs from Honduras arise from these fires. There has been a greater loss of harvests due to drought, and the poor are worst affected.
The government is indifferent to this reality – they see the problem but not how to solve it. Logging companies are not controlled. Bilateral co-operation is strengthening corrupt civil servants. The Inter American Development Bank has loaned money for a project to fell ten times the area of forest, and then replant. But the logging companies pay nothing for the damage they do and the people have to pay for the reforestation. A new monster – CAFTA (Central America Free Trade Area) – is coming soon.
We have mobilised the country to march on the capital, to demand a logging ban. We are doing what the state is not; we are protecting forest, with other organisations, and doing research to back up our proposals.
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We request the G8 to press the Honduras government to take steps to reverse environmental degradation.
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We ask for technical and economic support to NGOs and civil society to help them meet the challenge of climate change in the face of government inaction.
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We request G8 countries only to buy certified timber, to ensure communities benefit. And to desist investing funds that support state corruption.
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Please support NGOs, who are more committed.
I request from your organisations to help us defend our rights, because the threats are so bit and so many. 11 people have been murdered, and there is a price of $40,000 on my head. If we can do this, we can protect humanity.
Mubanga Kasakula, small-scale farmer and leader of Zambian Small Scale Farmers Forum
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Zambia has a total population of 10.4 Million
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60% of the population in Zambia is engaged in agricultural activities, and most of them are women
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Zambia has three seasons: Hot & Dry (Aug-Oct), Rainy (Nov-April) and Cool & Dry (April-July).
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Most farming is done in the one Rainy season unlike other countries like Kenya/Uganda where there are two wet seasons
Climate change: what we have noticed in recent years is:
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There is a shift in the start of rainy season.
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Rains do not begin until December and stop by early March, and rain is interspersed with dry spells
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Most crops grown are late maturing, like local varieties of maize and sorghum
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Yields are going down due to lack of rain
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This has brought about a critical situation: in 2005, Zambia has a food deficit of 85,000 metric tonnes.
IMPACTS
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The reduced food supply affects household incomes for families dependant on Agriculture
(2004 food production was 1.2 million MT against 866,000 MT this year) -
Families cannot send children to school because there is no money for fees
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Span of attention of children in school is affected as children are sent to school hungry
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Malnutrition is on the increase
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There is greater susceptibility to diseases and lower survival rates for HIV/AIDS victims
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Women and girls are walking longer distances in search of water for animals/domestic use, which is tiring
The support we need
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Enhance the capacity of the Zambian Metrological Agency to give accurate, timely information
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Funding for small-scale irrigation schemes, which are affordable for poorer farmers.
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Funding to develop early maturing and drought tolerant crop varieties through farmer led research
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Encouragement to grow drought resistant crops for example Cassava, Sorghum, instead of hybrid maize
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Support for appropriate farming, not just more food aid
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Small scale irrigation can help: Treadle pumps can lead to almost doubled production from a small investment
How that support should be given
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More resources and investment to agriculture sector and transparency in its allocation
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Improved rural infrastructure relevant to poorer people, to enable income generating activities (access to water and electricity)
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Give space and capacity for farmers to engage in policy issues from local level to international level.
Esther Nalliw-Licnachan, Philippines, Save the Ifugao Terraces
The Ifugao rice terraces are a World Heritage Site. In the late 1990s there was the economic crisis in SE Asia, and then El Nino. There was an energy crisis, with constant blackouts. Poor people felt the impact of El Nino most. The hill rice lands gave low yields; in the lowland corn areas, the use of hybrid seeds and fertilisers meant that farmers got into debt. The vegetable and livestock farmers were affected by flooding and salinity of water. The energy crisis hit the poor worst because they have no alternatives. Factories shorten their hours, and this leads to less pay; poor harvests lead to higher commodity prices.
We are promoting sustainable energy solutions, which are available and controlled at local level, and environmentally friendly. People participate in the decision making. The schemes ive energy for lighting, agro-processing and water supply. What we need is:
The options must be small scale. Please, all of you, be a small voice too, to teach, to lobby, to advocate.
Mary Robinson, former UN High Commissioner on Human Rights
Climate change is a political, development and cultural issue, and a human rights issue - food security, health, access to schooling - not just a scientific issue.
Where do we go from here, having heard all these people? There seems to be some progress being made on debt and aid, less on fairer trade. Climate change issues haven't been central to action so far - we here need to work on this. World Social Forum - brought a wide linkage between NGOs. We need to involve business leaders, to tell the government to back action on climate change. We need to mobilise all through 2005.
Question of litigation: human rights - to food, rights of the child, etc. includes collective insuring that the Convention is enforced. There is a new appointment at the UN, on Business and Human Rights, which could be relevant to the gas flaring issue.
If in this G8, there's acceptance of a responsibility, then first, a commitment on greenhouse gases is needed, then explore the possibility of litigation in relation to human rights.
Further information
For more information about the GW8 or the Working Group on Climate Change and Development please contact Andrew Simms – andrew.simms@neweconomics.org – or Hannah Reid – Hannah.Reid@iied.org
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