(2019-01-27). Environmentalist on mission to preserve island nation Vanuatu. aljazeera.com Leimalu Tapesi, the first woman anointed chairperson of a village tribal council, plans to crack down on illegal logging.
(2019-01-27). A new abnormal. mronline.org Humanity now faces two simultaneous existential threats, either of which would be cause for extreme concern and immediate attention. These major threats—nuclear weapons and climate change—were exacerbated this past year by the increased use of information warfare to undermine democracy around the world, amplifying risk from these and other threats and putting the future of […] | Source
(2019-01-27). People Power: 160,000 European Protesters Demand Action on Climate Crisis. commondreams.org Tens of thousands march in France, Belgium over climate crisis | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/france-climate-march-01272019-955px.jpg…
(2019-01-27). International Appeal: Stop 5G on Earth and in Space. globalresearch.ca To the UN, WHO, EU, Council of Europe and governments of all nations | We the undersigned scientists, doctors, environmental organizations and citizens from (__) countries, urgently call for a halt to the deployment of the 5G (fifth generation) wireless network, …
(2019-01-27). 5 Ways to Protect the Planet Without Disenfranchising People With Disabilities. truthout.org People with disabilities are disproportionately affected by disasters, which are worsening and increasing because of climate change. The National Council on Disability estimated that a " disproportionate number of the fatalities" amid Hurricane Katrina were people with disabilities. Typical evacuation routes and disaster plans are often not accessible to this vulnerable group, while interruptions to electricity are deadlier for those who require machines to treat medical conditions. | And it isn't just disasters like fires, superstorms, and floods. Extr…
(2019-01-27). Our Environmental Past Holds the Solution to Our Climate Future. truthout.org Climate change is caused by climate pollution. When we discovered human sewage pollution was killing millions in the 19th century, we couldn't stop making human sewage. What did we do? We treated the pollution. | Why aren't we treating climate pollution? Is it because we can't? When we discovered that human sewage pollution was killing millions, we thought it would be too expensive to put a toilet in every backyard. So, we made rules and laws that said costs didn't matter, human life was more important. It wasn't too expensive after all. | Then we discovered that too many outhouses were polluting the groundwat…
(2019-01-27). The U.S. Military Plans to Keep Incinerating Toxic Firefighting Foam, Despite Health Risks. theintercept.com The U.S. military is moving ahead with plans to collect and destroy unused firefighting foam that contains the hazardous chemicals PFOS and PFOA. But in trying to solve one environmental problem related to these persistent chemicals, which have caused massive drinking water contamination, the Defense Department may be creating another. | More than 3 million gallons of the foam and related waste have been retrieved from U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, National Guard, Army, and Air Force bases around th…
(2019-01-27). Hawaiian Slack Key Guitarist Makana/NuclearWakeUpCall.Earth. indybay.org Described as "dazzling" by the New York Times, Makana is an internationally acclaimed guitarist, singer, composer and activist who is widely known for lending his musical talent for social change. | Recently he toured Russia and recorded "Mourning Armageddon" in a newly decommissioned nuclear bunker in Moscow. He is performing at Yoshi's on February 21.
(2019-01-25). ILO to ruling class in Davos: Meet the needs of workers. peoplesworld.org GENEVA (PAI)—The International Labour Organization (ILO) is demanding the world's governments enact and commit to new worker protections to meet the changing nature and demands of modern workplaces. The demands come as billionaire representatives of the world's ruling class gathered in Davos, Switzerland to discuss the world economy and as most media in the U.S. …
(2019-01-25). Toxic Pesticides Assault in Utah. counterpunch.org In 2014, I met Blaine Malquist. This was in Florida at the Pesticides Forum of Beyond Pesticides, a national organization fighting for environmental and public health protection from the use and misuse of pesticides. Mosquito fogging Malquist lives in Nephi City, Juab County, Utah. He briefly said to me that the careless use of pesticides More
(2019-01-25). Extreme Wealth is a Planet Killer. counterpunch.org We either keep fossil fuels in the ground, or we fry. That's the conclusion of another new blockbuster study on climate change, this one from the National Academy of Sciences. Our fossil-fuel industrial economy, the study details, has made for the fastest climate changes our Earth has ever seen. "If we think about the future More
(2019-01-25). Native eyewitness gives account of what really happened at the Lincoln Memorial. peoplesworld.org The mocking harassment of a Native American elder at the January 18 Indigenous Peoples March in Washington, D.C. by Catholic high school students has sparked national and international outrage. Nathan Phillips, an elder of the Omaha Nation and Marine veteran who attended the march, was accosted by a large group of white students, at least 100, from the all-boys Covington Catholic …
(2019-01-25). My Message to Davos Elites: Act As If Our House Is on Fire. Because It Is. commondreams.org "Our house is on fire," said the Swedish student activist who has galvanized 100,000 fellow teens around the world to follow her example in striking for the climate. "At Davos, people like to talk about success, but financial success has come with a price tag, and on the climate we have failed. And unless we recognize the failures of our system, there will be unspoken suffering." (Image: World Economic Forum) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/greta_thunberg_davos_2109.jpg…
(2019-01-25). Tucson tells Trump: Hands off Venezuela! fightbacknews.org Tucson, AZ – Just one day after President Trump announced official recognition for the illegally self-inaugurated interim president of Venezuela, Juan Guaido, a dozen activists rallied outside the downtown federal building, January 24. The rally took a stand in solidarity with the democratically-elected president, and former union bus driver, Nicolas Maduro. | Organizers from the Tucson Anti War Committee expressed their solidarity with the masses of workers, campesinos and indigenous peoples fighting for their right to self-determination and their Bolivarian Revolution.
(2019-01-25). Right "To Their Faces," 16-Year-Old Greta Thunberg Tells Davos Elite Climate Crisis Their Fault. commondreams.org Sixteen-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg just told a group of the elite gathered in Davos for the World Economic Forum—as they were seated just feet away from her—that they are among those directly responsible for the climate crisis. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/awkward.jpg…
(2019-01-25). Ten Thousand Students March in Berlin as Global #ClimateStrike Movement Rises. commondreams.org An estimated ten thousand students took to the freezing cold streets of Berlin, Germany on Friday as they added their voices to the growing youth-led global uprising that is demanding urgent and far-reaching action to address the world's climate crisis. "The general problem is not that there's a lack of knowledge, but of action," said one student. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/climate_strike_berlin.jpg…
(2019-01-24). A Disturbing Number of Missouri Towns Evict Residents for Calling the Police. aclu.org The ACLU is urging towns across Missouri to repeal unjust 'nuisance ordinances.' | Over the last few decades in towns and cities across America, local authorities have passed laws that punish people for calling 911 with steep fines and eviction, even when they are seeking police protection. Known as nuisance ordinances, these laws present victims of crime with an impossible choice. As a domestic violence survivor in St. Louis put it: "If I…
(2019-01-24). Headlines for January 24, 2019. democracynow.org Venezuela Accuses U.S. of Attempting to Engineer Coup, Competing Senate Bills to End Government Shutdown Unlikely to Pass, Federal Workers Flood Senate Office Building to Protest Shutdown, Trump to Delay State of the Union Address Until Shutdown Ends, Witness: El Chapo's Sons Murdered Mexican Journalist Javier Valdez, Brazil: Son of President Bolsonaro Linked to Criminal Syndicate, Iowa Anti-Abortion Law Struck Down as New York Pro-Choice Bill Passes, Michael Cohen Cancels Congressional Testimony, Citing Trump's Threats, House Committee to Probe White House Handling of Security Clearances, U.S. Climate Science Ha…
(2019-01-24). Pentagon Climate Change Report Ignores Its Own Role in Fueling the Crisis. mintpressnews.com The U.S. Department of Defense produces more hazardous waste than the five biggest U.S.-based chemical companies combined and is the biggest contributor to global pollution in the world.
(2019-01-24). Egypt 'more dangerous than ever' for peaceful critics. amnesty.org Eight years after the start of Egypt's revolution, the Egyptian people are facing an unprecedented attack on freedom of expression, Amnesty International said today. Tens of thousands took to the streets to demand greater protections for human rights during the 25 January revolution of 2011, but under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi the space for dissent is being crushed out of existence. | Over the course of 2018, the Egyptian authorities arrested at least 113 people simply for peacefully expressing their views. Many were detained without tria…
(2019-01-24). Mexico: Caught Between Bullets and Neglect: Lack of Protection for Defenders of the Territory in the Tarahumara Sierra. amnesty.org This document addresses the Mexican State's failure to effectively protect the defenders of the land, territory and environment in the Sierra Tarahumara, specifically the members of the Rarámuri Coloradas de la Virgen indigenous community. Amnesty International documented the case of Rarámuri defender Julián Carrillo who was killed in October 2018 despite having protection measures from the Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders and Journalists.
(2019-01-24). Mexico: State protection measures were not enough to prevent the killing of environmental defender Julián Carrillo. amnesty.org The Mexican state failed in its obligation to ensure the effective protection of the environmental human rights defender Julián Carrillo, said Amnesty International in the report Caught between bullets and neglect: Lack of protection for defenders of the territory in the Sierra Tarahumara, published today, three months after his death. | "The Indigenous Rarámuri people of the community of Coloradas de la Virgen have for years faced a series of attacks and threats because of their work defending human rights and their ancestral territory," said…
(2019-01-23). There Still Is Time to Limit Global Temperature Rise To 1.5 ∞C. therealnews.com Dr. Christopher Smith of Leeds University explains that meeting the goals of the Paris climate accord remains possible if we end meat consumption and build no new fossil fuels infrastructure
(2019-01-23). MALAYSIA: FULLY RECOGNISE AND PROTECT INDIGENOUS RIGHTS. amnesty.org Amnesty International welcomes the Government of Malaysia's pledges to recognise and protect the rights of Indigenous peoples, and the announcement that it will "seriously" consider the recommendations made by the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM) on Indigenous land rights.
(2019-01-22). "The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee": David Treuer on Retelling Native American History. democracynow.org We end today's show with "The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee," a stunning new book by David Treuer that looks at Native America from 1890 to the present day. The book's powerful mix of memoir, extensive interview and storytelling presents decades of indigenous history that have been sidelined by the mainstream. David Treuer is Ojibwe from the Leech Lake Reservation in northern Minnesota. He teaches literature and creative writing at the University of Southern California.
(2019-01-22). Chase Iron Eyes: Trump's Mocking of Native Americans Gives License to Others to Denigrate My People. democracynow.org As we continue to look at the video that has gone viral showing a group of Catholic high school students apparently mocking an indigenous tribal elder near the Lincoln Memorial, we speak to Chase Iron Eyes, an activist and lead attorney for the Lakota People's Law Project. He is a spokesperson for the Indigenous Peoples March.
(2019-01-22). "I Was Absolutely Afraid": Indigenous Elder on "Mob Mentality" of MAGA Hat-Wearing Students in D.C. democracynow.org On Friday, thousands took part in the Indigenous Peoples March in Washington, D.C. The next day, video went viral of an interaction that took place soon after the march ended between an indigenous elder and a group of Catholic high school students from Kentucky who had attended a March for Life protest the same day. In the video, Omaha elder Nathan Phillips is seen peacefully playing his drum and singing while being encircled by the students—some of whom were wearing red "Make America Great Again" hats. The video appears to show the students taunting and mocking Phillips. Some of the students are seen makin…
(2019-01-17). The Fox in Charge of the Henhouse: Activists Decry Trump's EPA Pick, Coal Lobbyist Andrew Wheeler. democracynow.org Senate confirmation hearings began Wednesday for former coal lobbyist Andrew Wheeler, whom President Trump has nominated to become administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Wheeler has been the acting head of the EPA since Scott Pruitt resigned in July amid an onslaught of financial and ethics scandals. We speak with Heather McTeer Toney, national field director for Moms Clean Air Force and former Southeast regional administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency during the Obama administration. We also speak with Mary Anne Hitt, director of the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign.
(2019-01-14). Jay Inslee's Climate Change Gambit. progressive.org The issue of climate change was barely even mentioned during the last presidential race. Hopefully, Inslee's presence as a candidate will keep that from happening again.
(2018-12-24). A "Massive Outlaw" zcomm.org Interview on Single Payer, Climate Devastation, Impeachment…