Sarah James in Cancun: Protecting the caribou and Gwich'in homelands

Sarah James
Board Member/Spokesperson
Neet’sai Gwich’in, Arctic Village
Photo: Sarah James in Cancun. Photo copyright Brenda Norrell.
Listen to Sarah James, live from Cancun, where the UN Climate Change Conference, COP 16, is underway. Sarah James is here for the protection of the Gwich'in and caribou homelands.
"We are the Ones Who Have Everything to Lose"
Maybe there are too few of us to matter. Maybe people think Indians are not important enough to consider in making their energy decisions. But it’s my people who are threatened by this development. We are the ones who have everything to lose.
The oil companies keep saying that all their roads and pipelines aren’t going to bother the caribou. But we know the caribou. We know they don’t like all that stuff, especially when they are having their calves. We are concerned about all the salt and chemicals they put on their roads. It can drain onto the tundra, get into the water, and be unhealthy for the young caribou. A report from the Canadian government tells us that the caribou have already been disturbed around the oil fields. If we lose the caribou there will be no more forever." --Sarah James, Gwich'in Steering Committee

Listen to internet radio with Brenda Norrell on Blog Talk Radio

In Cancun, Sarah James shared these facts about how climate change impacts the Gwich'in:
--Petroleum development is a major contributor of greenhouse gases on Alaska's North Slope.
--Warming conditions in the North are three times the mean global estimate.
--The forage habitat of caribou is shrinking with increased forest fires and shifting tundra.
--Melting permafrost compounds climate change by further releasing additional CO2 and methane (greenhouse gases) into the air. This impacts migrating wildlife.
--Warming events have altered the route and time of migration for the Porcupine Caribou Herd, and therefore impacted the subsistence lifestyle of Gwich'in Athabascans.
--Lakes and ponds are drying up as a result of warmer temperatures.
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High level negotiations begin in Cancun
http://www.indypendent.org/2010/12/08/high-level-negotiations-kick-off-in-cancun

CANCUN: President Evo Morales will meet with the People on Thursday

Bolivian President Evo Morales meets with the People in the Movement to Protect Mother Earth

Thursday, Dec. 9, 2010,

3 pm

La Via Campesina!

Centro Deportivo Jacinto Canek

Cruce Av. Tulum y Chichen Itza

Cancun, Mexico

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Today's news from Bolivia and Movement on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth:

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Pablo Solon Responds to Secret U.S. Manipulation of Climate Talks Revealed in WikiLeaks Cable
http://pwccc.wordpress.com/2010/12/06/pablo-solon-responds-to-secret-u-s-manipulation-of-climate-talks-revealed-in-wikileaks-cable/

Cancun March Photos: Solidarity with Huicholes against mining

Photos copyright Robert Free. Huicholes solidify alliances against Real Majestic Silver Mine of Canada and its assault on their sacred lands. Tuesday's Via Campesina Peoples Climate March, Cancun, Mexico.

Read article: Mining threatens Huicholes' sacred place, where they offer prayers to hold the world in balance.

http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2010/12/huicholes-form-alliance-to-fight-mining.html

Cancun: The Peoples March for Climate Justice Begins

Tuesday morning: La Via Campesina's Peoples March for Climate Justice begins! Top Photo: Sarah James, Gwich'in, marched for the protection of the Arctic, homeland of her people and caribou. Photo 2: Chiapas Caravan. Photo 3: March begins. Photos copyright Brenda Norrell.

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BOLIVIA: NEW TEXT BY LCA CHAIR IS IMBALANCED, ALL VOICES MUST BE HEARD
By Plurinational State of Bolivia
(Dec. 6, 2010) In a press conference this morning at the COP16 climate negotiations in Cancun, Ambassador Pablo Solon of the Plurinational State of Bolivia said that a new text released yesterday by the Chair of the working group on Long-Term Cooperative Action is imbalanced, and excludes the proposals of Bolivia and many other developing nations. The main differences, Solon indicated, must be ironed out in negotiations among countries rather than unilaterally decided by a Chair.

“Debates should continue on the negotiating text that includes the proposals of all parties,” Solon said.

Ambassador Solon enumerated some of the proposals by Bolivia that have been left out: a consideration of the impact of war on greenhouse gas emissions, respect for human rights and the rights of indigenous peoples in climate policy, the creation of a declaration on the rights of Mother Earth, a definition of forests that does not include plantations, rejection of new market mechanisms that treat nature as merchandise, and the creation of a climate justice tribunal.

Solon did note that one essential proposal by his delegation remains: a 50% reduction of domestic emissions by developed countries by 2017. He pointed out that this position is very much in line with that of most developing nations in the G77 and China, where the minimum demand is for a 40% reduction.

In response to accusations that Bolivia is blocking progress in Cancun, Solon said that his proposals are motivated simply by the desire to prevent the kind of disastrous rise in global temperatures that would condemn humanity to death.

“We have come to seek an accord for humanity and nature in its totality… The most current research indicates that 300,000 people die each year due to natural disasters. You’re playing with human lives,” Solon said.

Solon indicated that the recent revelation on Wikileaks that countries were pressured by the US government to associate themselves with the Copenhagen Accord was no surprise to the Bolivian delegates. Along with Ecuador, Bolivia had $3 million dollars of climate finanace withdrawn by the US in April 2010 as a result of refusing to sign the Copenhagen Accord.

“It confirms what we’ve been saying all along… That is not a climate negotiation, it’s an imposition. We will not be bought,” Solon said.

The Bolivian negotiator also indicated his intention to remain at the table during the entire course of the talks this week.

“We will never close ourselves off from any kind of negotiation among parties,” said Solon.