Activism News Roundup #7
credit: 350.org in Bangladesh
Even for those of us already concerned about the earth and its climate, September’s extreme weather has been a wake-up call. Time is not on our side as we watch so many communities withstand hurricanes and earthquakes, sometimes in rapid succession. It is more important than ever to stay focused, to lift up the brave activists fighting for their communities and for our earth, and to remember which communities are most impacted by the changing climate and the proliferation of fossil fuels.
Here are stories of people taking action all around the world from recent weeks.
DAPL
DAPL Sues Resisters for $1 Billion
Intercontinental Cry | September 4, 2017 –
“The Fortune 500 company answerable for building the Dakota Access Pipeline across unceded 1851 Ft. Laramie Treaty territory is seeking $1 billion in damages in a new lawsuit against organized opposition involved with the Oceti Sakowin (Great Sioux Nation) struggle to block the private oil infrastructure project.”
If Humanity Doesn’t Turn Back from Climate Abyss, Says Pope, ‘We Will Go Down”
Common Dreams | September 11, 2017 –
“Speaking with reporters as Hurricane Irma barreled up Florida’s Gulf Coast on Sunday, Pope Francis bolstered his reputation as an outspoken advocate of addressing man-made global
Over 1500 Indigenous Communities In Danger of Losing their Land
Intercontinental Cry | September 18, 2017 –
“Argentina’s Indigenous Territorial Emergency Law, which restrains legal evictions and prevents native communities from losing their ancestral lands, expires in November. There are over 1500 communities in danger.”
8 Ways to Help People of Color Recover from Hurricane Irma
Colorlines | September 11, 2017 –
“As millions recover, there will be stark differences in how different communities are able to access necessary financial resources. Here, a list of organizations focused on bringing help to communities of color and groups who may face socioeconomic challenges after Irma.”
‘Unprecedented’ Lofoten Declaration Demands Managed Decline of Fossil Fuel Industry
Common Dreams | September 7, 2017 –
“…a coalition of more than 220 organizations called for a ‘managed decline of fossil fuel production’ on Thursday, with an immediate end to new oil, gas, and coal development. The Lofoten Declaration, named for an archipelago in Norway where drilling by the oil industry has been successfully blocked by environmental groups, demands ‘unprecedented action to avoid the worst consequences of our dependence on oil, coal, and gas.’”
Judge OKs Lawsuit Seeking Better Protection of Puget Sound
Oregon Public Broadcasting | September 20, 2017 –
“Washington’s Department of Ecology faces the possibility of losing millions of dollars in federal money after a judge Tuesday declined to dismiss a lawsuit brought by an Oregon-based environmental group. The lawsuit, by Northwest Environmental Advocates, of Portland, is designed to force the state to do more to protect Puget Sound from pollution or risk losing more than $3.5 million per year in federal support.”
Indigenous Leaders Press Peruvian Government for Prior Consultation and Cleanup of Oil Concession
Indian Country Today | September 3, 2017 –
“Over the past two weeks, indigenous protesters blockaded an access road and airstrip in Peru’s oldest oil concession, Block 192, deep in the Amazon rain forest of Loreto region, as their leaders travelled to Lima to pressure government authorities for a public consultation on future oil drilling there. It was the latest confrontation in a long struggle of indigenous communities to get the government and oil companies to take responsibility for widespread pollution in northeastern Peru that has poisoned the land and rivers and threatened the health of tens of thousands of Natives.”
4 Reasons Trump Can’t Stop the Renewables Revolution
Yes! Magazine | September 20, 2017 –
“1. States that cut carbon emissions are prospering.”
Title: Mayan Communities Able to Identify and Hopefully Protect Territories
Indian Country Today | September 2, 2017 –
“Mayan communities in Belize now have a way to officially identify and potentially protect their territorial boundaries. On August 9, the International Day of the Worlds Indigenous Peoples, the Sarstoon Temash Institute for Indigenous Management (SATIIM) in Belize launched the Maya Lands Registry and announced the project they developed for the Crique Sarco community. In their press statement, SATIIM noted that the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) had ordered the Belize government in 2015 to “create an effective mechanism” to identify and protect Mayan lands in accordance with their traditional governance.”
Indigenous Peoples Face Severe Inequality in Disaster Relief Efforts
Intercontinental Cry | September 23, 2017 –
“…Romero argues that while quantifiable statistics, such as the sheer number of casualties, may cause the earthquake that shook Mexico City this past Tuesday to seem more impactful; indeed, the previous quake on September 8th which hit Chiapas and Oaxaca—Mexico’s two most impoverished states—will likely be more crippling in the long term.”
