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June 2010 Follow KAIROS on Facebook North-South Town Hall Meetings From June 14 to 17, KAIROS undertook a Climate Justice Tour of Canada, with stops in St. John's, Halifax, Fredericton, Victoria, Yellowknife and Regina. Isaiah Kipyegon Toroitich (Program Officer for Policy and Advocacy at Norwegian Church Aid in Kenya), and Naty Atz Sunuc (General Coordinator of CEIBA, the Association for Community Development and Promotion in Guatemala) joined staff and network members on the Eastern tour while Francois Pihaatae (Ecumenical Animator on Climate Change for the Pacific Conference of Churches) and Fred Sangris, a Yellowknives Dene member who studies climate impacts on wildlife, joined us in the West and North. Naty and Isaiah then came to Toronto for the G8/G20 Peoples' Summit, and Francois attended the Interfaith Leaders' Summit in Winnipeg. Participants at the well-attended events had the opportunity to hear first hand about the disproportionate impact of climate change on Southern countries and Canada's north, and to discuss with partners what real solutions to these crises might look like. Suggestions included the adoption of science-based targets and timelines to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, greater conservation in the North, a meaningful shift towards renewable energy, and increased international development funds to ensure the ability of Southern communities to adapt to the changes such as drought, flooding, food shortages and forced migration that are already happening as a consequence of climate change. You too can join in this important conversation about climate justice and building a sustainable economy by reading our discussion paper Charting A Roadmap to a Sustainable Future - PDF and participating in our online discussion group or providing email feedback to Ecological Justice Program Coordinator Dorothy McDougall. KAIROS Update Six Months After... Six months ago KAIROS lost its CIDA funding, ending a 35-year collaboration agreement, through which KAIROS and its predecessors provided support to its partners in the Global South. Canadians from coast-to-coast wrote their MPs, the Prime Minister, and the Minister of International Cooperation, urging them to reinstate the funds, and supporting KAIROS' good work. Thanks to our donors KAIROS has continued to thrive despite this challenge but faces difficult choices in the fall. Read the report on KAIROS' journey over the last six months. The United Nations Declaration On The Rights Of Indigenous Peoples Read the Declaration in online book format. On June 9 the leaders of KAIROS' 11 Churches and religious organizations wrote to Ministers Cannon, Moore and Strahl welcoming the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and urging the government of Canada to fully endorse and implement the Declaration. In this letter (PDF) the Church leaders highlight the First National Event of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission held in Winnipeg from June 16 - 19, 2010. For more information please contact Ed Bianchi Indigenous Rights Program Coordinator ebianchi@kairoscanada.org 613-235-9956 Toll free 1-877-403-8933 How Big Is The BP Oil Slick? Bringing The Scale Of The Disaster Home An interactive map enables users to place the oil spill, scaled, anywhere in the world. The magnitude of the spill is difficult to imagine but the website gives a shocking picture. For those of us in the Great Lakes region, the spill easily fits both Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Halifax? It's easily as big as the entire province of Nova Scotia. Vancouver? The spill could completely engulf Vancouver Island, all the Gulf Islands, extending well inland. But this analysis from KAIROS moves beyond the spill, discussing it comparatively with the Exxon Valdez, the oil devastation in the Niger Delta, and Canada's own Alberta Tar Sands. For more information please contact John Dillon Economic Justice Program Coordinator jdillon@kairoscanada.org 416-463-5312 x 231 Toll free 1-877-403-8933 KAIROS Condemns The Assault And Killing Of People Aboard The Freedom Flotilla To Gaza KAIROS joins churches and concerned people from around world in condemning the assault and killing of innocent people aboard the humanitarian convoy headed to the Gaza Strip. On May 31, the Israeli Navy boarded a ship in international waters that was attempting to deliver humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza, who have been under a crippling Israeli blockade since 2007. At least 9 civilians were killed in the subsequent assault. All on board the four ships were arrested and detained. KAIROS urges our government to join the international community in calling for an end to the Gaza blockade, condemning the attack, and supporting an independent investigation into Israel's actions. Read the full statement. KAIROS is increasingly concerned by the worsening intimidation against Congolese human rights defenders, and the ongoing impunity for crimes committed against them. The death of Floribert brings to mind the 2005 death of Pascal Kabungulu Kibembi, another leading human rights defender and former executive secretary of KAIROS' partner organization in the DRC, Héritiers de la justice. No one has ever been found responsible for Pascal's death.. Read the full story. The Blanket Exercise A Reflection on 'The Blanket Exercise', a teaching tool used to bring awareness about European Settlers, Indigenous Peoples, and Canada's history. Rejoice, peoples of the world, in our tears! Celebrate our pain, our being born again to new hope! Watch over our grief and our setting out afresh to bring justice and hope, to walk and work with the ancient peoples of this land, to rebuild a nation with reconciliation and engagement which brings seeds to life, sees the deserts bloom, and builds firm trunks and mighty trees across our land. The tears will dry. The pain will always remain. No equation can right the wrongs. No need to fear or deny memory, but only to welcome new possibilities, let life burst from the burning, fresh shoots from charred remains, and the beauty of diversity and change redress our ancient land. Excerpt from a poem written by William Loader on Australia's Day of Apology to the Stolen Generations of its Indigenous Peoples - 13 February, 2008 |
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