Friday, December 4, 2009

SIGN THE NYC FOOD CHARTER PLEDGE!










NYC FOOD CHARTER:
10 PRINCIPLES FOR A SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM
Sign here: http://mbpo.org/index.asp

Food has a profound effect on the health and well-being of a community. The purpose of the NYC Sustainable Food Charter is to set forth the values and principles essential to a just, vibrant, and sustainable food system, and to spur the creation of such a food system for all New Yorkers. (A detailed breakdown of the following points is available in the full text link for the petition. -Clean Food Earth Woman)

1. Human Right
2. Equality
3. Health
4. Environment
5. Economy
6. Labor
7. Education
8. Community
9. Collaboration
10. Food Policy
FULL TEXT AND
Sign Petition: http://mbpo.org/free_details.asp?id=179

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

SUSTAINABLE AG MUST BE INCLUDED AT COPENHAGEN!







Now that Unsustainable Agriculture (CAFO's, GMO's) has been reported to yield worse pollution than all transportation combined, Copenhagen MUST ACT to shift all agriculture to sustainables only, planet-wide. NO MO GMO'S!!!! WE must stop the madness of poisoning our food, air, land and water for BIG AG BS!
-Clean Food Earth Woman
If you can get to Copenhagen:
Please Join
The Center for Food Safety & Navdanya International
for the Panel Discussion
“Say No to GMOs – Why Genetically Modified Crops Are Not a Climate or Food Security Solution”
With Dr. Vandana Shiva of Navdanya International, Debbie Barker of Center for Food Safety, and Others
Friday, December 11, 2009
1 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Klimaforum09, Blue Room
DGI-byen, Tietgensgade 65
1704, København V, Denmark
For more information, please contact Rose Clouston at rclouston@icta.org or 1.571.289.7974

And Please Join theInternational Commission on the Future of
Food & Agriculture for a panel discussion on the seminal publication
“Manifesto on Climate Change & the Future of Food Security”
with Dr. Vandana Shiva, Scientist, Activist, Ecologist & Author;
Dr. Giampiero Maracchi, Agrometeorological Institute, National Research Council, Italy;

Debbie Barker, Center for Food Safety; and
Maria Grazia Mammuccini, ARSIA/Region of Tuscany, Italy

Sunday, December 13, 2009
1 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Klimaforum09, Orange Room
Copies of the Manifesto will be distributed.
The session will be in English and translated for others.

For more information, please contact Caroline Lockhart at carolinelockhart@yahoo.com

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

HOW TO SAY NO TO GMO'S

Climate Agreement Must Support Shift Toward Sustainable Agriculture
New paper series tackles climate challenges for agriculture
MINNEAPOLIS - December 1 - To effectively address global climate change, policy solutions must support a transition toward more sustainable agriculture systems that recognize the critical role agriculture plays in the world, concludes a series of issue briefs released today by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP). The papers are being published a week before global climate talks begin in Copenhagen.

“We cannot truly address climate change without getting it right on agriculture,” said IATP President Jim Harkness. “Agriculture is a contributor to climate change, but just as importantly it profoundly affects land use around the world, and has the potential to be part of the solution. Smart climate policy for agriculture can help address hunger, support rural livelihoods, improve water quality and biodiversity, and strengthen our energy security.”

The climate series covers a wide range of topics:

· Agriculture and Climate—The Critical Connection, by Jim Kleinschmit, gives an overview of the science of agriculture and climate change.

· Putting Agriculture on the Global Climate Agenda, by Anne Laure Constantin, sets benchmarks for including agriculture within global climate negotiations.

· U.S. Climate Policy and Agriculture, by Julia Olmstead, reviews how agriculture is considered in U.S. legislation and makes recommendations for a better approach.

· Speculating on Carbon: The Next Toxic Asset, by Steve Suppan, analyzes how Wall Street speculators could influence agriculture and climate goals.

· Eye of the Storm: Integrated Solutions to the Climate, Agriculture and Water Crises, by Shiney Varghese, explains water’s role in the climate and agriculture crises.

· Climate Inequity, by Shalini Gupta and Dr. Cecilia Martinez, traces the historical inequities that have contributed to climate change, and proposes a more equitable climate policy.

“We are at a unique moment in history that compels us to face several crises at the same time,” said Harkness. “In addition to global warming, there are now over one billion people around the world who are hungry. Our financial meltdown has led to growing unemployment, particularly in rural communities. A shift toward low-input, sustainable agriculture systems is a crucial part of building a greener, more stable economy and addressing each of these crises.”

IATP is sending a delegation of eight to Copenhagen and will conduct a series of workshops on climate and agriculture. You can read all the issue briefs, watch videos with the authors and find out more about IATP’s activities in Copenhagen at: www.iatp.org/climate.
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The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy works locally and globally at the intersection of policy and practice to ensure fair and sustainable food, farm and trade systems.

CONTACT: IATP
Ben Lilliston
Communications Director
(612) 870-3416
blilliston@iatp.org
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2009/12/01-15