EarthAction

UN General Assembly calls for an end to the war in Ukraine

The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution late last night (Feb 23), calling for an end to the war and demanding Russia’s withdrawal from Ukraine, in line with the UN Charter.

Coming just hours before the war entered its second year, the resolution was adopted under the Uniting for Peace mandate, which provides the possibility for the UN General Assembly to take action to address acts of aggression or other serious threats to international peace when the Security Council is blocked by the veto power of one of the Permanent Five Members.

The UNGA resolution, entitled Principles of the Charter of the United Nations underlying a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine contains 11 key points including;

• Deploring the dire human rights and humanitarian consequences of the war;
• Expressing deep concern about the adverse impact of the war on global food security, energy, nuclear security and safety and the environment;
• Calling for full adherence by the parties to the armed conflict to their obligations under international humanitarian law;
• Emphasizing the need to ensure accountability for the most serious crimes under international law committed on the territory of Ukraine through independent investigations and prosecutions at the national or international level, and ensure justice for all victims and the prevention of future crimes;
• Underscoring the need to reach, as soon as possible, a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine in line with the principles of the Charter of the United Nations;
• Reaffirming that no territorial acquisition resulting from the threat or use of force shall be recognized as legal;
• Demanding that the Russian Federation withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized border;
• Calling for a cessation of hostilities.

Time for Russia to End the Continuing War Against Ukraine
InDepthNews, February 23

"Russia should end its invasion of Ukraine, withdraw its troops from Ukrainian territory and enter into negotiations with Ukraine to resolve historical disputes and establish a lasting and just peace that guarantees the security of both nations," says the World Future Council in an article Time for Russia to End Continuing War Against Ukraine published in InDepthNews yesterday.

“Regardless of any grievances and unresolved conflicts that Russia may have with Ukraine and the United States/NATO, the use of force to resolve such conflicts is prohibited under Article 2 of the UN Charter,” says Alyn Ware, Director of the World Future Council Peace and Disarmament program.

"War has no place in the 21st century when humanity already needs to address so many pressing issues such as climate change and implementing the Sustainable Development Goals” says Angelina Davydova, in the InDepthNews article. Ms Davydova is a Member of the Ukraine War Environmental Consequences Work Group and Council Member of World Future Council.

“We regret that better use is not made of diplomacy, mediation and Common Security mechanisms earlier in conflicts to address and resolve historical grievances." says international lawyer Neshan Gunasekera, Co-Chair of the World Future Council Peace and Disarmament Commission and a Director of the International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms. “We call on the United Nations and the international community to make better use of these common security mechanisms to address unresolved conflicts and prevent war." 

Such Common Security mechanisms include the UN Security Council, UN General Assembly, International Court of Justice, UN mediation services, UN Human Rights Council, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and others.

UN to Publish Comprehensive Global Land Outlook 2

Media Advisory
 

Chronic Land Degradation: UN to Publish Comprehensive Global Land Outlook 2 Report Wednesday, 27 April 2022

 

Contacts: 
Terry Collins, +1-416-878-8712 (m), [email protected]
Wagaki Wischnewski, +49-228-815-2820;
+49-173-268-7593; 
[email protected]

 

A new report from the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), to be released Wednesday, 27 April 2022, offers both stark warnings and hundreds of practical ways to effect local, national and regional land and ecosystem restoration. 
 
UNCCD’s evidence-based flagship Global Land Outlook 2 (GLO2) report, five years in development with 21 partner organizations, and with over 1,000 references, is the most comprehensive consolidation of information on the topic ever assembled. 
 
It offers an overview of unprecedented breadth that includes new analyses of various future land scenarios and the potential contributions of land restoration investments to climate change mitigation, biodiversity conservation, poverty reduction, human health and other key sustainable development goals.
 
Report embargo: Wednesday, 27 April 2022
09:00 US EDT / 13:00 GMT / 14:00 UK Summer Time / 15:00 CEST
(check local time here) 
 
GLO2 is being released shortly before the UNCCD’s 15th session of the Conference of Parties opens in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire (COP15, 9-20 May, www.unccd.int/cop15). 

The first GLO edition in 2017 underscored the wide-ranging drivers, risks, and impacts of persistent land degradation, which have intensified considerably in the last five years – increasingly evident in the deterioration of human health and stable livelihoods.
 
The new report sets out the rationale, enabling conditions, and diverse pathways by which countries and communities can design and implement a customized land restoration agenda. 

Advance access to the GLO2 report and a summary for decision makers, will be available next week. 
 
Advance embargoed interviews with report authors and officials are also available.
 
A high-level virtual launch will be followed by a press conference Wednesday,27 April 2022

The press conference will begin 27 April 2022 at 09:00 US EDT / 13:00 GMT / 14:00 UK Summer Time / 15:00 CEST (check local time here)  

To register for the press conference, and to receive the advance embargoed media materials, please email the following to [email protected] 

• Media organization 
• First Name
• Last Name
• Position
• Email
• Telephone
• City
• Country

 
A formal launch of GLO2 will take place Tuesday, 10 May 2022, during the high-level segment of the UNCCD’s 15th Conference of Parties (COP15, 9-20 May), Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.  
 
COP15 programme, registration and other media information: https://www.unccd.int/cop15

 

About the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
 

The UNCCD, established in 1994, is the only legally binding framework set up to address desertification and the effects of drought. There are 197 Parties to the Convention, including 196 country Parties and the European Union. The Convention aims to mitigate the impact of land degradation by uniting governments, scientists, policymakers, the private sector and communities around a shared vision to restore and manage the world’s land, and to ensure the sustainability of the planet and the prosperity of future generations.

Focus on land to safeguard climate and sustain life

Media Advisory
 

French Spanish Russian Arabic Chinese
 

Focus on land to safeguard climate and sustain life on our planet 

Côte d’Ivoire hosts first major conference in 2022 to tackle the interconnected challenges of land degradation, climate change and biodiversity loss 

The fifteenth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP15) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) will take place in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, from 9 to 20 May 2022. Heads of State, ministers and delegates from 196 countries are expected to attend this major event on the future of land management, alongside private sector, civil society, women and youth leaders. 

Journalists and media organizations worldwide are invited to attend the Conference to cover the meeting and participate in all events organized for the media. Online Registration | UNCCD  is now open for media wishing to participate in person or virtually.  

The COP15 theme, ‘Land. Life. Legacy: From scarcity to prosperity', is a call to action to ensure land, which is the lifeline on this planet, continues to benefit present and future generations.  

The Conference will focus on the restoration of one billion hectares of degraded land between now and 2030 and tackling the growing impacts of droughts, sand and dust storms, and wildfires. COP15 will also take action on key policies that can enable action on restoration, particularly land rights, gender equality and the role of youth in future land stewardship.  

In addition to formal negotiations, COP15 will include a high-level segment on 9-10 May. UNCCD COP15 will be the first of the three Rio Conventions meetings to be held in 2022, with Biodiversity COP15 and Climate change COP27 convening later this year in Kunming, China and Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, respectively. 

The Convention unites governments, scientists, policymakers, the private sector and communities around a shared vision to restore and manage the world’s land. The last Conference of the Parties took place in New Delhi, India, in 2019. It was preceded by COP13, which took place in Ordos, China.  

Journalists are required to submit the following documentation to be considered for participation. 

• Duly filled online application form 

• An electronic passport photograph 

• Official press card or a company photo identity card  

• Letter of assignment to cover the event 

On request, the secretariat will provide accredited foreign journalists with a Note Verbale to secure visas from the Embassy of Côte d’Ivoire closest to them.  

Detailed information on COP15, including the provisional agenda, is available here: cop15.  

For more information and to register, contact: Wagaki Wischnewski, [email protected] 

Read more about the UNCCD here

Invitation to COP26 virtual launch event

Dear Friends and Colleagues, 

 

I am delighted to invite you to attend the launching of a major new global initiative which will be announced on November 2 at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow. At its centre is a new coalition of governments called the Green Grids Initiative – One Sun One World One Grid, which will be announced in the World Leaders’ Summit during the first two days of COP26 by a group of presidents and prime ministers. The Climate Parliament, an international network of legislators which has been developing this initiative over the last few years, is organising a simultaneous virtual event. We’d be delighted if you could join us.  

 

Our objective is to accelerate the construction of the new energy system, powered by the sun, that’s needed if we’re to run the entire world economy on renewable energy. Solar panels on every rooftop need to be combined with a massive expansion of desert solar power stations and large-scale wind farms, including offshore. Continental-scale grids need to link together the best locations for wind and sun to ensure a reliable supply of affordable, clean energy for everyone. Villages that have no electricity need to be equipped with mini-grids to harness their local renewable resources. The new green grids need to deliver enough power to run our transport system on clean energy. And all this needs to happen extremely fast if we’re to have any hope of staying within a safe global carbon budget to keep the planet’s temperature rise below 1.5C. 

 

The Green Grids Initiative represents a parallel strategy alongside the ongoing climate talks. While discussions about emissions targets continue, our aim is to just get on with building the new energy system in all parts of the world as fast as possible. With the right grid infrastructure, there are ample resources of sun, wind and water to power every home, every car and every factory, thus eliminating the fossil fuels that cause more than 75% of greenhouse gas emissions. 

 

Invitations are going out to governments now to participate in the intergovernmental coalition. The UK is playing a leading role as the summit host, as is India. France has informally confirmed its participation, as have a number of African governments. We are hoping that the US will participate. 

 

We’re also well aware that in most of the governments that will participate in the Green Grids Initiative – One Sun One World One Grid the level of political will is not yet sufficient for an energy transition at the speed and scale required. That’s why, alongside the coalition of governments, we are bringing together Members of Parliament and Congress, as well as citizen groups, who all have a key role to play in pressing governments to move faster. The Climate Parliament has created a Green Grids Leadership Forum to engage interested civil society organisations, philanthropies and youth movements in the initiative, as well as companies who are pursuing the energy transition. 

 

Regional working groups of the Green Grids Initiative have been established in Africa and Asia, involving international organisations such as the African Union and the African Development Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the Green Climate Fund, the International Energy Agency, the International Renewable Energy Agency, the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, UNIDO, the World Bank and many others. 

 

Given the central importance of increasing political will, we’re planning to get started right away with a virtual launch event that will bring together influential voices from many parts of the global community over the course of an hour or two, with Members of Parliament and Congress playing a central role.  

 

Our global online event will be convened by the Climate Parliament, which has been laying the groundwork for the Green Grids Initiative over several years in conversations with energy ministers and heads of government. (A short documentary describing this process can be found on Amazon Prime Video, or here, entitled The Energy Internet.)  

 

The event will begin with a five-minute film, and then tune into the announcement at the World Leaders’ Summit, where ten presidents and prime ministers will be on the stage. This will be followed by a global discussion. Through our network of legislators we will assemble a large audience of journalists as well as concerned citizens, so that the event will serve as a kind of global press conference among other things. After the first hour, we will divide into a parallel series of regional discussions in all parts of the world, in which questions from journalists and citizens can be addressed by legislators from that region. This is an opportunity for you to ask questions on key issues you are concerned about.  

 

Our virtual launch event will begin at 2 PM Greenwich Mean Time on Tuesday, November 2. The event being online, you can participate from anywhere. We very much hope that you might be interested in joining us. The Green Grids Initiative represents an extremely ambitious effort to build the new energy system at unprecedented speed. It will face many obstacles from special interests and bureaucratic inertia, and it won’t succeed without pressure from its friends. 

 

There is a link to register on the home page of the Climate Parliament website here.

 

 

We look forward to hearing from you. 

 

Kind regards, 

 

Nicholas Dunlop

Secretary-General

Climate Parliament

www.climateparl.net

United Nations Day Against Nuclear Tests

Climate change and nuclear weapons are two existential threats to human survival that share a number of connections, according to participants at Nuclear Weapons & Climate Change, an intergenerational symposium that was held at Central Hall Westminster in London and online last week (Thursday, 9 September 2021).

Over 300 legislators, experts, government officials and representatives of civil society organizations from more than 60 countries met with youth leaders in the climate action and nuclear disarmament movements to discuss effective action to address these two existential threats to current and future generations.

The event, held in commemoration of the International Day Against Nuclear Tests, was co-organised by Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament, the Kazakhstan Embassy to the UK, Nursultan Nazarbayev Foundation and Youth Fusion.

Connections between climate change and nuclear disarmament

The event highlighted that climate change and nuclear weapons, in addition to being the two most serious threats to the survival of human civilization, share other similarities and connections:

• The impacts of climate change emissions and the use of nuclear weapons are trans-border and transgenerational. They cannot be contained in either time nor space – impacting globally and far into the future;
• Neither issue can be resolved solely at national levels, but require international cooperation and the building of common security;
• Climate change stimulates conflicts that could spill over into nuclear conflict, while any use of nuclear weapons in armed conflict would create catastrophic climatic consequences, compounding the current impact of climate change emissions;
• The human and financial resources currently devoted to nuclear weapons are desperately required to instead be invested in assist carbon emission reduction and climate stabilisation.

Effective measures to address the threats of nuclear weapons and climate change

Lord Hannay of Chiswick, Co-Chair of the UK All-Party Parliamentary Group on Global Security and Non-Proliferation, in his opening keynote address, outlined the key challenges associated with nuclear weapons and climate change.

On the nuclear weapons issue, he called for progress on key measures including adoption of a new START treaty to reduce the nuclear arsenals of Russia and the USA, a renewal of the Iran nuclear deal and a renewed dialogue of the P5 (China, France, UK, Russia and USA) in Strategic Stability which should include consideration of the adoption of no-first-use policies. (For more on no-first-use policies see NoFirstUse Global).

On the climate issue, Lord Hannay highlighted the importance of the COP 26 conference in Glasgow in November this year, and the need to ensure monitoring and implementation of climate agreements, which have been lacking so far.

Most important in both nuclear disarmament and climate protection is building political commitment. “We cannot afford to say that the global challenges outlined today are too many to ask the international community to take on at one time,’ said Lord Hannay. ‘We do not realistically have the choice to address them sequentially. We need to find the political will and the resources to deal with them now.” 

Inter-generational panels

Youth leaders in climate action and nuclear disarmament who spoke in the panel sessions. From left to right: Marie-Claire Graf (Switzerland), Global North Focal Point for YOUNGO, the Children and Youth constituency to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; Aigerim Seitenova (Kazakhstan), Member of OSCE Core Group of Youth Experts; Nicole Ann Ponce(Philippines), Co-Founder of the I am Climate Justice movement, Core Team Member of World's Youth for Climate Action; Kehkashan Basu (UAE/Canada),Founder and CEO of The Green Hope Foundation. Member of the World Future Council. Winner. 2016 Children's International Peace Prize. Winner of the 2020 Voices Youth Gorbachev-Shultz Legacy Award for Nuclear Disarmament.

The event featured four inter-generational panels on the topics Impacts of nuclear weapons testing and use, Nuclear war and climate change, Move the nuclear weapons money and Legal actions to address nuclear weapons and climate change.

For reports on these panels, please see Legislators, experts, officials and youth discuss climate change and nuclear disarmament connections at special London event.

Military carbon footprint - move the nuclear weapons money

Key issues raised in the event related to the negative influence of the nuclear arms industry, high carbon footprint of the military, massive budgets and investments allocated to military purposes including nuclear weapons and the importance of shifting these budgets and investments to addressing climate stabilisation and sustainable development. This framework is also the focus of the global Move the Nuclear Weapons Money campaign.

Dr Philip Webber, Chair of Scientists for Global Responsibility, compared the global investment required for to stabilise the climate (about $1trillion annually) with the current investments in climate stabilisation (about $400 billion) and the global military budget (about $2 trillion) to demonstrate that the shortfall is about 1/3 of the global military budget. Dr Weber then focused on the UK situation and demonstrated that the UK investments required to meet a net zero 2030 target would be an even smaller percentage of the UK military budget.

He noted that the UK military carbon footprint is about 11 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent – equal to the annual emissions of 6 million cars. In addition, if the UK Trident nuclear weapons were ever used, this would would cause catastrophic climatic consequences. Finally, Dr Webber noted that if funds were re-directed from military to climate action, 5 times as many jobs would be created. (See Dr Webber’s presentation - PDF version or Power point version).

Slide from presentation of Dr Webber comparing UK military spending with the funding required to achieve net zero carbon by 2050, or more ambitiously by 2030.

Slide from Dr Weber's presentation explaining why nuclear-armed countries continue to increase their spending on nuclear weapons despite these funds being required to address the climate crisis.

Closing remarks: action to protect people and the planet

In his closing remarks, Ambassador Idrissov reminded the audience of the significance of Central Hall Westminster, the venue for this event. “In this very premises in January 1946, the very first session of the United Nations General Assembly took place,” said Ambassador Idrissov. ‘And the very first resolution adopted by this UN session established a special commission of the Security Council to ensure the elimination from national armaments of atomic weapons and other weapons of mass destruction. It is sad that 75 years later, we are still struggling to implement this resolution.”

One of the initiatives of Kazakhstan has been a call on the UN and its member states to commit to achieving the goal of nuclear weapons elimination no later than 2045, the 100^thanniversary of the UN. Civil society is supporting this call, and other more immediate nuclear disarmament measures, with Protect People and the Planet: Appeal for a Nuclear-Weapon-Free World (still open for endorsement).

A civil society appeal to prevent nuclear war, eliminate nuclear weapons and redirect nuclear weapons budgets and investments to instead support public health, COVID-19 recovery, the climate and sustainable development. Open for endorsement.

Peace is not everything, but everything is nothing without peace. No to war, militarism, and violence

The Doomsday Clock has moved for the first time in history to just 100 seconds to midnight. The
Nobel prize winners “The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists" justify this move by citing the
dangers of atomic war and the consequences of climate change. The dangers of a great
cataclysmic war have increased in view of the rivalries of the great powers, as have the quantity
and quality of regional conflicts and wars over resources and as consequences of climate
change. Wars are inseparable components of the "new normal."

Peace is not only the absence of war; it covers all dimensions of human existence and the
existence of nature. Peace means global justice and always includes climate justice. This is the
struggle for peace that the World Social Forum has waged since its conception, particularly
related to US interventionism. It is also a struggle against military confrontations wherever they
exist.

For these reasons we are planning on the one hand several public online discussions on the
ongoing military conflicts in West Asia (Yemen, Syria and Palestine) as well as on the
involvement of NATO in Eastern European countries like Ukraine, Armenia and Azerbaijan. On
the other hand, we are going to deal with the militarization of internal political conflicts,
especially in countries where the pandemic has led to an extreme polarization between
authoritarian regimes and its peoples. Some further notes:

1. Anti-militarism today is a rejection of and pressure against the biggest military alliance in
   the world: NATO and its ∼1000 military bases.
2. Special attention should be given to the economic and ecological reasons as well as the
   humanitarian consequences of the ongoing militarization processes in regards to
   repression, human rights violations, and the forced migration of millions of people.
3. Central to militarism is the gross excess of spending on military arms. 2 trillion US dollars
   per year cause deaths on a daily basis are partly responsible for poverty and hunger
   around the world. Disarmament is a central challenge for peace engagement and just
   shaping of the future.
4. Militaristic structures in individual countries and internationally also destroy democracy
   and participation; anti-militarism is therefore always also a struggle for democracy.
5. Small arms are the "weapons of mass destruction" of the 21st century. The daily killing
   and murdering with such weapons demand peace-based political and social responses
   and an international ban.

In all these panel discussions, the audience should be given the opportunity to deliberate the
strategies and mobilizations which not only engage the traditional peace movement, but also
activists, experts, and opinion leaders from other thematic areas like global justice, cultural
diversity, and climate change.

The 24th of January should reflect the diversity of these issues and the central challenge for
peace and global justice.

Reiner Braun, International Peace Bureau; Leo Gabriel, Prague Spring 2, network against far-
right extremism and populism; Kristine Karch, International network ‘No to war - No-to-NATO’.

Read more here

2020 EarthAction Report

2020 EarthAction Report

A Brief Overview of EarthAction’s Projects & Campaigns

2020 Action

Every month, 2020 Action and the 2020 Action Education Fund, both projects of EarthAction, educate and mobilize thousands of US citizens encouraging them to communicate with US policymakers on critically important peace and environmental issues. Each month, 2020 produces a timely Action Alert with meaningful actions for citizens to take to protect our environment and security—usually to contact a policymaker facing a critical decision. For details, read 2020’s 2020 Action Report at 2020Action.org. This is 2020 Action’s 35^th year!

Support for Indigenous Peoples—Save Our Spirits Fund

In 2020, we expanded our collaboration with the Save Our Spirits (SOS) Fund to provide increased support for indigenous and ancestral communities around the world to help them preserve, strengthen, and pass on the spiritual practices and ceremonies and the wisdom of their elders.

This year, EarthAction made SOS grants to support the work of the following groups:

The Elders Project (TEP) in Colombia: We continued to work with and provide assistance to the traditional authorities (Mamos) of the Sierra Nevada of Santa Marta (SNSM) in Colombia. Rick Harlow, the Project Director, made trips to Colombia to work directly with the traditional authorities to help strengthen their spiritual and traditional practices.

Indigenous Peoples Healing Fire at Assonet in Massachusetts was held on Saturday, November 28^th. It was organized by members of the Wampanoag Tribe. We hope this will help to lay the foundation for a permanent Indigenous Healing Ceremony Circle in the greater Boston area.

The Lalakea Foundation for their Nā Wāhine ʻĀpapalani, Hawaiian women cultural practitioners who have been conducting ritual and ceremony on Maunakea for many years and who are dedicated to honoring the sacred Piko O Wākea through prayer, chant and ceremony that acknowledge Nā Kānaka o ka Mauna, Deities of the Mountain, and form connectivity with the sacred through space and time. This project will extend into 2021.

Several Villages in the Hopi Community for their COVID-19 Emergency Response: Hopi Contact Tracing Project. This project will extend into 2021 and train people within the community to carry out contact tracing in a number of Hopi villages that are being hard-hit by the pandemic.

The Cordillera Peoples Alliance, Philippines to assist them with their response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, the distribution of food relief consisting of rice, sugar, salt and cooking oil to a total of 500 families of indigenous people among the Ayangan tribe in the province of Ifugao. They also shared information on COVID-19 and held discussions on food security during the relief distribution in communities and conducted psycho-social sessions among vulnerable groups such as farmers, elders, youth, and informal workers.

Grass-Roots Organization for Women (GROW) in Ghana, for support of their project: Community-based Initiatives to Address the Impact of Corona-19 Virus Pandemic in Rural Indigenous and Local Communities. They are strengthening outreach to prevent the spread of infection and addressing emerging public health issues that impact vulnerable populations in rural areas who lack access to essential services.

Kitanglad Integrated NGOs Inc. (KIN), in Philippines for support of their program: Indigenous Womens Relief Against COVID-19 by Nurturing Culture and Nature. From May through August, KIN provided food and other support to community members, especially women, mothers and youths and their families belonging to the Daraghuyan-Bukidnon Tribe of Dalwangan in Malaybalay City, and the Talaandig Tribe of Songco, Lantapan, and Mt. Nebo, Valencia City. These tribal beneficiaries are partners in forest protection, biodiversity conservation and cultural survival of the tribes of Mts. Kitanglad Range Natural Park and the Mt. Kalatungan Range Natural Park.

Samdhana Institute, Philippines to assist with a response to the COVID pandemic to provide food relief to Erumanen ne Menuvu tribe (Manobo) in Southern Bukidnon, Philippines. Four hundred selected Menuvu families received food relief, to help them survive through the difficult period of the pandemic until they are able to plant for their own food.

Other Campaigns

Throughout the year, EarthAction engaged in many global campaigns for peace, justice and protection of the environment through our website and social media. For example, working with others, we helped to end the construction of hundreds of dangerous dams in Bosnia & Herzegovina, thus protecting Europe’s last remaining wild rivers! For details visit: www.earthaction.org.

Thank You

EarthAction thanks all our Partner Organizations, individual members, donors and Board members for their ongoing participation and support. Special thanks to the Thomas D. Hormel Trust, the Stewart R. Mott Foundation, and the Save Our Spirits Fund.

Let's Celebrate the TPNW

 

On January 22^nd, the world will celebrate the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear weapons, supported by over 120 states at the UN in July 2017.

 

On this historic day, we call on members of the IPB family, our friends and all peace lovers to celebrate this historical step, and deliver this great news with noise and fun in your countries all across the globe, as the road to a world free of nuclear weapons is now wide open!

 

We invite you to join us for a virtual IPB Zoom party where we will celebrate this milestone toward nuclear disarmament together.

 

During the celebration, we want to pay tribute to generations of activists that have tirelessly raised awareness about the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons, since the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. The victims of these bombings and the survivors, the Hibakusha are in our hearts to celebrate together a new era: nuclear weapons are officially illegal when the TPNW will enter into force.

 

Our party will start at 1 p.m. CET and last approximately until 3 p.m. CET on Friday the 22^nd of January.

 

You can look forward to drinking one (or many) of our delicious signature TPNW cocktails in the company of fellow supporters of peace and disarmament.  We have a couple of surprise virtual guests and activities prepared for you but you will have to come and see by yourself!

 

You can attend by signing up to the event here: https://bit.ly/ipbprt

EU and Russia Support UN Call for Global Coronavirus Ceasefire. Cameroon Rebels Announce Ceasefire

In an international appeal issued on Monday March 23, UN Secretary-General (UNSG) António Guterres urged warring parties across the world to observe a ceasefire to assist the battle against COVID-19, which he called ‘the common enemy that is now threatening all of humankind.’ (Click here for his video message).

In addition, Mr Guterres tasked UN Special Envoys in conflict zones to follow up on this appeal. ‘My special envoys will be now working with the parties to the conflict to try to make sure that this global appeal is not only listened to but leads to concrete action, leads to a pause in fighting, creating the conditions for the response to COVID‑19 to be much more effective.’

The appeal appears to be having some impact - although limited so far.

On March 26, a rebel militia in Cameroon, the Southern Cameroons Defence Forces (Socadef), responded by announcing that they would observe a two week long ceasefireso that people could be tested for coronavirus without fear. 

A chief mediator in the Cameroon conflict Mr Alexandre Liebeskind, said that he hoped others would follow Socadef's example, not only in Cameroon but also in other conflicts in Africa. "Sitting in Africa, I am particularly concerned because it's a fragile continent. The economic and social consequences [of coronavirus] could be devastating if it is not quickly contained." 

European Union and Russia support the ceasefire call

Josep Borrell, the European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, has supported the UNSG's call for a ceasefire, tweeting: 

'The call for an immediate global ceasefire by UN Secretary General @antonioguterres is more important than ever. Only together and in peace can we overcome the global #coronavirus pandemic. This is the real fight we need to face today. Unity and solidarity are our weapons.' (@JosepBorellF)

Sergei Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister, released a statement on March 25, supporting the ceasefire call and highlighting key conflicts where a ceasefire is especially important.

"Of special concern are the situations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Libya and Syria, as well in the Palestinian territories, including the Gaza Strip. We note separately the risks associated with the possible deterioration of the epidemiological situation in African countries, where there is a persisting armed confrontation. The localities with camps for refugees and internally displaced persons are particularly vulnerable."

Win Without War urges the United States to Support

Win without War, a United States based campaign, has called on the Trump Administration and US Congress to support the ceasefire call.

'The truth is, it’s going to take all of us, everywhere, doing our part. That’s what every doctor says, every scientist and public health official tells us. Yet in far too many corners of the world, some of us are still trying to kill one another on the battlefield. Right now, we need the entirety of the U.S. government fighting this pandemic, not endless wars.'
Win Without War appeal to President Trump and the U.S. Congress.

US residents can add their support at We Demand a Global Ceasefire.

Call to support global ceasefire by ending weapons production

World Beyond War (WBW) and Peace Brigades International (PBI) Canada, another two organisations promoting the UN call for a ceasefire, are urging campaigners in arms-producing countries to support by ending weapons production and arms transfers. See United Nations Calls For Peace During The Coronavirus Pandemic, But War Production Continues.

They note that the weapons industry is keeping factories open to keep making weapons, even in countries like Italy and the USA where many other businesses are having to close during the worst part of the pandemic. Indeed the arms industry has effectively convinced governments that the defence industry be included as "essential services, [which] may remain in operation.”

WBW has launched an online petition calling for the cancellation of Canada' largest arms show, CANSEC, which is scheduled to take place on May 27-28 and has not been cancelled or postponed.

Webinar on an End to War

World Beyond War is holding a webinar on April 7 on the topic Ending War with keynote speaker David Swanson. Click here for details. 

Taken from UNFOLD ZERO

UN Disarmament Week: Over $500 Billion of Nuke Money Counted - and Shifted to SDGs

From October 24-30 (UN Disarmament Week), a team of volunteers in New York City counted out $542 billion – the approximate global nuclear weapons budget for the next five years – and symbolically reallocated this to climate protection, poverty alleviation and the Sustainable Development Goals. The money was counted in 542,000 mock notes each of value $1million.

The event was part of a global campaign to cut nuclear weapons budgets, end investments in the nuclear weapons industry and re-direct these budgets and investments to peace, disarmament, climate protection and sustainable development.

'Most people have no idea how much is $1 billion, let alone $500 billion, says Holger Gūssefeld, World Future Council adviser and conceiver of the money counting project. 'By counting this note-by-note we come to realise the absolute insanity of investing so much money in devices designed to bring unimaginable misery into the world instead of using these precious resources to solve the global social, humanitarian and environmental problems.’

‘We had hoped to count 1 million notes to make up $1 trillion, the nuclear weapons budget for the next ten years’ said Susanna Choe, Co-founder of Peace Accelerators and one of the main money counters. ‘But this amount of money is so vast, that even counting with notes of $1million and with many volunteers counting, it was too much.’

We filled basket after basket with billions of dollars,’ said Bill Kidd, Member of the Scottish Parliament and another of the main money counters. ‘This money could protect the climate, end poverty, ensure universal health care, support peace and help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals if it were not wasted on nuclear weapons.’

Susanna Choe, Bill Kidd and Vanda Proskova counting nuclear weapons money. Behind them is the graphic which depicts what the money could fund if it was not invested in nuclear weapons.

Money Counting from the United Nations to the City

The money counting started at the United Nations (click here for video of UN launch) and then continued at various locations around the city including:

• With Students Strike 4 Climate (Fridays for Future) in front of the United Nations;
• Outside Jacobs Engineering, a nuclear weapons contractor, during which a letter was delivered to the company informing them of the divestment campaign against them;
• In front of New York City Hall, to support initiatives for the City Council to end investments by NYC pension funds in nuclear weapons companies, and to establish a public committee to advance NYC’s role as a nuclear-weapon-free zone;
• At Strawberry Fields in Central Park (a location honoring John Lennon), Washington Square Park (wth New York University students) and at the Gandhi statue in Union Square;
• The Hub in the Chelsea neighourhood of New York City, where most of the money was counted and re-allocated to baskets representing the 17 SDGs.

Volunteers help count the nuclear weapons money at the Hub.

Move the Nuclear Weapons Money and the SANE Act

The money counting action was part of Move the Nuclear Weapons Money, a global campaign to cut nuclear weapons, end investments in the nuclear weapons industry and re-direct these budgets and investments to peace and sustainable development. (See New anti-nuclear campaign to stop funding of nuclear weapons, Associated Press).

“The nuclear weapons industry is powerful and wealthy, and has a stranglehold on the political process in most of the nuclear armed states,” said Alyn Ware, Co-founder of the Move the Nuclear Weapons Money campaign. “But we can take back this power by supporting legislative efforts to cut nuclear weapons budgets, and by ending investments by our cities, universities, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds and banks in the nuclear weapons industry.” 

U.S. Senator Markey, an endorser of Move the Nuclear Weapons Money, used the opportunity of the money counting week to introduce an updated version of the Smarter Approach to Nuclear Expenditure (SANE) Act. The Act, which was introduced also into the U.S. House of Representatives by Congressman Blumenauer, aims to improve national security and budgetary sanity by cutting redundant and destabilizing nuclear weapons programs.

'The United States should fund education, not annihilation; that is our future,' said Senator Markey. 'We need sanity when crafting America’s budget priorities, and more and improved nuclear weapons defies common sense. The SANE Act cuts nuclear weapons and delivery systems that we don’t need so we can invest in the people and programs that will make America safe and prosperous in the future.'

We encourage U.S. citizens to call on your congress members to endorse the SANE Act. 

Senator Ed Markey, Co-President of Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament and lead sponsor of the SANE Act. Markey is also co-author with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of the Green New Deal.

Money countings in other cities/countries

There were also countings of smaller amounts of nuclear weapons money in London, New Mexico, Philadelphia and New Zealand.

In London, a counting of £5.2billion in 10,400 notes of £500,000 each was organised by Conscience: Taxes for Peace not War and held on Saturday 26 October outside theMinistry of Defence. See Photos of the London event, London Count the nuclear weapons money action flyer or visit the London event facebook page.

In New Mexico there were counting events at Taos Plaza (Taos), State Capital Roundhouse (Santa Fe), Socorro Plaza Gazebo (Socorro) and outside the Los Alamos National Laboratory (Los Alamos).  The events were organised by Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety in cooperation with Youth United for Climate Crisis Action and Taosenos for Peaceful and Sustainable Futures.  See Activists Count ‘Nuclear Weapons Money’ In Los Alamos (Los Alamos Reporter), Photos of the New Mexico countings and the blog $13 billion of public money to be counted for peace at New Mexico nuclear weapons facilities.

In Philadelphia, a counting of $4.5 billion was held on October 24 at City Hall Philadelphia Courtyard organised by the Granny Peace Brigade Philadelphia. The event include songs led by the Grannies such as ‘We are a gaggle of Grannies’. See Photos of the Philadelphia counting and some videos of the counting action.

In New Zealand, a counting event was organised in the New Zealand Parliament co-hosted by PNND Member Louisa Wall MP and the United Nations Association of NZ. New Zealand banned nuclear weapons by legislation adopted in parliament in 1987, and has followed up by ending nuclear weapons investments by government managed funds.  See videos of the New Zealand event.

Money counting with School Strike 4 Peace and Fridays for Future in front of the United Nations.

Counting nuclear weapons money in the rain - in front of the Ministry of Defence in London.

Counting outside Los Alamos National Laboratory (nuclear bomb design and development facility) in New Mexico.

Granny Peace Brigade Philadelphia counting the money and singing cheeky anti-nuclear songs.

Nuclear weapons money event in the New Zealand parliament.

Alyn at the money counting event at Strawberry Fields, imagining what money could support if it wasn't invested in nuclear weapons. Meanwhile a busker sings 'Imagine' in the background.

From Basel Peace Office. Read more here.