Global Economic Justice
Vulnerable communities living in poverty, both at home and abroad, are the first and most directly impacted by climate change. And global economic forces, from the World Bank to free trade regimes, consumption patterns in the Global North to the activities of extractive industries, serve only to increase their vulnerability. The Economic Justice Track will critically examine the linkages between the ecological crisis and unjust economic structures, and explore alternative visions that uphold human dignity, community wellbeing and ecological sustainability.
Saturday, March 14th
10:45 - 12:15am: Workshop Time I
Global Economic Justice Track Plenary Lagos to Louisiana: Poverty and Climate Justice
Climate change affects us all, but communities living in poverty, in the U.S. as well as globally, face the most devastating and direct impacts on their lives and livelihoods. With much creativity and little external support, they are struggling to adapt to shifting weather patterns and other challenges posed by global warming. Join us to hear the stories and perspectives of climate justice activists working with vulnerable communities in Nigeria and the U.S.
Speakers: Leo Atakpu, Nigeria Civil Society Network for Water and Sanitation & Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice; Nia Robinson, Environmental Justice and Climate Change Initiative; Moderated by Jessica Walker Beaumont, American Friends Service Committee.
4:30 - 6:00pm: Workshop Time II
Food Crisis: How did we get here and what do we need to do?
In the same way that today's financial crisis shows the need for fundamental reforms to the financial system, the food crisis shows the fundamental flaws of the world food system. Hundreds of millions of people face hunger although more than enough food is produced to feed everyone. How did the push for globalized trade and deep cuts in international aid for small scale agriculture help bring about the crisis? What fundamental changes are needed to guarantee access to healthy food for all human beings?
Speakers:Karen Hansen-Kuhn, Action Aid; Sr. Claudine Dumbi, Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, Democratic Republic of the Congo; Moderated by Susan Thompson, Medical Mission Sisters Alliance for Justice
Climate Change Adaptation: Rights & Responsibilities
Countries in the Global South have contributed little to the carbon emissions driving global warming, yet are the most directly impacted by the consequences. As a matter of equity and responsibility, industrialized countries have an obligation to help vulnerable countries adapt to the challenges of climate change. But money alone is not enough - how it is distributed, who receives it and to what ends it is used remain crucial questions. Join us to discover how the church and ecumenical community around the world are responding; learn about the concerns with the World Bank's Climate Investment Funds; and consider the alternatives being proposed.
Speakers:Janet Redman, Institute for Policy Studies; Rajyashri Waghray, Church World Service; Moderated by Theresa Polk, Center of Concern
The Roots of Migration
In the ongoing debate on migration, one question remains regrettably absent: why? Why do millions of Latin Americans make the unlikely decision to leave their communities and cross a dangerous desert in order to live in a country with increasingly draconian anti-immigrant laws? U.S. economic policies, particularly free trade agreements, play an often unacknowledged role in exacerbating international migration trends. Drawing on personal testimony from recent immigrants and stories from partners in Latin America, this workshop will explore how the hidden consequences of globalization drive millions of people to seek a living in the United States. Participants will also gain an understanding of where efforts at comprehensive migration reform are currently, and learn what concrete actions can be taken in the next two years to push for a fair and humane reform.
Speakers:Gustavo Torres, CASA de Maryland; Ricardo Juarez, Mexicanos sin Fronteras; Antonia Peña, Committee of Women Seeking Justice; Ben Beachy, Witness for Peace.
Sunday, March 15th
2:00 - 3:30pm Workshop Time III
Global Economic Justice Track Plenary A Garden for All: Connections between Economic and Climate Justice
In his inaugural Mass, Pope Benedict XVI reflected that "the earth's treasures no longer serve to build God's garden for all to live in, but they have been made to serve the powers of exploitation and destruction." Join Columban Father Sean McDonagh and Dominican Sister Miriam MacGillis as they explore what our faith has to say about the linkages between economic and climate justice, and what wisdom our traditions may offer in creating a more just and sustainable future.
Speakers:Fr. Sean McDonagh, SSC, Missionary Society of St. Columban; Sr. Miriam Therese MacGillis, OP, Genesis Farm; Moderated by Fr. James Hug, SJ, Center of Concern.
3:45 - 5:15pm: Workshop Time IV
Caring for Creation: Resource Extraction, Climate Crisis, and the Necessity of Economic Policy Reform
The tremendous economic expansion of the past decades has been heavily dependent on the unceasing extraction of fossil fuels and other natural resources. International Financial Institutions, such as the World Bank, have played a key role in promoting and financing these activities despite accumulating evidence as to their negative impact on communities and the environment, particularly in the Global South. As climate change becomes an increasingly urgent concern, and the ecological limits of the Earth more apparent, activists are challenging the growth paradigm underlying the Bank's financing decisions and current global economic structure, and seeking to create alternative visions to promote local control, sustainable management and just distribution of resources. Join us to learn more about the role of international financial institutions in climate finance and to discuss how a steady state economy model might offer a way forward.
Speakers:Karen Orenstein, Friends of the Earth; Brian Czech, Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy; Moderated by Marie Dennis, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns.
Taking It Home: Organizing for Global Economic Justice in Your Local Congregation
You've spent two days at Ecumenical Advocacy Days, learning about climate change, global poverty, debt cancellation and just trade. The next challenge is to bring what you've learned back to your home congregation and inspire others to join the movement for global economic justice! Join this workshop to learn community organizing approaches that can help you connect these global issues to the lives of people in your community. Come to share and explore creative ideas and strategies to engage your congregation and help it to be a prophetic and powerful force for God's justice in the world.
Speakers:Mercedes Mack and Carly Pildis, Jubilee USA; Dave Kane, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns.
Financial Crisis: A Global Problem Needing Global Solutions
The Group of 20 (G20) industrialized and emerging economies will reconvene in April 2009 to discuss their ongoing response to the global financial crisis. Yet the effects of the crisis have spread far beyond the small group of countries and interests which will be represented at the table, impacting countries around the world and resources available for development aid, debt alleviation, food security and to respond adequately to climate change. Learn more about the global repercussions of the financial crisis; examine some of the economic policy changes that will be necessary; and discuss how a more participatory and just response to the crisis could be achieved.
Speakers: Sarah Anderson, Institute for Policy StudiesStudies; Leo Atakpu, Nigeria Civil Society Network for Water and Sanitation & Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice; Moderated by Jessica Walker Beaumont, American Friends Service Committee.
Speaker Bios:
Leo Atakpu: Leo Atakpu is the National Coordinator and co-founder of Nigeria Civil Society Network for Water and Sanitation (NEWSAN) and Deputy Executive Director of the Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ). NEWSAN is a Nigerian network consisting of more than 100 local groups working on a diverse set of water related issues in the country. NEWSAN follows national policy on water and sanitation, opposing the privatization of water and seeking to improve access for Nigerians. Leo's work with ANEEJ is deeply involved with international policies, such as World Bank lending and its impact on Nigeria's ability to provide water to its residents.
Sr. Miriam Therese MacGillis, OP: Sr. Miriam MacGillis is a member of the Dominican Sisters of Caldwell, New Jersey and co-founder of Genesis Farm (http://www.genesisfarm.org/index.htm), a learning center for Earth studies in New Jersey. The farm practices Biodynamic methods of agriculture which are in tune with the natural rhythms of Earth. Miriam also coordinates programs exploring the work of Thomas Berry as he has interpreted the New Cosmology, and lectures extensively in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Asia and the Pacific.
Fr. Sean McDonagh, SSC: Sean McDonagh, SSC, a Columban priest from Ireland, was one of the first voices to bring theology to bear on environmental matters. His book, To Care for the Earth: A Call for a New Theology, was published in 1986 and was born from his experiences in the Philippines. As a missionary among the T'boli people of Mindanao for over 20 years, he saw the destruction of the tropical forests and the devastating results for the people and the world. He has written numerous books since then describing current and potential environmental catastrophes connected to human activity, including international debt, trade issues and genetic modification. Presently, Fr. McDonagh serves as the coordinator for Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation research for the Columbans.
Nia Robinson: Nia Robinson is Director of the Environmental Justice and Climate Change Initiative (http://www.ejcc.org/) and co-author of A Climate of Change: African Americans, Global Warming, and a Just Climate. Before joining EJCC, she worked as an organizer and labor relations representative with Service Employees International Union and was an environmental justice activist working with Detroiters Working for Environmental Justice and the Earth Tomorrow Program of the National Wildlife Federation in Detroit Public High Schools.