In a ceremony presided over by His Excellency, the President of the Republic of Malawi, Dr Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera, the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of the African Risk Capacity Group, in the presence of Representatives of Partners organisations (Ambassador of Germany to Malawi), and of the UN system (WFP and UNDP country directors), delivered a symbolic US$14.2 million … [Read more...]
Climate-resilient seeds for smallholder adaptation
Climate change is threatening food security in many tropical countries, where a large proportion of food is produced by vulnerable smallholder farmers. Interventions are available to offset many of the negative impacts of climate change on agriculture, and they can be tailored to local conditions often through relative modest investments. However, little quantitative … [Read more...]
Mother Earth is not for sale
Mother Earth is Alive! The Earth is alive. Terra Madre, Gaia, Pachamama, Vasundhara… The Living Earth is a self-organised, self-regulating living system. She is autopoeitic, writing the poetry of life, creating the symphony of life, through the harmony of every participating living organism, from the microbes to the mammals. From the molecule, to the cell, to the … [Read more...]
Protesters arrested after oil terminal actions
Five supporters of Just Stop Oil were remanded in custody over the Easter weekend and appeared in court on charges related to actions at oil terminals in support of the demand that the UK government end new oil and gas projects in the UK. Kathryn Dowds, 28, Jake Handling, 27, and Joshua Smith, 29, were charged with aggravated trespass after being arrested during an action at … [Read more...]
Young people start food gardens in the Cape Flats
Perhaps the greatest problem and fear we face in SA today is the millions of unemployed youth walking the streets; many of them with degrees and most with only basic education. This is a recipe for revolution and crime. Young men are often seen as a problem and are more easily caught up in “get rich quick” activities. But there is truly serious and … [Read more...]
Community-based just transition dialogues are a must
Last year, with the climate crises getting worse, Earthlife Africa Johannesburg kicked-off – in various communities in Limpopo, Gauteng, and Eastern Cape – what may be its most important campaign yet, the Just Transition Public Participation Dialogues. In a bid to ensure that communities are not left behind as the country moves toward the just transition, Earthlife Africa is … [Read more...]
Environmental regulation amendments to threaten constitutional rights
Proposed environmental regulation amendments will violate fundamental constitutional rights to public participation, affecting the poor and vulnerable communities disproportionately. On the 31st December 2021 Barbra Creecy, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment gazetted a proposed amendment to the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) - the Section 24H … [Read more...]
Extraction’s devastating impact on small-scale fishers
The Green Connection’s (GC) first ever Oceans Tribunal – which took place on 21-22 September 2021 – was marked by heart-wrenching stories and presentations from small-scale fishers and other communities whose livelihoods are being destroyed by extractive industries. Part of its ‘Who Stole Our Oceans’ campaign, the Tribunal – attended by more than 200 people – aims to … [Read more...]
Creating climate impact with small acts every day
According to a Mail & Guardian article published in 2019, only 58% of Africans have heard the term “climate change,” while four in ten Africans have never heard the term before. Jack Mazingira, Founder of a community-based organisation located in the slums of Nairobi called Towards Green Environment, has seen climate illiteracy first hand. As a trained Climate Reality … [Read more...]
How local governments can put food on the table
2021 is the year of food. After the pandemic exposed how vulnerable food systems are, two global summits are placing food front and center: the UN Food Systems Summit (UNFSS) in September in New York, USA (with the Pre-Summit gathering key actors from July 26-28 in Rome, Italy), and the Nutrition for Growth Summit this December in Tokyo, Japan. Finally, the issue of food is on … [Read more...]
Saldanha Bay initiative links recycling to feeding scheme
In the Saldanha Bay Municipality there is a new initiative to encourage lower-income areas to participate more in recycling by feeding hungry children in return. Since 2016, the Saldanha Bay Municipality’s kerbside recycling collection service has been running well, reaching over 40% participation of households in middle and upper-income suburbs. However, in high-density, … [Read more...]
Mozambican litchi programme brings the sweet taste of success
In a victory for more than 200 smallholder growers, Westfalia Fruit is celebrating a bountiful 2020 litchi season in Mozambique. The returns from the 2020 bumper crop are uplifting a community of small-scale farmers in Manica Province, who, with the help of Westfalia over the past five years, have secured market access to Europe, GlobalGAP status, and a World Bank grant to … [Read more...]
Concerns raised about Saldanha gas-to-power plant
While South Africa struggles to survive the impacts of the CoVid-19 pandemic, along with being ravaged by all the corruption that continues to be exposed, the Green Connection questions our government’s reasoning for pushing through Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs), when there is little or no chance of meaningful engagement with those communities who will be most … [Read more...]
