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 Newsletter - 3 / 2011 |
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Do you remember? A good four years ago, in Hamburg’s City Hall in May 2007, we celebrated the birth of the World Future Council. Since then we have achieved a lot. 2010 was the most successful year of the World Future Council. In particular we made real breakthroughs with our work in Climate and Energy. We put important issues on the political agenda, including our campaign for ombudspersons for the interests of future generations.
Of course, it is not always easy to secure financial support for the work for future generations. We experience time and again, however, that our work truly makes a difference and this motivates us. We hope to count of your continued support in our fifth year!
With best regards from Hamburg,
Alexandra Wandel
Executive Member, Management Board
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"There is a value that unites all: Children"
Deutsche Welle sits down with WFC Founder Jakob von Uexküll in a detailed interview as part of its theme on human rights.
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Preparations are in full swing for the International Conference on Renewable Energy and Gender which is organised by our African Renewable Energy Alliance (AREA) and will take place from June 29th to July 1st in Abuja, Nigeria. A highlight will be the solar-powered public viewing of the Women’s Football World Cup match between Germany and Nigeria. We are pleased to work jointly with our partners the Heinrich Böll Foundation, the Energy Commission of Nigeria, the ECOWAS Regional Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE), the Alternative Energy Africa Magazine and the Bosch Solar Energy AG.
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© Nathalie Bertrams
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New Honorary Councillor: UN Biodiversity Chief
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We celebrate a prominent new international personality in our Council: Dr. Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, is our newest Honorary Councillor. Under the banner “Biodiversity is Life. Biodiversity is Our Life,” Dr. Djoghlaf was key in the success of last year’s UN biodiversity summit and adoption of the historic Nagoya Biodiversity Compact by 193 countries. Read more about his work.
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Breathe in, breathe out, and drop the Coke
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Buddhist, economist, two-time nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize and WFC Councillor Sulak Sivaraksa reflects on the habits of Western societies in his newest book. In an interview with 'The Independent' Sholto Byrnes writes, “Sivaraksa's view is that true happiness is not to be found in material gains or in the constant pursuit of unlimited growth, but starts with the search for inner calm.”
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© Koa Books
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New money for the Green Climate Fund
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At the UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn we will organize a Side Event on June 11th to introduce our proposal for financing the Green Climate Fund. We will demonstrate that financing the transition to renewable energy in less industrialised countries with money from the newly created Special Drawing Rights of the IMF is more powerful than redistributing existing funds.
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On June 7th Councillor Prof. Dr. Rolf Kreibich of the Institute for Future Studies and Technology Assessment will speak on the topic ‘Can the future still be saved?’ in a special series at the Ecumenical Centre of Berlin.
Visionary biodiversity policies
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Together with the Centre for International Sustainable Development Law (CISDL) we will organise a workshop on biodiversity policies at the first meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Nagoya Protocol on June 9th in Montreal, Canada. At the workshop WFC Director Alexandra Wandel will introduce the biodiversity laws which were honoured with the Future Policy Award in 2010.
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To whom does the world belong?
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For many years and on many levels our Councillor Vandana Shiva has fought to ensure that common goods such as seeds and water belong to all, now and in the future. With her commitment, she has in recent years become one of the major protagonists of the global justice movement. On the 23rd of August she will be a guest at the International Summer Festival in Hamburg.
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A double threat: nuclear risk and climate change
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Our newest study examines the convergence of nuclear and climate change threats and its implications for global security. It is the outcome of groundbreaking research by the WFC Peace and Disarmament Working Group member Prof. Dr. Jürgen Scheffran, who presented the report last month at the Mayors for Peace seminar on the ecological and humanitarian consequences of nuclear warfare in Geneva.
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Appeal for greater accountability
Parliamentary ombudspersons can encourage more political transparency, explains Councillor Dr. Sándor Fülöp at the European Commission’s Green Week. The WFC demands the establishment of such ombudspersons and is campaigning for it. At the European Parliamentary Hearing on Rio+20 Dr. Fülöp and WFC Director Future Justice Dr. Maja Göpel continued to push for a mandate for ombudspersons as one concrete solution to tackle weak monitoring and accountability in current governance structures. Watch the appeal from Councillor Shawn A-in-chut Atleo.
The post-fossil era: how will cities look in 2050?
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Which obstacles will we need to overcome? What can cities of Europe, the US and the emerging nations do? Answers to these questions were the focus of the "Urban Futures 2050" conference in Berlin, organized by the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation in cooperation with IZT. WFC Director Climate and Energy Stefan Schurig moderated a panel discussion on these questions with representatives of developing countries and emerging economies.
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Get information on all other recent events here.
To successfully continue our work, we depend on partners and people willing to support its projects. If you are interested, please contact the World Future Council. You can read more about ways to support us here.
We are grateful for donations to:
World Future Council
GLS Bank
Acc. No.: 200 900 4000
Sort Code: 430 609 67
IBAN: DE70 4306 0967 2009 0040 00
BIC (SWIFT-Code): GENODEM1GLS
Make an online donation here.
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Ingrid Heindorf
For more information about the World Future Council, its goals and activities please see our website:
www.worldfuturecouncil.org
Contact: World Future Council, Mexikoring 29, 22297 Hamburg, Germany, Phone: +49 (0)40-30 70 914-0, Email: info@worldfuturecouncil.org
The WFC gratefully acknowledges all donations.
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