dutch ministry of foreign affairs (dgis)
We are grateful to the dutch ministry of foreign affairs (dgis) for supporting the following projects in 2008:
africa: mapping the expansion of agrofuels
Switching to agrofuels has been portrayed as a golden opportunity, a ‘green’ solution that could tackle the world’s energy crisis and help to mitigate climate change. Industrialized countries, international financial institutions such as the World Bank, and multinational agribusiness, oil and transport companies are all promoting agrofuels as a panacea to the world’s problems.
ATALC: Sustainability School
building capacity to resist, mobilize and transform in latin america and the caribbean
brazil: demystifying the ‘sustainability’ of ethanol
Brazilian sugar cane ethanol is being sold as a ‘sustainable biofuel’: it is one of the country’s key exports. But during 2008, the global agrofuels ‘fever’ began to cool, as critical voices and resistance movements around the world raised concerns that agrofuels are false solutions to climate change, contributing to the global food crisis and driving continued deforestation.
brazil: how to live well in the city (in times of climate chaos and peak oil)
Poor communities often bear the brunt of environmental and social problems such as climate change and the related global energy crisis – yet they often feel powerless to take action, by, for example, reducing their own greenhouse gas emissions and dependence on oil.
brazil: taking a comic look at 'sustainable agrofuels'
The Brazilian government is a leading proponent of agrofuels, with ambitions to flood the world with sugar cane ethanol.
cameroon: corporations and biodiversity
Cameroon is in Central Africa’s Congo Basin, one of the world’s largest reservoirs of biodiversity. Yet unsustainable logging, mining and large construction projects carried out by foreign transnational corporations are threatening Cameroon’s Indigenous communities and wildlife.
climate justice and energy program
Through our Climate Justice and Energy Program, we fight for justice for the communities affected by climate change and promote energy sovereignty, the right of communities to choose their own sustainable energy sources. (dutch ministry of foreign affairs)
colombia: challenging the privatization of biodiversity and water
In Colombia, transnational corporations (TNCs) are striving to gain control of the country’s biodiversity, creating and deepening environmental conflicts as they appropriate the country’s natural heritage. TNCs’ activities are destroying the livelihoods of communities that used to live in harmony with nature, and threatening their traditional wisdom, knowledge and values. This process of privatization and commodification of life is highly visible in the case of forests and water.
colombia: court overturns controversial forestry law
From the moment the bill to enact a General Forestry Law began its passage through the Colombian Congress more than three years ago, environmental organizations, black communities, peasant organizations, indigenous organizations and others opposed its adoption: it was considered a serious threat to the country’s natural heritage and community rights. Finally, however, the General Forestry Law was passed in April 2006.
community testimonies: where the people speak out
In 2008, Friends of the Earth International continued to give a voice to people around the world through our community testimonies project.
costa rica and el salvador: community exchanges contribute to forest regeneration and organic farming
Rainforests in Central America are threatened by neoliberal policies that promote the replacement of forests with tree plantations, the expansion of monoculture crops such as pineapples, and destructive logging.
december: central america - challenging 'global europe'
The European Union’s ‘Global Europe’ trade liberalizing agenda is driven by the EU’s anxiety to maintain competitiveness in relation to emerging economies such as China and India.
economic justice - resisting neoliberalism program
Our program on Economic Justice - Resisting Neoliberalism challenges the current economic model by exposing and resisting corporate power and the new Global Europe strategy, while identifying and promoting initiatives that generate sustainable livelihoods. (dutch ministry of foreign affairs)
el salvador: building a movement to resist climate change
Climate change is severely affecting the environment and people’s livelihoods in Central America. Rainfall patterns are changing, storms, flooding and droughts are increasing, and crops are failing, pushing poor communities deeper into poverty.
el salvador: mobilizing against corporate power and free trade
Communities in El Salvador are suffering the environmental and social impacts of neoliberal policies, such as the privatization of services, dollarization of the economy and trade liberalization through free trade agreements. These policies were designed to open the country to transnational corporations (TNCs), which now control services such as electricity, pension funds and telecommunications.
foe europe, the netherlands and uruguay: (ex)changing worlds!
Neoliberal economic globalization creates unfair and often damaging links between impoverished nations in the south and rich industrialized countries in the north.
FoEI Exchange Program in 2008
Throughout 2007 and 2008, we have carried out exchanges between staff members from FoE groups in different continents. This program was funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Exchange Program stimulated the process of sharing of experiences, lessons learned and knowledge on IFIs and economic policy.
food sovereignty program
Our Food Sovereignty Program aims to halt genetically modified organisms and corporate control of our food. (dutch ministry of foreign affairs)
guatemala: creating a toolkit for community consultations on mining
Mining is having a devastating and worsening impact on the environment and people’s livelihoods and culture in Guatemala, but the government still plans to expand mining activity. This dire situation is compounded by the fact that there is a lack of accessible information on the impacts of mining and how communities can resist it. As a result many people are influenced by propaganda which portrays mining as being beneficial to development.
haiti: adapting to climate change, collecting rainwater
Lack of a secure water supply makes poor communities vulnerable to changes in weather. People, particularly women and children, are obliged to spend a lot of time on the exhausting task of carrying water to where it’s needed.
