[Indigsol] Indigenous Peoples from around the World Outraged at the Rapid Escalation of Climate Change and Denounced False Solutions

[mattm-b at resist.ca]

For Immediate Release
25 April 2009


Indigenous Peoples from around the World Outraged at the Rapid Escalation of
Climate Change and Denounced False Solutions

Anchorage, Alaska--At the first global gathering of Indigenous Peoples on
climate change, participants were outraged at the intensifying rate of
destruction the climate crisis is having on the Earth and all peoples.
Participants reaffirmed that Indigenous Peoples are most impacted by climate
change and called for support and funding for Indigenous Peoples to create
adaptation and mitigation plans for themselves, based on their own
Traditional Knowledge and practices. Indigenous Peoples also took a strong
position on emission reduction targets of industrialized countries and
against false solutions.

The majority of those attending looked towards addressing the root problem -
the burning of fossil fuels - and demanded an immediate moratorium on new
fossil fuel development and called for a swift and just transition away from
fossil fuels.

"While the arctic is melting, Africa is suffering from drought and many
Pacific Islands are in danger of disappearing.  Indigenous Peoples are
locked out of national and international negotiations," stated Jihan Gearon,
Native energy and climate campaigner of the Indigenous Environmental
Network<http://www.ienearth.org/>.
"We're sending a strong message to the next UN Framework Convention on
Climate Change this December in Copenhagen, Denmark that business as usual
must end, because business as usual is killing us.  Participants at the
summit stood united on sending a message to the world leaders in Copenhagen
calling for a binding emission reduction target for developed countries of
at least 45% below 1990 levels by 2020 and at least 95% by 2050."

"In Alaska, my people are on the front lines of climate change and are
devastated by the fossil fuel
industry," related Faith Gemmill, Executive Director of Resisting
Environmental Destruction on Indigenous Lands
(REDOIL<http://www.ienearth.org/redoil.html>).
"As an Alaska Native network we are fighting back.  We recently won a major
battle last week as the District Court of Columbia threw out a plan to
access 83 million acres of the Outer Continental Shelf that was driven by
Shell Oil. Shell has a long history of human rights violations, for which
many have suffered and died, like Ken Saro-Wiwa of the Ogoni People in the
Niger Delta of Africa."

Tom Goldtooth, Indigenous Environmental Network <http://www.ienearth.org/>'s
Executive Director, commented, "We want real solutions to climate chaos and
not the false solutions like forest carbon offsets and other market based
mechanisms that will benefit only those who are making money on those
outrageous schemes."  He added, "For example one the solutions to mitigate
climate change is an initiative by the World Bank to protect forests in
developing countries through a carbon market regime called Reducing
Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation or REDD."  He concluded,
"Don't be fooled, REDD does nothing to address the underlying drivers of
deforestation."

At a World Bank presentation at the global summit, Egberto Tabo, General
Secretary of COICA <http://www.coica.org.ec/>, the Coordinating Body of
Indigenous Organizations in the Amazon Basin denounced "the genocide caused
by the World Bank in the Amazon." Mr. Tabo also categorically rejected the
inclusion of forests in the carbon market and the Bank's funding of REDD.
The World Bank's representative, Navin Rai admitted that "the Bank has made
mistakes in the past..We know that there were problems with projects like
the trans-amazon highway." But REDD, he argued would not be more of the
same. However, indigenous leaders at the global summit were unconvinced by
his assurances and the Work Bank presentation ended with a Western Shoshone
women's passionate appeal to the Bank to stop funding projects that endanger
the survival of indigenous peoples.

Contact:
Faith Gemmill, REDOIL, redoil1 at acsalaska.net  +1-907-750-0188 (mobile) for
the Arctic
Jihan Gearon, IEN, ienenergy at igc.org  +1-218-760-1370 (mobile) for False
Solutions
Tom Goldtooth, IEN, ien at igc.org  +1-218-760-0442 (mobile) for Emission
Targets