A Matter of Life and Death
Maathai, Wangari
Planting Peace Wangari Maathai A Matter of Life and Death Africa is the continent that will be hit hardest by global warming. Unpredictable rains and floods, prolonged droughts, subsequent crop...
...countries need to put in place mechanisms that raise steady and reliable funds for the prime victims of the climate crisis, in Africa and other developing regions...
...We must ask no less of our leaders, or ourselves...
...African leaders and civil society must be involved in global decision-making about how to address the climate crisis in ways that are both effective and equitable...
...By managing resources better, by recognizing the links between peace and sustainable management of limited resources, we are more likely to get at the root causes of civil strife and wars, and therefore create a more peaceful and secure world...
...Many of the conflicts in the world Unfortunately, the generation that destroys the environment may not be the one that pays the price...
...We have a responsibility to protect the rights of generations, of all species, that cannot speak for themselves today...
...It is essential that we expand our definition of peace and security to include responsible and accountable management of the are fought over resources like water, fuels, grazing ground, minerals, and land...
...Therefore, Africa must not remain silent in the face of the realities of climate change and its causes...
...Unpredictable rains and floods, prolonged droughts, subsequent crop failures, and rapid desertification have, in fact, already begun to change the face ofAfrica...
...In Africa, however, it's a matter of life and death...
...As major polluters, the industrialized countries have a responsibility to assist Africa to reduce her vulnerability and increase her capacity to adapt to climate change...
...The industrialized Wangari Maathai, the 2004 Nobel Peace Laureate, is a member of Kenya's Parliament and the founder ofthe Green Belt Movement...
...But, morally, we are required to act for the common good...
...It's critical that we see the world as one and that we protect not only the local but also the global environment...
...It is the future generations that will confront the consequences of the destructive activities of the current generation...
...This is a cruel irony, since the continent's greenhouse gas emissions are tiny when compared with the industrialized world's...
...We need only to look to Darfur...
...limited resources on Earth, as well as a more equitable distribution of those resources...
...We know a strong linkage exists between the environment, governance, and peace...
...Politically, it is more expedient to neglect the long-term common good and ignore intergenerational responsibility for the convenience and opportunities of today...
...The continent's poor and vulnerable will be particularly victimized by the effects of rising temperatures—and in some parts of the continent, temperatures have been rising twice as fast as in the rest of the world...
...Some countries are engaged in destructive logging and harvesting of biodiversity in forests far from their borders...
...Climate change makes the need for this redefinition even more urgent...
...As a result, farmers and herders have clashed over scarce arable land and water, and unscrupulous leaders have used these conflicts to stir up mass violence...
...On climate change, we are all called to action...
...In wealthy countries, the looming climate crisis is a matter of concern, as it will affect both the well-being of economies and people's lives...
...Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and even more displaced amid campaigns of intimidation, rape, and abduction...
...In recent decades, the desert in Western Sudan expanded because of droughts and erratic rainfall that can be attributed, in part, to climate change...
Vol. 71 • November 2007 • No. 11
