Shalom Magazine - 1994, Vol. 1
EARTH - OUR ONLY HOME
Environmental Protect Knows No Borders
by Liora Moriel
All of Israel is celebrating the Year of the Environment, 1994. And the
SPNI (Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel) is 40 years old.
Festivities began with four days in Eilat (March 20-24), the southernmost
tip of Israel situated on the Red Sea, where the SPNI hosted the
International Conference on the Role of Non-Governmental Organizations in
Protecting the Environment with nearly 200 environmentalists and heads
of NGOs taking part in discussions, plenary sessions and workshops to
examine issues of ideology, practice and strategy in their work. Following
the conference was the Seventh Annual SPNI International Seminar on
Environmental Education, Conservation and Public Action (March 20-April
10). Seminar participants, leaders in their fields, took part in the
conference before they continued on to two intense weeks of study and
exposure to the comprehensive efforts of environmental education,
conservation and public advocacy in Israel. They got to know each other
better as well, sharing the excitement of meeting people in a new place
that quickly becomes familiar.
"They were amazed at the scope of SPNI's activities," said Alona Vardi,
the SPNI coordinator for the conference and seminar. "We're probably one
of the largest NGOs in the world dealing with nature protection and the
environment. We have a paid staff of about 1,000 people, 26 field schools,
22 branches manned by local-municipal volunteers, 13 information centres,
14 community activity centres, and dozens of nature, youth and tour clubs.
In 1994, some 1.2 million Israelis are expected to participate in the
society's various activities."
Since the summer of 1954, when the SPNI was founded by a handful of
teachers, educators, zoologists and scientists concerned over the future
of nature in Israel, it has thrived and developed, creating a unique model
of a nature preservation organization, functioning in public struggles,
education, conservation and research alike.
It began as a nature protection advocacy group (for instance, the
successful campaign to stop people picking wild flowers), and added
environmental concerns and activism to its agenda. Thus, its portfolio in
the realm of environment protection as a whole is thin, although
impressive (e.g., the successful fight against erecting the Voice of
America radio transmitter at a sensitive site in the desert). Raul
Montenegro, President of FUNAM of Argentina, suggested that the SPNI would
do well to participate in international NGO conferences, where it could
help spearhead international political action on behalf of the Earth, as
well as strengthening local action. While this point is well taken, admits
Vardi, it must also be noted that in Israel, the NGO Chairperson (Yoav
Sagi) actually sits on the National Council for Planning and Development
with government representatives and has an equal voice, something unheard
of anywhere else in the world.
Seven participants from the seminar and one from the conference shared
their views with our Shalom reporter in Eilat.
L. Victoria A. de Palacios - Ministry of the Environment, Honduras
We are dealing with illiterate rural people on three main issues this
year: deforestation caused by the burning and cutting down of trees;
water, its scarcity and quality; and solid waste. We're working with
the people in their communities, explaining to them that rivers running
dry and their continuing to cut down trees are interrelated issues. We
teach people how to get rid of solid waste without contaminating water
and other natural resources. We show them how to sort garbage waste for
recycling. For example, Coca Cola has a machine to crush cans and it
can send the waste with banana export boats. Paper recycling is also
available, and we're teaching people to use biodegradable materials to
make compost for better crops. Education has to be in all fields of
people's lives and this seminar will help me. I'm an educator with 45
years' experience, I write primers with stories on the environment in
Honduras so local children can learn to love our country and care for
it. I was asked to come out of retirement last year to direct the
ministry's non-formal education programs on the environment. Here, I'm
sharing with others. I'm studying how we can enforce the laws in my
country, where the Environment Ministry was only created in August
1993. It's good to be with motivated young people from all over the
world and share experiences with them.
Foo Ngang Mathias - Ministry of the Environment and Forestry, Cameroon
I am a research assistant working with providing information to educate
the rural population. I was very pleased to hear Yoav Sagi, the
Chairperson of SPNI, speak about the evolution of his organization over
40 years, although I would argue whether it is really applicable to
Black Africa. We need to focus on timing and the provision of
alternatives. For example, in tropical forests the needs of the people
are principally food production. They are poor. It's irrelevant to talk
about environmental protection while they need food. They don't have
money for food, so they cut down the forest to grow food. Villagers
depend on wild animals for food and protein. It's cheaper for them to
go into the forest and shoot animals,even though they are in a
protected area, than to buy sheep and chicken from the government and
raise them. People have little real access to alternatives: the sheep
and chicken are expensive and they're sold in a place far away. We
provide chickens and goats at half price, and eating sheep in Black
Africa is not common, only for special occasion like death and
marriage. And perhaps the taste of the bush animals appeals to them.
They know it is dangerous, and they are killing protected species, but
they don't see alternatives. These are the examples we must look at.
I'm interested in the relationship between NGOs and the local
authority. What kind of relationship will work for us? We're working
with local associations, especially with women in rural areas. Women
are realizing that they have to trek longer distances to fetch water
and wood and they're recognizing that this is the price of the absence
of forests that were cut down in their area and they're organizing
themselves to plant trees. Female teachers organize environmental
clubs, where they teach the effects of deforestation. Women are also
most aware of the process of desertification, north to south, because
the burden is on them. They are the ones most active to change the
process. They learn to find management tools even though they are
illiterate, they train to fundraise, prepare projects, etc., and then
they see that all this is really working!
Jamal Anwar - Coastal Area Resource Development and Management
Association, Bangladesh (Conference participant)
I am a voluntary consultant. My field is the protection of the natural
environment, marine and river studies and pollution control. I came
here to the conference for an exchange of opinions and to present a
paper on the "Largest Mangrove Forest of the World Threatened," on
Bangladesh's struggle against coastal environmental degradation. I have
a great respect for Israeli scientists and workers who are doing a
great job of protecting the environment in this region, especially
environmental education. The problem in a developing country is that we
don't have any educational programs at all for environment protection,
nor any regional or global environment action.
I am impressed with what I have seen here in Israel, where the whole
nation is participating. This land is their own property and they
protect it. If people in Bangladesh could feel that the land is theirs,
every person would be its policeman. if I may be critical for a moment,
however, I wasn't happy with Israel's attempt at urbanization of the
Bedouin. It's like our problem with rain forest dwellers. They move
around and the government had programs to settle them, but it caused
even more destruction. They should be allowed to live their lives.
Vivek Khadpekar - Nehru Foundation for Development, India
I'm the coordinator of urban programs for the foundation. I deal with
the protection of urban water bodies. Unfortunately, anything which
could potentially be reclaimed by real estate developers is considered
a waste if is not so reclaimed. There are villages outside the official
city limits which are engulfed as the city grows, and so the land use
in these villages is changing. Villagers must then change their
lifestyle. Water reservoirs seem to have lost their historic purpose
and people, including local authorities, gradually encroach on them.
The reservoirs become polluted with sewage. This is my area of
expertise. I was lucky to find an area of research that nobody had
thought about before! Why am I here? Because one rarely gets the
opportunity for more than just listening to papers being delivered.
Here we can communicate and learn.
Annette Edwards - Research Student, Barbados
I was born in Trinidad and am now a student in Barbados. Education is
my first career, so I am in a research program on environmental
education. In particular, I study coral reef protection around
Barbados, which is of coral origin. Barbados has shells everywhere,
whereas other Caribbean islands are volcanic, so we want to preserve
Barbados' uniqueness. I'm interested in environmental education and
community action, so I came to Israel for this aspect, to get a broader
perspective. I'll be going back with some ideas on how to solve
problems. I'll be with people who deal with similar problems, so I
won't have to reinvent the wheel! I talk to people one by one and get
the information I need. I like the fact that there are so many
interesting people in this seminar and I can learn from their
experiences.
Viatcheslav Karbanov - Central Economics and Mathematical Institute of
the Academy of Sciences, Russia
I'm an environmental scientist who is here representing "Rainbow," an
NGO that deals with the environment and sustainable development, a
network of 32 local groups from all over the Commonwealth of
independent States (CIS). It is useful for me to know more about
evaluation of NGOs and environmental laws that are about to be
introduced in the future in different countries, and see how this can
be applied to Russia.
There's another aspect, too: This is a great opportunity to have a
direct link to Israel, since usually we have contact only with European
organizations. This is important because the SPNI has long, deep
experience and is popular in Israel. It has tangible results like the
field school system and it carries great weight with the local
population. It's very useful to know how to implement these ideas.
People from all over the world are here and I hope to establish direct
links with them for my organization and find out how to realize
existing Rainbow projects.
One major problem is that we have no national support and nobody funds
us. Russia is a paradox: We have intellectual skills but little
practical experience, so basically we are a developing country
economically. Here, we share case studies and this is very useful. In
addition, many people here speak Russian so I don't feel like I'm far
from home, which is a very unusual feeling in a foreign country.
Afera Teklehaimanat - Bureau of Natural Resources, Ethiopia
I come from the Tigral region in the north, where we have a problem
with land degradation. We're trying to solve the problem by mobilizing
the whole society. We want to hear more about the experience of people
in other developing countries, like Israel. My interest is to look into
the activities of conservation of natural resources. When people talk
about car problems (that car pollution is the leading environmental
hazard) that's not our problem. We want to hear case studies that
relate to our problems.
Vladimir Dvoretsky - Academic Youth Ecological Club, Bulgaria
Our NGO has 150 members. It's a think tank of young academics and
professionals studying hot spots and running environmental programs and
actions against pollution. Every May 1 5, we hold a demonstration in
Sofia (capital city) against air pollution caused by too much traffic.
This gets lots of media coverage and the city made some small steps to
implement our recommendations, such as requiring catalytic converters
in new cars and expansion of the metro and tram lines. I'm here to get
information and make contacts. I'd like to learn more about the
strength and experience of the SPNI, and learn how to motivate our
activists, get more media attention and improve the performance of our
activities.
The participants, 32 people from 21 countries, were asked to fill in an
evaluation sheet and rate the best things about the seminar. Judging by
the answers given, the most popular event was the personal meeting with
SPNI Chairperson Yoav Sagi; next came the lecture on the Negev by a
dedicated young woman at the Sde Boker Field School; and finally, the
meeting at Beit Yerah Environment School, where Noga Gazit's pupils turned
the tables on their guests the international seminar participants
and asked them about their own work and plans.
"This was a very meaningful experience for everyone concerned," Alona
Vardi summed up. Ethics, politics, education, and law as a tool for
environmental protection, conducting public campaigns, and working towards
sustainable development in traditional and modern societies: These are the
topics of the day.
The struggle in Israel for environmental and nature protection continues,
as it does all over the globe. Look at what a brief examination of daily
newspapers produces:
* Just a few weeks ago when bus fares went up nationwide, a local umbrella
NGO, Life and Environment, promoting quality of life and environment in
Israel, publicly protested. They stated in newspaper advertisements signed
by leading professionals that the fare hike and public transport policy
(which makes buses more expensive and cars more attractive) "conflicts
with the contemporary approach to urban planning, is damaging to health
and impairs the quality of the environment."
*The Environment and Labour Ministries filed a complaint with the police
recently against a factory for violating regulations governing the
handling of dangerous radioactive materials.
*This Independence Day in Israel, twelve people were honoured for their
work in environmental protection. They acted as torch lighters, a highly
prestigious role in the annual celebrations. They included one of the
founders of the SPNI, an industrialist who seeks out environmentally-
friendly energy-producing methods and categorically refuses to make money
out of methods which would injure the land and the air; a Druse villager
who has been working for the governmental Nature Protection Authority for
many years; a 14-year-old girl who organizes her classmates for cleaning
up their area.
Whether environmental concern comes from NGO group pressure, the law or
individual effort, the Earth needs our protection.
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