Retailers say “no” to beef from illegally-felled Amazon.

Supermarket giant Wal-Mart along with two other large retailers, Carrefour SA and Pão de Açúcar, announced that they would no longer sell meat in their Brazil outlets from suppliers who had cleared protected Amazonian rainforest to raise cattle.

The announcement was made at a meeting of the Brazilian Association of Supermarkets (Abras) shortly after the environmental group Greenpeace released a report showing how the activities of internationally known brands are leading to Amazonian deforestation for grazing pastures.

Meanwhile, also in the wake of the Greenpeace report, a Brazilian federal prosecutor filed a billion dollar lawsuit against the cattle industry for devastating the Amazon.

What encouraging news! Our heartfelt thanks and congratulations, Greenpeace for your carefully researched report on livestock raising and the clearing of invaluable rainforests in Brazil.

We also thank Wal-Mart, Carrefour, Pão de Açúcar and other stores for responding to the public’s wish to protect these vital reserves. With collaborative actions such as these and humanity’s growing awareness of the need to halt meat eating altogether, our planet is surely on the path to recovery of her flourishing verdant state.

Reference
http://news.mongabay.com/2009/0612-abras_beef_wal-mart.html
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N12272317.htm

‘Climate Exodus’ imminent.
According to a new collaborative study compiled by specialists from Columbia University in New York along with the United Nations University and non-governmental organization CARE International; human migration and displacement will soon take place on an unprecedented scale if the problems of climate change are not addressed.

The report, entitled “In Search of Shelter,” signals that global warming is already causing human migration and that the coming decades could see an estimated 200 million people forced to abandon their homes.

Especially impacted regions include central Mexico, where tens of millions of people face droughts and South Asia, where disappearing glaciers are endangering the agricultural production of one of the world’s most populous regions.

Our sincere thanks, experts from Columbia University, the United Nations University and CARE International, for this meaningful study that highlights such an alarming trend.

Let us all increase our steadfast resolve to act in ways that protect the balance of our planet.

In an April 2009 videoconference in Seoul, South Korea, Supreme Master Ching Hai, who often inspires hope in times of need, addressed the plights facing our world, offering an effective solution.

Supreme Master Ching Hai: To help the government to change so that it can avoid that kind of crisis management, we can write letters explaining how a vegan diet is the solution for the planetary crisis.

It’s the most practical way to prevent future calamities due to global warming, because the plant-based lifestyle is more sustainable and opens up land that can be used for cultivating crops for humans.

It restores the balance of our oceans and forests and preserves our finite natural resources. This is truly the best way to restore our environment and ensure the highest degree of peace.
Such a simple solution – being veg - that’s it. 

Reference
http://www.therenewableplanet.com/blogs/the_daily_green/archive/2009/06/10/climate-change-to-cause-mass-human-migration.aspx,
http://www.france24.com/en/20090610-water-stress-ocean-levels-unleash-climate-exodus
http://www.ciesin.columbia.edu/binaries/global/news/2009/clim-migr-report-june09_final.pdf
http://www.lemonde.fr/planete/article/2009/06/10/region-par-region-les-migrations-liees-au-rechauffement-climatique_1205069_3244.html#ens_id=1099506,
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jojz
http://www.ehs.unu.edu/article:223 http://we.care.org/Charles7
http://www.care-international.org/Contact-Us
http://www.columbia.edu/~amd155/
http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/directory/susanaadamo

ASEAN meets to discuss forestry’s role in climate change.

About 30 representatives from the Association of the Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) countries met for the 3rd ASEAN Social Forestry Network (ASFN) in Freeport, Philippines.

The five-day meeting began with forestry professionals from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Laos, and the Philippines speaking about the important role of community forestry projects to mitigate the effects of global warming.

Saying that responsible social forestry will not only help the environment, but also improve economic conditions and status of upland farmers, Sagita Arhidani, ASFN secretariat officer from Indonesia, said, “Our hope is that the member countries learn from each other’s experiences in dealing with this important issue of climate change.

Taken together, the policies of ASEAN nations will have a dramatic impact on climate change all over the world.” Association of the Southeast Asian Nation members, we laud your concern and cooperative commitment to this vital matter of our time.

May Heaven grace your continued endeavors in facilitating meaningful climate change solutions.

Reference
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/regions/view/20090613-210228/
Asean-execs-meet-on-climate-change
http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/206817/asean-meet-tackles-climate
http://forestry.denr.gov.ph/ASFN.htm

With a recent study revealing the large carbon footprint of both meat and alcohol, the UK’s Committee on Climate Change is recommending a shift toward fruits, vegetables,
and non-alcoholic beverages to stay on track for the country’s commitment to reduce greenhouse gases 80 percent by 2050.

Reference
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/climatechange/5377780/Stop-eating-lamb-and-drinking-beer-if-you-want-to-save-the-planet.html
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2257103/posts?page=1
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/273040