Mekong Delta: salt water deeply encroaches on land
Mekong Delta facing water crisis. Farmers in Âu Lạc’s (Vietnam) premier rice growing region are concerned that crops now in the fields may fail as salinity levels reach record highs. Currently, brackish waters are advancing 50 km inland due to rising sea levels and may reach as far as 70 km by the time the rainy season alleviates the situation. The problems of the encroaching sea waters are compounded by increasing demands for fresh water by agriculture and industry, which have caused river levels and underground water tables to fall further. Compared to eight years ago, the Tân Châu River in An Giang Province is now nearly 80 centimeters lower, while in Hậu Giang Province, residents in areas where wells have turned salty now must try to have fresh water transported from other sources.

We pray that Heaven will protect the people of Âu Lạc in this difficult time. May humanity’s wiser and more compassionate regard for our planet meanwhile restore the balance of our earthly home.

Concerned for the escalating global shortages of both water and food, Supreme Master Ching Hai has repeatedly encouraged the world’s population to turn to the life-saving plant-based lifestyle. The following is an excerpt from an international gathering with Supreme Master Ching Hai on August 20, 2008.

Brazilian forest conservationist Silva wins Norway prize
Norway’s Sophie Prize goes to Brazilian conservationist. Current Senator and former Environment Minister Marina Silva has been honored with the prestigious Sophie Prize for her tireless efforts to preserve the Amazon rainforest. The US$100,000 environmental award was initiated by Norwegian author Jostein Gaarder who named it after his philosophical novel, “Sophie’s World.” In the time that Senator Silva served as environment minister, the country’s deforestation was reduced by 60 percent to one of its lowest levels in decades, while at the same time preserving traditional farming societies of indigenous peoples.

Our warm congratulations, Senator Marina Silva, on this well-deserved award. We wish you further inspiration in your noble endeavors to assure a verdant future for the legendary, life-giving rainforests.

Move to save rare Cornish moth from extinction
Scientists work to save rare moth. With only some 200 observed annually, the Cornish Rust Sandhill moth is among the world’s most rare. The hardy moth only resides on a short 0.8 kilometer Loe Bar beach in the south of England, where it endures winter storms, summer heat, and crashing waves. However, scientists caution that the moth may not be able to withstand the temperature change of global warming, so researchers from the University of Exeter and environmental consultancy Spalding Associates are evaluating how to best safeguard their welfare.

We join the University of Exeter and Spalding Associates’ scientists in concern for the fate of the Cornish Rust Sandhill moth. Let us join in kindness to ensure the protection of our manifold co-inhabitants who play such irreplaceable parts in our ecosphere.

An Antarctic ice shelf has disappeared -scientists
Antarctica’s Wordie Ice Shelf disappears. Citing climate change as the cause, the U.S. Geological Survey and the British Antarctic Survey have reported that the Wordie Ice Shelf, disintegrating since the 1960s is now gone, along with the northern portion of the Larsen Ice Shelf. The European Space Agency also announced that an ice bridge linking the Wilkins Ice Shelf to the mainland is also close to disintegrating. US Geological Society glaciologist Jane Ferrigno, who led the study on the Wordie and Larsen shelves, stated, “Antarctica is of special interest because it holds an estimated 91 percent of the Earth's glacier volume, and change anywhere in the ice sheet poses significant hazards to society.”

We thank the European Space Agency, the British Antarctic Survey, Dr. Ferrigno, the US Geological Society and all scientists who have gone to the ends of the earth to report on the devastating effects of climate change and help us understand its risks. We pray that humanity as a whole will take the appropriate and considerate steps to save our precious planet and all her inhabitants.