Street Protests in Copenhagen. Source: http://www.itsgettinghotinhere.org/category/climate-justice/

The climate talks at Copenhagen closed in 2009 with no binding agreements or timetables for curbing greenhouse gas emissions. Only pledges were made to avoid more than a two degree Celsius temperature increase and avoid dangerous climate change. On this edition, we hear from climate justice activists who went to Copenhagen. They say we need a system change, not climate change.

Featuring:

Vandana Shiva, ecology activist, author & Research Foundation of Science, Technology, and Natural Resources Director; President Mohammed Nasheed, Republic of Maldives; Tom Goldtooth, Indigenous Environmental Network Executive Director; Victor Minotti, International Forum on Globalization Director; Michelle Mascarenhas-Swan, Movement Generation Justice and Ecology Project.

Special thanks to KPFA radio producer, Brian Edwards-Tiekert, who recorded some of this audio at the climate talks at Copenhagen in 2009.

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Words from Ecology Activist Vandana Shiva

Thousands of members of civil society came to voice a way forward at last December’s climate talks in Copenhagen. But many weren’t there to talk ‘cap and trade,’ or make a marketplace of air space.  Among them was ecology activist and author Vandana Shiva. She talked about fundamental lifestyle shifts.

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Maldives President Advocates Shifting Climate Policy to ‘3-5-0′

Small islands are among the most vulnerable to climate shifts. Take the Republic of Maldives, a thousand-island nation located in the Indian Ocean.  Sources say, in the next hundred years, Maldives could mostly be under water.  Maldives President, Mohammed Nasheed, attended the Copenhagen talks in December 2009.  He urged leaders to create a treaty based on three numbers: 3-5-0. That’s 350 parts-per-million of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.  That’s what scientists and activists say is the target number to keep the planet healthy and sustainable. Right now, we’re at 387.  Here, Nasheed talks about going carbon-neutral and urges action on the 3-5-0 campaign.

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Market-based solutions aren’t real solutions, says Indigenous Environmental Network

When we talk about peoples affected by a changing climate, some argue that no-one feels the affects more than indigenous people.  Whether they’re mountain communities suffering from melting icecaps, or Alaskan natives living on crumbling territories.  People who live off the land are already feeling the affects of ecological imbalances. That’s according to Tom Goldtooth, executive director of the Indigenous Environmental Network based in Northern Minnesota. He went to Copenhagen to advocate for the adoption of indigenous rights language into the climate accord. Goldtooth spoke with Making Contact producer, Pauline Bartolone.

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A Reportback from the International Forum on Globalization Director

Many members of civil society who attended the COP15 talks were part of the climate justice movement. They work locally to create ecological solutions to climate change which alleviate unequal burdens on marginalized communities.  Some groups cited the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as an important set of principles in developing alternative solutions to the carbon trading model.  Victor Minotti is the Director of the International Forum on Globalization. After returning from Copenhagen, he spoke on a panel in Berkeley, California about the goods and the bads of the Copenhagen Accord…  And, more importantly, the road ahead.

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Michelle Mascarenhas-Swan of Movement Generation speaks about local solutions

Michelle Mascarenhas-Swan is with the Movement Generation Justice and Ecology Project. Before and after the Copenhagen talks, they’ve focused their work in urban centers, where she says folks are hit first and worst by the climate crisis. Here, she gives some examples of how city residents can be in control of managing local resources more sustainably.
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For more information:

Indigenous Environmental Network
Bemidji, MN

International Forum on Globalization
San Francisco, CA

Mobilization for Climate Justice National

Mobilization for Climate Justice West

Movement Generation Justice and Ecology Project
Oakland, CA

Navdanya International – Seeds, Food Security and Sustainability
India

Republic of Maldives Presidents Office
Republic of Maldives

Scenes from the ColorLines TV special "Race and the Economic Recovery."

Social programs have been cut, living wage jobs are scarce and our economic system is in upheaval.  While the White House claims its stimulus package is working, the question remains, is it working for all Americans?

On this edition we bring you the audio version of Link TV and Applied Research Center’s video, ‘Color Lines: Race and Economic Recovery’. Hear the untold stories of how racism hurts all of our economic futures.  The documentary also examines how the current recession and time limits on welfare are affecting women of color.  It’s hosted by Chris Rabb, author of the soon-to-be released book, ‘Invisible Capital.’

Featuring:

Tisha, 29-year old African-American woman and mother of three; Jane MacNichol, Legal Assistance Resource Center of Connecticut Executive Director; Vijay Prashad, Trinity College Professor in Hartford, CT; Steve Thornton, SEIU 1199, VP and Education Director; Tram Nguyen, California Reinvestment Coalition Media Coordinator; Eric Mar, SF Board of Supervisors; Manuel Hernandez, S.C.O.P.E. Los Angeles community organizer; Elsa Barboza, S.C.O.P.E. Los Angeles Campaign Director; Herb Wesson, Los Angeles City Council; Kevin Norton, I.B.E.W. Local 11; Dr. Manuel Pastor, USC; Art Shanks, Cypress Mandela Training Center; Dorothy Morris, Cypress Mandela Training Center student; Ron Dellums, Oakland, CA Mayor; John Tafoya, Cypress Mandela Training Center graduate; Erika Artis Cruz, Green Jobs Training graduate.

This audio was repurposed from Link TV and Applied Research Center’s video: ‘Color Lines: Race and Economic Recovery’.

For more information:

Afro-Netizen
A Blog by Chris Rabb

Applied Research Center (Public Policy, Research, ColorLines)
Oakland, CA

California Reinvestment Coalition
San Francisco, CA

ColorLines

Cypress Mandela Training Center
Oakland, CA

Green for All
Oakland, CA

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 11
Pasadena, CA

LinkTV

Legal Assistance Resource Center of Connecticut
Hartford, CT

Los Angeles City Council
Los Angeles, CA

Oakland Green Jobs Corp (Ella Baker Center Initiative)
Oakland, CA

Oakland Mayor’s Office
Oakland, CA

San Francisco Board of Supervisors
San Francisco, CA

S.C.O.P.E. Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA

SEIU Health Care 1199NE
Hartford, CT

Trinity College
Hartford, CT

Articles, Blogs, Films, Reports, Other

Invisible Capital: How Unseen Forces Shape Entrepreneurial Opportunity
A book by Chris Rabb

‘Color Lines: Race and Economic Recovery’ credits:

LINKTV SHOOT
Chris Rabb, Host
Tram Nguyen, California Reinvestment Coalition Media Coordinator
Erica Marcus, Executive Producer
Tammy Johnson, Merin Mathew, Noel Rabinowitz, Co-Producers
Michael Smith, Director
Kevin Mazzier, Director of Photography
Caio Simbula, Camera 2
Channing Kennedy, Camera 3
Stephanie Cardenas, Makeup
Shayla Durrett, Teleprompter Operator
Wanjiru Kamau, Production Assistant

WELFARE SEGMENT
Tammy Johnson, Noel Rabinowitz & Seth Wessler, Co-Producers
Channing Kennedy, Editor
Rafael Delauz, Director of Photography
Seth Wessler, Field Producer
Noel Rabinowitz, Music Soundtrack Editor
Music by Quinn Raymond
Additional Music by Juba Kalamka and Randy Green

GREEN SEGMENT
Tammy Johnson & Noel Rabinowitz, Co-Producers
Channing Kennedy, Editor
Jorge Rivas, Director of Photography
Laura Merians, Lighting Designer

CONNECTICUT AND LOS ANGELES FIELD CREW
Tammy Johnson, Field Producer
Channing Kennedy, Camera
Yvonne Liu & Christina Chen, Assistant Producers
Yvonne Liu, Story Consultant
Simone Andrews, Assistant Producer
Music by Quinn Raymond

OAKLAND FIELD CREW
Merin Mathew, Field Producer
Kevin Mazzier, Camera
Manfred Lee, Grip

COLORLINES ADDITIONAL CREDITS
Theme Music by Juba Kalamka
Writing by Chris Rabb, Tammy Johnson, Noel Rabinowitz & Channing Kennedy
Research assistance provided by the Investigative Fund at the Nation Institute
Special thanks to SCOPE LA
Major Funding provided by the Akonadi Foundation

Buddhist scholar, Dr. Joanna Macy. Photo: http://www.owbaw.org/

Dr. Joanna Macy is a long-time peace, justice, and ecology activist. A celebrated Buddhist teacher, Dr. Macy’s wide-ranging work spans Eastern and Western thought.
Her work is known to other activists around the world as “The Work That Reconnects.” She spoke at the 2009 Bioneers Conference held in San Rafael, California at a plenary called, “The Hidden Promise of Our Dark Age: Discovering Our Wisdom, Strength and Beauty in the Midst of Crisis.”

Special thanks to ‘Reference Media Group’ for recording this audio at the 2009 Bioneers Conference in San Rafael, CA.

Featuring:

Dr. Joanna Macy, peace, justice, and ecology activist & author of ‘World As Lover, World As Self – Courage for Global Justice and Ecological Renewal’

For more information:

Bioneers

Bioneers: Revolution from the Heart of Nature Radio

Dr. Joanna Macy

Articles, Blogs, Films, Reports, Other

“World As Lover, World As Self-Courage for Global Justice and Ecological Renewal”
A book by Joanna Macy

Music

‘Rain’ by Nicky Hind
‘Reshuffles’ by Nicky Hind
‘Ripples’ by Nicky Hind
‘Glass From Jasper’ by Roedelius from Buddha Lounge Series
‘Baila Verena’ by Potosch Potschka
‘Dona Cre Tun’ by Gary Stadler with Stephanie from Buddha Lounge Series

On November 18, 2009, Students faculty and staff at UC Berkeley protested tuition fee increases by the UC Board of Regents. Photo courtesy MCT, via dailytitan.org

State budgets are strapped and deep cuts to public programs continue.  No system is on the chopping block more than public education. On this edition, we continue our series, How We Survive. This week? It’s a time of crisis in higher education. And as administrators cast an eye toward privatization, students are mobilizing for change, and a voice in the system.

Featuring:

Zachary Levenson, UC Berkeley Graduate School student and TA; Mark G. Yudof, University of California President; Laura Nader, UC Berkeley professor; Bob Meister, UC Santa Cruz professor; Wael Elasady, Portland State University student & protest organizer; Jonathan Sanford, PSU’S student body president; Jim Francesconi, Oregon State Board of Higher Education Vice President; Zaki Bucherest, PSU student activist; Adam Sanchez, PSU graduate student & primary school teacher; Christopher Newfield, PhD, UC Santa Barbara Professor & author of ‘Unmaking the Public University: The Forty Year Assault on the Middle Class’.

Some audio in this show was excerpted from the film “Occupied Berkeley: The Taking of Wheeler Hall” produced by David Martinez and Brandon Jourdon.

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Beyond Wheeler: UC Voices for Education as a Public Good

The University of California system is known around the world as one of the most successful models of publicly-funded higher education. In 1960, UC President Clark Kerr spearheaded the groundbreaking California master plan for higher education, seeking to make a quality education accessible to all. Yet some 50 years later, some say the foundation of public education is being dismantled through fee hikes and corporate funding.  Making Contact’s Pauline Bartolone has more about UC Berkeley folks who are trying to stand in the way of privatizing what was meant to be public.

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Portland State University, Inc. 

Like other states across the country, Oregon is struggling with the question of how to fund higher education in a time of massive budget cuts.  The Portland State University PSU, has increased class sizes, and made deep cuts to student programs and teacher pay. But recently PSU’s president proposed a new model to solve the university’s budget woes: incorporation. Jenka Soderberg from KBOO has more.

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Author Offers a History of the Privatization of Public Education

From raising fees to privatizing entire universities, nationwide, there is a variety of ways that privatizing public college education is taking place. As we’ve heard, the dismantling of California’s public system has been going on for decades.  Dr. Christopher Newfield wrote a whole book about it. He’s a Professor of English at UC Santa Barbara and author of ‘Unmaking the Public University: the Forty-Year Assault on the Middle Class.” He’s currently in France where he’s working for the Education Abroad Program for the University of California.

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For more information:

National Education Association
Washington, DC

Portland State University
Portland, OR

Save Cal Now
Berkeley, CA

Solidarity Alliance

Articles, Blogs, Films, Reports:

‘Budget Cuts Dimming Bright Futures‘
By Laura Christmas, Tampa Bay Online

CUNY Campaign to Defend Education (CCDE)

‘Occupied Berkeley: The Taking of Wheeler Hall’
by Brandon Jourdon and David Martinez

Professor Christopher Newfield Blog

Recession Realities in Higher Ed (Blog)
By Ray Schroeder, Professor Emeritus University of Illinois at Springfield

Reclamations Journal

Remaking the University (Blog)

Unmaking the Public University: The Forty Year Assault on the Middle Class
A book by Christopher Newfield

People outside UC Berkeley's Wheeler Hall while it was occupied by 43 students opposed to what they call a privatization of the UC system. Source: oaklandnorth.net

The University of California system is known around the world as one of the most successful models of publicly-funded higher education. In 1960, UC President Clark Kerr spearheaded the groundbreaking California Master Plan for Higher Education, seeking to make a quality education accessible to all. Yet some 50 years later, some say the foundation of public education is being dismantled through fee hikes and corporate funding.  Making Contact’s Pauline Bartolone has more about folks at UC Berkeley who are standing in the way of privatizing what was meant to be a public.

Some audio in this segment was excerpted from the film “Occupied Berkeley: The Taking of Wheeler Hall” produced by David Martinez and Brandon Jourdon.

Roundtable guests Max Rameau, Annie Flores and Shereen D'Souza in the "Making Contact" studios. Photo: Khanh Pham

When we hear about human rights violations in the news, it’s often about genocide, war, and politically induced famine.  But what about the basic human needs that we, here in the US, not in a developing nation, need in order to go about our daily lives? On this edition, a round table discussion about the right to healthy food, the right to housing, and the right to healthcare.  Do Americans have these, and if not, what’s standing in the way?

Featuring:

Annie Flores, Womens Economic Agenda Project; Max Rameau, Take Back the Land Founder; Shereen D’Souza, California Food and Justice Coalition Director.

For more information:

California Food and Justice Coalition
Berkeley, CA

Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign
Cleveland, OH

Take Back the Land
Miami, FL

Women’s Economic Agenda Project (WEAP)
Oakland, CA

Top: Steve Williams, co-founder of POWER. Bottom: Stanley Aronowitz, Professor, City University of New York Sources: http://therealbarackobama.wordpress.com

It’s a time of economic transition, and systems that may have seemed stable over the past few decades are proving to be far from it. But how did we get here? And how can we learn from the past, to build a more fair and just system in the future? While many politicians and pundits claim that no one saw the current economic collapse coming, in fact, we had plenty of warning, depending on who we listened to. This week, we hear from three people who’ve been sounding the alarm about capitalism’s house of cards for years, and in some cases, decades.

Featuring:

Steve Williams, POWER: People Organized to Win Employment Rights co-director and co-founder; Rick Wolff, University of Massachusetts at Amherst Economics Professor and author; Stanley Aronowitz, City University of NY Graduate Center Sociology & Urban Education Professor and author.

This program was co-produced by Megan Martenyi as part of Making Contact’s internship program.

For more information:

Stanley Aronowitz

Left Forum

People Organized to Win Employment Rights (POWER)

University of Massachusetts-Amherst Department of Economics

Additional Information:

Building Bridges Radio: Your Community and Labor Report

“Capitalism Hits the Fan” by Richard Wolff
A 57-minute video on the economic meltdown
Produced by the Media Education Foundation: Documentary Films

WBAI, 99.5 FM

Music:

“Martin Fierro,” by Juana Molina
“Fall in Love,” by Flying Lotus
“Rich Get Richer,” by The O’Jays

Dancing and singing in call and response at a ceremonial gathering in Haiti. Photos: Rita Daniels

Aftershocks continue to rock the island nation of Haiti, one-million people are homeless and more than 150,000 are confirmed dead. Mass burials and cremations in the streets have now replaced search and rescue efforts. On this edition, we take a look at the roots of the devastation of Haiti’s capital – Its history with the US, the militarization of American relief efforts and the economic policies that contributed to its people’s plight.

Featuring:

Daniel Brevil, Haitian-born master drummer and San Francisco Bay-Area resident; Bill Quigley, Center for Constitutional Rights Legal Director; Gabe Gonzalez, Center for Community Change Campaign Director; Pat Robertson, televangelist; Pierre Labossierre, Haiti Action Committee; Brian Concannon, Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti Director; Colette Eloi, San Francisco bay-area based folkloric Haitian dance teacher; Guy de Chalus, student of traditional Haitian drumming.

Contributing Producer: Rita Daniels

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A Report-back from a Survivor in Haiti

The recovery efforts continue in Haiti amidst a rising death toll which has now topped one hundred and fifty thousand. As the Haitian people continue to struggle for survival, we bring you a story of hope and courage. Haitian-born Daniel Brevil is a world renowned master drummer and a San Francisco Bay Area resident. He was in Port Au Prince visiting family when the quake struck.  He’s still there. Making Contact spoke to him from the center of the disaster more than a week after the quake.

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Why is Haiti Seeing More Guns than Aid?

The Haitian community has banded together and pooled their resources to help feed, clothe and administer medical care to each other since the earthquake struck on January 12th. And although aid is reportedly starting to trickle into the Port-Au-Prince metropolitan area, there is widespread concern that people are still seeing more guns than aid. Why is that? We spoke to Bill Quigley. He’s the Legal Director of the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York and the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti.

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Economic Roots of the Devastation in Haiti

While the international community mobilizes to get aid – and guns – to Haiti, others are sending money and prayers. No matter where you were in the world when news of the devastation hit, disbelief seemed to be a global common denominator.  How could Haiti be dealt another blow, when it has already suffered so much?  Making Contact’s Pauline Bartolone searched for some answers.

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Haitian Dance Shows Culture of Resilience

African-rooted folkloric dance is a staple of everyday Haitian life. You see it in many places, including local ceremonies and national events.  But there is a community of Haitians and non-Haitians around the globe that has studied the art for years and transported it beyond the island nation. Making Contact’s Rita Daniels attended a Haitian dance class in Oakland, CA just days after the earthquake.

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For More Information:

Center for Community Change
Washington, DC

Center for Constitutional Rights
New York, NY

Doctors Without Borders
New York, NY

Haiti Action Committee
Berkeley, CA

Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti
Joseph, OR

Partners in Health
Haiti

TransAfrica Forum
Washington, DC

Articles and Radio Essays

“Holding Up Haiti: Women Respond to Nightmare Earthquake”

“The Power of History–Haiti” by Mumia Abu-Jamal