A green goal and removal of a stole -- it's all about the game of footie

Well, it's happened. Even the iconic FIFA organization is now marked by environmental social strife. Not that the world's pre-eminant soccer organization is upset with changes (in fact, it's not even responsible for the changes). Yet, the recent grumblings of Iranian women and the recent pledges by the South African government is cause for pause in the mighty footie realm.

So, what do I mean?

A recent petition demands that FIFA president, Mr Joseph S. Blatter, put pressure on the Iranian government to allow women into the stadium to watch the world's most international sport. The petition states that women are currently banned from participating (as observors) in Iran's participation in FIFA games -- and this exclusion prevents them from enjoying the inclusion of a culturally relevant past-time.

At present (and as any good theoretically a-political organization would do) FIFA is not weighing in on the debate. Rather, it is stepping back and taking the "we don't influence" politics approach -- an approach that simply does not exist in today's climate.

And speaking of climate -- while FIFA may be reluctant to engage in politics with the Iranian government it cannot avoid this aspect of international sports when dealing with the South African government.

In 2010 South Africa will host the FIFA Soccer World Cup -- an event that draws the attention of billions from all over the world. As a result the South African government has pledged to raise awareness (and standards) on water and energy conservation -- in an effort to green the game.

"We are committed to ensuring that South Africa learns from the Green Goal experience which vastly reduced the environmental impact of the 2006 World Cup in Germany," said Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism Marthinus van Schalkwyk.

Hmmm, footie really is political -- whether the FIFA realize this or not.

For more information on the Iranian petition go to:
http://www.petitiononline.com/FIFAban/petition.html

For more information on FIFA go to:
http://access.fifa.com/en/article/0,0000,110908,00.html

For more information on South Africa's pledge for a green World Cup go to:
http://allafrica.com/stories/200612140740.html

Wal-Mart and Christian values go head to head in holiday season

Oh dear! It appears that Wal-Mart is acting in an un-Christian-like manner, or so say 130 pastors south of the border.

In an effort to draw attention to the low employment standards at the international mega-store, these 130 pastors formed a union-backed lobby group known as WakeUpWalMart.com. This newly formed organization sent a letter asking Wal-Mart's chief executive officer, Lee Scott, to provide higher standards to Wal-Mart employees and their families. The lobby group also released a new television ad featuring Pastor Joe Phelps of Highland Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, asking, "Would Jesus shop at Wal-Mart? Should you?" The pastor continues by asking, "can we continue to shop at Wal-Mart without insulting God?" He goes on to list allegations that Wal-Mart has violated child labor laws and engaged in gender-based discrimination and says half the company's 1.3 million U.S. employees aren't covered under the company health plan. The ad is set to run in 43 media markets.

In response to the advertisement Wal-Mart spokesman Dave Tovar said the United ad and its supporters are backing negative attacks while Wal-Mart is creating jobs.

"The fact is, union leadership is wasting millions of its members' dollars on a failing campaign against a company that is good for working families," Tovar said.

Of course, the un-Christian like employment practices of Wal-Mart cannot stop the buying blitz scheduled for next week. The mega-store announced yesterday that last-minute holiday shoppers will get a chance to shop at Wal-Mart Canada round the clock. While the books show it's an effort to boost the retail giant's year-end sales, the move affects 51 select stores across the nation starting on Monday. The round-the-clock sale will last until Dec. 24 -- a Sunday, ironically enough.

For more information go to:
http://wakeupwalmart.com/
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/edmonton/story/2006/12/13/walmart-shopping.html

Lego my bagel -- online petition targetting Dempsters

Hello mates,

It's time again to take the ol' mouse and click with your conscience.

On Metro Morning (CBC) this morning, two young women are calling on Canadians to reduce packaging -- their target (an example only) is a new product by Dempsters.

The new product is a bagel wrapped in hard packaging with diner-style sachets of peanut butter and a plastic knife (all individually wrapped) -- and all of this is triple-wrapped.

Talk about obsessive packaging (and an extraordinary waste). Talk about the rise and rise and rise of our solid waste ( -- wait! Didn't Toronto already go through an ordeal regarding solid waste...did we not learn that disposal is a problem and that reduce, reuse and recycle is essential?).

As a result Amy Nugent and Morwenna White have taken up the fight to reduce packaging. They have started an online petition calling on the government to implement standards and regulations regarding packaging. Their argument (and it is valid) is that voluntary regulation DOES NOT work. Period. And that is true. There are a variety of examples all across the consumer-minefield.

They are also asking people to mail their Dempster bagel back the president of the company. The address is listed on the first layer of packaging.

For the online petition go to: http://www.petitiononline.com/PKGREG/petition.html

Green travel getting a new boost from airlines

Travel.
It's fun; it's exciting; it's alluring; yet, to the mean green in all of us, it's a conundrum.

Travelling requires the use of carbon fuels, which, we all know, is a main contributer to green house gases and global warming. Unfortunately, the worst offender of this output is airline travel.

Yet, we live in a global world -- a world where families really do exist on either side of the pond and relaxation time really does include an escape to sun and surf.

So, how, then, can a green consumer make friendlier choices when it comes to travel -- in particular air travel?

According to PlanetSave (a web portal with green ideas for everyday living) we do have options. While the environment is not the main impetus for changing airline policy, the rising cost of oil (and the subsequent shrinking profit margin) IS enough to cause airlines all over the world to re-examine their methods of operation.

As such, PlanetSave believes that airlines have founder simple and safe ways to reduce their fuel burn, and thus their emissions. Solutions, such as winglets added to the aircraft, or flying more direct routes at energy-efficiency altitudes and speeds are methods being adopted by a large number of airlines. As is the eliminatino of excess weight and the use of electric vehicles for ground crew operations.

While all airlines are jumping on the efficiency wagon, PlanetSave does state that Asian and European airlines often have more advanced green programs than their American counterparts (but this is changing thanks to rising oil prices and savvy consumers like yourself). As such, PlanetSave singles out British Airways as a leader in this field of green-travel choices.

The stalwart of luxury travel, British Airways advocates an emissions trading scheme in the industry and has established carbon offsetting and sustainable-tourism initiatives. In the USA, JetBlue is potentially the greenest airline because of its newer, more fuel-efficient fleet and its in-flight recycling and waste-management programs. PlanetSave also gives kudos to American Airlines, Singapore Airlines, and several more for their in-flight recycling programs.

In the end, though, savvy, green travellers can opt for more sustainable choices by taking a few tips:

*Opt for direct flights instead of multiple stops—take-offs and landings are a major source of CO2 emissions.
*Choose an airline with fewer delays while the plane waits for a gate upon arrival, if possible. Planes burn excess fuel while waiting.
*Become a frequent flyer on an airline with a newer, more fuel-efficient fleet such as JetBlue, Singapore Airlines, or Virgin Atlantic.
*Consider purchasing carbon offset credits for the miles you fly.

Sign, sign, everywhere signs...

Today will be a short post.

It's just an alert for anyone interested or involved in cycling or climate change. There is a petition (online) asking the current Conservative government to put both issues front and forward by endorsing cycling across Canada.

To read the petition or get active go to:

http://www.gopetition.com/online/10170.html

Community meals means communion with commonality -- and that's the best sauce for hunger

We all know where any good party ends up: in the kitchen.

The kitchen is a hub -- it's the source of sustenance; a source of warmth and an easy place to find good icebreakers (let's face it, when pushed for conversation, nothing breaks the ice better than a discussion of food and wine).

So, it is with this in mind that I offer you two choices for community kitchen dinners this Friday night.

Community dinners (and subsequently community kitchens) are popping up all across Canada, yet, they are not a new notion. In fact, they are a return to values that were once prevalent in community-oriented cultures -- cultures that, in North America, have been usurped by the cult-of-the-individual. So, in a world of marketing and unauthentic experiences, community dinners are providing urban and rural dwellers with an opportunity to break bread with their extended community.

In Toronto, this Friday, there are two community dinners. The first is the long-standing tradition of Dufferin Grove Park. This community dinner attracts a wide variety of people from all across the neighbourhood (and beyond); as one community member stated, the dinner has helped to rejuvenate the community. For as little as $6 a plate ($5 if you bring your own plate) a person can look forward to a meal filled with locally produced food (purchased from the Farmer's Market held in the same park year round, every Thursday) and prepared onsite in the wood ovens. The second option is across town in Corktown. Again, the neighbours gather and for $5 a person can expect a home-cooked meal and chit-chat with people from every socio-economic and political background (including apolitical!).

Given our anonymous urban lives, these community dinners offer us all a chance to reach out and connect with the very people that deliver our papers, cut our lawns, teach our children and invest our money. They are a meeting point -- as food always is -- that does not rely on labels and schemas, but rather on nurturing and communion. And we could all use a little more communion.

Bring your plate (sustainability matters) and see you there!

Women is the N&*$er of the world -- Part 2

Today, I want to provide you a few lists, a bit of perspective and, perhaps, the possibility of change.

The reason? Seventeen years ago one man turned a gun on himself but not before killing 14 women and injuring 13 others at the École Polytechnique de Montréal.

While countless stories will provide his name, background, socio-economic and cultural status as well as intimate details of his suicide note and warped rational for his killing spree, I will refrain from doing this. Instead, I offer you the names of the dead. The direct victims of one man's violent, patriarchial attitudes towards women; one man's example of the desire for dominance and control over the "other half"; one example of the pervasive and prevalent attitude that women are secondary to men -- an attitude that continues to exist around the world.

People Killed
Geneviève Bergeron (b. 1968), civil engineering student.
Hélène Colgan (b. 1966), mechanical engineering student.
Nathalie Croteau (b. 1966), mechanical engineering student.
Barbara Daigneault (b. 1967) mechanical engineering student.
Anne-Marie Edward (b. 1968), chemical engineering student.
Maud Haviernick (b. 1960), materials engineering student.
Maryse Laganière (b. 1964), budget clerk in the École Polytechnique's finance department.
Maryse Leclair (b. 1966), materials engineering student.
Anne-Marie Lemay (b. 1967), mechanical engineering student.
Sonia Pelletier (b. 1961), mechanical engineering student.
Michèle Richard (b. 1968), materials engineering student.
Annie St-Arneault (b. 1966), mechanical engineering student.
Annie Turcotte (b. 1969), materials engineering student.
Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz (b. 1958), nursing student.

Now, take a moment. Read the list again. And sit with it. Sit with the knowledge that these women were innocent victims of one man's rage. Sit and reflect on the fact that they were punished, not for what they did, but for who they were. Now reflect on the fact that most of us, at least once in our life, will experience this unjustified and unwarranted hate directed at us - to some degree and on some level.

Done?

Good. Now remember how YOU felt when persecuted for being who you were. Recall the anger, the fear, the anguish and the confusion.

Got it?

Then take this into your day. Regardless of who you come across remember that prejudice, of any type, can and does kill. There is no rationalization that can justify hate and violence -- whether it is towards women, the LGBTQ community, Muslims, Christians, Jews, the list goes on. Yet, the only way we can truly break the cycle of us vs. them (differientation that leads to prejudice and hate) is to break down our own barriers and walls. Have courage. Persist. We will get through this.

Of course, for those more practically inclined, there are other actions that can and should be done. One such action is to support the Dec. 10th Campaign.

This campaign calls on all people (and organizations/corporations/institutions) to support the status of women in Canada -- a status, they report, which is seriously threatened. For more information of the Dec. 10th Campaign desires and rationale please scroll below to the declaration.

Finally, please examine the following list. It is the tally of all the women that died this year due to men on women violence in the GTA. The names are varied. The consequences are different. The reason is the same.

Women and Their Children Killed in the GTA in 2006
Yasmin Ashareh, 20
Seema Badhan, 19
Rose Boroja, 54
Colleen Bradley, 59
Kamlesh Dhingra, 58
Audrey Gates, 80
Wendy LaFleche, 41
Victoria LaFleche, 7
Jesse LaFleche, 3
Shao-Sang Liang, 38
Vivian Yuen-Yee Chau, 3
Ian Chau, five months
Dale Cheryl Mapstone, 29
Malena Morales, 31
Meherun Nessa, 35
Natalie Novak, 20
Rosa Peterman, 57
Gwendolyn Pilgrim, 35
Thayalini Subramaniam, 31
Malini Thayakumar, 36
Neruuya Thayakumar, 14
Gnanalakshmi Raman, 29

For more information on the Dec. 10th Campaign go to:
http://www.criaw-icref.ca/index_e.htm

For more information on the Dec. 6th Fund go to:
http://www.dec6fund.ca/what.htm

For more information on supporting the movement to end violence against women go to:
http://www.whiteribbon.ca/

Statement for the December 10th Campaign
For Women’s Equality and Human Rights
On December 10th, International Human Rights Day, Canada will mark the 25th anniversary of its ratification of the UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Instead of celebrating this historical milestone, women in Canada are mobilizing to ensure that governments honour and respect their international and domestic human rights commitments. This is because over several months now, the federal government has acted in ways that deny most women’s realities, undermine women’s access to justice, and abandon its own obligation to advance women’s human rights in Canada.

Reality Denied

In 2006, the federal government made a number of important changes affecting women’s equality rights. These include a 40% cut to Status of Women Canada and the elimination of twelve regional Status of Women Canada offices. These measures signal a profound rejection of the realities of women’s lives. The justifications for these measures by Minister Beverley Oda are that women are strong, already equal, and don’t need these critical policy and legal supports. Although we acknowledge that women in Canada have won formal equality rights, we know that much more work must be done to make these equality rights a reality for all women in Canada. One indicator of this is women’s wages. On average, women still earn 71 cents on the male dollar, making Canada 38th in the world in terms of the wage gap ratio. Racialized and Aboriginal women earn significantly less. Their average annual income, respectively, is $16, 621 and $ 13,300. Further, even though 70% of mothers are in the paid work force, Canada still does not have in place a national child care program. According to the Toronto Community Foundation, over 10,000 children are on a waiting list for subsidized child care spaces in Toronto alone.

Access Denied

Access to justice is now denied to women on many fronts. In the last year, the federal government abolished the funding for the national child care program, decided not to adopt an improved federal pay equity law, eliminated all funds for the Court Challenges Program, removed the goal of equality from the mandate of the Women’s Program at Status of Women Canada, and prohibited the use of federal funds to engage in advocacy at any level of government, lobbying and most research. Other policy decisions have also contributed to denying women’s access to equality and their rights. Among these are the cuts to literacy programs, the lack of support for women and men who are homeless, the refusal to respect the Kyoto Protocol, the decisions to renege on the Kelowna Accord as well as Canada’s obstruction of the adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Equality Denied

Instead of promoting women’s equality, the federal government is severely hindering: women’s capacity to organize, advocate and lobby. They won’t support women’s equality in the workplace and have limited women’s rights to challenge discrimination before the courts. Canada’s democratic safeguards are indeed being eroded and our internationally acclaimed human rights legacy is seriously in jeopardy.

Respect Your Commitment, Prime Minister Stephen Harper

We, the undersigned, urge Prime Minister Harper to respect his own election commitment to uphold women’s equality and human rights in Canada. During the 2006 election campaign, Mr. Harper stated:

“If elected, I will take concrete and immediate measures, as recommended by the United Nations, to ensure that Canada fully upholds its commitments to women in Canada." (January 18, 2006).

Prime Minister Harper is not respecting this commitment. The government’s approach jeopardizes the historic efforts by Canada to achieve women’s full equality, and disregards women’s human rights here at home. Rather than uphold his commitment to the women in Canada, the Prime Minister has in fact ignored the experience of millions of women in order to justify his government’s actions.

On December 10, we call on the federal Government to:

• Reverse its policy decisions on childcare, pay equity, the Court Challenges Program, Status of Women Canada, and the Women’s program..

• Respect the CEDAW Committee recommendations, by improving the living conditions and respecting the human rights of Aboriginal women, effectively addressing violence against women and women’s poverty, improving maternity and parental benefits, funding civil legal aid, changing immigration laws to respect the rights of live-in caregivers and ensuring a more equitable participation of women in the political institutions.

Women in Canada, because we are strong, determined and passionate, can and will not accept an erosion of their hard won and still fragile equality rights. Women are not living in poverty, as mothers, care-givers or elders, because they are weak or lack self-confidence. They do not choose to become the victims of violence at the hands of partners, family members or strangers. They do not wish to have their children taken from them because of a lack of access to safe and affordable housing. They have not chosen to be under-represented in Canada’s political life, or to be underpaid in countless workplaces across the country. Women, women’s organizations and our allies have chosen, however, to come together to call upon this government to reverse course and promote a collective respect for women’s equality and human rights.
Sincerely,

 Aboriginal Women’s Community-Based Studies Initiative
 Alliance des femmes de la francophonie canadienne
 Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
 Canadian Council of Muslim Women
 Canadian Federation of Students
 Canadian Federation of University Women
 Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action
 Canadian Labour Congress
 Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women
 Canadian Union of Public Employees
 Canadian Women's Community Economic Development Council
 Canadian Women’s Foundation
 Child Care Advocacy Association of Canada
 DAWN Ontario
 Fédération des femmes du Québec
 Feminists for Just and Equitable Public Policy
 MATCH International
 National Association of Women and the Law
 National Council of Women of Canada
 New Brunswick Advisory Council on the Status of Women
 Ontario Association of Interval and Transition Houses
 Provincial Advisory Council on the Status of Women, Newfoundland and Labrador
 Public Service Alliance of Canada
 Regroupement provincial des maisons d'hébergement et de transition pour femmes victimes de violence conjugale
 Transition House Association of Nova Scotia
 Women’s Inter-Church Council of Canada
 Women’s Space
 YWCA Canada

Corporate responsibility is the new black

A few years ago only a couple of hundred multinationals were concerned enough with corporate responsibility to include this aspect of their conduct in annual reports.

This year analysts expect close to 2,000 such reports.

Bluntly put: this is exponential growth.

Andrew Brengle, senior analyst with Boston based KLD Research & Analytics, says that only 15 to 20 percent of these reports will be worth reading. He believes that only this small fraction of reports are thorough and comprehensive enough to provide a clear overview of corporate responsibility.

But the fact remains, more and more businesses realize the importance of ethical and responsible corporate decision-making. In otherwords responsibility and full disclosure is actually good business sense (que the choir, I feel a allehuai moment coming on!).

More and more businesses are attempting to communicate with employees and stakeholders through full disclosure. This move towards transperancy, then, forces companies to examine their decisions; this, in turn, provides impetus for making more responsible, ethical and sustainable decisions.

While Brengle may be right -- that the majority of these reports are simply surface attempts to appear responsible -- the fact still remains: consumers demanded, corporations responded; we care about the process not just about the outcome.

For more information on Brengle and the plethora of corporate responsibility reports go to:
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/1204/p25s01-wmgn.html

Ten years later the electric car is reborn

Ten years ago there was a cheaper, quieter, greener and more efficient alternative to the gas-combustable engine.

But we don't really know about it and we don't drive it because ten years ago the major car manufacturers, in conjunction with oil companies, governmental agencies and other lobbiests, set out to destroy the potential of this alternative transportation source.

That was 1996. This is 2006. This week, General Motors announced it is ready to launch a plug-in version of its upcoming two-mode hybrid model: the Saturn VUE Green Line. A plug-in version -- aka: electric car (or, at least, some variation of it).

In 1996, GM fought deep and dirty to destroy the electric car.

In 2006, the Big Three member announced its corporate intentions to expand its alternative fuel options.

So, what happened?

War happened. As did worldwide political unrest. Terrorism happened. As did socialization of the USA's fourth largest oil provider. Awareness happened. As did the momentum and belief in the decades of correlational proof on the human element of global warming.

In otherwords the GM (and perhaps other automakers) are living in a different world than 10 years ago.

In otherwords GM (and other automakers) can no longer make economic decisions based on short-term gain (five, ten, fifteen years is but a blip in a larger life-span). Instead, these major inhibitors and accelerators of transportation industry change have come to realize that to circle the proverbial wagons is to orchestrate one's own demise.

Though good ol' GM should be applauded for being the first major automaker to commit to producing a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle the sense of irony is a bit thick. At least, though, large corps are good foot-in-the-mouth swallowers. GM and other large corporations know that corporate image makeovers and PR games are all part and parcel of doing business in a global economy. So, applause the announcement, in my eyes, should be kept for other, not so large players in this realm.

In my view, applause for GM's decision to create and offer consumer accessible alternatives to the gas-combustable engine should be kept for people like Chris Paine and Jessie Deeter -- the writer/director and producer of Who Killed the Electric Car (an expose on the intentional death of an greener alternative to gas-powered cars in America).

Applause should also be kept for the thousands of Greenpeace activists, supporters and corporate personnel who have consistently drawn the public's attention to environmental issues such as global warming.

Applause should be kept for David Suzuki and all the people involved in his foundation that have kept up the barrage of news, views and data to support the need for a societal shift in how we think, act and feel about the Earth and its resources.

And applause should be kept for all those people, across the globe, that CHOOSE to ride their bike to work, take public transit, refuse to use plastic bags, continue to buy bulk (rather than fancy packaging) and opt for the admittedly rougher, but certainly far greener option of recycled personal hygiene paper products.

These are the true heros -- for without them, major automakers, such as GM, would not be in a position to realize public sentiment and corporate image is far more powerful than a small man with a big stick in an unstable oil-producing country half-way across the world.

For more information on Who Killed the Electric Car go to:
http://www.sonyclassics.com/whokilledtheelectriccar/electric.html

For more information on GM's announcement go to:
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061110/AUTO01/611100327/1148

For more information on criticism on Who Killed the Electric Car go to:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_Killed_the_Electric_Car%3F