UN News May 8
USING ART TO INSPIRE ACTION ON THE ENVIRONMENT – NEW UN CAMPAIGN
New York, May 7 2008 4:00PM
Art can be a catalyst for environmental action – that’s the message today from a United Nations seminar and exhibit which are bringing together artists from around the world.
Mia Hanak, Founding Executive Director of the Natural World Museum, which is co-sponsoring the events in New York, said that, “art is a vehicle for environmental action and social change. Our collective goal is to ignite people’s passion for being a part of the global solution and together inspiring people to take bold actions in finding new ways to embrace sustainable lifestyles.”
The seminar and art exhibition are also sponsored by the UN’s Environment Programme (UNEP) and Department of Information (DPI), under the title, “art changing attitudes toward the environment.”
Seven artists from different regions of the world are exhibiting photographs focusing on the environment at UN Headquarters in New York until the end of May.
Indian-born photographer Subhankar Banerjee has photographed the Arctic region over the past eight years and said today that the area suffered from negative perceptions as a “hostile wasteland” and that its indigenous peoples had also suffered from intolerance. “I hope that my work would help unlearn many of these intolerances against a whole part of our planet and our indigenous friends who call this home,” he said.
The events are part of the http://www.un.org/Pubs/chronicle/tolerance/seminar.html
Unlearning Intolerance Seminar Series which was initiated by the UN in 2004. Eric Falt, Director of Outreach with DPI, said that the aim was to “examine intolerance, as well as to explore ways to promote respect and understanding among peoples.”
“In previous years,” he said, “the series has focused on anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, genocide and the role of the media in promoting tolerance.”
Ms. Hanak said, “We are sending out a call to action through the arts to break down our barriers and activate environmental and social transformation. We can each do our part in turning the tide in public awareness - and just remember one person can make a difference and together we can create change.”
2008-05-07 00:00:00.000
MIGRATORY BIRDS THREATENED BY CHANGING ENVIRONMENT, UN WARNS
New York, May 8 2008 6:00PM
Numbers of migratory birds – considered to be some of the best gauges of the state of global biodiversity – are plunging in the face of a changing environment, the United Nations Environment Programme (<"http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=535&ArticleID=5803&l=en">UNEP) warned today.
Marking World Migratory Bird Day, the agency said that the decline is being recorded for many species along all of the main migration corridors, which birds utilize on their journeys, spanning thousands of miles, between their breeding and wintering grounds.
“Migratory birds are some of the most extraordinary creatures on the planet and in many countries bird watching is an economically important leisure and tourism activity,” said UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner.
“But migratory birds are more than this. Their dependence on healthy habitats and ecosystems makes them among the key indicators as to whether the international community is truly addressing the decline and erosion of the planet’s nature-based assets.”
The Day – focusing on the theme “Migratory Birds – Ambassadors for Biodiversity” – will be marked on the weekend of 10-11 May with concerts, films and other public events to highlight the ever-increasing threat to migratory birds and to global biodiversity.
Although the reasons behind the drop in numbers of migratory birds are complex and are specific to certain species, the overall decline is a reflection of the larger environmental problem tied to the global loss of habitats and biodiversity.
UNEP noted that 41 per cent of the 522 migratory waterbird populations on the routes linking Africa and Eurasia are witnessing their populations drop, and it has been reported that numbers of migratory songbirds using the same corridors are also on the decline.
Meanwhile, numbers of Boreal birds in the Western Hemisphere, such as the Canadian Warbler, which migrate from northern Canada to South America, are plummeting because they are losing their forest breeding grounds.
Vulnerable to changes in the environment, migratory birds are dependent on stop-over sites to rest and refuel as they make their long voyages, but these locations are threatened or disappear as a result of agricultural, urban, infrastructural and industrial development.
Climate change also plays an important role, as climbing global temperatures result in larger deserts and more frequent storms, which could lead to rising sea levels and impede migration.
New York, May 7 2008 4:00PM
Art can be a catalyst for environmental action – that’s the message today from a United Nations seminar and exhibit which are bringing together artists from around the world.
Mia Hanak, Founding Executive Director of the Natural World Museum, which is co-sponsoring the events in New York, said that, “art is a vehicle for environmental action and social change. Our collective goal is to ignite people’s passion for being a part of the global solution and together inspiring people to take bold actions in finding new ways to embrace sustainable lifestyles.”
The seminar and art exhibition are also sponsored by the UN’s Environment Programme (UNEP) and Department of Information (DPI), under the title, “art changing attitudes toward the environment.”
Seven artists from different regions of the world are exhibiting photographs focusing on the environment at UN Headquarters in New York until the end of May.
Indian-born photographer Subhankar Banerjee has photographed the Arctic region over the past eight years and said today that the area suffered from negative perceptions as a “hostile wasteland” and that its indigenous peoples had also suffered from intolerance. “I hope that my work would help unlearn many of these intolerances against a whole part of our planet and our indigenous friends who call this home,” he said.
The events are part of the http://www.un.org/Pubs/chronicle/tolerance/seminar.html
Unlearning Intolerance Seminar Series which was initiated by the UN in 2004. Eric Falt, Director of Outreach with DPI, said that the aim was to “examine intolerance, as well as to explore ways to promote respect and understanding among peoples.”
“In previous years,” he said, “the series has focused on anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, genocide and the role of the media in promoting tolerance.”
Ms. Hanak said, “We are sending out a call to action through the arts to break down our barriers and activate environmental and social transformation. We can each do our part in turning the tide in public awareness - and just remember one person can make a difference and together we can create change.”
2008-05-07 00:00:00.000
MIGRATORY BIRDS THREATENED BY CHANGING ENVIRONMENT, UN WARNS
New York, May 8 2008 6:00PM
Numbers of migratory birds – considered to be some of the best gauges of the state of global biodiversity – are plunging in the face of a changing environment, the United Nations Environment Programme (<"http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=535&ArticleID=5803&l=en">UNEP) warned today.
Marking World Migratory Bird Day, the agency said that the decline is being recorded for many species along all of the main migration corridors, which birds utilize on their journeys, spanning thousands of miles, between their breeding and wintering grounds.
“Migratory birds are some of the most extraordinary creatures on the planet and in many countries bird watching is an economically important leisure and tourism activity,” said UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner.
“But migratory birds are more than this. Their dependence on healthy habitats and ecosystems makes them among the key indicators as to whether the international community is truly addressing the decline and erosion of the planet’s nature-based assets.”
The Day – focusing on the theme “Migratory Birds – Ambassadors for Biodiversity” – will be marked on the weekend of 10-11 May with concerts, films and other public events to highlight the ever-increasing threat to migratory birds and to global biodiversity.
Although the reasons behind the drop in numbers of migratory birds are complex and are specific to certain species, the overall decline is a reflection of the larger environmental problem tied to the global loss of habitats and biodiversity.
UNEP noted that 41 per cent of the 522 migratory waterbird populations on the routes linking Africa and Eurasia are witnessing their populations drop, and it has been reported that numbers of migratory songbirds using the same corridors are also on the decline.
Meanwhile, numbers of Boreal birds in the Western Hemisphere, such as the Canadian Warbler, which migrate from northern Canada to South America, are plummeting because they are losing their forest breeding grounds.
Vulnerable to changes in the environment, migratory birds are dependent on stop-over sites to rest and refuel as they make their long voyages, but these locations are threatened or disappear as a result of agricultural, urban, infrastructural and industrial development.
Climate change also plays an important role, as climbing global temperatures result in larger deserts and more frequent storms, which could lead to rising sea levels and impede migration.
Labels: article, Environment, United Nations
posted by Leslie at
6:53 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home