Niger migration

It's now over 3o years since I travelled through Niger to the edge of the Sahara. Even our last visit to West Africa was back in 2000, to Gambia. Between those two times migration within West Africa had increased a great deal. The Tuareg people are among those who've long lived as nomads in the area. But it seemed to us in 2000 that so many more people were on the move, not really living nomadic lives but trying to escape wars, drought and poverty and generally seeking better ways of life. There were still people very strong in spirit and enjoying the present though and these pictures of migration from West Africa, across the desert to Europe, I find very poignant. A reminder of how much I take for granted as an employed Western European citizen. One prediction concerning climate change is that there will be a lot more mass migration from parts of the world debilitated by droughts and floods. Many are also made homeless by large-scale development projects. I was thinking Jim Lovelock's predictions, that climate change could kill nearly all of us, are too gloomy. But I think we've certainly yet to face up to what many in West Africa have already experienced, in terms of what mass migration might mean.

Satish Kumar - to be an Earth Pilgrim

Hearing Jonathon's talk made me look for the first Richard Sandbrook memorial lecture, which I'd somehow missed. Good to see a summary of it on Satish Kumar's blog. In his memorial lecture in 2008 he talked about revering Nature and the relationship of 'friendship' with the earth, based on reciprocity. He sees acting like a pilgrim, rather than like a tourist, on Planet Earth as the way to forge the friendship that is needed with the Earth.

"When we are at home, we have a special relationship with a place, and we need to rekindle our relationship with Nature. Perhaps more than just friendship is required – we need to fall back into love with Nature, romance with Nature. And the best way of forging this relationship is to be with Nature, sitting under a tree, working in an allotment, walking on Dartmoor – a pilgrim and not a tourist on Planet Earth."

Porritt on optimism and action

Jonathon Porrit gave the second Richard Sandbrook memorial lecture on 25th June, three extracts of it are up on YouTube and worth a listen in my view. He talked about reactions to climate change, the case for hope and optimism, how we can ward off despair and why we should get angry. He argues history has showed that leaders of change can't motivate through preaching Armageddon. He identifies three kinds of optimism

1. Lovelockian school of optimism - the world will be a better place in 2-300 years because 5 billion people will have died. This is based on his understanding of life in Earth.
2. War footing optimism. Where is the Pearl Harbour moment? Moving onto a different footing, a war footing. Perception that climate change has to be addressed in the way that war is addressed. (Rationing, controls etc in interest of greater good)
3. We still have a window of time' optimism that enables us to come through into a better world. [This is the camp Porritt identifies with]. If this window were to close he wouldn't know how to cope with the despair - a response that it's too late to act.

He went on to talk about how to take advantage of the window, the diminishing opportunity, who will be the agents of change and political leadership that recognises the window of time for action. How we ward off despair?

1. Anger. He is surprised at low level of anger at what is going on in ratcheting up irresponsible economic activity. Difficult to get people motivated to act without anger.
2. Positive visions. Martin Luther King didn't go around the world saying 'I have a nightmare' but 'I have a dream'. Historically we have been better at the negative stuff than the positive. But, as Richard Sandbrook used to say - how can we get anywhere without being able to summon up positive visions? Need to be better at celebrations than wakes.
3. ....the third isn't covered in the video clips. I'll look out for it....or perhaps think about one for myself?

Finding a balance in natural history programmes

I find TV programmes that are all doom and gloom regarding our natural world so deeply depressing I can't often watch, however shocking. So I find a personal dilemma in George Monbiot's challenge to the BBC. Should I enjoy 'beautiful thrilling programmes about the world's wildlife' or join Monbiot in calling for more acknowledgement and explanation of political and environmental contexts? I do think he has a good point but I also don't agree that people necessarily believe, as a result of seeing these programmes, that all is well with the world's ecosystems. My research has shown that people develop many simultaneous understandings about our enviornment, not just one, and I think there's plenty around that shows all is not well. Though if, as he says, no BBC programme has as yet taken a look at effects of climate change in East Africa then I also think that needs to be addressed.

Mixed messages on state of the future

Interesting article in The Independent on impacts of the recession on taking action concerning climate change.
On the one hand

...researchers warning that global clean energy, food availability, poverty and the growth of democracy around the world are at risk of getting worse due to the recession...too many greedy and deceitful decisions led to a world recession and demonstrated the international interdependence of economics and ethics

and on the other hand

The good news is that the global financial crisis and climate change planning may be helping humanity to move from its often selfish, self-centred adolescence to a more globally responsible adulthood... Many perceive the current economic disaster as an opportunity to invest in the next generation of greener technologies, to rethink economic and development assumptions, and to put the world on course for a better future.