The Greenpeace tour has started and the Arctic Sunrise ship has already been to Manaus, Belem and Fortaleza and received over 8,000 visitors. Today, February 14, the ship is in Recife and will soon be in Salvador, Rio de Janeiro, and Santos.
During the World Social Forum and at the guests-only events—guests like Carlos Minc, Minister of the Environment—held on board the boat, Greenpeace activists talked about the importance of the oceans, of investing in renewable energies and of conserving nature in order to curb global warming.
Follow the Arctic’s stops at Brazilian cities.
And participate in this campaign by signing a petition that urges President Lula to adopt effective measures to save the climate.
Next stops:
* Recife - February 14 and 15
* Salvador - March 7 and 8
* Rio de Janeiro - March 21 and 22
* Santos - March 28 and 29
Image: from here.
Source: http://www.greenpeace.org/brasil
Read this post at the Sturm Und Drang blog: Salve the Planet. Participate.
When the Arctic Sunrise ship became visible in the horizon, still far way, tiny, sailing on the ocean in front of the hotel where I’m staying, I must confess that it made me pretty excited. Between phone calls and e-mails, and while I worked organizing the media attendance to register the moment, I would take a quick pause to watch that little spot on the ocean, getting closer, closer… until suddenly, there it was! The entire crew was on the side of the ship holding a huge banner with the theme for the expedition that we’re using in Brazil and pictures of the huge wind turbines that have been installed near the port.
The gang spent three days at sea, and many of them got really seasick—the Arctic is an ice breaker vessel and draws very high, which makes it swing a lot so that even the most experienced sailors can feel seasick—but everybody was there, happy, smiling and ready to do whatever was necessary. It’s a pleasure to see the gang working hard to further the project. Mari tells us about the arrival, in the expedition’s blog, from the perspective of those on board. I was in one of the two trawlers we had arranged to take the press to sea, near the ship, to get some images. We handed out Dramamine to prevent any embarrassments, and followed the Arctic until it docked at the Mucuripe Port. Tomorrow we’ll have a seminar on renewable energy on board the ship, with the participation of local public authorities, experts in the area (Steve Sawyer, from the Global Wind Energy Council will be there), and people from Greenpeace to discuss the potential of Ceara’s wind—the greatest potential in the country. I’m a little under the weather with a cold (thanks to that awful air-conditioner and today’s strong winds), so I’m going to stop here. I’m going to rest, read a bit, and listen to some music in my hotel room. The gang is on the ship, celebrating its arrival.  A toast to everybody from here, with some orange juice, some vitamin C tablets and some propolis spray for my throat. Cheers!
Read this post at the O Escriba blog: Good winds bring the Arctic Sunrise to Fortaleza
Read this post at the Guindaste blog: The jungle
On February 12, Thursday, we have a date in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. It’s Twestival, a worldwide live event that will happen in over 100 cities around the world. In addition, we are going to raise funds for the Charity:Water, an NGO that works to bring drinkable water to people in developing countries.
Did you know that 1.1 billion people on this Planet go thirsty?
The organization is managed by @fernandosouza, from TwitterBrasil, in Sao Paulo and by @lesilva in Rio de Janeiro.
In the beginning there was London…
In September of 2008, a group of Twitterers from London decided to organize an event where the local Twitter community could meet offline, see the faces behind the avatars, have fun, and above all, raise funds for a charitable institution that takes care of the homeless. Organized within two weeks, Twestival gathered 300 people (and there was a waiting list) and allowed whoever was necessary to collaborate.
Of course, the media was interested and there was a new event in London. The organizers decide to hold one event every three months—and they were also curious to find out if this concept could be translated to other cities around the world. Gathering twitterers from all over the globe in events held on the same day on behalf of institutions is something that shows another facet of this tool.
Charity:water
Charity:water is a non-profit organization that brings drinkable, clean and safe water to people in developing nations. One hundred per cent of the funds raised go straight to projects, financing sustainable drinking water solutions, where potable water is most needed. They also work to increase awareness of the water crisis through events, fund raising exhibitions, and other awareness raising campaigns. Many communities in developing countries oftentimes have an abundant stock of clean and drinkable water, right below the surface of the ground, but are unable to use it. This is where charity:water and its partner organizations come in. Drilling a well can cost from US$4,000 to US$12,000, and people who live with less than US$1 per day cannot bear this expense even with the involvement of the entire community.
How to Donate.
Anyone and everyone can make a donation through the Twestival page, on the charitywater website. There are no predefined amounts, so feel free. To make a donation, select the city it will be related to, which can be either Sao Paulo or Rio de Janeiro. Here in Sampa, the meeting will be at Espaço PIX/Gafanhoto (Av. Rebouças, 3181 - Pinheiros), which is very well known by the gang—we know how to squeeze ourselves in there, don’t we? Make your donation and keep an eye on the official websites to find out what’s going on.
Update: Hey guys? Let’s start donating? Twestival has received only US$263 so far…
Read this post at the Ladybug Brasil blog: Tweetfestival Brasil
Greenpeace is campaigning to alert the population and pressure governments to understand the seriousness of climate changes and the urgency of having a decent plan to replace the Kyoto Protocol at the upcoming UN meeting on the climate, scheduled for December of this year in Copenhagen.
The organization’s Save the Planet website is now up and running. It’s Now or Now. There, any citizen can send a message to the Brazilian delegates who will be attending the COP15. This is the full text of message:
In December of 2009, in Copenhagen, Denmark, representatives of over 200 countries will gather to reach an agreement about how to save the planet’s climate. Brazil has an important role in climate changes, since it is the fourth largest emissor of greenhouse gases; it is also one of the ten largest economies in the world and moreover has natural resources like the Amazon Rainforest. To do their share in fighting climate changes, the Brazilian government must commit to eliminating deforestation in the Amazon, increasing generation of renewable electric energy and creating a network of marine reserves to keep the oceans alive.
Send the message below to President Lula. Brazil can—and should—take the lead in building a new development model.
Dear Mr. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil
I hereby request that the Brazilian government take the lead in the negotiations at the 15th Conference of UN Members, to be held in Copenhagen, Denmark and to commit to:
- Eliminating deforestation in the Amazon by 2015 and supporting the establishment of an international fund to support this goal (Forests for Climate mechanism);
- Guaranteeing that at least 25% of the electricity is generated from renewable sources of energy such as wind, sun, biomass and small hydroelectric power plants by 2020, and supporting technology transfer among countries;
- Turning at least 30% of the Brazilian marine coast into protected areas by 2020;
Mister President, regardless of Brazil’s track record as an emissor of greenhouse gases, your country must take responsibility for itself. We can continue growing and generating jobs and income without contributing to global warming—humanity’s greatest challenge ever.
Save the Planet—It’s now or now.
To help in this campaign, the Arctic Sunrise is in Brazil. For the next three months, it will visit the entire Brazilian coast, from north to south. To embark on this adventure and find out when the ship will be open for public visitation (and where…) check back on the blog.
Read this post on the Ladybug Brasil Blog: Greenpeace in campaign: It’s Now or Now.
The project of law 6424/05, known as Zero Forest, is about to be voted in the Environment Commission, of the chamber of deputies, and, when its approved, it’ll go to the plenary, with great chance of passing. It reduces form 80% to 50% the areas of the Amazon forest to be conserved and used as forest handling in private properties.
Check here the deputies that may or may not commit this attack against the Environment.
Including Palocci is in the area!
The idea is to send messages to them, call them, really disturb them, for them to vote against the project. It may pass, but, those guys’ shins will swell up.
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