Global Poverty Project campaign launches in Aotearoa

I’ve been a little busy lately, for one reason or another, and neither been attending many events, nor blogging about green stuff.

I’ll make amends with a quick description of an event I was invited to by the Wellington Activation Manager for the Global Poverty Project, Sarah Wood, which took place at the Banquet Hall of Parliament last night.

MP’s Jackie Blue (N) and Steve Chadwick (L) spoke, as the hosting MP’s and Chair and VC of the Parliamentary Committee to Effect Change on Women’s Issues, and welcomed the organisers of the Global Poverty Project to Wellington, and also to Aotearoa/New Zealand, as they begin the launch of their campaign here.
In Australia, it’s fronted by Hugh Jackman, no less, and has had endorsements from Bono and other celebrities, but you can look at the website here.

In Wellington, we were treated to a very well-presented launch by Hugh Evans, a young man who first experienced the priviledge of his birthright when he was taken to the Phillipines by World Vision as a 14 year-old schoolboy. He realised then that most of the things he took for granted about his life (home, access to schooling, his parents’ jobs) were essentially an accident of birth – if he had been born at the same time, in another place, his life might have been like that of the teenagers he met, who survived by selling scavenged metals on the Burning Mountain rubbish dump that he visited.

The presentation is travelling around New Zealand, visiting the major cities.
It’s back here in Wellington on Friday 28th August, at Rutherford House, Pipitea Campus of Victoria University of Wellington. Lecture Theatres are on the ground floor, there’ll be signs to guide you to the right one(s).
RSVP to
newzealand@globalpovertyproject.com
so they have some idea how many lecture theatres they’ll need! They requested that for today as a deadline, but if you find this late, Sarah is a very accommodating person and may let you off.

 

Supersizemypay 2.0

On Friday, I went to a cheery Campaign launch in Wellington for the latest Unite! minimum wage increase call – to raise the minimum to $15/hour.

We gathered at the Southern Cross in Abel Smith St, to be welcomed by Don Franks MC-ing, and a warm-up performance by the Union Choir, who sang stirringly and melodically.

Union Choir at Unite! Campaign launch

There were a few more speeches after the intro, then a time of social chitchat and networking was enjoyed by all.

Details of the new campaign can be found at Unite! website.

 

Buying localer

Can you make a New Year’s resolution after the event? Apparently you can, because I did so yesterday – when I run out of basic food necessities or need that single item, as I so often do, I’m going to buy them at the local dairy, instead of the supermarket. It’s only a brisk 20 minute walk to our smallish local supermarket, and that’s in a shopping centre where I can also (and do) visit the doctor, dentist, hairdresser, postal centre and hardware store, so we’re really very well provided, but in the meantime, the little corner shops even closer continue to close.

You can see their ghosts every few hundred metres along busy roads, converted into flats and houses with rather large picture windows. Our nearest dairy, just at the top of our drive and opposite our bus stop, closed for business about 18 months ago. Even though it was bought by a craftsperson who uses the large open shop space to practise his trade, he wasn’t able to stop the zoning reverting from commercial to residential, so cannot use it as a shop. However we are lucky to have another extant dairy within 400 metres, on a busier road, and it is this one I have resolved to help keep in business. Nor is it a hardship – my favourite loaf of bread is the same price as in the supermarket, milk and spread a bit more, but well within the margin of what I would spend in fuel or time if I drove or walked the extra kilometer to save those few cents.

The time might come when it’s a real struggle to walk that hilly trip to the shopping centre, and then I’ll really need that little shop, so I’ll use it now, as well as the supermarket, and the wholefoods shop, and the farmer’s market, to make sure it’s still there then.

 

Dairy Exports

Just looking at Dairy exports for last year. A staggering 154% increase (by value) in exports going to Venezuela. This puts Venezuela as our second top export destination for Dairy! Who would have thought. Exports to Cuba also increased by 139% but off a smaller base leaving it ranked 21. Increase in total exports from $7,466 million  to $9,836 million in last year. Interesting to know how much of that is due to value fluctuations and how much is volume.

2007 Rank	Country	% of Exports of Dairy (Year ending June 08)
1	United States of America	8.34%
11	Venezuela	6.3%
2	Japan	5.88%
3	Philippines	5.69%
7	Saudi Arabia	5.28%
5	Mexico	5.06%
9	Malaysia	4.77%
6	Australia	4.73%
4	China, People’s Republic of	4.47%
8	Indonesia	4.15%

Interesting to note that dairy exports are earning almost double that of meat exports.

 

Now we have got 2 six-foot leaders

Frog talked yesterday about Green Party Co-Leader, big six-foot Norm. Now it seems that Jeanette Fitzsimons has found a way to get a bit of equity on the height issue:

Otago Daily Times, 22 Oct 2008

 

Running

Next weekend I’m off to the National Road Running Relays in Mosgiel.

Yup, I confess. I am a runner. One way to prove to the world you are a masochist these days is to be caught going for a run. No, I’ll qualify that; people excuse the occasional run, spurred on by guilt of a few too many pints the night before or the need to fit a new pair of jeans, but too much more than that is looked upon a wee bit strangely.

It didn’t always used to be this way. Before car (or BC for short), before trains, and carts and bikes, runners had an important role to play in the world. We were broadband; the latest technology when it came to news broadcasting, the information superhighway. These days we have been superseded by the times. Along with our friends the pigeon fanciers and the penny farthing enthusiasts, we are, well, a bit odd.

Yet, running is a Green sort of pastime. It doesn’t require much other than a pair of shoes and enough clothes to keep warm. Some runners I know even forgo the shoes (but most then also become good friends with their local physiotherapist). Unlike other sports you don’t need a few thousand square metres of reshaped nature with white panted lines on it. It’s very much a leave only your footprints sort of activity.

It’s like high speed tramping. I know my way round local communities, bushes, mountains and reserves. I know where there are taps you can stop for a drink, dogs that leap out from behind hedges and public toilets that get washed regularly. I wave at people in Newtown most mornings as I run past them, especially other runners. Runners give each other the one eyebrow raised salute. Good on ya, mate.

Running is you actively in your environment, your community, Running is not jogging, or as friends at my club call it, yogging, (from the movie Anchorman).

Veronica and I trying this new fad called uh, jogging. I believe it’s jogging or yogging. it might be a soft j. I’m not sure but apparently you just run for an extended period of time. It’s supposed to be wild.

Jogging is a poor imitation of running, but as we runners are no longer in the majority these days we take our jogging allies where we can find them. Running is very political. Have you noticed all the Presidents of the United States seem to have photo shoots where they go running to prove that they are not going to die of a heart attack or anything. And it’s not just Green, according to this Washington Post article about the French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s unseemly running habit, it is inherently right wing:

“The Sarkozy jog, say his critics, is a sad imitation of the habits of American presidents, and a capitulation to ‘le défi Américain’ (a phrase that was the title of a book published here as ‘The American Challenge’) as bad as the influx of Hollywood movies,” writes Boris Johnson, a British member of Parliament and confirmed jogger, in the Telegraph.

“I am not deterred . . . by the accusation that jogging is right-wing,” he says. “Of course it is right-wing, in the sense that the facts of life are generally right-wing. The very act of forcing yourself to go for a run, every morning, is a highly conservative business. There is the mental effort needed to overcome your laziness.

Obviously I’m not as left wing as I thought.  So, if your in Mosgiel the weekend next give a cheer for the Wellington Scottish Mens B team as we run past.

 

Time is running out to save the Nevis River from damnation

Fish and Game have put in an application to prevent the Nevis River from being dammed and they need your help to save this last untouched river of consequence in central Otago.

Naturally the local power company opposes the application and conservation groups support it.

MFE have identified the Nevis as a probable hydro site and estimate it could power a 45 MW generator or around 197 GW hours / year. Wow, that’s nearly half a percent of New Zealand’s power usage. For this we would destroy an outstanding fishery, flood an irreplaceable historic site and put another nail in the coffin of our international brand.

Given the 30 MW Matakitaki will cost about 100 million It’s likely the Nevis will be somewhere in that region. How much electricity do you think we could save with 100 million dollars? I bet it’s more than one 200th of our national usage. The only reason this application is being opposed is because Pioneer Generation make their money from generating power and not saving it.

So now you have two choices – turn away and leave it for someone else to deal with. Or you can submit your unqualified support for the application at
http://www.mfe.govt.nz/issues/water/freshwater/water-conservation/kawarau/kawarau-order-nevis-river.html. Submissions close on October 3.

No matter what the outcome on this application you can be sure that the plans to damn our pristine rivers will continue no matter how little sense it makes. The only thing that can save them is organised action, so keep informed.
Keep NZ Rivers Free Flowing
Wild Rivers Action Project

Photo courtesy of coincidink | Crosspost from www.joshuavial.com

 

Out on the street

Was a beautiful day in Dunedin today, and I enjoyed an afternoon spent wandering the north end of Dunedin chatting with people. Was good to see lots of support for the Greens. I was feeling a bit jaded the other day but am now ready for more Green Party Emails … (unfortunately they built up while I was outside). So if you are reading this and feeling down with the state of the world or your inbox – and it is not hard given its current status – I implore you get out and talk to people about it (maybe not your overloaded inbox though there is Free Software Day coming up soon). If suggesting to people that they party vote green is not your thing ask them if they are on the roll. Or you might be more into promoting reduce/reuse and recycle or expounding car alternatives. It is however great fun and worthwhile in fact with the current urgency necessary.

 

Yes it is not it isn’t

I listened to parliament this afternoon. I was totally disgusted. I swear Rodney and Winston spent at least an hour playing I’m just going to keep reading out my speech.
“oint of order that is sub judice.”
“Not it is not.”
“Yes it is”
“No it is not”
“yes it is”
“No it is not” … is to is not is to is not is to is not….
Seriously if the general public knew how much money you had wasted with such childlike antics then there respect for the house of representatives would diminish. If I was unlucky enough to be an MP I would be walking out of there in disgust. Seriously guys grow the fuck up. You are there to represent us in looking after our country. Not to argue like three year olds.

 

Why I’m glad I’m not a Green MP

I have had a bit of a break from the greens this weekend – only one meeting and didn’t check my email till this evening. Bliss… While I indulged in a breath of Dunedin summer I would pause every now and then. Pause and think about our dilemma. Then I would offer thanks that I’m not going to be in caucus on Tuesday morning. Sitting around a table making a very pivotal decision. I have not decided. I trust you guys to make a good decision. I just hope that there is a right decision to make, but know that there isn’t. Know that whatever choice you make we will back you up – If you can justify it – and work even harder to get more Green MPs so next time the compromise can be pulled further away from growth/pollution in the direction of a sustainable future.

As I heard Metiria say recently – In there [parliament] numbers is the only thing that matters. While in true kiwi fashion we have achieved so much with so little this time we didn’t have enough. So if you are reading this blog, pondering as I still am what path should be taken please help us get more MPs so next term when this happens the Green tinge is a bit stronger.

To those that think this is a stunt laid against a decision already made I would like to say you are wrong. While this might be a politically expedient thing to do it would have been just as expedient to drop the whole Section 59 issue when it blew up, filing it under to hard and moving on. It is not as though there was not a billion other things to fix. I joined the greens because they stuck to their principles, our principles. While we have matured and learned from our mistakes the day the party deserts Green Principles is the day I will resign my membership.