Good News Agency – Year V, n° 11
Weekly - Year V, number 11 –
Managing Editor: Sergio Tripi, Ph. D.
Good News Agency carries
positive and constructive news from all over the world relating to voluntary
work, the work of the United Nations, non governmental organizations, and institutions
engaged in improving the quality of life – news that doesn’t “burn out” in the
space of a day. Editorial research by Fabio Gatti. Good News Agency is published in English
on one Friday and in Italian the next. It is distributed free of charge through
Internet to the editorial offices of more than 3,700
media in 48 countries, as well as to 2,500 NGOs and service associations.
It is a service of Associazione Culturale dei Triangoli e della Buona
Volontà Mondiale, NGO
associated with the United Nations Department of
Public Information. The
Association has been recognized by UNESCO as “an actor of the global movement for a culture of peace” and it has
been included as an international organization in the web site http://www3.unesco.org/iycp/
Human rights – Economy and development – Solidarity
Peace and security – Health – Environment
and wildlife
Religion and spirituality – Culture and education
Editorial - World crisis: it
is not too late to change this situation
2 September - A series of
round-table meetings was held in
Last week's round tables dealt
with the following questions: Why do women become involved in armed struggle?
What specific role do they play within armed groups? What problems do women and
girls face in the process of disarming, demobilizing and reintegrating into
society? What specific difficulties arise for girls involved in armed groups?
The participants exchanged
views on knowledge and understanding of humanitarian rules, implementing those
rules within armed groups, and their ability, as women, to influence the
conduct of the other members of their group. They also discussed the usefulness
and judiciousness of promoting humanitarian rules within these groups. The common
aim of all the round tables was to better understand how women experience war
and how this differs from the experience of men. The report on the exchanges,
along with the participants' recommendations, should be published by the end of
the year.
United Nations reaches
internally displaced persons by air in Democratic Republic of Congo
New York, 19 August -
Yesterday representatives of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
(OCHA), the World Food Programme (WFP), the United Nations Organization Mission
in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC), and their partners arrived in
the high plains of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to
deliver 90 tons of food and basic supplies to some 1,200 internally displaced
families. The aid is being flown in by helicopter, since the only way to reach
this remote area is by air.
The families fled their homes
near the town of
Because of the influx of
internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the area, the
population of Shanje has increased by 50 per cent, and that of Numbi by 25 per
cent. The result has been a severe threat to an already precarious food
security situation, with the host communities’ food stocks already having been
entirely consumed. (…)
http://ochaonline.un.org/DocView.asp?DocID=1662
For many years, both companies
have maintained strict codes of conduct for their licensees and manufacturers.
These codes address a range of key labor rights
issues including the prohibition of forced and child labor
and the setting of requirements in such areas as health and safety, working
hours, compensation and compliance with applicable laws. (…)
The project has
been launched as part of an ongoing effort to strengthen the effectiveness of
these labor standards by drawing on the interest and
expertise of interested investor organizations and jointly exploring means of
promoting 'sustained compliance' with labor codes.
This collaborative project seeks to foster the creation and testing of internal
systems within factories in order to promote such compliance over time,
including enhanced training and education for management, supervisors and
workers and potential positive compliance incentives. (…)
http://www.iccr.org/news/press_releases/pr_projectk082704.htm
Annual DPI/NGO Conference
“Millennium Development Goals: Civil Society Takes Action”
8 to
Civil society activists from
around the world are preparing to mobilize broader public support for a major United
Nations initiative, the Millennium Development Goals. The 57th
Annual Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), entitled Millennium
Development Goals: Civil Society Takes Action, will take place at United Nations Headquarters in
“This Conference aims to raise
public awareness and support for the Millennium Development Goals through the
3,000 NGOs working directly with the UN Secretariat” says Shashi
Tharoor, Under-Secretary-General for Communications
and Public Information of the United Nations, “The involvement of civil society
partners in the MDG Campaign is essential to its success.”
At
the Millennium Summit in 2000, 189 Member States adopted a Declaration that
synthesized the priorities of the international agenda and reflected the
commitments that had been painstakingly negotiated during the previous decade
of world conferences. The Millennium
Declaration, and the eight goals it identified, have
become a road map for tackling poverty, instability, HIV/AIDS, gender
inequality and violence in virtually all parts of the world.
The Conference provides the opportunity for non-governmental organizations to assess the current status of the MDGs, address the obstacles that threaten their realization, share innovative approaches to partnerships and learn of the civil society campaigns that are most effective in stimulating broader public awareness and support for sustainable and replicable North-South programmes.
Over 2,000 NGO representatives
associated with DPI and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) from 90
countries around the world are expected to attend the Conference, which will
bring together United Nations officials, government representatives, MDG
campaign activists, media representatives, academics and, most importantly,
experts on the front lines where the urgent need for the implementation of the MDGs is most clearly felt.
One of the several innovative
features of this year’s Conference is an interactive web site where NGO
representatives and interested citizens around the world will be able to view
the plenary sessions live. The interactive web site is at: http://www.undpingoconference.org in English, French
and Spanish. (…)
The Conference marks an important
step in United Nations-civil society consultations leading up to the Millennium
Summit+5 review in September 2005 and beyond. These
changes create more opportunities for Conference participants to voice their
ideas and to network before, during and after the Conference. The Conference
draws on the many efforts of United Nations and civil society players’ who have sought to define, implement and monitor
the MDGs.
The report, "Economic
Security for a Better World," (Note 1) includes estimates for countries
representing more than 85 per cent of the world's population, and says such
economic security -coupled with democracy and government spending on social
security - not only benefits growth but can also promote social stability. The
report cautions, however, that economic security remains out of reach for the
vast majority of the world's workers, about three-quarters of whom live in circumstances of economic insecurity that
fosters what the report calls "a world full of anxiety and anger".
Only 8 per cent of people - fewer than one in ten - live in countries providing
favourable economic security, said the survey produced by the ILO's Socio-Economic Security Programme.
"Coming shortly after the
report of the World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization, this
book should enrich the debate on how we can build a fair globalization,"
says ILO Director-General Juan Somavia. "Unless
we can make our societies more equal and the global economy more inclusive,
very few will achieve economic security or decent work." (…)
http://www.ilo.org/public/english/bureau/inf/pr/2004/38.htm
2 September - Equity Building Society (EBS), a
micro-finance bank catering to
Eradicating poverty through
profit: making business work for the poor
An international conference on the private sector and the public good. Keynote addresses, panels, workshops and other
presentations will focus on private sector approaches to development -- how
business can "do good and do well" at the same time.
The conference is intended for
all professionals from the business, policy-making, academic, and social
entrepreneurial communities with an interest in base of the pyramid business
engagements, including COOs, line business managers,
corporate social responsibility officers, triple bottom line investors,
sustainable development entrepreneurs, and funders.
The conference will bring
together leading corporations from both North and South; international agencies
working on pro-poor policies and projects; entrepreneurs – business and social
– who are alleviating poverty through innovative business approaches. Many
voices will be present; all will speak with authority from extensive first-hand
experience. (…)
1 September - For the first time,
mobile banking will hit the road in
http://www.unhabitat.org/adb_loan.asp
FAO partners with Indian institutions
to improve land and water management in drought-prone areas
Rome, 13 August -- As
part of an innovative model of development assistance that puts project
management in the hands of national institutions, FAO signed agreements this
week with three Indian organizations to strengthen land and water management
for poor farmers in drought-prone areas of the country. The projects,
funded with 13.9 million euros from the
Under such agreements, FAO no
longer has direct responsibility for the technical choices made in project
implementation, but rather assists national implementing institutions in making
appropriate choices. (…)
media-office http://www.fao.org/newsroom/
European Commission provides a further
€1.35 million in aid for victims of house demolitions in Rafah
(
Funds aim to turn back tide of
children going into institutions.
Tokyo/Geneva/New York, 31
August - The Government of Japan is
donating more than
US$ 2 million
to UNICEF to
get children out of orphanages and
other residential institutions
across Central Asia. The announcement coincides with
a tour of
Around 32,000
children in institutions
in Central Asia,
plus 30,000 families that are
at risk of
institutionalising their
children, will benefit from the contribution of approximately 235 million
yen. The funds will be
divided between the five Central Asian countries, with US$ 444,000 for
The funds, from the Japanese Trust Fund for Human
Security, will go to the UNICEF
supported-project: “Every Child
Has a Right to Grow up in a Family Environment”, aiming
to turn back
the tide of
children going into institutions in
these countries. The
Soviet legacy of state care for children in
difficulties, coupled with rising
poverty, means that around 200,000
children are growing up in long-term residential care
across the region – almost
84,000 of them in Kazakhstan
alone. The major stumbling block to getting
them out of
institutions and back
into a family environment is
the lack of
alternatives, with few
social workers or services to help
families in difficulties, few regulations on domestic
adoption, fostering and guardianship, and the absence of proper
norms and standards on child
protection. Meanwhile, new children’s homes are still being opened. (…)
http://www.unicef.org/media/media_23373.html
"There are tremendous
needs and only a handful of humanitarian organizations are working here",
explained Reto Stocker, who heads the ICRC delegation
in
During the emergency phase of
the conflict last year, the ICRC helped thousands of displaced people and ran
the surgical centre at the
by Vukoni Lupa-Lasaga, Rotary
International
2 September - As in many
impoverished communities throughout
In the past three years, local
and visiting Rotarians have often volunteered time and money to assist with
reconstruction efforts. Following in their footsteps, Alf Vasey,
of the Rotary Club of Newtownabbey,
Linking up with teams from
The new houses are built with
local materials costing the equivalent of a modest $3,000. Nevertheless, they
are financially beyond the reach of poor residents, who mostly depend on meager
incomes from growing and selling bananas and other tropical fruits. Thus, in
addition to paying their own way to
The Technical Experts
Conference on 7 and 8 September, held by the Organization for Security and
Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
(UNODC) will be the first of its kind. The aim of the conference will be to
share international organizations’ experience in promoting more effective
border management and security, and to develop a more
strategic and coordinated approach to delivering international assistance.
Security reports show that
http://www.unis.unvienna.org/unis/pressrels/2004/unisinf27.html
3 September - Kosovo recently
launched a campaign in Pristina to reinforce the role
of civil servants and citizens in the fight against corruption. A working group
comprised of both civil servants and civil society will be carrying out the
UNDP-supported campaign through advocacy, education and debates at the
municipal level. “The Fight against Corruption” report, sponsored by the
government and UNDP was also presented. The report evaluates the perception of
corruption in public institutions, and presents various recommendations based
on the Balkan experiences in fighting corruption.
United Nations,
The women were speaking at a
meeting organized in
The meeting, which brought
together over 200 women from an association of female ex-combatants called Ndabaga ,
was also attended by Rwandan Minister for Gender, The Hon. Valerie Nyirahabineza, who said that peacekeeping missions must
have a gender perspective, and that Ndabaga members
could lend valuable contributions. (…)
http://www.unifem.org/pressreleases.php?f_page_pid=6&f_pritem_pid=172
The historic Nairobi Summit on
a Mine-Free World (29 November – 3 December 2004) will showcase considerable
achievements worldwide in eliminating antipersonnel landmines, but urgent efforts
are needed to bring Asia in line with the rest of the world. (…)
More than 500 delegates,
including decision makers at the highest levels, Nobel peace prize winners and
campaigners are expected at the landmark Nairobi Summit at the end of the year.
(..)
UN Drugs and Crime Office to provide
assistance to Pakistan’s Intelligence Agencies
Vienna, 23 August (UN
Information Service) -- The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
and the Ministry of Interior and Narcotics Control of Pakistan have signed an
agreement on a new technical assistance project to enhance the intelligence
capacity of key law enforcement agencies in Pakistan. Syed
Faisal Saleh Hayat,
Minister of Interior and Narcotics Control of Pakistan and Bernard Frahi, a senior representative of the UNODC met on
Saturday, 21 August, in
The agencies will be offered
advisory services, training and relevant equipment. Immediate beneficiaries
include the Anti Narcotics Force, the Frontier Corps (
Investigating and dismantling
criminal groups engaged in drug trafficking and organized crime requires a
strong intelligence capacity. In the context of an increased need for
strengthening law enforcement capacity in countries surrounding
http://www.unis.unvienna.org/unis/pressrels/2004/unisnar855.html
UN completes largest
de-worming campaign in history for 4.5 million Afghan children
The cost of the campaign came
to some US$476,000 – just over 10 US cents per child treated. (…)
Rotary
Helps Fund Polio Immunizations in
Part
of rapid response plan to stem the spread of the poliovirus in non-endemic
countries
Immunization
campaigns will be conducted in late July and August to protect approximately
1.3 million children under the age of five against polio in three
With a
global investment of over US$3 billion since 1988 for the eradication effort,
including more than US$500 million contributed by Rotary International,
responding to this looming epidemic will require an additional US$100 million,
of which US$25 million is urgently required by August.
The Global Polio Eradication Initiative is spearheaded by the World Health
Organization, Rotary International, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Oprah Winfrey To
Receive Global Humanitarian Action Award At 2004 UNA-USA Global Leadership
Awards Dinner – September 30,
Joan Ganz Cooney
and Pete Peterson to receive Global Leadership Award
Oprah Winfrey will receive the
United Nations Association of the
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan and many U.N.
ambassadors and corporate and community leaders will attend the dinner. Dinner
chairs include Victor F. Ganzi, President and CEO of
the Hearst Corporation, Robert A. Iger, President and
COO of the Walt Disney Company, Kenneth D. Lewis, CEO and President of the Bank
of America Corporation, H.R.H. Princess Firyal of
Jordan, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, David Rockefeller and John C. Whitehead.
Gland, Switzerland, 3
September - WWF and Wallenius Wilhelmsen
Lines, one of the world's shipping leaders, have recently signed an agreement
that will promote conservation of the high seas — areas of the open ocean
outside a nation's exclusive economic zone.
The three-year agreement aims
to strengthen the work of WWF's global Marine
Programme on high seas conservation and WWF-Norway’s Endangered Seas Programme.
Wallenius Wilhelmsen's
welcome support will help WWF work to improve high seas governance as well as
creating and developing practical conservation solutions, such as High Seas
Marine Protected Areas (HSMPAs). WWF's
high seas conservation strategy also aims to reduce the threats of illegal,
unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing and to develop means to better manage
global tuna fishing fleets and reduce bycatch of
marine species like dolphins, marine turtles, and sharks. (…)
Mexico City, Mexico, August 25
- Mexico today launched a new partnership that makes it the first country to adopt
internationally-accepted standards to measure and report business greenhouse
gas (GHG) emissions for establishing a voluntary national program.
The partnership, called the Mexico
GHG Pilot Program, was launched with the signing of an agreement between
The two-year partnership will
develop a voluntary reporting platform for Mexican businesses, following the
internationally accepted Greenhouse Gas Protocol, developed by WRI and WBCSD.
It hopes to assist businesses in
http://climate.wri.org/newsrelease_text.cfm?NewsReleaseID=294
Clean Up the World is a community
based environmental campaign that inspires and empowers communities from every
corner of the globe to clean up, fix up and conserve their local environment.
In conjunction with Primary Partner the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Clean Up the
World brings together businesses, community groups, schools and governments in
a range of activities and programs that positively improve local environments.
Since the first campaign in 1993, Clean Up the World
has inspired more than 40 million volunteers in over 100 countries each year to
take action.
Clean Up
the World promotes community action as the key to long-term environmental
change. The campaign welcomes participation from all nations and Members range
from individual groups working independently in their local community, to
national initiatives where the work of many groups is coordinated across an
entire nation.Clean Up the World encourages and
supports Member activities year-round, while the third weekend in September
(Clean Up the World Weekend) serves as a global celebration of Members’
environmental actions and achievements.
So far, a total of $32 million
from the international community have been approved or are in the pipeline.
Some of the funds have been provided bilaterally direct to the countries, but
the great majority has been routed through FAO. An additional $5 million have
been provided from FAO's own resources. Affected
countries have mobilized their own resources for national locust control
campaigns.
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2004/50034/index.html
Carried out by the UK's
largest independently-owned market research company Market & Opinion
Research International (MORI; 1), the poll found that 95 per cent of residents
are willing to recycle more and 84 per cent would reduce the amount of water
they use. Overall, more than four in five were in favour of lifestyle change,
with 82 per cent willing to help reduce pollution and consume less in order to
lessen their impact on the environment.
These views, welcomed by WWF,
are reflected in the UK South East Regional Assembly’s new framework that will
lead the way in tackling over-consumption and cutting pollution. If everyone in
the world lived a typical
Every year the United Nations calls
upon individual people of goodwill and organisations to observe this
International Day with activities dedicated to the creation of a culture of
peace, and to a day of global cease-fire and non-violence. To support this
special Day on a spiritual level, a group of organisations representing a wide
variety of religious and spiritual traditions has, since 2002, co-ordinated an International Day of Peace Vigil, encouraging local
groups and individuals to hold a 24 hour Vigil in houses of worship and places
of spiritual practice.
As a contribution to this
global focus the United Nations Days & Years Meditation Initiative and
Intuition in Service have, since 2002, co-ordinated an international Vigil of meditation
and prayer for the 24 hours of September 21st from midnight to midnight
GMT. The 24 hours are divided into 15 minute periods. The aim is to have
individuals or groups commit themselves to spend specific 15 minute periods in
prayer or meditation for world peace. You can choose the 15-minute time slots
you will participate, and see the list of all participants, in your own time
zone. When you select your country and time zone you will be able to register
your times in your time zone.
Events in:
Argentina, Australia, Belarus, Chile, Croatia, France, Ghana, Greece, Germany,
Hungary, India, Kazakhstan, Korea, Morocco, Mozambique, New Zealand, Nigeria,
South Africa, Spain, Thailand, Tibet, Uganda, 40 cities throughout the U.S. -
over 100 cities worldwide
11 Days of Global Unity is an extraordinary
convergence of peace and sustainability events that will take place in over 100
cities around the world culminating on Sept. 21 the UN-designated International
Day of Peace. 11 Days is being connected and promoted by We, The World and is designed to inspire,
inform and involve increasingly large numbers of people in creating a world
that works for all! To see our
latest listing of events click on 11 Days Calendar and scroll down.
The Calendar is being hosted by 11 Days partner organization Transitioners.org. Featured 11 days
events coming up:
Children's Global Summit - San Francisco, September 3-5, 2004. Remarkable, courageous,
international young people (ages 14 to 28) who have faced extreme circumstances
in war and other conflict, have organized their first global summit. The
purpose is to develop clear solutions and a call to action for the adults of
the world to pay attention.
Art Exhibition Bridging the Gap - Celebrating 11 Days of Global Unity Through the Arts - Brunei Mission
to the U.N. in New York City. Reception Sept. 10 with UN Under
Secretary General Shashi Tharoor.
Exhibit Sept 11-21 (Admission Free)
Interdependence Day Festival 2004 - New York City Sept. 12 featuring speakers, performers and workshop
presentations.
Our
Voices, Our World - New York
City Sept. 21st culminating 11 Days broadcast event featuring Dr. Jane Goodall DBE (Founder, The Jane Goodall
Institute, and U.N. Messenger of Peace), William Schulz (Executive Director,
Amnesty International USA), Marianne Williamson (author and public speaker),
Clarence Jones (Speech writer and lawyer for Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.) and many other visionary speakers and performers
celebrating the U.N. International Day of Peace in New York City.
http://www.wetheworld.org/11days
Ndola, Zambia, 31 August
– The second phase of UN-HABITAT’s Values-based Water
and Sanitation Education programme is now underway in Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda,
Tanzania and Zambia following a Water for African
Cities training workshop in the Zambian Copper Belt city of Ndola.
(…)
Over the past three years,
UN-HABITAT has been implementing the Values-based Water and Sanitation
Education programme in six demonstration countries – Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia,
Ghana, Kenya, Senegal and Zambia – as part of its Water for African Cities
Programme. With support from the Swedish International Development Agency, the
water education programme has proven a truly innovative and successful
education initiative in Africa. (…)
The water and sanitation
education initiative is part of UN-HABITAT’s support
to African countries in the development of a new ethic for water governance and
conservation in cities. By complementing the technical and regulatory measures
put in place to address this avoidable wastage, Values-based Water and
Sanitation Education plays a strategic role in bringing about positive attitude
changes, and in the longer term, helps develop a new water-use ethic in
society.
http://www.unhabitat.org/zambia.asp
30 August - Jordan’s National
Strategy for the Youth, to be launched in October, has been formulated with the
participation of young people to address a range of issues, including
education, vocational training, labour, health, IT and communications,
environment, recreational activities, civil rights, culture and media. The
initiative is one of the first serious attempts to address gaps and loopholes
facing today’s youth, according to the Higher Council for the Youth, which
developed the strategy with UNDP’s help.
The Exhibition will feature
the winning projects of the 2004 Student Design Competition. This Competition
is open to all undergraduate and graduate students in schools of architecture
around the world. Competition awards: First prize $10,000; Second
prize $5,000; Third prize $2,500. Prizes will be awarded during the
International Conference “Caring Communities for the 21st Century:
Imagining the Possible” on Friday, 11th February at United Nations
Headquarters prior to the Exhibition opening.
Entry forms will be accepted
until 15 October 2004 and projects are due 31 December 2004. The jury will meet
24 January followed by an exhibition of winners at the National Arts Club from
26 January to February 6. Additional exhibitions are schedule at Toyo
University, Tokyo in mid-May, and other venues around the globe.
The Competition is organized
in conjunction with United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT),
the Programme on Ageing, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and the
Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture.
iccc@earthlink.net www.international-iccc.org
* * * * * * *
Good News Agency’s editorial
for the 57th Annual DPI/NGO Conference “Millennium Development
Goals: Civil Society Takes Action”
“Our chances of success depend in great part on the degree to which you, the individuals and groups that make up civil society, mobilize around this [MDG] mission.”
(top)
For the careful
observer, consciousness is changing. We are rapidly accepting the fact that we
cannot go on as before and we are becoming more and more open to new
possibilities. A wise use of the creative imagination is essential in order to
recognize, among these new possibilities, those which are most able to improve
the quality of life. There are now many signs that indicate how the cultivation
of creativity is becoming an accepted aim, not only in the education of the
young, but also in the world of adults. There is a growing recognition of the
importance of
inventiveness and imagination in the growth process of the young.
And there is a growing interest in courses in creative thought in the world of
work, particularly among the leadership. These tendencies, if extended and
projected into the future, show what is in store: a global culture, in which
regional and national differences are preserved in order to enrich each other,
with an accent on creativity in its myriad forms. William James said: “The
greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can change their lives
by changing
their mental attitudes”. It is a revolutionary discovery, because it assigns to
humanity as a whole, but also to every single inhabitant of this planet, including
me and you who are reading these lines, the ability and the responsibility to
contribute to creating a better future from the point of view of unity in
diversity.
There emerges in consciousness today the
need for, and at the same time the initial evidence of, a new and global
system of ethics, which can only spring from the new concept of brotherhood
which many people of advanced consciousness have already begun to make their
own: the concept, precisely, of unity in diversity. It is a concept of explosive
power: it knocks down the barricades erected by different doctrines, overcomes
the barriers of different conceptions and behaviour and conquers the
incomprehension, animosity and hatred which these differences, sometimes
exasperated to the point of fanaticism, have originated and consolidated. From
this revolutionary concept, easy to speak of but difficult for many to
assimilate, it will certainly be possible to elicit the right reply to those
questions which humanity is asking itself in order to
rebuild the science of human relationships. And concepts such as tasks, duties
and responsibilities will take on a spiritual dimension and a new meaning in
the beautiful battle of consciousness to build a new age of peace.
To go from theory to practice, I have some
difficult questions to ask. Have we perhaps sown thoughts of comprehension
and respect for the weakest in the consciousness of our youth? Have we perhaps
taken to heart the tremendous historical results of an education and teaching
centred on the principle of force as the greatest social law, results that,
especially in the twentieth century, have been devastating, horrible? Have we
perhaps indicated to our young people examples of real servants of humanity,
stirring in their consciousness the light of comprehension and the
responsibility of sharing? Have we perhaps brought to the school desks and the
universities, in a predominant way, those principles of fairness which can give
rise to responsible social behaviour and constitute strong brakes on those
whose consciousness is still immature? Or haven’t we perhaps proposed to them,
in the occurrences of every day, models of conduct which exalt personal
achievement to the detriment of the collective interest? And in the media, with few exceptions, haven’t
we perhaps accepted the indication to our young people, and sometimes the
exaltation, of egoistic and venal values which give rise to and feed
materialism, individualism and exasperated and unrestrained social climbing,
which takes on, in its worst form, the concept of the end that justifies the
means? Haven’t we perhaps produced a virtual reality in which violence and
cruelty are spotlighted in minute details, almost with satisfaction? Haven’t we
perhaps accepted as unavoidable the fact of living an existence of well-being
side by side with extremely hard and cruel realities which see thousands of
children die of hunger every day? Haven’t we perhaps accepted without
objection, in the virtual reality which now envelops us, protagonists of
infinite television stories in which hatred, betrayal, promiscuity and
unrestrained social climbing constitute the basic elements for perverted
designs and for crimes pursued with wickedness and ruthlessness? Haven’t we
accepted, even legitimised, these types of behaviour, which are characteristic
of some social groups, insidiously and ambiguously proposed as a model and a
point of arrival for our young people?
Let us, then, assume our responsibilities.
Is it too late to change this situation? In spite of everything, I think not.
Innovative teachings begin to clear a path in schools and universities. In some
high schools, far-sighted cultural and didactic associations are presenting to
the young, with a real spirit of service, those problems of strong socio-economic
imbalance which have brought about very serious situations in many parts of the
world. And in some universities a new viewpoint of evaluating world problems
and the responsibilities which derive from them is beginning to penetrate:
faculties like Political Science, Economics, Jurisprudence, Sociology and
Science of Communications are beginning to acknowledge new subjects of study,
which incorporate responsibilities, tasks and innovative prospects for future
levies of management. Moreover, the hundreds of non-governmental associations,
the many thousands of non-profit associations and the many millions of people
dedicated to voluntary service bear witness to the fact that a silent
revolution of consciousness is already in progress. It is an inexorable
movement which it will be impossible to stop. It is our best guarantee that we
will gradually know how to build a society which is juster
and more inwardly aware and thus really happy, and it is our best evidence that
each one of us, in his family, in his profession, in his own place of work and
in his free time can immediately bring his own contribution. And I ask those who tend to be discouraged,
because they see that these new people, these consciences awakened to the real
personal and social values, are still in a clear minority, to bear in mind the
scientific concept of “critical mass” and to ask themselves this
question: at what level will this growing minority of the population reach a
critical mass which will bring about spontaneous modifications in the social
tissue? When it will have reached 15 percent? We are already there. Twenty percent? Perhaps, and we are not so far off. Twenty-five percent? Almost certainly, and it will not be
long before that level is reached and man will at last be able to show that he
knows how to take care of this planet. Pure optimism?
Not at all: it is the awareness of not being any longer far from that level of
critical mass which I have mentioned, coupled with the certainty that we don’t
have much more time to change the quality of life on Earth, by resolutely
travelling the road of sustainable development. In other words: virtue of
necessity.
At least three different levels of values
should be included in the vision of sustainable development. At the first
level, the most tangible, there are the intelligent calculations made by the
scientists or the
economists concerning human survival. At the second level there are the
compassionate concerns for human justice to which all the movements involved in
development and human rights give voice. The third and most inward level, the
source of vision, goes beyond the interests only of humanity to include all
life. This is the level at which the unity of creation and the subtle
interdependence of all creatures are perceived. It is the level to which the
religions bear witness, even if it is not necessary to be formally religious to
recognize it. It is supported by the understanding of ecology. It can be
defined as the spiritual level. There is an urgent need to integrate these
different levels of values so that the guidelines and the programmes outlined
at the Summit of Johannesburg honour all three dimensions: those of the mind,
the heart and the human spirit.
A fact which is often forgotten regarding
human development is that it does not necessarily imply an ever growing
production of goods and services. It is true, for example, that buildings and
textbooks are necessary to supply the basis for the education of the
population; but human potential is something subtle and subjective, and it is
from the relationship that we create between ideas and facts that knowledge,
wisdom and culture emerge. A growing number of people is
supporting the idea of a culture which is simple in its means and rich in its
goals and which deliberately includes not only human beings but all
creatures. There is little doubt that such an approach is necessary,
particularly in those countries which are already following a course of intense
production and consumption. The statistics are convincing: and we are all aware
that, if every person in the world consumed as much as the average person in
the high-income western countries, we would need another three Earths to
sustain us. Thus the goal of sustainable development cannot be a continuation,
an expansion of such as intense exploitation of natural systems. We must learn
instead how to extend our comprehension and our respect in order to ensure the
sustainability of their usage, also from the viewpoint of future generations,
making this the tangible evidence of our degree of free identification with the
new emerging values.
In each of the fields of expression of human
activity institutions and practices exist, both at the national and the
international level, which materially condition the extent to which individuals
can exercise their own liberty. Much has been written about the
different, complicated systems on the basis of which such institutions interact
within the different societies all over the world. At the centre of this
complicated network of conditioning factors are the people, the individuals,
with their attempts to exercise their own will freely. The meaning of liberty
concerns essentially the capacity to make choices and it is thus a question of
values. Liberty of action must therefore be exercised responsibly, given that
every choice made by us, every value proclaimed by us, concerns those who
surround us and inscrutably extends its sphere of influence outwards. This flow
of thought is most valid when it is a question of exercising one’s liberty in
the choice of fields and programmes of service which, as such, though they
start from us, extend outside us and provide tangible evidence of how delicate
the exercise of this faculty is.
More and more groups characterized by the
common desire to serve a cause have been established in the last fifty years
and their number continues to grow. In these days, the Non-Governmental
Organizations associated with the UN Department of Public Information are
participating to the 57th NGO/DPI Annual Conference at the UN
Headquarters coming from the four corners of the world. “This Conference aims to raise public
awareness and support for the Millennium Development Goals through the 3,000
NGOs working directly with the UN Secretariat” says Shashi
Tharoor, Under-Secretary-General for Communications
and Public Information of the United Nations, “The involvement of civil society
partners in the MDG Campaign is essential to its success.” And the recognition of the significance of a
minority, any minority, working for the common good was splendidly expressed by
the American sociologist Margaret Mead, who said: “Never doubt that a small
group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it is
the only thing that ever has.” Yes, this too is a
fine expression of critical mass!
(Translation by Jancis
Browning)
*******
Good News Agency is distributed free of charge through Internet to over 3,700 editorial offices of the daily newspapers and periodical magazines and of the radio and television stations with an e-mail address in 48 countries: Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bosnia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Holland, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Portugal, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, Uruguay, Venezuela, USA, and it is also available in its web site: http://www.goodnewsagency.org
It is a service of Associazione Culturale dei Triangoli e della Buona Volontà Mondiale, a registered non-profit educational organization chartered in Italy in 1979 and associated with the Department of Public Information of the United Nations.
The Association operates for the development of consciousness and promotes a culture of peace in the ‘global village’ perspective based on unity in diversity and on sharing.
Via Antagora
10, 00124 Rome, Italy. E-mail: s.tripi@tiscali.it
* * * * * * *
(TOP)