The Droplets of Life The World Summit on Sustainable Development, held in Johannesburg Aug 26 to Sep 4, was the environmental event of the year, though many left the event disappointed… Except on the water issue, which will be the star of a United Nations-sponsored International Year in 2003.
From our files:
The negotiations of the Free Trade Area of the Americas and of the World Trade Organization continue – and winning more and more criticism from the anti-globalization activists, who denounce the risk of creating more misery and environmental degradation as they prepare for the 3rd World Social Forum to take place in January 2003.
More than 11,000 species are in danger of extinction. An international meeting in November, aimed at protecting flora and fauna from illegal trade, produced mixed results. And for the animal and plant life of the northern Spanish coast, the end of 2002 was a tragedy, due to the massive oil spill caused by the tanker Prestige.
Indigenous peoples want to be treated on the level, Guatemala’s Nobel Peace Laureate Rigoberta Menchú told a Summit of women of the Americas. But there is a long way to go because indigenous peoples were not heard at the Johannesburg Summit and are still waiting for the approval of a United Nations declaration on their rights.
Donors, governments and multilateral agencies are guaranteeing the continuity of the plan aimed at restoring the biodiversity chain through Mesoamerica, a 768,000 square km area that holds eight percent of the world’s biodiversity.
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Questions and Answers with La Ley, Café Tacuba, Deepak Chopra, José Saramago and Isabel Allende
