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UN International Days
United Nations observances are used to contribute to the achievement of the purposes of the UN Charter and promote awareness of and action upon, important political, social, cultural, humanitarian or human rights issues. They provide a useful means for the promotion of international and national action and stimulate interest in United Nations activities and programmes. For international years and decades the UN Secretary General takes action to establish preparatory process, evaluation and follow-up procedures.
The majority of observances have been established by the UN General Assembly and some have been designated by UN specialized agencies.
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The Quest for Justice
Last Updated on 2017-01-05 20:04:51
PART 1
A Puzzling Void
For three decades I have lectured and offered seminars at institutes and retreat centers frequented by modern pilgrims in search of something called spirituality. For the most part I have applauded these neoheroic travelers into the depths of the psyche and their experimentation with non-Western spiritual practices. But recently, I have grown dissatisfied with the theory and practice of what passes for spirituality. Last summer, conducting a seminar at such a center, I fell into a void. What compelled my attention was the simple observation that amid all the offerings on holistic living, healing, meditation, awareness, opening the heart, oneness, knowing God, sacred bodywork, etc., there was not one reference to justice. Checking the catalogs of several other centers devoted to spirituality, growth, and living at the level of the soul, I found the... More »
Bolivia Set to Pass Historic 'Law of Mother Earth' Which Will Grant Nature Equal Rights to Humans
Last Updated on 2011-05-26 00:00:00
With the cooperation of politicians and grassroots organizations, Bolivia is set to pass the Law of Mother Earth which will grant nature the same rights and protections as humans. The piece of legislation, called la Ley de Derechos de la Madre Tierra, is intended to encourage a radical shift in conservation attitudes and actions, to enforce new control measures on industry, and to reduce environmental destruction.
The law redefines natural resources as blessings and confers the same rights to nature as to human beings, including: the right to life and to exist; the right to continue vital cycles and processes free from human alteration; the right to pure water and clean air; the right to balance; the right not to be polluted; and the right to not have cellular structure modified or genetically altered. Perhaps the most controversial point is the right "to not be... More »
Mother Earth Day Poster
Last Updated on 2011-04-19 13:48:07
International Mother Earth Day Poster contributed by Rusudan Grigolia, Friends of the United Nations.
To Downolad the full size poster CLICK HERE
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Earth Day Message: Then & Now
Last Updated on 2011-04-19 00:00:00
In 1970 Dave was a student at California Lutheran University and held the position of Religious Activities Commissioner in the Student Government.
With the support of Rev. Gerry Swanson, the College Chaplain, and the assistance of two other students, Will Hall and Susie Struck, Dave reallocated his budget to celebrate the first Earth Day.
So many good ideas soon surfaced that the event quickly became a week-long celebration and included, not only the college community, but the entire city of Thousand Oaks, California.
The week long program included:
• Clifford Humphrey, founder of Ecology Action and dubbed "Grandfather of the Recycling Movement". His photo pushing a globe in a baby buggy made the cover of New York Times magazine that first Earth Day 1970.
• Beach clean-up and party
• Tree planting at the campus chapel and service for the... More »
U.N. Prepares to Debate Whether ‘Mother Earth’ Deserves Human Rights Status
Last Updated on 2011-04-19 00:00:00
United Nations diplomats on Wednesday will set aside pressing issues of international peace and security to devote an entire day debating the rights of “Mother Earth.”
A bloc of mostly socialist governments lead by Bolivia have put the issue on the General Assembly agenda to discuss the creation of a U.N. treaty that would grant the same rights found in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to Mother Nature.
Treaty supporters want the establishment of legal systems to maintain balance between human rights and what they perceive as the inalienable rights of other members of the Earth community — plants, animals, and terrain.
Communities and environmental activists would be given more legal power to monitor and control industries and development to ensure harmony between humans and nature. Though the United States and other Western... More »
