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Watch: Fixing the Future! July 25th, 2012
- The Oblate-sponsored Community Supported Garden at La Vista is a good example of the community based economic alternative highlighted in Fixing the Future.
Fixing the Future is both a film and a project to help communities across America become aware of the sustainable, community-based economic alternatives developing everywhere in the US.
Host David Brancaccio, of public radio’s Marketplace and NOW on PBS, has traveled across the country to visit people and organizations that are attempting a revolution: the reinvention of the American economy. The film features communities using sustainable and innovative approaches to create jobs and build prosperity. Fixing the Future highlights effective, local practices such as: local business alliances, community banking, time banking/hour exchange, worker cooperatives and local currencies.
The Imploding Banking Sector July 24th, 2012
Read Fr. Finn’s latest blog on Huffington Post – his commentary on the latest implosion of the banking sector. It begins…
Summer months here in Washington, D.C. are generally characterized by the slower pace that is associated with southern cities and the rush of Congress and government employees to get in some vacationing with their families before Labor Day. Even the traffic reporters usually sprinkle their reports with comments about the decreased traffic flows or the early exits for the eastern shore that usually start on Thursday afternoon.
Unfortunately, if you are on the House Financial Services Committee or the Senate Banking committee or one of the regulators for the numerous corporations that operate in the financial services sector, there has been very little down time since the famous early May JPMC announcement about the huge trading loss in their Chief Investment Office in London. Since then the amount of the loss has more than doubled and numerous investigations into the actions of individuals involved in the loss have been opened. All of these activities promise to keep a number of folks at their desks for longer than expected.
Victory Against Vulture Funds! July 23rd, 2012
Jubilee USA Stopped Vulture Funds in New York State; Courts Stopped Them in the UK
In June, Jubilee USA – of which OMI JPIC is a member – launched a campaign to stop vulture fund legislation from passing in the New York State Legislature. Vulture funds were attempting to get Bills through that would have promoted and protected vulture funds in New York State courts, making it easier for vultures to litigate against poor countries.
Jubilee mobilized more than 4,000 New York Jubilee members to take action, calling and writing their Assembly Members and Senators to stand with the poor and not with the hedge funds.
The Wall Street Journal’s Jacob Gersham wrote how important this work was: “The path became trickier for Elliott on Friday, when an alliance of religious groups that supports debt relief for developing nations, Jubilee USA Network, entered the fray by issuing a mass alert about the bill. It said the proposed law could be wielded in poorer regions and “litigate poor countries into submission.” Read the full article in the Wall Street Journal.
UK Courts Rule Against Vulture Funds, Support DR Congo
In a surprise decision in the Jersey Isles, the UK’s Privy Council overturned a prior ruling, siding with the Democratic Republic of Congo against vulture fund FG Hemisphere. FG Hemisphere was seeking $100 million from the DRC for a debt the vulture fund bought for just $3 million. While having initially lost the case, the DRC has won on final appeal. While the UK passed a law in 2010 limiting the amount a vulture fund could claim from impoverished countries, it did not apply to crown protectorates, like Jersey, where vultures funds could still pursue cases. This decision was pleasantly unexpected and a cause for celebration.
US Congress holds Hearings on Peru and Bangladesh July 20th, 2012
JPIC staff and summer fellow Fr Stephen Ashoki OMI (Sri Lanka) attended Hearings in the US Congress on Peru and Bangladesh. Both countries have a strong Oblate presence.“Poison Harvest: Deadly U.S. Mine Pollution in Peru.”
“This is a matter of grave concern, not just to the citizens and residents of La Oroya and of Peru, but of the world and, in particular, the United States,” – Testimony to U.S. Congress by Archbishop Pedro Barreto of Huancayo, Peru.
This week, on July 19, the House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs held a hearing on the mining contamination by Renco Group, a U.S. based company, which is operating in La Oroya, Peru. The hearing was entitled “Poison Harvest: Deadly U.S. Mine Pollution in Peru.” Those invited to testify included Archbishop Pedro Barreto of the Archdiocese of Huancayo, Peru and Rosa Amaro, President of the Movement for the Health of La Oroya. Also giving testimony were Dr. Fernando Serrano from St. Louis University School of Public Health and Keith Slack representing Oxfam America.
The hearing focused on the environmental damage in small town of La Oroya by Doe Run Peru, with testimonies from local community leaders, faith leader and NGOs. Doe Run is the Latin American affiliate of the Renco. Doe Run Peru is accused of being responsible for the health problems of the people in La Oroya especially children suffering from severe lead poisoning, and the environmental contamination affecting the area. Members of Congress strongly condemned Doe Run Peru for the environmental damage and promised to bring up the issue through the United States and Peruvian Free Trade Agreement (FTA) engagement. In addition to these solidarity actions, the JPIC office also attended a meeting at the Embassy of Peru with the Ambassador about human rights issues. In the light of the state violence against indigenous peoples protesting various mining operations in Peru, the JPIC office has signed onto NGO letters calling for respect of human rights in that country.
Bangladesh Human Rights
Earlier in the day another important congressional briefing was held focusing on the Human Rights Situation in Bangladesh. The United States is the largest investor in Bangladesh. However, there is an alarming human rights situation, with a number of recent extrajudicial killings and threats to labor activists. Leading international labor and Human Rights organizations are urging the United States government to use its influence to raise these concerns with the Government of Bangladesh. Those who perpetuate this violence, particularly certain national security operations, must be brought to justice. Since January 2012, Bangladesh has seen 34 victims of extrajudicial killings; the most recent being the killing of Bangladeshi labor leader Aminul Islam. Other issues raised during the hearing include the status for the millions of Burmese Refugees in Bangladesh, child labor in the garment industry, and unsafe working conditions in general. The U.S Government was also challenged to support Bangladesh civil society.
Press coverage of the Hearing…
Faith Communities and the Urgency of Climate Change July 18th, 2012
Solar on the roof at the Oblate Parish in Chula Vista
“The increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events- more powerful storms, longer droughts, bigger fires, excessive heat waves shattering temperature records and severe floods, along with the visible evidence of receding glaciers and dying coral reefs – are warnings that human activity is changing Earth’s climate in troubling and often unpredictable ways. They are portents of even graver dangers ahead.”
“Both the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the United States and the United Kingdom’s Met Office have confirmed the link between anthropogenic climate change and the increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. As the planet warms, these types of weather phenomenon won’t be mere aberrations – they will be the new normal. And it is going to get much worse.”
Thus begins a clear and succinct argument for the urgency of the changes underway on our planet and the moral power of the faith message. The article by Michael Stafford titled, “Faith must confront climate change with a single moral voice” concludes with a highly relevant call of people of faith to action on climate change: “chose life” so “that [we] and [our] descendants may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19).
Read the article posted on the ABC Religion and Ethics website…
Looking for local resources on climate change and energy conservation for your parish? Interfaith Power and Light is active across the country and can offer a wealth of information, speakers and practical guidance to promote sustainability, from discounts on energy saving lightbulbs to going solar! Search for a local affiliate on their national website, Interfaith Power & Light. There are IP&L chapters in 39 states. Find a chapter in your state!
