Stay rural, start a project

World

WORLD FOOD DAY 2009

Every year on October 16th MIJARC is contributing to the world food day. In 2009 MIJARC focuses on

Agrofuels and Climate change-
Even more threats for Rural Poor


Climate change, the rise of need and prices of fossil energies and their deposit launched a discussion on renewable energies. In addition to water and solar power and other renewable energies, agrofuels play an important role in energy production. But agrofuels grow on the same land as food. This fact brings in a new dimension in the discussion of food sovereignty.

Industrialised countries have released huge amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere from burning fossil fuels, and have caused a human induced change in the earth's climate. On the one hand, 1.02 billion people suffer from hunger, most of them in rural areas, where food is used to be produced. On the other hand, the rising industries in various countries need more energy for industrial production. Fossil energies are not available in a sustainable way and renewable energies are not that established as they should be. Therefore any chance to produce energy is taken: agrofuels play an important role and the result of this is a hard struggle for land.

We engage ourselves to:
• allocate adequate resources for capacity building and in education for food sovereignty for young people in rural areas
• train young people on climate change issues and impacts of agro fuel production,
• develop projects that respect the environment
• establish projects for saving energy
• ensure representation of young people and also women in decision making structures and in the management of resources at all levels- local, national and international
• food sovereignty must be the principle of agricultural policies worldwide
• eliminate forms of violence relating to land
• involve and encourage sustainable agricultural practices

You and your group can do additionally:
• inform yourself about the climate change and agrofuels
• organise a public demonstration about the problems around seed
• organise a debate with young people of your area about the problems in relation to climate change
• invite peasants with experience in the struggle for productive resources and organise a debate.
• organise forestation programmes (planting trees)
• analyze together the picture of the poster and organise a debate on this.
• write a declaration of your local group in relation to access to seeds for young people in your village or area, make it public and organise a debate with the local population.
• create an information desk in the next city during 16th of October and discuss with urban population
• meet local and national government representatives, politicians in general, farmers organisations and NGOs and debate with them about the situation of young people.
• organise a press conference and present your opinion to the public!

Hope you will discuss the World Food Day study material and we call upon you to take actions on the following regard on the basis of your analysis.

The world team of MIJARC is wishing you all the best and a lot of actions for another world!

MIJARC World Team