Posts Tagged ‘Avaaz’
Thousands of babies starved to death in Yemen
85,000 lives snuffed out before they can even begin.
85,000 children under five years old have already starved to death in Yemen
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Monsanto’s mega-plant blocked. Any Progress on Climate Change?
These are No small time victories for worthy issues.
There’s a lot that’s depressing in the world today, but scroll down and see what our future could look like if we just stick together.
World issues on climate change, Monsanto, our oceans, the internet, democracy, free speech, basic human rights, preemptive wars… have to be tackled vigourously.
After the March — Real Progress on Climate Change!! From Europe, the US, and China!
We desperately needed Europe to kick off a global round of ambitious climate commitments at a recent summit in Brussels, so I felt deflated when I was told by insiders there was “no way” the EU would stand up to big oil and coal to cut carbon emissions by “at least” 40% by 2030. But we didn’t back down, and they did it! Here’s how we got from “no way” to a big win:
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The climate march was a game changer, cited by president after president in their UN summit speeches. While hundreds of organisations contributed to the march and the win in Europe, our role was crucial. The BBC said: “The marches brought more people on to the streets than ever before, partly thanks to the organizational power of the e-campaign group Avaaz.” And Germany’s Environment minister said: “I would like to thank the millions of people who have joined Avaaz…Without public support it will be impossible to stop climate change.” US President Obama also responded to the climate march, saying: “Our citizens keep marching. We cannot pretend we do not hear them.” Following the momentum building win in Europe, Obama met with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week – Obama promised reasonable-sized cuts in emissions, and China promised cuts as well, for the first time ever! The momentum we desperately needed has begun… After big oil and coal, what’s the next worst soulless corporate lobby? Yep, Monsanto. And that’s the next big victory that our community has helped win. |
Monsanto’s mega-plant blocked!
When Monsanto tried to extend its grip over the global food chain with a massive new seed factory in Argentina, Avaaz members stood side by side with a local movement and stopped Latin America’s largest GM seed plant from being built this year. Monsanto is a $60 billion mega-corporation that plays dirty. Here’s how we helped stop them:
Local grassroots leader Celina Molina said: “After more than a million Avaaz members stood with the people of Malvinas Argentinas, we won an important battle in the fight against Monsanto! From gaining access to documents previously denied to us by the authorities to running a game changing opinion poll, Avaaz was important for preventing the largest transgenic seed plant from being built in our backyard.” |
Plus Big Wins on Saving our Oceans, the Internet, and Democracy
Thanks to several thousand Avaazers who donate monthly to sustain our small team, we can work on several issues at once. Here are some other big wins in recent weeks: The Largest Marine Sanctuary in the World Created! – To support this critical reserve, over 1 million of us called on the US government, we commissioned an opinion poll in Hawaii, and more. And in the end, President Obama stood up to the big fishing lobbies and protected an area of the Pacific almost the size of South Africa! Internet Neutrality Protected in Europe and the US! – 1.1 million of us lobbied the EU parliament to protect the free and open internet with strong rules on net neutrality. And against all the efforts of the big telecoms companies, we helped get the win! In the US, Obama just followed suit and took a strong position to protect net neutrality that “stunned” the telecoms companies. Brazilian Congress Ends Secret Voting! – After several months of steady campaigning with call-ins, activist stunts, media attention and more, Avaazers in Brazil (now 7 million strong!) pressed the Congress to almost completely end the shady practice of “secret voting.” It’s a huge victory for one of the world’s largest democracies. |
Ebola vs People
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10:58 PM (14 hours ago)
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 Ebola could threaten us all, and the most urgent need to stop it is for volunteers.
If just 120 doctors among us volunteer, it will *double* the number of doctors in Sierra Leone. Other volunteers – in health, sanitation, logistics – can help too. This is a call to serve humanity in the deepest possible way, to accept serious risk for our fellow human beings. Click to learn more, and show our gratitude to those making this powerful choice:  |
Three weeks ago, hundreds of thousands of us went offline to fight climate change. This week, we’re going offline to help stop Ebola.
The Ebola virus is spiraling out of control. Cases in West Africa are doubling every 2-3 weeks and the latest estimate says that up to 1.4 million people could be infected by mid-January.
Talking about exponential growth is frightening
At that scale, this monster threatens the entire world.
I just read that the UN has only $100,000 in its fund for the Ebola outbreak
Mind you that AIDS harvest over 1.5 million each year (as much as Malaria and Dysentery combined).
Though, malaria is the number one disease followed by dysentery that put heavy burden on the States in Africa and Equatorial countries.
Ricken Patel – Avaaz posted this Oct 18, 2014
Previous Ebola outbreaks have been repeatedly contained at small numbers. But the scale of this epidemic has swamped the region’s weak health systems.
Liberia has less than 1 doctor for every 100,000 people. Governments are providing funds, but there just aren’t enough medical staff to stem the epidemic.
That’s where we come in.
39 million people are receiving this email. Our polling shows that 6% of us are health workers – doctors or nurses – that’s nearly 2 million of us.
If just 120 doctors among us volunteer, it will *double* the number of doctors in Sierra Leone.
Other volunteers can help too — lab technicians, logisticians, water and sanitation workers, and transport workers. Volunteering means more than time. It means risk.
Health professionals have already died fighting Ebola. But if there’s any group of people that would consider taking this risk for their fellow human beings, it’s our community. I and others on the Avaaz team are ready to take that risk with you, traveling to the front lines of this crisis.
Great things come from listening to the deepest voices within us.
If you’re a health professional, or have other skills that can help, I ask you to take a moment, listen to the part of you that you most trust, and follow it.
Click below to volunteer, see messages from volunteers about why they’ve made this choice, and leave your own message of appreciation and encouragement for them:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/ebola_volunteers_thank_you_3/?bFAfecb&v=47569
Raising your hand to volunteer is the first step. You’ll need to get, and provide, a lot of information to ensure you’re well matched to an available position. You will likely need to discuss this decision with your loved ones, and you can withdraw from the process later if you choose to. For this effort, Avaaz is working with Partners In Health, Save the Children, and International Medical Corps, three of the leading organisations fighting this deadly disease. We are also consulting with the governments of Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea, and the World Health Organization.
While there is substantial risk, there are also clear ways to contain that risk.
Ebola is spread through bodily fluids, so with extreme care, the risk of contracting it can be minimized.
So far, 94 health care workers have died of Ebola in Liberia, but almost all of them have been national health workers, who sadly are far less well equipped than international volunteers.
With treatment, the chances of surviving the virus are better than 50%.
Many of us, from police to activists to soldiers, have jobs that involve risking our lives for our country. It’s the most powerful statement we can make about what’s worth living for. Taking this risk to fight Ebola, makes a statement that our fellow human beings, wherever they are, are worth living for:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/ebola_volunteers_thank_you_3/?bFAfecb&v=47569
If Ebola spirals further out of control, it could soon threaten us all. The fact that a weak health care system in a small country can let this monster grow to a size that threatens the world is a powerful statement of just how interdependent we are. But this interdependence is far more than just interests.
We are connected, all of us, in a community of human beings.
All the lies that have divided us – about nation and religion and sexuality – are being torn down, and we are realizing that we really are one people, one tribe.
That a young mother and her daughter in Liberia fear the same things and love the same things as a young mother and her daughter in Brazil, or the Netherlands. And in this unfolding understanding, a new world is being born. Out of the darkest places come our brightest lights. Out of the depths of the Ebola nightmare, let’s bring the hope of a new world of one people, willing to give, and sacrifice, for each other.
With hope and determination,
Ricken, John, Alice, Danny, and the whole Avaaz team.
Note: See the video
Fighting Ebola street by street
Good people are all around the globe! Disasters too –
Thanks Ben C. Solomon for this great video about #ebola –
Sean Casey makes me think of u and all the great work u and ur colleagues are doing!http://www.nytimes.com/video/world/africa/100000003161313/fighting-ebola-outbreak-street-by-street.html?playlistId=100000003105684®ion=video-grid&version=video-grid-headline&contentCollection=Ebola+Outbreak&contentPlacement=0&module=featured-videos&action=click&pgType=Multimedia&eventName=video-grid-click
More information:
Up to 1.4m people could be infected with Ebola by January, CDC warns (The Guardian)
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/sep/23/ebola-cdc-millions-infected-quarantine-africa-epidemi…
Known Cases and Outbreaks of Ebola Virus Disease, in Chronological Order (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/outbreaks/history/chronology.html
Ebola ‘devouring everything in its path’ (Al Jazeera)
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2014/09/ebola-devouring-everything-path-201499161646914388.html
Ebola death rates 70% – WHO study (BBC)
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-29327741
Unprecedented number of medical staff infected with Ebola (WHO)
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/ebola/25-august-2014/en/
Farm Fish feeding on pork? Any link with Mad Cow epidemics? Otherwise, I don’t care…
Posted on: March 19, 2013
Fish feeding on pork? Any link with Mad Cow epidemics? Otherwise, I don’t care…
 We can stop porkfish from entering our markets! Click the link and sign:  |
Fish are secretly raised on pork. Europe just decided to allow ground up pig meat into fish feed.
Avaaz claims that “The same fish feed the EC just authorised was banned in 1997 for its connection to Mad Cow Disease, a deadly epidemic that spread around the world…”
(Mad Cow was the result of feeding the herbivorous cows bones and left-over meat mixed in the fodder. Fish can eat fish and something else. Until further experiments, I should not eat fish fattened with pork meat.)
These kind of fish will be on the Middle East dinner plates, and there won’t be any labels to let us know that the fish we are eating and feeding our families were raised on pork!
Unless we raise a massive resistance now.
The new rules allowing pig meat into fish feed take effect in weeks and the European Commission is hoping that no one will notice. If we raise a massive outcry now, our governments will have every incentive to ban porkfish from entering our markets or risk a massive scandal!
The move to allow ground up pig meat into fish is dangerous. There is no such thing in nature as a fish eating pork, but the European Commission is under serious pressure from lobbyists who want to make fish farming cheaper.
The European Commission needs to know that they are the ones who will lose if they allow our food to become secretly contaminated with pork. Our government officials could have a scandal on their hands if they’re seen as allowing pork-fed fish into our countries.
If we let them know we demand a ban, they have every incentive to enact one and should the entire Middle East ban the import of these fish, Europe will lose a massive market and need to reconsider its decision.
Avaaz members have come together before to protect the natural world and our food system from dangerous meddling. Over 1 million of us spoke out against genetically modified food in Europe and another million of us have taken action against mutant salmon
We only have weeks left before pig meat enters our fish. Let’s send a strong message to our government officials to keep porkfish out of our markets to force the European Commission to reverse the decision and to keep pork out of our fish. Sign the petition and share with all your friends:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/porkfish_en_fbb/?bFAfecb&v=22966
Dalia, Bissan, Marie, Rewan, Mais, Mohammad, Wissam, and the whole Avaaz team
More information:
1. As the Horsemeat Hysteria Spreads, E.U. Opens a Mad-Cow Can of Worms (TIME) http://world.time.com/2013/02/19/as-the-horsemeat-hysteria-spreads-e-u-opens-a-mad-cow-can-of-worms/
2. EU clears use of pigs, chicken in fish feed (France 24) http://www.france24.com/en/20130214-eu-clears-use-pigs-chicken-fish-feed
3. EU gives ‘untimely’ OK to pork, poultry in fish feed (EurActiv) http://www.euractiv.com/cap/eu-clears-pork-poultry-use-fish-news-517855
4. EC approves animal meat in fish (Food Production Daily) http://www.foodproductiondaily.com/Supply-Chain/EC-approves-animal-meal-in-fish-food
Any ideas on breaking up this war on women?
Is it still the same story all over the world?
Abusive, violent men in charge of making the laws that are supposed to protect wome?
And males using their power to fend off challenges from victims or voters
Is it time to change that. It is very feasibel.
When a 23-year-old student was brutally gang-raped on a bus in Delhi, citizen protests caught fire across the country and the world erupted in outrage.
India commissioned an official review. And this week the government brazenly says it will ignore the review’s recommendation that politicians charged with rape or similar violence against women must step down.
The 260 Indian politicians accused of such offences are fighting tooth and nail, and so far they are winning!
The only way to turn this round is a concerted, people-powered effort to banish men like this from office.
With 25,000 pledges to donate, Avaaz claims to be able to create a campaign war chest to take on the worst politicians.
The politicians in India depend on their reputations. And we intend to expose them in the news and social media, including through ads and polls.
We’ll start in India — the world’s largest democracy, which is gearing up for national elections — and then stand ready to intervene wherever there are opportunities to change politics and end the war on women!
Here’s the plan:
1. Avaaz will identify elected representatives or election candidates who are known violators of women’s rights.
2. We’ll choose elections which, when we win, will get massive attention and encourage other abusive men to stay away from public office.
3. We’ll lay down the gauntlet!
4. We’ll go in hard to kill their chances of clinging to power or getting elected. This could include:
- running opinion polls to encourage their parties to choose other candidates;
- organising actions in their local area;
- encouraging local and national reporters to cover their crimes;
- releasing ads in major print, TV and radio outlets;
- hiring lawyers to ensure their victims aren’t intimidated into silence;
- running hard-hitting campaigns to end the war on women.
Violent, chauvinist attitudes to women aren’t confined to Indian politicians.
Italy’s former PM Silvio Berlusconi could be elected again this month despite facing trial for sex with a minor.
Morocco just let off an MP sentenced for a year for raping a civil servant… then laid charges on the rape survivor!
Berlusconi owns a tonne of Italy’s media, so gets off lightly there, while in Morocco and other countries, powerful people can lean on judges and media bosses.
So people-powered campaigns are the only way to end the culture of impunity!
Worldwide, 1 in 5 women will become a victim of rape or attempted rape in her lifetime according to UN studies.
Until men like these are kicked out of power, we’ll never get the changes to laws and attitudes that women need.
Our power multiplies when these guys are at their most vulnerable: when they’re running for office and need every vote they can muster.
We know this strategy works.
A few months ago when Republican front-runner for US Senate Todd Akin suggested some rapes are “legitimate“, savvy bloggers and campaigners turned the story into his worst nightmare. The firestorm they created cost him the race, and the Republican Party, calling his remarks “insulting and inexcusable”, pulled his funding and asked him to step aside. It sparked a conversation about sexual violence that’s still going on in the US.
We can ensure that men like Akin can no longer get into office anywhere.
If enough of us pledge to donate a small amount now, we can launch rapid-response campaigning that could flip elections like Akin’s across the world and get other political parties to think again.
Time and again, Avaaz members have risen to the challenge of defending women’s rights:
In Afghanistan, we helped protect Lal Bibi when she spoke out about her horrific rape.
In Honduras, we fought alongside local women against a law that would jail women for using the morning-after pill, even if they’ve been raped.
Now we can address these issues at the source, by changing who sits in parliaments and ministries, making decisions about women’s lives!
We’ve seen how much positive change pro-women politicians — male and female — can bring to our societies, so let’s make room for them!
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/end_the_war_on_women_loc/?bFAfecb&v=21809
With hope,
Mia, David, Jooyea, Michelle, Alex, Ricken, Alaphia, Emily and the whole Avaaz team
MORE INFORMATION
For politicians, shaming rapists should start at home (Firstpost):
http://www.firstpost.com/politics/for-politicians-naming-and-shaming-rapists-should-start-at-home-573922.html
The Government vs. the Committee (WSJ):
http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2013/02/05/the-government-vs-the-committee/
Todd Akin and Richard Mourdock fall to Senate defeats (Guardian):
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/nov/07/todd-akin-richard-mourdock-senate-results
How widespread is violence against women? (UN):
http://www.un.org/en/women/endviolence/pdf/VAW.pdf
Miscarriage of justice: MP Accused of Rape Acquitted, Plaintiff Arrested (Morocco World News):
http://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2013/01/74825/miscarriage-of-justice-mp-accused-of-rape-acquitted-plaintiff-arrested/
Adonis Diaries 