The 22nd of April ‘Earth Day’ was conceived of by a network originating in the US in the 1970s as part of the modern environmental movement to spread activism and raise awareness of environmental issues and climate change. Expressing a concern for the deteriorating environmental state of our common planet, the aim of the movement is to bring people together from all around the world.
The 22nd of April ‘Earth Day’ was conceived of by a network originating in the US in the 1970s as part of the modern environmental movement to spread activism and raise awareness of environmental issues and climate change. Expressing a concern for the deteriorating environmental state of our common planet, the aim of the movement is to bring people together from all around the world. This year’s theme of the campaign- “the face of climate change” aims to draw people’s attention to images showing how climate change is already tangibly and visually “impacting real people, animals and beloved places”. The idea is to promote and awareness for the need to foster a more sustainable future.
For this year’s Earth Day, the UK charities CARE International and Save the Children UK are highlighting the need in particular to support pastoralist women and children in their challenge to adapt to the severe impacts of climate change. The effects of climate change are being felt by many of the world’s most insecure people, where rising temperatures, droughts, and irregular/unpredictable rains are not only impacting on the livelihood strategies of these communities but also the resulting implications on access to health and education services. Recent studies (conducted by IISD and IUCN) have shown that such environmental changes, compounded with additional strains such as overpopulation, regional conflicts, the privatisation of land and the degradation of natural resources have left communities with less and less time to recover between droughts.
According to the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) severe and increasingly frequent droughts have been found to have a particularly negative impact on pastoralist children. The effects of malnourishment and water shortage caused by climate change are felt foremost by children, often impacting not only upon their access to food and nutrition but with knock-on effect to their access to education and health services. The result is that the unexpected and unpredictable effects of climate change can result in devastating effects on some pastoralist women and children.
In many rural or remote communities “women often face more severe consequences from drought due to inadequate access to or control over livelihood resources as well as limited decision making power, formal education, mobility or livelihood options.” (Care International UK).
It is increasingly obvious that short term quick fixes, such as food aid, and nutritional support projects are ineffective in the face of the long term trends of climate change. The goal of development initiatives should be to enhance the ability of communities to exercise their own choices and respect their traditions in regards to their livelihood strategies. This is a particularly pertinent issue which resonates with communities around the world that are struggling to respond to the effects of climate change.
Earth Day Network: http://www.earthday.org/
http://pillownaut.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/joyful-earth-day.html
PENHA : http://penhanetwork.org/pages/Sudan.html