Cooperatives have a vast history of playing important roles in supporting local economies in both the Midwestern United States and Germany. Today, a significant opportunity exists to build on existing cooperative models in the Midwest to also supply sources of local,...
energy
Communique from the eighth SADC People’s Summit
We the more than 250 representatives of grassroots movements, community-based organizations, peasant and small farmers movements, faith based organizations, women's organizations, labour, student, youth, economic justice and human rights networks and other social...
The controversial jatropha stumbles in Kenya | by Leah Temper
A campaign by Nature Kenya and other Environmental Justice Organizations (EJOs) has saved the Dakatcha Woodland Important Bird Area (IBA) from destruction from biofuel crops after Kenya's National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) rejected clearance for a...
Rio+20 or Rio-20: Green economy vs Ecological debt | by Rikard Warlenius
The high-level UN Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, last week was called an "epic failure" by Greenpeace and other environmental organizations, their disappointments reminiscent of the "epic failure" of the UN Climate Conference in Durban, South Africa only half...
Charles Dickens
The great Victorian novelist Charles Dickens was born 200 years ago this year. Andre Marais looks back on his life and work and his relevance for us today. What would Dickens have made of South Africa in this year of his bicentenary? Despite all obvious differences...
Crisis and Alternatives | by Achin Vanaik
Crisis for whom? Why after all this is it business more or less as usual? Because those who benefit think they can get away with it. Where there is greater ground level resistance – for example in Greece, significant political forces have put forward specific...
Rio+ 20: Greed Economy alive and well in the hotels of Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil–Alongside the multilateral government negotiations happening at the Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development are business negotiations and so-called “public-private partnerships” being driven by corporate networks such as the Consumer Goods...
Rio+20: Sabotaging Sustainable Development | by Fazila Farouk
The messages of gloom and doom have been out there for some time now. Just about every other commentator is pronouncing on an impending failure of outcome for the Rio+20 Summit on sustainable development being hosted in Brazil this week. We are being told to temper...
“Greed” economy and more disasters for humankind | by Ricardo B. Reyes
Expect more natural disasters, social and economic inequality and marginalization in the near future once the United States and other Northern countries succeeded in ramming through its proposed “Green Economy” in the upcoming Rio+20 Conference. A historic conference...




