Earthcharter

Prevention is Unsustainable

Tuesday, 17 August 2010 14:08

By saving a child's life today, are we condemning them to a Malthusian starvation in the future? Malaria control, vaccinations, or water purification are not sustainable interventions unless they are matched by population management.

In Zambia, the average family size is somewhere between 6 and 7 children. Alan, one of Workers Education Association of Zambia leaders, explained that having such large families is a tradition, not a rational decision. Historically, it was necessary to have 6 children to get 2 of them to adulthood. Children played the role of workers on the farm, and social security in old age.

But now 4 or 5 children reach adulthood, and they are following tradition, having 6 children of their own. Such a massive increase in population is not sustainable.

At present, Zambia is experiencing a grain surplus, which gives people the impression that population increases are not worries. Yet, massive deforestation for cooking fuels, fresh water pollution from too many users, losses of wildlife from too many farmers tells a very different story. Just a few bad harvests, and Zambia will be in real trouble.

How does a country change a cultural practice, having large families, when it no longer serves its original purpose? For religious reasons, birth control is not an acceptable topic for conversation in Zambia, no matter its necessity. But there are some practices associated with lower birth rates.

Education for girls is associated with both higher economic performance and lower birth rates. Economic growth is also associated with lower birth rates. More efficient farming methods are associated with lower birth rates. When people feel secure about their future, they lessen the number of children they have.

So, the conclusion seems clear. Simply curing illness is not a sustainable practice, at least in Zambia. Any efforts have to be combined with a longer term effort to educate girls, increase economic activity, and improve efficiency. Project COPE is trying to put all these efforts into one development package in our target villages.

Project COPE is a joint effort of Earth Charter US and the Workers Education Association of Zambia. We work person to person to avoid the government and huge international NGO's. I will be reporting on our progress on this blog.

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Add to Your Reading List: Our Earth: How kids are saving the planet

Tuesday, 10 August 2010 19:01

Next month, Canadian author and illustrator Janet Wilson’s new book, Our Earth: How kids are saving the planet hits bookshelves. Our Earth chronicles the lives of everyday children all over the world who are taking action to help save our planet.

The book features the stories of ten children from countries such as Canada, Indonesia, China, Costa Rica and the United States who are taking action to improve their communities. The tale of these “greenagers” will certainly inspire all readers to take the simple actions to help our planet. From the press release:

“Our Earth also includes a comprehensive list of actions and ideas for everyday kids to take care of the environment. Readers of this book will not only be inspired by the work being done by children around the world, they will also have the tools to begin to make a difference in their own backyards.”

Wilson’s book, which was printed on environmentally friendly paper, comes to a bookstore near you in September of 2010. Be sure to pick up a copy and do your part!

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Drastic Effects of Oil Spill Could be Felt for Years to Come

Monday, 09 August 2010 11:25

This morning, the Associated Press released a story detailing the possible long-term side effects of the BP oil spill. According to the article, scientists have begun to find specks of oil in the larvae of blue crabs. Blue crabs are a key part of the gulf ecological system, serving as both a predator for smaller bottom-dwellers such as snails and prey for larger animals such as dolphins, tuna and even raccoons. That the blue crabs are affected could cause problems for years to come.

“It would suggest the oil has reached a position where it can start moving up the food chain instead of just hanging in the water," said Bob Thomas, a biologist at Loyola University in New Orleans. "Something likely will eat those oiled larvae ... and then that animal will be eaten by something bigger and so on."

Tiny creatures might take in such low amounts of oil that they could survive, Thomas said. But those at the top of the chain, such as dolphins and tuna, could get fatal "megadoses."

Unfortunately, there is no estimate of what percentage of blue crab larvae is contaminated. Scientists are forced to wait and see what the long-lasting implications of the oil spill will be, though the blue crab population “is virtually certain to take a hit over the next year and perhaps longer.”

You can find the entire article here.

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Answers to Zambia's Challenges

Tuesday, 03 August 2010 14:22

The answers to Zambia's challenges were far easier for me to see here in the States than they were when I was in Zambia. All the self-defeating behaviors so visible from across the Atlantic turn out to be embedded in a highly evolved survival scheme that is complexly interconnected in a web of relationships. One thing cannot be changed without disturbing everything else.

Just consider the use of charcoal for fuel. Charcoal not only is expensive, but the market for charcoal is destroying the forests of Zambia at an alarming rate. The government has taken the position that charcoal is unsustainable, and therefore it must be eliminated. All this makes sense from an American perspective. One the ground, things are very different. There are two main problems. What does one cook with if not charcoal? If charcoal is the only source of income, what does one do without money?

The charcoal market exists in a complex interconnection starting with the extremely poor rural villagers whose only source of income is cutting down trees for free, and turning it into charcoal. They sell it along the road in sacks which are bought by middle men and loaded onto huge trucks. It is then sold to vendors in the cities, who then sell it to urban households, or to other vendors who break it into smaller packets to sell to poor who live in compounds and cannot afford a entire sack. If charcoal was to go away today, they all lose their livelihoods. Is it acceptable to let those people go hungry?

And what should people use to cook with? There are no alternative energy sources in Zambia at present. The most common replacement for charcoal in developing countries is electricity. But electricity in Zambia is notoriously unreliable, costly, and in short supply. Even in the capital we never experienced an entire day with electricity. In the rural areas we were without electricity for nearly an entire day at a time. How can one cook for a family when the only source of cooking goes out for 4 to 5 hours at a time?

What's next? After our small fund raiser, we have $900 to kick start the first Ecodome toilet installation, and the first financial cooperative. The COPE Project is so comprehensive and complicated, there are literally thousands of details, yet we need to focus on just a few to get started.

We are very fortunate in that Mr. Simpungwe of Interchem has agreed to help us with the shipping for the first Ecodome Toilet, and so the cost is well within reach. And the Micro Bankers Trust has also agreed to train the first coop while training COPE trainers. These are both key parts of our total program, and there we will start. Right now Victor is trying to arrange all the details, and we will keep you posted as the details emerge.

As we expand the toilet/sanitation program, we face the challenge of funding it. Even though the toilets cost only $450, without the housing, who should pay? Obviously sanitation is a government responsibility, but they have not show any interest in funding such a project. Rural people cannot afford such an investment, even though it saves their lives over the long run. Some NGO's are interested in funding sanitation, but not at the significant level needed to actually solve the problem. Yet, latrines and open air defecation are not sustainable alternatives. Another Zambian conundrum.

Father Dominic told me to focus on the goal, otherwise the little bumps along the way become insurmountable obstacles. And yet, I keep stubbing my toes on those little bumps. For the time being, I can keep the horizon in view, but is that view sustainable. An Earth Charter conundrum. Add a comment