Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - June 11, 2012, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A9 winnipegfreepress. com WORLD WINNIPEG FREE PRESS, MONDAY, JUNE 11, 2012 A 9 Craig and Marc Kielburger Craig and Marc Kielburger co- founded Free The Children, and are authors of the new book, Living Me to We: The Guide for Socially Conscious Canadians. The 20- year- old video predated YouTube, yet it has since gone viral, with 20 million views. Its picture is grainy but the words are crystal clear. " We've come 5000 miles to tell you adults you must change your ways." A 12- year- old Canadian girl stands before world leaders, expressing the fears and despair of a young generation facing at a bleak future for the planet they will inherit. All listened raptly. Some wept at the starkness of her appeal. She became known as " the girl who silenced the world for five minutes." It was 1992, and representatives of world governments were gathered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for the first United Nations Conference on the Environment and Development - the Earth Summit. The girl was Severn Cullis- Suzuki, daughter of environmentalist David Suzuki. Two decades later, Cullis- Suzuki, with a child of her own, cares even more passionately about the issues now than she did then. As the world prepares for another Earth Summit in Rio, we spoke with her about her recollections of that seminal conference and what in her opinion has - and has not - changed in the years since. Cullis- Suzuki remembers the Earth Summit coming at a time of high environmental concern. Two weeks were allotted for the talks. The heads of state from 108 countries attended, including U. S. President George Bush Sr. and Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. Over 10,000 journalists were on hand. Back then, Cullis- Suzuki recalls, addressing the depletion of the ozone layer was high on the environmental agenda, as was a growing awareness of a new environmental issue called climate change. A big concern was bringing on side the developing countries who were worried that being forced to comply with environmental measures would hinder their efforts to develop. The end of the Summit saw the signing of legallybinding agreements, including the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the Framework Convention on Climate Change, which would pave the way for the Kyoto Protocol. The nations of the world agreed to a global action plan for sustainable development: Agenda 21. The world emerged from Rio with a sense of hope and promise. " I look back at those documents that came out of Rio, and they were pretty amazing," Cullis- Suzuki says. " Great promises were made at Rio, then it kind of fell off people's agenda." The hope and promise were short- lived. Cullis- Suzuki recalls that, in the years following the Earth Summit, the global economy slipped into recession and economic constraints meant the environment was no longer a priority. Cullis- Suzuki notes the parallels to today, as economic woes again displace the environment as a top concern for world leaders. She cites the fact the 2012 Earth Summit will last only three days. President Barack Obama will not be there, and Prime Minister Stephen Harper has not indicated if he will attend. Climate change has risen to a preeminent concern. " We're in a new reality, living in a time of climate change. We already have climate refugees around the globe and now have to talk about adaptation and mitigation," says Cullis- Suzuki, who holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, and a Masters of Science specializing in Ethnoecology. In an ironic reversal, smaller developing countries like the island nations Grenada and the Maldives, who are already feeling the effects of climate change, are the ones begging industrial nations to address climate change. However, this time there will be no agreements that legally bind countries to meet environmental targets. Instead countries will be asked to work voluntarily towards targets they set for themselves. Cullis- Suzuki is now coaching young Canadians to represent the interests of the next generation as delegates at Rio 2012. We asked her, if she were to stand before the Rio Summit 20 years after she first held the world's leaders rapt, what would she say now? " I'm hearing from a lot of people that the same speech I gave then could be given again today. That is a sobering thought," she told us. " Sometimes it's hard not to feel really negative. I think I would ask why we have not succeeded? Why are we not further along?" The answer may come from her father. In a recent blog, David Suzuki declared environmentalism a failure. Creating environment ministries and holding environment- focused conferences, he argued, made the environment just " another special interest" like agriculture or education. It was something separate from the economy and so fell to the wayside when recessions struck. Ironically, Rio's goal in 1992 was to integrate environmental awareness into global development. As Suzuki put it, " The event was meant to signal that economic activity could not proceed without considering ecological consequences." Twenty years later, world leaders once again need a child to stand up and remind them that, for the next generation, the environment is not a special interest, it's their future. LOOKING BACK - THE EARTH SUMMIT, TWENTY YEARS LATER metowe. com/ living RURAL MUNICIPALITY OF SPRINGFIELD UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF THE PLANNING ACT NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING On the date and at the time and location shown below, a PUBLIC HEARING will be held to receive representations from any persons who wish to make them in respect to the following matter: THE RURAL MUNICIPALITY OF SPRINGFIELD BY- LAW NO. 12- 06 being an AMENDMENT to the RURAL MUNICIPALITY OF SPRINGFIELD DEVELOPMENT PLAN BY- LAW NO. 98- 22. HEARING Rural Municipality of Springfield Municipal Office LOCATION: 100 Springfield Centre Drive, Oakbank, MB DATE & 19 June 2012 TIME: at 7: 00 PM To create a Livestock Operation Policy that shows areas in the Rural Municipality of Springfield where the expansion or development of livestock operations of any size may be allowed; areas where the expansion or development of livestock operations involving a specified maximum number of animal units may be allowed; and areas where the expansion or development of livestock operations will not be allowed. There are also a number of land use changes to reflect the Livestock Operation Policy and subdivision policy changes. AREA All lands, structures and buildings AFFECTED: in the Rural Municipality of Springfield FOR Mr. Dan Doucet, Planning Department INFORMATION Rural Municipality of Springfield CONTACT: Phone: 204.444- 3824 A copy of the above proposal and supporting material may be inspected at the Rural Municipality of Springfield Planning Office located at Unit 1, 27 055 Oakwood Road, Oakbank, Manitoba during normal office hours, Monday to Friday. Copies may be made and extracts taken therefrom, upon request. GENERAL INTENT OF BY- LAW NO. 12- 06: $ 50 ACADEMIC ASSESSMENT ( a $ 175 value) Available Fridays only, from 9 - 1 till June 22. Sylvan Learning of Winnipeg 17 - 200 Meadowood Drive ( near St. Vital Shopping Centre) 204- 988- 5055 www. SylvanLearning. com Offer expires 06/ 22/ 12. Valid at participating centres only. May not be combined with other offers. Single subject testing only. For greater success in school this fall, Call us! In as little as 3 hours a week, help your child be a more successful student! Fit us in around other summer activities, and be amazed at the results this fall! . Reading, Math, Writing . Build self confidence and skills . Flexible programming: days, evgs & half days . Payment options available . Guaranteed READING, MATH, WRITING, STUDY SKILLS Fabricland Sewing Club Members Value Hotline 1- 866- R- FABRIC WINNIPEG 1172 St. James St. . Ph: 772- 8709 1530 Regent Ave. . Ph: 661- 6426 1895 Pembina Hwy. . Ph: 253- 2518 STORE HOURS: Mon. & Tues. 9: 30 am - 6 pm Wed., Thur. & Fri. 9: 30 am - 9 pm Sat. 9: 30 am - 6 pm; Sun. 12 noon - 5 pm WHOLESALE PRICING AVAILABLE * Refers to Fabricland Sewing Club Members Correction Please note that the pricing for the Canon Powershot G1 X ( SKU 5249005) as advertised in the June 11- 30, 2012 Don's Photo flyer for $ 679.99 has been erroneously printed; the actual retail price of this item is $ 799.99. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Syria rebels pick leader BEIRUT - Syria's main opposition group on Sunday picked a secular Kurd as its new leader after criticism that the former head was too autocratic and the group was becoming dominated by Islamists. The opposition, hobbled by disorganization and infighting, is trying to pull together and appear more inclusive by choosing a member of an ethnic minority. The opposition's disarray has frustrated western powers eager to dislodge Syrian President Bashar Assad but unwilling or unable to send their own forces to do it. There has been some willingness to support the rebels with funds and arms, but the lack of a cohesive front or a single address has hampered the efforts as the bloodshed intensifies. On Sunday, government forces shelled rebel- held cities and villages, killing at least 38 people in the rebellious Homs district in central Syria, activists said. It was impossible to independently confirm the death toll. Auburn shooting kills 3 AUBURN, Ala. - Three people were fatally shot, including two former Auburn University football players, and another three people were wounded during a party at an apartment complex near the school, authorities said Sunday. Auburn police Chief Tommy Dawson said at a news conference current football player Eric Mack was among those wounded and was being treated at a hospital. The two slain former players were identified as Edward Christian and Ladarious Phillips. The other person killed was identified as Demario Pitts. Desmonte Leonard has been charged with capital murder and hadn't yet been captured, police said. Turquorius Vines, 23, said he was at the pool party Saturday evening at the University Heights apartments with Pitts. He said he and his friend were approached by two other men who started arguing with them over a woman. Vines said he punched one of the men, while Pitts hit both over the head with a bottle. Either one or both of the men then started shooting, he said. Kennedy divorce on web NEW YORK - Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a newly revealed legal filing his estranged wife, Mary, was abusive toward his children from an earlier marriage and asked the court to prohibit her from threatening suicide in front of their kids. Mary Kennedy killed herself last month at the family's estate in Bedford, N. Y., two years after Robert Kennedy filed for divorce. Portions of a confidential affidavit filed in 2011 in connection with the divorce proceedings were posted online Sunday by The Daily Beast as part of a cover story in Newsweek magazine about Mary Kennedy. A spokesman for the website won't say how the affidavit was obtained. The couple married in 1994 and had four children together. Calls to lawyers for both Kennedys were not immediately returned. - The Associated Press THE World N AIROBI, Kenya - Kenya's internal security minister was killed with five other people when the police helicopter they were travelling in crashed in a forest on the outskirts of Kenya's capital, Nairobi, officials said. An anti- corruption crusader said the incident calls into question the government's procurement of airplanes and helicopters for its security forces. Internal Security Minister George Saitoti and his deputy, Orwa Ojode, were killed in the crash Sunday, Vice- President Kalonzo Musyoka said. Two pilots and two bodyguards also died in the crash, officials said. The government declared three days of mourning for the crash victims. The death of Saitoti is a " great tragedy that has befallen our country at this time as we are making elaborate preparations to hold peaceful elections," Prime Minister Raila Odinga said at the scene of the crash. It was not immediately clear what caused the accident. Kenyan police cordoned off the scene of the crash. Rescue officials collected the charred and scattered remains of those killed. Saitoti and Ojode were on their way to a political event in western Kenya, Odinga said. Saitoti, an American- trained economist and mathematician, was one of the most visible figures in Kenyan politics. For more than a decade he was a deputy to former president Daniel arap Moi. As security minister, he was the government's spokesman on security matters, including Kenya's decision to send troops to Somalia last year. Analysts say he played a key role in that decision. Saitoti appeared often on national television to reassure the public in the aftermath of deadly attacks blamed on the Somali militant group al- Shabab. Al- Shabab, in a message sent from its official Twitter account, welcomed " the death of the evil minister." Saitoti announced last year he would seek the Kenyan presidency in 2013. Anti- corruption crusader Mwalimu Mati said the crash should make the country focus on the history of government purchases for the Kenya Police Air wing. He also said Saitoti will leave a controversial legacy. Saitoti faced allegations of being involved in Kenya's largest financial scam in the 1990s. - The Associated Press Crash kills Kenyan minister Politician planned to run for president By Tom Odula KHALIL SENOSI / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Kenyan officials investigate a helicopter crash that killed six people on the outskirts of Nairobi on Sunday. A_ 09_ Jun- 11- 12_ FP_ 01. indd A9 6/ 10/ 12 10: 04: 20 PM ;