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Earth Management - all Peoples together This new global dialogue will be held August 17-22, year 2002 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada The theme is
Earth Government for Earth Community- A grassroots process - NEWSLETTER Newsletter Volume 2 Issue 03, February 2001
Mailing address Earth Community Organization
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Table of Contents 9. Articles
* The People's Participation Grassroots Movement by Germain Dufour
* A People's Participation Movement by David Keane
* Science, Technology, Engineering, and Earth Management by Germain Dufour
* Primordial Human Rights and Earth Management by Germain Dufour
* Earth Charter and Earth Management by Germain Dufour
* The Soul of Humanity and Earth Management by Germain Dufour
* The Corporate Sector and Earth Management by Germain Dufour
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The campaign to design the Earth flag for Earth Community is going on right now and students from all over the planet are encouraged to participate. It will be their first unified achievement. Have you contacted a school or any other educational institution in your community to encourage participation? Have you let parents, students and teachers (instructors, professors, etc) know of the campaign? We now have two proposals for the Earth flag. Back to top of the page
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http://globalcommunitywebnet.com/earthgov1/ Between now and August 2002 we will have created the Interim Earth Government for Earth Community. The Interim Earth Government for Earth Community will govern for as long as necessary to create the democratic structure of the government and to put in place the voting system it requires. The immediate goals of the Interim Earth Government are to define and develop each Ministry as explained in the President's Message section. Government model #1 The first government model is a method developed by professor Gerard Endenburg of Maastricht University, the Netherlands. It can overcome the flaw of the inherent "dictatorship of the majority" of a democracy, which can even be the narrowest majority of just 50.001%, by making use of the Sociocratic Method of Decision Making. Read about it at: http://globalcommunitywebnet.com/earthgov1/GMmodel1.htm A solution to the democratic deficit: the Sociocratic Method of Decision Making
by
Marielle Jansen P.O.Box 411, Samford Qld. 4520 Australia e-mail: sociocracy@aol.com phone: 61-7-32985553 Government model #2 In this model called The Global League of the ethical control, the League should have at it's disposal representative posts in each of the countries and each post should carry out several functions such as cultural, ethnical, Ecological and political orientation, charity and so forth. Such a political aspect of each post will turn both structurally and in organisation terms into an International Party of the Religious, Cultural and Ecological Reformation. Read about it at: http://globalcommunitywebnet.com/earthgov1/GMmodel2.htm
by Alexander Wegosky President of the Association of Ecological Revivify Tarusa, Kaluga Region P.O. Box 64 249810 Russia ers@tarusa.ru Government model #3 This model is a specific Earth Government model called the democratically elected Earth Government. There are 51 ministries in this model. Other minister and officer positions may be created. Back to top of the page
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This is a proposal developed by Marielle Jansen for the basic process of drawing up an ECO Charter: Phase one: 1. Send out an email letter to the ECO members asking them to state the 10 most important items as they see it. (set a deadline of say: 2 months) 2. Sort out the order of these most favoured items by the number of times mentioned. 3. Send out the list thus obtained and ask the members to indicate their own order of importance (since there will be items emerging on an equal level). Obtain consent from the members who participated in this process on the right order. Phase two: 4. Prepare the wording of the Charter in English, French and (where we have the translating capacity: as many other languages as possible). 5. Draw up the document 6. Publish the document for the ECO members (in a newsletter) and make final adjustments according to remarks received (say, within a month), if necessary. Phase three: 7. Prepare publication on the ECO website 8. Publish document on the website 9. Collect reactions from the public (for future reference and improvement). Back to top of the page
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Dear ECO members, Since the founding days of the Earth Community Organization (ECO), there have been discussions about a specific charter for our organization. In the records of the Round Tables of August 2000 you will find details of (a number of) these discussions. Special thanks are in place for Mirian Vilela for her contributions and efforts. For the time being it was decided to adopt the Eartch Charter for our organization following the inclusion of amendments proposed during the World Congress to suit our special needs . For instances, the universal values, global concepts, the scale of human rights, and the spirit of collectiveness, peoples grassroots participation and global community of our organization. ECO has taken the task to adjust the Earth Charter. These amendments were summarized on our website at http://globalcommunitywebnet.com/earthcommunity/GlobalConcepts.htm and at http://globalcommunitywebnet.com/earthcommunity/ScaleOfHumanRights.htm As much as we appreciate the Earth Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the time has come to draw up a document to reflect the specific vision, mission and aim of our organization. Although such a document should not be cast in concrete and must be open for changes and amendments according to insights that we do not yet have today, we must make a real effort to produce a document that is acceptable to all the members of the ECO. We must make sure that through our charter we create a guideline to live by and a document to reflect our aspirations for a democratic grassroots process. It is a matter of course that we structure our communications process accordingly. This is why you are all invited to state the ten most important points you want to be stated or added in to the proposed Charter of the Earth Community Organization. In the time frame of the next two months your entries will be compiled and placed in the order of the items most frequently mentioned. A concept charter will then be drawn up in accordance with these items, which will be presented to you for consent. Depending on the reactions and / or requests for changes and adjustments, new concept charters will appear. The final version, however, should be ready for official presentation to "the world" at the time of the ECO congress in August 2002. We hope that you will all take part in this important task. Please keep your wording as concise as possible, as the charter should not become a burden for others to read, but rather a pleasure. Remember that the ECO distinguishes itself from other grassroots democracy organizations through the recognition of the Divine Will. May this Divine Will be our guide when we define the rules of rights and responsibilities for the Earth Community Organization. Marielle Jansen Mirian Vilela Sue L.T. McGregor James Mwami Germain Dufour Back to top of the page
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World Congress on Managing and Measuring Sustainable Development Global Community Action 1 Proceedings August 1-22, 2000 The following was copied from the Proceedings.
We accept the Earth Charter as drafted by the Earth Charter Commission. When the The Global Community organization becomes better structured members will be asked to vote for its inclusion as our Earth Charter. For now there is more work to do. The Earth Charter was part of the Discussion Roundtables of the World Congress and as such new amendments were proposed. For instances, the universal values (click 'Universal Values' on your left) promoted by The Global Community are to be included in the Charter along with the proposal of new human rights: fresh water and clean air are human rights. We respectfully ask Ms. Mirian Vilela, Earth Charter Project Manager for The Earth Council, to review and amend the draft. All information you need to do so is on our websites. We want to see the spirit of our organization included (in writing) in the draft. For instance The Global Community means the Earth Community. Members may wish to change the name but all basic global community principles, concepts, and values will still be kept the same and must be included in the Charter. This World Congress has showed us that there is a close interdependence between the human health, the conduct of the people, the quality of their environment, the type of their professional occupation, the motives and objectives of their lives, the relationships with other people and with the natural elements. The Earth Charter must be drafted to spell out this spirit of collectiveness and global community, and it must be specifically made for our organization, The Global Community (or the Earth Community) organization, and none others. INTRODUCTION TO THE EARTH CHARTER INITIATIVE For over a decade diverse groups throughout the world have endeavored to create an Earth Charter. Hundreds of groups and thousands of individuals have been involved in the process. Representatives from government and nongovernmental organizations worked to secure adoption of an Earth Charter during the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. However, the time was not right. A new Earth Charter initiative was launched by the Earth Council and Green Cross International in 1994. An Earth Charter Commission was formed in 1997 to oversee the project and the drafting of the Charter. The Secretariat for the Commission is at the Earth Council in Costa Rica. In March, 1997, at the conclusion of the Rio+5 Forum in Rio de Janeiro, the Earth Charter Commission issued the Benchmark Draft Earth Charter. The Commission also called for ongoing international consultations on the text of the document. Between 1997 and 1999 over forty national Earth Charter committees were formed, and numerous Earth Charter conferences were held. Comments and recommendations from all regions of the world were forwarded to the Earth Council and the Drafting Committee. Guided by these contributions to the consultation process, the text of the Charter has been extensively revised. In April, 1999, the Earth Charter Commission issued Benchmark Draft II. The consultation process continued throughout 1999 in order to provide individuals and groups with a further opportunity to make contributions to the drafting process. As a result of the worldwide consultation process, the Earth Charter Commission issued a final version of the Earth Charter after their meeting on March 12 – 14, 2000 at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris. The Earth Charter Commission plans to review responses to the document in two or four years and consider possible amendments. Objectives of the International Earth Charter Campaign • to promote a worldwide dialogue on shared values and global ethics; • to draft an Earth Charter that sets forth a succinct and inspiring vision of fundamental ethical principles for sustainable development; • to circulate the Earth Charter throughout the world as a people's treaty, promoting awareness, commitment, and implementation of Earth Charter values; • to seek endorsement of the Earth Charter by the United Nations General Assembly by the year 2002. A Declaration of Interdependence and Principles for Sustainable Development As indicated by the Preamble, the Earth Charter is a declaration of interdependence and responsibility and an urgent call to build a global partnership for sustainable development. The principles of the Earth Charter are closely interrelated. Together they provide a conception of sustainable development and set forth fundamental guidelines for achieving it. These principles are drawn from international law, science, philosophy, religion, recent UN Summit meetings, and the international Earth Charter conversation on global ethics. The goal of sustainable development is full human development and ecological protection. The Earth Charter recognizes that humanity's environmental, economic, social, cultural, ethical, and spiritual problems and aspirations are interconnected. It affirms the need for holistic thinking and collaborative, integrated problem solving. Sustainable development requires such an approach. It is about freedom, justice, participation, and peace as well as environmental protection and economic well-being. The Design of the Earth Charter Some groups would prefer a short Earth Charter that is a prayer or poem or a declaration with five to ten principles only. Others strongly favor a more substantial document that is more like an intergovernmental declaration. In an effort to address these different concerns, the Drafting Committee has created a layered document with a Preamble, sixteen main principles, various supporting principles, and a conclusion. The principles are divided into four parts. The supporting principles offer clarification and elaboration of the ideas in the main principles. The supporting principles provide an overview of the many issues that have been raised by various groups in the course of the international consultation process. Those who favor a very short Earth Charter would like to see the supporting principles significantly reduced in number or eliminated. Others feel passionately that the supporting principles are an essential part of the Charter because they make explicit the practical meaning of the main principles with reference to critical issues. The supporting principles are especially important to groups that feel marginalized and excluded from decision making processes. A further thorough analysis of the structure of the Charter and of the place and function of the supporting principles is underway. A Commentary on the principles is being prepared. Three Ways to Present the Earth Charter Vision • Use the four General Principles only as a short version. • Use the two-page Abbreviated Version with the full Preamble, the sixteen main principles only, and a conclusion. • Use the full document with the Preamble, the main principles together with the supporting principles, and the conclusion. The Earth Charter Website Explore the Earth Charter website for more information. www.earthcharter.org THE EARTH CHARTER PREAMBLE We stand at a critical moment in Earth's history, a time when humanity must choose its future. As the world becomes increasingly interdependent and fragile, the future at once holds great peril and great promise. To move forward we must recognize that in the midst of a magnificent diversity of cultures and life forms we are one human family and one Earth community with a common destiny. We must join together to bring forth a sustainable global society founded on respect for nature, universal human rights, economic justice, and a culture of peace. Towards this end, it is imperative that we, the peoples of Earth, declare our responsibility to one another, to the greater community of life, and to future generations. Earth, Our Home Humanity is part of a vast evolving universe. Earth, our home, is alive with a unique community of life. The forces of nature make existence a demanding and uncertain adventure, but Earth has provided the conditions essential to life's evolution. The resilience of the community of life and the well-being of humanity depend upon preserving a healthy biosphere with all its ecological systems, a rich variety of plants and animals, fertile soils, pure waters, and clean air. The global environment with its finite resources is a common concern of all peoples. The protection of Earth's vitality, diversity, and beauty is a sacred trust. The Global Situation The dominant patterns of production and consumption are causing environmental devastation, the depletion of resources, and a massive extinction of species. Communities are being undermined. The benefits of development are not shared equitably and the gap between rich and poor is widening. Injustice, poverty, ignorance, and violent conflict are widespread and the cause of great suffering. An unprecedented rise in human population has overburdened ecological and social systems. The foundations of global security are threatened. These trends are perilous—but not inevitable. The Challenges Ahead The choice is ours: form a global partnership to care for Earth and one another or risk the destruction of ourselves and the diversity of life. Fundamental changes are needed in our values, institutions, and ways of living. We must realize that when basic needs have been met, human development is primarily about being more, not having more. We have the knowledge and technology to provide for all and to reduce our impacts on the environment. The emergence of a global civil society is creating new opportunities to build a democratic and humane world. Our environmental, economic, political, social, and spiritual challenges are interconnected, and together we can forge inclusive solutions. Universal Responsibility To realize these aspirations, we must decide to live with a sense of universal responsibility, identifying ourselves with the whole Earth community as well as our local communities. We are at once citizens of different nations and of one world in which the local and global are linked. Everyone shares responsibility for the present and future well-being of the human family and the larger living world. The spirit of human solidarity and kinship with all life is strengthened when we live with reverence for the mystery of being, gratitude for the gift of life, and humility regarding the human place in nature. We urgently need a shared vision of basic values to provide an ethical foundation for the emerging world community. Therefore, together in hope we affirm the following interdependent principles for a sustainable way of life as a common standard by which the conduct of all individuals, organizations, businesses, governments, and transnational institutions is to be guided and assessed. PRINCIPLES I. RESPECT AND CARE FOR THE COMMUNITY OF LIFE 1. Respect Earth and life in all its diversity. a. Recognize that all beings are interdependent and every form of life has value regardless of its worth to human beings. b. Affirm faith in the inherent dignity of all human beings and in the intellectual, artistic, ethical, and spiritual potential of humanity. 2. Care for the community of life with understanding, compassion, and love. a. Accept that with the right to own, manage, and use natural resources comes the duty to prevent environmental harm and to protect the rights of people. b. Affirm that with increased freedom, knowledge, and power comes increased responsibility to promote the common good. 3. Build democratic societies that are just, participatory, sustainable, and peaceful. a. Ensure that communities at all levels guarantee human rights and fundamental freedoms and provide everyone an opportunity to realize his or her full potential. b. Promote social and economic justice, enabling all to achieve a secure and meaningful livelihood that is ecologically responsible. 4. Secure Earth's bounty and beauty for present and future generations. a. Recognize that the freedom of action of each generation is qualified by the needs of future generations. b. Transmit to future generations values, traditions, and institutions that support the long-term flourishing of Earth's human and ecological communities. In order to fulfill these four broad commitments, it is necessary to: II. ECOLOGICAL INTEGRITY 5. Protect and restore the integrity of Earth's ecological systems, with special concern for biological diversity and the natural processes that sustain life. a. Adopt at all levels sustainable development plans and regulations that make environmental conservation and rehabilitation integral to all development initiatives. b. Establish and safeguard viable nature and biosphere reserves, including wild lands and marine areas, to protect Earth's life support systems, maintain biodiversity, and preserve our natural heritage. c. Promote the recovery of endangered species and ecosystems. d. Control and eradicate non-native or genetically modified organisms harmful to native species and the environment, and prevent introduction of such harmful organisms. e. Manage the use of renewable resources such as water, soil, forest products, and marine life in ways that do not exceed rates of regeneration and that protect the health of ecosystems. f. Manage the extraction and use of non-renewable resources such as minerals and fossil fuels in ways that minimize depletion and cause no serious environmental damage. 6. Prevent harm as the best method of environmental protection and, when knowledge is limited, apply a precautionary approach. a. Take action to avoid the possibility of serious or irreversible environmental harm even when scientific knowledge is incomplete or inconclusive. b. Place the burden of proof on those who argue that a proposed activity will not cause significant harm, and make the responsible parties liable for environmental harm. c. Ensure that decision making addresses the cumulative, long-term, indirect, long distance, and global consequences of human activities. d. Prevent pollution of any part of the environment and allow no build-up of radioactive, toxic, or other hazardous substances. e. Avoid military activities damaging to the environment. 7. Adopt patterns of production, consumption, and reproduction that safeguard Earth's regenerative capacities, human rights, and community well-being. a. Reduce, reuse, and recycle the materials used in production and consumption systems, and ensure that residual waste can be assimilated by ecological systems. b. Act with restraint and efficiency when using energy, and rely increasingly on renewable energy sources such as solar and wind. c. Promote the development, adoption, and equitable transfer of environmentally sound technologies. d. Internalize the full environmental and social costs of goods and services in the selling price, and enable consumers to identify products that meet the highest social and environmental standards. e. Ensure universal access to health care that fosters reproductive health and responsible reproduction. f. Adopt lifestyles that emphasize the quality of life and material sufficiency in a finite world. 8. Advance the study of ecological sustainability and promote the open exchange and wide application of the knowledge acquired. a. Support international scientific and technical cooperation on sustainability, with special attention to the needs of developing nations. b. Recognize and preserve the traditional knowledge and spiritual wisdom in all cultures that contribute to environmental protection and human well-being. c. Ensure that information of vital importance to human health and environmental protection, including genetic information, remains available in the public domain. III. SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC JUSTICE 9. Eradicate poverty as an ethical, social, and environmental imperative. a. Guarantee the right to potable water, clean air, food security, uncontaminated soil, shelter, and safe sanitation, allocating the national and international resources required. b. Empower every human being with the education and resources to secure a sustainable livelihood, and provide social security and safety nets for those who are unable to support themselves. c. Recognize the ignored, protect the vulnerable, serve those who suffer, and enable them to develop their capacities and to pursue their aspirations. 10. Ensure that economic activities and institutions at all levels promote human development in an equitable and sustainable manner. a. Promote the equitable distribution of wealth within nations and among nations. b. Enhance the intellectual, financial, technical, and social resources of developing nations, and relieve them of onerous international debt. c. Ensure that all trade supports sustainable resource use, environmental protection, and progressive labor standards. d. Require multinational corporations and international financial organizations to act transparently in the public good, and hold them accountable for the consequences of their activities. 11. Affirm gender equality and equity as prerequisites to sustainable development and ensure universal access to education, health care, and economic opportunity. a. Secure the human rights of women and girls and end all violence against them. b. Promote the active participation of women in all aspects of economic, political, civil, social, and cultural life as full and equal partners, decision makers, leaders, and beneficiaries. c. Strengthen families and ensure the safety and loving nurture of all family members. 12. Uphold the right of all, without discrimination, to a natural and social environment supportive of human dignity, bodily health, and spiritual well-being, with special attention to the rights of indigenous peoples and minorities. a. Eliminate discrimination in all its forms, such as that based on race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion, language, and national, ethnic or social origin. b. Affirm the right of indigenous peoples to their spirituality, knowledge, lands and resources and to their related practice of sustainable livelihoods. c. Honor and support the young people of our communities, enabling them to fulfill their essential role in creating sustainable societies. d. Protect and restore outstanding places of cultural and spiritual significance. IV. DEMOCRACY, NONVIOLENCE, AND PEACE 13. Strengthen democratic institutions at all levels, and provide transparency and accountability in governance, inclusive participation in decision making, and access to justice. a. Uphold the right of everyone to receive clear and timely information on environmental matters and all development plans and activities which are likely to affect them or in which they have an interest. b. Support local, regional and global civil society, and promote the meaningful participation of all interested individuals and organizations in decision making. c. Protect the rights to freedom of opinion, expression, peaceful assembly, association, and dissent. d. Institute effective and efficient access to administrative and independent judicial procedures, including remedies and redress for environmental harm and the threat of such harm. e. Eliminate corruption in all public and private institutions. f. Strengthen local communities, enabling them to care for their environments, and assign environmental responsibilities to the levels of government where they can be carried out most effectively. 14. Integrate into formal education and life-long learning the knowledge, values, and skills needed for a sustainable way of life. a. Provide all, especially children and youth, with educational opportunities that empower them to contribute actively to sustainable development. b. Promote the contribution of the arts and humanities as well as the sciences in sustainability education. c. Enhance the role of the mass media in raising awareness of ecological and social challenges. d. Recognize the importance of moral and spiritual education for sustainable living. 15. Treat all living beings with respect and consideration. a. Prevent cruelty to animals kept in human societies and protect them from suffering. b. Protect wild animals from methods of hunting, trapping, and fishing that cause extreme, prolonged, or avoidable suffering. c. Avoid or eliminate to the full extent possible the taking or destruction of non-targeted species. 16. Promote a culture of tolerance, nonviolence, and peace. a. Encourage and support mutual understanding, solidarity, and cooperation among all peoples and within and among nations. b. Implement comprehensive strategies to prevent violent conflict and use collaborative problem solving to manage and resolve environmental conflicts and other disputes. c. Demilitarize national security systems to the level of a non-provocative defense posture, and convert military resources to peaceful purposes, including ecological restoration. d. Eliminate nuclear, biological, and toxic weapons and other weapons of mass destruction. e. Ensure that the use of orbital and outer space supports environmental protection and peace. f. Recognize that peace is the wholeness created by right relationships with oneself, other persons, other cultures, other life, Earth, and the larger whole of which all are a part. THE WAY FORWARD As never before in history, common destiny beckons us to seek a new beginning. Such renewal is the promise of these Earth Charter principles. To fulfill this promise, we must commit ourselves to adopt and promote the values and objectives of the Charter. This requires a change of mind and heart. It requires a new sense of global interdependence and universal responsibility. We must imaginatively develop and apply the vision of a sustainable way of life locally, nationally, regionally, and globally. Our cultural diversity is a precious heritage and different cultures will find their own distinctive ways to realize the vision. We must deepen and expand the global dialogue that generated the Earth Charter, for we have much to learn from the ongoing collaborative search for truth and wisdom. Life often involves tensions between important values. This can mean difficult choices. However, we must find ways to harmonize diversity with unity, the exercise of freedom with the common good, short-term objectives with long-term goals. Every individual, family, organization, and community has a vital role to play. The arts, sciences, religions, educational institutions, media, businesses, nongovernmental organizations, and governments are all called to offer creative leadership. The partnership of government, civil society, and business is essential for effective governance. In order to build a sustainable global community, the nations of the world must renew their commitment to the United Nations, fulfill their obligations under existing international agreements, and support the implementation of Earth Charter principles with an international legally binding instrument on environment and development. Let ours be a time remembered for the awakening of a new reverence for life, the firm resolve to achieve sustainability, the quickening of the struggle for justice and peace, and the joyful celebration of life. Back to top of the page
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by Germain Dufour Over the past decades, Earth Community has initialized the 'People's Participation Grassroots Movement' in wanting what is rightfully ours to manage: Earth. 'We the Peoples' of the Earth are now set with one goal, one direction, that is to protect and manage Earth for our generation and for all of the others to come. We are the hopes of humanity. We are now developing the foundation of Earth Government, the highest aspirations of humanity, a Vision of the most powerful reform in the History of Humanity. People from all over the planet are developing models for Earth Government, the greatest of all hopes. Human consciousness has evolved and will seek no rest until Earth Government has come to life. Societies seek to form a democratically elected Earth Government, one representative per million people. Over six thousands representatives will be managing Earth. The Middle Age feudal Kingdom has evolved to become a planetary government where representatives are making decisions on behalf of their communities. In the 'Vision of Year in Year 2024', governing now requires participation from every person on Earth. National governments have turn over to their citizens the responsibility and accountability of local and global problems. Finding sound solutions to problems and making decisions is no longer accomplished behind closed doors but is now a process requiring everyone's participation. National governments and Earth Government have made democracy a living and a spiritual process for the good of all of humanity. Participation is now a necessity. Participation, global concepts, universal values and the Scale of Human Rights are being taught at the school level. Earth Community has focused societies aspirations toward a unique goal: humanity survival now and in the future along with all life on Earth. Back to top of the page
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by David Keane Back to top of the page
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by Germain Dufour Earth Community has come to realize that peoples live in a world of increasing interdependence and that our faith is intrinsically related to the preservation of the global life-support systems and to the survival of all forms of life. Earth Community is calling upon scientists, tehnologists, technicians, engineers and all other professionals to create positive actions in their own fields about using knowledge from all fields of science in a responsible manner to find sound solutions to human needs and to fulfill aspirations without misusing this knowledge. Science gives a person a set of rules, a way of thinking, a philosophy to look at the physical universe, to observe and analyze it, and to discover its making, its functioning, and its structure. The scientific method is very reassuring to oneself. It gives us the basic reasoning we need in order to make informed and sound policy and management decisions. Science has a responsibility for the well-being of humanity. Science is found everywhere in our societies. Because of science, new technologies and techniques were developed and used in the market place. The products of science take important places in all aspects of our lives and actually save lives every second. They make our lives manageable in a million difeerent ways. Science has also played a destructive role in our history and is continuing to do so today. Science, technology and engineering are directly or indirectly responsible for threats to our environment, for wasteful uses of the Earth's resources and for wars and conflicts in the world. Science, technology and engineering are major forces of socio-economic change. They cause humanity and its social and natural environment to evolve rapidly and, therefore, they carry serious responsibility and accountability. They are no longer regarded as benefactors of humanity. Ethical integrity has declined. In several parts of the world people have become suspicious and are questioning abuses of various kinds. Many scientists and other professionals have shown little regard to ethical problems arising from their work and must become responsible and accountable just like everyone else. There are no exception. We are all asked in helping humanity and all life on Earth from complete extinction. It is a common goal. Researchers and other professionals receive public funding for finding solutions to problems in society. Public funding should be directed towards very specific research projects related to the life-support system of the planet and to a more sustainable biosphere. Science, technology and engineering must regain public trust, state ethical responsibilties and become a voice to present and future generations. During the August 2002 global dialogue, there will be a discussion roundtable on the ethical issues related to science, technology and engineering, their practices and ideologies. The public is invited to debate the issue. The public should be informed about research projects and their wider implications. All parties involved should collaborate with the public. Strong legal and moral safeguards must be implemented to discourage unethical practice and the wrongly use of science, technology and engineering for the development and manufacturing of mass destruction weapons, and for experiments which do not respect the dignity of human persons and animals. Back to top of the page
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by Germain Dufour Primordial human rights are those human rights that individuals have by virtue of their very existence as human beings: to live, eat, drink fresh water, breath clean air, and have shelter. These rights are separate categories than ecological rights, the right of the greatest number of people, economic rights, social rights, cultural rights and religious rights. Ecological and primordial human rights are the only rights that have existed unchanged throughout the evolutionary origin of our species. Any major change would have threatened our very existence. All other human rights listed here are rights created by human beings and can be changed depending of new circumstances; they are not stagnant but are rather flexible and adaptive, and they can evolve. Ecological and primordial human rights of this generation and of future generations are therefore much more important than any other human rights existing now and in the future. This is the reason for drawing the Scale of Human Rights as shown here: * Ecological rights
In this way the Scale of Human Rights gives us a 'sense of direction' for future planning and managing of the Earth. Earth management is now well defined and becomes a goal to achieve. We no longer waste energy and resources in things that are absolutely unimportant. Back to top of the page
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by Germain Dufour Back to top of the page
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by Germain Dufour The Earth Community Organization found a way of dealing with globalization: global ethics. In the past, corporations rule without checks and balances. For now on global ethics will be a basic minimum to do business, and there will be checks and balances. Our judgement will be based on global ethics. Global ethics must always be grounded in realities. But realities are changing constantly and are different in different places. We live in a world that makes progress toward democracy. Ethics and morality exist only when human beings can act freely. In our free society, rights are tied to responsibilities. Corporations are committed to improvement in business performance and want to be seen as 'good corporate citizens' on a local and a global scale. Corporations have social responsibilities as they are an integral part of society. Global ethics recalls that those realities, on which others build upon, have to be protected first. The Earth Community Organization found that universal values and human rights as described above were the foundation of global ethics. The Earth Community Organization has now at hand the method and framework to conduct societal checks and balances of a global sustainable development. A more balance world economy will result of annual checks and balances. Corporations will take their social responsibilities and become involved in designing, monitoring, and implementing these checks and balances. Several corporations have already done so. Results will be taken into account in the evaluation of sustainable development. Corporations are required to expand their responsibilities to include human rights, the environment, community and family aspects, safe working conditions, fair wages and sustainable consumption aspects. Back to top of the page
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