Small Island Crisis

---Sign the Petition here---
http://www.avaaz.org/en/sos_small_islands/
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Recent News!!!
http://islandsfirst.org/about/news.html

The full email from AVAAZ.org

Dear Friends,

Imagine the sea rising around you as your country literally disappears beneath your feet, where the food you grow and the water you drink is being destroyed by salt, and your last chance is to seek refuge in other lands where climate refugees have no official status. This is not a dream, it's the fearful reality for millions of people who live on islands around the world, from the Maldives to Papua New Guinea.

That is why these small islands are planning the unprecedented step next week, ahead of the UN General Assembly meeting, of calling on the Security Council itself to address climate change as a pressing threat to international peace and security.

This is a creative move born of desperation, a challenge to global powers to end their complacency and tackle this lethal crisis with the urgency of wars. This effort could help shift the tenor of the world's debate -- from a far-off storm cloud to a life-threatening crisis here and how. But the island states' campaign will meet fierce opposition from the world's biggest polluters, so they need our help. Sign the petition now to raise a worldwide chorus of support for this call -- our signatures will be presented to the UN by the islands' ambassadors as they introduce their resolution next week:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/sos_small_islands

Arctic ice is melting so fast that, for the first time in human history, you can sail straight through the Arctic. Hurricanes and other extreme weather patterns are growing in size and number. As an Avaaz member in St. Kitts writes, "While those in the US can evacuate an area when a powerful hurricane is on its way, those of us on the islands do not have that option." Now, small island nations -- whose highest points are often only a few meters above sea level -- are preparing evacuation plans to guarantee the survival of their populations.

President Remengesau of Palau, a small island in the Pacific, recently said:
"Palau has lost at least one third of its coral reefs due to climate change related weather patterns. We also lost most of our agricultural production due to drought and extreme high tides. These are not theoretical, scientific losses -- they are the losses of our resources and our livelihoods.... For island states, time is not running out. It has run out. And our path may very well be the window to your own future and the future of our planet".

Beyond the islands, countries like Bangladesh -- population, 150 million -- face losing large parts of their landmass. The experience of our planet's most vulnerable communities serves as a warning sign of the future world we can all expect: extreme weather growing in intensity, conflict over water and food supplies, coasts disappearing and hundreds of millions made refugees.

The more signatures we raise to be delivered to the UN next week, the more urgently this call will ring out to protect our common future. Sign now:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/sos_small_islands

The small islands' brave campaign for survival is our campaign as well. Just as sea levels rise or fall everywhere at the same time, the choices of every person everywhere affect the future of our common home. By standing with the people at the front line of the climate crisis, we show them, and ourselves, that we recognize our fundamental shared humanity -- and the responsibilities that come with it.

With hope, Ben, Iain, Alice, Paul, Graziela, Pascal, Ricken, Brett, Milena -- the Avaaz team

PS: For a report on Avaaz's campaigning so far, see:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/report_back_2

PPS: These are the States who are sponsoring the resolution: Fiji, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Seychelles, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, joined by Canada and Turkey.

For a draft of the Small Islands States Resolution, please see:
http://islandsfirst.org/draftres.pdf

For more information about those presenting the petition please visit:
http://islandsfirst.org

For information on Tuvalu's evacuation plan and climate refugees, see:
http://www.wwf.org.au/articles/climate-refugees-in-a-drowning-pacific/

For information about how rising sea levels will affect us all:
http://www.earth-policy.org/Updates/Update2.htm

For more information on the rapidly-melting Arctic ice:
http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/for-the-first-time-in...

For more information about all of the island states:
http://www.sidsnet.org/aosis/
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Also be sure to checkout my friends Stephen Thrasher @ http://www.myspace.com/stephenthrasher

Song: "Distance" - Stephen Thrasher

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• Island
• small
• islands
• crisis
• ocean
• sea
• levels
• climate
• change
• avaaz
• global
• warming
• petition

[aivilik]

Besides, even if you COULD prove that global warming was caused by man, you can't just fire up the global dictatorship machine and think that we aren't going to promptly shut your controlling ass down. Well, you CAN, but if you choose to think that way, I hate to tell you, that you're going to end up being greatly disappointed. People will not stand for a dictatorship. At least Americans won't. Go buy a razor, you hippy.

[LectricNightConcepts]

@aivilik Who said anything about dictatorship? We can effectively bring about a change in how we do things with the various democratic tools at our disposal. Informing one's people of the potential hazards and offering sustainable ways to protect against them is a very simple plan. We spend thousands of dollars insuring our home and possessions; why not do the same thing with our planet?

[aivilik]

This is crap. If ocean levels are rising, there is nothing that humans can do about it. Just think about that. Climate change is a constant on Earth; always has been. You just adapt to it...or fucking cry about it and point fingers at other people because you're completely incapable of adapting to that which you cannot change. These progressives/liberals have no idea what they're talking about. Global warming will be followed by a period of global cooling; it's happened before and will happen ag

[LectricNightConcepts]

@aivilik. Sure there are periods of warming and cooling, but mankind is contributing to the warming, and the science seems to say that our contribution is quite significant and getting worse. There is also an inevitable tipping point, where we could be thrust into a much different climate than we are capable of handling. Where that point is, we don't know, but is it really a good idea to blatantly push ourselves ever closer to that unknown edge?

[Savehumanrights]

Global warming is a conn. How do you break the news to someone that santa isnt real. Although its cruel to break the news it has to be done to adults but please dont tell the kidd sant isnt real. Just do some resurch if in doubt. I was a beleiver once too. Its ok to be tricked once with santa and again with Global Warming but not a 3rd time with Climate Change.

[LectricNightConcepts]

Well, I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on that one. I have done lots of research actually, and from research, I've learned that Global Warming is a fact. There is full agreement in the scientific community that the Globe is getting hotter. The debate is whether or not is caused by humans, and every month we get more evidence this is true.

Climate Change is idea that the globe will get so warm it will change it's stable climate to something unlivable by humans.

[22871987]

It is true, the South Pacifc Island Nations are all facing the same problems on global warming. Recently in a local Fiji News paper, the island nation of Tuvalu and its govt are trying to occupy the fiji govt lands and elsewhere in australia since they r soon to be underwater. Similarly W.Samoa is asking favour to NZ to take them in at a govt reserve land, American Samoa, Palau n other USA territories should ask Obama to take them in. Our islands r sinking ppl, wake up pasifika, wake up.

[alanccoop]

I have posted photos I took in 1973 of Nauru on Web shots. You can see them if you do a search on "coopec100"

[LectricNightConcepts]

You're welcome. :) I just wish I could have done more. I never did hear what happened when the small island states presented to the UN.

If anyone knows the results, please pass along the info. If you know of a link to an article about it, that would be great.

[saharra22469]

THank You for putting this video up and helping to educate all. Not enough are hearing about this problem and ppl need to be consistently reminded.

This is serious. Watch Anthony Marrs, The M-BOMB on youtube.