I visited Mathari slum (second largest in Kenya) two weeks ago, where the Chinese ambassador officially opened a school they had helped to build. The conditions of living there are so appalling with no electricity, clean water or sanitary facilities. I am therefore keen to see the output of the 'Slum Diaries' as I have no doubt the films will remind people of the needs of slum dwellers, but more importantly provide inside solutions to the problems and highlight the urgency for development – Enock Chinyenze, Regional Coordinator for Africa - TVE
Slum Diaries – 9 to 13th July
At the third session of the World Urban Forum, held in Vancouver in 2006, UN-HABITAT collaborated with TVE and the National Film Board of Canada to organize the parallel event Slum Diaries.
In a world where there are over one billion slum dwellers, the aim of the networking session was to bring together media practitioners and filmmakers - working with slum communities and grass roots organisations, and disadvantaged individuals. In particular the idea was to look at how film and visual media can be used for advocacy and to document slum problems and possibilities from the perspectives of the slum dwellers themselves. This is considered an urgent priority, especially as the UN predicts that, if business continues as usual, the slum population could double by 2030.
Therefore, the aim was to share practices, methodologies and experiences about creating community focussed, democratic, ‘participatory’ media that had social change as a key output. The organisers wanted to forge a productive ongoing relationship between filmmakers and slum dwellers in order to make local and global audiences understand the situation of slum dwellers.
At the same time, during the World Urban Forum, UN-HABITAT and the National Film Board of Canada signed a Memorandum of Understanding that includes the collaboration of the two agencies and TVE on the long-term production of the video series Slum Diaries.
The conclusion of the networking event in Vancouver was a call by the participating filmmakers and media practitioners to organize further meetings with a view to establishing a network of filmmakers working with slum dwellers.
The meeting being held in Nairobi intends to chart out the full scope of the proposed Slum Diaries video and networking project before embarking on a strategy to seek funding for production and dissemination. – UN-HABITAT
Running on Empty
The ‘Running on Empty’ debate was aired in Malawi and Malawi Economic Justice Network (MEJN) also ran a media campaign in the papers resulting in a few people requesting for a copy of the documentary, especially those in rural areas who do not get TV signals. MEJN have also just finished filming the ‘Failing the Farmer’ debate and will be editing this week – Austin Madinga, MEJN
Why Women Count
Ace Communications, Kenya, have also had success in airing the new ‘Why Women Count’ (Africa series) through KBC TV on Saturday 30th June and will also be showing this Saturday between 10a.m. -12 noon. STV may also agree to air and Lulu Kaingu is working on hosting and official launch for the series to gain more publicity, including radio debates and distribution of the DVD series to Civil Society Organisations that support the cause – Lulu Kaingu, ACE
General Environment News:
British official counsels Africa on climate change
Kigali, Rwanda (PANA) – British special delegate for climate change in Africa, George Edgar has urged African countries to develop national integrated programmes to fight climate change in a bid to mitigate the impact of global warming, a reliable source said Tuesday in Kigali. "There is an urgent need for African countries to address the impact of climate change and devise other solutions to prevent the devastating effects linked to global warming," the British official averred, Edgar said. "These changes mainly occur through torrential rains, rise in water levels as well as floods in most countries in the African continent," he explained. According to him, the only inclusive solution to mitigate the impact of global warming would be for the governments of African countries to adopt a long-term strategy for massive planting of trees to better protect the environment. His advice comes after Kenyan Green campaigner and 2004 Nobel Prize laureate, Wangari Maathai initiated in October 2006 an ambitious project to plant one billion trees to fight global warming and poverty. Speaking on the fringes of the UN summit on climate change in Nairobi, Wangari Maathai urged populations from across the world mainly Africans, to plant trees and fight against rising temperatures. "Everybody can dig a hole, plant a tree and water it. And everybody can do in such a way that the tree he or she planted survives", said Wangari Maathai who is the first African woman and first Green campaigner honoured by the Peace Nobel. http://www.panapress.com/newslat.asp?code=eng021254&dte=03/07/2007
South Africa: SA to be Re-educated on Using Essential Resources
BuaNews (Tshwane): South Africans need to be re-educated on how to utilize essential resources such as water and energy, decreasing pollution, and managing waste, says Indalo Yethu, South Africa's environmental campaign Chief Executive Officer JP Louw. "The mammoth task is to reach South Africans, and their peers across the globe, who may be working as government officials responsible for developing legislation, company executives developing business policies, teachers responsible for educating learners, and individuals making their own lifestyle choices," said Mr Louw at the World Environmental Education Congress currently underway in Durban. The theme for the congress is "Learning in a changing world". http://allafrica.com/stories/200707040608.html
Nigeria: Adoption of SAP Tops Environment Agenda
This Day (Lagos): Environment ministers from the 16-nation Guinea Current Region (GCR) are billed to meet in Gabon, August, with focus on the adoption and implementation of the Strategic Action Programme (SAP) coming to the fore. The Action Programme, which is a business plan to operationalise the Guinea Current Large Marine Ecosystem (GCLME) project, is expected to be presented to the Ministers for deliberation, adoption and signature. Professor Chidi Ibe, Executive Secretary of the newly created Interim Guinea Current Commission (IGCC), the body responsible for implementation of the GCLME project, has expressed optimism about the Gabon meeting. In a recent interview in Accra, Ghanaian capital, Ibe claimed that the adoption of the Strategic Action Plan (SAP) will be another major landmark towards the achievement of set goals and objectives of the (Guinea Current Large Marine Ecosystem) GCLME project QUOTE. http://allafrica.com/stories/200707040660.html
Uganda: NEMA Approves Construction of Garbage Recycling Plants
New Vision (Kampala): The National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) has approved the construction of garbage recycling plants in nine towns. Gerald Musoke, the NEMA deputy executive director, said the $3m (about sh5.2b) projects were funded by the World Bank's solid waste management component. "We have identified nine towns with at least 60-70 tonnes of garbage emitted daily," he said. The towns are Jinja, Lira, Soroti, Fort Portal, Kabale, Kasese, Mbarara, Mbale and Mukono. Musoke said this was a major step in managing garbage, adding that it would boost Uganda's quest for engaging in the carbon trade. http://allafrica.com/stories/200707040662.html
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| Enock Chinyenze Regional Coordinator for Africa Television Trust for the Environment (TVE) United Nations Environment Programme Division of Communications and Public Information P. O. Box 30552 Nairobi, Kenya Phone: +254 20 762 1551 Mobile: + 254 723 562900 Fax: + 254 20 762 3927 www.tve.org www.unep.org | |
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