The Future of Food : Climate Change, GMO’s and Food Security
October 1 – 2, 2008
Conference Room No. 1, India International Centre
Lodhi Road, New Delhi
October 1 – 2, 2008
Conference Room No. 1, India International Centre
Lodhi Road, New Delhi
Dear Friends,
Navdanya with Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology and Diverse Women for Diversity would like to invite you to a major International Conference on 1st and 2nd October, 2008 on the theme “The Future of Food : Climate Change, GMO’s and Food Security” in New Delhi.
Climate Chaos and food crisis compel us to revisit the dominant paradigm of food and agriculture. Industrial, globalised agriculture has contributed to climate change as well as to the current food crisis and food insecurity. More than 40 countries have had food riots. Rising oil prices and food prices are being defined as a security issue. However at the high level UN meeting at FAO in June 2008 on the food crisis and climate change, the World Bank and global corporations promoted the disease as the solution. They called for higher levels of chemical fertilizer use even though the cost of fossil fuel based fertilizers has tripled with the rise in oil prices and synthetic fertilizers are a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions leading to climate change.
The FAO Summit was also used by the biotechnology industry to renew the push for GM seeds and crops, even though GMOs do not increase yields. In India GM Bt. Cotton engineered for “resistance” to the bollworm is vulnerable to new pests, leading to higher pesticide use and more debts and more suicides. The 2007-2008 crop has been devastated by the “mealy bug”. Yet the myth continues to be spread that Bt. Cotton reduces pesticide use and has been a miracle for Indian farmers. The agribusiness as well as the biotech industry is promoting industrial biofuels as a false solution to climate change. This in turn is aggravating the food crisis.
The biotech industry is also using the climate crisis to promote GE seeds. As the recent ETC report shows, the gene giants have already taken more than 500 patents on climate triats.
While appropriating the adaption potential to climate change through climate resilient crops, the biotechnology industry is positioning itself as the only source of climate resilient crops. The National Climate Change Action Plan of India depends exclusively on biotechnology for crops that are resilient to droughts, floods and salinity.
We feel it is important and urgent to address these interlinked issues of climate, food and GMO’s and defend the rights of all people to safe healthy and nutritious food and the rights of farmers to secure and sustainable livelihoods, and to seed sovereignty and seed freedom.
These issues are particularly important in India’s context because India’s food sovereignty and biosafety is severely threatened. The biotech industry is very aggressive in trying to dismantle our biosafety and food safety regulations. The U.S – India Agriculture Knowledge Agreement, which has Monsanto on its Board, has the introduction of GE crops and biosafety deregulation as its major priorities. There is an attempt to dismantle India’s Biosafety Regulation and replace it with a fast track, single window Biotech authority for quick approval of GMOs. Recently Navdanya successfully prevented the exclusion of GM foods from Biosafety regulation through its Supreme Court case. While GMO threats grow, the alternatives promoting biodiverse ecological farming are also spreading, creating hope in the midst of hopelessness and food security in the midst of food insecurity. Navdanya has started a “Seeds of Hope” campaign in the suicide belt of Vidharbha to create GMO free, suicide free villages. We have created new community seed banks of climate resilient seeds to keep them in the commons and in the public domain.
We hope you can join us to shape a future of food based on diversity and democracy, resilience and security instead of a future based on monocultures and monopolies, vulnerability and insecurity. Invited speakers include – Dr. Arpad Pusztai, World renowned scientist who did the research on GM Potatoes for the U.K. Government, Dr. Mae Wan Ho, World renowned Geneticist and Biophysicist and Director of ISIS, Dr. Terje Traavik, Professor at Norwegian Institute of Gene Ecology, Norway, Patrick Mooney, Right Livelihood Award Winner and Director of ETC Group, Canada, Dr. Tewolde Egziabher, Right Livelihood Award Winner and Director of Ethiopia’s Environment Protection Agency, Percy and Loiuse Schmeiser, Right Livelihood Award Winners and Canadian Farmers from Saskatchewan, Canada who took on Monsanto to defend farmers rights, Dr. Shiv Chopra, renowned Microbiologist and Human Rights Activist who worked with Health Canada and banned Monsanto’s rBGH Vaccine for cows, Dr. John Fagan, award winning molecular biologist and former research scientist with the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Fagan renounced over $1.5 million grants from the NIH to protest genetic engineering.
We would also like to invite you to attend the 9th Annual Albert Howard Memorial Lecture to be delivered by Prince Charles at 6.00 pm on 2nd October at the Auditorium of India International Centre. We are enclosing his most recent statement against GMO’s.
We would also like you to join us at Bija Vidyapeeth on our farm in Doon Valley for a training program on the same theme from 3 – 7 October, 2008. Navdanya will also be happy to facilitate post conference tours to biodiverse organic farms in the Himalaya.
We look forward to your confirmation. Please send your confirmation to Navdanya@gmail.com; Vandana@vandanashiva.com
Warm regards,
Vandana Shiva
Conference Schedule
Day 1 – October 1
Overview
The Climate Crisis and the Food Crisis
The climate crisis and the food crisis are linked. Industrial agriculture contributes to climate change and is vulnerable to climate chaos. Industrial agriculture based on fossil fuels has been promoted by agribusiness, which is now using its monopolistic control over the food system to drive up prices.
Session - I
GMO’s : A Scientific Assessment
Genetic engineering was promoted as a solution to hunger and poverty. However, GMO’s do not produce more food. The biotechnology industry is now using the climate crisis and food crisis to once again promote the myth of more food through GMO’s.
Leading scientists working on gene ecology and molecular biology will provide an independent scientific assessment of genetic engineering.
Session – II
GMO’s in India : Reports from Farmers Field
In India, the introduction of genetically engineered Bt. Cotton has pushed farmers into debt and to suicide of 200,000 suicides. The highest suicides have occurred in the Bt. Cotton belt. The promise and the performance of GMO’s do not match.
Reports from farmers fields from across India will provide insights into the experience farmers have had with GMO’s.
Session – III
Biosafety Regulation : Weaknesses of the Past, Challenges for the Future
In India, and across the world, the biotech industry is attempting to dismantle the fragile and weak regulatory biosafety systems to create fast track approvals for GMO’s. Experts will analyse the weaknesses in regulating biotechnology in the past and the challenges for the future.
Session - IV
GMO Free Movement
Jaiv Panchayat : The Living Democracy Movement for GMO Free, Patent Free Zones
Citizens and Governments have created GMO Free Regions and Zones as ways to protect ecological production and defend safe food.
Experiences from India and world on GMO Free zones will be shared, alongwith ideas on how to expand the movement.
Day 2 – October 2
Session - V
Climate Change, Biofuels and Industrial Agriculture
The biotechnology industry has used the climate crisis for the “Greeing of GMO’s” by promoting GM corn and GM soya for boifuels.
Experts and activists will present analysis why biofuels are a false solution to climate change and what are the steps that need to be taken to avert climate catastrophe.
Session - VI
Climate Change, Biopiracy and Farmers Rights : Robbing Humanity of Climate Adaption
Adaption to climate change needs the biodiversity which is adapted to floods, droughts and salinity. Adaption also requires that this biodiversity stay in the commons. That is why Navdanya has set up community seed banks of climate resilient crops. The biotechnology industry is claiming patents on climate resilience traits in crops.
A new campaign against biopiracy of climate traits will be launched to keep biodiversity for climate adaption in the commons.
]
Session VII
Soil Not Oil : Food Security in Times of Climate Change, Peak Oil and GMOs
Ecological and local agriculture is the authentic solution to climate change and food insecurity, not GMO’s and industrial agriculture. From across the world, experiences and analysis will be shared of how communities are shaping a fossil fuel free, GMO agriculture that protects farmers and defends peoples food rights.
To insure your participation in this international conference kindly fill up the prescribed form. You can get this form either by going Navdanya,s website or You can mail on following Emil IDs. requesting the Form to take part in The Future of Food : Climate Change, GMO’s and Food Security, conference.
vandana@vandanashiva.com; navdanya@gmail.com; vandana.shiva@gmail.com; vshiva@vsnl.com; irfangreen@gmail.com; jani.shreya@gmail.com;
Navdanya with Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology and Diverse Women for Diversity would like to invite you to a major International Conference on 1st and 2nd October, 2008 on the theme “The Future of Food : Climate Change, GMO’s and Food Security” in New Delhi.
Climate Chaos and food crisis compel us to revisit the dominant paradigm of food and agriculture. Industrial, globalised agriculture has contributed to climate change as well as to the current food crisis and food insecurity. More than 40 countries have had food riots. Rising oil prices and food prices are being defined as a security issue. However at the high level UN meeting at FAO in June 2008 on the food crisis and climate change, the World Bank and global corporations promoted the disease as the solution. They called for higher levels of chemical fertilizer use even though the cost of fossil fuel based fertilizers has tripled with the rise in oil prices and synthetic fertilizers are a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions leading to climate change.
The FAO Summit was also used by the biotechnology industry to renew the push for GM seeds and crops, even though GMOs do not increase yields. In India GM Bt. Cotton engineered for “resistance” to the bollworm is vulnerable to new pests, leading to higher pesticide use and more debts and more suicides. The 2007-2008 crop has been devastated by the “mealy bug”. Yet the myth continues to be spread that Bt. Cotton reduces pesticide use and has been a miracle for Indian farmers. The agribusiness as well as the biotech industry is promoting industrial biofuels as a false solution to climate change. This in turn is aggravating the food crisis.
The biotech industry is also using the climate crisis to promote GE seeds. As the recent ETC report shows, the gene giants have already taken more than 500 patents on climate triats.
While appropriating the adaption potential to climate change through climate resilient crops, the biotechnology industry is positioning itself as the only source of climate resilient crops. The National Climate Change Action Plan of India depends exclusively on biotechnology for crops that are resilient to droughts, floods and salinity.
We feel it is important and urgent to address these interlinked issues of climate, food and GMO’s and defend the rights of all people to safe healthy and nutritious food and the rights of farmers to secure and sustainable livelihoods, and to seed sovereignty and seed freedom.
These issues are particularly important in India’s context because India’s food sovereignty and biosafety is severely threatened. The biotech industry is very aggressive in trying to dismantle our biosafety and food safety regulations. The U.S – India Agriculture Knowledge Agreement, which has Monsanto on its Board, has the introduction of GE crops and biosafety deregulation as its major priorities. There is an attempt to dismantle India’s Biosafety Regulation and replace it with a fast track, single window Biotech authority for quick approval of GMOs. Recently Navdanya successfully prevented the exclusion of GM foods from Biosafety regulation through its Supreme Court case. While GMO threats grow, the alternatives promoting biodiverse ecological farming are also spreading, creating hope in the midst of hopelessness and food security in the midst of food insecurity. Navdanya has started a “Seeds of Hope” campaign in the suicide belt of Vidharbha to create GMO free, suicide free villages. We have created new community seed banks of climate resilient seeds to keep them in the commons and in the public domain.
We hope you can join us to shape a future of food based on diversity and democracy, resilience and security instead of a future based on monocultures and monopolies, vulnerability and insecurity. Invited speakers include – Dr. Arpad Pusztai, World renowned scientist who did the research on GM Potatoes for the U.K. Government, Dr. Mae Wan Ho, World renowned Geneticist and Biophysicist and Director of ISIS, Dr. Terje Traavik, Professor at Norwegian Institute of Gene Ecology, Norway, Patrick Mooney, Right Livelihood Award Winner and Director of ETC Group, Canada, Dr. Tewolde Egziabher, Right Livelihood Award Winner and Director of Ethiopia’s Environment Protection Agency, Percy and Loiuse Schmeiser, Right Livelihood Award Winners and Canadian Farmers from Saskatchewan, Canada who took on Monsanto to defend farmers rights, Dr. Shiv Chopra, renowned Microbiologist and Human Rights Activist who worked with Health Canada and banned Monsanto’s rBGH Vaccine for cows, Dr. John Fagan, award winning molecular biologist and former research scientist with the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Fagan renounced over $1.5 million grants from the NIH to protest genetic engineering.
We would also like to invite you to attend the 9th Annual Albert Howard Memorial Lecture to be delivered by Prince Charles at 6.00 pm on 2nd October at the Auditorium of India International Centre. We are enclosing his most recent statement against GMO’s.
We would also like you to join us at Bija Vidyapeeth on our farm in Doon Valley for a training program on the same theme from 3 – 7 October, 2008. Navdanya will also be happy to facilitate post conference tours to biodiverse organic farms in the Himalaya.
We look forward to your confirmation. Please send your confirmation to Navdanya@gmail.com; Vandana@vandanashiva.com
Warm regards,
Vandana Shiva
Conference Schedule
Day 1 – October 1
Overview
The Climate Crisis and the Food Crisis
The climate crisis and the food crisis are linked. Industrial agriculture contributes to climate change and is vulnerable to climate chaos. Industrial agriculture based on fossil fuels has been promoted by agribusiness, which is now using its monopolistic control over the food system to drive up prices.
Session - I
GMO’s : A Scientific Assessment
Genetic engineering was promoted as a solution to hunger and poverty. However, GMO’s do not produce more food. The biotechnology industry is now using the climate crisis and food crisis to once again promote the myth of more food through GMO’s.
Leading scientists working on gene ecology and molecular biology will provide an independent scientific assessment of genetic engineering.
Session – II
GMO’s in India : Reports from Farmers Field
In India, the introduction of genetically engineered Bt. Cotton has pushed farmers into debt and to suicide of 200,000 suicides. The highest suicides have occurred in the Bt. Cotton belt. The promise and the performance of GMO’s do not match.
Reports from farmers fields from across India will provide insights into the experience farmers have had with GMO’s.
Session – III
Biosafety Regulation : Weaknesses of the Past, Challenges for the Future
In India, and across the world, the biotech industry is attempting to dismantle the fragile and weak regulatory biosafety systems to create fast track approvals for GMO’s. Experts will analyse the weaknesses in regulating biotechnology in the past and the challenges for the future.
Session - IV
GMO Free Movement
Jaiv Panchayat : The Living Democracy Movement for GMO Free, Patent Free Zones
Citizens and Governments have created GMO Free Regions and Zones as ways to protect ecological production and defend safe food.
Experiences from India and world on GMO Free zones will be shared, alongwith ideas on how to expand the movement.
Day 2 – October 2
Session - V
Climate Change, Biofuels and Industrial Agriculture
The biotechnology industry has used the climate crisis for the “Greeing of GMO’s” by promoting GM corn and GM soya for boifuels.
Experts and activists will present analysis why biofuels are a false solution to climate change and what are the steps that need to be taken to avert climate catastrophe.
Session - VI
Climate Change, Biopiracy and Farmers Rights : Robbing Humanity of Climate Adaption
Adaption to climate change needs the biodiversity which is adapted to floods, droughts and salinity. Adaption also requires that this biodiversity stay in the commons. That is why Navdanya has set up community seed banks of climate resilient crops. The biotechnology industry is claiming patents on climate resilience traits in crops.
A new campaign against biopiracy of climate traits will be launched to keep biodiversity for climate adaption in the commons.
]
Session VII
Soil Not Oil : Food Security in Times of Climate Change, Peak Oil and GMOs
Ecological and local agriculture is the authentic solution to climate change and food insecurity, not GMO’s and industrial agriculture. From across the world, experiences and analysis will be shared of how communities are shaping a fossil fuel free, GMO agriculture that protects farmers and defends peoples food rights.
To insure your participation in this international conference kindly fill up the prescribed form. You can get this form either by going Navdanya,s website or You can mail on following Emil IDs. requesting the Form to take part in The Future of Food : Climate Change, GMO’s and Food Security, conference.
vandana@vandanashiva.com; navdanya@gmail.com; vandana.shiva@gmail.com; vshiva@vsnl.com; irfangreen@gmail.com; jani.shreya@gmail.com;
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