Enviado por ETC Staff el
Argumentos que engañan, confunden o enganchan
La inteligencia artificial de la geoingeniería; Segunda parte
Para leer la primera parte vaya al Communiqué 109
Enviado por Joëlle Deschambault el
Enviado por Jim Thomas el
The distracting allure of a technofix is a common trick deployed by those pushing risky technologies. Nuclear power we are told might just solve climate change, GM food could feed the hungry, "DDT is good for you" etc. But the latest eyecatching technofix under discussion at a conference in Cambridge this week is a real dodo: 'Synthetic Biology' we are now told will reverse extinction of species and conserve biodiversity. Really ?
Enviado por ETC Group el
Climate Drift: Geoengineers have a problem. Computer modeling suggests that blocking solar radiation in the temperate zone (to preserve Arctic ice or to forestall massive methane releases) could cool the Northern hemisphere but its impact could also drift South, creating severe climatic disruptions by dampening down Asia’s monsoon while drying out Africa’s Sahel. Not a popular proposition.
Now, geoengineers may hope they have a solution. A new study in Nature Climate Change[i] by the UK Government’s Meteorological Office suggests that some form of solar radiation management could mitigate the conventional vicissitudes of nature. According to the report, volcanic eruptions north of the equator in the 20th century either contributed to – or caused – droughts along the African equator and further South.
Enviado por Joëlle Deschambault el
GROWING POWER IN PEASANT SEEDS SYSTEMS: Farmers seeds and struggle against GMOs, AGRA- 2nd Green Revolution. Tunis, March 29.
It has become crucial to defend seeds. In the past 20 or 30 years, what was once seen as normal – peasant farmers growing, selecting, saving and exchanging seeds – has come under attack from corporations seeking to control and commodify the very basis of agriculture.
Enviado por ETC Staff el
Los geoingenieros tienen problemas: los modelos por computadora sugieren que bloquear la radiación solar en la zona templada del globo (para preservar el hielo del Ártico o evitar liberaciones masivas de metano) podría enfriar el hemisferio norte, pero su impacto podría llegar hasta el sur, creando severos disturbios climáticos como la disminución de los monzones de Asia o sequías totales en el Sahel.
El Grupo ETC intenta brindar todos nuestros textos, investigaciones y reportes en inglés y español, y ocasionalmente traducimos los materiales al francés y portugués.
Algunas veces personas o grupos nos contactan pidiéndonos permiso de traducir algún material en otro idioma. Damos las gracias a quienes ofrezcan su ayuda voluntaria con las traducciones, lo único que solicitamos es que mantengan el crédito del Grupo ETC por la autoría del documento. También nos interesa contar con una copia de las traducciones para que podamos usarla en nuestro sitio web.
Enviado por ETC Group el
In October 2012 ETC Group uncovered that a commercial geoengineering firm had quietly carried out the world's largest geoengineering deployment to-date (in July 2012). When the news became public as a result of ETC Group's investigations, it caused a wave of concern among scientists, governments, the public and of course the people of Haida Gwaii. HSRC have since said they intend to carry out further ocean fertilization dumps. On this page we have collected some of the background on the Haida Gwaii ocean fertilization episode, how the story was reported, the legal situation, the science and more.
Enviado por Anja Chalmin el
Hace 6 años (2007) el Grupo ETC alertó sobre una empresa comercial de geoingeniería llamada Planktos, Inc., la cual comenzó con la navegación en el río Potomac de un navío de investigación con vistas a verter 100 toneladas de nanopartículas de hierro en las aguas de las islas Galápagos. Planktos esperaba generar una elevación en el volumen de plancton por medio de la “fertilización oceánica”, una técnica de geoingeniería dirigida a la captura de carbono en aguas marinas profundas. La “gran idea” consistía en vender bonos de carbono mediante un esquema que Russ George, director ejecutivo de Planktos denominó “más un experimento de negocios que científico”.
Enviado por Anja Chalmin el
En octubre de 2012, el Grupo ETC descubrió que una firma comercial de geoingeniería había realizado, de manera oculta, el despliegue de geoingeniería más grande hasta el momento.
Enviado por ETC Group el
Almost six years ago ETC Group blew the whistle on a commercial geoengineering outfit called Planktos, Inc., which was making its way to dump 100 tons of iron nanoparticles into the waters of the Galapagos Islands . Working with allies ETC Group was able to prevent that ocean fertilisation dump. In 2012 however we were less lucky. The same geoengineering entrepeuner, Russ George, suceeded in dumping over 100 tonnes of iron into the Pacific ocean west of Haida Gwaii in Canada, claiming that his actions had prompted a 10,000 square km plankton bloom. This time his new company, The Haida Salmon Restoration Corporation (HSRC), was using millions of dollars in funds from a small indigenous community. Read here the full story of how ETC Group uncovered HSRC's rogue geoengineering scheme and the storm of international concern that ensued.
Enviado por ETC Group el
In the first two months of 2013, leading advocates of geoengineering have argued variously that researching geoengineering (as a Plan B to GHG emission cuts) is like helping a cancer patient manage pain while seeking a cure; or, that an accelerating gaggle of executive jets circling the equator could spray enough sulphuric acid in the stratosphere to keep the Earth’s thermostat within bounds; or, that a single island state could thumb its nose at the military might of the major powers and geoengineer the planet to its liking. So much lobbying and still months to go before the IPCC delivers its fifth assessment report – with an anticipated treatment of geoengineering.
Enviado por Joëlle Deschambault el
De nouvelles technologies, à haut risque, allant du très petit (nanotechnologie, biologie synthétique) au très grand (geoingénierie) sont présentement en rapide développement. Promues en tant que solutions miracles, le principe de précaution et leurs potentiels impacts sociaux et économiques sont souvent ignorés dans la course pour leur déploiement. Sans une application stricte du principe de précaution et un processus d’évaluation transparent et participatif, ces technologies pourraient avoir des conséquences désastreuses sur notre planète déjà fragilisée. Pour faire face au déploiement de technologies puissantes, la société civile doit s’organiser et travailler à développer des plateformes d’observation et d’évaluation des technologies.
Enviado por Joëlle Deschambault el
Geoengineering – the intentional, large-scale technological manipulation of the Earth’s systems – is another false solution to climate change being pushed from the global North. High-risk and high-tech schemes under development, including blasting reflective particles into the stratosphere, whitening clouds and dumping chemical compounds into the oceans, could have devastating consequences for ecosystems and for the food and water sources for billions of people. States responsible for most of the historic greenhouse gas emissions are pushing for geoengineering as they see it as “the perfect excuse” to continue business as usual – keep emitting CO2 while making new profits selling the geoengineering technologies. No government, industrial sector or billionaires club has the right to own the planet’s thermostat. Geoengineering diverts attention and resources from real solutions to climate change. In this workshop, we will provide a brief introduction to geoengineering technologies before discussing strategies to stop them. Hands Off Mother Earth!
Enviado por Joëlle Deschambault el
New, high-risk technologies, ranging from the very small (synthetic biology, nanotechnology) to the very large (geoengineering), are being rapidly developed. Promoters promise solutions, but the precautionary principle and social and economic impacts are often ignored in the rush to deploy the latest technofix. Without the strict application of the precautionary principle, and a transparent and real participatory way to assess impacts, these new technologies could wreak more havoc on our already fragile planet, battered by reckless and unsustainable forms of production. To deal with the onslaught of ever more powerful technologies, civil society organizations, movements, indigenous peoples and peasant organizations need to self-organize to create Technology Observation Platforms (TOPs).
Enviado por Joëlle Deschambault el
ETC Group will be participating at the 3rd World Forum on Science and Democracy and the World Social Forum 2013 that will take place in Tunis, capital city of Tunisia between 23-30 March 2013. Come join us in various activities, workshops and assemblies! We hope to meet you there!
To know more about our side event Geoengineering: Resisting Climate Manipulation, click here.
Enviado por Joëlle Deschambault el
Lors de la onzième Conférence des Parties, les négociateurs devront considérer de placer un nouveau champ d"activités industrielles sous la supervision de la Convention des Nations Unies sur la diversité biologique (CDB). La biologie synthétique est un secteur en bourgeonnement capable de créer des systèmes génétiques artificiels et de programmer des formes de vie à diverses fins industrielles. Or, il est urgent de mettre en place un cadre de gouvernance efficace pour ce secteur. Voici dix points qui doivent être gardés à l'esprit.
Enviado por ETC Group el
Issue: The Gene Giants know their market dominance looks conspicuously like an anticompetitive oligopoly, so they’re launching a series of initiatives – including the false promise of cheap, post-patent GE seeds – to mollify antitrust regulators and soften opposition to transgenics while advancing their collective market control. Meanwhile, the world’s two richest men – Bill Gates and Mexico’s Carlos Slim – are working with CIMMYT (the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center) to make bargain GE seeds and traits available to farmers in the global South.
Enviado por Joëlle Deschambault el
Este nuevo informe del Grupo ETC advierte que 6 multinacionales de los gigantes genéticos controlan las actuales proiridades y la dirección futura de la investigación agrícola en el mundo. Syngenta, BASF, Dow, Monsanto y DuPont controlan 59.8% de las semillas comerciales y 76.1% de los agroquímicos. Las mismas seis compañías dan cuenta de al menos 76% de toda la investigación y desarrollo privados en ambos sectores.
ETC brinda critica las nuevas iniciativas lanzadas por los gigantes genéticos, que incluyen la falsa promesa de semillas baratas, libres de patentes, que tienen el fin de pacificar a las agencias antimonopolio y suavizar la oposición a los transgénicos mientras siguen avanzando en su control absoluto del mercado. Entretanto, los dos hombres más acaudalados del mundo —Bill Gates y el mexicano Carlos Slim— trabajan con el CIMMYT (Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo) para poner “a disposición” de los agricultores del Sur global semillas genéticamente modificadas “baratas” y rasgos genéticos cuya patente está por expirar. Es absurdo pensar que los campesinos se beneficiarán de la caridad de los gigantes de la ingeniería genética, pensar que será bueno que los cultivos transgénicos cuya patente caducó los invadan y contaminen gratuitamente.
Descargue el Communiqué completo en PDF.
Enviado por ETC Group el
A report released today by ETC Group warns that 6 multinational Gene Giants control the current priorities and future direction of agriculture research worldwide. Syngenta, Bayer, BASF, Dow, Monsanto and DuPont control 59.8 % of commercial seeds and 76.1 % of agrochemicals. The same 6 companies account for at least 76 % of all private sector R&D in these two sectors.
Amid unprecedented corporate concentration, ETC Group’s report provides a critical look at new initiatives launched by the Gene Giants – including the false promise of cheap, post-patent GE seeds – aiming to appease antitrust regulators and pass off oligopolistic practices as acts of charity. Meanwhile, the world’s two richest men – Bill Gates and Mexico’s Carlos Slim – are teaming up with CIMMYT (the international public maize and wheat breeding center based in Mexico) to get bargain GE seeds and traits in the hands of farmers in the global South.
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