We urge all civil society to remind Heads of States of their duty to attend the UN CSD RIO+20 Summit, that will take place in Brazil on June 2012. We need their engagement and urgent implementation of sustainable policies to create a better future for us and up coming generations. Rio+20 is an outstanding opportunity for fundamental change and its importance is not only measured by the urgency of the problems it tackles but also by the highest level of attention it is given by many of the World leaders. In the challenging world of today, it is crucial that the people’s representatives engage in the Conference that fights urgent global issues such as unequal consumption, overexploitation of natural resources, increasing poverty, to stop short-sighted solutions, and the greed of companies, banks and individuals. It is urgent that together, they commit on finding strategies to promote global economic and social transitions in ways that avoid marginalization of peoples, environmental degradation, over-exploitation or pollution.

Knowing that the Heads of State take every opportunity to connect with and hear the concerns of their constituents, we urge civil society to formally express its strong wish for their leaders engagement in the Rio+20 Conference, whose goals are: to secure renewed political commitment for global Sustainable Development, assess the progress to date and the remaining gaps in the implementation of the outcomes of the major summits on sustainable development, and address new and emerging challenges. From soaring food prices to the crippling effects of climate change, our economies are now confronting the reality of years of spending beyond our financial and environmental means and millions of people are suffering and dying because of that. If we are to maintain stable societies and enjoy good lives, we can no longer sustain a widening budget gap between what nature is able to provide and how much our infrastructure, economies and lifestyles require.

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Lake Baikal, a unique UNESCO world heritage site, is under threat from the Russian Government, after permits have been given to open a toxic pulp and paper mill on its shore. Petition General Director of UNESCO Irina Bokova to step up and defend this unique world heritage! Take action

A disastrous oil spill is gushing as much as 2,500,000 gallons of crude a day into the Gulf of Mexico.

Before the spill, U.S. leaders were ramping up offshore drilling. Now, the Obama administration says no new drilling will be allowed until an investigation is concluded. But that’s not enough: offshore drilling is dirty, dangerous, and the wrong strategy for a safe climate future for all.

The world needs the US to move away from oil, and work with us instead to drive forward the global clean energy revolution. Let’s use this moment to send a world-wide message to President Obama, urging him to overturn offshore drilling expansion — our global outcry will be delivered in Washington with a massive banner when we reach 500,000 signers:

To President Obama and members of Congress:
We urge you to permanently call off plans to open up more of the US coastline to dangerous offshore drilling. Instead, invest in a clean and safe energy future.

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We may not know the full impact of BP’s disaster in the Gulf for a long time to come, but one thing is clear- this is BP’s fault and it should pay for the harm it’s causing.

There is currently a $75 million cap on how much an oil company has to pay in the event of a disaster. Unfortunately, the fishing communities, restaurant owners, tourism industry and other individuals affected by this current disaster have lost more than this much already and will lose more in the days, months and years to come.

Can you take action to make sure the $75 million cap is lifted, and that BP will have to pay for all of the harm it has caused?

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HOW CAN EUROPE SUPPORT THE YASUNI-ITT INITIATIVE AND THE ECUADORIAN GOVERNMENT’S DECISION TO FORGO EXTRACTING OIL RESERVES IN THE YASUNI NATURAL PARK?

EUROPEAN GOVERNMENTS SHOULD SUPPORT THE MOST ADVANCED, INTEGRATED INTERNATIONAL INITIATIVES THAT AIM TO REDUCE CO2 EMISSIONS, CONSERVE BIODIVERSITY AND SHIFT TO GREENER ENERGY SOURCES.

We are asking that organizations and groups adhere to the Manifesto. You can join the Manifesto until April 22.

Caretaker Prime Minister of Thailand

Subject: Please review plans to cooperate with the Burmese military regime for the construction of hydropower dams on the Salween River

Dear Caretaker Prime Minister of Thailand,

Cc: Minister of Energy and Governor of Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT)

We, the individuals and organizations from Burma, Thailand, and other countries listed below, are gravely concerned about the likely environmental and social impacts from hydropower projects on the Salween River, a joint-project between the Thai and Burmese governments, the Chinese state-owned Sinohydro Corporation, and Thailand based MDX subsidiaries. If the dams are built, ecological integrity, human security, and local livelihoods will be jeopardized. Therefore, we call for the Thai government and concerned agencies, including the Ministry of Energy and EGAT, to review and withdraw from the projects for the following reasons:

Lack of transparency in the decision-making process

The entire decision-making process for the planning of the Salween hydropower development projects has been shrouded in secrecy. There has been a total absence of public participation among the dam-affected communities in Burma already suffering the atrocities of civil war, or the over fifty ethnic Thai-Karen villages living along the Salween River in Thailand’s Mae Hong Son province.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Thai Ministry of Energy and Burma’s Ministry of Electric Power was signed in May 2005 for the development of five hydropower projects on the Salween and Tanaosri river basins. Then in December 2005, a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) was signed for joint-investment and implementation of the Hutgyi dam construction between EGAT Plc and Burma’s Department of Hydropower stating that the construction would commence in late 2007. Recently, in June 2006, EGAT and Sinohydro Corporation, a state enterprise from the People’s Republic of China signed an MoU for the development of the Hutgyi dam.

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