Greetings!
I`ve just joined the list and look forward to participating when I
can! I have an announcement about a Canadian ecofeminist event taking
place this summer you may be interested in attending, or may simply
appreciate knowing about...
Women and the Earth presents "Gathering in the Green", August 25-31, on
Denman Island in beautiful British Columbia. It is a six day camp
inspired by ecofeminism as a spiritual politic for women and men
interested in deepening the ecological self, social change, eco-activism,
celebrating the Goddess/Sacred Earth, etc! Please check out the new home
page on the www if you are interested in the details...any support you
could offer by helping spread the word would be greatly appreciated!
Women and the Earth is grassroots, non-profit and fuelled only by
participant fees- no corporate or government sponsorship! (Although we
asre blessed with a Ministry of Women's Equality under the current B.C.
govmt. which has been very helpful) The sliding scale is of course
designed to keep the gathering as accessible as we possibly can-
$350-$475 Canadian translates into about $260-$360 U.S. This cost covers
six days of organic, bioregional vegetarian fare, a variety of presenters
and facilitators and topics ranging from seasonal ritual, herbology,
bioregionalism, post-patriarchal values and compassionate living to
understanding ecosystems, dance, unlearning the isms, alliance building,
activism, sharing our herstories/ histories, and more!
http://mypage.direct.ca/m/mackiej/index.html
As co-ordinator of Gathering in the Green, I would be happy to forward a
brochure complete with registration form to anyone on the list who would
like to e-mail me their snail-mail address. And thanks in advance for
your own heart work on behalf of our planet!
In sisterhood for the Mother,
Fireweed
P.S. As a new subscriber, I would just like to say how much I appreciated
joining on in the midst of the "veg rant"! Gathering in the Green is an
avid supporter of FAR (Feminists for Animal Rights) and will model
ecofeminist vegan living as conscious non-violent daily activism. Food
-lovers of every persuasion are absolutely welcome without exception,
however no animal products will be available for consumption on the site.
There is certainly no question in my mind that recognizing the links
between oppressions cannot exclude other animals, particularly where
priviledge provides an opportunity- actually, a responsibility, I
believe- to choose wisely...with compassion. Habitual dietary cravings
are a part of human nature- albeit conditioned- but like smoking, I think
that the 'right' of one person to pursue personal pleasure at the expense
of another runs counter to the values of ecofeminism. My compassion for
the smoker or hamburger lover becomes co-dependant and enabling if it is
never appropriate to define boundaries where those 'self and other'
destructive activites are not accomodated.
It seems to me that the defensiveness that denial generates is akin
to the backlash we experience as feminists in general. I find the issue
of gentle persuasion through example vs. perceived coerscion through
assertive 'insistance' intriguing. For example, if the notion that all
life is 'available' for consumption assumes appropriateness of all forms
of consumption, then why is cannibalism the exception, rather than the
norm? The answer, I believe, clearly points out that the patriarchal
system of hierarchy- ranking 'the worth' of human animals above the
non-human- is deeply entrenched. The offspring of a cow, chicken or sheep
is simply 'worth-less' than a human infant, in the so-conditioned mind.
This is the same form of objectification- of 'othering'- that allows for
the exploitation of women, people of color, and the unseen( ocean depths,
land fills, future generations, species extintion, etc.) Similarly, if we
agree that racism is unacceptable, would it not be hypocritcal to suggest
that withholding the freedom of dark-skinned women on Mondays is a
permissable exception? Yet, the once a week -'occassional' deviation in
our diets, seldom triggers the "I am being a bigot" alarm bell.
Ridiculous parallel? Only if we have already made up our minds that
non-human animals are inferior!
Now, in all fairness, I must state that I am in no way free from this
paradox myself - this psychotic split, if you will, that plagues the
naturally self-centred mind! ("Deviation in moderation" ought to be a
bumper sticker!)These ruminations are simply part of my own attempt to
come to terms with some of the lifestyle decisions many of us are
grappelling with at this time in our ecofeminist evolution/revolution...
Yikes! I have inadvertantly joined "the rant" without intending to do
so at this time! Well, hopefully it will be more food for thought for
some (O.K, O.K, I heard those groans out there!!)
-Fireweed
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sat Jul 13 11:28:06 1996
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 1996 10:18:03 -0700 (PDT)
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
From: Elizabeth Byers <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: New list: Mountain Forum
Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
We need some feminine voices to speak for mountain ecosystems!
Please cross-post as appropriate:
********************************************************
PAYING FOR MOUNTAINS:Innovative Mechanisms and Promising Examples
for Financing Conservation and Sustainable Development
--ELECTRONIC CONFERENCE -- JULY 9 to AUG 8--
If you are interested in mountainous areas, conservation, or
sustainable development, this conference is for you. The
conference is being facilitated by the Mountain Forum, a
participatory and cross-cutting network of mountain peoples and
professionals. The conference is an integral part of
the Earth Summit's 'Mountain Agenda' and is being coordinated by
staff at the Mountain Institute in partnership with the UN Food
and Agriculture Organization and Mountain Forum regional
institutions--The International
Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and the
International Potato Center (CIP).
The outcome of the conference will be a document providing input
to the Earth Summit follow-up meetings in 1997. This document
will help to guide planners and policy makers at the regional,
national and international levels on how to balance the downward
flow of mountain resources. All participants will be recognized
for their contributions. Postings in all languages are welcome,
although our translation capability is limited.
To join in the discussion, please send an email message to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Leave the subject line blank (it is ignored). In the text part of
the message, write:
subscribe mtn-forum
Please subscribe right away! This conference, the first to be
launched by the Mountain Forum, will run only until August 8. We
need your experience now!
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