Dear Friends,
The Earth Council is pleased to announce the first on-line conference
of the new "Earth Forum" website. This first interactive conference
will be in English and will focus on the topic of "Global Ethics,
Sustainable Development and the Earth Charter." The conference is open
to university students and academics from around the world. To access
the audio/video presentations, students will need to use the free
RealPlayer software with an "audio-capable" computer. (more info. below)
========================================================================
CONFERENCE: GLOBAL ETHICS, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND THE EARTH CHARTER
WHO: Seventeen distinguished speakers, and
500-1,000 university students from around the world
(see speaker's list below)
WHERE: The new Earth Forum website
http://www.earthforum.org
WHEN: April 6-9, 1999
(Register on-line today. It's free!)
========================================================================
** THE EARTH CHARTER CAMPAIGN
The basis for the conference will be the second Earth Charter Benchmark
Draft. (A link to this document, as well as additional background
information, is provided below.)
The objective of the Earth Charter Campaign is to draft a statement of
ethical principles, similar in intent and authority to the U.N.
Declaration on Human Rights, that will guide the conduct of people and
nations towards each other and the Earth to ensure peace, equity and a
sustainable future.
It is hoped that a final Earth Charter document will be presented for
U.N. adoption as a "People's Treaty" by the year 2002, the 10th
anniversary of the Rio Earth Summit.
** THE CONFERENCE
This conference, the inaugural event for the new Earth Forum website,
will address the topic of "Global Ethics, Sustainable Development and
the Earth Charter." Seventeen invited speakers from 13 countries have
already prepared audio/video presentations for the conference -- to be
delivered via RealVideo servers from the Earth Forum website
("sound-enabled" computer and the free RealPlayer software required).
We expect up to 1,000 university students to participate by reading
background papers, watching video presentations, and then discussing
the issues and ideas presented with other students from around the
world, their professors, and the speakers themselves.
During the conference, interaction between speakers and students will be
facilitated via on-line discussion fora linked to each presentation.
Although interaction will not be "LIVE", speakers have agreed to both
review and contribute to the discussion fora at least twice daily during
the event. Students are also encouraged to participate each day, by
presenting new ideas and exchanging points of view among themselves. By
facilitating both the presentation and discussion of different
perspectives on this very important topic, we hope to not only stimulate
an exciting debate, but also to engage academics and students in helping
to identify the fundamental principles necessary for the creation and
adoption of a true "Peoples' Earth Charter." We look forward to your
participation and contributions to this effort!
** THE SPEAKERS:
Connie R. Alaras - University of the Philippines (Philippines)
David Bernard - Capilano College, ESSA Tech. Ltd. (Canada)
Charlotte Elton - Center for Research and Social Action (Panama)
Vittorio Falsina - Harvard University (USA; Italy)
Willis S. Guerra F. - Federal University of Ceara (Brazil)
Ashok Khosla - Development Alternatives (India)
Kim S. Losev - Moscow State University (Russia)
Ruud Lubbers - Tilburg University/Harvard Univ. (Netherlands)
Brendan Mackey - Australian National University (Australia)
Bedrich Moldan - Charles University (Czech Republic)
Alejandrina Mata - University of Costa Rica (Costa Rica)
Robert Muller - University for Peace (Costa Rica; France)
Steven Rockefeller - Middlebury College, Emeritus (USA)
Duncan Taylor - University of Victoria (Canada)
Mary Evelyn Tucker - Bucknell University (USA)
Saskia Wieringa - Institute of Social Studies (Netherlands)
Soon-Young Yoon - The Earth Times (USA; Korea)
** Opening Remarks: Maurice Strong, Earth Council Chairman, Senior
Advisor to the United Nations and the World Bank and Secretary General
of the 1992 U.N. Conference on Environment and Development (the "Earth
Summit")
For more information, contact the Earth Council Secretariat at:
Apdo. 2323-1002, San Jose, Costa Rica; tel: +506-256-1611;
fax: +506-255-2197; e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
==========================================================================
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Download the PDF version of this announcement:
http://www.earthforum.org/earthforum.pdf
Visit the Earth Charter Campaign website:
http://www.earthcharter.org
Review the latest version of the Earth Charter Benchmark Draft
http://www.earthcharter.org/draft/
Watch an Earth Charter "Shockwave" presentation
(courtesy of the USA Earth Charter National Committee)
http://www.earthcharterusa.org/presentation/new_text/
Download the free RealPlayer software here:
http://www.real.com/products/player/index.html
Register for the conference on-line today (it's free!)
http://www.earthforum.org
