Ecuador

[Taronyu]

I found this message on ECOLOG-L, an ecological mailing list for professional ecologists (Why I'm on it, as a linguist, is a long story.) I've copied it verbatim here, because I agree with its message and think this is an appropriate place for it.

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Hi everyone,

I was just reading Nature magazine and apparently the plan the Ecuadorian
government has to avoid oil drilling in Yasuni National Park, the most
biodiverse place on earth, and home to one of the last groups of people
living in voluntary isolation, is not working.  Estimates are that there are
possibly 920 million barrels of oil underneath the national park, and the
Ecuadorian government has proposed to avoid drilling if the world is willing
to pay Ecuador $3.6 billion, approximately half of the expected value of the
oil.  This $3.6 billion is a measure of how the world values biodiversity, a
sacred way of life and perhaps most of all, a stable climate.  The money
would go toward helping the Ecuadorian economy shift away from the oil
dependency of the last 30 years.

My thought is that if the movie Avatar, which essentially is the story of
Yasuni, was the highest grossing film in history in North America, surely it
touched a nerve, and surely each and every person who saw the film can
afford to spend the price of the movie ticket or video rental to contribute
to this fund, which reportedly has only $100,000 in it.  Each barrel of oil
is worth about $5-9, depending on how you value the oil itself versus the
cost to mitigate its combustion.  This is about the price of a movie ticket
or video rental.  There is debate about whether the Ecuadorian government is
trustworthy.  And of course, there is the very legitimate viewpoint that
this is essentially holding biodiversity and native people ransom, and that
since life is priceless, this is unacceptable behavior.  But if this is what
it will take, most people who could afford to see the movie initially can
also afford to be put out another $7 in hopes that this will work.  If you
are more comfortable signing a petition to register support, do that.

I have put together the following links so that you can educate yourself
about the issue, allow yourself to feel what could be lost, and to buy your
barrel of oil.  Please send this to everyone you think would care and/or
everyone you know who has seen Avatar.  If you have seen it, definitely send
it to the people you saw the movie with.  Let's make this viral and let's
make the fund grow!

http://www.yasunigreengold.org -lots of information, and an opportunity to
sign a petition and to donate.
http://www.theworld.org/2010/01/29/avatar-in-the-amazon/ - movie and article
about how indigenous groups in western Ecuador felt about Avatar
http://www.saveamericasforests.org/Yasuni/SS/index.html- a slideshow
http://www.saveamericasforests.org/pages/GivePage1.htm
<http://www.saveamericasforests.org/pages/GivePage1.htm-donation>page
to donate

Thank you!

[Eyawng te Klltepayu]

There must be better ways of doing this. Well, I've signed and donated.

If this money raising campaign actually works I can see governments all over the world 'discovering' resources in places that are ecologically or anthropologically special. Really hope that doesn't happen.

[Toruk Makto]

Pay them not to destroy? Blackmail like this will never fly.

[Eyawng te Klltepayu]

Pay them not to destroy?

It's pretty horrible.