Pacific Peoples' Partnership

Connecting Indigenous and Pacific Peoples

Climate Connect Workshop for Indigenous Youth

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By Kori Stene

In November 2019, not-for-profit organization ECO Canada, had the honour to partner with the Pacific Peoples’ Partnership (PPP) through an exciting 3-day climate action workshop, delivered to 80+ Indigenous youth of the Tsawout, Tsartlip, Tseycum and Pauquachin First Nations Groups near Victoria, British Columbia. Youth learned from Indigenous Knowledge Holders, Elders, Leadership and Climate experts from across the province and the country, while they engaged in activities and discussions that increased climate literacy, taught the importance of protecting our water and oceans, and instilled environmental stewardship among the younger generations.

Climate Connect educational workshop for Indigenous youth at the LÁU, WELṈEW̱ Tribal School in Brentwood Bay near Victoria.

It was rewarding to work alongside such a passionate group (PPP), connected through a common motive: protection of this planet Earth. The curriculum content for the Climate Connect Youth Workshop was built with the inspiring words of Elder Albert Marshall’s in mind:  Etuaptmumk: Two Eyed-Seeing – “learning to see from your one eye with the best of the strengths in the Indigenous knowledge and ways of knowing … and learning to see from your other eye with the best or the strengths in the mainstream (Western or Eurocentric) knowledge and ways of knowing … but most importantly, learning to see with both these eyes together, for the benefit of all”.

Being a non-Indigenous woman myself, it is beautiful to observe and learn from Indigenous ways of knowing; to harmonize my own Western science approach to climate change with the cultural, interconnections of traditional ways of viewing the world. Western science brings in the art of external observation, monitoring, and interpreting change through understanding impacts and looking at those impacts upon the human race. The Indigenous approach to climate change shines light on the impacts from within; to understand our relationship with Mother Earth and how taking care of the planet is so deeply aligned with the art of self-care.

The Medicine Wheel was used as a traditional teaching tool.

This beautiful, balanced perspective of inter-cultural collaboration of Etuaptmumk encourages us to work together and to learn from each other. To remind us to bring our Traditional Medicine Wheel along with a geographical compass, when navigating solutions to positive environmental action. This workshop braided those two strengths together, inspiring 80+ youth to become ‘two-eyed seeing’ environmental stewards of their land.

One lesson that truly resonated with me from the workshop was simple, yet powerful, demonstrating the power of collective action. Imagine a room of 100+ people where they all clap at different times. The sounds are mild and sporadic. Now imagine those same 100+ people all clapping their hands at the exact same time. The sound is magnified, harmonized, and 100x louder than the previous. It sent the message to the youth that when our individual actions are combined together, we can make a larger positive impact.

These young Climate Connect participants took the pledge to plant and care for ceremonial cedars

Climate change is something we are all a part of we all contribute-to it, and we all feel the repercussions of it. The youth are the future. The future is now. It is essential that younger generations understand, relate to and take action for a cleaner and more regenerative future … regenerative in that it continues to provide abundance for future generations as Mother Nature always has, instead of leaving less behind.

Dealing with climate change requires coming together as a collective, finding strength in our differences, seeing the world through multiple perspectives, instead of only our own. Climate change is a many-layered issue that will take a unified, yet mosaic-like, systems-thinking approach to come up with a seven-generational solution. The change lies in our ‘two eyed seeing’ youth.

The workshop’s powerful message to youth participants is:

  • You are stronger than you know and braver than you believe. Think big!
  • You’re never too young to make a difference, so don’t wait until you’re older.

 

Kori Stene is the main Lead for ECO Canada’s Building Environmental Aboriginal Human Resources (BEAHR) program, www.eco.ca/beahr, having delivered 40+ training workshops across Canada. She has project managed many initiatives within ECO Canada including curriculum development for Indigenous Leadership in Energy Management and Climate Change Adaptation Training for Indigenous Leadership. Kori has carried out multiple environmental field studies in Canada, Ireland and Australia.

 

PPP would like to thank our friends at ECO Canada for their partnership and additional in-kind contributions. We also want to acknowledge RBC Royal Bank Blue Water Fund for their funding support of this program.

Peoples & Passages:

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At our AGM in December 2019, PPP welcomed two new Board Members Tierra Madani – Originally from the island of Molokai in Hawaii, Tierra lives and breathes aloha in all that she does. She moved to Victoria in 2014 and has since earned her place within the HR community and within the Tourism/Hospitality industry.

And we are also thrilled to introduce Dylan Sunshine Waisman – a new Vancouver based Board Member.  Her maternal family hails from Fiji and the Solomon Islands with family spread across the South Pacific. Her paternal family are Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe. Sunshine received her law degree with honours in the UK and her Master’s in Law degree with a focus on human rights and migration law. Sunshine currently works to uphold Indigenous rights in the criminal justice system as a Gladue Report Writer, while studying to become an accredited lawyer in Canada, and volunteering on a bi-monthly basis at pro-bono legal clinics in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.

Learn more about these new Board Members HERE

 PPP also thanks retiring Board members Eli Enns who is now a PPP partner NGO with their Toddler in Nature program, so he is not going too far and we look forward to continuing work with his organization IISAAK OLAM! 

Board member, Rachel Wang, offers a farewell to fellow Board member, Jessica Rutherford: “I regret to inform our members that Jessica Rutherford will be stepping down from her position on the Board due to the demands of her existing strenuous work schedule. As passionate and empathetic global citizens, we often forget how much personal time and energy it takes to meaningfully fulfill our many commitments. While we are sad to see Jessica go, we wholeheartedly support her decision. Having previously worked with Jessica at the World Wildlife Fund in Solomon Islands, it has been a wonderful experience working with her again in Canada towards the same vision: healthy and resilient communities across the South Pacific. The Board thanks Jessica for all her work and hopes our paths will cross again soon.”

PPP is pleased to welcome Cedar Luke. Cedar joined our team as our Intercultural Research Associate by way of his graduating internship placement with us early in 2020. In the last decade, he has lived, studied and worked in Latin America for five years and is graduating in Latin American Studies and Intercultural Education. In a world of beautiful diversity Cedar strives to honor and bridge our differences so we may work together in harmony for all generations to come.

A sad passing –Edmund Kundi Senjiku a Sepik River carver recently passed away, as reported by former PPP Board Member Elaine Monds. Edmund was a young father based in the middle Sepik region of Papua New Guinea.  He was a talented carver who was represented at Elaine’s former business the Alcheringa Gallery.  Edmund died on February 20th, 2020 and his uncle (also a Master Sepik Carver and PPP Friend) Edward Dumoi is taking a collection to help Edmund’s four kids aged 9-3 years old who are mourning for their father. To help or learn more contact Edward: Email: emdumoi@gmail.com or via Mobile: +675 73401336 or +675 73617215 / You can use these phone numbers for his what’s app account.

As a Human Rights Commission Rules on One Papuan Shooting from 2014, Another Occurs as 2020 Begins

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On February 19, 2020, a shooting occurred in Papua. However, sources conflict considerably as to what actually happened. According to Cenderawish command military spokesman Eko Daryanto, there was a shootout between soldiers and separatists and one separatist, Meki Tipagau (age 18) was killed. An unidentified 14-year-old girl was also shot, likely by her own companion. However, a local news website, apparently Suara Papua, identified the victim as Melkias Tipagau (age 12); his principal at SD YPPK Bilogai elementary school, Stefanus Sondegau, hadn’t yet determined if Tipagau was deceased. The same site reported a second fatality, Kayus Sani (aged 51)as well. It also reported that there were two additional people shot, not one: Heletina Sani (aged 30), and an unidentified 11-year-old girl (not 14).

Furthermore, West Papua National Liberation Army (separatist) spokesman Sebby Sambom denies that any of his people were in the area at the time and that the victim (singular) was a civilian. He also claimed that there was no shootout and that “the security forces cracked down on villages.” Sources even conflict as to whether the shooting occurred at Yoparu village (Sugapa District) or at Gulanggama village in Intan Jaya district), and one site suggests it happened a day earlier but was reported on February 19. With so much conflicting information, we will provide an update on our Facebook page as we learn more.

Ironically this shooting occurred within days of Indonesia’s National Human Rights Commission (Konmas HAM) determining that the Indonesian military violated human rights in a 2014 shooting in Papua. In Indonesia’s Bloody Paniai case, or Kasus Paniai Berdarah in Indonesian, the TNI’s Special Battalion 753 Team shot and killed four Papuan students and injured 21 others on December 8, 2014. This was at a protest at the Karel Gobay Field in Madi district, Paniai regency, over alleged beatings of Papuan youth by the army. After demonstrators threw stones at the military office, security forces opened fire on the crowd.

Then recently-elected President Joko Widodo ordered the National Human Rights Commission (Konmas HAM) to investigate. On February 19, 2020 the commission determined that the military had carried out gross violations of human rights. They explained that the delay in arriving at a conclusion was the result of unnamed individuals hiding evidence. Konmas HAM “interviewed two dozen witnesses, analysed documents and visited the scene”.

The commission announced they have forwarded the findings to the Attorney General’s office for possible prosecution and says the soldiers and their superiors should be blamed not only for their deaths but also for the torture of 21 Papuans. The commission’s chief investigator Muhammad Choirul Anam called the shootings “a crime against humanity”. Presidential Chief of Staff, Moeldoko, who was at the time of the incident the commander of the armed forces has counterargued that the shootings were not premeditated and that it was not a violation of human rights. He claimed that the military’s sudden reaction was due to being caught by surprise.

As witnessed by the shooting on February 19, shootings occur with alarming regularity in the region, stemming from Indonesia seizing control of the mineral-rich region in the 1960s. A series of violent outbreaks occurred in the region August-October 2019. We hope that the Konmas HAM conclusion will discourage the latest shooting from starting a new lengthy round of violence towards Papuans.

Sources:

Deadly shooting in Papuan village, RNZ, 19 February 2020

Bedova, Dennis, Indonesian military say Papuan separatist killed in…, Infosurhoy 20 February 2020

Mawel, Benny, At least one killed in Papua gunfight, The Jakarta Post Wed, 19 February 2020

Human Rights Commission: Indonesia’s military found responsible for Paniai deaths, RNZ, 19 February 2020

Gorbiano, Marchio Irfan & Sutrisno, Budi, Palace denies 2014 Papua killings constitute gross human rights violation, The Jakarta Post, 17 February 2020

Indonesia military to blame for 2014 Papua killings: rights commission, Thai PBS World 17 February 2020

Prepared by Andy E. Nystrom, PPP Archivist & Research Assistant

February 19, 2020

 

A Canary in the Coal Mine: Disappearing Islands and Climate Change

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The tiny Micronesian state of Kiribati (pronounced Kirabass) was in the news lately. A recent United Nations human rights committee ruling states that it is unlawful for governments to return people to countries where their lives might be threatened by climate change. The ruling was made after a New Zealand court rejected the claim of a Kiribati citizen who applied for refugee status in New Zealand for himself and his family. He claimed that their lives were at risk due to rising sea levels. While upholding New Zealand’s claim, the UN human rights committee cited projections that rising sea levels won’t make the atolls that comprise Kiribati uninhabitable for 10 to 15 years. They believe that time period should allow the international community to take steps to “protect and, where necessary, relocate [Kiribati’s] population.” (The Guardian, 20 Jan 2020)

The 33 islands and atolls that make up the nation of Kiribati are among the most threatened places on earth.  The atolls are only a few feet above sea level. Already a combination of storm surges and salinization of freshwater aquifers on the islands is challenging inhabitants. Even when storms aren’t threatening to swallow the islands, fresh water is becoming difficult to find. Low lying islands in Hawaii, Japan and the Arctic have already disappeared. (NBC News, 9 June 2019)

Nor is Kiribati alone among the Pacific Nations: the nine islands that comprise Tuvalu are also experiencing threats. (The Guardian, 16 May 2019) As Tuvalu resident Nausaleta Setani, initially not a believer in climate change, has said, “I have been learning the things that are happening are the result of man, especially [from] other countries. It makes me sad.  But I understand other countries do what is best for their people. I am from a small country.  All I want is for the bigger countries to respect us, and think of our lives.”

Former president of Kiribati Anote Tong claims that it is already too late for Kiribati even as the large nations of the world do little or nothing about climate change. (The Washington Post, 24 Oct 2018) According to a University of Texas at Austin update, “Climate Security in Oceania,” (31 Dec 2019), Tong’s ideas have not changed on the subject.

But will the international community respond by allowing the islanders to migrate with dignity? Examples from Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric to Hungary’s efforts to ban immigrants suggest the international community won’t respond with generosity.

Sources

The Guardian, 20 January 2020: “Waiting for the tide to turn: Kiribati’s fight for survival”

NBC News, 9 June 2019: “Three islands disappeared in the past year. Is climate change to blame?”

The Guardian, 16 May 2019:  “One day we will disappear: Tuvalu’s singing islands”

CNN , 20 Jan 2020: “Climate refugees cannot be sent home, United Nations rules in landmark decision”

Washington Post, 24 Oct 2018: “Our island is disappearing but the president refuses to act” 

University of Texas at Austin report, 31 Dec 2019: “Climate Security in Oceania” 

 

Prepared by Art Holbrook, PPP Board Member and Chair of the Communications Committee

 

Australia’s Wildfires Through the Eyes of its Aboriginal People

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We can all be grateful the devastating 2019/2020 wildfire season that ravaged major areas of Australia seems to have been extinguished by drenching rains. While the fire events were reported daily across the newsfeeds of the world, the voice and wisdom of the Aboriginal people within the country has arguably been under-reported. Here are three recent articles that spotlight the wisdom of those who have lived there forever as they would say, and used their knowledge of caring for the land in managing such hazards.

National Public Radio, January 11, 2020, “With Their Land in Flames, Aboriginals Warn Fires Show Deep Problems in Australia”:

Until the latest New South Wales wildfires totally destroyed his property, Aboriginal Australian, Noel Butler and his wife held camps and workshops there on aboriginal culture, including a program for troubled indigenous youth. School groups would come to learn about native art, history and food. Fire was a key issue they would teach about.

Noel Butler notes that public officials today rely on massive controlled burns contrary to the way Aboriginal people have managed the landscape of Australia. “Fire in this place is our friend,” he says. “Fire has been used to maintain, to look after this whole continent forever. … Native peoples called them “cool burns,” low-intensity fires intended to balance the various plants and trees growing in an area. … How we maintain that balance is through fire, by not letting any one thing dominate something else,” explains Butler. “The eucalyptus shouldn’t be allowed to overrun all the other trees. If one shrub starts to take over a grassland, it should get burned back.”

BBC, January 12, 2020, “Australia fires: Aboriginal planners say the bush ‘needs to burn’”:

This insightful article focuses on Shannon Foster, a knowledge keeper for the D’harawal people who are residents of the Sydney Basin coastal area of New South Wales. Country is personified within Aboriginal culture, she explains. “The earth is our mother. She keeps us alive … It’s the concept of maintaining country – central to everything we do as Aboriginal people. It’s about what we can give back to country; not just what we can take from it.”

“The current controlled burns destroy everything. It’s a naive way to practice fire management … Whereas cultural burning protects the environment holistically. We’re interested in looking after country, over property and assets. We can’t eat, drink or breathe assets,” declares Ms Foster. “Without country, we have nothing.”

New York Times, January 15, 2020, “Want to Stop Australia’s Fires? Listen to Aboriginal People”:

In this richly-informative article, Murrandoo Yanner, a Gangalidda leader and director of the Carpentaria Land Council Aboriginal Corporation in northern Australia, shares his traditional wisdom. As the story says, he is a man made for these times, declaring that the way forward is back … “If we can understand, learn from and imagine our place through the laws and stories of our ancestors then we will have true knowledge on how to live, adapt and survive in Australia, just as our ancestors did.”

 

Prepared by Alison Gardner, Editor, Pasifik Currents

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