Helena Norberg-Hodge, Founder of ISEC

Tonight in Berkeley my sitting meditation group had a guest speaker--Helena Norberg-Hodge, who founded the International Society for Ecology and Culture (ISEC). Her talk was eye-opening. She is trying to educate people all over the world on the damage globalization is doing to local farming communities and the environment, and she is asking us to wake up to the fact that those who really benefit from globalization are the largest corporations and largest banks in the world. Here is a link to a great article and interview with Norberg-Hodge entitled "Global Warning:"

http://www.unitedearth.com.au/HNHinterview.html

Some of the things Norberg-Hodge stressed in her talk tonight included: deregulization is bad on the global level because it only benefits the large corporations; we need to push for no more redundant trade of food staples like milk, meat, butter, etc. because it is ridiculous to export these items and then turn around and import the same items for our own consumption--it's a complete waste of energy resources, especially when you consider that many of these items have to be refrigerated; we must buy local produce and stop supporting such "well-traveled" produce; and we must start developing and using renewable energy sources like hydro-electric power and solar power instead of oil-based energy sources or nuclear energy sources.

Here's a quote from an article she wrote:*

"Governments are forced into competition with one another for the favors of corporate vagabonds and try to lure them with low labor costs, lax environmental regulations and substantial subsidies. Instead of ‘free trade’, a careful policy of using tariffs to regulate the import of goods which could be produced locally would be in the best interests of the majority. Such ‘protectionism’ is not aimed at fellow citizens in other countries; rather, it is a way of safeguarding local culture, jobs and resources against the excessive power of the corporations."

*from this site: http://www.newint.org/issue282/endpiece.htm

Link