Southern spirits
Southern spirits
As a western European outsider it is impossible not to pick up on Greek feelings of being a victim of a financial and political elite. According to Nadia Valavani Greece has been a social experiment for more than a year; a guinea pig for a German type of Europe. She refers to German banks being the biggest creditors of the Greek debt.
In any way the Greek - German relation is a very interesting and very sensitive topic during the evening. When an MP of the German Linke party, Andrej Hunko, makes his speech the Greek crowd almost explodes. Even the past relations of the Second World War are drawn into the discussion.
In the midst of the action a television crew of the Dutch public news programme Nieuwsuur, enters the room. They are making an item on the growing civil unrest in Greece. Earlier the spoke with the owner of an iron store who is planning to leave Greece because his sales have hit rock bottom. Maybe this item will contribute to a change in Dutch public opinion on the Greek debt crisis, the lack of working spirit of the 'lazy Greeks'. Monday or Tuesday (9 - 10 May) the item will be aired on Dutch public television.
For now I would like to return to the speech of Sofia Safakora. She ended with the words of Pablo Neruda, the Chilean poet and politician: "Somewhere in the future days will be truly brilliant". Lets hope for those days because the light over the Acropolis and it's inhabitants seems to shine pretty grim.
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News / 6 December 2023
Women take the lead – Pioneering a democratic funding model in Central America
In the global fight for women’s rights, grassroots organisations are at the forefront of driving positive change within their communities. Fondo Centroamericano de Mujeres (FCAM), a partner of Both ENDS, has been pioneering a participatory grantmaking approach to fund feminist and women’s movements across Central America. Going beyond traditional donor-driven grant delivery, FCAM shifts decision-making power about how funds are distributed and used to the organisations themselves. The approach is based on the conviction that self-led women, non-binary and trans people organised to respond to the problems they face, are best suited to determine their needs and propose solutions for lasting change. What does this mean in practice? How to go about it? Programme Coordinator María Estelí González highlights the key elements of FCAM’s approach and reflects on the organisation’s contributions towards a more just and equitable funding landscape.
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Event / 6 December 2023, 12:00 - 13:30
Agroecology as a Climate Change Measure: Exploring financial opportunities for Agroecological Practices in Africa
Climate conference (UNFCCC) side event
This event will showcase the vital need to advance agroecology as a people, nature and livelihood-centred approach towards climate adaptation and mitigation. It will make the case for agroecology and climate action based on researched and carefully selected case studies on agroecology in Africa and how it is and can continue contributing to adaptation and mitigation of the impacts of climate change.
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Event / 3 December 2023, 10:15 - 11:45
Gender Just Climate Policy & Finance: From Barriers to Actionable Solutions
Climate conference (UNFCCC) side event
Let's tackle gender equality in climate policy & finance, moving from obstacles to practical solutions at our in-person event on December 3rd in Dubai.
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News / 29 November 2023
An Urgent Call for Gender Just Climate Finance
The climate crisis continues to escalate, and the urgency for meaningful solutions has never been more palpable. As world leaders gather for the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference or Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP28), it's crucial that grassroots voices are not just heard but leading on the solutions we craft. We must recognise the climate leadership of the self-led groups of women, girls, trans and intersex within the Indigenous, Afrodescendant and rural communities that have been structurally excluded and silenced as the world grapples with climate change.
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News / 26 November 2023
Connecting people for change
We are concerned about the results of the Dutch Parliamentary elections on November 22, 2023. The Netherlands is in danger of turning its back on the rest of the world and hiding itself behind its own dikes. Meanwhile, within our national borders, people are being excluded and their place in society is being questioned.
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Event / 23 November 2023, 16:45 - 18:15
The Future We See - Democratic Decision Making
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News / 16 November 2023
Voting with a worldwide impact
Disposable fashion items continue to flood into the country, the nitrogen crisis has brought construction to a standstill and energy poverty is on the rise, but Dutch politicians are contemplating their navels. These are problems that we can never solve on our own. The clothes we wear, the food on our plates, and the electricity that comes out of our wall sockets – they are all produced in global trade and production chains. With far-reaching consequences, both in our own country and far, very far beyond our borders. It would be naive to think that we can solve all these problems through domestic policies alone. And vice versa: we would be evading our responsibilities if we continued to believe that the Netherlands only plays a humble role on the global stage. Latest figures show that the Netherlands is the fourth largest exporter and the seventh largest importer of products worldwide. With the elections on the way, it is time to look beyond our own small country. Because it is also important to vote with a worldwide impact.
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News / 15 November 2023
Strengthening social movements for inclusive water governance in Bangladesh
This article was written in the run-up to the event 'The Future We See' on November 23, about different forms of inclusive, democratic decision-making. Click here to reserve free tickets.
For generations, the people of Bangladesh’ flood-prone deltas have shaped their natural environment to support agricultural production. They used temporary embankments to keep tidal waters out of the floodplains for most of the year and let the rivers flow freely during monsoon season, allowing the sediment to settle on the floodplains as part of the delta formation process.
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Publication / 13 November 2023
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Event / 12 November 2023, 13:00
Climate March
On Sunday November 12th, we'll join the feminist block of this year's climate march in Amsterdam. Join us!
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News / 9 November 2023
Both ENDS welcomes new leadership: Annelieke Douma and Karin van Boxtel are interim directors!
Both ENDS has two new interim directors from November 9: Annelieke Douma and Karin van Boxtel. After 15 years, Danielle Hirsch hands over the directorship. She is currently standing for election to the GroenLinks/PvdA list. Annelieke and Karin will lead Both ENDS during the transition period to a new director of Both ENDS. Together with the board and the organisation, the new directors duo is full of energy to get to work in the coming months.
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Event / 9 November 2023, 20:30 - 22:30
Election debate: The Netherlands in the world
See the Dutch web page for more information (in Dutch).
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News / 6 November 2023
Response to FMO investments in Nicaragua
On 27 October, RTL Nieuws reported that the Steungroep Nicaragua considers the millions of euros that the Dutch development bank FMO is investing in Nicaragua irresponsible. When asked, FMO stated that 'it had to continue to support its entrepreneurs in difficult times'. Both ENDS believes that the choice to continue to invest in Nicaragua brings substantial risks, which FMO does not take sufficiently into account when deciding on financing. Previous FMO investments have caused harm to people and the environment and, in some cases, even led to violence – with, as its lowest point, the murder of Berta Cáceres in Honduras in 2016.
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Publication / 30 October 2023
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Event / 27 October 2023, 20:00
Debate: Fossil disaster in Mozambique
In 2021, the Dutch government provided a €1.000.000.000,- worth export credit support to Totals Mozgas project in Cabo Delgado, despite civil society warnings about human rights and environmental risks. The gas exploitation fueled a violent conflict, culminating in the Palma attack, displacing 800,000 people and killing 1,200 people.
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Publication / 16 October 2023
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News / 13 October 2023
Water is life, water is food: World Food Day 2023
"Water is life, water is food" is this year's theme for World Food Day. Our partners around the world know all too well that this is a very true sentence. To celebrate World Food Day 2023 this October 16th, we'd like to show a few examples of how our partners fight for the right to water and this way, contribute to local food sovereignty at the same time.
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Press release / 4 October 2023
New database names companies blacklisted by global investors and banks
A coalition of NGOs today launched the Financial Exclusions Tracker, a new website that tracks which companies are being excluded by investors and banks for sustainability reasons. Most excluded corporations are barred due to links to fossil fuels, weapons or tobacco.
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Event / 28 September 2023, 16:00 - 17:30
The Future We See - Food Systems
What does a food system look like that serves the well-being of people and the planet?
While agriculture and livestock food production in the world have become increasingly large-scale, industrial and ever more efficient for decades, the damage and inequality this food system causes is also becoming increasingly clear. Across the world, more and more people are therefore engaged in alternative, sustainable food production that ensures many generations to come to still have access to fertile, healthy land and clean water.
In this talkshow, we highlight some of these examples and hope to fuel the dialogue about this topic.
Speakers:
- Rosinah Mbenya - PELUM Kenya (via Zoom)
- Matt Canfield - University of Leiden
- Ida Simonsen - Dutch UN Youth Representative Biodiversity and Food
- John Arink - Ekoboerderij Arink (biodynamic farmer)
Moderator
Farid Tabarki - Studio Zeitgeist
Inspired? Join our 'The Future We See' - talkshow on September 28th! You can either attend live or online, quietly listen or actively participate in the discussion - or during the drinks afterwards. We hope to see you there!
Also take a look at our previous session
To get a glimpse of the atmosphere, see a short video of our last session (about economic systems): https://youtu.be/AUNGcROovnc
And to dive in a little deeper, watch this compilation: https://youtu.be/nzuwIREeiNo
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News / 21 September 2023
Global Alliance for Green and Gender Action supports the African People’s Counter COP
Six out of nine planetary boundaries have been crossed (Stockholm Resilience Centre) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says that the world is likely to breach global temperature of 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels between now and 2027. COP28 is the moment of the first Global Stocktake, which means the assessment of where we are at in reaching the goals of the Paris Agreement.