Listen to a very lucid and eye opening critique on the state of Auckland, our new Supercity
Mels Barton is the editor of the Glen Eden Guardian, Secretary of the Titirangi Ratepayers Assoc, Trustee of the Ecomatters Environment Trust, and the Weed Free Trust, the Secretary of the Friends of Regional Parks, the National Coordinator of Sea Week, plus President of GAG (the Grassroots Action Group), Mels has her finger on many pulses.
Find out how the elected council representatives are being totally overloaded with information and data, then expected to vote on issues that they do not have the necessary time to research. For example, having to attend a council meeting in two days time, but given a 500 page dossier to read and fully understand.
Note, that where once our democratic process was to vote in a full council who managed the ongoing affairs of the city, today Auckland appears to have a two tier system that operates with a corporate model embedded in all aspects of council, and that elected council members are often dependent on council staff for information, who may have mixed loyalties with how the business of council is run.
The message being heard is the urgent need for transparency in all aspects of the democratic process, ‘if we the people are to have our elected servants serve our express wishes for self governance, these servant have to be seen to be acting on behalf of the wishes of the people.’ Be it at local or at a national level.
An insightful interview, that ends with very good news that trees and stands of trees in the Auckland regional council areas, plus Waitakere and the Northshore have been saved from the axe.
From 1 January 2012, following the National government’s 2009 changes to the Resource Management Act, the only way to protect trees on private land was to have them scheduled (listed in the District Plan), a very prolonged and labour intensive practice.
Fortunately, the above changes have been overturned by our Judicial system who have recognized the short sightedness of this hurried 2009 legislation.
www.gag.net.nz
One of the greater challenges for both the individual and groups of human beings today, is to find a way to organize ourselves to plan and build a successful business, or community initiative and (if viable) actually make it happen - every time, with easy to use templates.
Dana Darwin, originally from Canada, now domiciled in NZ is a Founder of Platform One Foundation Charitable Trust, which is the umbrella organisation that supports the platform network of villages. He is also a Core member of a NZ based global Person-to-Person network actively developing and implementing a bottom up system model of organisation for businesses and communities. Bottom up, means from the grass roots up.
Dana is actively engaged with many organisations including Solar Industries Association, Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, Auckland City Council, and closely aligned and working with a large NZ based group of companies and business professionals delivering positive results in the sustainability arena.
With a very broad work experience from commercial fisherman, logger, machinery operator, boat captain, builder, establishment of and living completely off grid, saw milling, extensive blue water sailing, commercial diving, farming including animal husbandry, organics, market gardening, food processing, tree planting, subdivisions, consent processes, consulting and project management services, facilitation, IT systems architecture, and business development, he understands the pitfalls and challenges when shaping a system that has to be robust and reliant as we look towards an unsure future in the world of today.
Listen to a strong and enthusiastic committed person devoted to our natural environment, supporting Youth (and of all ages) sustainable Energy conversations of all kinds, personal and community spiritual evolution, creating engagement tools, that provide value to the individual while supporting our global community. Providing Clarity, Consistency and Being, his is the voice of Leadership amidst the clamor of global awakening.
dana(at)organicdesign.co.nz Web site launching late June.
The Good, the bad and the ugly, in reverse order.
Why is it that the NZ Govt and a number of Departments plus some businesses here have no interest at all in GE Free NZ, Nuclear Free NZ and Clean Green NZ?
Why do they seem to want the swamp of sameness for our unique situation, by not positioning us to possibly be the only organic country on earth with a massive marketing (and moral) advantage? An Ark no less.
And why is it that the NATIONAL government has done away and cancelled the - 100% Pure NZ - campaign and white washed it to now be - The New Zealand 100% Pure You - campaign, which does away with our country and landscape being 100% PURE and is just a play on words.
Meanwhile, the 100% pure visitor, can unknowingly breathe in more uncontrolled exhaust fumes, drink more chemically treated and sanitised water and presumedly consume in the fast coming future, locally grown non organic GE food! Becoming instead a 100% laboratory experimental tourist.
Why are we selling our pristine landscape out, our principles and our ethical ideals?
And our children and grandchildren!
Hear a very coherent and passionate statement of the deplorable situation in this country of insider connivance to want to sully our food chain, and extend it into the animal kingdom as well as forestry.
However we have allies!
Note that the Vatican in January 2011 stated that:
There was no truth in claims the Holy See approved of biotech crops. Cardinal Peter Appiah Turkson, a Ghanian who heads the Vatican's key office for Justice and Peace, likenend the economic dependence on big corporations that GM crops bring, to a new form of slavery.
www.gmwatch.org
And listen to how the people of Northland and the Whangarei City council are resisting and that Whangarei District Councilors have voted to unanimously reject the outdoor use of genetically engineered (GE) crops and animals in the District.
The historic vote rejecting the outdoor planting of GE crops and trees reflects the concerns of communities about the lack of protection afforded by central government in relation to GE and land use.
The Communities, ratepayers and consumers have realised their basic right to protect the food system and environment, and that is what the decision supports.
This is where all New Zealanders need to rally behind the people of Northland and extend this GE free notion all the way down the country.
http://www.gefree.org.nz
This weeks interview is very disturbing and it will alarm you. Little do we know the extent of what is happening as rapacious big business, with industry insiders, compliant and or silent media and gagged politicians see off New Zealands assets and sovereignty in what is a shocking expose of corporate takeover in this country. It’s unprecedented!
Huge areas of land are being sold off to overseas interests, businesses too, and the NZ public is completely unaware.
Representatives of Government are secretly negotiating agreements and treaties, that do not have to be ratified by Parliament, (unlike America, where they have to go before Congress) that when signed, locks NZ into contracts that will be impossible to withdraw from.
As for our military relationship with the USA, listen for some very secretive info that we know nothing about. And what wiki links says about insiders in NZ, who are working against our sovereignty and security and not in the interests of our people as a whole.
Why the secrecy?
Listen to Murray’s passionate overview of what is happening right at this very moment on:
Note that the TPPA - is called TAKING PEOPLES POWER AWAY! IT’S NOT A TRADE AGREEMENT
OF INTEREST: Since the devastating Christchurch Earthquake, community groups from the grass roots up are making a very significant impact by working with locals to support them with repairs, food, health, energy and general goodwill. It is grass roots organizations that are the essential key to community coming together.
http://www.cafca.org.nz
http://www.tppwatch.org
http://www.nznotforsale.org