A challenge to conservationists: Phase II.Mac Chapin's article in the November/December issue of World Watch has generated the heaviest flow of letters to the editor since we began producing the magazine in 1988. This overwhelming response has led us to publish an unprecedented number of those letters in this issue, including reactions from leaders of the "Big Three" conservation organizations that were at the center of Chapin's story. As you will see in the letters that follow, both the facts and their interpretation are hotly hot·ly adv. In an intense or fiery way: a hotly contested will. Adv. 1. hotly - in a heated manner; "`To say I am behind the strike is so much nonsense,' declared Mr Harvey heatedly"; "the debated by experts and officials from a range of organizations. But we are heartened to find that there is substantial consensus on the core issue the article addresses: that the needs of indigenous peoples The term indigenous peoples has no universal, standard or fixed definition, but can be used about any ethnic group who inhabit the geographic region with which they have the earliest historical connection. and healthy ecosystems must be more effectively integrated in conservation programs than they are today. We hope that Chapin's article and the responses published here will spur the kind of dialogue and commitment to change that will be needed if consensus in words is to be translated into action on the ground. There is no doubt that Chapin's article has made a lot of people uncomfortable, but discomfort is sometimes needed to force people to address problems that have festered for a long time. In talking to Noun 1. talking to - a lengthy rebuke; "a good lecture was my father's idea of discipline"; "the teacher gave him a talking to" lecture, speech rebuke, reprehension, reprimand, reproof, reproval - an act or expression of criticism and censure; "he had to dozens of representatives of environmental organizations, indigenous groups, and foundations about these questions in the past few months, we have been impressed im·press 1 tr.v. im·pressed, im·press·ing, im·press·es 1. To affect strongly, often favorably: by the number of dedicated, savvy people who are committed to finding a productive way forward. Worldwatch will contribute to this process by continuing to convey the latest developments and most creative thinking on the subject to a worldwide audience. Fresh air and debate, we believe, are essential ingredients of change. Early in 2005, we plan to convene CONVENE, civil law. This is a technical term, signifying to bring an action. a roundtable discussion that will bring together the key players in this drama to consider concrete steps that will better mesh the needs of indigenous peoples and the natural world. CHRIS FLAVIN flavin: see coenzyme. flavin Any of a class of organic compounds, pale yellow biological pigments that fluoresce green. They occur in compounds essential to life as coenzymes in metabolism. President, Worldwatch Institute The Worldwatch Institute is a globally-focused environmental research organization. Based in Washington, D.C., the institute was founded in 1974 by Lester Brown. Christopher Flavin is the current president. |
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