Mia MacDonld's presentation from the AAWA conference underway in Nairobi is available now, covering Ethiopia's livestock sector, developments in nature's rights and animal rights, and strategies for action.

Narrated by former Brighter Green intern Whitney Hoot, this video is part of Brighter Green's Food Policy and Equity Program, outlining the social, environmental, and animal welfare consequences of intensifying meat production and rising domestic and export consumption on Ethiopia, home of Africa's largest livestock herd.

Brighter Green's program on Food Policy and Equity continues to grow, with a video on the expansion of Brazil's livestock sector now available. The video, narrated by Simone de Lima, professor of psychology at the University of Brasilia and founder of Brazilian animal rights organization Pro-Anima, explores the profound environmental consequences of Brazil's booming livestock and soy industries.

As part of Brighter Green's Food Policy and Equity Program, a short video detailing China's rising consumption of animal products is now available. The video is narrated by Brighter Green Associate Stella Zhou, who is blogging from China this summer. More to come soon as we explore further the impacts of the globalization of industrial animal agriculture in China, India, Brazil, and Ethiopia.

Last month, Mia MacDonald posted a blog on the Huffington Post, covering Goldman Sach's involvement with factory farming in China. Her piece, "Investment Bankers with Wings: Making a Killing," earned several notable mentions online, from sources such as the PETA Files, Discovery's Planet Green, and Current TV.

Mia MacDonald posted a blog on Goldman Sachs's investment in factory farming in China on the Huffington Post. Read it here. Feel free to add your comments or share with others or link to it.

Brighter Green Executive Director Mia MacDonald recently discussed the environmental impacts of factory farming at a Pace Law School Panel, organized by the Student Animal Legal Defense Fund and the Environmental Law Society. Click here for the PDF of this presentation.

Brighter Green colleague Anna Lappé's new book is out. Diet for a Hot Planet addresses the climate impact of our food choices, and what we can do to make a difference. Thanks, Anna, for mentioning Brighter Green's work in helping to shape a more just and sustainable food system for New York City!

The March issue of Resurgence Magazine, themed "The Future of Food," has published an article by Brighter Green Executive Director Mia MacDonald. Click here for a PDF version of the article, "Eat Like it Matters."

Karin Chien, founder of dGenerate Films and Co-Executive Producer with Brighter Green of "What's for Dinner?", has won the Piaget Producers Prize at the Independent Spirit Awards. Karin won the award for her work on The Exploding Girl, and Santa Mesa.

Yesterday was the two-month anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. On April 20th, an explosion on a BP-operated oil drilling rig 40-miles off the Gulf Coast left 11 workers dead and an unknown quantity of crude oil gushing into surrounding waters. In the last few weeks, estimates of the severity of the spill have continued to rise: Initially, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported that there were approximately 5,000 barrels of oil gushing from the underwater well each day; now the estimate is 40,000 to 60,000 barrels per day. After several unsuccessful attempts to staunch the flow of oil, BP installed a new containment device on June 3rd that is collecting approximately 15,000 barrels per day; a second device was installed on June 16th. (Unfortunately, some reports show that this tactic may have actually increased the quantity of oil gushing from the underwater well.)

This week, India's Supreme Court convicted eight former executives of Union Carbide India Limited--a subsidiary of the American company Union Carbide, now owned by Dow Chemical Company--of negligence in the Bhopal gas leak, which exposed at least 500,000 Indians to 40 tons of toxic methyl isocyanate gas. The leak, which is considered "the world's worst industrial disaster" killed at least 3,000 people instantly and thousands more after being exposed to contaminated air and water; government agencies estimate a total death toll of 15,000 lives. The eight executives (one of whom passed away before the conviction) were sentenced to two years in prison and fined Rs. 100,000 (about $2,100). What is perhaps even more shocking than these seemingly lenient convictions is the timeframe--the court's decision arrives more than a quarter century after the Bhopal gas leak, which occurred in December 1984.

At the Beijing zoo, you can admire the plumage of brazen peacocks, watch hippos play in the water, and observe scaly crocodiles basking in the sun. Then, when you get hungry, you can dine at the zoo's restaurant and eat the same species that you paid to come see! The Bin Feng Tang restaurant's menu includes exotic dishes such as shark fin soup, kangaroo tail, hippopotamus toes, and--for the boldest customers--deer penis. Ge Rui, of the International Fund for Animal Welfare, says, "One of the zoo's missions is to foster love of animals and a desire to protect them. But by selling the meat of caged beasts, this zoo stimulates consumption and increases pressure on animals in the wild. It is socially irresponsible."

The days of gladiator battles and public guillotine executions are in the past, but many cultures still hang on to bloody traditions, such as bullfighting. This ‘sport’ is still practiced in Spain, Portugal, France, and several Latin American countries, although its origins may be traced to Rome. During a bullfight, a trained matador (or torero) wearing an elaborate, brightly colored costume maneuvers around the bull waving a red cape, in an attempt to subdue the animal. The objective of the bullfight is to kill the bull, generally with a sword thrust. However, bullfighting is also extremely dangerous for the matador. Last month, Spain’s most famous bullfighter, Jose Tomas, was gored in the upper thigh during a match; the bull’s horn penetrated 6 inches into his leg, through his femoral artery, and he required eight liters of blood transfusions (even though the human body contains only five liters). He survived the attack, but it could have gone either way. Now, I wonder what happened to that bull?

Based on what I've read and what I've heard from participants who attended COP-15 in Copenhagen last December, the World People's Conference on Climate Change and Mother Earth Rights held last week in Cochabamba, Bolivia had a completely new tone and a very different guest list. In fact, there was no guest list in Cochabama.

Everyone could attend and there were no locked doors. Rather than limit the most critical discussions to political leaders from the western world, 'real' people gathered at the People's Conference: Indigenous farmers and villagers, local activists, educators, bloggers, etc. Some people arrived in Bolivia already possessing extensive knowledge about climate change and experience in the green movement; others got there knowing almost nothing, but they brought dozens of questions about what exactly climate change is and who it is affecting.

The Ninth Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues wrapped up today, after two weeks of diplomatic negotiations and side-events on contemporary indigenous issues—specifically dealing with how development policies can work within the frameworks of indigenous culture and identity. I attended a workshop on Climate Change and International Indigenous Environmental Law, led by Lori Johnston of the South East Indigenous Peoples Center.

The South East Indigenous Peoples Center is leading the charge in documenting legal cases involving Indigenous communities and environmental damage. They hope to build an online repository for such lawsuits, thereby building the body of International Indigenous Environmental Law and giving Indigenous communities the tools to defend their legal rights. They are also looking to create a global map that pinpoints environmental destruction on Indigenous Peoples lands, documenting the events through photography and writing.

I managed to catch up with "wild law" pioneer Cormac Cullinan at the World People's Conference on Climate Change and Mother Earth Rights, after his speech on the rights of nature. When I asked him about the rights of non-human animals, he presented me with an interesting extension of John Rawls' "A Theory of Justice." Cullinan asked me to imagine that I had the chance to design the world before I was born into it. The catch was this: that I could be born as any creature—a white baby in New York, a black baby in sub-Saharan Africa, a polar bear in the Arctic, a pig on a factory farm, an elephant in a zoo. What would the world look like if you knew that you could be born a chicken, only to live for 39 days in a dark shed with 50,000 other chickens and no access to the outdoors, then be hung upside down with your throat slit, and scalded alive in boiling water? If this were the case, then maybe, just maybe, we would treat other animals more fairly.

After eating lunch (and dancing!) with President Evo Morales, conference participants headed to the official closing ceremony at the Cochabamba stadium for a reading of the final conference Declaration on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth. In addition to the reading (entirely in Spanish, of course), several heads of states and other diplomats were called to speak; we heard from President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and the Vice President of Cuba, Esteban Hernandez, among others. Like the inauguration four days earlier, there were no U.S. diplomats present, and their absence was noted. As a representative from the United States, I think that my greatest responsibility after attending this conference is to let my fellow citizens know that we cannot avoid issues of climate change any longer; now is the time to join the negotiations, raise awareness amongst our people, and lower our emissions. President Obama, do you hear me?

It’s hard to believe that today is the third — the penultimate — day of the World People’s Conference on Climate Change and Mother Earth Rights. I've learned a lot and met some incredible people, but I wish I could be in two places, maybe even three, at once. There are so many interesting events, but it's impossible to attend all of them. However, thanks to some last minute rescheduling today, I was able to attend a strategy session called, "Implementing the Rights of Mother Earth Locally: A Viable Strategy for Frontline Communities." Speakers included Shannon Biggs (Director of the Community Rights Program for Global Exchange), Mari Margil (Associate Director of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund — CELDF), and, the icing on the (vegan) cake, Cormac Cullinan (South African lawyer and author of Wild Law: Protecting Biological and Cultural Diversity).

I was especially excited to hear Mr. Cullinan speak since I've been working on an upcoming Brighter Green project that focuses on the rights of nature, wild law, and earth jurisprudence. Not only did I get to hear him speak, but I was also able to ask him a few questions after the presentation — I even got a picture with him. I also caught Mari Margil from CELDF, who allowed me to ask her about how agriculture and factory farming fit into the larger issues of nature's rights and animal welfare. (Stay tuned for the soundbytes from these brief interviews, to be uploaded soon!)

This morning—after an unexpected detour in Fort Myers, three hours sitting on a runway, and a mad dash to Aerosur Flight 558—I arrived in Cochabamba, Bolivia, for the first day of the World People’s Conference on Climate Change and Mother Earth Rights (PWCCC). Despite the sleep deprivation and traveling frustrations, the members of the New York delegation were in remarkably high spirits; in fact, everyone in the city seems to be in remarkably high spirits. I’ve already had the opportunity to meet some of the most incredible, passionate people I’ve ever encountered, and it’s only the first day. The New York delegation consists of about 40 people, some of whom are here independently, some of whom are here representing organizations, institutions, and media outlets.

This diverse group of individuals includes a youth organizer from Harlem, a volunteer from Sustainable South Bronx, and a blogger from Brooklyn. I’ve also connected with many people who don’t hail from the five boroughs. It seems that most of the conference attendees are South American—and many of them are indigenous. Word on the streets (of Cochabamba) is that there are 20,000 people registered for the conference. Last evening, I had the privilege of speaking on a panel with two activists from India, members of Beyond Copenhagen (BC).

Last week marked the end of the 2010 COP-15 meeting of CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. CITES--an agreement between 175 international Parties--was first drafted in 1963, to ensure that the global trade of 33,000 species of wild plants and animals does not endanger any species' ability to survive. The delegates at this year's Convention, held in Qatar, rejected several proposals that could have expanded animal rights, especially the rights of aquatic species. The Parties failed to pass regulations which would have tightened controls on trade for several species of hammerhead, whitetip, and dogfish sharks. One proposal to protect porbeagle shark species did receive the required approval of 2/3 of the Parties, although it passed by only one vote. The CITES delegates also rejected proposals to strengthen restrictions on the trade of pink and red coral, the Atlantic bluefin tuna, and the polar bear.

Lunar New Year celebrations continue. Also known as the Spring Festival, it's the most important Chinese holiday, for which millions of Chinese travel across their vast country by road, (increasingly fast) rail, boat or plane to reach their home villages and families. In the south-central province of Jiangxi, in Jishui County, Wang Ronghua, the livestock entrepreneur who's featured in Brighter Green's documentary, "What's for Dinner?," has been working hard. "Other people enjoy festivals," he says, "but we have more work to do....I work day and night for the New Year festival. We even have to slaughter pigs at night."

Interestingly, just before the New Year festival, the Chinese government indicated that a new survey on the sources of China's water pollution had found vastly more pollution than even two years ago. The main reason: for the first time, agricultural waste was included; 13.2 million tons of agricultural effluents were counted, including from factory-style livestock operations, smaller farms and crop production. “Everybody knew there was a problem with agricultural pollution in China," said Steven Ma, of Greenpeace's Beijing office. "But now there are numbers.” Big numbers.

"What's for Dinner?" director Jian Yi will be at the Sanlitun, Beijing Apple Store on February 19th 2010, to showcase his recent films. Jian Yi is among a handful of filmmakers invited to discuss the use of Apple Products in their work. Clips of "What's for Dinner?" will be screened at the event, and Beijing musician Xie Zheng, and Vegan Hut restaurant owner Yu Li, both of whom are featured in the film, will be present at the screening. Tell your friends and colleagues in Beijing.

Photo by Jacqueline Hodges

Costa Ricans elected their first female President, Laura Chinchilla, last week. This appointment can be added to the long list of Costa Rica's accolades; the abolition of its standing army, free health care and education for all, its status as the happiest country on earth, and of course, its much lauded progressive environmental policies.

Costa Rica's Constitution establishes that "Every person has the right to a healthy and ecologically balanced environment," and reserves the right to denounce any infringing acts and collect monetary compensation. For a country rich in natural resources, Costa Rica has made good on this pledge to its citizens: The Pachero administration, citing reasons of environmental protection, opted to not exploit the rich oil deposits off its Atlantic Coast; the Constitutional Court upheld the cancellation of a multi-million gold mining permit with Canadian Vannessa Ventures on the basis of environmental degradation; and in 1999 a Costa Rican prosecutor sought damages against transnational corporation Geest Carribean for illegally logging more than 700 hectares of forest surrounding Tortuguero National Park - making it Costa Rica's first formal attempt at quantifying the value of lost biodiversity.

Is that the neighbor's dog barking in the apartment upstairs, or should you look out the window for something a little wilder? On Sunday morning, Columbia University Public Safety spotted three coyotes in front of Lewisohn Hall, on Broadway and 116th Street. One of the coyotes was sighted again later in the morning, but no arrests were made--these wild dogs are still roaming free. The Chief of Public Safety warned community members to report any sightings, but not to approach the animals. This isn't the first coyote sighting in Manhattan this year, and it certainly isn't the first encounter between humans and those "other" urban dwellers who usually remain hidden in public parks, subway tunnels, and in the recesses of urban minds that have forgotten what nature looks like.