Air for sale?
ENVIRONMENT
I don’t know who you are, but one thing do I ask of you,
Don’t sell yourself.
No, Air — Don’t sell yourself,
Don’t let them channel you,
Don’t let them run you through tubes,
Don’t let them box you, or compress you,
Don’t let them make you into pills,
Don’t let them bottle you. Take care!
Today, in 2005, those fears imagined by the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda in his Ode to the Air some 50 years ago have a real foundation that grows daily. Along with water, the oceans and the rain, air is increasingly viewed as an ‘environmental service’, another class of merchandise for which all of us must pay, like it or not.
The concept of ‘environmental services’ has become popular over the past decade. Originally coined by economists, the term now appears frequently in documents produced by governments, the World Bank, universities and business associations. It has also been adopted in the vocabularies of development agencies, NGOs and social organizations. The idea has crept insidiously into our collective consciousness without setting off the alarm bells that it should have done.
For example, ‘atmospheric regulation’ – the ability to keep air quality at breathable levels – is considered today to be an ‘environmental service’. The alarming implication is that each time we take a breath we must remember that we are not simply breathing but are ‘receiving a service’.
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Voices from the margins:
Multimedia: video, podcasts, and more.
- Poetry Slam in Zimbabwe
- The House of Hunger poetry slam held in Zimbabwe in 2006, and organised by the Pamberi Trust, showcased young artists performing inspirational work on issues from corporate power to child soldiers. The video features four of the poets.
Published by Pambazuka News.
- Iranian women speak out
- 3 March 2007, London. Women's rights activists marched through the English capital last week to celebrate International Women's Day with a protest against the misogyny of the Islamic regime in Iran and the threat of invasion by the US. Hear the voices of Iranian feminists Azar and Leila Parnian and the sounds of the demonstration as it passed through the heart of the city. Click here to learn more about the campaign.
Produced by Heidi Bachram.
- Raised Voices audio:
- Benny from West Papua on Corporate Power
- Vinayan from India on agriculture
New Internationalist (NI) workers' co-operative exists to report on issues of world poverty and inequality; to focus attention on the unjust relationship between the powerful and the powerless worldwide; to debate and campaign for the radical changes necessary to meet the basic needs of all; and to bring to life the people, the ideas and the action in the fight for global justice.
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