Sustainable cities: from small rural communities
The paradox of large cities is mostly established. On one hand, a group of people representing a minority enclosed in high luxury houses and apartments. On the other hand, a second group, in part original from cities with up to 50,000 residents and of small rural communities, which set out in search of new employment opportunities and income. Sometimes that dream does not come true for some. Among these, one or more workers, unable to return to the place of origin, are now living under the bridges or in poorly built shacks. Both groups deal with the adversities that come from the negative impacts of the environment, dealing with violence and drugs that plague these towns, candidates to unsustainable.
In the eyes of society, the second group sometimes becomes "invisible", detached from the minimum conditions of human dignity of a sustainable city. As it is, for example, health care, education, sanitation and sewerage. Despite the efforts of many organized society and government policies. However, both groups are vulnerable to these impacts. At times they cannot escape some kind of urban violence, where all things are mingled in a web of causes and effects on the environment common to all. The misunderstanding, that they can find later on, promotes this invisibility. Hence, it is very common to hear "what do 'environment and sustainable cities' have to do with this?"
I ask: Why distance ourselves from this agenda of co-responsibility and commitment? In which extent can setbacks overcome the advances in face of this reality? From my point of view, I stand particularly in Brazil’s context. Allegedly, in face of the observation and experience of everyday life, from the gone by years of the 70's - coinciding with the Stockholm Conference which launched the discussion on the "limits to growth" and the delimitations’ of natural resources in the environment - I believe that: beyond the current healthy favoring of the purchase of housing for low-income population in large cities, the prevention of occupation without criteria also has to be promoted, starting from the care of the extremities. For example, encourage the improvement through the strengthening of small, medium producers and rural entrepreneurs in its contextual basis. To reach to these people, without intermediaries, important and basic information, of how much and when to intervene legally in their surroundings, from its rights and duties, in the case of renewable and nonrenewable resources found in nature. How, where and when to get investment for their rural enterprises which can ensure sustenance for them and their families. Bearing in mind future generations, as well as, not forgetting the present ones. With equity and prosperity for the large, medium and small urban centers and small rural communities. Also making them sustainable in a systemic way.
From this perspective, it has always to be demonstrated the concept of the correlation of all the dimensions of the environment, permeated by climate change and global warming. Transversely measured by the social, ecologic, economic, environmental, cultural, political appeal, among others, in the feeling and actions of people and institutions, engaged and committed with their time, as it happens through the UN Habitat. "
Maria da Penha Mendes Furquim Werneck
SILENOU DEMANOU Blondel from Cameroon, 21 June 2012one of the biggest problem that raises the current policies of development is the stratification of society, is it a consequence or a desired effect? the access to energy for all, health for all food for all Education for All in a capitalist system is not it utopian?
how else glimpse of sustainable cities?
Maria da Penha Mendes Furquim Werneck from Brazil, 25 June 2012Thank you for the comment. Excuse me for the delay.
From my point of view, in addition to actions already taking place to strengthen medium and small rural properties into sustainable ones, it is also necessary to subsidize them with legal frameworks, using simple methodologies, less technical, didactic, in a systemic and emancipatory way. This need is shaped based on the statement of the difficulty of access to such information, in most cases, depending on the range of the existing environmental regulations. Such as the distance to the print media and Internet access, of a significant number of individuals in rural areas.
With this strengthening, the intention is to offer the option to the less fortunate, economically, producers’ children the pick, to fix on their land or try one’s luck in the big city.
It is quite a challenge, given the geographical dimension and the every day problems. Utopia? Maybe. Hence the need of partnerships with plural individuals and institutions.
Around here, there is an instituted program "Rural Energy." This provides electricity to remote areas of the city. There has been improvement in the quality of life in some respects, such as health, regarding the care with food and medicines and it supplies power for the irrigation, just to name one.
In education, as a whole, quotas for admission of youths at Universities were established, mostly for African descendants and native Indians, in favor of the strengthening of social mobility.
Experiences like these show that it is possible to reduce social inequalities and represent advances of something that until very recently, was configured as a dream. We must go further, to improve the quality of public education at all levels.
"Desired effect and consequence," permeate the social fabric, simultaneously and historically, at different degrees. From naive to the perverse subtlety, feed the power and the domination of some ver others and contribute to social inequality.
For some individuals, excess offer of consumption and of opportunities. Others caught in their social mobility by the absence of this provision, of the minimum necessary, lacking policies and actions promoting the good quality of life. To what extent is man the executioner of his peers?
It is known, that the man is behind every formation and maintenance of the stratified structure of society, and in most cases in defense of private interests, of the skin which he inhabits. The exacerbated consumption besides accelerating the depletion of natural resources, causes disruption in living together, human relations and the formation of the human being.
To what point, the man who dwells in everyone recognizes himself in the other? To what extent human ethics is present? What is the role of public and private institutions before the millennium's challenges and objectives?
Are they dreaming about solutions to the sustainability of cities, linked to environmental and human issues, socially woven in between? What will be the consequence of this or that? Dreaming is necessary: it is from it that hope is renewed and may or may not give place to concern and action, guided by the desired effects of the type of city and citizens they want to support.
In this century what desired effects are permeating the contexts as from the power guidelines decisions? What sort of cities and citizens are desired?
in 06/25/12
SILENOU DEMANOU Blondel from Cameroon, 28 June 2012At the beginning was the light, I like this sentence from the Bible. I am currently involved in a project organization and development of communities, the project aims to improve the living conditions of populations in the incentives for it even be the motor of development. we have just completed phase energy and I must admit that the first observations are clear
we must act at the base, I'm sick of all these conferences that do not move things forward, here rio which has just ended, a bunch of egoist hijack the future of the planet, it constipated my reflection when I think
Maria da Penha Mendes Furquim Werneck from Brazil, 6 July 2012Thank hereby a matter of opinion.
From my point of view, provided that dialogue and consensus prevail, necessary ingredients to build trust among the concerned parties, the conferences from local to global, are valid to promote and institutionalize cooperation between the parties. Controversies occurs under regard to Environmental Protection, Economic Development and Social Inclusion. However,discussion and understanding, dialogic, points to the equilibrium positive and renews the sense of hope and movement for better.
Local good practice, as quoted by you, in order to strengthen the communities in its foundations, merit congratulations! And so from the basis, from local to global and vice versa, procedural change necessary, befall.
The dialogue, common sense and the conclusions that are expected from these conferences are the actions and "desired effects", considering that we are all in the same boat, adrift. The search for a safe port is of joint responsibility of all, but differentiated in the right measure, regarding burden and bonuses.
This a discussion started in finale the 1960s, with sequence, of the publish "The Limits to Groowth" (Club of Rome); continuing in Stockholm Conference; in Tbilisi; in Rio 92 and + 20, just to name a few, with demands and commitments differentiated. I believe these reach the surface of the dialogue with a view to the common good of all/the. It is known, this is the desire of much of the world.
In parallel event at the Rio + 20, the Peoples' Summit, I attended a round of debate on Environmental Education. It was gratifying. I believe that there is always some sort of gain for both parties, as long as the process advance interactively and consensual.
I also like the phrase, thought-provoking: "At first it was light" suggests the creation itself when everything seemed perfect, or it does not.