EARTHKEEPING NEWS A NEWSLETTER OF THE NORTH AMERICAN COALITION FOR CHRISTIANITY AND ECOLOGY Volume One, Number Four March/April 1992 Call to Action: Congress Provides Focus for Action on Earth Summit House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Dante Fascell (D-Fla) has agreed to help create and cosponsor a Congressional resolution on strengthening the policy toward the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). Fascell's cosponsorship assures that there will be just one House resolution expressing the sense of Congress on UNCED policies that activists can rally around. Rep. Robert Torricelli (D-NJ) and Rep. Gus Yatron (D-Pa) have also introduced binding resolutions calling on the Bush administration to take stronger positions at the final Preparatory Committee meetings in March. The unified Fascell-Torricelli-Yatron resolution is based on a non-governmental organization (NGO) working group draft that had input from a wide variety of environmental, development and population NGOs. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass) introduced a companion resolution with similar provisions. The Congressional Resolutions call for USA to support: A financing provision of Agenda 21 that meets the concerns of developing countries, A mechanism for monitoring compliance with international environmental agreements, Programs for global transition to sustainable energy systems, Goals for preserving and increasing worldwide forest cover, Initiatives to help developing countries become more energy efficient, A reduction in the debt burdens of developing countries, A timetable for reforming the systems of national accounting by industrialized countries and the U.N., Support for greater public participation in environmental and development decision-making at all levels, Support for a global action plan to raise the status of women. The United States is the only member of the Group of Seven industrialized countries whose head of state has not announced plans to attend the Earth Summit. Sen. Albert Gore (D-Tenn) and Rep. John Porter (R-Ill) have introduced identical Congressional resolutions urging President Bush to lead the UNCED delegation. For more information, contact Sally Yozell in Sen. John Kerry's office, U.S. Senate, Washington DC 20510 (202-224-2742); or Nancy Carman, House Foreign Affairs Comm. 2170 Rayburn Bldg., Washington DC 20515 (202-226-3596) From Earth Summit Updates #5 Dec. 91 and #6, Feb. 92, Environmental and Energy Study Institute, 122 C Street, NW, Washington DC 20001. PRESSURE IS MOUNTING ON PRESIDENT BUSH. The Big Blue Foundation, an environmental film group, has launched its "Earth Voice Campaign" through 4 public service announcements to be shown in movie theaters and on television. The announcements stress the importance of the Earth Summit and ask the viewer wanting more information to dial 1-800-LEAD-RIO, and to send a telegram via telephone to President Bush urging his support and personal leadership at Rio. For more contact Regina Cleveland, Big Blue Foundation, 8446 Melrose Place, Los Angeles, CA 90069 (213) 852-1414. Home     Table of Contents