World Urban Forum
An interactive platform for community driven content on social issues + activism.
It was a great week at the World Urban Forum. Catrina Longmuir and I, Ingrid Hein, spent the week finding participants at WUF that had something to say in a CitizenShift Videoblog. I do believe that we found a diverse, if not eclectic group of folks to talk to.
We chose to implement this videoblog with a webcam - an inexpensive solution to videobloggin, in an effort to show how easy it is to create your own media. However, we ran into a couple of snags. Mostly, with light and sound (ah! the primaries of film…). The NFB booth at the World Urban Forum was ambiantly lit, which meant our videos were a bit dark. We tried a variety of spots, but alas, it wasn’t until the third day that we realized we were better off outside in sunlight.
The second problem was sound - the exhibition hall at WUF was full of activity, including announcements on various stages, musical acts, hundreds of people talking, and so on. Our computer mic did not cut it. The first few videoblog entries don’t have great sound quality - you’ll find the later entries are much better, as we purchased an external mic to use and found quiet spots to videoblog.
Overall, this experiment went well - we wanted a low-tech solution to giving a voice to WUF participants that did not get in the limelight otherwise. I think we accomplished this with flying colours. We hope you enjoy listening and watching these incredible people who attended WUF.
Please leave your comments, we would love to hear from you!
Leave a comment
Category : Uncategorized
The videoblog in Spanish from Ignacio Prafil (Argentina) at WUF has been translated into English. It was so important that he had a presence at the World Urban Forum - Please take a moment to watch/read this clip.
Ministerio de Educaciono coordinator Ignacio Prafil from Argentina, kindly offered to give his thoughts on our videoblog. Ignacio had spoken up during the Q&A of the roundtable that happened on Wednesday, around indigenous people and community-driven media. He felt that his voice had not been heard- an indigenous Argentinian, he does not speak English, (and many of us in the audience did not speak Spanish, and for a while did not have translation headsets for this situation). He stated that in order to create ‘effective’ community driven media, the first step is to understand what one another is saying - he felt discluded (as an ‘indigenous voice’) from the roundtable in this sense, and we wanted to hear more of what he had to say.
We are most grateful to Jess Kincaid for volunteering to professionally translate Ignacio’s important message. (see below)
Part I | Part II
Transcript - Part I
Well, my name is Ignacio Prafil, I´m from the Mapuche People in Argentina. We are here in this city brought together for this 3rd World Urban Forum…our perspective was that the participation of indigenous peoples was going to be more decisive, that is, that more attention would be paid to our voices. While this forum is addressing the issue of planning, of urbanization, we believe that [the issue] is also the damage that different States have done in trying to make large cities, and it has been noticed that there is high level of pollution, a high degree of land degradation, in fact few places with natural resources are left.
So, based on this, we believe that today society has become conscious of this situation. And indigenous peoples, we have always known this, we’ve never been strangers to this reality. We are caretakers, guardians of biodiversity. So we would hope that, at least in this forum, the voices of indigenous peoples be present. And in this case we are saying to them, well, we are making a call for the attention of the people from the UN, from the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, that they please open the doors wider so that the participation by delegates from the different indigenous peoples is more pronounced on this subject. And this is a bit of what was presented yesterday in the press conference, sort of to say that to this African sister, who holds the post of Habitat secretary, so that…
Transcript - Part II
Well, we were making a call for attention toward the UN people, specifically the secretary of Habitat, our African sister, Anna Tibaijuka that hopefully she can understand the message of indigenous peoples. We have seen that there has been a little, perhaps we have felt a little discriminated against. A bit like that. Well, for example on Wednesday, when there was the topic of communication, the topic of video, and the topic of the approach of indigenous peoples, of how to take advantage of this communication media. There was no translation to Spanish. So I think this is a lack of respect towards us, or at least towards the First Nations that live here. We think that if we´re talking about communication, communication is a two-way street. And above all the language should be understood, because in the media, if the language is not understood, then you can keep colonizing, you can keep stepping on people, you can keep invading, keep occupying things. So our reality as indigenous peoples, we come here to put forward the idea that participation has to be direct, with previous informed consent; that we should have the information on time and in a clear format, and that all of this have a clear objective and a direction in order to carry forward this reality that we are now suggesting.
That is, we think that we are going to continue to participate and hopefully sometime this World Urban Forum will take place in South America, or Central America or Mesoamerica. Hopefully it will be that way. Hopefully for 2012 we can at least meet in South America. And that is our wish, because sometimes the subject of urban indigenous people is not considered in urban planning. So there are many that are in the city, that are in small towns, and sometimes they go unnoticed. In fact here in Vancouver, there are areas where indigenous people have their space, their neighbourhood, but they are outside of what is central and beautiful Vancouver.
And hopefully today when they give us the opportunity to read this conclusion or this contribution we want to make from the indigenous communities themselves in the plenary session, it is listened to and carried out, and reaffirmed by the people that move forward with the forum, especially for the people from the United Nations. So thank you for the space you have given us, thanks very much for allowing us a few minutes and we would like to say that indigenous peoples, we are alive and well, we are going to keep contributing, but in the end we want a situation of equal opportunity. So perhaps we have lost the battle. We have been colonized, but we have never been defeated. That´s why we are alive. That´s why we are here. Thanks to the efforts of our ancestors, we are here in this place. Thanks.
Find out more: www.lofdigital.org.ar
Comments(2)
Category : Uncategorized
Communicating for Change is an organization that works with video to affect social change. In this videoblog, General Manager Yemesi Ilo explains how a video on female mutilation helped change policy and the way people think in her community.
Watch Yemisi Ilo´s videoblog: Part I | Part II
Find out more: http://www.cfcnigeria.org
Comment (1)
Category : Uncategorized
Carmella Alexis is a representative of the Sisters in Spirit project. The Native Women´s Association of Canada (NWAC) launched the national Sisters in Spirit Campaign in March 2004 to raise public awareness of the alarmingly high rates of violence against Aboriginal women in Canada. NWAC believes we are in an urgent state of affairs with regards to the safety of Aboriginal women in Canada.
Currently Carmella is involved specifically in working to prevent violence against young girls.
Watch Carmalla Alexis’ videoblog:
Comments(2)
Category : Uncategorized
Similar in intent to the original Speaker´s Corner, “Sustainability Corner” brings the concept of “being heard” to the whole world through a web-based video speak out designed to engage the delegates of the World Urban Forum in an ongoing, global discussion on sustainability.
In keeping with the WUF’s ‘Ideas to Action’ central theme, the Sustainability Corner will ’seed’ the dialogue in the context of efforts local to Vancouver and Canada, with a focus on five major sustainability goals: Energy, Water, Resources, Land and Well-Being.
Have a look: http://www.sustainabilitycorner.com
Comment (1)
Category : Uncategorized
We were fortunate enough to catch reknowned and respected scientist, environmentalist and activist, David Suzuki for a moment today. His message, as always, is insightful and inspiring.
Watch David Suzuki’s video blog:
Leave a comment
Category : Uncategorized
Daniel Dauda Siaffa is Executive director in Sierra Leone of an international conservation society, BirdLife International. It strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global biodiversity, working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources.
Watch Daniel Dauda Siaffa’s video blog:
Leave a comment
Category : Uncategorized
Tessie Fernandez is the Executive Director of the Lihok Pilipina Foundation, Inc - A foundation of by for Women and their concerns in over 70 cities across the Philippines. Tessie had recalled an NFB film that had been made
Lihok Pilipina Foundation’s Objectives
* Develop viable and visible organizations that will enable women and their families to participate in the planning, decision making and activities affecting their lives; * Enhance their capacity to earn income, access and control of resources to improve their quality of life;
* Develop women´s capacity to be secure in their person and homes from all forms of abuse and violence such as battering, demolition and others;
* Advocate with government agencies and the private sectors for more responsive program, policy and resource allocation.
Watch Tessie Fernandez’s videoblog (PART 1):
Watch Tessie Fernandez’s videoblog (PART 2):
Leave a comment
Category : Uncategorized
Namrata Bali is the General Secretary of SEWA (Self-Employed Women’s Association - an organization that helps women gain self-reliance and empowerment through becoming self-employed) and Director/Trainer for Video SEWA.
Namrata was a part of the Roundtable session that took place on Wednesday around community-driven media, and today was a participant in the Networking session around media-empowerment for ’slum dwellers’.
Watch Namrata Bali’s videoblog
Comment (1)
Category : Uncategorized
Rosaline M’Carthy from is the National Chairman of the Women’s Forum in Sierra Leone. She is working with the ActionAid Group in league with UN Habitat to help improve poor people’s lives.
Watch Rosaline M’Carthy’s videoblog:
Leave a comment
Category : Uncategorized
Next entries »
