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Patrick Bond delivers keynote at Cyprus conference on mining and sustainable development, 16 October |
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Imagining Sustainable Development: the interaction of global challenges in production and local democracy’
Societal role in the global economic, political, ethical and environmental challenges of today
16 October 2015 09:00 – 13:30, Amphitheater UNESCO, University of Nicosia
The proponents of the unstoppable force of Global Economy have promised to provide all humans with what seemed like an unattainable standard of living only decades before. Unfortunately, it has thus far, not delivered on the promise.
It is well accepted that a decent livelihood for all cannot be achieved without fundamental changes in the way societies and global institutions produce and consume. Production and consumption of products and services in a conduct that takes into account global societal benefits, local democratic institutions, best accountability practices, economic viability and environmental responsibility through the entire product cycle, will shape the answers to key issues which forms today’s challenges of Global Sustainable Development.
Sustainable Development’s major innate obstacle however is general ignorance of the big picture by the population. Hence, there is an impetus to provide more awareness as well as, more in-depth knowledge about Global Development issues, especially focusing on traditionally dynamic segments of society like University students, making it easier for them to adopt ethical ideas and change their attitude and facilitating change in the long term.
Such challenges include setting a global ethical floor for labor conditions, reducing waste, advancing the efficiency of the use of natural resources and promoting an honest democratic dialogue.
With an emphasis in the production and consumption of raw materials and the extraction industry, the conference aims at enhancing the participants’ critical understanding of Global Development Challenges while promoting their active engagement through civil and civic action in the local context. Based on the notion that being aware of current issues is the best way to develop conscious production and consumption behaviors, the conference will attempt to turn local citizens to global citizens who take direct action in a local and global context and transform them into multipliers who will raise Sustainable Development issues as a focal point in the public discourse and promote democracy, accountability and social action.
The conference will start by providing a contextual overview of the conflict mineral debate and recent progress in the European and International level by Stop-Mad-Mining project manager, Theocharis Michail. Our keynote speaker, Dr. Patrick Bond from South Africa will then try to present recent global experiences in academic debate format and underlie important issues pertaining the extractive industry paradigm. After the coffee break, Dr. Alexander Apostolides will confine the issue in the local experiences and provide an understanding of the interplaying incentives at work in a historic perspective and Dr. Stefanos Spaneas will present the link between Social communal empowerment as a sustainable alternative to Development.
Finally the conference will close with Savvas Vlachos from the Cyprus Energy Agency that will provide innovative, viable and local actions to deal with resource overproduction and overconsumption for a sustainable future.
The conference is held in the framework of the Project ‘Time for change: Promoting sustainable consumption and production of raw materials in the context of EYD 2015 and beyond!’ and in collaboration with the project Global Campus: Students for Social Justice and Municipal Democracy Week
Conference Agenda: UNESCO Amphitheatre, October 16, 2015
9:00-9:30 Registration and Welcome Coffee
9:30-9:40 Welcome Dr Pambos Vrasidas, Director CARDET
9:40-10:05 Presentation of CARDET, the Sustainable Development Week and the Raw Materials Project Theocharis Michail, CARDET
10:05-10:30 “Promised Land – when settlements violate human rights” and panel discussion Screening of a film created by the organization DanWatch in the framework of the Raw Materials Project
10:30-11:30 “Global debates on sustainable development and mining destruction” and discussion Dr Patrick Bond, University of Witwatersrand, South Africa
11:30-12:00 Coffee break
12:00-12:45 “The extraction industry’s role in the political economy framework” and discussion Dr Alexandros Apostolides, European University of Cyprus
12:45-13:15 “Social community development as oppose to extractive industry practices” and discussion Dr Stephanos Spaneas, University of Nicosia
13:15-13:30 “The rational use of energy in our homes and in our daily activities” Savvas Vlachos, Cyprus Energy Agency
13:30 End of conference
The conference is held in the framework of the Project ‘Time for change: Promoting sustainable consumption and production of raw materials in the context of EYD 2015 and beyond!’ and in collaboration with the project Global Campus: Students for Social Justice and Municipal Democracy Week
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