THURSDAY, JULY 29, 2021 AT 10 AM PDT – 11 AM PDT
See full detail and register at https://elasa.co.za/ela-events/sonic-forest/
Register now for our next Streaming Club session on 29 July at 7pm where our expert panel will discuss the role of indigenous communities in preserving the world’s biodiversity. The discussion is inspired by and will revolve around the beautiful 35 minute Stand with Trees documentary, Sonic Forest. The panel will be chaired by Kate Handley, ELA Executive Committee member. Zoom details will be provided on registration. There are no costs to join this event, which forms part of the ELA’s efforts to advance knowledge in domestic and international environmental law, including in relation to the recognition of indigenous voices, and the urgent need for reform of the law in a time of socio-ecological crisis.
Attendees should stream Sonic Forest in their own homes (either available on YouTube or through a free subscription to Water Bear). We encourage our members and friends to sign up to Water Bear, as it contains a wealth of incredible films about environmental issues, and most of them are available for free!
Our speakers:
- Maria Antonia Tigre, the Director of Latin America for the Global Network for the Study of Human Rights and the Environment (GNHRE). Through the GNHRE, she has increasingly focused her efforts on human rights-based climate litigation in Latin America. She is also a coordinator of the human rights group, with a particular focus on ecological rights, for the Global Pandemic Network (GPN), a community of scholars created to debate legal aspects associated with pandemics.
- Delme Cupido, the Southern African Hub Director for Natural Justice. He is a human rights lawyer with more than 18 years’ experience in the advancement of human rights and governance in southern Africa, as a human rights and public interest lawyer, activist and grant maker in the non-profit sector.He began his legal career at the Legal Assistance Centre, a public interest law firm in Namibia where he worked in the Human Rights and Constitutional Litigation Unit working on a range of cases, including serious human rights violations against indigenous communities. While at the LAC, he went on to head the AIDS Law Unit, leading their work on the campaign to ensure the provision of ARV’s for people living with HIV or AIDS, working on national, Pan-African and global campaigns. Delme has worked extensively with the issues and communities which Natural Justice is concerned with, particularly indigenous and local peoples in southern Africa, and has a long and close connection with the organization, and a deep commitment to the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities who face the brunt of the onslaught against nature and the environments that sustain them.
- David Tshidzumba, an environmental activist from Save Our Limpopo Valley Environment (SOLVE). He is the Chairperson of SOLVE Youth Brigade and is also part of Vhembe Biosphere Youth Network steering committee. His work is around environmental education, capacity building in local communities and engaging the youth in environmental issues. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Sciences.
- Dr Kawika Winter, a multidisciplinary ecologist who has focused his research and professional career on large scale biocultural restoration of social-ecological systems in Hawai`i. His particular areas of interest include revival of traditional resource management, and he operates in the spheres of academia, conservation, and policy. After serving more than a decade as the Director at Limahuli Garden and Preserve on the island of Kaua`i, he is now the Reserve Manager a the He`eia National Estuarine Research Reserve on O`ahu. He holds a faculty position at the Hawai`i Institute of Marine Biology (University of Hawai`i at Mānoa), is an Affiliate Faculty in Natural Resources and Environmental Management (University of Hawai`i at Mānoa), and is a Research Associate with National Tropical Botanical Garden.
Book prize: Gaps in International Environmental Law: Toward a Global Pact for the Environment
Registered attendees at the panel discussion who are members of the ELA stand a chance to win a copy of a fantastic book by Maria Antonia Tigre: Gaps in International Environmental Law: Towards a Global Pact for the Environment (2020). The prize will be awarded to two attendees on a lucky drawn basis. You can sign up to become a member of the ELA for just R500 and be eligible to win prizes and enjoy other member benefits as well as contribute to the sustainability of our wonderful organization that seeks to advance knowledge in environmental law in South Africa.