[305] in peace2
World Social Forum in Brazil (in January)
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (F. AuYeung)
Thu Jun 29 23:54:23 2000
Message-Id: <200006300354.XAA20769@m12-182-25.mit.edu>
To: peace-list@MIT.EDU
cc: iguanatw@MIT.EDU
Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 23:54:05 -0400
From: "F. AuYeung" <auyeung@MIT.EDU>
Do you think we can get MIT IAP funding for this, maybe lead some
lectures on social and economic justice, then send a MIT delegation
down to Brazil? Sounds crazy, but if someone is willing to work on
it with Course 11 or 17...
F
------- Forwarded Message
>WORLD SOCIAL FORUM
>fsm2001@uol.com.br
>Porto Alegre, Brazil
>January 25-30, 2001
>
>The World Social Forum will be a new international arena for organizing
>against neoliberal policies and for building economic alternatives that
>prioritize social justice.
>
>It will take place every year in the city of Porto Alegre, Brazil,
>during the same period as the World Economic Forum, which happens in
>Davos, Switzerland, at the end of January. Since 1971, The World
>Economic Forum has played a key role in formulating neoliberal policies
>throughout the world. It's sponsored by a Swiss organization that serves
>as a consultant to the United Nations and it's financed by more than one
>thousand corporations.
>
>The World Social Forum will provide a space for building economic
>alternatives, for exchanging experiences and for strengthening
>South-North alliances between NGOs, unions and social movements. It will
>also be an opportunity for developing concrete actions, to educate the
>public, and to mobilize civil society internationally.
>
>The World Social Forum developed as a consequence of a growing
>international movement that has gained greater visibility since the
>mobilizations against the
>Multilateral Agreement on Investments (MAI), which happened in Europe in
>1998, the demonstrations in Seattle, during the WTO meeting in 1999, and
>the recent protests against the IMF and the World Bank in Washington,
>DC, among others.
>
>For decades, these international financial institutions have been making
>decisions that affect the lives of people all over the world, without
>being subject to any sort of democratic control. People in Third World
>countries, as well as the poor and excluded sectors of industrialized
>countries suffer the devastating effects of economic globalization and
>the dictatorship of international institutions such as the IMF, the
>World Bank, the WTO and the governments that serve their interests.
>
>We need to continue pressuring these institutions to be accountable to
>our societies. Similarly, our governments must be made aware that this
>oversight will be exercised with increasing intensity over their
>actions. Many of us have struggled in our own countries, regions, or
>cities, thinking that we were isolated. Recently, we have begun to
>realize that together we can constitute a planetary archipelago of
>resistance. The World Social Forum represents a new opportunity toward
>the construction of an international counter-power.
>
>Brazil is one the countries that has been greatly affected by neoliberal
>policies. At the same time, different sectors of Brazilian society are
>resisting these policies, in rural and urban areas, in shantytowns,
>factories, political parties, churches, schools, etc. The richness of
>Brazilian grassroots organizations represents a source of inspiration
>for the development of the World Social Forum.
>
>The Brazilian Organizing Committee invites international networks of
>NGOs, unions and social movements to help us build the World Social
>Forum. We hope to receive support from organizations in the Americas,
>Africa, Asia and Europe with a commitment to contribute with this
>organizing process and to send delegations to Porto Alegre in January.
>We are asking for a special commitment from organizations in the First
>World to help funding delegations from their partner organizations in
>Third World countries, in order to guarantee diversity within the World
>Social Forum.
>
>The World Social Forum will represent a historic moment for organizing
>and social change. Let's build it together!
>
>
> Brazilian Organizing Committee:
>
> The Brazilian Association of Non-Governmental Organizations
>(Associa=E7=E3o Brasileira de Organiza=E7=F5es N=E3o Governamentais,=
ABONG)
>
>Action for the Taxation of International Financial Transaction in
>Support of Citizens
>(A=E7=E3o pela Tributa=E7=E3o das Transa=E7=F5es Financeiras em Apoio aos=
Cidad=E3os,
>ATTAC-BR)
>
>The Brazilian Commission of Justice and Peace
>(Comiss=E3o Brasileira de Justi=E7a e Paz)
>
>CIVES - Brazilian Association of Businesses for Citizenry
>
>The Central Union Federation
>(Central =DAnica dos Trabalhadores, CUT)
>
>IBASE - Brazilian Institute for Social and Economic Analysis
>
>Global Justice Center (Centro de Justi=E7a Global)
>
>The Landless Workers Movement
>(Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra, MST)
>
>
> - Organizational Issues Regarding the World Social Forum
>
>1) The World Social Forum (WSF) will take place in Porto Alegre, Rio
>Grande do Sul state, Brazil, from January 25-30, 2001, the same period
>in which the World Economic Forum occurs in Davos, Switzerland.
>
>2) It will take place in the Events Center of the Catholic University of
>Porto Alegre (Pontif=EDcia Universidade Cat=F3lica de Porto Alegre, PUC),
>with the capacity for 2,500 people in a single auditorium. The PUC
>Events Center is a modern facility with up-to-date technological
>resources. The Center also has several smaller auditoriums.
>
>3) The WSF will consist of three types of activities:
>a) A series of daily plenary sessions with several invited speakers;
>b) presentations of current initiatives and exchange of experiences;
>c) strategy meetings to develop networks and to strengthen ties among
>groups that engage in similar forms of organization.
>
>The plenary sessions will be scheduled by the organizers of the WSF in
>accordance with suggestions by participants. The other meetings will be
>organized based on the interests and requests of the participants.
>
>4) The Events Center also has a large space for information tables and
>art exhibits.
>
>5) The Rio Grande do Sul state government and the Porto Alegre city
>government (both are Workers Party administrations) officially support
>the World Social Forum.
>
>6) The International Committee of the World Social Forum will organize
>its first meeting on June 24, 2000 in Geneva, Switzerland at the same
>time as the Social Summit of the
>United Nations' Copenhagen + 5, which will bring together organizations
>and activists from all over the world.
>
> 7) Our priorities until then will be:
>- To invite networks of NGOs, unions and social movements to form the
>International Committee of the World Social Forum, with the
>responsibility of organizing the event at the international level;
>
>- to establish topics for speeches and presentations to be given during
>the WSF, in common agreement with the International Committee;
>
>- to invite speakers to the WSF;
>
>- to prepare the first meeting of the International Committee in
>Geneva, Switzerland.
>
>- to invite Brazilian organizations for the National Support Committee
>of the WSF;
>
>- to organize logistical issues, such as the communications systems, in
>conjunction with the support committee in Porto Alegre,
>
>7) We expect to attract 2,500 representatives of NGOs, unions and social
>movements, as well as elected representatives. Participants must be
>registered by their organizations. We will establish quotas for
>different sectors and geographic areas.
>
>8) The Brazilian Committee and the International Committee will be
>responsible for guaranteeing the presence of Third World organizations,
>in particular from Africa, Asia and Latin America.
>
>9) Parallel events involving the WSF speakers can be organized in
>coordination with the Brazilian Committee.
>
>10) The World Social Forum is not a decision-making body. Participants,
>however, can disseminate proposals and positions resulted from
>organizing meetings.
>
>11) At the Forum's closure, we will organize a large public event. We
>will also evaluate our organizing process and make decisions for the
>following year.
>
>
>To get involved or to request further information, please write to:
>
>fsm2001@uol.com.br
>
>
Robert L. Potter
Institute of Ecology
The University of Georgia
Athens, GA 30602
Ph: 706-542-5858
2-2968
Fax: 2-6040
Email: BPotter@Sparc.Ecology.UGA.EDU
http://home.att.net/~bpotter/index.html
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