The Clear Act (Cap & Dividend)

So I read the Clean Act, also known as Cap and Dividend,  is gaining momentum in the US thanks to Senators Maria Cantwell (Democratic Washington State) and Susan Collins (Republican Maine). Through this plan the government will (a) cap the carbon supply, then (b) auction permits to companies, and out of this (c) Pay back dividends to citizens. Every year there is a reduction in permits so supply declines and prices increase. The idea is that once this begins clean technology will become c...

War v. Justice: Part I

This is part one in a series dealing with questions of constitutional and international justice as a result of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq through a case study of Omar Khadr, an enemy combatant currently in US custody at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Part I: Introduction The last ten years have raised many important questions not only regarding the legal rules of war, but the application of law and justice at home, too. There are many reasons for this. When you think about it, there are no mor...

Emily in the News – Reporting from Haiti

Our fellow UN Citizen Ambassador Emily Troutman has spent the past several weeks in Haiti offering her help, recording her experiences and photographing the destruction and now the recovery of the nation. Recently she has been featured on AOL News (here) describing some of the medical issues now being faced by thousands. The admirable work of hundreds of doctors and nurses working tirelessly in makeshift hospital camps has already been the focus of numerous international headlines due ...

Tricks and Toxic Waste in Ivory Coast

Is this for real? I cannot find any other sources than Wiki leaks. UPDATE: Its real. Also covered (and solicited by Trafigura's lawyers) on UK's Guardian, BBC NewsNight, Huffington Post,and Greenpeace. According to Business Respect, Trafigura has offered 1,000 British Pounds ($1624 USD) as compensation to each of the 30,000 people affected. SOURCE: WIKILEAKS This file contains a deleted BBC news article on the toxic-waste dumping of commodities giant Trafigura. According to a Septe...

West Bank student’s deportation upheld

BBC News - West Bank student Berlanty Azzim's deportation upheld Berlanty has a Gaza ID card. She went to the West Bank under a visitors permit but instead stayed for four years to study Business Management - which she would be finishing this coming month. At the end of October, she was stopped at an Israeli checkpoint, detained for six hours, then blindfolded, handcuffed and told she would be taken to a detention centre in the southern West Bank. When her blindfold was removed hours l...

EVENT: AIU Lecture Symposium 2009

For those of you in Japan on December 3, 2009, my International Institutions and Law class will be hosting a lecture and discussion regarding Human Rights violations in the occupied Palestinian territories. The Lecture Symposium will run for an hour and a half, and will be an excellent opportunity to learn about a conflict situation that has continued to plague the middle east for over fifty years. We will be joined by Saul Takahashi, Deputy Head of Office of the United Nations Office of t...

Kirsty on Vancouver’s Urban Rush

This past Friday Kirsty sat down with the hosts of Vancouver's Urban Rush to talk about her experience in New York and her entry in the UN Citizen Ambassador Project. While there she spoke about global citizens working towards the Millennium Development Goals, adjusting our consumerist and materialist cultures, and putting pressure the Canadian government to follow through on the promise by Lester B. Pearson (and recently other developed nations) to contribute 0.7% GNI to foreign aid. What...

Doha deal creates corruption monitoring mechanism

Under the new mechanism, all States will be monitored every five years to see how they are living up to their obligations. Findings, based on self-assessments and peer reviews by experts, will be compiled in country review reports. The executive summary of these reports will be made public. "From now on, States will be judged by the actions that they take against corruption, not the promises they make," said Mr. Costa. via Doha deal creates corruption monitoring mechanism.

The Citizen Ambassadors Project Film

The wonderfully talented David Ohana at the UN offices in New York has finalized the Citizen Ambassadors Project Film about our trip to New York in October - so here it is, in all of its glory (and don't worry, its only a few minutes long)! httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6nnjDEYve8

Emily on Fox 5 News!

Check out below for UN Citizen Ambassador Emily Troutman on Fox 5 News! httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zzkYxlSUVM