пятница, 30 декабря 2016 г.
четверг, 29 декабря 2016 г.
Russell Begaye: How President Obama has protected our sacred land for future generations
I am very proud to be both Navajo and American. As the President of the Navajo Nation, I’ve dedicated my life to ensuring that, as a Navajo, my story - and our stories - are part of our collective American history. Today, I want to share one of those stories with you.
There was a time when our nations, American and Navajo, were at war with each other - when the U.S. Cavalry forcibly rounded up Navajo men, women, and children, and marched them at gunpoint to a foreign land hundreds of miles away. During this time, some of my Navajo ancestors successfully hid at a sacred place of prayer, shelter, and fortitude: the Bears Ears area of Utah.
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Bears Ears National Monument
This beautiful piece of land stretches for over a million acres across the southern edge of the state. Its ancient cliff dwellings, ceremonial sites, abundant rock art, countless cultural artifacts, winding creek beds, and expanses of desert land, contain the great history of my nation.
This place served to protect my family then, just as it has protected many Native American people throughout the years.
Today, President Barack Obama has signed a proclamation to protect this land as a national monument for future generations of Navajo people and for all Americans. Thanks to his action, this land will be finally given the legal reverence and protection it deserves.
This action reflects the President’s profound record on conservation: He has done more than any other president in history to set aside more land and water for the future.
But it is also in accordance with his actions to elevate the voices of Native people. Five sovereign tribal nations petitioned to have this irreplaceable land conserved.
Bears Ears National Monument is sacred not only to the Diné people, but also our Hopi, Ute, and Zuni neighbors. These tribes came together in an unprecedented show of unity to conserve these lands for future generations of all Americans. This intertribal coalition also pushed for a new standard for national monuments and tribal involvement.
With this step to protect and conserve these irreplaceable lands, he has set a new precedent for national monument tribal collaborative management. And he has strengthened the relationship between our Navajo and American nations.
As both Navajo and American, I am proud our President listened to a sovereign appeal and acted to preserve our sacred land for future generations.
Russell Begaye President,
Navajo Nation
четверг, 22 декабря 2016 г.
Paul Nicklen: Why we're protecting the Arctic
For the last 40 years, I've roamed the polar regions of our world. I started as a child, growing up in an Inuit community on Baffin Island, Canada, where I learned from the Inuit people not just to survive in our environment - but to thrive in and love the Arctic for all it had to offer.
Later, as a scientist, I tried using data to make the case for conservation. But it wasn't until I became a polar photographer for Sea Legacy and National Geographic magazine that I finally found a way to convey the urgency of protecting this fragile ecosystem for the good of all humanity.
Photo by Paul Nicklen
As a scientist, what I know about the Arctic is terrifying. Currently, it’s warming twice as fast as anywhere else on the planet. As a photographer, I can observe and document these effects first-hand: receding glaciers, struggling wildlife populations, and cities impacted by rising sea levels.
And as the landscape changes, driven by climate change, I am watching the Arctic region become increasingly vulnerable. In particular, we should see the rapid disappearance of sea ice here for what it is: a sign of imminent and catastrophic change. The danger of an oil spill would deliver a fatal blow to this pristine and critically important ecosystem.
But - with the leadership of President Obama - we've taken a step forward.
The new withdrawal - which encompasses the entire U.S. Chukchi Sea and the vast majority of the U.S. Beaufort Sea - will provide critical protection for the unique and vibrant Arctic ecosystem, which is home to marine mammals and other vital ecological resources and marine species, and upon which many Alaska Native communities depend. With this action, we’ve now protected nearly 125 million acres in the Arctic from future oil and gas activity since 2015.
Photo by Paul Nicklen
This action also comes in conjunction with Canada’s announcement that it will freeze offshore oil and gas leasing in its Arctic waters, to be reviewed every five years through a climate and marine science-based assessment.
My career as a scientist, photojournalist, and co-founder of SeaLegacy.org has taught me that merely telling people the ice is melting doesn't work. Temperatures are rising. Animals are struggling, starving and drowning. Water levels are gradually immersing cities. We can no longer just talk about this. We need to show the world how urgent it is with images and stories and, more importantly, with urgent action.
At this pace the Arctic will be void of ice by 2050. It's a message that's hard to hear but easy to understand when you see the damage at the poles of this great Earth. Species whose survival is at serious risk, like the Pacific walrus, polar bear, bowhead whale, fin whale, spectacled eider, and Steller’s eider will benefit from these protections, and so will the communities that rely on the Arctic ecosystem for their way of life. I hope Sea Legacy’s photographs become ambassadors for this beautiful ecosystem and inspire immediate action to protect it.
Thanks for hearing me,
Paul
Paul Nicklen
Wildlife Photojournalist Nanoose
Bay, British Columbia, Canada
суббота, 17 декабря 2016 г.
Julia de la Rosa: Hola (from Cuba)
My name is Julia de la Rosa, and I am a Cuban cuentapropista - or Cuban entrepreneur. Over 20 years ago, my husband and I started our own business in Cuba providing lodging and transportation to visitors in our neighborhood in Havana. Everything about my business was on a very small scale: We had two bedrooms and one old car, and we did almost everything ourselves.
As a cuentapropista, I watched this historic change help my business grow in ways I would have never expected. The demand for our services dramatically increased with the growing number of visitors, so we had the opportunity to expand. We now run a real bed and breakfast with 10 bedrooms, and have 17 people working with us as we provide services 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Now, we’re starting a small taxi company, as transportation requests have increased - especially in old, classic cars. Thanks to these new times, we can even come to the U.S. to buy pieces to restore our eight American cars.
More than 500,000 Americans visited Cuba last year. Ten U.S. airlines are flying between American and Cuba citizens. And American cruise lines will soon start pulling into our ports. That’s going to mean a lot for Cuba's development.
But this new relationship has not only changed my business, it’s changed my life. Like many others Cubans, I have family in the U.S., and thanks to President Obama’s decision to re-establish relations, my biggest dream could finally come true - to travel to Miami to meet my father's family. I am incredibly grateful to President Obama for his leadership in forging this historic change for the U.S. and Cuba, and for what it will mean to both the Cuban and American people for generations to come.
Hope to see you in Havana soon,
Julia Julia de la Rosa
Havana, Cuba
суббота, 10 декабря 2016 г.
пятница, 9 декабря 2016 г.
понедельник, 5 декабря 2016 г.
пятница, 2 декабря 2016 г.
четверг, 1 декабря 2016 г.
Josh Earnest Press Secretary The White House: How to see the White House on a dollar bill.
What’s it like to attend a state dinner at the White House? Or see Marine One land on the South Lawn?
From hosting festivals on the South Lawn to allowing people to explore its rooms via Google Street View, President Obama has used both traditional events and new technology to open up the doors of the White House to more Americans than ever before.
Today, we’re excited to share a new way for you to experience 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue - and all you need is a smartphone and a dollar bill.
As you experience a year at the White House -- from the Easter Egg Roll to a State Arrival Ceremony -- you'll see that even as seasons and people change, the White House endures as an institution of American democracy. That’s why we teamed up with the White House Historical Association and Nexus Studios to create this augmented reality experience -- to educate and inspire Americans to learn all about what the People’s House stands for.
So, give it a try:
Josh
Josh Earnest
Press Secretary
The White House
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