Children Travel to Kenya to Protect Endangered Species
11/24/98
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Title: Children Travel to Kenya to Protect Endangered Species
Source: InterPress Service
Status: Copyrighted 1998, contact source to reprint
Date: 11/24/98
Byline: Judith Achieng'
NAIROBI, Nov 24 (IPS) - About 450 children, armed with facts,
slides, posters and video tapes, have travelled to the Kenyan
capital of Nairobi to voice their concern about the increasing
threat to the environment by human activities.
''I think the environment is in a terrible state and the
wildlife is suffering,'' says Philip Tinker of Britain, who made a
speech at the three-day International Children's Conference (ICC),
which opened at the UN Environmental Programme (UNEP) headquarters
in Nairobi on Monday.
Tinker, 11, has led a group of children his age in his hometown
of Hull to plant a small forest, a garden with wild plants and
built a pond for toads and water snails. ''I am helping build this
wood so that wildlife will have somewhere to live and food to
eat,'' he says, pointing at the projection of a slide he prepared
for his audience, showing a line of young trees.
Tinker, a member of a UK-based 'Wildlife Watch' which runs
environmental and wildlife activities for children, is also
worried about waste dumping which has become a threat to wildlife
in parts of Britain.
To curb the worrying trend, his wildlife group recently created
the world's longest snake out of used aluminium cans in Hull city
centre to get people to think about recycling. ''In Britain we
produce a lot of rubbish, most of it is dumped in rubbish tips
outside the city on old quarries and wetland cites. This of course
cuts down the number of homes available to wildlife,'' he says.
''We should think ways of persuading people not to produce so
much waste and to recycle more, so that the environment can stay
safe for wildlife and people,'' he says.
Continuous pollution of air and water by industries has also
multiplied in the European country, endangering wild species of
birds, insects and water animals. ''Frogs, toads and newts are
fast decreasing in Britain. All these creatures need wetland to
live in, but lots of wet places are being filled in or drained. I
want these animals to get back their home,'' says Tinker.
The children, aged 10-12, are expected to come up with
recommendations to be presented to governments after the
conference.
According to Tinker, Britain has lost more than 50-percent of
its natural forests, the home of thousands of wild plant and
animal species in the last half a century to industrial expansion,
despite concerted group campaigns against degradation.
Tinker's colleague from Kenya, Mwaka Mitsumi of Malezi school
in Nairobi, says about 24 out of 1,080 bird species known in the
East African country are under the endangered list as a result of
destruction of their habitat, and being hunted for food and
feathers. ''Our people need to get back their cultural values
where people hunted responsibly,'' she says.
Some of the birds, including the blue swallow and the Amani sun-
bird, which get their food out of water die of poisoning caused by
chemicals dumped into the water by industries, she says.
Children from Canada, Japan and India challenged governments to
ban industries that consume a lot of trees and those which release
poisonous waste into the atmosphere and water. ''Companies must be
forced to treat or recycle their waste to stop further degradation
on the environment,'' says Sakiko Hiratsuka from Japan.
Gienvieve and Sarah Dogherty from Canada have narrated how they
have led a group of 10 other children in their Comox valley
community in the fight to save the remaining 150 swans in their
local area. In the 1930s, the swans numbered at least 500 and the
numbers remained stable until commercial logging came in. ''We
have been campaigning to sensitise the government to stop logging
activities which are dangerous to swans,'' explains Gienvieve.
The sisters say that logging not only has changed climatic
patterns in the area but also destroyed the habitat of the swans.
''When tree are cut down, wind blows into their caves and kills
them because they have no protection,'' says Genevieve.
For Upasna Bhandari, educating illiterate people who form a
large segment of the Indian population on the need to curb high
population growth rates to ease the pressure on the environment is
of a major concern. On average, 3 children are born and one person
dies every second in India, according to the 10 year old.
''When the population increases, there will be no space left,
no protection from pollution and no life on earth,'' she argues.
Kenyan delegate, Lisa Ochola says a clean environment will be
achieved when her country's forests will be safe from current
''land grabbing by greedy individuals'' who cut them down and turn
the land into residential estates. ''The city of Nairobi used to
be called the green city in the sun. Now it is filled with litter.
People should try to act responsibly to keep the city clean,'' she
says.
Most delegates were against continued use of chemicals on crops
as a means of attaining food security, which in the process kills
both targeted and untargeted pests. To save plants with medicinal
value and insects vital for pollination from the unselective
killing by chemicals, some suggested that governments should
encourage farmers to take up safer farming methods such as organic
farming as an alternative to chemicals
Others like Julia Dan from Romania called for special security
for all wildlife and not wait to act after they become endangered.
''What use is there waiting for plants and animals to be
endangered before they are given security? If the government put
down policies which protect all wildlife early, then none would be
endangered,'' she says.
The ICC, which has been discussing conservation activities
since 1995, is preparing the ground for the 2,000 conference to be
held in Eastbourne, England, according to UNEP.