[Aztlan] Indians Gather to Save the Planet

[Hoopes, John W]

PALENQUE, Mexico (AP) - North American Indians assembled in the shadow
of ancient Mayan pyramids Monday discussed how their tradition wisdom
could help save the planet, and were told that even indigenous cultures
have struggled with environmental abuse.

More than 200 leaders from 71 American Indian nations in Mexico, the
United States and Canada came together in this Mexican jungle to find
indigenous solutions to pollution and ecological problems threatening
the planet.

"Our Mother Earth is being polluted at an alarming rate, and our elders
say that she is dying," said Raymond Sensmeier, a Tlingit leader from
Yakutat, Alaska. "The way the weather is around the world ... a
cleansing is needed."

The conference began with a pre-dawn ceremony that included fire, copal
incense, chants in Lacandon Maya and blasts from a conch shell.

Speakers reminded attendees that even Indian cultures have battled with
environmental abuse and pointed to theories that deforestation
contributed to the collapse of the Maya who built the temples at
Palenque.

"As we stand here, very near Palenque, I am mindful that some scholars
have suggested that environmental stressors contributed to the decline
of the Mayan civilization," said U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
regional administrator Elin Miller. "The planet-wide stress on the
environment today means that collaborative efforts ... are not just good
things. They may well be essential for our survival."

But, as Bill Erasmus, a representative of the indigenous people of
Canada's Northwest Territories noted, "part of our role is to wake up
the world. It is very obvious to us all that the climate is changing."

Mexico's environment secretary, Juan Elvira Quesada, said the gathering
is meant "to present the teachings of the original peoples of North
America."

"In this way, the indigenous communities can become the natural guides
to restoring balance and harmony in the world," he said.

The lessons they have to teach are simple - based on reviving Indian
notions about ownership, use, compensation and respect.

"I sometimes talk to scientists," said Sensmeier, "and they
compartmentalize things, put things in boxes and disconnect them, and
doing so promotes disharmony and imbalance."
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jc6oTnNUIBs5sEpldHPNe57rjljAD8VB1U500

We should work to improve communication and understanding to the point
where individuals like Sensmeier would know that there are many
scientists who are working hard within their own belief systems to
accomplish just the opposite.

John Hoopes