“The
real goal of the Earth Charter is that it will
in fact become like
the Ten Commandments.”
- Maurice Strong
The
Earth Charter – Humanity’s Covenant with the Earth
In 1992 Maurice Strong was the
Secretary General of the historic United Nations Earth Summit in Rio.
In order to ensure the success of the Summit, Strong’s wife,
Hanne, held a vigil with the Wisdom-keepers, a group of "global
transformationalists." Through round-the-clock sacred fire,
drumbeat, and meditation, the group “held the energy pattern"
for the duration of the gathering. As described in my previous
article Agenda
21 was the primary
output of the Summit. It was stated at the time that this ‘blueprint
for the 21st century’ would lay the necessary foundation
for a subsequent “new global covenant between humanity and
the Earth.”
Shortly after the Earth Summit
concluded Strong formed the Earth
Council, a group of
“environmental visionaries and
philosophers”, and set about drafting this “new
global covenant”. Various draft versions were
formulated but the radical and transformative nature of the document
met with resistance from more conservative members of the UN
bureaucracy. In 1997, the Earth Council and Green Cross
International, founded by Mikhail Gorbachev, joined forces to form
the Earth
Charter Commission.
The Commission, co-chaired by Strong and Gorbachev, claims to have
consulted more than 100,000 “concerned world citizens”
around the globe. The twenty-three members of the Commission, which
includes nine Club of Rome members, claim to have “mediated
prayerfully over every word and comma”. I wonder who
they were praying too?
The Earth Charter Commission approved
the final text of the Earth Charter in 2000, and it has since been
embraced by the United Nations, many religious leaders around the
world, the majority of world governments and countless
Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO's) and activist groups. Following
the release of the Charter a series of international forums, called
The
Earth Dialogues
were held at the United Nations to discuss how the general
public could be convinced to adopt the “covenant
with the Earth” in a real and personal way.
Perhaps most revealing was the forum for Inter-Religious
Groups and Spiritual Leaders. As stated in the forums official
meeting
minutes, the intent
was to deal with "the ethics of
intolerant righteousness and the greed of short term gain, as these
cannot lead us to sustainable development. It is clear that our
religious institutions have barely begun to articulate the core
values of sustainable development. In their fundamentalist -
fanatical forms, religions throughout history have justified
terrorism, jihads and crusades against people who hold different
beliefs and against the Earth itself." So we can
clearly see who they consider their enemy to be.
While
supporters of the Earth Charter consider traditional mono-theistic
religions to be the main obstacle to peaceful coexistence and
sustainable life on Earth, they do not propose doing away with
spirituality. The Earth Charter goes into detail about the need for
faith and spirituality in human life. The preamble of the charter
states "the spirit of human solidarity
and kinship with all life is strengthened when we live with reverence
for the mystery of being, gratitude for the gift of life, and
humility regarding the human place in nature."
So
what exactly does this Earth Charter contain? Compared to most UN
publications it is very short, only four pages long, direct, and to
the point. It clearly lays out the Constitution for a New Green
Order. "The choice is ours,"
it states, "form a global partnership
to care for Earth and one another or risk the destruction of
ourselves and the diversity of life. Fundamental changes are needed
in our values, institutions, and ways of living."
The Charter can be read at the official Earth
Charter website. The
site describes the Charter as “a
declaration of fundamental values and principles for building a just,
sustainable, and peaceful global society in the 21st century. Created
by the largest global consultation process ever associated with an
international declaration, endorsed by thousands of organizations
representing millions of individuals, the Earth Charter seeks to
inspire in all peoples a sense of global interdependence and shared
responsibility for the well-being of the human family and the larger
living world. It is an expression of hope and a call to help create a
global partnership at a critical juncture in history.”
The
document begins with a preamble which summarises the problems with
the “global situation”, why an Earth Charter is
needed to address these problems and the solutions the Charter will
provide. It then lists 16 overarching principles that it claims
should govern life on this planet. The Charter concludes with a
series of closing statement entitled The Way Forward. Rather
than going through the whole document line by line I will just
provide the reader with the preamble and closing statement which, in
effect, summarise the other parts of the Charter. Keep in mind as you
read the following text, this is not the ramblings of some idealistic
environmental group. It is a covenant that has been officially
endorsed by the UNCED, UNESCO, UNEP, many governments, and thousands
of smaller organisations.
PREAMBLE
We
stand at a critical moment in Earth's history, a time when humanity
must choose its future. As the world becomes increasingly
interdependent and fragile, the future at once holds great peril and
great promise. To move forward we must recognize that in the midst of
a magnificent diversity of cultures and life forms we are one human
family and one Earth community with a common destiny. We must
join together to bring forth a sustainable global society founded
on respect for nature, universal human rights, economic justice, and
a culture of peace. Towards this end, it is imperative that we, the
peoples of Earth, declare our responsibility to one another, to the
greater community of life, and to future generations.
Earth,
Our Home
Humanity is part of a vast evolving universe.
Earth, our home, is alive with a unique community of life. The forces
of nature make existence a demanding and uncertain adventure, but
Earth has provided the conditions essential to life's evolution. The
resilience of the community of life and the well-being of humanity
depend upon preserving a healthy biosphere with all its ecological
systems, a rich variety of plants and animals, fertile soils, pure
waters, and clean air. The global environment with its finite
resources is a common concern of all peoples. The protection of
Earth's vitality, diversity, and beauty is a sacred trust.
The
Global Situation
The dominant patterns of production and
consumption are causing environmental devastation, the
depletion of resources, and a massive extinction of species.
Communities are being undermined. The benefits of development are not
shared equitably and the gap between rich and poor is widening.
Injustice, poverty, ignorance, and violent conflict are widespread
and the cause of great suffering. An unprecedented rise in human
population has overburdened ecological and social systems. The
foundations of global security are threatened. These trends are
perilous—but not inevitable.
The Challenges
Ahead
The choice is ours: form a global partnership to
care for Earth and one another or risk the destruction of
ourselves and the diversity of life. Fundamental changes are
needed in our values, institutions, and ways of living. We must
realize that when basic needs have been met, human development is
primarily about being more, not having more. We have the knowledge
and technology to provide for all and to reduce our impacts on the
environment. The emergence of a global civil society is
creating new opportunities to build a democratic and humane world.
Our environmental, economic, political, social, and spiritual
challenges are interconnected, and together we can forge inclusive
solutions.
Universal Responsibility
To
realize these aspirations, we must decide to live with a sense of
universal responsibility, identifying ourselves with the whole
Earth community as well as our local communities. We are at once
citizens of different nations and of one world in which the local
and global are linked. Everyone shares responsibility for the
present and future well-being of the human family and the larger
living world. The spirit of human solidarity and kinship with all
life is strengthened when we live with reverence for the mystery of
being, gratitude for the gift of life, and humility regarding the
human place in nature. We urgently need a shared vision of basic
values to provide an ethical foundation for the emerging world
community. Therefore, together in hope we affirm the following
interdependent principles for a sustainable way of life as a common
standard by which the conduct of all individuals, organizations,
businesses, governments, and transnational institutions is to be
guided and assessed.
THE
WAY FORWARD
As never before in
history, common destiny beckons us to seek a new beginning. Such
renewal is the promise of these Earth Charter principles.
To fulfill this promise, we must commit ourselves to adopt and
promote the values and objectives of the Charter. This requires a
change of mind and heart. It requires a new sense of global
interdependence and universal responsibility. We must
imaginatively develop and apply the vision of a sustainable way of
life locally, nationally, regionally, and globally. Our cultural
diversity is a precious heritage and different cultures will find
their own distinctive ways to realize the vision. We must deepen and
expand the global dialogue that generated the Earth Charter, for we
have much to learn from the ongoing collaborative search for truth
and wisdom.
Life often involves tensions between important
values. This can mean difficult choices. However, we must find ways
to harmonize diversity with unity, the exercise of freedom with the
common good, short-term objectives with long-term goals. Every
individual, family, organization, and community has a vital role to
play. The arts, sciences, religions, educational institutions, media,
businesses, nongovernmental organizations, and governments are all
called to offer creative leadership. The partnership of government,
civil society, and business is essential for effective
governance.
In order to build a sustainable global community,
the nations of the world must renew their commitment to the United
Nations, fulfill their obligations under existing international
agreements, and support the implementation of Earth Charter
principles with an international legally binding instrument on
environment and development. Let ours be a time remembered for the
awakening of a new reverence for life, the firm resolve to achieve
sustainability, the quickening of the struggle for justice and
peace, and the joyful celebration of life.
Now
you may be thinking this all sounds very nice and reasonable. Why not
join together in a joyful celebration of life. But the real intent
behind the Earth Charter, and the Global Green Agenda in general, is
to eliminate national sovereignty and place all humanity under the
control of a single 'Earth Government.' They clearly and explicitly
state that this is their goal:
"In
my view, after fifty years of service in the United Nations system, I
perceive the utmost urgency and absolute necessity for proper
Earth government ... There is no shadow of a doubt that the
present political and economic systems - if systems they are - are no
longer appropriate and will lead to the end of life evolution on this
planet. We must therefore absolutely and urgently look for new ways.
The less we lose time, the less species' and nature will be
destroyed.
Since the
United Nations is the only world-wide, universal organization that
is presently available, since it had fifty years of valuable
experience and many successes, since it paved the way to proper
Earth government, instead of putting it on the defensive,
unjustified attacks and criticism, reduction of resources and
non-payment of obligatory contributions, governments should honestly
ask themselves if a better way would not be to consider a second
generation United Nations upgraded by a true quantum jump into a
proper Earth preserving and human well-being and justice ensuring
organization of our planet.
The continental approach to a
world union remains an important avenue. One could conceive five
continental unions: the European Union, an American, an African, an
Asian, and an Australian Union. A World Union could be
constructed as a super-structure and common political, economic and
environmental instrument to achieve these objectives."
from
- The
Earth Charter in Action
Unlike
Agenda 21, which is a hard law document, the Earth Charter lays out
the principles which laws and regulations will have to promote and
enforce. The Charter
"was drafted in coordination with a
hard law treaty that is designed to provide an integrated legal
framework for all environment development law and policy."
This hard law treaty is called the International Covenant on
Environment and Development and is being prepared by the Commission
on Environmental Law at the International Union for the Conservation
of Nature (IUCN), a behemoth agency which oversees 700+ governmental
agencies worldwide. Interestingly, Maurice Strong (busy man!) is on the IUCN's Board of Directors.
Again, unlike Agenda 21, the Earth Charter
is not being forced on local communities from above. The United
Nations is quietly fostering a grass-roots mainstream movement where
people personally commit themselves to the Charter. They believe that
this personal commitment will be necessary to bring about the
societal transformation that the Charter requires. The primary tool
being used to permeate society with awareness and acceptance of the
Charter is the Earth
Charter Initiative.
This is another brain-child of Strong and Gorbachev.
According
to their own description “The Earth
Charter Initiative is the collective name for an extraordinarily
diverse, global network of people, organizations, and institutions
who participate in promoting the Earth Charter, and in implementing
its principles in practice. The Initiative is a broad-based,
voluntary, civil society effort, but participants include leading
international institutions, national governments, university
associations, NGOs, cities, faith groups, and many well-known leaders
in sustainable development.”
The Earth
Charter Initiative is located in, and managed by, the United Nations
University of Peace. The governing council of this University
contains some very interesting names. Many of its top
academics are members of the Club of Rome. In fact the infamous
Maurice Strong is the President
of the University and its Rector, Martin Lees, is the Secretary
General of the CoR! The
founder and current Chancellor of the University is Robert Muller,
former Assistant-Secretary of the United Nations, and its #2 ranked
official. I strongly urge the reader to research Mr Muller’s
vision for the world as outlined on his websites
http://www.robertmuller.org/
and http://www.goodmorningworld.org/.
Here are some snippets to whet your appetite:
"Little
by little a planetary prayer book is
thus being composed by an
increasingly united
humanity seeking its oneness. Once
again,
but this time on a universal scale, humankind is
seeking
no less than its reunion with 'divine,'
its transcendence into
higher forms of life. Hindus
call our earth Brahma, or God, for
they rightly
see no difference between our earth and the
divine.
This ancient simple truth is slowly dawning again
upon
humanity, as we are about to enter our cosmic age
and
become what we were always meant to be:
the planet of god."
-
Robert Muller,
former UN Assistant
Secretary General
and Chancellor of the UN University for
Peace
“What an incredible
planet in the universe this will be
when we will be one human
family living in justice,
peace, love and harmony with our divine
Earth,
with each other and with the heavens.”
-
Robert Muller,
former UN Assistant
Secretary General
As a final insult, and perhaps to
make clear the true intent of their agenda, the original copy of the
Earth Charter has been placed in a specially constructed Ark of Hope.
Placed within the Ark, along with the Earth Charter, were
various items
called 'Temenos Books' and 'Temenos Earth Masks.' Temenos is a
concept adopted by Carl Jung to denote a magic circle, a sacred space
where special rules and energies apply. Some of the Temenos Books
were created within this magic circle by children, who filled them
with visual affirmations for Mother Earth. Fashioned with the "earth
elements", the Temenos Earth Masks were also worn and created by
children. The outside of the Ark is covered with images depicting
native spirits of fire, earth, air and water. If you wish you can
read more here.
This Ark forms a major part of ‘the Earth Charter outreach
programme’ and visits hundreds of schools and universities
around the world each year.
The Earth Charter stresses that
man is his own saviour. By saving 'Mother Earth' we will once again
return to an idyllic Garden of Eden and redeem our tarnished souls.
But instead of worshipping the true Creator, the Global Green Agenda
seeks to plunge us headlong into an earth-worship new world religion.
They are only waiting for “the right crisis” after
which they surmise that humanity will gladly sell their souls for the
kind of world that the Earth Charter Promises.
“Do
not do unto the environment of others what
you do not want done to
your own environment..
My hope is that this Charter will be a kind
of
Ten Commandments, a 'Sermon on the Mount',
that provides a
guide for human behavior toward the
environment in the next
century.”
- Mikhail Gorbachev