It is true that democracy based on majority view is also a form of oppresion especially against minorities. The same can be said about knowledge. Knowledge consolidated in the hands and minds of a few, can result in a legitimised form of oppression. This is becoming evident in the area of climate change within the promoted complex mechanisms and processes meant to comprehensively deal with this global phenomenon.
A few terms have become synonymous with “climate change”- REDD, COP15, Adaptation and Mitigation- especially linked to local communities and how they can be integrated into the climate change framework. A few well placed leaders, NGOs, CBOs etc have been at the forefront of calling for action and demanding for resources to facilitate the engagement with these “terms”.
The biggest gainers at the present moment are those armed with the knowledge about where resources can be accessed (for training, workshops, meetings, conventions etc), and this happens to be a minority of leaders among the disadvantaged and marginalised local groups and communities (real or imagined). There is nothing wrong with the crop of leaders attending and being part of the “global party”, but there is everything wrong when this is being done in the name of the marginalised, but with a clearly misplaced agenda- accumulating resources for a few individuals. We need to draw an ethical line when dealing with climate change…….where is that line?
Sphere: Related Content
