Friday, September 07, 2007

people vs. pine scent

Why are these disputes always binary. Trees vs. Squatters. That sort of thing.

I understand why Philippine authorities want to restore watersheds and green areas in cities. But the best way of doing this is not by demonizing squatters (see this article from the Inquirer) but by working with them. Yes, plant a million trees. But how about getting the squatters into the act and letting them plant the trees. Join with the squatters and watch environmental activism truly take root.

1 comment:

Brendan Crain said...

Amen.

I remember reading about a similar effort by the UNHCR where refugees were being enlisted to help replant areas that had been devastated by refugee camps. Pretty neat. I found the link, too:

http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/006760.html