Not quite Fracking.... but I felt there was enough overlap to let you know about this...... only incase anyone is in London, or knows anyone who mght be interested....... Not exactly "caring for mother earth"

Report Launch: ‘Opening Pandora's Box’
A New Wave of Land Grabbing for Mining and its Devastating Global Impacts
Presented by The Gaia Foundation in collaboration with GRAIN,
The London Mining Network and the UK Food Group
Wednesday 29th February 2012
3:00pm – 4:30pm
Panel discussion followed by Q&A
Committee Room 10, House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA
Hosted by the All Party Parliamentary Climate Change Group (APPCCG)
Please enter by St. Stephen’s Gate, and allow about 15 minutes to pass through security. RSVP to Neha Sethi at
the APPCCG Secretariat on climatechangegroup@carbonneutral.com or call 0207 833 6035
Alternatively, if you’d like to meet the panellists and discuss the report in a more informal setting with a glass of wine, come to our public event in Hampstead that evening…
Wednesday 29th February 2012
6:30pm – 9:00pm
6:30pm – 7:30pm food & wine at 18 Well Walk, Hampstead, NW3 1LD
7:30pm – 9:00pm talk and Q&A at Burgh House, New End Square, Hampstead, NW3 1LT
£12 full price, £8 concessions, includes food & wine
Book online www.eventbrite.co.uk/event/2839435829 or call 0207 428 0054 to reserve a place
A dangerous convergence of trends is leading to unprecedented rates of growth and scale in mining across the
planet. There has been a relentless increase in demand for products since 2002 as a result of population
increase, higher standards of living in so-called “new economies”, and a wasteful economic model built around a
throwaway ‘upgrade’ culture in new technologies. The 2008 economic collapse and a rush to invest in tangibles
such as metals and minerals, has pushed up prices, providing further incentive for exploitation into new territories
and deposits.
Meanwhile, more sophisticated extractive technologies - which use huge amounts of energy, water and toxic
chemicals - have led to fracking, tar sands, deep offshore drilling and mountain top removal. As pristine
ecosystems, new depths of land and sea, protected areas such as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and even the
UK Home Counties, become targets for the extractive industry; we are no longer dealing with isolated pockets of
destruction and pollution.
The 2012 report Opening Pandora’s Box, reveals how a new wave of global land grabbing by the extractive
industries is devastating ecosystems, stripping communities of their options for food and water security, and
driving climate change.
The following panelists will be speaking at both events:
• Henk Hobbelink, Coordinator, GRAIN International
• Liz Hosken, Director, The Gaia Foundation
• Richard Solly, Coordinator, the London Mining Network
Deborah Doane, Director of the World Development Movement, members of the UK Food Group will also be
speaking at Westminster. Philippe Sibaud, Author of the report, will be joining the panelists in Hampstead