http://viewchange.org Videos from ViewChange.org (Filtered by topics: Indigenous peoples of the Americas) en-us Wed, 20 Oct 2010 21:36:00 +0000 Copyright 2011 Link Media, Inc. http://www.viewchange.org/videos/explore-a-place-to-run-to <p>In the town of Iqaluit in the far north of Canada, domestic violence is a serious problem. But Arctic women are supporting each other at Qimaavik, a safe haven for abused women and children. Through peer support and counseling, they are rebuilding their self-esteem and healing wounded spirits.</p> Wed, 20 Oct 2010 21:36:00 +0000 http://www.viewchange.org/videos/explore-a-place-to-run-to Domestic violence, Nunavut, Canada, Iqaluit, Arctic, Women's rights, Intuit, Aboriginal Peoples of Canada, Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Annenberg Foundation >> TITLE: explore.org>> TITLE: The mission of explore is to champion the selfless acts of others.>> TITLE: explore traveled to the Arctic on a philanthropic fact-finding mission to uncover the current issues facing the Intuit people.>> TITLE: A place to run to ...>> TITLE: Canada, Nunavut, capital city Iqaluit>> CHARLES ANNENBERG WEINGARTEN [Founder, explore]: I'm Charles Annenberg Weingarten. I'm in the Arctic with my explore team, to learn and to gather information about people and organizations making a positive difference throughout this region. The Arctic communities face many unique challenges. But even those issues we are familiar with are often magnified in this part of the world. Some of what I discovered was hard to hear. What's the most difficult aspect of living up here in the Arctic?>> MARY ELLEN THOMAS [Executive Director, Iqaluit Research Institute]: For me personally, it's the heartbreak of the social conditions. Of seeing children who don't graduate, women who are being abused, people with huge addiction problems. That's the hard thing.>> TITLE: In a recent survey, the Nunavut territory in the Arctic had a violent crime rate eight times that of Canada overall. This statistic covers only crimes reported. Ninety percent of the victims were women.>> SIGN: Abuse is wrong in any language.>> SIGN: Stop the violence.>> TITLE: Qimaavik Women's Shelter, Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada>> CHARLES ANNENBERG WEINGARTEN: Hi, nice to meet you. >> NAPATCHIE MCRAE [Executive Director, Qimaavik Women's Shelter]: Nice to meet you, too. We home at least 300 to 400 women a year. This is the only shelter in Nunavut that operates 365 days a year, seven days a week, 24 hours.>> CHARLES ANNENBERG WEINGARTEN: What is the name of the organization?>> NAPATCHIE MCRAE: Qimaavik. It's an Inuktitut name, and it's called, "A place to run to." It's to home the women and children that are fleeing violence, either from their partners or from their family members.>> CHARLES ANNENBERG WEINGARTEN: In Iqaluit, the capital of the recently established Nunavut territory, I met with scholars and scientists who spoke to the issues facing this area. Issues that can manifest in domestic abuse.>> MARY ELLEN THOMAS: Urbanization occurs everywhere in the world. Though it's only 6,500 people, it's still an Arctic urban environment. Iqaluit is where the government is, Iqaluit is where there is some private industry, Iqaluit is where things are happening, so the best and brightest, the most educated, come from some of those communities to take jobs here in our community. So you have those folks who don't have an education here, who aren't getting the jobs, so you have that kind of conflict going on. And so it's like everywhere where there's urbanization.>> RICK ARMSTRONG [Scientific Support Manager, Iqaluit Research Institute]: It's difficult for people to get housing here. There's a limited amount of public housing here, and there are long lists of people trying to get into this public housing. So, where do they go? They move in with relatives and, before long, there are problems resulting from too many people living in a house. That's probably one of the areas that really, really needs attention here.>> ELISAPEE SHEUTIAPIK [Mayor of Iqaluit]: There's a huge impact when it comes to overcrowding. Social problems, usually families are overcrowded, sometimes two to three generations live in a home. For me, the biggest challenge is bringing the spirit up. >> TITLE: Iqaluit visitors seminar.>> ELISAPEE SHEUTIAPIK: I think there was a high expectation when we became a territory. The common folk thought they were going to really benefit and they haven't. Trying to build up their self-esteem, confidence. And it's ... In Iqaluit, for instance, a lot of them are feeling kinda left out, because they don't have the education.>> CHARLES ANNENBERG WEINGARTEN: What is the relationship of drugs and alcohol with domestic violence?>> NAPATCHIE MCRAE: Seventy per cent of abuse is related to alcohol and drugs. Thirty per cent will be like due to lack of employment being available, and the other one would be the abuser was either abused when they were growing up, or they have seen the abuse. It is a cycle. This is where we want to be able to help the children to break that link, to break that cycle.>> SIGN: What you see here, what you hear here, when you leave here, let it stay here.>> NAPATCHIE MCRAE: Some of these women that come here don't have self-esteem anymore. They don't know where to begin anymore. It's not just physical anymore, it's emotional.>> CHARLES ANNENBERG WEINGARTEN: What does the center do to help people heal?>> NAPATCHIE MCRAE: We have two peer counselors who'll be seeing clients at least twice a week.>> CHARLES ANNENBERG WEINGARTEN: Do you counsel the abusers?>> NAPATCHIE MCRAE: That's the problem with the shelters, is that that's not part of our mandate, to be talking with the abuser. For several reasons -- one of our issues here is that we don't have a male counselor here, we don't have the funding to help the abuser to heal at the same time. I think if they make the healing a mandatory thing, I think the men would seek more help.>> TITLE: Most abusers in Nunavut receive one day in jail or less.>> NAPATCHIE MCRAE: The biggest challenge running this shelter is dealing with children that have witnessed violence. For one thing, we don't have a child psychologist here, or a person to work with children only, because of the funding.>> CHARLES ANNENBERG WEINGARTEN: How does this center receive its funding?>> NAPATCHIE MCRAE: We get our contribution from the government of Nunavut, from the Department of Health and Social Services. But it's a very limited contribution we get from them, and a lot of stuff that we need to purchase, we have to do some fundraising or depend on donations we receive. A lot of this stuff that we have in here is donated. My dream for this center is to help all these women to get their self-esteem back and to be able to seek employment, to be able to talk to their partners to seek help for themselves too.>> ELISAPEE SHEUTIAPIK: I went to speak to the Ministers of the Status of Women. We went through a process of naming the road to Qimaavik "Angel Street.">> TITLE: Iqaluit singer Lucie Idlout wrote "Angel Street" in honor of her friend Irene, a victim of domestic violence. Mayor Sheutiapik is now asking all Canadian provinces to recognize the victims of domestic abuse by naming a local road Angel Street.>> LUCIE IDLOUT: Broken down on Angel Street / He pushed you down / Made you unseen / Irene / High heels on a gravel road / Irene>> NAPATCHIE MCRAE: I've seen several women move ahead with their life. Some have gotten jobs as social workers, they go to their education. Some have gone through nursing programs, and some have said, "Okay, I'm a strong person, I'm going to go and live by myself, and find myself a job." Us woman suffer the same things, regardless of who we are.>> SIGN: Nunavummiut are working together ... to end violence against women.>> TITLE: explore.org -- never stop learning ...>> TITLE: With the support of the Annenberg Foundation, explore has made funding possible to: The City of Iqaluit Qimaavik Women's Shelter.>> TITLE: To learn more: www.city.iqaluit.nu.ca>> TITLE: [end credits] http://www.viewchange.org/videos/ecuador-a-model-of-green-enterprise <p>Decades of oil drilling in Ecuador has devastated huge swaths of the Amazon rainforest and its wildlife, threatening to destroy the ancestral homes of native tribes and their culture. But some of these indigenous people are finding a way to balance development and conservation.&nbsp;</p> Wed, 07 Jul 2010 21:11:00 +0000 http://www.viewchange.org/videos/ecuador-a-model-of-green-enterprise Amazon Rainforest, Environment, Yasuni National Park, Tourism, Latin America, South America, Ecotourism, Biodiversity, Environmental protection, Sustainability >> DALJIT DHALIWAL: Decades of oil drilling in Ecuador in South America has devastated huge swaths of the Amazon rainforest and its wildlife, threatening to destroy the ancestral homes of native tribes and their culture. But some of those people are finding a way to balance development and conservation. Here's our story. >> VOICEOVER: It's early morning. A loud screeching noise fills the air. Appearing in twos and fours, the parakeets and parrots arrive. They descend from the rainforest, branch by branch, to the clay bank below. They come for the mineral-rich clay, an antidote to the toxins in the nuts and seeds. This corner of the Ecuadorian Amazon jungle is the Yasuni National Park. It's a lush habitat for many kinds of plants and wildlife. The park contains more species of flora and fauna than all of North America. Tourists from around the world come to see the dramatic diversity of life: more than 550 recorded species of birds, and the endangered giant otters. The Yasuni National Park covers two and a half million acres of rainforest in the easternmost part of Ecuador. The park is known as one of the most bio-diverse places on earth, and UNESCO designated the area as a "biosphere reserve" to protect its wildlife and to ensure sustainable livelihoods. But the park also sits on large oil deposits. And behind its seemingly peaceful lushness lies a struggle by the indigenous peoples to protect their ancestral land against reckless exploitation by oil companies. >> GIOVANNI RIVADNEIRA: Oil has spilled all over the Amazon River. >> VOICEOVER: Giovanni Rivadneira is a Quechua Indian from the Anangu community. >> GIOVANNI RIVADNEIRA: With all the exploitation that has been done, the community has gotten absolutely nothing. We don't have water, we don't have a good education, and we don't have good health. >> VOICEOVER: Lured by the quick money offered by oil companies, some communities have allowed them to extract oil on their land. Amazon crude production has been the main source of revenues that keeps Ecuador's economy afloat. But four decades of oil exploitation has left a legacy of deforestation and pollution, threatening not only the plant and animal life, but also the lives of indigenous people. Living inside the Yasuni Park, people in the Anangu community are struggling to make ends meet. Some 300,000 indigenous people call the rainforest their home. Many are hunters, gatherers, and small-scale farmers. Job opportunities have been scarce. Ten years ago, they came up with an economic alternative that would provide jobs for their people and keep oil companies from destroying their land. >> GIOVANNI RIVADNEIRA: In one community meeting, I said we could build something here in this beautiful place God has given us. Here in the forest, we have everything. So I proposed to my community to work in sustainable tourism. >> VOICEOVER: With seed money from a non-governmental group, people in Anangu started to design and build the tour center by themselves. It took five years to complete. Called the Napo Wildlife Center, it's the first native owned and operated lodge in the Yasuni National Park, and a certified ecological destination in Ecuador. Fausto Cornejo was hired by the community to help manage the business. He is making sure that the lodge maintains its commitment to conservation. >> FAUSTO CORNEJO: We do not discharge anything to the soil or to the lake. All the water that comes from the toilet or from the kitchen goes to the septic tanks. And these septic tanks will distribute the gray water and black water to a system of wetlands. You see the grass, this one. This is the one that is purifying all the gray water and black water. Every two months, we test the water that comes out, and gives us around 95 percent free of bacteria, and that means that it's purer than the lake. >> VOICEOVER: The lodge now has four solar panels collecting energy for the electricity. The plan is to rely on solar power for all its energy needs in the future. The Napo Wildlife Center has caught the attention of Tatiana Calderone from the United Nations World Tourism Organization. She is part of a United Nations program that helps communities inside the Yasuni biosphere develop eco-friendly projects. >> TATIANA CALDERONE: We think sustainable tourism is a key for any conservation or preservation program. That's the model we could find in Napo Wildlife Center. We want to apply that model in other communities. >> VISITOR: I think that it's an excellent idea. It's better than some multinational lodge motel operation. This is what the indigenous people need. >> GIOVANNI RIVADNEIRA: We want to show everyone there are many job opportunities by taking care of the forest. Working for an oil company is not the only way. I am very proud to be part of a project that is going to give us profit and this profit is going to be invested in education, health, culture, and protecting our environment. >> VOICEOVER: Sustainable tourism provides development, and leaves a small footprint on environment. It's a boost to the local economy, and the project's supporters are hopeful it can be a viable alternative to oil. >> DALJIT DHALIWAL: Ecuador is asking the international community to compensate it for the loss of oil income in exchange for a moratorium on drilling in one of the largest oilfields in the Yasuni National Park. Several countries have committed funds to study this initiative. http://www.viewchange.org/videos/ecuador-provides-birth-choices-to-save-lives <p>Among indigenous people in remote parts of Ecuador, expectant mothers are often reluctant to give birth away from home, leading to possible complications during labor. But local hospitals are beginning to realize that a little cultural sensitivity can go a long way toward changing their minds.</p> Fri, 07 May 2010 00:15:50 +0000 http://www.viewchange.org/videos/ecuador-provides-birth-choices-to-save-lives Childbirth, Ecuador, Pregnancy, United Nations Population Fund, United Nations, Home birth, Amazon Rainforest, Huaorani, Napo River, South American indigenous people >> VOICEOVER: Ecuador's Amazon jungle: According to a myth of the Huaorani people, pregnant women died giving birth because the only way for their babies to be born was for their husbands to cut open their bellies. But one day, the myth goes, a mouse appeared and told a pregnant woman to throw a rope over a beam in the ceiling, get down on her knees, tap her body with a palm stick, and push the baby out. This is called vertical birth. Today, indigenous women continue to follow this traditional practice at home. But home birth can be life threatening. Ecuador has 13 million people, and nearly one million are indigenous. Many live in remote areas where women face high risks of dying from complications in childbirth simply because they receive medical help too late. Alba Peralta and a group of community health promoters are on a campaign to encourage rural women to switch from home birth to hospital delivery. >> ALBA PERALTA: Life experiences have taught me that it's my obligation to tell women they should go to a health center because not only are their lives in danger, but their babies' as well. >> VOICEOVER: Today, they are travelling 60 miles up the Napo River to Palma Roja, one of the 500 tiny hamlets accessible only by boat. In 1998, the government passed a law providing free maternal health care to every woman, but few in rural communities know about it. In 2004, a network of health promoters known as the Users Committee was created. Supported by the UN Population Fund, or UNFPA, they are to inform and encourage women to claim their rights and benefits. Alba and her team are visiting 18-year-old Mariela Grefa to persuade her to go to the hospital. Pregnant with her first baby, Mariela is learning from her mother the traditional way of childbirth. But, despite the offer of free services, she still prefers giving birth at home. >> MARIELA GREFA: I am scared to go to hospital, because I know that sometimes when women cannot give birth the normal way, doctors open you up. >> VOICEOVER: For indigenous peoples, giving birth is a private and intimate family ritual. Midwives and family members are always there to give support and comfort. Modern medicine is not only unfamiliar but also frightening. >> LILY RODRIGUEZ: When women arrive in hospitals, they have to go through a practice that is completely different from their culture. >> VOICEOVER: Lily Rodriguez is the deputy representative of UNFPA in Ecuador. >> LILY RODRIGUEZ: They are in an unfamiliar environment, and in a language they do not understand, and that's why they resist going to the hospital. >> DR. ALFREDO AMORES: I asked a young mother: "Why don't you go to the hospital?" And she said, "Because we are violated." >> VOICEOVER: Dr. Alfredo Amores, director of the Orellana Provincial Health Department, says women are wary of Western medical doctors. >> DR. ALFREDO AMORES: If they open your legs and put their hands inside you without asking, what do you make of that? For an indigenous woman, this is tremendously offensive. >> VOICEOVER: Years of campaigning by the Users Committees for more culturally sensitive services have led to a new initiative. Otavalo City, high in the Andes, where half of its 10,000 residents are indigenous, recently opened a vertical delivery room in its hospital. It's the first public health institution in the country to provide vertical birth delivery. This Otavalo model is now being replicated in other health facilities. >> LILY RODRIGUEZ: What's being done is the recognition of the Declaration on the Rights of the Indigenous Peoples which says that they have the right to be taken care of according to their culture and worldview. >> VOICEOVER: To inform women of their rights and birth choices is a critical role played by Alba and the Users Committees. Since they began their work, the number of pregnancy-related deaths has started to decline in Ecuador. >> VOICEOVER: This report was prepared by Patricia Chan for the United Nations.