Black communities and sustainable development Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit source - Don de Silva Down to Earth: National conference on black communities and sustainable development If it is not inclusive, it is not sustainable. This was one of the main conclusions of the first national conference on sustainable development issues facing black communities will be held in London recently. The conference was jointly organised by the Community Development Foundation (CDF) and The 1990 Trust. CDF is a leading authority on community development in Britain. The 1990 Trust is a national, advocacy, research, and information institute, which deals with issues faced by black -- Asian, African, and African Caribbean communities - in Britain. Speaking at the conference, Lee Jasper, Director of The 1990 Trust said that there was very little awareness among black community groups about the links between poverty, degradation, social and economic injustice and environmental issues. Although the disadvantaged communities bear the brunt of environment and development problems in Britain, they remained isolated from the mainstream environmental movements. "Black organisations must attend the conference, voice their concerns and take action", Mr. Jasper urged. Conference documents highlighted the fact that most sustainable development problems facing black community groups, such as, unemployment, homelessness, social exclusion, stemmed directly from racism and social injustice and are different from the traditional environmental concerns. For many black communities, racism was the biggest obstacle to the fundamental right of an individual to a liveable environment. Black households were over-represented among homeless households accepted by local authorities. They were allocated the worst housing in the least desirable areas. Black households are subject racial harassment and abuse in most housing estates. Very little had been done by governmental and non-governmental authorities to deal with the impact of racism on children. Housing associations seldom worked with black-run firms. The building industry was riddled with racist attitudes. Black contractors and consultants often had to submit free feasibility studies with little chance of being chosen. Most planning applications submitted by black individuals and enterprises were rejected by local authorities. In the UK, a modest start has been made to address these sustainable development issues with the establishment of LOCAL Agenda 21, an initiative of local government authorities. A recent official survey revealed that: 70% of UK local authorities initiated activities under the LOCAL Agenda 21 initiative. However, two surveys presented at the conference revealed a different story. The CDF survey of Local Agenda 21 officers in local and county councils, carried out by Chris Church , received 160 responses. It revealed that only 3 per cent of the LA 21 staff were from black communities. This figure correlated with the almost totally white presence at the 1998 national annual conference of LA21 staff. The CDF survey concluded that the lack of involvement of black communities in local environmental activities appears primarily due to lack of well-planned activity by those seeking to engender involvement, for example, local authorities, rather than lack of interest. The 1990 Trust survey, presented by Don de Silva received feedback from 72 black community organisations throughout the UK. According to the survey: Thirty-nine per cent had heard about Local Agenda 21; Sixty-one per cent had not heard about Local Agenda 21; Only fourteen per cent had participated in LA 21 activities; A majority of eighty-six per cent had not participated in LA 21 activities. Workshops were held on themes, such as: social exclusion, environmental justice and taking action on environmental issues facing black communities. ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytrc-06.11.99-04:40:23-25273