Individuals can make a difference by committing to boycott bottled water in their everyday lives. But, in order to make a significant dent in the profits of the industry and to continue widespread public outreach and education, WILPF has created resources to help you work with institutions in your community. By working with local restaurants, schools, community centers and local governments, you can have an impact on the growing bottled water boycott! This is a direct action campaign that includes elements of media, community outreach, education, and targeted action. Download the toolkit here.

Blue October is an international month of action to challenge corporate control of water and to protect water as a shared natural resource available to all.

1. Take Back the Tap! Celebrate the 35th Anniversary of the Clean Water Act, one of our most important environmental laws, by calling on Congress to invest in clean, affordable public tap water for future generations. More info: vkaplan@fwwatch.org or 202-797-6556

Stop the Mining of Sacred Tribal Land!

We need your immediate support to stop the proposed copper mining that would irreversibly desecrate lands sacred to Apache and other tribes and devastate the environment and health of the people in Superior, Arizona, and many other neighboring Arizona communities.

Background
On July 24, 2007 Senators Jon Kyl (R-AZ) and John McCain (R-AZ) introduced bill S. 1862, the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act of 2007, in the US Senate. A related bill, H.R. 3301, was introduced in the House of Representatives by Representative Pastor (D-AZ) on August 1, 2007,.  The House bill is co-sponsored by Representatives Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Harry Mitchell (D-AZ), and John Shadegg (R-AZ). The proposed bills would, among other things, convey federally-owned land known as Oak Flat, Devils Canyon, and Apache Leap near Superior, Arizona, to Resolution Copper Mining, a subsidiary of a multi-national mining corporation. The land sought by Resolution Copper is believed to have one of the largest copper deposits in the world and is worth an estimated $65 billion. That land, however, contains sites and artifacts that are of deep spiritual, cultural, and historic significance to the Apache and other tribes in the region. Further, Apache Leap is a breath-taking butte where Apache lookouts were once posted to warn of attacks by the US Cavalry and leapt to their deaths rather than be captured.

Defeat Fast Track Postcard Now Available for download

 

Fast Track drains our democracy...
Water is a human and earth right, not a commodity to be bought and sold. Free trade deals like NAFTA, CAFTA and WTO/GATS put our public water commons on the market for private profit, and threaten the availability of safe and affordable drinking water for all. The Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) or “Fast Track” process allows the White House to negotiate and sign free trade deals that deny Congress and We, the People, a voice. Free trade deals override national and local sovereignty. We need just and democratic trade that respects the rights of communities and nature.
Write your Congressperson today!
Sample Letter:
Dear Member of Congress,
Fast Track is up for renewal June 30, 2007. I am staunchly opposed to legislation granting new Fast Track authority to President Bush during the 110th Congress. Free Trade deals like NAFTA, CAFTA and WTO/GATS have been passed via the Fast Track process, and have opened the flood gates to privatization of our public water services and resources. Multinational corporations must deliver profit to investors. Water privatization severely limits access to safe and affordable water for people and ecosystems.
Water for life, not for profit!
Do not grant Bush's White House Fast Track Authority!
Name:…………………………………………………………………………….. Address:……………………...City:……………… State:……..Zip:…………..
Email:……………………………………………………………………………... Signature: ………………………………………………………………………...

Satin ribbons representing Nature’s Gifts to all her creations – Sky, Land, Water, Animals –interweave with the gifts of our ancestors, our Cultural Heritage, to form an interdependent Tapestry of the Commons. Together we weave the tapestry, together we remember the gifts of the commons, and together we unweave the ribbons as we assess the current state of our common wealth.

The Tapestry of the Commons is an interactive, engaging and beautiful project for groups of all ages and levels. We can use it to explore the concepts of common, public and private property; interconnectedness and sustainability; and the threats of privatization, globalization, commodification and corporatization. With a narrative grounded in history and through exercises and games we emerge with ideas for focused action designed to reclaim our common wealth.