Tag: corporations

Barcoding Nature: The Largest Global Land Grab In Human History

“We abuse land because we see it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.” — Aldo Leopold

Have you ever heard of a natural asset company or NAC in short (and we’re not referring here to the glutathione precursor, N-acetyl-cysteine)? It won’t surprise us if you haven’t. We’ve only recently come across the term ourselves and we’re coming to the view that it may facilitate the biggest corporate land grab in recent history. That’s if we, the people, don’t put a stop to it.

If you believe that Nature should never become a commodity that’s bought and sold by a powerful few, read on. The fact that the moneyed minority feel that they have a right to effectively barcode Nature is quite breathtaking in its greed and arrogance. Though not all that surprising when you look at what’s been happening over the past 2 years. We really are being called to ‘clean house’ on so many levels.

We’ve created an infographic (see below) to summarise the plans for the exploitation of what’s now being termed, Nature’s Economy. You can see at a glance the price tag that’s been placed on her head and why suddenly traditional philanthropy — based on giving — has been declared ‘a total failure’ and is being replaced by ‘investment philanthropy’. You’ll be familiar with the names involved in kicking off this new kind of non-giving (aka taking) philanthropy. If you were wondering how philanthropic investing could be declared a failure, look no further than André Hoffmann, the vice chairman of pharmaceutical giant, Roche.

Please download and share as far and wide as you can. This is a message that needs to take flight rapidly.

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Pizza Hut Pushes Anti-Racism Training For Teachers, Talks Of America’s ‘History Of Police Brutality And Systemic Racism’

Pizza Hut, through its Pizza Hut Foundation, is presenting training pamphlets for teachers that make statements such as “Racism exists within and beyond schools and communities of learning,” “The myth of a racial hierarchy remains a dominant part of America’s culture,” and “Acts of violence against Black communities are often identified on social media by the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter.”

In a pamphlet titled, “Empowering Educators: A Guidebook on Race and Racism,” it states, “The Empowering Educators Guidebook provides support for educators seeking to increase their personal awareness of race and racism, as well as direction on how to ground learning environments through inclusive curriculum and diverse, affirming literature.”

The pamphlet refers to America’s history of systemic racism as it talks about the death of George Floyd: “Floyd’s murder, along with other acts of violence against Black men and women leading up to and after his death, spurred global protests as America continues to reckon with its history of police brutality and systemic racism.”

It continues by arguing, “Many antiracist experts note that racism in America is not perpetuated by ‘bad’ people. Rather, racism is maintained by laws, policies, and normalized practices that are upheld consciously and unconsciously by those who knowingly or unknowingly benefit from them,” adding, “Although many people don’t engage in individual acts of racism, they still benefit from racist policies, practices, and social norms.”

It champions the “reality” of intersectionality, writing, “A person who is Black and female, for example, experiences discrimination and disadvantage differently than a person who is White and female. This concept of intersectionality was coined in 1989 by Dr. Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw. She describes how a person’s social identities such as race, class, and gender coincide to create overlapping systems of disadvantage. When developing your awareness, it is important to acknowledge this reality for students, families, and colleagues.”

Quoting the author of “Anti-Bias Education For Young Children and Ourselves,” the pamphlet states, “Children as young as three-years-old begin to show evidence of societal messages affecting how they feel about themselves or their group identity—this is the beginning of internalized superiority or internalized oppression.”

In a section titled, “Microaggresions,” the pamphlet states, “Microassaults are overt attacks intended to communicate discriminatory or biased feelings about a person or group,” followed by this example: “An educator calls on all White students before calling on any BIPOC students. (Underlying message: I don’t see you as equal to White students.)”

Then this: “Microinsults often come across as compliments, but they convey insensitivity or rudeness that demeans a person’s identity,” with the example, “‘You are so articulate.’ (Underlying message: It is unusual for someone of your race to be intelligent.)”

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The Emerging Magic Mushroom Monopoly

In December 2017, one of the godfathers of the contemporary psychedelic renaissance, Bob Jesse, penned a manifesto for the commercial era of hallucinogens, one that echoed as far and wide as when Timothy Leary famously evangelized, “Turn on, tune in, drop out,” in 1966. Jesse delivered a very different kind of message: “Open science for all!”

A philanthropist and independent researcher, Jesse was instrumental to reviving a new wave of medical interest into psychedelic-assisted therapy starting in the 1990s. This new form of therapy offers a revolutionary approach to treating the rising cases of depression and anxiety in the U.S. But Jesse began to see this pioneering research pillaged by Big Pharma, as soon as it showed commercial value as a breakthrough treatment for mental illness.

In the manifesto, Jesse took a stand against would-be monopolists for flagrantly misusing patent laws, advocating instead for a shared creative commons for psychedelic research, with limited intellectual-property rights. The statement attracted over 100 co-signers, including every major figure in the psychedelic research and NGO community, from philanthropic funders to grassroots advocates.

But there was a notable absence from the list: the founders of Compass Pathways, a rapidly growing psychedelic therapy company bankrolled by major investors, notably Peter Thiel, the PayPal co-founder and right-wing political financier.

“It was very suspicious when they didn’t sign on to the letter. It gave a lot of people pause about what their plans were,” said Carey Turnbull, a longtime philanthropist in the psychedelic community who has become one of Compass Pathways’ main detractors.

Compass’s founders—millionaire couple George Goldsmith and Ekaterina Malievskaia—had already raised eyebrows by quietly transitioning from a charity organization to a for-profit corporation in 2017. Compass was also conducting dubious drug trials on the Isle of Man, an infamous tax haven for the uber-wealthy with lax regulatory oversight. Suspicions abounded about the unusually restrictive contracts it pushed researchers to sign, and reports that Compass had blocked other organizations from signing a deal with one of their drug manufacturers.

The unwillingness to sign the letter was more than a snub. It was a harbinger of things to come.

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