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TID-Conference "The Third Pole in Danger - China's Environmental Policy in Tibet"
Friday 25th , March, 2011, 10am - 6pm, at the Hessische Landesvertretung, Berlin.
The progressive destruction of the environment in Tibet is the result of a
reckless mishandling of its natural resources. By exploiting these
resources, China is attempting to secure enough raw materials and energy to support its economic growth at the cost of the Tibetan mountains, forests, and rivers.
China’s actions constitute a crime not only against the unique ecosystems
that are being destroyed but also against the Tibetan people who suffer the consequences of environmental degradation: a lack of potable water,
famine, disease, and displacement. With one-third of the world’s population dependant upon Tibet’s water resources, the environmental situation in Tibet is of global importance.
The conference “The Third Pole in Danger – China’s Environmental
Policy in Tibet” is a part of the TID’s campaign “Green Tibet.Free Tibet”.
Our goal is to disseminate information about Chinese environmental policy in Tibet, its impact on the living conditions of the Tibetan people, as well as its consequences globally.
The conference was organized under the auspices of Dr. Franz Alt.
Registration: Please note that capacity is limited. The deadline for registration is: March 11, 2011. Please complete the registration form (in German) or here:
Registration
Program
10.00 am Doors Open
11.00 am Welcome and Opening of the Conference, Wolfgang Grader, Chair of Tibet Initiative Deutschland e.V.
11.15 am Introduction, Dr. Franz Alt, Co-host
11.45 am “Tibet's Nomads – From Nature's Guardians to Victims of Modernity?", Gabriel Lafitte, lecture and discussion
12.45 am Lunch break, Hessian-Tibetan buffet
14.00 pm “China's Water Politics in Tibet” - Claude Arpi, lecture and discussion
15.00 pm Coffee break
15.30 pm “Endless Resources? China's Environmental Policy in Tibet and its Global Impact” - Tenzin Norbu, lecture and discussion
16.30 pm Closing Words - Kelsang Gyaltsen, Special Envoy of H.H. the Dalai Lama
Speakers
Dr. Franz Alt is a well-known journalist, publicist and author. He is an expert on Tibet and also highly engaged in environmental issues.
Gabriel Lafitte is a public policy analyst who has worked with Tibetans for over 30 years, most recently as consultant to the Environment & Development Desk of the Tibetan exile government. He has written on development models suitable for Tibet, resource exploitation, education and basic needs, poverty, urbanisation, and the ways Tibetans accommodate modernity without embracing colonisation. He recently retired from teaching Asian Studies at universities in Melbourne, Australia.
Claude Arpi is born in Angoulême (France) in 1949. His real quest started in 1972 with a journey to the Indian Himalayas. Since then he has been an enthusiastic student of the history of Tibet, China and the subcontinent.
After graduating as a Dental Surgeon from Bordeaux University in 1974, he decided to come to India. Claude Arpi regularly writes on the geopolitics of the region, environment and Indo-French relations.
Tenzin Norbu born in India, schooling from TCV school - Dharamsala,
graduated from Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand with M.Sc of Environmental Technology & Management. He previously worked as a Senior research associate at the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand (5 years). Tenzin also worked on different projects funded by EU, ADB, etc., and is now serving (since December 2008) at Environment and Development Desk under the Department of Information and International Relations of The Tibetan Government in Exile of H.H. The Dalai Lama at Dharamsala.
Kelsang Gyaltsen is the Envoy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Europe and one of the two Envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama entrusted with the task of conducting the dialogue with the representatives of the Chinese government.