Dear comrades and esteemed readers, on behalf of the HOMEF family, I wish you and your loved ones a Christmas full of celebrations and a new year that brings you closer
to the change you desire for yourselves, your loved ones, your communities and the
world. The year 2024 was remarkable in many respects, and this last edition of the Eco-Instigator brings you articles and reports from some of our latest activities.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, this edition opens with articles and reports from COP29, which took place in Baku, Azerbaijan, as well as from the African People’s Counter-COP
(APCC), which was held in Saly, Senegal. There are strong reasons to consider COP29 disappointing as it fell far below the mark. This viewpoint is underscored in the article discussing the plight of Niger Delta communities that have been sacrificed on the altar of fossil energy and petrol dollars.
The many failures of global platforms that are meant to address the challenges facing our world and proffer solutions to the plight of the world (especially that of the Global South) call for new approaches and narratives for thinking about resilience. One of the articles in this issue explains how the Omega Resilience Awards (ORA) global and regional teams in Africa, India and Latin America, together with ORA-India fellows and stakeholders, initiated the creation of the resilience lexicon.
The next article addresses the polycrisis in the Niger Delta, showcasing how one of the Omega Resilience Awards (Africa) fellows used research, documentary analysis and policy brief to tell and show critical aspects of the unfolding polycrisis in the Niger Delta.
Back to the issue of resilience building, which is vital in this epoch of the polycrisis and for attaining the just energy transition, a report on one of HOMEF’s activities
sheds light on the critical role of culture as a source of resilience-building.
The article relating the landslide victory of the Rezistans ek Alternativ Party which is affiliated with the Alliance for Change Coalition in the 10 November 2024 elections in Mauritius is a demonstration of the results of commitment to the struggle for community and societal transformation. HOMEF and partner civil society groups have become more vocal in the struggle against genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and in the campaign for food sovereignty. This edition features reports on the memorandum on the implications of GMOs in Nigeria, submitted to Rt. Hon. Bello A. Ka’oje, Chairman, House Committee on Agriculture Production and Services, House of Representatives, Abuja, on 12 November 2024. In this respect, a report on how HOMEF celebrated Nigeria’s food heritage is also included. Another report shows how African youths from 47 countries gathered in Addis Ababa to declare their commitment to promoting agroecology.
As you read these enlightening articles and reports, find the environmental justice-themed poems nestled within this volume for your reading pleasure and reflection.
Once again, we wish you a revolutionary 2025. Do not forget to write to us or send in your articles, stories, poems or pictures. It is always a delight to get your feedback. Continue to share with us at [email protected].
Until Victory!
Download and read Eco-Instigator #46 here