The report below comes  from  Telesur.  They identify the proposals as coming from Evo Morales and Hugo Chavez but in fact they were the work of the first World People's Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth, held in Cochabamba, Bolivia where more than 35,000 people met and came up with the proposals mentioned in the report as part of the Cochabamba Accord.  The domination of Cancun by the "rich countries" as Evo says makes the

The  World People’s Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth is over, but the momemtum generated by this first initiative will create ripples that will continue for some time.   I am left with a feeling of tremendous hope, and a sense that this is just the beginning, that we are on our way to the formation of a global movement for climate justice, that there are  many, many people who care, who are prepared to devote their hearts, their minds, and their passion to slowing down and turning around the tragic trajectory that has been set by the industrial growth society.

Environmental advocates from around the world gathered in Cochabamba, Bolivia, this week and resolved that, a year from now, they would hold a world’s people referendum on climate change to marshal support for the rights of the planet.

“Although it is hoped that some states will cooperate, the participation of governments will not be essential to the referendum, as civil society organizations are to plan it according to their own lights and the traditions and customs of each local area,” reports Franz Chavez for Inter Press Service.

With the horror in Haiti, we could all use some good news that we will not hear in the mainstream media.  On Thursday January 21, Aymara elders and Indigenous people from across Bolivia and the Americas will gather at the inauguration of  Evo Morales as leader of Abya Yala, the Indigenous name meaning Our America.  On the following day, he will be inaugurated as President of Bolivia for the second time.   Up until Evo's regime, Bolivia was the second poorest country in the Americas after Haiti.