Advisory: Ottawa Event and Media Availability – Indigenous Rights, the Environment, and "Free Trade" Agreements

MiningWatch Canada is hosting a public event in Ottawa on April 14, 2016. Three recognised experts will discuss the often-conflictive relationship between international "free trade" and investment agreements, mean for Indigenous rights, the environment, and democratic governance.

Presenters Art Manuel, Meinhard Doelle, and Angella MacEwen will be available for interviews before the event. Please contact Jamie Kneen to make arrangements: jamie(at)miningwatch.ca or cell (613) 761-2273.

The event will be webcast live: https://meet74253482.adobeconnect.com/taken/ and recorded for future viewing.

Taken to the Tribunals: Why International Investment Treaties are Bad for the Environment, Indigenous Peoples’ Rights, and Democracy

From NAFTA to the TPP, this panel discussion will explore the impending collision between the Canadian government’s promotion of “free” trade and investment, on the one hand, and its promises to restore credible environmental assessment, respect Indigenous peoples’ rights, and promote sustainability (including action on climate change), on the other.

Presenters

Art Manuel: Indigenous sovereignty in the context of both international investment protection and environmental assessment
Art is spokesperson for the Indigenous Network on Economies and Trade (INET) and one of the most forceful advocates for Aboriginal title and rights in Canada. He is Secwepemc from Neskonlith, in the B.C. Interior.

Meinhard Doelle: The Whites Point Quarry environmental review, the Bilcon NAFTA tribunal case, and implications for environmental assessment in Canada
Meinhard teaches at the Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University, where he specializes in environmental and energy law, with a focus on climate change and environmental assessment processes.

Angella MacEwen: Current battles over the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and CETA (Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement): Investor protection as a threat to democracy
Angella is Senior Economist at the Canadian Labour Congress. She has co-authored Cost of Poverty studies for the three Maritime provinces and has been involved in several Alternative Budgets with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).

Where:
J.K. Wylie Board Room,
Public Service Alliance of Canada
233 Gilmour Street, Ottawa

When:
7-9:00 pm, April 14, 2016