The people of my village started talking about the changes they were noticing. The summers were getting hotter. The winters were getting warmer. People would go out onto the Flats and get sunburned. The wetlands are starting to dry up. The hole in the ozone makes it very hot up there in the summers. The permafrost is thawing ... Our lakes are disappearing ... The summer before a fire forced our people to flee my village. This affects not only the people but our animals are losing their habitats so they must move on to safer areas.
Our Elders warned us that this would happen. Now they're asking us to do something about it. Our Elders have seen the parts of our culture destroyed and they know the problems this new threat will cause. They are worried once again because they see our culture disappearing forever.
... This is a powerful and beautiful country that overwhelms anyone who walks there. But this is not an isolated example. It is the entire globe that is in danger, as you all know ...
It is my belief that the fate of the earth may very well depend on a new
dialogue that must begin immediately between nation-states and the
emerging Fourth World comprised of hundreds of millions of indigenous
people ... We need to bring our powers together and forge a contract
that will ensure that the responsibility for Mother Earth lies in our
hands. It is no longer a question of stabilizing our dependency on
fossil fuels - we must reduce our usage.
- Norma Kassi (Gwat-la-ey-ishi), Wolf Clan, Vuntat Gwich'in
Whitehorse, Yukon*
The balance of evidence suggests a discernible human influence on global
climate.
- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 1996
