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23 July, 2015
Wednesday 15 July saw the official launch of our End Heart Disease: Plant a Fruit Tree campaign. A Movement of Life global project coordinated by the Dr. Rath Health Foundation, its aim is to educate people how heart disease is caused by a long term lack of vitamin C. The inspiration for the campaign is Dr. Matthias Rath’s scientific discovery about the development of heart disease, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States in 1990, and the inverse relationship between its incidence and our intake of vitamin C. Following the recent release, by scientists at the Dr. Rath Research Institute, of scientific proof that atherosclerosis is an early form of the vitamin C deficiency disease scurvy, it is clear that the elimination of heart disease as a cause of human mortality is now possible.
The urgent need for concerted action to be taken to prevent and control cardiovascular diseases can be seen in World Health Organization (WHO) statistics showing they are the number 1 cause of death globally. With an estimated 17.5 million people dying from cardiovascular diseases in 2012, representing 31% of all global deaths, more people die annually from these diseases than from any other cause. Of the deaths recorded in 2012, an estimated 7.4 million were due to coronary heart disease and 6.7 million were due to stroke.
Fruits are a good source of vitamin C and other micronutrients. Based on Dr. Rath’s breakthrough, this means we now have scientific proof they can help prevent cardiovascular diseases. Significantly, therefore, a new study has found that less than 15 percent of U.S. adults currently eat enough fruit daily to meet even the federal government’s basic recommendations. Globally, the WHO similarly acknowledges that only a small and negligible minority of the world’s population consume a sufficiently high average intake. The real tragedy behind these statistics is that not only have the people of the world not been informed that heart disease is caused by a long term lack of vitamin C, their governments are essentially doing little or nothing to provide optimal amounts of this crucial nutrient for those who can’t afford them. Clearly, therefore, rather than continuing to rely on our governments for these things, we have to take action ourselves.
In order to save as many lives as possible, our End Heart Disease: Plant a Fruit Tree campaign aims to reach kindergartens, schools, workplaces, senior citizens’ homes and other key community organizations. But we need your help to do this.
If you plant a tree, please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. some photographs – or a link to somewhere we can download them – and we will publish them in the Gallery section of the Movement of Life website. Alternatively, if you record a good video while planting your tree, upload it to YouTube or Vimeo and we can include it on the Movement of Life website. As the existing videos on the campaign page show, fruit trees are easy to plant and once established should only need minimal ongoing care and attention to produce plenty of fruit. The more people we can reach, teach and help through this global campaign, the more lives will be saved!
Source:
Dr. Rath Health Foundation – Launch of our End Heart Disease – Plant a Fruit Tree campaign
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Thursday 11th of June 2015
The second greatest ecological festival in Cyprus, was realized this past Sunday June 7th 2015 at the National Forest Park of Aglantzia, and throughout the day it attracted about 2000 people. The Ecological Celebration of Cyprus, is an annual exhibition of ecological products, and a presentation of practical applications and information.
The goal of this annual event is to support and promote the direct relationship between the producer and the consumer; the natural quality food for all; products sourced locally; affordable and fair prices; processing by traditional methods; our reconnection with nature; collective initiatives and collaborations; and our disconnection from industrialization and the illogical commercialization of everything.
At the second National Ecological Celebration if Cyprus 2015, there was a participation of 36 local groups and producers, who create clean and high quality products (fresh produce, naturally prepared health products, cosmetics, cleaning products, handcraft) that were manufactured without the use of chemicals or fertilizers, and always with respect to our health and nature. Through the event, local ecology, biodiversity, and sustainability groups were showcased, presenting their currently running projects on natural agriculture, the creation of urban vegetable gardens, recycling as well as education programs.
During the day, a series of presentations took place on subjects such as: natural agriculture and heirloom seeds, natural health, composting as well as natural building. The attendees also had the chance to learn how to create a simple solar oven, how to tie chairs in a traditional way, how to create their own bread, homemade pasta and jam with agave syrup as well as produce their own handmade mosquito bite ointment.
A vital part of the Second Ecological Celebration of Cyprus was the kids’ corner, with ecology activities especially dedicated to our young fellows were running throughout the entire day, as well as an artistic program.
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An initiative of Ecological Groups from Cyprus along with the Agricultural Research Institute
On Wednesday, September 10th 2014, at Zygi experimental station of the Agricultural Research Institute of Cyprus (ARI), an all-day educational workshop took place with the subject: Cultivating and Saving our traditional vegetable varieties.
This workshop hosted specialists and researches from ARI in the fields of composting, organic agriculture, microorganisms, vegetable pest control, and collecting and maintaining our traditional seeds with the goal of educating representatives from various ecological organizations in Cyprus on the theme of saving traditional varieties.
Among the participants were representatives of the Eco-groups of Amarantos, Anakyklos Perivallontiki, Movement of Life Cyprus, Utopia Collectiva and other ecological initiatives of Cyprus.
This seminar was the first step in educating the various eco-groups’ representatives by the ARI team, on the subjects of: organic agriculture, pest control and correct principles on researching, recording and collecting traditional seeds, aiming eventually in the reproduction and maintenance of heirloom vegetable seed varieties of Cyprus.
In this seminar, information was shared on basic agricultural practices by Mr George Soteriou and the basics on the use of compost and manure in agriculture by Dr Panayiotis Ntalias, as well information on microorganisms and soil fertility by Dr Michalis Omerou. Dr Lambros Papayiannis and Mr Nicos Seraphides, talked about the main vegetable pests and expanded on their control via organic ways. Important part of this workshop was Dr. Dionysia Fasoula’s talk on the principles of maintaining genetic material as well the lecture by seed specialist and event coordinator, Mr Aggelos Kyratzis who analyzed some basic points on collecting, processing and maintaining vegetable seeds.
All the conducted presentations will soon be uploaded on ARI’s homepage and you will be able to download and save them by clicking on the announced links.
This was the first workshop of a constructive collaboration that has initiated between the ARI Cyprus and various active ecological organizations in the island. The aim of this initiative is to combine the excitement and dedication that these eco-groups have shown on spreading the knowledge around maintaining our traditional seeds along with the technical and scientific experience ARI has accumulated through years of research in the field. This consists of a terrific chance for scientific knowledge, experience and actions on the subject of seed saving, to merge together and create a powerful synergy that promises to mobilize the scenery of Heirloom Seed Saving in Cyprus.
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Thursday 14th of May 2015
PRESS RELEASE
Τhe second Ecological Celebration in Cyprus
Exhibition of ecological products, practical applications and information
Τhe second large scale Ecological Celebration in Cyprus will take place on Sunday, the 7th of June 2015, from 11am in the morning until 8pm in the afternoon in Nicosia at Academy’s National Forest Park in Aglantzia (Larnacos Avenue).
At the Celebration the chance will be given for awareness and dialogue on crucial present environmental issues, having as main axes the promotion of cooperation and solidarity, and the exchange of ideas and education.
The goal of the Celebration is to support and promote the direct relationship between producer and consumer; natural quality food for all; products sourced locally; affordable and fair prices; processing by traditional methods; our reconnection with nature; collective initiatives and collaborations; and our disconnection from industrialization and the illogical commercialization of everything.
At the Ecological Celebration local producers will participate with naturally grown quality vegetables and legumes (without chemicals and fertilizers), naturally prepared health products made with respect towards nature (no animal testing), and natural ecological products (cleaning products-cosmetics). In addition, certain organisations and groups will be present who deal with ecology, sustainability, and biodiversity and who are active in promoting ecological issues such as natural cultivations, the creation of urban vegetable gardens, recycling, education programs, health awareness, and workshops. Visitors will have the chance to discuss with them and receive all the information they wish about these initiatives.
During the day the public will made aware of all of the above issues, as well as be able to attend several production workshops which will take place. In addition, there will be a kid’s corner with activities related to ecological matters, a cultural program, as well as presentations in which specialists will briefly present their topic, followed by dialogue and exchange of views with the attendants.
Program of activities
Presentations
11:30 – 12:30 Heirloom Seeds and Natural Cultivations
12:30 – 13:30 Natural Health – Healing with Natural Therapies without Chemical Medicine
16:00 – 17:00 Composting at Home
17:00 – 18:00 Natural Building and Alternative Approaches to Sustainable Architecture
18:00 – 19:00 Degrowth and Collectiveness
Workshops
11:30 – 12:30 Bread Making
11:30 – 13:30 Construction of a Solar Oven
15:30 – 16:30 Making homemade Pasta
16:30 – 17:30 Production of handmade Ointment for mosquito bites
17:30 – 18:30 Making Jam with Agave syrup
Composting with Earthworms: throughout the day
Kid’s Corner
11:30 - 12:00 Kids’ Yoga
16:00 – 16:30 Kids’ Yoga
16:30 – 17:30 Fresh Local Herbs – Meeting and Planting
Throughout the day: Handcrafts from Recycled Materials
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Things are shifting quite rapidly in the small island of Cyprus. Bail out announcements over a year ago have managed to stir things for Cypriot people and the need for change has propelled the island’s people to look for alternatives; solutions that can turn them into more resilient and self-reliant.
Permaculture seems to be attracting an increasing amount of attention all across the world and since financial challenges have hit the island last April, people of Cyprus have started to respond to it even more. The design system of Permaculture offers people the tools that help them visualize and formulate their future into a more prosperous and positive one.
The last weekend of July 2014, the first Introduction to Permaculture Course was held in Cyprus at the private property of Petrera Permaculture Land, at Kalo Horio/Klirou area in Nicosia. The course was well attended by more than 20 people, coming from countries all over the world, such as France, Latvia, Portugal, Argentina, USA and Cyprus. With a fascinating synergy among the South-African permaculture designer, Caspar Brown and Movement Of Life Of Cyprus health and eco-advocate, the instructors guided the 2-day workshop participants along the contemporary global challenges in the sectors of energy, water and soil explaining the need for permaculture solutions today and giving a quick preview of the fundamental principles of permaculture.
The course gave its participants a first glimpse of how important it is to maintain a healthy soil and offered many solutions to reverse the current challenging soil-undermining state. In that same context a practical session on how to create our own warm compost heap in our back yard was held which was then followed by an extensive discussion on water crisis in Cyprus and methods that can help us be more resilient with our water. Simple techniques such as swales and grey water systems were analyzed and demonstrated on site.
The course concluded with a collaborative design analysis of three major challenges: Energy, Soil and Water where the participants recognized, discussed and pointed out both challenges and opportunities of working with these resources in Cyprus.
What was encouraging to see coming out of these short seminar was how mindsets of the participants started to shift towards the end of the workshop. More ambitious and more excited to become the positive change they want to encounter, participants, with the end of this seminar, went back home with simple everyday design tools ready for implementation.
This course is one of many that will follow in Cyprus with the goal of bringing awareness on Permaculture and applying its principles for the sake of evolving out of the paralysis and unemployment the financial crisis is imposing on our island. This is only one, of many classes that will be follow with the goal of achieving sovereignty and sustainability in regards to our water, food, energy and knowledge in order to live in more autonomous and healthy communities.
To find out more on Permaculture you can visit:
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