Latest news with #Heartney
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
With climate action at stake, pro-Trump statement at UNPFII met with silence
This story is published through the Indigenous News Alliance. During the opening day of this year's United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, or UNPFII, one speech took a striking turn. Indigenous leaders and representatives of nation states delivered 3-minute monologues about the plight and importance of Indigenous women around the globe. Most were followed by ripples of applause from the speakers' peers, or sometimes thunderous ovation if the statement was particularly rousing. Notably, an hour or so in, when the U.S. counselor for economic and social affairs, Edward Heartney, delivered his statement, he used his time to tout President Donald Trump as a protector of Indigenous women. 'The United States remains committed to promoting the rights and well-being of Indigenous women and girls,' said Heartney. 'During President Trump's first administration, he supported initiatives aimed at promoting economic development and entrepreneurship among Indigenous women.' Heartney mentioned violence against Indigenous women, and gave examples that he said 'demonstrate the administration's ongoing commitment to delivering accountability and justice for American Indian and Alaska Native nations and communities.' No one clapped. You could hear a pin drop. Presiding over the three hours of interventions, which would continue into the next day, was Aluki Kotierk (Inuit), newly-elected chair of the UNPFII. Representatives of Indigenous communities around the world described the progress certain countries have made to protect Indigenous women, and the considerable work still left to do. Read Next Your guide to the 2025 UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues Anita Hofschneider Chile, for example, has adopted laws against gender-based violence and has a new law going through Parliament that aims to protect cultural heritage. The president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, declared 2025 to be the 'Year of the Indigenous Woman.' Colombia approved a formal development plan recognizing Indigenous women as key defenders of land, food sovereignty and knowledge systems. 'Colombia understands that Indigenous women are the owners of our territories – not guardians,' said Colombia's Minister of Environment Lena Estrada Anokazi (Uitoto Minɨka). Anokazi is the first Indigenous woman to hold this office in Colombia. But it's not enough, she said, that her nation has implemented traditional Indigenous knowledge in development and policy. 'We need to fight, because traditional knowledge systems are there and always have been, but they need to be appreciated on the same level as scientific knowledge,' Anokazi said. By her characterization, Indigenous women are leaders living at 'the dangerous nexus of multiple and intersectional discrimination due to their gender and their Indigenous identity,' but who nevertheless protect the land and the cultural understanding of how to care for it. More and more, traditional cultural knowledge is revealing itself as essential to fighting climate change and engineering new ways of living that don't destroy the earth. This positions Indigenous women as among the most impacted by climate change, and also likely the most capable of solving it. Without Indigenous women, Anokazi said, we can't even talk about sustainable development. Interventions by some non-Native representatives painted a slightly different picture of Indigenous women: one that focused almost exclusively on the violence, dispossession and dismissal they face, without the context that they are knowledge- and culture-bearers, intentionally vulnerable in a hardening world as stalwart servants of their ecosystems and communities. The differing views of Indigenous women was not lost on forum attendees. An Inuit representative took time from her three minutes to assert that Indigenous women are not simply passive victims of colonization, which is a key distinction highlighting fundamentally differing worldviews. Quechua activist and forum panelist Tarcila Rivera Zea re-grounded the discussion with an Indigenous women's view on Indigenous women: 'We're not complaining. We're not begging,' she asserted. 'We're acting.' In the context of this conversation, Heartney's pro-Trump statement felt abrupt and out of place to attendees. It echoed messaging from right-wing think tanks, which use economic development, job creation and even so-called protection as Trojan horses for resource extraction. Heartney framed economic empowerment – not preservation of culture and biodiversity, nor justice for murdered and missing Indigenous women (MMIW) as others did — as 'a cornerstone' of the United States' approach to Indigenous women's well-being. As for their safety, he cited legislation passed during the first Trump administration to address the MMIW crisis, and the FBI's Operation Not Forgotten. In the silence that followed, Heartney briskly gathered his things and slipped out the door. Had he stayed, he would have heard the next statement, delivered by fashion model and land protector — a term used to describe a lifelong commitment to one's homelands — Quannah ChasingHorse (Hän Gwich'in and Sicangu Oglala Lakota) on behalf of the Gwich'in Steering Committee. 'The U.S. has opened the coastal plain to oil and gas leasing, threatening our very survival,' ChasingHorse said. Though ChasingHorse's statement was written in advance, it read like a direct rebuff to Heartney's message. The coastal plain in question is Iizhik Gwats'an Gwandaii Goodlit, 'the Sacred Place Where Life Begins.' 'The Gwich'in have never given consent for development, and our right to self-determination is being violated by interests that view our lands as a commodity,' ChasingHorse continued. 'I am outraged that decisions about my people's future are being made without us at the table.' Last month Heartney announced in a General Assembly session the United States' rejection of the UN's sustainable development goals. 'Put simply, globalist endeavors like Agenda 2030 and the SDGs lost at the ballot box,' he said. High Country News reached out to Heartney for comment through his colleagues and through an online contact form, but as of press time has not received a response. On Tuesday, during a discussion on the right of Indigenous people to consent to decisions impacting their lands, Chickaloon Village Traditional Chief Gary Harrison put a fine point on things. His community, he said, has particularly high rates of MMIW cases. 'I find it a little bit strange that you have governments taking up Indigenous peoples' time,' he said, spending precious seconds of his three minutes to directly question the forum chair. 'If everything's okay in their countries, why are we here?' The room thundered with applause. This story was originally published by Grist with the headline With climate action at stake, pro-Trump statement at UNPFII met with silence on Apr 28, 2025.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
In 2015, Obama committed the US to achieving UN global goals by 2030. Trump just rejected the goals
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — In 2015, then-President Barack Obama committed the United States to achieving newly adopted U.N. global goals by 2030, including ending poverty, achieving gender equality and urgently tackling climate change. The Trump administration now says it 'rejects and denounces' the goals. The U.S. renunciation was one of the first — if not the first — by any country of the 17 goals that were adopted unanimously by all 193 U.N. member nations, with the aim of eliminating global hunger, protecting the planet, ensuring prosperity for all people, and promoting peace. The Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs, also include providing clean water and sanitation for all people and quality education for every child, while promoting good health and decent work and economic growth for everyone. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. The Trump administration's announcement was buried in remarks on a General Assembly resolution on the International Day of Peaceful Coexistence this week by Edward Heartney, a minister-counselor at the U.S. mission to the United Nations. Heartney said that while framed in 'neutral language,' the goals and the U.N. agenda for 2030 'advance a program of soft global governance that is inconsistent with U.S. sovereignty and adverse to the rights and interests of Americans.' In last November's election that gave President Donald Trump a second term, he said, 'globalist endeavors like Agenda 2030 and the SDGs lost at the ballot box' to the U.S. government focusing first and foremost on Americans. 'President Trump also set a clear and overdue course correction on `gender' and climate ideology, which pervade the SDGs,' Heartney said. Trump has said the U.S. government will only recognize two sexes, male and female, and spoken out against transgender people and rights. The SDGs stress that they apply to everyone, everywhere, and will 'leave no one behind,' but they do not specifically mention LGBTQ people. As for climate, Trump has promoted more oil and gas drilling and he withdrew the U.S. from the 2015 landmark Paris climate agreement to combat global warming, and said he would take the U.S. out of other climate pacts. The SDGs call for urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts, noting that planet Earth is 'standing at the brink of climate calamity.' U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric, responding to the U.S. announcement, said all 193 U.N. member states voted in 2015 for the SDGs and agreed to work together to deliver the 2030 Agenda, which is 'the path to bridging divides, restoring trust and building solidarity.' It continues to be the U.N.'s guiding principles 'to advance a world of peace, prosperity and dignity for all' and 'a better, healthier, safer and more prosperous and sustainable future,' he said. After Trump's first election in November 2016 on an 'America First' platform, the U.S. also opposed multilateral solutions, but it didn't disavow the SDGs. It just ignored them. Following Joe Biden's election to the presidency in 2020, the U.S. renewed support for the SDGs, reporting to Congress on how the United States was contributing to achieving the 17 goals. ___ On the Web:
The Hill
07-03-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
In 2015, Obama committed the US to achieving UN global goals by 2030. Trump just rejected the goals
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — In 2015, then-President Barack Obama committed the United States to achieving newly adopted U.N. global goals by 2030, including ending poverty, achieving gender equality and urgently tackling climate change. The Trump administration now says it 'rejects and denounces' the goals. The U.S. renunciation was one of the first — if not the first — by any country of the 17 goals that were adopted unanimously by all 193 U.N. member nations, with the aim of eliminating global hunger, protecting the planet, ensuring prosperity for all people, and promoting peace. The Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs, also include providing clean water and sanitation for all people and quality education for every child, while promoting good health and decent work and economic growth for everyone. The Trump administration's announcement was buried in remarks on a General Assembly resolution on the International Day of Peaceful Coexistence this week by Edward Heartney, a minister-counselor at the U.S. mission to the United Nations. Heartney said that while framed in 'neutral language,' the goals and the U.N. agenda for 2030 'advance a program of soft global governance that is inconsistent with U.S. sovereignty and adverse to the rights and interests of Americans.' In last November's election that gave President Donald Trump a second term, he said, 'globalist endeavors like Agenda 2030 and the SDGs lost at the ballot box' to the U.S. government focusing first and foremost on Americans. 'President Trump also set a clear and overdue course correction on `gender' and climate ideology, which pervade the SDGs,' Heartney said. Trump has said the U.S. government will only recognize two sexes, male and female, and spoken out against transgender people and rights. The SDGs stress that they apply to everyone, everywhere, and will 'leave no one behind,' but they do not specifically mention LGBTQ people. As for climate, Trump has promoted more oil and gas drilling and he withdrew the U.S. from the 2015 landmark Paris climate agreement to combat global warming, and said he would take the U.S. out of other climate pacts. The SDGs call for urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts, noting that planet Earth is 'standing at the brink of climate calamity.' U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric, responding to the U.S. announcement, said all 193 U.N. member states voted in 2015 for the SDGs and agreed to work together to deliver the 2030 Agenda, which is 'the path to bridging divides, restoring trust and building solidarity.' It continues to be the U.N.'s guiding principles 'to advance a world of peace, prosperity and dignity for all' and 'a better, healthier, safer and more prosperous and sustainable future,' he said. After Trump's first election in November 2016 on an 'America First' platform, the U.S. also opposed multilateral solutions, but it didn't disavow the SDGs. It just ignored them. Following Joe Biden's election to the presidency in 2020, the U.S. renewed support for the SDGs, reporting to Congress on how the United States was contributing to achieving the 17 goals.
Associated Press
07-03-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
In 2015, Obama committed the US to achieving UN global goals by 2030. Trump just rejected the goals
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — In 2015, then-President Barack Obama committed the United States to achieving newly adopted U.N. global goals by 2030, including ending poverty, achieving gender equality and urgently tackling climate change. The Trump administration now says it 'rejects and denounces' the goals. The U.S. renunciation was one of the first — if not the first — by any country of the 17 goals that were adopted unanimously by all 193 U.N. member nations, with the aim of eliminating global hunger, protecting the planet, ensuring prosperity for all people, and promoting peace. The Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs, also include providing clean water and sanitation for all people and quality education for every child, while promoting good health and decent work and economic growth for everyone. The Trump administration's announcement was buried in remarks on a General Assembly resolution on the International Day of Peaceful Coexistence this week by Edward Heartney, a minister-counselor at the U.S. mission to the United Nations. Heartney said that while framed in 'neutral language,' the goals and the U.N. agenda for 2030 'advance a program of soft global governance that is inconsistent with U.S. sovereignty and adverse to the rights and interests of Americans.' In last November's election that gave President Donald Trump a second term, he said, 'globalist endeavors like Agenda 2030 and the SDGs lost at the ballot box' to the U.S. government focusing first and foremost on Americans. 'President Trump also set a clear and overdue course correction on `gender' and climate ideology, which pervade the SDGs,' Heartney said. Trump has said the U.S. government will only recognize two sexes, male and female, and spoken out against transgender people and rights. The SDGs stress that they apply to everyone, everywhere, and will 'leave no one behind,' but they do not specifically mention LGBTQ people. As for climate, Trump has promoted more oil and gas drilling and he withdrew the U.S. from the 2015 landmark Paris climate agreement to combat global warming, and said he would take the U.S. out of other climate pacts. The SDGs call for urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts, noting that planet Earth is 'standing at the brink of climate calamity.' U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric, responding to the U.S. announcement, said all 193 U.N. member states voted in 2015 for the SDGs and agreed to work together to deliver the 2030 Agenda, which is 'the path to bridging divides, restoring trust and building solidarity.' It continues to be the U.N.'s guiding principles 'to advance a world of peace, prosperity and dignity for all' and 'a better, healthier, safer and more prosperous and sustainable future,' he said. After Trump's first election in November 2016 on an 'America First' platform, the U.S. also opposed multilateral solutions, but it didn't disavow the SDGs. It just ignored them. Following Joe Biden's election to the presidency in 2020, the U.S. renewed support for the SDGs, reporting to Congress on how the United States was contributing to achieving the 17 goals. ___
Voice of America
05-03-2025
- Politics
- Voice of America
At UN, Trump's domestic policies enter international arena
The United States made clear Tuesday that it will no longer automatically support core United Nations platforms, including sustainable development and global goals that include eliminating poverty during a vote at the U.N. General Assembly. 'Therefore, the United States rejects and denounces the Agenda 2030 for sustainable development and the sustainable development goals, and will no longer reaffirm them as a matter of course,' U.S. representative Edward Heartney told the assembly. The U.S. voted against a resolution titled 'International Day of Peaceful Coexistence' that reaffirmed the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, 'acknowledging that this includes a commitment to promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.' Heartney said Americans voted in November's election for their government to refocus on U.S. interests. 'Simply put, the globalist endeavors like Agenda 2030 and the SDGs lost at the ballot box,' he said. The measure passed the assembly with 162 countries in favor and three against — the United States, Israel and Argentina. The General Assembly creates 'International Days' to raise awareness of important global issues and promote peace and tolerance. There are more than 150 of them currently, including International Women's Day, which is coming up on March 8, World Environment Day, International Mother Language Day and World Diabetes Day. On Tuesday, delegates voted to create an 'International Day of Hope,' as well as an 'International Day for Judicial Well-Being.' Washington stood alone, the sole no vote on both. Heartney said Washington 'strongly supports efforts to sustain peace and pursue diplomatic solutions to crises around the world and that individual rights are fundamental to U.S. security and the promotion of international peace." 'This resolution, however, contributes to the unnecessary proliferation of multiple international days, many of which have a similar intent,' he said of the International Day of Hope proposal, noting that there is already an International Day of Peace and another on Happiness. 'The current draft resolution also contains references to diversity, equity and inclusion that conflict with U.S. policies that seek to eliminate all forms of discrimination and create equal opportunities for all,' Heartney added. The Trump administration has made the elimination of diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI programs, a core pillar, saying it illegally promotes discrimination. Washington was also the sole vote against a resolution titled 'Education for Democracy,' which reaffirms 'the right of everyone to education' and recognizes 'the importance of equal opportunities for young people, including women.' The text recognizes 'that education for democracy nurtures responsible and active learners, capable of contributing effectively to peace and prosperity in their societies and beyond,' and notes the negative impact that the COVID-19 pandemic had on global education. It calls on governments to invest more in quality education, to bridge the digital divide and 'to advance the prospects of future generations and foster the building of peaceful, just, democratic and sustainable societies.' On Feb. 24, Washington stunned the international community when it voted against a Ukrainian and European Union-drafted General Assembly resolution supporting a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine and submitted its own text that did not name Russia as the aggressor in the war. The assembly voted to amend the U.S. text to include language on Russia's 'full-scale invasion' of Ukraine and supporting Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. When the amended American text was put to a vote, Washington abstained. It was adopted with 93 states in favor, eight against and 73 abstentions. General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, but they do carry the moral weight of the international community.
