<![CDATA[EDFU FOUNDATION INC.

<![CDATA[EDFU FOUNDATION INC. - Blog]]>Mon, 05 Jan 2026 17:13:58 -0500Weebly<![CDATA[Day of the Imprisoned Writer]]>Tue, 15 Nov 2022 16:30:00 GMThttps://www.edfufoundation.org/news/day-of-the-imprisoned-writer

November 15th is the
Day of the Imprisoned Writer

Keep in mind that these are only a few individuals from 2022; there are several more not only from this year but from previous years who are still imprisoned or have been silenced.

This international recognition day is to bring awareness to the importance of freedom of expression & press, specifically through writing. It also highlights highlight individuals who are currently detained or have been murdered for reporting news and sharing their experiences with the public.

If you know a journalist in jail or who has been murdered, speak their name. Let people know who they are so they are not forgotten. We must remember them so that their work is not overlooked.

Continued Reading

]]><![CDATA[Substack]]>Mon, 31 Oct 2022 04:00:00 GMThttps://www.edfufoundation.org/news/substackEDFU Foundation is on Substack!

Subscribe to our Substack

EDFU Foundation is now on Substack. We posted our first article on September 26th this year and continue to post bi-weekly. While a lot of the content on here is elaborated writing on what you see from our social media pages, we will also have exclusive content there that features subject matters and topics we have dialed into and knowledge we want to share with you. Everytime we write something, you will receive an email version of the article. So make sure to subscribe!

Eventually, we will have exclusive content on our Substack. It's free to subscribe. Donations are always appreciated! And we will have paid content in the future.

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]]><![CDATA[What is COP27?]]>Sun, 30 Oct 2022 18:16:41 GMThttps://www.edfufoundation.org/news/cop27explained

If you have attended any of our virtual or in-person events, you have heard us mention “COP27”. - What is it? Why is it important? - As we are vastly approaching the start of the conference, we would like to help you understand exactly what it is and the importance it has for our earth.

COP27

COP27 is the 2022 climate conference for the United Nations (UN). The official title is “UNFCCC COP”.

UNFCCC = United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
COP = Conference of Parties

The number that follows “COP” is the total number of meetings that the committee has held. This year will be the 27th meeting.

Every year a different member nation of the UN is assigned to be the “COP President” and they are in charge of organizing the meeting. Egypt will host the 2022 conference in the city of Sharm El-Sheikh. The 26th conference was hosted by both Scotland & Italy, but due to COVID-19, the conference was delayed a year. The 2020 event resumed in 2021 and was held in Glasgow, Scotland. The United Arab Emirates will host the 2023 conference, but details have not been released yet. Any resolutions or treaties that are adopted tend to be named after the host city or country; i.e. in 2015, the Paris Agreement was formed in France.

History

In 1992, the UN held 3 Rio Conventions as a result of their Earth Summit in Brazil. These conventions became the “COPs” and focus on these key topics: Biodiversity, Climate Change, and Desertification. It was also in 1992 that 154 countries signed the “UNFCCC” as an agreement to help combat the harmful effects humans are having on the climate.

While there are many different COPs, the term has almost synonymously been associated with the UNFCCC’s conference and thus this is why many refer to it only by “COP” + the number of the meeting.

2022

This year marks the 30th anniversary since the UNFCCC was adopted and signed. The conference will look at uniting nations around the world, as well as reviewing the Paris Agreement. The world is far off from the goals set in 2015 regarding the Paris Agreement.

COP27 has unofficially been dubbed the “African Cop” by the world, because of its location on the continent and the fact that many feel that the climate issues facing the continent should be at the forefront of discussions. There is also the hope that with the conference being on the continent of Africa, more Africans will have exposure to important events like this.

Importance

COP27 is important because the earth is facing climate disasters at an alarming rate. EDFU Foundation will be attending the conference, along with some of our partners, to join the conversation and help create solutions on this concerning topic. This event presents a unique opportunity where national governments, businesses, politicians, and lobbyists are in the same space as non-governmental organizations (NGOs), activists, and civil society. There are also ministers of peace and negotiations present to help.

We will update you on our experiences there, as well as actions that are being taken and discussions that are happening as a result of COP27. We will also continue to keep climate change as a priority issue as it continues to consistently affect Earth at an alarming rate.

Donate

Donate to EDFU Foundation if you can! Your support helps us continue the work we do and to be able to attend events like COP27 and create space for all to be included!

]]><![CDATA[Who do you hold the door for?]]>Mon, 26 Sep 2022 17:33:17 GMThttps://www.edfufoundation.org/news/whodoyouholdthedoorforWho do you hold the door for?

A CSW66 Parallel Event

Earlier this year, in March, we held a virtual discussion for the 66th session on the Commission of the Status of Women through the United Nations. We presented "Food Sovereignty Between Power and Politics" that dove into the many aspects women all over the world face with farming; having access to good, clean food; and solutions to these issues.

The first question:

Our board member and the host of the event, Dr.Dimah Mahmoud, started the event off with a question: "Who do you hold the door for?"

When we come together and we create these spaces for people - our people and those who are consistently left out of these important conversations - who do you help create this space for? Who are holding that seat for so that they may one day join the conversation or benefit from it?

"I'm holding that door for those that are black and mixed, and are tokenized for being black and mixed. I'm calling them in to utilize their priviliges for the movement. I'm holding the door for all of the ghetto youth that are constantly forgotten. I'm holding the door for me and all of those who are younger. I'm holding the coordinate for the real weaving of black land and land back between black and indigenous communities. I'm holding the vision of parks departments utilizing their land for food sovereignty." -Amber Tamm

"The people I hold the door for are the small scale farmers, indigenous women, pasteurized fisher folk, and of course, all of us who consume food and who desire to have good food -and that includes myself." -Bridget Magambi

"I am holding the door for all people who feel disconnected & dislocated, because we've been uprooted and planted in places where we shouldn't be. I'm holding the door especially for our young people who find themselves lost and feel that they don't belong anywhere. And I'm saying that you do belong and you have the right to grow roots wherever you are." -Dee Woods

"I hold the door for every one of our women; our young women and our elders, who know that this is our time. - Who know what it means to hold the other half of the sky." -Dr.Dimah Mahmoud

"The space that I'm holding is to challenge the narrative that exists- that "Africans are poor", that "Africans are beggars", and actually show that there is something good that can come from the continent. We try to connect the North and the South to try and change this narrative." -Leonida Odongo

"I'm opening the door for ancestor, Thomas Sankara. He spoke fiercely on the colonial origin of debt. I also hold this space for thousands of black farmers who organized in 1999 to bring a lawsuit against the USDA for decades of anti-black racism. I definitely hold this space for all the ancestral wisdom, because they knew that debt was a way to dispossess & dislocate us from our lands and the pathway to liberation." -Tracy Lloyd McCurty

We invite you to watch the entire presentation on our YouTube!

Follow us to continue the conversation:

And we pass the question off to you: Who do you hold the door for?

]]><![CDATA[2022 ECOSOC Youth Forum]]>Wed, 06 Jul 2022 08:00:05 GMThttps://www.edfufoundation.org/news/2022-ecosoc-youth-forumEDFU Foundation held our first parallel event at the United Nation's ECOSOC Youth Forum!

This year, the United Nations held their ECOSOC Youth Forum virtually this year from April 19th-20th. This year's theme was: "Building Back Better from COVID-19 while Advancing the Full Implementation of the 2030 Agenda". (The "2030 Agenda" refers to the Sustainable Development Goals.)

The forum held workshops and dialogue opportunities for young people to talk to member states, stakeholders in civil society, and even private sectors.

EDFU Foundation had youth attend on behalf of our organization.

The forum held parallel events on April 18th, a day before the forum actually started. EDFU Foundation held our first parallel event at the Youth Forum. The event was titled "BIPOC Youth in Industry 4.0" and it was a continuation of our discussion from CSW66 and our panel on "Women in Industry 4.0".

The virtual panel was moderated by our president, Sheldon Williams, and our board member, Dr.LaWana Richmond. Our guests included Kevin Nichols, Nathaniel Rose, Lekiesha French, Ko Williams, and Daniel Laster. The panel gave light and voice to the need for youth interest in technology and its development. The young members of our panel had the opportunity to ask the guests in the industry questions and express their accomplishments, as well as their concerns.

The panel is available for viewing at any time on our YouTube page or Facebook page.

Follow along with us, because we are not done with this conversation! We need to keep the interest alive for our youth and we need continue to talk about issues and opportunities for an inclusive and diverse future.

]]><![CDATA[Intersectionality of Indigenous Culture (UNPFII)]]>Wed, 04 May 2022 23:01:13 GMThttps://www.edfufoundation.org/news/intersectionalityofindigenousculture

a parallel event

for the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

On May 2, 2022, EDFU Foundation held a virtual panel discussion as a parallel event for the United Nations' Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.

The panel was moderated by our founder and CEO, Sheldon Williams. Our panelists were Dr. Amara Enyia, Dr.Dimah Mahmoud, and Paul Old Leitura.

The panel was a discussion about Indigenous people and their cultures and how they are connected to the African Diaspora. We also bridge the United Nations forums to how we can use these stages and spotlights to amplify our voices, and we're giving a look into the new Permanent Forum for People of African Descent.

If you missed the panel, we encourage you to watch it on replay. The video can be found below and it is streaming from our YouTube Channel.

Important Links

During the panel, our host and panelists shared some great links to help you continue to learn more about the topics and issues discussed. We have gathered those links for you here! While watching the replay of the panel, please feel free to refer back to this blog entry to find all of the links discussed in the video.

The Looming Threat of Eviction

A report by the Oakland Institute about the displacement of the Maasai in Tanzania. This article gives the story and facts about the issues the indigenous Maasai face in being displaced by the Tanzania government.

Maasai Rising to Resist Eviction Plans in Ngorongoro Conservation Area

A report by the Oakland Institute about what the Maasai are doing to fight for their land rights in Tanzania.

Afronauts Podcast: Interview with Eric Holt-Gimenez

Our Afronauts podcast interviewed Eric Holt-Giménez, who is the Executive Director of the Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy In Oakland, CA. Eric spoke to us about how many of the foods we eat today came to be in the USA and how the indigenous peoples of these foods were exploited in the process.

Seed is Power Rally

If interested in African Food and Seed Sovereignty, watch this Seed Is Power Rally, cohosted by the Alliance of Food Sovereignty in Africa and A Growing Culture.

Seed is Power

A powerful narrative about Seed Sovereignty in Africa by A Growing Culture. This video includes French subtitles.

USAID: Defund Agra, Support African Farmers

If you live in the US, please consider signing this letter to support the call to Defund the Alliance of A Green Revolution in Africa.

]]><![CDATA[CSW66 Summary]]>Mon, 28 Mar 2022 20:26:29 GMThttps://www.edfufoundation.org/news/csw66