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Grand Canyon Chapter Press Releases:For Release: June 26, 2001 Last Great Wilderness Project & Native Gwich'in SpeakerARCTIC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE SLIDESHOW AND GWICH'IN SPEAKER COMING TO PHOENIXThe "Last Great Wilderness Project" will be presented by Lenny Kohm and is a superb slide presentation about the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the last great American frontier. In addition, Ms. Sandra Newman, a member of the Gwich'in Nation will talk about the potential impact of oil development on the Gwich'in peoples traditional way of life. Mr. Kohm is a nationally known photographer and conservationist who has volunteered his time, money and expertise to get the word out to the public on the current threats by the petroleum industry that would despoil this vast pristine wilderness for monetary benefit. Ms. Newman speaks on behalf of the Gwich'in Steering Committee, the native body formed to represent native interests in the face of oil development. These two riveting programs will be presented back to back at Trinity Cathedral on July 5th, from 7p.m.-9p.m. and will be followed by a FREE Ice Cream social. Come and see spectacular images of North America's arctic region, while finding out what is being done to counter these threats to "YOUR" public lands. FREE parking in Garage behind Trinity Cathedral. Lets' not let history repeat itself by letting the economic exploitation that took place in the lower 48 states take place on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska; truly our "Last Great Wilderness". The program is sponsored by the Sierra Club. Admission is free. For more information contact the Sierra Club at 602-254-9330. Last Great Wilderness ProjectBackgroundLENNY KOHM, WELL-KNOWN ENVIRONMENTAL PHOTOGRAPHER AND SANDRA NEWMAN, REPRESENTATIVE OF THE GWICH'IN NATION TO SPEAK AT TRINITY CATHEDRAL Lenny Kohm, a widely known environmental photographer, and Sandra Newman, member of the Gwich'in Nation will speak July 5th at Trinity Cathedral. Mr. Kohm and Ms. Newmanís appearance in Phoenix, Arizona sponsored by the Sierra Club. In his own words, "Summer 1987 was when I was contacted by a national environmental magazine about a possible assignment to photograph the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. Since then, I have lost my journalistic objectivity and have devoted my life to assisting Aboriginal people in trying to protect their cultural and environmental values from irresponsible industrial development (particularly in the arctic and sub-arctic regions of North America)." The 100-mile stretch of arctic coastal plain in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is the only fragment of the United Statesí total 1,100-mile arctic coastline not already open to oil and gas development. Now, oil industry officials are pushing for access to this fragile heartland of this last complete eco-system in North America. Given that there is only a 5% chance of recovering the 3.2 billion barrels of oil estimated by the petroleum industry to be lying under the coastal plain, it would take 100 arctic refuges to lessen our dependence on foreign oil at our present rate of petroleum consumption. Were oil and gas development to occur, the U.S. Department of Interior estimates up to a 40% loss (70,000 animals) to the Porcupine Caribou herd (129,000 animals). "It is puzzling that people and the government would be willing to sacrifice a renewable resource, such as the herd, and the lives of the Gwich'in Indian people, who depend upon it, for merely the possibility of the short term benefits we could gain by extracting a small amount of petroleum, a non-renewable resource", says Kohm. In the words of Gwich'in Indian leader, Norma Kassi, "Lenny Kohm has become a true brother to us within our nation. Lenny has shown us true dedication to assist us in preserving what is left of our way of life. He has spent many days, which extended into months, living off the land and learning our traditional ways, eating our food, and sharing our caribou skins, for this we love him dearly." Cindy Shogun, executive director of the Alaska Wilderness League says, "I must admit I was skeptical at first at the idea that a couple of people showing slides in church basements could compete with the sophisticated multi-pronged PR campaigns launched by a half a dozen of the worldís largest oil companies. But Iíve become a believer since Iíve seen the results." Lenny has brought the message of protection for our Arctic coastal plain all over the country during the past 14 years, and he will be in Phoenix on July 5, 2001. For further information or to RSVP please contact: Sierra Club (602) 254-9330 or email: rob.smith@sierraclub.org. Links to more Arctic National Wildlife Reserve info:
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