Myrte from JMA (YFoE Netherlands) tells us about her trip to Nigeria as part of the Worse than Bad campaign
Together with Milieudefensie and VARA’s Vroege Vogels, I am going to Nigeria on the 20th of August to report on the oil disaster that has been going on for more than fifty years.
My name is Myrte Rischen and I am a Young Friends of the Earth Netherlands volunteer and one of the four winners, who have joined the contest of Worse Than Bad. The main goal was to make as many people aware of the oil problems in Nigeria as possible. For a month, we have organized many activities and had to think of original ways to tell this problem to the world.
There have been flashmobs, short movies, a marathon, protests, a festival and many other things.
Now, together with three other winners, I am going see for myself how the lives of the people of the Niger Delta are being affected by the oil spills and gas flares that Shell is causing every day. For ten days, we are going to talked to the people who live in that black mess and visit different places where the oil has taken over the landscape.
While the VARA is shooting a documentary about this, I am going to keep as many people live updated while we’re in Nigeria. I’m doing this with a blog, where I will tell about what we see and hear with text, pictures, short films and anything else that we might encounter.
Although I am really exited about the trip, I am a bit anxious about the injustice, the ruined lives and the strong impressions that I am going to experience.
If you want to hear more about the trip and my experiences there, read the blog and I’ll keep you informed!
Myrte
Follow Myrte’s blog at http://worsethanbad.org/blog/