Many are saying "Keep it in the Ground"
The Guardian speaks out loud and clear on climate change & public responsibility
Dear Friends,
When the Guardian launched phase II of Keep it in the Ground we promised to keep you abreast of all the key moves ahead of the Paris climate summit in December.
To recap, the summit is the latest in the annual round of meetings (Conferences of the Parties in UN jargon) to thrash out a global deal on climate change. The talks have been building up to Paris 2015 after the disappointing ending at Copenhagen in 2009.
Here’s a backgrounder on the talks
This time around, there is widespread optimism that there will be a deal. Why? Because the talks are much further advanced than at the equivalent stage before Copenhagen. Over 150 countries representing 90% of the world’s emissions have already put their greenhouse gas curbing pledges on the table (our big data interactive will help you get to the bottom of what they mean).
Another factor is the French hosts. They have poured a huge amount of diplomatic capital into making these talks a success. Here’s an extract from a piece by the Guardian’s Fiona Harvey, a veteran of reporting many UN climate talks, on France’s diplomatic push:
Every one of France’s ambassadors, in embassies and consulates around the globe, has been educated on the demands of climate change, and instructed in how to communicate the messages to the governments they deal with, ahead of the summit, which starts on 30 November. Ambassadors have been holding public events, private meetings, talks with their diplomatic counterparts, businesses, NGOs and even schoolchildren.
At home, the outer walls of the foreign ministry, a stately 19th-century edifice on the banks of the Seine, are covered in a series of banners declaring, in several languages, the messages of Paris Climate 2015. Even the Eiffel Tower. further down the riverbank, has been pressed into service, lit up at night with climate slogans … Climate diplomacy has never seen such a concerted push.
Another hopeful development this week was the landslide by Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party in the Canadian elections. The outgoing PM Stephen Harper turned Canada into an international climate pariah so Trudeau’s promise to take part in Paris can only have a positive impact on the talks. But, says US environment correspondent Suzanne Goldenberg, let’s not get carried away. The proof of the pudding will be in the eating.
Your sincerely, James Randerson, Editor for the Environment, The Guardian
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Dear Friends, Date: October 22, 2015
In 2001, I was arrested for protesting oil and gas development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
My fellow protestors and I blockaded the door to the Department of Energy, kneeling and chanting until we were taken, one by one, to a waiting police van. After a long drive in the sweltering heat, we were booked in a D.C. city jail and spent 18 hours hungry, tired and sweating, singing together until bail was posted.
I’ll never forget the sound of our voices echoing throughout the concrete halls as we sang for environmental justice in the beautiful and fragile Arctic.
Now, more than a decade later, our Congress has an opportunity to shield this national treasure from destructive fossil fuel development and preserve it for future generations. Will you join me in calling on Congress to pass the Arctic Wilderness Act and protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge’s coastal plain, once and for all?
See the web site below to sign the petition and ask Congress to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska is an extraordinary piece of wilderness. These 19 million acres are home to a diverse, fertile ecosystem of animals such as musk oxen, wolves and polar bears, as well as the Porcupine caribou herds that provide the livelihood of the indigenous Gwich’in Nation.
Much of the refuge is protected by its “wilderness” status, but its coastal plain is not, putting it at risk of oil and gas exploration. Fossil fuel development in this fragile ecosystem would threaten the survival of both the Porcupine caribou and the Gwich’in Nation, as well as permanently harm the integrity of God’s Creation in this unique wilderness.
As people of faith, we are called to steward and preserve Creation. That’s why Interfaith Power & Light is joining with the Episcopal Public Policy Network to call on Congress to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge’s coastal plain from destructive fossil fuel development. Add your name to stand with us today.
Please sign the petition: Urge Congress to pass the Arctic Wilderness Act!
>>> http://www.signforgood.com/protectanwr/ >>>
With Interfaith Hope, The Rev. Sally Bingham, President
Interfaith Power & Light, http://www.interfaithpowerandlight.org