Saturday 5 December 2009

Copenhagen and beyond

Today promises to be the largest climate change mobilisation in the UK, known as the Wave.Hoping and demanding that politicians finally take serious action in Copenhagen next week when world leaders meet to discuss climate change.. We are, I am afraid a little to late. We are way beyond pressure and turning point. The world is boiling as you read. Concrete proposals are needed immediately not next week. Words will be casually used, promises will be made. Commitments will be made, but in all probability will be quickly forgotten.
We will be greeted with images of smiling politicians, happy looking and shaking hands, falsely agreeing to fix problems they have no intention of fixing. Obviously action needs to be taken globally, now not tomorrow.
Binding agreements should be non negotiable, sadly they are not. Expecting major polluters to sort out the climate is like putting hooligans in charge of your neighbourhood watch. The basic injustice is, it is the poor who have contributed least to climate change who will be the most effected by it. They will be forced to go begging to the nations that have created this situation in the first place.
With the best will in the world we will be unlikely to see any serious challenge to industry from our world leaders. Rich governments will simply play lip service to combatting climate change, probably achieving absolutely nothing.
Immediate priorities should be halting deforestation, supporting adaption in Africa and other vulnerable nations and supporting technological change and exploiting ambient energy resources.Their is a fierce urgency to all of this, their is a need for strong leadership, alternatives to current practices have to be explored. Capitalism does not seem to be working, but we cannot afford to give up hope, we must demand the impossible.
Sorry for little rant , and my general pessismism, normal sevice will presume sortly. I try to keep on dreaming!

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