What a good global deal looks like (and other crucial updates!)
Posted on 14. Dec, 2009 by Philip Ireland in Australia
Rally in Copenhagen on Global Day of Action | Hannah Ireland
The Ministers have arrived and head of states (aka. Prime Ministers and Presidents) are on their way.
As I am writing this, however, the talks have stalled. This is because, in short, everybody thinks that everybody else is not doing enough. Oh the irony.
The different streams of negotiations have been suspended and restarted several times now, but be assured (or unsettled depending on your perspective) that there are ‘informal’ meetings continually running.
In contrast to this, December 12 provided us a ray of hope with action from all around the world. The pressure is mounting from all directions.
Violence?
I am sure you have all seen the media about violence in Copenhagen. It has been a little disheartening for many of us here as the vast majority of action as been peaceful.
In fact, of all the ‘violence’ that was reported on December 12 in Copenhagen charges have been so far only laid on 3 people…. (mind you, to get this number they had to arrest almost 1000 people). So…. Just to put those numbers straight, tens of thousands marched (the police estimated 100 000), and 3 people have been charged.
If only the media was more interested in the substance of this convention.
Australia’s walk against warming!
I would like to personally congratulate all those in Australia who attended the walk against warming. In a positive twist, a few people from delegations from the Global South, asked me about the marches in Australia. They have been encouraged about your calls for justice.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu gave an inspiring speech to a few hundred of us just outside the convention centre.
Watch this video to hear his speech (I can promise that you will not be disappointed!)
What are we asking for?
As we head into, what is beginning to look like a very chaotic final week I thought I would spend some time outlining what we are actually asking from a global deal.
The essentials checklist as outlined by Climate Action Network available online (http://www.climatenetwork.org/) includes:
-A commitment to keep warming below 2 Degrees Celsius
-this requires reducing greenhouse gas concentrations to 350 ppm and ensuring global emissions peak within the 2013-2017 period
-Industrialised countries as a group must reduce emissions by at least 40% below 1990 levels by 2020
-Developing countries must be supported in their efforts to limit growth of their industrial emissions
-Emissions from deforestation and land degradation must be reduced to zero by 2020
-Developed countries need to provide at least US$195 billion in public financing per year by 2020, in addition to aid commitments for developing country adaptation and mitigation
-An adaptation framework that immediately and massively scales up predictable and reliable support for developing countries
-Copenhagen outcomes must be legally binding and enforceable
This is the week we have been waiting for.
Now is this time for strong international climate action.
Many of the powers in this world do not want to see a strong deal out of Copenhagen. We must all take action to tell our leaders what we expect from them, indeed, what we demand.
Here are some things you can do right now:
-send a letter to Penny Wong
-check out the Copenhagen toolbox on A Climate for Change and ….get tips on how to stay up to date during the talks, talk to the media and much more!
Tracking for you,
Phil
The Adopter - Phillip Ireland
Phil grew up in Newcastle on the beautiful east coast of Australia. He's deeply concerned about the impacts of climate change on poor communities around the globe, which has shaped a passion for activism around these issues. Phil is a Ph.D. candidate at Macquarie University in Australia... read more»
Great post, Phil. For reasons I can’t quite identify, I feel somewhat uplifted. I have long been expecting Copenhagen to achieve little and I can think of no rational reason to doubt that expectation. But your blog has left me feeling a little more positive. Maybe it was the 100,000 people marching. Maybe I’m still feeling the afterglow of the inspiration and invigoration I felt from being part of the Melbourne Walk Against Warming on Saturday. Great to get out amongst other concerned citizens.
I believe the only ethical position for developed nations is to contribute funds for solving climate change in proportion to how much green house gas they have emitted in the past.
Australia must act ethically on this issue. Therefore Australia should support USD$195 billion globally by 2020 per annum in new and additional aid for developing countries and Australia should commit to paying our fair share.
To break the climate discussion deadlock on this issue I urge the Australian delegation to announces Australia’s financial commitment and become a leader in the climate discussions. For the sake of our children and future generations please act immediately at this critical stage of the Copenhagen talks.
Thanks Phil - great to get your insider updates. Slightly depressing when you consider the fairly enroumous gulf between what we need out of Copenhagen and what it appears we’re likely to get but when you consider what is at stake, especially for brave small nations like Tuvalu, there is absolutely no excuse for inaction on our behalf. Having said that I better write that letter to Penny Wong right now!
I don’t have a question for Louise - or rather, I have so many she couldn’t possibly answer them all! Instead, I just want her to know that many ordinary Australians are sitting here watching the progress - or lack of it - at Copenhagen. I can’t help thinking if the outside temperature there was considerably warmer (say 40oC for 3 days in a row) then faster progress might be made! I don’t believe a real deal will be achievable unless negotiators can set aside their national interests and put humanity’s interests first. What’s happening now is that individual countries are looking to first protect their own economies (as a proxy for protecting their own populations), inevitably at the expense of some other country’s economy /population. I can’t see how any effective, equitable agreement can be reached on that basis.
We need to REALLY listen to the voices of those directly affected and put ourselves in their shoes. How would WE feel if our homeland and our culture was likely to be wiped out because someone else was not prepared to curtail their energy-hungry lifestyle? How will we FEEL as Australians if the koala goes extinct, if the Great Barrier Reef dies, if our World Heritage national parks suffer drastic declines in biodiversity, if large swathes of iconic rural Australia are no longer able to support primary production, etc. etc.? What are we going to claim as our own then - “we are the world’s largest exporter of coal”? A target of 450ppm would prove lethal to many species and ecosystems. We are gambling that it won’t prove lethal to our own species. Do we really want to take that chance?