Green Action ELT
A newly released Netflix documentary, “Breaking Boundaries: The Science of Our Planet,” features David Attenborough and Johan Rockström, one of the scientists who introduced the concept of planetary boundaries. The film sounds alarm on planetary boundaries, but offers hope. Highly recommended: read more here and watch the film here. #GreenELT
Amazing that it still takes a teenager to join the dots, clearly setting out the problems and the solutions in a way that our political leaders generally fail to do:
“Climate change is as big a threat to world peace as war,” the UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, recently told the UN Security Council, as he committed the UK, host of this year’s key climate conference, COP 26, to leading the world on action. Yet the UK’s own influential Public Accounts Committee (PAC) comprised of UK Members of Parliament says ministers have “no plan” to meet climate change targets, two years after setting them in law. Renowned economist Andrew Simms lays all of this bare in a brilliant article settings recent UK spending commitments in perspective: “What that leadership currently looks like is a government which announced an increase in its military spending of £16.5 billion in November 2020, and in 2020-21 spent at least £41.2 billion on the military and just £3.1 billion on reducing carbon emissions.” Strip away the green rhetoric and what lies beneath looks very much like business as usual with all its toxic legacy for our children and grandchildren.
Starts today. Curious About Our Planet is a 3-day virtual festival by Glasgow Science Centre that celebrates the diversity of the planet and the dangers it faces. There’s a Sustainable Cocktail Making Class (18+) event with music from Tide Lines, on Saturday 20th February at 8pm and many other activities, games, workshops and projects for all ages to enjoy.
Here’s a really simple and clear explanation about the Climate and Ecological Emergency Bill. It’s a great chance to build consensus both inside and outside parliament on a road map to an environmentally sustainable future. In a year when the UK Government seeks to persuade the rest of the world that it is serious about the Climate and Ecological Emergency, the least you can expect from your MP is that they support the bill. Here’s a letter I wrote to mine:
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Dear Laurence Robertson, As one of your constituents I am writing to ask you to support the Climate and Ecological Emergency Bill – see https://edm.parliament.uk/early-day-motion/57374/climate-and-ecological-emergency-bill. Scientists are increasingly sounding the alarm as to the inadequacy of governmental response to this real and urgent problem. I am deeply concerned for the future of our planet and the wellbeing of my children and grandchildren. In a year when the UK Government seeks to show the rest of the world at COP 26 that it is serious about the climate and ecological emergency, the least I can expect from you as my MP is that you support this bill. By so doing you will help to propel action and signal to the increasing number of environmentally concerned people in this constituency that you care about their future. Yours sincerely |
Writing to your MP is easy: just enter your postcode at https://www.writetothem.com/?a=westminstermp then follow the simple instructions. MPs really do listen to this kind of thing, so please take a few minutes out of your day to let your MP know how you feel on this vital issue.
According to the authors of a recent report, humanity needs to “take a cold shower” about the true scale of the climate and ecological crisis facing us. Experts need to “tell it like it is.” ‘Anything else is misleading at best, or negligent and potentially lethal for the human enterprise at worst.’ Then we might make the systemic changes that the urgency of the situation demands. There are signs of progress. And if you are reading this you are probably already doing what you can personally. But do read the report so that you are under no illusions. Then ask yourself what you can do to help persuade businesses and politicians make those necessary changes.
Great publicity on the UK’s Channel 4 news the other day for the young people engaged in Mock COP, an international youth-led climate conference, mobilising around the postponement of COP26. Tune in on You Tube at midday UTC tomorrow (Tuesday 1 December) for the live closing ceremony and global statement.