Lifeboat to Rescue the World Climate Treaty!
Trip to Bonn - July 21st - All welcome
Following on from actions in the Hague last November, FOE International has launched preparations for this year's major action on climate change. Thousands of people from all over the world are expected to participate in the BOAT ACTION, July 21st at the UN Kyoto Protocol negotiations in Bonn. There will certainly be a Birmingham contingent!
We will construct the Boat in the town centre and drag it to the UN conference. The Boat will be decorated with banners and flags from groups and individuals around the world, creating an unavoidable message for climate talk negotiators.
As you may remember from December's Action Briefing, last November's climate talks in The Hague saw over 5000 people from all over Europe (six of them from Birmingham FOE!) brought together to construct a sandbag dike around the UN conference hall. Klaus Toepfer, the Head of UNEP, and Jan Pronk, the Chair of the UN climate talks, also participated and were presented with sandbags from the dike, which decorated the podium in the plenary sessions as symbols of hope for the talks. While November's talks ended in indecision, that hope continues at Bonn as surely as the threat of climate change does.
"People all over the world are outraged at the scandalous attempts of fossil-friendly
governments, in particular the US, Canada and Australia, to sabotage the Kyoto
Protocol. FOE's Boat will be built with the determination and sincerity that we
expect from the politicians inside the UN climate conference. Political lip-servicing
and a weakening or abandonment of the treaty from any of the Parties will not
be acceptable. The climate will not wait."
Ricardo Navarro, Chair, FOE International
FOE believes that the Kyoto Protocol rules to be negotiated in Bonn must ensure:
- fossil fuel emissions targets agreed at Kyoto are maintained
- investment is accelerated in renewable energy and energy efficiency not nuclear
power, so-called "carbon sinks", large hydroelectricity or coal projects
- industrialised countries make most CO2 emission reductions at home
- funding made available to vulnerable countries for climate disaster preparedness
and management
- the inequitable use of the world's resources is recognised: developing countries
have a right to develop sustainably and industrialised countries must encourage
greener energy consumption.
If you would like to come to Bonn for this action, contact me at Birmingham FOE as a group of us will certainly be going! However due to time pressures I will not be cycling there unless a particularly large gauntlet, in the form of funds for BFOE's campaigning, is thrown down. Offers welcome, flying pigs available on request.
Karen Leach