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 Climate
Change
GLOBAL WARNING: COP7 IN MARRAKECH SEEKS TO PRIVATISE THE
ATMOSPHERE
In Morocco between October 29th and November 9th, world
leaders, big
business and NGOS will create a new commodity - air.
Instead of
making real changes to the root causes of climate change
such as
dependency on fossil fuels and an unsustainable economic
model, they
plan to buy and sell pollution on the open market.
Good business sense,
but not good common sense.
After the last climate talks in Bonn, the beaten and
exhausted Kyoto
protocol trembled, a shadow of its former self.
Business lobbyists
finally
got to smoke their celebratory cigars, anticipating the
opportunities
given
to them by the vast potential of carbon trading, an
estimated turnover of
13 trillion US dollars a year. After ten years the stage has
finally been
set for the money to start rolling in, with the actual
nature of the
catastrophe and its impact on humanity and all life reduced
to a mere bit
part, a sideline, a symbolic theme.
The privatisation of the atmosphere and the trade in
greenhouse gases
will not only do nothing to address the problems of climate
change; it
will
also reinforce the structural economic inequalities between
the North
and the South. Attention on some of the lesser-known
bad-guys, like the
international accountancy firms that are planning to
facilitate the trade
in
emissions (PricewaterhouseCoopers, Arthur Andersons etc.) is
vital.
By concentrating our energies on local actions rather than
mobilising to
go to Marrakech communities can get more involved in the
struggle for
climate justice. This is a crucial moment. The
terrorist attacks against
the US on September 11th have created a vacuum where there
were
valid criticisms of the corporate-led climate talks.
If we let the
actions of
terrorists take away our critical voice then we too lost
something
precious that horrific day. The fact remains
that the issue of climate
change fundamentally connects some the main concerns today
– the
environment and our planet and the social and economic
inequalities of
the people who inhabit it.
And thus the next scene looms in Morocco; the spotlight
finally shining
on what was the secret star of the show all along - enough
depressing
predictions - let the games begin! Carbon trading is on the
table - what
are the rules, and how do we make people comply? Come on,
there's
money to be made!
We must take action to show that trading in pollution is not
a
solution.
Contact info@risingtide.nl
for more information and/or to order COP7
local mobilisation posters or see www.risingtide.nl for more
information
about climate change and download your own poster and funky
stickers
to use in your actions.
Some ideas to get your creative juices flowing:
*Thin blue line - find out the sea-level rise or flood level
predictions
for
your area (Met office, Environment agency) and paint/chalk
this level in
blue around town, on council buildings, petrol stations,
etc. Accompany
this with posters/leaflets explaining the line and
forecasted impacts of
extreme weather
*Street Theatre: a marriage between the atmosphere and big
business,
future news and weather report, a carbon auction or carbon
casino
*Declare Anytown a car-free zone, have street parties
reclaiming space
normally consumed by cars, make ‘wanted' posters in car
parks for
'crimes against the biosphere' with pictures of cars, take
over streets
with masses of people on bikes
*Target the local branches of international accountancy
firms like
PricewaterhouseCoopers and Arthur Andersons
*Do a 90% for 90% action - see www.risingtide.org.uk
*Fix up some bikes (universities and stations are good
places to ask for
leftovers) and set up a local free bike scheme
*Paint cycle lanes or 'think bike' signs on the road
*Office occupations of companies not reducing emissions or
part of
increasing emissions (airlines largest culprit)
*Plough up a motorway and create a park!
*Campaign for not-for profit public transport
*Floods on the news? Set hosepipes on offices of oil and
airline
companies
*Create virtual reality images of climate chaos future in
your region/town
*Flyer cars with 'violation' tickets explaining their
environmental costs,
or
with fish containing messages/website addresses
*'Climate chaos ahead' road signs on all rush-hour
approaches to town
Rising Tide Network
http://www.risingtide.nl
http://www.risingtide.de
http://www.risingtide.org.uk
More:
http://www.csn.ul.ie/~environ/cop6.htm
http://www.climate.indymedia.org/ |
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