We had this remarkable situation with a total of 192 countries signing up to attend the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark last month. The conference was awash with presidents, prime ministers, ministers and diplomats from every nation on Earth all coming together for two weeks.
Leaders of the richest nations and the poorest nations supposedly were co-operating together to put a real brake on the potential for global catastrophes due to climate change that may beset the Earth by the middle of the century. The signs are already obvious starting with melting icecaps at the north and south Pole.
There is little point in fudging it. These global negotiations to address climate change collapsed. The Copenhagen summit that we longed to be a turning point in human history ground to an unconvincing fudge. As usual, the USA, the UK and a handful of other countries tried to put unconvincingly a positive gloss on the conclusion of the summit.
The so-called “Copenhagen Accord” said it will keep temperature rises to no more than 2C but does not contain commitments to emissions reductions to achieve that goal. A toothless, clawless tiger.
Scientists, non-governmental organisations, ecologists, environmentalists, activists and countless thoughtful people worldwide knew that the leaders, especially of the rich and powerful nations, had let the world down, their citizens, future generations and themselves. They brought little to the conference table except rhetoric.
A total of 102 poor nations called for the maximum global temperature rise to be limited not to 2C but to 1.5C. The chief negotiator for one block of nations complained that the rich nations want Africa “to sign a suicide pact, an incineration pact, in order to maintain the economic dominance of a few countries”.
Those who emit the most pollution and consume the most, especially USA, China and Europe, showed an unwillingness to move the agenda forward to include listening to the poor nations, making accessible the necessary funding to protect them as much as possible from climate change and make a massive commitment to the development of clean technology around the world.
All references to 1.5C in past drafts were removed at the last minute. The 2050 goal of reducing global CO2 emissions by 80% was also dropped.
Further increases in global temperatures will turn millions of people into refugees due to droughts and rising sea levels. Land and water shortage will lower food production as global population increases. Sadly, the powerful heads of state appeared in Copenhagen, made their speeches, met with their counterparts and flew home without any substantial commitment to protect the Earth and the variety of species.
Poor nations had to agree to what little was on offer or risk losing whatever funding might be available.
Friends of the Earth US dismissed the agreement as a sham. “This is not a strong deal or a just one – it isn’t even a real one,” said the group’s president Erich Pica.
Lumumba Di-Aping, chief negotiator for the G77 group of 130 developing countries, said the deal had “the lowest level of ambition you can imagine. It is nothing short of climate change scepticism in action. It locks countries into a cycle of poverty forever.
John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace UK, said: “The city of Copenhagen is a crime scene tonight, with the guilty men and women fleeing to the airport.”
We have learnt one lesson. We have to drop the economic model and globalisation and shift to another workable and sustainable model. Global capitalism is a virus that destroys our capital – the Earth and its limited resources.
What are the necessary steps? We have to switch to a sustainable way of life. In the World War 2, numerous countries shifted over to a war footing in the war against Nazis. Nations of the world have to make as dramatic a shift towards a sustainable way of life on Earth. We have to recognise the needs of the poor people’s of the world who have suffered the most due to the present exploitive and violent economic system that haunts the world.
Here are some of the urgent priorities.
1. We need to make a 90% ending of CO2 emissions over the next 40 years.
2. Shift to a renewable based economy.
3. Use of energy from sun, air and water through cooperation and movement of energy in cables between hot and cold countries. Close down all coal fired statios and nuclear power energy sources by 2050.
4. Dramatic drop in all forms of consumption.
5. Electric cars with electric stations (instead of gas stations) to collect recharged batteries.
6. 30% of CO2 emissions come from homes. The rest comes from factories, offices, transport, public buildings. Heat, light, fuel, electricity are the primary areas for saving. Apply discipline, insulation, clean industries and creative technology.
7. Eco taxes. Eco taxes includes paying taxes for distance travelled by car or by plane. The more you travel by car and plane the more you pay.
What can you do? Start today. Make a commitment to seeing ways to conserve energy and resources. Team up with others, near and far.
Some of us will feel disheartened with the so-called Copenhagen Accord. If we are, then let us keep our determination to liberate us all from the pathology of ignorance and greed that dehumanises us all. We will not allow our Earth to go to hell.
Copy of Copenhagen Accord,
http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Environment/documents/2009/12/19/copenhagenaccord.pdf