THE CLIMATE JUSTICE movement hasn’t gone away – it’s just waiting an extra year for the next international climate conference – COP26, due to be held in Glasgow next November.
COVID-19 put paid to the original plan to hold the conference in November 2020: but that gives campaigners an extra year to work on getting a good result. It’s also a year they will spend linking calls for climate justice to calls for health justice – and they are asking for your help to promote these twin aims.
The latest initiative comes from health campaigners Medact, Students for Global Health, the Centre for Sustainable Healthcare and Health Declares – and it’s a simple open letter which they would like members of the public to sign and share with others who might sign it too. The letter has three main demands on world leaders: •that they commit themselves to making an ambitious and historically accurate reduction in emissions; •that they permanently cancel all new fossil fuel extractive projects; •that they guarantee that COP26 will be fossil fuel free by ensuring that fossil fuel companies and lobbyists are not able to influence negotiations.
The coalition of campaigns points out that we must all understand that the health of our communities is bound up in the health of the planet – and they believe we must all put pressure on the UK Government to deliver at next year’s talks.
The campaigns have also written a briefing paper which goes into these issues in more detail. This will be launched on 7th December: click the link below to join the meeting.
•Sign the open letter here: Open Letter
•Register for the Briefing Paper launch: Launch Meeting
•To find out more about climate, health and sustainability issues concerning the new Whipps Cross Hospital, go to: 20:20 Vision
●Read more about it: Have public services survived COVID? Medics mark Hiroshima Day anti-nuke events