By Rea Cris, Parliamentary Officer, RSPB Scotland
Frank Sinatra sung that he loved Paris in the spring time. I will be in love with Paris this winter when we make sure that political leaders know there is strong public support for ambitious commitments at the UN climate summit in December.
The current negotiations for a new global climate deal to replace the Kyoto Protocol are a minefield of acronyms and techno jargon – so I won’t bore you. They have also been ongoing for many years but what is scheduled to be agreed in Paris is a binding new agreement for all countries to limit climate change. It really is a last chance to get a deal which moves the world in the right direction, that’s why 2015 is a crucial year in the fight against climate change. Climate change is having an impact on our wildlife and it is only expected to get worse. Scientists have estimated that for every 1oC rise in global temperatures 10% of the world’s species will become extinct. A cruel irony is that climate change is already affecting countries and people in the global South who have done the least to contribute to carbon emissions. At 2oC rise would mean that small island states like Tuvalu would disappear under rising sea levels. Negotiations in Paris can secure binding targets for industrialised countries and money for developing countries to help them adapt.
Even if you aren’t able to come to Paris and march down the famous avenues you can play a part in the outcome. If enough of us make enough noise in the coming months, we can create a bigger impact at the negotiations as well as influencing the kind of future we want to live in right here at home. Scotland has some proud credentials, having passed some of the most ambitious climate change legislation in the world back in 2009, but with repeatedly recently missed targets it needs our help to keep politicians on track about what we care about most.
To help make the noise needed, there are some exciting events coming up to get involved in – for events in Scotland at http://www.stopclimatechaos.org/scotland/events. RSPB Scotland is a member of SCCS, a coalition of environment, faith and international development organisations, trade and student unions and community groups.
The most important date to keep free in your calendar is Saturday November 28th 2015 for Scotland’s Climate March: Show Your Colours for Climate, Justice and Jobs in Edinburgh. Join the worldwide movement marching for a better future – there will also be marches that weekend in London, Cardiff, Belfast and all round the world. Stand up for people affected by rising global temperatures and demand that world leaders agree an ambitious deal. Scotland needs to show its colours in Paris so let’s brighten up that dreich November day by donning our brightest glad rags as Scotland marches on this weekend of global action. This is the march you don’t want to miss; grab a friend and be sure to be there!
LINKS
The History of Climate Change Negotiations in 83 seconds. https://youtu.be/B11kASPfYxY
Stop Climate Chaos: www.stopclimatechaos.org
Scotland’s Climate March: join RSPB at the march: http://www.e-activist.com/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=13&ea.campaign.id=43251&ea.tracking.id=internal
Matt Williams, Assistant Warden, RSPB Snape.