March 2022:
COP26 November 2021. No need to go to Glasgow during the climate talks in early November. Size isn’t everything, especially during a pandemic!. Why not join one of 40+ events under the heading GLOBAL DAY OF ACTION FOR THE CLIMATE taking place across the UK at mid-day on Saturday 6th November. We will be on College Green Bristol, together with other groups that day.
If you can’t join any actions, follow the talks on the media. Look out for non-binding promises being made with distant dates, vague targets, technological solutions not yet tested at scale, and carbon markets that may merely shift the emissions round the globe without changing anything. What are the sponsors of COP26 (NatWest, Unilever, Microsoft, Sainsbury’s and others) doing and what do they want in return, who is lobbying in the shadows? And what about the pitifully small sums being offered by the rich countries to the Third World/Global South to help them with mitigating the effects of climate change? Plenty to keep an eye on. Contact your MP, certainly. But how about your pension provider, bank, insurance companies, and supermarkets who keep the show going – they need a response from us, the public.
June 2021: COUNTDOWN TO G7. This is a year of major decisions: In November the climate summit (aka COP26) will be hosted by the UK in Glasgow. In preparation for this the leaders of the G7 nations are meeting in St Ives Cornwall 11-13 June, and we want to make sure that action is taken to deal with the unfolding catastrophe of climate change and ecological collapse. In the month leading up to the G7 summit, we are publishing some short briefings each day for those who want to bring about change. Whatever your age, join an action, in Cornwall or locally, to make sure that our leaders don’t forget about the climate and ecological emergency.
28 days to go. The Group of Seven – US, UK, Canada, Japan, France, Germany & Italy – meet
11th-13th June in Cornwall, UK. The G7 represents 54% of global wealth. Will #G7 #ActNow for Life on Earth? UN Secretary-General, World Economic Forum, 2011: “We mined our way to growth. We burned our way to prosperity. We believed in consumption without consequences… Over time, that model is a recipe for disaster. It is a global suicide pact.”
https://www.un.org/press/en/2011/sgsm13372.doc.htm
August 2020: Extinction Rebellion (XR) is currently running a campaign for a debate on the proposed Climate and Ecological Emergency Bill (https://www.resilience.org/stories/2020-08-21/why-the-climate-and-ecological-emergency-bill-could-lead-to-a-revolution-of-the-imagination/) to be put before Parliament on 1st September. You could support this important initiative in two ways: 1) Write to your MP (easiest via www.writetothem.com, and/or 2) join an XR rally (with mask, keeping social distance etc) in London, Cardiff or Manchester on Tuesday 1st September 2020 (www.extinctionrebellion.uk).
2020. Grandparents for a Safe Earth is not currently operating as a campaigning group, but we do sometimes disseminate information.
Are you one of the 5 million people in the UK who already have or will have a Council pension? If so, you’re contributing to a £260 billion pot that places some of its investments in extracting fossil fuels. What to do? 1) Contact your Local Authority Pension scheme and ask them to divest. The investments of the 89 Council pensions schemes in the UK are administered by 8 Pensions Partnerships or Pools. These pools have access to low-carbon or no-carbon funds. Demand of your Council that they invest your money in these, and divest from fossil-fuels. 2) Attend a meeting of your Pensions committee as an observer or with a question. It’s never been a better time. At this time of COVID you get a chance to be seen on Zoom, and remind them that climate change is still here – your Council probably declared a climate emergency last year. Pensions mean power, see this short clip https://youtu.be/GmumgriuGfU, produced by ShareAction (visit www.shareaction.org to find out more about their work) Let us know how you’re getting on via our contact page.
22.03.20 No public actions or protests at the moment because of the Coronavirus outbreak, but how about spending some time on the lessons from the outbreak with climate change/collapse? Will we have learnt about the risks of globalization, rapid economic growth and species depletion, or will we instead go back to rapid economic expansion to make up for lost time, and forget about climate change. Follow this link if you’re interested in examining this issue: https://ecohustler.com/nature/5-ways-coronavirus-could-help-humanity-survive-the-ecological-crisis/