Greens join 600,000 in People’s March for the Climate

30 November 2015

Local members Jean Lambert MEP, and Waltham Forest candidate Lee Burkwood
were among those marching.

Councils Urged to Divest from Fossil Fuels Immediately

Members of Waltham Forest and Redbridge Green Party joined the international People’s March for the Climate on Sunday November 29^th. The London march began in Park Lane and ended at Parliament. Over 600,000 people took to the streets in 175 countries around the world to call for a strong deal in Paris that will see a swift transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. In London, it was estimated there were 50,000 people on the march.

The demonstration was timed to put pressure on 147 world leaders to take action on climate change at the Paris Climate Talks, known as COP21 (1). Starting today, negotiators from 195 countries will try to reach a deal within two weeks aimed at reducing global carbon emissions and limiting global warming to 2C (3.6F).

There is now a scientific consensus that climate change is happening and it is the result of human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels and the farming of animals for meat and dairy products. In fact, it is happening at a faster rate than previously thought. Unless action is taken now, the planet will experience extreme weather, food shortages, mass extinction of species and escalating wars over resources.

This means massive investment in renewables and not in new fossil fuels. It means saving energy by insulating and converting all homes and all public and private buildings, and a shift from cars to public transport. It means a dedicated workforce to create this infrastructure – one million climate jobs. It means moving away from a meat and dairy based diet.

On the local government level, actions should include divesting employee pension schemes from fossil fuels (2). Currently, Waltham Forest has a total of £44,096,000 invested in fossil fuels, while Redbridge has £32,852,000. Divesting from fossil fuels would highlight the destructive influence of the oil and gas industry and encourage people to invest in more ethical, cleaner businesses such as renewable energy.

Hannah Boustred, of Waltham Forest & Redbridge Green Party, said: “Waltham Forest Council have said they want to put climate change at the heart of their policies - which have seemed to be hollow words – so the COP21 talks should encourage them to demonstrate they are serious about climate change and divest from fossil fuels.”