GlosCAN press release

Climate Change: “we can climb it!”

Gloucestershire Climate March, linked to People’s Climate March in New York, Sunday 21^st September in Stroud.

On Sunday 21 September, people of Gloucestershire are invited to come together in a public statement on the issue of man-made climate change. The aim is to place pressure on governments to develop binding policies to curb CO₂ emissions and to encourage humanity to adopt low carbon initiatives. Since 2007, scientists have developed better tools, and drawing from the IPCC’s Fifth Assessment Reports we can be certain about how humans are changing the climate.

The starting point at 12.00 noon is to be Stroud Subscription Rooms forecourt from where the march will progress up to Rodborough Sports Field. Here the plan is to make a large heart-shape to symbolize the things that are cherished: people, habitats and planet, which are under threat from the destabilising build-up of CO2 in the atmosphere. Participants will join in singing, music and picnics!

It takes place on a global day of action, spearheaded by climate campaigning groups 350.org and Avaaz. In New York United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is hosting a Climate Summit to engage leaders and advance climate action and ambition. The Kirklees campaign against climate change argue that globally this will be ‘A weekend to “bend the course of history”’

Participants will sign a declaration and petition, which will be the start of many actions by GlosCAN.

Two planning meetings include one on Tues 9^th Sept, 7 – 9 pm at The Exchange, Brick Row, Stroud, and a preparation day on Sunday the 14^th Sept, 10am to 4 pm, at the same venue, where flags and banners will be made.  Volunteers with an artistic leaning are needed to help make inspiring cloth flags and banners, in green and blue that depict the connections between all forms of life.

GlosCAN committee member, Arun Cappi said, "The event is an opportunity to share information with the wider public, to help the evidence become clear; and to show that it is a fair and scientific assessment of the impact that we are having on the atmosphere."

Event planner, Fred Miller said, "The mountainous challenge that is climate change reminded me of the Bear Hunt story: ‘You can't go round it, you can't go under it, you have to … climb it’ … and ‘Climb it’ sounds like Climate, so that is what we called it."

Fellow GlosCAN committee member, Nick James, said, "It will also be a call to local government to 'up its game’, and commit to 100 percent clean energy for all its operations, and to urgently develop a sustainable zero carbon, local economy."

“It is also a call for leadership from our national government at the United Nations talks that are being held in Paris in December 2015. These talks are a last chance, very late in the day, to put in place global limits on more carbon emissions”, said Vaughan Webber, one of the GlosCAN organisers.

GlosCAN is an independent campaigning group not affiliated to the Green Party. We support them because we share their sense of urgency that climate change is a serious issue that must be faced responsibly. We are glad to host news, press releases, events and announcements from any group, organisation, charity, or business that share our aims and beliefs.