Last week's RISE event was great. We marched, we chanted, we sang, and we learned, all for a good cause. Now, the event itself was an awesome time, and helped to fight against a very important local problem within the East Boston area, but these RISE events had another purpose too. As I mentioned in that last post, many of them were created in support for something called GCAS, or the Global Climate Action Summit. I briefly explained what it was in that post, but because it took place this past week, I think it warrants some more explanation. So, what exactly was GCAS? Did it go well? Or, might it even be a setback?
What was GCAS?
Let's talk a bit more about what exactly GCAS was. While full of interesting and fun things to do, the main focus of it was to bring people, leaders, organizations, and politicians from all around the world together to talk about climate change and the solutions they can implement to help reverse it. Not only this, but according to the event's official website, "It will also be a launchpad for deeper worldwide commitments and accelerated actions from countries" (https://www.globalclimateactionsummit.org/about-the-summit/). So, the way I see it, it was almost like a Paris Agreement Pt. 2: different in the sense that there weren't just politicians talking about the issues, but similar in that it had a goal of creating solutions for countries and companies to combat climate change.
Secondarily, the summit also functioned as a way to highlight the people and countries who are doing it right when it comes to climate change. The ones who are really taking the issues to heart, and working hard to ensure that their impact on our climate is minimized. Finally, the event also encouraged countries and companies to commit to a series of challenges, called "Key Summit Challenges" which included topics such as addressing healthy energy systems, creating inclusive economic growth, transforming unsustainable communities, and much more. If you'd like to see the full list of the challenges, you can click here.
Completely Sustainable
One thing that isn't of incredibly high importance, but I thought was worth mentioning, was the creation of the event itself, which was made 100% sustainable. They thought of everything, from transportation, to catering, to waste recovery, to community education, to the total carbon footprint, and more. They hand selected the venue and all other elements to fit under a sustainable goal, and that's something worth commending. I don't have the space to detail everything here, but trust me, they really cared about making this event sustainable. If you'd like more details about how exactly they accomplished that, click here.
Community Events
Aside from all the meetings, conferences, presentations, and such, there were a lot more events outside of the actual summit that the San Francisco community could get involved in. Additionally, as was the focus of my last post, tons of events around the world (as part of the RISE campaign and otherwise) were held to show support for the conference and its push for stronger action against climate change. There were marches, teach-ins, festivals, exhibitions, discussions, and much, much more. All of which were free, open to the public, and very well supported.
The Program
Even thought the conference was held through September 12th-14th, the bulk of it took place on the Thursday (September 13th) and Friday (September 14) of that week, with a ton of events packed into an extremely short time span. In just two days, they hosted over 25 different sessions about a multitude of different subjects, worked with over 4,000 delegates, and generated about 500 major commitments to healthier climate from business and communities. There were panels hosted by experts, stories told from the native people on the front lines, and detailed plans from politicians about what they hope to bring to the table in the future. You can view the full program here.
Was it Successful?
So, all of this leads up to one major question: was it successful? Are we finally on a better track when it comes to tackling this tremendous issue? Well, the truth is, I don't know. None of us really do. Just like the Paris agreement, there were a lot of promises made, which is fantastic, but not all promises are kept. As we have seen with said Paris agreement, some countries are doing a fantastic job keeping their promises, but others (like the U.S!) aren't doing as much as they should.
That being said, there were a TON of good promises made. Multiple businesses, states, and countries planned to reach net zero carbon emissions in the coming decades, multiple bans on harmful items were formulated, and much more. As much as I would like to explain all the commitments that were made, I think that other articles have done it much better. If you'd like to see some of the major highlights of the suggested projects and commitments, you can click here, here, and here.
Conclusion
So, the conference is over, and now it's time to look towards the future. No one really knows what it has in store for us. Of course, we will continue to hope for the best; promises that companies and countries have made are immensely encouraging. It seems that real progress is being made all over the world, and that we may just have a brighter future ahead of us. That being said, we must be careful. The climate movement in the 1970s failed largely because it was believed that those fighting for the climate had already won, and the same outcome could very easily happen today if we focus too much on what we've accomplished. There's certainly room for celebration, but the fight isn't over, and if we hope to preserve the Earth for generations to come, then it likely never will be.
We will continue to fight. That's the takeaway here. Companies and countries have made their pledge, and now it's time to hold them to it. Time to make sure that the future they promise actually does come to fruition. Time to step up and speak out. Time to celebrate, maybe, but also time to look to the future, not only at what we've accomplished, but what we still have yet to do. It's time to ensure that we keep our word, work to create a better future, and plan so that, when it comes time for the next climate negotiation in Poland, that we will have made progress. It truly is a time for change.
All credit for information used in this post goes to:
https://www.globalclimateactionsummit.org/
https://www.gasworld.com/gcas-net-zero-carbon-emissions-before-2050/2015439.article
Images:
https://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/07/california-to-host-global-climate-action-summit-in-2018.html
https://www.e-mc2.gr/news/pagkosmia-diaskepsi-klimatikis-drasis-global-climate-action-summit-12-14-septembrioy-san
https://www.thenation.com/article/at-the-global-climate-action-summit-brown-and-bloomberg-make-bold-new-pledges/
http://www.ktvu.com/news/global-action-summit-protest-blocks-streets-in-san-francisco
https://www.globalclimateactionsummit.org/
https://ecocanterbury.org.nz/event/rise-for-climate-day-1/
https://www.globalclimateactionsummit.org/program/
https://guce.oath.com/collectConsent?brandType=eu&.done=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.huffingtonpost.co.uk%2Fmaria-keogh%2Fwhat-does-the-paris-agree_1_b_9515590.html%3Fguccounter%3D1%26guce_referrer_us%3DaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZWNvc2lhLm9yZy8%26guce_referrer_cs%3DDVk4nS7dB7fev_4uM1Krvg&sessionId=1_cc-session_217bea71-c2a0-4717-b54b-58094c68f885&lang=en-gb&inline=false
https://www.peepso.com/the-difference-between-contribution-and-commitment/
https://quotefancy.com/quote/44670/Robin-Hobb-The-fight-isn-t-over-until-you-win
http://badinertech.blogspot.com/
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