The first time humanity noticed that wed become an existential threat to ourselves, nuclear war was the potential armageddon casting its shadow over the world. It was the reason Greenpeace came into existence 50 years ago today. The self-imposed risk of annihilation was justified by the Mad doctrine the claim that, because nuclear weapons were so terrible, no one would ever use them for fear of mutually assured destruction. Todays superpowers are still negotiating treaties to try to dodge that fate.
Unlike bombs and missiles, climate changes weapons of mass destruction are genuinely invisible, and so easy and cheap to manufacture that everyones doing it. Most worryingly, theyre already airborne. Weve been launching them in greater and greater volumes for several centuries, and weve finally arrived at the moment when the first wave hits.
All of these factors make the climate talks taking place in Glasgow in November fraught and complex, and absolutely urgent. Just hoping that everyone will be sensible enough not to destroy the only known habitable planet doesnt seem to be working this time.
In 2019, Chinas annual emissions exceeded those of all developed countries combined, as their coal addiction proves hard to shake. Meanwhile, the USAs puny renewables industry is only a third as big as Chinas, and their per capita emissions are still twice as big. So everyone has a good reason to call everyone else a hypocrite, ignore the threat and destroy themselves. Yes, Mad.
The glacial pace of the international talks can be incredibly frustrating, but glacial pace is a lot faster than it used to be, and is accelerating all the time. Our leaders will move as quickly as we push them, and more and more people are putting their shoulders to the wheel. Politicians are all talking the talk, weve got more targets than a rifle ranges performance management review, now we need to force concrete action. Is it realistic to think that ordinary people can make politicians change entire industries in a just transition? Yes, it is. Weve tested it.
Greenpeace led the campaign to drive coal out of the UK. It provided more than 30 per cent of our energy supply when we started, less than 3 per cent now, and our last coal plant is scheduled to close in 2024. We were business partners in Britains first offshore wind farm, the best clean energy technology for a windy island, and it's now providing tens of thousands of jobs. Last year we helped push the government into a 2030 phase-out for petrol and diesel cars, and were still exposing and blocking the worst ideas from the oil and gas industry.
If theres one thing we need to stop burning even faster than fossil fuels, its forests. Humans and our livestock now account for more than 95 per cent of the mammals on our planet. Millions of cows and acres of cattle feed have replaced large chunks of the Amazon and the wildlife that lived there, while oil palms are wreaking the same destruction in Indonesia.
Greenpeace has been at the forefront of tackling the drivers of deforestation, especially for globally traded agricultural commodities like palm oil and soya beans. The soy moratorium we painstakingly constructed cut deforestation in Brazil by a huge amount from 2006 until the arrival of President Jair Bolsonaro, the Trump of the tropics. And our work on forests is where we learned about the importance of the Indigenous peoples who own, occupy, or use a quarter of the worlds surface area and safeguard 80 per cent of Earths remaining biodiversity. The Bolsonaro government is driving them from their forest homes, and without their protection, we lose the forests, then the climate, and then risk our own homes.
Some 50 years after our first voyage, Greenpeace is still an amphibious organisation. After successful campaigns against nuclear weapons testing, whaling, and the dumping of radioactive and toxic waste at sea, our oceans team are currently campaigning to protect the high seas from being emptied by industrial fishing, and from the creeping contamination of waste plastic.
But we need many more people to get involved in order to get a lot more done, and do it faster. If we want to have any chance of keeping global heating aligned with the Paris Agreement on climate, then we need to cut emissions by half this decade. And if we want to prevent the loss of more than a million species, we must halt biodiversity loss now, not in 2050.
A tall order. As economist John Maynard Keynes said: The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as escaping from old ones. Escaping old ideas is difficult. But many of yesterdays eternal truths must be discarded if we are to avoid a frightening tomorrow. And the threat which sank the Glasgow talks last year Covid may be the thing that saves them this year.
The pandemics silver lining, the elusive positive impact that everyone has been searching for, was not the fleeting glimpse of clean air and birdsong some of us enjoyed, unsupported by any structural change. That was just a postcard from a vanishing past. The lasting positive impact of the pandemic will, perhaps, be a reset of the role of the state.
Last year UK government expenditure amounted to more than 50 per cent of gross domestic product, a disaster by orthodox economic thinking. But everyone understood that in such an emergency we needed rapid, government-led action that would have achieved even more with greater international cooperation. Its an interesting idea. Lets hope it takes hold in time for the Glasgow talks. The future is rapidly slipping into the present.
John Sauven is executive director of Greenpeace, a post he has held since 2008.
Go here to read the rest:
- High Seas Forecast (Tropical Atlantic) [Last Updated On: June 10th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 10th, 2016]
- International waters - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [Last Updated On: June 10th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 10th, 2016]
- high seas | maritime law | Britannica.com [Last Updated On: June 10th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 10th, 2016]
- Radiofax Charts - New Orleans [Last Updated On: June 16th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 16th, 2016]
- High Seas Alliance | highseasalliance.org [Last Updated On: June 16th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 16th, 2016]
- High Seas Fleet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [Last Updated On: June 16th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 16th, 2016]
- Web Design & Mobile App Developer San Francisco CA | HIGH SEAS [Last Updated On: June 16th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 16th, 2016]
- knit/lab high seas - Kieran Foley [Last Updated On: June 21st, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 21st, 2016]
- Protecting Ocean Life on the High Seas - Pew Trusts [Last Updated On: June 27th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 27th, 2016]
- Convention on the High Seas - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [Last Updated On: June 29th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 29th, 2016]
- Ultima Online: High Seas - UOGuide, the Ultima Online ... [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2016] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2016]
- High Seas - Science NetLinks [Last Updated On: July 10th, 2016] [Originally Added On: July 10th, 2016]
- High Seas Fleet - Wikipedia [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2016] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2016]
- United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea [Last Updated On: November 27th, 2016] [Originally Added On: November 27th, 2016]
- Ocean Prediction Center-Coastal, Offshore and High Seas ... [Last Updated On: December 15th, 2016] [Originally Added On: December 15th, 2016]
- Global High Seas Marine Preserve A non-profit dedicted ... [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2017]
- New centre for high seas visitors in Angus - The Courier - The Courier [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Naval Presence on High Seas Underscored - Financial Tribune [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Pirates Face Push Back On The High Seas - American Media Institute [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Queen Mary 2 to Host High Fashion on the High Seas - Cruise Hive - Cruise Hive [Last Updated On: February 13th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 13th, 2017]
- Nigeria Rescues Oil Tanker From High-Seas Pirates - OilPrice.com [Last Updated On: February 13th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 13th, 2017]
- High Tea on the High Sea by Searoad Ferries Services [Last Updated On: February 13th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 13th, 2017]
- Conflict and Diplomacy on the High Seas - Focus News [Last Updated On: February 14th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 14th, 2017]
- Cabin cam shows the hilarious frustration of rolling on the high seas - Pickle [Last Updated On: February 14th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 14th, 2017]
- Ransomware Gangs Have Become the High-Seas Pirates of the Internet - On the Wire (blog) [Last Updated On: February 14th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 14th, 2017]
- Suspect in high-seas homicides hospitalized, putting case on hold - Sacramento Bee [Last Updated On: February 15th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 15th, 2017]
- To Boldly Cruise Where No Couple Has Cruised Before - Bloomberg [Last Updated On: February 15th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 15th, 2017]
- Sailing the high seas: Top cruises for first-timers, families and excursions in 2017 - Malay Mail Online [Last Updated On: February 15th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 15th, 2017]
- All aboard for Cosplay on the high seas - The New Paper [Last Updated On: February 17th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 17th, 2017]
- Star-Studded Broadway on the High Seas 8 Sets Sail Feb. 17 - Playbill.com [Last Updated On: February 17th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 17th, 2017]
- The Cold War returns to the high seas - CNN [Last Updated On: February 17th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 17th, 2017]
- 'The internet is like the high seas' - Deutsche Welle [Last Updated On: February 18th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 18th, 2017]
- Greg McQuade discovers life on the high seas aboard USS Dwight D. Eisenhower - wtvr.com [Last Updated On: February 18th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 18th, 2017]
- In Dramatic High Seas Rescue, Four Fishermen Rescued By Good Samaritans Off Galveston, Texas, Coast - Patch.com [Last Updated On: February 19th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 19th, 2017]
- Escape to the high seas at the National Aviary - NEXTpittsburgh [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2017]
- Scapa Flow German High Seas Fleet scrap sites explored - The ... - The Orcadian [Last Updated On: February 23rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 23rd, 2017]
- Two boats towed in harbor in high seas - Cayman Compass [Last Updated On: February 24th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 24th, 2017]
- Take to the high seas with Condor Sailing Adventures - Pensacola News Journal [Last Updated On: February 25th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 25th, 2017]
- Aging high-seas murder suspect out of hospital and back in court - Sacramento Bee [Last Updated On: February 28th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 28th, 2017]
- Masters of the waves talk of high seas, thrills & spills - The New Indian Express [Last Updated On: March 1st, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 1st, 2017]
- Campbell River Sea Cadet off to England to hit the high seas - Campbell River Mirror [Last Updated On: March 4th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 4th, 2017]
- Survival on the high seas (From The Northern Echo) - The Northern Echo (registration) [Last Updated On: March 4th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 4th, 2017]
- Industry 4.0 on the High Seas - MarineLink [Last Updated On: March 4th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 4th, 2017]
- New Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales Trailer Brings Us More Action On The High Seas! - LRM Online (press release) (blog) [Last Updated On: March 4th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 4th, 2017]
- Eco-warriors meet government authority on Ballina's high seas ... - Echonetdaily [Last Updated On: March 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 6th, 2017]
- Tech on the high seas: Fred Olsen IT chief chats cloud, connectivity and security - www.v3.co.uk [Last Updated On: March 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 6th, 2017]
- Why newbie Drusilla is preparing for life on the high seas - The Wharf - The Wharf [Last Updated On: March 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 7th, 2017]
- Bhang Travel Inc. Brings Cannabis Networking to the High Seas - PR Web (press release) [Last Updated On: March 8th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 8th, 2017]
- Drama on the high seas: East Kilbride couple reveal dramatic rescue after boat sinks in Gulf - Scottish Daily Record [Last Updated On: March 8th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 8th, 2017]
- French, Irish yacht sailors survive high seas off Australia's coast - TRT World [Last Updated On: March 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 10th, 2017]
- Journey through the high seas - Manila Standard - The Standard [Last Updated On: March 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 11th, 2017]
- High Seas Yacht Service | Specializing in Marine Propulsion Alignments [Last Updated On: March 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 11th, 2017]
- High Seas Adventure With Bunn And Molina's 'X-Men: Blue' - ComicsAlliance [Last Updated On: March 17th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 17th, 2017]
- Fun on the high seas - Dallas Voice [Last Updated On: March 19th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 19th, 2017]
- Freedom on high seas - nation.lk - The Nation Newspaper [Last Updated On: March 19th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 19th, 2017]
- Limerick cancer survivor returns to the high seas - Limerick Post [Last Updated On: March 19th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 19th, 2017]
- At ease on high seas, woman pilot storms into male bastion | Kolkata ... - Times of India [Last Updated On: March 19th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 19th, 2017]
- Meeting on High Seas Fisheries in the Central Arctic Ocean - The Arctic Journal [Last Updated On: March 19th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 19th, 2017]
- Shell Looks to Lower The Cost of Drilling on The High Seas - Chem.Info [Last Updated On: March 23rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 23rd, 2017]
- Indians work on high seas but yet to take a cruise | Goa News ... - Times of India [Last Updated On: March 23rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 23rd, 2017]
- Cubans Still Fleeing on the High Seas, Months After Obama Nixes Wet Foot/Dry Foot - Breitbart News [Last Updated On: March 23rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 23rd, 2017]
- Narcosis Brings Terror Comes to the High Seas on March 28 - Dread Central [Last Updated On: March 23rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 23rd, 2017]
- Duncan high takes class to the 'high seas' - Duncan Banner [Last Updated On: March 23rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 23rd, 2017]
- Cardboard vessels take to the 'high seas' at MCA - News Item [Last Updated On: March 27th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 27th, 2017]
- Skating a halfpipe on the high seas - GrindTV [Last Updated On: March 29th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 29th, 2017]
- SEAS: The Art Of Sound Perfection [Last Updated On: March 31st, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 31st, 2017]
- Helping save a life on the high seas warmed the heart of one Craig woman - Craig Daily Press [Last Updated On: April 2nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 2nd, 2017]
- Watch: Impressive High Seas Evacuation from Tall Ship - GCaptain [Last Updated On: April 2nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 2nd, 2017]
- A dining odyssey on the high seas - Detroit Free Press [Last Updated On: April 2nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 2nd, 2017]
- High Stakes for High-Seas Gaming - TravelPulse [Last Updated On: April 2nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 2nd, 2017]
- High life on the high seas - THE BUSINESS TIMES [Last Updated On: April 3rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 3rd, 2017]
- Captain Cannonball sails the high seas as a pirate - Destin.com - Destin Log and Walton Log [Last Updated On: April 3rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 3rd, 2017]
- Real 'Pirate Women' On The High Seas Of Old | On Point - WBUR - WBUR [Last Updated On: April 5th, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 5th, 2017]
- Trekr Racing makes its debut on the high seas - Washington Blade - Washington Blade [Last Updated On: April 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 7th, 2017]
- No clean boats on the high seas | Kochi News - Times of India - Times of India [Last Updated On: April 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 7th, 2017]
- Cruise Operators Continue to Hide Behind the Death on the High ... - Cruise Law News [Last Updated On: April 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 7th, 2017]
- Master of the high seas: Pomp, patriotism and politics as Navy's newest ship gets a name - Wicked Local Wellesley [Last Updated On: April 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 10th, 2017]
- Young family moves from high desert to life on the high seas - Grand Junction Daily Sentinel [Last Updated On: April 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 10th, 2017]
- Master of the high seas: Pomp, patriotism and politics as Navy's ... - Wicked Local Quincy [Last Updated On: April 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 12th, 2017]
- Orphans turn sailors for fun day on the high seas - Pattaya Mail [Last Updated On: April 14th, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 14th, 2017]