New Voices on Climate Change is an innovative initiative of Global Justice Ecology Project, the goal of which is to broaden the climate debate by amplifying the voices of peoples around the world who are already being impacted by climate change. In doing so, the initiative will:
1) Empower peoples and communities already being impacted by climate change by promoting their stories throughout the world.
2) Empower people to become active in the climate movement by humanizing and personalizing climate change, which is otherwise an often daunting, disempowering and abstract problem.
The initiative includes the following components:
• An aggressive media campaign to connect mainstream and alternative media with individuals representing communities impacted by climate change.
• Production of a speakers’ directory of these New Voices that will be distributed to environmental and climate organizations worldwide to encourage inclusion of New Voices speakers in climate-related events.
• A U.S. speaking tour in the fall of 2009.
This program is extremely important because of the key role the United States plays in the climate problem—both as the largest per capita contributor of greenhouse gas emissions and as the number one obstacle to international climate negotiations (both under Democratic and Republican Administrations).
Through our work at the UN Climate Conferences, with which Global Justice Ecology Project has been involved since 2004, we have many contacts with indigenous and marginalized peoples from communities impacted or threatened by climate change. Already we have confirmed participation from peoples from Brazil, Argentina, Uganda, South Africa, Indonesia, Canada, New Zealand, India, Paraguay and the Philippines. Organizations we are working with include Jubilee South, Indigenous Environmental Network and International Alliance of Indigenous and Tribal Peoples of the Tropical Forest.
The New Voices initiative also weaves into our other climate work, which involves organizing around the 2009 UN Climate Convention in Copenhagen, where the world’s leaders will decide the climate regime that will succeed the Kyoto Protocol when it expires in 2012. We are collaborating with organizations all over the world to rally millions of people in support of real action on climate change.
Photo Top Right: Hubertus Samangun speaks to the press during a protest at the UN Climate Conference in Bali in 2007. GJEP and Global Forest Coalition helped organize this event, which was called to protest the exclusion of Indigenous Peoples from the official negotiations. Photo: Langelle/ GJEP
Contact New Voices participants:
Ph: +1 802 482 2689
Email: ne*******@gj******.local
