Nick is one of twenty-three Australian Youth Delegates to Copenhagen Climate Negotiations (5-18 Dec, 2009).
This is his collection of stories, videos, photos and links that aim to be informative, funny, relevant and recent.
A Climate of Compassion
As I watch this video and feel the beautiful and powerful message wash over me, I wonder about the future. The tomorrow for my close loved ones - family and friends. The tomorrow of people here in Berlin. The tomorrow of my children and their children.
My cousin had her third baby last week. As she welcomes him to take his first breath, I am on my way to a COP15 where the most important discussions that will be held in our lifetime have uncertain outcomes. As the baby feel sunshine for the first time, the worlds wealthy hold-up the response to secure a safe climate. As Tim has his first meal, the future - his tomorrow - is up in the air.
When I think of compassion I think of the future. We know that the decisions we are making today are directly effecting our tomorrow, and we know that climate issues are part of this. At COP15, we will be asked some very hard questions and they all have the same idea, how much are we willing to pay for a safe tomorrow?
I spoke to an amazing woman recently who has been a mentor for me. When I told her about the climate issue and what I am doing, she said that the question is who will pay the cost of climate change? As we are asked to dig into our pockets, we must remember this question. Who will bear the cost?
If we do not act seriously now, who will pay the cost? If our government continues coal expansion, who will pay the cost? If businesses continue to pollute, who will pay the cost? If we do not cut down on personal emissions, who will pay the cost? As I said on 2SER radio on Wednesday, everyday the costs of not responding are increasing. So, who will bear the cost of climate change?
In our compassionate world we think of Tim’s tomorrow, and we think of the tomorrows of people all around the planet. This is a call to you who are compassionate to act with love for others, your world and yourself. Compassion is at the heart of all climate action because we are thinking of others and we are thinking of a safe future for people we may never meet.
And Climate Justice Fast has made it to twenty days without food, only water. Watch Michael giving his reasons for doing the fast in this short video and you can comment on their website here.
N.
