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• Archbishop Desmond Tutu is joined by Wangari Maathai and Dr Samuel Kobia in supporting Kofi Annan’s ‘Time for Climate Justice’ campaign
• Youssou N’Dour, Angélique Kidjo and Amadou and Mariam contribute to the campaign’s free musical petition “Beds are Burning”
• Kofi Annan asks people to join Climate Justice campaign by downloading musical petition to demand decisive action from world leaders
Archbishop Desmond Tutu has been joined by Wangari Maathai and Dr Samuel Kobia in calling on Africa to have its voice heard on the issue of Climate Justice in the run-up to the post-Kyoto talks in Copenhagen in December.
The trio have come out in support of the ‘Tck Tck Tck-Time for Climate Justice’ campaign, which was launched earlier this year by the Global Humanitarian Forum.
Climate Justice has, at its heart, the principle that emissions have a price and greenhouse gas emitters must pay. The countries, and peoples, who are suffering the most from the adverse consequences of climate change – both now and in the future – have done the least to cause it.
With the developing world, including much of Africa, suffering the most from the effects of devastating climate change, the “Climate Allies” have joined the campaign to raise awareness ahead of the climate talks in Copenhagen in December.
All three called on Africans from across the continent to act now to ensure that they have their voices heard, encouraging people to join the campaign for Climate Justice by downloading the campaign song for free or uploading a ‘tck’ video, image or text message to the human clock that ticks down the seconds until the start of the climate talks.
Desmond Tutu said: "The older generation has made a mess, bequeathing on the next generation a world that faces a very real and serious threat of extinction: climate change. In Nigeria, villagers are engaging in conflict because of diminishing pastures. Part of the reason Darfur is happening is because of pasture conflicts. Africa knows that this is not happening thousands of miles away. It is happening in our own backyard.
“I support the campaign for Climate Justice and I am pleased to become a Climate Ally. This is your campaign. Join me.”
Dr Samuel Kobia said: “Climate change is the most important challenge to today’s world. The member churches of the World Council of Churches are continuously reporting to us about the consequences of climate change on vulnerable communities in different parts of the world, from Kiribati and Tuvalu in the Pacific, to Congo, Uganda, and even my own country Kenya in East Africa, to the Amazon region in Latin America, to Cuba and Haiti in the Caribbean.”
Wangari Maathai said: "Climate change justice is important for Africa because she has emitted an almost negligible amount of carbon in the last 200 years of industrialization, and yet scientists say she will be hardest hit by climate change."
African stars help record campaign’s musical petition ‘Beds are Burning’
African stars also joined in the making of the ‘Time for Climate Justice’ campaign musical petition ‘Beds are Burning’. Youssou N’Dour, Angélique Kidjo and Amadou and Mariam joined 60 international music stars and celebrities including Duran Duran, Mark Ronson, Jamie Cullum and Mélanie Laurent to record the campaign song which has already received over a quarter of a million views on YouTube.
The stars are urging people around the world to support the campaign by downloading the song. This will count as a unique digital petition, with people adding their names to demand world leaders reach a fair, robust and binding agreement at the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. Already, more than 2 million have signed up to the campaign.
Angélique Kidjo said: "I strongly feel that climate change is not only a crucial environmental issue but also a human rights issue: the people most affected by the climate crisis are the ones living in the developing world who can't afford to cope with the consequences of an excessive industrialization they didn't start."
Amadou and Mariam added: “The time has come!”
Speaking at the launch of “Beds are Burning” in Paris, Kofi Annan, President of the Global Humanitarian Forum said: “Climate change is the greatest humanitarian challenge facing mankind today. And it is a challenge that has a grave injustice at its heart. It is the major developed economies of the world which contribute the overwhelming majority of global greenhouse emissions. But it is the poorer and least developed nations that are hit hardest by its impact.
“By downloading ‘Beds Are Burning’ for free from major music download platforms on the internet, people from around the world will be adding their names to this growing global petition – joining the campaign for climate justice and becoming a Climate Ally.
“This will be the first time ever that a musical petition has been created to demand decisive action from our world leaders. I believe it can become the Band Aid for the internet generation. Together, we can create such a noise that our leaders will not be able to ignore it when they meet in Copenhagen this December to agree a new post-Kyoto climate agreement. Good leaders are also good followers.”
For More Information, Please Contact:
Marcus McKenzie – Project Manager – marcus.mckenzie[.]ghf-ge.org - +41 22 919 75 02
Emma van der Meulen – Project Officer– emma.vandermeulen[.]ghf-ge.org - +41 22 919 75 45
‘Tck Tck Tck – Time for Climate Justice’ campaign
The Time for Climate Justice campaign aims to highlight the importance of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP15) in Copenhagen in December 2009 and lobby for a fair, robust and binding agreement to succeed the Kyoto Protocol. The campaign is the first major initiative of the Global Alliance for Climate Justice. The campaign was created by Havas Worldwide and was launched earlier this year at the 56th Cannes International Advertising Festival.
Kofi Annan announced the creation of a Global Alliance for Climate Justice at the inaugural GHF Annual Forum in June 200. The Alliance is a global movement which aims to raise awareness for climate justice, a concept according to which pollution has a cost and the poor must be supported in adapting to the consequences of climate change.
About Climate Allies
Climate Allies are high profile individuals and members of the general public who feel strongly about embracing the issue of climate justice. Everyone can become a Climate Ally by downloading the campaign soundtrack ‘Beds are Burning’, uploading a tck, image or text message.
About Global Humanitarian Forum
Founded in 2007, the Global Humanitarian Forum is led by Kofi Annan and brings together stakeholders, including government, business, international organizations, civil society and the general public, to help solve humanitarian challenges. The Forum’s current focus is to increase awareness on the human face of climate change and to boost support to vulnerable populations worst affected by global warming.
About Dr Samuel Kobia
Dr Samuel Kobia is Secretary General of the World Council of Churches. Dr. Kobia previously headed the Kenya National Council of Churches and has been involved in many social, political and ecumenical activities across Africa and around the world.
About Angélique Kidjo
Angélique Kidjo is a Grammy Award-winning Beninese singer-songwriter, noted for her diverse musical influences and creative music videos. She has been involved in numerous charity and advocacy initiatives.
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