Welcome to the June edition of our national newsletter, a great place to stay up to date on all Friends of the Earth's updates, news, and solidarity!
This newsletter is possible because of our beautiful community, because of individuals like yourself. I thank you deeply for supporting FoE!
FoE Australia celebrates 50th birthday
We're very excited to announce that it's Friends of the Earth Australia's 50th birthday this year!
To celebrate, we are going to spend this month diving into the past, and looking into the future of FoEA, and we invite you all to join us!
We've had 50 years of radical grassroots activism, and have no intention of stopping. But to do so, we need your help!
As the financial year draws to a close, now is the best time to make a tax-deductible donation and help to ensure Friends of the Earth Australia can continue to be a voice for environmental justice for the next 50 years!
Donate today at: foe.org.au/supportfoe
Climate wreckers index report
Market Forces has just released the updated Climate Wreckers Index report, tracking how much of our retirement savings Australia's largest super funds have invested in the world's most climate-damaging fossil fuel companies. The report found that super funds have doubled their investments in these polluting companies in the past two years!
Worse still, super funds still massively favour fossil fuels over clean energy. For every dollar invested in clean energy companies on the share market, the average super fund has five dollars invested in climate wreckers
Healthy Futures Delivers Urgent Methane Letter to Parliament House
On Monday, June 5th, Healthy Futures took a significant step forward in their fight against methane emissions from coal and gas production. They delivered a powerful letter to Parliament House, addressed to Federal Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen, demanding immediate action on methane regulation.
Collaborating with Australia’s leading health organisations, including ANMF, ACEM, RACGP, RANZCP, AFMW, DEA and CAHA, Healthy Futures underscored the urgent need to address this critical issue. Their collective voices represent over 350,000 health workers, ensuring the message cannot be ignored.
How You Can Contribute: Join Healthy Futures at their upcoming supporters meeting on June 12th to learn more about our methane campaign and other initiatives aimed at creating a cleaner, healthier future. Your involvement and support are crucial in driving meaningful change.
Friends of the Earth International at Bonn Climate Change Conference
Friends of the Earth International, the world’s largest grassroots environmental federation, hosts a small delegation of experts and activists at the 60th session of the Subsidiary Bodies pre-sessional meetings (Bonn Climate Change Conference) in Bonn, Germany.
The group will highlight the urgent need to make progress on delivery by rich countries of new public climate finance for developing countries. They will also warn of the dangers of unproven technofixes and dodgy carbon market schemes, as negotiations under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement restart after stalling at COP28 last year, and the Oceans Dialogue continues.
Getting gas out of rentals better for climate, affordability and human safety
At 3:10am on Monday 3 June a gas explosion levelled a social housing project in the Sydney suburb of Whalan. One woman was killed and five people injured. All residents are now homeless and nearby houses have sustained damage from the blast that was heard up to a kilometer away.
On the same day, the Victorian Government announced a public consultation on getting gas out of rentals and rooming houses, replacing gas appliances with efficient electric options and improving the insulation in rentals across the state.
We urge all Victorians to make a submission to the Victorian Government consultation on new minimum standards for rentals and rooming houses before the 1 July deadline and encourage people living in other parts of the country to write to the energy minister in their states and territories to ask for similar reforms.
Anti-Nuclear update
The terribly flawed Australian Naval Nuclear Power Safety Bill is before parliament is likely to be considered in the next Parliamentary sitting late June. If you have not done so already, please write a quick email to your representative to oppose this bill from going through, at least in its current draft.
On a more positive note, FoE Melbourne's Nuclear Free Collective are hosting their famous Art Auction again in August, and are welcoming art works. The theme is 'Make Art Not War', but gratefully welcome art works outside of the theme. If you have an artwork to donate, please register it here and they will be in touch.
A new firefighting team to protect our wild places
As climate change makes fire seasons longer and more intense, there are many things we must do.
Here in Victoria, one simple idea would be to establish a volunteer remote area firefighting team which would be tasked with working alongside career firefighters to stop small fires in national parks and other wild areas before they become uncontrollable blazes.
Most other states and territories already have these teams. FoE has been campaigning for the idea for several years, and now things are aligned to enable us to get this team established through a pilot program.
You can find out more and take action here.
GM-Free uncovers approved genetically modified wheat
The Genetically Modified Free Alliance Australia (GMFAA), has uncovered genetically modified wheat that was approved back in 2022
Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) has assessed an application made by Trigall Genetics seeking to permit the sale and use of food derived from a new food produced using gene technology: wheat line IND-00412-7. This wheat line has been genetically modified for drought and herbicide tolerance (glufosinate). FSANZ approved the draft variation on 27 April 2022.
The safety assessment of wheat line IND-00412-7 is in Supporting Document 1 (SD1). No public health and safety concerns have been identified. Based on the data provided and other information, food derived from wheat line IND-00412-7 is considered to be as safe for human consumption as food derived from conventional non-GM wheat cultivars (FSANZ, 2022).
GMFAA disagree and believe that the wheat should not have been approved without the proper checks and balances and do not believe that they are as safe as conventional non-GM wheat cultivars.
References
(Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ), 6 May 2022) 199-22 Approval report – Application 1232. Food derived from drought-tolerant and herbicide-tolerant wheat line IND-00412-7 A1232 Approval Report final.pdf (foodstandards.gov.au)
