Climate & Energy Justice
Chain Reaction magazine out now
Chain Reaction #125 − November 2015
National Magazine of Friends of the Earth, Australia
Read online at foe.org.au/chain-reaction/editions/125 or subscribe (details below).
Economics for Earth
Briefing on the TPP and Sustainable Development Goals
Several UN Sustainable Development Goals are irreconcilable with Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal
From September 30 to October 2nd Andrew Robb and Trade Ministers from 11 other countries negotiating the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) met in Atlanta to finalise a gigantic trade deal, which threatens global sustainable development.
Economics for Earth
Academics challenge the privatised university
Academics from across Australia and New Zealand are descending on Brisbane for the next two days to discuss how to challenge the increasing corporatisation of universities, which is drastically reducing the quality of research and academic life. Challenging the Privatised University is being co-hosted by Friends of the Earth, the Ngara Institute, the NTEU, the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) and the National Alliance for Public Universities and aims to support the revitalisation of the public and intellectual importance of Universities.
Climate & Energy Justice
New report on financing climate action: Richest 782 people could power half the world with 100% renewable energy
The personal fortunes of the 782 wealthiest people on the planet, many CEOs of major corporations, could power Africa, Latin America and most of Asia with 100% renewable energy by 2030, said Friends of the Earth International in a new report released today. [1]
Launched just a week before the UN climate summit in Paris, the report illustrates that the finance for an energy revolution certainly exists, while the political will to drive the transformation is so far shockingly absent.
Climate & Energy Justice
Coal Atlas 2015 released
Facts and figures show the environmental and social impact of coal production
Brussels, Belgium, 18 November 2015 – The Heinrich Böll Foundation and Friends of the Earth International have published today the first English edition of the Coal Atlas 2015 in Brussels. The Coal Atlas contains the latest facts and figures on the use of coal and its environmental and social consequences. With more than 60 detailed infographics, the atlas illustrates the coal industry’s impact on nature, health, labour, human rights and politics.
Climate & Energy Justice
Paris climate negotiations
[Please scroll down for our media work and commentary on the negotiations]
The Paris climate talks are over. The good news is that we have a deal. In the words of commentator George Monbiot, “By comparison to what it could have been, it’s a miracle. By comparison to what it should have been, it’s a disaster”.
Response from FoE UK.
Response from FoE International.
Check the photos from our community mobilisation on the last day of the conference: 3,000 people spelt out the words 'Climate Justice. Peace' on the streets of Paris.
Climate & Energy Justice
National Radioactive Waste Unwelcome in Queensland
Australian Nuclear Free Alliance
Friends of the Earth Brisbane
Qld Nuclear Free Alliance
The Australian Nuclear Free Alliance and Friends of the Earth Brisbane will vigorously oppose the Federal Government’s siting of a national nuclear waste storage facility anywhere in Queensland.
The federal government has today released a short-list of six possible sites for a national nuclear waste repository, and one is in Queensland. The site, called Oman Ama, is 150 km inland from the Gold Coast.
Climate & Energy Justice
Is Australia ready to address the challenge of forced climate migrants?
Friends of the Earth Australia media release November 12, 2015
Friends of the Earth Australia has welcomed the public communication by Shadow Immigration Minister, Richard Marles MP*, indicating that Labor is finally willing to take up in a serious way the issue of Pacific people forced to migrate because of climate change related displacement. Mr Marles has stated that “Australia being a destination for climate change migrants has to be up for discussion.”
Economics for Earth
TPP text released. What now?
The Final TPP text, released on Thursday night, confirms all of our worst fears. The Environment Chapter is weak and lazy, encouraging rather than enforcing any regulations that may otherwise have served to protect the natural environment.
The General Commitments outlined at the beginning of the chapter state that nations must “strive to ensure that [their] environmental laws and policies provide for, and encourage, high levels of environmental protection and... continue to improve [their] respective levels of environmental protection”, but also that they must “recognise the sovereign right of each Party to establish its own levels of domestic environmental protection and its own environmental priorities, and to establish, adopt or modify its environmental laws and policies accordingly”. In other words, it would be nice if the participating nations had solid environmental laws, but nothing will be enforced.
Land & water
Tasmanians exposed to high levels of toxins in drinking water
Approximately 3,000 Tasmanians were exposed to high levels of toxins in drinking water on a regular basis during 2013-14.
Environmental organisation Friends of the Earth Australia (FoE), today released a report assessing information from TasWater on non-Microbiological detections of pollutants in Tasmanian drinking water between July 2013 and June 2014. The information was supplied to FoE via Right to Information (RTI) legislation. Approximately 3,000 Tasmanians were exposed to high levels of toxins in drinking water on a regular basis during 2013-14, with perhaps as many as 20,000 people exposed to high levels at some time during 2013-14.