News
Nobel Laureates Urge Harper to Put Climate on G20 Agenda
By Mike De Souza, Canwest News Service
National Post
“Environmental degradation and global warming, and their impacts, are economic and security issues as well as environmental ones,” the letter to Mr. Harper said. “Failure to address climate change will put the global economy at further risk, and plunge millions who are already living on the economic margins into deeper poverty. This poverty leads to more migration, more violence and greater social and economic insecurity for both developing and developed nations.”
The letter was signed by Wangari Maathai, Shirin Ebadi, Jody Williams, Rigoberta Menchu Tum, Mairead Maguire and Betty Williams, all founding members of the Nobel Women’s Initiative, which promotes women’s rights, peace, justice and equality.
They noted Canada has a leadership role to play as host of the upcoming G8 and G20 summits, and also because of its historic role on the international stage in promoting action on climate change and sustainable development at conferences in the 1980s and the 1990s.
“You can make a difference,” the letter said. “As one of the world’s largest economies, and one of the world’s largest emitters of greenhouse gases, Canada has both the responsibility and the capacity to show leadership on this issue.”
The laureates also praised Canada’s historic role in promoting peacekeeping initiatives such as the Ottawa Convention banning landmines and the establishment of the International Criminal Court.
“You and your fellow world leaders have the opportunity at the G8/G20 Summits to lay the framework for a constructive agenda, one that ensures that climate change will not further erode our global economy,” said the letter. “With your leadership, we can build a future that is not only more sustainable — but also more peaceful and just.”
Letters to the other leaders also offered specific praise for actions and policies on climate change. For example, the laureates praised French President Nicolas Sarkozy for leading efforts to reduce deforestation.
“As the environment and climate change are two of the most pressing global challenges — and you have already demonstrated leadership in these areas — we urge you to ensure that environment and climate change are on the G8/G20 agenda,” said the letter to Sarkozy.
“The current agenda items of the recession and maternal and child health are both extremely deserving of international attention. However, these issues cannot be addressed in isolation. The global economic crisis will not be resolved without meaningful progress toward a clean energy future — and support for developing countries as they adapt to climate change.”
Mr. Harper has opted not to convene a meeting of environment ministers at the summit, even though these types of bilateral meetings have taken place at economic summits since the 1990s.
He also has rejected calls from international leaders such as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for climate change to be on the G20 agenda, saying the economy must be the focus, and that other topics getting attention from the media are “sideshows.”
