Tim Jones on the Climate March

Tim's off to Poland

2008-12-02T07:05:00.000-08:00

Tim is now off to Poland to attend the United Nations climate change conference which is being held in the city of Poznan.

You can catch up with his posts at: http://poznanclimate.blogspot.com/

Only started

2007-09-30T11:19:00.000-07:00

The march is all over bar the shouting. We are in London, we have done more than 1,000 miles and we are ready to finish. The hecticness of the final few days means that this 80th blog will be my last of our 80 day protest.

I hope you have enjoyed what has been written. Climate change is not a complicated issue, but our society's dependence on fossil fuels means there has always been something to write about.

I'm sure the question the marchers will now be asked is: 'Was it worth it?'

We can never know all the effects of our campaigning actions. The world is too complex for that. But the threat of climate change is so great we can't not campaign.

However, this march will have been a failure if it has not inspired more people to campaign. The science is saying we are almost on the brink of runaway climate change. We have to act now. But we also have to continue campaigning year-after-year; no one protest, postcard or direct action can ever be enough.

Please join the World Development Movement so you can campaign with them on climate change and other issues of global justice, now and into the future:
www.wdm.org.uk/join

Join now - it's a better time than any other.

"We shall not give up the fight, we have only started."

Final awards

2007-09-30T11:07:00.000-07:00

At the start of this march and blog I said I would report on certain things along the route. Below are the final awards categories mentioned at the start:

Best local beers:
A difficult choice between 'Saltaire Blonde' of the Shipley Brewery in Bradford, and 'Hoplite' of Hogsback Brewery in Salisbury. My head says Hoplite but my Yorkshire heart says Saltaire.

An honorable mention to the Wye Valley Brewery which provided us with many a fine pint through Herefordshire, Wales and Gloucestershire.

Highest number of 4x4s:
There has been a personal plee from one of my hosts for Farnham to get this award. Northallerton was also mentioned earlier in the blog. But honesty must report that the site of huge numbers of 4x4s travelling to and from Richmond park in London has to win both for the number and the complete pointlessness of massive vehicles in a crammed city.

Friendliest town:
We have received brilliant welcomes from local supporters everwhere we have gone, along with amazing food and shelter. The welcome from passers-by has differred though. Newcastle, Bradford and Wales are places the marchers would mention as the most welcoming. But I think a straw pole would reveal that Bradford just wins...

Messiest roadkill:
The hedgehogs, rabbits and pheasants all blend into one in the memory. The largest roadkill was a deer north of Northallerton. But the messiest was definitely a badger as we entered Wales. It was so well decapitated, Rachel mistook it for a dog. The smell stayed with us for hours.

Home

2007-09-30T10:58:00.000-07:00

With great relief and excitement we arrived in London over the weekend. Whilst we still have the final miles through central London to complete, I am now able to sleep in my own bed for the first time in two-and-a-half months. What joy.

Arriving in Battersea we were met by the usual fantastic Christian Aid supporters and their cakes. I'd also like to give a personal thank you to members of the South-West London World Development Movement group who came along to Battersea as well.

In fact, I'd like to tank all the local World Development Movement campaigning groups who have joined us on the march: Ayshire, Edinburgh and the Lothians, York, Leeds, Bradford, Manchester, Derby, Cardiff, Swansea, Bristol, Poole, Woking, Richmond and Kingston and South-West London.

You can find your local WDM campaigning group at:
www.wdm.org.uk/groups/contacts/

Open our eyes

2007-09-28T14:03:00.000-07:00

As we marched into Working on Friday, a signpost by the road indicated that there have been 188 road deaths in Surrey in the last three years. 188. In Surrey alone.

Road deaths are another indication of why a world less dependent on the motor car will be better for reasons other than tackling climate change.

But a statistic about the deaths of real people also makes us question what is considered news in this country. Every life is valuable whether it is part of a statistic which says at least 150,000 people die from the effects of climate change each year; 60 people a year die on Surrey's roads; or one person dies in a horrific incident.

But our media can promote one unusual death ahead of many which are seen as usual. In the UK, deaths on UK roads, or death from climate or economic inequality around the world, are seen as normal and not worthy of the news. We have to see beyond what the media regard as news to have our eyes opened on what is really happening.

Distance covered so far: 995 miles

Do they all support us number 21

2007-09-27T14:11:00.000-07:00

In Farnham on Thursday night I got to speak alongside Jeremy Hunt, local Conservative MP and member of the Shadow Cabinet.

First of all we challenged Jeremy on the need for more than an 80 per cent reduction in emissions by 2050, rather than the government's target of 60 per cent.

Jeremy responded that the most important thing is for annual targets on the government to ensure emissions are reduced every year. He is of course right that there has to be annual accountability to ensure we are on track to meet long-term targets. A 60 per cent reduction means less than a 3 per cent cut every year, whilst more than 80 per cent means cuts of 4-5 per cent every year.

So I challenged Jeremy to commit to annual cuts of 5 per cent every year, something he was unwilling to do, saying the Conservative party has yet to agree its policy. He had phoned Peter Ainsworth, the Conservative Environment spokesperson, before our meeting who said that "the science is compelling" on the need for 80 per cent cuts by 2050 / 5 per cent cuts every year.

Jeremy Hunt was similarly unwilling to commit himself on the need to include aviation within the climate bill until the Conservative party do.

Jeremy's final words were ones I would agree with:

"This town could be so much nicer if we could return it to being friendly for people on foot. I hope people will look back on this period and ask 'how could they live like this?'".

To some extent the local people of Farnham already recognised that a low carbon world can be a better world. Local primary schools have a walking bus where kids walk to school as a group accompanied by two parents taking their turn. It obviously reduces carbon emissions, builds community and tackles obesity. So many little changes needed to make our world a better place.

Distance covered so far: 979 miles

Local ale

2007-09-27T14:08:00.000-07:00

I enjoyed a local beer of a different sort in Farnham on Thursday night. The ale itself was from Kent, so a long way from Surrey. But I was taken there by my host Rob, and was made to feel fully part of a local group of drinkers at the pub. Thanks to all - local is about a lot more than where something is produced.

Hard conversations

2007-09-26T10:34:00.000-07:00

As we enter the last few days of walking we are fitter than ever. The emotional tiredness feels less as we all look forward to heading towards our various homes. But the hardest part of the march now is answering questions.

The hard questions are not: "What would a fair international agreement for emissions reductions be?" but: "How are your feet?, "Have you walked all the way?" and "What will you do after you finish". There are only so many times you can answer "fine", "almost all of it" and "go back to work".

The one marcher who does not have to tackle such questions is Portuguese speaker Geanis from Brazil. She has had the much harder challenge of marching for two-and-a-half months with a group of people who have been unable to communicate in Portuguese. I think Geanis has been the bravest person on our march.

Geanis has been here because her community have been directly affected by climate change, but not in the way you would think.

Geanis comes from an African-Brazilian agricultural community. They have been removed from 9,000 hectares of land by a European multinational company which is growing eucalyptus. As well as taking land from local people the eucalyptus monoculture takes huge quantities of water away as well.

The eucalyptus plantation is funded by carbon credits, the system where Europeans avoid reducing their emissions by paying for 'emission reductions' in impoverished countries. In this case the planting of eucalyptus.

Geanis told her story again in New Arlesford in Hampshire on Wednesday. Join in the conversation with her and tell your MP to get carbon credits out of the climate bill.

Distance covered so far: 956 miles

Solar heating

2007-09-25T15:07:00.000-07:00

My hosts on our final rest day in Eastleigh, Alain and Mary, have solar water heating installed in their home. I enjoyed a carbon free shower which felt a lot cleaner than a normal one. Alain and Mary have not had to use their gas boiler since March.

Has paying for solar water heating saved Alain and Mary more money than investing the money in a savings account? - No. Has it cut carbon emissions, reduced dependence on imported gas and stopped some money flowing to Russian oligarchs to spend on detroying Enlglish football? - Yes.

As a government, if your main interest were short-term economic growth, you would not promote solar water heating. However, if you were bothered about reducing carbon emissions and the UK's dependence on Russian gas, you would subsidise solar water heating on a big scale. I know which I would vote for.

Now is the time to act

2007-09-24T15:07:00.000-07:00

We are now in the final stretch of the march - just a week to go until we will finish in London.

In Monday night's meeting in Eastleigh, Elisee, our marcher from Burkina Faso, once again articulated the reason why we are all marching.

In recent weeks Burkina Faso has been affected by the floods seen in many parts of Africa. The heavy rains are an unusual event which tie in with the predictions of what will happen with climate change; warmer air means that when the rain comes, there will be more of it all at once.

Elisee works with farmers in Burkina Faso to try and make their livelihoods more secure. But climate change is destroying that security. Elisee told the people of Eastleigh that one million people have been displaced by the floods, and farmers have seen their entire crop for the year wiped out. Elisee finished:

"Climate change is already here and many people are suffering. This phenomenon will continue unless rich countries are willing to reduce their carbon emissions ... We do not have any more time."

Distance covered so far: 940 miles

Do they all support us number 20

2007-09-24T15:03:00.000-07:00

In the spirit of openness I should report that Chris Huhne MP (Lib Dem) popped into the start of our evening event in Eastleight. I'm afraid I was still in a local hostelry sampling a Ringwood beer from the local brewery at the time. Chris Huhne is Environment spokesman for the Lib Dems, and we believe he has signed-up to most of our demands for the improvements needed in the climate bill.

Direct action fungi

2007-09-24T14:53:00.000-07:00

Trevor, our guide through the New Forest, knows a lot about fungi. I found this out by talking to Trevor about my closest friends over the past two months; the fungi growing on my feet.

Trevor claims that fungi are amazing organisms. They have even been found to grow in the kerosene tanks of aeorplanes, blocking up engines and stopping planes from taking off. That's my kind of fungus.

Trevor, as a man who works for the Forestry Commission, also knows a lot about trees. He took us past a fabulous 600-year old oak in the forest known as the Knightwood Oak. However, the Forestry Commission has found in recent years that English Oaks are struggling in the south of England as the climate changes. The warmer summers are not suitable for the English Oak, and it is doubtful whether oaks which are young now will be able to survive into their 100s.

Distance covered so far: 924 miles

Government cut the carbon

2007-09-22T10:26:00.000-07:00

We marched into Bournemouth on Saturday, a day ahead of the Labour party. Whilst we were joined by local campaigners, a middle-aged gentleman accosted me with the most bizarre conversation I have had on the march yet.

Man: "You should be getting the government to cut the carbon emissions."
Tim: "We are. We've been marching 1,000 miles this summer on a protest march to get the government to cut the UK's carbon emissions. That's why we are in Bournemouth this weekend."
Man: "You should be asking them why they are not building more windfarms."
Tim: "We are, along with all the other things needed to tackle climate change."
Man: "But what you need to do is get the government to cut carbon emissions and ask them why they are not building more windfarms."

I don't know whether he understood what we were doing. Or just thought that building windfarms is all we need to do to tackle climate change.

I hope he was doing what he thought we should be doing.

Distance covered so far: 910 miles
Seas seen: 3 (Irish, North and English Channel)

Public emissions

2007-09-21T06:57:00.000-07:00

As we marched into Wimbourne we were greeted by school children and locals at Queen Elizabeth School. The Headmaster told us the school is responsible for 3 per cent of carbon emissions in Dorset - a huge amount - although a new, much smaller emitting building, is being built to replace it.

In one event earlier on the march all the attendees were asked to pledge to “use my fair share of the Earth’s resources”. I did not feel able to make the pledge.

In terms of stopping the worst effects of climate change, using my fair share would mean emitting less than 1 tonne of carbon dioxide a year. In the UK we emit 10 tonnes of carbon dioxide per person.

I know I will not emit less than 1 tonne of carbon dioxide this year or next. Any time I use electricity it is from a national grid which gets more of its electricity from fossil fuels. I live in a rented home which has gas heating, and needs it. And, like Queen Elizabeth School, government and company services and infrastructure on which we depend lie outside my immediate control.

Tackling climate change requires us to act as a society. It is not possible to tackle as individuals.

Distance covered so far: 894 miles

Do they all support us number 19

2007-09-20T08:03:00.000-07:00

Bob Walter (Conservative) met us as we arrived in Blandford Forum and had his photo taken with us. After his words of support I asked him if this went as far as to voting for at least an 80 per cent cut in the climate bill. Bob gave the cryptic answer "I hope so". Sounds good - I hope so too.

I then asked him about including aviation. At first he responded that aviation is an international problem. I explained there are clear ways to assign UK emissions, after which Bob said he supported the need for aviation to be included in the bill.

If Bob is true to his word, that's a vote for making the climate bill stronger when it gets to the House of Commons.

Distance covered so far: 884 miles

Denial to despair

2007-09-19T10:03:00.000-07:00

On our march I have had two conversations with climate change deniers. One was by Torness nuclear power station. The second was on Wednesday somewhere between Warminster and Shaftsbury.

In my experience before the march, those who are sceptical about the science of climate change tend to be men over 50 years old. Obviously this is not based on any scientific experiment subjected to analysis and published in a peer reviewed journal. But the two climate change deniers I have met on the march fit the profile.

Today, a man accosted me that humans are not having any influence on the climate. I went through the science of climate change and asked him which bit he disagreed with. Is it that we have not increased the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere? Is it that greenhouse gases do not have a warming effect?

His response was that there's no point in us doing anything because of China. So, he now accepted climate change.

I pointed out that we emit 10 tonnes of carbon dioxide per person, and China emits less than 4. If we do not reduce our emissions, how can we expect China to?

He responded that it's all too late to do anything about it.

In the space of ten minutes our conversation went from denial, to blaming someone else, to saying it is too late.

The opposition to action on climate change is not based on logic. It is the perceived threat of what action to tackle climate change would mean.

Distance covered so far: 869 miles

Direct action dog

2007-09-19T10:01:00.000-07:00

I had to reasses my view of dogs on our march from Warminster to Shaftsbury. Along one stretch of road a dog joined us for a while. It then proceeded to sit down in front of approaching traffic.

If all dogs took such direct action, I think I could grow to like them.

Limo humvee

2007-09-19T09:59:00.000-07:00

The short journey from Trowbridge to Warminster on Tuesday was notable for one thing. A Limo Humvee parked in a drive. The biggest symbol of the ridiculous excess of our scoiety we have seen on the march.

Distance covered so far: 851 miles

Update (from Pete, the WDM web officer):

We did have one comment to this post which was just a signpost to a Limo Humvee hire site! - since I've just discovered that this entry features quite high up in google when you search for "Limo Humvee" (try it!, I haven't tried "Limo Hummer" yet)- quite amusing since as you say, Humvees demonstrate perfectly the most selfish, stupid and excessive wastage of our society! - hopefully someone searching for Limo Humvee hire will think twice and perhaps go by bike or bus..

Privatised public space

2007-09-19T09:53:00.000-07:00

Our route into Trowbridge on Monday took us through the Shires Shopping Centre. Passing through we tried to speak to locals about climate change.

Unfortunately, three big men were soon next to me telling us to lower our banners, and stop handing information out to people. I asked why, to which their response was "This is private property."

The Shires Shopping Centre is owned by Zurich Insurance. It is a privatised public space; it t is a social centre for the local people where many gather.

There was no shortage of advertising telling people to consume more in order to be happier. But any alternatives are banned because it is private property. If you are not telling people to consume more, you are not allowed.

Distance walked so far: 840 miles

Slavery

2007-09-18T04:33:00.000-07:00

In Bristol there are many reminders of the city's wealth built on the slave trade, such as mansion houses overlooking the downs. In the year of the 200th anniversary of the UK act of parliament which made the transatlantic slave trade illegal, there is much discussion of the parrallels with campaigning today.

There are themes about the slave trade which African campaigners I have met claim have resonance today. Slavery was tackled because of a mass movement involving black and white, not just a few white 'celebrity campaigners'. The act of parliament banning the trade was the beginning of the end of a horrible injustice, not a great act of benevolence on the part of the British people. And the effects of the slave trade still make themselves known today in the vast inequalities which exist between communities around the world.

All these themes remain true about climate change campaigning today. Tackling it requires a mass movement of all peoples. If we limit climate change it will be the limiting of a horrendous injustice, not an act of great benevolence. And perhaps most poignantly, our emissions now will effect many future generations to come.

Distance covered so far: 813 miles

See the World Development Movement briefing: 200 years on the legacies of enslavement and abolition for more.

Do they all support us number 18

2007-09-18T04:28:00.000-07:00

We met two more Labour MPs in Bristol, Doug Naysmith and Kerry McCarthy. Unfortunately, neither were willing to commit to any specific demands on the climate bill, despite being willing to stand in a photo with the marchers and all the locals who turned out to support us.

They did accept that the government needed to "raise its game" on climate change. Doug and Kerry also accepted that there are weaknesses in the climate bill because of the lack of annual accountability for the government, and that avitiation isn't included. Something for all Bristol residents to work on with Doug and Kerry

Tyndale

2007-09-18T03:55:00.000-07:00

On Thursday 13 September we marched past the monument to William Tyndale south of Dursley in Gloucestershire. In the 1520s, Tyndale translated the New Testament of the Bible into early modern English against the will of the state, and had copies printed and distributed across England. The established church and state opposed common people being able to read the New Testament in English; fearful of how the radical words of Jesus would be used. Tyndale was burnt at the stake in 1536.

Before Tyndale got his translation published, Henry VIII had sought to use reformers like Tyndale in the King's quest to get a divorce from his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Tyndale passed-up the chance of personal gain and insider access to the state because he believed what Henry VIII was doing was wrong and an abuse of power.

When we engage with people in power, there is always a debate as to what extent we should modify our challenge and get insider access so that we are more likely to have 'influence'. I think like Tyndale we have to remain true to the challenge we have to those in power. Success is highlighting injustice and calling for change, not getting insider access at the expense of toning down what we say.

Distance covered so far: 800 miles

Suffering number 2

2007-09-12T14:30:00.000-07:00

Since the first few weeks of the march the walking has got a lot easier. But today it felt like we were back in Scotland. A supposed 15 mile day turned into 21 miles, with two steep climbs at the end.

There were differences. This time Rosalia from El Salvador powered us up the hills at the front. The hero was Elisee from Burkina Faso, who joined us for his first day of marching today, and powered on all the way to Dursley. As we marched up the second hill, we returned to the song which had seen us into Dunfermline eight weeks ago: "We shall not give up the fight, we have only started."

Even if we get all the improvements we need in the climate bill, that is only the start of the fight or one days walking. We also need loads of government policies to shift us to a low carbon economy. The campaiging goes on and on. We need you to join us:
www.wdm.org.uk/join

Distance covered so far: 782 miles

Do they all support us number 17

2007-09-12T14:24:00.000-07:00

As we crossed over the Severn Bridge back into England we were met by local MP Steve Webb (Liberal Democrat). He committed himself in front of us and a TV camera to voting for at least an 80 per cent cut in emissions by 2050, and including aviation within those emissions.

At the end of our days walk to Dursley a second MP, David Drew (Labour) joined us. He felt that carbon trading is a nonsense and aviation should definitely be included in the bill. Unfortunately he was less supportive on the need for at least an 80 per cent target. David felt that the important thing is how we cut emissions, not the particular target.

Of course he is right that we need the government to start implementing all the measures needed to drastically reduce emissions. But given the government is setting an inadequate target, the target has to be improved as well.

Severn Barrage

2007-09-11T09:33:00.000-07:00

Our latest rest day has been in Chepstow, watching the River Wye fall and rise with the tide. Apparently this area has the second largest tide in the world. We saw the direction of the river change within five minutes and the huge power of the incoming tide.

A Severn Barrage is being proposed to generate electricity from the tidal force of the Severn and Bristol Channel. Last night one of our hosts said he recognised the need for different ways to generate electricity, but was worried about the impacts of any barrage on the local environment.

We need to generate more electricity from non-fossil fuel sources. Whether or not we need gigantic projects like the Severn Barrage, the threat of climate change means we have to massively increase the energy we generate from the sun, wind, waves and tides.

However, any way we extract energy from the Earth may potentially be damaging. We have to use less energy so that we generate less in the first place.