Droughts. Floods. Disease. Declining food stocks. Poverty. Forced migration.
The picture painted by UN scientists four years ago was confirmed and elaborated by a World Bank report released last week.
The ‘Turning Down the Heat’ report offers a bleak depiction of a world that is four degrees warmer, which is how much average global temperatures will rise by if immediate action isn’t taken.
While the conclusions of the report are not new, it shows that it isn’t just the traditional progressive voices on environmental issues who are speaking out about the implications of uncontrolled climate change.
However, a striking fact remains: if science has never been clearer, politicians have never been further from expressing a real commitment to fight climate change.
The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) recently released its annual report on the ‘gigatonne gap’, which is a geeky name for the gap between the emission reductions that are needed and the reductions that are actually taking place.
And let’s be clear, the picture is getting worse.
Instead of declining, the concentration of warming gases like carbon dioxide (co2) are actually increasing in the atmosphere—up around 20 per cent since 2000, making the 4 degrees scenario painted by the World Bank a real possiblity during the course of this century.
And it doesn’t look like the UN climate change conference in Doha, Qatar will be able to alter that trend, as not one single government has expressed a willingness to increase its emission reduction commitments.
Science is clearly telling us that the question should not be when will society decide to take action but rather why we keep on behaving in such an irresponsible manner.
The role of the unions
I would advance three explanations: the strength of the powers of the status quo; the inertia of climate change investments, which remain massively oriented in the wrong direction; and finally the fear of the changes we will have to make if we honestly want to commit to saving our planet.
There are probably many more explanations but these are certainly the areas where workers and trade unions can and must play a decisive role.
Can we as a movement stand up for the transformation of all industries, and stop allowing some of our employers to lobby governments against climate policies, using jobs and workers as a shield for blocking action?
As a movement, we have countered these arguments in the past, and despite pressures from employers, we all fought for an asbestos ban.
The climate issue may be bigger, but it is no different in nature.
No jobs will be lost if employers invest in making industries green and stop overpaying their shareholders.
Can we be more vocal in supporting green investments, which we know are also job-intensive and could become a major piece in building a new, sustainable trade union movement?
Unions didn’t wait for governments to find out that investing in renewable energies, sustainable buildings, fighting deforestation or promoting public transport could create millions of jobs – 48 million in just 12 countries, to be precise, as the ITUC report on Green Jobs indicates.
It is time for us to call for a real shift in regulations which would spread progress in these sectors.
Can we start investing our pension money in a more strategic and coherent manner, which today is used to give more power to the very industries that are blocking progress?
Our proposal to orient at least five per cent of pension fund portfolios towards clean energy and infrastructure could make a huge difference by making thousands of clean energy projects around the world viable.
And finally, can we make a better case for solidarity in this transformation?
Can we convince governments that there is no reason to fear our leadership; that we can build a progressive alliance to secure a just transition for workers and communities to find a place in the new, green and fair economy?
International recognition of the need for these measures is there, but we have still much more to do.
Our call for leadership in emission reductions and our capacity to convince governments to move to a more equitable way of sharing the effort must now be tested at a national level.
The UNEP report shows that there is still a window of opportunity for staying below the two degrees temperature increase target, which while not completely safe, is still infinitely preferably to a four degree increase.
It also shows that more ambitious international pledges, coupled with national policies on energy efficiency, forests and power generation, can still bridge the gap.
I’m convinced that as a movement, we can make these policies happen. Our jobs, our communities and our children depend on them.
The time for the labour movement to stand up for the climate has come.
