Britain's Trades Union Congress calls for creation of one million green jobs
I sure hope our union brothers and sisters look this over for inspiration. We all need it.
http://climateandcapitalism.com/?p=4065#more-4065
A People's Petition for One Million Climate Jobs
April 1, 2011
It's time for a mass movement that stops the cuts, force the bosses to create jobs, and solves the environmental crisis.
At its 2010 conference, Britain's Trades Union Congress called for the creation of one million green jobs to tackle unemployment and the environmental crisis.
The petition below was launched by the Campaign Against Climate Change, supported by the Public and Commercial Services Union, the University and College Union, the Communication Workers Union and the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association. It is endorsed by John McDonnell MP, Caroline Lucas MP, Linda Riordan MP, Kelvin Hopkins MP, and Sally Hunt, General Secretary of the UCU.
ETA: Original title, "Uh Is Anyone In The Canadian Union Movement Looking at This?", edited by moderator
At last, some concrete proposals to reduce emissions.
Economics and environmentalism are connected. It is, after all, the economy that drives emissions... the solution is to have profitable green businesses. The change will take some government help, such as training workers.
Taking it a step further, perhaps WORKERS in general should refuse to work at jobs that involved high CO2 emissions. I would love to quit a job "on principle".
The title on this page says ""Ecosocialism or Barbarism: There is no third way" - I guess that refers to food riots and uncivilised behaviors if the world continues on this high carbon path.
Three of those ideas are:
# We call for an immediate, fully government-funded programme to promote energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy in existing and new buildings.
# We call for Government funding for free or low fare public transport services and the expansion and integration of public transport networks to reduce the use of private cars; for major investment in extending the rail network and introducing faster and more efficient trains; and the phasing-out of domestic airline flights as soon as practicable
# We call for direct intervention by the proposed Climate Service to create new industries, and convert existing and declining industries, to conduct the research, development, manufacture and installation of alternative technologies for generating electricity from renewable sources.
Can I ask that in the future, babblers indicate what the topic of the thread is more specifically? Vague questions like "uh is anyone in the canadian union movement looking at this?" are not particularly illuminating. Thanks.
Workers embrace the green movement:
Time again to hear that old ditty played by Cornwallis's army band at the surrender to Washington at Yorktown: World Turned Upside Down.
Actually I wanted to catch some off guard just so to get more to look at it and also it was a real question, not just rhetorical.
Can I ask that in the future, babblers indicate what the topic of the thread is more specifically? Vague questions like "uh is anyone in the canadian union movement looking at this?" are not particularly illuminating. Thanks.
So, uh, I wonder if anyone in the NDP party is looking at this idea? I think Jack Layton, the darn-near PM of Canada, has embraced the idea of green jobs, and has plans to get the industry started... but the exact plans I dunno.
Turns out, he might have to sell green ideas to Canadians for the next election, unfortunately. Steve's more into Mordor brown.
We cannot wait until the next election. Unions and green groups have to work on this now.
Trade unions must join the fight against climate change
[excerpt]
The huge BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico occurred while Simon Butler and I were writing our new book, Too Many People?
Almost immediately there were articles in major newspapers claiming that WE were responsible for the disaster, because WE love cars and WE are addicted to oil.
We couldn't resist paraphrasing one of Bob Dylan's early songs - "No, No, No, It ain't WE, babe."
Global warming and environmental destruction are not caused by working people.
They are caused by the rich, both as super-consumers and, even more importantly, through their control of the corporations that produce the immense majority of greenhouse gas emissions and other forms of pollution.
Stephen Pacala, director of the Princeton Environmental Institute, puts it this way:
In contrast, the rich are really spectacular emitters ....
The top 500 million people [about 8 percent of humanity] emit half the greenhouse emissions.
These people are really rich by global standards.
Every single one of them earns more than the average American ...
And yet many environmentalists insist that working people are the cause of global warming, that the solution is for us to lower our living standards, give up our cars, and pay carbon taxes.
In reality, individual activity isn't driving climate change, and changes in individual behavior - however morally appropriate - will not save the world....
I’m not saying that we shouldn’t try to live greener lives. Of course we should. But we must understand that while there are things that individuals can do, global warming is a social problem, and it can only be solved by social change.
To prevent disaster, we need a new industrial revolution, a new energy revolution. We need to change what we make and how we make it.
Entire industries need to be eliminated and others need to be transformed.
If the necessary economic and social changes are not made, our lives, and even more our children’s lives, will be much harder, much poorer, than they are today.
Our grandchildren may not have an inhabitable world to grow up in.
And that means that global warming is a trade union issue. It is an issue that directly affects working people, and it can only be stopped if the workers’ organizations join and lead the fight to end it.
If we leave this issue to the bosses, to the corporations and politicians who profit from the existing system, the changes will be inadequate – and they will put the entire burden on working people.
The rich will reap the profits, they’ll continue to live in gated communities and air conditioned mansions, while we pay the price.
The trade union movement must take this challenge on – or working people will be the victims of climate change.