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This is a strange time. A Papal Encyclical is generating almost as much excitement than a Beyoncé album — complete with pre-launch leaks and a global media frenzy.
But there is no denying it: Pope Francis rocked the world last week by connecting the need for a fair economy with the need to to take bold action on climate. He has said clearly that we cannot separate these goals — there can be no serious climate action without confronting the logic of unchecked greed and the culture of limitless consumption.
We don’t have to agree with the Catholic Church on everything – I certainly don’t – to celebrate the fact that the Pope has just echoed the central call of the global climate justice movement.
That’s why I am going to the Vatican on July 1st to participate in events surrounding the encyclical.
It’s also why, as soon as I return, I will be participating in the March for Jobs, Justice, and the Climate in Toronto.
This march is our chance to show exactly how lowering our emissions in line with scientific imperatives can build a fairer and more equitable society – by respecting First Nations land rights; by creating countless “climate” jobs that pay a living wage; by encouraging community-controlled renewable energy; by making affordable and reliable transit a top policy priority; by investing in the low-carbon caring-giving and sanitation work that is primarily done by immigrants; by opening our borders to those displaced by climate change; and by changing our food system to encourage more local production and to guarantee food for all. All of these “people’s solutions” to climate change will be on full display in the March – and much more.
The March is also a chance to show that Toronto, as a truly international city, is not only concerned about the local impact of climate change but the devastation being wrought on the many homelands of its residents, from the Philippines to Haiti to Pakistan.
Now is the time to send a clear message to our political leaders that we reject the false choices pitting the economy against the planet. If we are willing to confront the logic of bottomless greed, we can have a thriving and fair economy and a safe and stable climate.
But that shift won’t be delivered from on high by either politicians or popes.
It will have to be demanded from below. Please join us.
See you in July,
Naomi Klein
This blog post was written by Naomi Klein – Author of This Changes Everything
This blog post was original published at jobsjusticeclimate.ca and is reprinted with permission.
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