On March the 5th of 2017, at the “ Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas” with the support of local student assotiation, there was a meeting of activist groups, non governamental organizations, and dezens of persons with the main goal of discussing and prepare the combat to the Climatic Changings for social justice.
Climatic Changes, Inequlaities and social justice
João Camargo, who is a climatic change investigator, and CLIMAXIMO activist made the fisrt intervention defining what are “Climatic Changes” and why the human factor is the most preocupying one. Paula Sequeira, also CLIMAXIMO activist made the last speech. This debatte was moderated by Paula Sequeiro of the “Coletivo Clima”.
Which factors influence the clima the most?
Clima is the overall temperature in one site, without significative oscilation over a period of 30 years.
Is this the first time that we see clima changes ?
No, we have always assisted to clima changes but before we were not here and were not part of the equation nor this clima changes were, mainly, consequence of human actions. For the last 10.000 years there has been a relatively stability on the clima, being that the 2016 year was the most hotest since there are regists, the same for the previous years, only one of this years is not on the XXI century.
What are the consequences of the temperature rise ?
All over the world the agriculture fields are afected due to the temperatura changings, this endangers the local food productions. There will also be an increase of the natural disasters such has floods, storms, as conseqeunce there will “thousands of climatic refugies”. In Portugal if the level of the sea water rises, many costal cities will vanish.
The palnet does not need salvation, it is not to him that this fight serves. The human species, as well as the others, will only achieve a an harmonious society with equilibrated ecossystems if respond succefully to this wolrd wide emergency. The cause of the problem is not exclusive of the manufacturing countries, the consumer countries are also part of it when they consume and agree with this action. People are begining to be alerted and their action and commitment is urgently needed to reinforce the fight against temperature rise as well as the burn of fossil fuel that sustens the occidental economy.
The Climáximo is an activist grout that fights for sustainable alternatives, rejctingo those of the so called “Green Capitalism”. They understand the straigh connetion betwwen the wealth distribution and power. They defend urgent replacement of fossil fuel burn with more sustainable energy sources and gladly take those who are willing to bhelp bulid new alternatives.
Natural gas: Transition energy
Midcat is project to build the gas pipeline that will transport the natural gas since Argélia to Europe. The main goal is to lower the Russian dependency, they supplys over 90 % of the european countries natural gas importation. This gas is the “easy solution” that european union defends for the climatic changes, but it is not accepted by the majotity of the activist, that has Mari Ver, from the prject “Stop Midcat”, Catalan colective, fights agians its construction.
Why the natural gas is not a solution ?
The natural gas is mainly composed of metan and although the burn of it issues less carbon dioxide than the burnth of carbon or oil, this is a viable alternative because it reveals potentiality of greenhouse-efect hundred times greater than the carbon dioxide.
So one can easliy conculde that it is imperative a significative reduction of all kind of oil fossil burnth, such is unsustainble for the european economy. The peoples knowledge of the euoropeans policies on this stills very poor and revolutions that hapens all over the world due to the negative effects that the construction of such pipelines have on local villages, are not noticed.
To weave a red line
The “Citizen Academy” together with Climáximo are developping a project to weave the biggest red line ever seen. Guiness present record is of 52 km, so they are alerady geathering interested people all over Portugal taht will knit in favour of the Portuguese beachs and marine ecosystem, which are undageared by the oil prospection.
In favour of free seeds
In Portugal several organization and colectivities from civil society, as the non governamental organization “GAIA”, are helping the massification of this movement that aims to keep the seeds free of genetic mutations. It also, oposes to the patents over the seeds and foods that made it more expencive and less nutritional. The same for the internationa treats and laws the are giving away the control of our food chain to certain corporation and powerfull governs with the sole propose of incrasing their profits.
Portugal 100 % renewable
Ana Rita Antunes, is part of ZERO, an organization who´s goal is have a Portugal free of fossil fuels, polution, waste of natural ressources, destuction of ecosystems and biodiversity as well as of unequal society and wealth dsitribution.
The bealief that carbon and natural gas will steel be needed to mantain our electricity net during the years to come is a negative factor, to reason this subject. In 2016, Portugal, during 4,5 days used energy only from renewable energy sources, has consequence we are now a model to follow as reference to environmental politics. Yet, major part of our energy steels sourced from fossil fuels, so ther is the nedd to increase in 26 % of renewable energies. The present legislaiton is limit to autoconsume of wind , hidric and sun energy, leading to the beliave the we still need fossil fuels to keep the electric net active.
Environmwntal impact of renewable energies
It is undeniable that electric dams may not serve the public interests and that matrials used to build the photovoltaic panels and other technoclodies do have a big ecolgical footprint. But this arguments are just escuses for not building alternatives, if we manage conviniently the renewabl resources , those will be in fact the very best ecologic energy source
Coopérnico, social company that promotes the colective investment in sustainable projects in benefit of the investors, society and planet – It lead António Loy to expalin the roll that energy cooperatives can have at the promotion of descentralizaed energy production and self consume.
Fuel and Gas in Portugal : The citizens fight
At this tertulia were present several movements who raised after the threat of oil prospection and they fight against its implementation
Where are we ?
Beteween 2015 and 2017, fifteen oil and gas prospection were licenced in sea and in land.
At the meetitng date, there were more active prospection contracts, four of this contracts at the Algrave sea earned by Repsol and Partex were canceled. Partex is the oil company of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.
Yet there are still areas from liotral Alentejo to Peniche bay and from litoral west to Porto that are licenced for prospection.
Sousa Cintra, thru the joint venture ENI -GALP has received authorization form the Portuguese gouvernement (since January the 11th) to execute a prospection hole. All they have to do is give proper warning to the legal organisms ten days before begining of site works.
What is being done ?
Since there is the threath of oil and gas prospection in Portugal, several people have geathered to fight the increase of fuel fossil burn, favouring the economical growth of companies and gouvernments.
Since the Ferrel nuclear fight this environmental cause is receiving a bigger portuguese citizen partitipation and the oposing mevements that have raised are pressing the governemnt to revoke their decisions.
There was a conversation between Inês, of the Oil Free Algarve Plataform, Eugénia, from Litoral Alentejo, including also Ricardo Vicente of Oil Free Peniche,
Inês Ferro from the Oil Free Algarve Plataform is one more activist that has joint the organization for the cause. She has presented and explained her most recently project, “Open Your Eyes”, who´s goal is to alert people and motivate the sending of letters and e-mails to the portugues governement , that has only rescended two, out of the nine contracts, that authorize the hydrocarbons prospection in Portuguese territory.
Petitions, debates and lectures, have been organized by the movement Oil free Peniche, with the voluntary action from Ricardo Vicente who works in information disclosing, developing methods that stimualte the interst on this theme.
All civil society organizations and expert guests spoke of this issue at the “Oil and Gas National Encounter” that took place at São Jorge Cinema on March the 11th. This clarification sessions aim to mobilize people and get them to cooperate with movements against gas and oil exploration in Portugal, developing stratagies for indivudual and joint actions.
The sustainable and vegan meal was served at lunch time, althought the goal of this meeting does not run out at analise impact that of the food industry has on environment thru the animal explorations.
100 thousand jobs for the clima
Jobs for the clima is an international campaign who´s goal is to give secure labor conditons to the over 200 million unemploied people all over the world as well as to those who are subjected to precarity and social insecurity. Theis basic ideas, have already gained the support social and environmental organizatons and unions. This idea is being disclosed thru the united kingdom, France and South Africa.
Ana Pereira from the CGTP-IN union and Carla Prino of Precários show their concern about the unemplyment and precarity. The Portuguse economy since 2008 is agraveted and political measeures taken so we are able to pay the public debth are increasing the precarity, further to the cuts on sectors such as culture and health. There are two million people under vunerable working conditions, such contracts with ending date, false “green receipts”. We must account also those who receive low salary, leading us to the invitable conclusion that more than half of the Portuguese people are living under the minimum level of dignity.
Which are the goals?
Sinaan Eden presetnd us with a campaign that aims to create new jobs in areas that will cause significative reduction on the emission of green house efect gases, such as renewable energies, solar, wind, hidric, etc…-public transportation- replacing the private car -energy eficiency, massive reflorestation as well as the fire fight. This jobs would prefer workers from the poluent sector granting them secure laber conditons
What are the prespectives ?
It estimated that Portugal is able to receive 100000 clima jobs and for the comng 15 years will be able to reduce 60 % up to 70 % the emission of green hose efect gases
Why are we not creating an alternative from gound ?
The probability is that the global average temperature will rise about 2 º C over the next two years, in this scenario, the clima will take off and we will loose the control. The revitaliztion of the public sector its a way of transaction that will use the descentralization of the municipalities to fight social and climatic injustice. The end goal is a new model, one which is not only based on the profit and economic growth of both governements and companies desregarding the real needs of people and evironment.
Are the goals of this campaign compatible with the governement program of the XXI constitutional Portuguse govern ?
The analise made buy the reponsbles of this campaign shows that the commitement for the “green development” ends on a document that does not, yet, resolves all the issues of climatic sustainbility. For instance the plantation of monocultures eucalyptus that, could absorb the carbon from the atmosphere, once they are growth be caught later on, the ecossystem will develop to the point to work as a carbon collector. This measure is based on the extrative philosophy that understands all the environmental resources as means to be extracted and explored by the human being, disregarding all the others with which we share the palnet earth. So, there are some agreed measures between the “Partido Socialista”, the “Bloco de Esquerda” and “Coligação Democrática Unitária”, that are according the goals of this campaign. Such as canceling the concession and privatization of the colective transports in Lisbon and Porto, so the public sector can mantain control over the “clima jobs” that would be mainly on the public tranportsion area.
That public investment, not sourced from public -private joint ventures, will mantain this new type of jobs while there is a transaction from a n economy thta is fuel fossil dependent to one based on low green house gas. All citizens who wants to be part of this fight are well come, so we can build up a strong base one that can support this claims.
Free commerce treats and clima
José Olivira from the paltaform “Não aos tratados transatlâncitocos” (Menaning no to the tranaltlantic treats) and Margarida Silva from the Corporate Europe Observatory were present at this lecture to enlight us of this reality.
What are free commerce treats
The free commerce treats are international agrrements between countries to achieve certain mutual benefits overcoming othe lega barriers for legal trading.
Which the treats worring the plataform “Não aos Tratados Transatlânticos”?
The European Commision has promoted this treats to encourage business and comercial trading with EUA (TTIP), Canada (CETA), and other countries present at the worl wide Comercial trade organization. The idea is to lower the regulation level of the market, protecting their private economic and finatial interests above the peoples rights and planet.
Why are they a source of concern and threatning the planet?
The environnment is on risk becuase witht this treats the environmental european regulations are to be aligned with those of the USA which will allow the use of hydaulic fracking, liquid and gas fuel fossil extraction method from the subsoil at UK and remaing Europe territory. The clima may also suffer with the signature of such agreemnets because corporations will be able to legally persuit the governements for aproving public politics that allow exploration of the fuel fossil at the subsoil. As to the public health, they do represent a threat to the food health security because the USA standards for the presence of hormones, fertilyzers, and other toxic products is lower than Eurpoeans. Resuming, this treats have been contetested by the people because they are proposing signivitive changings to fundamental issues of the social state.
The globla economic agreement between Europe and Canada (CETA) – was signed on February the 15th of 2017, the goal was to be implemented from July the 1st. Fifteen out of the twenty nine Potugues MEP´s were in favour , nut now each national parlament, and some regional, will have to rectify the decision. O Partido Socilsita is organizaing debates on this issue within the civil populaiton. Yet, major decisons are being taken withou public consultation, who are at significative unfasmilarity of this issues. All people can do is to orgnize social movements and groups and press politition and political organizations to not sign such treats
Civil disobidience for clima justice: International experiences
Many times the social movements have to use civil disobidience as tool to fight against the burn of fuel fossil. This are exterme actions taken by those who think “out of the box” and are not willing to take formal and institutional measures that end without success. At the closure of this lecture were present several activists that chaired their personal experiences, explaining all the logistics and comunication needed to end this type of onterventions with success. It is not rare to question ourseleves wether if we want to be encarcerated, but we must not be naive, the all system will not be changed on the day after.
Who were present activists and what have they done
Mari Ver was part of the actgion Ende Gelände, in Germany against coal mine. It will be repeated this year, the aim is allways the same : The use of our own hands and body sacrifice in order to participate at Climatic Justice, instead of waiting that governs and corporations commit to their promises or sign treats that truly benefits the environment. The action is open to all who wants to be part and includes guides on how to participate, workshops and training sessions for several groups. Some block the railways, some the mine workers, etc… During the negotiations of the transatlantic treat, a people group joined the TTIP Game Over willing to press the MEP´s, non violently, alerting them for democratic fraude of the treats they were about to sign. Juan Ignacio Carnacho cooperates with spanish green piece and Sarah Reader part of Clima Justice Now, with them she organizes actions against the burn of fossil fuel. Sarah uses to organize tutorial sessions on Civil Disobidience or movements convergency. On the UK she partipated on the movement that aimed to replace weapens production with renewable energy production – she told us that during one of the inteventions, the protesters blocked the in come of weapens to the exposition area boycotting the event. Now, working at the Corporate Europe Observatory, is used to organize events and prepare stratagies to mobilize Europe ending the capture of the governs by the multinational companies and environmental genocides.
References:
Edição Julho 2016 “Empregos para o clima” por Carla Prino, Filipe Carvalho e Sinan Eden ; Trangénicos? Não! Obrigada: um manifesto em 10 pontos da plataforma portuguesa por uma agricultura sustentável, https://climaximo.wordpress.com/, https://www.nao-ao-ttip.pt/, https://gaia.org.pt/o-que-e-o-gaia/
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