News bulletin from World People's Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth: The world comes to Cochabamba..

When President Morales of Bolivia launched his invitation to the world to come to Bolivia to develop a Peoples’ Agenda for Climate Change, we never imagined the overwhelming response it would generate. With less than a week to go before the conference, here are some of the astonishing statistics related to the conference:

  • At least 15,000 people are expected to attend from 126 countries
  • Around 70 governments are expected to attend to listen to the voices of civil society, including Presidents of Ecuador, Paraguay, Nicaragua, Venezuela, the Vice-President of Comoros Islands, government ministers, delegates and parliamentarians from Europe, Asia and Africa.
  • The following international organisations will also be sending representatives: UNICEF, FAO, UNESCO, UNFPA, WTO, OICA, OPS, FIDA
  • 180 self-organized events have been registered by different networks on every aspect of climate change policy
  • More than 50 scientists, social movement leaders, researchers, academics and artists have agreed to speak on 14 panels including NASA scientist Jim Hansen, Bill McKibben, environmental journalist and leader of 350.org, Indian environmentalist Vandana Shiva, best-selling author Naomi Klein, Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano, Miguel D’Escoto, former President of UN General Assembly, Lumumba Di-Aping, former lead negotiator for the G77 along with leaders from leading environmental organizations and communities at the front line of climate change.
  • More than 300 press have registered including major news networks and newspapers such as BBC, Radio France International, Guardian in the UK, Telesur, l Jazeera, and Democracy Now

It is clear that the conference and its objective of putting forward a just and effective response to climate change have touched a chord worldwide. It shows more than ever, after the failure of Copenhagen, that the hope that we can address the climate crisis lies with the people of the world.

Cochabamba comes to the World – cmpcclive.org

The world is not only coming to Cochabamba, we are determined to bring Cochabamba to the world. As the conference opens on 20 April, we will launch a new interactive website that will allow anyone in the world with an internet connection the possibility to watch debates live, send in comments, join virtual meetings, listen to radio coverage, watch daily shows by Democracy Now, and follow the stories and analysis by many of the conference participants. Stay tuned for more information in the next couple of days on http://pwccc.wordpress.com

Bonn opens doors for Cochabamba

During UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) negotiations in Bonn, 9-11 April 2010, the G77 plus China successfully resisted attempts by the US to make the disastrous Copenhagen Accord the basis for future negotiations.

Most significantly, negotiations in Bonn opened the door for Cochabamba to have a direct impact as it was agreed that the new UNFCCC negotiation text will take into consideration proposals that are presented before 26 April 2010.

Help us get the word out

If everyone attending the summit invested a little time in communicating their participation and the importance of the conference, we could become a much bigger news story and make a greater political impact. Here are some ways you can help:

  • Write an article on your own website, to newspapers, your networks and allies on why you are attending the Peoples’ Climate Conference
  • Contact mainstream and grassroots media in your country offering interviews and analysis
  • Look to place an opinion/comment piece by your organisation or by a high profile ally in a major news outlet
  • Become a fan of the conference on Facebook
  • Tweet about the conference using the hashtag #cochabamba and #cmpcc Stay in touch with latest news at http://twitter.com/boliviaun This is the best way to get breaking news from the conference.
  • Organise an international action or event in solidarity with Bolivia. For more information, visit http://pwccc.wordpress.com/category/intl-actions-events If you would like to organise a live interactive meeting between Bolivia and any large meetings you are holding simultaneously with the Peoples’ Climate Conference, email alfredo@mayfirst.org

Difficulties: Visas, registration, accommodation

The scale of worldwide response has caused difficulties for the conference organisers, especially as this conference has barely a fraction of the resources compared with the UN conference in Copenhagen. We apologise if this has caused inconvenience to you. Extra resources have been put into these areas in the last days before the conference to expedite all your requests. Please email:

Peoples’ Climate Summit in the News

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/cif-green/2010/mar/19/bolivia-conference-on-climate-change

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/apr/13/bolivia-climate-summit

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-mckibben/bless-bolivia-for-re-char_b_521509.html

http://www.progressive.org/huff041210.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/richardblack/2010/04/earth_spirits_twin_visions_on.html

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

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Thank You, Catch You Later.

Bolivia Rising