The Epping Beecroft Climate Action Group is a community grassroots organisation. Residents (including from outside the area) have joined together to promote and facilitate sustainability both locally and nationally.
What is sustainability?
Sustainability is about acting in ways that meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
Increasing consumption and increasing population mean that we are using resources at an unsustainable rate. Our use of water, soil, fossil fuels and many other resources is unprecedented. We are destroying other species (animals and plants) - and we don't know the long term impact of the loss of those species on the complex systems that enable human beings to live comfortably on earth !
What's climate change got to do with sustainability?
We believe that warming of the planet is causing changes to our climate. These changes are a growing threat to our way of life, disrupting human and natural systems in many harmful ways. We believe that the major cause of this warming is our society's use of fossil fuels. The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) - the United Nations body of 2,500 scientists from member countries - re-confirmed this in their 2007 report. Burning fossil fuels produces greenhouse gases which trap heat, preventing it from escaping into space. The more emissions we produce, the more heat we trap and the more the planet warms. Urgent action is needed now due to the long life of these emissions in the atmosphere and the fact that emissions are still increasing rapidly. By working together to reduce and eventually stop unsustainable practices like burning fossil fuels, we can both reduce our impact on the planet and show our decision-makers the real level of our concern.
What does being a member mean?
- Firstly, and most importantly, that you are concerned about sustainability issues. In politics (and sustainability is a political issue) one of the most important assets is numbers. Each member is a voter and so the bigger our Climate Action Group is, the easier it is to get attention from people in positions of authority and power
- Everything else a member does occurs by accepting an invitation. Emails are sent advising of events and opportunities to get involved in activities, and members decide the extent to which they participate.